Skinny Girl's Quest for Muscle

I let myself take a break for the holidays. From about Mid-October through December, I allowed any food I wanted into my diet and did not follow a regular, scheduled exercise routine. So, it was a nice break. Guess what? Break's over--time to get back to it. The unfortunate part is that this is also the same time of year that everyone starts back up with the newly formed goal of "Oh hey, I'm going to get fit this year. yeah, that's it. It'll be my resolution for [insert year]". The gym will be crowded for certain.

Another unfortunate incident of the New Year's timing is the lack of farmer's market produce. All of the produce that I purchase will have to come from the supermarket. At least the options in the organic product section are growing and prices are coming down and are more in-line with non-organic offerings.

Finally, the limited availability of daylight, and the cold outdoor temps will make exercise lackluster. No wonder all those New Year's resolutions fall short. Who wants to try to build a diet around dismal produce availability and exercise in the cold and the dark?

Even though I took a break physically (and nutrition-wise) over the last couple of months, I did not take a break from reading the latest books, journal articles, and trends in nutrition and fitness. My goals for the beginning of 2010 include some of the ideas and theories that I was most attracted to in my readings and research. One major theme is 'sources of carbohydrates'. In the coming weeks, I'll be getting the carbohydrates in my diet from vegetable and fruit sources, and not from grains, rice, and processed sugars.

Another idea that I'll implement is that of less activity, but more efficient activity. This will include regular sessions of hiit (high intensity interval training), Tabata, and short weight lifting routines (in place of typical 60 minute lifting routines).

The outcome of both reducing the dense carbs from my diet at the same time as working at only highly efficient exercise will hopefully *crossing fingers* bring about changes of 1) reduced body fat and 2) increased lean mass. Gee, that sounds familiar: less fat, more muscle.

Now of course, this wouldn't work for everyone. Not everyone is a hardgainer like I am. For those that find adding muscle easy, certainly eating grains would probably not be a bad idea. For those needing to lose a large amount of body fat, more aggressive routines at the gym may be in order. However, in my case, I can only eat so much so why not make it foods geared towards getting the correct amount of calories with a big dose of vitamins, minerals and fiber, to pair with a exercise routine geared toward limiting calories burned at the same time as building muscle. Certainly highly dense carbs don't build muscle--why eat em?

So there you have it, the two part plan for 2010.

But wait, I still have a blog to take care of. No worries, there's a plan for this blog as well. As I eat, exercise, and record measurements, I'll be noting them here to track and share my progress.

That's it for now. Until next time, go do something athletic!