I thought real mens played real sports which keep real scores.
Real talk.
Jerk...[wmv] [mov]
Jerk (behind the head)...[wmv] [mov]
For the treadmill, I look at the numbers on the display like calories burned, time, incline, etc. and I make number combinations out of them.
A particularly exciting moment is when I get 34:56 lapsed because I know it will never be like that again for the rest of the workout.
That or times like 13:35. See there are two digit differences between 1 and 3 and 3 and 5. Add each side together and you get 4 and 8. The average is 6, which is the same value of the addition of two middle numbers, 3 + 3.
how does one not find exercise mind-numbingly dull
if i could take a drug to turn my brain off i would exercise all the time
instead, even a 30 minute jog seems like a fucking lifetime, even with an mp3 player cranked
serious, here. i do the occasional exercise because hey, it's healthy and i don't wanna end up like some of my coworkers, but on the other hand, snooooooore
how does one not find exercise mind-numbingly dull
if i could take a drug to turn my brain off i would exercise all the time
instead, even a 30 minute jog seems like a fucking lifetime, even with an mp3 player cranked
serious, here. i do the occasional exercise because hey, it's healthy and i don't wanna end up like some of my coworkers, but on the other hand, snooooooore
My dad was a competing powerlifter so I essentially grew up in the atmosphere of weight lifting, the gym, and all that. Plus when I went out for football, weight lifting was mandatory. I just kept going with it after High School.
In fact, if I don't exercise, I get maybe 3-4 hours of sleep at the most.
drohne (I think) had a theory where you need to hate yourself enough that the fear of being pear-shaped trumps the drudgery of exercise. Sounds plausible too.
well, it'd be nice to be able to hike up a few hills with going into an quasi-asthmatic fit
however, i'm also not terribly motivated beyond the basics because i'm generally pretty content with my own laziness
so answer me this: why the proselytization? i'll do it out of curiosity if you want, because non-boring exercise is intriguing as a concept even as i think it highly unlikely
how does one not find exercise mind-numbingly dull
if i could take a drug to turn my brain off i would exercise all the time
instead, even a 30 minute jog seems like a fucking lifetime, even with an mp3 player cranked
serious, here. i do the occasional exercise because hey, it's healthy and i don't wanna end up like some of my coworkers, but on the other hand, snooooooore
You guys who find plain jogging to be drag should check into turning it into more of a 'point A to point B and damned whatever is in between affair.' Although, that may not be the best idea for those with questionable joints, but it makes it feel like there's a purpose to it (other than personal fitness). Will also train you for whenever you have to escape an angry mob, the police, or whatever.
You guys who find plain jogging to be drag should check into turning it into more of a 'point A to point B and damned whatever is in between affair.' Although, that may not be the best idea for those with questionable joints, but it makes it feel like there's a purpose to it (other than personal fitness). Will also train you for whenever you have to escape an angry mob, the police, or whatever.
Yeah, and you can also try...not jogging. Seriously, if you hate it that much, there are plenty of alternatives. You probably don't need to run anywhere near as much as you think.
QuoteOn the other hand, take the distance you would normally run, cut it in half, slice it up into rounds of 400 meter sprints interspersed by rounds of fast power cleans, for example, and you have a workout that provides more calorie burn, helps you maintain strength (and may well increase it), keeps you jumping between wildly different activities with different physical requirements (different metabolic pathways, muscle groups etc) and is done in half the time.
the crossfit routines certainly fits more to short lunchtimes.
but one note though : i did find that this changed my abilities drastically. my stop-start burst sprinting that i'd use at Futsal, i could suddenly do all day rather than have to conserve some energy (i.e. : don't bother defending, token trackback, save for scoring ops) , but my distance running ability dropped right off (which i'd read wouldn't happen and that many distance runners use CF to improve overal distance stamina).
5 Km feels like hell right now, and i never used to get into my stride until 7-8km (at 12-13km/h)
Right now, i've been at the pies, so it's even harder. lol.
Mac has great advice. He helped me out a lot. I'm back to swimming laps primarily, with so cross fit and weights mixed in.
Hippie? Aerobics involves people running around in colourful, form-fitting lycra. I feel cigarillo or wilde homo would be more appropriate guys.
sigh, i enjoy what i do, and that's what exercise is about for me, you crossfit nazi you ! ;)
Between this stay fit stuff, the daily WDYB and the cookware thread, I think we all have a little spandex going on. All we need is a thread about Glade plug-ins, really. :-*
Crossfit doesn't really fit with my goals -- not that I can really talk about lifting goals, since they've recently been superseded by schoolwork. Next semester I'll be less busy though and I'll finally hit the gym again with Rippetoe's program. I can stand to bulk up 20 lbs.; the added speed and power will be a nice bonus.
so this is the new bulging face of viking homosexuality
i was kinda thinkin "hey, cormac's a good guy, he might have a point" but the grunting apes in these videos frightened me away :(
Of course people grunt when doing exercise!
Of course people grunt when doing exercise!
I swear, a lot. So much so that the kid goes off on rants of the "Jesus fucked in hell" variety whenever she lifts stuff from the floor. :-[
no, i have nothing against competition, it just doesn't motivate me overmuch although i enjoy a good bout of trash talk as much as the next guy
what does "looking good" get me -- i don't have a lot of insecurities, here
my wife is an exercise fiend for her health first and foremost. where's the competition in wanting to be healthy? i ask because i'm getting some conflicting messages here
Of course people grunt when doing exercise!
I swear, a lot. So much so that the kid goes off on rants of the "Jesus fucked in hell" variety whenever she lifts stuff from the floor. :-[
:rock
I'm terrified of the kid being around the barbell though. I was squatting on my porch one night when my wife took the kid out to see what Daddy was doing - I almost dropped the barbell on them. Kids have no fear of this stuff at all.
My dad was a competing powerlifter so I essentially grew up in the atmosphere of weight lifting, the gym, and all that. Plus when I went out for football, weight lifting was mandatory. I just kept going with it after High School.
In fact, if I don't exercise, I get maybe 3-4 hours of sleep at the most.
Awesome that you grew up with heavy weights! I agree with you pretty much on the primacy of the squat and deadlift for strength, maybe not so much the bench. But then I don't have a bench at home so I still have an excuse not to do it at this point. Have you read any of Mark Rippetoe's powerlifting stuff? He gives more weight (har har) to the (strict) press than the bench press.
I'm also learning the Olympic lifts. Pretty decent with the power clean, ok on the clean & jerk. Haven't even started on the snatch.
so what changed your mindset if it was the same as mine?
I'm a Rippetoe advocate.
Squat, squat, squat, and then do a few other things.
Crossfit doesn't really fit with my goals -- not that I can really talk about lifting goals, since they've recently been superseded by schoolwork. Next semester I'll be less busy though and I'll finally hit the gym again with Rippetoe's program. I can stand to bulk up 20 lbs.; the added speed and power will be a nice bonus.
Cool - have you done Starting Strength before? I'm basically trying to do at least one, sometimes 2, SS-esque days per week. I'm definitely not doing the program but i'm looking into it. The SS book is great if you haven't read it.
I'm happy that there is a gym in my building that's pretty good. The only issue that old people are always on the treadmill and there is some crazy lady that talks to herself while, but going at odd hours lets me avoid them.
I'm 5'10" and 162lbs. I go 3 times a week to the local gym and do (this is mostly on machines, except lower abdomen I hoister myself up and kick my legs out):I don't want to completely shit on anyone's routine.
Pulldowns/upper back - 3 sets, 10 reps @ 130lbs
Shoulders - 3 sets, 12 reps @ 75lbs
Biceps - 3 sets, 10 reps @ 45lbs
Triceps - 3 sets, 10 reps @ 60lbs
Chest - 3 sets, 10 reps @ 105lbs
Leg press - 3 sets, 10 reps @ 200lbs
Abs - 3 sets, 30 reps @ 50lbs
Lower back - 3 sets, 10 reps @ 100lbs
Lower abs - 3 sets, 12 reps
No cardio, since I'm a bit too lazy and I have aortic stenosis (a heart condition). Though I do mountainbiking from time to time for fun. I just started earlier in the year, looking to gain a bit of muscle and tone, and trim down my gut a bit. I was always thin person, with a good metabolism + decent diet (although I'll go a bit heavy on the meat and carbs from time to time). But, after going, I feel great and working out has done wonders for my confidence. Not to mention, I've been getting some more looks from women ever since I started going, which in turn inspires me to go more.
Am I on the right track, or are there any other suggestions you guys have?
I don't want to completely shit on anyone's routine.
Exercise talk tends to degenerate like the console wars. People have opinions, and they present those opinions as facts. People get mad, talk gets heated, you know the score.
That being said.
I think that routine is garbage. Machines are garbage. Anything you can do 10 reps of is garbage. Lifting the same weight week after week is garbage.
Switch to free weights. Concentrate on big compound lifts. Try to put 10 lbs on your leg and back lifts every week, 5lbs on your chest and shoulder lefts.
But what do you think are the disadvantages of using machines? I prefer machines to free weights as of now, because I'm not terribly coordinated and have trouble maintaining form
I am probably going to have to start eating more though.
Do you understand that, people? That is the best part of lifting weights. It's the one exercise program that actively encourages you to stuff your face. It requires you to stuff your face. How can you not be down with that?
I wouldn't call it extreme, it just requires a lot of dedication. Like, if I wanted to down a gallon of milk a day, I'd need to keep 5 gallons at work, and just chug it all day long. Craziness.
But Rippetoe creates monsters. His program, when it works 100%, puts like 30-40 pounds on a guy in about a year. That's just obscene.
I could see myself switching to a crossfit style program in maybe 6 months. I'd like to put another 10 pounds on first, at least.
edit: If you have a cage, I don't think you need a spotter. I don't sweat a spot when I squat. If you gotta dump it, just drop to your knees or to your butt. All you'll do is make a lot of noise.
Draft, you suggested to get a 'bar' for pullups after you can do 100 pushups. Are there bars that don't damage the house? There's no place here I can put it into the wall and the door frames are made of wood so I don't want to damage that either.
I am probably going to have to start eating more though.
Do you understand that, people? That is the best part of lifting weights. It's the one exercise program that actively encourages you to stuff your face. It requires you to stuff your face. How can you not be down with that?
Eating right and being active has always worked out fine for me, but I'm the type of person to wear v-necks and clubbing sunglasses.
Same routine is fine, you just need to add weight. You can't keep pressing 100 lbs week after week, it's just spinning gears.Any warm up sets?
Free weights are better than machines for two big reasons:
1. Full range of motion. Most machines will not allow you to engage the full ROM on whatever lift you are doing. The worst offender is the smith machine for doing squats. However, smith machine while doing the bench is OK. Not the best, but OK if you can't get a spotter.
2. Free weights force stabilizer muscles to activate so you can hold the proper form. Machines allow those muscles to slack off because you're just sliding a weight along a preset path. It's noticeably easier to use machines. Like, for example, you say chest 105x10.. I'm assuming this is a bench, on a smith machine. Try to put up 105 with free weights. I'm betting you will not be able to complete 3x10x105.
Like I said, I'm a Rippetoe advocate. Rippetoe's beginner program is as follows:
Day A:
Squat 3x5
Press 3x5
Power Clean 5x3
Day B:
Squat 3x5
Bench 3x5
Deadlift 1x5
You alternate, 3 days a week, MWF, or TTS, or whatever. And you EAT. And you SLEEP.
Those 5 lifts are the big, huge, mass and strength building compound lifts. They hit every major muscle group, and hard. You only do sets of 5 because the goal is to just slap mad weight on every time you hit the gym.
It's a common misconception that a routine like this, one built around big lifts and mass/strength gains, is going to turn you into some roided out monster. You wish. Getting that big is incredibly hard. You have to be putting away many thousands of calories a day and lifting like a Goddamn monster.
As Draft said upthread, yeah, you wish you could get big that fast!
I've been lifting heavy for over a year, and overall i've gotten smaller. I may look bigger because I've got less fat covering up the muscle but I've gone down a few shirt sizes. Which is the kind of wardrobe problem you want to have.
As Draft said upthread, yeah, you wish you could get big that fast!
I've been lifting heavy for over a year, and overall i've gotten smaller. I may look bigger because I've got less fat covering up the muscle but I've gone down a few shirt sizes. Which is the kind of wardrobe problem you want to have.
This really depends on the body type you're starting from.
Don't let lifting weights turn you into a dick ;)
Is there a set of rings that you recommend then? I never did end up getting the Iron Gym simply because it looked pretty cheap.