training two bodies

[saansaturday]

After I wrote about my new training plan, maramaye let me know that she's been reading my weightlifting posts and wants to make a similar transformation but feels pretty clueless about what to do. After writing her quite the long reply, I realized that we could help each other out. She can't afford a trainer right now but I can train her for free and learn from the experience. This is a good opportunity for me to try my hand at personal training and see how well I do and how much I like it. I started having thoughts about this path only a few months after I fell so in love with weightlifting--I love to teach and I also like telling people what to do. ;) V has been encouraging me to get on with it but I've had some hesitation because I know I need to learn more and I'm also worried that I'm too bossy/mean/hardcore for most people.

maramaye accepted my offer and we've already set her up with a program. So far the entirety of our discussion is contained in the comments to that previous post because we thought it would be helpful to allow others to join in and critique our process or learn along with us. But I'm not sure anyone noticed. It's time to bring this project out into the open, hence this new post.

We're going to continue our discussion in the comments to this post. Additionally, I'm going to create a filter and tag for future posts on this subject (I'm thinking once a week, depending on the volume of comments). LJ probably isn't the best format for this but I think it will work well enough. This will be an opt-in filter, so let me know if you would like to follow maramaye's transformation.

maramaye's main goal is to speed up her metabolism, so she'll be lifting heavy weights, increasing her general physical activity, and eating much and often.

Comments

[catvalente.livejournal.com]

I'd be interested in trying out the regimen you guys come up with. I've been lifting off and on for most of this year, but moving and work has kept me from it for the last couple of months.

[saansaturday]

I had maramaye pick a program from stumptuous, as I think they are pretty good, basic beginner programs and I see no reason to reinvent the wheel when I have so little experience designing programs. You're welcome to follow along or pick your own program to follow and join the discussion.

[ivy]

Did she tell you about her recent frostbite experience? Please go easy on her until she's recovered.

Other than that, wow, awesome, go y'all! I'll be interested to see how it goes, and I totally want on the filter.

[maramaye.livejournal.com]

I was clear about being a bag of injuries and ailments: frostbite, ED-NOS, old backpacking injury, etc. For the first training session(s) I'm doing bodyweight exercises only.

Plus I really do feel much better on the frostbite. I'm 90%-95% back to normal, I think.

[maramaye.livejournal.com]

For the first training session I did workout 4 from stumptuous.com.

Specifically:

Calf raises - 1x10, then found it too easy with both feet so switched to one foot at a time
Calf raises - 2x10 (each foot)

Squat - 1x8 bodyweight only (I found the motion easy to do with good form, which I attribute to the prevalence of squat toilets in places I've lived; it was still difficult to do as a matter of strength.)
Squat - 1x8 with broomstick in place of weight bar
Squat - 1x6 with broomstick in place of weight bar

Lunge - 3x8

Deadlift - 1x8 normal with broomstick
Deadlift - 1x8 sumo, which I found a lot more comfortable
Deadlift - 1x6 sumo

Given the lack of elevators in Ukraine and how many stairs I'd been climbing and kilometers I'd been walking every day, I had thought I was in better shape than this. In all cases above, I could not have done another rep with good form (except for calf raises which I think I can do infinitely, due to dance training and having monstrous calves already). I also required a full ten minutes rest between my last set of lunges and my first set of deadlifts. And that's with the weight of a broomstick. Yikes.

Today I slept in late, so didn't wake up til 10:30am. Here's what my eating schedule looked like:

11am: yogurt (good european vanilla yogurt)
1pm: 2-3Tbsp peanut butter
3pm: 2 satsumas, 2 hard boiled eggs
5:30pm: personal-sized cheese pizza (homemade from scratch, yum)
7:30pm: 1 satsuma
9:30pm: 1oz almonds
(My workout started at 10:15pm)
11pm: 2 hard boiled eggs, 2 satsumas, 1oz almonds, 2Tbsp peanut butter

I'm still high on carbs and low on fat and protein; we didn't get to go grocery shopping today due to a sick 6-year-old.

Tomorrow I would really like to do some ballet.

[tobyhush.livejournal.com]

some observations -
you've been injured. It will take away from your previous fitness. You've also been starving for 2 months, that's going to erase muscle with great efficiency.
Why did you have to rest for 10 minutes? (e.g. what sensation did you have that made you think "I need to rest"?) Did you get back to resting heart rate?

Regarding food -
how much yogurt?
I don't know how many calories you get from satsumas but I don't think you've even reached 2000 there (I could easily be wrong, that's just off the cuff)

[saansaturday]

This is wonderful. It sounds like you are really listening to your body and I'm quite pleased with your log.

Did you change the order of the exercises from the order listed on stumptuous? Next time do them in the order listed as there is a logic behind it. Since the bodyweight squats and deadlifts were challenging to you, next week we'll just increase the reps and continue to work on form.

Regarding the rest, usually you shouldn't need more than 2-3 minutes rest between exercises or sets of an exercise. But with your recovery from frostbite and lack of muscle right now, it's nothing to worry about. It's good you are taking the rest you need and as your fitness level increases you should be able to rest less.

Your nutrition is getting better and you realize where you are lacking. I am minorly concerned about the sugar in your yogurt but at this point I'm just glad you're getting more calories (which we will continue to try to increase both the number and quality of).

[tobyhush.livejournal.com]

Hi, I'd be interested in tracking your ongoing discussion and if I could see the previous posts as well I'd appreciate it.

[tobyhush.livejournal.com]

If you haven't seen it before, the site http://www.figureathlete.com/ has some fairly good articles (some crap too) and some good science to back up much of their work on routines and eating and things like that. Their partner site www.t-nation.com also has a bunch of good articles that I've found have been very helpful.

It looks like the routine you are having her start with is moderate reps/moderate weight yes? E.g. she's going to be aiming at increasing muscle mass not at increasing recruitment of fibers (which would be heavy weights and low reps).

[saansaturday]

Hi there,

I'm very familiar with both those sites and even kept a log on T-nation for a while. The Figure Athlete side sometimes makes me crazy as the articles can be a bit condescending (I do think Rachel Cosgrove and Jen Heath are great though). Thanks for the recommendation regardless.

At this point I think it's best if maramaye focuses on building some muscle mass while getting comfortable with the form of various exercises. She's expressed some confusion about technique and worry about getting injured so those extra reps should do her good for learning technique and just getting comfortable with weightlifting. She should be going heavier after she creates this foundation.

[spider88.livejournal.com]

Very exciting! I love reading about transformations. Count me in to the filter.

Saturday

[maramaye.livejournal.com]

Today I was significantly sore, in the post-hard-workout way. It was a challenge to walk up the stairs, and even more so to walk down the stairs without falling on my face. However, I had way more energy today than I've had in the past few weeks. I decided to do some gentle stretching rather than to try to attempt ballet. I'm shocked that such a wimpy workout can do that much to me.

I woke up at 7:30am, and my eating schedule was the following:

8am: cream of wheat; yogurt
10am: 2 hardboiled eggs
12:30pm: yogurt
3pm: 3oz nuts
5pm: 1svg Kashi Go Lean cereal (the kind with 13g protein) in 1c whole milk; 2pcs chocolate
8pm: 1/2c potatoes roasted in olive oil and parmesan cheese, 1/2 large chicken breast
9:30pm: 1/2 large chicken breast

I managed to go grocery shopping, and the commissary actually had protein powder. I got some, and vegetables, and frozen hamburger patties, and a whole bunch of nuts, and a dozen eggs, and some pineapple, and whole milk, and the Kashi cereal to have instead of cream of wheat. I also got the kind of yogurt that's a really thick custard-style with tons of fat in it and blackberries mixed in, but without much sugar; it's mostly tangy. My new favorite yogurt.

Re: Saturday

[saansaturday]

Your calories still seem a little low and I'd like you to be eating more meat. But your nutrition is looking better every day. :) I'm afraid the cream of wheat might have been the better choice than the Kashi--doesn't it have cane juice in it? I'm not a huge fan of sweeteners or overly processed food as you might have noticed. But again, protein is good; eating more calories is good. I don't expect you to change your diet completely all at once. Little changes, bit by bit, will be more sustainable in the long run. Vegetables, eggs, hamburger, nuts, pineapple and milk are all things I'm happy to have you eating. You can use the protein powder in a post-workout shake. If you have a blender it's nice to blend it with some fruit.

Soreness at this point is good; it means you really did work hard. :) As your body gets used to training you'll get less sore, less often. Gentle stretching was probably the right choice for today.

[maradydd.livejournal.com]

Sure, I'd like to read it.

Sunday

[maramaye.livejournal.com]

Again with the gentle stretching and being sore. For food I had:

10am: breakfast burrito (1 egg, cheese, bacon, a tiny bit of salsa, wrapped in a flour tortilla)
11am: yogurt
12pm: breakfast burrito (1 egg, cheese, bacon, a tiny bit of salsa, wrapped in a flour tortilla)
1pm: 1 satsuma
3pm: 1 large zucchini & 2 huge mushrooms, made in a pan with 1 Tbsp each butter, olive oil, and parmesan, with salt&pepper
4:30pm: 1oz pistachios
5:30pm: 2 hamburger patties with cheese, 3 servings green beans with butter
6:30pm: 1 satsuma
8pm: 2pcs chocolate

Tomorrow I should be able to get to the gym, though I've heard a rumor it might be closed to civilians for the next couple of days. Something to do with a basketball tournament. I'll be attempting Day 2 exercises.

Monday

[maramaye.livejournal.com]

I was not able to get on post today, but I'm told I'll be able to get a pass later this week and will be able to just walk there without relying on my hosts. So I modified Day 2's workout somewhat:

Instead of bench presses, I did push-ups with my feet up on a chair. (I'd guess about 18" off the ground.)

For the standing shoulder press I used a package of bottled water as the weight. There were four 2-liters, which is about 17.5lbs. If I'd had more weight I could have done more, but not by much. Certainly not another 2L.

For dips I used a chair behind me and my feet stretched out to about a 110 degree angle at my knees.

For ab crunches I used a 2L bottle of water on my chest for a weight.

The numbers were:

Push-ups: 1x6, 1x7, 1x6
Standing shoulder presses: 3x10
Assisted dips: 3x6
Ab crunches: 3x10

I don't feel nearly as sore after this one as I did after Day 1, but I have to say that the elevated push-ups were hard. Seriously hard. As were the dips.

Re: Monday

[maramaye.livejournal.com]

8am: kashi cereal with whole milk; yogurt
10am: 3oz nuts
12pm: 2 hardboiled eggs
(I worked out from 1:30-2pm)
2:30pm: 2-scoop whey protein shake with whole milk (60g total protein; it took me almost an hour to drink the whole thing), 1 satsuma
6pm: 2 large servings (10-12oz total) roast beef, 1 small biscuit with butter, roasted carrots, 1/2 roasted potato
8pm: yogurt

I don't know how many calories that is, but I felt almost horribly full for most of the day.

Re: Monday

[saansaturday]

Great job again. Your exercise substitutions are what I would have suggested had I actually done so (oops, last night was busy). I'm impressed you went with feet-elevated pushups rather than the normal sort. I'd like you to try to get at least 24 reps of each exercise, so if you have to do this day at home again, you can do sets of 8-10 of regular pushups or add a fourth set of the feet-elevated pushups. Don't worry about the leg exercises in which you weren't able to get three sets of eight though. I still want to go a bit slow with your legs. I think with everything else you should be ok for three sets of eight next week.

So you will be able to get to the gym Wednesday? Or is there a chance you will be at home again?

Tuesday

[maramaye.livejournal.com]

I woke up around 7:30am. Today I did a lot of wandering around the house aimlessly, and sweeping, but no ballet. My legs are *still* sore. (Not as much as they were, but.. yowch.)

I ate:

8am: kashi cereal in whole milk; yogurt
10:30am: 1 satsuma, one 2" chocolate cookie (one of my hosts bakes - she actually sells her stuff. I generally stay away from it.)
1pm: 8oz roast beef
2pm: yogurt
4:30pm: 4oz hamburger patty w/A1, 2svgs corn with butter
6:30pm: 3oz pork loin, 3svgs broccoli with butter
9pm: one 2" chocolate cookie, 1/2 glass of milk

I didn't feel hungry for long stretches of this morning, so I'd find myself realizing it had been too long and having to just eat according to the clock rather than to my feeling. I generally felt better today than yesterday.

Re: Tuesday

[saansaturday]

I didn't feel hungry for long stretches of this morning, so I'd find myself realizing it had been too long and having to just eat according to the clock rather than to my feeling.

Well you did a great job at that. I still want to see you eating some source of protein at every meal (cookies and yogurt don't count ;) ) but I'm pleased as your nutrition is generally getting better and you seem to be getting used to eating more often already.

Here's a good list of foods you might want to add to your diet. In particular, I'd like to see you eating more fish and other foods containing omega-3 fats. Next time you're at the grocery store look for omega-3 eggs. This is something to enjoy while in the developed world. Foods with lots of omega-3s can be a little more difficult to track down in other places (they were in China anyway).

Wednesday

[maramaye.livejournal.com]

Today I have what my hosts refer to as "The Belgian Crud." Nausea, aching throat, exhaustion, possible fever.

I kept putting my workout off to see if I'd feel better later in the day, and still have time to do it now if it ought to be done. But I don't know what to do in order to make the healthiest decision.

What do I do when I feel crappy?

Re: Wednesday

[saansaturday]

That's a tough question for me sometimes as well. If I don't feel too horrible I'll usually train anyway because I want to be as consistent as possible. So if it's a mild headache, mild nausea, mild head-cold, etc., I'll probably still train. But if it is more than mild I usually err on the side of caution; training can take away from the energy necessary for healing.

You mention exhaustion. Do you just feel like laying around in bed? In that case you should probably listen to what your body is telling you and rest. I wouldn't train with a fever, either.

[justbeast.livejournal.com]

I'd like to be on the filter.

[spsh.livejournal.com]

can you please include me in the filter? thanks!

[saansaturday]

You're on now. There's just been one post so far, earlier today.

[fendahleen.livejournal.com]

The last thing I need to do is speed up my metabolism, an incandescent thing which I fear will outlive me, but I'd be interested to get in on pretty much any of your filters on fitness/weightwork.

Also, hi.

[saansaturday]

Hi there,

I've put you on the filter.