Lindsay's Ramblings

Restlessness and impatience change nothing except our peace and joy. Peace does not dwell in outward things, but in the heart prepared to wait trustfully and quietly on Him who has all things safely in His hands. - Elisabeth Elliot

I am SO happy that my back and hip are feeling better, and my workouts are going great(withOUT my workout log)!  I am so glad I can deadlift again.  I actually went up to 155lbs for 6 reps with the trap bar today and felt good! The only thing that's still giving me some trouble is tightness in my QL(quadratus lamborum), which I learrned is another result of a weak gluteus medius. Lesson: don't neglect your abductors! I also got in some overhead squats  : And then finished my lower body workout with Farmer's walks with 50lb dumbbells: I love doing a few sets of Farmer's walks after a workout. They make you look cool, and the looks you get from the people doing crunches on the ab machine is quite amusing. I can only imagine what they're thinking-probably something like, "What is that crazy girl doing now?" So it's gonna be a HOT weekend with temps around 103 degrees all weekend. So I will probably be in the pool most of the week...

In the winter, I can do without ice cream-it's not something that I crave at all. But in the summer, I am all about it! It's just so refreshing and yummy! This is what I enjoyed over the weekend: Some of you may be confused as to why I post a lot of pictures of the "bad" foods that I eat in a "fitness" blog. Well, I actually do that for a reason. Most fitness bloggers post pictures of all the healthy foods they eat...so you can get that elsewhere. I am not one of those fitness people who act like they eat perfect ALL the time. Like I would NEVER have a slice of pizza, or EVER let a donut touch my lips, oh NO. Maybe some of them really do eat perfect, but honestly, it's kind of annoying to me. What I want others to see from my blog is that just because you strive to eat healthy does  NOT  mean that you can't  EVER  enjoy a treat! I think that a lot of times people don't want to make a change to start eating healthier because they think o...

When I first started this blog a few years ago, it was basically just an online "diary" for me to document my life and vent my thoughts and feelings(as you can see if you go back and read some of my first entries-it sounded kind of like my  high school journals!). Over time, my love of fitness began to show through as I started writing posts hoping to educate and motivate others to want to live a healthier lifestyle. I also began to share my passion for lifting weights and what it has done for me. My goal then became to spread the message about the power of weight training and to encourage women to get over their fear of the weights. I never ever thought that my blog would evolve into what it is now, and I am  SO thankful and so touched that my words have inspired others through what started as me just wanting to share my love of fitness! I was actually in the process of writing this post when I recieved this comment on Facebook: ...

I decided to skip the gym today in favor of a workout at home outside in my driveway! All I used was a homemade 20lb slammer ball and my own bodyweight. I did 4 rounds of: 10 slams, 10 pushups, 10 lunge jumps,  and then went rollerblading around the neighborhood. As much as I love the gym, sometimes it's just nice to get out of the gym and workout in the fresh air. No music, no clatter, just the sun shining and the sound of the birds chirping. :) Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Something I learned early is to not worry about what I can't control...But what I can control is my attitude, my effort, and my focus every single day."  -Tim Tebow

So it's now officially summer, and it sure feels like it! It is HOT, and I love it.  My little brother came over and floated with me for a little while today! It was good to see him, since I don't get to very often. He's still a brat, but he's not as bad as he used to be. ;) So I went to the grocery today to pick up a "few" things....and here's what I ended up with: Guess you can never have enough meat and produce! Oh, and look what I found!!! Okay, so I have this thing that I have to chew fruity gum when I'm working out. It can't be peppermint or spearmint-it HAS to be fruity. I think it makes me "EXTRA" strong(haha, get it?), kind of like my tall socks. ;) I know, I'm a dork. I'm obsessed with Extra's Dessert Delights gum. My husband actually stuffed my stocking full of all different flavors at Christmas! Then I saw a while back that they had come out with a new flavor-Sherbet(or "Sher bert " as...

Hope ya'll don't mind if I brag on my husband a little bit.  ;) Looking at him now, you would never know that in the last 5 years he's endured brain surgery, radiation treatments, 2 years of chemotherapy, and an accident that involved a torn knee tendon and a badly dislocated elbow. I've seen this man hobble to the gym on crutches and in a wheel chair to train even when he could only lift with one side. I've seen him when he could only lift 10lb dumbbells after his brain surgery. I've seen him lifting weights in bed while he was recovering from  injuries. He has never once let anything stop him. Not surgeries, not broken bones, and not cancer(praise God)! Now....what was your excuse again?

Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong.  Let all that you do be done with love. 1 Corinthians 16:13-14

I deadlifted Wednesday for the first time in months! It felt really good, no hip pain, although I was super sore the next day and still today in my hamstrings, lower back, and rhomboids. Oh, how I've missed that feeling! So I think I've decided that I'm going to switch things up. I've mentioned how I love being on a structured plan with my training-it's just how I am. I like to have something written out to follow, and I'm obsessive about logging everything that I do in the gym. I think most people would benefit from having a plan and tracking their workouts. I've been doing it religiously for the past few years, and have seen major progress and improvements in my physique.  With this back issue going on right now, however, I think it would be good for me to take a break from having a "plan" and just play it by ear for a little while! At least until my back is good. There's no use trying to follow a plan if I don't know how my back ...

It's so easy to get discouraged when you feel like the results you want just aren't coming fast enough. It's so easy to get discouraged when you think about how far you have to left to go towards achieving your goal. It's so easy to get discouraged on those days when you just don't seem to have the motivation you once had. Sometimes people get so caught up on just getting results as fast as possible that they forget to enjoy the process! I think one of the reasons I have had success is that I never really had an "end goal", as far as how I wanted to look, or getting to a certain weight or body fat percentage or anything like that. I wanted to build muscle, yes, but I never really even thought about how long it was going to take. I just truly enjoyed lifting weights. I loved going to the gym. I loved feeling and seeing my muscles work. I loved training hard and pushing myself with every rep. I loved getting stron...

As I've mentioned in previous blog posts, I am just like most women and am guilty of comparing my body to others. I look at pictures of fitness models, and they just look so perfect ...and I wish that I could look like that! Comparing yourself to others can sometimes be motivating by making you want to eat healthier and train harder, but then sometimes it can also be discouraging because it just causes you to focus on your flaws.   Instead of comparing yourself to others, compare yourself to YOURSELF! When I get discouraged or down about they way I look, it helps me to look back at old photos that remind me of how far I've come and how much progress I have made over the years. I may not look like the fitness models I compare myself to yet, but I have made some great improvements in my physique! Back in 2006, I was sooo skinny! And what's funny is that I actually thought I had muscle. On the days when I still feel like this scrawny little...

Most of us know that simple carbohydrates, such as white bread and white rice, starchy carbs, and sugar are bad for us and that they should not be included on a regular basis in a clean eating diet. However, there is an exception- post workout !  For us bodybuilders(I like calling myself that, but I'm really not really) and/or people who want to build muscle, it is important to get in a fast digesting protein and carbohydrate source within 30 minutes after strength training. The goal is to replenish muscle glycogen stores and to increase protein repar. According to John Berardi, Ph.D., "You need to consume enough carbohydrates to promote a substantial insulin release. Insulin is the hormone responsible for shuttling carbohydrates and amino acids into the muscle. In doing this, carbohydrate resynthesis is accelerated and protein balance becomes positive, leading to rapid repair of the muscle tissue. Therefore, by consuming a large amount of carbohydrates, you ...

Work hard and cheerfully at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Colossians 3:23

So there have been  a few pictures of me popping up around the internet on various websites....And of course, along with all of the good comments, there are going to be some negative ones. The latest picture of me posted to Pinterest is one where I'm flexing my bicep(my signature pose, ha!), and one commenter said that she thought I looked like a man!   Welp, that's the first time I've heard that one so far! Honestly, comments like that don't bother me at ALL ! I was telling my husband the other day that I actually take it as a compliment ! Huh? A compliment, you say?? Yup! I mean, of course I don't really want to look like a man, but the fact that I'm at the point where some people think that I'm "too muscular"  just shows me how much muscle I have gained. 5 years ago, I don't think anyone would've said something like that because I was a lot scrawnier! (And anyways, if she saw me in real life, she'd realize how tiny I really am...

Check out this awesome post by Jen Comas Keck about the different nutritional strategies people use to achieve a lean and strong physique:   http://www.jencomaskeck.com/2012/06/what-do-you-eat-peek-into-diets-of-some.html I love this because it goes to show that different things work for different people. There is no right or WRONG way to eat. The way that I eat may not give someone else the same results. You just have to find what works best for YOU ! On a side note, I love Jen's blog, and I am honored that I was included among this list of people! So cool. :)

Yay, it's Friday, so you know what that means for me! Soaking up the sun, grilling out, cruising in the Jeep, and my weekly weekend treat. :) Have I ever mentioned that I LOVE summer? I haven't? Oh-well, I LOVE SUMMER!!! My back has felt great this week, and that makes me happy! The massage or the chiro or both seem to have helped! Hopefully next week I can get back into my normal weight training routine instead of being so random, which I hate. And I can't wait to be able to deadlift again!  Today's workout was upper body. I did heavy bench presses and pullups, as well as some bodyweight dips and face pulls. Here's me getting in set of weighted pullups with 35lbs. I was able to get 4 reps, which(I think ) is a PR! I love pullups!

Here's my sporadic "what I ate Wednesday" post: 8:00 1/2 cup oats, 1 scoop Syntha-6, 1 tbsp natural peanut butter, coffee w/cream and Truvia 10:30 PWO-almond milk, 1 scoop Optimum Nutrition natural whey protein, 2 tbsps gatorade powder (vanilla protein+orange gatorade makes an orange creamsicle shake, and it is soooo yummy!) 12:00 Protein pancakes(made out of 1/2 cup cottage cheese, 1/2 cup oats, 2 egg whites) w/sugar free syrup, canteloupe 4:00 Chili made with lean beef and turkey mix, no salt added chili beans, diced tomatoes and tomato sauce, 12 almonds 8:00 2 fried eggs, ~3 oz chicken breast, 1 cup broccoli 10:00 2 tbsp natural peanut butter, protein shake **Approx. 2200 calories, 175g carbs, 82g fat, 200g protein, according to myfitnesspal.com**

I went to the chiropractor today, and it was really encouraging. I don't have an injury or anything major going on, just some muscle tightness and imbalances that can hopefully be fixed! I don't have any restrictions as far as working out, which is good to know!  The plan is to go the chiro once a week, foam roll, stretch, and strengthen my gluteus medius. It has been driving me crazy not knowing exactly what was wrong and what to do or not do, so now that I know I feel SO much better. Okay, soooo I need some new dinner ideas! I'm good with meals during the day, but I kind of hate my dinners because they're so boring...and because I'm a baby and hate eating my veggies!  I like to keep my dinners low carb-just protein, veggies, and some fat. Usually it's leftover chicken with broccoli, a lean beef patty with broccoli, or taco seasoned turkey breast with...yup, you guessed it! Broccoli! There are not many vegetables that I like, but ...

"If anyone wants to come with me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me." -Luke 9:23

I'm feeling much better today! It is absolutely gorgeous outside, and I just finished a great workout of snatches, squats, and a conditioning circuit. It felt good doing squats, even if I can't go as heavy. So far, my back is feeling good today! Today's workout outfit: I'm tellin' ya, there's something about knee socks that just make me more pumped to workout! I used to be self-conscious about wearing them to the gym, but now I could care less about what other people think of me. Getting in a workout is always the best way to start the day, and something about seeing the sun shining as soon as I open my eyes in the morning just makes me happy! :)  Later today we're going to watch The Hunger Games movie and then out to eat at one of our favorite restaurants. Have a great weekend everyone!

My husband is watching wrestling for the third time this week, which I have NO interest in right now....therefore, I am writing my second blog post of the day.... Well, today was kind of a crappy day. I was in a bad mood, emotional, and it was 60 degrees and dreary out, which didn't help. 60 degrees on the first day of JUNE!? I know it's partly because it's almost that time of month...but what set it off was my back. I had a massage Thursday evening, and it was great , it felt amazing....But I was hoping that it would give me some relief. It didn't. I woke up yesterday still in pain. I woke up fine, not in a bad mood at all, until I started doing some house cleaning.  My back was just hurting the whole time, and it was just so frustrating that I broke down. I have never had back pain like this before that is constant and never goes away. It's been like this for a few weeks now. I know something is not right, so I'm going to the chiropractor next week. May...