Fitness Catch-All

Grenn wrote:

I am not losing any real weight. I am building muscle and my stomach seems to be getting more fit, but I am still around 300 lbs. Le sigh.

While it might not be the goal you were shooting for, this is a good thing that's happening and it's worth celebrating!

Jonman wrote:
Grenn wrote:

I am not losing any real weight. I am building muscle and my stomach seems to be getting more fit, but I am still around 300 lbs. Le sigh.

While it might not be the goal you were shooting for, this is a good thing that's happening and it's worth celebrating!

Indeed. Remember it's not as simple as just losing weight. It's all about changing body composition.

Checking back in!

I've had some health problems this year, which I think I mentioned in passing before. First my thyroid was overactive, then my medication caused it to become underactive. The lack of energy from this coupled with COVID, and worsening pain in my knees led to me eating pretty lazily and not working out at all. I've gone from 75kg up to 88kg over 12 months and am one digit away from the obese BMI category.

I've also been diagnosed with a fatty liver, which was the final straw. This was all a big shock, though I saw it coming. I've always been fit, and have always taken lifting pretty seriously (though maybe overeating to hit PRs wasn't always the best idea).

The doctor is pretty confident in my ability to drop the weight and "fix" my liver, as she's known me a while and has seen me when healthier. I've gone down to 1800 calories which seems like a safe number for my current stats (175cm, 88kg, 31 years old). My gym is still closed to due COVID, so I'm walking briskly up and down the large hills in my neighbourhood and mixing it up with Ring Fit every day.

So far it's been pretty easy adapting to the lower calories. I usually skip breakfast and have something filling for lunch (sweet potato, chicken breast, rice + kimchi etc...) and have already figured out a few sneaky low calorie snacks. Now it's just a matter of consistency.

I've been meaning to get back on track for a while, but getting a medical diagnosis has seriously kicked my fitness goals into overdrive!

A_Unicycle wrote:

Now it's just a matter of consistency.

It's always a matter of consistency. Good luck on your journey.

EvilHomer3k wrote:
A_Unicycle wrote:

Now it's just a matter of consistency.

It's always a matter of consistency. Good luck on your journey.

Indeed! I tell myself that I'm not going on a diet, or following a specific training goal (like squat x pounds). I'm changing my lifestyle. It's a lifelong journey.

Good luck!

Has anyone ever seen a Google Forms (or similar) that will let you use your phone to track how much you lift each session? Given I have my phone with me all the time, it would be silly to not see if there is a way I could use it to track my lifting.

A spreadsheet in google sheets works great for me.

Every time I try to use some electronic tool on my phone, I always get tired of it and end right back with a composition book and pen.

I use the IOS app Strong. It can save programs, and I just add whatever I did after the set I did it. It is horribly not intuitive, and the free version last I used it was very limited, but I enjoy it.

I use StrongLifts, which manages what you're lifting but I'm not sure it tracks it in a way that you can review. I like it because it's based on five fundamental workouts (squats, bench press, overhead press, deadlift, and barbell row) and a consistent distribution of them (workout one is squats, overhead press, and deadlift; workout two is squats, bench press, and barbell row). Five sets of five reps for each exercise. If you complete all five sets for a given exercise, the weight autoincrements by five pounds (10 pounds for deadlift) for the next day you're doing that exercise.

The app allows for changing some of these things, and adding other exercises (e.g., curls), but that's the pro subscription. I'm also not sold on the low reps/high weight philosophy. These two things may have me looking for another system soon. But for now, it's served as a way to minimize cognitive friction for getting into a fitness habit, so I'm thankful it exists and has a free tier.

Update on my fitness:

In early 2018 I was diagnosed with a condition that causes seizures and a loss of consciousness. In that process the MD took away my driver's license. At the same time I was going thru a very tough time and started attending an outpatient psychiatrics hospital for group therapy and treatment. The problem was it was a 14 mi round trip and the public transit is terrible. My research and experience living in my region is that biking gets you there faster or just as fast as the bus + walking. So I started biking. At the time I was nearly 400 lbs and a size 32 (5x). Nearly 4 years later I've acquired 2 more bikes and between 3 bikes I have done over 9k mi and lost 120 lbs and counting. I'm still in a work in progress and learning more about diet and rest as important factors for weight loss. I'm so proud of my accomplishment and I am excited to keep up the hard work.

You should be proud - that is awesome!

That is bad ass, Sku Boi. Bikes can be transformative in so many ways. Of course they don't do it themselves; you're the engine. So keep on keepin' on, and feel free to geek out about your bikes here or the bike thread.

Wow, that is just an awesome outcome through your hard work. Keep it up, Sku Boi!

muraii wrote:

That is bad ass, Sku Boi. Bikes can be transformative in so many ways. Of course they don't do it themselves; you're the engine.

You have no idea how true I find this! I have a long tail cargo, Surly Big Dummy, and since 2019 I have done about 600 mi with passengers(About 50 unique riders.) You haven't lived until you've experienced children cheering you up a hill from the back seat!(Or falling asleep because its so relaxing.)

muraii wrote:

So keep on keepin' on, and feel free to geek out about your bikes here or the bike thread.

I just might. :3

Sku Boi, that's awesome! You're truly into the n+1 problem of bikes now What is your stable looking like?

charlemagne wrote:

Sku Boi, that's awesome! You're truly into the n+1 problem of bikes now What is your stable looking like?

* Priority Continuum (Gordon, because his butterfly bars look like bottlecap glasses)
* Surly Big Dummy(Scratchy, because he has claws that have ripped my tights and is the opposite of the nemesis electric car Itchy)
* Dutch style cruiser that I cant remember the brand of (Ellie)
* Pedego Stretch (Green Bean, wife's bike)
* Trek 7600(Gingerbee, wife's),
* Raliegh hybrid style bike (Liberty, loaner for guests)
* Unfinished project bikes and unused kids bikes.

Overall I have about 12 bikes in the stable. But I only use Gordon and Scratchy without hesitation. I also volunteer at the local bike co-op (Bike Kitchen) and help folks fix their rigs and help fix up donations that are for sale.

I love it! Everybody must name their bikes.

charlemagne wrote:

I love it! Everybody must name their bikes.

I think all children deserve names. (My metal babies) xD

At the start of the year, on turning 49 I set myself the goal that before I turn 50 (Jan 2022) I would enter a powerlifting competition (or equivalent - covid would possibly interrupt) and lift a total of 500kg or more.

Last Saturday I did it.

200kg Deadlift.

117kg Bench Press.

183kg Squat. (add clips and it turns into 501kg)

I set a PR 6 times over the course of the day. I'm extremely satisfied with this achievement.

Not sure what my next physical goal will be, but I will certainly be taking a break from getting under a very heavy bar for a month or two.

Bruce, that's f*cking awesome. Congratulations on setting all those PRs. My suggestion is a half-marathon or full marathon. Go from weights to cardio.

EvilHomer3k wrote:

Bruce, that's f*cking awesome. Congratulations on setting all those PRs. My suggestion is a half-marathon or full marathon. Go from weights to cardio.

I did toy with that idea. I used to do a lot of running. I was an umpire for Australian Rules Football which required between 5 and 15 km of running, about 1/3 of which was backwards. But chronic ITB tendinitis means I will never do distances again.

I might try for 125mph clubhead speed with the driver. Follow Bryson.

Bruce wrote:

At the start of the year, on turning 49 I set myself the goal that before I turn 50 (Jan 2022) I would enter a powerlifting competition (or equivalent - covid would possibly interrupt) and lift a total of 500kg or more.

Last Saturday I did it.

200kg Deadlift.

117kg Bench Press.

183kg Squat. (add clips and it turns into 501kg)

I set a PR 6 times over the course of the day. I'm extremely satisfied with this achievement.

Most impressive.

If you don't mind my asking, what programming do you use?

Top_Shelf wrote:

Most impressive.

If you don't mind my asking, what programming do you use?

I have been working with a coach on this program 4 days a week. It was focused on the big 3 with parts of the program dedicated to eliminating weaknesses and sticking points. eg. a lot of paused deadlifts to make the first 2 inches of the lift match my ability to lock out the hinge. Floor presses to improve the top of my bench. Paused squats to improve depth and make sure I got below the hip crease. Almost no single leg work. No show pony stuff - my biceps are half the size of my triceps. Daily calories above 2400 as any less than that makes my recovery garbage and I can't show up fully for 4 sessions a week. It means I'm a little fluffy now and we'll work on that now.

That's a long winded answer that can be summarised as "I did what my coach told me", but I also went to see a couple of pro powerlifting coaches for some critique of my technique. How to most effectively brace for d/l and squat. What mid-foot pressure really feels like. Where should bar touch down and how to most effectively generate leg drive for my bench. I tried to leave no stone unturned in my quest.

Oh there is a part of me that wants a 32 kg kettlebell. I'm using a 20 kg one now but that is a huge jump in weight. Oh well more volume training.

JohnKillo wrote:

Oh there is a part of me that wants a 32 kg kettlebell. I'm using a 20 kg one now but that is a huge jump in weight. Oh well more volume training.

Get the bigger one.

My KB workouts use a 20lb, 35lb and 45lb one.

20lb for warmups and single-arm work sets
35lb is warmup bell for two-handed swings and work bell for presses and get-ups,
45lb is the work bell for two-handed swings.

So get the bigger one, and don't stop using the smaller one, just progressively start subbing the bigger one in for the last set or two.

Bruce, you smashed that goal! Well done

Wife and I picked up some Fitbit versa 2 watches for Christmas. Neither of us have had a tracker in a long time. I am amazed at this little work horse. It really helped me just gameify my day to make sure I'm staying active and made monitoring my health much easier. I didn't expect it to hook me so easily.

I knew I needed to start working out at new years as my friends and I are heading to the mountains for a snowboard trip in Feb. This just helps so much more. In 2020 I lost 30 lbs, in 2021 I maintained that but never lost more and totally lost interest in working out. Now with this I'm already down 3 lbs in approximately 10 days and tracking my intake and output so much easier.

If you're on the fence I highly suggest trying one out. It also syncs into the smart scale my wife bought the other year so that's handy info as well. All workouts currently done at home. I'd love to do more outside but it's below 0 outside and that is never fun.

For the majority of the pandemic I've been running 6 days per week (prior to that I was running 3x and swimming 3x), but in my second run post-marathon back in December my knee started to hurt. Gave it 2 weeks, and it still hurt towards the end and after the short run I did. So I got onto my wife's Peloton bike for the first time in the 2+ years that it's been in the house ... and I have to admit that I really like it. The various metrics and such hit the same pleasure centers in my brain that a lot of video games do. To the point that I'm doing multiple rides per day on most days.

I have had to find instructors who I can handle, though. I realize that these services live and die by their personalities, but for me the less personality the person has, the better. I'm there for a workout, not a friend.

Anyway, even though my knee is feeling better and I'm back to comfortably running 3 times per week, I think I'm going to stick with the bike as well, which is an idea I'd have laughed at 2 months ago.

billt721 wrote:

I have had to find instructors who I can handle, though. I realize that these services live and die by their personalities, but for me the less personality the person has, the better. I'm there for a workout, not a friend.

I suggest you stay far, far away from Apple Fitness. I found the most Peloton instructors to be mildly annoying but Apple has turned almost all of theirs up to 11.

I'm with you, though. I don't need a friend. I don't need the trainer to motivate me or encourage me. I don't need them to enrich my soul. I certainly don't need them to sing the songs. I hate when they do that. I want a trainer who is like my HS football coach or even a drill sergeant.