488 replies to this topic

[Isis]

Your lungs DO NOT like inspired gases to be dry and cold.  It's not efficient.  

I'm way too old and sensible to do anything insane like sprinting on icy surfaces.  I'm one of those people who are incredibly paranoid about accidents - I see potential accidents everywhere I look!

[TheLoneliestMonk]

After a day off, I went back to the gym with a vengence this morning.  3x5 squats and standing press for 150 and 65 respectively, then a set of 5 deadlifts at 165.

Following that, I ran 2.4 miles at 7.0 mph on the treadmill.  Im not to happy to find out that the treadmill emphasises my quads, since squats do too, and I dont do anything for my calves or ham strings really.  oh well, hopefully it's better than not running at all.

Running afte squats still sucks, but I'm sticking with it at least till I fail at a run.

ETA:  Also, I weighed myself after my workout, and I was 199.  I think I'm going to start doing this every monday to make sure I'm not gaining or losing weight really fast.

Edited by TheLoneliestMonk, 23 November 2009 - 11:12 AM.

[Capoeirista13]

So I was doing a whole set of chin-ups/pull ups today and I decided to just use my fingers to hold onto the bar and not my whole hand.  My god the difference is absurd.  Not only does it feel harder to do the actual exercises, but I can only hold onto the bar for about 5 reps.

[TheLoneliestMonk]

oh man, I've been slacking on this thread, and on working out.  tuesday, I did my 2.52 mile run at 7 mph no problem.

wednesday, however, I slept in and only had time to lift.  I progressed as planned in everything, except pull ups which I ended up doing 2 sets of 2 for, and then went to the gravitron or whatever they call the pull up machine for fatties and did my weight minus 35 kg(not good with commie to pound conversions) for 2 sets of 5.  they were palm away instead of my usual palm facing me grip though, and wider.

Today, I ran as planned, increasing by .24 miles because I had skipped a day, so that was 2.76 miles, again at 7.0mph.  I almost quit, even though I hadn't even lifted before starting.  This has left me worried about my 2.88m run tomorrow.  I may lift in the morning, and then take an extended lunch to do my run.

For the past 2 weeks, I have been eating a ton more than usual, and am hoping that since each day, my workout is more intense than the previous, at some point, I will hit equilibrium to maintain a bit, then surpass it and start shedding fat, and magically still gain muscle, whilst telling Epicurus to suck it.

[Liffguard]

My knee is still acting up and now I'm down with the flu. Stupid biology. If I was a robot this wouldn't be a problem.  :(
I demand that any sciency-type people who might be reading begin work immediately to alleviate this problem!  :angry:

I've got a few challenges coming up that I'm probably not going to be as prepared for as I wanted, but oh well. First is the selection board for the Royal Marines which involve a heady mix of cross-country endurance runs, push-ups, pull-ups, sit-ups, obstacle courses and general beastings. I'm confident I have the fitness, now I'm just gearing myself up so that I enter with the right mindset.

Second is a very special facebook event, Have A Very Burpee Christmas. The event is simple, on a yet to be specified date in December I will have to complete a mile of jumping burpees. If I assume a very generous standing jump distance of 1.6m then that works out as roughly 1000 jumping burpees. Yay  :unsure: :uhoh:

[ztemhead]

I got yelled at today for deadlifting wearing only my socks.  Guy was all huffy too.  Whatever happened to general politeness?  

you're going in the Royal Marines, Liff?  well that's news.  It was a bit of an offhand reference there, do you care to elaborate a bit?

[Ixodes]

I had to take a much longer than planned leave of absence from the weight room (1 week in Montana, 2 weeks of family fight with influenza, 1 week of wife out of town, ending with the holidays).

I hit the weights today and (as expected) was weak as a kitten.  It was pathetic but not unexpected.  What really burned my britches is that they were playing christmas music in the weight room.  WTF???  How in the name of the gods can I expect to deliver my best, most intense mindset with Here Comes Santa Claus fouling the background??  Of all the damned days to forget my ipod...

[Liffguard]

ztemhead, on Nov 28 2009, 22.02, said:

you're going in the Royal Marines, Liff?  well that's news.  It was a bit of an offhand reference there, do you care to elaborate a bit?

It's something I've been planning for a while. The application process takes forever though. I've got a three day selection board coming up and if I pass that then they'll send me onto another one. If I then pass that one they might offer me a place to start my training next september. In any case, I've got the better part of a year before I actually join up.

[Mr Barry]

Best of luck with both Liff. The Marines is really something special to aim for, the burpee challenge is in-fucking-sane. Oh and 1.6m per jump  :unsure:

Cracking on with the 5x5 thing and got some good grappling in this week. The eating small amounts six times a day is really increasing my energy levels while awake and I don't seem to have to sleep so much either. This is either awesome as it gives me more time to feed my Football Manager addiction in the evenings or I am heading for a 39 hour stint in bed. Not sure which.

[Balefont]

Well, physical test done...in the pouring rain...about 42 degrees F (about 5.5 C).

Running went okay, not as good as prior runs.  200 sit ups.  Check.  50 push ups were going well up to 35 then my feet started to slip in the mud.  The last 13 or so were terrible form but I passed.  I did an extra 10* because I was so disgusted with the last ones in the set of 50.  (*only 10 because I needed to stop and help support my other teamates (including my daughter))

Then the suicide sprints (I'm not a sprinter).  Meh.  Then rolling downhills straight into 25 more push ups.  Felt like puking at that point.

But that part is done.  One test closer to Black Belt.  Less than two weeks till the Practical and we're looking at about a 9 hour long test given my team's weaknesses.

I've lost 35 pounds in a month and half.  I need beer.  Naow.

Edited by Balefont, 05 December 2009 - 04:06 PM.

[ljkeane]

Balefont, on 05 December 2009 - 04:05 PM, said:

But that part is done.  One test closer to Black Belt.  Less than two weeks till the Practical and we're looking at about a 9 hour long test given my team's weaknesses.

I don't know a lot about martial arts but why do you need a team to test for a Black Belt, I was under the impression that it was an individual thing?

[willo the wisps]

I seriously need an online workout buddy. Somebody to motivate me( or rather, shame me) into working out when I should and drag me from Skype.

Seriously.

[Tsavong Lah]

Anybody have any knowledge on bike trainers and which ones are good for your money?  I live in the middle of nowhere, have a decent bike that I don't ride nearly enough, and the winters are not very hospitable.  I figured a bike trainer would break up the monotony of using an elliptical every day and be equally nice on my poor joints.



So the past two weeks I've finally got back into workout mode after a very prolonged harvest plus injury and sickness had me sidelined for the better part of the fall.  I'd been avoiding the scale and found to my dismay that I had gained back 10 lbs over 3 months, so I'm not longer half way to my goal.

Anyway, I haven't been using this thread, but I think I should to keep myself motivated.

[Capoeirista13]

I was also under the impression that belt tests were individual things, especially at the higher levels.  I've never done anything like that myself but in capoeira we were all tested individually before class.

Finals week for me, I have two statistics and one computer networking exam coming up, so no substantial workouts for me for awhile.

[Balefont]

ljkeane, on 05 December 2009 - 04:14 PM, said:

I don't know a lot about martial arts but why do you need a team to test for a Black Belt, I was under the impression that it was an individual thing?

The short answer: It's both.

For sho dan in several schools in my area the team approach is used.  We all test as a group and individually.  If someone on the team makes a mistake, we all pay for it as a team.  But if a team member fails, we don't all fail.  I think testing as a team is way harder because the good ones need to be sure the not-as-good ones get as good or else the Practical will be a 12 hour long bloodfest.

ETA: The levels above sho dan are strictly individual tests.

Edited by Balefont, 06 December 2009 - 08:53 AM.

[ztemhead]

Balefont, on 05 December 2009 - 04:05 PM, said:

Well, physical test done...in the pouring rain...about 42 degrees F (about 5.5 C).

Running went okay, not as good as prior runs. 200 sit ups. Check. 50 push ups were going well up to 35 then my feet started to slip in the mud. The last 13 or so were terrible form but I passed. I did an extra 10* because I was so disgusted with the last ones in the set of 50. (*only 10 because I needed to stop and help support my other teamates (including my daughter))

Then the suicide sprints (I'm not a sprinter). Meh. Then rolling downhills straight into 25 more push ups. Felt like puking at that point.

But that part is done. One test closer to Black Belt. Less than two weeks till the Practical and we're looking at about a 9 hour long test given my team's weaknesses.

I've lost 35 pounds in a month and half. I need beer. Naow.

that's badass.

[Week]

Enjoying the new gym and the 5x5 program still..finally getting into a solid groove of working out regularly.  Starting monday I am going to start going every day, even if it is just for 15-20min of cardio, just to be in the habit and because I don't really have anything better to do.

My only issue thus far has been that I didn't see a place to do pull ups/chin ups anywhere.  The power rack has some bars that are about 8 feet off the ground that look like they may be upside down and should be for pull ups..but I don't know.  Is it considered kosher to just do pull ups with a 20kg bar on one of the racks?  Seems like it could maybe be a bit unstable, though I guess the bar shouldn't probably jump up much.

[Iskaral Pust]

I'm back! (to soccer that is)
I played indoor soccer the week of Thanksgiving, and played two nights this/last week.  No bad reaction from my ankle, so I'm going to stick with two nights a week with a heavily strapped ankle.

My touch and ball control are shocking (nearly 8 months out of the game), but already showing some improvement.

Apart from that, weight-lifting has gone well in patches.  Work is too busy to maintain a proper routine.  I'm now considering getting up at 5:00 three mornings a week (instead of 5:50) to lift weights before work.  But that still requires me to get to bed at something like 9:00-9:30 the night before.

Despite my less than ideal access to exercise this year, I'm still in pretty good shape.  Stress eating and zero cardio in the first few months of my injury saw my waistline expand from 30 to 32.  Now back to 30 and impossible to find pants once more. (and some decent muscle tone).  I still have plenty of catch up to do, but I'm looking forward to it.



I'm another treadmill runner, to stay loose between soccer games.  I agree that it emphasizes the quads (just like soccer).  I find the neglect of my hamstrings is a problem that gradually leads to other issues (e.g. lower bck)

But running outside in the NE winter does not seem reasonable.  I don't see any good running routes that are free of packed snow and ice.  Raw lungs from breathing the cold air isn't fun either.

[seastarr]

Today was trapeze day, so despite the freezing weather, I was out in my layers flying through the trees. Bliss and joy! I can't tell you how much fun it is. It's so much fun, it's hard to sleep at night afterwards. It's hard not to wake up on trapeze morning three hours too early to bounce around the house and get excited. I also did a trampoline workout today, and thoroughly exhausted myself so that I fell down on my back on the trampoline and stared up at the sky through the trees. I felt so young and happy and alive, like I really was 10 again.

Edited by seastarr, 06 December 2009 - 08:36 PM.

[Skunkbelly]

Can I just complain for a minute? Some of you may know that I broke my foot in July. I spent August in a cast. Now my foot hurts again. I went to the ortho two weeks ago. He took an x-ray and told me that the bone was healed. The pain is coming from the next bone over. He taped my foot up and told me that if that felt better w/ the tape then he'd recommend orthodic inserts for my shoe. Not covered by my insurance and $400 a pop.  I have an appt Monday for casting. My foot has been swollen, so I've been taking Naproxin. That seems to help.  So  much so that I was considering canceling the next ortho appt.

Today I took the kids on a 1 mile walk to see the waterfall near our house. Now my foot is KILLING me. A one fucking mile walk. Flat. At at three-year-old's pace.  I haven't been working out since the summer because it hurts to  walk anywhere.  I guess I could swim, but I don't want to inflict any more pain than I have by simply living my life by hobbling across campus to the pool.  I'm gaining weight and feel like a sloth. My pants don't fit properly. Not to mention that I have a brand new pair of  x-country skiis in the basement waiting to go under the tree and I don't know if I will ever be able to use them. Furthermore, we are going to Nevada in February and I am bound and determined to explore Red Rocks. Even if I have to crawl.   I am so sick of foot pain.