OcUK Health Seekers: Post your progress pics

[megatron]

Not sure which thread to post this in. Note that in the background u have James LLewelin IFBB pro, Mick Holding WSM competitor, and Jay Hughes who just beat Terry Hollands in the Great Britain Strongman comp.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30446799@N08/3600391893/

I got two good reps after that fail. Well maybe a bit forced. I did 6 reps, 1 which I flunked out due to not using technique. All that bouncing around on the bottom really made my thighs burn!

 

[dun]

Most people have an average metabolism in actual fact, there are a lot of tests that can be done and the tolerances are quite wide though. Age and activity are a big factor too. So technically there are no such things as fast/slow metabolisms - over 90% of people with "metabolism" oddities when tested show that in actual fact they fall within the norm. Remember the more lean body mass you have the more efficiently your body metabolises food, and what seems like a "speed up" of your metabolism.

I haven't got the facts and figures here, but I've read a lot of articles stating that metabolic rate is actually very average for most people and metabolic disorders are rarer than people think.

That is pretty much what I have read as well mate, especially concerning people who cannot put on weight no matter what they try (apart from eating more ). Sorry for any confusion.

Not sure which thread to post this in. Note that in the background u have James LLewelin IFBB pro, Mick Holding WSM competitor, and Jay Hughes who just beat Terry Hollands in the Great Britain Strongman comp.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30446799@N08/3600391893/

I got two good reps after that fail. Well maybe a bit forced. I did 6 reps, 1 which I flunked out due to not using technique. All that bouncing around on the bottom really made my thighs burn!

What's that 200k? Good weight anyway mate. Very different training style to me, but if it working great.

 

[thevet]

Sorry for the horrendous quality! Don't know why I'm bending over in the shot which was supposed to be showing my legs, either.

I think my chest needs more work to be honest. I hit it hard with dumbbell presses, dips, dumbbell pullovers and flies but it doesn't seem to grow. :/

Hopefully I'll see some improvement when I eventually get a proper bench so I can make use of my barbell properly.

lower your reps to about 4-6 and try to push the heaviest weight with the strictest of form,do about 5 sets on your chest for inline,flat and decline,total of about 15 sets,concentrate on the pushes more than the others ot build mass on your chest

 

[Mansize_tissue]

lower your reps to about 4-6 and try to push the heaviest weight with the strictest of form,do about 5 sets on your chest for inline,flat and decline,total of about 15 sets,concentrate on the pushes more than the others ot build mass on your chest

Thank you for the advice.

I think I'll definitely give lowering the reps & increasing the sets a go. Would I be okay doing presses with dumbbells, or would barbell presses be better? I use dumbbells currently, since they seem to involve more stabiliser muscles, but I'm afraid this may be taking some of the work away from the chest.

 

[Freefaller]

Pretty much @ Jonny L

Interesting Freefaller, I aim for about 2500 calories a day but if I'm honest with myself I'm pretty sure I'm not hitting it. A typical day might be:

8:00 - large bowl of porrige (whole milk) + honey (w/ cinnamon)
1 a day cod liver oil

11:30 - 3 scrambled eggs on white bun (whole milk + small amount of butter)

14:30 - tin of tuna + cous cous (w/ lots of chopped veg) + pitta bread

18:45 - 20:45 - training of mad intensity

21:00 - stirfry w/ lots of veg + either prawns/steak/chicken

On days when I don't train I usually add a bowl of Greek yoghurt with honey and chopped nuts. Also when I'm training I dilute about a third of a bottle of Lucozade into 1L of water, which is about 100 cals of corn syrup - to be honest I'm not sure if this is helping anything.

I don't know how much that is, some days I will forgo the eggs and have a large mango or papaya and then some mixed nuts or something, then usually later a banana or something.

That's hardly breaking 2500cals so you're under eating, and considering you train hard for 2 hours, it's not surprise you're not putting on any weight. You'd need to double your current diet to even make a dink on it.

Put it this way this is what I ate yesterday:

Smoothie - 250ml of yoghurt, 100ml whole milk, blueberries, rasberries, banana, apple, big handful of rolled oats, 1 scoop of whey, cinnamon.

3 eggs scrambled with a crumpet.

1 pack of oatcakes (7 per pack)

2x trout fillets, curly kale, broccoli, and some cous cous.

175g Wholewheat pasta with lardons, pesto.

2 large chicken thighs with wild rice in a tomato sauce, peas and spinach.

SOme nuts and raisins.

That's one days worth typically. That's just about 3.5k cals. Eating lots is hard work!

 

[Makunouchi]

Yeah... that's around £15 of food a day, I can afford maybe £5-7 and hopefully less where possible. Living off savings while searching for a job for the lose

However I'm not trying to 'bulk' though, I just want enough to give me good recovery speed between sessions and the maximum possible energy during training periods. Is there something I could be eating/taking specifically for this?

 

[Morba]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30446799@N08/3600391893/

I got two good reps after that fail. Well maybe a bit forced. I did 6 reps, 1 which I flunked out due to not using technique. All that bouncing around on the bottom really made my thighs burn!

fella, those reps look horrible

 

[Jonny L]

Not sure which thread to post this in. Note that in the background u have James LLewelin IFBB pro, Mick Holding WSM competitor, and Jay Hughes who just beat Terry Hollands in the Great Britain Strongman comp.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30446799@N08/3600391893/

I got two good reps after that fail. Well maybe a bit forced. I did 6 reps, 1 which I flunked out due to not using technique. All that bouncing around on the bottom really made my thighs burn!

Surely all this will do is injure you? I would forget about who's behind you and just lower the weight and get on with it.

 

[Jonny L]

Yeah... that's around £15 of food a day, I can afford maybe £5-7 and hopefully less where possible. Living off savings while searching for a job for the lose

However I'm not trying to 'bulk' though, I just want enough to give me good recovery speed between sessions and the maximum possible energy during training periods. Is there something I could be eating/taking specifically for this?

I tend to find cheap food can be good food too.

Buy your oats in bulk and they work out quite cheap. They also make a good meal replacement when mixed with whey (see Freefaller's shake for the posh version ).

Whole grain pasta is great for packing in the carbs, as is brown rice.

You can buy chicken in those big frozen packs, perhaps not quite as good as fresh and freerange but its still chicken and its cheap.

If you don't mind fish try stuff like sardines and pilchards, plenty of protien and they come in very cheap.

Go to the market for your fruit and veg and barter, always works for me, especially if the stall owners an old lady, they love me

Also, cut back whatever you are drinking to just water, I stopped drinking squash, fizzy drinks and most importantly booze and it has saved me an absolute bomb. Tap water is the way forward.

At the end of the day supplements are exactly as their name suggests, extras, a balanced diet will be your best bet to fast recovery.

Hope this helps a bit.

edit: and sorry for the double post, I'm a bit eager this morning haha.

edit 2: Re the energy for training sessions bit, eat a banana and perhaps some white bread with jam before your session that should give you a good boost.

 

[jmc007]

Surely all this will do is injure you? I would forget about who's behind you and just lower the weight and get on with it.

no swearing. FF.

fella, those reps look horrible

You mean they look horrible to do rather than horrible form, right?
Because they look good lifts to me.

 

[dun]

lower your reps to about 4-6 and try to push the heaviest weight with the strictest of form,do about 5 sets on your chest for inline,flat and decline,total of about 15 sets,concentrate on the pushes more than the others ot build mass on your chest

I did the whole 5x5 for a couple of weeks, and sure my strength went up a lot but for mass it just wasn't helping for me. In the 2 weeks I ate like I normally do and actually dropped about a pound and felt like crap.
Big ass volume is the key for me right now but give it a try and see how you like it mate.

 

[Jonny L]

******. ****** and ******.



You mean they look horrible to do rather than horrible form, right?
Because they look good lifts to me.

I thought that form was pretty bad, and rather than being an efficient way to train would most probably end up in injury at some point. I'm always willing to be proven wrong though.

This is the video I found most useful when I started doing dead lifts, and this is how I still perform them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-O_MT72rck

 

[Morba]

******. ****** and ******.


You mean they look horrible to do rather than horrible form, right?
Because they look good lifts to me.

I don't know if you are being serious or not.
Either way, that wasn't good form.

 

[megatron]

Surely all this will do is injure you? I would forget about who's behind you and just lower the weight and get on with it.

Apart from the failed rep, which as u notice I let go, I don't see anything wrong with that lift (not perfect form ofcourse). If it would pass in a powerlifting comp thats all I'm concerned with. I bailed on that rep but completed 2 more reps after video completed and also had 2 reps before that video.

I can count on one had the number of times I actually failed a deadlift rep but I will obviously concentrate on form Monday. However this isn't even a 1 rep max so I don't get why you're telling me to drop the weight.

So what ur saying is don't put this on youtube?

 

[Morba]

the rep before wasn't to my liking either.
yes it would pass in a comp, if thats all that matters to you then fair enough

 

[Cristian]

I honestly don't see the point of dropping the bar down after each rep unless you're a powerlifter or going for a PB session.

Same with the belt, I'd rather lower the weight a bit and do them properly, no belt, no dropping on the ground, good form all the way. Maybe struggle a bit on the last one.
le: oops had the window open and didn't see the last post.
tought we were on a bodybuilders thread, not a powerlifter one.

 

[Morba]

i dont see an issue with a belt. can understand why some people feel like they do about them, but whatever. use a belt if you are training hard. makes sense to me.

not the worst drop in the world either, controlled enough imo :]

 

[megatron]

I thought that form was pretty bad, and rather than being an efficient way to train would most probably end up in injury at some point. I'm always willing to be proven wrong though[/url]

The first 2 reps u didn't see, and all the warm up reps or the warm-down. I agree there isn't a perfect rep there but I am trying to stimulate my body rather than stop on a rep because my form might suffer on the next rep. U don't know if your form is going to be spot on until you do the rep. You might find that if u concentrate on the next rep your form improves. What I don't do is attempt a rep with bad form because I think couldn't do it with good form, every rep is meant to be perfect... As I said I will do my utmost to carry out correct form especially in my heaviest lift even though I am repping it and fatigue will hamper form.

Its not perfect form agreed but I feel I will be stronger for having tried to do it and failed or failed to get correct form than if I had been to scared of not getting perfect. Fact that I was being filmed had no bearing on what I did, I was oblivious to the camera.

I know that camera only records 30sec so I was not quite going at my own pace.

 

[Jonny L]

Apart from the failed rep, which as u notice I let go, I don't see anything wrong with that lift. If it would pass in a powerlifting comp thats all I'm concerned with. I bailed on that rep but completed 2 more reps after video completed and also had 2 reps before that video.

I can count on one had the number of times I actually failed a deadlift rep but I will obviously concentrate on form Monday. However this isn't even a 1 rep max so I don't get why you're telling me to drop the weight.

So what ur saying is don't put this on youtube?

All I am saying, is that for the sake of not injuring yourself and being out of it for a few weeks/months, it would be better to drop the weight and concentrate on good form. Fair enough if they would accept that in a competition, but if it were me I would concentrate on good form during training and then let it go a bit if that is acceptable in a comp in an effort to lift more. At the end of the day it is up to you, I was just offering my 2 pence.

You may also find that good form could offer you better strength gains as you would be performing the exercise as it was intended and hitting the right buttons. I could be wrong, and am happy to be proven so.

 

[megatron]

i dont see an issue with a belt. can understand why some people feel like they do about them, but whatever. use a belt if you are training hard. makes sense to me.

not the worst drop in the world either, controlled enough imo :]

Can't believe someone brought up the fact I was wearing a belt. That is the only time in the whole week I wear one for one set of deads. Don't use it for squats just wrist wraps.