Operation Get Lean – Week 1 Recap + TREADMILL SPRINT INTERVALS

Last week, starting Sunday, I began training and eating to get lean and add muscle with a goal of looking something like the photos below.  I’m crazy for those shoulders and abs!  I’ve never really had nice shoulders and arms like that and I want to see if I can get them.  

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Slightly embarrassing to post my pic, but I wanted to document my progress, so here’s where I’m starting. 
I have been doing a lot of reading, researching, and remembering what trainers and fitness competitors I’ve known have told me throughout the years.  To get results like that, you have to lift weights, do cardio, and eat clean.  There’s really no secret.   
A few days ago, I posted my current eating regimen and I’m happy to report I have stuck to it 100%.  I have planned a cheat meal for Saturday night, but plan to continue my clean eating Saturday day and on Sunday and the next week, etc.  I really want to see what eating like this COMBINED WITH the working out and cardio do for me in the next few months. 
I’m planning to workout 5 days a week (Mon-Thurs, Saturday, and off Friday and Sunday).  This week I’m taking off Friday (so that will be 6 days this week).  The cool thing for me is that I added 20 minutes of cardio to the end of every workout.  I’ve never done that before.  And I’m talking hard cardio, keeping the heart rate up the whole time.  (I’m not monitoring it with a device but can tell by the way I feel). 
Go HERE to see what I ate this week.  The big changes for me were giving up my afternoon coffee (I drank hot tea instead) and my late night bowl of cereal.  I used to always eat a bowl of something like Cheerios before bed.  Now if I’m hungry, I’ll eat one serving of greek yogurt.  It’s also challenging to eat every 2-3 hours, reminds me of breastfeeding.  It feels like as soon as you’re finished eating, it’s time to eat again.  But, I liked my meals, so it wasn’t too bad.  I just keep thinking
THE WORKOUTS
I’m not following any specific program, just making sure I hit every body part hard each week.  For convenience, this week, I followed 5 workouts from the Jamie Eason Live Fit plan.  But, I also added 20 minutes of cardio on the treadmill at the end.  For 5 of the days, I just kept adjusting the treadmill to do my own made-up intervals.  For instance:
Minute 1:  4.0 mph at 0 incline
Minutes 2-4:  2.5 mph at 15 incline (don’t hold on!)
Minute 5:  4 mph at 0 incline
Minutes 6-7:  6.5 at 0 incline 
and then repeat for 20 minutes total. 
One day, I did treadmill sprint intervals.  Since I’ve never done this before, I set the treadmill speed to 7.5 mph and did 30 seconds on, 30 seconds off.  Basically, you crank the treadmill to your desired speed and run for 30 seconds, then grab the side rails and jump to the side, keeping the treadmill going at that speed and rest for 30 seconds.  Moving the speed up and down takes too long.  
I did that for 20 minutes.  The first 9 minutes weren’t too bad, and the iPod helped.  Minutes 11 and 12 felt super hard.  Minutes 13-15 I was like, “Why am I doing this f*#k*ng thing?”  But the last 4 minutes, I’m thinking, “I’m almost done, I can do this, I AM doing this! I’m strong!”  I swear working out is such a mental and physical sport.  I never thought I could consistently do cardio after a hard weight lifting workout and now I’ve done it 5 times in one week.  I learn that you have to train your mind and your body at the same time.  
For weight training, I did: 
SUNDAY- back
MONDAY – legs 
TUESDAY – biceps and triceps 
WEDNESDAY – shoulders + planks (3 sets, 45 seconds to 1 minute)
THURSDAY – back and biceps + planks (3 sets, 45 seconds to 1 minute)
SATURDAY- legs 
Go HERE for the exact workouts with pinnable images, except I added one more not shown.
I have been tired at a reasonable time at night (thank God, sometimes I get a “second wind” right before bed and can’t sleep) and woken up so SORE every morning that I was immediately taking 2 Advil.  I just ordered a nighttime recovery supplement that is supposed to help with soreness- it’s by Advocare.  I haven’t taken it yet, so I can’t tell you if it helps or not, but I’m crossing my fingers! 
You can follow my Pinterest FITNESS inspiration board for more motivation and fitness tools. 
Have a great weekend!

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Meet Megan

Hi! I’m Megan, mom to a thoughtful teenager and spunky young girl. We call Houston home and recently moved into our dream home. I traded my lawyer hat to become a full-time blogger in 2010. I love sharing my passion for affordable fashion, home decor, organization, & fitness to help inspire you to take care of you!

26 Comments

  1. I look forward to following your progress. I'm on hiatus from figure competitions (just had baby number 2) and look forward to the challenge of prepping for another show in the future. I stumbled across your blog looking for post partum weight loss success, and I commend you for all your hard work! Right now, I just need to remind myself of the fundamentals of eating clean and getting consistent exercise.

  2. Yay for you! I have a little over a month before Marli's 1 year birthday and need to crank it up a notch for the home stretch. I love lifting heavy, super setting, and the ole trusty interval training. I've been documenting my progress too, although this week was a bit laxed. Thanks for the reminder to get back on it! Keep up the great work. Can't wait to see the progress.
    Linh
    http://abeautifulrawr.com

  3. Epsom Salt baths are amazing for soreness! Also a good Post Workout Recovery shake/mini-meal no more than 20 min post workout will do wonders! (I'm sure you already knew all this) 🙂 you look amazing and are so inspiring!

  4. Hi Megan!

    Love both your blogs!

    I'm curious, how long is your weight training session? Do your workouts take an hour or less combined with the cardio?

    1. Great question Susie. With the 20 minutes of cardio and some ab exercises or planks and 5-10 minutes of warm up, my total workout is about 1 hour and 15-30 minutes. I try not to rest more than 1 minutes between sets, more like 45 seconds, so it depends on if I'm doing 3 or 4 sets or 8-12 reps.

  5. I'm with ya! Time to eat cleaner for me and not fall off the wagon. 🙂 Can't wait to watch your progress!

  6. Excited to follow your progress! I need to start eating cleaner and leaner as well to reach some new goals, and not cheat! 🙂

  7. I love sprint intervals. They are a great way to torch calories in a short amount of time. For the past 16 weeks, I've been training for a marathon that I'm running next week. I'm considering the Jamie Eason Live Fit plan as my next goal. Hopefully, I'll build back some of the muscle I lost marathon training. I look forward to following your progress. Good luck.

  8. I am interested to know what you think about the Advocare recovery pill! I wake up feeling like I have been ran over by a bus most mornings. It takes until around 10AM to shake it out and I've already been at work at least 2 hours! I have tried a few things, but haven't found it yet. I've never been one to take supplements, but if it works I would def give it a try!

  9. I love reading your posts. I'm very into fitness as well – always looking to better myself! If you need a fitness buddy, i'd love to become friends! My IG is all fitness @makenzie_faughnan 🙂 Give me all the muscle!

  10. You look great, but that's awesome to set your sights even higher. I go to a kind of boutique gym that offers classes similar to Barry's Boot Camp. We do hourlong classes that combine cardio on a treadmill (sprints, inclines, etc) with strength work on the floor. I used to only go 2x/week, but in the last few months have upped to 4x/week and can tell a huge difference in my arms, shoulders, and legs. I'm lifting heavier but not bulking up at all, and I feel great. Just need to start on the cleaner eating, though. Congrats on sticking with the eating. I think that makes a huge difference. Can't wait to see your progress!

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