Hi Nat!

I've been working with dumb bells (light ones) for a while now and I also worked out at "Curves" for 3 months this summer. I just haven't been consistent with working out since September. I remember the trainer at Curves commenting that I had really good upper body strength for a woman when I first started, but I didn't think much of it since it's impossible to tell how much resistance you're getting on those machines; you just push it as hard as you can.
Come to think of it, I used to be able to toss around bags of grain and bales of hay when I was growing up and helped out at the local stable where my horse was kept and I did a lot of heavy lifting at the nursing home where I worked when I was in college. Maybe I haven't lost as much as I thought?