A thread for general questions about fitness, exercise, etc.

how bad is a 3 day gap between working out :?

it's over

lol

Now that my iPod is working again and I can blast Napalm Death in my ears while doing my curls I can actually hit the gym and stay motivated! Amped.

word. high on fire has been keepin me pumped atg ("at the gym") these days. without the gift of portable music and a gym really close by there's no way i'd ever work out.

atg ("at the gym")

oh goodness i am a fan of this

i've tried grind but it doesn't do the trick. it's gotta be doom-y / viking / black metal or hard rock. then like lcd soundsystem -- 44:33 or whatever for the jog LOL. real creative choice there but it never lets me down.

SHAME ON YOU

4 eating that pizza last night amirite?

it's gotta be doom-y / viking / black metal or hard rock.

i have found kyuss and the sword and darkthrone's newest to work well in a gym context

also sabbath bloody sabbath

I'm sorry, but I find it just wierd that a thread about fitness, exercise and health would automatically assume that this entails working out at a gym. Tain't so.

thanks for pointing that out

i haven't been to the gym in a couple weeks, but soon it'll be warm enough to start running/biking!

I walked 14,500 steps yesterday!

A new hope:

internal eagle claw qigong and 8 ribbons of silk brocade qigong EVERY MORNING.

I find 'pump me up music' like pantera or some crap, very unjustified. I work out fine while listening to soft-rock and shit. Especially for any cardio machines. As for the weights, no need for hardcore shit either. IF you can get yourself to the gym you are going to do the same amount of reps regardless to what music you listen to. That's why I prefer soothing music that makes me happy :)

:)

Hoos...screw curls, man. Such a small muscle group to iso on. Better to do rows (sitting or standing), Lat pull downs, or basically any upper body exercise where you are pulling against the resistance towards your body.

Your biceps will get enough of a workout that way, and the other muscles are then better supported when you do the other exercises.

pullups ftw

Zackly.

Napalm Death must be excellent at the gym!

it's gotta be doom-y / viking / black metal or hard rock.

agreed! i sometimes think of going out to run in terms of how excited i am to spend half an hour or an hour just listening to metal.

hello

i want to do some cardio, inside a gym. preferably every other day or so. anyone have any suggestions on plans/routines etc

exercise bike, running machine, cross trainer all good

if you go to a gym you'll get an induction, they'll give you a basic plan which will include cardio and resistance, nothing burns fat like resistance training.

bring an ipod and some water.

word

i guess i'll just consult someone there -- it's at my college so it's not exactly like i have to "join" per se... i'm sure there are people there to talk to tho

Search interval training or tabata intervals. Higher intensity cardio for shorter periods. Any of those machines would be fine if you push yourself.

Depending on how fit you are walking fast at a decent gradient is a good start on the running machine.

I bought two 10-pound dumbbells yeaterday, since my 'core' has turned to cookie dough. Do I need a bench? -- I don't have any good chairs to use. Is there a link to basic set of routines I can look at?

for a dumbbell routine look no further than CSPAN am I right or am I right

CSPAN is filled w/ good motivation for staying in shape

I found some good dumbbell exercises and advice about routines in The New Rules of Lifting.

ExRx is an amazing reference site for fitness training.

I tried a cardio machine the other day that was like...ice skating? You had to do sideways skates. Seems like it would be awesome for the ass but I found it a) too difficult and b) too difficult to keep my knees in line, and I worried about the strain if out of line in the joints.

Cookie dough core = diet.

I do watch what I eat! Much more than I did ten years and 25 lbs ago.

hey so at age 25 my awesome metabolism is finally getting a bit shaky and my diet of a bunch of shit has given me a bit of a belly. Don't particularly want to change my diet, so what's the best exercise to keep lean and mean in the tummy region? Just burn the calories w/ running?

Possibly possible in your 20s, but not for very long. Exercise alone won't control weight/fat in normal people.

Likewise, Doc, you have to be even more careful. You can only burn so many calories exercising, and build so much muscle with the testosterone decline of your 40s. Your core/abs/belly/gut is all about body fat, not muscle.

"You can't outrun a donut."

Any suggestions for getting better strength/definition in the lower abs?

Leg lifts for better strength. Eat better and work out more to get better definition basically (there is no magic secret to abdominal muscle definition beyond getting very fit and seeing it reflected also in your lower abs.)

Declined leg lifts for added difficulty, right?

I meant hanging left lifts. If you are so strong that you need added difficulty you could put a weight between your thighs or ankles.

Leee...depends on what you are going for, doesn't it? I can't give advice on "cut" abs, but if you just want your pants to fit better, a combination of cardio and yoga might work.

Not a fitness expert but someone who used to work out quite a bit but gained sixty pounds and lost it. I mean my stomach disappeared and it wasn't from ab training on machines. A lot of it was through cardio.

Can someone point me to a good online resources re: fat-burning and strength building, as well as good nutrition info, for someone who knows nothing about these things.

Indeed, I've lately been going to the gym everyday, but have just learned that I've been taking a real quantity over quality approach, unfortunately.

what are you doing at the gym?

Typically I run on the elliptical trainer for 30 mins, then do an all-over variety of weight machines.

To give you an idea of my ignorance, I just learned what interval training is today. My strategy has just been "go at it as much as I can" which I more or less only realized is counter-productive, or at least not optimal.

only just realized, in fact.

If you're in the gym 3-4 times per week and you have like an hour each time, is doing 20-30 mins of cardio followed by 30 mins of varied weight/strength/total-body stuff a good way to go? I know some people do like "arm day" and "leg day" but is that only for lifting heavy? Is it a bad idea to do cardio and strength in the same session?

old thinking was that you have to split them up, new thinking is you're fine mixing them

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/05/02/mixing-weight-training-and-aerobics/?ref=health

depends on your weight situation, eating habits, and goal, i find

weights are very taxing on yr cardio system so you have to do at least a little cardio to warm up (5-20 mins). how much more you do is up to you. much more than that BEFORE weights though and you may be too tires to lift the weights!

tireD

yep that's it basically. the main reason to split cardio and weights, or do a split body weightlifting routine, is to maximise the amount of effort during a lifting session.