Rolling Fitness Fascists 2010 thread

The other side of Nutrition Nazism.

Getting back into the swing of lifting after a layoff (and then another layoff last week for vacation). Reading Starting Strength again for form tips on the major barbell exercises.

For now I'm doing an all deadlift/overhead press routine - should be back up to ~250x5 deadlift at the end of the week.

Decided to take rock climbing to the next level. Meaning I go more than once or twice a week now.

And am considering and outdoor trip, which I've been skittish about up to now.

I have discovered the Turkish Get Up.

^the weirdest weightlifting exercise!

It kinda makes me want to grow a handlebar moustache

for a good primer on the TGU, search youtube for Martone Turkish - the first one is "Turkish Get up sit up" (I think) the rest are labeled Turkish Get Up parts 2/3/4.

I've been doing the Starting Strength thing (or I guess a variation of it since I haven't bought the book--cue cheapskate) and I'm pretty happy with it. Squat has gone from 115 start to 210 in about 8 weeks, deadlift (which I'd never really done) 135 to 240. Chin/pull-up, press and bench press have been slower on progress (my dream of getting to 3 x 5 x 175--approx. body weight--seem pretty unachievable right now). I guess long arms is a big detriment to success in the latter, but I will keep at it. The couple of times I messed around with Power Cleans I found the exercise to be almost impossible to master w/ any weight (even the frame by frame breakdowns on the SS wiki aren't much help--although maybe printing and bringing to the gym would help.)

Joined a gym yesterday (got a good deal for self and partner) but haven't been there yet, and no time to go until Saturday, at this rate.

This is going to be funny.

Power cleans are tough without coaching, but there are some good options in the Bay Area if you get that involved.

A lot of people substitute Pendlay rows (strict bent-over barbell rows) for the power cleans.

I was making good progress on the bench press - about 10 kilos away from body weight, but then work hit me with a brick. I guess 3 x 5 x body weight is a good place to aim for.

what's this p90x thing that's been making the rounds?

As far as I can tell, it's a highly structured version of high intensity interval training.

I got Ross Enamat's package in the mail recently - Never Gymless (bodyweight exercises, mostly), Infinite Intensity (bodyweight + dumbbells/sandbags/etc.) and his conditioning book/DVD. He's a boxing trainer and a badass - without ever training to deadlift he filmed himself pulling 495 at 170 lbs bodyweight.
Also has a great blog with hints and tips @ rosstraining.com - a little heavy on the inspirational stuff, but dude is right at the age where Rocky probably had a formative impact on him becoming a boxer (then trainer).

I haven't been to the gym all week - some kind of metatarsalgia or 2nd metatarsal overload syndrome in my right foot makes it painful to even walk. Bought new insoles and have been popping Aleve.

I've gotten interested in sledgehammer swinging for conditioning - it's cheap, no lessons in form required, should get the heart pumping pretty good with a 16# sledge. Think I'm going to dedicate myself to daily Tabatas in June, if I can locate a free tire by then.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJWqx-zPffs

I'm not nearly strong enough or in good enough shape to justify my interest in alternative strength training/strongman stuff rather than just focus on Starting Strength or w/e, but beating the shit out of a tire is way more fun to me than squatting.

I've always been cardio. Can someone give me a succinct case for strength training if I don't care about getting buff? Is it a health thing? An endorphin thing? Both?

it's about looking awesome bro

Nothing burns fat like weights.

Hello Fitness Fascists, what is the best way to do sit-ups?

Waits expectantly....

No clue. None of the people I listen to recommend them - lifting things is better for the abz.

re: benefits of strength training - endurance in everyday activities as a side effect of lifting, increased lean muscle mass is good for you in every way, it's pretty awesome for your sex life, core strength built via squatting/deadlifting/etc. will protect your body in the event of trauma.

thx milo, that makes sense

and i wouldn't _mind_ looking better tbh

You might want to look into bodyweight exercises if barbells don't interest you - pull-ups, push-ups and air squats are a good initial way to get into shape and build strength.

i just started pushups and pullups a couple weeks ago! (out of some vague sense that i needed to "balance out" my running and cycling or whatever)

never heard of air squats but i will look into them

Weird, bf has made me do air squats for foot and leg problems pain; he says it's good for "circulation". Which I'm sure it is, but will that really do anything for my core/abs?

"Foot and leg pain" like the kind you get from jumping up and down on tippy-toe, on cement, for a couple of hours.

I don't know if air squats do much for the core - regular squats do because you're stabilizing a load across your back. Air squats are great for the thighs (quads and hamstrings) and glutes, and often alleviate knee issues when performed correctly (and deeply), but I've never heard of them for feet specifically.

if anyone really want to beat themself up, try "burpees with a push-up." I still have horrible memories of doing squat thrusts in full pads...

"A lot of people substitute Pendlay rows (strict bent-over barbell rows) for the power cleans."

I did those for a while, but Starting Strength guy seemed down on them so I just concentrated on Squats, Bench Press, Deadlifts, Press, Pullups/Chinups.

"Hello Fitness Fascists, what is the best way to do sit-ups?"

On a medicine ball by all accounts, but yeah sit-ups alone are kind of whatever.

sorry for the newbish question but what's the best way to combine weightlighting and cardio? alternate days? if on the same day, weightlift first, then cardio, or the other way around? anything I should know?

If you are doing heavy lifting then doing heavy cardio first is good way to ensure that you won't lift as much.

If you're going to do cardio on the same day, do it after weight-lifting. Don't do long slow jogs, etc., make it intense and fairly short. Or you can do it on days you don't lift.

okay: today I did a 90-minute vinyasa flow class followed by a 60-minute boxing class followed by a 30-minute core class. i dunno if this is FF approved but it felt great wish i could do this every day but now i am very sleepy...

Yoga teacher friend is supposed to give me some lessons when she's in town again.

i discovered it about 5 years ago. went with a friend as a lark. I was doing a lot of muay thai at the time and figured how hard could it be, right? we went to a beginners class. it was really hard.

and really fun. i was hooked immediately and started to work it in. eventually i stopped lifting and just stuck with boxing and yoga. never looked or felt better though tbf the learning curve is a bit longer before it starts to be a workout and some yoga classes are not very physically challenging.

I got Ross Enamat's package in the mail recently - Never Gymless (bodyweight exercises, mostly)

what do you think of this? I'm going to lose access to my gym membership for about two and a half months so this sounds appealing. how much equipment does it require?

I haven't actually gotten to explore the programs/progressions much, but it's pretty solid. Enamait isn't going to win a Nobel for literature, lots of "as so-and-so, great strength coach said, yada yada yada" plus inspirational quotes. The info itself is great.

Equipment mostly involves some bands, one of those ab rollers, etc.. A pull-up bar is essential, but you can get via a door gym. You can incorporate dumbbells/sledgehammers/etc. if you wanted, but that's covered more in Infinite Intensity.

milo what do you think about these?

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41QzEaMkY7L._AA400_.jpg

I'm a fan of kettlebells. You can do all the standard dumbbell movements with them, and they're very good for high-rep 'ballistic' moves like the snatch and swing (which are A+ for fat loss). You could do just about all of those with dumbbells as well, but the thicker handle is good for grip strength and having the weight off-center in many moves is a plus.

Perform Better has free shipping on online orders through tomorrow - big big savings on ordering kettlebells.
I have one 16KG/35LB from Dragon Door, which is fine, but I'm going to order a pair of PBs during the sale. Better coating, longer handle (less banging the forearm during snatches and presses), highly recommended from what I understand.
http://www.performbetter.com/detail.aspx_Q_ID_E_5331_A_CategoryID_E_420

I bought a jump rope today. and I found this program on the web which looks reasonable and fun:

http://www.gopack.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=9200&ATCLID=518334

so far the coordination isn't there yet and my maximum # in a row is 30 :( but that's only after a day. also I may need to get a thinner one as this one is woven nylon and quite thick. jump roping is fun, though, and gets your heartbeat up in no time.

I keep getting sidelined with (what I'm pretty sure is) 2nd Metatarsal Syndrome - aleve/ibuprofen doesn't help with the pain, but stretch my calves and 2nd right toe over a period of days does.

Makes cardio rough when every step hurts.

lately i've been combining these...

http://www.physioadvisor.com.au/assets/256/images/14101256(300x300).jpg

with these...

http://www.myfit.ca/exercisedatabase/images/medicine_balls_chest_pushup.gif

feet on swiss ball + hands on medicine balls = MAXIMUM BALLS

Top 10 Reasons Heavy Weights Don’t Bulk Up the Female Athlete
http://www.elitefts.com/documents/female_athletes.htm

aka why most women's fitness programs/trainers are useless

found a place with a bunch of scrap tires - couldn't get a huge tractor tire on my truck alone, but I got a decent sized truck tire.

Rolled it outside this afternoon and did 100 12# sledgehammer swings (50 each arm, sets of 10).

owwwww

You will be totally sore tomorrow.

I am completely retired from doing any set of less than 10 reps. I'm done with super heavy weights, just a fool's game at this point for me.

Did another 100. I think my July goal will be 5000 sledgehammer swings.

are there gyms out there that don't aggressively try to get you to join some training program?

That's how they can afford to have membership for $30 and under.

I just want some place where I can use the treadmill, free weights, etc. without being hassled

The only experience I have is being hassled initially (fitness evaluation + hard sell on training). After that I never heard a word about it from the 24 Hr Fitness and LA Fitnesses that I've been to.

Tried "Cardio Kickboxing" this morning. The guy went kind of easy on us in that we were new, and although I was pretty sweaty after I think I could have handled more. Also did ab conditioning with the same dude. I think the kickboxing would be more enjoyable if we actually hit something.

milo did you try the tabata training? and if you did how was it

I've never done real Tabatas - no 20 second timer yet, and I'm not sure what moves I think I could do with the proper intensity without hurting myself.

I do different intervals for cardio, though.

Ive been getting into high reps lately, and wanted to test how I did with the benchpress test they do at the NFL combine. It's how many reps of 225 lbs. you can do. I got 26. I felt good, so i then did 315 for 5, 335 for 2 and 365 for 1. I wont be waiting by the phone for the NFL to call though.

Hurting, kickboxing is MASSIVELY more enjoyable if you actually hit something. If you're at all curious, it's very much worth pursuing.

Finally getting back to the gym after a few wasted months without regular exercise. Was doing ok w/ weight training but now its kicking my ass; still extremely sore today from a workout Friday night and a full weekend's rest. Going to keep at it, though; I think I've hit juuust the right level of fatty self-loathing to work as useful motivation without tipping over into "fuck it, why even bother" again.

My new thing is to try to do at least three work mornings per week in addition to weekends. Early morning workouts are the only way to go with my current work schedule.

http://www.lifelineusa.com/en/products/coming-soon-pullup-revolution

New pull-up assistance product - it's about 1/2 to 1/3 the cost of a set of Iron Woody bands.

Oh god my new trainer is trying to murder me with my own legs :(

Q: I basically can't do pullups and I've been using a pullup assist machine at the gym - what's the best way to train myself toward doing pullups? Right now I usually just do like 3 sets of 6-8 reps at half my body weight and I find that challenging. Better to gradually decrease weight assistance or increase reps or some combo? Also what are the best other exercises to train the proper muscle groups?

Definitely better to decrease weight resistance - better to do one full pull-up on your own than 3x5 with assistance, because once you can do one unassisted you can build from there. I'd say do 3 sets of X (5-8), and decrease the assistance by 10#/week, or more if you can. There's also a good chance you can push yourself harder - there's supposedly an effect from using the machine (where you're standing or kneeling on a platform, yes?) that you're not expending your absolute max effort.

Anything that targets the back and arms would work your pull-up, but rather than do lat pulldowns or anything, I'd just work harder at the pull-ups themselves until you can do one unassisted. Maybe mix in rows for variety - low cable rows, bent-over barbell rows, etc..

Decided to take rock climbing to the next level. Meaning I go more than once or twice a week now.

And am considering and outdoor trip, which I've been skittish about up to now.

― rim this, fuck that (Eric H.), Wednesday, May 12, 2010 11:43 PM (2 months ago) Bookmark

man i have been off the g-d wagon w/r/t climbing, haven't been in months. have been drytooling my hangboard cuz a) it hurts my wrists much less and b) ice climbing makes more sense in MN than rock climbing, now that i think about it

but srsly dude, get outside! VE probably runs a trip now and then down to red wing or taylors, and you can toprope easy stuff until you get the feel of it.

btw since someone on here asked on a diff thread, "drytooling a hangboard" =

using these
http://images.usoutdoorstore.com/usoutdoorstore/products/full/camp_alpina_axe.jpg

to do pullups by doing this
http://media.godashboard.com/Woodys/bdrytooling01.jpg

Badass. Yeah, I'm still waiting to see you at VE one of these days!

Don't think an outdoor trip is in the cards this summer ... maybe a fall trip, tho.

is it essential to always have a day off between sessions of weights/pull ups?

always? def not. depends on yr proficiency, and what kind of workout you did. like i'm not gonna take a rest day if i do a set of ten pullups, but i might if i actually did some weight training (which i've really never done)

gbx have you ever done ice park in ouray? im going to ouray in a month for ipr, so no ice, but i hear about the park a bit.

i haven't! all my ice climbing has been out in VT/NH, none of it super-technical

and, like, seven years

ago

so do any of yall fuck with protein shakes?

muscle milk is good. worldwide pure pro is pretty good too.

Too lazy to make my own.

At the moment I don't really do enough heavy exercise to justify using a protein product, but I was kind of creeped out by all the additives in most whey mixes. I ended up using Optimum Nutrition Any Whey, which is just 100% pure whey without artificial flavors or any of that shit. It has less protein than most whey mixes, but I never had to worry that I might be poisoning myself.
Toss one or two scoops of that in a blender with whatever kinds of fruit you happen to have in your kitchen, and it's very good.

Whey looks pretty awesome in general, if you do a PubMed or web of knowledge search. It kinda seems like almost everybody should take it, even if they don't do a lot of exercise!

the whole foods brand is cheap but flavorful, probably lots of sugar. 100 pushups week 4 + 200 squats week 2 didnt want to jinx it but fuck it im DOING IT arent i so ill just do it

gonna start situps next week

dont know why they call crunches 'situps' and go through this labored caveat not to do actual situps, but crunches, but whatever

I haven't found a protein I can stomach mixed just with water, but I should probably keep trying.

I started drinking a recovery drink after long workouts (1hr+ of lifting & running, 2+ hour intense bike rides). It's mostly carbs, which is apparently what you need for recovery, and it's definitely helped my quads not be tired all the time.

But ... apparently I should be drinking protein to build muscle? Surely I shouldn't be drinking protein drinks _and_ recovery drinks, _and_ my normal meals.