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Fitness |OT9|...You looked better before

I was burned out on chicken breast and tried something new this week for meal prep and it turned out better than I could have ever imagined. Ground turkey, black beans, roasted sweet potatoes, onion, bell pepper, green chili's, chipotle chili powder, smoked paprika, ground pepper and just a touch of salt. Not as fast to prep as chicken breast and asparagus, but worth it for the variation.
 

s_mirage

Member
A question from a gym newb: how do you deal with equipment hogs? I'm talking about guys who are doing very infrequent sets and are typically moving back and forth between two pieces of equipment, holding the unused one with their towel/water, while hardly using either.
 
Yeah... see that whole looking good and feeling good thing? It's a massive moving spectrum.

When you start, you figure you just want some abs, or some bigger guns, or to be able to complete that 10k. Then in a couple of years, your obliques aren't popping like they should, and you need more of a taper from your lats, and you're still pissed off that you're not squatting three plates. Worse, your last marathon time was three and a half hours, which is shit really.

...and recreational fitness is basically being able to do what you want to do without dying, and not looking like a couch potato. :)
Right now I am on the wanting abs part, but it seems I really need to do exercises for the abs for them to form. I can see the outline where the abs should be forming but the packs themselves aren't there.

Hmm when I swam again after a long time I realized I wasn't getting out of breath as much as I did before. Also, my hikes were much pleasurable because someone else other than me always gets tired way sooner so I get a lot of rest, to the point where I wonder why we're stopping too much. This whole fit thing is a huge boon. Not to mention all the compliments and stares I get now :)

A question from a gym newb: how do you deal with equipment hogs? I'm talking about guys who are doing very infrequent sets and are typically moving back and forth between two pieces of equipment, holding the unused one with their towel/water, while hardly using either.
Watch how long they use the equipment. I usually do 3x10 of everything I do, I notice people also do 3 sets. If not, you can try going around and doing your other routines first. If you really have to do an equipment, you can ask politely if you can do a quick one or if you can alternate with the person hogging the equipment. You both paid to be there.
 

KillerBEA

Member
A question from a gym newb: how do you deal with equipment hogs? I'm talking about guys who are doing very infrequent sets and are typically moving back and forth between two pieces of equipment, holding the unused one with their towel/water, while hardly using either.
Ask to work in,
 

Tater Tot

"My God... it's full of Starch!"
Found a cool spot under a tree.

Week 2 of rings. They are a humbling experience.

l3gUlU.jpg
 

Magwik

Banned
Just dropping by for a quick question, if I want to hit a specific goal by September (drop around 30lbs), am I better off cutting and focusing solely in cardio + diet, or focusing on diet + building muscle? I've already dropped roughly 25lbs since the start of April with a mix of the two, just not sure where I should be focusing from here on out.
 

s_mirage

Member
Watch how long they use the equipment. I usually do 3x10 of everything I do, I notice people also do 3 sets. If not, you can try going around and doing your other routines first. If you really have to do an equipment, you can ask politely if you can do a quick one or if you can alternate with the person hogging the equipment. You both paid to be there.

Ask to work in,

Thanks for the advice.
 
Just dropping by for a quick question, if I want to hit a specific goal by September (drop around 30lbs), am I better off cutting and focusing solely in cardio + diet, or focusing on diet + building muscle? I've already dropped roughly 25lbs since the start of April with a mix of the two, just not sure where I should be focusing from here on out.

If your aim is to lose the weight, cardio + diet.

If your aim is to look good when you've lost the weight, weights + diet.
 

Pixeluh

Member
A question from a gym newb: how do you deal with equipment hogs? I'm talking about guys who are doing very infrequent sets and are typically moving back and forth between two pieces of equipment, holding the unused one with their towel/water, while hardly using either.

Ask them when they will be done, or if you can work in. They'll probably get the clue and hurry up (at least that happens to me).

However, I totally am one to hog the squat rack at my gym. My gym only has one rack/barbell and my boyfriend and I are doing strong lifts together so we are at it for an hour. We go at off times when there is literally nobody there, but if we ever saw someone waiting on us we would kindly hurry up or let them work in. Most of the gym goers do body weight and machine work so we are doing okay so far.
 
Just dropping by for a quick question, if I want to hit a specific goal by September (drop around 30lbs), am I better off cutting and focusing solely in cardio + diet, or focusing on diet + building muscle? I've already dropped roughly 25lbs since the start of April with a mix of the two, just not sure where I should be focusing from here on out.
Always focus on building muscle unless you are very overweight imo
 
Nothing like having a heat wave come through and your gym's a/c failing to work properly... Today was ROUGH. I'm normally the type of person that can do a workout without sweating much at all. Today, literally dripping sweat after a set or two. By the end, was more drenched than I've ever been at the gym.

Really hoping they get this figured out fast... I mean it was hilarious, but I can't take this every day, haha.
 

Jokab

Member
Am I correct to assume that in a deadlift, before the bar passes the knees basically only the legs should be doing work? And after the knees, keep pushing with the legs but also drive hips forward?
 

BlueTsunami

there is joy in sucking dick
Am I correct to assume that in a deadlift, before the bar passes the knees basically only the legs should be doing work? And after the knees, keep pushing with the legs but also drive hips forward?

At the knees you should be flexing your glutes and pushing your hips forward. The tricky part is getting this motion to feel smooth in transition. Barbell Romanian Deadlifts can be a good alt motion to get this feeling down (both the motion and the place where you bring your hips forward)
 
Ive been on a PPL split for a year now, i can highly recommend it if you have the time to go to the gym 5-6 times a week.

Pretty much my thoughts on this. If you have the time, go for it, I did it for a bit and enjoyed it. Just requires a decent amount of time dedicated to the gym each week.

Right now I'm on a upper/lower split so that I'm able to hit everything twice a week and only be at the gym 4 days a week. Works out insanely well for me, loving the free time!
 

.....

Member
Pretty much my thoughts on this. If you have the time, go for it, I did it for a bit and enjoyed it. Just requires a decent amount of time dedicated to the gym each week.

Right now I'm on a upper/lower split so that I'm able to hit everything twice a week and only be at the gym 4 days a week. Works out insanely well for me, loving the free time!

Yeah , the frequency/volume is the main benefit of the program . If you cant devote that much time then other programs would be advisable like upper/lower , PHUL or 3 day full body .
 

LogicStep

Member
At the knees you should be flexing your glutes and pushing your hips forward. The tricky part is getting this motion to feel smooth in transition. Barbell Romanian Deadlifts can be a good alt motion to get this feeling down (both the motion and the place where you bring your hips forward)
Aren't you supposed to also use your back? I thought on DL you use your legs and butt in conjunction with your upper and middle back.
 

BlueTsunami

there is joy in sucking dick
Aren't you supposed to also use your back? I thought on DL you use your legs and butt in conjunction with your upper and middle back.

Your back is supposed to act more like a stabilizer, the lats to keep the bar close to your body and the whole back itself to keep your spine in a neutral position. Its the hip hinge movement that you're trying to utilize to bring the weight into lockout.
 

Carbonox

Member
Switching to 5/3/1 has been glorious for me so far though I'm starting to feel Bench stagnate a tad but that's more me in general I think. Current calc. 1 rep maxes:

Bench: 264
Deadlift: 396
Squat: 346
Total: 1006

My deads and squats keep on rising though (next deadlift session should push me through the 400lbs mark no problem). Hitting the 1000 mark total was a short-term goal of mine, now to find some new shortish-term goals for my numbers maybe.
 
This sounds interesting. Can you share your routine please?

Certainly!

I use a spreadsheet to track everything, so here's a screenshot of my routine.

I stick to the reverse pyramid method for my sets as well. (heaviest weight is first, decreasing weight on following sets) And not that it has to be done this way, just chiming in with how I handle my sets.

I'm liking it though. As I mentioned earlier, spending less time in the gym overall and still seeing the same results as I did when I was going 5/6 times a week. Can't complain!
 

Jokab

Member
My seasonal allergies are fucking me up today. Symptoms include runny nose, dry eyes, and a sore throat. Can I still go to the gym today?

If you're sure it's not an actual infection you should be fine. Just listen to your body and make sure you don't get any tightness in the chest, that's a sure sign to quit it right away. If it indeed is the allergy, it all kind of depends on how severe your particular allergy is. Personally I work out anyway.
 

Vorg

Banned
Certainly!

I use a spreadsheet to track everything, so here's a screenshot of my routine.

I stick to the reverse pyramid method for my sets as well. (heaviest weight is first, decreasing weight on following sets) And not that it has to be done this way, just chiming in with how I handle my sets.

I'm liking it though. As I mentioned earlier, spending less time in the gym overall and still seeing the same results as I did when I was going 5/6 times a week. Can't complain!

Awesome. Thanks! Gonna try this for a few weeks and see how I do.
 

TheBear

Member
Hey guys, I've been doing F45 for a few months and have had some decent results combined with watching what I eat with portions etc. lost about 10 kilos and look a lot healthier. However I'm finding F45 a bit hard on my joints and there's a lot of wasted exercises which I think are a waste of time. I do like that at the end of each session I am sweating my ass off though.

I was thinking about getting back into lifting heavy, but I hear that's not the trend now either which is confusing. My cousin who is a PT trainer and is fucking huge and shredded only does yoga and body weight training.

Basically I'm confused. I want to lose my gut and put on muscle mass. Help.
 
If I need to I always unload deuces 1-1.5h before DLs. Any sooner and the feelings of relief interfere with bracing/tightness.

Uh, I guess the real message is that I can't truly relate lmao.
I mean I did unload before the gym. The ice cream finally catching up to me lol
TBH this probably was the best dl session in awhile.
 

mdsfx

Member
My seasonal allergies are fucking me up today. Symptoms include runny nose, dry eyes, and a sore throat. Can I still go to the gym today?
I get terrible allergies from June-August. I never take a break due to them. I've found that working out always helps me feel better, clearing my sinuses and such. I do take Claritin and use Opcon-A eyedrops which helps tremendously.

Jogger's nipple every single time I don't tape up, lol. Goddam. XD
Screw tape. Body glide.
 
Hey guys, I've been doing F45 for a few months and have had some decent results combined with watching what I eat with portions etc. lost about 10 kilos and look a lot healthier. However I'm finding F45 a bit hard on my joints and there's a lot of wasted exercises which I think are a waste of time. I do like that at the end of each session I am sweating my ass off though.

I was thinking about getting back into lifting heavy, but I hear that's not the trend now either which is confusing. My cousin who is a PT trainer and is fucking huge and shredded only does yoga and body weight training.

Basically I'm confused. I want to lose my gut and put on muscle mass. Help.

If your goal is to get stronger by lifting heavy ass weights, then lift some heavy ass weights. Nothing wrong with body weight training as well cause that is extremely intense too. First step is if you want to do it by lifting or bodyweight exercises. I'm a gym rat so I will prefer traditional weights but I would love to do all the crazy bodyweight stuff as well, I just don't want to struggle through it haha.
 

GrapeApes

Member
That feel when you have new gear but can't use it for days. Just got some SBD sleeves but not squatting till Monday. Last time I was in a rush to use new gear got injured and I couldn't squat for months! Feelsbadman.
 
That feel when you have new gear but can't use it for days. Just got some SBD sleeves but not squatting till Monday. Last time I was in a rush to use new gear got injured and I couldn't squat for months! Feelsbadman.

i love my sbd sleeve but i feel like i should have went with large instead of xl. Maybe i'll get the usa one next in a smaller size.
 

TheBear

Member
If your goal is to get stronger by lifting heavy ass weights, then lift some heavy ass weights. Nothing wrong with body weight training as well cause that is extremely intense too. First step is if you want to do it by lifting or bodyweight exercises. I'm a gym rat so I will prefer traditional weights but I would love to do all the crazy bodyweight stuff as well, I just don't want to struggle through it haha.

I think I'm going to go back to my old strength training gym 3 times a week and try ddp yoga on my off days. See how that goes. I miss stacking the plates but my sessions in the gym went for too damn long
 

Jokab

Member
I wonder why my pendlay rows are doing better than my bench press. The reason why I'm wondering is because I saw someone in this thread say "finally my barbell rows are higher than my bench", which makes me thing that it's unusual. Is it? Or what is the sort of expected ratio between the two movements?
 

vypek

Member
If your goal is to get stronger by lifting heavy ass weights, then lift some heavy ass weights. Nothing wrong with body weight training as well cause that is extremely intense too. First step is if you want to do it by lifting or bodyweight exercises. I'm a gym rat so I will prefer traditional weights but I would love to do all the crazy bodyweight stuff as well, I just don't want to struggle through it haha.

I didn't think bodyweight training could get people very strong in the same way as heavy weights. Or am I just misunderstanding? Is lifting heavy the definitive way to go to pack on strength and muscle while bodyweight training is helpful but doesn't give as much return as heavy lifting?
 
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