Maybe I’m made for lifting heavy sh*t

After the competition I barely had any motivation to do anything athletic. I basically trained 2x a day for 12 weeks prior and I needed a break. Both physically and mentally. But I had to immediately start training for my triathlon. I gave myself one week to just relax then hit the swimming, biking and running.

That was 5 weeks ago. Honestly it feels like ages ago though I bet many of the other competitors feel like it was just yesterday. The triathlon training has been going well. I could be doing more of it, but steady state cardio is not really my favorite. What I’ve learned over the last 9 months of working out at Beyond Fit doing HIIT style training is that my body does well with short bursts of high intensity exercise.

Sure I could probably condition myself to be good at endurance training, but I’m a firm believer that if it’s not something you really enjoy you shouldn’t be doing it (or forcing yourself) when there are plenty of other activities you could do and love while achieving your fitness goals.

I continue to workout out at Beyond Fit since the competition but stopped lifting weights outside of that. I was beginning to feel weak and flabby so I decided to hit the iron 3x a week until after the triathlon. The plan after the tri is to up back to 5x a week and go into a gaining cycle. I will talk more about that in the next post! As I crawled back into the gym this week many ideas crossed my mind.

1. Should I take it easy and ease myself back in or just hit it hard?

2. Would I be able to lift the same weight after taking 5 weeks off? 

3. Is three times a week of heavy lifting going to affect my endurance training negatively?

I decided to just go in and see what I was capable of and found that I haven’t lost much strength in 5 weeks. Most importantly I was reminded how much I love lifting. Blasting electronic music in my ears, breathing heavy, feeling the burn, being the only girl in the dumbbell area of the gym surrounded by men; I get a high from all this.

I think I have found my true fitness calling. I am meant to lift heavy shit.

I am small and petite so lifting heavy for me is not the same as lifting heavy for someone else. I can’t lift as much (right now) as the next gal. That is why I try hard not to compare myself to others and just try to beat my personal best. Everyday I go into the gym I push myself, if something is easy I go up in weight. If I’m not feeling the burn in the muscles I push harder. On leg day I wobble out of the gym and it hurts to sit down the next few days. And I love that!

Does that mean I will stop doing everything else and become a crazy bodybuilder? NO!! I am in love with cross-training and I get bored very easily. Also, I want to remain feminine looking and not bulk up too much. Thankfully when you are natural and do not use steroids or other chemicals that push you past your genetic limits it’s very unlikely to get huge and bulky.

The 3rd question above is yet to be determined. Many triathletes believe that you don’t want too much muscle and weight on your body for competition. So the real bulking phase won’t start until after my triathlon is over.

I plan to document everything I’m doing here on this blog. My diet has been all out of whack so I first need to get that on track. Since I don’t have a personal trainer I am going to mimic the workouts of some of my favorite physique/fitness models to see what works best for me. I’m thinking I can find the right formula of heavy lifting, diet, and small amounts of cardio that will aid in me putting on muscle without putting on too much fat.

Thanks for following along!!

A Few Special Announcements!!

We are currently running a special for our comprehensive online program Wellness Reboot. Save $25 off the 28-day program or $5 off the 7-Day Refresh cleanse. More details here! Offer good through the month of September.

My profile has been added to the many beautiful and strong vegans up on VeganBodyBuilding.com! Take a read and be inspired. Anytime you don’t feel like going to the gym it’s a great motivator to look at the photos and read the profiles. Also, if you have have questions the forum at VBB is soooo helpful!

If you’d like to see what the PlantBuilt team did to train for the competition order the special edition Vegan Health and Fitness Magazine! There are sample meal plans and workouts from all the competitors including me!

I’ve started creating raw recipes and making cooking videos for Skinny Limits, a local juice company here in Austin. Take a look at the first recipe, Bruschetta Tacos. It is so easy and mouthwatering delicious. Check out the other raw food recipes on their website as well!

And as always thank you for reading! I love to hear from you about what fitness activities you are doing and what fun goals you’ve set for yourself. And feel free to share this blog and any of the resources above with others so we can continue to spread the vegan message through health and fitness!