@silas1325 Thanks for that, I guess two months isn't a long time but I somehow expected a more obvious difference.
Looking at the wall tile size, the "after" pic is scaled slighlty larger so the larger size could be an optical illusion of sorts. Edit: resized image for correct scale.
@teckknight I definitely see the slight differences, I particularly noticed your shoulders being a little more filled in. Granted, the two months are still relatively short, and perhaps you're burning more calories than you're taking in. Either way, I can't wait to see what your next two weeks look like in juxtaposition to your before photo.
@teckknight Oh whoops, I may have misspoke. Not that you're in a caloric deficit, but I was suggesting that maybe you were more in maintenance rather than being at a surplus in calories.
@groo101 You might have a point there. I'm still very reluctant to eat more because of lingering paranoia building up the fat again - but if I focus on lean protein for my surplus this should not be an issue right?
@teckknight Well there's eating more, and there's eating to gain muscle. As long as you give your body a reason to direct those calories toward building muscle, you should see more growth in muscle in proportion to fat accumulation. Gaining fat is just part of the process and is unavoidable, but you can certainly make leaner gains. So yes, stick to a higher ratio of proteins, about 1 to 1.5 grams per your body mass.
@groo101 I've started to find a little bit of balance in my forearm stand which has been a long time goal of mine. I also managed to kick up into a handstand with no wall support and get a few seconds of balance but unfortunately no video.
I also did 5 deadhang chin above bar pull ups! Before I was injured last summer it was my goal and when I was able to exercise again last august I could only do 3. I don't actually train pull ups so I'm pretty happy about it. My new goal is 8 by summer.
I'm working on a new aerial hoop act that I'm pretty excited about. I'm so sore and bruised but as someone who spent most of last year unable to do what they loved I couldn't be happier!
@silas1325 I always love seeing your stuff, you're one of the few female athletes I follow, and the things you do continue to amaze me. Thanks for sharing with us every week!
@groo101 This week I continued making slow improvements. I upped the time for planks / hollow hold / arch to 35s, and am working on lengthening the time I do the shoulder and wall planks. And I'm getting closer to being able to touch my toes (at my ankles).
The biggest baddassedness was that one of my coworkers noted some of the new muscle definition that's coming as a result of the BW.
The biggest challenge over the next month will be struggling to maintain my schedule as I begin ramping up my running schedule for marathon training. In the past, my gym workouts were always the first things to fall when I started getting 'too' busy.
@holdfast4yourlife People tend to question the merits of the grease the groove methodology for numerous reasons, but for someone like you, it might be a great training alternative for your schedule. Don't think about your workouts as having to be blocked off and routine. If you crank out sets of pushing and pulling movements scattered throughout the day, it will be great for maintaining that muscle definition at the very least. If you're like me, the GTG method may be your source of hypertrophy. Regardless, don't give your muscles a reason to atrophy! Provide the necessary stimuli and you'll continue to make gains, even if you're scattering the workout throughout the day.
