(2015)Hi guys, welcome back!! Here is the second post of “My Fitness Journey”. If you missed last weeks’ post, you can find it here!:)
Writing the “Second Part” of the series was actually a lot more difficult than I thought it would be. Only because it was so hard deciding what to share, how to share it and how to make everything flow. I kind of call this my “figuring it out stage” if that makes sense?
So without further ado
“THE MIDDLE”
Towards the end of my senior year of high school, a few months before heading off to Baylor, I let myself add on a few extra pounds, but nothing too drastic. There was no way I was going to let myself gain the infamous freshman 15. Nope, not this girl. Not the girl who worked so hard to lose the weight in the first place.
OH HELLLL NO WAS THAT GOING TO HAPPEN!!
Well, it did…… and it happened all before the fall semester had even started. Since I went to Baylor early and started taking summer classes at the beginning of July….I was technically a month ahead of everyone in the weight gaining department.
SEPTEMBER 2010 – FALL OF FRESHMAN YEAR(Poor Eating, Way Too Much Partying & a Whole lot of Cardio)
Needless to say, halfway through my first semester of college, I had gained half the weight back that I had previously lost….. But like, how was this happening?! I wasn’t doing anything that different. I mean, I was still working out and I was still eating healthy….ish?! So how was this happening?
Well, when I look back, it was all very clear.
Every day, I would go to the SLC (Baylor’s student gym) with friends and do cardio for “like” 25 minutes, followed by abs. We were all eating at the same places and eating the same things. Yeah, the alcohol & partying didn’t help but it wasn’t like I was doing anything drastically different from them… I mean, they were skinny and we were eating/doing the same things… yet I was the only one gaining weight.
SOUND SIMILAR TO EARLIER?
Thankfully during this time, I realized the truth in that I had lost focus. I lost focus of MY fitness journey. I forgot that I am not like everyone. I am not naturally thin, I wasn’t born with a 6-pack and an ass-kicking metabolism. I lost focus on the fact that I have to work harder. I forgot the number one rule in that you cannot compare yourself to somebody else, because everyone is different and everyone’s fitness journey is different.
By the end of Freshman year, I really noticed how much weight I had gained (aka-my mom gave me the cold honest truth), so once again, I cut out all fast food, soda, and white bread. By doing this, I was able to lose some weight by the fall but it wasn’t as easy this time around. It wasn’t until Christmas of my Sophomore year that I decided I needed to step up my game. I started doing a lot of research and realized that the biggest mistake I had been making the past year, on top of partying and eating poorly (hello frat parties, froyo, and too many late night Whataburger runs), was that I stopped doing weights. If you remember from back in part one… when I first started working out, I would run, do abs and then would finish with weights. The moment I added weight lifting back into my routine, I saw almost immediate results and from then on, I was completely hooked on weights and resistance training.
(The picture to the left is at 127lbs with clean eating + cardio only and the picture to the right was taken six months later at 115lbs after introducing weight training back into my life and continuing to eat clean)
Below you will find the weekly weight training regimen that I followed for over three years. Each workout was a little over an hour long, consisting of 45 minutes of weight training and around 15-20 minutes of cardio.
My First Weight Training Regimen
Monday: Legs – 10 mins on the bike
Tuesday: Shoulders – 15 – 20min stair stepper
Wednesday: Cardio – Run Bear Trail (3-4 miles)
Thursday: Back – 15 to 20 min stair stepper
Friday: Arms – 15 to 20 min stair stepper
Saturday: Chest – Run Bear Trail (3-4 miles)
Sunday: Yoga
For three years, my life revolved around this workout plan and eating a set diet. To be completely honest though, it was a lot easier to find time to work out in college than it is now. Not to mention the fact that I was probably walking 30,000+ steps a day and had an ample amount of free time to do as I pleased. I just moved so much more while in school, than I do now that I’m in that #deskjob life.
Diet wise – absolutely no fast food, soda, or white bread. Only fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, healthy fats and whole oats for this girl (To this day I still eat like this, but I am more lenient).
Side Note*** Are you guys catching on to how big of a deal it is to cut out fast food, soda, and white bread out of your diet? Okay, cool. Just making sure.
As I end Part 2, I want to make sure that you guys understand its biggest takeaways…. like just how important weight training and clean eating are in reaching your goals. The fact that partying and eating poorly will always hold you back and just how important it is to not compare your fitness journey to others because as I said above, everyone is different.
Thank you guys for stopping by!
xo,
Lauren