Get fit 2: Resolution 2K:19!

[Tvtyrant]

Hi everyone! It is January and New Years resolutions are in full swing, so I thought I would make a new Get Fit thread and see how everyone is doing :)

How about everyone else? How is health going and what are this years' goals?



Resources:
Last Thread (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?538695-Get-Fit-I-want-a-folding-vegetable)
Athlean X (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCe0TLA0EsQbE-MjuHXevj2A) - Explains what muscles you are working exactly and how you are targeting them.
Fitness Blender (https://www.youtube.com/user/FitnessBlender) - Free cardio workouts, I use them frequently.
Darebee (https://darebee.com/)-Cool informational packets for exercises and diet, convenient poster designs.
Exrx.net (https://exrx.net/Lists/Directory) -Database explaining types of exercises and how to perform them.

Questions and Answers:

Question: When I try to get into exercise I hurt for days afterwards and then end up not going again. Is this pain normal?

Answer: This is a normal response to introducing new exercises to your body called DOMS (https://physioworks.com.au/injuries-conditions-1/doms-delayed-onset-muscle-soreness)(Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness.) It is marked by a reduced amount of muscle function and deep, painful soreness that starts 24 hours or more after the initial workout. If you continue to exercise it should fade after a week and not return.

Question: Is Keto a good diet for me? Does it really work?

Answer: Keto, also known as Atkins and sharing some space with Paleo, is a diet which focuses on reducing carbs below 20grams a day. It has been popular off and on since it was invented because it allows people to lose weight while maintaining a high degree of satiation (fullness,) which helps some individuals who otherwise yo-yo in and out of diets. It still has onerous restrictions and is detrimental for muscle growth and energy during vigorous activities. Keto may be a good diet for you if you can stay on it indefinitely, and helps with food addictions. It may not be good if you are in the very active range such as construction, weightlifting competitions, marathons or the like.

A quick guide for people totally new to exercise and dieting. Work in progress.

You have decided to get in shape. The first step is probably going to be to go see your doctor and make sure you don't have any health complications before you start a new diet or training regimen.

If you are like me a few years you probably don't know much about nutrition, what kinds of exercise are good for you, etc. There is a lot of information out there, and getting started is daunting. All of those people at the gym look like they know what they are doing, and you feel embarrassed when you go. That is all perfectly natural to feel, as it pertains to all of real life (see picture below.)

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DXP9ywBU0AAv0pa.jpg

None of the people at the gym started out being adjusted to working out in front of people or knowing what they are doing, and not all in shape people go to a gym. I disliked going to a gym for the first year I exercised, and I am now fairly acclimated even if I still prefer not going to one.

The easiest way to motivate yourself starting out is to get an exercise partner, someone who you can motivate and can be motivated by. A friend, member of a class, work colleague, the point is to have accountability and someone to focus on and not get too demotivated by fit people doing something that seems impossible to reach.

The next step is to pick a hobby and a diet. Some people reading this will be doing one or the other, but they are nearly always best together. Diet controls the nutrients your body needs, allowing you to build muscle, keep healthy vitamin levels and either grow or lose mass as you desire. There are several popular diets out there, from atkins/keto to fruit cleanses to high carb vegan diets. All of these are useful and are easily skipped if you are capable of eating in moderation and cutting out junk food and empty calories without outside assistance (I can't.) Looking at links in the resource section on them will help you decide which is best for you. The most important thing is to pick one that you can do indefinitely and doesn't feel like punishment, given enough time you will slip up if you find the diet tedious or difficult.

Why do I say hobby and not exercise? Once again you want something that will be easy to continue for a long time, and hopefully motivate you to exercise either as training or as part of the hobby. Hiking, canoes, marathons, tennis, weightlifting, all are hobbies that motivate participants to exercise outside the hobby and helps them enjoy that exercise. Personally I greatly enjoyed hiking so I started walking daily, then lifting weights, and then doing core exercises to improve my hiking speed and distance while minimizing injuries. If you enjoy exercise without needing a hobby then the hobby is unneeded, but personally my hobby motivates me both in general and also provides specific goals such as being able to climb a particular mountain or backpack with a specific weight.

Once you have a hobby and a diet plan picked out get started! As you get healthier you will find you enjoy those more, leading to a feedback loop that makes staying in shape easier as you go. Enjoying yourself is the best motivation there is.


My resolution right now is to lose 20lbs by June 12.

I'm currently on a bit of a plateau, I dropped down to 262 at the beginning of December and stopped hard there. I'm reasonably certain it is the rain and not being able to walk as much as I was, but the rainy season is just getting started so it might be a long winter for me. The good news is 262 is only 2 pounds above my original goal for 2 years, and I reached it 6 months early. 160 pounds down! Stretch goal is to get to 240 by June, those last 20 might be rough though.

My current exercise routine is a split between Kickboxing for cardio, resistance band weight training and calisthenics. Basically because I am cheap and got tired of paying for a gym when I can do the majority of it at home.

https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/523318572483870741/537372223422332977/fat_me.jpg
https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/523318572483870741/537372246227025941/me_today.jpg?width=449&height=598

[Iruka]

One of my resolutions was to start a new Get Fit thread. :smalltongue:

Healthwise things are ok on my side. I put on a few pounds since November due to lack of exercise and a lot of chocolate to handle the stress.
Then I got a bit of a headstart for 2019 by signing up for a Silvester run and throwing myself out of bed each christmas mornig to go for a run. The event went way better than I expected. I started near the end of the field since I did not know how it would turn out but I felt better with every kilmeter and finished the 11 km in about 1:07. That put me in place in the 1800's but for me it is a pretty decent time and I did not feel like I had run to exhaustion.

Since then I went climbing once, did a few pushups, went for a ~10 km run each week.
Most importantly, I drastically decreased my intake of sweets once the stuff from the after-christmas sales was used up.

Resolutions are weekly 20 km and 500 push-ups or 50 pull-ups for the first half of the year. As last year, I want to do three running events for motivation. (Last year, I managed 2/3.)
I also want to consume less sweet stuff, but I haven't found a good measurable goal for that yet.



edit:
The change you managed is still nothing but stunning, especially with that latest picture. Great job!

Someone posted a pretty intense core workout in the last thread but I cannot find it anymore. Can we maybe use the first post to compile stuff like workouts or food tips?

[Tvtyrant]

One of my resolutions was to start a new Get Fit thread. :smalltongue:

Healthwise things are ok on my side. I put on a few pounds since November due to lack of exercise and a lot of chocolate to handle the stress.
Then I got a bit of a headstart for 2019 by signing up for a Silvester run and throwing myself out of bed each christmas mornig to go for a run. The event went way better than I expected. I started near the end of the field since I did not know how it would turn out but I felt better with every kilmeter and finished the 11 km in about 1:07. That put me in place in the 1800's but for me it is a pretty decent time and I did not feel like I had run to exhaustion.

Since then I went climbing once, did a few pushups, went for a ~10 km run each week.
Most importantly, I drastically decreased my intake of sweets once the stuff from the after-christmas sales was used up.

Resolutions are weekly 20 km and 500 push-ups or 50 pull-ups for the first half of the year. As last year, I want to do three running events for motivation. (Last year, I managed 2/3.)
I also want to consume less sweet stuff, but I haven't found a good measurable goal for that yet.



edit:
The change you managed is still nothing but stunning, especially with that latest picture. Great job!

Someone posted a pretty intense core workout in the last thread but I cannot find it anymore. Can we maybe use the first post to compile stuff like workouts or food tips?
That is a good idea. Was it this one:


For what activity?

I have a pretty long core building+flexibility enhancing routine.
1.Deaddog/deadbug for 60 reps (lay on back with arms and knees pointed into air, then extend one perpendicular arm and leg and retract).
2. 3 minute plank or 5 1 minute planks.
3. Something something dogs (like deadbug but you are on hands and knees and extend outward while maintain pose on perpendicular hand and knee.)
4. 1 minute full bridge, then 2 30 second one legged bridges.
5. Sleeper stretch 20 times each arm.
6. 5 15 second supermans.
7. One we call the starfish. Lay on belly with arms and legs outstretched, then lift one arm and pull it as far across your body as you can while keeping your other hand and both feet on the mat. Try to run your upperbody while keeping hips pushed into ground to aid in back muscle flexibility. Hold 1 minite each side.

If not I will comb the thread again for core stuff. The above is outdated, I do a somewhat more vigorous version now.

Going to post some resources into the opener, as well as linking the previous thread :)

500 pushups a week is a lot, plus a 10k. I'm super impressed. Last year you were trying to get to 100 in a row, how has that gone?


Edit: I put a resource section for links and a Q&A section for common questions. I'll add those as people suggest them or I come across ones I think should be there.

[Cozzer]

Huh, nice!

I'm still doing Darebee workouts (almost) every day, which is slowly but steadily improving my strength, endurance and general body shape. Also, with the new year I decided to spend a few months cutting my calorie intake here and there (not a real diet, just eating less than I usually would whenever I don't feel super-hungry) in order to lose the final 3-4 kgs towards my ideal weight.

I mean, I know I don't have it in me to mantain the lifestyle I'd need to have extre-ripped abs or whatever, but what's the point of having muscles if I don't show them off at least a little, right?

[Iruka]

That is a good idea. Was it this one:


500 pushups a week is a lot, plus a 10k. I'm super impressed. Last year you were trying to get to 100 in a row, how has that gone?



Yeah, that's the one, thanks!
Tried it once and it felt super effective.

Might need to adapt that number, but 100 per day with two days for regeneration sounded feasible in my head.

The 100-in-a-row project went the way most of my things go. Once it starts becoming a routine and I hit the first plateau I get bored and do something else.
Doing consecutive sets to failure was however very effective. I got to the mid-forties, more than I ever could do before.

[Gravitron5000]

Wow TvTyrant! That's awesome progress.

As for goals, I have some nagging injuries I want to deal with, I am 15 lbs above my target weight (175 lbs), I'm hoping to climb at least 2 days a week, and I want to get back into my weight training routine which I dropped to to those nagging injuries. My weight doesn't seem to react much to either diet or exercise alone, so I need to deal with both. I'm currently looking at mostly reducing portion sizes as that has worked in the past, but I'm also not as young as I once was.

For weight training, I find this site useful for ideas to keep your routine fresh, and for checking exercise forms.

https://exrx.net/Lists/Directory

[Tvtyrant]

Huh, nice!

I'm still doing Darebee workouts (almost) every day, which is slowly but steadily improving my strength, endurance and general body shape. Also, with the new year I decided to spend a few months cutting my calorie intake here and there (not a real diet, just eating less than I usually would whenever I don't feel super-hungry) in order to lose the final 3-4 kgs towards my ideal weight.

I mean, I know I don't have it in me to mantain the lifestyle I'd need to have extre-ripped abs or whatever, but what's the point of having muscles if I don't show them off at least a little, right?

I know that feeling! Which workouts have you been doing?


Yeah, that's the one, thanks!
Tried it once and it felt super effective.

Might need to adapt that number, but 100 per day with two days for regeneration sounded feasible in my head.

The 100-in-a-row project went the way most of my things go. Once it starts becoming a routine and I hit the first plateau I get bored and do something else.
Doing consecutive sets to failure was however very effective. I got to the mid-forties, more than I ever could do before.

I can do like 10 in a row so I'm really impressed at mid-forties :)

I think that seems like reasonable plan for work and rest days.


Wow TvTyrant! That's awesome progress.

As for goals, I have some nagging injuries I want to deal with, I am 15 lbs above my target weight (175 lbs), I'm hoping to climb at least 2 days a week, and I want to get back into my weight training routine which I dropped to to those nagging injuries. My weight doesn't seem to react much to either diet or exercise alone, so I need to deal with both. I'm currently looking at mostly reducing portion sizes as that has worked in the past, but I'm also not as young as I once was.

For weight training, I find this site useful for ideas to keep your routine fresh, and for checking exercise forms.

https://exrx.net/Lists/Directory
Added the link to the directory, thank you!

Climb like mountain or wall climb?

[Comrade]

Congratulations on the progress y'all.

Fitness goals are... kind of on track, kind of not. My goal has been to increase my weight, since I've been chronically underweight my entire life, and after hitting a high point my weight started to drop back down below 150lb. It's on an upward trend again, fortunately, but the brief downturn was a little dispiriting. On the other hand, my physique is better than ever despite the drop in weight. My lats, which were always a weak point for me, are actually pretty well developed now, and my shoulders have improved a lot as well-- so it seems the drop in weight didn't really impact my progress in terms of physique, which is a relief.

[Cozzer]

I know that feeling! Which workouts have you been doing?

Right now I'm doing their Combat HIIT program when I come home from work. I also do the Push-up challenge (30 push-ups of a different kind each day) in the morning, just after waking up. In the weekends, if it's not too cold and it doesn't rain, I try to add running before lunch.

[Gravitron5000]

Added the link to the directory, thank you!

Climb like mountain or wall climb?

Wall climbing, but mostly bouldering, which is short climbs without a rope (falling on padding) that emphasize power and technique. I do rope up from time to time though.


https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4830/30733297857_95cd19f772_z.jpg


I don't do mountaineering. I like to end my days with the same numbers of toes that I started with :smallsmile:. In all honesty, I know a number of mountaineers, and I don't have nearly the tolerance for suffering that you need to deal with what seems to be a routine day climbing mountains. Maybe I only know mountaineers that make a habit of engaging in sufferfests.

[Tvtyrant]

Congratulations on the progress y'all.

Fitness goals are... kind of on track, kind of not. My goal has been to increase my weight, since I've been chronically underweight my entire life, and after hitting a high point my weight started to drop back down below 150lb. It's on an upward trend again, fortunately, but the brief downturn was a little dispiriting. On the other hand, my physique is better than ever despite the drop in weight. My lats, which were always a weak point for me, are actually pretty well developed now, and my shoulders have improved a lot as well-- so it seems the drop in weight didn't really impact my progress in terms of physique, which is a relief.

Probably burned off the last of your body fat :) As long as you put on muscle you should slowly trend upward.

I forgot, had you said you were vegan and opposed to creatine in the last thread?


Right now I'm doing their Combat HIIT program when I come home from work. I also do the Push-up challenge (30 push-ups of a different kind each day) in the morning, just after waking up. In the weekends, if it's not too cold and it doesn't rain, I try to add running before lunch.
Dang HiiT daily? I would be totally burnt out in a few days. I like kickboxing for cardio but I don't think I hit HiiT levels.


Wall climbing, but mostly bouldering, which is short climbs without a rope (falling on padding) that emphasize power and technique. I do rope up from time to time though.


https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4830/30733297857_95cd19f772_z.jpg


I don't do mountaineering. I like to end my days with the same numbers of toes that I started with :smallsmile:. In all honesty, I know a number of mountaineers, and I don't have nearly the tolerance for suffering that you need to deal with what seems to be a routine day climbing mountains. Maybe I only know mountaineers that make a habit of engaging in sufferfests.

Bouldering takes some crazy hand strength, I can't hold my own weight without holding it like a panicked cat :(

Summiting supposedly requires being able to run the distance you climb while carrying a pack, which I think takes some crazy fitness.


Sounds like Christmas put most of us back a bit, I feel a little better now :)

I discovered a crazy effective bicep exercise using bands and a door, where you lean back and curl from the door, then step back to increase pressure while curled and eccentrically overload as you straighten your arm slowly. Tremendous muscle 🔥.

[Comrade]

I forgot, had you said you were vegan and opposed to creatine in the last thread?

Not at all, I don't think I could subsist on a vegan diet, haha. Sure as hell I'd have a much harder time hitting the amount of calories I need daily to continue gaining without meat in my diet.

[Kyrell1978]

Well, this year the goal is to drop the ten pounds I gained over the holidays and then maintain. I got myself AX2 from Athlean X (I've already done Xero) and my lovely wife got me the Athlean Xblox for Christmas. I'm super stoked and I plan on finishing AX2 then swapping back and forth to Xero.

Since the Youtube channel is linked as a resource, I'd also like to throw out that there is a Facebook group called AthleanX.comfans that is super helpful and positive.

[Cozzer]

Dang HiiT daily? I would be totally burnt out in a few days. I like kickboxing for cardio but I don't think I hit HiiT levels.

Well, it's called "HIIT" but it's not a super-difficult training program. :smalltongue: I'm better at that kind of exercise than at pure strength training, and it's also pretty fun.

[razorback]

Subscribing will post up thoughts later.

[Saint Jimmy]

So I have a question about workouts. I’m a high school student, and with all my activities, I find it hard sometimes to keep a consistent workout schedule, much less research and write plans for them out. There’s so much out there, it’s daunting to try to learn all about muscle groups and different exercises, given my time issues. I’m working on total-body fitness, trying to strengthen everything. I try to do more functional-type lower body stuff Monday, functional upper body stuff Wednesday, core Friday, and “lifting” (bench, barbell squat, etc.) Saturday. That last one is a new addition.

Now that all the exposition is out of the way, does anyone know ways that I could learn the theory behind exercise and muscle groups and stuff, as well as different exercises, so I could plan my workouts better? Also, for my goal of total body strength and fitness, would it just be easier for me to find a few Darbee workouts? I guess I’m just looking for general feedback on what I’m trying to do. Like I said earlier, it’s a daunting thing to try to get into and manage, so I want to make sure I’m doing it right.

[Tvtyrant]

So I have a question about workouts. I’m a high school student, and with all my activities, I find it hard sometimes to keep a consistent workout schedule, much less research and write plans for them out. There’s so much out there, it’s daunting to try to learn all about muscle groups and different exercises, given my time issues. I’m working on total-body fitness, trying to strengthen everything. I try to do more functional-type lower body stuff Monday, functional upper body stuff Wednesday, core Friday, and “lifting” (bench, barbell squat, etc.) Saturday. That last one is a new addition.

Now that all the exposition is out of the way, does anyone know ways that I could learn the theory behind exercise and muscle groups and stuff, as well as different exercises, so I could plan my workouts better? Also, for my goal of total body strength and fitness, would it just be easier for me to find a few Darbee workouts? I guess I’m just looking for general feedback on what I’m trying to do. Like I said earlier, it’s a daunting thing to try to get into and manage, so I want to make sure I’m doing it right.

Getting started can be tough because general fitness doesn't lend itself to picking a program. Usually programs are aimed at a particular goal or use a particular method, and the general fitness comes with filling in the gaps you find in it as you train.

For weight lifting something like Starting Strength or Push-Pull-Lift tends to be pretty good, or if you are aiming for something like reaching military benchmarks you can look at doing a mix of calisthenics and HiiT.

My advice in general would be to pick a hobby you enjoy that requires fitness and let that guide your training. Like if you want to canoe you need a lot of back, arm and chest endurance but distance running not so much.

I'm happy to answer any questions yoy have :)

[Comrade]

So I have a question about workouts. I’m a high school student, and with all my activities, I find it hard sometimes to keep a consistent workout schedule, much less research and write plans for them out. There’s so much out there, it’s daunting to try to learn all about muscle groups and different exercises, given my time issues. I’m working on total-body fitness, trying to strengthen everything. I try to do more functional-type lower body stuff Monday, functional upper body stuff Wednesday, core Friday, and “lifting” (bench, barbell squat, etc.) Saturday. That last one is a new addition.

What do you mean by 'functional upper/lower body stuff'?

In terms of weight-lifting, I'd suggest against cramming all your lifts into one day of the week. There's a million different perspectives out there on how to allocate workouts to different days of the week; what's worked best for me has been hitting chest/triceps two days of the week, back/biceps two days of the week, legs one day, and shoulders one day. I do a few abs/core exercises after my main workout each day-- you really don't need an entire day dedicated to working abs/core, 15 minutes after each workout will do it.

If you've got any questions about specific lifts/workouts I'd be happy to help however I can!

[Saint Jimmy]

Getting started can be tough because general fitness doesn't lend itself to picking a program. Usually programs are aimed at a particular goal or use a particular method, and the general fitness comes with filling in the gaps you find in it as you train.



My advice in general would be to pick a hobby you enjoy that requires fitness and let that guide your training. Like if you want to canoe you need a lot of back, arm and chest endurance but distance running not so much.
So I actually do Historical European Martial Arts, which to the best of my knowledge uses most parts of the body (swinging the sword, keeping stable and balanced, etc.) That, and just general fitness are why I was trying to do total body stuff. It sounds like maybe I should replace my core workout with another upper body one, as that is what is getting used the most, and do core at the end of one or two of them like Comrade said.


For weight lifting something like Starting Strength or Push-Pull-Lift tends to be pretty good
Are those specifically Darebee programs, or are they something else?


What do you mean by 'functional upper/lower body stuff'?
Yeah, I wasn’t sure my terminology was right. I mean that it’s (I may or may not be right about this) less weight, more reps, with more calisthenics, as opposed to the low reps, heavier weight stuff that increases size and strength. My understanding is that the goal of what in doing is more to build endurance, with less of a focus on strength and size. I’m not 100% sure, though. (Example, instead of doing four sets of five barbell squats, I do three sets of 10 squats, lunges, and step-ups, holding a kettlebell and increasing the reps by two each set.)

I think that was good for getting into exercise, but now that I’m trying to build up my strength, I don’t know if I should continue doing that or not.


In terms of weight-lifting, I'd suggest against cramming all your lifts into one day of the week. There's a million different perspectives out there on how to allocate workouts to different days of the week; what's worked best for me has been hitting chest/triceps two days of the week, back/biceps two days of the week, legs one day, and shoulders one day. I do a few abs/core exercises after my main workout each day-- you really don't need an entire day dedicated to working abs/core, 15 minutes after each workout will do it.
Ok. I’ll have to think about how to best schedule a plan. I think right now, I’m thinking about doing total-body Monday and Wednesday, upper body Friday, lower body Saturday. Does that sound reasonable?


I'm happy to answer any questions yoy have :


If you've got any questions about specific lifts/workouts I'd be happy to help however I can!
thanks!

[Kyrell1978]

Now that all the exposition is out of the way, does anyone know ways that I could learn the theory behind exercise and muscle groups and stuff, as well as different exercises, so I could plan my workouts better? Also, for my goal of total body strength and fitness, would it just be easier for me to find a few Darbee workouts? I guess I’m just looking for general feedback on what I’m trying to do. Like I said earlier, it’s a daunting thing to try to get into and manage, so I want to make sure I’m doing it right.

Head to the YouTube and check out AthleanX. He has a ton and a half of videos that explain the theory as well as his workout videos that he puts on Youtube for free. (I really love his sore in 6 series, it helped me a lot before I ended up buying one of his actual programs).

[Tvtyrant]

So I actually do Historical European Martial Arts, which to the best of my knowledge uses most parts of the body (swinging the sword, keeping stable and balanced, etc.) That, and just general fitness are why I was trying to do total body stuff. It sounds like maybe I should replace my core workout with another upper body one, as that is what is getting used the most, and do core at the end of one or two of them like Comrade said. [spoiler]

It depends on what you mean by core. Core is used to mean abs and lower back, sometimes including the glutes. Generally speaking what you want to do is compound exercises which hit a lot of stuff at the same time, which are pull ups, squats, deadlifts, overhead press, bench press, dips, etc. The reason you end up doing narrower exercises like just arms is you either find you have a muscle imbalance and need to catch up a specific muscle, or you want the look of that one being big.

For SCA/HEMA I would suggest probably pullups as your single best exercise, they work your shoulders, arms, abs, and back. Dips are really good for abs and triceps, and both increase endurance a great deal.

If you prefer exercises that feel like you are doing something productive chopping wood is a good one for arms, chest, and back.



Are those specifically Darebee programs, or are they something else?


They are weightlifting specific programs for newer people. The focus is doing big compound exercises 3-4 times a week because if you are fairly new you can build a lot of muscle in a short amount of time, so the best way to take advantage of that is to hit everything at once until you run through your new lifter gains period.

You can find the programs for free if you look them up on google.



Yeah, I wasn’t sure my terminology was right. I mean that it’s (I may or may not be right about this) less weight, more reps, with more calisthenics, as opposed to the low reps, heavier weight stuff that increases size and strength. My understanding is that the goal of what in doing is more to build endurance, with less of a focus on strength and size. I’m not 100% sure, though. (Example, instead of doing four sets of five barbell squats, I do three sets of 10 squats, lunges, and step-ups, holding a kettlebell and increasing the reps by two each set.)

I think that was good for getting into exercise, but now that I’m trying to build up my strength, I don’t know if I should continue doing that or not.

In my experience the problem with light weights is intensity. In order to build muscle and endurance you need to progressively overload your body, while a lot of time kettle-bell exercises are done at a fairly relaxed pace while lacking the increased weight of heavy lifting to make up for it. If you want to go that route I would find some tapes online to follow as they will set a brisk pace and not let you rest between sets.

Otherwise focusing on compound exercises on lifting days and cardio on off days is probably your best bet.



[QUOTE=Saint Jimmy;23663342]
Ok. I’ll have to think about how to best schedule a plan. I think right now, I’m thinking about doing total-body Monday and Wednesday, upper body Friday, lower body Saturday. Does that sound reasonable?

I think you are probably best off doing total body three days a week, cardio three days.

Total Body: Squats or deadlift (alternate by day,) Bench, Overhead Press, Pull ups, dips. Aim to be done in 50 minutes.

Cardio: Do a Darbee or kickboxing tape for 30 minutes, add bicycle, run, swim, etc.

Alternatively I would look at boxer training programs. So lots of running, jump rope, planks, pullups, push ups, burpees, walking lunges, squat jumps, etc.

BEGINNERS BOXING WORKOUT:
THE SPLIT:
Monday - Jumping Rope, Speed Bag, Sparring
Tuesday - Weight Training
Wednesday - Rest
Thursday - Running
Friday - Shadow Boxing, Heavy Bag, Sparring
Saturday - Weight Training
Sunday - Rest
MONDAY - JUMPING ROPE, SPEED BAG, SPARRING:
Jump Rope for 3 three minute rounds.
Hit the speed bag for 3 three minute rounds.
Spar with a partner for 10 to 15 minutes.

TUESDAY - WEIGHT TRAINING:
Legs - Barbell Squat - 3 x 5, 90 second rest
Lats - Pull-Ups - 2 x 8, 90 second rest
Upper Abs - Crunches 3 x 25, 90 second rest
Lower Abs - Hanging Leg Raises 3 x 25, 90 second rest
Neck - Neck Bridge (Hold as long as possible) - 3 x 0, 90 second rest

TUESDAY - WEIGHT TRAINING:
THURSDAY - RUNNING:
Perform HIIT on a treadmill.

Interval 1 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 2 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 3 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 4 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 5 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 6 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 7 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 8 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 9 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 10 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 11 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 12 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR

FRIDAY - SHADOW BOXING, HEAVY BAG:
Shadow box for 5 minutes.
Hit the heavy bag for 3 three minute rounds.

SATURDAY - WEIGHT TRAINING:
Legs - Barbell Squat - 3 x 5, 90 second rest
Lats - Pull-Ups - 2 x 8, 90 second rest
Upper Abs - Crunches 3 x 25, 90 second rest
Lower Abs - Hanging Leg Raises 3 x 25, 90 second rest
Neck - Neck Bridge (Hold as long as possible) - 3 x 0, 90 second rest

SUNDAY - REST.
ADVANCED BOXING WORKOUT:
THE SPLIT:
Monday - Jumping Rope, Speed Bag, Sparring
Tuesday - Weight Training, Running
Wednesday - Shadow Boxing, Heavy Bag, Sparring
Thursday - Jumping Rope, Speed Bag
Friday - Weight Training, Running
Saturday - Shadow Boxing, Heavy Bag, Sparring
Sunday - Rest
MONDAY - JUMPING ROPE, SPEED BAG, SPARRING:
Jump Rope for 3 five minute rounds.
Hit the speed bag for 3 five minute rounds.
Spar with a partner for 15 to 30 minutes.

TUESDAY - WEIGHT TRAINING, RUNNING:
Legs - Barbell Squat - 3 x 5, 90 second rest
Lats - Pull-Ups - 2 x 8, 90 second rest
Upper Abs - Crunches 3 x 25, 90 second rest
Lower Abs - Hanging Leg Raises 3 x 25, 90 second rest
Neck - Neck Bridge (Hold as long as possible) - 3 x 0, 90 second rest
Perform HIIT on a treadmill.

Interval 1 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 2 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 3 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 4 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 5 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 6 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 7 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 8 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 9 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 10 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 11 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 12 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR

WEDNESDAY - SHADOW BOXING, HEAVY BAG, SPARRING:
Shadow box for 5 minutes.
Hit the heavy bag for 3 five minute rounds.
Spar with a partner for 15 to 30 minutes.

THURSDAY - JUMPING ROPE, SPEED BAG:
Jump Rope for 3 five minute rounds.
Hit the speed bag for 3 five minute rounds.

FRIDAY - WEIGHT TRAINING, RUNNING:
Legs - Barbell Squat - 3 x 5, 90 second rest
Lats - Pull-Ups - 2 x 8, 90 second rest
Upper Abs - Crunches 3 x 25, 90 second rest
Lower Abs - Hanging Leg Raises 3 x 25, 90 second rest
Neck - Neck Bridge (Hold as long as possible) - 3 x 0, 90 second rest
Perform HIIT on a treadmill.

Interval 1 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 2 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 3 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 4 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 5 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 6 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 7 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 8 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 9 - 1 minute regular pace, 20 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 10 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 11 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR
Interval 12 - 1 minute regular pace, 15 second sprint at 90-95% MHR

SATURDAY - SHADOW BOXING, HEAVY BAG, SPARRING:
Shadow box for 5 minutes.
Hit the heavy bag for 3 five minute rounds.
Spar with a partner for 15 to 30 minutes.

So you eventually work up to 6 days a week.

[Comrade]

I think you are probably best off doing total body three days a week, cardio three days.
I've never done total body workouts, are they effective? It seems to me that you'd be minimizing your ability to really work and develop each muscle group and limiting recovery time.



Yeah, I wasn’t sure my terminology was right. I mean that it’s (I may or may not be right about this) less weight, more reps, with more calisthenics, as opposed to the low reps, heavier weight stuff that increases size and strength. My understanding is that the goal of what in doing is more to build endurance, with less of a focus on strength and size. I’m not 100% sure, though. (Example, instead of doing four sets of five barbell squats, I do three sets of 10 squats, lunges, and step-ups, holding a kettlebell and increasing the reps by two each set.)

I think that was good for getting into exercise, but now that I’m trying to build up my strength, I don’t know if I should continue doing that or not.

I'd say the 6-10 rep range is pretty ideal, maybe 3-5 if you feel like going heavy and pushing yourself. My personal preference is to start with one or two warmup sets of 15-20 reps at a weight where I really have to push myself to get the last five reps. Then I'll up the weight for two 10 rep working sets, and then again for two 6-8 rep working sets. Sometimes I'll mix things up by introducing drop sets (5-6 reps at a heavy weight, then immediately going into 6-8 reps at a lighter weight, and then dropping the weight again for another 10 reps) or supersets (following one exercise immediately with another).

[Tvtyrant]

I've never done total body workouts, are they effective? It seems to me that you'd be minimizing your ability to really work and develop each muscle group and limiting recovery time.



I'd say the 6-10 rep range is pretty ideal, maybe 3-5 if you feel like going heavy and pushing yourself. My personal preference is to start with one or two warmup sets of 15-20 reps at a weight where I really have to push myself to get the last five reps. Then I'll up the weight for two 10 rep working sets, and then again for two 6-8 rep working sets. Sometimes I'll mix things up by introducing drop sets (5-6 reps at a heavy weight, then immediately going into 6-8 reps at a lighter weight, and then dropping the weight again for another 10 reps) or supersets (following one exercise immediately with another).

For new people I think they are. After DOMS wears off there is a long period where you just aren't in good enough shape to really breakdown the muscle without pulling something or otherwise hurting yourself, and a day off to two will recover the body.

Like there are squat everyday workouts for the first 5 months to get your body up to a base level and then start splitting days.

Personally my workout 3x week is:
Box Squats 3x12
Pushups 30
Diamond push up 20
Dips 15 (these are newer and I suck)
Lat pulldowns
Tricep kickbacks
Curls
Pec flies
Bunch of janky forearm stuff

Abs/core:
Weighted toe touch reaches
Figure 8s
Plank hip touches
15x5 supermans
1 minute bridge
Cobra stretch
Childpose stretch
More weighted reaches

Then I drink some milk and go to bed lol

My off days I try to do kickboxing tapes for cardio and to keep from getting stiff.

[Saint Jimmy]

Thanks! I appreciate all the advice! I’ve been busy with school for a few days, but I’ll work on implementing it. :smallsmile:

[Tvtyrant]

My doctor ordered me off strenous physical activity due to my car accident messing me up worse then I thought. So running, hikes, and weight lifting are all off the table. I still have yoga and swimming :/

[Kyrell1978]

My doctor ordered me off strenous physical activity due to my car accident messing me up worse then I thought. So running, hikes, and weight lifting are all off the table. I still have yoga and swimming :/

Good luck with your recovery and I hope it goes quickly for you. I know it's frustrating, I had a torn MCL, a broken foot, and then had to have my gall bladder removed within the space of about 3 months around a year ago. But on the bright side, I'm all healed up and working harder than ever. I hope the same goes for you.

[Tvtyrant]

Good luck with your recovery and I hope it goes quickly for you. I know it's frustrating, I had a torn MCL, a broken foot, and then had to have my gall bladder removed within the space of about 3 months around a year ago. But on the bright side, I'm all healed up and working harder than ever. I hope the same goes for you.

Thanks! I don't think anything is really damaged, just very cramped and inflamed. My one leg is now shorter then then other and my shoulders aren't even due to the tightness, hopefully I can fix that soonish.

Were the MCL tear and broken foot related? Because otherwise that is some crazy bad luck.

[Kyrell1978]

Thanks! I don't think anything is really damaged, just very cramped and inflamed. My one leg is now shorter then then other and my shoulders aren't even due to the tightness, hopefully I can fix that soonish.

Were the MCL tear and broken foot related? Because otherwise that is some crazy bad luck.

Kind of related I guess. Mostly due to I'm forty and was acting like I was twenty. I tore my MCL wrestling with my oldest son (he's a wrestler but I'm about three or four inches taller and fifty pounds heavier) after a leg day work out and running a five K.....so yeah dumb ass me. The foot was about a month later...I was taking Judo and I landed exactly wrong when a guy threw me...I finished class but was done after that for about a month. After those two I calmed it down a bit. :smallbiggrin:

[Tvtyrant]

Kind of related I guess. Mostly due to I'm forty and was acting like I was twenty. I tore my MCL wrestling with my oldest son (he's a wrestler but I'm about three or four inches taller and fifty pounds heavier) after a leg day work out and running a five K.....so yeah dumb ass me. The foot was about a month later...I was taking Judo and I landed exactly wrong when a guy threw me...I finished class but was done after that for about a month. After those two I calmed it down a bit. :smallbiggrin:

Oh gosh! My Dad got injured coaching football a similar way, doing blocking drills as a fifty year old with teens.

I'm at the state where having not worked out for a week all my muscles are at their biggest before they begin shrinking. The next month is going to be real sad :(

[Kyrell1978]

Oh gosh! My Dad got injured coaching football a similar way, doing blocking drills as a fifty year old with teens.

I'm at the state where having not worked out for a week all my muscles are at their biggest before they begin shrinking. The next month is going to be real sad :(
Yeah. Being forced to take time off always sucks. It'll come back pretty quick though once you're able to get back to it.

[Peccavi]

Hey wow! This is exactly the thread I was needing (well, almost exactly. Would anybody from here be interested if I started a mental health thread, assuming I don't find one?).

First let me say, that the progress I'm reading about here is incredible and inspiring. So "congrats" to all that are making progress, a solid "you can do it!" to everyone struggling, an emphatic "I'm really impressed by your attempts/effort" to anybody who feels they haven't progressed as much as they should, and lastly a "thank you" to everyone who's posted at all- for me (really struggling) it helps a great deal!

A little background, I started training in martial arts when I was 5 and was always incredibly active. At the height of my physical abilities, at 16-straight out of high school, I joined the army. Reserves at first, then on to full time when I was old enough. I found I was fit enough to qualify for the special forces entrance exams. To say that I was physically capable would be a massive understatement, I was in the top of everything. I felt like I could run forever, of course the army proved to me this was not case, they have a habit of just making things harder until you hit your limit! It was great, I loved every minute of it, and I served for 6 years full time from 1998 to 2004.

Unfortunately that time period included active service overseas, in some really horrible places, doing and seeing some really horrible things. I, like many people faced with traumatic events (certainly not limited to service personnel) found myself unable to cope. I was diagnosed with PTSD and given a medical discharge.

Between the crushing depression, lack of sleep and a small pharmacies worth of medication, I spent the next 10 years or so largely inactive. My health has been steadily decreasing ever since. Whilst I have mostly recovered (or at least gotten a handle on) from the worst of my PTSD symptoms I have developed a pain condition called Fibromyalgia. Which is characterised by severe-widespread pain, particularly in my back, exhaustion and weakness. I currently find myself unable to work, and struggling physically with even the simplest of activities that require movement through the back and core (which I'm beginning to understand is pretty much everything). I've also just discovered that my cholesterol is really high (8.7 as opposed to the healthy goal of below 4) and my blood sugars indicate I may be developing pre-diabetes. I'm currently around 20kg overweight, which is nowhere near as bad as it could be.

For the past 2 years I have been undergoing treatment for the Fibro by way of Physiotherapy (clinical pilates), hydrotherapy and of course more medication. The theory was to retrain my brain into realising that it can move without pain and actively exercising my core and back but very gently. This, however, has not made any difference. We've now changed tac, and I'm now doing a lot of resistance exercise with my upper and lower body, basically now working the core and back indirectly as you need to maintain stability throughout the movements. I am feeling very confident that this method will bring some alleviation to my condition.

I have also begun intermittent fasting at the suggestion of a Dietitian, fasting for 16 hours a day and eating during the other 8 (the last hour is the hardest!). Recent studies have shown, apparently, that this has been proven to have a much more significant effect on cholesterol, blood sugars and weight reduction then a low cholesterol-low calorie diet.


Maintain the intermittent fasting for the next 3 months and recheck the blood work. I'm also hoping to lose 10kg in this time.
Find the time everyday, where my pain levels are low enough to engage in the exercise plan. I'm doing roughly a 3rd of the amount that I want to do, but I'm making progress every week.
Get back into martial arts. I've started doing a little bit everyday, but it is only a little bit. I'm hoping to get the point where I can work through at least 2 of my forms.

[Kyrell1978]

Hey wow! This is exactly the thread I was needing (well, almost exactly. Would anybody from here be interested if I started a mental health thread, assuming I don't find one?).

First let me say, that the progress I'm reading about here is incredible and inspiring. So "congrats" to all that are making progress, a solid "you can do it!" to everyone struggling, an emphatic "I'm really impressed by your attempts/effort" to anybody who feels they haven't progressed as much as they should, and lastly a "thank you" to everyone who's posted at all- for me (really struggling) it helps a great deal!

A little background, I started training in martial arts when I was 5 and was always incredibly active. At the height of my physical abilities, at 16-straight out of high school, I joined the army. Reserves at first, then on to full time when I was old enough. I found I was fit enough to qualify for the special forces entrance exams. To say that I was physically capable would be a massive understatement, I was in the top of everything. I felt like I could run forever, of course the army proved to me this was not case, they have a habit of just making things harder until you hit your limit! It was great, I loved every minute of it, and I served for 6 years full time from 1998 to 2004.

Unfortunately that time period included active service overseas, in some really horrible places, doing and seeing some really horrible things. I, like many people faced with traumatic events (certainly not limited to service personnel) found myself unable to cope. I was diagnosed with PTSD and given a medical discharge.

Between the crushing depression, lack of sleep and a small pharmacies worth of medication, I spent the next 10 years or so largely inactive. My health has been steadily decreasing ever since. Whilst I have mostly recovered (or at least gotten a handle on) from the worst of my PTSD symptoms I have developed a pain condition called Fibromyalgia. Which is characterised by severe-widespread pain, particularly in my back, exhaustion and weakness. I currently find myself unable to work, and struggling physically with even the simplest of activities that require movement through the back and core (which I'm beginning to understand is pretty much everything). I've also just discovered that my cholesterol is really high (8.7 as opposed to the healthy goal of below 4) and my blood sugars indicate I may be developing pre-diabetes. I'm currently around 20kg overweight, which is nowhere near as bad as it could be.

For the past 2 years I have been undergoing treatment for the Fibro by way of Physiotherapy (clinical pilates), hydrotherapy and of course more medication. The theory was to retrain my brain into realising that it can move without pain and actively exercising my core and back but very gently. This, however, has not made any difference. We've now changed tac, and I'm now doing a lot of resistance exercise with my upper and lower body, basically now working the core and back indirectly as you need to maintain stability throughout the movements. I am feeling very confident that this method will bring some alleviation to my condition.

I have also begun intermittent fasting at the suggestion of a Dietitian, fasting for 16 hours a day and eating during the other 8 (the last hour is the hardest!). Recent studies have shown, apparently, that this has been proven to have a much more significant effect on cholesterol, blood sugars and weight reduction then a low cholesterol-low calorie diet.


Maintain the intermittent fasting for the next 3 months and recheck the blood work. I'm also hoping to lose 10kg in this time.
Find the time everyday, where my pain levels are low enough to engage in the exercise plan. I'm doing roughly a 3rd of the amount that I want to do, but I'm making progress every week.
Get back into martial arts. I've started doing a little bit everyday, but it is only a little bit. I'm hoping to get the point where I can work through at least 2 of my forms.

Good luck with your goals. 10 kg in three months is a fairly quick drop but certainly doable depending on your current level of fitness and all of that. Please make sure you are eating enough that you don't just enter the starvation state and end up losing just to gain it back. That **** is heartbreaking.

[Tvtyrant]

Hey wow! This is exactly the thread I was needing (well, almost exactly. Would anybody from here be interested if I started a mental health thread, assuming I don't find one?).

First let me say, that the progress I'm reading about here is incredible and inspiring. So "congrats" to all that are making progress, a solid "you can do it!" to everyone struggling, an emphatic "I'm really impressed by your attempts/effort" to anybody who feels they haven't progressed as much as they should, and lastly a "thank you" to everyone who's posted at all- for me (really struggling) it helps a great deal!

A little background, I started training in martial arts when I was 5 and was always incredibly active. At the height of my physical abilities, at 16-straight out of high school, I joined the army. Reserves at first, then on to full time when I was old enough. I found I was fit enough to qualify for the special forces entrance exams. To say that I was physically capable would be a massive understatement, I was in the top of everything. I felt like I could run forever, of course the army proved to me this was not case, they have a habit of just making things harder until you hit your limit! It was great, I loved every minute of it, and I served for 6 years full time from 1998 to 2004.

Unfortunately that time period included active service overseas, in some really horrible places, doing and seeing some really horrible things. I, like many people faced with traumatic events (certainly not limited to service personnel) found myself unable to cope. I was diagnosed with PTSD and given a medical discharge.

Between the crushing depression, lack of sleep and a small pharmacies worth of medication, I spent the next 10 years or so largely inactive. My health has been steadily decreasing ever since. Whilst I have mostly recovered (or at least gotten a handle on) from the worst of my PTSD symptoms I have developed a pain condition called Fibromyalgia. Which is characterised by severe-widespread pain, particularly in my back, exhaustion and weakness. I currently find myself unable to work, and struggling physically with even the simplest of activities that require movement through the back and core (which I'm beginning to understand is pretty much everything). I've also just discovered that my cholesterol is really high (8.7 as opposed to the healthy goal of below 4) and my blood sugars indicate I may be developing pre-diabetes. I'm currently around 20kg overweight, which is nowhere near as bad as it could be.

For the past 2 years I have been undergoing treatment for the Fibro by way of Physiotherapy (clinical pilates), hydrotherapy and of course more medication. The theory was to retrain my brain into realising that it can move without pain and actively exercising my core and back but very gently. This, however, has not made any difference. We've now changed tac, and I'm now doing a lot of resistance exercise with my upper and lower body, basically now working the core and back indirectly as you need to maintain stability throughout the movements. I am feeling very confident that this method will bring some alleviation to my condition.

I have also begun intermittent fasting at the suggestion of a Dietitian, fasting for 16 hours a day and eating during the other 8 (the last hour is the hardest!). Recent studies have shown, apparently, that this has been proven to have a much more significant effect on cholesterol, blood sugars and weight reduction then a low cholesterol-low calorie diet.


Maintain the intermittent fasting for the next 3 months and recheck the blood work. I'm also hoping to lose 10kg in this time.
Find the time everyday, where my pain levels are low enough to engage in the exercise plan. I'm doing roughly a 3rd of the amount that I want to do, but I'm making progress every week.
Get back into martial arts. I've started doing a little bit everyday, but it is only a little bit. I'm hoping to get the point where I can work through at least 2 of my forms.

Keep me in the loop on how the weight training aspect goes, I have a close friend who has your condition and I would like to be able to help her with it.

She wants to do fasting as well, but I worry that with FM it will lead to her eating insufficient protein and causing her to atrophy. Does your doctor see any issues with that, or is the weightlifting sufficient to prevent it? My friend doesn't exercise which is why the idea is particularly frightening to me.

[Peccavi]

Good luck with your goals. 10 kg in three months is a fairly quick drop but certainly doable depending on your current level of fitness and all of that. Please make sure you are eating enough that you don't just enter the starvation state and end up losing just to gain it back. That **** is heartbreaking.

Thanks. Yeah, I'll be careful. At the moment I'm still consuming the same calories as I was before I started the fasting (just a little under the recommended, because I'm trying to lose lose weight).


Keep me in the loop on how the weight training aspect goes, I have a close friend who has your condition and I would like to be able to help her with it.

She wants to do fasting as well, but I worry that with FM it will lead to her eating insufficient protein and causing her to atrophy. Does your doctor see any issues with that, or is the weightlifting sufficient to prevent it? My friend doesn't exercise which is why the idea is particularly frightening to me.

I will keep you updated on the weights, it's going to be slow progress (not least of which because I'm weak as a kitten!), but everything with FM is.

Proteins are really important, I have to have protein shakes to keep the levels high enough because I'm also trying to gain muscle. The dietitian seemed to be just as concerned with vitamins, minerals, electrolytes, omega-3's, and healthy fats. So I take a lot of supplements on top of a fairly balanced diet.

No, nobody is concerned with atrophy. I did bring it up with the doc, but she wasn't worried. Apparently it's a lot harder to get into into the muscle burning zone then I thought. Having said that I do still have significant body fat to burn first, it might be a different story if I had a low body-fat percentage.

[Kyrell1978]

Oh gosh! My Dad got injured coaching football a similar way, doing blocking drills as a fifty year old with teens.

I'm at the state where having not worked out for a week all my muscles are at their biggest before they begin shrinking. The next month is going to be real sad :(

You're about half way through your month off; how are things going? Have you started back early or been okayed to start back early?

[Tvtyrant]

You're about half way through your month off; how are things going? Have you started back early or been okayed to start back early?

I was a lot stiffer then I realized, my SI joint was locked on my left leg and my neck was locked in a downward position. I was essentially t-rexing, and was too swollen for the chiropractor to work on it directly. This monday my massage specialist, chiropractor and me coordinated me taking a hot bath before getting a glute massage and then get my SI joint popped.

That was very shocking to say the least, I am physically taller now then I was on Monday and much straighter. My joints have been loosened up but keep cracking, so they need to be straightened before they can do much.

I'm on track for getting back to exercise in two weeks but only isolated exercises until then and no hills. I find it very frustrating but today my back feels amazing so it is clearly working.

[Comrade]

Some sweet milestones in the past month or two: hit 4 reps at 90lbs of lawnmowers/one-arm bent-over rows, and hit 5 reps at 205lb on the bench press. Got my weight back on an upward trend and returned to my previous all-time high of 155lb, so now I'm looking forward to chugging on up to 165.

I want to try PRing again on the bench press; last time I did that was a few months ago and my PR then was 225lb, and I think I can go heavier now.

[Kyrell1978]

I was a lot stiffer then I realized, my SI joint was locked on my left leg and my neck was locked in a downward position. I was essentially t-rexing, and was too swollen for the chiropractor to work on it directly. This monday my massage specialist, chiropractor and me coordinated me taking a hot bath before getting a glute massage and then get my SI joint popped.

That was very shocking to say the least, I am physically taller now then I was on Monday and much straighter. My joints have been loosened up but keep cracking, so they need to be straightened before they can do much.

I'm on track for getting back to exercise in two weeks but only isolated exercises until then and no hills. I find it very frustrating but today my back feels amazing so it is clearly working.

Glad to hear you're getting better. I love chiropractors , especially as I get a bit older :smallbiggrin:.


Some sweet milestones in the past month or two: hit 4 reps at 90lbs of lawnmowers/one-arm bent-over rows, and hit 5 reps at 205lb on the bench press. Got my weight back on an upward trend and returned to my previous all-time high of 155lb, so now I'm looking forward to chugging on up to 165.

I want to try PRing again on the bench press; last time I did that was a few months ago and my PR then was 225lb, and I think I can go heavier now.

Nice job. That's quite a bit of weight for your.....well...weight.

[Tvtyrant]

Some sweet milestones in the past month or two: hit 4 reps at 90lbs of lawnmowers/one-arm bent-over rows, and hit 5 reps at 205lb on the bench press. Got my weight back on an upward trend and returned to my previous all-time high of 155lb, so now I'm looking forward to chugging on up to 165.

I want to try PRing again on the bench press; last time I did that was a few months ago and my PR then was 225lb, and I think I can go heavier now.

Nice! Glad to hear the weight is trending upward again, you must look quite shredded now :)

Glad to hear you're getting better. I love chiropractors , especially as I get a bit older :smallbiggrin:.
.

I saw a meme the other day "the only thing I miss about being young is not having back pain." I fully support that message.

[Iruka]

I saw a meme the other day "the only thing I miss about being young is not having back pain." I fully support that message.

I miss other things too, but the complete lack of back pain is definitely among them. Especially since I have a bit of a crooked spine and back then the doctors kept telling me everything was fine as long as I kept up the swim training. Guss what I stopped doing about 10 years ago ...


I was a lot stiffer then I realized, my SI joint was locked on my left leg and my neck was locked in a downward position. I was essentially t-rexing, and was too swollen for the chiropractor to work on it directly. This monday my massage specialist, chiropractor and me coordinated me taking a hot bath before getting a glute massage and then get my SI joint popped.

That was very shocking to say the least, I am physically taller now then I was on Monday and much straighter. My joints have been loosened up but keep cracking, so they need to be straightened before they can do much.

I'm on track for getting back to exercise in two weeks but only isolated exercises until then and no hills. I find it very frustrating but today my back feels amazing so it is clearly working.

Glad to hear things are improving for you!

[Comrade]

I'm on track for getting back to exercise in two weeks but only isolated exercises until then and no hills. I find it very frustrating but today my back feels amazing so it is clearly working.

Glad to hear you're back on track! Few things suck more than being banished from the gym for a long period of time by injury or illness. Getting back into the swing of it and making up for lost strength is tough.

Hit chest today and managed to get two reps of dumbbell bench press with 95lb dumbbells. Even got a little video/gif of it here (https://imgur.com/ajZzACj). Got the weight up both times with no help but the movement wasn't as smooth as I'd like, so I plan to try again soon and really nail it. Still, felt pretty good!

(Less flatteringly here's (https://i.imgur.com/eexy7nW.mp4) a video of me totally bombing at a subsequent set. Word to the wise, if you're doing dumbbell press with heavy weight, make sure you really get the weight up at the start or you'll end up flailing on the bench like a lunatic.)

[Tvtyrant]

I miss other things too, but the complete lack of back pain is definitely among them. Especially since I have a bit of a crooked spine and back then the doctors kept telling me everything was fine as long as I kept up the swim training. Guss what I stopped doing about 10 years ago ...



Glad to hear things are improving for you!
I mean we are apparently the same person :p My doctor suggested swimming but my eyes don't like chlorine.


Glad to hear you're back on track! Few things suck more than being banished from the gym for a long period of time by injury or illness. Getting back into the swing of it and making up for lost strength is tough.

Hit chest today and managed to get two reps of dumbbell bench press with 95lb dumbbells. Even got a little video/gif of it here (https://imgur.com/ajZzACj). Got the weight up both times with no help but the movement wasn't as smooth as I'd like, so I plan to try again soon and really nail it. Still, felt pretty good!

(Less flatteringly here's (https://i.imgur.com/eexy7nW.mp4) a video of me totally bombing at a subsequent set. Word to the wise, if you're doing dumbbell press with heavy weight, make sure you really get the weight up at the start or you'll end up flailing on the bench like a lunatic.)

Comrade I resent you and your swanky looks :/

Honestly though, looking good and you can see the hard work. The dumbbells look way harder then a barbell, I am impressed.

[tonykakkar]

My Fitness Resolution is going to a gym regularly nearby my residence.

[Kyrell1978]

So....my wife started the AthleanXX program (the one he designed for women) about a month and a half ago. It has been amazing to watch her progress thus far. That point was illustrated to me yesterday when her sister decided to stop by and just do a workout. She was dying about a quarter of the way into it and my wife was still hitting it hard. Super proud of her.

[Tvtyrant]

So....my wife started the AthleanXX program (the one he designed for women) about a month and a half ago. It has been amazing to watch her progress thus far. That point was illustrated to me yesterday when her sister decided to stop by and just do a workout. She was dying about a quarter of the way into it and my wife was still hitting it hard. Super proud of her.

Is there a major difference between the guy and girl workouts? How long are the workouts?

[Kyrell1978]

Is there a major difference between the guy and girl workouts? How long are the workouts?

I've done Xero and AX2. Xero is all bodyweight and does two str days and two conditioning days with a challenge that usually combines the two. AX2 is a weightlifting and bodyweight program that generally does the chest/tri, back/bis, leg day, and shoulder/rot. cuff, with a challenge day at the end of the week. It throws some conditioning in but not a lot. XX is all conditioning with a small amount of dumb bells and resistance bands thrown in. Her workouts are usually around 30 min or so. It seems to be a series of 10-12 workouts that are repeated in a slightly changing sequence.

[Dragonquetra]

I resolved to get down to 200 pounds in January, starting at 230. Went up a little last month, but doing well so far this month in moderating my caloric intake. Need to start exercising.

[Kyrell1978]

I resolved to get down to 200 pounds in January, starting at 230. Went up a little last month, but doing well so far this month in moderating my caloric intake. Need to start exercising.

Glad to hear it. If you need any help finding resources Tvtyrant put a pretty good list up. If you need anything feel free to ask though my experience is mostly with martial arts and the athleanx programs (I lost about a 100 lbs doing them).

[Dragonquetra]

I've been considering martial arts and/or yoga. Don't know where to start though. I'm more interested in a curvy body rather than getting muscular, although I wouldn't mind having some definition to my abs.

[Tvtyrant]

I've been considering martial arts and/or yoga. Don't know where to start though. I'm more interested in a curvy body rather than getting muscular, although I wouldn't mind having some definition to my abs.

A few things to consider:

1. If you are estrogen dominant you are unlikely to get bulky muscles unless you very deliberately train for them and/or start taking steroids. Bulky muscles require the hormone testosterone to be prevalent.

2. Body fat locations are determined by your hormones, so if you are curvy now you will likely remain curvy down to a certain percentage of body fat. If you aren't curvy naturally diet and exercise won't make you curvy.

3. Losing body fat is done most easily through gaining muscle. When losing weight your body tends to strip resources from sources equally, so your body composition doesn't change much while losing weight but does while gaining weight or maintaining a stable one. The easiest way to lose body fat as a percentage is to put on muscle first while staying the same weight, which is called recomposition. Then you drop weight, losing some of both fat and muscle but staying the same ratio as when you were heavier.

If you are starting from a position of being very obese like I was this is less applicable, and you are better off dropping weight first.

4. From my experience avoiding injury while losing weight and building a core is the most important thing to do first, as I was very out of shape and injuring myself was easy. Starting with something like yoga/low impact cardio + 10,000 steps/swimming laps and working up to martial arts and weight lifting is the way to go. Being out of shape makes injuries likely, and those can scare you off or set you back in a cycle.

5. In negation of point four, make sure you enjoy what you are doing or you will find it hard to keep doing it. If that means jumping into judo/kickboxing and getting hurt it is better then quitting out of boredom. There is a fine line there.

If you have any specific questions feel free to ask them.

Edit: I am not an expert, I just spend a lot of time looking at information online and have the personal experience of losing a lot of weight in the last few years and getting into shape.


I've done Xero and AX2. Xero is all bodyweight and does two str days and two conditioning days with a challenge that usually combines the two. AX2 is a weightlifting and bodyweight program that generally does the chest/tri, back/bis, leg day, and shoulder/rot. cuff, with a challenge day at the end of the week. It throws some conditioning in but not a lot. XX is all conditioning with a small amount of dumb bells and resistance bands thrown in. Her workouts are usually around 30 min or so. It seems to be a series of 10-12 workouts that are repeated in a slightly changing sequence.

One of the things I notice watching Athlean X routines online is how many isolation exercises he promotes, which seems at odds with the "no more then 50 minutes" rule for weight lifting. The exercises being about 30 minutes makes sense from the latter position, I might look into purchasing a plan then.

[razorback]

5. In negation of point four, make sure you enjoy what you are doing or you will find it hard to keep doing it. If that means jumping into judo/kickboxing and getting hurt it is better then quitting out of boredom. There is a fine line there.

As a martial arts instructor, I respectfully disagree. I would rather people would quite (for whatever reason) rather than seriously hurt/injure themselves or others. If your rolling and pushing too hard and/or out of your depth can lead to blown joints or worse. If your striking, this can be anything from pulled muscles/ligments/tendons, blown out joints or brain damage. Obviously, this is towards the extreme but newbies and/or young men, in general, tend to push harder than is either good for them or their partner and this is where we see the most injuries.
As you said, there is a line between working techniques so they are effective and reflexive vs. one that push you beyond your abilities and injury. Good instruction and forethought go a long way.

[Tvtyrant]

As a martial arts instructor, I respectfully disagree. I would rather people would quite (for whatever reason) rather than seriously hurt/injure themselves or others. If your rolling and pushing too hard and/or out of your depth can lead to blown joints or worse. If your striking, this can be anything from pulled muscles/ligments/tendons, blown out joints or brain damage. Obviously, this is towards the extreme but newbies and/or young men, in general, tend to push harder than is either good for them or their partner and this is where we see the most injuries.
As you said, there is a line between working techniques so they are effective and reflexive vs. one that push you beyond your abilities and injury. Good instruction and forethought go a long way.

I appreciate your point of view. I mangled my right shoulder doing Judo when I was younger and acknowledge the risks are there.

My larger argument was that you should try to get into exercise slowly and build up to high impact stuff like martial arts. The issue is motivation until that point; if the options are not exercising at all and doing a martial art too early I think the latter is a more acceptable risk.

[Kyrell1978]

I've been considering martial arts and/or yoga. Don't know where to start though. I'm more interested in a curvy body rather than getting muscular, although I wouldn't mind having some definition to my abs.
If you are doing it for fitness and not learning how to defend yourself I would suggest taking a Karate or Tae Kwon Do class to start. They are generally a bit easier on the body than say Judo or Jui Jitsu. If you are looking to be able to win a fight I'd go with grappling first then striking. Abs are 100 percent made in the kitchen. You can do exercises to make your abs "pop" a little more but generally the "six pack" (or four or eight pack depending on genetics) starts to be visible around 12-15 percent body fat and gets more defined from there.


A few things to consider:

One of the things I notice watching Athlean X routines online is how many isolation exercises he promotes, which seems at odds with the "no more then 50 minutes" rule for weight lifting. The exercises being about 30 minutes makes sense from the latter position, I might look into purchasing a plan then.

I think they are super worth it. There is usually an option to get 3 months access or lifetime (not for XX though). I picked the lifetime on both of these programs. I am doing ax2 right now and am going to repeat Xero afterwards to keep things mixed up. Most people start with AX1 though. I'm weird and started with Xero since I didn't have the equipment at the time. :smallbiggrin:

[razorback]

I appreciate your point of view. I mangled my right shoulder doing Judo when I was younger and acknowledge the risks are there.

My larger argument was that you should try to get into exercise slowly and build up to high impact stuff like martial arts. The issue is motivation until that point; if the options are not exercising at all and doing a martial art too early I think the latter is a more acceptable risk.

Agreed, if taken intelligently.

[Astral Avenger]

Just discovered this thread, I love the encouraging vibes.

I'm registered for a canoe-bike-run triathlon in May, I got second last year and want to take Brian of the top spot of the podium that he's apparently been on for the last 6ish years (I may not be remembering his name correctly, I don't know the guy). Assuming he is in similar shape to last year, I need to work on my running leg more than the other two. Tentative goal is sub 1-hour paddle (depends on water levels though), sub 23 minute bike and sub 20 minute run (bonus goal is sub 16 run).

If anyone wants, I have a workout generator that I put together to help avoid the monotony and could post a few workouts.

[Dragonquetra]

If you are doing it for fitness and not learning how to defend yourself I would suggest taking a Karate or Tae Kwon Do class to start. They are generally a bit easier on the body than say Judo or Jui Jitsu. If you are looking to be able to win a fight I'd go with grappling first then striking. I want to do it for fitness and to defend myself.


Abs are 100 percent made in the kitchen. You can do exercises to make your abs "pop" a little more but generally the "six pack" (or four or eight pack depending on genetics) starts to be visible around 12-15 percent body fat and gets more defined from there. What exercises are good for developing the abs?

[razorback]

I want to do it for fitness and to defend myself.


I would suggest Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

[Dragonquetra]

I would suggest Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. How can I learn that?

[Kyrell1978]

I want to do it for fitness and to defend myself.

What exercises are good for developing the abs?
There are a lot depending on level of fitness. Planks, sit ups, crunches. leg lifts. All of those work different parts of your abs. Here is an awesome one as an example. That's what is great about Jeff Cavaliere....he puts enough stuff on Youtube that you don't actually need a program. The programs just package it all together to make it optimally effective.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHD1-2P94DI


I would suggest Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.
BJJ is good stuff though I've never taken it. I did Shingitai Juijitsu.


How can I learn that?

Depending on where you live it can be as simple as looking up "BJJ classes near me" on google and then going there. If there aren't any in your area Gracie University is available online. It's not what I would suggest and you will still need at least one partner to get anything out of it but it is a place to start for a beginner that doesn't have access to a school.

[Dragonquetra]

Thanks Kyrell! ♥

[razorback]

How can I learn that?

Your're in Phoenix according to your signature. My suggestion is go to a few studios, watch their classes, talk to the instructors and get a feel. I didn't train in a Gracie studio but it's hard to go wrong with them and you have both Gracie and Gracie-Barra in your area. The tend to be pretty good from everything I've seen and the guys I did practice with.

[Kyrell1978]

Thanks Kyrell! ♥

No problem. Good luck getting to where you want to be.

[Tvtyrant]

Had a definite "I am not a young man anymore" moment today. I bashed my knee on a concrete wall while moving tulip bulbs and 30 minutes later I have a bruise and am limping. A decade ago I fell off a ladder onto asphalt while painting, got up and put the ladder away and was fine.

In other news I am wrapping up my last chiropractor visit Friday and am going to be weight lifting again, I feel like losing two months is more like six due to lost muscle and cardio endurance but at least I have a clear plan of attack.

[Kyrell1978]

Had a definite "I am not a young man anymore" moment today. I bashed my knee on a concrete wall while moving tulip bulbs and 30 minutes later I have a bruise and am limping. A decade ago I fell off a ladder onto asphalt while painting, got up and put the ladder away and was fine.

In other news I am wrapping up my last chiropractor visit Friday and am going to be weight lifting again, I feel like losing two months is more like six due to lost muscle and cardio endurance but at least I have a clear plan of attack.

Alright! Back at it. Good luck with the knee.



Also, just as a public service announcement: Please be careful about from whom you decide to purchase things. I know I'm a little late to the game but I found out about the Britany Dawn Fitness Scandal a while ago and it's been gnawing at me ever since. I can't imagine how crushing that would be to a person just starting out.

[Tvtyrant]

Alright! Back at it. Good luck with the knee.



Also, just as a public service announcement: Please be careful about from whom you decide to purchase things. I know I'm a little late to the game but I found out about the Britany Dawn Fitness Scandal a while ago and it's been gnawing at me ever since. I can't imagine how crushing that would be to a person just starting out.

I haven't heard about this. Apparently she sold "unique plans" to people that were all the same generic plan and then tried to explain it as having "taken on too much of a workload." Amazing...

[Kyrell1978]

I haven't heard about this. Apparently she sold "unique plans" to people that were all the same generic plan and then tried to explain it as having "taken on too much of a workload." Amazing...

It gets worse too. She's offering refunds that are as low as a quarter of what people paid and demanding that the people sign a non disclosure agreement to receive them. Then a few people are claiming that after she sent the refund she cancelled the transaction and the money disappeared out of their accounts. It's jacked all the way up.

[Tvtyrant]

It gets worse too. She's offering refunds that are as low as a quarter of what people paid and demanding that the people sign a non disclosure agreement to receive them. Then a few people are claiming that after she sent the refund she cancelled the transaction and the money disappeared out of their accounts. It's jacked all the way up.

Oh that is just... Gross. I'm reasonably certain that voids the contract but still an awful way of "doing business."

One of the things I am entertaining is letting my weight rise a bit. I am between 255 and 260 right now but my weight hasn't moved downward in months, and keto inhibits muscle strength and development. Coming off keto for a few months to catch up feels enticing even knowing I will likely climb up in weight.

[Kyrell1978]

So, oddly enough, I have found my thoughts wandering over the course of the last few weeks to the idea of getting certified as a personal trainer. I don't really have a desire to do that as a profession, just to be more knowledgeable about helping others. It's probably super related to the fact that I'm teaching Personal Fitness merit badge to a group of Boy Scouts, but it's just.....weird.

[Tvtyrant]

So, oddly enough, I have found my thoughts wandering over the course of the last few weeks to the idea of getting certified as a personal trainer. I don't really have a desire to do that as a profession, just to be more knowledgeable about helping others. It's probably super related to the fact that I'm teaching Personal Fitness merit badge to a group of Boy Scouts, but it's just.....weird.

I think it is a meritorious goal, like becoming a licensed masseuse for the sake of doing it and better understanding the body. How much do the courses cost for it?

[Kyrell1978]

I think it is a meritorious goal, like becoming a licensed masseuse for the sake of doing it and better understanding the body. How much do the courses cost for it?

It depends on which certification you want. A good one usually goes for somewhere between 600-2,000 dollars (US). You can get kind of a bog standard one for 300 or so, but that kind of defeats my purpose.



EDIT: Whhoooooo! I talked to my wife and she said go for it!!!!! Now the question ACE or NASM? I leaning toward ACE since it's more of a general approach from what I've read. :smallbiggrin: Super excited.

[Tvtyrant]

It depends on which certification you want. A good one usually goes for somewhere between 600-2,000 dollars (US). You can get kind of a bog standard one for 300 or so, but that kind of defeats my purpose.



EDIT: Whhoooooo! I talked to my wife and she said go for it!!!!! Now the question ACE or NASM? I leaning toward ACE since it's more of a general approach from what I've read. :smallbiggrin: Super excited.

I say go for it as well! What is the difference between the two programs?

My back seems to be fully functional now. I did a 12 hour day working construction yesterday and was able to get up without severe pain today.

[Kyrell1978]

I say go for it as well! What is the difference between the two programs?

My back seems to be fully functional now. I did a 12 hour day working construction yesterday and was able to get up without severe pain today.

Well they are both kind of the gold standard of fitness here in the US and if I were interested in pursuing a career either would be accepted virtually anywhere as they are both accredited by the NCCA. It appeared to me after a relatively comprehensive review of the literature that ACE was more generalized in its approach (Let's learn a bit of everything) and NASM was more concerned with corrective fitness (improving muscular dysfunction). I chose ACE and ordered the study program and reserved an exam voucher yesterday. I am super hyped. I have six months to complete the program and take the test.

That's awesome about the back!!

[Tvtyrant]

Well they are both kind of the gold standard of fitness here in the US and if I were interested in pursuing a career either would be accepted virtually anywhere as they are both accredited by the NCCA. It appeared to me after a relatively comprehensive review of the literature that ACE was more generalized in its approach (Let's learn a bit of everything) and NASM was more concerned with corrective fitness (improving muscular dysfunction). I chose ACE and ordered the study program and reserved an exam voucher yesterday. I am super hyped. I have six months to complete the program and take the test.

That's awesome about the back!!

Sounds amazing, keep us clued in about it.

Started doing abs and back again today, my lord have I lost a lot of progress. I am going to have to remember to keep progress slow and not injure myself trying to be where I was three months ago. On the plus side I look better then I have in my entire life, and am now the lightest I have been as an adult. If I lose thirty more pounds I will be lighter then I was pre-puberty, which is quite the thought.

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/452920657538449408/560901369490571293/20190328_114343.jpg

[Comrade]

Sounds amazing, keep us clued in about it.

Started doing abs and back again today, my lord have I lost a lot of progress. I am going to have to remember to keep progress slow and not injure myself trying to be where I was three months ago. On the plus side I look better then I have in my entire life, and am now the lightest I have been as an adult. If I lose thirty more pounds I will be lighter then I was pre-puberty, which is quite the thought.

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/452920657538449408/560901369490571293/20190328_114343.jpg

Looking good! Awesome progress.

[Kyrell1978]

Sounds amazing, keep us clued in about it.

Started doing abs and back again today, my lord have I lost a lot of progress. I am going to have to remember to keep progress slow and not injure myself trying to be where I was three months ago. On the plus side I look better then I have in my entire life, and am now the lightest I have been as an adult. If I lose thirty more pounds I will be lighter then I was pre-puberty, which is quite the thought.

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/452920657538449408/560901369490571293/20190328_114343.jpg

You look good man. I will definitely give you all updates when I get a little further through the course work. It's pretty interesting so far.

[Tvtyrant]

I'm currently so far out of keto it isn't funny. I'm pretty broke, so I have been buying a lot of bananas as the cheapest portable food. I can get 500 calories for about $1 and take them to school or on a walk without them being unhealthy.

The weird thing is my weight has been stable while I crack my diet in half. I expected this would cause me to start packing on weight due to the sugar, but it seems to have evened out around 254.

Current diet:

Breakfast: 3 strips of bacon (~aprox 300 calories)
Lunch/snacking: Bananas (3-500 calories depending on number)
Dinner: Pork loin (also cheap.) Usually a lot of it, I'm pretty hungry by this point.

Exercise is going well, I'm quickly getting my shoulders back. My abs are in a state of decay, it is rather painful trying to get them back to where they were pre-accident without hurting myself.

Program:

Weighted Reaches
Plank touches
Reverse Plank
Weighted Lunges
Bridge
Band clamshells
forearm band exercises

Bench press
overhead press
dips
bicep curls

Its not perfect but combined with my daily hill climbs I feel like I'm hitting everything.

[Kyrell1978]

I'm currently so far out of keto it isn't funny. I'm pretty broke, so I have been buying a lot of bananas as the cheapest portable food. I can get 500 calories for about $1 and take them to school or on a walk without them being unhealthy.

The weird thing is my weight has been stable while I crack my diet in half. I expected this would cause me to start packing on weight due to the sugar, but it seems to have evened out around 254.

Current diet:

Breakfast: 3 strips of bacon (~aprox 300 calories)
Lunch/snacking: Bananas (3-500 calories depending on number)
Dinner: Pork loin (also cheap.) Usually a lot of it, I'm pretty hungry by this point.

Exercise is going well, I'm quickly getting my shoulders back. My abs are in a state of decay, it is rather painful trying to get them back to where they were pre-accident without hurting myself.

Program:

Weighted Reaches
Plank touches
Reverse Plank
Weighted Lunges
Bridge
Band clamshells
forearm band exercises

Bench press
overhead press
dips
bicep curls

Its not perfect but combined with my daily hill climbs I feel like I'm hitting everything.
Glad it's going well for you. I'd throw in some weighted squats or dead lifts but that's just me. Do you always do the same ab workout. You might check out the six pack shuffle from AthleanX. I do that every work out day (5 days a week) and it never the same twice. It comes with the programs I bought but I think it's only like 5 dollars for just that app and it's lifetime access. Don't quote me exactly but I know my son got it for pretty cheap.

[Tvtyrant]

Glad it's going well for you. I'd throw in some weighted squats or dead lifts but that's just me. Do you always do the same ab workout. You might check out the six pack shuffle from AthleanX. I do that every work out day (5 days a week) and it never the same twice. It comes with the programs I bought but I think it's only like 5 dollars for just that app and it's lifetime access. Don't quote me exactly but I know my son got it for pretty cheap.

Squats and deadlifts have too high of a chance to resprain my back right now, I do unweighted squats and some other unloaded exercises so I can eventually fix the muscles sprained in the car accident.

I used that before the car accident and will again in the future, but currently my maximum plank time is 40 seconds and I can only do 20 reaches before cramping. Trying to slowly get it back so nothing gets resprained.

[Kyrell1978]

Squats and deadlifts have too high of a chance to resprain my back right now, I do unweighted squats and some other unloaded exercises so I can eventually fix the muscles sprained in the car accident.

I used that before the car accident and will again in the future, but currently my maximum plank time is 40 seconds and I can only do 20 reaches before cramping. Trying to slowly get it back so nothing gets resprained.

Right, right. Still glad that your doing well and "fighting the good fight" as it were.

[Tvtyrant]

Right, right. Still glad that your doing well and "fighting the good fight" as it were.

Thanks! I'm actually doing pretty well, I moved a living room and ripped out the carpet today without any pain issues. So many staples 😒.

How is your PT sessions going?

[Kyrell1978]

Thanks! I'm actually doing pretty well, I moved a living room and ripped out the carpet today without any pain issues. So many staples 😒.

How is your PT sessions going?

Yuuup! A friend of mine and I started a remodel of a house today carpet staples and ring shank nails that held the underlayment for the linoleum. :smallbiggrin:

[Tvtyrant]

Yuuup! A friend of mine and I started a remodel of a house today carpet staples and ring shank nails that held the underlayment for the linoleum. :smallbiggrin:

I honestly don't understand why anyone buys carpet. I would take wood, plaster, tile or concrete over it. You can easily add a rug, taking a carpet away is a lot more work. I also think wallpaper is the rug of the walls; tapestries and paintings do the same thing better without the labor and mess.

I got in a really sharp walk today, Portland is built at the bottom of a bowl surrounded by hills so I tend to climb up the hills and out of the town and then back. It is fun going from the base of a skyscraper to climb higher than it and back; it gives me a sense of accomplishment. My glute activation exercises seem to be working; my butt hurts instead of my quads now.

[Kyrell1978]

I honestly don't understand why anyone buys carpet. I would take wood, plaster, tile or concrete over it. You can easily add a rug, taking a carpet away is a lot more work. I also think wallpaper is the rug of the walls; tapestries and paintings do the same thing better without the labor and mess.

I got in a really sharp walk today, Portland is built at the bottom of a bowl surrounded by hills so I tend to climb up the hills and out of the town and then back. It is fun going from the base of a skyscraper to climb higher than it and back; it gives me a sense of accomplishment. My glute activation exercises seem to be working; my butt hurts instead of my quads now.

Yeah. I'm not a fan of carpet. We are going to ceramic tile in all of our units. I think we are about 3/4 of the way there at this point. This is the first time we've really been able to get into this unit since it was rented when we bought it.

EDIT: Should probably relate to fitness somehow

In other news......I am hitting the books hard for the whole personal trainer thing. I have a guy set up to give me the CPR/AED class (for free even Yay Boy Scout friends) and seem to be on schedule as far as class work goes.

[Captain Jak]

I finally got to quit my second job -- yay, more time! A side effect, however, is a decided decrease in the heavy lifting I had been doing on a regular basis. So, now I'm into push-ups and bicep curls to start, actually get a proper upper body conditioning started, and see where I go from there.

Primary job...well, I still do a lot of running around and stairs there, so legs are take care of. :D

[Tvtyrant]

Yeah. I'm not a fan of carpet. We are going to ceramic tile in all of our units. I think we are about 3/4 of the way there at this point. This is the first time we've really been able to get into this unit since it was rented when we bought it.

EDIT: Should probably relate to fitness somehow

In other news......I am hitting the books hard for the whole personal trainer thing. I have a guy set up to give me the CPR/AED class (for free even Yay Boy Scout friends) and seem to be on schedule as far as class work goes.

Have you learned anything unexpected or mindblowing yet?


I finally got to quit my second job -- yay, more time! A side effect, however, is a decided decrease in the heavy lifting I had been doing on a regular basis. So, now I'm into push-ups and bicep curls to start, actually get a proper upper body conditioning started, and see where I go from there.

Primary job...well, I still do a lot of running around and stairs there, so legs are take care of. :D
Make sure you work your abs and glutes or you could end up unbalanced with a strong chest and upper back, strong legs and a weak core. That is a recipe for hernias and other injuries.


I finally got to 249 yesterday, first round milestone since 299 in September. I had a small bowl of vanilla icecream with blueberries to celebrate, first ice cream I have had in 2 years. 9 pounds left until my stretch goal of 240 (I hot my original doctor goal of 260 in December.) 240 means I would really weigh 220 or so due to the massive amounts of excess skin, and then the peeling begins :o This is also the lightest I have been since middle school, I was 260 when I started puberty freshman year.

I've been pushing my body too hard this week; I went on back to back hikes on the weekend, then had to move a house worth of furniture yesterday and today.

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/385523317056077824/572274951084572674/20190427_162409.jpg

Latest picture of me from Saturday.

[Hawk7915]

My wife and I have been trying to get fit all year. It's mostly going great - we're just doing Weight Watchers and occasionally going to the park or gym (maybe once a week), but I'm down over 20 lbs to 166 (started the year at 189).

The big thing for me is meal prep. Weight Watchers is all about "points" for a meal, and we've had to find creative ways to eat healthy and well without spending a ton of cash or blowing all our points. Some of our new favorite meals are...

"Mini Quiches": We've been making a huge batch of these every three weeks and freezing them. Makes for a quick and filling breakfast for just 1 point. It is by base not gluten free or vegetarian but could easily be made to be so.

Shredded Chicken: Weekly we just hand-trim some chicken breast and cook it in our instant pot, then freeze it. It's a quick way to add a bit of protein to a sandwich, soup, breakfast burrito, taco, or quesadilla without a lot of fuss.

Tortellini Soup
White Chicken Chili
Stir-fried Veggies and Beef
"Tostadas" with homemade two-ingredient bread
Chicken Tikka Masala
White Wine and Fennel Glazed Chicken
Garlic Teriyaki Chicken
Southwest Style Pork Tenderloin

We also do a whole lot of "lightly seared meat + microwaved vegetable" dinners, with a rotation of seared pork chops, steak, sea scallops, or shrimp alongside a big serving of asparagus, green beans, broccoli, or Brussels sprouts. On the Weight Watchers scale all of these are less than 8 points per meal and a few of them like the Chicken Tikka Masala are functionally "zero points" (although in practice you'll probably end up with some bread or rice with it). If anyone is shopping for light meal recipes I am happy to post them :smallbiggrin:

Exercise remains elusive. I am disabled, which limits what I can do. We're toying with buying some free weights and trying to strength our cores - any suggestions or advice? I'm starting to plateau and would like to drop another 10 pounds by the Holidays to be at a nice healthy weight.

[Tvtyrant]

My wife and I have been trying to get fit all year. It's mostly going great - we're just doing Weight Watchers and occasionally going to the park or gym (maybe once a week), but I'm down over 20 lbs to 166 (started the year at 189).

The big thing for me is meal prep. Weight Watchers is all about "points" for a meal, and we've had to find creative ways to eat healthy and well without spending a ton of cash or blowing all our points. Some of our new favorite meals are...

"Mini Quiches": We've been making a huge batch of these every three weeks and freezing them. Makes for a quick and filling breakfast for just 1 point. It is by base not gluten free or vegetarian but could easily be made to be so.

Shredded Chicken: Weekly we just hand-trim some chicken breast and cook it in our instant pot, then freeze it. It's a quick way to add a bit of protein to a sandwich, soup, breakfast burrito, taco, or quesadilla without a lot of fuss.

Tortellini Soup
White Chicken Chili
Stir-fried Veggies and Beef
"Tostadas" with homemade two-ingredient bread
Chicken Tikka Masala
White Wine and Fennel Glazed Chicken
Garlic Teriyaki Chicken
Southwest Style Pork Tenderloin

We also do a whole lot of "lightly seared meat + microwaved vegetable" dinners, with a rotation of seared pork chops, steak, sea scallops, or shrimp alongside a big serving of asparagus, green beans, broccoli, or Brussels sprouts. On the Weight Watchers scale all of these are less than 8 points per meal and a few of them like the Chicken Tikka Masala are functionally "zero points" (although in practice you'll probably end up with some bread or rice with it). If anyone is shopping for light meal recipes I am happy to post them :smallbiggrin:

Exercise remains elusive. I am disabled, which limits what I can do. We're toying with buying some free weights and trying to strength our cores - any suggestions or advice? I'm starting to plateau and would like to drop another 10 pounds by the Holidays to be at a nice healthy weight.
Congrats! That is some good progress there :)


I would see if you can get a PT to help you decide on a specialized regime for your disability. That costs a bit though I understand if it isn't an option.

In general core strength is about stabilizing your body, strengthening things so sudden lurches or imbalances don't injure you. Planks are great, and can slowly get more conplicated by reaching hands out in front or to the side to build twisting stabilization.

I like bands as an at home exercise option. Thdy are cheaper then weights and can be used in a large range of motions, and are also more portable.

[Kyrell1978]

Exercise remains elusive. I am disabled, which limits what I can do. We're toying with buying some free weights and trying to strength our cores - any suggestions or advice? I'm starting to plateau and would like to drop another 10 pounds by the Holidays to be at a nice healthy weight.

This really depends on what type of disability you are talking about. Also, no matter what anyone suggests you should clear it with your physician first.

[Comrade]

I finally got to 249 yesterday, first round milestone since 299 in September. I had a small bowl of vanilla icecream with blueberries to celebrate, first ice cream I have had in 2 years. 9 pounds left until my stretch goal of 240 (I hot my original doctor goal of 260 in December.) 240 means I would really weigh 220 or so due to the massive amounts of excess skin, and then the peeling begins :o This is also the lightest I have been since middle school, I was 260 when I started puberty freshman year.
That's awesome!



The big thing for me is meal prep. Weight Watchers is all about "points" for a meal, and we've had to find creative ways to eat healthy and well without spending a ton of cash or blowing all our points.

The diet can honestly be the toughest part of staying fit so if you've got that part down then you're on a pretty good track already. As for exercising with a disability, tough to offer advice without knowing just what it is, although generally speaking, I would second the suggestion of a trainer who specializes in working with disabilities.

On my end: I hit 158lb as of my last weigh-in, which is my all-time high. This is the most I've ever weighed in my life. Not sure why that's such a weird thought to me. That was a week and a half ago, too, so it might be more now-- I'm hoping to hit an even 160 by Friday.

Lifts are increasing as well. On my last chest day I managed to bench 225lb for a fairly clean 2 reps, so I'd like to try and hit 250lb for my one rep max next time.

[Tvtyrant]

That's awesome!



The diet can honestly be the toughest part of staying fit so if you've got that part down then you're on a pretty good track already. As for exercising with a disability, tough to offer advice without knowing just what it is, although generally speaking, I would second the suggestion of a trainer who specializes in working with disabilities.

On my end: I hit 158lb as of my last weigh-in, which is my all-time high. This is the most I've ever weighed in my life. Not sure why that's such a weird thought to me. That was a week and a half ago, too, so it might be more now-- I'm hoping to hit an even 160 by Friday.

Lifts are increasing as well. On my last chest day I managed to bench 225lb for a fairly clean 2 reps, so I'd like to try and hit 250lb for my one rep max next time.

That is impressive work! I know you have struggled to gain weight so it is impressive you have gotten up there.

Benching my entire body weight is even more impressive, congrats man.

Diet wise what have you been doing?

[Comrade]

My daily goal is 3,800 calories but I have a lot of leeway in hitting that number. I rely to an extent on some pretty sugary/unhealthy stuff to manage 3,800, like brownies and cookies, which I can kind of get away with for the time being since I'm just trying to gain and don't have to worry about shooting up too much in weight. I try to keep my daily sugar intake under 100 grams and keep my daily protein intake around 190; other than that, I'm pretty lax about the specific foods that comprise my diet.

Once I stop focusing on gaining (I don't really have an end goal weight at this point) and start focusing on maintaining and keeping a clean diet it's going to take a lot of adjustment haha.

[Tvtyrant]

My daily goal is 3,800 calories but I have a lot of leeway in hitting that number. I rely to an extent on some pretty sugary/unhealthy stuff to manage 3,800, like brownies and cookies, which I can kind of get away with for the time being since I'm just trying to gain and don't have to worry about shooting up too much in weight. I try to keep my daily sugar intake under 100 grams and keep my daily protein intake around 190; other than that, I'm pretty lax about the specific foods that comprise my diet.

Once I stop focusing on gaining (I don't really have an end goal weight at this point) and start focusing on maintaining and keeping a clean diet it's going to take a lot of adjustment haha.

:/ I felt guilty about eating some figs today.

That is some crazy intake to get to 160, I was eating a similar amount when I was 360. One thing I know is anything liquid tends to be an easy way to stuff calories in, eggnog especially.

[Kyrell1978]

:/ I felt guilty about eating some figs today.

That is some crazy intake to get to 160, I was eating a similar amount when I was 360. One thing I know is anything liquid tends to be an easy way to stuff calories in, eggnog especially.

Yeah. That's a crazy number to me also. I was doing that and hovering around 300 myself. :smallbiggrin:

[tyckspoon]

My daily goal is 3,800 calories but I have a lot of leeway in hitting that number. I rely to an extent on some pretty sugary/unhealthy stuff to manage 3,800, like brownies and cookies, which I can kind of get away with for the time being since I'm just trying to gain and don't have to worry about shooting up too much in weight. I try to keep my daily sugar intake under 100 grams and keep my daily protein intake around 190; other than that, I'm pretty lax about the specific foods that comprise my diet.


Speaking from a not-trying-to-do-anything-special-dietwise perspective, you probably want to lean on fats for a lot of this? Dairy (ice cream/half-and-half/whole milk/real yoghurt [not the fake sugar non-fat stuff, it's got no flavor anyway) used for the liquid base and fruit for flavor/color/general nutrition smoothies can get you there surprisingly quickly, they'll pack a ton of calories into a much easier to consume format.. they'll also have a fair amount of sugar, but you can at least make it no added sugars.

[Comrade]

:/ I felt guilty about eating some figs today.

That is some crazy intake to get to 160, I was eating a similar amount when I was 360. One thing I know is anything liquid tends to be an easy way to stuff calories in, eggnog especially.

My metabolism is pretty ridiculous, but it seems to be chilling out. A year ago 3,800 was my maintenance intake and I needed 4,000 a day to gain... Those were not easy days.


Speaking from a not-trying-to-do-anything-special-dietwise perspective, you probably want to lean on fats for a lot of this? Dairy (ice cream/half-and-half/whole milk/real yoghurt [not the fake sugar non-fat stuff, it's got no flavor anyway) used for the liquid base and fruit for flavor/color/general nutrition smoothies can get you there surprisingly quickly, they'll pack a ton of calories into a much easier to consume format.. they'll also have a fair amount of sugar, but you can at least make it no added sugars.

Milk and dairy definitely help-- I generally drink three cups of milk a day, which aside from the sugar (even in whole milk that comes out to over 30 grams of sugar) is pretty handy for hitting 3,800. I used to make a shake using milk, peanut butter, banana, and protein powder-- 950 calories, about 75-80 grams of protein. Probably should get some more protein powder and do that again instead of resorting to brownies...

[Tvtyrant]

My metabolism is pretty ridiculous, but it seems to be chilling out. A year ago 3,800 was my maintenance intake and I needed 4,000 a day to gain... Those were not easy days.



Milk and dairy definitely help-- I generally drink three cups of milk a day, which aside from the sugar (even in whole milk that comes out to over 30 grams of sugar) is pretty handy for hitting 3,800. I used to make a shake using milk, peanut butter, banana, and protein powder-- 950 calories, about 75-80 grams of protein. Probably should get some more protein powder and do that again instead of resorting to brownies...

The shake is probably healthier, but doesn't taste as good. It is kind of funny reading your weight gain struggles, I have been training myself to eat only clean foods whenever possible and losing weight because there aren't the extra calories I am used to from soda, pasta, etc. You are forcing yourself to eat like I did, just feels bizarre.

One thing I will say about the fat thing; eating a lot of fat is hard. I eat bacon or sausage every breakfast because the high fat content means I only have to eat a little to be full. Eating 2000 calories in carbs is easy, in fat it would feel like I am stuffed all day.

[SkepticalSquid]

Thank you for posting a link to the darebee site in the resources at the start of the thread. I want to get stronger and better at martial arts this year, so I'm excited about some of the workouts they have. I've also been trying to go to Judo club at my school, but I've found that I often "freeze up" when trying to remember how to do the throws and fall practice because I can't remember how to do them and am afraid of doing them wrong. Has anyone else had this problem, and, if so, how did you overcome it?

[Astral Avenger]

I've also been trying to go to Judo club at my school, but I've found that I often "freeze up" when trying to remember how to do the throws and fall practice because I can't remember how to do them and am afraid of doing them wrong. Has anyone else had this problem, and, if so, how did you overcome it?

I've mostly done falls and rolls in a more gymnastic/parkour/free running sense than martial arts, but there should be some overlap with learning martial arts falls and throws.

Here's my way of learning and practicing them:
1) Just go for a roll/fall (start with a small one).
2a) If it went well, do it about 10 more times to work on building up muscle memory.
2b) If it didn't go well, have one of the instructors/more experienced people walk you through it or correct any element of it that needs work and go to 1.
3) Rest (think about form, practice the dance of the fall/landing/roll in your head).
4) Go to 1.

There's a phrase I heard from a viola teacher a long time ago: Perfect practice produces perfect players.
Basically, it boils down to go for it, but then step back and analyse what worked, what didn't and why, then fix everything that wasn't perfect and go again.

Lastly, have fun. It seems silly to say that as a learning technique, but you absorb info way faster when you're enjoying the learning process.

Good luck!

[Kyrell1978]

Thank you for posting a link to the darebee site in the resources at the start of the thread. I want to get stronger and better at martial arts this year, so I'm excited about some of the workouts they have. I've also been trying to go to Judo club at my school, but I've found that I often "freeze up" when trying to remember how to do the throws and fall practice because I can't remember how to do them and am afraid of doing them wrong. Has anyone else had this problem, and, if so, how did you overcome it?

Break it down into steps for each throw. Here's a great youtube channel if you are having problems with a specific throw https://www.youtube.com/user/welcomematstevescott

[SkepticalSquid]

I've mostly done falls and rolls in a more gymnastic/parkour/free running sense than martial arts, but there should be some overlap with learning martial arts falls and throws.

Here's my way of learning and practicing them:
1) Just go for a roll/fall (start with a small one).
2a) If it went well, do it about 10 more times to work on building up muscle memory.
2b) If it didn't go well, have one of the instructors/more experienced people walk you through it or correct any element of it that needs work and go to 1.
3) Rest (think about form, practice the dance of the fall/landing/roll in your head).
4) Go to 1.

There's a phrase I heard from a viola teacher a long time ago: Perfect practice produces perfect players.
Basically, it boils down to go for it, but then step back and analyse what worked, what didn't and why, then fix everything that wasn't perfect and go again.

Lastly, have fun. It seems silly to say that as a learning technique, but you absorb info way faster when you're enjoying the learning process.

Good luck!

Thank you so much for your advice! I have Judo class again tonight, so I'll be sure to remember what you've said.

Also, Kyrell1978 , thanks for the YouTube link! I haven't quite gotten back into doing throws yet, but when I do this will be really helpful.

[Saint Jimmy]

I’m back with another question. I was finally able to start seriously lifting in March, due to time issues (and laziness). Since then, I’ve improved fairly quickly, at least from where I was, using the push/pull/legs split, but really only in the push and legs department. For some reason, I’ve had a lot of trouble learning how to do pull movements like rows and deadlifts with the correct form, even with light weight, and I haven’t really seemed to make any progress in those areas. I also can’t figure out how to properly structure a pull workout with the right exercises in the right order. Does anyone have an idea on how to fix this?

[Comrade]

Are you feeling lat exercises mainly in your biceps instead of your lats? I definitely had that problem early on and as a result my back was probably my least-developed muscle group for a long time. One minor adjustment I made that surprisingly made a hell of a difference was focusing the movement on my elbows rather than my hands-- for example, when doing pulldowns, I used to just think of the movement as pulling my hands down. Once I started thinking of it instead as pulling my elbows down and back, I found it much easier to activate my lats. (I had a similar experience with pectoral flyes, where for the longest time I just wasn't feeling that exercise in my chest until I started thinking of it as bringing my biceps closer together instead of my hands-- now it's probably my favorite exercise for stimulating the chest.)

In terms of the right exercises, that's something you have to work out via trial and error, see which exercises work best for you. For me personally, my favorite lat exercises are pullups, pulldowns (with a shoulder-width overhand grip), one-arm dumbbell rows/lawnmowers, and low rows. For lower back, I mainly stick with hyperextensions; I have mild scoliosis, so nailing the proper straight-back form for deadlifts is a lot tougher for me. When it comes to traps, I like the classic shrugs with dumbbells for upper traps, and facepulls for lower traps (they also are a great rear delt exercise).

[FinnLassie]

So, I thought I weigh 10 kilos more than I actually do... which is a good thing. I have a target weight for this year, and it feels kinda good that I've already "cut" 10 of it. :smalltongue: I'm going on FODMAP diet due to IBS as well as getting back to cycling (I used to be able to do 10km without issues, but right now 3,5km is a struggle). I'm positive I'll hit my target by the end of the year, and I'm not gonna stress about going lower than that. That'll be a job for next year, then.

[Tvtyrant]

I’m back with another question. I was finally able to start seriously lifting in March, due to time issues (and laziness). Since then, I’ve improved fairly quickly, at least from where I was, using the push/pull/legs split, but really only in the push and legs department. For some reason, I’ve had a lot of trouble learning how to do pull movements like rows and deadlifts with the correct form, even with light weight, and I haven’t really seemed to make any progress in those areas. I also can’t figure out how to properly structure a pull workout with the right exercises in the right order. Does anyone have an idea on how to fix this?

This is probably the result of poor mind-muscle connection. Your body doesn't know what to activate when, so it hits the wrong things and uses stronger muscles to compensate.

Turn the weight down a lot, then do the exercise very slowly so you can feel out the activation. Do a high volume of very slow activations over multiple sessions until you can activate the muscles correctly and do the movement with good form, then turn down volume and turn up weight.

Edit: I managed to hit delete on this post by my fingers slipping on the phone while editing. :/

I have had the same problems in the past, I was badly out of shape and my body and mind had little connection left. Focusing on activating the proper muscles will eventually fix it, I had that issue especially with my biceps and glutes staying out of exercises.

[Kyrell1978]

I’m back with another question. I was finally able to start seriously lifting in March, due to time issues (and laziness). Since then, I’ve improved fairly quickly, at least from where I was, using the push/pull/legs split, but really only in the push and legs department. For some reason, I’ve had a lot of trouble learning how to do pull movements like rows and deadlifts with the correct form, even with light weight, and I haven’t really seemed to make any progress in those areas. I also can’t figure out how to properly structure a pull workout with the right exercises in the right order. Does anyone have an idea on how to fix this?
This is the best deadlift tutorial video I've ever seen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYREQkVtvEc Athlean X also has a dead lift checklist that's excellent. As for rows it depends on what type you're going for https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8l_8chR5BE is another Alan Thrall video tutorial for traditional barbell rows. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEFHHOCfHgw here's a great one for dumb bell rows. As far as order of exercises go I'd do the larger muscle groups before the smaller. Activation of larger muscle groups helps you release more human growth hormone and allows any workout following that to be more productive. This is especially true of the leg muscles so I'd go for deadlift first, whatever type of row/pullup, then on the the smaller bicep/triceps work, but there is no "correct" order. I hope that helps and good luck.


So, I thought I weigh 10 kilos more than I actually do... which is a good thing. I have a target weight for this year, and it feels kinda good that I've already "cut" 10 of it. :smalltongue: I'm going on FODMAP diet due to IBS as well as getting back to cycling (I used to be able to do 10km without issues, but right now 3,5km is a struggle). I'm positive I'll hit my target by the end of the year, and I'm not gonna stress about going lower than that. That'll be a job for next year, then.
That's great. Congrats and good luck meeting all of your goals.

[Saint Jimmy]

Thanks to all of you, that all sounds like it should help me a lot! Especially using the right muscles and stuff, that’s the main thing I was struggling with. That’s super helpful.

[Tvtyrant]

So, I thought I weigh 10 kilos more than I actually do... which is a good thing. I have a target weight for this year, and it feels kinda good that I've already "cut" 10 of it. :smalltongue: I'm going on FODMAP diet due to IBS as well as getting back to cycling (I used to be able to do 10km without issues, but right now 3,5km is a struggle). I'm positive I'll hit my target by the end of the year, and I'm not gonna stress about going lower than that. That'll be a job for next year, then.

Congrats! That is quite a lot of weight to overestimate yourself by.

What is FODMAP?

I approve of cycling as exercise but I am far too scared of cars to do it myself. It has to be an indoor for me.

[Kyrell1978]

What is FODMAP?

It's a specific diet designed for people with IBS or Crohns type problems. Every food has a FODMAP score and you try to stick to low FODMAP foods (at least that is what I recall from around a year ago). They thought about putting me on that but then cut out my gall bladder instead :smallbiggrin:

[Tvtyrant]

It's a specific diet designed for people with IBS or Crohns type problems. Every food has a FODMAP score and you try to stick to low FODMAP foods (at least that is what I recall from around a year ago). They thought about putting me on that but then cut out my gall bladder instead :smallbiggrin:

Sometimes a more permanent solution is best I suppose.

How is the training going?

[Kyrell1978]

Sometimes a more permanent solution is best I suppose.

How is the training going?

Good. My wife and I are running through ax1 together now that she finished AXX (I literally just finished my workout, clicked finished, then checked this forum). We ran two miles today before our ax1 conditioning workout. :smallbiggrin: That might have been a bit of a mistake. I'm also working on deadlifts for the first time since they aren't really common in the AthleanX programs and I hope to be pulling about 300 lbs (approx 135 Kg) by the end of summer (I can get 260 lbs [approx 118 Kg] right now I started teaching Personal Fitness Merit Badge to the kids in my Scout Troop and four of my six kids are now working out pretty regularly (one of them has to for the merit badge and the sibling rivalry took over from there). So, you know busy. Throw in some studying when I can and life's pretty full.

[Comrade]

So, I thought I weigh 10 kilos more than I actually do... which is a good thing. I have a target weight for this year, and it feels kinda good that I've already "cut" 10 of it. :smalltongue: I'm going on FODMAP diet due to IBS as well as getting back to cycling (I used to be able to do 10km without issues, but right now 3,5km is a struggle). I'm positive I'll hit my target by the end of the year, and I'm not gonna stress about going lower than that. That'll be a job for next year, then.

I had to google how much 10 kilos was in pounds to grasp just how much of a difference that makes, haha. That's pretty crazy. Good luck hitting your target weight!

Speaking of hitting target weights, I clocked in at an even 162lbs today, which is another peak for me. I could probably stop now, since I'm finally at what I'd consider a normal weight for my height, but... nah. Not satisfied with my physique just yet. Still plenty of room for improvement.

[Tvtyrant]

Congrats on getting to 162! That is a lot of dedication paying off :)

I am trying a new exercise lately that has been interesting. I have always had weak hands for my size so I started doing forearm exercises about five months ago, lately I have been doing towel-carries (wrapping a weight in a towel and then doing a farmer carry without the ability to close your grip.) The time I spend working out is getting too long so I started doing rows and curls while using the towel to save time, it leads to an insane burn on my arms. I'm going to do that for a bit and see if it makes as much of an effect in size as it does in feeling.

[Comrade]

I am trying a new exercise lately that has been interesting. I have always had weak hands for my size so I started doing forearm exercises about five months ago, lately I have been doing towel-carries (wrapping a weight in a towel and then doing a farmer carry without the ability to close your grip.) The time I spend working out is getting too long so I started doing rows and curls while using the towel to save time, it leads to an insane burn on my arms. I'm going to do that for a bit and see if it makes as much of an effect in size as it does in feeling.

Has it had much effect? Grip strength has been a bit of a weak point for me as well.

New PR today, 245lb bench press (https://imgur.com/4Kv9pt3). Going to take it easy the next couple of weeks on chest days and stick with a 10-15 rep range before I try and bump that up to 255lb.

[Tvtyrant]

Has it had much effect? Grip strength has been a bit of a weak point for me as well.

New PR today, 245lb bench press (https://imgur.com/4Kv9pt3). Going to take it easy the next couple of weeks on chest days and stick with a 10-15 rep range before I try and bump that up to 255lb.

Grip strength is improving pretty well, but it makes it hard to work biceps properly. They are hard to isolate and they need way different weight amounts. My brachialis have gotten bigger though as they grt worked trying to control the weight swing.

Congrats! Super jelly!

[Kyrell1978]

Has it had much effect? Grip strength has been a bit of a weak point for me as well.

New PR today, 245lb bench press (https://imgur.com/4Kv9pt3). Going to take it easy the next couple of weeks on chest days and stick with a 10-15 rep range before I try and bump that up to 255lb.
Congrats, that's getting to those "DAMN" numbers. :smallbiggrin:

Grip strength is improving pretty well, but it makes it hard to work biceps properly. They are hard to isolate and they need way different weight amounts. My brachialis have gotten bigger though as they grt worked trying to control the weight swing.

Congrats! Super jelly!

Have you tried separating the muscles out to isolate them? For example, grab a decently heavy bar and use your forearms to roll it forward and backward and separately (probably before the forearm thing) do your regular bicep work. I don't know, just throwing out ideas.

[Tvtyrant]

Congrats, that's getting to those "DAMN" numbers. :smallbiggrin:


Have you tried separating the muscles out to isolate them? For example, grab a decently heavy bar and use your forearms to roll it forward and backward and separately (probably before the forearm thing) do your regular bicep work. I don't know, just throwing out ideas.

Yeah, that is the normal way to do it and I shall probably go back to it soon. Combining them was an experiment which worked really well for my forearms but did little for my biceps.

I'm going to see a lot more development once the last of my restrictions is lifted; I'm still on lighter weights then I want.

On the plus side the only lingering issue from the car accident is my hip. I am now assigned hiking to stretch the scar tissue out, so back to my hobbies but the constant pain is a drawback.

[FinnLassie]

Switching to FODMAP has made me lose around 3 kilos in the past month or so. Now I just need to add exercise. Plan is to have a cycle-walk-cycle-walk-cycle rhythm weekly to build up my stamina again. I have to go gentle with the cycling for at least the first two weeks now, so I'm limiting the time per day to 15-30min depending if I need to run errands or not. Days I walk, an hour is a minimum. When I get back from my babysitting gig on the second week of July, my plan is to start with weights. Gonna buy a 10x visitor pass to my nearest gym, so i get used to lifting and have time to think what kind of weights I want to buy for myself to use at home. Or, well, if I like the gym enough, I'll skip on buying weights and get a monthly pass (which isn't too much as I get student discount and the place is owned by the city, not a private one).

Phew. Writing all this out is helping me clarify my plan. And now that it's out in the public... I guess I need to stick to it. :smalltongue:

[Tvtyrant]

Switching to FODMAP has made me lose around 3 kilos in the past month or so. Now I just need to add exercise. Plan is to have a cycle-walk-cycle-walk-cycle rhythm weekly to build up my stamina again. I have to go gentle with the cycling for at least the first two weeks now, so I'm limiting the time per day to 15-30min depending if I need to run errands or not. Days I walk, an hour is a minimum. When I get back from my babysitting gig on the second week of July, my plan is to start with weights. Gonna buy a 10x visitor pass to my nearest gym, so i get used to lifting and have time to think what kind of weights I want to buy for myself to use at home. Or, well, if I like the gym enough, I'll skip on buying weights and get a monthly pass (which isn't too much as I get student discount and the place is owned by the city, not a private one).

Phew. Writing all this out is helping me clarify my plan. And now that it's out in the public... I guess I need to stick to it. :smalltongue:
Sounds like a forward looking plan!

You might want to look at some lifting plans, it is easy to get shellshock when you walk in the gym and not know what to do.

[Kyrell1978]

Switching to FODMAP has made me lose around 3 kilos in the past month or so. Now I just need to add exercise. Plan is to have a cycle-walk-cycle-walk-cycle rhythm weekly to build up my stamina again. I have to go gentle with the cycling for at least the first two weeks now, so I'm limiting the time per day to 15-30min depending if I need to run errands or not. Days I walk, an hour is a minimum. When I get back from my babysitting gig on the second week of July, my plan is to start with weights. Gonna buy a 10x visitor pass to my nearest gym, so i get used to lifting and have time to think what kind of weights I want to buy for myself to use at home. Or, well, if I like the gym enough, I'll skip on buying weights and get a monthly pass (which isn't too much as I get student discount and the place is owned by the city, not a private one).

Phew. Writing all this out is helping me clarify my plan. And now that it's out in the public... I guess I need to stick to it. :smalltongue:
Sounds awesome!!!


Sounds like a forward looking plan!

You might want to look at some lifting plans, it is easy to get shellshock when you walk in the gym and not know what to do.

This is great advice also. It's going to be super important to plan out this phase as well to ensure that you don't end up developing imbalances in any particular area.

[FinnLassie]

I've learnt rather good lifting things back when I did boxing and from waaaay back in the day when I had a personal trainer (jfc that's a story and a half). Though, it's not a bad idea to check online for a refresher. I'll start with 1,5kg weights for sure just to get used to them again, and then up the kilos.

In general, for years I've really wanted to get into powerlifting, but right now it's a bit far fetched. But I'd like to be able to lift half my target weight at some point (so around 45-50kg). I mean, even third of that would be cool. Anything, really!

Kendo was the perfect sport for me. Feeling a bit sad that I have no opportunities to get back to it at least for now. It's an awesome full body workout that also fixed my sense of balance to at least some extent.

[Kyrell1978]

I've learnt rather good lifting things back when I did boxing and from waaaay back in the day when I had a personal trainer (jfc that's a story and a half). Though, it's not a bad idea to check online for a refresher. I'll start with 1,5kg weights for sure just to get used to them again, and then up the kilos.

In general, for years I've really wanted to get into powerlifting, but right now it's a bit far fetched. But I'd like to be able to lift half my target weight at some point (so around 45-50kg). I mean, even third of that would be cool. Anything, really!

Kendo was the perfect sport for me. Feeling a bit sad that I have no opportunities to get back to it at least for now. It's an awesome full body workout that also fixed my sense of balance to at least some extent.

Good luck with your goals. I've always thought power lifting was pretty interesting and I play around with doing 5 x5s when I'm between programs.

[Tvtyrant]

So on the confessional side: I went off keto for about 6 months to see if I could maintain bodyweight while on a normal diet. The first four months I stayed at 250, over the last two months though I have gained 13 pounds. The slide up was slow at first, but then it lept up from 255 to 260 and stuck there.

So I'm going back through induction now. I'm frustrated because my desire to snack came back after a few months, I will have to break myself of it again. I still met my goal of losing 160 pounds in 2 years, but I lost 170 and slid back up and it irritates me.

[Kyrell1978]

So on the confessional side: I went off keto for about 6 months to see if I could maintain bodyweight while on a normal diet. The first four months I stayed at 250, over the last two months though I have gained 13 pounds. The slide up was slow at first, but then it lept up from 255 to 260 and stuck there.

So I'm going back through induction now. I'm frustrated because my desire to snack came back after a few months, I will have to break myself of it again. I still met my goal of losing 160 pounds in 2 years, but I lost 170 and slid back up and it irritates me.

This happens to all of us i think. I spent nearly a year at 195 and am sitting at 205 now. It got back up to 215 at one point. It's good that you realized it and are working it back down though, so good job for that. I'm doing the same thing with my weight as well.

[Tvtyrant]

This happens to all of us i think. I spent nearly a year at 195 and am sitting at 205 now. It got back up to 215 at one point. It's good that you realized it and are working it back down though, so good job for that. I'm doing the same thing with my weight as well.

Thank you for the support, it is nice to know it isn't just me :)

I moved my daily steps to 15,000 to keep my calories burned at 1,000. I have slowly been adding steps to keep my calories stable, but I had to drop it a lot after the accident and now I get to move back up.

[Kyrell1978]

Thank you for the support, it is nice to know it isn't just me :)

I moved my daily steps to 15,000 to keep my calories burned at 1,000. I have slowly been adding steps to keep my calories stable, but I had to drop it a lot after the accident and now I get to move back up.

Sounds like you got a plan in place to get back to it. I have no doubt that you'll get back to where you were fairly quickly. Anytime on the whole support thing. This is exactly why I was super happy to see that this thread existed. I know that I was encouraged and drew inspiration from some crazy places and I would like to think that I could do that for someone someday. :smallbiggrin:

[Comrade]

So on the confessional side: I went off keto for about 6 months to see if I could maintain bodyweight while on a normal diet. The first four months I stayed at 250, over the last two months though I have gained 13 pounds. The slide up was slow at first, but then it lept up from 255 to 260 and stuck there.

So I'm going back through induction now. I'm frustrated because my desire to snack came back after a few months, I will have to break myself of it again. I still met my goal of losing 160 pounds in 2 years, but I lost 170 and slid back up and it irritates me.

There's always peaks and valleys. As long as you maintain a general trend in the direction you want to be going in, you're doing alright.

Speaking of peaks and valleys, I forgot how much havoc a vacation can wreak on gains. Been out of town the last few days (with another week or so to go) and there aren't any gyms in the area I can go to, so I've been trying to put together some kind of ersatz workout plan to hold me over until I get back. I've tried stuffing my boots and four full jugs of water into my backpack and using it as a makeshift dumbbell for upright rows and lawnmowers and stuff like that. Suffice it to say, not an ideal substitute for a gym. Also tried incorporating push ups but the pain in my hands/wrists makes me stop long before any burn in my chest or triceps does.

Plus with all the walking/sightseeing we've been doing I imagine my weight's going to take a hit too. I just hope it doesn't clear out my gains too bad.

Anyway, if anybody has any tips for strength training when you don't have access to gym equipment, I'm all ears!

[Astral Avenger]

Also tried incorporating push ups but the pain in my hands/wrists makes me stop long before any burn in my chest or triceps does.

Anyway, if anybody has any tips for strength training when you don't have access to gym equipment, I'm all ears!

Only thing I can offer is try doing knuckle push ups, keeping your wrist inline with your arm. Often that helps reduce hand/wrist pain for those exercises. Also, first couple times you're doing that, put some sort of padding under your fist, a folded sweatshirt works great.

Learned that tip from a chiropractor, probably worth a shot.

[Kyrell1978]

There's always peaks and valleys. As long as you maintain a general trend in the direction you want to be going in, you're doing alright.

Speaking of peaks and valleys, I forgot how much havoc a vacation can wreak on gains. Been out of town the last few days (with another week or so to go) and there aren't any gyms in the area I can go to, so I've been trying to put together some kind of ersatz workout plan to hold me over until I get back. I've tried stuffing my boots and four full jugs of water into my backpack and using it as a makeshift dumbbell for upright rows and lawnmowers and stuff like that. Suffice it to say, not an ideal substitute for a gym. Also tried incorporating push ups but the pain in my hands/wrists makes me stop long before any burn in my chest or triceps does.

Plus with all the walking/sightseeing we've been doing I imagine my weight's going to take a hit too. I just hope it doesn't clear out my gains too bad.

Anyway, if anybody has any tips for strength training when you don't have access to gym equipment, I'm all ears!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9Y2v3fiQLE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZA8GzhFh_CQ

Here's a couple of workouts from AthleanX that I've done that are all bodyweight. I did his Xero program as well and it's pretty killer but if you are just looking for something to tide you over probably not for you. He has a bunch more on his YouTube channel as well. Range of motion exercises for your wrist might help with the push up/wrist pain problem.

[Tvtyrant]

I got a new gym membership in a hole in the wall gym near me. The place is great actually, very old fashioned and everyone knows what they are doing.

My big issues were my back and shoulders; my arms are strong but my delts are very weak and my back is weak from my accident. I'm doing 5x5 for the time being, deadlift and shoulders today.

I'm thinking about doing Push/Pull/Legs on a five day a week split. So it would go Push/pull/Legs/push/pull
Legs/push/pull/Legs/pull
With the spaces around leg day since deadlift and squats are more draining then upperbody.

Edit: things are worse then I feared.

Bench: 115
Row: 90
Deadlift: 150
Elliptical: I can only manage a heart rate of 130 for 25 minutes before feeling sick
Overhead: 80

Disappointing first few days.

Edit 7/10: First rest day, my body is naturally sore but I already miss the clarity exhaustion brought the last three days.

My current schedule is below, I am on the first Wednesday.

Sunday Exercise A: (Quads, Hamstrings, Calves, Abs)
Deadlift
Lunges
Calf Raises
Ab stuff (there is lots of variety there)

Monday Exercise B: (Chest, Shoulders, Triceps)
Benchpress
Overhead Press
Flies

Tuesday: Exercise C: (Back, Biceps)
Row
Curls
Lat Pulldowns

Wednesday: off

Thursday: Exercise A (legs)

Friday: off

Saturday: Exercise B (Push)

Sunday: Exercise C (Pull)

Week 2

Monday: off

Tuesday: Exercise A (Legs)

Wednesday: off

Thursday: Exercise B Push

Friday: Exercise C Pull

Saturday: off

Sunday: Exercise A Legs

Edit 7/13: The first week is done, feeling great. I "jogged" 10 miles this week, walked 30, and lifted 5/6 days. Doing well, the jogging actually is really helping my hip pain.

My lifts suck, but they are already improving so a lot of it is cognitive limits I think.

[Kyrell1978]

I got a new gym membership in a hole in the wall gym near me. The place is great actually, very old fashioned and everyone knows what they are doing.

My big issues were my back and shoulders; my arms are strong but my delts are very weak and my back is weak from my accident. I'm doing 5x5 for the time being, deadlift and shoulders today.

I'm thinking about doing Push/Pull/Legs on a five day a week split. So it would go Push/pull/Legs/push/pull
Legs/push/pull/Legs/pull
With the spaces around leg day since deadlift and squats are more draining then upperbody.

Edit: things are worse then I feared.

Bench: 115
Row: 90
Deadlift: 150
Elliptical: I can only manage a heart rate of 130 for 25 minutes before feeling sick
Overhead: 80

Disappointing first few days.

Edit 7/10: First rest day, my body is naturally sore but I already miss the clarity exhaustion brought the last three days.

My current schedule is below, I am on the first Wednesday.

Sunday Exercise A: (Quads, Hamstrings, Calves, Abs)
Deadlift
Lunges
Calf Raises
Ab stuff (there is lots of variety there)

Monday Exercise B: (Chest, Shoulders, Triceps)
Benchpress
Overhead Press
Flies

Tuesday: Exercise C: (Back, Biceps)
Row
Curls
Lat Pulldowns

Wednesday: off

Thursday: Exercise A (legs)

Friday: off

Saturday: Exercise B (Push)

Sunday: Exercise C (Pull)

Week 2

Monday: off

Tuesday: Exercise A (Legs)

Wednesday: off

Thursday: Exercise B Push

Friday: Exercise C Pull

Saturday: off

Sunday: Exercise A Legs

Edit 7/13: The first week is done, feeling great. I "jogged" 10 miles this week, walked 30, and lifted 5/6 days. Doing well, the jogging actually is really helping my hip pain.

My lifts suck, but they are already improving so a lot of it is cognitive limits I think.

The numbers will come.....but you knew that. I'm sure you're already seeing progress by now.

[Tvtyrant]

The numbers will come.....but you knew that. I'm sure you're already seeing progress by now.

Quite a bit of progress. Deadlift is back up to 250 (which is my weight so I should hope so,) my cardio has improved tremendously already. I feel happier too, which is the biggest thing.

How is it going on your end?

[Kyrell1978]

Quite a bit of progress. Deadlift is back up to 250 (which is my weight so I should hope so,) my cardio has improved tremendously already. I feel happier too, which is the biggest thing.

How is it going on your end?

Pretty good. I just got back from Scout Camp with my boys. 10 days in the woods with no phone or internet always seems to put me in a better place. Now to catch up on the work that needs done. :smallbiggrin: Thanks for asking.

[Tvtyrant]

Pretty good. I just got back from Scout Camp with my boys. 10 days in the woods with no phone or internet always seems to put me in a better place. Now to catch up on the work that needs done. :smallbiggrin: Thanks for asking.

That is a lot of time for reflection. I would be miserable by the time I got back :0

I have found out that I really like running up hill and in no other situations. Running on flat ground takes a lot of technical knowledge, downhill more so. Uphill and your feet automatically put themselves in the running position, and all of the work is done by your glutes, calves and hamstrings.

[Comrade]

Just walking downhill is brutal on the calves. I make sure to hit my calves pretty hard during leg day at the gym but I don't think they've ever been more sore than the day after a hike where the way back was a lot of downhill trail.

Made an attempt at a 255lb PR on bench press last week. Couldn't get the weight up, but I was able to get five solid reps with 225 pounds (my PR when this thread was started, I think) this week, so I'm thinking the failure was a fluke. Going to take another crack at it next week. Body weight stalled a bit, but it's back on an upward trend and I'm now at 163lb, which is a new all time high!

[Tvtyrant]

Just walking downhill is brutal on the calves. I make sure to hit my calves pretty hard during leg day at the gym but I don't think they've ever been more sore than the day after a hike where the way back was a lot of downhill trail.

Made an attempt at a 255lb PR on bench press last week. Couldn't get the weight up, but I was able to get five solid reps with 225 pounds (my PR when this thread was started, I think) this week, so I'm thinking the failure was a fluke. Going to take another crack at it next week. Body weight stalled a bit, but it's back on an upward trend and I'm now at 163lb, which is a new all time high!

Wow buddy! Congrats! I'm sure you will hit it soon if you don't make it next week!

Knowing how slender you were before I bet you look like a beefcake now :)

[Kyrell1978]

Anybody else watch the crossfit games this weekend? Those guys are absolutely nuts.

[Tvtyrant]

Anybody else watch the crossfit games this weekend? Those guys are absolutely nuts.

I didn't know there were crossfit games. What were ghe highlights?

[Kyrell1978]

I didn't know there were crossfit games. What were ghe highlights?
There is so much that they do it's crazy. They have all the events for men, women, and co ed teams on youtube. Here's an event. I'm super addicted to this and I don't even do the cross fit thing. :smallbiggrin:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2aIW1uFeps&list=PLMBAcjeGtKQa_VfWsf22OxDoP4r4YtwOC&index=5

[Iruka]

I liked the swimming event, both as a former swimmer and because for once good form won out. :smalltongue:

Speaking of it, for the first time in years I did some actual swimming! The weather in Germany was exceptionally hot and sunny this summer and so I went to the open air pool a few times. I am of course far removed from the ability I had ~10 years ago, but I felt very comfortable in the water and did up to 1500 m on a set. A great full body workout, relaxes the muscels in the back and in a long, empty pool also quite meditative. Can't recommend it enough. :smallbiggrin:

In general, I have been pretty negligent fitness wise. In part because of a persistent cold, then some mysterious injuries in wrist and shoulder. The former kept me from running for a long time, the latter canceled the push-up plan. One of the running events I had planned for this year, I had to cancel because of a scheduling conflict.

During the last two months, I got slowly back on track. With the swimming, lots of physical work for a festival of my orchestra and going for some runs I feel pretty good. Watching those insanely fit crossfitters also motivated me to do some bodyweight workouts. :smalltongue:

[Kyrell1978]

I liked the swimming event, both as a former swimmer and because for once good form won out. :smalltongue:

Speaking of it, for the first time in years I did some actual swimming! The weather in Germany was exceptionally hot and sunny this summer and so I went to the open air pool a few times. I am of course far removed from the ability I had ~10 years ago, but I felt very comfortable in the water and did up to 1500 m on a set. A great full body workout, relaxes the muscels in the back and in a long, empty pool also quite meditative. Can't recommend it enough. :smallbiggrin:

In general, I have been pretty negligent fitness wise. In part because of a persistent cold, then some mysterious injuries in wrist and shoulder. The former kept me from running for a long time, the latter canceled the push-up plan. One of the running events I had planned for this year, I had to cancel because of a scheduling conflict.

During the last two months, I got slowly back on track. With the swimming, lots of physical work for a festival of my orchestra and going for some runs I feel pretty good. Watching those insanely fit crossfitters also motivated me to do some bodyweight workouts. :smalltongue:
Yeah. I throw that on during workouts quite a bit around this time of year. They also have about 4 Netflix Documentaries about previous years (I told you all I'm addicted). 1500m is a lot. I think I was 14 or 15 the last time I did that (Mile swim in Boy Scouts).:smallbiggrin:

[Tvtyrant]

Anyone have advice on how to get enough protein? I eat a lot of meat and dairy but my protein never quite reaches the desired amount, and protein powder isn't the easiest thing to use on the go (milk spoils fast.)

[Astral Avenger]

Anyone have advice on how to get enough protein? I eat a lot of meat and dairy but my protein never quite reaches the desired amount, and protein powder isn't the easiest thing to use on the go (milk spoils fast.)

Here is a decent overview (https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/best-protein-powder#section9) of a bunch of variations on protein powders. Otherwise (or additionally), just get a small container that can hold 2-3 servings of the protein powder so you can carry it around dry and mix it into a drink as you want it. Carrying some like that kept me going through a whole season of life-guarding for a summer camp eight hours per day with a 20 mile bike commute each way.

I tend to have a low meat diet, but lots of rice/beans, eggs, quinoa, cheese and nuts. I don't know the exact breakdown and numbers, but it's kept me healthy and strong for the last four-ish years with my very active life (I'm an outdoor guide/educator and amateur competitive endurance athlete).

[Tvtyrant]

Here is a decent overview (https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/best-protein-powder#section9) of a bunch of variations on protein powders. Otherwise (or additionally), just get a small container that can hold 2-3 servings of the protein powder so you can carry it around dry and mix it into a drink as you want it. Carrying some like that kept me going through a whole season of life-guarding for a summer camp eight hours per day with a 20 mile bike commute each way.

I tend to have a low meat diet, but lots of rice/beans, eggs, quinoa, cheese and nuts. I don't know the exact breakdown and numbers, but it's kept me healthy and strong for the last four-ish years with my very active life (I'm an outdoor guide/educator and amateur competitive endurance athlete).

Do you find the cooking time on beans gets difficult? I like beans but 8 hours soaking plus 2 hours cooking gets tiring after a while, I end up eating really late.

The link is nice, thanks :)

[Kyrell1978]

Anyone have advice on how to get enough protein? I eat a lot of meat and dairy but my protein never quite reaches the desired amount, and protein powder isn't the easiest thing to use on the go (milk spoils fast.)

I eat a lot of chicken (about 50g of protein in a 6-7 oz skinless breast for about 250-300 Cal), egg whites ( approx 50 g in 2 cups of eggs for around 250 Cal), cottage cheese ( 1% is 320 Cal for around 50 g of protein). Not a lot of on the go advice though.

[Bartmanhomer]

I'm actually on a diet and exercise for a 30-day challenge. I'm so glad I've found this thread. :smile:

[Kyrell1978]

Welcome aboard.

[Comrade]

Anyone have advice on how to get enough protein? I eat a lot of meat and dairy but my protein never quite reaches the desired amount, and protein powder isn't the easiest thing to use on the go (milk spoils fast.)

Chicken breast. Lots and lots of chicken breast. Absurd amounts of chicken breast.

Seriously though, protein powder is great if you're constantly on the move and need the convenience (personally I've found Musclepharm Combat and Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard in particular to be pretty good) but there's a lot of ways to sneak more protein into your diet. If you're going to have a bacon omelette for breakfast, for example, use egg whites, and substitute the bacon with turkey bacon; that'll add a solid 30 to 40 grams of protein to your breakfast.

Like Kyrell said though... get used to eating lots of variations of chicken breast. I'm pretty sure I've consumed more chicken and rice in the last year than most people do in a lifetime. It ain't fun but it's protein.


I'm actually on a diet and exercise for a 30-day challenge. I'm so glad I've found this thread. :smile:
Welcome!

[Bartmanhomer]

What's your take on Acai? Is it healthy? Because what I heard about Acai it has antioxidants and omega-3. :smile:

[Kyrell1978]

What's your take on Acai? Is it healthy? Because what I heard about Acai it has antioxidants and omega-3. :smile:

I just took a look at the nutritional values. They look ok. Weight loss is more about your Calorie count (you must be in a caloric deficit to lose weight) than finding super foods and such. If you are lifting weights (and I highly suggest that everyone do that to some extent) you should probably concentrate on getting enough protein to build lean muscle mass and everyone should stay away from refined sugars as much as possible.

[Tvtyrant]

What's your take on Acai? Is it healthy? Because what I heard about Acai it has antioxidants and omega-3. :smile:

So healthy eating is about a couple things. Micro nutrients, Macro nutrients, and calories.

Foods like acai and blue berries are useful for getting micro nutrients in to your diet. These are the vitamins and minerals that make your heart best properly, keep your bones strong, etc.

Then there is four macro nutrients thst break down into calories. Fat, carbohydrates, protein and alcohol. These breakdown into calories ar different rates and effect your liver and blood sugar differently as a result. You need protein to rebuild muscle as a separate concern.

The primary goal is to eat macros that break down slowly except before intense exercise, so fat, protein and complex carbs in larger amounts and limit fruit and starches as much as possible. Another way to do this is to focus on the glyemic index, which tells you how much food effects your blood sugar.

You want to move your blood sugar as little as possible because of the insulin cycle. When you make too much blood sugar your body releases insulin which turns it into glycogen, then your body has too little blood sugar so it tells you to eat more even though you have plenty of spare calories. So normally you want to slowest blood sugar release possible.

Calories are the total amount of energy you get from food, and to lose weight you want to take in less energy then you spend. Most diets are about getting your body not to panic or insist on eating the difference, another reason to eat low glycemic foods. Overweight people tend to have overactive insulin responses, you it is especially important to avoid over active insulin responses until you have trained your body.

In the case of acai berries I would avoid them in the early days, try to get your sugars and simple carbs as low as possible at first.

[tyckspoon]

Do you find the cooking time on beans gets difficult? I like beans but 8 hours soaking plus 2 hours cooking gets tiring after a while, I end up eating really late.

The link is nice, thanks :)

Beans are a classic slow-cooker/pressure cooker dish for a reason. Set 'em in the morning, eat 'em in the evening.

[Astral Avenger]

Do you find the cooking time on beans gets difficult? I like beans but 8 hours soaking plus 2 hours cooking gets tiring after a while, I end up eating really late.

The link is nice, thanks :)

I largely eat canned beans, which are basically step 1: open the can, step 2: mix with whatever I'm eating them with, step 3: eat.

When I am doing raw beans, I usually try and start soaking them either the night before or at breakfast and then put them on the stove to simmer the second I get home in the afternoon. Otherwise like tyckspoon said, if you have a slow cooker/rice cooker/crock pot, you can put the beans in there and they'll be ready to eat either the next morning or that evening depending on when you started them. If you have a pressure cooker/one pot, you can cook them quite a bit faster (it's been a while since I had access to either of those, so I don't remember exactly how much faster).

When I'm out backpacking, I'm usually using either dehydrated refried beans or fill a 1L water bottle with beans and soak them through the day as I'm hiking. I mostly stick to the dehydrated refried beans since a 1L water bottle is a lot of extra weight to carry up and over mountain passes.

[Tvtyrant]

I largely eat canned beans, which are basically step 1: open the can, step 2: mix with whatever I'm eating them with, step 3: eat.

When I am doing raw beans, I usually try and start soaking them either the night before or at breakfast and then put them on the stove to simmer the second I get home in the afternoon. Otherwise like tyckspoon said, if you have a slow cooker/rice cooker/crock pot, you can put the beans in there and they'll be ready to eat either the next morning or that evening depending on when you started them. If you have a pressure cooker/one pot, you can cook them quite a bit faster (it's been a while since I had access to either of those, so I don't remember exactly how much faster).

When I'm out backpacking, I'm usually using either dehydrated refried beans or fill a 1L water bottle with beans and soak them through the day as I'm hiking. I mostly stick to the dehydrated refried beans since a 1L water bottle is a lot of extra weight to carry up and over mountain passes.

All good advice. I love making curried garbanzo beans with onions and peppers, but I hate eating at 11pm after getting home at 9.

[Bartmanhomer]

Have anyone eat at Green Blend restaurant? I eat there every morning even though it's a little pricey. It's also very healthy.

[Kyrell1978]

Have anyone eat at Green Blend restaurant? I eat there every morning even though it's a little pricey. It's also very healthy.

That's like 5 states away, soooooo, nope. :smallbiggrin:

[Bartmanhomer]

That's like 5 states away, soooooo, nope. :smallbiggrin:

Well, I live in New York, NY USA so I think that more than 5 states away.

[Kyrell1978]

Well, I live in New York, NY USA so I think that more than 5 states away.

Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York......Pretty much straight east from Missouri till you hit Penn. then go north.:smallsmile:

[Tvtyrant]

Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York......Pretty much straight east from Missouri till you hit Penn. then go north.:smallsmile:

How much water can we use? Because I could be one by using the panama canal, or six (Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Michigan, New York.) Or 10 by land, but that involves going south to get bigger states.

[Kyrell1978]

How much water can we use? Because I could be one by using the panama canal, or six (Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Michigan, New York.) Or 10 by land, but that involves going south to get bigger states.

I'm not sure there are any rules to this game, so do your thing. :smallbiggrin:

[Bartmanhomer]

Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York......Pretty much straight east from Missouri till you hit Penn. then go north.:smallsmile:

Hey you're right. That's 5 states. :biggrin:

[Iruka]

Yesterday afternoon I was very proud of myself for forcing myself through three consecutive sets of push-ups to failure.

A few hours later I hated myself.

Today I actually feel okay. Sore of course, but not devastatingly so.

[Kyrell1978]

Yesterday afternoon I was very proud of myself for forcing myself through three consecutive sets of push-ups to failure.

A few hours later I hated myself.

Today I actually feel okay. Sore of course, but not devastatingly so.

For me it's usually not the next day, it's two days later that kills me. Good job for getting the work in.

[Bartmanhomer]

I must say this is one of the best threads in Giant In The Playground Forum so far. :smile:

[razorback]

I must say this is one of the best threads in Giant In The Playground Forum so far. :smile:

Agreed! 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, 610, 987, 1597, 2584, 4181, 6765, 10946, 17711, 28657, 46368, 75025, 121393, 196418, 317811

[Iruka]

For me it's usually not the next day, it's two days later that kills me. Good job for getting the work in.

About two days is normal for me too, but usually it doesn't hit me so hard a few hours later.

[Kyrell1978]

About two days is normal for me too, but usually it doesn't hit me so hard a few hours later.


Yeah, I know I've hit it pretty hard if I'm like "I'm not going to be able to move tomorrow" that night. :smallbiggrin:

[Bartmanhomer]

Today I eat 4 applesauce at Barnes and Noble, then I drink a bottle of water, eat 3 oranges and now I'm eating 2 cases of strawberries. I'm really glad I'm taking this seriously.

[Tvtyrant]

It is funny that the more I focus on diet and exercise the more my diet resembles that of people I used to make fun of. I drink coconut water and eat yogurt for lunch, my breakfasts and dinners usually involve beans and veggies with some meat and I eat nuts between meals. Members of my family constantly either tell me how much they pity me or get mad because they feel I am being condescending.

Activity wise I am doing quite well. My left arm has healed from my injury in July, and I am doing upperbody exercises again. The problem I am running into these days is that my body can't keep up with my ambitions; I don't have the energy to do extensive cardio and weight lifting on the same days (and it is painful to try on leg day), and if I alternate I find myself running out of energy when I don't get enough rest days.

My diet is essentially linked to my workout regimen; lots of carbs at breakfast because I lift after, then lots of protein at lunch, then a mixed dinner.

[Saint Jimmy]

Glad to hear you’re doing well, TvTyrant! I just committed myself to making my workouts consistent, something I’ve always struggled with, and eating better, as a I find I eat too much fat and carbs, and not enough protein. It’s hard enough as a high schooler in a house where good nutrition isn’t valued super highly beyond “eat a fruit,” so good on you for keeping at it when your family is actively against it.

[Cozzer]

Members of my family constantly either tell me how much they pity me or get mad because they feel I am being condescending.

God, I'm not easily annoyed but this triggers me so much. Why do even perfectly reasonable people suddenly lose their ability to mind their own f*ing business when it comes to what others are or aren't eating?

That said, good job everyone! I'm still on my usual workout-diet regimen, mostly stable but veeery slowly losing my last reserves of fat. I'd love for the process to be faster, but I have to accept I don't really have the mental energies to go at it more seriously than I already am, so I'll just have to wait!

[Comrade]

Activity wise I am doing quite well. My left arm has healed from my injury in July, and I am doing upperbody exercises again. The problem I am running into these days is that my body can't keep up with my ambitions; I don't have the energy to do extensive cardio and weight lifting on the same days (and it is painful to try on leg day), and if I alternate I find myself running out of energy when I don't get enough rest days.

Glad to hear the arm's healed up. As for the lack of energy during workouts, I'm just speculating here, but it could be the carbs you're eating before the workout (especially if it's in the form of foods like white rice or white bread) are causing your blood sugar to spike and then fall sharply during the workout. Whole grains digest slower and don't cause blood sugar to spike and then fall so rapidly. Intraworkout might also help if you want to give it a shot.

I've kind of stalled both weight and strength wise. The past couple of months I've wavered between 160-165 pounds in body weight-- mostly, I'd guess, because a. I've been really busy the past couple of months and it's hard to find time to eat, and b. because I've been really busy, I've been really active, so I'm probably burning more calories than I was before. My lifts seem to have hit a plateau as well.

Fortunately my physique is still pretty solid and I don't feel like I've lost my gains or gotten skinnier. Just need to find a way to get the weight back on an upward trajectory.

[Tvtyrant]

God, I'm not easily annoyed but this triggers me so much. Why do even perfectly reasonable people suddenly lose their ability to mind their own f*ing business when it comes to what others are or aren't eating?

That said, good job everyone! I'm still on my usual workout-diet regimen, mostly stable but veeery slowly losing my last reserves of fat. I'd love for the process to be faster, but I have to accept I don't really have the mental energies to go at it more seriously than I already am, so I'll just have to wait!
I have no idea, it might be they feel bad about their own lifestyle. It could also just be about power, you assume a position of power whenever you criticize someone.

Stable is good, lowers the chance of injury. Keep it up!

Glad to hear the arm's healed up. As for the lack of energy during workouts, I'm just speculating here, but it could be the carbs you're eating before the workout (especially if it's in the form of foods like white rice or white bread) are causing your blood sugar to spike and then fall sharply during the workout. Whole grains digest slower and don't cause blood sugar to spike and then fall so rapidly. Intraworkout might also help if you want to give it a shot.

I've kind of stalled both weight and strength wise. The past couple of months I've wavered between 160-165 pounds in body weight-- mostly, I'd guess, because a. I've been really busy the past couple of months and it's hard to find time to eat, and b. because I've been really busy, I've been really active, so I'm probably burning more calories than I was before. My lifts seem to have hit a plateau as well.

Fortunately my physique is still pretty solid and I don't feel like I've lost my gains or gotten skinnier. Just need to find a way to get the weight back on an upward trajectory.
I can't eat grains, otherwise I would. Sweet potatoes could work, but losing American Potatoes is basically the last bit of normal food I eat.

If you are burning more calories then you eat, building muscle isn't going to happen, especially with such a low body fat percentage. Sounds like you need to find a new way to add calories (not helpful advice I know.)

[Bartmanhomer]

I can't eat grains, otherwise, I would.
Why can't you eat grains Tvtyrant? :confused:

[Tvtyrant]

Why can't you eat grains Tvtyrant? :confused:

I have Celiac's disease. Wheat, buckwheat, rye and oats all make me very sick. Oats less so, but they contain a protein very similar to gluten that makes me ill.

[Bartmanhomer]

I have Celiac's disease. Wheat, buckwheat, rye and oats all make me very sick. Oats less so, but they contain a protein very similar to gluten that makes me ill.

Oh.wow. I'm so sorry to hear that. :frown:

[Tvtyrant]

Oh.wow. I'm so sorry to hear that. :frown:

It is okay. In a weird way it saved my life, forced me to change habits I was raised with and become healthier.

[AMFV]

Glad to hear the arm's healed up. As for the lack of energy during workouts, I'm just speculating here, but it could be the carbs you're eating before the workout (especially if it's in the form of foods like white rice or white bread) are causing your blood sugar to spike and then fall sharply during the workout. Whole grains digest slower and don't cause blood sugar to spike and then fall so rapidly. Intraworkout might also help if you want to give it a shot.

I've kind of stalled both weight and strength wise. The past couple of months I've wavered between 160-165 pounds in body weight-- mostly, I'd guess, because a. I've been really busy the past couple of months and it's hard to find time to eat, and b. because I've been really busy, I've been really active, so I'm probably burning more calories than I was before. My lifts seem to have hit a plateau as well.

Fortunately my physique is still pretty solid and I don't feel like I've lost my gains or gotten skinnier. Just need to find a way to get the weight back on an upward trajectory.

Well there a few things you can do to help. A lot depends on how closely you're monitoring your macros though. If you have enough room to add some fats that can be an easy way to up your calories.

[Bartmanhomer]

Well, I'm taking my diet seriously. Man, I sure missed eating junk food. :smile:

[Kyrell1978]

Oh my Goodness. I just picked up AthleanXs Beaxst program. I am going to be soooooorrrrrreeee tomorrow. Hope everyone is doing well, I've been ridiculously busy lately. :smallbiggrin:

[Bartmanhomer]

So anyway. I've been eating healthy foods such as broccoli pizza with chicken, seltzer water, fruits, hiker trail mix and Muscle Mix Protein Shake. I exercise everyday. So I'm doing great so far.

[FinnLassie]

My plans to lose weight have been bombed due to a lot of personal and health issues. :smallsigh: I gained about 6 kilos, and now I've lost about 4 of that. I just want to be under 110kg by the end of the year, and keep that stable throughout the winter.

I've started water running classes, every Friday morning, and I love it. It's really good for my mangled knee, since there's not really pressure at all. Though, I need to stretch my leg a couple of times during the hour, but I'm hoping that my knee will get more and more used to it. Water running is such a great core work out... and well, it's also hard on the glutes. I think I need to get a massage, because my legs and glutes have not been this sore since I did kendo. :smalleek:

[Tvtyrant]

My plans to lose weight have been bombed due to a lot of personal and health issues. :smallsigh: I gained about 6 kilos, and now I've lost about 4 of that. I just want to be under 110kg by the end of the year, and keep that stable throughout the winter.

I've started water running classes, every Friday morning, and I love it. It's really good for my mangled knee, since there's not really pressure at all. Though, I need to stretch my leg a couple of times during the hour, but I'm hoping that my knee will get more and more used to it. Water running is such a great core work out... and well, it's also hard on the glutes. I think I need to get a massage, because my legs and glutes have not been this sore since I did kendo. :smalleek:

I'm sorry about the health issues, but water running is a great form of cardio. If not a massage you could try foam rolling, it helps with knots.

I personally either tore or herniated my right quadracep. I'm so tired of not having insurance, every minor event puts me back months.

[Bartmanhomer]

Oh shoot I forgot to exercise on Saturday. :sigh:

[Kyrell1978]

It'll be ok. Just stay consistent and don't let one slip lead to a bunch of them.

[Tvtyrant]

I'm back up to steam finally. Running regularly again, both arms and both legs in good condition. No squats or deadlifts for a while, I need to run for my sanity's sake and the risk of reinjury is too high right now.

I am doing a 2 day split with a day off after.
Day 1: Run, Bench Press (120lbs), Row(130lbs), tricep push down(90lbs), lat pull down(160 lbs), facepulls(40lbs), hammer curls(35lbs), abs and stretching.
Day 2: Run, Overhead Press(90lbs), Skullcrushers(50lbs), facepulls(40lbs), barcurls(70-80lbs), abs and stretching.

I only gained 3 pounds in the month I couldn't run, which is a good sign for me. My diet has slowly shifted over the last three months, I now eat 1-2 pounds of canned beans a day as my staple. That is more about poverty then health, but the meat in my diet has disappeared and recently I stopped missing it much.

Hard to believe I can get 1k calories in a good split between fat, carbs and protein (including the whole dietary fiber
allotment) for $1 and no one told me. Pinto beans especially are amazing and cheap.

Yesterday stretched it a little though. Black beans for breakfast, pinto beans for lunch and then red beans and sausage for dinner.

@Kyrell1978 What is the beast program like? How is getting certified going?

[Kyrell1978]

I'm back up to steam finally. Running regularly again, both arms and both legs in good condition. No squats or deadlifts for a while, I need to run for my sanity's sake and the risk of reinjury is too high right now.

I am doing a 2 day split with a day off after.
Day 1: Run, Bench Press (120lbs), Row(130lbs), tricep push down(90lbs), lat pull down(160 lbs), facepulls(40lbs), hammer curls(35lbs), abs and stretching.
Day 2: Run, Overhead Press(90lbs), Skullcrushers(50lbs), facepulls(40lbs), barcurls(70-80lbs), abs and stretching.

I only gained 3 pounds in the month I couldn't run, which is a good sign for me. My diet has slowly shifted over the last three months, I now eat 1-2 pounds of canned beans a day as my staple. That is more about poverty then health, but the meat in my diet has disappeared and recently I stopped missing it much.

Hard to believe I can get 1k calories in a good split between fat, carbs and protein (including the whole dietary fiber
allotment) for $1 and no one told me. Pinto beans especially are amazing and cheap.

Yesterday stretched it a little though. Black beans for breakfast, pinto beans for lunch and then red beans and sausage for dinner.

@Kyrell1978 What is the beast program like? How is getting certified going?

Beaxst is awesome. It does total body splits but it has Str, hypertrophy, and metabolic all mixed in every day. It starts at 3 total body per week with 2 correctives (read facepulls. Lol) and conditioning days. Weeks three and four dropped one of the total body days for a Power day which is interesting. I've never really done a lot of those so I feel week af while doing them but it's getting better.

Unfortunately I had to put off the certification. My wife and I are currently involved if a court case defending her nursing license from a bull **** accusation which has taken up a good deal of my time recently but I'll get back to it eventually.

Glad to hear you're back to it.

So are you going to do a new 2020 post or just keep this one going? It seems to have lasted a little longer than last year's.

[Tvtyrant]

Beaxst is awesome. It does total body splits but it has Str, hypertrophy, and metabolic all mixed in every day. It starts at 3 total body per week with 2 correctives (read facepulls. Lol) and conditioning days. Weeks three and four dropped one of the total body days for a Power day which is interesting. I've never really done a lot of those so I feel week af while doing them but it's getting better.

Unfortunately I had to put off the certification. My wife and I are currently involved if a court case defending her nursing license from a bull **** accusation which has taken up a good deal of my time recently but I'll get back to it eventually.

Glad to hear you're back to it.

So are you going to do a new 2020 post or just keep this one going? It seems to have lasted a little longer than last year's.

Sounds like a hard program! My Dad is into metabolic resistance training, I like my muscles not to feel on fire all the time. Do you feel like the combined approach is leading to better improvement?

Sorry to hear about that. I hope the defense goes well.

I'll talk to a mod and see what they prefer. I can either get them to rename this one (we are only on page 7) or make a new one depending on what they feel follows the rules better. I'm thinking "Get Fit Season III: Hindsight is 2020."

[Kyrell1978]

Sounds like a hard program! My Dad is into metabolic resistance training, I like my muscles not to feel on fire all the time. Do you feel like the combined approach is leading to better improvement?

Sorry to hear about that. I hope the defense goes well.

I'll talk to a mod and see what they prefer. I can either get them to rename this one (we are only on page 7) or make a new one depending on what they feel follows the rules better. I'm thinking "Get Fit Season III: Hindsight is 2020."

I like the new name for sure. Beast has upped my strength quicker for sure. I've also gained weight size in the few weeks I've been on it but part of that has been a lack of discipline in nutrition. I'm cutting that off now to see how much is real gain.

It is pretty hard but I love it.

[Tvtyrant]

I like the new name for sure. Beast has upped my strength quicker for sure. I've also gained weight size in the few weeks I've been on it but part of that has been a lack of discipline in nutrition. I'm cutting that off now to see how much is real gain.

It is pretty hard but I love it.

I'm glad it is going well! I wouldn't worry about fat too much, it is winter. I'm just wearing a heavy jacket until I start starving myself again in spring.

One I was shown was to measure instead of weigh. Gains around the chest, shoulders, and arms are muscle and around the tummy is fat.

I went from 249, then subtract 30 for the omnipresent loose skin :(, in June to 273 now. This amounts to three more inches around the chest but also two around the belly, so there is some fat gain there.

I feel a lot more energetic and stronger at this weight, not looking forward to cutting down again.

[Comrade]

Working and going to school fulltime has really put a damper on my fitness progress. It's been tough to find time to eat and hit the gym, so I've definitely lost some weight (not much, went from 165 down to about 160) and I've gotten a little weaker too. Might need to invest in some more mass gainer. Or, you know, just quit my job, drop out of school, and move into the gym permanently. Not writing that off as a possibility.

[Tvtyrant]

Working and going to school fulltime has really put a damper on my fitness progress. It's been tough to find time to eat and hit the gym, so I've definitely lost some weight (not much, went from 165 down to about 160) and I've gotten a little weaker too. Might need to invest in some more mass gainer. Or, you know, just quit my job, drop out of school, and move into the gym permanently. Not writing that off as a possibility.

That is too bad! I hope there is a viable way to get more time.

I'm thinking about how I can add gym teacher to my job prospects so I can work out 2 hours a day for pay lol.

[Bartmanhomer]

I've been exercised and eating healthy lately. :smile:

[Kyrell1978]

I've been exercised and eating healthy lately. :smile:

Good to hear. As I recall you were trying to lose weight. (Feel free to correct me if I am wrong). How is that going for you?

[Bartmanhomer]

Good to hear. As I recall you were trying to lose weight. (Feel free to correct me if I am wrong). How is that going for you?

Doing well. I really need a scale to see how much weight I lost. :smile: