Lindsay's Ramblings

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Sometimes I hate posting blogs like the one I posted yesterday....   I don’t want to come off like an insecure person with body issues!   Really, it is almost always around that “time of the month” that I get feeling like that. Most of the time I really do look in the mirror at what I have created-my shoulders, my back, my quads, my booty(yes, I’m getting one!)-and think I look pretty dang good! ;)   I just want to make sure that I don’t always share only the good things with you all-the happy, confident, positive side of me, and make it seem like I never have bad days, or feelings of insecurity, or issues with my body. Even when you achieve your goal look or weight, you will still have insecurities! So  I will always share the good along with the bad(but mostly the good!). :) So after yesterday’s negative post, here are some things I can share on a more positive note! Wednesday I tested my 3 rep max on squats and deadlifts, and as promised, here are the ...

Every few months or so I get this urge to take progress pictures. I tell myself that the reason I do it is to track my progress along the way and to have pictures to look back on, to see how my body has changed. And yes, that’s part of the reason, but another reason I probably do it is just to make sure that I’m staying in the shape that I want(as in.... not getting fat!). So I took some of those progress pictures yesterday…and was not too happy with what I saw this time. As I've blogged about before, I struggle with the desire to be perfect, mostly when it comes to my physique. I have worked my butt off and spent countless hours at the gym creating the body that I have now, and I am proud of it. I love being lean and I love all the muscles that I have created… but...there are still those little flaws that bug me. Yes, they're there. For the most part I really do love my body, but I *DO* have flaws and insecurities just like everyone else. After getting a little down on m...

"We’re wired for worship. More specifically, we’re wired to worship the God who created us. When we choose not to worship God, by default, we worship a cheap substitute. We are looking to someone or something to do for us what only God can truly do for us. The Bible calls this idolatry."   –Kyle Idleman

And...it's Monday again-everyone's favorite day of the week! ;) Actually, this week I didn't dread Monday at all, only because I was looking forward to my workout! This week I get to test my 3 rep maxes on push presses, bench press, squats and deadlifts. Today was upper body strength and power day. I was able to get 120lb s for 3 reps on both push presses and close grip bench press, which I was happy with. I definitely feel that I have gotten stronger on this program, which is mostly what I'm focusing on right now. When this program is over I'm going to do a more hypertrophy focused phase for a couple of months just to change things up a little. Well, this morning, I woke up looking forward to my usual protein oats for breakfast....only to find that we were OUT of oats ! So... after going into freakout mode for about 10 seconds wondering what in the heck I was going to eat, I finally decided on just having a protein shake and toast with peanut butter. Which t...

Don't be extreme in your diet;  don't call it a diet . Don't believe that all you can eat is chicken. Don't do 2 hours of cardio a day. Don't remove yourself from your social circle because of your goal.  Don't compare yourself . Don't dissect yourself in the mirror. Don't sell yourself short. Don't worry about small obstacles or bends in the road. Don't be afraid of food (especially carbs) . Don't beat yourself up over a cheat meal. Don't listen to the naysayer. Don't quit.  Don't give up.   Don't stop believing in who you are and who you want to be." -Brooke Erickson

~Sooo...I think I'm getting the CrossFit itch again! NOT to go back to it completely, but just back to my once a week. I miss it! ~I have a new exercise that I'm loving on my program right now: 1 arm dumbbell chest presses. I don't know WHY I've never done these before! Not only are they great for the pec, front delt, and tricep, but they also give you a great ab workout at the same time! Try them! (FYI:You will probably want to start out a little lighter with the weight than you would on a 2 arm chest press.) ~Just my two cents on protein shakes, for what it's worth: they are absolutely not necessary for fat loss OR muscle building...but ya know what?  I just plain like them! In my oats in the morning, in a smoothie after a workout, or as a microwave "brownie"-yummy! Of course, real foods are always best, but I see nothing wrong with using protein shakes as snacks between meals or just for convenience when you're on the go! Plus, they satisfy...

Spring! It's finally here!!! Only...it doesn't feel like it. This has been the longest and coldest winter EVERRR it seems like. But without the cold, dreary winter I guess we wouldn't appreciate Spring nearly as much! I just keep telling myself it will come! It can only go up from here, right??  I just love everything about this time of the year-longer days, more sunshine, warmer weather, flip flops, flowers blooming....everything just comes to life! Plus, it means SUMMER is right around the corner!! :) Spring is a also great time for new beginnings; a great time to get refocused and motivated towards your fitness goals. So maybe you've been slacking or even quit on your new year's resolutions...it's okay-no better time to start back than now ! It's almost shorts and tank top weather....don't you want to be able to show off all your hard work with some toned quads and nice arms? With the warmer weather you'll be able to get ou...

"Do the right things consistently enough and long enough and your fat loss (and subsequently bodyweight) will take care of itself over time. Stop fretting over the minutia of little bodyweight fluctuations and focus on the bigger picture. Don't think about it, enjoy the process and wait for your body to be revealed." (Lean Bodies Consulting)

To celebrate our 7 year anniversary, my husband and I rented a cabin for a weekend getaway to the Smoky Mountains. We had a great time, and we couldn't have asked for better weather-70 and sunny every day. I only wish we could've stayed longer! Our cabin was so cute! And the view was amazing. Can't get much better than this! One of my favorite parts of the trip was drinking my coffee out on the deck in the mornings. And evenings just relaxing on the deck....   The hot tub was SO nice! Perfect weather for it. Saturday we hiked up to Grotto Falls It was so cool that you could walk behind the falls.  What we thought would be a 3 mile round trip ended up being almost 5 miles one way! I don't think I've ever walked that much in my life. But it was worth it! We stopped at some pretty scenic over looks on the way back... And of course I had to get a handstand pic-duh! :)  Saturday evening we got dressed up t...

Maybe I’m just not the typical girl, but I never had the dream of the big wedding in a church, with the   fancy dress and all that stuff.   My dream was to find a man who would be my best friend, treat me right, make me laugh, uplift and support me,  and most importantly , love God with all his heart.   So when I found the man who had all of those things, the man that I had been praying for for so many years, all that mattered to me was spending the rest of my life with him--not finding the perfect dress, the right DJ, or the best tasting cake!   7 years ago today, I gave my heart to the man of my dreams....  on a secluded beach...  in my bikini... with my bare feet in the sand.... the sun setting over the ocean behind us… and I wouldn’t have had it any other way.

Women often say to me, "I love your arms! I want my arms to look just like yours!" Of course, I'm flattered when I hear this. Always makes you feel good to know that your hard work shows.  :) I wish I could tell them it's easy; that they could just do a bunch of dumbbell curls and tricep kickbacks with 5 pound weights for a few months and get "toned" arms. But in reality, for me at least, it's taken years of heavy lifting to get my arms to look the way they do, and I'm still working on them!   So, what I'd like to tell them is this: you CAN get arms like mine, but are you are willing to... Get up and go to the gym to train, even on the days you don't feel like it? Give each workout session 100% and not just go through the motions? Make your workouts a priority and not just something you do when you “find time”? Toss the pink Barbie weights and lift HEAVY-heavy enough that you have to strain and make u...

  " Why are women afraid of building muscle? I believe it's lack of knowledge about what keeps a body young. Without a lot of lean muscle, sooner or later your skin and fat will start to sag and hang and drag. Without lean muscle you will still fit into your skinny jeans perhaps but when you take them off it will not be a firm pair of legs and glutes that show up that's for sure. Lean muscle is not a man-thing. All animals including human beings have it. The difference between men and women is the amount of body fat we naturally carry. A woman who works out lifting weights will become toned and firm. You'll become curvier in the right areas when you train the right way. You will never turn into a hulk." -Pauline Nordin  Although I think she-hulk is pretty hot! ;)  

Well, guess what I woke up to this morning? Snow! What a wonderful treat. NOT. This is definitely not what I want to see what I look out my window in MARCH! It is time for some warm weather already. Or at least some sunshine, geez. I'm SO over winter! Okay, rant over. I feel better now. ;) On the bright side, it's going to be almost 60 degrees this weekend! So anyways... I am now on the 3rd month of my training program, and I'm still really enjoying it. This month a few of the exercises are different and the reps have been lowered to 3 on the big lifts with more sets, but everything else is pretty much the same. Of course, I'm loving the low reps and was really sore from Monday's upper body workout, which I LOVE! :) The only thing I feel that is missing on this program for women especially is glute isolation exercises, which I've come to learn are very important. There is also no isolated calf trai...

  Growing strong in body is all right but growing in God-like living is more important. It will not only help you in this life now but in the next life also.  -1 Timothy 4:8   I was walking my dog the other day, which is the time I use to pray and reflect and often a time when God speaks to me and lays things on my heart. Well, after one of my walks, these thoughts came into my head and then I wrote them in my prayer journal: It's okay to want to be healthy and care about your appearance, but it's not okay to become obsessed with it. It's not okay for it to consume your thoughts or your time. It's not okay when it disturbs your peaces and causes anxiety. It's not okay when it becomes your main priority. Forgive me, Lord. Then as I was in the process of writing this post, the above scripture was in my daily devotional, along with this commentary: "Millions of dollars and hours of effort are spent on diet and exercise programs every year. Leading a he...

“Give me all of you!!! I don’t want so much of your time, so much of your talents and money, and so much of your work. I want YOU!!! ALL OF YOU!! I have not come to torment or frustrate the natural man or woman, but to KILL IT! No half measures will do. I don’t want to only prune a branch here and a branch there; rather I want the whole tree out! Hand it over to me, the whole outfit, all of your desires, all of your wants and wishes and dreams. Turn them ALL over to me, give yourself to me and I will make of you a new self---in my image. Give me yourself and in exchange I will give you Myself. My will, shall become your will. My heart, shall become your heart.” -C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

1. It's almost summer. That is all. 2. New Favorite snack: protein cake "thingy": WHY have I never done this before? I know, it looks weird(kind of like a biscuit!), but it tastes good, I swear. Something different than just drinking a shake, at least. I make it different ways, but my favorite is using Dymatize Elite Gourmet chocolate peanut butter, 2 tbsp almond milk, 3 tbsp egg whites, 1 tbsp peanut butter, and a 1/2 tsp of baking powder. Mix and microwave for about 45 seconds. Top with peanut butter. I usually have it as my bedtime snack. 3. My 4 Rep max results for this week's lifts: Push Press : 115lbs Close grip bench: 115lbs Squat: 190lbs  Deadlift: 205 I reached my goals on everything, so I'm happy. I think the handful of peanut butter m&ms I had right before the gym helped me on leg day. ;) I was mad that I forgot my camera to get a video of my squats and deads! For one, to check my form, and for another...so that no one c...