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rydi
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Post by rydi »

ah well, at least u got to the arnold first. if it had been the other way around you might not have thought the same way.

u working out more? I've been slacking still. I want school to be on break.
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Post by angelicyokai »

Went yesterday and did day 1 and 3. Today did day 2 and an hour on the elliptical trainer. I figured out that 2 hours in the gym on my off days feels about right.
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Post by rydi »

not bad
as long as it isn't too long.
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Post by rydi »

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Post by rydi »

So, since I'm on here and updating various things, I figured that I would provide a bit of an update on my current physical fitness stuff, both as a recap for myself, and as a way of letting people know more about the process if they are interested in doing something like this themselves in the future.

This is long, but it is ordered for ease of reading. If you are just looking for advice, without actual experiences and examples to go with it, you can skip all the colored bits.
---

For years I've piddled around with working out. Usually I don't make it more than a few weeks to a few months, but I see modest results when I do. Between working out 1-2 times a week, and eating fairly healthy foods, I had managed to slow my weight gain to a crawl, but by the end of 2008, I was still sitting around 195lbs (not sure on exact numbers, I wasn't tracking it well at that point, in part b/c I really didn't want to know...)

Around then, I decided that I was going to stop fucking around, and just do something. I had educated myself fairly well on nutrition and exercise theory, and oddly enough my youth was spent in sports and with a few fitness trainers, so I was not unfamiliar with what I needed to do. I just wasn't prepared for the work, and was always disappointed by how hard doing so little always seemed to be (for example, I wanted to run, or to do heavy lifting, but could only run a few moments before running out of breath, and I had no upper body strength).

So, before christmas of '08, I started working out more heavily, cross-training (which means to work on a variety of different aerobic exercises, such as bike, elliptical, running, rowing, etc.) and doing more strenuous weight routines inspired by Arnold's Encyclopedia of Bodybuilding. I worked out very hard with Jason over the few weeks we had off, and realized that I could in fact do what I needed to, and after only a week, I saw improvements in muscle tone and size. I decided I was going to pursue this further. Progress is noted below...
Winter/Spring of '09:
I followed up on the workouts I had started with Jason, attempting to go to the UCO gym 3-4 times a week. My intensity reduced somewhat (in terms of how hard I was pushing myself anyway; my endurance was actually increasing), and over the course of the spring I had setbacks due to time limitations and mental fatigue from school. By the end of Spring, I was at the gym perhaps 1-2x/week.

Weight - At this point I was in the low 190lbs

Routine (Weights) - Three day split, based on Arnold's beginner workout, slightly reduced in intensity, and omitting a few exercises. Ramped up from 3 sets to 4 sets on most, and increased both endurance and weight. Repetitions each set were focused in the 8-10 range in hopes of attaining maximum growth, and goals were focused around gaining mass (both to increase fat burning, and to enhance appearance).

Routine (Cardio) - During this period, I slowly enhanced my endurance. My knees and hips hurt after running, so I tried to limit that to every other day. I focused on lower impact cardio, like elliptical and bike, with every other day stints on the stairstep and/or rowwing machine. All activities were maintained at a fairly high heart rate, generally between 150-180.

Diet - I maintained mostly the same diet, but tried to trim it down to better foods. I increased water intake and protein in my diet.

In retrospect - The challenges of this phase were primarily psychological. Dealing with the effort/pain, forcing myself to go make room in my schedule NO MATTER WHAT, and dealing with the disappointment that I felt at slow progress and not meeting my own expectations. Physically, I'm not sure how I felt about this period. I realize that going at it hard could have caused burnout, but for me it made me more determined, and set me into a pattern of challenging myself that imo was beneficial. I also think that the hard work (along with common sense to not push too far and hurt myself) got me in good enough shape, fast enough, that I could move to the higher levels later.
Summer '09:
After getting out of class, and piddling for close to a month, I decided to get back to my former intensity levels. I set several goals for the summer, though working out was really the only one I fully lived up to unfortunately (and it took a lot out of me too). I'm glad it was the one I chose to work on though, both for the physical aspects, and the psychological; it gave me a strong sense of accomplishment, helped me to realize that I could overcome difficulty, let me see that progress could be made, and helped me to create a more regimented lifestyle for myself (something that has always been a problem for me). I worked my ass off, and was at the gym 4-5 times a week, in addition to occasionally going on walks and playing on the weekends with people at the park.

Weight - I started this period in the high 180's, around 188 i think.

Routine (Weights) - I upped the weights and began really focusing on trying to build up mass. I switched out most of the focused weightlifting exercises (things that work only one muscle at a time, such as the single arm bicep curls) for more complex exercises (those that work multiple groups at a time, such as the deadlift, bench press, pullup, leg press, etc.) in hopes of getting more work and development in before my body/mind gave out on a given workout. I tried to limit weights to 30-60 minutes, with an average of about 40mins. As time progressed, I focused more on my upper body, for several reasons: 1) it had always been an area of weakness, 2) it contributes greatly to traditional views of male attractiveness, 3) my lower body has always been strong and I was not interested in increased growth in my legs (more would just make me look unbalanced and make my thighs rub together more). I did work on staying toned in the legs however.

Routine (Cardio) - I continued cardio, but slowly upped the intensity. I hardly ever stopped before 40 minutes, and sometimes went as long as 60. I continued with mostly cross-training, reserving 20-30 minutes for the easier machines (elliptical, bike), 10-20 for track (walk/jog/sprint), and 10 minutes for a harder machine like rowing or step machine.

Diet/Supplements - I added yet more protein, and in a search for cheap sources of meat, I stumbled on McDonald's around the end of the summer or early fall... but it didn't become a regular part of my diet until fall. I tried various supplements, and experimented again with creatine (doesn't work for me, might for other people though). Experimented with various dietary regimens (meal spacing, home preparation of food, etc.) and realized that I have difficulty maintaining such patterns, due to the way my life is lived. Any great modifications in this area, beyond changing quality and amount of food eaten, require a large lifestyle change, or money enough to get someone else to take care of things for me.

In Retrospect - As I said at the beginning, this was an important period for me. It gave me lasting knowledge that change was possible, and that I could accomplish it, even if it wasn't as easy for me as for other people. By the end of summer, I was in the low 180's, but had increased in muscle enough that I had probably lost another 5-10 lbs of fat at least. I could do off-set pull-ups at around 80lbs (half of what I started at during Christmas, 160lbs), and had multiplied my upper body strength across the board by about 0.5x. I think that this was a good approach, but in looking back, it was definitely a long term project, and one that was designed more for a low level athlete than someone just wanting to lose weight. This isn't bad, but I think it prevented me from seeing immediate gains sometimes, in favor of increased cardio capacity and muscle growth. I also would not have been able to do it while in school, at least at that time (I think I probably could now, having already done it). Finally, I think that I really would have benefited from a split-day routine, with cardio in the morning/afternoon, and weights in the evening, but diet, motivation, and organization of time got in the way of that.
Fall '09
During this period, I continued with my summer routine through October, but tapered off to 2-3 gym visits a week as the semester became more active. Learning to balance the higher intensity gym work, as well as school, was valuable, and is a transferable skill. By this point working out was also beginning to become fulfilling emotionally; I didn't quite love it, but I did take something from it, have higher energy, and feel a bit of stress relief after hard workouts. Overall, this was just maintaining the activity from the Summer and slowly tapering off.

Weight - Still low 180's, approaching 180.

Routine (Weights) - This period was primarily, as stated above, a lower intensity version of summer. I made some gains on my goals (slightly lower weight, increased strength, etc.), but mainly just maintained what I had developed. I moved towards a lower intensity workout, with fewer exercises in it, and alternating between arms/shoulders/chest one day, and core/legs on off days (though legs were minimal). During this period I started replacing heavy leg exercises with more toning, by using the stair stepper for longer and higher intensity periods.

Routine (Cardio) - Nothing new here, and actually something of a backslide for me. Intensity went way down as the months progressed, as the cardio took too long, and I didn't really enjoy it at the time.

Diet/Supplements - In mid-Fall, I began taking calcium again, and added fish oil/omega 3 fatty acid supplements. I am not positive, as the 'experiment' wasn't controlled, but I feel that the Omega 3 really did help my cardio and mood (in experiments, omega 3 supplementation has been shown to help both). The calcium was just to further support bone density and hopefully prevent injury. I also went on the McDonalds diet at this time, for which some explanation is in order.

The maxim for my profession, and to some extent my life, is "know thyself." And I know for a fact that: 1)I don't do well prepping my own food, 2)I don't do well at managing portion size, 3)I have to get out of my house and spend money, 4)without a regular outlet for my spending/outing craving, I do stupid things. I began going to McDonalds b/c it gave me a regular source of protein. But, the ease of access (right by my house), the improved menu, and the fact that it was soooo much less than other alternative sources of food, kept me coming back. After a while, I noticed actual weight loss on this diet, and realized that the regular, dependable diet and portion size was actually helping me to control my calorie consumption. I also found the time spent, sitting and reading at a table over a cup of coffee, contributed to my mental well-being. Thus, my McDonald's diet was began. I eat, with very little variance, a plain (or with pickle) McDouble (no cheese), a yogurt parfait, and a small coffee refilled 1-2 times with 2 cream and 4 sugar, which comes out to around 600 calories (variance is there, depending on grease, refills on coffee, etc.) If it's breakfast, I eat two burritos (no cheese again, its 50 cal a slice for shitty fake cheese flavor), and/or a parfait, and a coffee, for a slightly higher value of around 750. Occasionally this is altered, but very seldom.

In Retrospect - This period was a bit of a disappointment, I feel like it was kind of a waste of time, in that I backslid a bit. It also was a bit frustrating, because it showed me that I really did have to do double the work that normal people did to lose weight; when I stopped killing myself, I stopped making gains. That said, it was good to take a bit of a break, and while merely maintaining on my workouts, I did make some diet/lifestyle discoveries that were helpful. Also, this period helped me to realize that I could maintain my accomplishments, and that I didn't have to maintain ridiculous levels of intensity to do so.
Winter/Spring '10:
From early November to the present, I've taken a somewhat different approach to my working out, and made a few discoveries... near the end of the year, frequency was reduced further, due to the cold. I found that preparation and prior commitment to working out was crucial, as the process of layer clothes and changing and all that was just very off-putting to me. I was force to take an extended break over christmas, but did other things to at least get a bit of exercise in. Currently I have resumed a 3-4/week frequency on working out, and have been ramping up intensity once more.

Weight - Before christmas I actually got down to 177, but gained some over the break. I am now back at 179, and dropping.

Routine (Weights) - I have further truncated my workout. I know primarily do an arms/chest/shoulder day, and a core day. Core is fairly light/brief, just sit-ups, side-bends, back raises, and sometimes leg raises or some other filler for flavor/entertainment/variety. Arms get a more difficult, but still brief, set of complex exercises, avoiding almost all single-muscle exercises: pull-ups (front and back grip), heavy upright rows, barbell curls, and form of dips, with occasional push-ups thrown in. I want to add in a bit more, and perhaps toss in some leg presses for my core days, but am fairly happy with this for now, aside from wanting to increase intensity. Legs are on back-burner. I keep track of their tone and shape, but at this point I really haven't lost much, if any, of either, and my cardio doubles as leg exercise.

Routine (Cardio) - In November, I was reminded of the fact that brisk walking actually can be more helpful for fat burning than more intense cardio, so I switched to taking long walks. I find this relaxing. It lets my mind wonder, reduces anticipatory stress (less "gawd, I don't wanna run tonight" pushing me to avoid the gym), lets me talk on the phone to people (and stay in touch more), and lets me enjoy music a bit more. It also, strangely, makes me more interested in running, and between periods of walking, I jog/sprint to increase my endurance and speed, just for the hell of it. I still do rowing and step a bit, just for strength and variety, but other machines have been eliminated for the time being. I set up better playlists for music, and that also helped my intensity. My current plan is just to keep going with this for a while, and to increase intensity. I am walking/jogging/whatever for about 45-60+ minutes every visit. Oh, and on the downside, I am getting more shin splints/leg aches (minor, but still irritating), so I think I need to up some trace nutrients... got bananas, will see how that helps.

Diet - Continuation of the once/day McDonalds, and the Omega 3 and Calcium supplements. Christmas was a bit bad on the portion size, though I still attempted to avoid the biggest christmas offenders, like large helpings of pie/cookies/etc. I really am finding that routine is key, at least for me, as going out once a day, followed by reasonably portioned meals every 4 hours or so, really helps me maintain a set calorie range. If I veer off routine, my body thinks I need more food, and I overeat. Or, sometimes, I actually under-eat by forgetting a meal, which is actually just as bad.

In Retrospect - still in the middle of this phase, but overall I'm happy with where I'm at. It is really a process, and a lifestyle, and part of that is just experimenting and seeing what works.
So, what have I learned from all this?
1)State of mind, and DEDICATION are the most important things. It has to be not just something you'll do if you feel like it, but something that is IMPORTANT and an assumed part of your day. Like eating, or shitting. And when you go, you can't view it as a drag, or a waste. You have to find something in it that engages you, challenges and goals, a purpose and something that entertains you. Music helps that, as does using it as a time to think (at least on cardio, as weights require more focus in my experience), or to talk to people. Be patient, and remember that it is a long term, permanent lifestyle change, not something you do until you're "pretty" and then drop.

2)Preparation, having a plan and following it, are probably the second most important thing. Do a little research, figure out what you want to do, modify your plans based on your experiences, and go in with at least a bit of a plan. Also, planning helps you to keep your diet in check, eat at the right times so that you aren't full or hungry when working out (both bad), and be sure not to get too much or too little calories over the day.

3)Diet is important. Don't starve yourself, but do try to eat healthier foods (research helps here), and control your portion sizes. Eat every 4 hours if you can, eat your big meals at breakfast (which should be no more than 1-2 hours after you get up), try not to eat too much before bed (cut off 3-4 hours or so before you sleep).

4)Don't be a bitch. This means that you have to be willing to endure, and put yourself in the mindset that a bit of discomfort is acceptable, and a challenge to triumph over rather than something miserable weighing you down. When you work out, don't reach for the minimum, go a bit farther. Work hard, and if you can, work harder. When it comes to changing your life, find reasons to do work and make positive changes, NOT reasons to avoid them. Don't say "but I like x food" or "but I don't wanna eat when I wake up"; instead find reasons to be healthier. Know yourself, and don't push yourself past what you can endure, but don't be a whiny bitch either (trust me, I've tried that route, and revert to that mindset even now sometimes, and it doesn't work).

5)Yet another mindset related tip, make your own health and achievements a hobby. Discuss them with people, have fun with it, enjoy your achievements, track them, study exercise and diet, treat it like any other hobby about which you are enthusiastic.

6)Routine is your god. By your adherence to it, you will succeed or fail.

7)Focus on positives.

8)Got at YOUR OWN PACE and measure yourself only against yourself. You have unique genetics and life experiences that have shaped your body; judging yourself against others is unfair to everyone, and a quick way to be dissappointed. And when the athletes walk by you, don't feel bad about yourself... they didn't always look awesome and bench 300lbs. Many of them started just where you are today.

9)Enjoy other people, but don't make them a part of your routine. You are the only constant. Even if someone works out with you every single time, appreciate it but don't expect it. The moment you depend on someone else for your momentum is the moment you start slowing down (and if you are with someone else, you likely will start slowing them down as well).

10)Learn and grow. You won't go in knowing everything, or even much. But do it anyway, and with an open, unabashed mindset. Study, try your best, then keep what works and toss out what doesn't. The commonality among these tips is that its all state of mind. Technique and particulars can be found in books, conversation with those that have experience, or even trial and error. But if you've got the mind for it, you can do it.

Secret tip 11)When you fail, pick yourself up and go at it again. You will fail, you won't be perfect, and you will let yourself down. But the only real failure is to use that as an excuse to stop trying.
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Post by angelicyokai »

Way to go dude. I agree with nearly everything here, and commend your effort. I also commend you for putting down your weight in a public place, not only will it encourage others, but you have put in stone (web > stone tablet) your starting point and current weight path, that takes guts.

I don't agree with the McDonald's eating concept, but I like to cook and your way might be great for those who don't.
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Post by rydi »

Thanks.

I do understand that it isn't the best eating pattern, but it is regular (I know what I'm eating and when), it is inexpensive (around $3), and it fulfills a psychological need (getting out of my house, and providing me some quiet time). The biggest problem with it imo is really just the high sugar/salt/preservative contents of the food, and I know for a fact that I eat too much salt... I don't put it on food for the most part, but the stuff I eat comes loaded with it.

As far as putting my weight down... I've never had much to hide. If I'm ashamed of something, airing it in public is sometimes a form of penance for me. Though I have to be careful about that, b/c sometimes it makes OTHER people feel weird, or dislike me. And of course it makes me forget sometimes that other people don't like talking about their own shame in a public forum.

Gideon sent me a thing from CrossFit, which was interesting. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CrossFit

I'm already implementing some of their techniques without knowing I was (a lot of it is just good science), so I may try and work in more into my routine.
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Post by rydi »

So, been doing heavier weights and trying to build mass. Up to 185 again, but I've gotten a lot stronger and am showing much more definition, so I assume that it is more muscle than fat... another 3-4 weeks of this, and I'll switch back over to a cutting diet/workout routine.
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Post by rydi »

Josh asked me about some weightlifting stuff, and food, so here are some articles. I can't attest to their accuracy, but in looking over them they seemed to cover the basics adequately. I will post more lifting links to this thread as I see them. Most of this is actually food, and is a bit light on the actual exercises.

Good Products:
http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/blend ... ottle.html
http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/opt/cas.html
http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/dym/elitegourmet.html
http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/dym/creatine.html

Weights:
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/south30.htm
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/im2.htm

Bulking
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/sclark64.htm
(for skinny people)
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/xrep11.htm

Food (especially for hardgainers):
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/vinced10.htm
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/hardgainer5.htm
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/topicoftheweek129.htm
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/hugo47.htm

Safety:
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/betteru26.htm
(#2, #3, & #9 I disagree with for various reasons, and a few others have caveats, but overall good)
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/hardgainer2.htm

Training articles of varied worth for ectomorphs/skinny:
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bbinfo. ... Ectomorphs
http://webcast.bodybuilding.com/fitshow ... morphs.pdf
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Post by Liquidprism »

Danke
All things in moderation...Except syrup.

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Post by rydi »

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Post by rydi »

Conditioning update: Working a stressful job for long hours with little movement and avoiding the gym due to mental/physical fatigue results in weight gain and muscle loss.

I'd like to get going again, starting in May, and do so with other people. Gold's is a solid option for this (ignore the time stamps, I'm too lazy to remove the skype detritus from my copy paste):

[8:46:30 PM] William James: for those wanting to work out regularly in a group:
Gold's memberships apply to all locations
Express locations usually are open until 11, larger locations are 24 hours
the larger location include pool, jacuzi, sauna
they have free weights, cardio, machines. no bumper plates for cleans, but oh well
signing up for a group membership of 5 peeps will run about $17/month but requires combined billing. otherwise its $34/month i think...
there are locations in north edmond, memorial, nw expressway and rockwell, south okc, and norman
they are not currently charging for their "one time sign up fee" that most gyms charge
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Post by Liquidprism »

I will do this. Optimum days for me I think would be Mon/Wed/Fri, but could probably swing Tue/Thur/Sun or something. It just depends on what other people want. I can totally work out on Fri days, and still go do stuff., but whatever. I really just need someone to go with me, after I get there I can pretty much figure it out myself.
All things in moderation...Except syrup.

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Some helpful vids

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Post by rydi »

So, update to workout diary:

Gained probably 15lbs of fat while losing muscle when I was working as a testing coordinator from nov 2011 to june 2012.

Spent that summer and fall, after leaving the job, at gold's. Did minimal cardio and heavy lifting routines as per the basic Starting Strength plan. Was good, lost some weight (went back down to 200 from 207ish) put on muscle, and reached intermediate levels on all of my lifts except bench.

Hernia surgery was a setback, and I spent spring 2013 recovering and building back up to former levels. After reaching strength levels approaching my pre-surgery max's, I felt I was hitting a plateau on my muscle dev and weight loss both. Searched a bit, and settled on a 4 day split (back/shoulder/chest, legs, bi/tri, repeat of one of the others) to replace my old workout plan. Using it through the summer, already have seen increase in muscle size in arms/back/chest, and have seen reduction in fat around chest and midsection. We'll see how it goes...

I intend to be a bit more active in changing my workouts every 2-3 months from now on, as I got a bit complacent and it showed.

activity goals:
Maintain weight regimen and increase workload
Increase cardio
Rigorously control diet (>150g protein, less than 1900cal)
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