Mommy likes pull-ups

I personally think that pull-ups are a superior exercise & since we don't have a cable machine, I will be substituting them for Lat Pulldowns in my workouts.  I use a resistance band to increase the number of reps that I can do during my workouts. One of my goals for this program is to increase the number of pull-ups I can do. Back when I was still in the Marine Corps, I could do 13.  To get to that point, I was doing them almost every day.  After some practice, right now I can do 7.  I would like to double the amount of pull-ups I can do by the end of this program.

The Gym

How does a stay-at-home mom of 3 small children & a husband who works long hours get to the gym? I have no idea! We are very fortunate to have a very nice home gym. It is actually a separate 1000 sq. ft. building on our property. In fact, one of the reasons we bought the house that we did is because it has a nice extra building. We have been buying gym equipment for quite a few years now & have what I consider to be a pretty nice free weight gym. We have Precor Icarian benches & preacher bench, 8-100 lbs dumb bells, squat rack with pull-up bar, leg press/hacksquat & plenty of weight! The only thing that I really would like to have is a cable crossover machine. We just haven't found one at a reasonable price yet. Having a gym at home is one of the best things that we have done for ourselves. There is no excuse for me to not workout. I don't have to waste time getting the kids ready, which can take up to an hour some days. I don't have to pay for child care at the gym, or for a membership for that matter. We spend quality time as a family playing, dancing & running around in the gym. Most importantly, I believe that we are setting a good example for our kids because they see us working out & living a healthy lifestyle.  I am sure we will be adding more in the future, but here it is for now:

Stage 1

The workout plan that I am following has 7 stages, you workout 2-3 times a week with a week of rest in between the stages.  I am probably going to workout every other day instead of 3x a week.  It is a good stress reliever for me & I get plenty stressed with 3 young children and a husband who works long odd hours! I feel a little awkward about posting my before pics, but they are what they are...

I am in the middle of my 2nd week of Stage 1 & I feel like I am a little beyond this stage, so instead of doing it over 8 weeks, I will probably cut in down to 6 before I get bored.  Then I will take more pics!

In the Beginning...

I am Jessica, a 30 year old stay-at-home mommy to 3 awesome little girls! The youngest will be a year old in a few days.  I have always been successful at getting my before baby body mostly back in a reasonable time after each child, but this time, I want more.  I want to pack some hard muscle onto my slim frame & I want to see my abs again!  I am starting this journey at 130 lbs and I am 5' 9 1/2".  I couple weeks ago I downloaded a great book onto my IPad (Happy Birthday to me!) called The New Rules of Lifting For Women: Lift Like a Man Look Like a Goddess.  I read it in ONE day!  I thought I knew a good deal about weightlifting, after all, I have been lifting weights, working out, running and just being physical for almost the last 20 years.  I learned a lot and felt inspired to start this journey.  The book contains about a 6 month fitness plan along with the nutrition plan.  At first, I figured that I would try to strictly follow the nutrition plan, but quickly realized that it isn't realistic to cook special meals just for me when I have a whole family to feed.  Therefore, I have decided to stick with the basic outline of the plan & then add in extra because I am still breastfeeding & I am definitely not trying to lose any weight. So here I am, feeling inspired & hoping that I can inspire someone else to get off their butt & go lift some iron!