Cerise's Strength and Lifestyle Blog

I am not a small girl. I'm about 6 feet tall, and my scale tells me I'm 188.4 pounds today. I've been 200 in the past for sure. I try and love my body, but there are days where I look in the mirror and feel like I'm just too big to look nice. I don't let those feelings beat me, and it's important that no matter what you look like you try and radiate some confidence too! That's the secret to true beauty, in my opinion! Still, easier said than done sometimes, right? I sometimes am not proud of my shoulder span and the way my traps and delts bulge over the back of dresses, or through dresses, for that matter. It always feels like I take up a lot of space, and that I'm always buying clothes too small. I have a larger chest, and when I gain weight it tends to fill out an hourglass shape. (That's not to say my belly is completely spared, though!) My butt is pretty wide and round, and my arms have a lot of volume to them. I know being curvy is popular th...

Hey everyone! Hope you had a great weekend! I wanna talk about habits today. It's good to take stock of the things you do regularly and assess if they're healthy for you! Some stuff I'm proud of:  I'm up at 5:30 am every day except on Mondays, which are my off/cheat days. I know, this one is a killer, right? I think another good habit is I don't really go to bars or party much. Ivy, the kinda nerdy friend I mentioned from last post, she's up gaming and stuff past midnight and is always getting wired on caffeine to get through the day. No negativity meant towards her, but when you've got a steady exercise routine, it really focuses you and irons out the kinks in your schedule!  Speaking of caffeine, one cup of coffee a day for me, max, or a pre-workout shake with some caffeine in it. I'm not hooked on it and I don't want to be!  I drink a fresh veggie smoothie every day. No, it does not taste great, but that's because it's healthy, right? It...

 I'm a Summer Girl at heart, but unlike most people I don't really hate any of the seasons, they all have their own appeal to me! Here are some of my random thoughts about the season!  The fall is a great time to get into outdoor cardio if you're thinking about it! My tip? Get out early and embrace the chill in the air, the exercise will warm you right up! It's also super atmospheric, feeling your footsteps crunch on the leaves, seeing everyone's Halloween decorations, that kind of thing! It's also important to get sleep and slow down if you find yourself getting sick when the weather changes. Especially nowadays, torturing yourself at the gym while ill is the worst thing you can do! Get vaccinated, too! Colder weather...I've gotten used to it at this point; leggings and sweaters can be fun when I manage to track them down in my size! Like I said, it can be invigorating going for a run in the morning when everything is nice and brisk! So is it me, or are ...

It's Monday, which means it's my day off my workouts, and more importantly, IT'S MY CHEAT DAY!! You might be asking why this post sounds like a foodee blog all of a sudden, and it's because I a bsolutely love to to eat. Ladies, don't let the diet industry make you think you need to starve yourself to get the body you want! I'll take even the most basic gym routine over the most fancy diet any day. In fact, to be honest, I kinda hate diets in general. They're miserable to maintain and rarely keep your weight stable after you go off of them. The missing ingredient? Exercise! Keep eating what you love and put in the time to build muscle and stamina. I take in over 3,000 calories on my gym days (a lot of that is protein) and the sky's the limit on my cheat days! And let's be real, it's not like having a more plush body is ugly, either; the way ads constantly compare people to 'perfect' skinny bodies really steams me! I'm a big girl in my...

So, my best raw bench press so far is 410 lbs. I only take one rest day. I spend a day completely on cardio, which is unorthadox for a primary weight lifter. Hooray for me, right? I'm not here to coach you about the specifics I do during my weekly routine, because you shouldn't be comparing yourself to me! Make sure you buy a weightlifting belt and consult a personal trainer or one of the many online resources about gym routines and pick something that you can actually manage to start! I was gangly when I first started lifting, and I wasn't lifting heavy for a while! I want the workout posts for this blog to be more about good vibes and encouragement than another site that spits out numbers and hard-and-fast workout routines. Which brings me to the most important muscle you need to develop if you want to get into better shape; your motivation. If you hate going to the gym, then a six day workout routine is never going to work for you no matter how much you want abs. You...

 Hey everyone, I'm Cerise! I'm a 23 year old competitive weightlifter and two time winner of the New York Diamond Woman lifting championship! I made this blog to share tips, inspiration about my fitness journey, and just blog about whatever's on my mind!  Some stuff about me: Exercise is my drug. I go totally stir crazy if I'm not up in the morning at the gym! I got into weight lifting when I was 15 and haven't looked back! My friends tell me I get laser-focus when I want to do something, and I can see that; when I find something I'm excited about the rest of the world just seems to fall away! I've also been told I'm competitive, but I just think that if I'm going to get involved in a competition, it just doesn't make sense to give anything but your best! Please don't be intimidated, a huge reason I'm making this blog is to show you that you can totally start from zero and meet your own fitness goals, and they don't have to be mine! I...