I’ve had some people ask me questions since I’ve had my blog, so I figured I would just post them here. This is also a great place to leave me a question in the comment section, or feel free to email me at LisaOkie@gmail.com. OR, submit a Q anonymously HERE.

Lisa Questions

How old are you?

I am at the ripe young age of 26! It’s crazy to think that my 10 year high school reunion is coming up soon!

Are You Engaged?

Ahh no I am not engaged. And honestly, I probably won’t be engaged for a while. Me and Sean (my boyfriend) have been together for 3.5 years! Can’t believe it has been that long! I know he is the man I’d like to marry, but timing just isn’t quite right yet. My parents have been divorced and my dad has been divorced 4 times, SO I’m definitely cautious when it comes to marriage and I have never wanted to rush into things. That being said, if Sean asked me today, I’d say yes.

See pics of us here!

Edited to add: Now I’m single!

Plus–another benefit–the school pays for some of my tuition now that I’m taking classes for Nursing School–can’t beat that!

I am looking to buy a new camera and was just wondering what kind of camera you use to take your pictures?

Ahh cameras. I swear. I have a love/hate relationship with cameras. For the past 6 months, I was using a camera I LOVE. It’s just a digital point and shoot, but for now, it’s all I need. It was a Canon PowerShot Digital Elph SD1300IS. But, being the dumb dumb that I am, I left it out in the rain so I got another one…not quite as nice. It’s a Canon PowerShot A3000IS. It works just fine, but I’d buy the other one over my new one.

How do you get your hair wavy like that? What products do you use?

It’s actually pretty dang natural. I get out of the shower, brush it out straight and then sort of mess it up with my hands. Make waves with my fingers, scrunch it a bit etc. Then I use 1-2 products. Everyday I use Kiehl’s Sylist Series Creme with Silk Groom.

Some days I also use Herbal Essence Tousle Me Softly Spray Gel. Squirt a few in there and let it air dry. That’s pretty much it. I also like BedHead Foxy Curl products.

Workout/Diet Questions

What kind of diet did it take to maintain your abs?

Unfortunately, a boring one that is very hard to keep up. When I was at my leanest with what I consider to be my best abs, I ate very carefully, very structured, and not very much.

I remember my diet back then would consist of something like this…

Meal 1: egg whites, exekial toast, pb, and some fruit.
Meal 2: cottage cheese with some fruit
Meals 3: a protein with some veggie
Meal 4: Protein drink
Meal : a protein with some veggie
Meal 6: cottage cheese mixed with cinnamon and an apple

I didn’t have many treats and it wasn’t fun. I still have abs–not quite as lean and now I just make sure to eat lots of fruits/veggies/good for me proteins/ and whole grains. Definitely not as strict as before though and I eat more and I believe my abs still look great.

I’ve written some blog posts about this:

Abs 101

Struggling to maintain abs

What got you interested/started in weight training?

I grew up a gymnast so I grew up doing plenty of push up/pull-ups etc so “muscle” never scared me. I honestly started to get interested in lifting when I started dating Sean. He lifts 5 days a week and I saw him and how good he looked and how good he ate and I just become interested. Isn’t it so true that you are influenced by those around you? I started lifting and after about 6 months, I could see SERIOUS changes in my body. I was always at a perfectly normal weight, but I started to tighten up and my body had SHAPE and I didn’t jiggle as much (I think its important for us ladies to keep some jiggle  ). It has changed my life and I imagine I will lift for the rest of my life.

I am interested in trying BFL, but not sticking to the workout 100%. I do Body Pump classes at my gym that I would count as the weight lifting 3 times a week and on the other days (and those 3 days of weights) I take other classes like Spinning, Body Jam, Body Flow, and I am interested in Body Combat. I also take an ab class once a week. Do you think with a combination of workouts like that I could still get the same results? Especially in the abdominal region? Obviously, I would stick to the diet also. I tried BFL before, but I was vegan and it was EXTREMELY difficult. I would love to get the abs that I think I can have…the ones I do have, but that are covered because I eat too many carbs! =P Any tips?

It sounds like your exercise routine is just fine. The important thing with BFL is to get quality lifting in–and if Body Pump is what you enjoy an dwant to do–then thats fine! The next important thing with BFL is high intensity interval training. I have posted some examples of my HIIT workouts on my work it out page if you are ever interested in looking. I might cut one of those cardio classes out a week and do a shorter, more intense cardio workout on your own.

As far as wanting to get abs—that’s 80% your diet. I can work out till I’m blue in the face and my abs won’t look the way I’d want them too.

Carbs can hinder SEEING Your abs b/c you might be holding water which masks them. But, it’s important not to cut out carbs–your body needs them and BFL never says too cut out carbs. Just make sure you balance your carbs with protein and get adequate protein. And make sure the TYPE of carbs you are eating are quality. Whole grains, fruits, veggies.

Abs are also consistency. Unfortunately, you can’t eat too many treats and see your abs. Sucks huh  . Honestly, these days it’s not worth it to me. I like my treats! But, if you wanna see your abs—just be consistent with your eats foremost and be consistent with your workouts! And then have some patience!

What are supersets?

A super set is when you combine two exercises that are for different body parts and you combine them back to back. So for an example you would do a squat and then a bicep curl. And you can go back and forth so you go right in from the squat to the bicep curl after the bicep curl you take a normal break, 1 minute, whatever your rest interval is going to be and then you go back and you do a squat and you do a bicep curl. It lets you get more in less time.

Do you have cheat days?

I don’t have Cheat Days anymore. Cheat days or cheat meals used to be a staple in my life. Unfortunately, cheat days was just another word for “binging.” I was never able to keep the “cheats” reasonable like cheat days were intended to be. Now, I try not to think of it that way. If I want a cookie, I eat it then. I don’t wait for a special day of the week to indulge in them. I don’t think cheat days are bad though, and some people need them and find them very helpful. However, that’s just not the way I try to view food anymore.

I was wondering if you would elaborate a bit more on the story you shared on Janetha’s blog. It’s basically me to a T…..er, except for I’m still unfortunately at the stage where I’m planning like a maniac. How did you stop the planning? I mean, there’s telling oneself to quit the planning and worrying, and then there’s actually, ya know, quitting the planning. Thanks very much.

Read here for my answer.

When and why did you decided to get implants? Do you regret the decision at all or was it well worth it?

Ahhh I figure this would come up. A month or so ago I admitted that I have had a breast augmentation on my blog. I was pretty nervous to divulge this information actually. Mainly because some people can be so judgemental about this sort of thing, and unfortunately, the blog world is not exempt from that judgement. But, you guys responded wonderfully and I only got positive feedback saying you couldn’t tell and that they looked good (so hopefully you guys were being truthful  ).

Since it’s all out in the open now, I’d love to really talk about this because I have a few mixed feelings on the subject.

Before I had my breasts done, I was a big A or a small B when I weighed a little more. I had a little “boobage” on my own if you will.

I had always wanted bigger breasts. I even went as far as to take those pills to make your boobs bigger in highschool, and obviously those didn’t work. I never hated the way I look or was ashamed with my body…I just simply wanted bigger boobs.

I finally made the decision after much research to just do it. I got them done about 2 weeks after I graduated from college in May 2007. So, it’s been 3 years now! (wow time flies).

I got them done because I wanted bigger boobs. That’s really the only reason. I thought I would be better proportioned since I carry most of my weight in my lower half. I’m now a 34C so I didn’t go up to much in size and for that I am thankful. I think I have a great size–they still look natural on my frame I think.

The surgery wasn’t too painful. It felt like a big elephant was sitting on my chest and my armpits hurt pretty bad (my incision site).

The next question is…Do I regret it? No. Are there things I don’t like about having bigger boobs? Yes. I hate that I have to wear two sports bras when I run. I hate how heavy they feel sometimes—I still don’t feel used to having them after all this time. But, I am happy with the results and how they look.

The next question is…Do I regret it? No. Are there things I don’t like about having bigger boobs? Yes. I hate that I have to wear two sports bras when I run. I hate how heavy they feel sometimes—I still don’t feel used to having them after all this time. But, I am happy with the results and how they look.

Would I do it again? NO. I’m so happy with how they turned out..no regrets on that end. Sometimes when they start to bug me or when they start to hurt when I run I regret them for a little bit. They didn’t make me any happier and they didn’t make me automatically love myself…just like losing 10 lbs won’t cure anything. But, I think the surgeon did a fantastic job and they are apart of me now. However, lately, I’ve been getting worried about them. Are they unsafe? Will they rupture and if they do, will I know it? What about mammograms when I get older? It causes some unnecessary stress.