Introduction...

[gym_girl]

Hi,

My name is Tammy 35 y.o. wife and mother of 2. I've been lurking for a few days so figured now is as good a time as any to introduce myself.

First off, from what I've read this seems like a very informative and supportive group.

I work out primarily with my husband. We have crazy work schedules but do the best we can to weight train. He works 2 days, off 3 and so forth. We do weight train every day he is off. I usually only weight train hard when with him and hit hard cardio when on my own. It seems to be great balance for us right now. If our schedules are crazier than normal I will full body circuit so as not to mess our schedule too bad.

We do a cardio warm up (10-15 minutes) than work a specific body part. We do mix up our schedule every once in a while so as not to get bored or muscle memory. I'm very proud of the commitment we've both shown to the gym and the support we show each other. Our current body part break down is as follows:

Legs -- which we just did today
Chest
Tri/Bi's -- love the overall arm mucsle exhaustion
Shoulders -- really developing (in my opinion)
Back/Abs

I'm really trying to clean up my eating. It isn't as clean as I would like, but I'm weak and I know it. I have awesome commitment to the gym, but my commitment to the food isn't as strong. I know I'm only hurting myself in the end, but like I said I'm weak. All things considered though, I started this journey March 2004 and my body has changed in so many ways. I started out weighing 140lbs and I'm currently at 130lbs. My pants size has gone from 9/10 to a 4, so I know things are working. I know its not a number on a scale, but I do get hung up on the scale number from time to time, much to the frustration of my DH. I am following the WW plan and do only weigh myself once per week.

Really looking forward to getting to you all.

~Tammy

[cursor]

Hi Tammy. Welcome to DiscussFitness.com. Hang around here and you'll get plenty of help. Glad to have you aboard.

Welcome Tammy. No worries on the eating habits. If you keep at it long enough you will change them to be better. Sometimes the best changes are made slowly. Regardless, it sounds like you have made some great progress so far! Keep going after your goals.

[threenorns]

pick one thing and work at it - personally, i recommend you focus on raising your activity level and muscle mass but leave your eating exactly as it is. you will experience terrific improvements without having to feel deprived or put-upon. after a while, believe me: you'll just not want to eat or do stuff that isn't good for you. if you smoke, you'll notice that after a great workout, you feel high, buzzing, full of energy - as soon as you light up, you'll come down with a hard thud and feel dirty, tired, and just plain "blah". you'll notice that when you eat junk food, it won't be satisfying - it'll *taste* good, but you'll have that nagging feeling in your gut that it just wasn't enough (cause there were not enough nutrients). on the other hand, when you eat healthy, nutritious, clean food, you'll feel the energy kicking in and you'll need to eat less of it.

it just works that way - i find trying to revamp fitness AND diet at the same time is too overwhelming right at the beginning and makes it easier to just give up.

btw: make SURE you're eating enough calories! if you're following an active workout schedule, the WW plan might not be giving you enough to succeed. me, i'm dropping down from an all-time high of 240 back in november, 215 when i first started working out (just starting my 8th week now). i don't know how much i've lost, but a couple or three weeks ago, i was 202 - 204, somewhere around there, and i'm about to lose my second-to-last pair of pants (they were so tight at the beginning of march you could see my drawers through the seat, but last night i had to hold them up while doing the step aerobics/tai bo class). from XXXL undies, i'm down to XL.

all this, and i have to eat nearly three times what i ate before i started working out! i'm serious: it's steak for breakfast, chicken for lunch, fish for dinner, snacks galore (fruit and yoghurt), bathtubs of salad, you name it! i tell ya, bodybuilding is a gourmand's dream! (although i'll admit my appetite is still out of whack and i still often forget to eat until i realize i'm absently chewing on the door frame)

[gym_girl]

threenorns,

Thanks for the concern about making sure I'm eating enough. I account for my WW activity points and eat them every day. If I didn't I wouldn't have enough energy to get out of bed in the morning.

My husband jokes that my eating is so much better than before I started working out. He use to eat my leftovers, but now I'm hungry enough to eat my own food. It is a running joke with us, and no way will I even consider sharing a piece of steak with him.... get your paws away from my plate, mister

Thanks again for the concern.

~Tammy

[threenorns]

i know - with bill and i, it's just as bad. you know you're gaining muscle mass, by the way, when you not only lick off the plate but add seasoning to the rim.

bill, he takes forEVER to eat: has to chew every mouthful 100 times by the count. in the time it takes him to finish one chicken leg (back attached), i've eaten my meal, cleaned off the table around him, and am halfway through the dishes. so i'm wandering around and i find myself *dying* to ask "you gonna finish that bit of steak?", lol!