Feeling sick

Yesterday i didn't work-out because it was super humid weather. It became so bad that i started to feel sick later in the day. And today i caught up on sleep and i also get caught up on some work which is why i didn't work-out. I was supposed to go to the gym today... but i guess i will just start on Monday.

Little steps

I'm gonna start putting my rant parts behind a read more tag, so that when you get on this blog you will see all the bodybuilding/fitness related stuff first and if you want to know more about me you can just press "read more".

TLDR; I was tired today, because i haven't been eating well, so i didn't do anything today. I had an appointment with my physical therapist which went horrible. We got into a back-and-forth and she overall just frustrated me and got me kind of angry cause she kept misunderstanding my points. We came to an agreement to do the thing i wrote about yesterday and on Friday i will go to to the gym for my first scope out. Tomorrow i want to do a leg day.

I remember

Ok so i finally remember why i stopped working out as much last year once i got a good start going in March/April when i first hit the gym: the heat. Last year was insane when it came to summer heat, so much so that we literally had a lot of creeks, lakes, and other natural waters drying up. It was a disaster. Luckily, so far, this summer hasn't been that bad, but the last two days have been pretty insane. I never ended up finishing my arm day, which is a pity. And today i couldn't get leg day going. Fortunately, it started storming earlier this evening, so now the temps have cooled down a lot and my apartment feels good again so i should be able to do it tomorrow.

I have my physical therapy appointment at 02.30 PM tomorrow so i hope to do my leg day before that, otherwise i wont be able to. I am still anxious about going to the gym. I will bring it up tomorrow during my therapy. I think i already know what she is going to say. That i have to build it up slowly. First by going to the gym and just walking on the treadmill. Not even doing anything extensive. And then she will ask me how long i want to be there. And then next time i can incorporate one other exercise machine etc. etc. In my head i know that it is that simple and that i should do it like that, but at the same time i just want to go and do my work-outs BUT at the same time i am also not doing anything right now so i might as well just go for a little while so the anxiety goes away again. Idk i think it will be easier once i just talk about it to her cause i feel that there is some force behind it.

I btw also got a new keyboard. It types so smoothly. I did a few type tests and i got 140 WPM almost every time. The keyboard was the most expensive one they had at the store lol, but it fits all my requirements so it was worth it i guess. The keys are very trigger happy, so sometimes if you even just slightly hover over a key with your finger it gets pressed, which i have to get used to.

I also finally picked up my vitamin D prescription at the pharmacy. I was "self-medicating" with only 400 IE chewing tablets. But i guess it worked since my bloated belly is gone. My prescription from the pharmacy is 25000IE though, which is pretty high. I have to take one tablet a week for six weeks, so i hope i feel more energized at the end of it.

We are also in August which means that at the end of this month school vacation should be over, so maybe then i will also feel more comfortable to go to the gym again. I would like to work towards a monday/wednesday/friday leg/glute day. Where on monday and friday i work-out at home, and wednesdays go to the gym; And then the next week i switch by going to the gym on monday and friday and work-out at home on wednesdays. I think that would be awesome. But how do i get there... i guess just by going to the gym again lol.

Splurge (upper body day)

Last Friday i felt horrible because i was gonna get my period. I ended up spotting throughout the day on Friday and then ultimately got my period on Saturday, which sucked. On Saturday i went to a concert with my friend. It was great! Got a cool tshirt. I took a bigger size so i can wear it to the gym too. 

My body looks like its old self again btw. My stomach isn't bloated anymore (except for period bloat) and i feel much better! My roommate and i bought a tub of pre-workout stuff last week and it is pretty good. I first mixed it with water which was nice, but now i mixed it with Sprite and it sooo much better. It tastes like an energy drink almost. I am drinking it right now while writing this post, cause i want to work-out soon. 

I remember telling myself that i wanted to go up in weight but i just checked my post and i didn't write about it. I think i want to do an extra set of shoulder shrugs. Do 10 reps of rows. Extra set of bar curls. Arnold press is still pretty difficult for me so i am gonna keep it how it is now. And sitting twists and side bends are fine like this too. I will report back once i am done so next time i can actually go up in weight maybe.

• short stretch/warm-up
• shoulder shrugs on pull up bar 4x6
• bent over rows 3x10 (6kg)
• bar curls 2x12 (6kg)

Tbc:

• bar curls 2x12 (6kg)
• arnold press 3x8 (4kg)
• sitting twists 3x12
• side bends 3x12 (7.5kg)

I was on my 2nd bar curl break and my roommate came home... that stressed me out and when i wanted to start my 3rd set i pulled a muscle in my back. I couldn't breathe for a little while and had to lie on my bed. I hope i can stretch it out and finish my work-out later today.

In better news, last night i found out that my favorite fake eyelashes are still being sold! Last time i checked they didn't sell them anymore because the make-up brand went bankrupt (or something) and got taken over by another make-up brand. And last night i found out that they started selling the eyelashes again. They are so cheap and that other make-up brand also sells a lot of other cheap things like face cremes and stuff so i am gonna splurge a little and order some things that i need! I've never ordered from them before but they have a lot of vegan stuff so i am excited.

Need more rest

Aaaaa. Today i was supposed to go to the gym, but i woke up and i felt like i got hit by a bus. Maybe i am pushing myself too much cause i still have my vitamin deficiency going on, and i need more rest? Today is supposed to be leg day, but i might just make it an ab day and if i feel a bit better later on i might do some squats or something. I don't know how long it takes to get my vitamin levels ok again. I know vitamin D deficiency can make it so your muscle soreness lasts longer (which explains why i sometimes have DOMs for over a week). 

It kind of bothers me that my physical therapist told me that "i went too hard" when i told her last month i still had pretty bad DOMs a few days after my work-out, instead of suggesting for me to get a blood test since it could be vitamin D deficiency. I feel this way a lot with many professionals; they get clouded by their own judgements and because of that they tunnel vision. Instead of letting sink in what the other person said and filtering it through their knowledge. It is like everyone immediately wants to judge. This happens everywhere, with everyone nowadays. It just bothers me more when it comes from professionals in certain fields. They should know better, right? 

Rabble rabble (upper body)

I got up early this morning for an appointment and when i got there the lady i had an appointment with was like "aww i'm sorry but i am going home sick". Welp... so we rescheduled for next week. It cleaned up some time in my schedule and i ended up walking my dog for an hour. The weather was nice and she laid in the grass sometimes and i would sit next to her. Which was nice cause i have horrible DOMs (in my butt mainly) from my leg day.  While i was walking i was thinking about going to the gym maybe and walk on the threadmill some more to get my DOMs out, but i dyed my hair yesterday and i do not like what it turned out to become so i'd rather stay at home. Today is arm day tho. And currently it is 12:42 PM so that means i should work out soon to make sure i wont be bothered by the sun.

I also went to the store and i saw that they were selling some pre-workout powders. There were some nice flavors so i might buy one of them to try. They also sold really big shaker drink thingies for only 5 bucks? The smaller ones were only 4 bucks. So i might buy those as well. Speaking of buying, i bought a bunch of clothes last night. There's this (online) store that was carrying shoes that i liked, and i love that store, so i bought some things from their discount corner and then i also bought a few oversized shirts. I mainly bought those shirts in case my stomach ever gets bloated again, cause i realized how limited my wardrobe is for moments like that. Most of my oversized shirts are shirts i wear around the house and they are full with stains i can't get out. 

I also feel more motivated than ever to get in shape again. It is so horribly annoying not to be able to wear what you want to wear. Not only that, but if it is warm weather outside, and my stomach ever swells again, i'd rather have nice legs so i can wear a comfy baggy dress or a tshirt with shorts. I mean i can do that now too, but it would be nicer if my legs looked nice too. I think next year before summer i want to go on vacation, so i can get a tan before summer starts here. I constantly use this tanning oil that make my legs have a nice glow, but it is annoying, because when i shower or when i shave my legs the "fake tan" comes off too. I want to be able to have more freedom with that and i cannot tan in this sun that we have here. But it will probably be easier to maintain if i get a real tan in a warm country and then maintain it when i go back here.

I'm sorry i am rambling i do not know why i am doing this haha. It is nice to think out loud sometimes i guess but it has nothing to do with working out. Yesterday i btw did core exercises. I feel it a little bit today, but not as much as i would like to so i might have to push myself a bit harder next time. I tried to yesterday but i wasn't really feeling it. I wanted to incorporate hanging leg raises, but i just wanted it to end so i scrapped those. I think i definitely have to do 4 different exercises. I also need to do more reps next time. I can easily do that. This is what i ended up doing:

• reverse crunch 3x20
• plank 30 seconds
• lying floor leg raise 3x20
• plank 40 seconds
• bicycle crunch 3x15

And well, today is arm day. I don't remember if i said anything about upping reps or sets or weights, but i don't think so.

• short stretch/warm-up
• shoulder shrugs on pull up bar 3x6
• bent over rows 3x8 (6kg)
• bar curls 3x12 (6kg)
• arnold press 3x8 (4kg)
• sitting twists 3x12
• side bends 3x12 (7.5kg)

The only thing i need to work on is my flabby core, but that is just pure fat burning. If i get to go to the gym at least 3 times a week to do 20-30 minutes of cardio, i think i will be set!

Getting better! (leg day)

Soooo, i got my blood test results back last week and turns out i have a vitamin D deficiency, like... really badly. Leave it up to me to have a vitamin D deficiency in the height of summer! Either way, i started to take vitamin D last week and my stomach is almost back to normal now. My hourglass figure is back, what seemed like excess fat before is all gone. I am so happy omg. Last week i wanted to wear a really cute pair of pants i had and i literally looked pregnant and i couldnt close the buckle. Now my pants are all loose fitting again. I was literally convinced for a while that i just gained weight and that was the issue, so i am glad that i am getting back to normal again. And also that it was only something as benign as a vitamin deficiency and not something worse! Also, my B12 was insanely high lol. So i think i will start taking my B12 gummies every other day, instead of every day.

My roommate started his new job yesterday. It was kind of chaos cause of course on his first working day his car breaks down. He ended up having to rent a car, but he made it, so that was all good. He called a repair guy who kickstarted his battery (since that was the problem) and it works fine now. Because my roommate has his job now i made a schedule for myself for the entire week since i want to go back to the gym again. I actually had planned to go to the gym today, but i had an appointment at 11.30AM and i thought it was at 12.30PM. So my entire schedule is effed up now and my anxiety is kicking in so i will just work-out at home instead. I am planning to go to the gym on Friday tho, and maybe if i feel like it any other day i will just go there and do some cardio or something. 

But today is leg day and i don't have to worry about my roommate coming home early. It is warm weather today, but my apartment is situated in such a way that the sun hits my place around 4-5PM. Which means that i can keep it relatively cool in my house before that time. So as long as i do my work-outs in the beginning of the day i should be fine. I think i will continue with 6kg, except for hip thrusts (i will try a higher weight). I will also incorporate bulgarian split squats again (my least favorite) so i will keep my sets to 3, i think 4 will be overkill. And i might just start with the split squat so i can get it over with lol.

Today i did:

• 3x10 bulgarian split squats 7.5kg
• 3x8 hip thrusts 20kg
• 3x10 romanian deadlifts 6kg
• 3x10 squats 6kg

I really had to push myself to get through the bulgarian split squats but after that it went alright. I think next time i want to put my hip thrusts at 10kg, and make my squats and romanians 8kg.

Tomorrow i have my "rest day" where i will do some stretches and core exercises.

Stomach :(

On Thursday i called my doctor regarding my swollen stomach. It became worse and worse and is becoming painful. The doc wanted me to come in so i went there on Friday. She did a small test and said that everything seemed fine and sent me out with a blood test that i will have to take on Monday (tomorrow). Today i was supposed to meet up with someone in the city, but i ended up cancelling cause i literally couldn't wear anything without being in pain. Luckily the blood test place is basically across the street and it is a walk-in clinic so i can go there any time during the day.

On Saturday i worked out and i did a small leg day. I did:

• 3x8 squats 6kg
• 3x10 romanian deadlifts 6kg
• 3x10 hip thursts 6kg

I wanted to do more but my roommate came home so i kind of cut it short. I still have a little bit of DOMs so i guess it did something. 

Oh yeah, my roommate btw got a new job he will start next week. This time it is a proper fulltime job so he will work from 8 till 5 every day. This will help me so much with getting into a proper rhythm again, and might even help me with going to the gym again. I just have to wait one more week.

Today i did some yoga and core exercises. My stomach is literally going insane. The yoga relieved some of uncomfortableness, but only ever so slightly. I think tomorrow i will go into town to see what type of over-the-counter meds i can get to see if they help. The weirdest thing is that i can tell i lost some weight and my muscles tightened around my core, because when i bent to the right or left i have a little fat roll. That fat roll is smaller now than it was 2 weeks ago. I showed it to my roommate and he also said it looked way smaller. So i am literally losing weight while not fitting in my clothes anymore, fun! Also, i am burping a lot (at least once every 30 minutes) and i constantly feel my stomach acid going insane. I do not have any acid reflux tho... So there's obviously some gas or something? I have no clue what is going on and my doc said everything seemed fine.

On Wednesday i have physical therapy again, so i was thinking to ask my therapist if she could maybe figure out what is wrong with me or if she can do anything to help eleviate the uncomfortableness, because my doc was useless in that sense. I used to have an older man as a doctor who i had my entire childhood, but i think he retired. Now two women took over his clinic (i believe one of them is his daughter). And i really do not like either of them. They are way too passive. She even forgot to tell me i had to be sober for my blood test (something that i remembered myself and ended up looking up online to be sure). I will need a new doc. There is one clinic that is near my house and there is another one that is in my town center. I think i will check those out.

Rainy upper body day

Last night i wasn't tired so i went to bed pretty late and i forgot i had an appointment in the morning that i ended up having to cancel. Once i got up i straight went into setting up my work-out! It went really well. I didn't feel very strong today, but i believe you are at your weakest just after your period so i guess that makes sense? But i felt very energized. I didn't need a lot of rest and i added some core work-outs in between my reps and sets so i could actually tire myself out.

• short stretch/warm-up
• shoulder shrugs on pull up bar 3x6
• bent over rows 3x8 (6kg)
• bar curls 3x12 (6kg)
• arnold press 3x8 (4kg)
• sitting twists 3x12
• side bends 3x12 (7.5kg)
• all work-outs done with a 7.5kg barbell or 1kg short barbell

I think if i had only done my normal work-outs i would've been done within 30 minutes which is insane. I ended up doing everything within 45 minutes or so. In between my sets and reps i did some bicycle crunches but i didn't write those down cause i didn't really keep count.

I am also on a fluid fast. My stomach is swollen (again) and i don't know why. I read somewhere that a shortage of B12 can make your stomach swollen, but also when you overconsume B12, but i don't know if it is that. I had the same problem some time ago. Usually when i go on a fluid fast the bloating goes down after 2 days or so and i am my old self. The annoying thing is just when i wear a shirt or pants my stomach pokes out and it looks really weird. Like even my loose fitting shirts rest on my belly now which is odd as hell. And it kind of hurts too. I am not gonna keep calorie or protein intake count but since it is a fluid fast and not a water fast i can just drink my protein shakes so it is okay. I also got a meal replacement drink from the store. I found a chocolate vegan one! I've never had those but i guess i will take that as dinner. If i drink that + my protein shake + some protein chocolate mylk then i should at least have gotten 60 grams of protein today so i think i am good to go!

Warm leg day

On Monday i did my arm workouts. I forgot what i did but i wrote it down somewhere lol. I think i will be focused now on just building up my routine again. I'd rather do like 4 reps in total than nothing at all (like i am doing now). Unfortunately the weather changed a lot and it is super hot now. My roommate and i bought a fan tho so i worked out with that today and it made it tolerable. I am definitely thinking of going back to the gym again. Usually during warm weather it is kind of quiet there, but idk. Today my work-out was kind of disappointing and i didn't do what i actually wanted to do but it is okay.

Today i did (all barbell exercises +7.5kg barbell): 

• warm-up 15 minutes
• romanian deadlift 3x10 (6kg)
• squats 2x8 (6kg)
• hip thrusts 3x10 (6kg)
• stretch 15 minutes

I started with Romanians cause my dog was in the way so i couldn't do squats. I only ended up doing two sets of squats cause my left leg started to cramp really bad and i think it is important to listen to my body. Then my roommate came home and i just wanted to finish my workouts so i didn't change the weights for the hip thrusts and i bailed on the bulgarians. I was still struggling tho. 6kg felt like too much for a minute. 

I also have been reading a bit here and there about DOMs and people said that eating a lot of protein really helps with DOMs. And i am pretty sure that is true. Back when i would consume more protein my DOMs lasted not as long and were less intense compared to when i would not eat as much protein. As i said, my physical therapist was a bit upset with me and said that i pushed myself too hard when i was there a month ago with my DOMs, but i think it is my protein intake. Gonna try and aim for 80grams of protein today!

I didn't keep track of my calories today, but i tried to meet my protein limit: 20 grams protein.

Misery Loves Company

So, my roommates family came over for a little more than a week, and after that i got the flu that i needed to recover from. And now that i am finally doing better i have the worst period ever. Aaaaa!! Good thing is is that a new week is around the corner and i would like to start again. I was thinking to maybe do 3x3 or 3x5 sets for legs, because it always seems so daunting to start with legs. I remember when i first got into working out i started with 3x5 and pumped it up to 5x5 with the same weights for like 1 or 2 months and i worked out almost every day (to make it a habit basically), and when i felt comfortable i went to 3x10 and higher. After that i moved on to the gym/bought a bunch of my own weights. I think what is important now is that i get into my routine again, so the number of sets and reps shouldn't matter! So Tuesday i should be here again :)