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Jul

Carole 165# Dead-Lift

I have some pretty amazing clients. I’m blessed and grateful all at the same time. I’ve been working with Carole for a year and a half now. We’ve been focused on over-all body strength. Carole just turned 65 years young a little over a week ago.

Today, she dead-lifted more than her body weight. This is one of the most inspiring progressions I have witnessed. You see, we don’t train dead-lift once a week, once every two weeks, and some times we go a full month in between dead-lifting at all. Instead we work on all over body strength. The style of training varies. Kettle-bell training, dumbbell training, barbell training, and body weight training. She never says no to anything I ask her to do. She does band assisted pull-ups, ring-rows, barbell hip thrusts, sit-ups, anything I ask. I hope this blog will encourage other women to reach out to a reputable personal trainer and get you some strong! Find someone you are comfortable with and get busy. Change doesn’t happen overnight. Change happens with practice. Consistent practice.

Congratulations Carole!!

Jan

The Big Picture

By garagegym107 8 Comments

Categories: Living Fit Daily
Tags: #bodyforlife, #fitatfifty, Body-for-Life, BodyBuilding, Bright Spots, Clean Eating, Community, exercise, fat loss, fitness, gaining self confidence, Garagegym107, Inspiration, Long term weight loss, Working out, Workout

Just a few days ago I was talking with a friend. She is in training to become a Life Coach and you can read about her Here. She is an amazing person and friend. Anyway, I was doing this little test to help her out with something she was working on. little did I know at the time I volunteered how big an impact it would have.

As we were going through the exercise I got dialed in to my usual fitness related mindset. I answered the questions and wrote down things that came to mind. As we continued on talking through the results I had an epiphany. My epiphany was that I often have tunnel vision. I’m not really good about taking a few steps back from this fitness goal or that fitness goal to see what I really want long term in life. It’s been a week since my friend and I had the conversation. The exercise we did has come to my mind at least once everyday since, but in most cases its been two or three times per day.

It’s very clear in my mind that my health and my fitness is important as I go through the next season or chapter or whatever the buzz word for it is. But up to that phone call, I hadn’t really stopped to think “what do you really want?”. After pondering what I want, I realized there are some things I must get in order to be prepared for the next big phase. I told my friend what I really wanted to do and one of those things requires reading a specific book I bought. She challenged me not with reading the book, but with simply “get the book out and txt me when you do”. It was perfect prompting.

Then she had me set a deadline for reading chapter one. Before I realized it I was through with chapter five. I’ve taken some baby steps to get started and before long, I will be knocking out what I need to knock out.

Not only did doing those little things help me with that very personal project goal, they fired me up to start logging my food again, which I haven’t done in a while. Food logging is a healthy thing for me. When I’m not logging, I’m eye-balling and I have some big ole eye-balls. Sometimes you have to know what you want before you know what to do.

I feel at peace right now more than I have in quite sometime. Peace with the big picture, not just my fitness and nutrition goals. I’m sure that before too long, the personal project goal will just right smack dab into my fitness/nutrition goals and try a hostile takeover, but I’m going to be ready for it.

The lesson brings home the old adage “you can’t see the forest through the trees”.

Hat Tip Photo Courtesy Ann Joiner

Jan

Moving Past That Place

By garagegym107 272 Comments

Twice this week I’ve had conversations with women who find themselves at a crossroads. It’s the crossroads to long-term change. It’s a frightening place to be.

To the left is everything you know, comfort, habit, status quo, the norm, the place you’ve known for what could be your whole life, failures, the past.

To the right is belief, discomfort, truth, health, happiness, knowledge, pressure, fear of the unknown, trials, failures (yes you have failures on both roads), wisdom, desire, change, gratitude.

I know this crossroads all too well. In the spring and summer of 2010 I stood at the very same crossroads. I had just won the Body-for-Life challenge which had been a goal for 9 years. Everyone thought I had it all figured out. What people around me didn’t know, was what was happening on the inside. Even my best friends had no idea.

I was terrified. Afraid I’d back slide back to the 328# person I used to be. I was terrified I would fail again. I was terrified that I was a fake. I was afraid I didn’t believe in myself as much as others believed in me. I was afraid of the future.

Looking back on that crossroads now it seems silly. But at that time the fear was very real, very much a part of my daily life.

In order to overcome that fear, I had to put some daily habits in place. Below are the most important ones listed in the order of importance for me.

No Negative Self-Talk. EVER
Write down 3 things I’m grateful for daily
Write down 3 positive affirmations about my body daily
Get the fear out of your head

These things may look trivial to some, but to a person who doesn’t believe in themselves, I believe these things are a game changer. Let me elaborate.

No Negative Self-Talk. EVER

Negative self-talk is the single most detrimental habit a person can develop. Negative self-talk comes up when you look in the mirror, when you are handling your personal finances, when you go to work, when you parent your children, in your marriage. It’s everywhere. SHUT. IT. DOWN. You are worthy of greatness, no-one, not even yourself should tell you otherwise.

Write down 3 things you’re grateful for

Gratitude helps you realize in the big scheme of things you’ve got it really good. Be grateful you’re healthy and not fighting for your life. Be grateful you have a roof over your head. If you are reading this, be grateful for the very device allowing you to see this, even if it’s a loaner. Be grateful for the simplest things in your life. Once you remove your “woe is me” tunnel vision, you get to fully see what you have to be grateful for.

Write down 3 positive affirmations about my body daily

I don’t mean the same things every day. Each day find 3 things you love about your body. They may or may not have a thing to do with your physical appearance. I love my eyes because they allow me to see things. I love my strong and powerful legs that allow me to move heavy things. I love my ears because they allow me to hear beautiful music.

Get the fear out of your head

If you are afraid of something talk about it with a trusted friend, a person who’s walked this path before you, or if nothing else, write your fear down in a journal. What I found over time was the fear was much, much greater in my head than it ever was out in the open. I’ve written letters to people and then burned them (very healing). I have sobbed on my friend’s shoulder when faced with the realization I wasn’t going to reach a goal I set. Getting your fear of failure out of you mind clears the space so that it can be filled to the brim with positive and grateful thinking.

All of the above may seem trivial, but if you are at the crossroads of significant weight loss, throw these habits in to play and see if you don’t find some peace from the constant fear of back-sliding.

Jan

Resolutions – Just Keep Going

By garagegym107 3 Comments

I posted on my FB page yesterday, a simple shout out to those starting something new in 2014. I’ve seen so many posts slamming new years resolutions and posts of seasoned athletes commenting on the new years crowds in the gym.

Today I feel a need to talk about the day I started my journey, exactly 13 years ago yesterday on 01-01-2001. I was miserably fat, extremely insecure, and totally embarrassed to go into the gym. I went anyway. I was wearing a 3xl t-shirt and a pair of leggings that should have never ever been seen in public, but it was all I had that I could fit into. So began my journey. That first week was literally hell looking back on it. I made myself so sore I got sick, but I kept going. I could feel peoples eyes and the looks of pity, but I kept going.

A month or so later when I had been going consistently for a month (a huge deal at the time), I decided to join a morning aerobics class. I got in the very back of the room. I noticed people looking back at me, some with encouragement, others with what I will describe as a knowing look. A look of “we are about to run her off” knowing. I hung in that class for 20 minutes and the instructor made no effort what-so-ever to modify the movements or even say to me “just keep going”. Three little words was all she had to say, but she never did. She became forever known to me as “the instructor I never want to be”. I walked out of that class at that 20 minute mark and I never set foot in that room again. Did I walk out of the gym?? Not a chance.

Instead, I got to know something called iron. Dumbbells at first and then I added the barbell. They didn’t yell at me. They never at any point implied that I couldn’t do it, they just fought back with resistance. From that point on, I knew I’d found what I loved to do. I lifted and lifted and slowly over the course of the year 2001 I began to change. After 90 days no-one could even tell I’d lost 35# and I cried ALOT because I was not an “after” in that first 90 days. In 90 days losing 35 pounds was impressive (looking back on it) and I could have stopped there but I didn’t. I just kept going. Another 90 days passed and another 35 pounds down, people started to take notice. Over the course of yet another 90 days, folks started noticing BIG changes on a monthly basis. Some where around the 125 pounds lost mark, I felt like I was on the right path and my habits had begun to develop, but it took years to get my emotional head straight. So if you are reading this and just starting, just keep going. It takes longer than you may think to change, but just keep going and you will change.

All of that started with a New Year’s Resolution and a gym membership. So for the next two or three months, walk around your gym and make eye contact with the New Year’s Resolutions, you may find a lonely soul that is one smile away from changing his or her life.

Me? I’ll be the one standing on the sidelines yelling “YOU CAN DO THIS” with tears streaming down my face, because I just kept going.

Dec

A New Year 2014

By garagegym107 1 Comment

NO! This is not a blog about New Year’s Resolutions.

As I write this post another year is coming to a close. Being the eternal optimist, I tend to see only the best when I look back. When I think back on it, I realize how much I’ve accomplished. I’ve become a successful business owner. I’ve managed to work two jobs and keep my wits and humor about me. I kept up with all of my workouts, even when I didn’t have time to sit down and post a blog about what I was doing.

The one thing that wasn’t stellar the entire year was my writing. I missed it, I didn’t realize how much until I started really posting again. It seems kind of silly actually. Me, in my little world, writing things for others to read. I hardly feel qualified to write. I do it anyway. I’m sure there are some folks out there who read my blogs and cringe at my less perfect grammar. I try hard not to get so caught up in proper sentence structure and grammar but instead focus on content.

I want to continue to write in a way that keeps things real. I’m a real human being with real challenges just like everyone else. I want to share experiences and the vision of a almost 51 year old fitness junkie/body builder/CrossFit coach.

You see, I realized about a year and a half ago there are a lot of folks out there who are hungry for some success in this life. Whether it be there own or someone else’s. It took me a while to announce myself as a “Successful Transformation” because I know better than most, in order to have a successful transformation, you gotta have a few years of maintenance under your belt. This year marked the 3rd year in a row I could wear the same sized corduroy pants. For a reformed yo-yo dieter and former obese person, this in of itself is a huge victory. My focus this year has been mostly on building muscle and not gaining fat. As I move in to 2014, it’s the year of legs. My training will be full body, with extra focus on the legs. I’ve created a category for posting all things related to this topic in one place. I have before pictures and will keep them safe and sound until I’m ready to do side by side comparison photos.

A special thanks going out today to all of my readers, both new and far. I’m overjoyed to see readers in the UK, Norway, Sweden, Germany, and Canada showing up on my stats page. Thank you all so very much for taking time out of your busy worlds to visit mine!

Stay safe and Happy New Year!

Dec

Meal Planning 101

By garagegym107 4 Comments

I have people ask me often how I handle meal planning. I’ve learned over the course of my journey that I tend to gravitate towards the same foods for days at a time. I know it sounds boring but really it’s not. It actually makes things quite easy for me.

I can’t tell you what foods are right for you, but you can pretty quickly figure that out for yourself. I go out of my way to eat fresh whole foods when I can. But two of my packaged staples are brown rice and a variety of dried beans, usually pinto or black beans. I bring the beans to a boil with a teaspoon of baking soda and them allow them to soak for an hour or two, then drain, rinse and cook with fresh water seasoned with onion, salt, and black pepper. For those who don’t know this little tip, the baking soda soak prevents the beans from making you gassy. Talk about a cheap date? I can eat for days based on my serving size.

Anyway, I chose to eat a small portion of both rice and beans in order to create a complete protein and this also allows me to have hot food meals. I eat plenty of refrigerated foods so having the hot filling meal are wonderful. In most cases I’ll also include a portion of chicken with my beans and rice. But not always since it’s a complete protein. Love the fiber that comes from both as well. Some folks can’t tolerate beans or rice, so perhaps sweet potato and a veggie would suffice with your protein. I’ll eat those on occasion as well.

I have a rice cooker that doubles as a slow cooker. Sunday is spent with a pot of beans on the stove, chicken in the slow cooker and the rice being steamed after the chicken has cooked.

Then out come my containers, my scale and my measuring cup. I do not measure my food all the time. You learn over time to eyeball it, but my eyeballing grows so I like to measure to be a bit more accurate.

Most people don’t WANT to take the time to meal prep. But then again, most people don’t want to be fit and healthy. I chose to be both.

Step One:

Make a grocery list of the following weeks meal plan requirements.

Step Two:

Cook it all.

Step Three:

Measure into containers and put in the fridge.

Step Four:

Be confident in your ability to get the proper amount of fuel in your body.

It’s so easy to allow the rush of the holiday season to get you off track. Bad weather convinces you to sleep in. Before you know it the New Year comes and you’ve gained 10 pounds over the holiday season. Don’t let it happen to you. Meal planning is even MORE important during the holiday season because of all of the tempting treats sitting around.

Oct

Swift Kick In The Pants

By garagegym107 1 Comment

My last blog was about the seasonal transition and hibernation of habits. Today, it’s all about the swift kick in the pants.

I see it already, the slack in attendance during classes. The “I overslept” excuse for skipping a workout. The even bigger excuse people tell themselves “no-one will notice that I’ve gained 10 pounds under this sweater”. News flash, the only person you are disappointing is yourself.

Sure, summer is over and fall is on its way through, but your goals haven’t changed have they? Don’t allow the dark mornings keep you from being around your peers and making smack talk and workout challenges. Get your arse out of that bed!!

First the workouts go and then the clean eating follows right afterwards. The seasonal treats will be there for the next 2 plus months. Don’t get caught with the winter blues of “I screwed up my whole plan, and don’t know how I got so far off track”.

Keep your mindset positive, sure it’s colder than usual, but get up and go anyway. You’ll warm-up once you start moving. For those who workout in the mornings, it’s always dark anyway so that’s not your excuse.

Don’t allow winter to steal away your momentum. Hold yourself accountable by setting mini-goals over the next two months. Challenge yourself to maintain your current level of fitness and not fatness. You know there will be times when clean food is hard to come by so do some pre-planning and keep some jerky, almonds, almond butter, etc. on hand to get you through the feeding frenzies you’ll encounter. No sense getting caught up in the frenzy when you already know it can and will set you back a few months if you allow it to.

Own your fitness. Keep your goals in sight and stay the course!

Oct

It’s That Time Again

By garagegym107 Leave a Comment

Categories: Living Fit Daily
Tags: Body-for-Life, BodyBuilding, Bright Spots, change, Clean Eating, Garagegym107, Inspiration, Long term weight loss, Motivation, Training, Weight Lifting, Well-Being, Working out, Workout

What time? It’s the bear syndrome time! People start sleeping in instead of keeping up their morning routine of going to the gym.

It’s feed the bear time as well. I see it every year, the big sweaters come out and the treats start showing up in the break-room. Be it Halloween, Football Friday, or the holidays the food starts coming out en masse and all good intentions go straight to the bottom of the priority list.

What can you do to keep yourself on track during the colder months of the year?

Remind yourself of your goals. Make post it notes to remind yourself of why you don’t need to hit the break-room every time a load of junk shows up.

Be very selective of your picking and choosing. Have a treat, just don’t have a treat every day or two or three times a day at that.

Bring something healthy to snack, yes, be that girl or guy, you know, the one everyone KNOWS will bring something healthy. For me, I always try to be the one bringing the protein. That way at least I know there will be something for me to munch on. Yep I’m selfish like that.

And lastly, keep yourself moving. Don’t let the cold weather become your excuse to derail your efforts.

Jul

Reach Just One

By garagegym107 3 Comments

A little over a year ago I started working out with a woman at work, outside on the parking deck. She started coming out and working out, never questioning anything she was asked to do, only trusting in the training and the trainer. Over time another person would ask to join, then another, then another.

My friend has since left the company and her family has moved back to her home state. Today I am so vividly reminded of her joy and zest for life, her laughter ringing through the air as she pushed through the sometimes very difficult workouts. People often breeze through our lives, not to stay indefinitely, but to make an impact in a very short period of time.

I continue to teach these classes on the parking deck and each week we seem to have another person join. It’s so inspiring to me to have a new person slip up the stairs and out in the the open sunshine. Some days are much harder than others, some days they question why they do what they do but then they always come back for more.

Each one reaches one. I live by that statement. I thank my friend Michelle Treichel for sharing that with me, it was a real sticker.

I love working out, love having changed my own life. I love continuing to change it through fitness and proper nutrition. All that being said, there is one thing that takes the cake and that is helping others. It doesn’t matter the shape or size or age or whateva… they are welcome in my little world.

They inspire me. They bring me joy. They remind me of being better. They make me better.

Here’s to the parking deck crew…many, many thanks to you all! We miss you Daphne!!

May

Show Me Your Brave

By garagegym107 6 Comments

Today’s blog is a bit deep, but hear me out.

My last blog was about stepping up in the face of challenge and adversity. I blogged about an overwhelming workload etc., however, what I didn’t share with my blogging friends is that my father-in-law over the last 4 weeks has begun a full on war with stage IV cancer.

I don’t share an overwhelming amount of personal information because I don’t want to distract my readers with personal noise.

About 3 months ago, I registered for Beast of the Valley Strongman competition. Over the past 3 weeks I’ve come up with about 20 excuses to bail out.

Yesterday, while watching my father-in-law struggle to consume an 8 oz nutritional drink I had a complete mindset change.

Tomorrow I will do this competition for him, in honor of his battle, my internal battle will be fought for him. No excuses, just results. To all of my super supportive friends, thank you from the bottom of my heart for all of your love and support. To the athletes of CrossFit Madison THANK YOU for bringing me joy each morning that I am allowed to coach you through your workouts.

Tomorrow it will be about having the courage to fight this fight along with him.

You see 6 weeks ago, my father-in-law was an avid tennis player at 79 years young and today, 6 short weeks later he has mentally decided to show us his brave. This could happen to ANY of us. Don’t take a single day for granted. Get up and do everything YOU can do to take care of your body and soul because you can.

Thank you to Lifting My Spirits for introducing me to this song.

To all of the strong and beautiful women I know who are competing from all over town tomorrow, I’m so proud to be a part of this community no matter where our home bases are, we are a family built on strong values of supporting one another.

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