The Right to Bare Arms
I am not typically a vain person, but allow me to say that, in case you were wondering, I have some pretty awesome-looking legs. Yeah, my thighs need some toning, but my calf muscles — fabulous. There was a time when I was just as cocky about my arms. Don’t get me wrong, my upper body never looked like that of my hero Beth Phoenix:
But back in the day people often stopped me to ask, “Are you a swimmer?” or “Do you play tennis?” because of my toned triceps and biceps. Those days are long gone.
Saturday I was hanging out with my brother and we were discussing our workout regimens and fitness goals (because that’s what we cool kids talk about) and he asked me to flex my bicep. He squeezes my arm and says, “No, really, make a muscle.” My reply: “I am!”
With that I knew it was time to do something.
As loyal readers know, I’m on a quest to lose weight this year. I’m doing Weight Watchers and working to burn 3,500 calories a week to do so. So far I’ve dropped more than 10 pounds. But simply losing weight is not enough. I need to tone my muscles as well. So yesterday I started Body Pump, an extremely intense hour-long weight lifting class. (And to earn my 3,500 calories for the week I also attended a step aerobics class immediately after Body Pump. I was so exhausted I thought I was going to vomit.)
I hope to work up to doing Body Pump three times a week. If I think I can handle it, I’ll even shoot for that this week, but right now all I feel like I can handle is a nap.
What do you do to tone your muscles?
curl slices of pizza
Pick up a 28-pound toddler, and do lunges when I pick up all the toys and miscellaneous items he spreads around the house — I do both multiple times per day.
OMG – I looked at mine yesterday and thought, just walk away Chantay!
What happened to my arms? They weren’t as toned as I wanted, but they looked exactly like I wanted them to look. Now – blubber. Nothing but noticeable fat and blubber.