Laynie’s training update: thinking about health

After losing her husband to a rare illness in 2001, Laynie reached a weight of approximately 194 pounds.  Five years later in 2006 she was declared winner of the Sydney Women’s Natural Masters Physique Championship.  How did she do it? If you aren’t familiar with her amazing story, click here to read it.

Laynie is currently training for the 2010 Australian Natural Women’s Masters Body Building Championship. She shares her ongoing fitness and training journey with Girlgetstrong readers. Below is her latest update ~ Melanie

Should I exercise when I am sick?

Is it a cold?  The flu?  Allergies or perhaps something worse?  In Australia we are coming out of winter, and the worst season for the Swine Flu yet.  Luckily, I’ve missed it despite the resident niece having three colds this season so far.

Did you know that there are over 200 different types of coronaviruses and rhinoviruses, which we simply call a cold?  The flu is much more severe and taxes your immune system more than a cold.  Weight training when sick is not only detrimental to muscle growth but to general health also.  Your body needs to be in a good state of health to go from a catabolic state, the breaking down of muscle tissue, to an anabolic state of recuperation and muscle growth.  So, it’s very simple; you will not make any gains whilst your immune system is in a catabolic state caused by any illness.

So what’s with all this talk about being sick?  For the last couple of weeks I’ve been battling a suppressed immune system, again.  The symptoms I have been suffering include poor appetite, mental lethargy, gastrointestinal malabsorption, poor sleeping habits, loss of drive and energy, mainly.  Due to any reason, I hate not being able to train for the good that it delivers to my mind and body, but I don’t want to train when I’m not going to get the results that I should.

So I’ve spent the last couple of weeks sitting back, resting and studying about nutrition and the mindset of a bodybuilder while I have been waiting for the results of tests to come in.  The results?  Low zinc levels.    The effects of low zinc upon training results in retarded post- training repair and growth of muscle tissue.  A deficiency in zinc can lead to a greater likelihood of overtraining symptoms and hormone level disruptions.  Great news for a peri-menopausal woman!  But at least I know now.

This time out really has had me thinking.  As a bodybuilder we think A LOT about food, mainly in terms of Protein, Carbohydrate, Fat and Calories, and not enough consideration about the micronutrients of our diet.  In fact, these nutrients may be more important than the calorie producing nutrients due to their physiological functions.

Are you staying with me here?  Bodybuilding is a sport of science, it happens on the inside and it’s different for everyone.  It’s different for the genders and age groups.  I suppose my reality is that to be a bodybuilder at my age is slightly different, and there is no real hard data because there simply aren’t enough of us doing it.  I’m also busy fighting the perception of what is feminine when many Australians are fat, lazy, idle and either overweight or obese.  In a recent poll most women preferred a toned buff body, or a skinny runway model look, while only 7% liked the muscled look.  Since when has it become good for a man to be muscular and therefore attractive, when muscular women are considered amazons?

From my perspective, strength, muscles and femininity do go together.  Training is the cornerstone upon which to build an unwavering sense of self, solid grounded confidence and unshakable self assurity.  Eating right is commonsense and an investment in your long term health and viability.

Now I’m better, I’m back into it … easy the first week out, yeah yeah.  Right.  Push the envelope baby! Let the Amazon pass.  Stay strong, eat well.  Dare to be remarkable!

Laynie

Laynie, The Marketing Muscle

Laynie overcame many personal challenges, including the death of her husband and remarkable weight-loss  in her journey to being crowned 2006 Sydney Women’s Natural Masters Physique Champion. And now she’s training again – this time Laynie has her sights on the 2010 Australian Natural Women’s Masters Bodybuilding Championship.  Laynie writes about her health and fitness training progress as we follow her in her quest to be the best.

Laynie encourages other women to “Dare to be remarkable”.  Visit her fantastic blog and follow her on Twitter @marketingmuscle.

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