I hate my thighs....but I'm working on it

I see how fat my thighs look here. 

I hate my thighs

I hate my thighs. I really shouldn't. I try not to.

They are good thighs. Thighs that can help me run two miles in under 20 minutes after not having trained at all. After not running for more than 10 years. Thighs that can do the splits, do a back walkover, get me through the toughest Pure Barre class.

Bridge kickover from last year

The thing is I've got muscular quads. Not the pencil thighs you see on all the models.

Not what my thighs look like

Even when I was in high school—when I was running twice a day and weighed 108 pounds, I still had quads. I still didn't have the thighs that looked good in shorty shorts.

I remember being in fifth grade—asking the other girls when I would be old enough to wear the short shorts that looked hot on other girls, that made me look like an overstuffed sausage.

My self-loathing went so far that for a few years I stopped wearing shorts completely. Because I hate the the way my thighs looked.

I was 28 or 29. At my highest weight. I saw a picture of me and my sister and stopped wearing shorts. I didn't want to look fat.

At 30, I started working out like a beast. And going the gym has really helped with my body confidence.

Just seeing other body types helped. Seeing muscular girls in shorts—and thinking they look powerful (not fat!) has helped me with this ridiculous demon.

Ever so slowly I've started wearing shorts again.

At first, I was worried about my leg's paleness, about a few spider veins.

But I looked around, and no one was grossed out because I didn't have model thighs (and never will).

I've purchased more shorts over the last year. I've started wearing them and not caring if my legs are pale.

The cut of shorts does help. Some will never work on my body type. I still can't do the super short shorts. But there are shorts out there for athletic girls. And sure, I might take selfie before heading out to see if the shorts work. Not all of them do.

I try not to look a picture and see how fat my thighs are. Focus on my smile or arms instead.

It's my demon—this thigh hatred. And I know I'm not alone.

For now, I will work on getting over it.

I see pictures of girls with too skinny thighs. At least I'm not that girl.

I've got real thighs. Unphotoshopped thighs. (Thigh gap, I laugh!)  Thighs that are strong and fast and can do amazing things.

Handstand practice

Missed my workout at the gym today, so I had to improvise.

25 minutes on the exercise bike—with weights
Assisted pull-ups
Russian twists, crunches, scissor switches and flutter kicks
Handstands

Handstands turned into a selfie party. It started because I wanted to see my form, but then I kept playing. I ended up using a shoe as a camera holder and setting the iPhone timer for 10 seconds. I got some awful shots (below).

The top one is a shameless but I like it. My arms look a little too open (see how my forearms aren't in line with my arms. Weird). L handstands are a good strength exercise.

L handstands
• Sit on the floor, with your back against the wall. With your legs straight, see where your feet are. That's where you want to put your hands.
• Stand up and turn around and put your back towards the wall. Put your hands down in that spot you just measured and walk your feet up the wall.
• You want your body at 90 degrees. You want your legs to be a straight line. You want your back to be a straight line, with the bend at your waist (opposite of sitting down on the floor when you were figuring our where you hands go.)
• Try and hold it.
• It gets easier with practice, but it's killer on my arms.

 #stronggirls.

How to climb a rope - Nerdy girl style

The rope climb is a one of the stereotypical enemies of nerds in gym classes everywhere. Rope climb is for jocks. Not stringy, pale people in glasses.

Ppp-shhaaw I say to that.

We have a climbing rope in our gym. It took me months to learn to climb it. Well, kind of. We'd do pull-ups on the rope and I couldn't strong-arm my way up the ropes like the guys can. I tried and tried to climb the rope, and could get a few feet up. In frustration I googled "how to climb a rope" and it was all over. The next time I went to the gym, I climbed 3/4 of the way up. And shortly after that, all the way up. (This is the video I found most helpful. I watched it several times: http://youtu.be/uKGy8EsN0VI)

The key is a foot wrapping technique. 

1) Jump up on the rope. If there's a knot you can base your feet on, use that. Grab as high up on the rope as you can and then stand up.

2) Wrap your foot (I use my right) around the rope.(With the rope on the inside of your leg, wrap your leg outside and then tuck your foot back inside the rope. So part of the rope will be on your leg. It will go across your ankle or top of your foot and then under your foot again.)

3) Step on the wrapped foot with your other foot and pull yourself up.

4) Repeat. Keep wrapping and rewrapping. (Watch the video. She explains so much better then me.) 

5) And then come down from the climb. Just watch out for rope burn! (And the knot at the bottom. That can hurt if you come down too fast and hit the rope with your crotch.) 

This way you use your legs AND your arms to get up. The foot wrapping technique gets easier with practice. The first few times I tried it, I had to really think about it, and concentrate on rewrapping my foot. (I miss my footing once in the video.) 

Don't worry, you still get an arm workout. (It really burns my arms out. I can climb 1 time to the top max.) 

This is one of my tricks that I'm proud of—because climbing a rope is awesome. And you do have to be strong to do it. Maybe it looks impressive? #Beastmode.

With Youtube, maybe there's not an excuse not to be able to climb a rope? Except for maybe rope burn….On your thighs. That totally sucks.

The gun show

This week I've been resting my knee—which has translated to more arm work at the gym.

I've been doing circuit training this week and avoid the circuits with jumping. My knee doesn't need the added strain. And the teacher has been giving me arms to do.

Skip TRX shootouts. Climb the rope instead. 4x. Skip cardio step-ups, do TRX I-holds instead.

Tonight my workout included rope climbs. Four of them. I got all the way up the first time. The second and third times I got about half-way up and the last time I got 3/4 the way up. The next station had 60-second TRX X-holds. And then 60-second intervals of battle ropes. The burnout was 4-straight minutes of plank holds with your feet in the TRX straps. There were some pendulum swings and bringing your knee to your chest and back, but it was a murderous workout. I was dead afterwards. So so dead.

The instructor said he was glad he wasn't doing it with us. Thanks.

But here is the result of my troubles—muscles.

Staycation Adventures: Climbing in Atlanta

Today the hubby and I went climbing at Adrenaline in Atlanta. We had a Groupon.

This shelf was NOT easy to get over.

I think it's my favorite place to climb. The atmosphere is very relaxed. The space is a tad small, but not too busy. There are lots of paths to climb—and it's very beginner friendly. So if you've never been climbing before, you can find paths to climb and have fun. Want something harder? They have paths along the roof, under a boulder. So something for everyone. They use an auto-belay, so it's easy to learn and they'll give you an intro before you start. Or you can opt out and pass their belay test—which they're super chill about.

We climbed a little, but mostly bouldered. I think I did all of the red (very beginner) bouldering paths. I found those challenging enough.

Beast Mode muscles.

Another shelf that gave me a challenge.

Matt bouldering in his Aerofit shirt.

The nerdy girl's guide to indoor rock climbing

Most everything you wanted to know about going indoor climbing….

1. You should try indoor rock climbing. It can be a lot of fun. And it's a cerebral workout without being too intense. If you could climb trees when you were little, you can do this. (And maybe you'll even feel like a kid again!) You won't feel like you're working out—but you'll be exhausted the next day.

2. A lot of gyms run groupons or deals, so check for discounts before you go.

3. You'll want to go with someone. This really isn't a solo workout as you'll need someone to belay you—ideally someone of similar size. A weight differential can be problematic say if a tiny girl goes with a burly guy. But this can work—then the girl will just have to be extra careful when belaying the guy down the wall (hook into the floor or get a staffer to help spot you.)

4. What to wear? Workout clothes. Capri's might offer more protection than shorts when your legs graze the walls and shorts are going to ride up when you put on the harness. Also, bring socks!

5. When you get there, make sure to rent climbing shoes. They help you grip the holds and can make climbing a lot easier.

6. Every place has a different belay system. Some places make you thread the rope, others have auto belays. Auto belays are easier. Most places make you pass a belay test. Some places will offer a free tutorial (which is great) before you climb, others have scheduled hour belay sessions, others leave you to figure it out for yourself. Obviously, places with auto belays and intros offered at any time are going to make it easier for first timers. Most websites will give you an idea what to expect.

Learning how to belay

7. When you're ready to climb, look for color coded tape (see the neon green and white tape in the back of that picture). Most places offer routes marked off in tape. Check the wall for the key. Red may be easiest, green the second easiest, white the hardest. Check the wall for the colors and start with some of the easier routes.

8. Not sure where to put your hands or feet? Ask your belayer. Take a second and think. Or try the wall again. You don't have to get it right the first time. And you can always try again.

9. Try bouldering. It's like rock climbing without the belay. These walls don't go especially tall and have gymnastics mats underneath. This is a good way to learn about climbing and routes without belays, levers and ropes. And you don't have to go higher than you want.

10. Watch the little kids. They know where to put their hands and feet and if they're nimbly climbing a route, it may be a good route for you to try when they're done.

And don't get discouraged. If bouldering is getting difficult, go back to a climbing with the belay. Take a break.

Stay for an hour, maybe two. Try climbing, belaying, whatever looks fun. Don't be afraid to try the slide they have set up for the kiddos.