Better Body Goals-Accountability Thread

[roamingmer]

Nikki Sharp has some good guidelines for detoxing and eating healthily - which will help any body shape. http://www.staysharpbestrong.com/
Sophie Guidolin also has some good guidelines - and a body to be envious of http://sophieguidolin.com.au/
The Sinus Survival Guide is also a good read and echoes all of the healthy eating journals.

Three big things I changed: No Dairy produce, No Breads / Yeast and trying hard to cut out refined sugars (or added sugars). Im still eating as much as before but also enjoying 'Rainbow' meals with multicoloured fruits, veg, salads and yes meat and fish (but the quantity is lower).

In reality eating healthily and exercising the core and upper body will have an influence. The best core strengthening is to lay on your back and lift the legs - whilst keeping the stomach in. Slow controlled situps also work - the aim is to be controlled with the movements otherwise the wrong muscle groups are used. Doing Yoga will help you regain flexibility as over training the abs will be detrimental to the elegance of tail and back...

Certainly all these aspects helped me - and the bloating I used get regularly has gone. Indeed my stomach almost disappeared whilst my weight stayed a consistent 60kg (1m74).

[Mermaid Oshun]

I thought Karkarotte is doing the squats to increase the bottom? If the gluteus maximus increases, that would increase the entire hip/but region. So this is a good thing right? Not something she would want to go away the way I understand it Deep blue. Congratulations on the progress Karkarotte!

so for female you multiply your hip measurement by 0.7 and that is your ideal waist measurement according to these scientists.

conversely measure your waist and divide it by 0.7 for your ideal hip measurement (female formula)

[deepblue]

I thought Karkarotte is doing the squats to increase the bottom? If the gluteus maximus increases, that would increase the entire hip/but region. So this is a good thing right? Not something she would want to go away the way I understand it Deep blue. Congratulations on the progress Karkarotte!.

Oh, I'm so sorry if I missed that that was her goal. I'll be more careful in the future about reading the earlier posts.

I'm actually looking for a video to show me squats to lift and just define my glutes. I in no way want a larger bum. But if I lose the fat and tone the muscle, it's pretty simple and I should end up where I want to be with it.

I really like my natural curves- even at my fittest, I have them. But to me, natural means it's not covered in unhealthy, undeveloped muscle and fat.

I did find a cool free workout app. I'm going to try the squats on it. But not tonight... my bum is so sore, today was the first day I managed to totally keep up with my Buns of Steel dvd. lol

[Mermaid Oshun]

Im really not sure if that is her goal or not deep blue. That's why I put so many question marks in my post. I tried to find her initial post stating her goals and I could not find it either.

[Mermaid Varshana]

I've been lifting weights, doing squats and abs exercises for like a million years It's not that.

[Mermaid Varshana]

I really don't want my hips to be bigger than 38". They're 39 atm. My waist is somewhere between 28.5-29. I'd rather it be down to 27.

[Coradion]

It's not going to be instant, just keep at it. You need the cardio with the muscle training in order to really burn through the fat and let the shapes you're working on toning and building up really show.

[Mermaid Varshana]

Oh, I've been doing lots of weightlifting and cardio since I was a teenager. I'm an insanely active person. That's not part of my better body goal. The only thing I changed was my diet to half raw. I lost about 3-4lbs, but gained half an inch in my hips. That was what confused me lol

[Joy&RaptorsUnrestrained!]

I went down to the beach this weekend, and in all the unpacking and such, I slacked off on my workouts (including squats). Heading to the resort gym/pool now. Will take photos later.

[deepblue]

This video helped me see what I was doing wrong with squats.
http://youtu.be/aPYCiuiB4PA

I did 45, and had to stop because my breathing went to hell, by virtue of the movements themselves. But in that time I felt more in my quads and latissimus dorsi than anywhere else. I'm almost certain that I'm doing it totally correctly. I just expected to feel more in the glutes.

I will work up to more. I'm going to attempt to do more every day, and still do my usual workout three times a week, for now.

[Usagi]

I have an idea. I will give one of you guys all the fat off my body that I don't want. Then one of you can just lose it for me! lol agghhh I think my problem is that I'm all malnutritioned or whatever haha I'm really lacking nutrients and vitamins and blah dee blah. I have a poor diet and probably have low iron (anemia runs in the family) so I'm just tired all the time. It doesn't even matter how much sleep I get. I've always been a tired person. I caught up with my squats, and have been meaning to take my hula hoop in the backyard, but it's been so freaking hot! Plus, I'm obsessing over Halloween costume-making right now haha

[Usagi]

Also, I had a HungryMan for dinner. I am ashamed. But it was that, fast food, or starve. Or delicious sweets that I shouldn't be eating lol

[Mermaid Varshana]

You'd be surprised how affordable fruits, veggies and lean meats are compared to box meals. I used to eat mostly TV dinners too, and spent $10 more on groceries.

[deepblue]

I have an idea. I will give one of you guys all the fat off my body that I don't want. Then one of you can just lose it for me! lol agghhh I think my problem is that I'm all malnutritioned or whatever haha I'm really lacking nutrients and vitamins and blah dee blah. I have a poor diet and probably have low iron (anemia runs in the family) so I'm just tired all the time. It doesn't even matter how much sleep I get. I've always been a tired person. I caught up with my squats, and have been meaning to take my hula hoop in the backyard, but it's been so freaking hot! Plus, I'm obsessing over Halloween costume-making right now haha

If you can go to a doc and ask for a blood test to tell you what nutrients you're low on, it's really helpful. A lot of people have no idea they're low in vitamin D, for instance. But low D can make you feel tired all the time, and it's a hormone precursor, so being low can effect so much of your life. It turns out it's really common. I shouldn't be low in D, I'm in San Diego and walk everywhere, but I do get low in it. So I take it in pill form because it makes such a difference in the way I feel.

And yeah, anemia, too. It runs in my family. Everyone is anemic to some degree, no matter what they do- except for me. When I'm 100% raw vegan I don't have to take iron because I got it from all the food I was eating. But I'm don't eat as much raw now, so I take Floradix (Edit- I take their Floravital, because it's vegan as I am. ). It's expensive but the BEST iron, and one of a few my body will absorb. It was recommended when I was pregnant, and it's amazing how fast you can feel the diff.

A lot of caffeine in your diet will also steal your iron, btw. Caffeine... one of the scariest legal addiction there is when it comes to what it does to our blood and bones, but no one thinks about it.

You can slowly bring better nutrition into your diet. You don't even have to be exrteme. Just dropping processed foods to begin with will make a difference.

[deepblue]

I have to double post because I am SO stoked right now. Just did my workout- a little late, I overslept, so I did it with fans pointing at me- and for the first time... I don't know how long, I did not have to take my inhaler before, during, or after. This kind of progress is amazing. These things pay off. As long as I can avoid smokers on the street and such, I should continue on this path of stronger breathing. Woohoo!

[Mermaid Varshana]

Exercise does amazing things to the human body. Ever since I started swimming and rollerblading more, my blood pressure is down around 89/56 and my resting pulse is under 60. I'm going to live forever :P

[Mermaid Dottie]

Okay, better body. Here are my goals.
Asleep by 10:30 so that I can be up at 6:30 to go lap swimming (If you see me on her later than 9:45, tell me to go to bed, no matter what thread I'm in.)
Sit-ups every day, regardless of my swim workout.
I want to drop 3 inches off my waist and tighten up my "kangaroo pouch", as I like to call it. What I've got going on is extra skin that never shrank back to size after Lochlan was born, but instead gathered fat into it and now hangs down quite unpleasantly.
I am currently 35 inches at the waist and 46 at the hips. My goal is for my waist to be small enough that a properly-fitting tail will have no way to slide down or gap.

[MermaidBrittany]

Wow, to see what everyone is doing is really inspiring I told myself that I would go to the gym very frequently in the summer, but I guess I have unintentionally put it off with community service events keeping me so busy :P
So, I accept the Squat challenge!
Never heard of it before, but it looks like an awesome start to getting me where I need to be! With college just around the corner, I want to make sure I have a nice routine down so that I don't gain the freshman 15
Good luck to everyone, I hope you achieve your goals!

[SeaGlass Siren]

I gained the freshman 15 xD

[Mermaid Oshun]

Woman thrown out of pool for wearing a bikini with a full figure.
I think we should all protest this. I think it is ridiculous!!
She looks GREAT are they all NUTS or what??? She should sue and be paid megabucks.