The Fitness Thread

[Emptyeyes_]

19 minutes ago, Vhozite said:

 Anyone here into martial arts/combat sports? I’m looking for a new activity and thinking about picking up boxing.

I'm into that, but I'm pretty casual about it. Im a bit too fragile for it regardless, especially due to an endocrine disorder, where my hormones are just out of order from galbladder removal and other factors from genetics. MMA for me will only be used for the set. Outside of that, I look at it as daily philosophy.

Edited February 3, 2023 by Emptyeyes_

[purbeast]

Been trying the 5x5 routine for my first chest exercise as I had kinda been stuck around the same weight on my incline barbell presses for a little while.

 

Yesterday I got up 225lb 5x5 pretty damn smoothly which felt great.  Doing 5x5 though I do have to drop weight slightly on my flat bench dumbell presses that I do right after though, due to the volume/weight of the incline press.

 

But I'm just thankful that my shoulder is actually feeling good consistently after nagging injuries for years.  I hope that as long as I keep doing what I am doing that I don't reagrivate anything. 

 

 Getting old sucks.

[Vhozite]

9 hours ago, Dayaan said:

Hopefully I'll buy some home weights too so I can grow my biceps and forearms since there are no efficient ways to build either in calisthenics.

If you want to save space you can buy a set of those adjustable dumbbells. My mom owns a set that go from like 5-25lbs, and they sell ones on Amazon that go from 25-50+, though and those are a bit expensive. 
 

Your school doesn’t have a student gym?

Edited April 19, 2023 by Vhozite

[JGreen]

Have you tried looking on Craigslist, Facebook marketplace and the like for dumbbells? You can often pick up some for cheap. If you can’t find adjustable dumbbells, another option is to get two fixed dumbbell pairs. Get one that’s heavy and another that’s light. Yet another option is to get a kettlebell. Lots of exercises you can do with that. Heck, in a pinch you can load up a backpack and curl that. 

[JGreen]

On 5/15/2023 at 7:33 PM, Dayaan said:

Checked back into this thread to update you all on that situation. I got adjustable dumbbells. They work great. I can work arms more efficiently and am looking into chest and back exercises I can do at home with them too. 

One good end exercise is a renegade row. You get into a push up position with a dumbbell or kettlebell in each hand. Keep your legs in a wide stance. Do a push up. When you get back into your starting position, do a row while keeping your torso inline and don’t twist your body. Do a row with the other arm and then push up. Repeat. Hits pretty much all of your upper body with chest from a push up, row hitting your back and your core by preventing your body from twisting during the row. 
 

Another good dumbbell exercise is to grab a weight just above what you normally shoulder press. Rest the weight on your shoulders. Squat. On the way up, using a bit of momentum, shoulder press. Put the weight back on your shoulders and squat again. When I’m at a hotel, I can do just these two exercises to hit everything. Plus it’s quick. 

Edited May 17, 2023 by JGreen

[Hecatom]

Fuck, retaking the habit of doing exercise is surely hard, lol.

At least I have been able to do cardio almost every day.

 

[purbeast]

I don't know if it's because I'm turning 42 in November, but damn I just took a week off and was on vacation so I was drinking a lot, eating kinda poorly, not exercising other than SCUBA, and taking no supplements, and damn back at the gym this week I was noticeably weaker and it sucks.  It was especially noticeable on my squats today.  Yesterday my shoulder dumbell presses I also noticed it.  I didn't even attempt my highest weight because I could only get 6 reps of the set prior, which I got 8 the time I lifted before I was on vacation.

[Camacho]

8 hours ago, purbeast said:

I don't know if it's because I'm turning 42 in November, but damn I just took a week off and was on vacation so I was drinking a lot, eating kinda poorly, not exercising other than SCUBA, and taking no supplements, and damn back at the gym this week I was noticeably weaker and it sucks.  It was especially noticeable on my squats today.  Yesterday my shoulder dumbell presses I also noticed it.  I didn't even attempt my highest weight because I could only get 6 reps of the set prior, which I got 8 the time I lifted before I was on vacation.

I've found that having more than a couple days off makes a noticeable effect. My wife has a PF black membership, so we can still hit the gym while on vacation, as those are pretty much everywhere. Barring that, I've got a set of loop style bands that travel easy. 

[purbeast]

11 hours ago, Camacho said:

I've found that having more than a couple days off makes a noticeable effect. My wife has a PF black membership, so we can still hit the gym while on vacation, as those are pretty much everywhere. Barring that, I've got a set of loop style bands that travel easy. 

When I'm on vacation, I'm on vacation lol.  I don't wanna workout.  I also use it as a recovery week to try and help nagging aches and pains go away, which didn't really happen this time.  That is definitely part of the "getting old" part.

 

I've taken weeks off before to try and recover but stayed at home so I kept my eating/supplement habit the same, and I think THAT is the biggest part of it versus taking the week off of lifting.  I mean I go from eating like 250+ grams of protein to eating like 100 maybe, and then eating much more carbs and liquid calories than I usually do.

[MillionX]

that reminds me; I only took a few days off some weeks ago... and that next time I was in my usual gym class it was noticeable.  On my time off all I did was sit around playing Diablo.  

My usual routine is just the weekends; it's become a thing I look forward to every time; they have all kinds of the boxing training bags to and dummys to hit, and some general fitness stuff like rowing machines, treadmills, weights and those ropes that are bolted to the ground that you have to whip around.  Usually I get in a good 1000-ish calorie burn each time (1-hour class sessions); at least that's the personal goal I like to hit. 

[JGreen]

Have any of you guys tried Indian clubs for shoulder mobility and injury prevention? I’ve seen it pop up recently and curious to try it. They don’t cost much money. 

[Darc_Requiem]

My out of shape ass is back on his push up grind. Let's see how long it lasts. 

[Vhozite]

3 hours ago, Dayaan said:

I'm not at the dorms anymore which means I am at the mercy of brown mom cooking. I cannot get lean like this. Any recipes you guys use on cuts? @Vhoziteyou handsome fucker, I'm sure you've got some stuff in mind.

I am the very last person to ask about anything diet related unfortunately. I’m still struggling to gain unfortunately my job situation has been crazy and I been missing meals 

 

Ive never deliberately cut a day in my life lol

[Haldol616]

I peddle my bmx do dumbbell bench press dumbbell rows and curl and press I eat a lot and take supplements for fast growth 

Edited June 4, 2024 by Haldol616

[Reticently]

I've lost 17lbs since last October just intermittently fasting instead of eating breakfast, and some light dumbbell work/pushups.

[Haldol616]

Light dumbbells are a good idea same as intermittent fasting too                                             I am about 140 at 5 feet 5 inches now 

Edited June 4, 2024 by Haldol616

[Haldol616]

On 12/20/2022 at 3:12 PM, Dayaan said:

I dropped my weight a little to 133 lbs. Gotta bring it back up!

 

I've been training calisthenics lately. Just bought some bars to work with and I'll buy Baseblocks later this year. Can anyone here do any higher level calisthenics and guide me through some training? Been working on my planche pushups and tucked planches lately...

Try push up planks and horse stances. Do various isometric exercises. Do various flexing and stretching exercises as well.

Edited June 4, 2024 by Haldol616

[Haldol616]

16 hours ago, Dayaan said:

😅 That post was from two years ago, friend.

 

Since then I've come very far, pivoted to MMA, and am in the process of pivoting back to calisthenics! I was actually just using the very same bars I mentioned in the original post, so that's great. I never did buy those Baseblocks because I realised I could do the same exercises for free, and still do those to this day. It's a nice callback, so thank you for that.

 

Back to the floor I go. Got caught up on forums between sets.

Are you competing? 

[Haldol616]

10 minutes ago, Haldol616 said:

Are you competing? 

I am actually 150 pounds at 15 percent body fat. I need about 3000 calories a day to maintain my weight.

[Haldol616]

1 hour ago, Dayaan said:

Not as of now!

Oh I see. What are your stats on physical strength?

[Haldol616]

3 minutes ago, Dayaan said:

If I posted them above then you're welcome to read it and guess where I'm at, but I don't really feel comfortable giving out "stats" at the moment!

Okay 

[Haldol616]

8 minutes ago, Haldol616 said:

Okay 

You can pm me your stats 

[Haldol616]

12 hours ago, Dayaan said:

Nope

Hahahaha 

[Haldol616]

9 hours ago, Haldol616 said:

Hahahaha 

I’m taking testosterone booster pills.                                 I’m actually 145 pounds at 15 percent body fat now.

Edited June 6, 2024 by Haldol616

[purbeast]

I have been trying to lean up and not lose any strength and so far I am doing pretty good.  I have lose 13-14 lbs since mid/late February.  I'm trying to lose like 1-1.5 pound a week and have been pretty on pace for that.  I went from 218 and am now 204 as of Thursday.  I want to see how I am feeling/looking if I get to 200.  I have lost VERY minimal strength but I have also changed up my routine a bit to do reps slower on the eccentric which meant I had to drop weight in most of them to keep my form in check when doing slow eccentric lifts.  I do feel like it's been better doing it that way and I am noticing my joints and stuff feel much better and my nagging injuries have gotten better since then.

 

Aside from my normal lifting routine which is monday - thursday, I am doing LISS (low intensity steady state) cardio friday - sunday for 25 mins on my treadmill at home.  I put it on 12 incline at 3.0mph and walk for 25 mins.  I've been eating much cleaner as well recently and lowered my carb intake quite a bit from what it was prior.  

[Haldol616]

I can shoulder press a 50 pound dumbbell with one arm 4 times. I can curl a 40 pound dumbbell with one arm 3 times. I can tricep extend a 30 pound dumbbell with one arm 1 time.

[purbeast]

2 hours ago, Haldol616 said:

I can shoulder press a 50 pound dumbbell with one arm 4 times. I can curl a 40 pound dumbbell with one arm 3 times. I can tricep extend a 30 pound dumbbell with one arm 1 time.

Not sure what your goals are, but keep at it.  I would suggest doing weights that you can get at least 6-8 reps of and are going close to failure.  It's okay to try and do heavier with lighter reps every now and then though, but I'd only do 1 set of those when doing an exercise.

 

50lb dumbell shoulder presses used to be my working sets of 6-8 years back but now my first warmup set is 55lb dumbells 8 times.   It just takes time to build up so stick with it.

 

I'm not sure what exercise you mean by "tricep extensions" but are you referring to sitting down and holding them behind your head, and pushing them up over your head?

[Haldol616]

47 minutes ago, purbeast said:

Not sure what your goals are, but keep at it.  I would suggest doing weights that you can get at least 6-8 reps of and are going close to failure.  It's okay to try and do heavier with lighter reps every now and then though, but I'd only do 1 set of those when doing an exercise.

 

50lb dumbell shoulder presses used to be my working sets of 6-8 years back but now my first warmup set is 55lb dumbells 8 times.   It just takes time to build up so stick with it.

 

I'm not sure what exercise you mean by "tricep extensions" but are you referring to sitting down and holding them behind your head, and pushing them up over your head?

While standing up. I just want to get stronger, faster, and more defined.

Edited June 10, 2024 by Haldol616

[polles]

Fitness involves maintaining a healthy lifestyle through regular exercise and balanced nutrition. For people, incorporating routines like 100 kettlebell swings a day can boost weight loss and overall fitness. Ensure proper form to avoid injury and balance with other exercises and rest for optimal results.

Edited June 26, 2024 by polles

[Haldol616]

I can curl and press 30 pounds about 11 times with one arm.

Edited June 14, 2024 by Haldol616

[Haldol616]

I can do 50 push ups max.

[Darc_Requiem]

On 6/8/2024 at 11:26 PM, Dayaan said:

Update? I've taken to paused incline pushups on my parallettes. Tough!

I've slacked off. I got back to 600 in day, got busy at work, and that was that. It was a lot easier to do when I spent my whole day at my cublcle instead of just half. I'm at a crossroads honestly. Do I want two more decades or 3 to 4 more decades? If I don't tighten up, it's going to be the former.

[Darc_Requiem]

@Dayaan44

[MillionX]

The regular gym routine has been such a great thing in life; I'd say it's always a good general recommendation for anyone in life, really....I started at this place in early 2020 (heh, right before the pandemic shut everything down for a while)...at first I only did weekends but I've been on their "ultimate" plan for quite a while now, able to go as much as I want per month.

 I was going to just lay around playing games on my day off yesterday but once again I was in there burning crazy calories----had 3 classes since work wasn't "in the way" yesterday; total burn was over 2,300 something.  There's also a leaderboard so that gave me some valuable points in terms of the rankings.

 

[Haldol616]

I rode my BMX 100 miles in one day. I can bench press 230 pounds. Lat pull down 230 pounds. Dead lift 400. Back extend 300. Shoulder press 125. Curl 110. Triceps extend 75. Do 200 incline sit ups.

Edited June 22, 2024 by Haldol616

[Haldol616]

I can run 80mph and ride my BMX 200mph

[Meier Link]

I spend 3000 calories a day with all the exercise I do.

[MillionX]

can't get enough of my current favorite work-out track here; I love hitting my ULTRA combos on the heavy bags (boxing fitness) to this... sheeeit, I'm going off like T.J. Combo in there when this track hits...

 

Also, an old classic forever in my workout playlist

 

[MillionX]

90 minute gym class yesterday... the numbers were ridiculous... I ended up with 1505 calories burned (only 1 other was past me; that dude was close to 1600!  ...this also helped me at least snag the #2 spot on the leaderboards for August); about 59 minutes in the "red zone"... it was crazy.  They should just make those special 90-minute classes a regular thing at least once a month.

Edited September 1, 2024 by MillionX

[intimigator]

On 9/1/2024 at 9:52 AM, MillionX said:

90 minute gym class yesterday... the numbers were ridiculous... I ended up with 1505 calories burned (only 1 other was past me; that dude was close to 1600!  ...this also helped me at least snag the #2 spot on the leaderboards for August); about 59 minutes in the "red zone"... it was crazy.  They should just make those special 90-minute classes a regular thing at least once a month.

Wow! That's amazing, mate. Good job!

 

I picked up American football and basketball, and played a ton of cornhole today too. Good day for work, but I'm really far behind you in terms of calories burned in a single workout!

[MillionX]

heh sheeeitttt, unfortunately I was unbelievably bad at basketball... didn't inherit those natural b-ball skills black dudes are supposed to have by default for whatever reason....I always hated when we got to that part of PE class in school.

 

my gym only had 1 class today; I thought about going but decided to be lazy instead... it was good to take a break after the 90 class last weekend.  Usually I'm in there consistently on the weekends + a couple of weekdays as well; I bought into the "ultimate" level membership so I could go as often as I want.  It's been one of the best decisions I've made in life, easily.... Dad takes some credit for throwing the idea out there some years ago.  

 

It's been quite a difference from when I started ---at first I was only going to 1 class per week...and that very first class I still remember feeling like I barely survived that shit. (*it's a fast-pace kinda thing, where from start to end it's non-stop stuff going on with a trainer guiding the class.)

[intimigator]

Just got a pair of Nike Vaporfly 3s. I need a way to carry my phone with me on runs, ideally through a sports bra or vest for men with a dedicated pocket. Does anyone know of such a thing? I fear the chafing on armbands and the floppiness of belts and pockets. Help?

[Camacho]

On 9/19/2024 at 9:36 PM, intimigator said:

Just got a pair of Nike Vaporfly 3s. I need a way to carry my phone with me on runs, ideally through a sports bra or vest for men with a dedicated pocket. Does anyone know of such a thing? I fear the chafing on armbands and the floppiness of belts and pockets. Help?

Your skin will toughen up after a while if you get chafed. Fanny pack is another option. 

[intimigator]

That was definitely the best run of my life, and it was the first! It was great, and I can't wait to get out there again. There are a lot of details that I can talk about and expand on, but I think what's appropriate to post here is that things went well, and I hope to pursue this further.

[MillionX]

It would be another 90-minute class this past weekend... I didn't think my numbers would be all that since the previous day was below my usual standard and I wasn't quite 100%, but I still got close to 1400 calorie burn.  The whole class was doing well too; at least 5 or so people were also up over 1100 at least by the end; it was awesome.

[purbeast]

Just don't get hung up on those calorie numbers the machines are spitting out.  It's good to use them to gauge relative work between different workouts and to see how changing up different things can effect the intensity which in turn burns more calories, but the actual number can be far from accurate.  It's simply not possible to calculate the calories burnt for people in any generic way like that.

[intimigator]

19 hours ago, purbeast said:

Just don't get hung up on those calorie numbers the machines are spitting out.  It's good to use them to gauge relative work between different workouts and to see how changing up different things can effect the intensity which in turn burns more calories, but the actual number can be far from accurate.  It's simply not possible to calculate the calories burnt for people in any generic way like that.

Had a great run yesterday. WHOOP had me burning 349 calories. Apple Watch had me at 320.

 

Treadmill?

[purbeast]

10 minutes ago, intimigator said:

Had a great run yesterday. WHOOP had me burning 349 calories. Apple Watch had me at 320.

 

Treadmill?

I don't know what WHOOP is.  I'd assume that the Apple Watch would at least have you input your measurements like height/weight at least right?  I've never used one.

 

 Even with JUST that it's still going to be just a huge guestimate, but I'd say it is "more accurate" than just the random numbers that treadmills spit out.

[intimigator]

1 hour ago, purbeast said:

I don't know what WHOOP is.  I'd assume that the Apple Watch would at least have you input your measurements like height/weight at least right?  I've never used one.

 

 Even with JUST that it's still going to be just a huge guestimate, but I'd say it is "more accurate" than just the random numbers that treadmills spit out.

The Apple Watch is not that great for this. The WHOOP is more of a dedicated tool for tracking these things. Necessarily, it is worse than a true laboratory test, but it is incredibly close and definitely fulfills my needs. They work with athletes to tune their algorithms and tracking methodologies, and it shows. I have checked the WHOOP against dedicated equipment for everything that it tracks, and it gets incredibly close for many, many things. There is also a necessary degree of manual data entry to keep it accurate, which I also appreciate. The Apple Watch, for me, is just a step tracker and useful for everything a smartwatch does besides fitness. It isn't precise enough, but still useful.

[purbeast]

40 minutes ago, intimigator said:

The Apple Watch is not that great for this. The WHOOP is more of a dedicated tool for tracking these things. Necessarily, it is worse than a true laboratory test, but it is incredibly close and definitely fulfills my needs. They work with athletes to tune their algorithms and tracking methodologies, and it shows. I have checked the WHOOP against dedicated equipment for everything that it tracks, and it gets incredibly close for many, many things. There is also a necessary degree of manual data entry to keep it accurate, which I also appreciate. The Apple Watch, for me, is just a step tracker and useful for everything a smartwatch does besides fitness. It isn't precise enough, but still useful.

Gotcha yeah it all depends on how much data you input to have it do the calculations.

 

But just saying things like "a 200lb 40 year old male" is not going to really do much for those algorithms, which is what I was really getting at with these numbers.  There is much more variance to the true calorie burn rate than knowing weight, age, and gender.  There are just so many more factors.

 

The real way to test/figure it all out is through keeping track of what you are eating and where your weight is, over a period of time.