Fitocracy Catch-All

duckideva wrote:

Sandbags: I got nothing. Search: Yeah, it's gotten wonky.

Also; I think I'm probably going to give up on Fitocracy soon. It's become more of a demotivator than anything. Since I'm never going to be able to lift weights like a guy, (cause...ya know; middle aged woman with knee replacements and old motorcycle injuries) and I don't want to be a power lifter, I feel pretty unrewarded in both points and purpose.

I'm still going to work out; but I think I'm going to search for a solution that doesn't put me in a position of never feeling good enough about what I'm doing, and that lets me easy see, track and print progression over time. I'd also like to find a solution that has some sort of calorie journal, so I can try and figure out what's causing plateaus in goals.

Any recommendations for a female friendly fitness journal application?

Hey duckdiva,

Check out "myfitnesspal".

My wife and I use it. You can track your calories and exercise. myfatsecret is similar but I prefer myfitnesspal, it seems to have more foods in it's database.

They both allow you to use your phone/tablet etc to scan barcodes and enter items to track calories.

I understand your frustration with fitocracy. I look at the "front front" page and think, that's insane. Those guys on the top of the leaderboards are professional athletes/insane lifters. The average joe doesn't have a chance at "competing" with them. That's why I like using the site to track what I'm doing, that's my main focus, how am I doing. I don't lift/run for points, I just get points for running/lifting.

Good luck.

Tim

I wish there was just a way to turn off the points.

Miashara wrote:

I wish there was just a way to turn off the points.

Aren't the points the point? You know, the leveling up and stuff?

Duckidiva, +1 on MyFitnessPal from me too.

I'm about a week into MyFitnessPal, and it's essentially a much better version of the Weight Watchers online app.

If the point thing bothers you I suggest ignoring it for now. I think Fitocracy does a real good job of allowing you to track all your exercises and display it in different formats. Just you it for tracking and chatting and it may be more friendly!

After looking back at some of the challenge top 10, it seems plenty of cardio activity does score pretty high. Rowing, bike classes, running. I think high weights will always trump the majority but it does not disregard cardio.

karmajay wrote:

If the point thing bothers you I suggest ignoring it for now. I think Fitocracy does a real good job of allowing you to track all your exercises and display it in different formats. Just you it for tracking and chatting and it may be more friendly!

Pretty much. Other than the points it's really useful, enough so I use it in spite of the points. But I do wish I could just turn them off.

Thanks for the recommendations, I'll go check it out.

I've stopped caring about the leveling aspect of Fitocracy. It's just for logging my workouts now. There are probably better apps for that, too. Maybe I'll look for one.

NSMike wrote:

I've stopped caring about the leveling aspect of Fitocracy. It's just for logging my workouts now. There are probably better apps for that, too. Maybe I'll look for one.

That's become less important for me too, mostly because I've been mucking about on there long enough that there's a distinct plateau that occurs in the higher levels. I've already picked off the low-hanging fruit in terms of achievements and level-ups are few and far between.

That said, logging my workout has become part of my routine - it promotes accountability and a couple of moments reflection on how the workout went and what the implications of that are for the next few workouts.

And that's well worth it for me.

Didn't Evilhomer leave for greener pastures a while back? I thought he hadn't found anything that worked as well and came back to fitocracy.

NSMike wrote:

I've stopped caring about the leveling aspect of Fitocracy. It's just for logging my workouts now. There are probably better apps for that, too. Maybe I'll look for one.

Ditto.

Plus the props feel good as well.

Time for a new group challenge!

GWJ Points-less Pedometer Power Play wrote:

Hey kids! Time to change it up. Last few group challenges have been points based, which as well all know gives the burly folk a huge advantage. Let's turn the tables on the meatheads! This challenge is for the Most Distance Travelled on Foot. Running, walking, hiking, if you're putting one foot in front of the other, it's counts, and it's how far you go, not how fast. It runs (see what I did there?) for a month, and as spring is turning, it's an excuse to get out there and play in the world.

You've got a good two-and-a-bit weeks to sign up before it starts.

NSMike wrote:

I've stopped caring about the leveling aspect of Fitocracy. It's just for logging my workouts now. There are probably better apps for that, too. Maybe I'll look for one.

Yep. This. Fito is important to me for seeing stars (does his 405 dance ONE! MORE! TIME!), comments, and running those sweet little performance graphs. I don't want to take the props away from anybody, but I'd trade 10 props for an additional comment. I just don't care that you thumbed me up, and I am tired of just thumbing you up. So I am going to start dropping more comments, instead. Our fito group is not as chatty as I would have expected. Perhaps that is because most of GWJ posts hardcore, here.

The weight of a comment hit me in real life a couple weeks ago. I walk into the gym and start my credentials processing. The OTHER guy behind the counter catches my eye and asks "Deadlifting today?"
Sort of startled me. It was deadlift day.
"Yes, it is" I paused, then asked "How did you know?"
He just smiles and says "I see you over there... you are the only one who does it right."
Friends, THAT put a can-do attitude in my mind and body. Shattered a rep record by three reps that day.

Jonman wrote:

Time for a new group challenge!

GWJ Points-less Pedometer Power Play wrote:

Hey kids! Time to change it up. Last few group challenges have been points based, which as well all know gives the burly folk a huge advantage. Let's turn the tables on the meatheads! This challenge is for the Most Distance Travelled on Foot. Running, walking, hiking, if you're putting one foot in front of the other, it's counts, and it's how far you go, not how fast. It runs (see what I did there?) for a month, and as spring is turning, it's an excuse to get out there and play in the world.

You've got a good two-and-a-bit weeks to sign up before it starts.

Too bad you can't log distance for cross country skiing or I'd join in. I could do snowshoeing but I like the built in downhill reward part of skiing far too much

Jonman wrote:

Time for a new group challenge!

GWJ Points-less Pedometer Power Play wrote:

Hey kids! Time to change it up. Last few group challenges have been points based, which as well all know gives the burly folk a huge advantage. Let's turn the tables on the meatheads! This challenge is for the Most Distance Travelled on Foot. Running, walking, hiking, if you're putting one foot in front of the other, it's counts, and it's how far you go, not how fast. It runs (see what I did there?) for a month, and as spring is turning, it's an excuse to get out there and play in the world.

You've got a good two-and-a-bit weeks to sign up before it starts.

But... but.... how will I bench for distance?

wickbroke wrote:
NSMike wrote:

I've stopped caring about the leveling aspect of Fitocracy. It's just for logging my workouts now. There are probably better apps for that, too. Maybe I'll look for one.

Yep. This. Fito is important to me for seeing stars (does his 405 dance ONE! MORE! TIME!), comments, and running those sweet little performance graphs. I don't want to take the props away from anybody, but I'd trade 10 props for an additional comment. I just don't care that you thumbed me up, and I am tired of just thumbing you up. So I am going to start dropping more comments, instead. Our fito group is not as chatty as I would have expected. Perhaps that is because most of GWJ posts hardcore, here.

The weight of a comment hit me in real life a couple weeks ago. I walk into the gym and start my credentials processing. The OTHER guy behind the counter catches my eye and asks "Deadlifting today?"
Sort of startled me. It was deadlift day.
"Yes, it is" I paused, then asked "How did you know?"
He just smiles and says "I see you over there... you are the only one who does it right."
Friends, THAT put a can-do attitude in my mind and body. Shattered a rep record by three reps that day.

That is awesome that:

a. you deadlift

b. they noticed

c. you broke a rep record

I love the deadlift and have been teaching it to my wife, someone who has never lifted before in her life. We have squat, deadlift and clean and press days and I work in a few other exercises just to make things interesting.

I take time in the gym to point out people who are using bad form or only working the "beauty" muscles and that helps her to understand why she has to do these "old timer" exercises instead of using the shiny machines on the other side of the room.

She's coming along.

Good work on your end.

Jonman wrote:
NSMike wrote:

I've stopped caring about the leveling aspect of Fitocracy. It's just for logging my workouts now. There are probably better apps for that, too. Maybe I'll look for one.

That's become less important for me too, mostly because I've been mucking about on there long enough that there's a distinct plateau that occurs in the higher levels. I've already picked off the low-hanging fruit in terms of achievements and level-ups are few and far between.

That said, logging my workout has become part of my routine - it promotes accountability and a couple of moments reflection on how the workout went and what the implications of that are for the next few workouts.

And that's well worth it for me.

Same here, it's a tool for tracking and keeping myself honest. I might do one more rep or five more pounds during a challenge but I've never gone out and worked out just to gain points. To me, it's a small reward after a workout, not a reason to workout.

Tim

infromsea wrote:

I love the deadlift and have been teaching it to my wife, someone who has never lifted before in her life. We have squat, deadlift and clean and press days and I work in a few other exercises just to make things interesting.

I also like the deadlift, but there seems to be so many different variations (romanian, Stiff-legged, alternate grip) that I have trouble understanding what I'm supposed to be doing. For a regular deadlift, what muscles should I be feeling? Is it more in the hamstrings, or in the back, or somewhere else? Normally what ends up happening for me is that my grip/forearms end up giving out before anything else.

Grip can be an issue when you get heavy. At 300+ pounds, I've been having more issues and having to reset my grip between reps. I use these things to improve my grip, but even they don't seem to be quite enough going heavier. Lots of people talk about how straps are cheating, but really, I don't know what else to do.

If you want good technique for the deadlift, I always say look no further than Mark Rippetoe's Starting Strength.

Anyone can feel free to correct me if I'm wrong here: It should be a lot of hamstrings on the leg extension, and should be the core on the upper body extension, with some in the shoulders when you squeeze at the top. If you're feeling it a lot in the back, you might not be engaging the core enough, which can lead to back rounding and badbad hurting. It seems counter-intuitive, but you really want to have the abs locked, which gives you a platform for the upper body to work against. If you let the abs stay loose, your back will round as you pull and your shoulders lag behind.

If your grip is giving out, you can try two things. First, is go to a mixed grip, which is where one hand has the palm toward you, and the other is palm away from you. That keeps the bar from rolling as much, and puts a bit less burden on your grip strength. Another option is to wrap your thumb under your first two fingers when you grip the bar. The pressure of your fingers on your thumb kind of locks it in there. It ain't comfortable, and I don't like doing it much, but it's a good "my legs say I have a bit more, but my grip is almost gone" kind of way to get the last few reps out.

I want to do more deadlifts, but can't always at my strength classes, because they're hard for my trainer to program in. Too much variance among all his clients. I must gets me a bar and weight set.

Standard dead lifts work almost everything. Make sure to keep your butt down low when you lift. Keep your back arched. You should be sore in your glutes, quads, upper back/shoulders, and biceps (mostly). Use a mixed grip as Chaz stated for heavier stuff. Straps are cheating? Screw that. If I have to use straps I will. I try not to but if I do, fine. Mixed grip is really no different than straps IMO. Same with the thumb thing. They are all designed to allow you to do more than your standard grip will allow. Finally, I'm not focused on grip strength. It needs to be good but I'm not doing competition so I do what I can without modifying grip and then I'll use mixed grip and then straps. Never tried the thumb thing and it doesn't sound fun but I may try it.

Stiff-legged deadlifts are a lot of hamstring and glute work. The work the whole leg but the focus is on hamstrings and glutes. Again, back should be arched. Legs should be slightly bent. Butt out.

Both of these really work your ability to arch your back. The most important thing with these lifts is maintaining that arch. Rounding your back is going to cause issues. Be very aware of your back arch.

Yeah, when EH says "back arched" he means (oh god I hope he means) arched DOWN so the apex of the arch is pointed at the floor, and not UP so the apex points at the ceiling. This can be hard to judge without a mirror. If you think about keeping your head and shoulders as up as possible, it's usually a good starting point. Look at the wall, not at the floor.

The thumb thing is not really super fun, and generally uncomfortable. It's kind of a last-ditch if even using a mixed grip isn't working any longer.

Chaz wrote:

Yeah, when EH says "back arched" he means (oh god I hope he means) arched DOWN so the apex of the arch is pointed at the floor, and not UP so the apex

So like

IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/AmFa7dH.png)

And not

IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/QN6OIdF.png)

(Hey, if anyone is looking for a graphic designer--look right here, because as the above drawings show, I'm AWESOME at it.)

Those are definitely NSFW. Look at those sexy glutes!

LarryC wrote:

Those are definitely NSFW. Look at those sexy glutes!

I'll be in my bunk.

CptDomano wrote:
Chaz wrote:

Yeah, when EH says "back arched" he means (oh god I hope he means) arched DOWN so the apex of the arch is pointed at the floor, and not UP so the apex

So like

IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/AmFa7dH.png)

And not

IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/QN6OIdF.png)

(Hey, if anyone is looking for a graphic designer--look right here, because as the above drawings show, I'm AWESOME at it.)

Is the person's head the top circle or the bottom?

fleabagmatt wrote:

Is the person's head the top circle or the bottom?

That's the great thing about my art--it can be interpreted any way you choose

(top circle, in case you were serious)

A new fitocrat reporting - just started using the site today.

My first thought is that it could benefit sooo much from animations of the exercises. I'm not a native English user, and I don't know many of the exercise names. I need to read the descriptions and imagine, if this is indeed what I am doing.

A simple animated GIF would be so helpful...

MsbS wrote:

A new fitocrat reporting - just started using the site today.

My first thought is that it could benefit sooo much from animations of the exercises. I'm not a native English user, and I don't know many of the exercise names. I need to read the descriptions and imagine, if this is indeed what I am doing.

A simple animated GIF would be so helpful...

As a stopgap, you can usually find a host of how-to's if you simply type the name of the exercise into Youtube.

I should be fine after two or three weeks, once I get familiar with the vocab. This first period will be tricky though - I work out in the morning, before work. And at my work, where I will be logging my workouts, YouTube is blocked.

That's not a serious issue, just a minor nuissance, I suppose. And a good reason for some Internet whining.