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Pop culture editor Kelli Luu talks sculpting strong shapely glutes to top off her volleyball legs.
Tom Kagy (00:01.363)
Hello, this is Tom Kagy with Unconventional Wisdom. Today our guest is Kelly Luu. She happens to be our associate editor for pop culture and social media. But her main qualification is that she has managed to maintain a perfect hot bod without taking GLPs.
Take us through the journey to get to where you are.
Kelli Luu (00:33.134)
Yeah, well first I started off kind of staying active really really young. I did gymnastics, cheer, volleyball growing up, dance. So I think from like a really young age I was always kind of moving around doing things and when I got into middle school that’s when I took volleyball very seriously. So I was doing training every day.
I was very active like three or four hours every single day. And I think that’s kind of where I got really into the fitness kind of thing. Once I hit high school, we started doing weight training and that’s where I got really into the gym. And ever since high school, I kind of just loved going to the gym. Once I was old enough to get my own gym membership, I got one. And ever since then, I’ve been going like four days a week trying to reach my goals. still, the goals never stop, so.
Tom Kagy (01:36.105)
So what are your goals? I specifically in terms of, I guess, body parts or, you know, visible physical attributes, because I think that’s what most people are interested in.
Kelli Luu (01:47.057)
Yeah, definitely. My goal right now, I am trying to bulk so that I could, I feel like I am underweight right now because my metabolism is really good and it’s been really good my whole life. That’s my blessed genetics. Thank you, my mom. But I would say I really want to start bulking up because I do feel like I am underweight. I’m 5’6 and I’m 116 pounds right now. And that’s…
Considered like underweight, if you look at the BMI scale, I’m really supposed to be like 125 or 130. So I do want to hit that 125. That’s my current goal right now, which isn’t too unattainable, I would say, for myself. just have been really tracking my protein and making sure that I’m doing heavy weight in the gym.
Tom Kagy (02:38.483)
So you’re basically trying to add what six or seven, no, about nine pounds of muscle mass.
Kelli Luu (02:43.0)
About nine, yeah. I think nine, yes, pure muscle. I do want it to just be muscle. I lift pretty heavy, so I’m doing lower reps and heavy weights. So that’s what I’ve been doing in
Tom Kagy (02:55.561)
Are you training for some sort of weightlifting competition? Why the emphasis on the heaviness of the weight?
Kelli Luu (03:07.246)
I feel like I like feeling really strong. So I can currently squat 155 and that’s the bar plus 45s on each side and a 10 on each side. And so whenever I squat, I love the feeling because I feel like I can totally lift a grown man. And I feel like if I’m ever in danger, if I’m ever being held down, I could totally get out of it.
So I feel like that really gives me that motivation, that’s part of my motivation. Or I just really like feeling strong and I feel like when I put more weight onto the bar, that shows my progress and shows how much stronger I’ve gotten. When I first started squatting, I could barely squat the bar. So I’ve come a pretty long way since I started actually lifting.
And every time I put, I usually just go up by fives, but every single time I put on another five pound weight and add it to my stack on the bar, it just feels really good. And I like the fact that I could say that I’m strong.
Tom Kagy (04:12.553)
Feel less sensitive. Right. So is that your favorite exercise, a squat?
Kelli Luu (04:19.521)
Actually, right now my favorite exercise is a hip thrust. My max hip thrust was about 4 45s on each side. my hip thrust is really heavy and like I said, I feel like if I’m ever being held down or anything, I could get my way out of it.
Tom Kagy (04:39.273)
Okay, so just so we’re clear, a hip thrust is where you are on your back, right? And you are thrusting up with your torso and your, I guess with your legs, to lift up a weight. And you’re.
Kelli Luu (04:44.717)
Yes.
Kelli Luu (04:52.514)
Yes, yes, it’s really good for your butt. and then it’s like all the weight is getting pushed up by your legs and your butt.
Tom Kagy (05:04.615)
Okay, so this is to build up your glutes then. Okay, and what if…
Kelli Luu (05:07.17)
Yes, elutes and I believe hamstrings, I feel it in my hamstrings. So that’s mostly where I feel them when I do my hip thrust.
Tom Kagy (05:15.837)
Okay, what about your back? What does that do to your back?
Kelli Luu (05:19.438)
Honestly, I don’t really feel anything. If you have the right form for your hip thrust, you should mainly only feel it in your glutes and in your thighs in that area. So I don’t really feel too much in my back, at least when I’m hip thrusting. When I’m doing RDLs, Romanian deadlifts, those are better for my back, or they are better for your back, I would say. And those, you definitely feel it in your upper back, your lower back. You feel it everywhere and your legs.
Tom Kagy (05:48.797)
So, okay, so when you’re doing the hip thrust, the weight is really going across what your belly button, about there.
Kelli Luu (05:55.918)
Yeah, like I would say kind of more like right on top of like the crotch thigh area right there. A little low. Yeah, you don’t want it on your belly because then it’s like you’re gonna fold in half almost. And then it’s really important. I always make sure I have like a padding. I have like a barbell pad that I can use. So I put that and I use that and that helps really well. And then I usually recommend to people if they don’t have one of those just to use one of the yoga mats.
Tom Kagy (06:01.961)
Okay, so a little lower down than the belly button.
Tom Kagy (06:10.29)
Right, right.
Kelli Luu (06:24.866)
they could use that as padding as well.
Tom Kagy (06:27.433)
Okay, so how many reps, sets, how many days do you the hip thrust?
Kelli Luu (06:34.952)
I try to do it at least three times a week. That’s probably the most I will. I work out my legs three times a week. and every single one of those days I am doing a hip thrust and I’ll do, I try to do six reps and I do five sets of heavy weight with six reps.
So I really like the mentality. know a lot of people, they say like, make sure you do your three sets. So I try to shoot for four, but if I want to be even better, then I’ll go for the five, five sets.
Tom Kagy (06:57.897)
Okay, that’s quite a bit.
Tom Kagy (07:12.745)
Okay, so, and this is as part of a longer workout, I assume, where you do a number of other exercises. So what are the other exercises that you’re doing, along with the hip thrust?
Kelli Luu (07:23.054)
So my whole routine, it’s only consists, my leg routine consists of five exercises right now. So the first one is the hip thrust. It’s my heaviest. So I like to start with whatever I can, whatever exercise I can do the heaviest of. So I start with my hip thrust and then the the next exercise is a Bulgarian split squat that I do on the Smith machine.
that I don’t really do too much of a, I only put 10 pounds on each side, because that one you’re doing kind of a squat with one leg, so that’s a little harder, it takes more balance. And that you really feel in your legs and your glutes, so that one’s really good. No, you’re standing up as if you were about to squat, and then one of your legs goes on top of like a box or the bench, and then you squat down.
Tom Kagy (08:06.185)
So are you sitting down for that or, I mean, are you sitting down or?
Tom Kagy (08:19.783)
Okay, so it’s not a machine then. You’re actually using free weights? Okay.
Kelli Luu (08:23.714)
Yes, yeah, no, not a machine. Most of everything that I’m doing is free weight.
Tom Kagy (08:30.259)
Okay, and so how many pounds and sets are you doing with that?
Kelli Luu (08:33.602)
Yes, so that one I will do four sets and it will be 10 pounds on each side. So that’s about like 60 pounds in total if you include the bar.
Tom Kagy (08:43.869)
Okay, what’s the purpose of the split squat versus just a squat? I mean, what’s the difference?
Kelli Luu (08:49.676)
You feel it a lot more throughout like one side of your glute. I feel like with a squat as well, it’s more, a squat helps your thighs. I feel a squat a lot more in my thighs than I would do in your glutes. So with the Bulgarian split squat, it’s specifically like targeted towards your glutes.
Tom Kagy (09:13.595)
Okay, so when you’re doing the Bulgarian split squat, you’re targeting your glute, but you’re saying it’s targeting it more like off to one side. Okay.
Kelli Luu (09:23.426)
Yes, on one side. it’s putting all, so I’m, not only is it like my body weight that I’m having to push up on one leg, it’s also the bar plus the tens on each side. So that’s all being pushed up on one leg. So it puts a lot more strain on just your single leg rather than both. And then with a squat, you kind of have like, you’re putting your back into it almost. You have your, you’re like kind of almost lifting it up all the way with both your whole body. Whereas with the Bulgarian split squat,
that you only feel in your leg and your glute.
Tom Kagy (09:55.207)
Okay, but I mean in terms of what it does to your glute, does it create a different shape to your glute? Is that why you’re doing that instead of just doing squats? I mean, does it?
Kelli Luu (10:05.514)
Yeah, I think it rounds it out. It rounds it out a lot more. And as just for feeling it. So I test my limits as to how much I’m really feeling a burn. And if I feel a burn, that’s how I know it works. that the Bulgarian split squat gives me probably the craziest burn out of every exercise that I do in the leg routine.
Tom Kagy (10:09.609)
Okay.
Tom Kagy (10:30.715)
Okay, so you’re like screaming and sweating while you’re on your last set of that. Okay.
Kelli Luu (10:33.696)
yeah, yes, that’s the only exercise I struggle with doing four sets of because that one.
Tom Kagy (10:40.489)
Okay, how many pounds? I don’t know if you told me already, but how many pounds do do with that?
Kelli Luu (10:45.934)
So that one, I believe it’s about 65, cause the bar is 45 and then I add two 10s on each side. Or I add one 10 on
Tom Kagy (10:53.295)
Okay, and then you’re also, course, lifting up your own body weight, most of it anyways. Okay.
Kelli Luu (10:57.762)
My arm. Right. Yes. Yeah. And then the next exercise that I do after that is
Tom Kagy (11:04.361)
Before we go on, how how many reps and sets of the Bulgarian split squat?
Kelli Luu (11:09.882)
I can only do six, six reps and I do three or four sets. So if I cannot even get my leg up on the fourth or if I try to do a fourth set and my legs are shaking, I sometimes will just skip that fourth set.
Tom Kagy (11:27.367)
Okay, so when you’re doing individual legs, so for each set you’re working first doing the six reps on one side and then you do the six reps on the other side. Okay, okay. Okay, so what’s the next exercise?
Kelli Luu (11:38.446)
Correct. Yes. Yeah.
The next one is the Romanian deadlifts. So that one’s the one that’s really good for your hamstring and your glute. And that one, that’s probably my favorite right now, just because it does help my back as well. I used to never do that when I was, I only started doing a Romanian deadlift probably within like the last four months or five months. And I’ve just seen like a major change in my lower back and like the top of my glutes.
And that has, like, I haven’t seen a big difference like that of my whole time working out. And then as soon as I started doing the deadlifts, I saw a difference. So it really helps, it really defines your lower back and it also helps with my posture. So my posture is something I’ve really been trying to fix. So the Romanian deadlift has for sure helped it.
Tom Kagy (12:34.855)
Yeah, I mean, I think for everybody, you know, me included that sits in front of a computer for many hours a day, posture is really a big deal. So what exactly does it do? You said it defines your lower back. What exactly does it do in terms of the shape of your lower back?
Kelli Luu (12:41.496)
Bye.
yeah.
Kelli Luu (12:52.114)
It’s kind of putting like a dip, I would say is like the best way to describe it. It’s putting almost a dip in the lower back to where… Yeah.
Tom Kagy (13:01.043)
You mean like an indentation, sort of a lateral indentation, or are you talking about like more from back to front indentation?
Kelli Luu (13:09.966)
More so if I were to look at if you were to look at somebody from the side and that the space right there right between the top of their glutes and their lower back that little curve if you can see a more defined curve I would say it’s like much more defined and then It’s yeah, I feel the difference a lot in my lower back is a lot stronger and then that also again It helps with when I’m squatting. So my lower back’s a lot stronger too now
Tom Kagy (13:15.059)
Mm-hmm.
Tom Kagy (13:26.248)
Okay.
Kelli Luu (13:39.052)
because of the RDLs, so when I squat, it’s a lot easier to push everything up. And then again, my posture, I feel like it’s much better, because when you’re doing a Romanian deadlift, your shoulders have to be back, and you don’t want to pull them forward, but it helps a lot with your posture.
Tom Kagy (13:57.617)
Okay, so when you’re doing the deadlift, are you doing the lift entirely with just your legs and not any of it with your shoulders or arms?
Kelli Luu (14:07.31)
No, so that is just strictly all your legs. you want to, everything needs to be pulling up with like your legs and your lower back kind of. You don’t really want to, I wouldn’t say you want to feel it in your lower back. It’s just, I’m like trying to do it myself so I can demonstrate, like explain it. But yeah, you don’t really feel it in your lower back. You want to feel it more in the back of your thighs and your glutes.
Tom Kagy (14:13.715)
Okay.
Kelli Luu (14:36.802)
and that’s how you would know it’s correct. There are other deadlifts that you can do, other variations of it that help more with your back, but the Romanian deadlift specifically targets like hamstrings and glutes as well.
Tom Kagy (14:52.231)
Okay, so how many pounds, reps, and sets?
Kelli Luu (14:56.622)
Okay, so for my deadlift, have, so the bar plus, I put 35s on each side, so that’s…
115 for the deadlift and I’m doing at least six. I try to do more as much as I can, but six is probably like the safe zone for me. I can always do six with 115 at least. And then I’ll do three sets of that. And then I will try to push myself on the last one. So I’ll put another five on each side. So it makes it.
a 125 weight and I’ll do that one with four reps, the last set with four reps.
Tom Kagy (15:41.019)
Okay, so I mean, we haven’t gotten to your squats yet in this sequence, You’re going to take us squats, but you mentioned that you do 155 on the squats. You’re actually doing more on squats than on the deadlift.
Kelli Luu (15:49.098)
yeah.
Kelli Luu (15:55.564)
Yes, yeah, I could squat much more than deadlift. So I’ve been squatting, when I was in high school and I played volleyball, that’s the first thing that they had us do in the gym was learn how to squat with the bar. So that one, I think I’ve like perfected my squat now, but yeah, I’ve been having to do that squat for quite some time. So it’s a lot heavier than, well, my hip thrust obviously is the heaviest. I would say that’s easy though, but a squat is…
Tom Kagy (16:12.562)
Okay.
Kelli Luu (16:24.588)
I would say my squat’s pretty impressive for a 116 pound girl.
Tom Kagy (16:29.203)
Yeah, that is pretty impressive. I don’t do as many different weight exercises as you, but just from what I do do when I do it, I can deadlift a lot more than I can squat, especially because I’m just like having to lift up the bar up to my shoulder. I don’t have a setup where I can just duck under it. So yeah, it’s a little surprising that you…
Kelli Luu (16:48.035)
Right.
Kelli Luu (16:53.102)
Yeah, with the deadlift, it kind of, when I started it, I could barely even lift the bar in a deadlift position. And I don’t know, maybe, I feel like I’ve always struggled with my posture. So I don’t know if that’s, if I had like a week back or if, I don’t know what it was, but when I, like four months ago, when I first started deadlifting, I could barely even pick up the bar with the correct form. It was super heavy for me, so.
Tom Kagy (17:02.738)
Hmm.
Tom Kagy (17:08.659)
Mm-hmm.
Tom Kagy (17:21.979)
Okay, you’re just not as used to it then.
Kelli Luu (17:24.762)
I think, yeah, I think that, but hopefully, I I’ve gone up in the deadlift weight faster than I’ve gone up in squatting weight. So maybe I could push, I’m gonna hopefully pass my squat weight with my deadlift.
Tom Kagy (17:39.689)
Okay, so you start off with the hip thrust and then you go to the split squat and then the deadlift. So what’s next after that?
Kelli Luu (17:46.99)
So then is my squat, but on, so a day like this where squat is the the fourth exercise, I will do a lighter squat to start off. And then I, if I have the energy, some days I do, some days I don’t, then I will do the last set with the full 155. But that’s.
I usually, if I’m squatting, I will start off 155 if the squat is my first exercise. But a lot of the time it’s not because it isn’t one of my favorites. It’s not one of my favorites. So I don’t like doing the 155, but I feel like I have to, I have to just keep up with it. but yeah, then I’ll do a squat. Yeah, I built it up. I start off with 25s on each side and then I do…
Tom Kagy (18:21.257)
Right.
Tom Kagy (18:35.005)
So you build up.
Kelli Luu (18:41.494)
eight reps, so that’s a light, it’s a light squat, so I can do more reps of that.
Tom Kagy (18:45.071)
So that’s a 95 pounder with eight reps.
Kelli Luu (18:48.302)
Yes, and then eight reps and then I’ll do that maybe like one or two times. The third time I’ll put on the 35s. I’ll switch out the 25s for the 35s. And then if I am really, really feeling it, then the last set will be the 155, the 45 with a five, a 10 on each side.
Tom Kagy (19:06.441)
Okay, so do you have any other exercise that you do on those days when you’re doing those four?
Kelli Luu (19:12.142)
Those, and then the last one, I’m honestly not really sure what it’s called, but there’s like a specific machine in the gym and you kind of stand on it and then you fold in half and you lift up with your back. So it’s kind of helping your, it helps your lower back and your glutes still. And that’s like strictly glute focused, I would say.
Tom Kagy (19:34.195)
Thank
Kelli Luu (19:38.275)
And that’s like the burnout, like the final burnout. That one I don’t do it with any weight, it’s just my body weight. And I just do like 20 reps, three sets.
Tom Kagy (19:50.825)
Okay, so how long does this particular workout routine that you described, how long does that take?
Kelli Luu (19:58.68)
Probably at least an hour. If I look at the clock and it hasn’t been an hour yet, then I rushed it. I know I rushed it or I didn’t do it. I didn’t do as many sets as I should have. But it should take an hour. But sometimes it’ll take me longer if I’m like hanging out on my phone at the gym or with a friend or something. But by myself, super locked in, it should take me about an hour.
Tom Kagy (20:02.152)
Wow.
Tom Kagy (20:24.445)
And you’re doing this three days a week. Okay, so what days of the week? I I hope I’m not getting too, prying too much, but what days of week?
Kelli Luu (20:26.604)
Yes, this is three days a week.
Kelli Luu (20:34.03)
got it, no. So I shoot for Monday, Wednesdays, and Fridays as my leg days. And then on Tuesdays and Thursdays, yes. So I try to do it in the mornings. If I don’t get to the gym in the morning, I’ll go at night. And I’m kind of like both a morning bird and a night owl. So a lot of the time, I go to the gym.
Tom Kagy (20:42.011)
Okay. And you do this in the morning?
Kelli Luu (21:00.11)
it’s either gonna be super early in the morning or it’ll be super late at night. however I can get it in.
Tom Kagy (21:05.513)
Right, whichever works out for your schedule. That’s why I was asking you because it depends, you know, like if it’s a workday or a weekend or, whatever, there are different demands. But before you actually go into this, what sounds like a pretty demanding leg focus routine, do you do any warmups to prepare your body for this stress?
Kelli Luu (21:14.989)
Right.
Kelli Luu (21:25.944)
Yeah.
Kelli Luu (21:30.126)
Yeah, I stretch. wouldn’t say I do, well, I don’t really do anything like no exercises to warm up or I don’t run or I know some people, a lot of my friends run before their leg days and then that’s how they warm up. I cannot do that. But I just stretch. I am really bad at cardio. I think I’ve always been bad at, even when I played volleyball and we would have to do our runs at the end of the day, that was what.
Tom Kagy (21:46.249)
Why are you not able to do that?
Kelli Luu (21:59.32)
That was my killer. I’ve never trained, I’ve never really put myself to train cardio. So even in middle school and high school, when I would run a mile, I would have a really bad mile. It would not be fast at all. So I don’t think I’m a runner. I think I’m more of a stronger weight pusher than a runner.
Tom Kagy (22:22.225)
Okay, so you’re totally focused on sculpting your body rather than building up your cardiovascular health or your overall health that you work at. Okay, so…
Kelli Luu (22:29.77)
Yes. Yes. I feel like with cardio as well, cardio is a good, good for anyone who wants to, you know, cut, cut some weight down or they want to lose their calories. But I’m trying to keep my calories in my body and I’m trying to keep the mass up. So I think if I did, it would hurt me.
Tom Kagy (22:48.905)
Okay, so you’re not, right. Okay, I mean, I understand that you perceive yourself to be too thin already, right? And you just want to bulk up, it sounds like you want to bulk up your lower body mainly. Is that it?
Kelli Luu (23:03.778)
Yes, lower body, and I do want to tone out my back. I have been trying to, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I’ll do back exercises and ab workouts. So I don’t do heavy weight with those at all. So that’s, I’m just trying to tone it up.
Tom Kagy (23:13.417)
Mm-hmm.
Tom Kagy (23:18.479)
Okay, so you’re not afraid that you’re gonna die young with a hot bod of a heart attack? Because you’re stressing your heart with all these very, you know, intense strength exercises, but you’re not really, you’re not really worrying about whether your heart is getting the kind of, you know, exercise that would be good for its sustainability, right?
Kelli Luu (23:25.454)
I know. don’t know.
Kelli Luu (23:47.138)
Yeah.
Tom Kagy (23:47.527)
So doesn’t that concern you at all? do you feel like, I mean, you know, an hour is a long time. And if you’re, you know, exercising half that time, I mean, that’s quite a bit of cardio workout as well. So I mean,
Kelli Luu (23:59.968)
Yeah, well, now that you say that, if I think about it, when I’m doing my ab workouts on Tuesdays and Thursdays, that’s kind of like, I would say maybe even a cardio for me because that’s a lot of bicycles, a lot of punches.
Tom Kagy (24:15.116)
okay. yeah, bicycles are definitely cardio. How long are you doing the bikes on Tuesdays and Thursdays?
Kelli Luu (24:21.87)
maybe like only like 10 minutes or less than that.
Tom Kagy (24:26.931)
Well, that’s still significant cardio if you’re doing it continuously.
Kelli Luu (24:31.488)
Yeah, something. like that helps. feel like the bicycles really help like me. It helps again, I like to sit up straight. I’m trying to really fix my posture. So the bicycle helps me sit up straight. It helps my core. And then also with the lower, you know.
But I would say, yeah, that’s like the only, I guess that’s the only kind of small cardio that I would do.
Tom Kagy (24:46.291)
Okay.
Tom Kagy (24:52.839)
Okay, well take us through the Tuesday and Thursday workouts in terms of, you know, duration, the sequence, know, reps, sets, so forth.
Kelli Luu (25:02.86)
Yeah, most Tuesdays and Thursdays are kind of, I would say my like fun play day. I really should take it more seriously as I take my leg days. But with a regular Tuesday, I come in and I just do just normal back exercises. Like that would include, I like totally don’t know the proper names for the back exercises, but I use the machines mostly for my back.
There’s like a pull down for your lats that I do. There’s one where you have your arms extended out forward and you push them out to the sides of you. And that really helps the middle of your back. And then, hey, I don’t do too many back. I try to do, I’m trying to do more pull-ups. That’s my next, that’s another goal I have. I can only do one pull-up and I really want to get that better. I want to do like at least four or five. So.
I am trying to work on that right now. Like the past like two months, I’ve only been able to just do one and I’ve been struggling trying to pull myself up for that second one. So that, and then I go to my abs and then the ab workout will just consist of crunches, normal crunches. I do a hundred of them and then regular, I have a weight.
Tom Kagy (26:26.887)
Are you doing it flat or on a board?
Kelli Luu (26:29.442)
Flat, yeah, flat. And then I take like a 10 pound weight and I’ll put it above my head. And I call these marches and I just bring my legs up one by one, like as if I’m marching. And that one has helped my core a lot. That one’s really, really good for it. That’s probably the one I feel the most. And I do 200 of those during on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Yeah, that one. But what I’m doing is I’m doing that one.
Tom Kagy (26:53.278)
Wow.
Kelli Luu (26:58.304)
in between like other workouts. So I split that one up and by like 20s. So I’ll do like one ab exercise. Let’s say I do one set of crunches. Then I’ll do the marches right after and then do more crunches and do the marches right after. So the marches I spread out through my whole workout of abs, which is why I can hit the 200.
Tom Kagy (27:12.745)
Okay.
Tom Kagy (27:20.339)
So how many sets?
Kelli Luu (27:26.665)
It’s, I would say like 10, that’s like 10 sets, 10 different sets of marches, but it’s spread out throughout the whole workout. So yeah, it’s like in between. So I’m not doing them all at once, or I’m not doing 20 and 20 and 20. I’m doing 20 marches, another workout, then 20 marches again, and then another workout.
Tom Kagy (27:47.827)
How many sets of crunches?
Kelli Luu (27:50.126)
Um, that way I’ll do five and I’ll do 20 each set.
Tom Kagy (27:56.905)
Okay, and then you said that you do the bicycles. So when is that worked in? At the end. Okay, so you do 10 minutes.
Kelli Luu (27:57.794)
Yeah, so.
Kelli Luu (28:02.254)
Oh, at the end, the very end. that’s why I was like, yeah, that’s why I was like, sometimes I don’t even hit the 10 minutes on the bicycle because I’m already so tired. And then that’s just, that’s like my finisher on a Tuesday, Thursday is the bicycle.
Tom Kagy (28:16.775)
Okay, so how many minutes does that take on Tuesdays and Thursdays?
Kelli Luu (28:22.19)
That one’s a little, I would say like an hour or two. I try to just make my workouts just a full hour long. So I would say that one’s probably an hour. I did this past Tuesday, it was a little shorter, so it was like 45 minutes, but that’s me like completely not looking at my phone at all.
Tom Kagy (28:42.651)
Okay. Now, you know, to me, it sounds like a pretty intensive exercise regimen. I mean, you’re essentially spending an hour a day, five days a week, which is pretty intense. So do you ever get injured because of just overexertion or, you know, overstressing your muscles?
Kelli Luu (29:02.862)
I don’t get injured, I would say. I was never injury prone either when I was playing sports. I had a bad ankle and that was it. And sometimes my ankle now, it is a little bit weaker. So I would say that’s the only thing that I am worried about ever happening to me when I’m in the gym. But as for other pulling muscles and stuff like that, I don’t really get any of those.
The worst feeling I’ll get is being sore the next day.
Tom Kagy (29:36.573)
Okay, since you’re really taxing your body quite a bit, how is your diet? mean, do you take any special measures to make sure you get the right nutrients?
Kelli Luu (29:48.482)
See, I think that’s another thing of why I haven’t been able to reach my goals as fast as possible is because of my eating. So I’m working out so much. My workout schedule I have down. I can go to the gym. I’m really good at it. I can make it in there every day. But I’m working out so much, I need to be eating a lot more so that I can reach the goals that I want to reach. that’s.
Tom Kagy (30:13.033)
Yeah, because I do feel sometimes when I see you that you keep getting smaller and thinner. You know what I mean?
Kelli Luu (30:21.149)
Yeah, that might be a day. That’s like a day where I didn’t eat. I worked out my legs the day before and I didn’t eat my full calories that I was supposed to. So then that’s like, I feel like that’s sometimes why maybe I look smaller. So I like just did an intense workout. I didn’t fill myself up enough.
Tom Kagy (30:38.259)
Well, mean, are you taking any special protein supplements or protein drinks or any other kind of nutrients?
Kelli Luu (30:45.486)
Yeah, so just, I drink protein shakes. So I love the protein shakes that we get in the office. I’m the culprit of drinking all of those. And yeah, those are, I love a good protein shake. At home I have, I just recently got a mass gainer, which is a protein shake, but it’s 50 grams of protein and it has 1300 calories in the shake. Yes.
Tom Kagy (30:56.412)
Okay, good.
Tom Kagy (31:12.937)
What? That means drink that in one sitting?
Kelli Luu (31:17.526)
Yeah.
Tom Kagy (31:19.257)
my God, that sounds dangerous. what about, I mean, when you take in that much calories and that much protein, that doesn’t seem to leave a whole lot of room for carbs and fiberous things like vegetables, fruits. Aren’t you concerned about fiber?
Kelli Luu (31:38.958)
Oh, still eat all of, I still will eat everything. Yeah, so.
Tom Kagy (31:43.798)
Okay, how many calories do you take in every day then?
Kelli Luu (31:48.64)
If I have, without the shake, I want to say at least 2,000, but that’s very little. I should really be eating more if I’m not drinking the shake. And I just started drinking the shake. So that’s why, yeah. I know I at least eat 2,000. Some days it’ll be more when I’m really, really trying, but I would need to eat like four or five meals a day if I wanna go over my 2,000.
My goal is really, my goal is to be like 25.
Tom Kagy (32:19.803)
Okay, just.
Tom Kagy (32:23.945)
Right, so you’re saying that you’re eating 2,000 calories plus drinking the 1300 shake plus the office shake, which is probably what, 150, 200? So you’re talking about 3,500 calories?
Kelli Luu (32:37.768)
Yes, but I just bought my mask gainer. So I just started that.
Tom Kagy (32:42.945)
Okay, so we can actually look forward to seeing you sort of blossom, bloom out then.
Kelli Luu (32:50.902)
I think so, yeah. I just received my mask in like two days ago and I drank my first, I drank the first shake out of it yesterday. Yesterday I would say it was a big eating day for me. So yesterday I had four meals and then I drank my shake. and I did.
Tom Kagy (33:09.801)
So how did it feel after drinking that 1300 calorie shake?
Kelli Luu (33:14.19)
Oh, it’s sometimes horrible. I used to more of it in high school. And in high school, I wasn’t eating as much. I would literally probably only have like two meals a day in high school. And then it would be the shake. So that wouldn’t feel as good. Now, it’s not too bad because I don’t know, feel like I’m more…
Tom Kagy (33:18.247)
Yeah, are you sure that that is?
Kelli Luu (33:39.638)
I’m more balanced out, I would say. If you’re only drinking that shake, it does not feel good.
Tom Kagy (33:46.621)
Yeah, yeah. And I would think it would not be good for your intestines, your stomach, your whole intestinal tract.
Kelli Luu (33:53.46)
especially if you use milk, if milk is used to make the protein shake. Yeah, it’s not good.
Tom Kagy (33:59.945)
So doesn’t that give you gas like crazy? mean, you’re Asian, so aren’t you lactose intolerant?
Kelli Luu (34:06.614)
I’m not. So I love milk. drink milk. When I didn’t have my mass gainer, I drink like a cup of milk every night to go to bed, like before I go to bed. Like I’ve always done that since I was a kid. So I love milk. I love dairy. I don’t get, I’m not lactose. So I’m, I’m really thankful. But the
Tom Kagy (34:08.387)
okay.
Kelli Luu (34:27.758)
But those protein shakes, the mask gainers, yeah, they’ll make you gassy. They’ll make you have to use the restroom for sure. But my metabolism’s really good. So I don’t ever like struggle, I would say. Or I don’t have, like I don’t have any kind of like pain like that when I’m using the restroom. Even with the shakes.
Tom Kagy (34:47.251)
Hmm. Okay, I don’t know. I have some reservations about a 1300 calorie shake. I mean, you’re gulping it down like within a few minutes, right? Ten minutes.
Kelli Luu (34:57.742)
Oh, no, no, no, it takes a while. yeah, you have to save it. I’ll usually do it. So before I go to sleep, the shake is like the last thing of my night. If I know I’m gonna drink a shake, then I’ll eat my last meal before going to the gym. So like at night. So if I go to the at night, if I’m going to work out my legs at nighttime.
Tom Kagy (35:00.937)
you’re sipping it.
Kelli Luu (35:26.412)
I will eat before I work out and then when I get back from the gym, I only will drink the shake.
Tom Kagy (35:33.705)
Okay, so in terms of your other food, know, your normal diet, what is your distribution like? mean, does it have much carbs in it or is it mostly protein and vegetables? I mean, what kind of food are you eating?
Kelli Luu (35:49.902)
Yeah, I go for mostly protein. I love carbs, so most of my meals do have carbs in it. I cook a lot as well. When I’m meal prepping, most of the time a meal prep would be just some chicken and pasta and then broccoli. That’s a classic one for me. I did just do a chicken curry with potatoes and that one was pretty good.
Tom Kagy (36:10.067)
Mm-hmm.
Kelli Luu (36:19.726)
I do feel like I need to eat more vegetables. So I have been trying to incorporate a veggie serving in each every single meal prep. I don’t know if this is like a full meal, but I did meal prep this last week as well and it was amazing. I loved it. But I made baked potatoes and I just had I just like boiled a bunch of potatoes. I put the potatoes in the Tupperware and then they were good to go. And I have just all the toppings and I have I made bacon and then
put the sour cream cheese and all of that on it. And that one was really good and that had me really full all last week. But I’ve been trying to meal prep more. If I eat out, if I ever feel like I want to eat out a meal, it’s usually like either in and out or Chipotle, which is mainly protein, I would say.
Tom Kagy (37:07.769)
Okay. So, how long have you been doing this routine that you described, the five days a week routine?
Kelli Luu (37:17.198)
Consistently, it’s been about five months.
Tom Kagy (37:23.249)
No, okay, so not that long. So how…
Kelli Luu (37:25.206)
Yeah, not too consistent, but I’ve been working out for quite like a long time. I just haven’t been consistent with that routine.
Tom Kagy (37:32.881)
Right, systematically. So at this point, what do you feel like you really want to change about your body? I mean, any, you know, your specific body parts, what are you working at changing?
Kelli Luu (37:48.334)
Definitely my abs is one of the like probably one of the most important. My abs and my glutes are the most important. I really like or like my legs I would say I would encompass like my legs and glutes all in one. I get a lot of compliments like in the summertime when I wear dresses and that makes me more motivated. People tell me I have really nice legs and my whole life I was I grew up I was called
super skinny, like Skinny Bone Jones, Chopsticks and all, a whole bunch of other names. So it’s really nice now, because people will tell me I have really nice legs. think because they look, you you could tell when somebody is just skinny or you can tell when somebody like works out. And I finally got out of, I just look skinny, because that’s how I looked like throughout high school, throughout middle school.
Tom Kagy (38:18.14)
you
Tom Kagy (38:32.827)
Right.
Kelli Luu (38:41.152)
And I finally looked like no one can say like, she’s just a skinny girl. People can say like, yeah.
Tom Kagy (38:46.633)
I don’t know, you look pretty skinny to me I see you. Of course, I’m not looking at your lower because you’re sitting, we’re typically sitting at a desk,
Kelli Luu (38:55.854)
Yeah, my legs are toned. So when I’m wearing a skirt, when I wear my dresses, my legs, you can see actual definition in my legs. Whereas I have family members who don’t work out at all and are just purely skinny. And you can just see their leg.
Tom Kagy (39:13.595)
Yeah, yeah.
Right. They just have cylinders for legs. Or, you know, the daikon legs as the Japanese, you know, like, but, know, the question, one question that I have is based on your description of your workout, you’re not really working out your calves, which is what most people see when you’re wearing a dress. So how are you getting, excuse me, calves that look great without doing anything that actually works out your calves?
Kelli Luu (39:18.39)
Right, exactly.
Kelli Luu (39:23.784)
Yeah. Yeah.
Kelli Luu (39:47.182)
Maybe my calves are naturally, I know jumping, I know jumping helps a lot with your calves. Maybe when I was.
Tom Kagy (39:55.655)
But you didn’t, when do you jump? You didn’t describe that.
Kelli Luu (39:59.138)
I think it was my volleyball days and they made me. Cause I think that just naturally. Yeah. used to, so before this routine came into fruition, I used to do just like, when you’re on your tippy toes and you just push yourself up, I used to do those with like a machine with weight. So like the weight goes, you put the weight on the machine and then.
Tom Kagy (40:02.8)
okay. Yeah, that’s probably, yeah. Because you don’t, your exercise is going to do any cat.
Kelli Luu (40:28.62)
you kind of stand under and there’s like a shoulder padding and then you hold and then you just stand up on your tippy toes and that. Yeah, that, I used to do that a lot when I was doing like a different routine. And then I started seeing my calves get really muscular and I didn’t want them to be that muscular. So then I stopped doing that.
Tom Kagy (40:52.989)
Okay. Now your tummy, I assume, is pretty flat, but do you have a six pack? I mean, when you’re just standing there, can you see a six pack?
Kelli Luu (41:03.512)
I’m working on it for sure. I’ve, yeah, you could see, I wouldn’t say it’s a six pack, but you could see my abs. You could definitely see like some, like there’s definition, there’s tone. But for the most part, my stomach’s always been flat. Again, my genetics, my mom, my mom weighs 110 pounds and she’s teeny tiny. So I’ve always, think I’ve always, my stomach hasn’t really ever been my.
Tom Kagy (41:05.572)
Okay.
Tom Kagy (41:25.694)
Right.
Kelli Luu (41:33.068)
my concern, but I do now want to tone it up. I want it to look defined. Like I do want it like a six pack.
Tom Kagy (41:40.731)
Okay. Okay. And, you know, from the exercise you described, I’m assuming, although I have never seen it, actually, surprisingly, because we’re always facing each other, but I assume that you have a pretty, like, bulky butt. Is that true?
Kelli Luu (41:50.83)
Thank
Kelli Luu (41:55.374)
I would say it’s not as bulky as I would like it to be for sure. yeah, I definitely do. So yeah, I would say if I were just like standing like straight, like my silhouette, like my butt sticks out now. But two years ago, my butt did not stick out. So.
Tom Kagy (42:00.174)
Are you still trying to bulk up your butt more?
Tom Kagy (42:15.955)
Well, that’s great because that’s one of the weaknesses of Asian physique, right? I typically Asian butts don’t stick out very much unless you work at it.
Kelli Luu (42:21.518)
Thank
Kelli Luu (42:25.132)
Right, and that’s exactly what I was telling you about the dip in the lower back and the top of the head. Yeah, so it’s sideways. It’s usually Asian genetics, they’re just more straight, they’re more flat. But now, that’s what I used to look like before, but now I have more of a silhouette, a definition. We’ll say a pea shape almost now in the dip.
Tom Kagy (42:30.473)
Oh, I see. I see what you’re saying. Yeah.
Tom Kagy (42:37.585)
Right,
Tom Kagy (42:49.435)
Right, So like the female superheroes, like…
Kelli Luu (42:56.009)
Yes, like, is incredible.
Tom Kagy (42:57.801)
Well, is there something that we haven’t covered that you think is important or has been important or some particular piece of insight or wisdom that you’d care to share?
Kelli Luu (43:14.582)
I would probably just, you know, I think working out is really, is amazing. And I think everyone should do it. And it’s something, it’s a good release. It’s a good release of anger, which is one of the reasons why I go. Because if I ever feel like, I’m having a bad day, it gets better in the gym.
Tom Kagy (43:27.081)
.
Tom Kagy (43:34.774)
I hope I had nothing to do with that anger.
Kelli Luu (43:37.198)
Oh no, no, no, no, no, not at all. No, not at all. This job doesn’t bring me any anger whatsoever. But yeah, going to the gym, like anybody, if, I know a lot of people will get offended when other people tell them to go to the gym, but I guess I would say instead of taking offense to somebody telling you to go to the gym, try it and it can only make your life.
Tom Kagy (43:45.03)
Okay, great.
Kelli Luu (44:05.89)
going to the gym can only make your life better. So that’s, I guess that’s my little piece of wisdom. It can’t make your life worse. Going to the gym won’t make your life worse. So it’ll only make it better.
Tom Kagy (44:06.365)
Okay.
Tom Kagy (44:17.405)
Okay, well that was great. Kelly, that’s been very educational. I’m sure every young woman or even not so young woman listening to this will want to imitate your workout so they can have a round butt and great legs and a floor.
Kelli Luu (44:32.5)
Yes, especially the Asian genetics, like we can beat it. We can overcome that. We can change it. Yeah.
Tom Kagy (44:37.417)
That’s your rallying cry, huh? Okay, well thank you very much, Kelly. It was a pleasure speaking with you.
Kelli Luu (44:45.132)
Thank you. Likewise..
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