Official Workout/Fitness Thread (Re-born)

[Zonkerbl]

I lift maybe twice a week, doing three sets, 12, 10, and 8. Dumbbell bench + upright dumbbell rows (12 bench, 12 rows, 10 bench, 10 rows, etc), then inclined bench + normal lat pulls, then if I have the energy I do lunges + hams, and if I'm really ambitious I do three sets of shoulders interspersed with two sets of situps. So it's circuit training more than lifting I guess. I started doing this a month or so ago after a light cardio workout (I always want to grab the cardio machines if they're available, you can lift whenever). Last week I tried being brave and lifting first and doing light cardio afterwards.

Correction: I started doing the weights after half hour interval workouts.

[nate33]

Lift heavier weight. Skip the cardio entirely on your weightlifting days so you have more energy to lift heavier weight. (You can still do 5-10 minutes of cardio to warm your body up.) I'd also suggest doing some squats, leg presses and/or dead lifts. The gluts and quads are your biggest muscles. Build them up and your body will devote more calories to maintaining them. If you attack the weights as vigorously as you have attacked the cardio, you should see serious strength improvement in a very short period of time.

Also, make sure you drink a protein shake after lifting.

[Zonkerbl]

Lift heavier weight. Skip the cardio entirely on your weightlifting days so you have more energy to lift heavier weight. (You can still do 5-10 minutes of cardio to warm your body up.) I'd also suggest doing some squats, leg presses and/or dead lifts. The gluts and quads are your biggest muscles. Build them up and your body will devote more calories to maintaining them. If you attack the weights as vigorously as you have attacked the cardio, you should see serious strength improvement in a very short period of time.

Also, make sure you drink a protein shake after lifting.

Chocolate milk! There is no scientific evidence that protein shakes are any better than good old chocolate milk. That's why it's my reward for working out.

Yeah, I used to do squats. A lot. I've been thinking about that. My joints have never functioned all that smoothly, there's lots of snapping and creaking (particularly now that I'm in my forties) and that tends to throw off my form and I get injured (particularly with squats). I messed up my lower back a few times and now squats are a very iffy proposition for me. Although now that I have a good chiropractor to straighten me out when I screw up, maybe I can try again.

It's tricky -- once my legs get their strength back, to do sets of 8 in squats I'd have to put at least 185 on the bar, and I don't think my back can handle anything over 135 now. I could stick with lunges -- just with heavier weights. They're like sissy old-guy deadlifts anyway. Or I can try squats with really light weights and see how my back responds as I ramp up the weight. The guys at the gym refuse to write up a workout routine for me that has squats in it. They're all about lunges and bulgarian deadlifts and so on.

Also my rotator cuff is not as healthy as it used to be - I get a little twinge in my left shoulder when I do incline presses, and I kind of don't want to press my luck. That's why I've gradually transitioned over to all cardio all the time. I can definitely dial back the cardio on my lifting days and do 10-8-6 instead of 12-10-8. I'm just anxious to waste precious gym time not burning a lot of calories.

Oh, and I'm getting a new job and the new place has a free weight room with some cardio machines but does not have a squat rack.

[dobrojim]

Finished my 4th consecutive VT100 yesterday a little before 9 am. 28:57 Elapsed time,
a little over an hour under the time limit

I'm mostly ambulatory today.

[dobrojim]

bump

I guess everyone is so tired after working out they can't go back 3 pages
and bring back this thread - lol

having done a hundred miles on foot a month ago, I took advantage of the
opportunity afforded by the Reston Bike Club on Sunday to bike 100 miles.
Blah, blah. I didn't go very fast and finished after they closed down the
post ride food and shirt pickup. But I did contact them to arrange to get
a shirt.

Here's the cool thing though. My 16 yo daughter did it with me. Well kinda
with me. We didn't ride together that much but I kinda kept track of her
and waited at various times to make sure she was progressing OK.

Forget if I've mentioned this already somewhere but she went on a Bike
Camp thing this summer living on a bike for 3 weeks straight. Started in
Natural Bridge, biked to Blacksburg, over to the Blue Ridge Pkwy up to
around Harrisonburg and finally back to Lexington. The kids carried what
they needed and cooked for themselves staying sometimes in Friends Meeting
Houses and other times camping where they could. Longest day they did was 61
miles so I was quite proud of her for doing the full 100, actually 105+ miles,
even moreso because of the 8-12 different periods of torrential downpours
we rode through along the way. She never complained once. And the course
was notoriously hilly being mostly in western Loudoun County as well.

so apologies if I'm getting tiresome by bragging on my kids too much...

[Zonkerbl]

I think I have a torn rotator cuff, and apparently have had it for about a year. Can't lift or do squats without making it worse. Sucks. Will eventually get around to having a dr look at it, maybe this week.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

bump

I guess everyone is so tired after working out they can't go back 3 pages
and bring back this thread - lol

having done a hundred miles on foot a month ago, I took advantage of the
opportunity afforded by the Reston Bike Club on Sunday to bike 100 miles.
Blah, blah. I didn't go very fast and finished after they closed down the
post ride food and shirt pickup. But I did contact them to arrange to get
a shirt.

Here's the cool thing though. My 16 yo daughter did it with me. Well kinda
with me. We didn't ride together that much but I kinda kept track of her
and waited at various times to make sure she was progressing OK.

Forget if I've mentioned this already somewhere but she went on a Bike
Camp thing this summer living on a bike for 3 weeks straight. Started in
Natural Bridge, biked to Blacksburg, over to the Blue Ridge Pkwy up to
around Harrisonburg and finally back to Lexington. The kids carried what
they needed and cooked for themselves staying sometimes in Friends Meeting
Houses and other times camping where they could. Longest day they did was 61
miles so I was quite proud of her for doing the full 100, actually 105+ miles,
even moreso because of the 8-12 different periods of torrential downpours
we rode through along the way. She never complained once. And the course
was notoriously hilly being mostly in western Loudoun County as well.

so apologies if I'm getting tiresome by bragging on my kids too much...

jim, it is truly inspirational what you do and what you're passing on to your kids!

[dobrojim]

Thanks CCJ. Much appreciated.

[fugop]

I tore my rotator cuff in the summer of 2001. I didn't have surgery -- docs put me on corticosteroids for a few months. I didn't do any real physical therapy. I had chronic pain in my shoulder for about 7 years following the injury -- it would throb at night, and certain movements would cause sharp pain.

Eventually, the problem became atrophy of the muscles more than any underlying structural issues. I went to a few physical therapy sessions in 2008, and spent a few months in the gym doing exercises that focused on the muscle group. I've been pain free since.

[Zonkerbl]

I tore my rotator cuff in the summer of 2001. I didn't have surgery -- docs put me on corticosteroids for a few months. I didn't do any real physical therapy. I had chronic pain in my shoulder for about 7 years following the injury -- it would throb at night, and certain movements would cause sharp pain.

Eventually, the problem became atrophy of the muscles more than any underlying structural issues. I went to a few physical therapy sessions in 2008, and spent a few months in the gym doing exercises that focused on the muscle group. I've been pain free since.

Huh. I hope it's that "simple" for me.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

Zonker, I had a rotator cuff injury, or some other bursar sac injury, bad enough to get some disability from the military. Very similarly to fugop, I had chronic pain in one shoulder. It did frequently hurt at night, depending on movement or which side I rested. It was really nagging. Limited range of motion and that arm weaker also bothered me, too.

Exact same treatment course worked for me. I got a shot and it killed the pain. After that, I did physical therapy. Started off light with lat pull downs. Did should presses. Did some other isometrics, along with some core work. What helped a lot is my medical plan covered massage treatments and other heat treatment/stimulation. When you get medical clearance, doing burpees or throwing a medicine ball up a wall and catching will also help your muscles/nerves to fire right, Zonker.

Whatever it was, doesn't bother me at all now, thank goodness.

[verbal8]

I played rugby for the first time in probably about a year. It was just a club scrimmage, but it was pretty much as intense as a game.

I normally play wing forward, but were short on forwards. We played 12 on 12, and I ended up at hooker(the guy in the middle of the scrum). My neck is quite sore from playing hooker, but other than that I feel pretty good.

[Zonkerbl]

Huh, I must have a super mild rotator cuff injury 'cause it doesn't restrict my range of motion as much as just hurts when I try to do certain things, like catch a football or do an inclined press.

[hands11]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWFeAnxS ... re=related

Great interview with Hopla.

For those of you that have kids learning to play, I really like his suggestion about using a lower hoop and smaller ball and working your way up so they can learn the right form and keep using the same form from a young age.

He also provides some good advice for your own game.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

Huh, I must have a super mild rotator cuff injury 'cause it doesn't restrict my range of motion as much as just hurts when I try to do certain things, like catch a football or do an inclined press.

I couldn't throw a football overhand when it was bothering me. I threw underhand. It was a nagging problem that lasted longer than I should have let it.

[Zonkerbl]

Going to see the orthopedist on Friday. Fully expect the same thing to happen as last time I went to a sports doctor. "What team do you play for? You're not a professional athlete? Here, this intern will explain some useless exercises you can do. Come back in six months."

[LyricalRico]

My neck is quite sore from playing hooker...

So many possibilities, but I'll let that change-up over the middle of the plate go by without swinging.

[Higga]

With the summer and warm weather coming to an end soon(that and getting darker earlier and earlier)I won't be playing soccer as much. Gunna be time to hit up the boxing ring again. Boxing = best cardio.

[dandridge 10]

I've been dealing with knee problems for 7 months now. Had it scoped in January, but still having problems when I run or try to play basketball. I am seeing a new orthopedic who is confident he can get me back playing b-ball/running without too much pain, but I'm starting to consider bicycling for low impact on my knees. Anyway, I am starting to do some research on a road bike or a hybrid bike, but don't know what I should get. Basically, I plan on riding on roads and bicycle paths only (no off road biking). For the most part, I probably will go for 15-20 mile rides (I borrowed a friends Trek Hybrid this weekend and road this distance), but might want to branch out eventually and do some longer distance rides and maybe someday do some touring in Europe on bike. I don't have any interest in competitions, and this would be only for exercise/enjoyment. Anyway, are there any riders here that can give me advice on what type of bike to get and how much money to spend on a middle of line bike. I had one person tell me that I should spend around $1500 for a good, but not top of the line road bike. I plan to stop by a local bike shop and test a few out, but would be interested in the thoughts of others that are not interested in selling me a bike?

[queridiculo]

Having been in the same boat, I opted for a bike in the commuter range, more specifically a Cannondale Bad Boy. The look, and name, might not be everybody's cup of tea but I'm having a blast riding the thing primarily because it sort of blends a MBR type seating position with the speed and agility of a road bike, while not having any of the heft of one of those mountain rigs.

There are a ton of bikes in that class, but going local and picking their brains and riding a few bikes is probably the best choice you can make.

$1500 is already on the top end of the spectrum for that class, but anywhere between that and $1000 should give you really nice bike to get around on.