Diary of a not-so-knowledgable, wanna-be-fit, country gal

NOTE: This is long, but I promise, they won't always be this long.

Alright, here it goes... one of the fellows on here suggested I jump on the bandwagon and create one of these diaries. Chris, I hope you're reading this...

I gotta tell ya, you're going to have to suffer through my exercise descriptions. I've been going to the gym for three years now and don't even know the names of the exercises I'm doing. He told me between all you smart folks on here, you can tell me what the exercises are! So, before I start... I'll tell ya where I'm at, and what I want to accomplish.

I'm 5'6, 135 pounds -- I'm a pretty active gal; I try and stay healthy, but my diet all out sucks sometimes. I can't keep away from ice cream, string cheese, and (God help me) Oreo cookies. Aside from that, I do like fish -- especially tuna -- and I am quite the chicken eater, and I am pretty fond of fresh fruits and veggies, so I guess that's a few good things. And for the longest time, I just figured "hey, I'll eat 10 oreos and work out twice as hard tomarrow" -- but I guess that isn't quite working out for me, seens how I have a stubborn layer of fat on my skin that I just can't seem to get rid of. My goal is to look like some of the women on here! Good lord girlies -- some of you have quite the perfect physique! I want to really get lean, I want muscle definition in my arms, and I want a strong, fit tummy with no love handles pouring over the edges of my pants. That's not a lot to ask for... is it?

And I must add, I've just recently (yes, RECENTLY) realized that machines are not as beneficial as free weights. I've been stuck in the same routine for 3 years and havn't lifted a dumbell until last week, and I'm looking to you smart people to give me some good exercises to do to get that nice, lean body. So, no more useless information -- here is the routine I've been doing for almost 3 years now. Last week, I finally picked up the dumbells and started doing some basis exercises. I'll start posting that routine tomarrow, seens how I'm giving up this machine routine. PLEASE people, I need advice and routine suggestions.

And PLEASE, if you will, tell me the names of these exercises. I really am clueless about fitness "lingo."

Rowing Machine -- 20 Minutes, 5 Miles

Pec Fly Machine?? (where you use your arms to bring the thingys in together) -- 3x15, 40 lbs.

Leg Press -- 3x25 (toes pointed straight, out, and in), 80 lbs.

Sit ups on the bar thingy (where you lock your feet under the bar) -- 3x15

Lat Pulldown (thanks Chris for clarifying that one in the last post) 3x10, 50 lbs.

Leg extension -- 3x10, 20 lbs.

Situps on an incline -- 3x15

The ab machine where you curl the weight -- 2x25 (one set with the pin higher up to make it harder, and the other with it down lower)

The leg hanging one where bring your feet up and out in front of you to work your lower abs -- 3x10

And I feel silly for not knowing the names, but that's it -- I hope you know what the heck i'm talking about!! Anyhow, that's the routine I've done day after day for the longest time, with the exception of the rowing machine -- I just started that. That replaced the treadmill. I usually go 10 minutes warmup on the treadmill (4.1 mph) and then jog for 30 minutes (5.4 - 5.7 mph). And when I'm not in the gym, I love to bike, which I often do to school and back in the fall (18 miles). That about sums it up... if you've made it this far. Thanks for reading! Please, help me! I welcome any of ya'll constructive criticism... I need some input :)

Thanks a bunch!
 
Welcome to the forum. I wish you well with your diary. I will look over your first post, and impart some thoughts to help you.

I wish you the best of luck.....you have come to the correct forum for advice and encouragement, and I will support you, and you can take this to the bank and cash this in..................

and,


ROCK ON!

Best wishes,


Chillen
 
Thanks! I'm really looking forward to getting some good advice. It's not really the norm for me to post my life on online message boards, but I'm thinking I will really benefit from this one!
 
Welcome to the forum!

you got the names right, just drop off the "thingy's" lol

Rowing Machine -- exactly that

Pec Fly Machine -- Fly's

Leg Press -- exactly that

Sit ups -- exactly that

Lat Pulldown -- :)

Leg extension -- :)

Situps on an incline -- not sure about a sit up on an incline. a decline maybe?

The ab machine where you curl the weight -- crunches with weight

The leg hanging one where bring your feet up and out in front of you to work your lower abs -- leg raises/lifts


p.s. you do not have bulky legs lol!
 
LOL... I swore 'thingys' was part of the name.... thanks for clarifying that for me. Next time, I'll be sure to put the CORRECT names, thanks! And yes, I suppose that sit up bench is at a decline rather than an incline. :11doh:

and ha, bulky legs ... I guess after 4 people telling me on here that I don't have bulky legs, I guess that MUST be the truth, right?

P.S. I might not have bulky legs, but I do have love handles (that which you won't see a pic of until I have an after pic to stick right next to it)

:D
 
Welcome to the forum. I'd suggest picking up The New Rules of Lifting, by Lou Schuler and Alwyn Cosgrove. I've been working out from it since May and have been pleased with the results. It will give you what you need to know, especially since one of the rules is "Don't 'Do the machines'"...
 
I used to be one of those people who worked out a lot, but didn't have a good diet. Since coming here I have learned a lot about nutrition and shed a lot of unwanted bodyfat My calipers tell me I've gone from about 16% to about 11 1/2%.

My advice is to spend a lot of time in the nutrition threads and have an open mind.
 
Alright, here it goes... one of the fellows on here suggested I jump on the bandwagon and create one of these diaries. Chris, I hope you're reading this...

I certainly am and, it seems you knew more of the excercise names than you thought you did! I'm going to assume at this stage that you ahve a pretty good handle on which muscle groups you're working with each of those excercises. I would suggest that, initially, you take a look at this website:-

ExRx Exercise & Muscle Directory

See if you can find some alternatives that you like the look of. It may well be that a change is as good as a rest.

Oh yeah, I thought I should mention, on the bulky legs thing.......no way, you have great legs!! :D
 
Thanks Chris! I'm happy you took a peek here at my diary. I will definitely read that article.

I just got from the gym about an hour or so ago and just sat down to eat my breakfast. I got a late start... so, actually, I suppose I should be eating lunch right now. Anyhow, I'm eating a bowl of oatmeal and a hardboiled egg.

I've decided on switching up my routine at the gym -- I'm going for an hour of cardio on different machines and some weighted crunches inbetween each machine. Then on the other days, I'm working with weights; although, I still don't know what they heck I'm doing with that. I need some help...

Anyhow, this was my routine today:

Rowing Machine -- 20 minutes, 6 miles (yes, I stepped it up some)
Treadmill --30 minutes (half at 5.7 mph, the other at 6.0 mph, and a 10 min. cooldown at 4.1 mph)
Eliptical Machine -- 20 minutes, hillclimb setting
Side crunches with a weighted ball -- 3x25
Situps with a weighted ball -- 3x25

And tomarrow, I'm off to pump some iron. Hah ha...

And gosh, I feeel good :)
 
Hey Chris and Chillen! I'm glad to see that people remember me here! I have been extremely busy. College has been kicking my butt this semester and I have a 2 year old tugging at my leg 24-7. Anyhow, I am still sweatin' it out at the gym everyday, probably moreso now than ever. I finally joined two guys downstairs with the free weights. They've been working out for 8+ years and seem to really have a lot of knowledge about all the exercises. And still, I can't even tell you all the exercises we do. I want to start writing them down and posting them here and hopefully someone can tell me if the routine looks good or not.

As far as my diet, I was doing really good UNTIL my sister brought over double-stuffed Oreos last night. I can say no to icecream, to cake, to potato chips, to alcohol, but by golly... you put Oreos in front of me, and I forget that I'm trying to be healthy. I gave in -- ate six. I know, I can't even stop at one. It's that bad! Anyhow, I'm keeping up with my cardio. I ran 3 miles this morning, and worked my arms in weight traing. Tomarrow is a chest day. I'll let you know how it goes.

Take care all!
 
Its good to hear you've found some guys to help you out - I'd be willing to bet they will know the names of all the excercises you're doing! Good to hear that your enthusiasm is still there.

I wouldn't worry too much about eating 6 oreos. Everyone slips up now and again and, in some ways, I would argue that it is important that they do. I would offer 2 pieces of advice in this area based on my own experience. 1) DON'T feel guilty about it!! If you do, it'll ruin the enjoyment of the discretion. When its eaten, its done so move on and don't dwell on it. 2) PLAN your indescretions and limit them to no more than once a week. That way you can look forward to treating yourself and can consider it part and parcel of your weekly nutrition. (ie. No guilt!)

Do a forum search for "cheat meal" and you will see its a hotly debated area. My own view is that, whilst the physical benefits of a cheat meal may or may not be real, the psychological benefits most definitly are!!

:)
 
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