In my last post, I told you of my new 5 day a week program. Well, the other day I came home so excited, I had to show my husband…I had a new muscle! I know that sounds so funny because obviously we don’t just start sprouting muscles. Everyone has the same muscles but you can’t always see them underneath the layer of fat that so annoyingly sits on top of them. Anyway, my Tricep…I can flex and see a bulge pop out!

People that I haven’t seen for a while have also made comments about how much thinner I look or how much more defined I am.

It’s amazing…after working with this program for less than a month, I can already see some results! The best part is that I can also feel those muscles.

The Beginning:

About a year ago I started with a goal to workout at the gym 3 times a week for an hour. At this time, I weighed 130lbs. which is 15lbs. heavier than my “pre-pregnancy” weight. Don’t let that number fool you…muscle weighs more than fat! It’s the body fat percentage that counts and mine was high.

6 months to make a habit:

I was told somewhere that it takes a good 6 months to make good intention into a good habit. At the 6 month marker I was making it to the gym 3 times a week on a regular basis. My workout consisted only of running on the treadmill and I had begun the “Fat Burn Marathon”. I ran about 9 miles a week. This has always been the best way for me to lose body fat. I did end up losing 17lbs. by the 10 month mark (unfortunately, along with that went most of my chest-oh well). At this point, I thought, “I’m on the right track. It’s time to add strength training.”

Cardio burns calories while you work, strength training burns calories all day long:

Where do I start? I haven’t lifted weights in over 8 years. I had no clue what to do so I went to a friend of mine who is in amazing shape. She used to compete in fitness competitions and recently tried out for American Gladiators. Anyway, she was nice enough to write up a simple 3 day workout targeting each major muscle group (Legs, Back, Biceps, Chest, Triceps, Shoulders, and Abs) to get me started. I was sore after each workout. Thank you, Marla.

New Goals for a New Me:

While this was working well, I had also begun making friends at the gym. One of which used to be a personal trainer. He knows a lot about strength training and good eating habits. He enjoys seeing people work hard and get in shape. He began working with me and 2 of the other friends I met that have the same goal to get a strong, lean body.

Because of all of our dedication, we began going to the gym 2 hours a day/5 times a week. I never thought I would be one that would spend 2 hours a day at the gym but since I began working with them, we do circuits and if one of us is not there, the program has to be adjusted. Not only do I feel a responsibility to be there but I look forward to it!

So along with the goal to go 2 hours a day/5 times a week. I am also on a 6 meal a day diet that is balanced and much healthier than the pre-packaged food I used to eat.

I will be sharing with you the meal plan and strength training program that I am currently on for one month that is supposed to produce faster results for lean, tone muscle. Will it get me closer to my Six Pack Abs? We’ll see!