Literally Back From the Dead This Time..

Hello Everyone! I'm writing today solely as a recurring request from one of my readers. I've been seriously ill the past week and a half and it really hurts my head and eyes to look at the computer screen. But a promise is a promise, so here I am :)

If I'm going to write a post today, I figure I might as well fill you guys in with what's been going on with me. I had to go to the hospital last Thursday after being pretty sick for about a week before that, and it turns out that I have mono. Which is really, really bad news. Don't get me wrong, being sick and unable to work really stinks, but on top of that ...get this...(as per doc's orders) NO physical activity for up to TWO MONTHS. WHAT?!!! This, on top of me not being able to eat just about anything ATM, is going to be setting me WAY, WAY back for my competition coming up in October. I've had nothing to do but lay in bed/couch the past couple of days and just rest, and I've been thinking about not being able to work out and have been pretty (ok, REALLY) bummed about it. I know there are other competitions if I'm not up to par for October, but I've been SO excited and SO focused on my training and dieting that it just really, really sucks for that to have been thrown away because of me getting sick. But, as my dad says, things happen, people get sick, there's nothing you can do about it :\ ..so for now, I'm just going to have to keep my chin up and continue to eat as cleanly and healthy as my body allows me to in hopes that when I am able to workout again, I won't be too far behind...

Onto a lighter note, many people have been asking me what my "competition" diet has consisted of the past couple of weeks..so I'm here to fill you all in :) As the competition date comes closer, my diet will be changing again, and I will fill you guys in when that happens. For the next couple of weeks, though, this is what my diet is:

Meal 1: 

4 Egg white omelet with half slice low fat Amer. cheese and a veggie (tomato, spinach)

1 Slice Whole Wheat toast with all natural peanut butter (about 1 tbs)

8 oz. protein shake (protein powder and milk)

1 cup cottage cheese plain or with some jelly

Meal 2:

1 cup greek yogurt

handful plain almonds 

Meal 3:

Tilapia (or any fish) seasoned with lemon juice,  garlic clove and tsp soy sauce

veggie (usually a salad with no dressing)

1 cup organic long grain brown rice

1/2 cup cottage cheese with peaches

Meal 4:

Protein shake

Meal 5:

Skinless chicken breast or fish seasoned with lemon, garlic and soy sauce

veggie

long grain organic brown rice

Meal 6:

homemade protein shake

-mix:

2 scoops protein powder

6 oz skim milk

1/2 cup of crushed ice

frozen fruit (strawberries, blueberries, mango, peaches, etc)

...and there you have it! That the framework of how my meals go every day...pretty much fish, chicken, rice and some veggies..every.day. 

The diet is extremely bland and I do try to dress it up once in awhile with some recipes. 

I do have pictures and a few recipes for you guys to try out that I will add on here later on.

The other day, I did make "healthy" sweet potato brownies as a little cheat treat, and they turned out pretty good..I will put that recipe up here and pictures later on as well. 

Just to give you guys and idea of what I'm trying to achieve with this diet...

I'm trying to keep my protein intake up, but am eating clean and lean 

so that I can start losing about 1/2 lb. a week. 

Before I got sick, I was right on target while following this diet.

If you are trying to lose more and at a faster pace than that, I would suggest keeping your carb intake

up during breakfast and before and right after your workouts. Other than that, try sticking to lean proteins and fruits and  veggies. 

Also remember to keep those reps HIGH HIGH in the gym to BURN BURN those calories :)

Make SURE you guys are getting in your cardio, as well, I cannot stress that enough! Cardio is going to be where you're going to burn the most calories and the most fat. 

YOU CAN DO IT! 

For the next few weeks, since I will be unable to workout, I will be living vicariously through you guys...so please, please, keep me updated about what you're all doing. Let me know if you guys are seeing the results you're hoping to see. Not seeing results? Shoot me a question and maybe I can help you find what you're doing that is not working for you. 

Eat clean and train mean, everyone :)

xxxo Fitness Felicia

PS: Just an FYI, I've honestly been really bumming since I've been sick..I've been cooped up my apartment all day just with the dogs, not really able to go anywhere or see anyone, and it's really sucked. On top of that, knowing that I could potentially not be able to compete in October has been gettin me down. But writing this post, knowing that people are out there reading this and utilizing what I have to say and are excited to read my blog, has cheered me up for the time being...so just a big thanks to all of you :) I get a lot of people who tell me personally or over twitter or instagram how much they enjoy reading this and it really means a lot to me! Someone told me the other day that I was in their inspiration, and that was amazing to hear. I just want to let you guys know that I do appreciate all of my readers and it does make me happy being able to share my experiences and this journey with you all. xxxoxo

The Importance of Looking Good

Hey everyone! Sorry it's been a few days, spent the weekend at the beach (so nice to get away!), and when I returned home to blog I found that our internet was down. But I'm back! Has anyone been doing the figure model workout? I started a new cycle today and it felt GREAT.
No matter how stressed I am, hitting the gym after a long day always immediately clears my mind and helps me to de-stress.

My new "thing" for today was starting a new pre-workout. I used n-zero extreme. I loved it. I felt such a good pump during my workout and felt a lot less fatigued during my sets.

Pre-workouts are great to get your mind and body set to workout, and do help provide focus and pump to your workout. However, pre-workouts are often quite pricey. You can obtain basically the same effects of a pre-workout by drinking an energy drink (such as monster) or caffeine (like coffee) about half and hour before your workout. They work as much cheaper stimulants if you're looking to try out a pre-workout supplement.

There's something that I wanted to write about today..I wanted to talk about why (I feel) it is important to look good when you workout. Just a note: I am absolutely not knocking anybody who hits the gym without makeup or wears an old, baggy t-shirt..I just wanted to give my POV and see if anyone felt the same way. 

I've gotten so many nasty, rude comments while at the gym about the outfits that I wear (always from other girls). If you cannot tell by my workout pictures, I like to wear compression shorts and tight tank tops. I usually wear lots of bright colors and most always have my shirt, sports bra, socks and shorts matching each other. I also always wear makeup when I'm heading to the gym. 

Now I know that I may be going a little bit above and beyond with the whole matchy-matchy thing...but it suits me, and for a good reason, too. 

I don't know about you women out there, but when I try clothes on in a store, if I don't have makeup on or have my hair looking nice, I feel like the clothes don't look as good when I'm trying them on. You need to know exactly what you're going to look like when you wear those clothes, you know what I mean? So it's hard to tell what you're going to look like if you don't have makeup on or your hair done. Maybe that's just me? Not sure.

But anyways, it's the same thing for me when I workout. I like to see the way my body looks at it's best - which is in nice clothes, with my hair and makeup done as well. I like to wear my compression shorts and tank tops because I like to actually see my muscles working. I also like to see what areas I need to improve on. 

Seeing my muscles working as I'm lifting weights is such a confidence booster. It's nice seeing your body transform into something you are proud of! 

I know a lot people like to get into the gym and get out, and don't put much time or effort into what they look like when they're headed to the gym, because they're going to get all sweaty and tired and smelly...and that is 100% fine! I'm not knocking that at all. But I feel that seeing yourself look your best while in the gym can actually be a big motivating factor in your workout. If you look at yourself in the mirror and think "yah, I look like crap, I just want to get this workout over with," how good of a workout are you really going to have? Compared to you looking in the mirror and thinking "yah, I look pretty good!" You're going to want to keep looking good and push even harder in the gym! Guaranteed! 

I had a discussion with my father about this topic, and he disagreed with me completely. For fathers day, however, I bought him his very own (colorful) compression workout shirts, and I bet you after he wears them and sees the way he looks in them, he's going to change his mind about all this. (I'll keep you guys posted on that one!) 

I've heard comments like "wow, who does she think she is?" and "does she think this is a fashion show?" and lots of other rude remarks about me while I've been in the gym. But I have a method to my madness, I swear.

 I think that everyone should look their best in the gym, for me, it is absolutely one of my biggest motivating factors and confidence boosters. Seeing yourself progress feels absolutely amazing. 

Everyone should be proud of the way they look, big or small. If you're in the gym, you're obviously trying to work on your body and health, so don't be ashamed of the way you look and cover up.

I think everyone should at least try  and see my point of view on this. If you disagree, that is quite fine, but let me know why. If you agree, let me know about that, too! Because sometimes I feel like a downright crazy person walking into the gym all frills and spills. Recently, though, I've gotten to the point where I just do not care. 

Gimmie some feedback, guys! Last post's feedback was W-E-A-K! Let me know that you're out there reading this and I'm not just rambling to a wall! SPEAK UP! 

Kill it today, everyone!! 

Love,
Fitness Felicia 

Merp.

Hi everyone, how's everyone doing tonight? I've had a semi-rough day. I've just been having a hard time getting motivated....about a bunch of different things. I've been getting really discouraged about a lot of things, and am kind of at a stand still, which I feel like always ends up happening once I feel like I'm starting to figure things out. It was a very frustrating day, and quite honestly, I was feeling very unconfident about a lot of things.

First off, I feel like nobody is reading my blog. I still really enjoy writing it regardless, but feedback is always nice. I know I'm new to blogging, but it's nice to know that you're interested in what I'm talking about, or if you have different opinions that I do, or any suggestions..just feedback in general is always a nice motivator. I wonder how long (if ever) it will take to get more than 4 followers (not that I don't appreciate my current four - love you guys thanks for following!). I look at some blogs and they have an overwhelming amount of comments about their posts...how do I get that to happen to my blog?!

Another thing I'm frustrated about is my little personal training "business" I have been trying to get off the ground. I haven't received any calls or emails from anyone interested in personal training, which is also really discouraging. I mean I know I'm doing it all by myself with just my little dinky flyers and this little blog...I guess I will just have to give it more time..
...the disinterest in my personal training is also making me discouraged about my future career. I know businesses are certainly difficult to get up and running and successful, and a lot fail, but I hope I get more of a response when I do start my own personal training/gym business. Of course I will have more professional marketing and blah blah blah. But oh, I don't know. Just a discouraging day.

I'm also getting discouraged about my workouts. No matter how much I eat in a day, no matter how much I try to change my diet or my workout plan, I cannot seem to gain weight! I've tried absolutely everything. My body is just not having it. I'm about to try a new approach and just cut, cut, cut and get lean and toned. But I'd really like to gain just a little weight :(

I'm rambling. Enough about my issues, this blog is supposed to be motivating and inspiring. But this is my "journey," so I guess you guys are just gonna have to follow me through the thick and thin, good and bad!

I had a very busy day yesterday and had no time for a post, so I'll be putting in yesterday and today's challenges in this post.

My challenge for yesterday was kind of dumb, or sad, however you want to look at it I guess, but I myself was very excited about it. ...my challenge was ... to finish a whole book!
I know it doesn't have anything to do with exercise, but I think reading is good for your health, so I'm counting it! I have not read a book (for pleasure) since probably my sophomore or junior year of high school. This book that I read, What Alice Forgot, was a little over 400 pages (which is a lot for me!), and was very challenging for me to stick with it and actually finish the entire book. So, yesterday, I finished my book, and loved it. I'm actually sad it's over. On to the next book I suppose. Sorry guys, I guess that was a really lame challenge :(

Today's challenge was a bit better: to devise a new triceps workout.
 Because I don't really have very many readers, I really embrace the readers that I DO have, and try to answer all their questions and comments that they leave me.
That said, today's challenge was for one of my readers,  "KayKay." She wanted to know exercises that she could do to target her triceps, because, like on many women, they are her trouble area.
KayKay, I hope you are reading this! Because this one is for you!!

Because I need to be doing something new that I've never done before, I made a new triceps workout that I have never done before. I dedicated this one to KayKay.

Because she said this was her trouble area, I'm assuming she is trying to tone it out a bit. So this will be a higher intensity triceps workout. In the alphabet, K is the 11th letter, A is the 1st and Y is 25th.
I was trying to be creative for this one, sorry if it's confusing, but just try to follow. Because A is the 1st letter, I added K and A to get 12 reps.
So, the first set is 12 reps. Y being the 25th letter, the second set is 25 reps. Because her name is KayKAY (two Kay's), do a third set of again, 12 reps, and a fourth set of 25. I wanted to make it a higher rep workout to increase the intensity, give you more of a burn in those triceps which will help them tone out a bit and lose some of that flab all of us women hate so very much!

KayKay, you asked me for some exercise ideas, so here are a few you can chose from: 

overhead dumbbell triceps extension

triceps kickbacks (get your elbow up a bit higher, this picture isn't that great)

overhead tricep extensions with cables

skull crushers 

tricep cable pulldowns 

Hope these exercises can give you a good burn, KayKay! also, Make sure you try out your  the 12,24,12,24 "KayKay" workout (I would do about three or four of these exercises with the 12,24,12,24 rep range), it does give a very good burn. 

This was a long post, sorry about all the rambeling. I don't think this post was all that great (due to lack of motivation), sorry about that as well.

I'll have a more uplifting and inspiring post tomorrow, promise!

Night gym rats!