SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

[Doggygirl]

How 'bout it folks? A challenge to help us keep our girly and manly figures at least "status quo" during this food fest we call the Holiday Season. :b&d:

OK - my weigh in this morning was 151.8. (lbs in the US). My goal is to be no higher than that on January 2. I will achieve this through continued exercise per my usual schedule - no holiday slacking - and being sensible on the food front.

So...who is in?? I will be seeing PT later this AM so no question I will get my :b&d: today.

Marshy - I need to talk to you netball captain. Humanity is NOT appropriate for someone in her lofty and pretigious role. tisk tisk. :H

DG

[drylifeahead]

SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

Ok DG, this month I'll be more dedicated.

Normally I am about 125-130 lbs. 5'5 and a half, but found myself 2 months ago at 150.
That's not so bad really, except God forgot to give me hips, so it goes pretty much straight to my gut.
Found an extra chin or two literally hanging around as well.
Over the last two months, I've lost 5 pounds, so since it's the Holiday Season, going for another
5 for the month of December. Even though it's only been 5 pounds, it's about 3.5 inches from my waist.
My clothes from 6 months ago are still tight, but some of them are passable. Just have to watch
which top I wear with them..gotta hide that 'muffin top'. One and a half pounds a week isn't asking
too much is it??

Honestly, other than regular exercise, I just have to stop eating late at night. Not a chocolate eater
by any stretch of the imagination, but since going AF, have had prob as much as I've had in the
last 10 years. Craving it for some reason?? NEVER happened before. I'm more a chip and dip kinda gal.

This month I am going to work on crunches. It's THE only way to get back my formerly 'flat(ter)'
stomach. No way can I give up carbs or sugars..I don't think I'd be alive without bread!!!

DLA :h

[Marshy]

SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

Oh dear - straight down to the weight business. OK, I still need to lose a stone (14lbs). And, like Drylifeahead, I still have the sweet tooth I acquired when I stopped drinking that I'd never had in my life before. I really need to work on that or I won't be able to shift the weight.

Went to the gym today after having a cold for the past week and I thought I was OK but felt really wiped out after 30 mins cardio. Couldn't even face going swimming!

[Suni]

SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

I'm in - somewhat reluctantly. :-))
It's winter where I live, cold always make me carb out!
I'm overweight 5'5" and 11 stone- for the Americanos 154lbs.
Trouble is, 7 weeks into this AF business I am piling on the lbs.
I think I'm using sweet things to compensate, but the urges for sweets seem to have replaced the urges for booze! Not good girls and boys.
Any help gratefully received.
I do the gym but it gives me an appetite.

[Lo0p]

SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

I'm definitely in! :boxer:

Now that AL is no longer an issue in my life I've decided to whip myself back into shape. I started my nutrition and fitness protocol this morning and i expect to be done in 70 days. This is something I've done before and I'm very good at it. Those of you that follow my other threads know that I am research GEEK. A couple of years ago I found myself about 50 lbs overweight and I turned my geekiness toward learning about fitness and nutrition. I learned a TON and lost about 40 lbs in a year and then I turned it into overdrive and finished it off with a fat shredding protocol that drove me quickly into single digit bodyfat %.

Here are before and after pictures of my results in the last 70 days (not entirely work appropriate): My Fitness Thread

I found the following website an invaluable resource when researching and charting my progress: John Stone Fitness - Welcome!

[Suni]

SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

I learned a TON and lost about 40 lbs in a year

Willing to share it on here?

[Lo0p]

SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

Sure! I'm currently putting the finishing touches on my protocol, which is almost a nazi-like no holds barred assault on fat. I wouldn't expect anyone to adhere to the kind of program I follow. But I'll post it here when I'm done.

I can give many tips and can help dispel some myths in the meantime though.

The first one is this:

drylifeahead;767773 wrote: This month I am going to work on crunches. It's THE only way to get back my formerly 'flat(ter)' stomach.

This is a very common misconception. There is no way on earth to 'spot reduce' fat. Crunches do not burn fat in the belly area. Your body gains and loses fat in a pattern predetermined by your genetics. The only way to lose fat in the belly area is to maintain a calorie deficit though diet and exercise and burn fat overall.

Crunches are an extremely ineffective exercise. Anyone would be way better served by following a sensible diet (first), weight training (second) and cardio (third). That is how you'll burn the belly fat.

[Marshy]

SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

Suni;767909 wrote:
I'm overweight 5'5" and 11 stone- for the Americanos 154lbs.
.

I thought you WERE an Americano! Rats - now I won't be able to bamboozle people with talk of "stone", eg "lost/gained half a stone" :H

[Suni]

SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

No Marshy. Not American, close but no cigar.
Oh Good. No crunches then.
But I like the idea of a Nazi like no-holds- barred assault on fat.
That sounds deadly earnest. Bring it on muscly boy.
I like swimming, cycling, power walking and dancing.
Can't wait for the next instalments.

[Doggygirl]

SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

WHEE!!! I LOVE LOVE LOVE seeing former and new abbercizers alike getting on the December bandwagon!

LoOp, like you I lost quite a bit of weight after I quit drinking and got my hormones fixed. BUT...I would really like to drop that last few % of body fat in 2010. So I pulled up the web site you suggested and will give that a read. Also looking forward to hearing more of your protocol and what works for you. Quite impressive abs you have there!

Suni I had you pegged for an American too. That's probably an insult to you and your fellow country people, wherever that is!

Hello DLA! Good to have you with us this month!

So Marshy. Are you saying that all this time you have been trying to bamboozle us here with this talk of stones? And here I thought you were repaving your driveway this whole time!

L-Glut (and other aminos) seems to apply to sugar cravings just like booze cravings. The Diet Cure by Julia Ross is an interesting read - I think there is another thread somewhere here about The Mood Cure which is another of her books on the subject. All that said, I fight the sugar craves too. Like AL, on the occassions where I give in to it, I can't stop like a "normie." Geez. Life is Unfair!! :upset: (well, I'm dealing with it...)

Anyway...

For today! :b&d: with Personal Torturer - lower body. She earned her $$$ today, that's for sure. I thanked her for doing her part to help me win the No Gain Maintain raffle prize at the gym. Today was Week 2 weigh in (we started right before Thanksgiving). I didn't gain, so things are right on track.

One of the things I need to get better at is feeding my body in a way that is harmonious with my workouts. While I lack knowledge of how to do this, I'm sure it includes eating breakfast. :H I sure feel better when I workout when I remember to eat breakfast anyway.

My plan for the rest of the week:

Wed: Cardio
Thurs: PT / Upper Body + Cardio
Friday: Lower Body
Saturday: Day off
Sunday: Upper Body

That's the PLAN anyway. Alright. Enough talk. Get your a$$es in gear! :b&d:

DG

[Lo0p]

SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

This is a good read and it's what first got me started: Gravityhomer's Fat Loss Guide

Although it's a far cry from the protocol I use now.

Doggygirl, I think it's great that your PT is kicking your butt on those lower body days. IMO, those are absolutely key to fat loss.

Here's my leg day workout:

4 sets of 15 reps hamstring curls
4 sets of 20 reps leg extensions (extremely painful)

then comes the kicker...

4-5 sets of 20 reps of barbell squats as heavy as I can go with perfect form
(these make you wish you were DEAD. These alone are brutal but doing them right after obliterating your quads with the leg extensions...? Suicidal.)

then I finish it off with some calf extensions

I can barely walk for like three or four days afterward. Trying to climb a flight of stairs...near impossible. Trying to lower yourself onto a toilet...hilarious :H

Why do it? Heavy resistance exercises like the barbell squat or deadlifts burn fat for hours after you do them. You'll even be burning fat while you're sleeping that night. More importantly though, they stimulate production of Human Growth Hormone, which gets released in pulses that night when you go to sleep. This stuff promotes fatty acid oxidation, lean mass synthesis, and destroys older damaged cells and causes production of new ones. In short this stuff is like drinking from the fountain of youth. There are a myriad of benefits that you get from this stuff floating around in your bloodstream that go way beyond the benefits I mentioned.

Go heavy on your lower body days! It really does pay off.

[Marshy]

SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

Doggygirl;768051 wrote:
So Marshy. Are you saying that all this time you have been trying to bamboozle us here with this talk of stones?

Moi? :undercover:

I think I'll give L-glut a try. When I first found this site I tried some of the supplements but they didn't seem to do anything for me so I gave up on them. But maybe now I've got the booze out of my system anything I take might have a fighting chance of working.

ETA: DG, I've just ordered those books from my library (love my online library service). Good time of year to think about healthy eating!

[Sweaty Betty]

SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

Hello hello.

I'm running OUTSIDE! I love it. After a year of constant head chat telling me I couldn't, that it was too hot, I didn't have time etc. I finally just did it. Woo hoo.

Bets.
xx

[Tom 4.0]

SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

OK guys, I'm in for the December challenge. I'm carrying an extra 10 pounds that I really need to lose.
LoOp, thanks for the inspiration.:goodjob:
Doggy, just "crack that whip".uch:

Tom

[Leelou]

SOME Pain, NO Gain, MAINTAIN! aka December Abbercizers!!!

Im in...I will continue the lifestyle change I started in November!

My goal is 12kg weight loss... until I get there, I must keep at it. After that, it's training maintenance from then on.

Currently, 5 weeks into my training, I've lost 5kg so far, lost my boobs :boohoo:, losing my butt; :shocked: (good thing yipee) fit into clothes just in time for summer....:monalisa:

Most importantly, exercise is really helping with the AF goal! AND I'm feeling so much better!

AF is my first priority, Exercise is my second!