ups and downs...

why do you have to have a -3500 calorie deficit in order to lose a single pound, yet it seems like a mere +300 calorie excess will result in a pound gained!  somehow i managed to gain several pounds, yet i have a hard time believing that i have consumed an additional 10,000+ calories over the past two weeks.  so how does that work?  i’m chalking it up to mostly water weight.  no, i’m not in denial that i have had some days of extra calories, but not quite that many calories.  so some is real, some just has to be water.  it’s the only thing that makes sense to me.

i am changing my routine a bit.  my poor little stepper is worn out.  it has broken twice now.  my husband was able to fix the first break by welding a “patch” onto the front, but this second break is a little more complex.  he says he can fix it, but it’s still broken.   this past weekend, i got an elliptical.  my cousin was moving and couldn’t take it with her, so i got it for a price that fit my budget.  so, i have changed it up a bit and have started using the elliptical.  i have only done two full workouts on it so far, but they sure are more intense workouts than i was getting from my little stepper.  i can exercise at a level that keeps my heart rate consistenly higher, so i know i’m in the range to get full cardio benefit from it.  that is good.

yesterday’s session with brent was also a bit of a change up.  as he put it, this is the second phase.  i’m not entirely sure what that will entail, but i just go along with whatever he says.  the majority was more of the same - leg extensions, adduction, abduction, leg press, chest press, chest flys, lat pull down, row, biceps.  skipped the shoulder press and triceps but instead did dumbbell press on a ball and a chest pulldown (i think that’s what he called it).  the dumbbell press was hard.  20lb weights in each hand, at the end of the session, balancing on a ball.  i was all kinds of wobbly, but i did it.  then the chest pulldown, which was easier than i expected.  but i’m sure that will change, as brent will undoubtedly increase the weight next time so that it pushes me harder. 

i think i did pretty well yesterday.  i always gauge my workout by how i feel about it and how i feel the next day or two, as i really don’t know enough about weight training to know if a certain weight or time is average, good or poor.  so, yesterday, i pushed pretty hard.  there were two times (i think) when brent was ready to start counting down from 10, and i knew i could keep going so i did.  another day, i may have just kept pushing but not really given it 100% at trying for another full rep.  and the leg press was going pretty well for me for some reason.  i always think that my cardio is going to give me a little setback for the leg machines (since my legs haven’t had enough time to fully rest, or so i think), but that doesn’t seem to happen. 

i totally adore brent.  i really do.  he’s such a good person.  i’m totally at ease with him, he makes me laugh, and i feel like he is genuinely interested in my well-being (not just getting thru the session so he gets paid).  i think that’s what makes him so good at what he does and makes me want to try just that much harder during my sessions.  you believe in me, and i want to prove you right.  that kind of thing.  i can’t imagine people working with a trainer who isn’t as amazing as brent – how do you get thru the session, let alone want to come back for more?  i’m so thankful that i have someone who is pushing me to be a better me!

ok, so i don’t have any measurements for this week.  i know my weight is up to 158, but that’s it.  i let my mom borrow my tape measure, but then i didn’t ask for it back to take my measurements this week.  knowing that my weight is up, i just wasn’t all that motivated to take measurements anyway.

oh, and mom had her consult with brent last week.  she was a little sore, but i kept telling her “you just wait”, as she really hasn’t seen anything yet.  i hope she does well with it.  i hope she pushes herself.  i hope she doesn’t drive whine about being sore after this week’s real session.  only time will tell…