Hi Everyone,

Well here we are again. How was your BFL week? It seemed like it was a little slow on the Forum here. I assume that was because we were all too busy in the gym to be spending our time here typing. So pry your fingers off that dumbbell and tell us how your week was!
_____________________________________________

I had a pretty good week. But the big event of my week came on Wednesday. I was lying on the bed taking a little rest at around noon when Trish came home from her LBW. She looked like she was going to fall over. She walked over to the bed like a zombie and flopped down with a groan. The she explained to me that she had completed all three sets of the Abb Boot Camp for the first time. Well, I'll tell ya that threw instant fear into me, because I knew there is no way that I'm going to be outdone, so that meant I too had to complete all three sets when I went to the gym later that day.
So I psyched my self up for it and went for it. I made it all the way through, but I must admit that the third set was not a pretty sight. It's two days later and my abbs are still hurting. I love it!

Hope you had a good week too,
Arnie

I only missed todays workout. I plan to do my Lowerbody tomarrow. I did slack off alittle on yesterdays cardio. I had a sick child and I got less then an hours worth of sleep the night before. I went 20 mins at different resistant levels, but didn't go as fast or make the distance I normally do.

I've been doing the ab bootcamp. I usually only have time for one or two cercuits, but I definetly feel it now that I'm doing it at the gym on an incline.

I thought the soreness and burn came from higher carbs. I've been at induction level carbs, barely making 15 net many days. I was sore as all heck after workouts though, and my lower body work on Monday burned like never before.

I didn't check in last week but still haven't missed a day! I forgot to set my alarm on monday and missed working out in the morning so went after work at 5 to get in my UBW. Well, let me just tell you.. don't go to the gym at 5pm. Every single bench was taken so I did cardio monday and UBW tuesday. At least I didn't just go home!
It seems like by the weekend I am just generally hungry and anticipating my free day so it's hard to eat right. I had a little chocolate candy and almond butter yesterday and probably more carbs at dinner than I should have. I also didn't break it up into 6 meals, rather 4 larger ones.

I feel like I take advantage on my free day. Last week we had donuts, Baskin robbins ice cream cake, granola, candy, and a sizable breakfast (including pancakes, chicken-fried steak and a biscuit), clam chowder and tuna melts, asian pears an peanut butter. Really, really bad eating. But by monday I hardly eat anything because I'm still full from sunday and I don't feel like eating sweets at all. So maybe it's all good.
Do you guys go nuts like me Sundays, or do you keep eating healthy?

This Sunday I'm hoping we can finish off that baskin robbins cake. :P

Sunday I basicaly just eat Atkins style low carb, I just don't worry as much about breaking it into 6 meals.

Off topic, but my gym got new weights They are really cool. The plates are coated in a rubber like substance and plates above 10 lbs have easy carrying handles. Sorry just something that amused me today and I had to share.

I did my LBWO that I missed yesterday. I had planned on just switchign the day anyway. Along with my typical lower body work I've been adding in some hip abductors and erm the other one (one you seperate legs and the other you squeeze them together). I'm hoping to reduce the annoying bulge on inner thighs and get more glut work in.

I've noticed some of my trouble spots look more like saggy skin then fat. I've started skin brushing, though if anyone knows proper tecnique I would appriciate learning it. I've also started oil massage at night, hoping to improve circulation and tone skin. It also helps redice cellulite from my understanding.

That's another brag I can do this week. I was looking in the mirror sulking at some bulges when it dawned on me, no more cottage cheese While I still have ecess weight, fat pockets and problem areas, I no longer have sever cellulite on the backs of my legs and but

Hi all!
My week was pretty good; however, i only got 4 work outs in so far. I went to the gym yesterday and changed into my workout clothes then realized I'd forgotten my tennis shoes! So, I changed clothes again and drove home. I was disappointed cause I was really looking forward to doing my work out. I'll hit all five next week.....

Other than that nothing else to report. I've lost about 1 pound of fat and have gained 1.5 pounds of muscle (according to my Tanita scale.) However, I'm having trouble fitting into all of my pants, I don't know what's going on with that. I'm really trying to avoid the whole, "I want results NOW!" mentality....kinda hard.

T

Hi BFLers!

I always look forward to this weekly post. Arnie, it's great that you have a partner for BFL! I wish DH would join me. After reading your post yesterday, I thought "I'm going to do 3 circuits today". Well, I was geared up to do it, but ran out of steam. I'm still at 2 circuits. The leg raise still kills me. to you and your wife for doing 3 circuits.

Ladybelle, congrats on the loss of cellulite. I think I'd be happy at my current stats if I could just get rid of the cellulite on my thighs. It drives me nuts. I saw mention of skin brushing on this site. I'll have to revisit that thread.

Nitro, I never did the all out "free day" b/c it's enough of a challenge losing this weight. If we have something to go to, I'll have a "free meal" instead, but even they have been very scarce. The binger in me fears the "free day" concept. BTW, great job on sticking to your goals.

Titania, that really sucks about forgetting your tennis shoes. As for the "instant results", don't sweat it too much. It's taken me 10 weeks before I started to see results. I'd been so discouraged, but luckily I had BFL buddies that got me through that phase. If you can, focus on how strong you feel and make other workout-related goals for yourself. Ignore the scale and pants for awhile. Trust me, you'll see results if you put in the effort.
_____________________

Well, I've just finished week 10 (still haven't missed a workout) and I'm finally starting to notice some changes. I don't know if it was a reduction in my carbs or BFL theory kicking in, but I'm slowly losing some weight on the scale. Better yet, when I plugged in my numbers on mybodycomposition.com, it shows that I've lost 6 lbs of fat in 10 weeks, but gained 3 lbs of muscle (for a net scale loss of 3 lbs overall). My BF is also down 4% since starting.

What I found interesting is that my upper body measurements have increased while my lower body measurements have decreased. For a pear shape, this can only be good news b/c it means I am becoming more proportional. I never thought I'd be able to sculpt my body like this. The site mentions that muscle indicators are the forearm, bicep, calf and shoulder measurements while fat indicators are the abs and hips. Before starting, my "muscle indicator" measurements were below normal, now they are pretty much normal.

I'm also fitting into my clothes better (did the pant tests today) and in the last week, I've been feeling better about my body when I look in the mirror. I'm going to take pictures tomorrow as well, just to complete the documentation before my final round at the end of C1.

Wanda

Arnie! ROFLMAO I could just imagine you - and the fear! LOL Good for you you did it!

Hi Guys,

I had to take a couple days off to rest this week b/c my cold finally caught up with me. I felt bad missing 2 days in a row...so I know exercise has become part of ym life now thanks to this! So far I've made it in 4 days this week. I set my goal to make it in 5 days. Tomorrow is going to be tough, but I'm determined to hit my goal. I'm enjoying my new program...it's revitalized me.

I hit a yoga class after my HIIT today. Ugh. I do yoga stretching evey day still, but the class was harder than I thought it'd be even though it was hatha instead on my usual asthanga (same teacher though). Yoga was a huge challenge from being pooped out from cardio, not having done it for a while and from being sore from Thursday's UB workout. I need to start getting up and doing my tape a couple mornings a week again since it's really tough to find time to go to class and do all my other workouts. I felt awesome afterwards though.

Nitro, I heard Lillygirl describe her free days once and she ate like there was no tomorrow and still got great results on her challenge. I usually end up feeling extremely gross and guilty if I eat more than one free meal so I try not to go overboard. You just need to experiment and see what feels right and what works for you.

Good job everybody!!

--Cindy

LadyBelle, you amaze me! An hours sleep because of a sick child and you still get out there and do it. Good for you.

Nitrovixen, I do the pretty much the same thing as LadyBelle for free day. I'm on Atkin's too, so I still stick to Atkin's on my free day and just ignore the 6 meals a day. I also treat myseld to some kind of Atkin's legal treat, like a bag of Pork Rinds or some beef jerky, or something like that.

Titania, Like Wanda said, hang in there and you will see more results. But I know what you mean about wanting to see the results now.

Wanda, Yup, those leg raises are the killer. On my third set, I must admit my legs were not very straight and the motion was more like a quick bump up, flop down motion. But I figure if I keep doing it I'll eventually get strong enough to do it with correct form.
And way to go on ten weeks without missing a workout!
It sounds like you are getting excellent results.

Everyone, I was reading an interview with Bill Phillips on the internet and he claimed that the success rate for BFL is fairly low. I forget the percentage he gave but it was pretty low. The reason he gave for this is that most people don't complete the 12 weeks. That is why he spent so much of the book on motivational stuff.

So I owe all of you a big thank you, because you help me so much with staying motivated.

Arnie

Wha?? That all sounds like normal everyday atkins food. And are you sure pork rinds are really a treat? ugh..

you guys that skip your free day are awe-inspiring! I don't think I could do without it now that I've been there/done that.

Cindy, that's great to know that someone else out there goes nutso on their free day and still got results. I can feel my musles forming but my scale is going up slightly and my clothes don't seem to be getting much looser. Although I feel like fat is disappearing in places and my body is tightening up. Maybe it's all in my mind..

did you all take before photos? Week 3 is over and I still haven't gotten around to it. Probably too late now.

keep it up everyone!

You may find this hard to believe, but "piggy puffs" have been a favorite treat of mine since childhood. I've always loved them (Old Dutch Brand). I just can't get enough of them. I've had to restrict myself to only Sundays because I was eating a bag or two every day. And although they are Atkin's legal they are very high calorie and I doubt that the good Dr. A would have wanted me eating a bag of them every day and Bill Phillips would probably think I'm completely nuts.

Arnie

Hi Nitro:


Definately NOT too late. Get those photos done or you'll regret it. I'll have taken 5 sets of pictures by the time I finish C1. When the scale and measurements weren't noticeably moving, I took pictures to help me psychologically. I could SEE muscle whereas the scale and the measuring couldn't. Just my experience for what it's worth.

Wanda