New Exercise and Fitness Thread

[Lightning Lord]

My sister posted this tongue-in-cheek bit on my Facebook page:

Dad: 'i really don't want to go watch your brother run the marathon'

Sister: 'what?!?! why?'

Dad: 'because he's not going to win. and i don't appreciate losers in this family. it's embarrassing.'

GOOD LUCK IN THE CHICAGO MARATHON THIS SUNDAY BROTHER! WE LOVE YOU!

Best running possible mate! Cheering for you from afar.

[Rubies & Jade]

GOOD LUCK IN THE CHICAGO MARATHON THIS SUNDAY BROTHER! WE LOVE YOU!

:laugh:

good luck alguien!!!

[Stego]

I finally put "Aoif" back in?

I thought you quit the board for a year.

I missed you.

[Rubies & Jade]

I thought you quit the board for a year.

this place is sorta like coffee, chocolate cake and porn... you can keep saying you're gonna give it up, but you always end up coming back.

while I'm here, I need exercises to specifically target muscles in my back (I really don't ever look at my back, but seeing my NHAW pic, I think I've been neglecting my back muscles!) the only thing I do regularly is that sorta bent over fly thing with dumbbells. any other ideas?

[Space Bandito]

I need some advice on stretching my legs and back muscles. I am trying to find the best ways to do so with out bending over too much as I have a head that is still healing. I know complicated.

As many know I am still recovering from a major surgery but I want to get back to doing some exercise. Tight hamstrings and back muscles (from lying down so much) are bugging me.

[Rubies & Jade]

SB, I usually do all back stretches from the position of lying on my back, because if I do the bending over ones I tend to round my back.

Here are my routine ones (I just pulled these images off the web:)

hamstring I do this usually with either holding on to my foot or with a belt/towel looped around my foot, depending on how flexible I'm feeling.

lower back

legs & hips & back twist thingie

shape like a 4 stretch

I have no idea what to call these things! sorry! Seastarr posted nice descriptions of some these, but that was many threads back I think.

[Stego]

while I'm here, I need exercises to specifically target muscles in my back (I really don't ever look at my back, but seeing my NHAW pic, I think I've been neglecting my back muscles!) the only thing I do regularly is that sorta bent over fly thing with dumbbells. any other ideas?

Pullups.

[alguien]

Thanks everyone!

I'll let you know how it goes!

[cjfshaw]

this place is sorta like coffee, chocolate cake and porn... you can keep saying you're gonna give it up, but you always end up coming back.

while I'm here, I need exercises to specifically target muscles in my back (I really don't ever look at my back, but seeing my NHAW pic, I think I've been neglecting my back muscles!) the only thing I do regularly is that sorta bent over fly thing with dumbbells. any other ideas?

pull ups, like stego said, and body rows, in addition to those bent over flies that's all you need

[Rubies & Jade]

thanks guys. I'm embarrassed to admit that I totally forgot about pull-ups. I think I put them totally out of my mind because I hate that I can't do them yet without some assist, so I sorta blocked that machine from my view when I'm at the gym. I'll work on that, and body rows too.

thanks again!

[Space Bandito]

SB, I usually do all back stretches from the position of lying on my back, because if I do the bending over ones I tend to round my back.

Here are my routine ones (I just pulled these images off the web:)

hamstring I do this usually with either holding on to my foot or with a belt/towel looped around my foot, depending on how flexible I'm feeling.

lower back

legs & hips & back twist thingie

shape like a 4 stretch

I have no idea what to call these things! sorry! Seastarr posted nice descriptions of some these, but that was many threads back I think.

Thanks. Much easier. I used to be a power lifter back in the day. But stretching was not my main concern. Now doing karate I know my fair share of stretches and exercises, but these are nice and simple. :thumbsup:

[Tempra]

this place is sorta like coffee, chocolate cake and porn... you can keep saying you're gonna give it up, but you always end up coming back.

while I'm here, I need exercises to specifically target muscles in my back (I really don't ever look at my back, but seeing my NHAW pic, I think I've been neglecting my back muscles!) the only thing I do regularly is that sorta bent over fly thing with dumbbells. any other ideas?

Pull ups / lat pull downs (if you can't do pull ups), all variations of rows (seated, bent over, 1 arm, etc), deadlifts.

Bent over flyes are actually a shoulder exercise.

[Tempra]

thanks guys. I'm embarrassed to admit that I totally forgot about pull-ups. I think I put them totally out of my mind because I hate that I can't do them yet without some assist, so I sorta blocked that machine from my view when I'm at the gym. I'll work on that, and body rows too.

thanks again!

Instead of using the assisted pull up machine, you may want to invest in some bands to help you progress to unassisted pull ups. Pull up machines provide too much assistance throughout the range of motion, which makes it hard to make the jump to unassisted. At least, I found that to be the case.

[cjfshaw]

if you can't do a pull up you could also start out by doing jump-assisted pull ups, where you jump to get the movement started instead of doing the pull up from a dead hang

[alguien]

Well, the Chicago marathon was pretty brutal, and I didn't get anywhere close to the time I thought I would, but I gutted it out and finished.

I was doing fine (probably going faster than I should have) up until mile 9 and then my legs started to feel really, really tired. Then I started to panic, thinking, "Crap, what if I started out too fast and can't finish?"

So I slowed down and tried to calm down. Felt a bit better by around mile 13. But then it started to get hot. By mile 15 I was walking and running, trying to pick spots that I could start running and walking through. I think by mile 17 it was about 77 degrees. By mile 20 it was like 81 degrees. :stunned:

So I finished in under six hours, even though I felt like absolute crap. Not exactly what I was aiming for, but at that point I was just relieved to finish. My previous marathon five years ago was about 4 hours and 15 minutes. This one was much slower, but also much more of a mental challenge.

So I'm happy with the accomplishment, though not 100% happy. I have to admit I'm sort of Monday morning quarterbacking of how I could have run smarter. But that's the perfectionist in me. ;)

Ah well, I finished! I ran a marathon! And very happy to be relaxing at home today. :thumbsup:

[Eponine]

Congrats on gutting it out. If you're disappointed with the result, would you consider using the base that you've built up to try again in a month or two? You wouldn't have to repeat the entire training cycle, just after a week of rest, start maintaining what you've already accomplished.

[alguien]

Congrats on gutting it out. If you're disappointed with the result, would you consider using the base that you've built up to try again in a month or two? You wouldn't have to repeat the entire training cycle, just after a week of rest, start maintaining what you've already accomplished.

Thought about it. I did sign up to do the Monster half marathon on Halloween at the end of this month. I figured I'd keep decent mileage through October and see how I felt after that. For this one, I have a suspicion that my tapering was too long.

[Stego]

Ah well, I finished! I ran a marathon!

You're a fucking beast! Congrats on an incredible level of fitness and toughness.

[Lightning Lord]

Ah well, I finished! I ran a marathon! And very happy to be relaxing at home today. :thumbsup:

Congratulations! Don't fret about time. You finished a marathon, you beat your body's attempt to make you stop. You should be proud!

81 is a brutal temp for a marathon. I thought October in Chicago was cooler than that.

[alguien]

You're a fucking beast! Congrats on an incredible level of fitness and toughness.

Thanks man! Appreciate it.

Congratulations! Don't fret about time. You finished a marathon, you beat your body's attempt to make you stop. You should be proud!

81 is a brutal temp for a marathon. I thought October in Chicago was cooler than that.

Thank you, sir! Chicago usually is cooler in October. We just had some late summer weather show up. Great for people who want to boat or swim on the beach, bad if you're trying to run 26.2 miles.

Bloody weather. :)