Daughter of a beekeeper

 Guess what I brought home today? Yay Yay Yay!  My Dad had bees for years in San Diego while I was growing up.  While we didn't eat any processed sugar, we went through a LOT of honey with six kids all with sweet teeth (do you say sweet teeth or sweet tooths?).  I never remember being nervous around them, and feeling instead kind of special that we had them.  There was one time a bee got caught in my 80's hair....

 

and there was also the time my cousin threw rocks at the hive, and my little brother was in the wrong place at the wrong time...

 

Poor little guy.  

 

But other than than that, with years of keeping bees we didn't have any problems.  I hope my neighbors don't freak out. Consider this fair warning if you're a neighbor :)  Anyway, my friend Sharlynn, who's kept up to 40 hives at a time, gave me my two starter boxes, and the use of her equipment, and most importantly, free consulting!  My boxes lost their residents from what she thinks was Varroa, so I've got some cleaning up to do.  That's OK because I can't order the bees until next spring.  It was so mysterious at the time she said. She went outside to check on them and they'd just disappeared.  No holocaust of bee bodies around, nothing.  From what I've read that's typical of Varroa --they fly away and then die.  She's got a supplier she uses in Salt Lake, but I've been looking around and found this Beeweaver company that claims high mite resistence, and high genetic diversity in their bees.  I may try them.

On the lifting front, I finally felt recovered enough to do a good workout today, and got within 5 pounds of my PR for back squat.  What a relief.  I didn't know if I'd ever get back my strength.  I've been so broken down lately with running, that high rep program, vacation (missed workouts), and a hamstring injury. My friend/inspiration April also posted her bench press weight giving me permission to not beat myself up over mine.  I find it's easy to let ego get in the way deny where I'm really at.

When I certified as a personal trainer, my instructor told us to tell people to bench press only from where their elbows are even with their shoulders --does that make sense?  So if you were lying on the floor, you come down to your elbows touching the floor and no further.  Behind that place is the "danger zone" for shoulders.  The shoulder could get injured there because the rear deltoid muscles are so much weaker than the big pectorals, and theses deltoids take all of the weight when you go behind parallel.  That's what I was doing after he told me that, until I found out that in powerlifting you DO go down until the bar touches the chest.  Sigh.  My pecs had gotten much stronger, but my rear delts had atrophied quite a bit. Bummer.  From 150 to 75? waa.  I still have to watch out because even when I go all of the way down, I lift my hips from the bench, effectively doing a decline press instead of flat press.  Today I kept it clean, and got a few reps out at 85 --like 3 :)  but got 5 reps at 80.  That's OK I decided.  My squat got a lot weaker when I started going all of the way down, and came back up after a while.  So it'll come back, it'll come back...

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Acupuncture worked!

Hey just popping in to say that those acupuncture treatments took effect within a week.  I did have a little relapse after a week of girl's camp for my church (you try getting 15 teenage girls to follow a detailed schedule from 7:30-11:00 and not get stressed!), but went back for one more treatment, and got back on track. 

I know it may not make any scientific sense, but worked is worked. 

I also got my copy of NROL.  I've heard it raved about on forums and other blogs, and couldn't wait to try it.  Although it had a ton of great information, I've been through a whole cycle of the program now and just feel like I've lost strength.  I'm not saying this would happen to everyone.  I teach a weights class on Tuesday and Thursday morning that ends up being a little bit high rep, and I think low rep workouts for my personal progression just make more sense.  This cycle started out at I think 3 sets of 15, and through a few weeks went down to 8 reps.  This is still pretty high and I think by doing this three times a week and teaching another 2 times at high rep it just broke me down.  My squat, deadlift, and bench have all gone down.  I'm going back to a modified 5 by 5.  I also like the flexibility of using my own program because sometimes I'm sore from other activities (i.e. running with my daughter, pulling trees and bushes out of the yard, a hard teaching day etc.). 
Last night I knew my legs were sore, and instead of doing a crappy job on a full body NROL workout, I just did upper body and really felt like I got somewhere.  I think this is a wonderful program for someone just starting out though, and there is lots of info I'll use over and over again.

Here's hoping I can get back to posting regularly again.  Sorry for the stops and starts.

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Quinoa salad, vegan pesto, and getting my behind back in the weight room.

 So...last night for dinner I made a quinoa salad.  Oh it was good.  My only thing with grain and bean salads is that they're usually so dense calorically. Maybe it's not fashionable to state that you care about calories but I do --not gonna' lie, that's my main weight management tool.  On the plus side, these were all quality calories.  The worst part of cutting calories is if you're not careful, you can trick yourself into eating sugar free syrup and 100 calorie packs all day and starve your body of the nutrients it needs, not to mention wanting to GNAW YOUR ARM OFF from hunger by 4:00.  This is not that kind of calorie dense.  Very filling.  When I ate it for dinner though I threw it on top of a big bed of greens so it would take longer to eat, get a boost nutritionally, and fill me up even more with the calorically cheap food.  Here's the recipe I followed with a few tweaks: I didn't have avocados that were ripe, so I added a few chopped toasted walnuts to mine, and the kids added a little cheese.  I also didn't have the red quinoa, just the blond.  Still yummy.

 

 Vegan pesto.  I  grow a ton of basil every year.  That's not usually the plan, I just miss fresh basil so much by summer, that invariably I raise too many plants.  By the end of summer they're bushes as tall as my waist but even bigger around.  The best way I've found to preserve all of that bounty is pesto.  Pesto is easy --you just throw everything into a food processor, package it up, and throw it in the freezer if you're not going to use it right away.  I used to use the standard Better homes and Gardens recipe, which calls for Parmesan, but wanted a veganified version because my kids literally use this stuff  every day.  Even if you don't believe the China Study claims, walnut or olive fat is much better for your heart than dairy fat.  When I make it in the fall I have 50-75 of these little half cup containers when I'm done. 

 

Now, you'll see recipes out there that use all basil as the base ingredient.  I tried that once or twice when I was first married, thinking the more basil essential oil you have the tastier it will be. However basil turns black when it oxidizes, which makes for a black pesto and nothing kills the appetite like black food. I use part spinach now to help keep the bright green color.  The secret ingredient for veganization of pesto? (My spell checker is going crazy with all of my made up vegan words!)  Balsamic vinegar.  Here's what you throw in your processor:

2 cups basil leaves --packed
1 cup spinach leaves -packed
1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs
1 cup pine nuts or walnuts (I usually use walnuts for cheapness --they're fine)
2 cloves garlic
1 t. salt
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2-3 T. water (depending on what you need to make the food processor keep going)
1/2 T. balsamic vinegar


You throw it in the processor and whirl away.  I think it makes about 2 cups, which means 4 of those little 1/2 cup containers.  Talk about calorically dense! But when you need a sandwich spread, this is better for you than mayo or ranch.  When you need a little "oomph" for your pasta, or something to dip carrots in, this is magic stuff.

OK on to the gym.  I skipped some workouts to rest up for that race on Saturday.  That makes sense right?  But my self confidence starts to go quickly and  I really doubted I could pull the same weight I did last week.  So I brought the camera into the weight room as extra motivation.  Yep.  Still got my 175 lb. deadlift.  My form really sucks towards the end (I didn't know I was rolling my chest back that high!), but I got in the 5 reps I was hoping for.  Stupid wrist straps slipped at 3 --don't ever start the wrist strap thing.  I wish I hadn't.  They're a pain, and a crutch I wish I didn't use. 

115 lb. squats.  I got my little block there to touch down on so I know I went below parallel.  I sure wish I could say I squat my bodyweight...but no, this isn't it. :)

You've got to forgive my lame music too.  Any suggestions for great motivating songs?  I'm running dry lately.

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A short history/update of nearly everything

 

Sorry I've been slacking lately in the blogging department.  I've been writing a lot for myself at night, and somehow it takes away the need to blog as much I guess.   I've had a lot of birthdays around here, hence a LOT of cake!!  My brother's birthday was in February --ergo the caramel frosted carrot/coconut cake.

 

My neighbor's birthday --thus an orange chocolate cake with chocolate dipped orange slices, dark chocolate drizzle, and citrus cream cheese filling (I went a little crazy on that 'cause it was a birthday present.  then I pirated the picture from my friend's blog because I suck :) ).

Finally Tia's birthday cake which was a banana cake with homemade whipped cream frosting, and strawberry sauce and filling. 

With all of that cake making, I've been getting some intense workouts in luckily.  Upped my deadlift again (!) to 165, and I got 5 reps in instead of a shaky one rep.  I also started rotating in Chad Waterbury's workout that's made for people wanting to lean down without a strict cutting diet --just to minimize damage.  It's kind of a HIIT program mixed with some heavy weights.  I'm still doing my heavy lifting days, but just use these on days when I teach a weights class and want some cardio (cake cake cake!!!) and a little lifting to keep my muscles stimulated. I'm loving it (no that's not a McDonald's endorsement).

I'm letting go of my BYU classes after this semester because I'm starting to get a few clients to train in my home gym, and it's getting to be a little much.  It makes me sad to let them go, but I think it's a good decision.

OK, me me me --I know I've got other people in my family too right?  For Tia's birthday she just wanted clothes.  We gave her a budget, and I thought we'd have to go shopping at least three or four times to spend it.  Nope.  All gone the first night, and the first store.  Sigh.  I wonder who that girl's mother is.  Ari got up in church today to speak for the first time and did fantastic.  I was so proud of her.  Kai is getting a little crazier and more rambunctious every day.  I hope the weather warms up permanently soon so he can GO PLAY OUTSIDE!

OK, that's all for now, but next post I'll show you my garden plans and seeds (yay seeds!  little tiny packets of possibilities!) .  Also, I should say that my DREAM garden plans for this year would involve a full time gardener, and a ton of concrete.  Oh well, I'll suck it up like I always do.

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PR deadlift! ....and still working on those squats.

Had some major carb loading last night ---unplanned, but hey, might as well use it the next day right?  Anyway, I had a great workout this morning!

The video above is from my back squats, and dang if I'm still not going below parallel!  In subsequent sets I turned my toes out and got down lower --according to my husband who was watching me, but no video --I was too tired to balance my phone on the leg machine again. 

Here's what I did today:

Assisted Pullups (I'm getting really close on these!) 5 sets of 5
Squats: 95 lbs (down from my fantasy land 155 --it makes a difference with a fuller range of motion!) 5x5
Deadlifts (conventional and from the floor) :115 --5 reps; 135 --5; 155 --4; 160 (!!!!) --1 (with my husband behind me yelling at me to go go go!)  sooo proud of that deadlift.  Usually I can do about 140 and I whine and cry about it.
Shoulder press: 20's/5 reps; 25's 5,5,5,5.
Barbell rows: 70/5; 90/5; 90/4; 85/4; 85/3   --I'm also proud of this, because obviously it was right on with the weight.  I always tell my clients/students, if you fail you win.  I kept pushing to my limits here. 

Last week I did  3 sets of ten for my lifts, and I think changing it up a little pushed me through some barriers.  I have to state here too, that i know these aren't super heavy lifts for some girls, but the whole point of weight lifting is to get stronger, not compete with anyone else (although some girls have really inspired me to know I could do more than I ever thought I could).  I'm getting stronger and it makes me happy!

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Sick.

Sorry I haven't posted.  I got sick.  If you don't know me very well, I have hyperthyroidism --Grave's disease.  This is where my immune system goes crazy, starts attacking my thyroid, and makes it hyper --just like a six year old boy on red 40. The only good thing about it is that I burn calories like crazy.  That also happens to be the bad thing.  My body likes to burn muscle as it's first fuel when I'm sick, so all of my strength gains kind of go down the toilet.  My body fat percentage goes up, and my muscle goes down.  I also can't sleep, have a resting heart rate of around 100 beats per minute, and I feel anxious and dizzy all of the time.

The bummer is that I've been in remission for months --almost a year.  I've had little flareups, but nothing that's made me go on meds for over a week.  I'm pretty sure it's diet.  My diet has been really clean since last year's competition, and my body has rewarded me with good health.  Then Christmas hit, and with it extra treats and extra stress, and down I go.  I'm also guilty of not taking care of it right away.  I should have gone on my anti-thyroid pills when I felt the first symptoms, but in the back of my mind I think I wanted the extra leeway with calories.  Isn't that awful?  It's like I was slitting my wrist to get lower blood pressure.  It doesn't make sense.  Now my metabolism drops because I have less muscle, AND I'm used to eating more because the Graves dialed my appetite through the roof, not to mention the possible damage to my heart.  My only excuse is when I'm sick I'm more impulsive and don't think things through as well.  It's a common symptom and I'm claiming it.

So then about two weeks ago, I got sick sick with a cold/laryngitis thing and then I've been really suffering.  I've shown up to teach my classes in street clothes to keep me from doing it with my students, and I've kept myself from doing personal workouts because I've felt like I just wasn't recovering.  I couldn't kick it. It's been so frustrating!  I've felt like a big fat disgusting slug.  Isn't that funny how quickly your personal identity can change in your mind?  Just a month ago, I was at Jeff's goal weight (Ok. little explanation here --I have a goal weight 4&1/2 pounds lower than what Jeff thinks is healthy for me --he'd be just as happy with me 10 pounds heavier or whatever, but I asked for help in reaching a goal so we bet a big screen tv against clothes shopping money that I'd get there.  He says "there" is 4.5 pounds higher than where I say) and now I'm back up 3 more pounds.  Sigh.  I know when I go from maintenance calories to deficit I lose 3 pounds in water right away, but there's some muscle loss there too, so once I start lifting again it will go up anyway.  Does that make sense? 3 down with water, 2-3 up with water back in my muscles and literal muscle fiber growth.

But, last night I slept with no coughing fits, and the thyroid thing is slowly coming back to normal, so I'm LIFTING TODAY!!! I'm so excited.  Wish me luck in getting back to normal please?

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Full body compound workout.

I found a couple of new blogs to follow and it's funny how my tastes have changed.  I used to follow religiously a girl that taught cardio classes and talked about what she ate all of the time, then I followed a runner/triathalon girl, now there are a few lifting girls I'm following.  One isn't too careful about swearwords so I won't post her link here ( although I think she's just young or something), but here are the other three:  Foods of April,  Mother Fitness and Nia Shanks  (and yes, that is the author down the side of the page on Mother Fitness) . So this Nia lifts HEAVY --girl can deadlift 300 pounds (and she weighs 122), and bench 145.  She advocates doing full body compound exercises only --not focusing on and burning out specific muscle groups. Think pull-ups versus biceps curls, or squats versus quad extensions. I'm not positive about doing this exclusively, but it's VERY interesting --and makes good sense to me.  These are functional movements for the most part. You're always going to want to pick things up off the ground for example (actually --I think Nia USED that example ).  So I've done two workouts so far like this, and I'm FEELING it.  Here's Wednesday's:

Barbell squats 135 pounds (a small note here: I "thought" I was able to do a lot more weight squatting, but I wasn't going all the way down.  It's so easy to trick yourself! This is down to where I can feel the tops of my thighs touching up against my pelvic girdle): 6 reps, 6 reps, 6, 8 (I got the hang of it here).

Deadlifts 95 pounds (note --these aren't "straight leg deadlifts" --they are conventional deadlifts) 8,9,9,7

Pullups (note --I was doing assisted by putting my feet on the bar and trying to do as much as I can with upper body, but I never felt like I was making any progress.  I tried "negatives", but found I ended up doing assisted without noticing --like I'd trick myself.  Finally, I asked Jeff to spot me, and finally I feel like I'm getting closer and closer to doing them on my own.  He says he's only pushing up about 20 pounds worth of me and I don't know about that, but I really feel like I'm maxing out finally.) 3 1/2, 3, 2 1/2, 3

Shoulder Press -25 pounds each arm: (note: standing is what Nia recommends.  I usually would do these sitting and one arm at a time so I could spot myself with the other arm -- and I could do 35's this way.  Standing, with both arms at once, your whole body is working to stabilize.  Much more "neuromuscular stimulation" --core, shoulders, legs, etc.) 7,7,5,4

Inverted Row: (here's a link in case you don't know what these are --I didn't, and they aren't on bodybuilding.com ) 10, 10, 10, 8

That's it.  I did another workout today, (Nia advocates three times a week, but I didn't see her program until Wednesday) substituting "step-ups" for the squats.  These (I think --I asked her to send me a link to a video) are where you start on a step --like 4 inches --with a barbell, and step back down into a lunge.  So hard to keep balance and form!  I started with 115 for the first set, and had to go down to 95 to keep the form without Jeff holding my torso.  I'm the kind of lifter who always seems to start out heavier than I can really do!

Anyway, here's some tips if you want to train like this for a few months. Pick 4-6 compound exercises, and do somewhere between 3 and 6 sets.  Pick a weight that you can do for 5-10 reps, but that should be all you can do by the last set.  Go until your muscles give out. Be safe! Have a spotter there, or make sure you have a place to drop the weight safely if you need to.  If you can do more reps at the end, do them, but pick a heavier weight next time.  You need to get adequate rest in between workouts, and get enough protein into you: 20-25 grams within 45 minutes after your workout, and 100-200 grams every day.  This doesn't have to be meat or dairy! Good sources include beans, nuts (higher in fat, so watch these a little), quinoa, oats, and protein powders like rice, hemp, soy, or yellow pea. This allows your muscles the rest and raw materials to rebuild stronger after you break them down working out.  That's the whole point of your workout!
 Do this three times a week if you can, or at least twice, until you can build up to three.  If you notice that you aren't able to increase reps or weight every couple of workouts, it's time to change things up.  Either change the number of sets, the number of reps (or both), or the exercise.  This is how you push through a plateau, but make sure first that it isn't an issue of not getting adequate fuel or rest. 

If you find that you'd like some help, feel free to contact me, I'm a trainer, and would love to work with you.  You'll find that you get addicted to the feeling of lifting just like you did with cardio, and I really believe it does more things, and better things for your body (although I'm not above getting an extra kickboxing session after a cookie binge party!).

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