My time to get fit - stage 1 - The beginning.

[RimBlock]

Hello.

Dont really have much to say, but as someone who is also getting into lifting weights and trying to drop fat, I always find your posts a good read.

Keep up the good work!!!
Sounds like your doing well.

Thanks TheCyberMonkey.

I often liken my life to a soap opera with some of the situations I find myself in like the massage example above. I also tend to look on the funnier side of things and hope the posts are at least a bit entertaining whilst still trying to maintain facts and motivation to help others and a record of my progress for myself and for others to compare against.

I am glad some people enjoy reading as much as I usually enjoy posting .

Now if I could just get my wife to stop watching her Japanese soap operas at midnight in bed, maybe I could get a good nights sleep as well, but that is another story .

Cheers
RB

 

[RimBlock]

35Kg per arm is a massive amount for a dumbell fly! Very impressive. How far down do you go? Chest level?

I come down to about chest level. Form is a little shakey at the moment. I will check exrx for form but from what I remember, I believe I am doing it right.

Ah, just checked. Dumbbell press not flys...doh!. Arms too bent. Right, have to reassess that one, sorry . Meant to be flys not press.

Regarding right arm being much stronger than the left, I am having the same problem and it doesn't feel like they could ever become equal. When I fail, it's my left arm that fails and I feel like it's holding me back, but I must resist the temptation to increase the weight on the right arm as your body will end up looking very uneven.

The difference is such for me that when I've done 8 reps on the bench press and the left arm fails, I could do another 8 reps straight away with only the right arm. Quite annoying really.

I thought they evened out a bit but from Wednesday I was surprised how different they were especially with the flyers (press).

You can shoulder press 30kg dumbbells can also lat pulldown a bit more too also the dumbbell fly looks a bit off 35kg all in all though looks like good progress to me.

I am working on shoulder pressing 30Kg dumbbells. Just upped from 25Kg 3*8. Only manaaged 4,5,5 first attempt. Very hard and the left shoulder was really burning. The lat are very hard and I am at around 8,8,6. The grip is killing me . The fly as established is a dumbbell press. I will correct form (and weight) tomorrow when I go back for my 3rd weights session this week. Thanks. Nice to know the progress is reasonable. Means I am not doing too bad .

Im assuming your 'Shoulder Dumbbells' is the TOTAL of the db's, ie 2 x 15kg?

Bit confusing, normal for BB to put the total INC bar, and for DB to put weight of each.

Nope, the shoulder press with dumbbells is 30Kg per dumbbell. Not able to do 3*8 yes as noted above but have done 3*8 with 25Kg and that is after doing the 30Kg military press with the barbell.

The numbers are per dumbbell or extra weight with total weight in brackets for exercises using barbell or plate machines. Bench press is 40Kg extra weight (2*20Kg plates) or 60Kg total inc bar weight. Dumbbell shoulder press is 30Kg per dumbbell.

The order of exercises in the sheet is usually the order I do them in. I alternate between bench press / lats / military press / fly to give the muscle groups more time to recover whilst working on a different set. Doing my military press straight after the bench press sees much worse results for the military press for example.

HAHA....Had a moan at the misses this very morning as I was feeling a bit tired and Im getting quite precious about getting some good sleep.

She has a habit of watching the simpsons in bed while im trying to get to sleep...grrrrrrrrrr.

On earlies this week so wasnt best pleased.

Shift work can be a killer. I remember my time doing it.

My wife keeps coming home with Japanese / Korean / Taiwanese dramas and will quite happily sit there until 3 am watching them. She is almost as hooked as I can get with a great game on the PC or XBox. Ok she is worse. I usually stop at 1am .

I think I will re-asses my form on all the exercises just as a matter of course as I feel form can deviate if you don't check it every now and then but I am fairly sure the rest should be pretty good.

Oh and the 55Kg dumbbell rows are also getting hard, mainly on the hands again but although I can do 3*8, it is currently only 8,8,5 with good form (quick up, 2-3 second controlled lower. Up pull without body roll).

I like the bench presses, squats and leg presses best with the military press coming next if I could only just get past the 8,8,6 or 7 and then left arm failure.

One other thing. Grip for the bench press (barbell). Where should the bar be resting in the hand ?. Mine is resting in the curve between the bottom of the thumb and the first finger which is directly above the wrist to create a vertical line up the arm. Only problem is that on my left hand, moving m thumb around after a weights session is a little uncomfortable like the thumb had been pushed too far in a direction.

Cheers
RB

 

[RimBlock]

That shoulder press is mahoooosive!
You shoulder pressing twice what I can ( i only use 16s)...I feel so week
Probably struggle swinging 30kg dumbells up to above my shoulder to even try it to be honest.

Nice work!!

Well with the 30Kg there is a bit of gerning TBH . 4,5,5 seemed very poor for the first try with the new weight but my left shoulder was burning nicely.

I did try doing the Arnold press with the dumbbells at one point a while ago but that just went all over the place .

I do find it odd that I can do the 25Kg dumbbells but not the 30Kg barbell. I am not sure if this is common or not. The dumbell grip is front to back whilst the barbell grip is obviously left to right. I am wondering if the barbells restricted movement due to the two handed grip makes it harder.

Will get the fly right tonight hopefully .

RB

 

[RimBlock]

I presume that's with the back rest up?

I struggle with the 30kgs I have to admit, so I'm impressed with that. I do have an old shoulder injury which does hold me back, but still, kudos to you. I push press over 80kg, but that's somewhat different to seated shoulder press.

Try it without the back rest though

err..... ahhhhh....

Welcome to Rimblocks face-palm post........

Good / bad and face-palm news.

The most embarrassing first.......

For some reason known only to them, Fitness First have decided to load up on plates for the barbell marked in Kg and, yep.... you guessed it..... dumbbells marked in ......errr........ lbs [where is the face-palm smiley].

All dumbbell exercises need the weight divided by 2.2 . Damn... I thought I was doing so well as well........ Oh well it makes a lot more sense now .

So dumbbell shoulder presses, flys done correctly) and rows are 13.6Kg, 9Kg and 25Kg dumbbells.

Ok, now for the good news.....

Bench press I upped to 70Kg (inc bar) and managed 7,4,3 on the first go. Military press finally squeezed out a 8,8,8 so can finally up the weight. Started the dumbbell fly at 20lbs and did it correctly this time. Hard but will up to 25lbs. Shoulder dumbbells at 30lbs went up to 8,7,7 from 4,5,5 last time. Weight after sauna, two shakes and shower was 102Kg dead. Whilst the weight measurement fluctuates, this is the lowest yet so pretty happy even if it is not really an accurate measure. It usually fluctuates between 103.4 and 102.8. It started at 106Kg.

Ok, bad news. I think the dumbbell rows with the new 55lbs has caused more pressure on the Achilles tendon which was feeling pretty good up until then. Now it seems to have come back as uncomfortable as ever. Nuts....... Think I may drop down to 50lbs again to avoid the strain.

Now to end on a good note.... when doing the rows I could feel my stomach muscles working which is the first time I have really felt them working hard. This is good news for me .

Apart from feeling like a complete idiot over the dumbbell weight, it was a pretty good session .

RB

 

[RimBlock]

Easy mistake to make. Eitherway, progress is progress - doesn't really matter what the weight is, if it's going up and you're getting stronger then that's all that counts.

Cheers FF.

Ok, some quick and dirty measurements (string and straight 24" ruler).
Neck: 17"
Chest: 43 1/4"
Biceps: 15 3/4"
Forearms: 12 3/4"
Waist: 40"
Thighs: 25 1/4"
Calves: 15 3/4"

So that is;
Chest down 1 3/4"
Waist down 1"
Bicep up 3/4"
Calves down 1/4"
Thighs down 3/4"
Forearms up 1/4"

based on figures from 4th week (posted with spreadsheet charts on post 41).

Measurements are tensed but not pumped . I really need to get a tape measure.....

Cheers

RB

 

[RimBlock]

I love my gym scales....

Today I weight 100.1 Kg......

Well had a bit of a problem with my breathing. Not serious but made th cross trainer difficult and since this is my sixth day in the gym this week I only did 15 minutes on it.

I also had a try on the assisted chinup / wide arm pull up / dips machine which is up with all the cardio machines.

Seems like 45Kg is a reasonable starting weight as that would mean I am lifting 55Kg in each of the exercises. I super setted them, wide arm pullups / chinup / dips for a couple of sets to get a feel for the machine.

I think I liked the dips best. Maybe a bitt with the assistance and then I will switch to unassisted when I have some baseline strength behind them.

Thank for all the comments as always guys.

Cheers
RB

 

[RimBlock]

I had started to workout at the beginning of the year. I was keepig it up even though I was working 80 hours a week over 7 days. I suddenly stopped about 2 months ago. I suddenly realised my form had gone out of the window. I think I started increasing the weights to quickly as I wanted to start hitting at least 50. My diet was also all over the place. As I'm skinny fat atm I couldn't decided whether to bulk or cut. I have no real muscle on me and carry fat around my chest and middle but no where else.

Wow, 80 hour week and gym time. Pretty big commitment.

I have found that I need to check form every now and then as it can slip and sometimes dropping down to help with form can really help. All this and I have only been doing this for 3 months.

I think I'm going to start again my with very low weights and really concentrate on form. I have my own weights in my house but the spotter on my bench is dead where my hands should be on my bar.

I also find this for a couple of exercises. I tend to find I have to lift and adjust before I start the set. This is most common with the military press and bench press for me.

I think this thread in particular may help give me the extra motivation I need.

Glad it can help. Lots of good people providing lots of good info here and in the forums.

Cheers
RB

 

[RimBlock]

And then there was surgery....

A lesson from the past.

A number of years ago I started working out. I was working for the Corporation of London who has their head office in The Guild Hall in London's financial district. Under The Guild Hall there is a smallish room that is dedicated as a free gym which has a number of old exercise machines. The room was small but not used much so there was no problem getting to use the machines. It was a closely guarded secret .

Well one of my favorite machines was the calf raise machine. This was mainly a stack of weights against the wall with a couple of shoulder pads and a raised bar to stand on so you could get the full range of movements for up and down with the feet to exercise the calf. Well I really pushed hard with the exercise and especially with this machine. Having fairly strong legs, well compared to my upper half, I was stacking the weight higher and higher. I believe it went to over 150Kg and to the point I could only just stand up to get in to the starting position.

One day at home in the shower I noticed a bulge around the lower abdominals on one side. The bulge was small, about the size of half a large marble and soft. Well after a few days of uming and ahing I finally got myself to the doctors and was diagnosed with a hernia.

For those who do not know, simply put, the internal organs reside in a bag that separate them from the muscles. A hernia is where the bag develops a hole and part of an organ pushes out. The most common organ is the large intestine and in serious cases the intestine can get blocked requiring urgent surgery. My case was minor and caught at the beginning. People who do not get it checked out have had the bulges growing to fantastic sizes. Hernias are sometimes mistaken fro tumors but undiagnosed suffers.

The fix is to open you up and place a mesh over the hole, after pushing everything back through. The body then grows a fibrous material over the mesh which then dissolves. The surgery is considered minor but they put you fully out for it. The operation is day surgery so they do not keep you in after you wake up.

Well around a year later or so the NHS called me in and I went for the operation. My memory is a bit sketchy but, last thing I remember is counting to 1..2..3..4..... a coldness going up my arm and then ......gone.

I woke up in recovery and stinking of ether. It was not too pleasant. The worst parts of the experience were the plastic device they put in the back of your hand for adding drips etc. That was painful to take out.... and the fact that as I was still smoking at the time, and so was coughing regularly which hurt 'a lot'....

This all happened around 6 years ago and apart from a lack of feeling around the incision scar (around 3" long) I have not had any more issues.

The point of me telling you all this........

Take it slowly if you are just starting out especially if you are used to a sofa based life.

For the sake of taking a little longer to work up your fitness levels you can avoid all this. Suffering a little embarrassment showing the doctor if you have got a lump or bulge around the lower abdominals may not be the end of the world and if it is a hernia then it is easily fixed with what is considered minor surgery.

This is just based on my experience and is not to be considered as medical advice. Please see a doctor and do some internet research for more information.

Hopefully the mods will not consider this inappropriate. FF, Please let me know if it is.

Start slow, eat right, work hard, love & live your life.

Have a great weekend.

RB

 

[RimBlock]

Oh and on a happier note.

I have just remembered I found a motivational pic on the internet which I saved at work.

RB

 

[RimBlock]

Ok so it has been a weekend of temptations and some pretty bad eating......

Well you see it was my wifes birthday on Monday and she decided to celebrate on Sunday as she was working on Monday.

Birthday breakfast..... yep she wanted McDonalds big breakfast... so I ended up with a sausage & egg Mc Muffin and orange juice.

She then decided she wanted to go to the airport which is only about 20 minutes away and a fairly nice journey for our youngest who loves riding on trains. Then it is off to the food court for lunch. This was not so bad as it was half a chicken in herbal soup. Then it was down to the car park where there was a go-kart track setup to promote for the F1 race coming to Singapore. Sin$20 for what seemed like 2 minutes race. We didn't participate but got pics of the kids in a 'photo taking' go-Kart which was to one side.

Off to Starbucks for a much needed coffee but it was full of students so there were no free tables. We ended up back in McDonalds or McCafe with my wife prompting me to have a small apple crumble for her birthday and then she proceded to get nothing for her self.... I am starting to suspect she is trying to keep me fat. Well she went off to another shop to get a cake she may like and returned with cheese cake, my old favorite. She took one bite and screwed up her face. It was listed as marble cheesecake but turned out to be lemon cheese cake and my wife hates bitter stuff.

She then then patiently explained how much of a waste it would be to throw it away so I simply must eat it but she would finish the remaining half of my apple crumble. So I finish this cheesecake all apart from the base whick I really cannot bring myself to eat and she sits there just picking at the apple crumbel and ends up not eating that one either.

Then off home, chat with my folks over the webcam so they can see the kids and off to my Mother-in-laws for a birthday cake celebration. One slice of cake and cup of soft drink. There goes my cheat day.....

Along come Monday. I have it booked as leave from work as my wife was doing the same until we booked a long weekend holiday later in the year and she had to give up the monday leave. Well like any good husband I went and met her for lunch which consisited of.... yep you guessed it, she only wanted McDonalds. One double cheese burger fries and coke later (no upsize) and I have once again swarn to my wife that I will not touch McDonalds. Sitting there all these number just kept flashing up...... 400+ calories for the double cheese burger, 350+ calories for the fries, that is almost 1 1/2 hours on the cross trainer just to stay the same.

I cooked pasta with chicken soup for dinner. I believe I will survive with the cottage cheese and ham sandwiches for the thirt meal I believe I am still under requirements but really disliked ending up in McDonalds half the time.

Well, life sometimes throws big roadblocks in the way and you just have to take things as they come and realign when you are through the other side.

Back on the healthy food again

Back to the weights tonight.

Back to sanity

RB

 

[RimBlock]

Well last nights session was ok.

The bench press with the new weight was dissapointing but I seem to be seeing a pattern. First session where I raise the weight I do pretty well at but the following session seems to have quite poor results and then subsequent sessions build up from there.

The fly's now with 25lbs did some damage. Feels like I have torn the muscle along the top of my shoulders. Bit uncomfortable but liveable.

I also did my first drop sets. As I was so dissapointed with the bench press I did them at the end of my routine.

60Kg -> fail (7 reps)
50Kg -> fail (8 reps)
40Kg -> fail (10 reps)
30Kg -> fail (12 reps)
20Kg -> fail (15 reps).

The 30 and 20Kg's failed due to pain / burning rather than failure to lift due to arms not working.

Well that really pumped my chest and I can feel it in my arms as well today. I also quite enjoyed it and ended up with doing bench presses with an empty bar .

Regards
RB

 

[RimBlock]

Thanks Dark Shadow,

I have seen your progress in one or two of the other threads and the difference between the start and current result is stunning. Congrats on the results. Must feel great now looking back on the starting photo.

Yeah it is a bit difficult at the moment and the weight does not seem to be coming off as quick as I would like. Money is tight, as with everyone, so I have just switched gyms to True fitness.

A few injuries are also causing issues. Along with the Achillies tendon which is taking a lot of time to heal and is frustrating as I want to get back to my squats, I have the left hand injury which shows itself with the bars pressure on the pad at the bottom of the thumb (bench press) and now a strain / tear on the shoulder (Supraspinatus I would guess) from the flys although this seems to be healing fine.

On the whole I am happy with the muscle size and strength gains, it is just the fat loss I would like to see more visible results on but ...... it has taken 3 years to put on that much fat so it will take more than 3 months to get rid of it .

On a side note, I have found a great site for a visible muscle directory here. I have no experience of any other sections including medical advice so cannot comment.

Cheers
RB

 

[RimBlock]

Thanks all,

I think maybe it is that I am putting on muscle quicker than I am loosing fat and TBH the best way of eccelerating the fat loss is to get back doing the cardio more as I have been slacking a bit there owing to the fact that I find it very boring . Weights I enjoy on the whole but on the cross trainer for 40+ minutes is just mind numbing even with tv there. Maybe I will see if I can sort out some setup with my eepc or something and some episodes of CSI or whatever.

Running or the like outside is particularly difficult for me with this tropical climate and this chesty cough is just making the cardio even more difficult.

I will find a way around it though. Just need to get my thinking cap on.

Don;t get too booged down on the weight side of things right now, if you feel fitter, stronger and that you can do more thats great progress in itself. Its something I struggle with, not understanding why weight isnt dropping off me when im eating right and training well. But the fact my clothes are looser and I feel much fitter serves as a reminder.
Did you take a picture at the start of this, i bet if you took one now in the same position you will see a difference

I feel prouder if that counts . More confidence, walk down the street with head high and shoulders back. Due to my height and loosing some fat the rest is pretty well hidden when clothed.

My trousers have more space around the waist but most of that was gained in the initial stages of the training and now the gains are harder to notice. My shirts are tighter due to my chest filling out. That is a nice feeling.

I have the initial pre-exercise shots in this thread along with a couple from a few weeks in. I am going to do some more in a week or two as a progress report. Until I do them it is going to be hard to tell how much more I have gained / lost. Think I really need to see them side by side .

Although I do post quite a bit about my weight on the scales, I am not concerned about it and the fluctuating for many reasons already posted all over the forums. The inch measurements are not changing very much though around the waist. Gotta kick my butt more to get the cardio done rather than missing or doing short sessions.

just stumbled across this thread, have to say i'm in a worse position than you when you started, lack of motivation is a poor excuse i know , still trying to find someway to kick my arse into gear.

Take a series of pictures in your speedos. Provided the motivation for me to get my butt in gear when I did that for myself .

keep up the good work, looks like its going well.

Thanks, despite the perceived slow fat loss I would rather be here than back where I was around 3 months ago.

i'll follow along and hopefully realise i need to do myself some good before life turns sour.

Earlier you start, the easier it is. Does not matter how old you are, you are only going to get older and it will get harder so start now .

and the treats you had on your wifes birthday can easily be overcome with a little extra work, the brusies from the battering you might have got if you'd said "sorry love , i'm trying to watch my weight" will have taken a lot longer to recover from .

I don't mind too much but she was very sneeky with the cheese cake and she can eat more or less what she likes without gaining weight. I think she feels I am missing out and so tries to push for me to enjoy the good food every now and then. We are also both very impulsive so it can be hard to resist.

Ouch, sounds like you've got a fair bit going on! Be sure to take it easy. Injuries can be permanent and training will only irritate and slow down recovery. Be patient.

I am trying to be patient at the moment and have not hit the weights since Tuesday in the hope that I will get all the damage repaired. My shoulder is feeling pretty good, just a slight twinge, my hand is feeling better but it is only with the weight on it that I can really feel it and the Achilles tendon is feeling a bit better again so hopefully that is on the mend. I will keep with the cardio only for this week and hit the weights again coming Monday.

8igdave[/URL]]Just thought id post to say your doing a real good job by the look of those pictures. Keep it up

. Bet the wife is proud.

My wife being chinese prefers the skinny guys like the ones from the Japanise / Taiwanese / Korean soap opera's. She will be out of luck but as I am only aiming for something like Dark_Shadows build she will not be too displeased. My ex would be proud .

I am undecided on whether to continue with the routine I am using or to move to the stronglifts or riptoe routines. My strength has improved which is fairly obvious by my results but I feel my endurance is still pretty weak. I am hoping that one of those two programs will help to change that.

I have also now cancelled my Fitness First membership and signed with True fitness. They offered 3 months free and 25% cheaper than Fitness first. Downside that I have to bring my own workout clothes, Fintess First provided workout attire. New gym, new routine maybe.

Due to the shoulder injury which felt like a tear in the muscle rather than a ligament issue, I have been upping the protein intake. Tofu (300g) with my lunch salad and Parma ham (100g), lots of eggs and two shakes before bed to fuel the repair. All I can say, 300g tofu in one go is too much and the protein shakes with milk are superlicious . Must stay with water for the shakes though to help keep the calories down.

Cheers
RB

 

[RimBlock]

Thanks again Dark_Shadow,

Interesting advice as usual.

Well something is against me and cardio . I went to buy some shorts at lunch time so I could do a cardio sessing before back to work and nowhere had western sizes....... Nike / addidas only had asian sizes which means XXXL is skin tight on me if I can get them on..... Royal sporting house (chain of sports stores) didn't have any staff to ask about sizes and the shorts so not indicate asian or western sizing.

Oh well there is a big sale on from one of the major department stores and so I will go there and get something much cheaper over the weekend.

Out of interest, what measure would you use to indicate that stronglifts is within reach, or how long to wait before trying it ?.

I like milk and yes the shake with milk was great but it is the first time in the last 3 months I have had it with milk. I will be sticking to water for the very reasons you mention for now .

Ok, after a little looking into the cyclic Keto diet (CKD) I get;

Lean body weight in lbs = protein grams intake (*4 = calories)
Total body weight *15 = Maintenance calorific requirement
Maintenance calorific requirement - protein calories = fat calories required (/9 = fat grams)

So 225lbs (168lbs lean)
168g protein = 168 * 4 = 672 calories from protein
224lbs * 15 = 3360calories for maintenance.
500 Calorie defecit / day = 2860 calories required per day
2860 calories - 672 protein calories = 1428 calories required from fats
1428 calories = 159g fat per day.

So;
For Sunday -> Friday lunch
168g of protein / day
159g of fat / day

For Friday afternoon -> Saturday midnight
Protein stays the same
Fat must be under lean body weight in Kg (76.3)
10-12g carbs / Kg of lean body weight (168 / 2.2 = 76.3)
76.3 * 11g = 839.3g carbs / day.

So;
168g of protein
< 76.3g of fat
839.3g of carbs

Friday afternoon before the last workout eat some fruit to get the body ready for the carb loading process.

Does this sound about right.

If so I just have to find out which foods I can eat for the Sunday -> Friday lunch period as most foods I have seen tend to have some carbs in them.

Also I understand that upto 30g carbs is safe / day although best avoided if possible. Any comments on that.

Many thanks
RB

 

[RimBlock]

I don't have time to read all the posts but I'll chip in from what i read in the first few posts.

I agree with Morba in his second post. Sometimes the size just comes with genetics. I go gym very regularly, I lift amongst the heaviest in the place, 40kg dumbell a side on bench press (an I only weigh 60kg). i train the same way and with the bigger guys there however I'm just soooo much smaller than them, I just can't put on size.

However if you naturally grow I'd recommend balancing heavy lifting with endurance training.

Smaller maybe but it must be nice to pull out the bigger weights amoung the newbies and see the looks of disbelief on their faces .

Thanks for the post psy-blade. Have a scan through the rest of the thread if you have time as there has been a lot of 'water under the bridge' since the first few posts and some great advice given by people here. Sure, a lot of the posts may, possibly, be me rambling a bit but hopefully they are not too boring .

Well if I am going to try the CKD diet I really should get some more photos up and get prepared by stocking up on the right food.

Maybe I will do a weights session tomorrow and then take the photos after .

Cheers
RB

 

[RimBlock]

ok, end of week 11

Some more progress pics of a still fairly poor standard.

Non-pumped. Have not been lifting weights for 3 days.

Just took them after getting in from work so a bit puffed.

Regards
RB

 

[RimBlock]

Edit: I'd also like to say thanks to you Rimblock for some very interesting and informative posts, and wish you luck with your training

Welcome mate.

Way I look at it, we are all after the same thing. More we share what we learn the easier it is for all of us .

RB

 

[RimBlock]

Well, another day, another gym......

First time at True Fitness. I guess it is what you are used too but I was a little disapointed.

They only have one bench press bench (one incline bench press and 3 smith machines, one also as a power cage but with no olympic bar). All weights are in lbs so I have to convert all barbell weights too the nearest lbs available. I also didn't have my weights sheet and felt pretty run down before starting......

All in all not the best experience. A little ajustment and I am sure things will work out.

On the plus side I had another go with the chin / pullups / dips. I am stronger on the dips with just a 36Kg assist (2*8), the others were around 45Kg assist and only 2*5. The machine is a cytec (I think) branded machine and works with weight 'stages' so the weight offset does not have the amount of weight but a 'stage' written on it. ou then have too look up the stage to find the weight offset. Stupid system . I just want to know the weight.

Oh they do have an incline situp bench so I will start to use that a bit as well.

They have lots of cable and fixed movement machines although I am trying to stay away for the moment.

I also am looking for some ideas for low catches for the bench press bench. The bench has two pegs which fit in the holes in the bench uprites to catch the bar. There is only one set of pegs and the bottom holes are quite high meaning that I am unlikely to push to the limit as failure would mean not being able to reach the pegs. So, a solution may be to buy a couple of pegs with a metal strip coming down and ending in a hook. Anyone know if these already exist or if I need to have them custom made ?

Cheers
RB

 

[RimBlock]

Something like that sounds like it would have to be custom made

I thought I was being ingenious when using the flat part of an open squat rack as a safety measure lol!

Nuts, thought as much. Have to get the pegs first and do some measurements. Not sure how the gym staff will react with me taking a tape measure in there .

Good stuff RimBlock. Really looking good in those pics and dont look like you're 225lb's!

Many thanks Kappa.

Ahh, well..... If I relax the belly more then, well I am sure you get the idea. I am not straining to hold it all in but just tensing the stomach a little rather than letting it flop down like a pudding .

Before I started with this whole 'get fit' thing, tensing my stomach made no visible difference .

I feel I have to change my workout at the gym, started to lose motivation now, not running as much, the whole weekend is turning into a cheat day etc That picture telling me to squat certainly helps though

I know what you mean. I have been feeling quite disappointed recently. The new gym is a little disappointing but was a change I need to make due to cash. The belly is still there and the measurements are not really changing much at all. Hopefully after I can get all the details about the CKD diet down and start it, I will see more fat loss.

I am guessing that with the exercise I am doing that I am just under my maintenance which is why I am not loosing any significant size around my belly. I will go the CKD diet way I think and see where that takes me.

Today is a new day, the week is a new week and its leg day! BAM! Gonna start to do cardio after my weights workouts again, just 20mins, which is better than nowt!

20 Minutes after weights should be pretty good. Completely deplete your energy reserves. I am looking at drop sets to do the same thing after my workout. I enjoyed doing the bench press drop sets and felt it the next day.

If cardio is becoming a pain have you had a crack at outdoor running? I HATE using cardio machines, but running is brilliant, the only effort I have is actually getting out the door and the first 5 mins, after that, its great! Especially when it's sunny, just running past things you drive by daily is so much more interesting then on a treadmill staring at a tv!

Sounds good but I get split shins. Have always had them when running. This is why I tend to stay away from the running machines. I have a friend who runs around Singapore doing a lunch time cardio session. The weather would also kill me though.

On a plus note, my shoulder feels fine now, my hand is feeling better but putting the barbell on it will really be the test and the Achilles tendon is getting better.

I think I will start another thread for the CKD diet just to gather information as people with information may not be reading this thread. I will like to it from here and keep the diet summary and progress reports in this thread. I have seen some of the historical threads and will re-read them now but I suspect they do not have what I am after.

Cheers
RB

 

[RimBlock]

Know how you feel there, my diets been pretty poor (Combination of not eating often enough/enough and drinking whilst on the go at uni , can't say I dont enjoy it though).

I have been good staying away from the choc bars (loved kitkat chunky and boost) and only very rarely with the cake so not so bad but 'things' keep getting in the way.

Last night we went to a Chinese wedding banquet (5th in 3 years) and for those who have never been to one, it is usually in a big hotel event hall with a few hundred people and a 10 (somethimes less) course meal. Now the amount of food per course is usually small but there is a little difficulty spending 2 hours not eating anything. TBH the food last night was pretty good but that was as to be expected as the hotel was on Orchard Rd which is the equivelent of Londons Oxford / Regents Streets. Oh well that is the last 'event' I am aware of for some time .

As for working out your lifts in lbs etc, just do what you feel capable of for 8 reps (or whatever your normal rep range), make sure you're pushing to failure each week then check the weights every few weeks and it'll make progress far more noticable/save time. That's what I'm doing as I've joined my uni gym with barbells and I'm just doing whatever weight I can within a reasonable rep range.

Sure but the convertion (Kg * 2.2 = lbs) gives me a starting point after deduction say 5-10%. The bench press felt much heavier and it was 10lbs lighter than the calculated weight. I suspect the weights are not made to exacting specifications.

That sounds about right RimBlock.

From my research and understanding 30-50g of carb is ok through the day. The good thing about keto is, you don't have the hunger pans like you get with normal diet.

The big negative for me was carb cravings. I absolutely miss milk, it's so difficult to avoid!

I've noticed some huge changes over the last few weeks. Over my year it has definitely been by far the quickest I've shedded fat.

Sounds good but it terrifies me with the amount of fat to be consumed. Whipped cream, bacon, full fat cheese..... this is why I would like some more info on what I can eat and some idea of diet plans before starting. I would also miss milk and the sugar in tea / coffee although I understand you can take sweeteners if they are not fructose.

Cheers
RB

Cheers
RB