Exercise & Fitness: it’s a marathon, not a sprint

[Iskaral Pust]

The old thread disappeared.

It’s been a good week of exercise for me.  I swam on Monday and Tuesday, then had a weights session on Wednesday with shoulder press and pull-ups.  Unfortunately Thursday became a rest day because I was just zonked with tiredness after work (too little sleep all week).  Friday was another swim, and then Saturday I swam and then had great weights session directly afterward.

My bench press today included 3x8 at 185lbs, a set of 4 reps at 205lbs (new PB), and a set of 10 with 2x70lbs dumbbells to finish. Cable row and bent over row were similarly good.

Tomorrow will be squats, and maybe deadlifts too.

[aceluby]

I thought I was going crazy when I couldn't find this thread last week...

Today starts my 5 day PPL-Upper-Lower program since last week was my last week of softball (won the championship in one of my leagues!).  Had a really good push workout today and was absolutely gassed despite not having any cardio.  Been doing straight 3x10s for the last couple of months and switched to progressive loads with a drop set today and can really tell the difference doing the progressive loads.  Started out pretty light for my first set of dumbbell presses, but I'm glad I did because the rest just crushed my chest.  Fly's, incline press, incline fly's, narrow press, partial fly's, decline pushups, a bunch of triceps exercises, and then finished with dips and triceps pushups.  Definitely gonna feel it tomorrow for back and bis.

[Iskaral Pust]

Squats yesterday were good.  I did 6x6 at 185lbs.  A bit stiff today though.  I did 3x25 seated calf raises too, but no deadlifts.  I’m finding it tough now to combine squats and deadlifts in a single session.

It’s rainy today so no swim, but it’s supposed to be sunny and quite hot for most of the week so I’ll be back in the pool soon.

[aceluby]

I stopped doing heavy deadlifts a few months ago and don't think I'll ever do them again.  There is just too much possibility of injury when there are better alternatives.  I'll do them with super light weights to get that nice stretch, but much prefer a kettlebell swing to build strength along my backside.

[Mr. Chatywin et al.]

I also ditched deadlifting a while back, and since the pandemic started I've also stopped traditional squats. I've found that walking lunges and goblet squats with less weight and higher reps makes a lot more sense these days since I'm not training for sports anymore. I'm sure my 1MRs have fallen off a cliff, but I actually feel better overall and that's what's most important these days.

[Iskaral Pust]

I still like deadlifts a lot, and they don’t cause any injury pain (beyond DOMS), but it’s asking a lot to do them after a really heavy session of squats.  I’ll try to find a separate workout day for them.

I was ready to give up on barbell squats until I finally got to better form by paring back unhelpful equipment.

[Starkess]

I've never been a big fan of traditional deadlifts, but I do Romanian all the time, one of my favorite exercises! But then I'm a stereotypical female lifter, always trying to hit the glutes.

Speaking of glutes, mine is still acting up. This started over a week ago, I was resting and icing and doing all the things. It started to feel better late last week, almost totally gone by Saturday, so I figured I'd try a nice easy 3 mile run on Sunday. But then of course I woke up on Sunday morning with it hurting a lot again?? I have no clue what could have triggered it. I did do the 3 miles, and while it didn't seem to make it worse, it didn't feel great either. So back to resting. Sigh. I've been trying to walk and stretch, but even walking is hurting now. Going in to see a physical therapist this afternoon, but I'm pretty sure they're not going to have that much more to tell me except...keep resting, icing, etc. And meanwhile today marks two months until my marathon so I am feeling hella stressed about not being able to run right now.

Lifting doesn't seem to make it feel any worse, but figured I should probably rest from that too, so skipped the gym today as well. Not only am I stressed about my race, stressed from being in pain, but also now I'm dealing with a deficit of endorphins... 

Update: The PT thought that is was primarily a muscle issue. She found an extremely painful knot in my glute med, which I'm not sure I can recreate myself but will be giving it a shot. Luckily, she thought it was unlikely that the bursa was any worse than slightly inflamed, and that with rest+stretch+mobility work+targeted release it should clear up relatively quickly. Sitting here at my desk, still in pain, I feel doubtful, but I'll just have to try it all and see. Oh and she said I could try some running as long as it doesn't actively make it worse, which is a big if but I'll probably try a mile or so tomorrow to see.

Edited August 10, 2021 by Starkess

[Mr. Chatywin et al.]

Pretty solid day overall. I did 20 minutes or so of yoga this morning, and after work got an hour full body lifting session in and a 20 minute jog afterwards. I'm starting to think this three day rotation may need to be shifted to a seven day plan. Currently day 1 is cardio, core and Pilates, day 2 is weights and day 3 is deep stretching and foam rolling, with me trying to do 15-20 minutes of yoga each workday. This plan has been solid, but it doesn't allow much for activities outside of it, so I may switch to doing this Monday through Saturday and keep Sundays open going forward for golf, long bike rides, hikes, and if I'm being honest, sometimes being lazy and watching football.

Edited August 12, 2021 by Tywin et al.

[aceluby]

Had a really good push workout this morning.  The two days of rest and using the theragun worked wonders to get through the first week of doms.  So far I think I'm going to like this workout regimen.  The PPL days are longer with progressive overload and heavy weights, with the upper/lower days focusing on bodyweight hypertrophy.  Upper was all pushups and pullups (~200 pushups and 50 pullups - which I'm realizing I'm just awful at), and lower was a 30 minute leg focused HIIT/plyo workout

[Mudguard]

Still mostly running on the treadmill, but I've added some bodyweight exercises like pullups and pushups to balance things out a bit.  Ran 10k in 43:45.  I started running again to get back into hiking shape, and I think my fitness level is fine now for pretty much any hike I want to do.  I have some arbitrary time goals for the various races, but I'm not sure it's worth all the work and discomfort to keep lowering my times.  

[Toth]

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Edited August 21, 2021 by Toth

[Iskaral Pust]

It was a really rocky couple of weeks for my exercise as work and preparation for a professional exam just dominated my time.

Monday through Wednesday of last week I had no time for anything and was really feeling the lack of exercise.  So Thursday last week I skipped on exam study/prep and swam after work and then went straight into the gym for shoulder press and pull-ups.  Then I swam again on Friday and Saturday (beautiful weather), and Sunday I did a session of bench press and rowing: I set a new PB with one BP rep at 225lbs, while also doing a really solid 4 sets of 8 at 185lbs.

Monday of this week was my professional exam (comfortably passed) and, freed of weeks of extra study and practice tests, I had great plans to return to the gym starting with squats that Monday evening.  But instead I was exhausted.  I was so fatigued all week long that I did not exercise at all after work apart from a couple of walks for some daylight.

I think my body has just come crashing down after too many months of too little rest*.  But good news is that I’m off work now until 8/31 on staycation so I can get lots of rest and exercise and hopefully feel fully recharged.

*My vacation in June wasn’t a rest at all as we handled my FiL’s hospice & death, and then cleared out the house and packed up my MiL to come live with us.

[Iskaral Pust]

Over the past 14 months, my weight has increased from 175lbs to 190lbs, compared to my typical level of 182lbs over the past few years.

I initially lost some weight while I had no access to weightlifting for four months early in lockdown, and probably some effect from stress and less food access and a couple of bad colds just before lockdown.  My weight gain since then is partly muscle mass (which everyone notices when they see me in person now), but also some fat gain as I got into a bad habit of eating dessert every single night, including a full pint of Ben & Jerry’s twice a week.  Considering that a pint of that ice-cream is 1,100kcal, that means I was consuming 3,000-4,000kcal per week just from desserts late at night.  I was also eating a Costco frozen cheeseburger plus fruit for lunch on ~80% of workdays during lockdown.  It’s a miracle that I didn’t gain even more fat.

I’m at ~18% body fat now (after being ~13% last June, which was my lowest level since my 20s), and I want to clean up my diet and get back down to 15%.  I’m objectively still pretty lean and defined, but I feel bloated/flabby.  I didn’t set out to do a bulk & cut cycle but a pattern of bad habits during COVID has effectively done that for me.

But the good news is that there’s some easy diet improvements to make.  For the past two weeks I’ve significantly reduced the late night sugar fix, and I’ve shifted to healthier lunches that are still very quick to make during busy days: 8oz kidney beans, some Greek yoghurt and whatever fruit or vegetable is available.  I know I’ll need to sustain better habits for months to see an effect but it’s good to get started on it.

Working from home and not having business travel a couple of weeks each month has allowed me to have more consistent weightlifting for a really sustained period, even if there was a longish blip in March-April when work overwhelmed my exercise routine.  I think that’s why I’ve gained more muscle mass in the past 14 months than I ever managed in the prior several years. That and the unintended bulk & cut cycle, which I’ve always known is necessary for hypertrophy but I have avoided because I don’t like to gain much weight: I didn’t at all enjoy my one past experience of an intentional calorie deficit (when my weight got above 190lbs without this much muscle mass), and I have beautiful custom made suits that I want to continue to wear.

[VigoTheCarpathian]

It’s tough to get a good fitness routine going, and to maintain it and return to it after interruption.  My toe being broken sent me into a period without working out, and I got really depressed, and couldn’t get motivated to find a new routine, and was sedentary for ~3 months. In hindsight, I think I was feeling depressed because I wasn’t working out (loss of control, none of those endorphins coming in, body hurting, losing muscle definition), rather than depressed about the injury itself (though I was sad that I couldn’t go climbing on a planned trip).

@Toth, after a lot of fits and starts, I’ve had to change my schedule, and wake up early at 5:30a to have a routine - otherwise work and kids and errands interrupt, and I had no guarantee I would get what I needed.  Ultimately, I had to carve out space in my life to work out because it was important to me, and I feel like it makes me more productive in other areas in my life (better rest, more energy, more mentally aware and happier).  It’s really hard to do, but I’ve noticed the difference in my life.  I’m only at about 75% of what I was prior to my injury, which is disheartening, but I also feel so much better and have something to work towards…do you have a goat for fitness, like weight loss or to be able to run a distance at a specific pace?

[Toth]

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Edited August 21, 2021 by Toth

[Iskaral Pust]

@Toth I’m torn between offering some sympathetic encouragement and telling you to take your head out of your ass.

120 minutes of quality exercise per week is absolutely sufficient for good health, physical fitness and physique.  This is not some insurmountable burden that is unavailable to regular people with busy lives.  It takes months of doing that consistently to get any significant positive outcomes, and it has to be done mostly (not entirely) consistently for years for those positive outcomes to be sustained.

There is no short cut to reversing the deleterious effect of years of inactivity, sedentary atrophy and/or bad diet.  We all struggle to find time, energy and self-discipline for exercise in our lives, until we actually do it and then we remember how good it feels and we make it a higher priority.  Just like anything else in our lives, we have choices and priorities for how we spend our time.  All humans have an identical number of hours available to them each week; and we all make our own choices about how we spend them.  Your career, your commute, your family, your leisure and socializing, etc are all your choices; no external agency forced those on you.  That’s true for me too.

You sound like you would benefit from designing a good exercise plan (“exercises for my belly” are mostly a waste of time, for example) that raises the ratio of effect:time, and then figure out how to prioritize a time budget for exercise in your lifestyle.

I’m worse than almost anyone here for complaining that busy work interrupts my exercise.  But I also know that I am accountable for that: there is only my choices and priorities around how I spend my time.  There is no external agency who owes me physical health, and — just like fad dieting — there is no limited window burst of exercise whose benefits will persist if I return to sedentary inactivity.

This isn’t hard.  You can absolutely prioritize 120 minutes per week for exercise, spread over three or four days, with a well-designed, intentional exercise plan.  And then you sustain that as a normal part of your regular life, just like showering each day or preparing meals or going to work — except more fun.  No-one has an easy short-cut or end-run available to them, and everyone feels impatient for results much of the time.

[Starkess]

Still working with my stupid hip and it's stupid nagging pain. It's getting better, I think, and I've been pretty good about following the exercises and stretches from the PT. But my running volume is so low for 3 weeks now, and I'm not sure how I can possibly hope to complete a marathon in 6 weeks or so. Oh well. Just gotta keep doing what I can and listening to my body and see where I end up. Today was supposed to be an 18 mile run but obviously that wasn't happening. Instead I ran 3 miles, biked 66 minutes (meant as a sub for running 6 miles), ellipticaled 3 miles, biked 33 minutes (to sub for 3 miles), and walked 3 miles. So at least I'm still trying to maintain some fitness! But if I can't manage a 10+ mile run soon, I'm gonna probably have to nix the marathon. I could attempt to walk the marathon, but that also requires a fair bit of preparation and Chicago has a pretty tight time cut-off with 6.5 hours, meaning I'd have to maintain 15 min/mi for the entire race.

[Mr. Chatywin et al.]

On 8/21/2021 at 10:08 AM, Iskaral Pust said:

This isn’t hard.  You can absolutely prioritize 120 minutes per week for exercise, spread over three or four days, with a well-designed, intentional exercise plan.  And then you sustain that as a normal part of your regular life, just like showering each day or preparing meals or going to work — except more fun.  No-one has an easy short-cut or end-run available to them, and everyone feels impatient for results much of the time.

Just to piggy back off of this, @Toth, try for starters just going to bed a little earlier each night and getting up a half hour earlier. Use that time to lightly train, be it stretching, yoga, pilates, jogging, etc., and make that a normal routine. Over time try to add a half hour training session after work, again, whatever you want to make of it. The more you do this the more it will feel just like Isk said, like brushing your teeth. 

And just remind yourself, we all fail, constantly, but that doesn't mean we can't get back up and keep working towards our goal, whatever that may be. For example, over the last few weeks I've gotten it into my head that like Nora, I want to run a marathon. It's going to take me a few years to train for it, so maybe fall 2023 is realistic, but I will have to suffer a lot to achieve such a goal. So until then, signing up for a few 5ks is a good way to start.

[baxus]

This morning I went to workout before work. Doesn't sound like much, but I've been skipping Monday mornings for weeks (if not even months) now and making up for it on Tuesdays. The bad side is that something snapped in my right shoulder on the very first dumbbell snatch I did and now I feel some pain in it. It doesn't seem like anything big, I did the workout fine with some minor pain but I'll have to wait for tomorrow to see how it feels.

3 hours ago, Tywin et al. said:

For example, over the last few weeks I've gotten it into my head that like Nora, I want to run a marathon. It's going to take me a few years to train for it, so maybe fall 2023 is realistic, but I will have to suffer a lot to achieve such a goal. So until then, signing up for a few 5ks is a good way to start.

Obviously, I don't know your starting point when it comes to distance running, but I think that schedule is a bit conservative and you could probably do it faster.

For example, I'm quite confident that I could get up to a marathon in 6-9 months. I do have some 15 half-marathons under my belt but it's been 3 years since I did the last one and now I stick to 5-8km runs every now and again. Still, having never done a marathon, I may be just talking nonsense.

[Impmk2]

4 hours ago, Tywin et al. said:

For example, over the last few weeks I've gotten it into my head that like Nora, I want to run a marathon. It's going to take me a few years to train for it, so maybe fall 2023 is realistic, but I will have to suffer a lot to achieve such a goal. So until then, signing up for a few 5ks is a good way to start.

 

46 minutes ago, baxus said:

Obviously, I don't know your starting point when it comes to distance running, but I think that schedule is a bit conservative and you could probably do it faster.

For example, I'm quite confident that I could get up to a marathon in 6-9 months. I do have some 15 half-marathons under my belt but it's been 3 years since I did the last one and now I stick to 5-8km runs every now and again. Still, having never done a marathon, I may be just talking nonsense.

It's certainly possible to train from nothing to a marathon in less than a year. I'm not sure it'd be a great idea though. If you're coming from no / a very low base I think it's a pretty good idea to spend a few months running 5-10kms to get the legs properly conditioned, then slowly ramp it up to half distance and try a few to get a feel for running for a 1.5+ hours at a time.

From there - for me training from half distance to full marathon took about 14 weeks. Though at that stage I already had a very solid base from a couple years running and already knew what 30km felt like. Half the battle is not getting injured (I did not manage to get to the start line completely injury free either of the times I ran it). So taking it slow, steady and giving it a year or 2 to really condition the legs to prep for those 70km+ weeks at peak training is a pretty good idea imo.

Of course YMMV. I had the time, really wanted to push myself and see what I could do if I put in some really hard miles. If you're just aiming to finish you could do it far, far faster. Not to take anything away from that - it's still a big achievement, and taking the pressure off is probably the best idea for the first one at least. I'm also sure there's just the odd genetic freak* who could train with no injury and just go out and destroy my times without issue.

*alternatively teenager / early 20s - I was never particularly gifted at sports, and I'm near 40 and really feel it these days.

Edited August 23, 2021 by Impmk2