Living not blogging: STRENGTH TRAINING (giveaway post).

by

Subtitle: Thanks to the Ren Man for a week of gives & facilitating my living not blogging about life.

Subsubtitle: Yeah. Im pretty freakin’ excited by this. Im so pretending we’re ranked in order (wink).

Weight training.

Resistance training:

We know I love it.

carlaflex

But why?

When I lift weights I know that I’m not, in that moment, thinking about how I’ll look in my sleeveless top, but focusing upon how powerful I feel.

When I lift weights I know that I’m not, in that moment, ruminating on boosting my metabolism and shedding fat, but on how I am growing stronger and *bigger.*

How, as a result of my iron hoisting, I now take up MORE space in the world.  How I’m far less likely to be ignored or overlooked.

Through weight lifting I have shed my insecurities and become more empowered in all areas of my life.

I trust my instincts more, I speak up without fear, and I have learned that saying NO and setting boundaries isn’t going to cause the world to come to an end.

For me weight training is about being heard, feeling empowered and knowing that I am capable.

And you?

You smitten yet?

How are you squeezing in some weight training today?

Please to hit us all up in the comments.

One lucky commenter will win a free playlist download from SonicTap.com

USA only.

Winner announced Monday 6.22.09

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Comments

  1. I read that on Jen’s blog today and it really did inspire me. Thank you. I know what you are talking about – that feeling in the moment. Will have to do more of it so I too can grow 🙂

  3. LOL, love the video! Doing the strength training has been the biggest bit of fun for me – that feeling of empowerment is wonderful. Are you looking at me punk?

  4. Nice post. I appreciate what you’re saying.
    When I’m training I focus on my body, my posture, when to relax and tense and how I’m moving. I want to make the effort as effortless as possible. Sometimes a workout is just too intense so I focus on doing it well and quickly.

    Afterwards I feel wonderful, more empowered (sorry for the cliche) and ‘stronger’ in the world. It’s great to achieve something so powerful from simple physical activities.

    Thanks
    Jens

  5. I am glad I found your blog by accident. You help me to build a bridge between metal and the spiritual side of life which I seem to have lost since I started my fitness path about 9 month ago. My yoga practice has completely disappeared in the back of the closed, but thanks to your blog it is slowly coming out of the woodworks again and I like to thank you for that. I don’t see many trainers that incorporate both sides of the coin, but I do think that the once that mange (hopefully I will be one of them at a later stage) have a more balanced approach to fitness and spirituality.
    Thank you and have a nice weekend
    Mel

    PS: Just have to leave a quick rant for not sending MizFit bracelets to Germany anymore. Hope you realize you made the cry 🙁 ;-).

  6. Hey Miz,
    You’re reminding me I have to actually use that squat rack in the basement to have it do some good! Okay…I do…just not as much as I’d like. I’ll get down there today, and move some iron! Sore legs – now that DOES sound fun…

  7. “less likely to be ignored or overlooked”

    I don’t weight train yet and I thought there was no real reason why yet after I read your words I wondered if I wasn’t ready to be seen.

    POWERFUL STUFF, MIZ.

  9. while I am in the kitchen I do counter push ups and have a reisitance band from my EAS Active that I will also use in the kitchen during “wait” times. Every little bit counts.

    LOVE your videos and ideas…keep ’em coming…please.

    Have a great day!

  10. I hadn’t seen that video before and I HAVE a band somewhere in my closet.

    Is this a sign I should find it in the CLUTTER 🙂 and use it this weekend?

    Have a great one all!!

  11. I did my new workout video for my dumbbell workout Tuesday evening and it kicked my butt….. I have sore mucsles that I really didn’t know I had…. so much so that I think I might be ready to do it again my Saturday!!!

  12. Have a great weekend MizFit!

    Today I am sending my girlfriend your way to check this out.

    I think she’d love weight training but she doesn’t listen to me 🙂

  13. Between this post & the post on priorfatgirl.com I am convinced!! I need – wait no – I WANT to try to add resistance training. I am at the stage where walking (which I still LOVE) is not all I Want to do! I am feeling braver and stronger! This weekend I will search the attic (I mean, declutter ~ as much as I can before the heat gets me up there) and find what stuff I have up there. I know I have some ankle weights (good for the thigh muscle that the doc wants me to build) and probably a band or two!!

    I am gonna try this!! Wait again, I am going to CONQUER my fear of “lifting”!!

    Miz, I hope you enjoyed you week of living not blogging!! Smooches to you and the family!!

    Have a great weekend!!

    peace, luv & jen

  14. Love the video! Put me in a weight room and I’m good to go, but I’m completely clueless when it comes to the bands.

    I love weight lifting because it makes me feel like an equal!! I love hitting up the weights with all the boys and feeling like I deserve to be there too 🙂

  15. I pushed a ball around under water in 20 different ways… I’m feeling it from my scapulae to the tips of my fingers and all along the front of my body. The core was rocked!

    For me it’s also about feeling strong and powerful. “Capable” is probably the best word to use. Strength training benefits me mentally, emotionally and physically.

    You looked amazing! I can’t even imagine the amount of work that goes into that… Just be sure to remind everyone that that took hours and hours!

  16. YESYESYES to the hours.

    NO NO NO to the hours working out.

    NO.

    For me it was/is 100% consistency in the working out (yes, I so surrender that. Not time per day or week at all but years in and out) and YES hours and hours of focus.

    Meditation.
    Visualization.
    MENTAL COMMITMENT and tenacity.
    FOCUS.
    Desire.

  17. “…MORE space in the world. How I’m far less likely to be ignored or overlooked.”

    Oh, yeah. I used to be very skinny and spent a good deal of my life hearing “Oh, there’s nothing to you.”
    (Insert string of Very Bad Words here). Over the years I’ve gained and currently come in at around a size 10. I’m 5’4″ (barely). While our culture suggests I ought to weigh less, I say *&%%%* to that. I feel substantial. There is something to me. That said I’m not in as good a shape as I ought to be due to a heart thingy, but once that’s over I’ll be deflabbed.

  18. I am not partaking in weights or strength training today. Not feeling good 🙁 But, I plan to encorporate more of it this next week! I’ve been convinced to go to the dark side 🙂

  19. I’m working on being more consistent with my lifting and this post helps so much!!

  20. I’ll be doing yoga. I lifted with my arms yesterday, and I’m too sore to hold a dumbbell to strength train my legs (doing lower body strength training with a bar hurts my back and the “bump” on my spine where my neck meets my back).

  21. Congratulations Carla! So happy for ya! 😀

    Yeah, yeah.. lifting with my 3lbs +5 lbs 30 mins ..upper bosy today

  22. Love what you wrote about what lifting has done for you. You seem to have found your true passion in life. And isn’t that – and love – what it’s all about?

  23. I love that weightlifting makes my 5″2, 115-lb self feel STRONG!! I am getting in some weightlifting today by going to Body Pump at my gym.

  24. Just having the actual weight in my hand gives me focus. Although I will probably never again put on a bikini (pasted on or otherwise), I’d still like to have definition. Right now my definition is “out of shape.” And if it counts for anything? You’re my #1 fitness fanatic.

    : )

  25. That’s exactly what I love about weight training. I feel strong, healthy, and most importantly, NOT body conscious!

  26. Saw the comment about the bracelet.
    You don’t ship overseas?

    For what it is worth you are my Jillian, MizFit.

    You inspire me.

  27. OF COURSE you’re ranked in order; I already knew you were up above Jillian Michaels and Rachel Cosgrove! (Good company you keep, eh?)

    That thing you said about taking up space. I think the subconscious idea of disappearing or diminishing yourself is one of the reasons that diets fail. Where’s the motivation in that? Goes against the survival instinct.

    Not many comments on your pic. You guys do realize that’s Carla (Mizfit) in that second photo, right?

  28. Wait, that’s you, Miz??

    Thanks Dragonmamma for pointing it out.

    I thought it was clipart LOL

  29. I am forcing myself to do some weight training today because I LOVE feeling stronger.

    I just hate the process by which it happens.

    Wish I had your love for the resistance training! Sadly, do not.

    And congrats for making the list!

  30. Dang Miz – look at you!!! Holey Moley!

    1000% percent on the lifting. It really changed my life. I am strong inside and out, and the stronger the outside gets, the stronger the inside gets. To me, there is no single more empowering fitness regimen than lifting.

    Makes me wonder how far I can go?

  31. That picture of you is amazing!!

    I love your perspective on lifting. I need to remind myself of your words when I’m thinking of ways to get out of strength training. I know I need to do it and it’s good for me, but I just love cardio so much more.

    And of COURSE the list is ranked! 🙂

  32. I can’t find the love for the resistance training at all.
    I think my head is still too firmly in the “cardio burns calories” place.

    I will try though for you.

    When is that picture from?

  36. Ooh yes. You’ve definitely got me to appreciate the value of strength training… I’m not necessarily strong when it comes to lifting weights (as I struggle with 10 pounders, haha), but being able to toss around my body weight with chin ups and push ups is really exciting. And then I know that for my size, I AM strong and powerful.

    And that means so much more than any amount of airbrushing or mirrors could ever do.

  38. I had already planned to squeeze in some upper body lifting after work today with some abs. And your post only further sealed that in. Now 5PM, time for happy hour excuses for me tonight…happy hour will have to wait another 60 minutes!

    Happiness Awaits

  39. I will be the first to admit, strength training isn’t my most favorite thing to do. I always FORCED myself to do it…up until recently.

    I’ve noticed such a difference in my arms/chest/shoulders, PLUS I can actually do 20 “real” push-ups in a row – without dying! That is HUGE for me. I love the feeling of being strong when I carry my groceries, pick up my niece, or carry a heavy box. It’s very empowering, and I’m hooked!

  40. You know I have a love for iron… it makes me strong and confident and HAPPY. Today I do an upper body unilateral stability workout. (hello dumb bells, cable machines and swiss balls).

    When I lift weights, I am lifting the weight of time off my back. I lift to be younger.

  41. Hey Miz – First off you look beautiful! 🙂 Thanks for sharing the pic! I too, love how weight training makes me feel. I love to feel strong. I love how I feel when I’ve gotten a good weight training workout in. It surprises me that I don’t get them in regularly. There is a disconnect in my brain somewhere. I’m not making it a priority.

    Thanks for this post. 🙂 Ideas for getting a workout in when I can’t make it to the gym.

    xo
    Nat 🙂

  42. I’m new this blog, but I just wanted to thank you for so eloquently stating “now take up MORE space in the world. How I’m far less likely to be ignored or overlooked.” It’s a message that should be shouted from the rooftops for all girls and women to hear… That’s it’s okay to take up more space in the world!

    Thank you, for your inspiring words, Miz!

  43. Very cool link! Congratulations.

    I have come to love the iron, and I KNOW it’s your good influence. No one I know talks about it as anything other than an obligation, and your passion really is infectious…I feel PROUD when I can lift heavy weights. Everything you said about taking up space moved me because yes, it’s how I feel, but it is definitely not always how I’ve felt. It has definitely boosted my self-confidence.

    You look amazing and beautiful in that photo. And I love the expression on your face. So strong. It’s kind of mesmerizing, miz!

  44. There is an enormous difference between taking up space in the world with fat body mass and lean muscle mass. I have been allowed to experience both. I used to feel like a victim and gained weight to protect myself. What a false protection the weight was.

    When my muscles are stretched, slightly sore and flexed, I feel great. I still mostly use hand-weights to work out. Do I have a dynaband? No. I guess I better get one after watching the video. When my body feels powerful, I know I am more powerful. When I was fat, although I took up more space in the world, I did not feel any power.

  45. (FYI I had trouble getting into your site)

    Thanks for this post and for your repeatedly telling us to weight train.

    I have fin ally heard you.

  46. This week has been a no-weights week because of the race. I’m jonesin’. I feel like I’m going to get back to it next week and be so weak! But over the summer I want to work more on weights…I was doing a full body session 3 times a week last winter, now I’m down to 2 half-arsed sessions with all the running. I can’t wait to shift back to it. It makes me feel powerful and strong. Don’t get me wrong, the running does too, but there is just something about pumpin’ iron…

  47. AHHH! DEVIL BANDS!!!

    I’ll never forget the first day my trainer dragged those out and I kinda laughed to myself thinking “really? this is going to be CAKE! I can’t believe he thinks I’m such a weak wimp.”

    I almost cried during that workout. Several times. They don’t look like much, but ohhhhh boy will they kick your butt! I cringe a little every time he brings them out.

    Although my arms have never looked better….

  48. Yes, smitten. Appropriate post, because Friday is my new day for a major weights workout.

    If I was into Twitter, I would totally follow you.

  50. I am a recent strength-training convert … way behind you. I work at it though. I’m going to get them guns.

    I referred to your post on strawberries today. As I mentioned the brain benefits to my writing group this week. So, we are all pumped up on strawberries at the Central Oregon Writers Guild. 😀 Our brains thank you.

    Feeling empowered I think is the most important thing we get out of this whole being healthier thing. I find it worth the effort and am glad I do feel empowered … finally.

  51. Love, love, love the photo. Love the whole story of that competition!

    I have been growing more fond of the weights. Since winter, I’ve been “lifting” along with the Shred videos and a little on my own. I’m gettin’ there!

  53. Well, you know that I am all bout the weight training! Love it! I did not know you did the bodybuilding thing! I did that as well in my late 30’s! Today is an off day for me but I do weight training 4 days a week so it is there as you well know! 🙂

    Oh, answering your question to me on my post the other day, I work out in a gym that says NO to pics in there plus at the time I am there, not many to take the pics either, even if I wanted to try & sneak some. Maybe some day I will get my hubby to do some pics. I have been thinking about that!

    You look awesome!

  54. Love the strength training–except while pregnant and supposed to be doing sissy weights. You would not believe the collection of weights and weight plates and weighted balls and bodybars I have stashed around my tiny house. You might actually expect me to be fit with all this stuff–well, I will be again eventually.

  55. I’ve come to enjoy strength training and appreciate how it’s helped me keep some tone while I’ve lost body fat. I think I wouldn’t be as happy with my body now if I hadn’t started doing it when I was just starting on my health overhaul (motivation at the time was to gain upper body bone density–running wasn’t going to help with that).

    I really, really love my BodyPump class. I enjoy strength training exercises in the couple of videos I have that have strength stuff. But…when it comes to thinking up what to do on my own, I still struggle with it. I still feel rather self-conscious in the weights section of the gym; how do you all remember what exercises you want to do? I’d also love some suggestions for strength training DVDs, if anyone has used these.

  56. I love how lifting weights makes me feel. I used to do lots of cardio at the gym and only lifted a few weights once in while (not consistently, not well planned – I’m not sure what I was thinking.) But about 5 months ago, I started lifting weights consistently and with sort of a plan. I love how strong I feel during and after weight lifting! 🙂

  57. I did some strength training as soon as i woke up and digested my wonderful power green monster!
    loving my muscles 😉

  58. I did light weight training after my cardio in the morning. do you think it’s better to strength train before cardio session?

  62. Yes yes a thousand times yes! Love my weight training! Makes me feel very strong and alive. I have to squeeze it in between my marathon training, but I make sure to have at least two good sessions a week.
    yay weights!

  63. I just discovered (because of someone else’s comment) that there was a link about you being in a bodybuilding contest. (Does anyone else have trouble seeing the links? The colors look almost exactly the same on my screen.)

    Anyway…that’s the first time I saw that story! I had no idea you were in a contest! What a rush!

    So, where are you now compared to where you were then? That was pre-childbearing, correct? Are you still that lean? How did pregnancy affect you? Are you stronger now? Faster? Meaner? Did you ever get the glue off your private parts? Give us the full scoop!

  64. Although I’ve never weight-trained, I feel like I know what you’re talking about when you say it makes you feel stronger in every way. Maybe I was a weightlifter in a previous life. Or maybe other things I’ve done have made me feel similarly grounded and capable.

    I can’t imagine lifting free weights, because the thought of it strikes me as boring. (Bad memories of lifting mini barbells during one of my many teen diets, I think.) But you know what I wish I had? One of those gym machines where you sit upright and lean your midsection against a cushion and use your ab muscles to bend yourself forward. Once upon a time when I had a gym membership, I used to LOVE that machine. Maybe THAT’S how I can relate! I always felt great after using that thing. And interestingly enough, I think my middle is the weakest part of me nowadays. It’s like I’m craving what I need most.

  65. COOL exercises! Hm i may have to implement a strong pair of nylons for that 😀 I’m workin it by lifting all the kiddies in the pool, fun stuff!

  66. Miz? YOU SO ROCK.

    I lifted this morning and feel worlds better than I did before the gym.

  67. I have started strength training and I notice that some things are already easier for me to do. I do have to tell you that I really like some of those benefits you mentioned. I can’t wait for people to start taking me seriously. 🙂

  68. Is that somebody famous? Sorry, I’m not “up” on the current pop icons.

    This is what’s called A Win-Win Situation. You get to express the real you, and we gals get to look at pictures of cute guys, although I’m sure most of them will be way too young for me.

  69. Oops, sorry Miz, can you delete post #68? I meant to post that on Tony’s log!

  70. I love to lift. Sometimes I get lazy with my lifting workouts but always incorporate it in most of my classes that I teach. Love seeing those veins pop.

  71. I’m with you on the weight lifting. I love feeling powerful and strong and it gives you a great sense of accomplishment when you move up in weight – you realize you’re making progress. I don’t want to be a soft, saggy, skinny person – I want to be strong, toned and in proportion! Strong women are sexy!

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  73. Hi MizFit,
    I’m a new reader and wanted to let yo u know I spent last night going all through your archives.

    So glad I found ya!

  76. Congratulations on the publicity. I suspect it is not in order though — there is no way you are as low as #3. I was thinking at least #2, but most likely #1. 🙂

  79. I don’t know what’s happened to me, Miz. When I was in high school, all I would do was lift weights. Maybe a relic of my only high school sports experience (high school football team!). But I didn’t incorporate any kind of cardiovascular exercise; I would do a 1-2 mile jog about twice a year, promising myself that I was going to get into running. However, I LOVED lifting weights.

    College, same story. I would go to the gym, spend 10-15 minutes on the recumbent bike (to warm up), then lift weights for an hour and a half. I loved weights for all the reasons that you do: I liked being bigger. I liked feeling powerful. I liked being stronger and more skilled than the dumbass men doing stupid things (no, really stupid things) with barbells. And maybe I secretly knew that I was going to need awesomely defined arms if I were going to be a lesbian and attract the perfect woman 😉

    Now? I am doing well if I can force myself to get into the weight room for two sessions a week. And most of my weights work isn’t about strength or power or size or tone or any of the things that used to make me feel empowered–most of my exercises are corrective and rehabilitative so that I can continue to swim, bike, and run.

    And I’m not sure why that is :-\

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