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Fitness thread - Q1/12


Soulboy
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No offence garcon but running wouldn't be my choice if I were your size. The impact on your joints would do more harm than good. Your all ready doing more walking which is a good thing.

If I were in your shoes I would look at swimming, exercise bike, rowing machine. I wouldn't go hell for leather and put your heart at risk, just hard enough to elevate your heart rate safely and keep it their for 20 minutes.

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Ok, maintaining 12st 11. Doing this fairly easy now. On my week 4 of running (and walking) to get up to 5k. Tbh I think I could run 5k but I'm sticking strictly to the format. Friday will be the new weeks running times. I usually go in the evenings and it's really working. Didn't realise how much proper stretching makes to your muscles, really do stretch out well after now. Looking forward to getting up to 5k in the next few weeks doing continuous running and then up to 10k for the next target.

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The only positives so far are completing a 10 mile race in the same time as when I got injured, but this time without injuring myself though it was more hilly and starting my marathon training proper.

Haven't weighed myself since the first one. Will do so soon.

Keep up the good work fellas +++

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Fizz - nice to see progress. But you must STOP DOING CRUNCHES. They do sod all for your abs and you will end up injuring your back.

You might think that doing ab exercises is going to help you get a 2, 4, 6 or 8 pack, but it's not. Truth is that it's the last place any fat goes, so you'll see nothing for the work you're doing and you'll risk injury.

Do planks to build core strength - start with one minute, followed immediately by 30 seconds side plank - left side then right side. Repeat this for five sets. You need to work up to being able to do 5 sets of 2 minutes of plank.

Also, with your shoulders, if it's pushing it, don't bloody do it!

The most important thing is form - which is why there's mirrors in the gym. OK, so some people use it for vanity, but they're there to make sure you're doing the exercises right. If you're not sure, then just ask someone who does (not a meathead in the gym!) like one of the trainers. Drop back to 12.5KG until you can comfortably do 3 sets of 10 reps without failure, then step it up.

Also your rep numbers are all over the place.

Ask yourself what you're trying to achieve - weight loss and toning or muscle gain. If it's weight loss and toning, do all your sets at 3 lots of 15 reps with a weight you can manage. If it's muscle gain, then look at volume training, so 8 sets of 8 reps - normally to failure, but, as always, form is absolutely critical. If you can't lift it properly, knock back the weight until you can.

And what happened to working your arms?

Right I'm now on my 4th week of going to the gym 2 times per week. I've gone up in weights a but and love working out now! Really helps having a training buddy!

In red are my new weights I'm using compared to my first week.

Monday

Back

- Dead lifts 3 sets x 8 reps 60kg now 70kg

- Pull downs 2 sets x 8 reps 10kg now 12kg

- Seat Rows 2 sets x 8 reps 8kg now 11kg

Chest

- Flat Dumb Bell Press 3 sets x 8 reps 10kg now 15kg

- Flat Flys 2 sets x 8 reps 8kg now 12.5kg

Abs

- Captains Chair 3 sets x 30 sec

- Crunches 3 sets x 30 sec

Thursday

Legs

- Squats 3 sets x 8 reps

- Leg Press 3 x 8 reps 10kg now 17kg

- Calfs 3 sets x 30 reps 12kg now 14kg

Shoulders

- Shoulder Press 3 sets x 8 reps 10kg now 15kg but that's pushing it!

- Side Raises 2 sets x 12 reps 7kg now 10kg

- Front Raises 2 sets x 12 reps 7kg now 10kg

All in all looking good but I have increased a further 2lbs in weight this week. hoping it's muscle! Lol

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After nearly 2 weeks I am back to 13st 10. However this is far too quick to all be lean muscle, I fear a lot may be water retention. I have been at this stage a few time over the years and get scared and lose the weight again. I have to get over the mental block of needing to put weightiiii on in order to grow muscle.

I have been eating pretty clean for a month or so with diet breakdown as follows.

3000 calories a day.

40% protiegn (220 grams)

40% carbs

20% fats (mainly essential fats)

My maintanence intake is around 2600 calories per day so eating 400 extra clean calories should achieve a lean bulk. Can anyone tell I'm trying to convince myself by writting all this nonsense. Just plod on eating and training I guess.

It just scares me that for someone of my height and build to look "big" I will need to get to 14 1/2 or 15 stone which I am not sure I can do. Football doesn't help as the extra weight plays a big part in getting around the pitch.

14st 2lb now gulp. Doesn't appear to be fat as waste is still the same size 33ins.

I'm lifting heavier than ever so it can't all be water, there must be extra muscle somewhere. Plan is to keep on this way until the end of February then cut to see see what I have built up. I am quite happy that there isn't too much extra fat and if that continues I may carry on until the end of March.

My plan will be 2 months of careful diet with extra cardio in time for the summer.

When I say it like that it sounds easy...

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Aaaaaaaagh!

Cardio schmardio. It is what it says - heart conditioning.

If you want to lose fat then resistance training is what you need - lower weights, more reps and more sets.

Whatever you bench, then bench 70% of it, but do century sets - do as many reps as you can with the lower weight with proper form, rest for 30 seconds, then go again til you can't do any more with good form. Follow this til you've done 100 reps, then move on to your back.

Do century sets for every major body part, keeping the balance.

And remember to use FULL range of motion +++

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Sorry I was being lazy when I said cardio. I break exercise down to cardio or resistance weights.of course you are correct and the way I will train is HITT style as I am a firm believer in its benefits.

Then it will be a toss up for weight training in the style you mention or the total opposite.

Losing weight often goes hand in hand with losing muscle and strength. Lowering rep ranges to say 5 sets of 5 but keeping the weight the same as before has been proven to save a lot of muscle mass.

That's for another day, 15 stone here I come.

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+++

15 stone from where before?

I was 13st7 a couple of months back then quickly rose to 13 10 and now 14st 2lb.

I have really nailed my diet in the last couple of months eating 400 calories per day on top of maintenance. Good calories mind you with 40% of my diet coming from proteign, 40 from clean carbs and 20% from fats.

However to fit all the required calories in I had to start a proteign shake (Reflex OSX). The shake contains some extra benefits however it also contains creatine so I know that some of the 9lb gained a large amount will be water.

Although I have increased in size all over my waist has stayed at 33ins so I am happy to keep "bulking" until I see a little too much fat. I am planning a short cut for pre summer and I hope to reach a lean 14st with 10% bf. That would see 7lb of lean muscle gain which I know is asking a lot. The thing is for 29 years I have lived on rubbish food and now my body is getting what it wants and needs it seems to be growing very quickly.

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There's some protein only shakes, that aren't expensive. USN IGF is one. Don't buy anything that's got any proprietary, trademarked or copyrighted ingredients - its all s hit!

Take BCAA's as well, before and after you train.

If you're 14st 2lb, that's where I am, or thereabouts at 90kg - and 6'1".

I'm staying at 90, but steadily reducing my body fat percentage, currently at 10.3% with a sub 10 target by the end of Feb. the last stubborn bit is bloody hard to shift!

I really don't want to be any heavier, because carrying any extra weight on the ludicrous climbs and mountain bike races I do is very noticeable.

Creatine is what you say. I bought a product once with it in and consistently got splitting headaches.

Drop the Creatine and go back to basics and you should start to see what you've achieved +++

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67.5kg, 17.1% bf

Official targets:

15%bf, at least and completing my first month of Marathon training.

Had a weigh in this morning after two clear weeks of marathon training.

66.6kg and 16.6%bf

I wouldn't mind my weight staying a bit more static with the bf coming down stronger, but I think that's down to only running so far. I don't do any cross training yet. I'm pretty happy with my eating habits and any day that I actually bother to check what I've eaten, I'm pretty sure I'm not even hitting 2100.

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I've a question. Sunday-Thursday I eat reasonably well (within my BMR - in fact BMR minus 300 cals or so normally not including exercise) and also do 45-60 mins of hard exercise each day (maybe not on the Sunday, but certainly on the Friday). I don't drink Sunday-Thursday either.

I've been drinking a protein whey isolate about 2 hours before lunch to give me a lift and avoid my temptation to get something sweet at lunch.

I'm trying to get from 94kg down to about 87 (5ft 9) (in no real hurry) but have hit an odd plateau at 92.4 from start of Jan. Now, 50% of my exercise is paddling which is quite muscle building and this, combined with the protein, might explain the lack of weight loss. However, I wonder if my less-than-ideal eating habits at the weekend and drinking are ruining all the work done in the week. Is it possible it might have that much of a detrimental effect?

I'm pretty fit, e.g. running 4 miles in about 29 minutes (treadmill last night) or 8 miles in about 61 mins, and resting heart rate around 52 or so. No idea what my b/f %age is but the scales put me at 34% which is utter rubbish (looking online at comparable rough images I'd say I was sub 20%).

Any ideas Mook? The paddling tends to be sort of sprint training which is a lot different of course to the distance stuff I was doing last year. Trying to fit two runs in a week too of over 4/5 miles each - can't fit in much more than that on a 5 days a week routeine where paddling is my main activity.

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I wouldn't worry too much about body weight and pay more attention to what you look like in the mirror. Forget about body fat % as this is such a hard thing to meaure, again use your eyes to see a change in shape.

If the exercise your doing is muscle building then it stands to reaon you will put "muscle weight" on but this will not be massive in scale weight as it's bloody hard going to put on a couple of pounds of muscle.

Chances are you are undoing your good work in the "off days". Try to limit it to one bad day or even better one cheat meal. Junk food and alcohol are just empty calories and should be avoided.

If your looking to lose weight then work out your weight in pounds, times that by 13 and that will give you a rough idea of your calorie needs. If you like running and paddling then you will require to keep as much muscle as possible so I would go for a 40 40 20 split. 40% of your daily calories in protein, 40% in carbs and 20% in healthy fats. That way your muscles wont waste away as quick when losing weight. Aim for a gram of protein per lb of body weight and that should help keep the muscle.

Good fats can be found in nuts and seeds (Almond nuts are great as a snack as they have a good amount of proteign, flax seeds are another good source), extra virgin olive oil is another good source and meat can be cooked with 1/2 tablespoon on top, you can even add it to your protein shake. Peanut butter is often over looked as a good source, this again can be added to a shake or on a bit of ryvita or cracker etc.

Edited by billy2shots
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Do you keep a record of your eating/ drinking at the weekend? If it's a lot, then yes, it will have an effect, of course.

Do you factor in your protein drink to your calorie counting during the week?

Maybe you need to up the intensity of your workout. If you're very consistent, your body has adapted. You might need to add some pressure to adapt again. Perhaps change one run to a hill work out or intervals.

*waits for Mook to poo poo everything above :grin:

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Apologies for the late reply to this as only just seen it a couple of days back.

Ive upped my gym sessions to 3 lunchtimes roughly about 45min each leaving time for a shower and a bite to eat at my desk.

My aim is for general fitness but at the same time I would like to replace the fat with muscle while not increasing in weight. Im 5’11 and currently 13.6 stone in weight but that has started to go up slightly since I started the gym.

Here is the new routine incorporating what you have suggested. I’ve levelled out the sets to 3 x 10 for now (bar the dead lift) and have lowered the weights a bit to be able to do the 3 sets comfortably. I will increase the reps as I get a feel for what is worth while.

Started to do 1 day as cardio on the cross trainer and thrown in the plank core strength exercises as well. Last week I did 20 min fat burn on level 10 but have been advised to lower it a few notches and go for longer to 30 min.

Yesterday was the first time I used the new sets and reps and it felt good so cheers for the heads up and suggestions. +++

I was planning on bringing in the arm exercises in when I increased to 3 afternoons a week which I have now started so biceps on Monday and Triceps on Thursday. In saying that my arms have been shaping up and toning up with the other exercises which I already do.

The blank kg figures are there as i have not tried the new sets yet so need to experiment when i give them a try on Thursday.

Monday

Back

• Deadlifts - 3 Sets x 8 Reps (60kg)

• Pull Downs - 3 Sets x 10 Reps (9 plates)

• Seat Rows - 3 Sets x 10 Reps (10 plates)

Chest

• Flat Dumb Bell Press - 3 Sets x 10 Reps (15kg)

• Flat Fly’s - 3 Sets x 10 Reps (10kg)

Arms

• Bicep Curls (Incline bench) - 3 Sets x 10 Reps ( kg)

Wednesday

Abs/Core strength

• Captain’s Chair - 2 Sets x 30 seconds

• Plank 1 min > 30s left > 30s right x 3 Sets

Cardio

• 30 min cross trainer level 6 weight loss (fat burn)

Thursday

Legs

• Squats - 3 Sets x 16 Reps (free standing no weights)

• Leg Press - 3 Sets x 10 Reps (full rack)

• Calf’s - 3 Sets x 30 Reps (16 plates)

Shoulders & Arms

• Shoulder Press - 3 Sets x 10 Reps ( kg)

• Side Raises - 3 Sets x 10 Reps ( kg)

• Front Raises - 3 Sets x 10 Reps ( kg)

• Tricep pulldown - 3 Sets x 10 Reps ( 2 plates)

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Hi Fizz, looks like you have taken a bit of time to put that little lot together so please forgive a couple of suggestions.

First I can hear Mook shouting at his computer screen. You can't replace fat with muscle, it just doesn't work. You can either keep going and build muscle then try and lose the fat at a later date or you can concentrate on losing it now then turn your attentions to building the muscle. Recomp is where you do both it is very very hard, again though you are losing the fat and building muscle rather than turning the fat into muscle.

Second thing is in your routine you are doing back and bi's and chest together and triceps later in the week. Try having a back and bi day, legs and shoulders and chest and tri's.

When you work the back you always bring the bi's into play indirectly so you are correct to do them on the same day. When you bench or work the chest you will be using the triceps so do them on the same day. Core will be worked in deads and squats but you could add this to leg day if you wanted.

You only really need to work each muscle group once per week, too much and the muscle won't grow aswell.

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Had a weigh in this morning after two clear weeks of marathon training.

66.6kg and 16.6%bf

I wouldn't mind my weight staying a bit more static with the bf coming down stronger, but I think that's down to only running so far. I don't do any cross training yet. I'm pretty happy with my eating habits and any day that I actually bother to check what I've eaten, I'm pretty sure I'm not even hitting 2100.

It's not just about the total calories - it's about getting mix right, as well as staying away from saturated fats and everything "can't believe it's not" and margarines etc.

If you're just running, try doing interval running to bring your body fat down - run 2 minutes normal pace, then sprint for 1 minute as part of a 30 minute routine.

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I've a question. Sunday-Thursday I eat reasonably well (within my BMR - in fact BMR minus 300 cals or so normally not including exercise) and also do 45-60 mins of hard exercise each day (maybe not on the Sunday, but certainly on the Friday). I don't drink Sunday-Thursday either.

I've been drinking a protein whey isolate about 2 hours before lunch to give me a lift and avoid my temptation to get something sweet at lunch.

I'm trying to get from 94kg down to about 87 (5ft 9) (in no real hurry) but have hit an odd plateau at 92.4 from start of Jan. Now, 50% of my exercise is paddling which is quite muscle building and this, combined with the protein, might explain the lack of weight loss. However, I wonder if my less-than-ideal eating habits at the weekend and drinking are ruining all the work done in the week. Is it possible it might have that much of a detrimental effect?

I'm pretty fit, e.g. running 4 miles in about 29 minutes (treadmill last night) or 8 miles in about 61 mins, and resting heart rate around 52 or so. No idea what my b/f %age is but the scales put me at 34% which is utter rubbish (looking online at comparable rough images I'd say I was sub 20%).

Any ideas Mook? The paddling tends to be sort of sprint training which is a lot different of course to the distance stuff I was doing last year. Trying to fit two runs in a week too of over 4/5 miles each - can't fit in much more than that on a 5 days a week routeine where paddling is my main activity.

What are you describing as "pretty well".

Given your time constraints, I'd look to change the way you run, as well as seeing what you eat and when.

Alcohol is a killer - very high carb content and given the time it's normally drunk (i.e. late at night), your body stores it while you sleep, rather than burning it.

Can you list out (roughly!) what you eat and when?

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You can't replace fat with muscle, it just doesn't work.

Hmmm - yes and no.

OK, technically, you don't "replace". You burn one and increase the other and most people will look to build muscle then lose fat, but you don't have to do it that way. This makes for harder work, looking at what you eat and when, as well as the type of training you do at what time of day.

The clever part is that when you increase muscle mass, you increase your metabolism, because muscle needs more fuel to keep it going - your body needs fuel to haul a load of fat around, but not much.

My current routine would probably be seen by most as extreme, but I have a specific goal I want to reach within a specific time - and it's categorically not for everyone.

And this is the key for everyone on here.

Set yourself a SMART goal. Yes, you know, all that stuff they teach you at work about setting objectives in a SMART way - well yes, it applies here as well.

Specific, Measured, Achievable, Realistic and Timed - there's other versions of this, but it's the one I use!

Saying "I want to lose some weight over the next few weeks" doesn't meet any of these.

"I want to retain my weight at 90KG, getting to 10% body fat within 8 weeks" does.

It's Specific, because I'm stating the weight I will be, as well as the BF %ge and the timeframe.

It's Measured, because I've thought long and hard about what I want to get to and how I'm going to get there.

It's Achievable, albeit effing hard work, because of the time I can dedicate to getting there. I couldn't achieve it by just doing stuff four times a week.

It's Realistic, because I know where I started from and where I want to be. If I started out at 95KG and 20% BF %ge, it wouldn't be, within the given timeframe.

It's Timed, because I've stated 8 weeks.

Is any of this making sense?

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What are you describing as "pretty well".

Given your time constraints, I'd look to change the way you run, as well as seeing what you eat and when.

Alcohol is a killer - very high carb content and given the time it's normally drunk (i.e. late at night), your body stores it while you sleep, rather than burning it.

Can you list out (roughly!) what you eat and when?

Breakfast - Special K with s/s milk

Mid morning - protein (yes, included in all cal calculations)

Lunch - typically s/wich, fruit, baked crisps

Mid aftenoon - maybe a twix or something or some seaweed peanut crackers

Dinner - mostly microwave meal (as healthy as I can get hold of, Tesco Paella is good) Tues-Thurs (am away from home all of this time). ETA almost always post 19:00 - about 20:00.

Bed at 22:30 for a 06:30 roll-call on the Thames!

Weekends are wine/beer Fri and Sat. Breakfast - largely poached eggs on toast. Dinner out almost always.

On the time constraints thing I'm not sure what you mean - I've time to hit the gym/water 5 times a week for an hour, just last night the missus didn't want to hang about for ages at the gym while I finished off a 7 miler! Pace on the treadmill by the way is not constant, starts slower and builds to a speedier crescendo!

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OK, putting it bluntly, your diet is fecked. Not time to write enough now, to offer a steer, but will stick something together for you.

Ref your running, interval running is the answer - yes you're doing exercise, but to burn fat, you need to interval running - slow run, fast sprint, slow run, fast sprint etc.

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Hah! And to think I've changed it for the better in the last 12 months too! I guess I normally do so much exercise training for 125 mile canoe races or marathons I never really worry about what I eat. I ate like a pig in 2009/10 but lost 2 stone becasue I was cycling over 100 miles a week commuting plus doing gym work and paddling on top.

My split lifestyle between London and Scotland means I don't get access to a kitchen for 80% of my working week which makes preparing seared tuna on a bed of lentils an impossible task.

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Treadmill running - Do you run on an incline? To simulate outdoors, make sure you have an incline of at least 2 or 3. Varying this will give you a simulated hills experience if you want to vary something other than speed.

Microwave meals are the devil's food. Haven't used a microwave in over three years. Only time I miss it is when I have leftover pizza in the morning, which is very rare indeed, considering I hardly have delivery these days either. Can understand constraints on dinner preparation, but it's necessary if you want to be healthy.

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