Jolene's Training Log

[jmcquillan]

Current Stats
Gender: Female
Age: 26
Height: 5'6"
Weight 133lbs
Body Fat: 20% (calipers)

About Me
I got introduced to SL 5x5 by my husband who started the program in February (link to his log in my signature). I’ve never lifted weights before, so all of this has been new to me. I had my 1st baby 6 months ago, and started running to get rid of the baby weight. After reading the SL website and watching my husband workout, I knew I needed to work with weights to get back into shape…running wasn’t going to cut it! We purchased the Powertec P-PR power rack and I started the program March 22, a couple days after it arrived. I’m currently in my 7th week and really like it so far. Besides feeling better about myself, I like the program because it is so simple and only 3 days/week. With both me and my husband working full time and a little 6 month old rolling around, it’s so hard to find time to workout. Since I know I only have 3 days each week, it’s a little easier to just do it and not make excuses.

Goals by end of July 2009
Squat: 145lbs
Chin-ups: 1 unassisted chin-up and make progress on pull-ups
Pushups: 3x10 regular pushups (right now I’m doing pushups on my knees)
Body weight: Maintain around 130-135lbs
Body fat: ~18%
Since I’ve never lifted weights before, I wasn’t too sure what goals to set. These are the goals I had set when I first started the program. If I can keep it up through the summer, I think I’ll be able to accomplish them. Doing 1 chin-up is the biggest goal for me. My arms are definitely my weakest area and chin-ups seem so impossible!!

Schedule
I’ve been doing the program 3 days/week, but I’m thinking about moving to 2 days/week and run on the other day. I currently don’t have time to run and really miss it (mostly a mental thing).

Diet
From reading the other women’s training logs, I know diet can be a big issue. I have been a little hesitant to eat too many calories, but am getting better about eating when my body tells me to. I aim for 1900-2100 calories/day and 120g protein (usually get around 60g fat and 200g carbs each day). I’ve never been big on eating out or fast food, usually about once a month, so that’s not an issue. I’ve been keeping a food diary since I started the program and it’s really helped me see what I’m putting in my mouth.

So anyway, I finally decided to start a training log to help keep me motivated…we’ll see how it goes. I’ll post a summary of my first 7 weeks on the program and then start posting my workouts.

-Jolene

[jmcquillan]

Here’s a summary of the progress I’ve made during my first 7 weeks on the SL 5x5 program:

Squats
Progressed from 45lbs to 120lbs. Stalled at 125lbs, so I’m starting again at 115lbs. The squat has been a favorite of mine since I started this program. Hoping to get to the big 45lb plates soon.

Bench
45lbs to 75lbs. Took me 3 attempts to get 70lbs and 2 attempts to get 75lbs.

Overhead Press
45lbs to 65lbs. Took me 2 attempts to get 55lbs, 3 attempts to get 60lbs, and I’m definitely going to stall at 70lbs. Got 65lbs my 1st attempt, so know I can do 70lbs, just might take a couple workouts.

Deadlift
65lbs to 120lbs. Felt really good about my form until about 105 lbs. Now that it’s feeling pretty heavy, I’m going to need to focus on it more.

Rows
I started out with an inverted row, but hated them. I tried to do them with my knees bent, but it never felt like I was doing them right. So after 2 ½ weeks of those, I changed to barbell rows. Started at 22lbs and have progressed to 50lbs. I might be able to use the 45lb bar for my next workout.

Chin-ups/Pull-ups
I could barely move myself up from a hanging position when I started, so my husband has been helping me do negatives and assisted chin-ups. I’ve been focusing on chin-ups, but will start to work on pull-ups later this summer. I still can’t pull myself very far up from a hanging position, but I do feel stronger doing the negatives, so hopefully I’ll start to make better progress.

Pushups
I tried doing regular pushups the first day and could only do 1-2, so I’ve been doing them on my knees. The first day I did 9 total and now I’m at 21 total.

Reverse Crunches
I had a hard time figuring out how to do these correctly at first. I think I’m finally doing them right since my abs are pretty tired after the 3rd set.

Body Weight and Fat
I started out at 135lbs with 21% bf. I’ve lost about 2lbs and 1% bf. Before the baby, I weighed 129lbs and had ~18% bf. I’m not too concerned about losing weight, but I would like to lose another 1-2% bf.

-Jolene

[jmcquillan]

Workout 5/6/2009

Squat
45lbs 1x5
75lbs 1x5
95lbs 1x5
115lbs 5x5; 3-4 mins between sets. I deloaded from 125lbs and I think it was a good boost to be able to go back to a manageable weight.

Overhead Press
45lbs 1x5
55lbs 1x5
70lbs 5x2,2,1,2,1; 4 mins between sets. So frustrating that these are so hard! I got the 65lbs on my first attempt and it didn’t feel too heavy, so not sure why I’m struggling so much with only 5lbs more. Did do more than last time at least.

Deadlift
120lbs 1x5. This felt heavy but not too difficult. I might have my husband check my form next time now that it’s feeling heavy.

Chin-ups
2x3 husband assisted up and 1x3 negatives

Bridges
3x30sec.

Felt good that I got all my squats. Frustrated at overhead, but glad I was able to get a few more than last time. Maybe I am getting stronger? 

Rest Thursday & Friday, lift Saturday.
-Jolene

[Kathy]

Hi Jolene,

You have made some great progress since March!! I always love to look back at where people start and see how far they have come in such a short amount of time - very encouraging.

Congrats on the newest family member. Hopefully he/she is beginning to give you some complete nights of sleep. I have 3 kids and my first never slept. I was a grumpy mess for the longest time

Look forward to seeing your continued progress!

Happy lifting,
Kathy

[pagangoddess]

Nice to see you here Jolene. Hubby got me into weight training also. That was 8 years ago. I started stronglifts last December and am enjoying its simplicity.

You're right, diet is important but so is flexibility and balance. Too much obsession will backfire. Trust me I'm an expert.

[jmcquillan]

Kathy: Yeah, I've really enjoyed going through people's training logs, especially the women's, to see how quickly people progress.

Hopefully he/she is beginning to give you some complete nights of sleep. I have 3 kids and my first never slept. I was a grumpy mess for the longest time

I'm really lucky with my little boy. He started sleeping through the night around 3 months. He'll still wakeup in the early morning 1-2 times/week, but nothing to complain about. I admire you having 3 kids and still finding time for yourself to workout! Every mother should learn from that; it's so important to have "you time".

Hubby got me into weight training also. That was 8 years ago.

pagangoddess: That's awesome that you've been doing weight training for 8 years. I hope I can stick with it that long!

-Jolene

[dlewis7444]

Hi Jolene, welcome.

I understand your frustration with the OHP. Most here agree it's one of the weirdest lifts. One day it'll go up like it's nothing, the next time it's just impossible. I'll be doing my first deload on it this weekend.

The link to your log in your sig doesn't point to the right place. Try this instead:
http://stronglifts.com/forum/jolene-s-training-log-t16292.html

Dave

[jmcquillan]

Workout 5/9/2009

Squat
45lbs 1x5
75lbs 1x5
95lbs 1x5
120lbs 5x5; 4-5 mins between sets. Felt pretty good. More confident about 125lbs.

Bench Press
55lbs 1x5
65lbs 1x5
80lbs 5x5,4,3,3,2; 4 mins between sets. The 1st 2 sets felt pretty good, but I found myself thinking too much about my form, which I think was distracting. I am getting better at pushing through and finishing a rep when before I would have just quit.

Barbell Rows
55lbs 5x5; 30 secs between sets. Felt good.

Pushups
9,6,7. 1 more than last time. I'll try regular pushups next time.

Crunches
3x12

Pretty good workout today. Glad I got my squats, but thought I'd do better on my bench...next time I guess.

Rest Sunday, lift Monday or Tuesday.
-Jolene

[Kathy]

Nice workout Jolene. Hope you are having a nice Mother's Day!

[jmcquillan]

Nice workout Jolene. Hope you are having a nice Mother's Day!

Thanks Kathy. Hope you're having a great Mother's Day as well. Congrats on the chinups too!

[jmcquillan]

Workout 5/11/2009 (Monday)

Squat
45lbs 1x5
75lbs 1x5
95lbs 1x5
125lbs 3x5; 3-4 mins between sets. Didn't have much time, so only did 3 sets. Last rep felt pretty heavy.

OHP
45lbs 1x5
55lbs 1x5
65lbs 3x5,4,3; 3-4 mins between sets. Only did 3 sets to save on time. I think if I rested longer between sets I'd get more reps. Next time I'm going to deload and go down to 60lbs.

Deadlift
125lbs 1x5. Felt heavy but I think my form was alright.

Chin-ups
3x3 negatives

Bridges
3x30 sec

Didn't have much time but wanted to get the workout in. Felt pretty good, but need to rest more between sets.

Rest Tuesday, left Wednesday.
-Jolene

[jmcquillan]

Workout Wednesday 5/13/2009

My husband was working out this evening, so I ran on the treadmill instead. I haven't ran in almost 2 months, so I was out of breath quickly, but I was really happy with how strong my legs felt. I never took beginning pictures of myself, but I can sure tell my legs have toned up. That's enough reward to want to keep at it!

Hopefully I'll get a workout in tonight.
-Jolene

[jmcquillan]

Workout 5/17/2009 (Sunday)

Squat
45lbs 1x5
75lbs 1x5
95lbs 1x5
125lbs 3x5; 3-4 mins between sets. Re-did this weight since I didn't think my form was perfect last time. Since I don't have much time, I'm only going to do 3 sets from now on. I almost didn't make it up on my last rep, but pushed through. Excited for 130lbs, only 3lbs less than my body weight!

Bench
45lbs 1x5
65lbs 1x5
80lbs 5x4,4,4,3,2; 3-4 mins between sets. Save number of reps as last time. I really don't feel like my arms are getting much stronger. I think I need to focus on eating more calories to see better results.

Barbell Rows
60lbs 5x5; 1 min between sets. These felt really good today. The last couple reps were getting harder.

Pushups
3x7,8,6. Still doing these on my knees. Tried to do a regular pushup, but could barley do 1...I'll keep trying.

Crunches
3x12. Did these in between my pushups.

Well...the weather's nice and so many other things to do besides work out. I hadn't lifted since Monday (ran Wednesday at least), so it was hard to get going again but glad I did once it was over. I am looking forward to my next workout where I'll be squating and deadlifting 130lbs...almost my body weight. My body weight is keeping steady around 133lbs and my body fat seems to have dropped to between 19-20%.

-Jolene

[XCouchPotato]

HI Jolenne:

Sounds like you had a good workout. Congradulations on getting your body fat down.

[MysCat]

Nice numbers there, Jolene. Almost bodyweight squat! Awesome.