Steel
If you want to keep your tongue, don't lick me in the Winter!   SSHOLEPosts: 479 Registered: 10/14/2004 Offline
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5/21/2007 at 23:06 |
Ugh... I'm starting off week 9 of weight training and cardio... I've been talking to a buddy of mine that boxes who swears by the jump rope...
I just gave it a try for the first time... made it 3 minutes off and on... think I'll just sit down for a sec and have a mild heart attack |
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BrianZ
Tender vittles  Posts: 1 Registered: 8/27/2007 Offline
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8/27/2007 at 20:35 |
Definitely guys. Breathing and muscles are so key for these types of activities. I think the abdominals are undervalued, and they can even be a cause of back pain if they are weak or in spasm. One of the best things to do for your abs, and therefore your whole body is to go through a simple dedicated training program for the abdominals.
I like the program here:
http://bytle.com/pump_your_abs
Whatever you do, make sure that you don't strain the muscles, as that can put you out of action for awhile and therefore out of practice for your entire training program. The program I mentioned above is relatively safe in this respect.
Best of luck everyone.
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acheron
Cynical_Malcontent  SSHOLEPosts: 552 Registered: 4/29/2004 Offline
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8/27/2007 at 22:25 |
I'm seeing fairly good results with just normal stuff, push-ups/crunches, biking and swimming . Sometimes I think all this focus on specific types of workouts, mathmatical reps and routines, etc. gets in the way of enjoying yourself. Pick something thats fun and rewarding to you. There's something mildly massachistic about this societal fixation with strict weight-lifting/running-gym stuff. My body-type is kind of natrually a swimmer body type-I respond very well to that kind of excersize and it feels right for me. It also has helped fairly significantly with muscular strength for me. Anyway, some people love gyms but its not for everyone.
On 2007-08-27 at 17:26:09, acheron craps monkey baby
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Tricky
Tender vittles  Posts: 25 Registered: 6/14/2005 Offline
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8/27/2007 at 23:35 |
This is one of the rare subjects on which I actually have something to contribute; I know a few high performance coaches and sports physiologists and have an interest in sports medicine. The general consensus, from what I've heard, seems to be that there isn't much point lifting weights to gain strength unless you're doing it at least three times a week to maintain the stimulus to build muscle.
To make things harder, as Vas says, it is very difficult to build strength and endurance at the same time. In the short term, you switch on different recovery pathways depending on whether you are doing a cardio or strength based workout. This means that if you spend an hour lifting heavies and proceed to go on a ten mile jog, much of the benefit from the heavies will be lost as regards strength training and mass gain as the endurance pathways are activated and the strength ones deactivated. This is a huge oversimplification, but we were in a pub when it was explained to me...
Another stumbling block is weight loss. To lose weight you must be using more calories than you consume (the 'catabolic state') but to gain muscle you have to have a calorie surplus (the 'anabolic state') this is why body builders go through their bulking and cutting phases.
As far as you're concerned, I reckon you should just aim to get fitter. It's not nearly as fun as throwing metal around, but c'est la vie. To break up the boredom, I would recommend doing five stints of ten minutes on different cardio machines, because there's nothing more daunting than looking at the thick end of an hour on the rowing machine and it will help you keep the intensity up. What coknurmowth says about training zones is good - you might want to buy a heart rate monitor to keep an eye on things and to tell you when you're slacking... I'm not sure about the fitness/weight loss issue, but I'm fairly sure that if you're getting one, you'll be getting the other, if perhaps to a lesser extent.
Of course, the other problem you have is that you're only doing it once a week, which isn't really enough. But then again, I'm pretty sure you knew that already.
Edit: on the other hand, this seems to suggest that a combined program is better for weight loss, but that may due to the HR zone thing again. Go figure.
On 2007-08-27 at 18:45:09, Tricky craps monkey baby |
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spod
SIR BABYHEAD  Posts: 58 Registered: 8/13/2006 Offline
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10/29/2007 at 07:21 |
Diet and nutrition is half the battle,loading up on carbs the day before a workout and eating protein after tearing and ripping your muscles during a workout should do the world of good.
Checkout 'bodybuilding and nutrition'
After a year or 2 of paying special attention to your diet you will set good eating habits that will stay with you for the rest of your life.
Free weights are the way to go.I used to do 3 sets for each exercise,I would aim for 12 reps each set but usually only got 8 reps on the last set (with a lot of animal grunt noises).
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mundhra
dread pirate neckbeard  SSHOLEPosts: 1600 Registered: 3/25/2002 Offline
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10/29/2007 at 16:23 |
(with a lot of animal grunt noises)
lolz
just as a reboot/update thing:
the rec center closes for a month in aug for cleaning and we hadn't re-upped. kinda slacked off there...
as of today we've been on a diet for almost a month and i'm down 9 lbs. we're saving a shitload of money by not eating out, and also feel a lot better. we've been fairly bad about exercising during the week, but we usually walk both saturday and sunday. thanksgiving and christmas are going to be terrible tests of will (especially with my mom trying to shove shit down my gullet). will probably rejoin the rec center soon.
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But the whole of modern so-called civilized existence is an attempt to deny reality insofar as it exists. When did Don last look at the stars, when did Norman last get soaked in a rainstorm? |
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valkane
Tender vittles  Posts: 2 Registered: 1/28/2006 Offline
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10/30/2007 at 02:19 |
Over two years ago, I got strep throat. I went to the doctor, and she told me I weighed 186 pounds. I'm a small guy (5'5") and I couldn't fucking believe it. Not morbidly obese, just completely out-of-shape. Fat.
So, I quit eating. And I started walking.
For lunch, I started eating like a fucking neanderthal: "Here's how much I could eat if I ran around the woods all day collecting berries, nuts, leaves and maybe a squirrel or two." = a cup and half of leaves, berries, nuts and protein, no fucking salad dressing, no fucking potato chips. Instead of paying $9 for lunch, I was paying $2.
After lunch, I walked two miles. I get an hour for lunch, and I could eat the berries and shit in about twenty minutes, and still bullshit with my friends, then take off for a stroll through our vibrant downtown. 2 miles takes about 40 minutes.
I did this every day for a year, rain, shine, snow, whatever. For dinner, I had whatever I wanted (home-cooked, no fastfood, all from scratch, hey, I like to cook), but stayed away from lots of bread & pasta, and just had one plateful... no seconds.
I lost 50 pounds in about 6 months. None of my clothes fit anymore. At this point, I started lifting. I still drank like a fish and smoked like a chimney, but I felt fucking GREAT! More energy, more confidence, all that bullshit those fuckheads in the Bowflex commercials are always crowing about... well, it's true. I'm 41 years old and in the best shape of my life, and it didn't cost me a dime.
I played around with a lot of different workouts (we have a rudimentary gym at work, and it's free, so I use that rather than paying some club), talked to some friends who are serious muscleheads, and settled on a routine that works for me. I'm going for more Bruce Lee than Conan The Barbarian, so bear with me....
I still walk (cardio) every fucking day of my life. This is my "stealth exercise": no one knows you're working out when you're just walking down the street. In the summer, I do the mornings before work (cooler), in the winter, I do lunch time (warmer). I've come to love my morning walks, it clears my head, I can plan my day, figure out work bullshit with no distractions, etc. Lunch walks are close to the same, only more of a stress reliever.
I can see why Mark Twain walked a lot.
I've had the best luck with the pyramid session when it comes to lifting: progressive weight with fewer reps. Like the other guys have said, you do a warm-up set with easy weight, do an exhaustion set with your target weight, then go freaky-deaky with a set at a weight you know you can't maintain.
In the beginning I over-trained (a lot more cardio after my lifting sessions which I realized was just burning all the calories needed for muscle-building). Now I've found I can maintain my personal target weight with alternate weeks of three-times and two-times a week with the lifting, but with the cardio (walking) every day.
This is a flexible schedule I can maintain without guilt, working around work schedules and kid schedules (gotta pick 'em up from volleyball.... gotta pick 'em up from field hockey, etc.)
Here's what I do:
Curls: Free weights, dumbells, 3 sets, 20, 25, 30 pounds, 15, 12, 10 reps.
One-arm pulldowns: 20, 22-1/2, 25 pounds, each arm. 15, 12, 10 reps.
(I alternate each set with each set - curls, the one-arms, the curls, etc.)
21's: barbells, 25 pounds, 7 low curls, 7 high curls, 7 full curls.
Overhead pulldowns: (Lats) 3 sets, 80, 100, 120 pounds, 15, 12, 10 reps.
Rowing pull: 3 sets, 80, 100, 120 pounds, 12, 10, 8 reps.
Butterflys: 10, 15 pounds, 12, 10, 10 reps. (alternating)
Pushups: 50, 30, 30 reps.
Bench: 80, 90, 100 pounds, 12, 12, 10 reps.
Chest Butterflys: 80, 90, 100 pounds, 12, 12, 10 (yeah) reps. (alternating)
Situps: 3 sets of 20 on inclined bench.
Squats: 3 sets, 195, 210, 225 pounds.
Leg lifts: 3 sets, 80, 90, 100 pounds. (alternating)
Then I do all the stretching I learned in Karate when I was 15.
It takes about an hour (if I'm fast) or 90 minutes (if I'm taking my time).
Admittedly, this is not a lot of weight, and I can't bench 300 pounds. But like I said, I'm a little guy, and not looking to get too big, just cut.
Which brings us to the whole "Toned" mythology. There is no toned. There is only lack of body fat. Skinny guys look "Toned" because they don't have a sheath of skin/fat hiding their musculature. Get your BMI down to 11-9 percent, and you'll be "toned," regardless of your stamina, strength or athletic ability.
Like the man said, if huge, bulky muscle represented the apex of athletic ability, then Tiger Woods would look a lot fucking different. The quote I remember is about guys in the Ranger training program in the army: "The big guys, the muscle guys, they couldn't hack it. It was only the little rangy guys who could make it through the course."
I haven't built a lot of bulk, but I do look like that scene in Spiderman when Peter Parker wakes up AFTER he's been bit by the radioactive spider. And that was really what I was going for.
But wait... I WOULD like a little more bulk, but I know that will require eating a lot more than I currently consume, and I'm terrified of getting fat again, so, it's not like I don't have issues.
Still, anyone in the know who can tell me what I could tweak to end up like Wolverine instead of Spiderman... well, I'm all ears.
And yeah, I've watched the video of the "300 Workout" (THIS IS SPARTA!) and I don't have the time, nor the resources to do that shit.
Anyways, this is a plan for going from 186 to 136 (for a medium 5' 5" frame) in about 9-10 months. And keeping it off for, oh, two and half years now. YMMV.
So, walk it off, get down to the weight you want, then start building muscle. It's all cardio (burning more than you consume) to lose weight, because once you hit that skinny body, you're gonna GAIN weight as you put on muscle. And it's easier to lose it, then start building than trying to do it all at once.
At least it was for me.
cheers,
valkane
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nocal
It's insane, this guy's taint  SSHOLEPosts: 803 Registered: 8/25/2004 Offline
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10/30/2007 at 04:04 |
I've been following a system from Joe DeFranco called "Westside for Skinny Bastards" and I've been seeing progress, where I was pretty stagnant. I was in good shape already, but I would like to be in great shape and play competitive sports.
As for diet, I have simplified it in that I eat a lot (I am trying to gain a bit of weight) and I eat cleanly. I eat fruits or vegetables with every meal, and I eat some kind of protein. Whole eggs, chicken, lean grass fed beef. I try to eat breakfast, twice during work, dinner, and snacks until bed. The key to diet is PLANNING your meals ahead of time, and in fact cooking them ahead of time. Additionally, learning to eat smart when you go out helps a whole hell of a lot.
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mundhra
dread pirate neckbeard SSHOLEPosts: 1600 Registered: 3/25/2002 Offline
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10/30/2007 at 04:20 |
thanks, valkane.
nocal: The key to diet is PLANNING your meals ahead of time, and in fact cooking them ahead of time.
absolutely. anything to get out of the 'don't feel like running to the store then cooking so i'll just order a pizza' trap. we sit down every sunday and plan out 8 or 9 meals for the week. since most of the recipes (weight watcher books) are for servings of 4 and we're only 2, we usually take leftovers for lunch. we also found that making up a second meal like soup or chili ahead of time helps when we don't feel like cooking.
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But the whole of modern so-called civilized existence is an attempt to deny reality insofar as it exists. When did Don last look at the stars, when did Norman last get soaked in a rainstorm? |
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nocal
It's insane, this guy's taint SSHOLEPosts: 803 Registered: 8/25/2004 Offline
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10/30/2007 at 06:24 |
Also when I say I plan them, that means that I'll cook three days of chicken and buy enough spinach for two days.
Part of this shit means you have to shop frequently in order to get fresh food.
Oh yes I would also say eat a lot of fish, supplement your diet with fish oil (enteric coated is best), and make sure that if you're serious about weightlifting you are eating something between .5 and 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight. I supplement with Jarrow protein powder, which has no cheap (and dangerous) bullshit, no corn syrup solids, and no artificial sweeteners.
The number one threat to the world is corn; if you never eat another ounce of corn syrup of any kind, you will be a healthier human being. Never drink a soda again, see how you feel.
mundrha: absolutely.
Like I also said, learning how to cheat is a great tool as well. When you go out, order the chicken, don't get french fries with it, order your oil and vinegar dressing on the side, only drink water. You'll be amazed how easy and good tasting it is to eat "healthier" when you're out. Do keep in mind though that even "healthy" looking stuff like chicken was probably roasted in butter.
EDIT: more brain poop
best for losing weight? not steady state cardio. look at a marathon runner, then look at an olympic 400 meter runner. which looks better, the one who runs 26 miles at a stretch, or the one who never runs more than half a mile at a time? jump rope/run/do the eliptical/row all out for 20 seconds, then take 40 off, repeat, design your own style even.
stuck doing 3x10? use a heavier weight and do 10x3. you will use quite a bit more time on your primary exercise of that day, but fuck it, you'll make gains.
take little breaks every 4 weeks or so if you are feeling any stagnation or serious fatigue (as in, i am in the gym and i can't fucking lift what i lifted 3 weeks ago). that doesn't mean sit on your ass, it means do some more reps with low weight, do bodyweight, do a little cardio, etc.
biceps do best when they are contracted at all times through an exercise.
the best growth in my arms came from chin ups, not from single arm preacher curls (dont' bother with preacher curls ever)
if you can do an exercise standing up, do it. you will work more muscles.
do complexes sometimes. they will kill you so fast. as in: squat, then drop to push up, then bring knees to your elbows one at a time, then back up and jump. or if you are the weight lifting type: romanian dead into clean into push press into overhead squat into back squat and repeat.
nothing is better for legs and for losing weight than sprinting. work up to it slowly if you are not the athletic type. i recommend doing it barefoot on grass; heavy shoes will give you shin splints at best and joint problems at worst.
do not fucking wear sleeveless shirts and shit. you are sweating all over the equipment you vain dicknose. also, no curls in the fucking squat rack.
and final beginner advice: learn the movements, even practice them without weight, before you do weight. start with low weight. do not cheat.
THAT THUR IS A LOT OF WORDS THAT SIGNIFY NOTHING
On 2007-10-30 at 01:34:53, nocal craps baby wotak monkeypigeon |
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SexNinja
the illest nigga  SSHOLEPosts: 1516 Registered: 10/28/2007 Offline
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10/30/2007 at 15:34 |
mundhra: anything to get out of the 'don't feel like running to the store then cooking so i'll just order a pizza' trap.
I've fallen into this delicious trap more than I care to admit. It's one of the reasons I haven't met my weight loss goals.
That's not bad advice nocal. I've always known in the back of my mind that if I want to lose my gut I'm going to have to be hardcore about it. Honestly, it's more mental than anything. I need to be in the right frame of mind and really want it. I mean, I do want it now, but I want it sitting on my couch eating cake right now.
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THINK I GIVE A FUCK HOW A NIGGA FEEL? - Prodigy, 2008 |
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