Strength training tips and more snow!

This has been a crazy week.  Thank goodness it is Friday!  Thanks to all of the people who have stopped by from the yahoo/Woman’s Day! I should thank my blog host as well for handling all that traffic without a single hiccup! I am a wee bit behind in some emails and such due to the influx, so if I haven’t answered by the end of the weekend, please feel free to email again.

Yay – more snow! There were several inches, but I decided to go ahead to the gym. First, I fueled up with a protein drink.

Still dark in the mornings, but spring is coming – I know it is!

Strike a pose for a winter workout everyone!

Not really sure why I took that, but there you go.

I ran for a mile on the treadmill, then did a compact workout:

Exercise Set/rep/weight Muscle worked
Dumbbell Pull Over 3 set of 10 at 25# Back
Stiff-legged dead lift 3 sets of 10 at 75# Lower body
Barbell Bench Press 3 sets of 10 at 55# Chest
Captain’s Chair 3 sets of 10 Core
Calf Raise 3 sets of 10 at 140# Calves
Military Press 3 set of 12 with 12# DBs (24# total) Shoulders
Pliet Squats 3 sets of 10 with 40# DB Lower Body

Mostly compound moves today to move through fast. Then I got on the treadmill and ran for 2 more miles. I was nice and sweaty and ready for some breakfast! I did peanut flour again, only this time I added it directly to the cooking water with the oats and a mashed banana. It smelled so good while cooking!

Topped with some chocolate buzz honey. I am a little surprised at how subtle the peanut flavor is because the smell is so strong. I used 1/2 a serving of peanut flour and a little extra cooking water because the peanut flour absorbed some. With the egg whites whisked in, this bowl of oats packs in 20 grams of protein! 

Speaking of lifting.  Here is a little bit of information on how to compose a strength workout.

First, you need to decide 2 things:  What are your goals and how much time do you want to commit?  Be totally honest with this.

Unless you are going for a competition of some sort, just a good general strength conditioning program is really all you need.  You don’t need to spend hours just lifting weights (unless you really want to).

One thing that I have learned, particularly from the New Rules of Lifting book, is that you can maximize your time in the gym with combination exercises.  This means that you are working multiple groups of muscles at the same time (the squat) versus isolation exercises (biceps curls).  There isn’t anything wrong with isolation exercises, but if you have limited time at the gym (like most of us), you want to get the most out of your time there.

A good standard conditioning program is to  basically perform full body workouts 2 to 3 times a week hitting all the major muscle groups  with a day of rest in between.

Or if you really love lifting, you can do it every day as long as you just work one body part/section each day and rest it in between (do take rest days).  For example, do chest/core and back on Monday, legs on Tuesday, arms and shoulders on Wed.  That way you can ensure that you are properly resting your muscles between workouts.   That kind of routine also works well if you have just a little bit of time each day rather than a block of time.

Also, I like  start with the exercises that use the large muscles groups first and work your way down to the smaller muscles.  For example, when doing legs, start with leg presses or squats, then move to doing quadriceps, hamstrings, and then calves.   That will allow you to have the strength to get the most out of the power moves.  Some people do the reverse, but I would start this way at first.

Next week, I will talk a little more about how to choose exercises.  From a nontrainer point of view, that is :mrgreen:

Phew – all that lifting talk made me hungry!  Lunchtime involved some of that awesome bread I made yesterday.  It is a touch fragile, or maybe my slice was too thin.  I made a BBQ chicken sammie with laughing cow.  Very good.

That pear was not as good as the one I had yesterday.  Striking out on the fruit the last few times.

Work was fairly busy today.  Most of the docs are back from whatever it is that they do in January when not on their boats.  It was a little hard to do when Pixie insisted on laying on my arm.

She is such a lover, though.  It’s hard to push her away without major guilt feelings.

<insert latte here>

I went outside this afternoon.  It actually was sunny and nice once the snow stopped.  Our bobsled run is taking shape:

Remember this?

Sigh…

I know Buddha is under there somewhere.  He is now a buddhacicle.

I did get seeds in the mail today, though.

If I keep thinking spring hard enough, it will come!

This cold made me crave something hot for dinner.  Buffalo shrimp time!  Baked in the toaster oven with lots of hot sauce:

I roasted the brussels while cooking the shrimp, too.  Yum!  I think roasting is my favorite way to prepare veggies.

I have a wee bit of work to do tonight, then I have a date with a couple dark mint cups and some movie watching!

Question:  Do you prefer raw or cooked veggies?

28 thoughts on “Strength training tips and more snow!”

  2. Kim Zepp

    You have a Buddhacicle – ha! That’s funny.

    I do the same with my lifting – first the large muscle groups and end with the small specific ones.

    Maybe some day I will try brussels. My mom never made them when I was a kid, and now all I think about are silly jokes about people having to eat their brussel sprouts as kids. They just don’t sound appealing. One of these days I may have to buy a couple and try them.
    .-= Kim Zepp´s last blog ..More set-backs =-.

    1. Lori Post author

      Definitely try roasting brussel sprouts! Alton Brown also has a great recipes with nuts, dried cranberries, and shredded brussels.

  3. Darla

    The food looks yummy and Pixie (awww, so cute). Just wanted to let you know that I am reading your blog, Lori. I don’t always have time to leave a comment, but I am enjoying what you are sharing with us. Thanks.
    .-= Darla´s last blog ..McDonalds =-.

  4. Kelly

    Love strength training tips because it’s an area I feel completely ignorant about. I have the “New Rules” book but some of the equipment is intimidating to me. I’m so afraid of doing something wrong in the gym. I like things I can do at home with dumbbells, etc. Trying to break out of that fear zone.

    YAY for seeds. Are you ready for spring or what?!
    .-= Kelly´s last blog ..The Friday Quickie =-.

  6. Cilla

    After a bit of trial and error and skating the learning curve on strength training, I’ve also gone for a full body conditioning workout a few times a week. I’m waiting for New Rules to land in my postbox and am looking forward to some new exercises to try. I have to concentrate on mixing it up from workout to workout because I tend to revert to my favourites if I’m not careful.

    Depends on what type of veggies. For things like beans, broccoli and carrots, I prefer a 2 minute nuke so that they’re warm but still crunchy.
    .-= Cilla´s last blog ..Salt of the Earth =-.

  7. debby

    I’m a full body every other day (or as often as I can get there but never two days in a row) weights workout girl.

    And I totally preferr my veggies cooked. But I like salads pretty good too. The way I like salads is pretty pricey as far as calories go, though. That’s why I like to get more veggies in cooked.
    .-= debby´s last blog ..Calories =-.

  9. Karen Ogle

    I am interested in suggestions you might have for a beginner. I don’t have a gym membership but I have a treadmill and I have some hand weight up to 5 pounds. and I have some weighted balls and some Pilates balls and resistance bands. Right now I’m just emulating some of the stretches and core strengthening exercises I used in PT when I had a back injury and I’m walking on the treadmill when I can. Right now thought I am nursing a broken toe so can’t do much walking. I’m open to suggestions for light hand weights workouts to get me started. I’ve lost a lot of weight but I’ve lost a lot of muscle mass too and I would like to regain it. Any help would be appreciated.
    .-= Karen Ogle´s last blog ..Bring Your Own Crazy- Fridays With Drazil =-.

    1. Lori Post author

      There are a ton of strength training moves that you can do with no weights, so maybe I can touch on those or get some other opinions on this as well.

  10. Fran

    I like them both: raw and cooked, depends a bit on the meal.

    Thanks for the training tips, very good ones, going to remind them.

    Again: boy am I glad we don’t have snow anymore. I don’t envy you 🙂

  11. Jody - Fit at 53

    Pixie is sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo cute! Man, glad I don’t live in the snow anymore! I hate the crowds here but I don’t want snow either! 😉

    You know me Lori, I love my weights but I agree with your basics for a program. One thing I would add as a person gets more advanced is to take stock of the body parts that respond better or your goals for them. I know people do say work larger body parts first but for me, as I got more advanced, I started working the body parts that responded least first so I would have more energy for them. For example, my back responds super easy so I now work that last cause I get big fats there…. as you said, it all depends on your goals. I love the combo exercises too but sometimes one body part I am working, I want to have heavier weights & doing a combo may not let me do that cause the other body part is weaker…. again, all in what your goals are. Hope you don’t mind me adding my weights craziness! 🙂

    Great post!
    .-= Jody – Fit at 53´s last blog ..Saturday Funnies – Winter Edition =-.

    1. Lori Post author

      That’s why I never work my biceps anymore. They really take well to training, so I only need the compound moves. My calves are the opposite and need to be isolated.

  12. Kimberley

    Spring can never come soon enough.

    I prefer my vegetables cooked, roasted Brussels sprouts, cauliflower and tomatoes, steamed broccoli, cabbage or green beans, zucchini cooked in olive oil and garlic..yum!

    I do like some raw though…cucumbers, tomatoes, green beans (love these raw with hummus), and celery.
    .-= Kimberley´s last blog ..Hello! =-.

  15. joanne

    I go back and forth with my weight lifting goals. One month I want to build muscle the next month I’m doing higher reps for endurance. .

    Spring WILL come. We will see the END of snow…it just HAS to happen. I’ll be so happy when I visit your blog and you tell us about planting those seeds that you’re getting in the mail. Then I know the better weather is on its way 🙂
    .-= joanne´s last blog ..Trains- Tunes and “Bakery on Main” =-.

    1. Lori Post author

      For seeds, I bought flowering tobacco, alyssum, and 4 o’clocks.

      I figure if I start them inside, it will force spring to come 😀

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