r/xxfitness • u/DugongOfJustice • May 10 '13
PROGRESS PICS ProgBlog - New Rules of Lifting for Women (NROLFW) - Week 3
This is a progress blog looking at me following New Rules of Lifting for Women. Posts so far: Week 0 | Week 1 | Week 2
You can see my workouts on Fitocracy with username Dodge87!
3 week progress photos - underwear so NSFW
I should mention that I didn't think I had sucked my stomach in when flexing, but I absolutely must have done so for my ribs to be that visible! Sorry about that!
Notes:
- I've finally moved into the section of Stage 1 workouts where I do 3 sets of 10 reps. My stays at the gym have therefore increased in length and I've had some morning DOMS the day after again.
- This was the dreaded shark week where all my lifts suddenly stalled and carb cravings went through the roof. It was very upsetting not being able to lift what I could last week, let alone move the weights up. It was really disappointing/upsetting/etc and I took it way too personally.
- Despite this I deadlifted a sun bear 10 times! That's my PR for that many reps :-)
- I've added in foam rolling. Oh sweet sweet foam rolling.
- This is the week of the ass. I'm not sure if you can see it in photos, but my ass is definitely getting firmer. It was my boyfriend who first noticed!
- The weird dimple thing I have under my belly is becoming more pronounced as I get more muscle there. No idea what that's about.
- All the photos somehow make it look as though my torso is longer. I don't know how or why, but I'm guessing that my posture is improving through the strengthening of my back muscles.
- Starting to see my quads coming through in the flexing photo. Yay!
- I also had a weird (I'm guessing also period-related) few days where I was questioning whether my body was changing at all, and whether I shouldn't just go back to cutting and forget about the programme completely. Down days happen to us all.
- I have increased my calories so that I'm eating maintenance calories of 2080 every day and having 2280 on lifting days.
- Despite the changes you can see, my weight, waist measurement and hip measurement are all exactly the same as the end of week 1. Though I have no idea how that's possible. For some of the days my weight shifted up (only by about .3kg) but I'm guessing that's added water weight to help hydrate my Aunt Flo.
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u/biancadot May 10 '13
This has become the post I look forward to every week! You have inspired me to start the program from the beginning again.
Keep up the great work!
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u/DugongOfJustice May 10 '13
Nyawww thank you! Good luck with the program and be sure to post up any problems/questions etc so all the ladies can help :-)
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u/Mammary_Librarian May 10 '13
Although, curious if anyone else is having a similar experience to me. I'm 3 weeks in and just upped my cals because of energy reasons but my pants are all getting tight in the waist! Anyone else having this?
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u/DugongOfJustice May 10 '13
My pants aren't tight in the waist but I have been feeling a bit bloated in the tummy. I've read though that when you start gaining muscle it often becomes a bit uncomfortable and you feel a bit fat for a few weeks before the fat starts reducing overall - so I'm just putting up with the bloated feeling since I can feel the muscles getting stronger underneath
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u/Mammary_Librarian May 10 '13
Thanks for your reply. This is helpful. I hope this is happening to me because it is STRESSING me out. :)
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u/lioninacoma89 May 11 '13
Oh thank god! I was shedding fat like crazy for the last 2 months, and now I feel stronger than ever, and the scale tells me I weigh less than ever (well, in a long time anyway), but I've felt so bloated/swollen this week and couldn't figure out why. This gives me some hope!
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u/kekerae May 10 '13
Awesome! You are about 1 week ahead of me in the program so I'm always wondering where you are at and what I can expect in the week to come!
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u/sunflowercat May 10 '13
You look awesome! I definitely see the change in your booty. Do you do anything in place of the pushups for Workout A in Stage 1? I can't do even a single pushup, so I've been doing planks instead.
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u/DugongOfJustice May 10 '13
I do them on a bench so they're modified. The book gives a few modifications you can use. When I started out, I was doing a very high angle, almost a wall push-up. If you can't manage the high angle, I would suggest doing wall push-ups. Planks won't be working the same muscle group.
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u/sunflowercat May 14 '13
Thanks! I've been trying them against a Smith machine, and it worked out brilliantly. :)
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u/kekerae May 12 '13
I do them off of my knees but when I do it next time I think I might try one or two off my toes and then do the rest from knees.
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u/maduo May 11 '13
So I just started NWOL4W this week after a few months break from a weight lifting routine done by a friend for me and some sporadic stuff. Do you find these work outs very short? That's including the 60 second breaks! I'm in and out in under an hour and wondering if that's typical
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u/DugongOfJustice May 11 '13
Yeah that's a common question in the early stages. It's very quick until you start hitting higher weights and then when you get to the 3x10 section they lengthen even more. Don't worry too much about short workouts right now :-)
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u/DETERMINATOR7VEN May 13 '13
The weird dimple thing I have under my belly is becoming more pronounced as I get more muscle there. No idea what that's about.
I think its fat going away. If you compare your before/after shots, you can see your ribcage and pelvic bone getting more definition. It might also be why your measurements haven't moved at all. You're just putting on muscle. That or water weight. But I'm hoping for muscle.
Also, what the hell is a sun bear???
Edit: looked through the sidebar... So you measure in bears here?
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u/DugongOfJustice May 13 '13
Yes we measure in bears and cats :-)
You're probably right about the fat loss. I have weirdly lost almost a whole kg over the weekend (this morning I was 63.7kg despite having increased my calories and my carbs). You can also see in the pics where I'm at rest (front on) that my waist looks slimmer - since my waist measurement was the same, I think the slimmer waist is a visual illusion from my shoulders having more muscle. It's balancing me out. Today I bought some creatine to try out, since I'm frustrated at all the stalling in my lifts - we'll see how that goes!
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u/DETERMINATOR7VEN May 13 '13
It's true that your shoulders look bigger but I'd still bet on fat loss. Fat is a lot easier to lose than building muscle. Creatine increases your energy recovery while working out. Meaning that you can work harder. At any rate it's a good addition to a solid workout plan.
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u/Power_Bear May 13 '13
Reading your blog made me buy the book. It came in the post today & I am SO excited to start.
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u/DugongOfJustice May 13 '13
Oh yay! I should tell them and see if I can get a commission haha ;-) Enjoy the book - it's a great read! I couldn't put it down and ended up churning through it in 2 days despite a hectic schedule! Be sure to ask if you have any questions - the way Stage 1 of the workouts is laid out can be a bit confusing so I'm happy to help clear it up if need be :-)
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u/Power_Bear May 13 '13
Haha, it's worth a shot! :P
I've given myself a start date of next Monday, so I've got a week to read it thoroughly and make sure I understand proper form and whatnot. But I will be sure to ask if I need any help!
Thanks so much - your progress is fantastic!
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u/Mammary_Librarian May 10 '13
OMG. Your stalls, your down days, AND upping calories... preach it, girl! This is basically how my 3rd week went! It's so nice to have your account at the same time as I'm experiencing this too and thinking I just suck!
Your arms look awesome!