How many of you are singing that now?!

I measured my booty today as I’m trying to get it to grow, along with my quads. 43″ all the way around – hurrah! I last measured before Christmas, November I think, and it was 41″ so it’s certainly going in the right direction. With my 28″ waist it’s certainly kapowing quite nicely :-)

*Excuse the bloat – I took the pictures right after eating an epic meal!*

In other news, I hit another deadlift PB on Monday – 120kg. Not as energetic as my last pull, I just wasn’t feeling the session at all and wasn’t even sure if I would go for it. In the end I thought what the hell, pulled it anyway but there was no celebration and I didn’t feel as good as I did in my last session.

I’ll spend the next few weeks repping out at 105kg and will then go for the 125 or even 130kg some time during February.

Right now, I’m working on my flexibility as it’s really starting to affect my squats now the weight on the bar is going up. Lots of daily foam rollering, stretching and pre-stretching glutes & hamstrings pre-squatting should hopefully help.

I’ll leave you a picture of my glow. Paleo or love – you figure it out ;)

©2012 JAG's Fitness Blog. All Rights Reserved.

is hitting a 115kg deadlift with ease…

©2012 JAG's Fitness Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Around this time last year, I wrote in one of my blog posts “I have a really good feeling about the year ahead” and I was so right. I never believed it would be such an important year in my life and that I would make the changes that I have but I’m so glad I had the courage to do so.

I started off the year knowing I had to make some important decisions and January saw me finally admitting that my marriage was over.

It had been on the rocks for a long time and despite efforts to change things, it was irreparable. Making that decision is possibly  the biggest and scariest decision I have ever had to make but now, almost one year later, I can say with my hand on my heart it was the best decision of my life and haven’t once regretted it.

The months following my decision were tough and I wrote some cryptic and depressing posts at the time but I was met with so much kindness and support – you all have no idea how much you helped me back through those dark months. However, out of the darkness comes light and I was soon bouncing back, to the old Jo from such a long time ago, I’d pretty much forgotten she existed – the fun loving, outgoing, bubbly, happy person I am now once again.

March saw me completing a 4 week Paleo challenge. With all the stress and negativity of ending a long term marriage, my exercise and diet had gone to shit and I needed something to help me focus. Who’d have known back then that it was the best thing I’d ever do for my health?  From the start I knew the challenge was going to be something I’d keep up in the long term – everything just felt so right, so many ailments cleared up (IBS, insomnia, aching joints, bleeding gums) and I was buzzing with energy.

To this day I still follow a primal style of eating with occasional white rice, unhomogenised milk and a little bit of cheese but I find it brings out unwanted side effects if I have too much – eczema, itching, increased mucus production and hay fever type sniffles – so it’s kept to a minimum.

April was a life changing month in more ways than one. Not only did I meet my amazing boyfriend, the true love of my life

I also transitioned into Intermittent Fasting which along with the change in diet has been the best thing I have done for my health, both mental and physical.  Whilst the paleo diet initially helped me to drop a bunch of weight, I really have IF to thank for helping me to lean out as much as I have.  I can proudly say I’ve not binged since March – that’s 9 months and possibly the longest I have ever gone.  I can say with my hand on my heart that I have IF to thank for that – I no longer obsess over food and though I’m not going to be arrogant enough to say I’ve beaten my ED and that I’ll never binge again, I think I’m the most recovered I’m ever likely to be.

Of course, I’m pretty sure being so happy in my personal life and no longer having the stresses of a failing marriage bogging me down has helped dramatically too :-)

Other awesome occurrences in April included an awesome progress shot of my back, which showed just how much mass I’ve gained in the previous 12 months…

and a deadlift PB of 100kg in my first ever deadlift session!

I really wish I hadn’t spent so much time arsing around trying to find a decent gym/training at home as I’d be so much further forward in my progress/strength goals by now.

May was an amazing month, mostly spent loved up with my man. It was the month we became official and declared undying love for each other – awwwwwwwwwwwwww!

By June, I was back in my goal dress from 2009…

and I also wrote a Guide to getting started with strength training

In July, I proved that weight is only a number by fitting into a bikini that I’d had since the age of 16. Most people that saw it said they couldn’t tell there was a 2 and a half stone difference in weight and everyone agreed that I look better in the bikini now at the age of 33 than I did when I was 16…

In August, I fell in love with my legs…

Hit a new deadlift PB of 105kg and wrote about how life can be awesome if you have the courage to make those tough decisions and stand by them.

September was a great month in the gym – not only did I master Glute Ham Raises…

I also hit another new deadlift PB of 107.5kg!

October was a life changing month for me – I moved from my home in Walsall to go and live in Swansea with my boyfriend. Massive decision and not one that I took lightly but things are going fantastically well. I’m settling into my new job and passed my phlebotomy training with ease. The shifts are tough and it’s a pain in the ass having to work weekends sometimes but the potential for job advancement is making it worthwhile right now.

So where am I right now? Well, training and diet are still going amazingly well. I pulled a 110kg deadlift in the gym a couple of weeks ago and also got a video of me pulling 95kg for reps…

I’m still trying to get leaner, though I’m still in good shape. I took a quick picture of my back/v-taper the other day and am pleased to see it’s still looking pretty good :-)

Here is a quick run down of my progress pictures from the year so far…

I’ll be making lots more progress in 2012 – it will be the year that I will get a smoking hot body so watch this space!

HAPPY NEW YEAR ALL

©2012 JAG's Fitness Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Oh boy, I’m loving this hot weather! Just when I thought it was time to retire the summer clothes, the sunshine explodes back into my life – I love it!

I just got back from spending some time with my gorgeous boyfriend and the weather was just as nice to us…

which meant lots of ice cream. And lots of smooching :-D

It also meant we hit the gym together and I pulled a 107.5kg deadlift! I had planned to get him to film me but an attack of nerves and lack of confidence stopped me and now I wish I had as he said my form was text book perfect.  Definitely next time!

The one thing the heat is not good for is leg training. Oh my goodness, it was so hot yesterday! I was training with my friend and sports therapist Marvin from West Midlands Injury Clinic. I can’t recommend Marvin highly enough, he really knows his stuff.  A month or so ago, my boyfriend hurt his back whilst he was visiting and the first person I called was Marv. He not only sussed what the problem was straight away but really helped relive his symptoms and gave him some advice to correct the problem. The guy is awesome and I can’t speak highly enough of him.

He followed along with my workout as he hasn’t trained heavy legs for a few years – mwahahahaha! Heavy front squats, stiff leg deadlifts, leg press, glute ham raises, calf presses & seated calf raises made sure he is feeling it today. I’m suffering with some murderous DOMS in my ass at the moment as I try to perfect my glute ham raises – ouch Ouch OUCH!

One thing Marvin did notice is that my pelvis is still tucking under slightly at the bottom of my squats. Thankfully, nowhere near as bad as it used to as I have been focussing on my stretching a lot more.  He got me laying down and stretched out my hamstrings for me and said there was a definite improvement so I have to ensure I stretch before I squat from now on!

I’m still loving my gym though I have noticed a few “regulars” who appear to have a severe case of Fuckarounditis!  The majority of the guys training really do bust their ass and it’s nice to see a select few incorporating squats and deadlifts but the owners still tell me I’m one of the hardest working members there :-D

Before I sign off, I want to leave you with a couple of links.  Two of my lovely friends are doing the Shine Half Marathon Walk on Saturday and really want to raise a lot of money for Cancer Research. If you can spare even just £1 they would be eternally grateful for your generosity…

Rachel’s sponsorship page

Liz’s sponsorship page

This is a cause close to both girls’ hearts so any donation, no matter how small, would be very much appreciated – thank you :-)

And for something a little more light hearted, my gorgeous friend Debs has created her own site called Calamity Dames – “a wry look at women doing their best to make it through the day without turning to gin. At least before breakfast”.  The site already has some fantastic, funny, witty, intelligent articles and I really recommend you check it out!

I’ll leave you with a relatively new picture of me, snapped one morning on my way to work. Still have my love glow…

©2012 JAG's Fitness Blog. All Rights Reserved.

I have had so many emails/comments about people that have missed my updates and I can only apologise to you.  I’ve really not had that much time to blog but I am going to make a real effort to post every week, even if it’s just a weekly round up of my exercise/diet/life.

I’m still training my ass off and my diet is still going well though I’ve inadvertently been eating more than usual, which has been caused by me not being as attentive to logging my food.  Thankfully, I’m not looking any worse for it and the scales are not showing any massive gain (though I am weighing in around 5lb heavier at the moment due to supplementing creatine).  The only real noticeable place the extra weight has gone is to the twins which has made my boyfriend a very happy man ;-)

I was due to take progress pictures last week to mark my 6 months of changing diet (Paleo/Primal and Intermittent Fasting) but I was recovering from surgery so I didn’t bother.  I had my gorgeous man here taking care of me and we indulged in foods that we ordinarily wouldn’t on account of me recuperating, such as ice cream, coconut macaroons and the evil haribos!  Suffice to say I felt the worse for indulging and I’m back on the straight and narrow now.

It’s been just over two months since I joined my new gym and it’s the best decision I ever made – I really love the place.  I took my boyfriend with me a few times to train and he likes it too though he’s not too impressed with some of the leg machines- the leg curl machines REALLY suck!

Thankfully, I have finally mastered the glute ham raise and OH MY GOD, I love this exercise! I’ve been working on my technique for the last few sessions and I have finally nailed it. I’m only doing body weight reps at the moment but look forward to adding in some resistance.

I have to say, this exercise hits my glutes and hamstrings more than any other single exercise out there! It’s evil and I love it :-D

Here are a few pictures of me and my man from our last lower body training session…

Perfect Form

Thank you ATG squats for my squat booty! I squat lower than this but the picture was taken on my way back up out of the hole.

Check out the pain! Good job I don’t give a damn about looking pretty in the gym!

I was going through my notebook the other day and I’m really pleased to see my front squat weight has gone up by 20kg since I joined my new gym. Not bad considering I only do an upper/lower split so some weeks I’m only hitting legs once.  My deadlift hasn’t progressed too much as I’ve been doing them in the same session as my squats.  As I can’t really focus on both of them during the same session I’ve put them into my chest/back workout.  However, I must have been having an evil moment when I decided to put them in at the end of my workout. Brutal doesn’t even come close! But, what an awesome way to finish up a workout :-D

I’m sure those of you who follow along with me on facebook will have already seen this but I got a new vest for lower body training – I saw the slogan online and just had to get it put on a top for training…

I love it!

And here is an up to date bicep shot – they’re really filling out since I started taking creatine about 5 weeks ago…

I was due to start my bulk at the end of the month but in all honesty, I’m not feeling lean enough to want to start just yet.  I’ve decided to postpone it til the end of October instead and keep up with the fat loss until then.  Progress pictures will be taken prior to bulking so mid-end October.  The pictures I’ve taken recently for my boyfriend have all shown incredible progress so I’m really excited to see how much more progress I can make in the next 6 weeks or so.

In the meantime, here’s a lil pic to show my glow is still present…

I’ll be hitting the gym tomorrow for my upper body workout and I’m going to make a real effort to get online and get my workout down in black and white.

Have a great evening everyone!

©2012 JAG's Fitness Blog. All Rights Reserved.

I always preferred to train alone. Over the years I’ve trained with various people and I came to the conclusion that I’m a bit of a loner where training is concerned and that training with a buddy is just not for me.  However, I think that’s just because I’ve never really trained with someone who pushes me out of my comfort zone before.  Earlier in the year I met up with an online friend and we had a training session together when I got my first ever 100kg deadlift. He really kicked my ass and pushed me more than I have ever been pushed before and it was at that point I thought how cool it would be to train with someone as strong or stronger than me, who would motivate me and push me to my limits.

And then I met my gorgeous boyfriend…

PHWOOOOOAAAARRRR!!!

He lives and breathes fitness and nutrition (as I do myself) and every time we train together he pushes me past my limits, always pushing me to get that extra rep, motivating and encouraging me.  He’s the best training partner I could wish for :-)

We trained together twice last weekend, an upper and lower body workout and true to form, I hit a new PB! I introduced him to the new gym, my JCB playground and we had 2 great sessions, though he wasn’t loving the lower body machines too much!

Here is a brief run through of my sessions…

UPPER BODY

Incline Bench Press

20kg x5
25kg x5
30kg x8
30kg x6
30kg x6

An increase in reps on all 3 sets so I was super happy with that! I am much preferring incline benching to flat benching, which aggravates my shoulders something terrible! This weight is going up to 32.5kg next session.

BARBELL ROW

20kg x5
30kg x8
32.5kg x8
32.5kg x8

I usually do dumbbell rows (at 22.5kg!) but as my beloved was doing barbell rows, I decided to do them with him. Weight was lowered as I realised I was heaving the weight up and my form was suffering so I checked my ego and did them properly!

DUMBBELL BENCH PRESS

12.5kg x8
12.5kg x8

Wow, not done flat bench in ages and especially not done dumbbell bench in, I dunno, over 12 months? As a result the weight is piddly low (I was benching 37.5kg with a barbell!) but it’s something to build on!

LAT PULLDOWN

42kg x8
42kg x8

LOVE lat pulldown and realised how much I’ve missed doing them! Have some way to go to get back to the 55kg I was pulling at my previous gym but I’m a lot more concious of my form this time around.

FLYES

7.5kg x12
7.5kg x10

I have to increase the weight next time. Unfortunately, my gym’s dumbbells go up in 2.5kg increments so it will be a large jump to 10kg. However, I’d rather lift heavier for less reps so I just have to suck it up and get on with it!

SEATED ROW

40kg x10
60kg x6 (PB)
55kg x6

Not done seated row in a very very long time! Was surprised to be able to pull 60kg, that is a new PB for me! I think the most I ever did before was 45kg so hurrah for strong back muscles. I’ll be keeping this exercise in for a while as I really loved it and it hit my back like nothing else!

CABLE CROSSOVER

11kg x8
11kg x8

Never done these before and they were a nice finishing exercise. My upper body looked so fucking awesome in the mirror, I really wish I had got my boyfriend to take a picture. Next time for sure!

LOWER BODY TRAINING

FRONT SQUATS

20kg x5
40kg x5
50kg x3
55kg x8
55kg x7
55kg x6
60kg x4 (PB)

I loved these squats! I felt strong and powerful and having my man behind me encouraging me to get those last few reps was awesome! REALLY pleased to hit 60kg, I can’t believe I was only front squatting 40kg before I joined this gym. That’s a 20kg increase in just over a month.  Mega happy with that, especially as I’m cutting right now!

STIFF LEG DEADLIFTS

40kg x5
50kg x5
60kg x8
60kg x6
60kg x6

Not done SLDL since I joined my new gym so it was nice to add them back in. 10kg increase from when I used to do them at home which pleased me though my grip was poor, even using chalk. I don’t have this problem with conventional deadlifts but maybe I’m just out of practice.

LEG PRESS (WITH FEET PLACED HIGH)

130kg x8 (PB)
130kg x7
130kg x7

I have increased this weight by 10kg for the last few session and I’m still matching my previous reps every time. This will go up to 140kg next session!

STANDING LEG CURL

10kg x6/6

I only did one set of these and had to stop because they just MURDER my bad knee. I’m not sure what it is but it really aggravates my patella tendonitis to the point where I just can’t do them as the pain is too much. The lying leg curl machine is no good either as it puts you in the weirdest position so I am going to leave these out from now on and add in either SLDL or GHRs – possibly both!

DEADLIFTS

80kg x6
90kg x5
90kg x4

I did these while the BF was doing leg extensions (which I hate). My grip was pretty tired and my whole body was drained by this point so I didn’t try and break any records.

CALF PRESS (ON LEG PRESS MACHINE)

80kg x12 (PB)
80kg x10
80kg x8

Calves were on fire at the end of these but they are still not challenging enough so the weight will go up to 90kg next session.

All in all, two really great sessions. Motivation is high at the moment and I’m really loving my training. A guy who works at the gym was asking me yesterday what my goals were, to which I said I’m cutting at the moment, trying to shed as much fat as possible whilst retaining my lean mass. He looked kinda surprised and said I didn’t look like I had any spare fat to lose which made my day. He also said I have a great shape and that it’s obvious that I train.  I’m still getting funny looks from most of the dudes in my gym but it doesn’t phase me. It’s quite entertaining to see them sneaking peeks during their rest periods, trying to see what weight I’m lifting or maybe they’re just checking out my ass ;)  Whatever it is, it’s tres amusing!

I’ll leave you with a couple of pictures…

Back is leaning out but my bootay is not KAPOW enough for my liking!

Upper body is leaning out and starting to really take shape. Boobs seem to be hanging around this time and not wasting away to nothing as they did in 2009. Result!

But this picture makes me realise how much my arms are lagging. I really think I’m gonna need to add in isolation work which I really hate  :-( I am loving my V-Taper though!

I probably won’t get to train again now until the weekend as I have a hospital appointment tomorrow but I hope to have some pictures and maybe even a little video footage of me in action at the gym on Saturday!

©2012 JAG's Fitness Blog. All Rights Reserved.

I love lower body training day. It’s my favourite, especially when I get to train fasted. I’m always so strong and powerful when I train fasted, I often day dream about how awesome it would be to afford to give up work and spend my time training and building a super hot bod!  But until my beloved wins the lottery, that’s not gonna happen :’(

I was a little bit apprehensive about training today. I should have trained yesterday but didn’t feel up to it due to a visit from Aunt Flo. Yesterday was spent on the couch reading, watching movies and snuggling up in my blanket.   A terrible night of sleep had me waking after just 5 hours and feeling shockingly bad. However, once I’d drank several glasses of water and some green tea I felt more like myself and decided to just go for it. The 20 minute walk to the gym is something I really enjoy now, it gives me chance to think about my training, listen to my music and prepare myself mentally for the challenge ahead.   As I rounded the corner to the gym, my adrenaline started pumping and I decided what the hell, I’m gonna go all out today and get me a new PB.  And I did :-D

I started off with front squats. Since I got my new PB of 75kg at back squats, I’ve been alternating every session between front and back squats. As my working weight for fronts is now 55kg and my working weight for back squats is 65kg, I’m catching up pretty damn quick!

FRONT SQUATS

20kg x5
40kg x5
50kg x3
55kg x6
55kg x6
55kg x4

An increase of 5kg on my front squats. Really happy with that and my legs felt strong on the first 2 sets. I’m thinking maybe I didn’t leave enough rest time in between 2nd and 3rd set as I only managed 4 reps. Will aim for 6 next time.

DEADLIFTS

60kg x5
70kg x5
80kg x5
80kg x5
80kg x5
90kg x3
100kg x3
105kg x1 (PB)

Super happy with my new PB!  I won’t lie, it was hard. It was fucking hard! But I loved every second of it :D  I don’t see it going up any time soon, I’m gonna stick with that for a while and focus some attention on my squats now.  Grip is getting stronger and the chalk is really doing the trick. No need for straps just yet, not that I would use them anyway!

LEG PRESS (FEET PLACED HIGH) – 120KG

1×8
1×7
1×6

I increased this last time from 110kg to 115kg and matched the same reps and have increased up to 120kg today and still matched the same reps. Think I will be going up to 125kg next week.

LYING LEG CURL – 20KG

1×8
1×6

I really loathe the lying leg curl machine AND the standing leg curl machine at my gym. They just don’t feel right, especially the lying leg curl.  I find the start position is unnaturally low and makes it awkward getting a full curl.  I have noticed my gym now has a GHR bench though so I think I’m gonna be a masochist and include some GHR’s in my workout regime – torture!

CALF PRESS (ON LEG PRESS) 75KG

2X12
1X10

An increase of 5kg again. Still matching the same reps as last time so this will go up again next week to 80kg. Thank you stiletto heels for my stupidly strong calves!

SEATED CALF RAISE – 20KG

2×12

This machine has been out of order the last few weeks so I was really happy to see it back in use again today!

All in all, a killer workout and I can feel the DOMS starting to develop in my ass already. And I bloody love it! To celebrate my new PB, I created some grain free pancakes…

To be honest, they weren’t the best. I just don’t like the taste/consistency of coconut flour so I am going to recreate them with almond flour instead.

Here is the recipe anyway…

COCONUT & BLUEBERRY PANCAKES – Serves 1

4 eggs
4 tbsp coconut oil (or melted butter)
4 tbsp coconut milk
1 tsp sugar/maple syrup
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
6 tbsp coconut flour
1/4 tsp gluten free baking powder

Blend eggs, oil, milk, vanilla, sugar and salt.  Sieve in the coconut flour and add the baking powder and mix until combined.  Heat 1tsp coconut oil in a pan and drop in a spoon of the batter mixture.  Cook over a low-medium heat until ready to flip over, cook underside for a few minutes.  Keep warm under a grill until other pancakes are cooked.

Top with your choice of topping.  I made some cream cheese frosting and covered with sliced strawberries.

I’m off now to enjoy my DOMS, drink some green tea and watch some trash on TV. Enjoy your evening folks!

©2012 JAG's Fitness Blog. All Rights Reserved.

and I’m loving it!  It’s been just over a month and I’m still the only female training there during the day but I kinda like that. It’s fun seeing guys do a double take when they see me at the squat rack lifting heavier than they probably could.  I was doing deadlifts at the weekend and there were a small group of guys watching me from across the gym.  As I loaded the bar to go for the 100kg I heard one of them say “christ, she’s going for 100!” It made me chuckle to myself.  My hands proved how hard I worked that day…

and my legs bore the bruises…

It’s also (on 13th) 5 months since I changed the way I eat. Wow, I can’t believe it. Almost half a year. And to think I was only going to do this for 2 weeks! It’s still the best decision I ever made. Since my boyfriend’s birthday weekend, I’ve been completely grain/legume free again with the occasional bit of dairy and my body has got back to it’s normal self, the IBS has cleared up and I’m back to feeling amazing.  I definitely won’t be doing that to myself again – ever!

I won’t be taking progress pictures this month, simply for the fact that I want to wait now until the end of September which marks the end of my cutting phase.  As the changes are getting smaller (but are still noticeable – the boyfriend had the pleasure of seeing a new picture yesterday and said I’m still leaning out and that he is still seeing changes – woohoo!) I want to leave a little more time in between pictures. I may take some just for my own records, then I will have tracked throughout the whole of the 6 months,  but I won’t be sharing them.

Time is passing so quickly and pretty soon it will be time for my first ever bulk. I’m massively looking forward to this, not only because I want to see my strength progress but it means I get to EAT! Though, I have to admit, my calorie intake has been through the roof of late, my calories have been way exceeding the 1700-ish I should be sticking to and a couple of days last week I consumed between 2500-3100 calories – oops!  I’m really knuckling down though for the last 6 weeks – pre-planning food so that I’m not over eating and the treats are going to be kept to a minimum – a grain free carrot cake with cream cheese frosting and maybe a little ice cream when I see my boyfriend – but nothing else.  I want maximum results in the last 6 weeks so that I can go ahead and bulk without being unsatisfied with how I look.

I’ll leave you with a few pictures.  First of all, a facial comparison from March/August…

Though the angle is different, you can see the jawline/chin is more defined and my hamster cheeks have kindly fucked off ;)

A comparison picture of my legs…

March/May/July.  What a difference huh? I didn’t actually lose that much scale weight between May/July but the shape of my legs has changed completely. I remember being really happy back in May to see how my legs looked yet now I think they look pretty chunky!

And finally, a bicep pic. Just because :D

Starting to look leaner and more pumped. Hurrah! Oh, and excuse the crap in the background, it was a laundry day!

Back with a workout update tomorrow.

©2012 JAG's Fitness Blog. All Rights Reserved.

They hurt. Like hell :(  I really have to get my arse in gear and buy some chalk – today’s deadlifts totally hurt and my callouses stopped me going for another shot at the 102.5kg PB from last week.

I had a great session though – my first lower body session in the new gym.  I really love this place so much. I felt completely at home and relaxed in there and not at all intimidated.  It was busier than my last visit but it was 10.45am on a Saturday morning so it was always going to be.  There were about 20 guys training today, still no chicks but I’m cool with that.  A few guys smiled and said hi to me today which is nice, it made me feel welcome.  I even had a guy tell me “nice deadlifts” when I was repping out 75kg which made my day :-D

Today’s session:

Fasted lower body training with 10g Xtend pre-workout

FRONT SQUATS

20kg x8
30kg x8
45kg x7
45kg x7
45kg x6

Really pleased with my front squats today. I focussed hard on keeping my form perfect and really dropped my ass all the way down to the floor – glutes were certainly feeling it!

DEADLIFTS

40kg x6
60kg x5
70kg x6
75kg x6
75kg x4
80kg x4
90kg x3
100kg x1

I was disappointed that I couldn’t go for my 102.5kg again but my hands were so sore, I couldn’t stand to do any more.  MUST.BUY.CHALK!!!

LEG PRESS (Feet placed high to hit hamstrings and glutes)

110kg x8
110kg x7
110kg x8

Gotta say, my quads looked effing awesome when I was doing these.  Really muscular and lean.

LYING LEG CURL

30kg x6
30kg x6

These were harder than the last ones I did as this machine works the legs individually with a plate on each side – they hurt. A lot!  The above weight is combined for both legs – 15kg for each.

CALF PRESS (On leg press machine)

50kg x12
50kg x12
50kg x10

SEATED CALF RAISE

20kg x12
20kg x10

Calves were burning by the end.  I’ve neglected training them for way too long!

Legs were totally shredded by the time I had finished and I walked home with very wobbly legs looking like I’d shat myself ;-)  Felt incredible though and it was a fantastic session – I’m so glad I joined this gym.

Progress pictures are due on Wednesday which will mark 4 months of switching to a paleo/primal diet – time has flown by so quickly!  I’m still loving this way of eating and still have no intention of returning to my old diet.  And of course, I’m still Intermittent Fasting which is with me for life :-)

However, my legendary impatience led me to snapping this pic this morning just to see how I’m looking…

Positives:

Starting to get some quad/hamstring separation
Legs are looking firm
Booty is looking bigger (hurrah!)
Waist looks teeny
Stomach is looking leaner and abs are starting to show ever so slightly

Negatives:

Not enough of all of the above ;)  I want MORE!

Have an awesome weekend everyone, enjoy the sunshine :)

©2012 JAG's Fitness Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Isn’t it lovely?!

Found by my gorgeous man :-D  I was complaining to him last week that there were no decent gyms in my area and that I needed to invest in an olympic bar/plates/bench as I am at the upper end of my available weights at home and am actually training below what I am capable of for my lower half.  However, at the moment I’m really not in a position to afford the equipment to continue training at home.

He had a look on Google and found this place and it was exactly what I was looking for! Apparently it’s only been open for 6 months and it has not been promoted at all (hence why I didn’t really know of it’s existence apart from knowing there was a new 24 hour gym not far away) and the majority of members have joined through word of mouth.

I went in today after work for a proper look around with the intention of signing up.  I took my kit with me so that I could stay and train if I liked what I saw.  The owners are *really* friendly and showed me around, showing me all the different machines and equipment.  They said there are only about half a dozen women that train there and they all train in the evenings but I don’t mind – it’s not the first time I’ve trained in a male dominated gym.  I can hold my own and now my weights are going up, the dudes will realise I’m not there to dick around, I’m there to shift some serious weight!

The best part is it only costs £25 a month with no contract.

It means I can finally work on progressing my squat and deadlift at last!  And they have a HUGE range of dumbbells, weight plates, barbells, a squat rack and assisted pull up machine (which I love!).  The place is pretty big and everything is nicely spaced out and there is plenty of room to get around, unlike my last gym where the equipment was stuck so closely together that you couldn’t walk between machines!

Once I’d signed up I got to work on my upper body. It was getting late and I hadn’t eaten apart from a couple of spoons of coconut butter before I left the house, so I wasn’t expecting to break any records. Fasted training works well if you do it in the morning, soon after waking – not so much after you’ve been up and about for 8 hours, at least, for me it doesn’t.

Here is my workout for today:

BENCH PRESS

Warm up:

20kg x8
25kg x8

Working sets – 35kg

3×6

I was annoyed that I dropped reps here as my previous workout was 7/6/4.  I guess you can’t pull out new records every session!

DUMBBELL BENT OVER ROW – 22.5kg

8+8
2×6+6

Really pleased to have increased reps on the first set as I only went up to this weight recently.  Got some funny looks as I grabbed the 22.5kg dumbbell from the rack – I guess the guys are not used to seeing chicks train, let alone train heavy ;)

INCLINE BENCH – 30kg

1×6
1×8
1×6

ASSISTED PULL UPS

1×6
1×5
1×6

HANG CLEAN TO PUSH PRESS – 30kg

1×6
2×4

Dropped reps again on the 2nd and 3rd set but I had just fried my upper body with pull ups so I wasn’t expecting miracles!

Overall, a good session – the sweat was running down my back by the time I had finished and my upper half felt fatigued!  I really think I’m going to love this new gym and I can see my weights/physique really starting to progress now I can train a lot more seriously!

I’ll be returning on Saturday morning for fasted lower body training :-)

I realised earlier that it’s been almost 4 months since I switched to a Paleo/Primal diet – how quickly has the time flown by?  New progress pictures are due next week on the 13th so watch this space!

©2012 JAG's Fitness Blog. All Rights Reserved.