Anyone else lift weights, work out or exercise?

[sporter]

I began working out almost 2 years ago. I took about a 6 month break at the beginning of this year but I am back to lifting every other day.

I am 6'3" 265-270lbs at the moment

The main part of my work out is dedicated to:

Dead lifts, max is 335 +/-

Squats, full range @ 275, can do up to 365 but range gets short

Bench press, 300 lbs no spot (did this today)

All done with live weights and bars.

 

[LPMan59]

i just joined la fitness with the wife and have been meeting with a trainer once a week. i have spent the better part of 15 years doing nothing and it shows. i am fat and weak but i have been the gym about 4-6 times per week lifting what weight i can and doing cardio on the bikes and elipitcals (sp?)

i told my wife i am a 90 lb weakling stuck in a 250lb body.

 

[mettle]

Run, pushups, pullups, situps, bike and have an elliptical in my garage. I like running the best though; the buzz, pushing oneself to keep going, feel like your're going to die; it's great! I don't, really never have, worked with live weights. I have in the past, but it never stuck.

I want great stamina and length of exertion before I want just mass moving bulk. That's just me though.

 

[antsi]

What are the goals you are trying to achieve in your program?

I saw an interesting definition of fitness that helps me think about an overall program. According to this guy, there are five elements of fitness:
1) strength
2) flexibility
3) balance-coordination
4) aerobic capacity - workload - endurance
5) body composition (ie, lean mass vs. fat mass)

Don't remember who came up with this, but I thought it was an interesting way to look at being all-around fit. You see lots of guys at the gym who are all in to one or two categories, but very far behind the curve in other areas. I most admire folks who have all 5 areas in good shape.

Sounds like you are doing pretty well in category 1. How are you on 2-5?

I like to cycle, and I run on a treadmill. Running would be my favorite exercise but it is too hard on my knees and ankles to do it every day. I am probably best on #4. For #5, I go up and down (right now I'm up). #2 is always a weak point for me. I have never been a serious weight lifter, but I do just enough strength training to keep at a reasonable level. I guess to rank my fitness categories in order best to worst, I would be: 4, 1, 5, 3, 2

 

[mettle]

Flexibility, pfft. Who needs it! I can still tie my shoes,

............. when I sit on the floor!

What are the goals you are trying to achieve in your program?

I saw an interesting definition of fitness that helps me think about an overall program. According to this guy, there are five elements of fitness:
1) strength
2) flexibility
3) balance-coordination
4) aerobic capacity - workload - endurance
5) body composition (ie, lean mass vs. fat mass)

Don't remember who came up with this, but I thought it was an interesting way to look at being all-around fit. You see lots of guys at the gym who are all in to one or two categories, but very far behind the curve in other areas. I most admire folks who have all 5 areas in good shape.

Sounds like you are doing pretty well in category 1. How are you on 2-5?

I like to cycle, and I run on a treadmill. Running would be my favorite exercise but it is too hard on my knees and ankles to do it every day. I am probably best on #4. For #5, I go up and down (right now I'm up). #2 is always a weak point for me. I have never been a serious weight lifter, but I do just enough strength training to keep at a reasonable level. I guess to rank my fitness categories in order best to worst, I would be: 4, 1, 5, 3, 2

 

[Arm America]

I hit the gym 3-4 times a week.
Do the elliptical 30-40 minutes each time before hitting the machines.
Don't get involved to much on the free weights.
Just have a desire to stay reasonably fit, active and limber.

 

[Dryden]

I lift 200lbs out of the chair occasionally. Sometimes I drag it upstairs at bedtime. Most of my workout consists of watching the neighborhood kid mow my lawn, then it's naptime.

 

[Bigum1969]

I've lost about 70 pounds, mostly through walking 2.5 miles about 4 days a week. My stressful job also helps keep the food moving through me quickly.

 

[Kingrat]

working out cant keep my mind active enough to hold my intrest, i did take martial arts about an hour a day 3 days a week for a year but i quit about a year and a half ago...thinking about going again

i wasnt any heavier/bigger but i felt better and stronger and i can tell ive been losing flexibility ever since

im at the other end of the spectrum from most guys who want to work out to lose weight, i want to add about 20-30lbs of muscle but its just nearly impossible from anything i have tried up until this point, ive always been a skinny toothpick..floating somewhere around 145-150lbs

 

[HICKMAN]

Was 284 a couple years ago, down 50 pounds via b-ball at lunch and some jogging. Have also done P90X and am doing the new Insanity workout INSANITY and it's whuppin my ass, but I've only been at it one week so far.

 

[Bigum1969]

Was 284 a couple years ago, down 50 pounds via b-ball at lunch and some jogging. Have also done P90X and am doing the new Insanity workout INSANITY and it's whuppin my ass, but I've only been at it one week so far.

Congrats on the weight loss. Speaking from experience, I know it can be a bear.

 

[Serial Crusher]

We have a half-assed gym on campus. But I'm not taking any summer session classes, so I haven't been there since April. I've lost 15 pounds since then. I can't wait for the fall semester to start. I'll be working out four or more days a week then.

 

[slacker]

Does lifting beers to my mouth while sitting in a lawn chair count?

I actually got a dog a week ago today, and he has been a great "personal trainer" for me so far. We walk just under 4 miles a night, which is 4 miles more than I walked before

 

[Dryden]

Does lifting beers to my mouth while sitting in a lawn chair count?


Actually, the lawn chair sitting cancels out the beer consumption. Standing against the lawnmower will help remove calories thru osmosis. Buy my video and learn more valuable lessons.

 

[223 Gunner]

I work-out 3 to 4 times a week, doing cardio, and free weights, and machines. I have been doing this for 7 years now. I have recently been reading about the benefit of an all alkaline diet, talk about tough, if you google it, you can read for yourself the benefits. If a person could stick to that and exercise, you would have a awesome level of fitness.

 

[Serial Crusher]

Here's a pretty interesting diet: My Life as a Caveman, Caveman Diet, Paleo Diet It is very sound from an evolutionary and anthropological standpoint. It is basically common knowledge in the anthropology field that the agricultural revolution brought chronic disease and recurring health problems to society. The idea that paleolithic man had a short life span is another case of creative accounting; as those who were not directly killed by accidents or conflict generally lived a long and healthy life.

I believe one of the reasons that diets like this haven't been popularized is that what you can eat is dependent on your genetic background, and that's uncomfortably close to racism for most publishers/media. Skeletal records tell some very interesting diet related stories. An example is lactose intolerance, because most Romans were lactose intolerant, they lacked a ready source of protein during puberty, and averaged a foot shorter than the northern barbarians, who could tolerate lactose. The diet also runs contrary to bunny hugging and socialism, and results in a higher carbon mudhole.

 

[Hoosier8]

I lifted weights in my twenties then stopped. Again in my forties then stopped. Last year I started again and was running, swimming, biking, and going to the gym 3 times a week. Then my right knee got irritated biking and I learned the hard way, what not to do while doing squats and pulled something top of the patella on my right knee. I had to lay off anything for way too long to let it heal and at this age, it takes longer. This happened just when I started seeing some significant body change.

I am back running, biking, and going to the gym and starting over on the weights with very light weights to build back the injured area.

For weights I think it is important to work on strength first since it should be the foundation for any bodybuilding. Strength and bodybuilding are not necessarily the same thing. I use the Strong Lifts method and it works so well for me that I have not gotten my usual injuries like I usually get with my rotator cuff. Now that I am doing squats right, one of the exercises I have always liked, I feel better about it all. You just better make sure you are using the right form. Form is more important than what you can lift.

Two good resources for information is stronglifts.com and crossfit.com, both have vids on how to do things right.

There is a simple exercise to see if you are in any kind of shape and one which you should test your kids with. If you cannot do one pullup, then you are out of shape. Any kid that is not overweight should be able to do one. A simple test.

 

[Serial Crusher]

I would say drop the running if you're biking too. Running is okay cardio, but not worth beating hell out of your knees over. If you feel like you absolutely have to run, you should look into doing sprint intervals instead. Distance running is going to be counterproductive to strength and mass gains.

 

[Hoosier8]

I lifted weights in my twenties then stopped. Again in my forties then stopped. Last year I started again and was running, swimming, biking, and going to the gym 3 times a week. Then my right knee got irritated biking and I learned the hard way, what not to do while doing squats and pulled something top of the patella on my right knee. I had to lay off anything for way too long to let it heal and at this age, it takes longer. This happened just when I started seeing some significant body change.

I am back running, biking, and going to the gym and starting over on the weights with very light weights to build back the injured area.

For weights I think it is important to work on strength first since it should be the foundation for any bodybuilding. Strength and bodybuilding are not necessarily the same thing. I use the Strong Lifts method and it works so well for me that I have not gotten my usual injuries like I usually get with my rotator cuff. Now that I am doing squats right, one of the exercises I have always liked, I feel better about it all. You just better make sure you are using the right form. Form is more important than what you can lift.

Two good resources for information is stronglifts.com and crossfit.com, both have vids on how to do things right.

There is a simple exercise to see if you are in any kind of shape and one which you should test your kids with. If you cannot do one pullup, then you are out of shape. Any kid that is not overweight should be able to do one. A simple test.

 

[antsi]

Here's a pretty interesting diet: My Life as a Caveman, Caveman Diet, Paleo Diet It is very sound from an evolutionary and anthropological standpoint. It is basically common knowledge in the anthropology field that the agricultural revolution brought chronic disease and recurring health problems to society. The idea that paleolithic man had a short life span is another case of creative accounting; as those who were not directly killed by accidents or conflict generally lived a long and healthy life.

I believe one of the reasons that diets like this haven't been popularized is that what you can eat is dependent on your genetic background, and that's uncomfortably close to racism for most publishers/media. Skeletal records tell some very interesting diet related stories. An example is lactose intolerance, because most Romans were lactose intolerant, they lacked a ready source of protein during puberty, and averaged a foot shorter than the northern barbarians, who could tolerate lactose. The diet also runs contrary to bunny hugging and socialism, and results in a higher carbon mudhole.

Interesting concept, and one that has some validity.

However, they are overlooking the most dramatic difference between early man and our current state of affairs - abundance.

The human metabolism is built to survive times of feast and famine - it's one of the reasons we are so effecient at storing fat.

Nowadays in developed countries at least, we no longer have famines. It's feast all the time. Our bodies that evolved (or were designed if you prefer) to be good at storing fat and avoiding unnecessary energy expenditure don't match our new circumstances.

The chronic disease problems we have now are as much an issue of how much we eat as what we eat.