DEADlifts.

Today was a heavvvy Deadlift dayyy Heaviest Iv gone since injuring my shoulder a couple months ago (AC Joint sprain). It was one of those days where my mental focus had to be on point. One of those days where I knew I just had to get it done and not think twice about it.  It was also one of those days where I had to make sure to pee before each set…

My first set started off fine, weight felt good, form felt good, things were movin’ along 👌. Then as I kept reppin out, naturally my form started to break and I started playing the mind body game. Goes a little something like my mind yelling “stop acting like the old geriatric water aerobics grandma that you are and just get this shit done!” Then even though my body feels like collapsing, it usually just listens.

Anyway, I did around 87ish% of my comp weight with a trap bar for 4 sets max reps on a minutes time.

Set 1-12 reps (video in link above)

set 2&3- 10 reps

set 4- 13 reps

Set 2&3 were the worst. I was running down, form was breaking earlier is the sets than my first set and reps were becoming slower

set 4 I decided to just give it my all (not that I wasn’t for my other sets), but my motivation really kicked in on this set. I wanted more than 10 measley reps. I felt a kick of energy, anger, and aggression. Pulled out 13 which I felt good about.

I didn’t want to give up or give in. I like to make sure I finish strong. My mental focus is going to be so huge for me these next couple months. Mentally continue to push myself. Because as soon as your mind gives up, your body gives up. I was not built to give up.

I know there are girls training hard out there that I’ll have to come up against. But that’s not what I want to focus on. Right now I want to keep my focus on MY training. And not worry about anything outside of that.

Tomorrows the Day!

       I know I haven’t posted in a while, and thats mostly due to the fact that I never really felt up to writing. That’s usually what happens when I have a blog. I tend to be a bit MIA for a little, but no worries I’m back!! And tomorrow is the day! Tomorrow is going to be my very first Strongwoman competition!

I truly can’t believe how fast this came! I also keep forgetting!! Which sounds really bad and laughable, because you’d think I’d be jumping up and down in excitement in anticipation and not being able to think about anything else!

But for some reason, I’m rather calm. Yes nervous, very very nervous. But still I’m calm. And that’s just me. When it comes to competitions I get more nervous than I do excited. Mostly because I’m not the best competitor. I psych myself out, I go blank, I get queasy, I over think. At least thats how I’d always get at most of my track meets.

But tomorrow I’m going to change that. Tomorrow I’m going to treat it not like a competition against a bunch of other people.  Instead I’m going to treat it as a celebration! A day where 4 months of working my ass off almost everyday, pushing my body to the limits, changing my life completely, putting my wants and needs before others will be celebrated.

I know what I have accomplished. I know what I can do now. And I don’t need to prove anything to anyone. Of course I’m still going to bust my butt tomorrow and shoot for the moon. I’m an athlete and I want to win, who doesn’t? But even if I end up in dead last, it won’t take away from how much stronger I am inside and out. I’ll still be a strongwoman.

A special thanks to my friends and family who have been there with me and who will be there with me tomorrow!! Your support and encouragement mean everything to me! And a thanks to my trainer Rob Marino and Jenn Finucane! Rob has taught me everything about this sport along with building my strength in the weight room! And Jenn has been there supporting me every step of the way if I ever needed anything! You both have helped me more than you will know! Giving me more confidence, strength, and will power. If anyone ever has any interest in  needing a trainer, I will always HIGHLY recommend these two! They will kick your butt into shape!

Welp I have to continue with prepping my food and preparing for tomorrow!! I will post soon to let you guys know my outcome!!

Forget the Past, Live in the Moment.

Good morning!

Last night I hit a pretty big realization which just motivated me to the max. What I most realized was that I had probably one of the best cardio work outs on my own that I’ve had in a loooooong time. And that was mostly due to the fact that my other cardio day this past week was complete crap. I made excuses after excuse that day, “my legs were tired from my leg day Monday”, “It’s snowing really bad out and I shouldn’t stay long”, “Well I did this many sprints, sooo that should do the trick”. GRRR just thinking about it makes me so mad!

I’m not one to not put my whole effort into things anymore. That was the old me, and it made me so mad that I let the old me slip in and make excuse after excuse to make myself feel better about the situation. The main reason why I’m frustrated is because my trainer gave me a goal weight to hit by February 14, which I know I can do! But if I continue to have crappy cardio days like that, then someone might as well hand me a donut because it just won’t happen…(I have donuts on the brain because tonight is my card night 🙂 !)

But thats why last night I knew that I needed to forget about Tuesday, I can’t change what happened, and hey I slipped up it happens. BUT NO MORE! I woke up yesterday on a mission, a mission to kick my own butt harder than I’v ever before!

I focused on my eating, went to work, then on my way from work I was off to the gym. I snacked on some sunflower seeds to get a little energy kick. Mind you, my drive from work to my gym is about 35-40 mins depending on traffic, and usually I can time my eating before workout out right. But anyway, I put my motivation cap on, put my handy dandy Polar Watch on so I could keep track of calories, and off I went!

I first attacked the rowing machine because treadmills were all taken, (I do HIIT [High intensity interval training] on all the machines I use). Then I ran over to a treadmill, when I saw it was freed up! SCORE! Now we can get this party started with some sprints! Whelp, as soon as I started going, I got a major you didn’t digest those stupid sunflower seeds you just ate cramp! I tried to keep sprinting through it, but it was useless. Beyond frustrated I knew I had to switch gears. This was NOT going to stop me, NO excuses here!

I decided to kick my butt in other ways…I did HIIT on the stationary bike and battle ropes. Did some ab work then light arm work. Then went back over and did more battle ropes and decided to finish with some HIIT on the stair master (which by the way, as much as I love that burning feeling, the stair master is the devil).

After an hour and a half I believe I was successful and it felt great! I got in a nice stretch afterwards, went home, had some isopure, ate dinner, and was lights out at 10:00.

Basically, we just have to remember that you can’t change the past, so why dwell on it?? Why waste all that time when you can enjoy the present moment? We never know how many present moments we are going to have (morbid, I know) so make them meaningful!

Oh by the way, I’m off from work today so……I’ll be back. 😉

And So it Begins!

Yesterday I had my first training session with Strongman equipment! At first sight it is definitely intimating. I mean going from a regular 45 lb barbell to a thick 65lb bar with a barrel in your face, your bound to be a little intimidated. But after my trainer went over the motions of how to do each step, I slow yet surly became more and more conformable with it.

I’m about to get all metaphorical on you guys right now, but I definitely see that training session as a step to getting out of my comfort zone not only in training sessions, but in life too. Going from seeing something that intimidates you and that your not comfortable with, to take baby steps and realizing that not only can you do this, but that you really enjoy it (which is a good thing too since it’s only just the beginning 😉 )! Why stay in a box of comfort your whole life, when there is SOOOOOO much more out there. And maybe even things that you could potentially love, but will NEVER know until you break that box and take a leap.

This is what I see my whole journey as. Yes I have been lifting since age 14, so what I’m doing may seen relevant to the thing that I am training to do. But, so far for me, it’s been a completely different lifting world than what I’m used to. This challenges me and pushes me mentally and physically every single day. Learning new things can be scary, but it can also be exhilarating, which is how my journey has been so far. Trying new things and pushing yourself is definitely something that I highly suggest everyone do, even maybe just once a week!

Anywayyyyyyy I have a video! Of me training with the log press yesterday (and my workout outfit just so happen to coordinate with the log press and weight colors 😀 )

Check it out on my youtube or my instagram page (this will hopefully be the first of many)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀Keeley Moffitt (@kekebball7)

Today I end with another easy low carb (practically carb free) meal! And progress pics!

Who needs a carby flour tortilla when you can have this colorful fiesta in your mouth!! Just some….

-ground beef with some taco seasoning (from a packet, use as much or as little as you want just check the nutrition facts on the bad so see what the carbs are)

-Half an avocado

-Monterey jack cheese

-Lime juice

-A little bit of habanero pepper (Side note, use real hot peppers instead of hot sauce. Don’t get me wrong I LOVE my Franks Red Hot, but it tastes fresher with real peppers!)

-And lastly some cilantro.

And now for some progress pics! 

DON’T FORGET TO DRINK YOUR H20!

Preparation is Key!

Goooooood Morning!

  Today we shall focus on being prepared when it comes to dinning out options.

First, twice this week I will be having dinner out… aka not prepared by yours truly…aka menus filled with the overwhelming amount of carbs! But no need to fear, there are ways to go about this without feeling the dread of the possibilities of those sneaky carbs getting into your “clean” meal!

Numero Uno! Find out where you will be dining. This way you can look up the restaurant and know what kind of cuisine they serve. Along with checking out their menu to see what options you have to pick from. Tonight I will be going to a pub type place, which I’m a huge fan of because pubs tend to always have a variety of options of their menu. You can get a burger and hold the bun and add your own carb free/ low carb toppings, with a vegetable side (tell waiter/waitress NO FRIES pretty please and get a substitute, that way they aren’t just sitting there staring at you and tempting you). Or if you want fries and only want like 2, to try them, then have two and IMMEDIATELY throw something gross on them so you won’t eat anymore!

Numero Dos! WATCH OUT FOR THE “LOW CARB” MENU OPTIONS! It may say low carb, but if you doing carb night and have a VERY limited amount of carbs you can eat during the day, then look closely, because in reality its not carb night low carb. Just because they remove the bun and add a lettuce leaf instead, doesn’t immediately make it low carb. You gotta watch out for those onions, tomatoes, and other carb loaded toppings! Restaurants are usually good about adjusting the meal to fit your needs, so don’t be afraid to ask if you can eliminate and add things.

Number Tres! Get a gooooood workout in! Today I have a cardio workout, and not that I’m a slacker when it comes to doing workouts when I don’t go out to eat, but I like to just kick it up a notch. I always go hard at the gym no matter what day it is, but if I know I am going to go out to eat and if there is a chance that sneaky carbs get in, then I go bigger and harder during my workout. Adding extra sets, extra minutes, extra sweat.

And last but not least, if you know your going to be going out to eat, and it’s not impromptu, then plan your day. Plan out what your going to be eating through the whole day, so that you know when dinner comes you have extra carbs to use at dinner …just in case. And if it is impromptu, and you have smart phone, and you  have the myfitnesspal app, then while your looking at the menu take your time by checking eat ingredient in the meal your interested in to make sure it fits your diet! And if you don’t have the myfitnesspal app THEN GET IT!!! IT’S A LIFE SAVER!

Basically when going out to eat, check out the menu and find something you would like that follows your diet plan before your get there, don’t be fooled by the “low carb” menu option, get a good workout in prior to, and lastly plan out your day! All simple things!

Now I wanted to put up a quick recipe!

Dark Chocolate Black Raspberry Sneed Bars

These high fiber and low carb gluten free bars are great for keeping in your fridge, and grabbing to go when in your in a hurry! I have been eating them before workouts to get some of the carbs that I need to get fueled. And because some of the carbed ingredients contain fiber as well, that cancels out the carbs and makes it low carb! It’s like magic! And the best part is, it only takes like 5 mins to make!! LOVE IT.

 This recipe should make 12 muffins (or in my case because I couldn’t find my muffin tin, I made 12 bars)

-100g. almonds

-50g. sunflower seeds

-50g. sesame seeds

-50g. flax seeds

-50g. pumpkin seeds

-1 handful of blackberries

-50g. of dark chocolate (yuuum)

-1tsp sea salt

-1/4 cup of oil (olive or sunflower)

-3 eggs

preheat oven to 390 degrees F. Chop the almonds and dark chocolate coarsely. Mix together almonds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, flax seeds, pumpkin seeds, blackberries, chocolate, and salt. Add in the oil and then the eggs and mix well. Pour mixture into nonstick muffin tins (or baking dish) and bake in the oven for about 15 mins. Allow to cool and store in the fridge in an airtight container.

Truly a Break-Fast

Goooood day!

      Ok this post will be quick, I say that now but of course paragraphs later and I’m still going ;-).

        This morning I was definitely feeling extra tired from this past weekend. It was one of my best friends birthday and we went out Friday night and so yesterday I was beyond tired and very thrown off of my regular routine. Which hey, it’s not always gonna be perfect, just means I have to suffer the consequences and get back on track. But it was definitely worth it, we had a blast!

Were crazy, but we don’t care.

       Anyway after working late last night and having to get up early this morning, I was slow to get out of bed and tired of eggs! But I definitely needed to eat something. So after a quick brainstorm I decided to throw together a smoothie. Of course when your going low carb a smoothie is a difficult task because most fruits are high in carbs. BUT I recently found out that blackberries are free game! And luckily I had some left over after making this blackberry dark chocolate sneed (nuts and seeds) bar (I’ll be most definitely sharing the recipe on that on in another post).

   I did a nice simple smoothie full of protein and nutrients.–> About a cup of blackberries, a cup of baby spinach (you can’t even taste the spinach I swear!), some ice, some almond milk, a scoop and a half of isopure strawberry and cream zero carb protein powder (you can use any protein power of course), hemp seeds, and chia seeds! –>For a little tip next time I’m going to freeze the blackberries instead of using ice so you don’t have tiny ice bit and so it’s doesn’t get watery.

About a cup of baby spinach

Some blackberries

A scoop and a half of protein

And BAM! Smoothielicious with chia seeds on top!

Basically what I wanna get at is to not skip any meals with the excuse of “I didn’t have enough time”. When I was in high school I would rarely eat breakfast, and if I did 9 times out of 10 it was some sort of granola bar. No bueno. You can make breakfast in seconds if you just take a second and use what you have and whip something up. And even though we all have in are heads what the typical breakfast food is, breakfast can consist of anything you want to eat! Don’t get stuck in the mindset that you have to have eggs and bacon! Have a burrito! Have some grilled chicken and spinach. Just make sure to eat something! Put fuel in your body to start your day off right. Ever since starting my carb night diet I haven’t skipped breakfast once. I make it a point to have something even if its going to make me late to work. Theres no way I am going to stat my day off with an empty stomach, not allowing my metabolism to get roaring, and feel tired and sluggish. Plus with the amount of calories I burn each workout, I need to stay energized with food and need my body to burn something while I workout!

In spite of what I said I do tend to make eggs…alot. Its just a really easy fast breakfast, and I make them in different ways to keep it interesting. But after having my smoothie this morning, it inspired me to take the next step and check out other fruits that are on the lower carb side and experiment with some smoothie options!

But all in all, EAT! Nothing makes me more frustrated when people think that skipping meals or not eating breakfast is going to help them loose weight. WRONG! But that will be in another post…And I promised to keep this short. So until then! Happy eating! 🙂

Head, shoulders, back, and legs, back and legs.

New Progress pics time!!

     Lately I have been so focused on what my goal is, I don’t even think about cheating on my diet or skipping out on a workout. I have no excuse to do so. The other day I was driving home from work and passed a McDonalds, and thought to myself “imagine if you caved in and had some chicken nuggets??” Just the thought about having fast food and ruining what I’v worked so hard for makes me sick to my stomach! Cheating on my diet is NOT even an option for me! I have gotten to the point where when I see a temptation I kick it in the shins and walk away!

      I literally plan my life around my gym time. If someone asks me to do something or if I have work, my first thought is, “ok well if I go to the gym at this time then that can work!”. If your a busy bee like I am sometimes, you can take 30 minutes or even 20 minutes out of you day to get some exercise in! Go for a walk! Get up off your couch…DO SOMETHING! This will also just help you clear your head, get the stress out, take the world off your shoulders. Believe me, yesterday I had work at night, so during the day I was cleaning, eating, and watching TV. Damn Dance Moms got me carried away and before I knew it I had work in less than 2 hours! Thank goodness yesterday was cardio and ab day, I ran to the gym busted out a 45 min workout and felt awesome and accomplished afterwards!

    You can make it work!

       I have also gotten to the point in my carbnight diet where, I am not craving carbs. I didn’t even realize till a little bit after waking up that tonight is my carb night! I have gotten so used to eating low carb and loving it that it doesn’t even phase me for when my carb night arrives…Such a drastic difference from when I first started carbnight. Don’t get me wrong I still love my carbs and love having some cheat meals, but it’s the fact that I also love eating clean and seeing the results that I work hard for!

Ok time for some progress pics!

Left picture is from October when I was starting to lift and eat somewhat clean. The top is from last week and the bottom is from this morning 🙂

My shoulders are my weakest point. The to image is from October and the bottom is from this morning. You can see my strength growing in my shoulders and my traps.

Legggssss. The left two photos are from December when I started to really train harrrd. I mean every leg workout I had I was DYING and sweating all over the place feeling that deep burn. Which is why my legs now look like the right photo taken two days ago!

PATIENCE = PROGRESS

Hey guys! I took a new progress picture yesterday and wanted to share! I also have a picture from when I first started my weight loss adventure about a year ago! NO JUDGING HERE! I, along with a lot of other girls, used to be embarrassed to say what my weight was out loud. But with where I am right now stronger inside and out, I don’t care anymore! This is MY journey and MY blog and I am here to be completely 100% honest with myself. If I’m not honest with myself then it will only be that much harder to achieve my goals! So here we go…

 In the top picture  I weighed a gross 250 lbs and in the newest progress pic I am down to 216! I am a tall girl so my weight (from what doctors have told me) should be around 180.  But for me, I’m not aiming for a specific number, I’m aiming for more so a specific body type. Which is strong, muscular definition (and no not to look like a man!) and lean. When your lifting it is very important to not weigh yourself on the scale constantly! Your body will be changing and turning that fat to lean muscle which is what mine started to do. Before I started carb night and just tried to eat cleanish I kept weighing myself and getting discouraged because the scale wasn’t going down…but yet I noticed I was getting leaner. Then it hit me. I was gaining muscle! I was loosing inches, but not lbs. Instead of weighing yourself, try measuring yourself! You definitely see a difference!

I started off with eating low carb, doing cardio, and some lifting. I now do carb night, lift heavy, with cardio 2 or 3 days a week,  and train 5-6 out of 7 days a week. I didn’t do any crazy crash diet here. I was patient with this whole thing (as much as I didn’t want to be!). I keep my lean proteins, green veggies like spinach asparagus, kale, and mixed greens in my diet. I changed my fats from eating cheeses to eating a little bit of cheese and getting my fats from avocados, coconut oil, olive oil, nuts, and seeds, AND LOTS OF WATER. As long as you eat clean and train hard theres no need for diet pills or crash diets! Your only hurting your body!!

A lot of my fat as turned to lean muscle mass which I am pumped about! I feel great, and super motivated now that the holidays are over…aka no more distractions by delicious holiday foods!

I shall get to it now!

Before:

250 lbs ugh I hate this pic.

And heres my current pics!

Catching up.

Hello all!

Ok we have some catching up to do. Lets see when I last left off was my first carb night. I most definitely went overboard with the amount I ate that night. I was pumped to get back to eating healthy and cutting the crap out again and training hard. My next carb night I had was wayyyyyy more controlled and I felt a million times better the next  morning!

That time I had BBQ pulled beef, mashed potatoes, and carrots for a traditional dinner. Then over an hour later I had one chocolate chip pancake. Then an hour or so after that I had 3 peanut butter cookies. Got some better sleep that night than the first time, and the next morning I felt tight and not bloated!! I was sooo excited!

heaven on a plate

for some reason I always crave pancakes when keeping it low carb.

happy Keeley!

After that night I had a week of training and then I would be off to Seattle for the holidays. This made me verrrrry nervous. I was just getting the hang of carb night, and now all those delicious holiday treats and wholesome carb filled foods that you devour to the extreme one time out of the year was fast approaching. I told myself I wouldn’t fall for it! I would stay dedicated and not go back to those old ways.

That week came and went, and in the middle of the week I made the executive decision that I was going to enjoy myself. And that doesn’t mean eat like complete sh*t. That means that I would portion my meals out and eat what I wanted in a controlled amount. I knew just from that one week I wouldn’t gain back a boat of lbs. But I also knew that while on vacation I wanted to spend it relaxing with my family, working out, and not counting every little thing that I eat. I have been eating clean enough for a while to know what a good portion amount for me is. But I also knew that upon returning I would just have to keep working my butt off.

And thats just what I did.

beautiful

Seattle

freshest shrimp I’ve ever had!

I’v been back on the low carb eating until tomorrow (my next carb night) and working hard in the gym. I decided to push my carb night back a couple days to fully recover from vacation. Even through New Years Eve My friends and I had a low key  nights where I had two drinks (which were no carbs) and raw tacos on a lettuce leaf. The next day I wanted to be nice and well rested to kick off my new year with a squat and leg day!!!

Christmas gift

NP in the sled

Oh and I got to use my new lifting shoes and lever belt that I got as Christmas gifts!!

Gifts that I got from one of my closest friends! She’s the besssst!

Ok and now, last but not least! I have a couple progress pictures from this past fall and winter. I am really excited about this because it just continues to show how far I’ve come! And even if I get a little discouraged if I’m not dropping a certain amount of weight at a certain pace, this just goes to show that when you work hard and consistently lift (with some cardio of course)  lean muscle really takes over fat and does its thing. I will leave you with those progress pics and that is all for now! I will try and be better about posting more often as the progress continues!

left side is not flexing and the right side is flexing.