The Fysical Phitness Thread

[Lee]

yee, i don't like the sound of a set of 70 jumping jacks. be careful with that!

/old man with bad knees from jumping too much

pernicious, try cycling or swimming? they're fun, will build fitness and aren't as likely to make you 'utterly sick' as running. but i think you're asking for too much without actually being willing to put in any effort - you need to decide how important this is to you.

 

[Stathakis]

llol exams + injury = horrible shape

today they put me on a treadmill today at 12 miles per hour - once upon a time slower than my 2-mile race pace, and it felt like a sprint.

it's gonna be a long road back to fitness

 

[reyscarface]

thanks everyone who gave me advise with my wrist problem, what i did was i took like 2 weeks and half rest without doing anything with the wrist, and now i dont really have any pain.

much appreciated, everyone!

 

[Jackal]

i started stronglifts 5x5 in late april and im currently chugging along quite nicely, approaching the end of week 7. i haven't failed an excercise yet but i think i am one or two workouts away from plateauing in most cases.

i have gained more than 18 pounds in these 7 weeks and those results are absolutely amazing. (160~ pounds to 178) and while most of it is muscle I am also getting a belly.

i am planning on stopping stronglifts by the end of june to leave 2 months for cutting. so my question is what are good means to go about "cutting" after a few months of HEAVY bulking. workout and diet.

 

[popemobile]

currently doing PHAT, liking the results so far. I was off the whole lifting thing for a couple months due to a variety of factors including a wrist injury and my own general laziness, but it feels great to be back on a solid plan

 

[Venom]

haven't lifted since my injury back in December, but my strength is still here, especially my legs. Been more focused on training and shit, and even more focused on losing weight. I do miss squats though.

 

[CBshuckle]

the track season has come to an end and here were my personal bests by the end:

100m: 11.2
200m: 24.0

and my jumps didn't improve at all from last year. I think I'm going to focus on running to get into college, but my 200 hasn't really gotten better much. What's a good distance to practice at in order to improve at the 200? thanks

I think my biggest problem was not the dedication/willpower but rather not knowing what to practice. I know I have the strength, just not the stamina

 

[Stylish Interval]

i started stronglifts 5x5 in late april and im currently chugging along quite nicely, approaching the end of week 7. i haven't failed an excercise yet but i think i am one or two workouts away from plateauing in most cases.

i have gained more than 18 pounds in these 7 weeks and those results are absolutely amazing. (160~ pounds to 178) and while most of it is muscle I am also getting a belly.

i am planning on stopping stronglifts by the end of june to leave 2 months for cutting. so my question is what are good means to go about "cutting" after a few months of HEAVY bulking. workout and diet.

Cutting isn't necessarily as hard as most people make it out to be. Cutting is, in simplest terms, losing bodyfat while maintaining (or losing a minimal amount of) muscle. So if you want to lose bodyfat, you have to cut calories. If you want to maintain muscle, you have to lift. If you want to cut, you have to cut calories and lift. gg wp, fitness.

The problem is most people want to lose their "weight" (as they call it, rather than bodyfat) quickly on a cut. Hard cuts are serious business, and aren't for people new to cuts. Long term cuts are going to be the real deal, and you've got a solid 2 months lined up for a cut so that works great. The secret to cutting is to make it easier on yourself. A 500 calorie deficit is going to be a) easy to maintain, and b) the most effective way to make sure you lose bodyfat without losing muscle.

Diet-wise you're going to want to maintain 1g / lb of bodyfat if you can, which is simple enough to do I think. I don't know what your current diet is, but if you're not already doing this you're going to want to start. Not only does it help maintain your muscle, but it curbs your appetite too, which is helpful cos you're going from what looks like eating everything in sight to eating a restricted amount of calories per day. Not much else diet wise as that should cover the basics.

As for workouts, you don't have to change a thing unless you want to. You're in your seventh week of SL. How are your lifts progressing? Where did you start, and where are you now? Sounds like you haven't failed any yet (unless by plateau you meant failing for the second time) so you should still be able to continue working with it. If you want to change things up, you can switch to any other program you want. Always make sure you're involving compound lifts, though. I don't care if you go to SS, Greyskull, Texas Method, or a Push/Pull split, compound lifts are and should be involved.

Now, there are some helpful diets if you'd like something more specific than "eat -500 calories per day." One example is LeanGains, a diet style "created" by Martin Berkhan, which focuses on intermittent fasting used for body re-composition. Basically, it's for dropping body fat percentage. You lose weight very slowly (standard recomp ~.2 lbs per week weight loss, weight loss recomp ~.7 lbs per week) but it is nearly all fat. It's used for people who want to drop from that 12-15% range down to 10-12% range. I don't know if you're there as I don't know your measurements, but you could be and this might interest you. Here is a PDF guide, and here is a subreddit for leangains.

On the other side of the coin, there's "Carb Backloading" which I have no experience with other than reading about people who use it while cutting. They have success so I figured I'd mention it. You can read up on it if you'd like.

Check out this post by moderator menuitem about losing weight if you're unfamiliar.

Check out this tool for calculating losing bodyfat (not sure how reliable it is but hey, it's been in a few progress pics threads so, why not throw it in here and let you check it out?)

I'd say it wouldn't hurt to post your lifts before you pick another program though, as seven weeks into SL doesn't sound like you're lifting too high. But then again, you might already be DLing 2x bw or something just because you could have started that high with the program. Good luck either way, and keep us posted! I might eventually decide I'm not content at 200 pounds and cut too xD

inb4 i'm wrong about everything, crucified by venom + pope, run over by stat, squatted by uragg, and fuk windsong (just wanted to say that, fukn 14 year old runs faster than the wind ps <3 windsong)

 

[shade]

yo jackal i have always wanted to start doing stronglifts but i never really have done, i guess im a bit apprehensive about it all really! especially now though when i feel like im starting to plateau a bit in my current routine. would you recommend it? also do you do any other exercises other than the ones in the stronglift routine?

 

[ToF]

the leangains diet never worked for me when i tried it cause my body i think is use to eating so frequently that i always felt hungry and tired. if you're the same way just follow iifym (if it fits your macros). make sure on a cut to get 1.5g/lb of bodyweight in protein and .5g/lb of bodyweight in fats, fill the rest with carbs under your maintenance calorie limit, and you'll see the pounds come off slowly.

 

[STEELDRAGON]

I just joined a weight training class a couple of weeks ago, and so far I'm not seeing much progress. I feel like I'm am super out of shape, but I am gradually getting better. Most of the exercises I'm doing are for my core. I'm currently doing leg extensions, static holds, back press, seated row, hack squats, crunches. My weakest muscles appears to be in my shoulders, as I can only usually do 20-30lbs, 3x10. I'm also going to try to join football and that should help me a lot. I feel like my metabolism is going up to, because for the past month I was consuming at least 3-4k a day, and my weight has stayed about the same. I think it is realistic for me to have a toned physique definitely by the end of the year. I don't know what my bf % is but I think its probably in the low 20s. I am planning on going a 6 small meals a day plan in order to try to make this process go quicker.

 

[Jackal]

yo jackal i have always wanted to start doing stronglifts but i never really have done, i guess im a bit apprehensive about it all really! especially now though when i feel like im starting to plateau a bit in my current routine. would you recommend it? also do you do any other exercises other than the ones in the stronglift routine?

ill address this before SI's awesome response.

I would highly recommend it. Like extremely highly.

I have been at it for 8 weeks now and I already need a whole new wardrobe, my shoulders and back are exploding through all the medium v-necks i used to own. my dress shirts dont fit me on the upper body and my jeans are extremely tight around my thighs. All this after 8 weeks.

I started with what I guess you could consider the perfect body to start with though. I was not fat by any stretch of the imagination but I did have excess room to grow, I was never one of those lean skinny kids who couldn't gain muscle.

I tried to do stronglifts once before, but the flaw there was that I didn't actually use the excel spreadsheet. The sheet keeps you locked in and focused. I also stick pretty religiously to the routine, I jog before and after to get loose (about 600m before and after the routine) with lots of stretching. I am now starting to work in an ab exercise here and there as I am having issues where my lower back is way stronger than my abs.

In terms of where I am at now, during week 8:

170 squat
120 bench
120 back row
95 overhead press (just failed this last time out, might have to deload)
200 deadlift

I weigh about 180 now having started off around 165 (i overstated my weight gain last time just checked my spreadsheet, ive gained anywhere from 13-16 pounds)

I have several friends who have also done this / are doing it and it really works. Highly recommended.

Now to move onto SIs post, those are my stats right now. I know they probably dont seem like a lot to you guys, or even necessarily that much for my weight, but they are really getting difficult. bench is the only one that is still fairly manageable, and shoulder press and back row specifically are causing the most problems.

I want to quit after week 9 or so for 3 reasons:
1) I am almost getting too big, I don't want to be one of those muscleheads, im not interested in being super strong I just want to look and feel good, and I dont think I need to be any bigger than what I have achieved.
2) Stronglifts (or maybe the diet I am on at least) is great at making you big and strong but what I am looking for now is to lose the fat and increase overall fitness. It doesn't give you that beach body but it will take you from nothing to well built pretty quickly. Me and a bunch of my friends have all got a belly from stronglifts so its time to cut that.
3) I am starting to feel some pain. Rarely were my muscles ever sore after a workout, SL is really good at that by starting with really low weights at high reps to get you acclimated. However, now with the really big weights im starting to get lower back pains and wrist pains. the lower back pains are surprisingly not from the deadlifts but from the shoulder press and squats (i guess i am leaning back?? or maybe the bar is too high on my squats?)

I am not too interested in going on a specific diet like leangains, ideally I can go back to my "normal" portions (ive been eating like a machine since i started SL) and maintain the high concentrations of protein I have been consuming (a first for me - I never ate tuna or cottage cheese or had protein shakes before SL).

I am more interested in how to alter my workout. My thighs are absolute rocks right now and my lower back is starting to hurt. I want to cut the fat out of my pecs and belly primarily. With this is mind what should I do?

Is it better to do high volume low intensity cardio, or HIIT? what kind of core/ab exercises are best? my friends do insanity, what do we think of that?

SI I am going to read the links you posted now, if those cover some of this my apologies!

 

[uragg]

so i recently cut 10 lbs in 3 weeks and then went a full week without lifting like a dumbass, lost a good bit of strength so i'm dropping the weight on all lifts and slowly building back up now, feels p good so far. however, i'm going to china for 2 weeks very soon and am not guaranteed regular access to weights at all. thus i am wondering if any of you guys had a good bodyweight exercise routine that doesn't rely on weights but is still challenging strength-wise for an intermediate lifter that could tide me over while i can't do barbell work. thx in advance



also damn jackal i wish i could put on weight like that, congrats on your gains with SL. you can definitely cut while still doing stronglifts if you alter your diet back to normal portions, since your numbers are decent but not overwhelming you can probably manage another 9 week cycle, but you'll probably have to deload a few times with all the lifts (but that isn't a bad thing). i'm not too sure what kind of routine can help make the cut easier while maintaining strength and size so i'll defer to others on that, but you can't really go wrong with basic stronglifts with some additional cardio in there imo

 

[Venom]

I weighted myself and I've lost 25-30 pounds over this 4 month period with me joining a BJJ gym, and I feel great. Only downside is training at nights as when I get home I can't sleep until 1-2 in the morning, which I don't really like. I'm aiming to have a new body by December, and at this rate, its highly possible.

I'll be lifting again as well starting tomorrow, I can only get better adding weights again.

 

[Stylish Interval]

I am more interested in how to alter my workout. My thighs are absolute rocks right now and my lower back is starting to hurt. I want to cut the fat out of my pecs and belly primarily. With this is mind what should I do?

Is it better to do high volume low intensity cardio, or HIIT? what kind of core/ab exercises are best? my friends do insanity, what do we think of that?

SI I am going to read the links you posted now, if those cover some of this my apologies!

Here's a little link to Dave Tate on bulking / cutting I thought I'd throw in (yeah fuck you other guys in the thread i'll link to t-nation til i die dave taters representtttt) Pretty basic stuff, lots of water, lots of protein, lower calories, etc. Just some stuff to run through your head while you're thinking about what you're doing.

Many of my friends have done p90x, and a handful have done Insanity. I would be lying if I said I didn't want their bodies when they're done. p90x (DM can step in if I'm getting this wrong) is basically interval training with a strict diet. Gives a plan that's easy to follow, laid out for you every day. Nutrition wise it's laid out (iirc), workout wise it's laid out, every wise is laid out for you. Perfect for cutting, at least in my opinion. You can look at the results pics yourself and make the call, but personally I'd say if you can stick to it, do it. Looking at the progress pics almost makes me want to start up lol

Honestly I think any interval workout will work for cutting. I just don't know what. Maybe complexes? Someone else might have to chime in. A complex is basically just doing a bunch of exercises without rest (supersetting may sound familiar here, circuit work may sound familiar here). You can do it three days a week, four days a week, five days a week, however many you want. Only ones I've done are Bear Complex (some crossfit shit) and this one from T-nation. edit: apparently this guy is some renown complex guy. here's an article from what i assume is his website. read a couple times to google his name for complexes / interval stuff.

But as far as I'm concerned, interval workouts are the way to burn off the fat. It's been like 20 minutes and I'm not thinking of a downside of p90x for your goals. you wanna lose fat. you want that nice body. p90x is gonna do it for you as far as i'm concerned. dm can chime in (you might have to find him...) since he's like...a..head moderator for p90x? model? i don't remember. he's important i think.


Just make sure you put a heavy emphasis on your diet when you cut no matter what you do. The diet is what's going to do it. You can run 10,000 miles but if you eat 100,000 calories you won't look any better (no one check that math). As the old saying goes, "Abs are made in the kitchen". No matter how strong you are, if you've got fat covering your muscle no one will ever know you have any.

if you take anything out of this post, take this: interval training (or circuit work) and diet

(all words found in this post are the respected (by himself) opinion of user: stylish interval. all words found contradictory those mentioned previously are thought to bring discussion and are encouraged. anyone with experience cutting for real (outside me cutting from like 230/235 to 200 with SL) is encouraged to speak up. i spent like 2 days on this and all i got was p90x seems like the greatest cutting tool for non powerlifters / bodybuilders but just fitness people in general. fuck.)

 

[Stylish Interval]

also what uragg said, cos i cut from ~235 to 200 doing SL and it went very well. cardio was added in from stath (this was a long time ago, i'm reaching back to a past i don't want to go to) and everything went well. from like a ~40 inch waist to a 36, got muscle, everywhere got smaller, it was good times.

but it's hard to compare 235 to 180. /me shudders

 

[Nosferalto]

stylish interval is absolutely right in regards to cutting when he emphasizes on the importance of dieting.

@jackal: having just about finished my pre-summer cut, i found the most crucial thing to focus on is the deficit (calorie wise). calculate your basic calorific needs for the day (maintenance) by using one of those online thingies and try to get about -300/500 below that number every day.

other than the deficit, focus on hitting your macros (your desired amounts of protein/fats/carbs which again you can calculate online depending on your stats) but don't completely neglect your micros (fiber, vitamins...) meaning that you should try as much as possible to get quality or ''clean calories''.

other than that, if you give me more stats i can probably help you out more. you're at 180 but if i can know your bf % (even an estimate) and height, it would help with your cutting plans.

anyway, it depends on your body type. the more muscle mass you have, the more difficult the cut is going to be. your goal when cutting is to shed as much fat and preserve as much muscle as possible.

when you create that deficit, your body is going to try to get calories from somewhere else, usually fats (for example 1g of fat can provide 9 calories). however if you have a lot of muscle and you cut too aggressively (meaning the deficit is too big), you WILL lose your hard earned muscle.

and definitely keep lifting heavy or your body will have no reason to keep the extra muscle mass. might be difficult on a cut with little energy provided from food so you can use stuff like pre-workouts (get the ones without all the sugar and caffeine) to help you out.

Also, regarding cardio, HIIT or whatever, I would say that it is not necessary at all. does methods simply allow you to create a deficit by burning calories which then makes you lose fat. i personally don't do cardio :P because losing muscle is very probable but i wouldn't say my way is very healthy (cardiovascular activities are good for your health but don't affect the way you look).

finally, just wanted to talk about something that i've been doing a lot so far. when you get to a stage where your bf % is pretty low and you want to go lower it even further, consider adding refeeds to your diet to replenish leptin levels (the most important fat burning hormone).

 

[Jackal]

how do I calculate my bf%?

im also probably equally as interested in my health as I am in my looks, I am not sure why you wouldn't be...

 

[popemobile]

how do I calculate my bf%?

you can use a fat caliper + an online calculator, but if you don't really know what you're doing then you might get an inaccurate result. Not quite sure where to get a fat caliper either, I got mine free with a bb.com order.

maybe a doctor or other physical health expert would do it for you if you were so inclined

im also probably equally as interested in my health as I am in my looks, I am not sure why you wouldn't be...

bitches don't care bout your health

 

[Stylish Interval]

i use the navy method cos i don't have a caliper

whatever you do, just record it consistently so you can watch trends. even if it isn't too accurate you'll have a good idea of whether it's going down or up until you can get an accurate measurement

and i swear there was some kind of scan or something that was like the most accurate way, but my google fu is weak today

 

[Lee]

dgaf about looks, cardio should be the backbone of any fitness routine. strength is no good if you're not conditioned enough to display it functionally.

not to mention that your strength workouts are gonna be of a piss poor intensity if your cardio is shit - even small cardio gains will allow you to train harder and for longer and, when you're training every day, those little improvements are gonna stack up fast.

@SI - get on #lifting!

 

[Stylish Interval]

so apparently when delta said 'fuck #lifting fb only'

he wasn't being serious

#lifting is back, bb

 

[Bam]

Finally getting into triathlons. Signed up for my first one this fall, an olympic length tri in western Maryland. I know I can already run/swim/bike the distances without too much trouble, but it's a length that I can train for with high performance in mind.

I'm buying good road bike when I go home this summer and my heart-rate monitor just came in the mail -- I'm gonna start training with that on so I can keep my running and swimming at a consistently challenging level.

 

[Stylish Interval]

bam shows up for the first time in ages

doesn't even act like it's a big deal, just talks about how he's doing fitness

modest celebrities, pffffftttttt

 

[Flashstorm1]

Does anyone have any suggestions for preventing my calf muscles from locking up whenever I go for a jog or a fast-paced walk?