For whatever reason, running makes me gain muscle in my legs. When I stop running, my quads and glutes atrophy and I drop a pants size.

[Edited on November 20, 2011 at 11:20 AM. Reason : d]

11/20/2011 11:19:46 AM

11/20/2011 11:51:59 AM

If it makes any sense, 8 years ago, at 150 lbs, I ate about 3,000 calories a day and worked out about 3 hours a day. Today, at 28 years old and 120 lbs, I run 20 to 30 minutes a day and eat about 1,300 to 1,800 calories a day. And I teach a 45-minute spin class once a week. I work a demanding job and don't have the time for the gym as I once did. Plus, not really sure 3 hours a day at the gym is a good idea.

So, there was a big lifestyle change from the old pic to the current pic.

11/20/2011 11:59:47 AM

Lucy you look beautiful in both pictures. It's not easy to compare when it's apples to oranges. At those periods in your life, you had different goals in mind.

I took a break from running about 2 months ago and am now down to 130 pounds. I just do Bodyrock and watch what I eat. And I'm still putting on muscle. I always thought I had to run to keep my weight in check. I'm now learning that isn't the case.

11/20/2011 1:45:14 PM

well, i didn't plan on ever really hitting the goal of 180, and was fine sitting at 182-184, but woke up yesterday and today chillin just under 180. so i hit the final weight loss goal

11/21/2011 8:48:27 AM

Quote :

"my only fitness goal is to not break out into a sweat when I eat meals."

i guess for me, my goals next year would be a toned down version of matt's (which are pretty extreme).

i'd like to be able to have working weights of 135 for strict standing overhead press, 225 for bench, 315 for squat, and 405 for deads. not 1rms, but reps. plate goals . also, 10 45# weighted chins, 10 45# weighted wide grip pull ups. currently about 185lbs bw, started getting quasi serious about lifting about this july.

bench would be what i'm the most concerned about. my bench press sucks fucking ass, but is getting somewhat respectable. got to work on back strength too.

if i'd have told myself this last year i'd have laughed in my own face. but i've made some really awesome gains this year looking back, and think it's totally plausible (might hit one or maybe even all of them in the 1H12). will be taking two - three weeks off for a wedding and honeymoon though.

11/21/2011 10:31:25 AM

I love how I hit a great low weight (130 pounds) and then I get sick....again

Hopefully tomorrow I'll be well enough to get back into the game. Trying to focus on diet these last few days but the medicine I'm taking isn't making me very hungry

11/21/2011 2:42:36 PM

a good sickness can put you back on track!

11/21/2011 3:02:51 PM

whoops

[Edited on November 21, 2011 at 4:08 PM. Reason : s]

11/21/2011 4:08:19 PM

yeah Cass was lookin fiiiiiiiiiiiiiine last weekend

I was like MG jealous!

11/21/2011 8:13:46 PM

Thanks Linda you are a hot piece of ass yourself!

Anyone running the 8K turkey trot on Thursday? I just signed up. I did the charity option so I can do early pick up. Pick up is tomorrow and Wednesday afternoon - do y'all think my bib would be ready by then? I don't care if I get a shirt or not.

11/21/2011 8:28:00 PM

I'm doing it

11/22/2011 1:30:53 AM

yes i saw your name on the list. lol when i registered it popped up the list of folks who had registered so i was flipping through it when i came across your name, a few other friends, and Rod Brind'Amour

11/22/2011 8:56:48 AM

it's almost sold out

11/22/2011 9:12:44 AM

yes! i was surprised i was able to still get a spot so late in the registration process. although i did pay the 100% charity option. but it's for a good cause so i'm okay with that

11/22/2011 10:50:09 AM

I registered yesterday!! You all make sure to wave at me when I'm the last one to cross the finish line

11/22/2011 10:52:47 AM

Minka i just PMed you

TWW Turkey Trot 2011

11/22/2011 11:41:15 AM

So jealous! I wanna do a Turkey Trot! Haven't found a good one that's convenient to Port St. Lucie, Florida.

Also, darn LunaK for sending me a discount coupon for the Ft. Lauderdale marathon.

11/22/2011 11:48:20 AM

^^lol @ TWW Turkey Trot 2011! We should make shirts!

11/22/2011 12:04:03 PM

TWWTTT!

11/22/2011 12:18:13 PM

11/22/2011 12:37:33 PM

Picked up my bib! I didn't realize Fleet Feet is now on the other side of Whole Foods. I was all confused for a minute

By the way - I ran a 8K in March and came in at 50:50. I know that the St Patty's Day race through Oakwood is hilly but I'm hoping to beat my goal. I'm also 17 pounds lighter than I was in March and have more lean muscle.

[Edited on November 22, 2011 at 5:47 PM. Reason : Stupid iPad ]

11/22/2011 5:45:27 PM

i was supposed to do the turkey trot with my family! it's kind of a tradition

but both parents have recently been really sick and didn't think it was a good idea

i missed last year too. it's lots of fun, enjoy yourselves!

11/22/2011 6:44:47 PM

Good luck to all the TWWTTers!

11/23/2011 8:43:17 PM

Thanks ladies!

11/23/2011 8:49:52 PM

Well that was fun! Still waiting for my official time but I'm thinking I came in around 47 minutes.

And I met Minka!

11/24/2011 10:03:47 AM

i got an official text message with my time. I managed to limp it out in 55 mins. Definitely taking a break from running for the weight room. I started strong and a sore right miniscus made me limp down the hills. cleared up about 4 mile mark but I kept it slow to not injure myself further.

11/24/2011 10:41:41 AM

lol I think I came in at 1:01. I had to walk up one of those hills and then this lady cheering people on said there's no walking in front of her house so, I ran the rest of the way. Omg so hard to get through but yay I'm done!! I did it!

11/24/2011 11:16:40 AM

Great Job TWWTTT'ers

11/24/2011 11:21:22 AM

Ray what time did you get the text? I never got a text even though I put down my number when I registered to receive the text

I guess I'll have to wait for the results to pop up online.

When I crossed the finish line the overall time I said 48 minutes but i didn't get a chance to see the second time which is my actual time result.

11/24/2011 11:48:11 AM

down to 150. o yeah.

11/25/2011 2:02:57 PM

Up to 161.8! 3.2 (maybe 5 more after that) to go!

11/25/2011 2:53:48 PM

How's the program treating you?

Make any modifications?

11/26/2011 1:43:04 PM

Found my official time - 47:14 ranking at 51% overall. 9:30/mile pace. Pretty good I am proud of myself. I shaved 3 minutes off my 8K time from earlier this year. I have a 5K next weekend and am interested to see how I perform.

11/26/2011 5:23:15 PM

wow i really like this topic! i might have to join in if there's one for 2012.

11/27/2011 1:16:39 AM

blah, down to a size 32 waist. FML FWP

11/28/2011 11:07:18 AM

why a FML to a 32 waist? i would assume that is awesome unless it's gone up.

how did everyone do over the weekend? i managed to keep my weight in check and weighed in this morning and was about a half pound less than i was on thursday morning.

11/28/2011 11:25:04 AM

Yeah, a smaller waist is good for your health/longevity. And most people find it desirable in both men and women.

The only way I could see it being a problem is if it means you gotta go buy a bunch of new clothes, and you ain't got the money.

11/28/2011 11:33:45 AM

^ shopping for clothes.

It is down more, which is desirable.
However, it also means all the pants I have just bought I can't really wear anymore.

11/28/2011 11:35:49 AM

i ate everything in sight this weekend and am going to go set some PRs today.

11/28/2011 11:38:01 AM

Quote :

"How's the program treating you? Make any modifications?"

It's going well. I haven't really changed anything other than I'm starting to hit weights that I might need to stay at a time or two on various lifts to iron out form at that load before moving on. I took full advantage of this holiday to eat as much as I could find!

11/28/2011 11:38:22 AM

I did pretty well this weekend, I'm down a pound and a half from last week. I think being active and not letting myself get off my schedule even though I was away from home really helped.

This weekend I have a 5k with my Girls on the Run. My last 5k (my first ever) my time was 31:53, I'm hoping my time will be better this go around but I dont know, I'll have a 5th grader as my running buddy. I've been training her pretty hard so hopefully we'll do really well

11/28/2011 1:05:07 PM

i have a 5K this weekend too

Quote :

"^ shopping for clothes. It is down more, which is desirable. However, it also means all the pants I have just bought I can't really wear anymore."

i know your pain. i went from a size 31 in pants to a size 28 and now my 28's are starting to get too big and i'm starting to fit into size 27's. and i just bought 2 pairs of size 28's in October and another pair earlier in the month. and the problem is that only designer jeans really fit me well so i have started to scout out my local Marshalls weekly for my favorite designer jeans (they carry them at least one weekend a month) and get my stuff there since it's a lot cheaper.

i did a big clothes purge a couple of months ago but kept all my nice jeans in their various sizes and have stored them for the time being because i figure when i'm preggo in a few years they could come in handy.

11/28/2011 1:14:08 PM

yeah, had to buy shorts first: sizes 40, 38, 36. then pants: sizes 36 and 34. then shorts again when it got warmer: size 34. and now all those are getting replaced. i can't afford weightloss

11/28/2011 1:16:13 PM

Thank god for leggings and dresses. Girls have it a little easier when it comes to clothing and weight loss.

11/28/2011 3:13:46 PM

grrr, gained 15 pounds last month. gonna have to make some changed to my eating habits, since I'm doing the same workout regimen, and I know I didn't gain 15 pounds of muscle, lol.

knee is still giving me trouble. it's "clicking" on the inner side towards the back of the knee, and I get a little pain inside the knee when climbing stairs. grrr. guess I'll dial back the weight on a few exercises this week and be sure to stretch real good

11/28/2011 4:22:48 PM

Well I can't wear leggings to work and the office is an ice box 85% of the time. Plus I had to get rid of most of my dresses because they were too big. So yeah - more jeans for me

11/28/2011 4:27:04 PM

I started out 2011 at about 215 lbs, 6'3". By February I was at ~221. I wasn't exercising and I was eating a lot, so I suspect that gain was entirely fat. I had gotten down to about 185 lbs in early 2010, so it was slow but steady fat gain after I stopped exercising and controlling my calorie intake.

At the beginning of February, feeling pretty fed up with the state of my body, I began a modified P90x program. This consisted of HIIT (Interval Training/Sprints) 3 times a week, Ab Ripper X on the same day (core exercises, basically).

Additionally, I would do push up/pull up circuits once a week. I'd basically do 6 sets of pull ups (wide grip, chin ups, overhand grip), 6 sets of push ups (standard width, military width, wider width, decline push ups), and also some dumbbell rows. On another day, I'd do arm/shoulder work - dumbbell shoulder process, curls, dips, tricep extensions, flies.

In retrospect, this program was kind of silly, but I did see results. From February to August, I went from ~221 to ~197 lbs. I also put on a decent amount of upper body muscle and got faster over that period of time. Obviously, a lot of that weight loss resulted from a tightly controlled diet. I stopped eating out all the time and started eating 6 meals a day.

It was around August that I realized I had hit somewhat of a plateau and that I needed to step up the intensity or modify my routine. I also knew that I was not devoting enough time to the big muscle groups (primarily, legs - the posterior chain). Unfortunately, I had no real experience with the big compound lifts (squats, deadlifts, presses), and I was kind of worried about hurting myself.

About that time (late August, early September), I began a strength conditioning program with MattJMM2, consisting of 3 sessions a week. Each session has consisted of squats with various combinations of bench presses, overhead presses, deadlifts, and chin ups. We've also done a lot of dumbbell (arms/shoulders), core, and mobility work. With respect to the compound lifts, we've done different programming, but generally it's been based around 3 sets of 5 at whatever my work weight is, with some max effort and speed work days sprinkled in.

During these few months of working with Matt, I've made a lot of progress. Went from being totally uncomfortable in the squat position to squatting 300 lbs last week. Bench press max is sitting right under 225, though I'm pretty confident that I could do 225x1 now. Aside from strength, I've seen a huge improvement in the way I look. My shoulders and arms are bigger and more defined. My core is stronger than it has ever been. I've added a substantial amount of muscle mass to my butt, legs, and chest. I was about 197 in August, got up to 211 around two weeks ago, then started using intermittent fasting (as outlined by leangains.com) and I'm down to ~207 already.

If you're like I was, and looking to get serious about your physical fitness, I would highly recommend MattJMM2's services. You can experience a tremendous transformation in 3-6 months time - right in time for Summer 2012. This goes for ladies, too. You're not going to get bulky from strength training, but you will get toned and you'll turn heads like never before.

11/28/2011 4:48:25 PM

BUY AN AD. jk

11/28/2011 4:53:28 PM

good write up, great progress, and really impressed with how your squat numbers have progressed in a short period of time.

11/28/2011 4:57:45 PM