Bodybuilding Transformation Challenge Weeks 2&3 of 12

These last two weeks have been pretty telling about how things will be going during this cut. I've been a lot better about hitting my macros, meal prepping, and getting into the gym. I've gotten over my cold, and since then it's been much easier to manage my energy throughout the days and weeks. I know that as long as my breakfasts and lunches are prepared for the day, I'm golden.

My workouts have been a little more sketch. My back pain comes and goes, so I have my good days and bad days. I don't want to assume that I know what aggravates it, but I do know that my pain was almost gone until I did a 40 minute morning cardio session, which was just some light treadmill action. I've been trying to go to the gym in the mornings rather than in the evenings when it's super busy. This way I get my workout done while my husband is doing his morning workout, so in the evening I can still spend time watching Netflix with him and Bernard.

Netflix and cuddlin' with my two main bears.

Overall I'm pretty happy with the way these last couple of weeks have gone, mostly because I've gotten into the groove of dieting, and I've been able to stick to my macros without having any cravings. Don't get me wrong-- I get hungry during the day, especially at work, but keeping snacks on hand and eating healthy, whole foods usually helps. I've opted to have fruits, vegetables, oatmeal, and rice as my main sources of carbs so that I can get some volume out of my meals, which helps a lot. I also have a lot of variety with different protein sources for every meal, that way I don't ever get bored of what I'm eating. But honestly, when you're hungry, you will eat just about anything and it will probably taste good.

As for my weight, I did hit a new low of 161.4, which isn't much in terms of a weight drop, but I've been hitting lower morning weights on average. Getting under 162 has been nearly impossible for a better part of this last year, so that was pretty exciting to see. I've been getting in anywhere from 1500-1800 calories a day which is a pretty decent amount of food considering I sit at a desk for most of the day, and work out for maybe an hour at most a couple of days out of the week.

Bernard wants to get swole.

This upcoming week, my goals will be to hit my macros on the nose & to hit each body part once this week, bringing my total weight training sessions up to four. I'll also be doing post-workout cardio to fill out my hour at the gym. Bodybuilding workouts haven't been taking me very long!

Until next time!
Mel

Bodybuilding Transformation Challenge Week 1 of 12

All right guys,

We're officially finishing up the first week of dieting for bodybuilding.com's transformation challenge. I convinced the hubby to diet with me, so we're in this together! I'm super excited to have a partner in this challenge.

This week started off with a long flight back to Upstate NY from Los Angeles, and then I jumped right into a new job here in town, so my schedule was completely knocked upside down. Not only did I severely under-eat, but I also had zero energy for the gym because of the major jet lag and exhaustion.

I *tried* to get in most of my protein, but my coach has me on 165g, which is way over what I'm used to getting. I think I hit roughly 140g on my best day, and a poverty 80-100g protein/sub 1k kcals most other days. I basically turned into a bitchy sloth-zombie. I realized that if I'm going to function at work and not completely K.O. right when I get home, I need to get in more calories and more food. I still don't think I've hit over 1,500 kcals in a single 24 hour period so far this week, and I paid for it by getting this nasty cold. It's like every time I diet the whole universe plots against me succeeding. Just kidding, I know I suck at it and I just need to work on eating the RIGHT amount, and stop being such an extreme dieter.

I didn't really weigh myself in the beginning of this cut because I didn't have access to a scale, but I gave myself a generous starting weight of 170 lbs. My lowest weigh-in this week was roughly 162 lbs which is where I've been holding steady for several months now. My lowest weight of 2015 after my cut was around 157 lbs.

My goal for this upcoming week is to get over this cold (as if I have much control over this one), meal prep a little better so I'm not starving at work, and get to the gym or do home workouts at least three times. Hopefully this helps me get back into the swing of things so I'm not just losing all my muscle during this cut.

Until next time!
Mel