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Fitness |OT| Pumpin' Iron and Spittin' Blood.

Maiden Voyage

Gold™ Member
Love all the workout tips and motivational messages on this thread. I just bookmarked this and promised myself that I'll be reading here whenever I feel to lazy to get my body moving. I really need to work out soon.
Yep, this thread can be a great source of extrinsic motivation! It's my favorite thread on Gaf.
 

T8SC

Member
bELCAaH.jpg



:lollipop_anguish:

Winter training ... :messenger_persevering:
 
Low carb seems to killer for me. Upping my cals but loose weight. On Tuesday I was down to 87,7 kg...

When I started low carb back in mid September I was at 92 kg and although I have been raising my daily calories ever since by 100cals per weeks I actually lost weight. 🤷‍♂️ Streght remains around the same though. For some stuff I was even able to up the weight so everything's fine I guess. Curious to see what'll be the threshold when I actually start to gain weight...

Counting calories is super fun though. Look forward to every week and to decide where and how to add the 100 cals. :messenger_grinning_sweat:
 
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Sub_Level

wants to fuck an Asian grill.
Is there a bench-squat-deadlift ratio as a general guideline?

I'm doing 135 bench lol, so I'm thinking my squat should probably be closer to 200? No idea on deadlifts.
 
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Maiden Voyage

Gold™ Member
I cleared out my Oct Apple Fitness goal of getting an average of 5.2 miles in per day. Most of that was on the treadmill as I'm still taking time off from running due to the knee/hip issue. New goal this month is an average of 94 mins of exercise each day. Should be doable & thankfully no travel plans for the month.

I'm going to begin working strength training back into my weekly routines, with heavy focus on lower body & core to help out the knee & hip. I will probably introduce shorter runs this week and build up to a consistent distance which is to be determined.
 

haxan7

Banned
I gained 25+ lbs this year since January after I started drinking again. Slowly weening myself off the alcohol and getting back into healthiness. Currently down to 5 light beers a night. Planning to stick to that for about 2 weeks, then drop to 4 beers a night. In a month or 2 I should be fully off the booze.

Have been doing some light bike rides with a full stretch routine after a 5 minute warmup. Planning to not do any real cardio until my flexibility is improved a lot, as I run into knee issues pretty easily.
 

T8SC

Member
Another PB, this time a 30min timed session.

I know I can go harder too, I'll be aiming for 345w next time & I think I can have my FTP over 370w soon.

It's only November, there may be some interesting race results come the start of next season.


EgWXJDd.png
 
Is there a bench-squat-deadlift ratio as a general guideline?

I'm doing 135 bench lol, so I'm thinking my squat should probably be closer to 200? No idea on deadlifts.
This is a good one. You'll need to scroll down a little, but it's got strength ratios for a bunch of lifts.

Bench should be 75% of back squat, deadlift 120% of back squat.

 
For the last few years I've been running Tactical Barbell. It's for military and law enforcement, mainly, although I'm recreational. Basically, it's equal parts strength training, endurance, and high intensity conditioning. But once a year you drop the other stuff and do 5 weeks of endurance-only training (read, jogging), which I'm at the end of now. Can't wait to get back to normal lifting and training again.

If anyone's looking for an intense program to run long term, I strongly recommend TB. There are a couple of books on Amazon (very cheap). It is challenging, but it's very basic and requires very little equipment.
 
Today's workout was maybe the most painful one in my whole program. Luckily I only have to do it one time each time I do this endurance phase, every 9 months or so. It's a strength-endurance circuit.

It's this:
Front squats w 65 lbs
Overhead press, 40 lbs
Back squats, 65 lbs
BB rows, 65 lbs
RDLs, 65 lbs

That's the circuit. You get up to 90 seconds rest between sets (I was doing 60 today) and 2 minutes between circuits. Today was "3 by 50," which means 3 times through the circuit, 50 reps every set.

I will likely spend the rest of the day reading comic books and playing video games.
 
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KAL2006

Banned
So I'm trying to get.my fitness level up and start running. So been doing this for on a 1 week and I notice I always get extreme lain on my ankles and feet, it like those give out before my tiredness of the run. Is this normal is it a case of just building mucle and strength and this pain will eventually go once I'm more my fitness goes up. Or is it a case of something to do with my weak joints and have to always deal with. Just some history for me I am slightly overweight and age 34.
 
So I'm trying to get.my fitness level up and start running. So been doing this for on a 1 week and I notice I always get extreme lain on my ankles and feet, it like those give out before my tiredness of the run. Is this normal is it a case of just building mucle and strength and this pain will eventually go once I'm more my fitness goes up. Or is it a case of something to do with my weak joints and have to always deal with. Just some history for me I am slightly overweight and age 34.
When I started jogging, I'd get a lot of pain around the shins and front/top of my foot, and it was a matter of building up the muscles there. I'd also strongly recommend buying good running shoes and socks (when you go to buy the shoes, ask about running socks with lots of padding) from a store that specializes in running shoes. (If you have the money, etc. of course.) It made an enormous difference for me.
 

KAL2006

Banned
When I started jogging, I'd get a lot of pain around the shins and front/top of my foot, and it was a matter of building up the muscles there. I'd also strongly recommend buying good running shoes and socks (when you go to buy the shoes, ask about running socks with lots of padding) from a store that specializes in running shoes. (If you have the money, etc. of course.) It made an enormous difference for me.

That's interesting, I'll look into shoes and socks and hopefully it is jus the muscles building up after all this is the first time I've been running in years.
 
Man, ellbow issues are such a sucker…

Grazed my left arm while doing supersets a few weeks ago (I learned, not doing those any more) and it has been bothering me a bit ever since. Not too bad, I had worse. What I hate about it is that it tricks me. The heavier my curls in the gym, the less it hurts. So naturally I go heavier and actually pull off the lift.

But yeah, back home here I am cooling and bandaging. Darn it man.

Now up to working around it again. Such is life for a gym rat. Not the first time and it won‘t be the last time for sure.
 
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Sub_Level

wants to fuck an Asian grill.
This is a good one. You'll need to scroll down a little, but it's got strength ratios for a bunch of lifts.

Bench should be 75% of back squat, deadlift 120% of back squat.


Well I'm all fucked up then lol. Currently for 3 sets of 6 reps I am

Bench 135lbs
Deadlift 125lbs
Squat 115lbs

Just a beginner tho. I'm sure my squat will soon overtake my bench as I've been adding 10lbs everytime I do it. Whereas for bench I have had to stay at 135lbs for a couple weeks now, a plateau of sorts. My goal on all 3, other than not injuring myself, is to do my bodyweight 170lbs. That would feel really cool.
 
Well I'm all fucked up then lol. Currently for 3 sets of 6 reps I am

Bench 135lbs
Deadlift 125lbs
Squat 115lbs

Just a beginner tho. I'm sure my squat will soon overtake my bench as I've been adding 10lbs everytime I do it. Whereas for bench I have had to stay at 135lbs for a couple weeks now, a plateau of sorts. My goal on all 3, other than not injuring myself, is to do my bodyweight 170lbs. That would feel really cool.
I think that it's okay to start off with your strength unbalanced, because that just is what it is, naturally. But you really don't want to be the guy who benches 315 and squats 225. If you don't have a published/well-known program you follow, I'd recommend getting one. 5-3-1 by Jim Wendler is a popular one. You can find books on Amazon or read up on t-nation.com. As I've said, I use Tactical Barbell, but that's lifting plus running (and the lifting part of TB is very similar to 5-3-1).
 

manfestival

Member
Just want to report in on some fantastic goals that I hit and never imagined even hitting. I finally have abs, it is weird. The top 2 layers definitely have definition and they feel like foreign bumps on my stomach. The last layer is covered by some loose skin(from the weight loss) and I guess will eventually get defined in time as my body resolves this issue. Sometimes I even look at my body and wonder if it is actually mine since I am used to being at like 24-30%bmi. My current BMI is sitting at around 15%.

On Wednesday my trainer had me weigh myself and I was officially at 184lbs. This shatters my previous low of 196lbs which I believe I had only ever achieved at 21. I am 34 now. As for real world implementation. My fitness level is on another level compared to those on my team too. Most of those on the team are either fit or not fat. The goal prior to going on this fitness journey was to stop being the fat guy on the team. It always irked me that people told me that I was not fat as I walk around with almost or at 30% BMI. They said it to be nice and the dishonesty always rubbed me the wrong way since their dishonesty wasn't helpful.

Oh I also have to buy a new wardrobe. I can finally fit in a size medium(maybe middle school was the last time I wore that) and a 32inch waist for pants actually on my waist rather than below... which that was easily middle school as well.
 
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So I'm really not sure at what is going on.

Back in early September I jumped on a low carb/high fat diet with 2500 cals of training days and 2300 on off days. I weight around 90 kg. Now fast forward to mid November I'm currently at 3100 cals on training days and 2900 on off days. Weight this morning was 88,4 kg. And mind you it has been a progressive decline over the past months, meaning, I did not drop weight drastically in the beginning.

How is that even possible? My strength has gone up significantly, my waist was cut in half (two holes tighter on my training belt) and I just feel better overall. This is insane.

Seems like my body is running on fats or shit. I have no fucking clue. I've been avoiding fats almost my entire lifting "career", it's straight out comical what progress I make with low carb now.
 
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I went back to a real gym today for the first time in years(for lots of reasons) and I have to say it felt amazing. I forgot how great it feels to sling around real iron, real weights as opposed to the training I have been doing at home. I wanted to go for 40 minutes, ended up staying 90.

I am in the middle of a multiyear plan and effort to completely remake my body physically and get back to being in the shape I used to be in, or as best as I can given the limitations of age(45). That started last year with losing about 70lbs of fat. I went from 330lbs to 260lbs at 6'4.

I am trying to transition into a more muscle building/recomp phase now. I built a pretty capable home gym last year based on suspension systems, sandbags, kettlebells but like I said above, nothing really beats pushing iron.

I am also in the middle of experimenting with testosterone replacement therapy as well.

Its nice to see a thread with everyone stories trials and tribulations.
 
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12Goblins

Lil’ Gobbie
I've been dealing with runner's knee for like 3 months. Effing sucks....

Ugh.

Glad to see some of yall really putting in the work!
need to rehab it brother. let it rest and foam roll/lacrosse ball the shit out all muscles that support your knee. you will find some super sensitive areas - those extremely tender areas are the source your problem.
 
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12Goblins

Lil’ Gobbie
So I'm trying to get.my fitness level up and start running. So been doing this for on a 1 week and I notice I always get extreme lain on my ankles and feet, it like those give out before my tiredness of the run. Is this normal is it a case of just building mucle and strength and this pain will eventually go once I'm more my fitness goes up. Or is it a case of something to do with my weak joints and have to always deal with. Just some history for me I am slightly overweight and age 34.
again, that is inflammation in your joints because the muscles that support them are super tight and need to be stretched

you can also alleviate this by finding better suited shoes
 
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So I've been having a lot more success with meeting people and I've been on at least one date since I started working out.

I think it's mostly a confidence thing but I've been really feeling a lot more confident in myself and have been taking more care of my appearance. I have noticed that since I started to look/dress better that interactions seem to come more naturally.

Yeah, it just feels really good and continues to motivate me to want to work out more. I've now got over that initial fear I had of everybody watching me at the gym. After going for many weeks I noticed that nobody was even bothered about anyone else, just focusing on their own work out. So when I got in the zone it was like I wasn't even there.
 

Raven117

Member
need to rehab it brother. let it rest and foam roll/lacrosse ball the shit out all muscles that support your knee. you will find some super sensitive areas - those extremely tender areas are the source your problem.
Thanks for the tips! You dealt with with it before? My hamstring has been a bit weird for months. Curious if there is a relationship there?

but yeah…. I just need to rest it. I’ve cut out most of the running and any kind of squat.
 
Hit my deadlift PR yesterday. 170 kg (375 pounds), 4 reps.

Todays I wake up and went from 88,4 kg to 87,5 kg…. I think I‘ll just stop trying to make sense of all this. 🤷‍♂️
 
I went back to a real gym today for the first time in years(for lots of reasons) and I have to say it felt amazing. I forgot how great it feels to sling around real iron, real weights as opposed to the training I have been doing at home. I wanted to go for 40 minutes, ended up staying 90.
Sore as a motherfucker today lol. I'm sore in muscles I forgot existed but man it feels great!
 

12Goblins

Lil’ Gobbie
Thanks for the tips! You dealt with with it before? My hamstring has been a bit weird for months. Curious if there is a relationship there?

but yeah…. I just need to rest it. I’ve cut out most of the running and any kind of squat.
yes sir. undoubtedly they are connected; a compromised hamstring will lead to knee pain because your quads must compensate for the hamstring and that puts too much load on your knee.
 
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Raven117

Member
yes sir. undoubtedly they are connected; a compromised hamstring will lead to knee pain because your quads must compensate for a compromised hamstring and that puts too much load on your knee.
Ugh. I know you are right. What’s funny is that it only aches when I sit in a chair for too long (like in a folding chair with kneees bent at 90 degrees).

Thanks for the tips 12Goblins!
 
Gyms closing again due to Corona seems to be just a matter of time around here... Fuck me, just as it's going so well. Have to make this week count. Killed my legs on Tuesday already, no up to the rest until Sunday.
 
Gyms closing again due to Corona seems to be just a matter of time around here... Fuck me, just as it's going so well. Have to make this week count. Killed my legs on Tuesday already, no up to the rest until Sunday.
Where are you? I saw this morning that California is trending upward.
 
Other side of the world mate. Arnold‘s land, Austria.

And to make this day even worse I just had a bloody horrible workout. When it rains, it pours.
So according to Google:

Austria, about 14000 cases per day with 9 million people
Florida, about 1500 cases per day with 21 million people

I know that there is reason to think Florida lies on its Covid numbers, but that is ..... damn
 
So according to Google:

Austria, about 14000 cases per day with 9 million people
Florida, about 1500 cases per day with 21 million people

I know that there is reason to think Florida lies on its Covid numbers, but that is ..... damn
I'm not too surprised. It's currently winter here in Austria. It's cold, people get sick. Everything was fine in the warm summer months. Now it seems to be completely out of control. Shit sucks. Be glad you don't have winters like we do in California.
 

T8SC

Member
I broke the Wattbike today. The spare one is the "Trainer" model, not the "Pro" ...

nothing-speechless.gif





Not happy. Hopefully the engineer won't take long to arrive, the Trainer model doesn't feel the same for some reason.
 
Yesterday I started off with deadlifts. Did 385 for 4x6, about 2 minutes rest in between, conventional stance, no belt or grip support. And I wasn't particularly tired at the end. Felt pretty good for a 40-something!
 

T8SC

Member
Yesterday I started off with deadlifts. Did 385 for 4x6, about 2 minutes rest in between, conventional stance, no belt or grip support. And I wasn't particularly tired at the end. Felt pretty good for a 40-something!

200.gif



I've been at the gym this morning for a session on a different type of bike, heading to a different gym later for the "Trainer" Wattbike session.

Wattbike-Website-Image.jpg


Miss you pro bike. :messenger_loudly_crying:
 

Tazzu

Member
Hey guys just started hitting the gym again recently and I was wondering if I can get some advice. In the past, I've talked about how I was doing Stronglifts 5x5 and would get to plateau. Since then I've restarted going back to the gym and I am still doing the 5 big compounds movements. I am focusing on size now and I have altered my workout as such.

As mentioned I am doing the big 5 compound movements but its the changes in reps/sets that is the biggest difference. Generally speaking, I am doing 3 sets of 8-12 reps, 3 times a week. In the 6-8 weeks or so since I started, I have actually grown a bit and I can definitely see it. However I feel the growth is far too slow. As such what should I be doing with my numbers to get bigger?

For example, on the bench press my strength training plateau was around 52.5 kg 5x5. As such I went down to 45kg doing 3x10, then 3x12, then upping the weight etc. until I got to around 50 3x10. However I feel the progress in numbers is really quite slow for a beginner. The other day I decided to do 60kg but 3 sets of 5 reps. Suprisingly while it wasn't easy, I was able to do it. The reason I went up to 60kg was to mix up my workout and to then go back down to lower weights but with higher reps and see how I do instead. The other excercises I do are the squat, overhead press, barbell row and deadlift.

So guys, given my workout what can I do to progress more quickly. I feel I eat enough calories and have a scoop of protein after every workout. I can' blame my genes either. While I am South Asian and now 32, my big brother worked out between 18-23 and got into good shape but then let himself really go. However in his late 30s hes got back into fitness and now has shed a lot of weight and his muscles are the biggest I've ever seen them. Another thing to note is that a few months back my testosterone levels were extremely low due to a year of the worst depression of my life. I am now feeling much better. I am sleeping way better, my mood is also much better and I have my energy back. During the depression I was constantly sleeping and could very little in the gym but progressively I could do now do more and right now I can do all 5 big exercises in a single session.

I really regret leaving this so late and now that I am 32 I feel unless I do something now I may forever miss the boat. I'm not going to become Arnie or anything but I really do want to put some bulk on before its too late. Sorry for the long (and sometimes personal) post but I would really appreciate any advice. What do I need to do with my sets/reps to get into that hypertrophy region. Making the adjustments has certainly made a difference but I still feel I am not quite at that sweet spot yet.

Thanks!
 
Hey guys just started hitting the gym again recently and I was wondering if I can get some advice. In the past, I've talked about how I was doing Stronglifts 5x5 and would get to plateau. Since then I've restarted going back to the gym and I am still doing the 5 big compounds movements. I am focusing on size now and I have altered my workout as such.

As mentioned I am doing the big 5 compound movements but its the changes in reps/sets that is the biggest difference. Generally speaking, I am doing 3 sets of 8-12 reps, 3 times a week. In the 6-8 weeks or so since I started, I have actually grown a bit and I can definitely see it. However I feel the growth is far too slow. As such what should I be doing with my numbers to get bigger?

For example, on the bench press my strength training plateau was around 52.5 kg 5x5. As such I went down to 45kg doing 3x10, then 3x12, then upping the weight etc. until I got to around 50 3x10. However I feel the progress in numbers is really quite slow for a beginner. The other day I decided to do 60kg but 3 sets of 5 reps. Suprisingly while it wasn't easy, I was able to do it. The reason I went up to 60kg was to mix up my workout and to then go back down to lower weights but with higher reps and see how I do instead. The other excercises I do are the squat, overhead press, barbell row and deadlift.

So guys, given my workout what can I do to progress more quickly. I feel I eat enough calories and have a scoop of protein after every workout. I can' blame my genes either. While I am South Asian and now 32, my big brother worked out between 18-23 and got into good shape but then let himself really go. However in his late 30s hes got back into fitness and now has shed a lot of weight and his muscles are the biggest I've ever seen them. Another thing to note is that a few months back my testosterone levels were extremely low due to a year of the worst depression of my life. I am now feeling much better. I am sleeping way better, my mood is also much better and I have my energy back. During the depression I was constantly sleeping and could very little in the gym but progressively I could do now do more and right now I can do all 5 big exercises in a single session.

I really regret leaving this so late and now that I am 32 I feel unless I do something now I may forever miss the boat. I'm not going to become Arnie or anything but I really do want to put some bulk on before its too late. Sorry for the long (and sometimes personal) post but I would really appreciate any advice. What do I need to do with my sets/reps to get into that hypertrophy region. Making the adjustments has certainly made a difference but I still feel I am not quite at that sweet spot yet.

Thanks!
The first question is going to be if you're getting enough calories and macros. The program I follow (Tactical Barbell) uses this formula:

Daily protein (grams) = bodyweight (in pounds) x 1.3
carbs = bodyweight x 2
fats = bodyweight x .5

So get out the pen and paper and look at the labels of your food or check online and add up what you're really getting each day. Odds are that you need to eat more.
 

Tazzu

Member
The first question is going to be if you're getting enough calories and macros. The program I follow (Tactical Barbell) uses this formula:

Daily protein (grams) = bodyweight (in pounds) x 1.3
carbs = bodyweight x 2
fats = bodyweight x .5

So get out the pen and paper and look at the labels of your food or check online and add up what you're really getting each day. Odds are that you need to eat more.
How important is nutrition to muscle growth?

Similarly am I doing anything wrong with my workout?
 
How important is nutrition to muscle growth?

Similarly am I doing anything wrong with my workout?
Nutrition is extremely important--that and time. It takes years to get truly big and strong, the right way (meaning, not getting tubby too). When I was really bulking, years ago, I was eating 3 large meals, plus a protein shake with lots of oatmeal, milk and peanut butter thrown in with the powder, plus a postworkout shake, plus about half a box of chicken nuggets before bedtime. And that was every day for months and months. I was about 30 at the time and I could squat 495 x10 and weighed about 215.

I would suggest that you buy a reputable mass building book and follow the program. I use Tactical Barbell (which is a series but one of the books is called Mass Protocol); the books are cheap and I can attest to their efficacy. But there are others. If you read the TB book I am happy to answer questions in DMs, etc. But it's important to have a program and to follow it.

Based on what you've posted, my first suggestion on the lifting would be to up it to 5 sets per lift. But your problem is probably that you aren't eating enough and aren't giving it enough time.
 

T8SC

Member
Used the Wattbike "Trainer" bike yesterday, couldn't find a nice "gear" to be in as its all different from the Pro model, ended up spinning my legs faster than I'm used to, to get the same wattage with the lighter gears. Torture. Fuck 110 cadence.

Went on the bike this afternoon to do a bit of active recovery before it rained. Back to the gym tomorrow for more bike work and then some HIIT.
 
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