No more lunges in my jeans!

Has anyone had a pair of jeans that you really liked to wear, but suddenly you need to do some lunges and stretching to get into them?  This week was an awakening for me in the clothing department.  I noticed that the number on the scale increased a little bit over the past two weeks which really got me upset because I had lost in the first week.  I have been eating better than I ever have and work out 5-6 times a week.  How is this happening?  I emailed a friend about it and they were my voice of reason saying it's probably muscle and water weight.  So I felt better, but still upset because I have a goal weight I would love to hit by the end of the 90 day.  Katie Hunter posted about a similar problem, but she then told us that her pant size has gone down since the challenge began.  AWESOME!  So it got me thinking.  I went into my closet and pulled out some of my "lunge worthy" jeans and tried them on.  Easy fit, no lunges necessary.   They were jeans that I had purchased around my first Marathon.  A few months ago I was seriously stretching, pulling at the waist, and sometimes had a plumbers crack when I attempted to put these suckers on.  So you can imagine how excited I am to learn that my wardrobe has increased to a few extra pairs of pants and some tops.  My chest size has gone down a little too, which may not be the best news for the males out there, but for me I'm happy with that.  So lesson learned out there and for others in the challenge.  Don't judge your progress by the scale.  Look at your body and see how it's changing.  Are your arms getting more definition? Forming an ab?  That's way cooler than a few extra pounds on the scale.

This week I began a new strength program as well.  It is called 5/3/1 by Jim Wendler.  It includes the following excercises-Dead lift, Press, Squat, and Bench Press.  I am working on all but the bench press.  I did my presses and deadlifts this Tuesday at Cutting Edge and was completely smoked.  I did a similar program like this in college and saw results there, so I am sure this one will do the same.   I will thank Jay Von Guinness when my lifts have all increased immensely! If anyone is looking to increase strength look into this program.  Really easy read, I can send it to you.  

I also hit Elizabeth this week.  For those of you that are unfamiliar with her, it is 21-15-9 Reps of Squat Cleans and Ring Dips.  RX weight is 95#'s.  I have not done this workout at that weight before and I have a goal to do at least the weight RX if I can't do the body weight movement RX.  So I did.  The first 21 were ok, not too bad, but not great either.  15 reps were slower and I was stringing them together 2-3 at a time.  9 reps was like MURDER.  I unfortunately only got to 8 because my back completely seized up on me in a pain I had never felt before.  I looked up at Sean who was screaming at me to pick up the bar and just told him I could not continue.  I was so upset because I really wanted to finish, but I knew that my physical health was much more important.  Here is the learning process that occurred for me.  Erika suggested I use the reverse hyper to stretch my back out.  I did a few reps of 8 swings and then foam rolled for a while.  I woke up the next morning pain free.  It was actually the best my back has felt in weeks!!!  Mobility and stretching is so important to what we are doing, so I not only have tried to focus on my workouts through this challenge, but how well I am recovering.  Extra time warming up and post WOD foam rolling stretching has made me feel so much better and I am even feeling more flexible.  So when you think you should just rush out of the gym post workout, remember to take some time to take care of yourself because you will appreciate it much later.

I will admit now that I cheated....BAAAAAAD this weekend.  If anyone knows me well enough there are just some things in life that I truly enjoy doing and one of them is having beers and watching football.    Due to the fact that the Giants were one step away from the Superbowl I just couldn't help but indulge.  AND THEY WON!!  So......it's probably going to happen again in 2 weeks, so I will be eating clean and punishing myself for the pollution I went through by doing some extra running workouts.  I will be absolutely cheating again on the National Holiday knows as the SUPERBOWL.  Dock me points, but I will make up for it with some extra pavement pounding :)