Bodybuilding & Lifting

[Tiinker]

Anyone?

[SinisterDeath]

That's a sport?Lies!

[Nolder]

[Tiinker]

ROFL.

 

Well, I wasn't sure where else to post this. Anyone got a gym routine that they like to follow - cardio or weights or otherwise?

[Tiinker]

Really? No one??? 

[SinisterDeath]

Really? No one??? 

Hasn't even been 12 hours. Gotta wait longer!

 

No, I don't hit the gym. (Shocker!)

I get my exercise from.. you know. working. That's why its called work!

 

On an easy day, I probably lift (totaling all the weight lifted) close to 2-3 tons.

ON a bad day, probably closer to 4-6 tons. That's not even getting into pushing/pulling, which can easily involve pushing/pulling 5-10 tons!, For reference, 50 reps, of 50 pounds = 2500 pounds or 1.25 tons.

 

That said, If I were to get into exercising, I'd probably forgo weights entirely and instead use the more traditional methods like Push ups, Sit-ups, pull-ups, Running(Biking), boxing probably mixing it up with stretching routines inspired by yoga, ect.

Course, I should put emphasis on cardio. <_<

[Tiinker]

Any particular reason why you'd forgo weights completely? 

I love boxing as a cardio exercise. I plan on doing it 3 or 4 times a week once the new year starts.

[Reyoru]

Train for strength not size. 

 

Madcow 5x5.

[SinisterDeath]

Any particular reason why you'd forgo weights completely? 

 

I love boxing as a cardio exercise. I plan on doing it 3 or 4 times a week once the new year starts.

1. I can be an incredibly cheap bastard.

2. Why not? If I can't lift my own body, wtf would I use weights?

3. Repetition versus Weight. Endurance vs Strength. I'd prefer the endurance aspect, besides which. The more repetitive the task, the easier it is to turn it into cardio.

[John E. Kelley]

I lift 12 ounce weights to my mouth repeatedly. I see a significant increase in the mass of my gut. Does that count?

[SinisterDeath]

I lift 12 ounce weights to my mouth repeatedly. I see a significant increase in the mass of my gut. Does that count?

Yes.

[Bannakaffalatta]

I have a five day workout plan if you still have need for one. I train mostly for strength, not so much for size, and most of my cardio comes when the Army makes me run, so you would have to add that to what I have.

[Lilbaz]

Don't take the protein powders or creatine. Great when you're working out but if you stop man boobs are for life.

[Barmacral]

That is a really shallow (and dumb imo) reason for not taking protein powder. I can't speak for creatine so much as I've never gotten into it though.

 

Personally I'm into bodyweight strength training. I much prefer the idea of being able to do a one-arm pushup or a pistol squat than being able to deadlift 400lbs (note - I can't yet do any of the above). You can get just as strong using your own bodyweight, it is all about changing the leverage to make the exercise harder every time it starts to get too easy.

 

I also really enjoyed kickboxing (Muay Thai actually) when I was able to do it, but unfortunately that isn't within my means right now.

[SinisterDeath]

Well, I may as well toss in some more input here...

 

I read an article awhile ago about which exercises men, and women should actually be focusing on.

The conclusion of the article was simple.

Women, need to do more impact exercises, (Helps with bone density) and men need to focus more on exercises that deal with stretching, and being flexible.

Basically we have already have natural advantage for having high bone density, so high-impact exercises, while beneficial, (specially if your into martial arts) aren't as good for you, as something like yoga.

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/among-men/men-should-practice-yoga_b_3781613.html

 

Yoga will make you better at almost everything you do

If you're an athlete, yoga will make you stronger and more flexible. It helps to increase the recruitment of stabilizing muscles, and strengthens the joints (which helps in injury prevention). Yoga will also fine-tune your focus and proprioception (the sense of the relative position of your body and strength of movement in space).

 

Yoga is a perfect way to begin an exercise program

There are tons of beginner programs, and yoga classes specifically for men. This can help you to avoid getting discouraged or feeling ashamed about your lack of knowledge or ability when beginning to tackle a fitness goal.

 

Course, there's also this.

 

 

Yoga is a cheap date

Nowadays, an average drop-in yoga class will run you about $20, plus incidentals, which is a far cry from dinner, movie, drinks, etc. Plus, you won't have to talk during the class, and you get to see your potential partner in skimpy workout gear!

 

So, we already know that before any exercise you should always stretch. Incorporating some yoga stretches into it, will improve joint strength.

 

Those looking to lose weight.. Cardio is your best answer.. It's virtually impossible to target fat locations... No matter what those infomercials tell you. There's a reason everyone you see doing marathons, or biking, or swimming are thin. While other athletes, are more prone to not be nearly as thin.

 

Lets see...

For those trying to get a six pack, 

Well, again, Cardio is your best bet to remove the fat around your mid-section.. Crunches will never remove that fat.

And even then, there's an inherent problem with any mid-section exercise.

They barely touch those muscles at all.

Crunches, sit-ups, ect actually mostly target your lower abdominal's as well as your quads.

 

There's one phrase word you always hear about, and its 

"Strengthen your Core"

http://exercise.about.com/cs/abs/a/corestrength.htm

So basically any exercise all those muscle groups are going to be good for you. (specially for those of us who have bad backs.)

 

You'll also notice, that Yoga Exercises are good at targeting those regions.

http://yoga.about.com/od/yogasequences/ss/yogaforabs.htm

 

And to top it all off, There's one thing I came across that you rarely hear mentioned.. Because apparently it's common sense. (Common sense is a myth. All knowledge is taught)

Basically one very important step  for doing any exercise focusing on your core, is actually something you do every time you go out on a date, almost instinctively.

 

That's right. You suck in your gut.

So if you do those Stretching moves, or working on crunches/situps, or even lifting weights. Sucking your gut can improve core strength, as well as ironically, help your posture.

For those of you who don't see the irony... One thing parents always tried to tell their kids growing up was 'sit up straight at the dinner table!"

 

Apparently some people actually listened to that.

[Selleck]

I would never consider myself a "bodybuilder" or anything of that sort, but I do enjoy exercise and lifting.  I tried P90X a few years ago and it was fantastic.  A lot of using your own bodyweight (pushups, pullups, etc).  I still do it pretty consistently.  I did not like P90X-2, but I hear good things about P90X-3.

[Bannakaffalatta]

I would never consider myself a "bodybuilder" or anything of that sort, but I do enjoy exercise and lifting.  I tried P90X a few years ago and it was fantastic.  A lot of using your own bodyweight (pushups, pullups, etc).  I still do it pretty consistently.  I did not like P90X-2, but I hear good things about P90X-3.

try insanity if you want nothing but body weight. the name is very fitting

[Selleck]

I have done some Insanity.  Never the whole program but I do several of the workouts from time to time (Pure Cardio, etc).  Awesome cardio workout.  A lot of people do an Insanity/P90 hybrid where they replace P90's cardio days with Insanity workouts. 

[Barmacral]

Sin, mostly responding to you here...
 

 

I read an article awhile ago about which exercises men, and women should actually be focusing on.

The conclusion of the article was simple.

Women, need to do more impact exercises, (Helps with bone density) and men need to focus more on exercises that deal with stretching, and being flexible.

Basically we have already have natural advantage for having high bone density, so high-impact exercises, while beneficial, (specially if your into martial arts) aren't as good for you, as something like yoga.

 

 

This depends on the person too much to generalize like that. I know I could do with more flexibility, but I also know guys who are super flexible. There is just far too many variations on individual body compositions from person to person to prescribe certain types of workouts to half of the human race.

 

So, we already know that before any exercise you should always stretch. Incorporating some yoga stretches into it, will improve joint strength.

 

On the contrary, studies show that there is no discernible benefit to stretching before a workout, in fact, arguments point the opposite way. Stretching before the workout reduces the elasticity of your muscles, reducing your explosive performance, with no evidence of reducing injuries. (note - I'm not suggesting yoga is a bad idea, in fact it is great... just not as a warmup)

 

Those looking to lose weight.. Cardio is your best answer.. It's virtually impossible to target fat locations... No matter what those infomercials tell you. There's a reason everyone you see doing marathons, or biking, or swimming are thin. While other athletes, are more prone to not be nearly as thin.

 

Yes and no. Cardio is not the answer. The kitchen is the answer. 80-90% of all weight loss is attributed to your diet. It is true that you cannot target specific locations for fat loss, but strength training is just as viable an option as cardio is for losing weight. I personally feel that it is even better since it helps you get stronger and has more long term effects of burning calories. Nobody, man or woman, has to worry about getting bulky until they've been doing it for years, and women never have to worry about it unless they start taking testosterone with the specific intent of getting bulky... women don't get bulky. The reason marathoners are skinny is because they don't spend time building muscle. Running also has a very high rate of injury due to muscle imbalances. People who do triathalons actually have some of the lowest injury rates in the world compared to any other sport because they get a balanced workout that targets a large number of muscle groups.

 

Lets see...

For those trying to get a six pack, 

Well, again, Cardio is your best bet to remove the fat around your mid-section.. Crunches will never remove that fat.

And even then, there's an inherent problem with any mid-section exercise.

They barely touch those muscles at all.

Crunches, sit-ups, ect actually mostly target your lower abdominal's as well as your quads.

 

Same answer as above, you want a six pack? Start eating healthy, start doing squats, deadlifts, planks, pushups, etc (proper form is vital, make sure you work on good form all the time). The various exercises will give you a six pack, but you'll never see it if you don't eat right. Cardio is probably the least useful option for getting a six pack. Crunches and situps are bad, yes. They are bad for your back and gain no particular benefit for your front. Stay away from them.

 

There's one phrase word you always hear about, and its 

"Strengthen your Core"

http://exercise.abou...orestrength.htm

So basically any exercise all those muscle groups are going to be good for you. (specially for those of us who have bad backs.)

 

 

Core strength is critically important, yes. A whole body workout is better than just a core focus though. Deadlifts, squats, pushups, pull ups, etc. These all target the core, legs, arms, etc.

 

The rest of your post is fine. Yoga is great and I heartily recommend it, at some point I hope to take it up myself, as of now I make a daily point of stretching to improve my flexibility.

[SinisterDeath]

This depends on the person too much to generalize like that. I know I could do with more flexibility, but I also know guys who are super flexible. There is just far too many variations on individual body compositions from person to person to prescribe certain types of workouts to half of the human race.

 

Yea, it was based on an article I had read (i mentioned that right?). The basic premise was that most male-athletes are more focused on high-impact style exercises, while women-generally do low-impact exercises, but more stretchy exercises.

For for people following those -norms- switching out, has benefits. For the guys, we already got the strong-bones, but need more limberness. Women (osteoporosis) doing those impact-exercises helps increase bone strength.. which is fairly important as you get older... (for both actually)

 

 

 

On the contrary, studies show that there is no discernible benefit to stretching before a workout, in fact, arguments point the opposite way. Stretching before the workout reduces the elasticity of your muscles, reducing your explosive performance, with no evidence of reducing injuries. (note - I'm not suggesting yoga is a bad idea, in fact it is great... just not as a warmup)

Yea, I've read that one before to.

That doesn't take away from replacing stretching with yoga, regardless of 'when' you do it.

 

I would think though... that some light stretching before working out would be more beneficial, than none at all.

 

 

 

Yes and no. Cardio is not the answer. The kitchen is the answer. 80-90% of all weight loss is attributed to your diet. It is true that you cannot target specific locations for fat loss, but strength training is just as viable an option as cardio is for losing weight. I personally feel that it is even better since it helps you get stronger and has more long term effects of burning calories. Nobody, man or woman, has to worry about getting bulky until they've been doing it for years, and women never have to worry about it unless they start taking testosterone with the specific intent of getting bulky... women don't get bulky. The reason marathoners are skinny is because they don't spend time building muscle. Running also has a very high rate of injury due to muscle imbalances. People who do triathalons actually have some of the lowest injury rates in the world compared to any other sport because they get a balanced workout that targets a large number of muscle groups.

Kitchen is part of the answer.

Weight-training builds muscles, which consumes more calories.

Cardio pretty much burns fat.

Eating less, reduces total calories.

 

From my perspective, Doing all 3 is going to be beneficial.(especially from a losing weight perspective.)

If you drop 5 pounds, and put on 1-3 pounds of muscle.. That's actually fairly good way to go. (will help prevent other issues)

 

Same answer as above, you want a six pack? Start eating healthy, start doing squats, deadlifts, planks, pushups, etc (proper form is vital, make sure you work on good form all the time). The various exercises will give you a six pack, but you'll never see it if you don't eat right. Cardio is probably the least useful option for getting a six pack. Crunches and situps are bad, yes. They are bad for your back and gain no particular benefit for your front. Stay away from them.

 

Yar,  building up the base-muscles will help them show but unless you get rid of the fat, its not going to do any good. 

Fat around the midsection is always the last to go.

So yea, doing both is going to be more beneficial than one or the other...

Infact.. if you look at those insanity or other type plans... You're doing cardio and strength training those muscle groups... so it's killing two birds with one stone.

 

 

Core strength is critically important, yes. A whole body workout is better than just a core focus though. Deadlifts, squats, pushups, pull ups, etc. These all target the core, legs, arms, etc.

 

The rest of your post is fine. Yoga is great and I heartily recommend it, at some point I hope to take it up myself, as of now I make a daily point of stretching to improve my flexibility.

I hadn't meant to imply that everyone should focus only on the core.

What I was meaning to say, was that  one aspect of the core I mentioned (posture/suckin in the gut) can be done in any exercise, regardless of whether it is a core exercise ..  Thus you'll strengthen it even when that's not the focus.... It's also a feature of Yoga.

[Andrej]

Train for strength not size. 

 

Madcow 5x5.

 

This routine is pretty legit, actually. But the important part is finding out what your PR is first so you can work off of accurate percentages. I trained with this program for about 8 weeks on my last deployment and generally the results were good, but towards the end I started to add more reps on the heavier sets for more volume.

 

It also only works in a few different exercises. Supplementary lifts will go a long way. (Skull crushers/french press on chest days, RDLs on DL days, etc)

 

Another program I liked to work off of was one I kind of came up with myself, it's pretty basic. It just had 3 primary 'group' days and then I would sometimes alternate what I would do on non-lifting days.

 

Chest & Tri's

3x10 with increasing weight for flat, incline, decline bench. Dumbbell or barbell is okay

Super set with 10-12 reps of dumbbell chest flyes

5 pull-ups after each set. (I like to combo muscle groups each day)

3x10 flat bench skull crushers (nosebreakers, whatever you wanna call them)

3x max set of overhead cable tricep extensions

Core exercise (planks, RTs, V-ups, etc. You pick)

 

Legs & Shoulders

4x8 back squats

3x10 seated/standing military press (dumbbell or bar)

3x12 combo set: upright row&outer grip curls w/ easy bar

3x Monster set w/ dumbbells: lateral raises (10), front raises (10), bent-over reverse flyes (15), hammer curls (20)

3x12 barbell/dumbbell shrugs

3x8-10 RDLs

2x max set calf raises

Core exercises

 

Back & Bi's

4x8 DLs

4x8 bent-over rows (over or underhand grip)

2x max set of pull-ups (combo with 20-25 push ups)

3x10 single arm chainsaw rows (each arm)

3x20 seated dumbbell curls (alternating)

3x8-10 single arm isolated curls/2x "21s" curls

3x10 back extensions (combo with core exercises)

[Barmacral]

Yea, it was based on an article I had read (i mentioned that right?). The basic premise was that most male-athletes are more focused on high-impact style exercises, while women-generally do low-impact exercises, but more stretchy exercises.

For for people following those -norms- switching out, has benefits. For the guys, we already got the strong-bones, but need more limberness. Women (osteoporosis) doing those impact-exercises helps increase bone strength.. which is fairly important as you get older... (for both actually)

 

Ok, I see your point.

 

Yea, I've read that one before to.

That doesn't take away from replacing stretching with yoga, regardless of 'when' you do it.

 

I would think though... that some light stretching before working out would be more beneficial, than none at all.

 

I disagree, while warming up before working out is absolutely important, save stretching for the post-workout.

 

Kitchen is part of the answer.

Weight-training builds muscles, which consumes more calories.

Cardio pretty much burns fat.

Eating less, reduces total calories.

 

From my perspective, Doing all 3 is going to be beneficial.(especially from a losing weight perspective.)

If you drop 5 pounds, and put on 1-3 pounds of muscle.. That's actually fairly good way to go. (will help prevent other issues)

 

The most important part of the answer by far, but yes, all three are important and you will see best results from doing a bit of everything when trying to lose weight. That said, if you are trying to focus on something more specific, such as bulking up, you should heavily reduce the amount of cardio you are doing as it may slow down your goals. Same idea for any sport or physical goal, find out what things work best, and feel free to cut back heavily on the others. Never cut your efforts in the kitchen or your sleep though, those are always important.

 

Yar,  building up the base-muscles will help them show but unless you get rid of the fat, its not going to do any good. 

Fat around the midsection is always the last to go.

So yea, doing both is going to be more beneficial than one or the other...

Infact.. if you look at those insanity or other type plans... You're doing cardio and strength training those muscle groups... so it's killing two birds with one stone.

 

Re: bolded - Wrong. Again this is depending on the person. In fact for many women fat on the thighs are the last to go for child-bearing reasons. Although the stomach is often one of the early places to gain and late places to lose, saying that it is last is wrong. Too much variance in the human population.

 

Insanity and P90X and those kinds of programs are heavy on circuit training which is a great way to get your muscles in shape and burn fat as it is high intensity... as long as you have good form. If you don't have good form you run the risk of injuring yourself, and when working along with those DVD's at home with nobody helping you and you're trying to burn through the exercises as fast as possible, many people don't even realise that form is something they should worry about. While I have nothing against those programs (not something I'm interested in personally) they do need to come with a word of warning.

 

And to get rid of the fat you're better off to eat right than focus on exercise. While a combination of both is best and I highly recommend, you'll have a lot more success with a good diet and no exercise than good exercise and no care about your diet.

 

I hadn't meant to imply that everyone should focus only on the core.

What I was meaning to say, was that  one aspect of the core I mentioned (posture/suckin in the gut) can be done in any exercise, regardless of whether it is a core exercise ..  Thus you'll strengthen it even when that's not the focus.... It's also a feature of Yoga.

 

I better understand your point.

[SinisterDeath]

 

 

Insanity and P90X and those kinds of programs are heavy on circuit training which is a great way to get your muscles in shape and burn fat as it is high intensity... as long as you have good form. If you don't have good form you run the risk of injuring yourself, and when working along with those DVD's at home with nobody helping you and you're trying to burn through the exercises as fast as possible, many people don't even realise that form is something they should worry about. While I have nothing against those programs (not something I'm interested in personally) they do need to come with a word of warning.

No doubt, The guy who created P90X, said that 'Insanity' is dangerous.

 

The only reason I highlighted insanity, was that it is basically focusing on building muscles, and cardio.

 

 

 

 

I disagree, while warming up before working out is absolutely important, save stretching for the post-workout.

Point taken.

 

That said, if you are trying to focus on something more specific, such as bulking up, you should heavily reduce the amount of cardio you are doing as it may slow down your goals. Same idea for any sport or physical goal,

 

Make's sense. Course, from a health perspective, those really -bulked up- body builders (think Arnold) typically leads to heart disease.

 

Find out what things work best, and feel free to cut back heavily on the others. Never cut your efforts in the kitchen or your sleep though, those are always important.

 

Definitely.

 

 

 

Re: bolded - Wrong. Again this is depending on the person. In fact for many women fat on the thighs are the last to go for child-bearing reasons. Although the stomach is often one of the early places to gain and late places to lose, saying that it is last is wrong. Too much variance in the human population.

Blasted! Women always throw wrenches into my hasty generalizations!

(no, not saying barm's a woman....)

 

Either way, losing weight around the gut tends to something both sexes struggle with. Men more so than women. While women struggle with losing weight around the entire area. (mid-section, thighs, buttox

Again, generalization.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17977473

http://www.marksdailyapple.com/gender-differences-in-fat-metabolism/#axzz2qa1ZYyvv

 

 

 

And to get rid of the fat you're better off to eat right than focus on exercise. While a combination of both is best and I highly recommend, you'll have a lot more success with a good diet and no exercise than good exercise and no care about your diet.

It's true that a good diet is necessary and that can not be stressed enough. And it is true, that exercise + poor diet isn't going to do you anything. 

 

Purely focusing on diet, has issues in and of itself. (which again, goes back to a combination of several things, in different proportions, based on your goals)

 

If you lose weight to fast, or have had said weight to long, this happens.

http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/human-biology/lost-weight2.htm

 

Which goes back to my earlier post about gaining some muscle, while you lose some fat. You still lose the weight, you can reduce your inches but you don't reduce them too fast, 

http://bamboocorefitness.com/one-pound-of-fat-versus-one-pound-of-muscle-clearing-up-the-misconception/

 

You could replace 5 pounds of fat, with 5 pounds of muscle and lose inches.. but not weight. If you straight up lose 5 pounds, but put on no muscle, that's a lot of volume loss. which takes longer for the skin to shrink down 

So, putting on some muscle even 1 pound or 2 pounds for every 5 pounds of fat you lose, is beneficial. In two ways.

1. Reduces the total volume loss, allowing your skin time to shrink down to your new frame.

2. Muscles consume calories, which helps with further weight loss.

[SinisterDeath]

On a related note. 

The term the wall is something Marathoner's talk about. It's not just psychological, but physiological.

It is literally the internal switch that takes place, when your body switches from using chemical energy (Food) to stored energy (Fat).

 

There was a documentary on a man that swam the English Channel. He had to consume something like a 6000 calorie meal before even starting his venture.

About 1/4 of the way through, he hit the wall. (burnt through 6000 calories.. in no time)

He lost something like 15 or 25 pounds of fat swimming the English Channel.

 

I'm not saying someone should attempt that kind of thing when exercising. But it is an interesting thing to consider, specially if you ever feel you've hit the wall.

 

I had read an article a few years ago, that actually found vigorous exercise, nearly indistinguishable from a heart attack when viewed on the EKG and other medical sensors.. (this was before P90x and Insanity. lol) 

[SinisterDeath]

So, I found this resource the other day. I "kinda" knew about it, but never been there. They have some interesting advice & ideas. Plus, they use a humorous 'tone' in there writing style, which makes it not boring to read!
http://www.nerdfitness.com

http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2013/01/24/rage-against-the-machine-how-to-switch-from-exercise-machines-to-free-weights/
http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2010/02/15/how-to-build-your-own-workout-routine/