Man of Honour
Haha I went out Saturday night for my birthday celebrations. Was on diet coke all night
Loser or what
Loser or what
*** The 2011 Gym Rats Thread ***
- Thread starter Morba
- Start date
- Status
*cough* loser! *cough*
Birthday delts today!
Happy Birthday!
Soldato
Thanks for the Constructive Criticism guys. I never even realised that with the right foot!
FF thanks for the link, I gave that a try and it really loosened me up. I need to reading up on stretching properly.
FF thanks for the link, I gave that a try and it really loosened me up. I need to reading up on stretching properly.
Hola chaps, wondering if I can gauge your opinion on a few things. Just analysing my diet for the past week, I'm cooking a lot more meals on Sunday nights and eating throughout the weeks (lentil soups, home made currys, etc).
I tend to be eating quite low % fat, but my carb's are still around 60%-70% RDA (going off RDA is 230g off course). I've been doing some reading, namely around the "Metabolic Typing Diet", etc (seen here ).
Is there any scientific credence to this? If not, I'm finding it really hard to cut down carbs and fat - given I'm not a big "vegetable fan" so cant really satisfy myself with eating salads and the likes!
Ta,
Sam
I tend to be eating quite low % fat, but my carb's are still around 60%-70% RDA (going off RDA is 230g off course). I've been doing some reading, namely around the "Metabolic Typing Diet", etc (seen here ).
Is there any scientific credence to this? If not, I'm finding it really hard to cut down carbs and fat - given I'm not a big "vegetable fan" so cant really satisfy myself with eating salads and the likes!
Ta,
Sam
Haha I went out Saturday night for my birthday celebrations. Was on diet coke all night
Loser or what
Happy Birthday loser!
That article is absolute rubbish
Some really bad observational science going on there.Don't worry about cutting down on fat too much, because then you'll probably be reducing your meat intake which will make it really hard to get enough calories.
I had a poor session on Saturday
I managed around 60kg @ 8 reps, then 6 reps on the Smith Press when doing my Chest, but instead of doing parellel Squats, I went bum to legs - all the way down - I started at the really lowly weight of 40kg (I know, I know!) I was doing 100kg but that was on parellel squats, and I did find it a little scary doing that far down
But the 40kg was very comfortable - I did 6 reps then 8 reps then 12 reps on the Smith Machine, but I have no DOMs, so couldn't have been that great a work out as the weight was so low.
I also did dumb-bell flies - 8 @ 2x10kg, 8 @ 2x12kg and 4 @ 2x14kg, they were killing me, but a better workout than using the Chest-Fly Machine.
Finished up with 15 minutes on the Bike, average heartrate of 147bpm and a 3 minute cooldown.
I'm trying to move away from the Smith Machine but I am in the process of moving to a nearer Gym which although is smaller, a bit more money and doesn't offer as much, it does seem to be much emptier and has at least 4-5 free weights areas, which is better than the one here - with a Smith Machine and couple of benches and very few weights.
This next gym does seem a bit more quieter as well - so I'll get a chance to do a better workout without waiting ages, or not getting on the Smith Machine at all.
But I'll be doing completely free weights, in the next gym I go to, no Smith Machines - just raw strength training. Going to do a bit more CV work so I can cut more as my belly isn't getting much smaller!
Definitely stop using the smith as much as possible, the fixed ROM is miserable.
Soldato
I was wondering, would you guys be able to advise on some good weight exercises to do to help boost my overall weight loss. I am happy with the cardio I am doing, but I know that building muscle can be important for losing weight, as the more muscle, the more calories are burnt. So basically, I need something to go along with my cardio routine 
I weigh 79 kilos, and want to drop to 65 kilos. I have very strong leg muscles (former swimmer) but I slightly weaker back and shoulders which need strengthening. Would weight machines be better to begin with so I don't injure myself as easily? And advice would be ace Thanks
I weigh 79 kilos, and want to drop to 65 kilos. I have very strong leg muscles (former swimmer) but I slightly weaker back and shoulders which need strengthening. Would weight machines be better to begin with so I don't injure myself as easily? And advice would be ace
Thanks
Last edited:
Caporegime
- Joined
- 21 Jun 2006
- Posts
- 38,367
Haha I went out Saturday night for my birthday celebrations. Was on diet coke all night
Loser or what
should have stuck to bottled water, diet coke has a lot of crap in it
Caporegime
There's only one way to build muscle. Lift weight, eat well, and sleep/rest well.
To give a bit more detail, make sure you do enough variety to cover the entire body. I'd say the 4 most important exercises anyone looking to gain muscle can do are the bench, the dead lift, the pull-up, and the squat. Supplement with other exercises to add further variety.
To give a bit more detail, make sure you do enough variety to cover the entire body. I'd say the 4 most important exercises anyone looking to gain muscle can do are the bench, the dead lift, the pull-up, and the squat. Supplement with other exercises to add further variety.
Last edited:
Caporegime
- Joined
- 21 Jun 2006
- Posts
- 38,367
Thought i would post this article from stronglifts, its not by the owner of the site but by one of his members.
The reason why i am posting it is because a lot of people complain or make fun of other people on a regular basis in relation to their diet, training or gym etiquette, hopefully this article will help change their mindset and use the energy they use on complaining or ridiculing to help their fellow man instead.
"In a lot of the articles and success stories you can read that SL-Members find this community of self-improving people to be so motivating and refreshing. Although I couldn’t agree more, I keep thinking what a waste it is that there is so much misinformation out there regarding food and fitness.
Think about it: how many people do you know that have been working out on different programs for years and years and/or have tried literally dozens of different diets, but got no results? Even if you don’t know many of those people, there have to be lots and lots of them seeing the tons of infomercials and websites that consider these people a ‘market’. I can’t help thinking of exactly how much energy gets lost like this.
I’ll give an example:
John liked to play volleyball in high-school. He goes to college and then gets a busy job, which he likes, but which also leaves him drained at the end of the day. He slowly but steadily gains weight until he’s about 25kg/55lbs overweight. He decides it’s enough and starts looking for a program to get him in shape. “Luckily”, there are enough websites regarding this topic and he finds the ‘perfect’ program, which will require him to work out 5 days a week at high intensity, and follow a diet of 2000kcal a day. John thinks: ‘this has got to work’ and gets excited.
Fired up, he starts his first day of training after a mind-numbing workday, completes his workout and feels great about himself. This goes on quite good for a couple of days, but John feels more and more exhausted and hungry during the day. He thinks: ‘no pain no gain’ and cracks on. In the second week, he has to work late and unfortunately misses his first workout. That’s a mental blow.
That weekend, his girlfriend throws a party and he exceeds his caloric restriction due to peer pressure. The next day he feels so bad about himself, that he decides to eat only 1500kcal and exercise even harder. The day after that he (of course) feels totally exhausted, but works out anyway. He keeps consuming only 2000kcal.
On Friday morning, he decides to weigh himself and sees that he has not lost a single pound, which is a severe mental blow again. That day a co-worker celebrates her birthday with cake, John needs to work late and both misses his workout and eats too much and unhealthy.
Saturday morning, he feels miserable about himself and quits altogether after three gruelling weeks of intensive exercise, extreme dieting and mental exhaustion.
How much energy is lost during this whole process?
You hear a lot of people bash fat guys like John because it supposedly is so simple: exercise more and eat less; you’ll lose weight. John has proven to have both a strong desire to get in shape and the willpower to overcome setbacks like a little hunger, exhaustion and ‘not feeling like working out’. He has what it takes, but he was on the wrong program!
It will take a few months before John will find another program, gets excited again, starts with energy and fails again with no results. Probably while wasting money on something he thinks he needs. What a waste!
My point is this: there are a lot of people outside this forum that have the same desire for self-improvement and the same amount of willpower to accomplish their goals. They are just using the wrong methods that simply cannot be sustained in the long run and are therefore prone to fail!
If John started Stronglifts 5×5 while keeping the StrongLifts Diet 90% of the time, he would not have failed. He would have enjoyed the pleasure of adding weight to the bar and the feeling of improvement. He would have seen results with much less effort than was needed for his program.
People like John are not lazy, weak losers.
They are nice people
-like you-
enthusiastic to improve
-like you-
willing to give all the time/money/effort that it takes
-like you-
but who are simply misinformed
-unlike you-
So if you know people like this (and you do), I therefore strongly urge you to show them the right direction. Because if all this energy and enthusiasm will be used in the right way; great things will happen. People will get happy. Success stories will be written.
They’ll thank you for it."
The reason why i am posting it is because a lot of people complain or make fun of other people on a regular basis in relation to their diet, training or gym etiquette, hopefully this article will help change their mindset and use the energy they use on complaining or ridiculing to help their fellow man instead.
"In a lot of the articles and success stories you can read that SL-Members find this community of self-improving people to be so motivating and refreshing. Although I couldn’t agree more, I keep thinking what a waste it is that there is so much misinformation out there regarding food and fitness.
Think about it: how many people do you know that have been working out on different programs for years and years and/or have tried literally dozens of different diets, but got no results? Even if you don’t know many of those people, there have to be lots and lots of them seeing the tons of infomercials and websites that consider these people a ‘market’. I can’t help thinking of exactly how much energy gets lost like this.
I’ll give an example:
John liked to play volleyball in high-school. He goes to college and then gets a busy job, which he likes, but which also leaves him drained at the end of the day. He slowly but steadily gains weight until he’s about 25kg/55lbs overweight. He decides it’s enough and starts looking for a program to get him in shape. “Luckily”, there are enough websites regarding this topic and he finds the ‘perfect’ program, which will require him to work out 5 days a week at high intensity, and follow a diet of 2000kcal a day. John thinks: ‘this has got to work’ and gets excited.
Fired up, he starts his first day of training after a mind-numbing workday, completes his workout and feels great about himself. This goes on quite good for a couple of days, but John feels more and more exhausted and hungry during the day. He thinks: ‘no pain no gain’ and cracks on. In the second week, he has to work late and unfortunately misses his first workout. That’s a mental blow.
That weekend, his girlfriend throws a party and he exceeds his caloric restriction due to peer pressure. The next day he feels so bad about himself, that he decides to eat only 1500kcal and exercise even harder. The day after that he (of course) feels totally exhausted, but works out anyway. He keeps consuming only 2000kcal.
On Friday morning, he decides to weigh himself and sees that he has not lost a single pound, which is a severe mental blow again. That day a co-worker celebrates her birthday with cake, John needs to work late and both misses his workout and eats too much and unhealthy.
Saturday morning, he feels miserable about himself and quits altogether after three gruelling weeks of intensive exercise, extreme dieting and mental exhaustion.
How much energy is lost during this whole process?
You hear a lot of people bash fat guys like John because it supposedly is so simple: exercise more and eat less; you’ll lose weight. John has proven to have both a strong desire to get in shape and the willpower to overcome setbacks like a little hunger, exhaustion and ‘not feeling like working out’. He has what it takes, but he was on the wrong program!
It will take a few months before John will find another program, gets excited again, starts with energy and fails again with no results. Probably while wasting money on something he thinks he needs. What a waste!
My point is this: there are a lot of people outside this forum that have the same desire for self-improvement and the same amount of willpower to accomplish their goals. They are just using the wrong methods that simply cannot be sustained in the long run and are therefore prone to fail!
If John started Stronglifts 5×5 while keeping the StrongLifts Diet 90% of the time, he would not have failed. He would have enjoyed the pleasure of adding weight to the bar and the feeling of improvement. He would have seen results with much less effort than was needed for his program.
People like John are not lazy, weak losers.
They are nice people
-like you-
enthusiastic to improve
-like you-
willing to give all the time/money/effort that it takes
-like you-
but who are simply misinformed
-unlike you-
So if you know people like this (and you do), I therefore strongly urge you to show them the right direction. Because if all this energy and enthusiasm will be used in the right way; great things will happen. People will get happy. Success stories will be written.
They’ll thank you for it."
Soldato
Hey guys, thought I'd ask a quick question after all this stuff about "John"
Been doing my shoulder workout that BennyC provided me with for a good 6 weeks I reckon by now. Would like to mix it up, whilst keeping the same high volume workout he provided me with. This is what I'm currently working to:
Seated Barbell Shoulder Raise (smith machine as I work alone)
1x 12, 1x 8, 1x 5
Dumbell Rear Lateral Raise:
3x12
Dumbell Front Raise:
3x12
SUPERSET:
Arnold Press / Upright Row
3x8 (8 of each exercise, so 16 reps per set)
Shrug:
3x 12
Any suggestions?
Been doing my shoulder workout that BennyC provided me with for a good 6 weeks I reckon by now. Would like to mix it up, whilst keeping the same high volume workout he provided me with. This is what I'm currently working to:
Seated Barbell Shoulder Raise (smith machine as I work alone)
1x 12, 1x 8, 1x 5
Dumbell Rear Lateral Raise:
3x12
Dumbell Front Raise:
3x12
SUPERSET:
Arnold Press / Upright Row
3x8 (8 of each exercise, so 16 reps per set)
Shrug:
3x 12
Any suggestions?
Soldato
Quality writeup!
Mehdi has hit a jackpot and I salute him for it. Having exchanged a few mails with him. I like his attitude and how he puts things across. No added crap. No rising crescendo, no violin, no heroics.
I know what its like to make a big change. It's not easy. Whilst I accomplished my goal before of losing fat before SL. SL made me immensely strong with the right mindset. Stronglifts just isn't about 5X5 and squatting 3 times a week. It's also about attitude and understanding.
Mehdi has hit a jackpot and I salute him for it. Having exchanged a few mails with him. I like his attitude and how he puts things across. No added crap. No rising crescendo, no violin, no heroics.
I know what its like to make a big change. It's not easy. Whilst I accomplished my goal before of losing fat before SL. SL made me immensely strong with the right mindset. Stronglifts just isn't about 5X5 and squatting 3 times a week. It's also about attitude and understanding.
Soldato
^^ Good post there.
I'll be keeping my diet good all this week and getting drunk on saturday. Still hoping for weight loss.
Had a crap day of squatting today, 1x5 of 95kg and that felt too heavy for 5 sets so then did 4x5 of 90kg
I'll be keeping my diet good all this week and getting drunk on saturday
. Still hoping for weight loss.Had a crap day of squatting today, 1x5 of 95kg and that felt too heavy for 5 sets so then did 4x5 of 90kg
Soldato
When I think shoulders, it doesn't matter how much I change my workout, there are always 2 exercises that will never be replaced.Any suggestions?
OHP and Pull Ups.
I'd replace the seated BB shoulder raise with Standing Overhead Press (Free weights). 5*5. This alone is more than adequate for a shoulder workout.
I’d appreciate some critique on my current exercise and diet regime.
Exercise:
Monday: Cycle to work and back (8 Miles total) Evening Spinning Class (45 mins)
Tuesday: Cycle to work and back
Wednesday: Cycle to work and back + Football training (1.5 hours)
Thursday: Cycle to work and back + Rugby training (1.5 hours)
Friday: Cycle to work and back + Football (5 a side 1 hour)
Saturday: Football match (11 a side 1.5 hours)
Sunday: Football match (11 a side 1.5 hours)
Food:
Breakfast: Quaker oats Porridge (Apple and Blueberry) + Semi skimmed Milk
Mid morn Snack: Banana & Apple
Lunch: Pack of Tesco Turkey mince + Ainsley Harriot’s Moroccan Medley Cous cous & Frozen Peas
Afternoon Snack: Banana
Evening meal: 1x Chicken Breast (grilled), 3 Scrambled eggs, Broccoli (boiled)
Fluids: 2l during the day, more when I exercise
How does the above seem?
My aim at present is to lose weight. I appreciate there is a lot of cardio there, and I’m willing to change some days if you think it necessary? I understand doing high repetition of weights is actually cardio of sorts?
I’ve based my diet to have a small amount of food, with carbs early in the day and finishing off with mostly protein. I’m probably doing it entirely wrong though. I’d appreciate some meal ideas I can take to work during the day. I have access to a microwave, but that’s it. I don’t mind cooking stuff the night before like I am now, just bored of the current meals.
I’m letting myself down sleep wise, I’ve always got lots of stuff going on and normally only get about 5-6 hours sleep a night which isn’t enough.
Appreciate any comments.
Exercise:
Monday: Cycle to work and back (8 Miles total) Evening Spinning Class (45 mins)
Tuesday: Cycle to work and back
Wednesday: Cycle to work and back + Football training (1.5 hours)
Thursday: Cycle to work and back + Rugby training (1.5 hours)
Friday: Cycle to work and back + Football (5 a side 1 hour)
Saturday: Football match (11 a side 1.5 hours)
Sunday: Football match (11 a side 1.5 hours)
Food:
Breakfast: Quaker oats Porridge (Apple and Blueberry) + Semi skimmed Milk
Mid morn Snack: Banana & Apple
Lunch: Pack of Tesco Turkey mince + Ainsley Harriot’s Moroccan Medley Cous cous & Frozen Peas
Afternoon Snack: Banana
Evening meal: 1x Chicken Breast (grilled), 3 Scrambled eggs, Broccoli (boiled)
Fluids: 2l during the day, more when I exercise
How does the above seem?
My aim at present is to lose weight. I appreciate there is a lot of cardio there, and I’m willing to change some days if you think it necessary? I understand doing high repetition of weights is actually cardio of sorts?
I’ve based my diet to have a small amount of food, with carbs early in the day and finishing off with mostly protein. I’m probably doing it entirely wrong though. I’d appreciate some meal ideas I can take to work during the day. I have access to a microwave, but that’s it. I don’t mind cooking stuff the night before like I am now, just bored of the current meals.
I’m letting myself down sleep wise, I’ve always got lots of stuff going on and normally only get about 5-6 hours sleep a night which isn’t enough.
Appreciate any comments.
Soldato
Pull Ups for shoulders? I know they'll hit the traps, but surely there are better exercises for hitting them?
Soldato
I'm a big advocate in compound movements.
The lats are the target muscle group at the bottom of execution but your upper body accounts for a lot in accomplishing that one task. Weighted pull ups is one of the exercises responsible for making my upper body stronger. Paired up with OHP ofc. Just talking from experience.
Soldato
Woop woop!
Off to the gym in a bit. I'm properly excite for it as well, I should see the progression hit through on my deadlift today
Do other people get this excited? I'm always sad if I miss the gym
Yeah, I completely get that. I'm heading to the gym a bit later on and I'm properly keen to blast out some bench press.
DS: I totally agree about Stronglifts. The whole website and community has a great vibe without being in any way "superior". You can tell the guy's happy about helping out so many people get stronger. I think it's fantastic that so many people have come around to a more "pure" form of strength traning as a foundation.
Man of Honour
Do other people get this excited? I'm always sad if I miss the gym
Yes, Freefaller is usually bouncing around the room at the prospect of a gym session.
I've not been for a couple of months now and it's massively irritating but hopefully I'm getting to the point where I can go back, I've put up a set of dips bars in the house for the moment so that I can at least do something in the meantime.
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