Back in the Gym After a Month Off

Finally! Today was my first day back in the gym in a little over a month.  I pretty much took it easy and focused on form and and balance, instead of lifting heavy weights.  I could definitely tell my balance was off, my muscles were weaker, and I don't have as strong "mind-muscle" connection with my glutes as I have previously had.  My workout consisted of:

1) lunge variations
2) squat variations
3) hip hyperextension exercises
4) a few inclined sprints
5) lower body stretching

I only spent about 30 minutes in gym, I plan on working back up to the 45-60 min routine I was doing before I went to France.

Bad news: My legs are so loose! I definitely see a difference in cellulite, especially on the back of my legs and my entire leg in general is loose.  There are skin folds (I previously couldn't grab) that are easy to squeeze lol.

Good news: All problem areas can definitely be improved.  If your legs look like this or even with more fat, YOU CAN GREATLY IMPROVE THE SHAPE AND LOOK OF YOUR BODY!! With hard work and fixing my rather inconsistent diet, my legs will return to their former tightness in about a month or so (this is the plan, but I MUST follow a strict schedule and eat HEALTHY)

Also in other good news, I had a 1/2 inch "pump" in my glutes and I could see a definite change in them after my workout, that's motivation!

And Part 3 of "Losing Weight and Improving Your Booty coming soon.

Losing Weight and Improving Your Booty-Part 2

Walking on an incline is probably the easiest way to lose weight while improving your booty.  I honestly don't think this is the best way, but it's low impact and great for beginners (or just when you are too tired to do anything else).  Although I don't consider myself a beginner, I like to walk on incline especially when I am in a "bulking" phase and don't want to go to hard on my legs. 

The best thing about using a treadmill for incline is you get to adjust the incline.  My advice would be take it to the highest percentage.  You will get the most out of the exercise and also burn a lot of calories! When it becomes too difficult, try bringing down the speed instead of the incline.

If you are trying to lose weight, this is an excellent cardio workout.  Easier than running, but incline walking can definitely be challenging.  Your heart rate to be in the fat  loss zone. 

Why this sheds pounds:

Incline walking is a cardio exercise that gets your heart rate going, and essentially that's all you need to burn calories.

Why this helps shape your booty:

Like I said before, I don't think this exercise is more efficient than stair stepping in shaping the glutes, but it is an easier, more low impact way to make a difference in your body.  This also strength the hamstrings, which in my opinion, adds to the sex appeal of your body.

As with every exercise, you must give your body time to change!

Losing Weight and Improving Booty-Part 1

Part 1: Using Stairs to Shed Fat and Shape Your Butt

 Note: This exercise is intended for those who wish to lose weight while improving the look of their glutes, if you wish to pack on glute mass this is not for you.

Climbing stair is a great way to get your heart rate pumping and shedding pounds.  Using correct technique, you can also help get your glutes into shape. 

Correct Techniques

1. Step with heel FIRST onto the step.  This is crucial if you want to target your glutes and not just other leg muscles.

2. Skip a step in between.  This allows for your thigh to be more parallel to the ground and in turn reaches deeper in to glutes.

3. Mind to muscle connection.  Each time you step up literally think about using your glues and SQUEEZE.

Why this sheds pounds:

In a 10 minute walk, I burn around 50 calories

In ten minutes of stair climbing, I burn about 100 calories

That's a 50% increase in the amount of calories burned!

(Based on heart rate monitor and being 132 lbs, if you weigh more you'll burn more calories)

Why this helps shape your booty:

The action of hip and knee joints is extension, this type of movement uses your leg and glutes muscles to propel you not only forward (as in walking) but also upward.  The more you can make the connection with your glutes and the deeper you can sink with the leading leg, the deeper you will reach your butt muscles.

Beginners: start with walking up the stair focusing on squeezing the glutes and descend back down the stairs quickly (but safely!) to keep heart rate up. 

Intermediate to Advanced: Change it up! Step out wider, move faster, add in leg lifts, change up descending patterns.

Losing Weight While Improving Your Booty

For the most part, when trying to change your body you are either:
1: losing fat
2: building muscle

While you can do both of these together, one will be limited by your diet.  To lose weight: Calories consumed must be LESS THAN calories expended
To gain (serious) muscle: Calories consumed must be MORE than calories expended.

If you do need to lose weight, but you would like to reshape, tighten, or lift your booty, you can work on this while losing weight.  The most important thing  is to reach your goal weight and then if you still need mass in your glutes, begin a muscle building routine.

I'm going to post a 3 part series on 3 different cardio exercises that can help you lose weight and improve your booty.

Grocery Shopping and Traveling

So I went grocery shopping in order avoid fast food altogether while I'm here in Dallas.  I have the tiniest kitchen ever and did not feel like cooking, so I bought several lower calorie frozen dinner and some fresh ingredients for salad.  I do not prefer eating frozen dinners, over fresh food and I plan on cooking in a few days.  But I think it's better than eating fast food.  Also I picked up this magazine:

An issue completely about GLUTES!! I can't wait to read and hopefully learn some new information about the gluteals.  So far my only exercise has been walks to the grocery store, but I'm hoping to find a gym around here when my bf gets back from work.

My Before and After Weight Loss Pictures

Although my goals today are to gain more curves, that wasn't always a problem.  I used to weigh 167 lbs and now I am between 130-133 lbs, depending on my diet.  After losing almost 40 lbs, I had lost some of the curve appeal I actually enjoyed.  If you need to loss weight, I suggest losing the excess fat before trying to gain glute mass.  It's easier to lose weight first before attempting to shape your body with weight training.

3 weeks without lifting weights

I've spent the last three weeks on a trip to France.  I had no access to a gym and I was a little concerned about losing muscle in my glutes.  I tried to salvage my gluteals buy doing body weight exercises (hip thrusts, squats, lunges) and also by taking advantage on the hills in the French countryside.  I also did not count calories, but I did try eat as much protein as I could.  Before I left I was on a little junk food binge and had gained about 7lbs in pure fat, thank goodness I lost this while I was there.  Question is: did I also lose muscle? Yes, unfortunately I can see the loseness in my thighs and butt. But, on the bright side, I didn't lose inches on my butt.  Here are my measurements before and after my trip.

May 18, 2012              July 7, 2012

Waist-26 in                 Waist-25.5 in

Thighs                         Thighs

  upper-22.5                    upper-22.5

  middle-21                     middle-21.5

  lower-18.5                     lower-19.5

Butt-36.5                     Butt-36.5

I lost around my stomach, but my thighs are slightly larger, something I do not want.  My fitness goals for the next month are slightly different than before.  Instead of gaining more muscle mass in my glutes, I am going to try and maintain their size, while cutting down fat on the rest of my body.  The difficult part about that is I am going to be moving around and staying in hotels.  So, I'll write another post on staying in shape or losing weight while traveling.  Feel free to leave any questions or comments!