The Fitness Thread

[TipRoast]

I have a couple of things that work for me.

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I have found that registering for a race (for me, that was 1/2 marathons, triathlons, and duathlons) is a great motivator. Having a financial commitment out there makes me train more faithfully and pay more attention to diet. And an olympic-distance triathlon (1500 meter swim, 40K bike, 10K run) is definitely something you'll want to train for, although I haven't done one of those in a while. These days you can find sprint triathlons pretty easily, which is what I look for. And the duathlons I do are of a similar (and reasonable) intensity (5K run, 20K bike, 5K run), but still require some training.

And there's something else about triathlons and duathlons: the feedback your legs give you when you get off the bike and start to run is something unforgettable (and not in a good way).

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The other thing that works really well for me is the 10,000 kettlebell swing challenge:

The 10,000 Swing Kettlebell Workout

A Complete 4-Week Plan The best kettlebell workout. The most powerful kettlebell exercise plus hardcore strength work. Get ready to be better… at everything! The Kettlebell Workout Challenge Without challenges, the human body will soften. We thrive when we push our boundaries, reach goals...

www.t-nation.com

I have combined the kettlebell challenge with the 30-day start-up Paleo diet a few times in the past.

The Whole30® Program - The Whole30® Program

The Whole30 Program Rules are laid out in two phases: 30 days of elimination, and 10 days of reintroduction.

whole30.com

It's not for everyone, but as I said, it works for me. (Full disclosure - I don't do the 24 kg (53 lb) kettlebell anymore. I've given myself permission to have a senior citizen's discount and now use a 35 lb kettlebell.)

 

[spacecrime]

I have a couple of things that work for me.

---

I have found that registering for a race (for me, that was 1/2 marathons, triathlons, and duathlons) is a great motivator. Having a financial commitment out there makes me train more faithfully and pay more attention to diet. And an olympic-distance triathlon (1500 meter swim, 40K bike, 10K run) is definitely something you'll want to train for, although I haven't done one of those in a while. These days you can find sprint triathlons pretty easily, which is what I look for. And the duathlons I do are of a similar (and reasonable) intensity (5K run, 20K bike, 5K run), but still require some training.

And there's something else about triathlons and duathlons: the feedback your legs give you when you get off the bike and start to run is something unforgettable (and not in a good way).

---

The other thing that works really well for me is the 10,000 kettlebell swing challenge:

The 10,000 Swing Kettlebell Workout

A Complete 4-Week Plan The best kettlebell workout. The most powerful kettlebell exercise plus hardcore strength work. Get ready to be better… at everything! The Kettlebell Workout Challenge Without challenges, the human body will soften. We thrive when we push our boundaries, reach goals...

www.t-nation.com

I have combined the kettlebell challenge with the 30-day start-up Paleo diet a few times in the past.

The Whole30® Program - The Whole30® Program

The Whole30 Program Rules are laid out in two phases: 30 days of elimination, and 10 days of reintroduction.

whole30.com

It's not for everyone, but as I said, it works for me. (Full disclosure - I don't do the 24 kg (53 lb) kettlebell anymore. I've given myself permission to have a senior citizen's discount and now use a 35 lb kettlebell.)

Wow, I love everyone's methods and successes.

There are some things I know are good for me and yet I doubt I will ever do them. Kettlebells and burpees are two such things.

The Whole 30 was amazing and I confess that the fact that it was only 30 days is what got me to do it. For those unaware, the short explanation of a Whole 30 is to eat only whole foods for 30 days.

IIRC, for 30 days you cut groups of food out of your diet:

sugar (forget if honey and fruit were allowed)
grains containing gluten
other grains (rice corn, etc)
dairy
legumes
alcohol

It's been 6-7 years so I might be mistaken about the groups. Or what you did on day 31, which was put back one group. Then after a week, put back another group, but say gluten for next to last, and IIRC, never put sugar back in

It took me two weeks to lose the achiness in my joints and about 3-4 days after I put gluten back in my diet to find out that my achiness was not being old, it was gluten. Or more correctly, inflammation caused by gluten.

 

[spacecrime]

Oh no, that wasn't a critism of your post. I knew the next things I was going to say might come across that way. You and I have a similar philosophy in this.

I originally did keto about 8 years ago and lost 100 lbs with it. Since then it's gotten more and more dirty and I've put some back on.

So I dove in again into nutrition and the mechanisms behind the different hormones (like insulin like you mentioned), and have a new plan now.

In the last 6 months I have lost the weight that I had slowly gained back from the initial weight loss, but this time I am not going let my diet slip like I did before and I think reaching college age weights is realistic for me.

Physically, I feel better now than I have since I was a teen.

I didn't take it as criticism but my post could have been better worded.

A lot has changed in the science and research world since your long-time-ago thread which pre-dated autophagy (Yoshinori Ohsumi won the nobel prize in medicine in 2016 for his work on fasting and cell regeneration).

I like having fitness and diet in the same thread. And I love both success and oh-crap-here-go-again stories.

 

[Undertaker #59*]

I didn't take it as criticism but my post could have been better worded.

A lot has changed in the science and research world since your long-time-ago thread which pre-dated autophagy (Yoshinori Ohsumi won the nobel prize in medicine in 2016 for his work on fasting and cell regeneration).

I like having fitness and diet in the same thread. And I love both success and oh-crap-here-go-again stories.

I've learned so much in the past 8 months or so including the wonderful process that is autophagy. It's like keto was on the right track those years ago, but wasn't really enough of the whole picture. Though back then I may have not been successful with the big changes I've made today. Straight keto and LCHF may have served as a great transition step.

I am also very encouraged by the studies about cancer, heart disease, and dementia.

But getting back to exercise, while I think there is no doubt it can be very good for you, most studies show that it has a marginal impact if the primary goal of it is weight loss.

 

[Alk]

I'm taking my first shot at this whole meal prep thing this week. I roasted up some sweet potatoes and chicken breasts. We'll see how it goes.

 

[BostonTim]

I'm taking my first shot at this whole meal prep thing this week. I roasted up some sweet potatoes and chicken breasts. We'll see how it goes.

Great. Count on it.

 

[Big/Sky/Fly]

Intermittent fasting works best for me. And the MOSSAD. They do it too.

 

[TipRoast]

But getting back to exercise, while I think there is no doubt it can be very good for you, most studies show that it has a marginal impact if the primary goal of it is weight loss.

True. And as you point out, the benefits of working out are many, in addition to its impact on weight loss, or more accurately, weight distribution.

Some of the benefits of exercise can include:

• Aerobic fitness: Not being out of breath when you get to the top of a flight of stairs
• Strength: being able to move suitcases in and out of the overhead compartments on airplanes
• Agility/flexibility: not throwing out your back when you move suddenly
• Stress reduction: when you're working out, you're doing something positive about your life
• Social fitness: if you're in a gym or running in a race or participating in a walk-a-thon, you're part of a community

A couple of things that I haven't seen mentioned so far: getting enough sleep and stretching.

Sleep helps the body recover from all that exercise, and also, when you're sleeping, you're not eating.

And stretching allows you to achieve gains in flexibility. Here's something to help people get started, if anyone is interested.

What is ROMWOD? - The WOD Life

You’ve seen your favorite athletes posting about it on social media. You know it has something to do with mobility. But what is ROMWOD, exactly, and why should you care about it? What is ROMWOD? ROM refers to range of motion, and it’s what ROMWOD is all about. ROMWOD offers stretching routines...

blog.thewodlife.com.au

 

[John Locke]

Intermittent fasting works best for me. And the MOSSAD. They do it too.

Ziva's spectacular figure approves.

Old folks may be the only ones that get that reference cuz NCIS appears tailored to them with drama, intrigue, cliffhangers and ultimate and apparently essential happy endings. Not a Bob Kraft rub and tug happy ending, though he is of a certain age to enjoy the show.

 

[aloyouis]

I like having fitness and diet in the same thread. And I love both success and oh-crap-here-go-again stories.

They are intrinsically linked. Healthy = eating well + exercise. As I said above, I eat pretty much whatever I want. What is different now vs when I was 240 is what I want to eat and how much is different. Forming the right habits and building sustainable momentum. The key word is "sustainable". Trying to do extreme things simply will not last for 99% of us including me.

Eat well. Don't smoke. Move your body.

 

[spacecrime]

• Stress reduction: when you're working out, you're doing something positive about your life

It's even more than feeling positive about your self. Research has shown a direct link between exercise and brain health. But you're right. It's hard not to strut a bit when you walk when you'r lean and muscular

 

[BostonTim]

It's even more than feeling positive about your self. Research has shown a direct link between exercise and brain health. But you're right. It's hard not to strut a bit when you walk when you'r lean and muscular

I remember that. Vaguely.

Cheers

 

[Alk]

I'm taking my first shot at this whole meal prep thing this week. I roasted up some sweet potatoes and chicken breasts. We'll see how it goes.

First attempt was so so. The chicken needs some work. It's pretty dry. Might have to switch over to chicken thighs instead of breasts. Either that or I'll give the grill a try now that it's getting nicer.

 

[fulltilt]

Just caught an Adam Sandler flick at my buddies house. There was this really large mamal of a guy in the Marathon. 8000-1 odds. 20 bucks won Adam 160 grand or some shit.

I believe in you. You can do it.

You just have to believe in yourself like R. Freaking Kelly, he went places no man should have ever gone. Look it up. Lol


View: https://youtu.be/8-9KCDxBpT4

Captain James T Kirk says "hold my beer"

 

[Big/Sky/Fly]

Captain James T Kirk says "hold my beer"

Is he related to Christian?

 

[Alk]

In case any of you are interested. This is the beginner workout that my son gave me. Leg day is still absolutely brutal for me to get through and going into this I thought that would be the easiest one for me considering all of the running that I had been doing.

Edit: I should clarify. This isn't all done in one day. This is split up into three days.

Pull:
4X12 dumbbell row
4X12 lat pulldowns
4X12 dumbbell shrugs
4X12 rear delt fly
4X12 barbell curls
4 sets till failure of assisted pull up

Push:
4X12 dumbbell bench press
4X12 dumbbell shoulder press
4X12 dumbbell chest flies (I normally do these on the machine instead)
4X12 barbell skullcrushers
4X12 rope push down
4 sets till failure push ups

Legs:
4X12 smith machine squats (my gym doesn't have an actual squat rack but this is good enough for me)
4X12 Bulgarian split squat (my least favorite exercise ever)
4X12 dumbbell lunges
4X12 goblet squat
4X12 Romanian deadlift
4X12 dumbbell side raises (not legs but I guess he figured he didn't abuse my shoulders enough on the other days. )

 

[BostonTim]

In case any of you are interested. This is the beginner workout that my son gave me. Leg day is still absolutely brutal for me to get through and going into this I thought that would be the easiest one for me considering all of the running that I had been doing.

Pull:
4X12 dumbbell row
4X12 lat pulldowns
4X12 dumbbell shrugs
4X12 rear delt fly
4X12 barbell curls
4 sets till failure of assisted pull up

Push:
4X12 dumbbell bench press
4X12 dumbbell shoulder press
4X12 dumbbell chest flies (I normally do these on the machine instead)
4X12 barbell skullcrushers
4X12 rope push down
4 sets till failure push ups

Legs:
4X12 smith machine squats (my gym doesn't have an actual squat rack but this is good enough for me)
4X12 Bulgarian split squat (my least favorite exercise ever)
4X12 dumbbell lunges
4X12 goblet squat
4X12 Romanian deadlift
4X12 dumbbell side raises (not legs but I guess he figured he didn't abuse my shoulders enough on the other days. )_

Alls I did was read your list.. The rescue wagon and I are just arriving at the ER loading doc.

 

[patfan64]

I did a search because I figured at some point somebody had started a fitness thread of some kind but no luck. I honestly can't even believe that me of all people is starting one. I had been running five days a week for the past two years. I managed to lose about 35 lbs without making much of a change to my diet other than portions. I kind of hit a wall though. I hadn't lost any weight in quite some time and was getting pretty tired of running every day. My son is a workout freak and he had been trying to get me to go to the gym. I finally caved and joined a gym at the start of this year. It took me a while to work up the courage to join (this is a thing apparently) but I finally did it. He drew up a workout plan for me. I go to the gym three days a week and run two days. That first week was absolute hell but it was pretty satisfying knowing that I had done that to myself. I still haven't lost any weight but I'm really seeing a difference in my body. I can do things now that I probably never could have done in my younger years. I have kind of made that my priority. I will sacrifice one day of running if I absolutely have to but no matter what I get those three days in. I have tried to make small changes to my diet but I still fail pretty regularly. So anyway, what's everyone else's workout regimen? Or just feel free to pop in and make fun of me. That's cool too.

Great topic Alk. I typically run three days and workout 2 - 3 when I'm not in Cross Country season. I change that to running 5 days per week and no working out.

I was 210 when I started running in 2013. Got down to 167 when I did the marathon in 2017. Optimal weight for me is 175 (I'm just shy of 5'10") Currently at 186 so I've got some work to do.

Now that the warmer weather is coming, I'll hopefully get up early and run a few miles before school.

Thanks for the inspiration.

 

[Alk]

Great topic Alk. I typically run three days and workout 2 - 3 when I'm not in Cross Country season. I change that to running 5 days per week and no working out.

I was 210 when I started running in 2013. Got down to 167 when I did the marathon in 2017. Optimal weight for me is 175 (I'm just shy of 5'10") Currently at 186 so I've got some work to do.

Now that the warmer weather is coming, I'll hopefully get up early and run a few miles before school.

Thanks for the inspiration.

I'm looking forward to the warmer weather too. I always tend to run lighter in the summer time due to being outside doing more things. I'm hoping to maybe get down to my goal of 200 by the end of summer.

 

[patfan64]

I'm looking forward to the warmer weather too. I always tend to run lighter in the summer time due to being outside doing more things. I'm hoping to maybe get down to my goal of 200 by the end of summer.

Good luck!!