New App Recommendation: Fitocracy

It's been a while since I made a recommendation. A friend turned me on to Fitocracy. It's a social network for healthy people!

So, Fitocracy is not just an app, it's a true social network available both online and through the app. The reason this post is an app recommendation is because the app is awesome. Now, I'm also on Bodybuilding.com, but I find their app is clunky, lags horribly on my cheap smart phone, and crashes with an unfortunate frequency. It might really be my phone's fault, given that the Buzzfeed app also crashes, but I digress.

The great thing about Fitocracy is how easy it is to use. It even has a cool section where if you don't know how to do an exercise, there are either pictures or a thorough description. Creating a workout is a matter of hitting a little button and you can work off that same workout each time with no need to search for your exercises every time you want to log a workout. On top of all that, there's a points system!

Really, the points allow you to level up. Near as I can tell, there are no perks to leveling up, but it's a great mental reward. I'm a level 6 already. What does that mean? No clue. Am I excited about it? Yes!

First Day Back at the Gym!

Yesterday was like a dream - if dreams left you feeling beaten the next day. I cannot even put in to words how much my butt hurts.

I am so happy to be back though, despite the fact that it hurts to put on underwear. I just feel better knowing that I'm exercising along with my good diet. Although diet is the biggest contributor to success, I just didn't feel like I was doing enough. I'm an all or nothing person.

Now, my doctor was a little apprehensive about me returning to the gym, which I understand. On the other hand, she doesn't understand weightlifting at all and had very little advice. "Don't do crunches or squats" What? When was the last time I used my abs in a squat? She even said no body weight squats. What? No, can't do that.

So I headed over to a few bodybuilding forums and consulted the experts of "bro-science" and found some really useful information regarding weight lifting post abdominal tear. The good news? I can do a LOT of the exercises I love as long as I start at a lighter weight and gradually build up. Pretty much all lower body exercises are fair game, which is awesome. On the other hand, upper body sucks.

I wanted to work on my push press, because I hurt myself on the press portion of the clean and jerk. So I tried a stand press with two 20 pound dumbells. I previously used two 35 pound dumbells so I felt that this was a good enough concession. Nope. I felt that familiar pull and tenderness as I raised my arms. I had to knock my press all the way down to two 8 pound dumbells. Ugh.

Oh, and, something I didn't read on any of my forums was bench supported bent over rows. Yeah, almost ripped myself open again. I thought it wasn't a core exercise. It is, it definitely is. Despite having my body supported by one arm and knee on the bench, the slight rotation that comes with bring the weight up was enough.

I think my upper body progression will be really slow for a while. For now, I need to use the upper body exercises as a form of core strengthening, not to work my arms and shoulders. At least for the next three months. At least no one will accuse me of skipping leg day.

Exercise Fail

As much as I love exercise, it hasn't been happening much recently. My hernia/abdominal tear is improving, but the muscle I pulled in my back hurts from below my shoulder blade, down my back, and all the way to my leg. I just don't want to exercise when I'm already hurting.
On top of that, a big motivating factor for exercising is the more you exercise, the more muscle you build, and therefore the more calories you burn sleeping.
I love to sleep.
Since I've been losing weight and inches on Keto and I'm hurting; I just can't get myself to do it. I can't make myself do much of anything.
Does moping burn calories?

First Week of Keto

I must say, after doing (and sucking at) Paleo for barely a month, the Keto diet is liberating, to say the least. It's also sent my digestive system through one hell of a loop. I've gone from constipated to exploding in the course of a few hours. Sometimes I have more energy than ever before, sometimes the simplest actions leave me exhausted. Its been rough. There's such a thing as the Keto Flu - which is a horrible sneaky bastard. Anyway, the worst of it has passed. I've actually lost quite a bit of weight - more than I ever did with paleo, or with just exercise and counting calories. Plus this way of eating is liberating: sour cream, cheese, heavy whipping cream, oh my! This feeling if being liberated, instead of feeling restricted; it feels sustainable. That all brings me to this point:

I can't wait to get back to the gym! I've got my diet under control and in check. I'm losing weight, while exercising less than ever before. My previous job required pushing 300-900 pounds, lifting up to 80 pounds regularly throughout my shift, and walking up to 25 miles in a day (while pushing the weight). Needless to say, it was physical, but I didn't really lose weight. I put on about 10 pounds over the course of six months. It wasn't all muscle, unfortunately.
The point is, I can't believe I'm losing weight being unemployed and relatively sedentary drinking whipping cream as a snack. Although I've been weighing myself, I'm not really counting it until tomorrow. Tentatively, I've lost up to 6 pounds. Probably water weight, but I'm curious to see the measurements tomorrow!
Tuesday I will be getting a CT scan to check out my hernia. I could be cleared to go to the gym as early as July...or I could end up needing surgery and then who knows when I'll be able to get back.

The Pros and Cons of a Workout Partner

I think it's wonderful to have a gym buddy, but it only works if you and your partner workout the same way. When I left the machines for free weights, I ended up leaving my partner too. It was just too hard to workout together when she did two free weight exercises and I did only two machine exercises. It was frustrating and I was sad to see us part ways.
My fiancé is slowly coming around to the idea of working out with me. Very slowly.
Speaking of workout couples, has anyone seen this video?

Someday I'll be in that kind of shape, and hopefully my fiance will be right there beside me.

Couch to 5k: Throwing in the Towel

Okay, I have to admit it, I'm a quitter.

I am officially giving up on Couch to 5k. Sorry, but it isnt for me. I've been struggling with running. Not only that, but I have been so dismayed that I've been neglecting my healthy eating. That's no good. Eating crap and barely running has made me feel depressed and I'm 90% sure I have gained weight and inches this week. Ugh. I'm normally not so defeatist. It's only Thursday and I think I've already failed. I need a change.

I know the quote is traditionally "Do what you love and you'll never have to work a day in your life", but the above image really got me thinking. When I was lifting free weights, I was psyched to go to the gym. Since hurting myself, I've been totally uninterested in exercising and eating healthy. Since my doctor won't clear me to lift yet, I'll be on the hunt for a new exercise that I love. Up next? Yoga!

Couch to 5k: First Impression

Periodically,  I'm going to be testing different fitness trends. First up is Couch to 5k. For those that haven't heard about it, it's supposed to be an easy introduction to running. Woth just nine weeks of training, a couch potato can run a 5k.

One thing you should know about me: I'm not a runner. I have short legs, I'm prone to side stitches, I throw up when I run a quarter mile straight, and I had pneumonia a few years back which scarred my lungs. I'm really not a runner.

Why the hell am I doing this? Well, I've never been any good at running, not even as a kid. I want to be able to say I can run. I want to prove to myself that I can do it. It's that simple.

 Yesterday I tried day one of Couch to 5k. The directions were simple enough. Five minute brisk warm up walk, then alternate between running 60 seconds and walking 90 seconds   for a total of 20 minutes followed by a five minute cool down walk. This sounded pretty reasonable...until I started doing it. The first minute was good, but the 90 seconds of walking wasn't enough to really catch my breath. Things went steadily down hill from there. I stopped running when I had two running intervals left. I felt like I was going to barf. Barfing with a hernia is a bad idea.

Not a great first run for a program that claims to ease beginners into running. Has anyone else tried Couch to 5k? What were your thoughts?

For those of you wanting to give this a try, the guide can be found here and I reviewed a Couch to 5k running app here.

App Recommendation: Couch25k

There are a lot of different Couch to 5k training apps. The one I like is by Zen Labs and it's free. Why do I like it? Just like Lift (which you can read my review on here) it's easy to use. It even has the warmup and cool down built right in.

You scroll from side to side to select what week and day you're on, then just press start. A woman's voice says "Begin warm up." When the warm up is over she once again speaks up, "Begin running." What I especially like is that it runs in the background and you can listen to a playlist or Pandora. It automatically turns down the volume of your music, givea you instructions, then turns the volume back up.

My favorite featurw though, as silly as it sounds, is that it tells you when you reach the half way point. As someone who runs down the road, its nice to not have to check the time to figure out when to turn around.

Want to check out the app for yourself? Here is the link to the official webpage and it can be found through the PlayStore.

App recommendation: Lift

If you can't tell, that's a little frog on top. The whole thing is covered in frogs. I feel silly writing in my froggy diary at the gym while men nearby bench press twice my body weight. If ycan't tell, that's a little frog on top. The whole thing is covered in frogs. I feel silly writing in my froggy diary at the gym while men nearby bench press twice my body weight. t tell, that's a little frog on top. The whole thing is covered in frogs. I feel silly writing in my froggy diary at the gym while men nearby bench press twice my body weight. I really wanted to find  an easy to use app to record which lifts I'm doing, how many reps, and the weight. Here's what I'm currently using:

If you can't tell, that's a little frog on top. The whole thing is covered in frogs. I feel silly writing in my froggy diary at the gym while men nearby bench press twice my body weight.

So I thought Lift by Lift Worldwide was the answer. It wasn't, of course. Nothing is ever easy when it comes to technology. Why am I recommending it? Because it's a great app, of course! Lift is basically a goal achieving app. The publisher's description reads: Lift breaks your goals down into simple habitra and routines, then prompts and encourages you to take regular steps towards healthy life change.

There are all kinds of neat goals you can work to achieve. I currently have one goal I'm working on and one goal lined up for next month.

It's easy to use, which is the best part. Want to check in with a goal? Just select it then tap the checkmark. All done!

The reason I think this is such a great app is because it makes lifestyle changes small and manageable. As a girl who drank a two liter of soda every two days, giving up soda was a big deal. I've been 11 days soda free now. Sure, it doesn't seem like a big deal, but to me, that little green check and the note that says I've hit that check for 11 days is my pat on the back.

Book Recommendation: New Rules of Lifting for Women

Has anyone heard of this book? ThethisNew Rules of Lifting is great. I used to be the girl that jogged on the treadmill for 10 minutes (and I use the term jog loosely) then hit the circuit machines, blaze through them doing one set of 15 reps, and be out the door in under an hour including stretching. I thought I was doing the right thing to lose weight. I lifted weights and did cardio, what else was I supposed to do?

Various fitness articles throughout the internet had taught me that the more muscle you have, the faster your metabolism is, and therefore the more calories you burn at rest. That is some pretty solid logic in my mind. Every week when I went to the gym, I was able to up my weight on a couple of the machines. I thought I was making progress. Yet when I went to use that muscle, I didn't feel stronger. Pushing a heavy grocery cart didn't get easier, holding back my dogs on a walk never felt like less effort, and running never became any less miserable.

Fed up, I read The New Rules of Lifting for Women by Lou Schuler and Cassandra Forsythe. What's great about this book? It got me out of the deprivation mind set. Eat less, lose weight makes sense, but NRoLfW walks through how eating fewer calories slows down your metabolism in the long run. This was mind blowing to me. You mean I can eat if I'm hungry? Hallelujah! I am a girl that is always hungry. I don't do "dieting".

The other reason I think NRoLfW is such an excellent starter book is because it really made me comfortable with the weight room. I was always so nervous walking into the weight room surrounded by all these buff guys. I had no clue what kind of exercises I was even supposed to do with free weights. Another reason I has enjoyed the machines-they came with directions!

Through this book I figured out a basic weight lifting routine and a great starting point. This book has a bunch of great illustrations on different exercises, as well as a basic workout. I didn't follow the workout and can't attest to its effectiveness, but it certainly looks like a nice starting point and has adaptions for different fitness levels.

Interested? The book can be purchased through the offical website as well as through your app store, in most book stores, and ebay.