Rydor_gurl - Gettin' Serious

[quote]kcinnitram91 wrote:
Everything sounds real good except I would advise you not to use a 33 lb plate for sit ups. If you use that your abs will become bulky. Trim it down to 10 or 15 and do more reps[/quote]

I disagree with this. I believe abs should be worked like other body parts, which means adding weight and working with similar rep ranges as other body parts and working them 1-3 times a week depending on total volume used.

Rydor_gurl, I would suggest Biotest’s (T-Nation’s) Flame-Out fish oil/CLA supplement. You only need 3-4 per day and a bottle will last 21-28 days. It is more expensive than other fish oil supplements, but the quality is outstanding and you won’t have to take 10-20 caps per day.

Otherwise, if cost is an issue, then the Sam’s Club brand (Member’s Mark) fish oil caps are also a decent quality.

You should spread them out with your meals, and yes, generally, it’s recommended to eat more of your protein/fat meals later in the day and evening and your protein/carb meals earlier in the day and immediately after your workout.

As for veggies, most spinach is already pre-washed. So buy bags of spinach already washed. The same goes for lettuce (stick with Romaine over the regular type of lettuce). And many other veggies can be purchased already washed and ready to go (carrots, broccoli, etc.).

[quote]OctoberGirl wrote:
Hi Ryder and welcome

I have a suggestion for getting washed and cut veggies. At the Albertson’s that I shop at they have a salad bar. Once or twice a week I go and fill up two of their containers with all kinds of veggies and tah-dah… all done.

As for lettuce, I Usuall get the butter lettuce which has roots on it so I don’t rip it off the head until I eat it. Otherwise it is spinach and romaine and I might rip up enough for two days and put a paper towel in the big storage bag after patting them dry.

Good luck with everything

Celeste[/quote]

Thanks for the advice! No salad bar at the grocery stores I go to, but I like the idea of ripping up enough leafy greens for more than one day.

[quote]kinein wrote:
Flameout is good fishoil you can look up more info on it under the store section of this site.

[/quote]

Thx. Will do.

[quote]Tampa-Terry wrote:
Oops, I didn’t reply to your question …

Re eating P+F at night, the reason for that is that you’re more insulin sensitive (a good thing) and better able to process carbs earlier in the day. So as a general approach, you eat more of your carbs earlier in the day, and then as the day goes by, you shift over to eating P+F. That’s where you would add in your health-promoting and athletic-performance-enhancing GOOD fats. Fat doesn’t elicit an insulin response like carbs do. Since you need 'em anyway, that’s the best time/place to put 'em in. (grin)

The only variable is if you work out later in the day. In that case we’d have to juggle a bit.[/quote]

Tampa-Terry, thanks for the response and the explanation regarding carbs in the morning and fats towards the evening. It always helps for me when I know the reason why I am doing something.

In my first post, I indicated that I workout in the morning. Usually, this is the case, and I will try to continue this way. However, because my work schedule may change this summer, I may have days when I need to workout in the afternoons. What would be your advice on juggling P, F & C’s in this case?

Meal 1
M2
M3
Workout
M4
M5
M6

And sometimes the workout is between M4 and M5.

I checked out Lisa Marie’s threads… some GREAT stuff there. I can’t wait to try out some of her recipes!

Also, I like the idea of the outcome based decision-making. I think, at least for now, I’ll go with measurements instead of weigh-ins, because in the past, the scale has been linked with some bad habits. I am also going to give myself a grace period before I take my initial measurements because I’m still working on the macro juggling (see below) and having the right foods available when I am hungry (this is a big factor in giving myself a fighting chance).

For food-logging, I am using Calorie-King. It is similar to Fitday. But wow, since I’ve started using it and paying attention to the P,F & C amounts, I am astounded. Really helps in keeping me aware. My carbs are way too high! Each day i learn more, though, when I’m reviewing my foodlog for the day. I’m confident I’ll get there!

[quote]Nate Dogg wrote:
kcinnitram91 wrote:
Everything sounds real good except I would advise you not to use a 33 lb plate for sit ups. If you use that your abs will become bulky. Trim it down to 10 or 15 and do more reps [/quote]

kcinnitram91: Thx for the advice. I think I will keep training it like other muscles, though, like Nate Dogg suggested. My reasoning: So far, my ab muscles are not bulky, and if my abs DO become so built as to be bulky, I just won’t work them for a while… muscle takes work to be maintained (“alas” to most people).

(And finally, I’ll keep using weighted plates (or harder exercises) b/c it feels SOOO GOOD to work my abs… and I’m not patient enough to do eighty+ reps to get to that point! hehehehe).

[quote]I disagree with this. I believe abs should be worked like other body parts, which means adding weight and working with similar rep ranges as other body parts and working them 1-3 times a week depending on total volume used.

Rydor_gurl, I would suggest Biotest’s (T-Nation’s) Flame-Out fish oil/CLA supplement. You only need 3-4 per day and a bottle will last 21-28 days. It is more expensive than other fish oil supplements, but the quality is outstanding and you won’t have to take 10-20 caps per day.[/quote]

Nate Dogg, Thanks for the advice and the explanation behind the choice. That really helps me out. I’ll be checking it out.

The current state of my fridge, thanks to your and Octobergirl’s advice:
Prewashed lettuce, mushrooms, precut carrots and a whole bunch of other veggies. (of course, in addition to the usual protein and dairy). I’m also just doing a bunch of the washing all at once myself.

R-Girl, you would do something like this:

M1 P+C
M2 P+C
M3 P-Only or P+Fibrous Green Veggies
Workout
M4 PWO P+C
M5 P+F
M6 P+F

-or-

M1 P+C
M2 P+C
M3
M4 P-Only or P+Fibrous Green Veggies
Workout
M5 PWO P+C
M6

I fully support your using the tape measure INSTEAD of the scale!!! Don’t measure for the first time until you’ve got your plan put together and have all your questions asked. After that you’re measuring just to determine whether your plan is working for you or not. If it’s not working (i.e., 2 or 3 weeks go by with no progress made), then we take a closer look at what you’re doing and tweak and adjust things a bit.

Definitely make sure you’re taking your food with you, wherever you go. When you’re eating at a slight caloric deficit and a meal is due, eating is not negotiable. You had better have something with you that hits your numbers or you’ll eat whatever is available.

A little trick, though? You can dash into the deli department of any supermarket and ask how many grams of protein are in whatever the serving size is, do the math, and ask them to slice an amount for you that will meet your protein requirements. I’ll do that if I’m out and abouts and due for a meal.

Beef jerky and nuts is good, too. Keep a serving in your purse for emergencies.

Recording what you eat into a food log, really is an eye-opening experience!!! (grin) I’m proud of you for dialing things in the way you are!!!

Oh yeah, and don’t forget. To lose weight/fat, you have to eat less calories to create a deficit! :wink:

I think many people start out trying to eat 5-6 meals a day (even if the meals are smaller) but don’t always realize that they are still eating more food than necessary to lose fat!

So be sure to create a calorie deficit even if eating 5-7 times a day!