So, this is my new program! The Female Body Breakthrough by Rachel Cosgrove. I got this book on kindle reader and I have to say that it really fits right in with my philosophy on eating *and* lifting! It also helps that her husband was one of the co-authors on NROLW, so it is very familiar.
I also think the Rachel embodies the type of fitness I want to achieve. I think we have a fairly similar body type (plus 10-15 pound for me, though LOL). I like that she is very fit and not so lean that she doesn’t look feminine. She is strong without being intimidating. Here is an awesome video of her doing chinups and she makes it look so easy.
It is a 16 week progressive program and I am going to try to follow it as closely as possible. She does not advocate cardio, but biking season is approaching and I am just going to have to work in my biking and be careful not to over train. Also, I think the base program is geared to people who have never lifted, so I am advanced enough to add in the cardio workouts.
The 4 phases last for a month. There are 2 alternating strength workouts to do. Here is workout A, which I did today.
First is a dynamic warmup, which I won’t go into here, but it involves lateral lunges, inch worms, jumping jacks, etc. It took between 10-15 minutes to go through.
| Exercise | Set/rep/weight |
| Bird Dog Forward Ball Roll |
3 set of 10 3 set of 10 |
| Stepups 3-point dumbbell row |
3 sets of 10 with 15# DBs 3 sets of 10 with 15# DBs |
| Partial Co-contraction Lunge (video) Pushup |
3 sets of 10 3 sets of 10 |
| Hip-thigh Extension (video) Bent Over Reverse Fly |
3 sets of 10 3 sets of 10 with 10# DBs |
I was really sweaty when this was done. It took about 35 minutes to get through this workout. I could not find a stability ball at the gym, so I did the ball rolls with one of those wheel things that you roll on the floor. The hip-thigh extension is basically a single-leg bridge. That is quite tough!
The goal is to add weights to 1 or 2 exercises each time you do this routine. I didn’t do too much with weights today as I wanted to get used to some of the moves and the routine. I have a lot of this routine to do over the next month! On Thursday I will go over routine B.
The eating plan fits in about what I am trying to do as well. Rachel talks about the 90-10 rule, which dovetails right in with how I am trying to eat (score for Lori!). Of course, there are some more strict guidelines like no sugar outside of your indulgent meals, which I have been doing mostly for the last couple of weeks anyway. You need to have protein and a fruit or veggie with every meal/snack, too. That’s a little tougher, so I need to work on that.
Also, I will need to eat 1 more meals/snack a day. I normally eat 5, so 6 will be a change for me. Easy enough on workout days with a post workout shake, but harder on the other days. This means 3-4 meal/snacks a week can be my indulgent meals, which is what I have been trying to do with some success. The non-negotiable meal is the post workout protein drink. Since I go to the gym first thing in the morning, I am making my shake and drinking half before and half after the workout, then coming home and eating breakfast. It’s probably not ideal, but it works for me.
I am actually pretty excited about this program as I loved New Rules of Lifting for Women.
You really are so inspirational, Lori! Sounds like a great plan!
This is an awesome book! I remember on first reading thinking it was somewhat similar to New Rules and then I discovered the Cosgrove connections. 🙂
I start new routines without the weights (or with small ones) too! Better to get the form and flow down first. Oh, and those single-leg bridges ARE tough! You think, oh, piece of cake–I get to just lie here and raise my butt up and down. HAH! To hold your body stable and ensure the proper alignment works everything from the ribcage down. Excellent exercise that recently made a return to my regular line-up.
Same thing with the bird dog. Looks like nothing, feels like a lot of something!
Wow that is really awesome Lori. I admire for you doing this!
Sounds like you are enthusiastic and I like that you don’t rest on your maintenance laurels…changing up your routine is good for keeping the body guessing!
Wow, that sounds very ambitious, Lori! Especially the changes to your diet. I’ll be interested to see what new creations you come up with.
Sounds like a great workout Lori! The 90/10 rule is something I might want to pick up myself too especially since the weekends are so hard.
Can I ask you a question? Maybe you can answer me by mail but how did you learn to do push ups? Or could you do one immediately? Most of my DVD workouts includes push ups and I really suck at it. I’m still doing the girly ones.
I can just talk some about pushups in my next post. You probably aren’t the only one that wants to work on them.
This sounds perfect for you – and way more lifting than I ever care to do (my chief complaint about NROLFW was the time it took). But I’ll happily follow along as you go for it 😀
Can’t wait to hear more Lori! I just like lifting in general & I think your last program was more me but it is all about finding what works for us! She does look great! I am not so sure no cardio is a good thing for many & especially with age – at least based on my experience & how the bod fights. I would be huge without cardio & I do some pretty intense lifting routines. Cardio is good for the heart & lungs too. I am glad you are keeping i your riding since you love it so much!
It’s great to find a program that ‘clicks’ with what makes sense and what you want to accomplish! I will enjoy seeing how you enjoy it and be sure to let us know how it compared to New Rules.
Adding this book to my wish list! Thanks for the great rec, look forward to reading your updates.
Bought the book on your recommendation and it’s really good so far. Thanks for the tip!
I wanted to Download the Kindle version because I would really like a digital format. But it is not available for Download in Singapore on amazon :(.