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Fitness |OT| Pumpin' Iron and Spittin' Blood.

rykomatsu

Member
Waiting on the last part of my wall mount rack to arrive - for some reason Rogue shipped it almost a week later than the rest of the rack.

Found 3/4" rubber mats at the feed store today. All tractor supply company. stores were completely out of stock, people weren't kidding rubber mats were selling out online...$42 per 4x6 mat, cheaper than tractor supply...flippers trying to sell them for $70-120/mat...

Soon...
 
Broke a 5 day fast last night with a fatty, proteiny meal. My exercises today have all been amped up, soreness gone, body finally given some fuel. Pushing quite a bit harder compared to the last 5 days, which I guess should go without saying, and it felt great. The shit test, as always, will be if I wake up extra sore tomorrow. My general mindset when it comes to pushing harder, holding back a bit, or focusing on different types of exercises is to simply adjust my routine based on what bodyparts show signs of soreness, inflexibility, etc. Then I rotate my choice exercises or de-emphasize certain daily exercises based on that. I suppose this lets me keep exercising every day instead of taking breaks.



VlaudTheImpaler VlaudTheImpaler next week I should be getting one of those Aqua bags in the mail. My wife was the one who actually pushed for it. I'll post about it from the perspective of an amateur's first punching bag, once I've had a chance to use it a bit.

EDIT: "routing" lol trashbrain.
 
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God Enel

Member
Broke a 5 day fast last night with a fatty, proteiny meal. My exercises today have all been amped up, soreness gone, body finally given some fuel. Pushing quite a bit harder compared to the last 5 days, which I guess should go without saying, and it felt great.

same here. just did a 4 day fast though (Broke it on Thursday).
As I had shit to do today I only did a smaller session with push ups, handstand practice and straight arm strength.

Tomorrow I’m gonna do a full body routine to shake things up a little. Cannot wait brothers. From kettlebell-work to farmers carry to full body exercises like barbell squats to overhead press. L-Sit Pull-Ups and so on. I’m excited 😁
 

Drake

Member
same here. just did a 4 day fast though (Broke it on Thursday).
As I had shit to do today I only did a smaller session with push ups, handstand practice and straight arm strength.

Tomorrow I’m gonna do a full body routine to shake things up a little. Cannot wait brothers. From kettlebell-work to farmers carry to full body exercises like barbell squats to overhead press. L-Sit Pull-Ups and so on. I’m excited 😁

Do you have trouble sleeping? I find around 50-60 hours I'm so hungry I can't sleep. I wonder if my problem is electrolytes. I never take them when I fast. I wonder if I did if it would make it easier.
 

God Enel

Member
Do you have trouble sleeping? I find around 50-60 hours I'm so hungry I can't sleep. I wonder if my problem is electrolytes. I never take them when I fast. I wonder if I did if it would make it easier.

The last meal I ate was Sunday evening around 6pm. Monday was a breeze, I wasn’t hungry at all. Tuesday I was a little bit hungry before I went to the gym but honesty not worth mentioning. wednesday evening was harder I have to admit. Especially because I opened Pinterest and it’s basically showing me fitness and food. The fucking app showed me cookies, cakes, Thai food, currys, Pasta, Steak and shit. Absolutely dumb idea to open it when I’m not eating lol. So yes I was hungry but I fell asleep eventually and it was all good.
And then on Thursday I ate at around 8pm in the evening after the gym.

So to summarize yes I have been hungry at times but it’s not so bad that I cannot sleep. I drink a lot of water during fasting and It works for me. Plus it’s important to be busy.. be it with work, working out, doing whatever. When you sit on your ass and do nothing it’s way harder imho - I think the same thing happens when you go to bed.

But I’m kinda used to it. Back when I was in university I only ate one meal when I came home. That was often times around 6 and then I did my workout - back then it was also running for a while - then I had my first meal of the day at around 8. That wasn’t always the case but quite often.

tomorrow is a crossfit workout for me brothers:
YJoGGw7.jpg


I don’t know shit about crossfit. It’s gonna kill me. My time will be shit but whatever. Just for fun with friends 😄

edit: we chose this one because of the name. There’s another one which we’re going to do at some point but it’s way worse than the one I posted.
 
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God Enel

Member
So I did the 7 rounds of Painstorm and I’m fucking done yo.
Shit was hard as fuck. Did it with 10kg dumbbells and a 12kg kettlebell (the swings).

after the first round I thought what the fuck is this shit. During my third my mind state: yeah I’m gonna quit.. then when I finished it I was like what kind of pussy are you to not even make it halfway through.. so I did the fourth round and was like fuck I’m gonna do the fifth round as well. After the fifth My mind changed and I just said, fuck it finish what you started. Two rounds more or less where’s the difference. It took me 1:24h to complete it.
The man makers fucking killed me. I absolutely underestimated how hard they are.
During the first three rounds my shoulders have been dying, 4-7 my legs..

here a picture of my time for each round:

itve1kc.png

With each round I’m slower and slower. Wanted to push through the last one way better.. but form > time so I said fuck it. I’m gonna do them as clean as I can even if it fucks my time. Tbh I was happy that I pushed through 😄

it was fun though. Maybe I’m gonna repeat it 😄
 
36 cards.

xz592lK.jpg


Not about to show a vid of me having kittens tearing it just yet :messenger_winking_tongue: . Gonna wait till I can get a whole deck and have it down pretty well. I was able to nearly quarter one of the halves. If I can't quarter the halves, I just reduce the cards till I can. Then do the same for anything left. Progress.

 
Hi, I’m new to the home gym scene and I’m trying to figure out weights. I’d appreciate any insight.

I’m looking to get Olympic plates, mainly for bench, squats, shoulder press, rows, and deadlifts. I also bought Olympic dumbbell handles. I have a rack coming and I have rubber flooring. Is it even worth getting bumper plates as deadlifts are the only exercise that I plan to do that will make regular contact with the ground? Also, will it be awkward to use regular plates for the dumbbell exercises? I am considering cast iron, urethane, and bumper plates. Most dumbbell exercises will be 65 lbs max.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
 

Cutty Flam

Banned
Hi, I’m new to the home gym scene and I’m trying to figure out weights. I’d appreciate any insight.

I’m looking to get Olympic plates, mainly for bench, squats, shoulder press, rows, and deadlifts. I also bought Olympic dumbbell handles. I have a rack coming and I have rubber flooring. Is it even worth getting bumper plates as deadlifts are the only exercise that I plan to do that will make regular contact with the ground? Also, will it be awkward to use regular plates for the dumbbell exercises? I am considering cast iron, urethane, and bumper plates. Most dumbbell exercises will be 65 lbs max.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
You’re probably good to go. No need to use bumper plates unless you plan to drop the bar often, are doing a ton of olympic lifts or training for competitions. If you’re just aiming to do the main compound movements and focus on deadlifts there’s really mot much of an advantage imo unless you have an issue with the sound of the weights after each rep

I have the olympic dumbbell bars as well but I almost never use them. I use the powerblock dumbbells I have instead, they have thicker grip so it trains the forearms a bit more plus I simply love the feel of them. But I liked the olympic db whenever I was performing heavy db rows, feels perfect for that. It doesn’t feel awkward at all with any of the lifts imo, but the handles aren’t as thick as my other dumbells plus it gets tedious adjusting the plates every time you want to go up in weight or pyramid set things like that. I’d rather just use the power block and not have to deal with four clamps every time I want to increase/decrease weight. Personal preferences; I like to relax as much as possible during rest periods and harness my thoughts, find motivation, focus on the breath instead of adjust weights constantly. I don’t lift heavy at all these days so it suits me, the pre-set dumbbells

I think in the end, buying a set that goes up to 65-70 lbs if they go that high, will save you time and money in the long run. It’s better than constantly adjusting your db bar with plates and clamps and it’s cheaper than buying sets of dumbbells

I use these mostly for any db work



I’m also don’t take much pride in my own personal home gym btw, I have a ton of stuff I’ve accumulated over the years as I started getting more and more into training, but to me they were always tools. I bought extremely old plates at a yard sale long ago not even sure what type of steel or whatever material it’s comprised of. I take a lot more pride in the items I bought or made to speed up recovery tbh
 
Thanks, I’ve decided to go with cast iron plates as I won’t be dropping or abusing them. Eventually, I plan on getting a dumbbell set, but I think that I’ll stick with the Olympic ones as I will mostly be using them for seared curls, overhead tricep extensions, and some presses. I can always slightly rotate my hands for presses if the dumbbells are too long. I don’t mind adjusting the weights as I had a routine that didn’t require a lot of weight changes.

The nice thing is that I was able to buy a used Precor functional trainer for a good price, so most of my rotator cuff and fly work will be done on that.
 
Finally. After all this time. All this training. I don't feel pain when I pull. I felt so alive today. I don't know what it was man, but I unleashed the beast. Every freaking time I gripped up with Mr. Stapleton I just had this huge surge of adrenaline. It wouldn't stop. I had to walk it off every time we switched out. No more fear for the pain. Only frustration in not being strong enough, which for me, brings me joy and determination. I freaking love the struggle.

Today, we wrestled on and off for two hours. Then for most of the last hour we gripped up at the table and really focused on back pressure, which hits the lower bicep hard which is also my weak spot.

So you bring your arm up like you're hammer curling, as far as it can go with your elbow in towards your belly. Lock it there, tight. Then place it on the pad and grip up. Mr. Stapleton would apply pressure and I would try to match or exceed the pressure without separating. You're pulling/leaning back and therefore your hand also wants to rise up, your elbow is the pivot point or fulcrum. He's such a freaking wall. Couldn't move him. But he said he felt me, which is major progress.

Did that for a while, took a break and did some curls (bicep and overhead triceps) with a special device Mr. Stapleton made... I'll most likely be making one and doing a tutorial on it at some point. It's freaking awesome.

I lasted all 3 hours and still felt like I could go all day long. My buddy was hurting after a couple pulls with me. He beat me a few times and so did I him. But the difference was definitely endurance. He was just shot at the table after that and I pulled with Mr. Stapleton the rest of the time. My buddy is definitely more muscle bound than I am and I am more tendon for sure. He's working on tendons now and I muscle. Which is why I lasted longer, and most likely why I no longer have pain. I just get weak after a certain amount of time. But after resting for a couple minutes I can give it nearly 100% again. I freaking love it.

We have an open practice next weekend at our teams sponsor, HealthElite. Gonna be some really big guys coming. This guy, Scott, the one on the left, being one of them. (Who might be joining our team btw. At least that's what the rumor is...)

maxresdefault.jpg


My buddy said, "Now man, don't get discouraged next weekend. These guys are insanely strong." Mr. Stapleton said, "Yeah, Scott is going to be the strongest guy there for sure. I should be right behind him and Alex, we'll see." (Mr. Stapleton is just getting back into the game after a seven year break. No way would he have lost back then though. And yes, he's wrestled him in the past, Scotts dad Bill actually trained Mr. Stapleton in the very beginning.)

I just looked at my buddy and said, "Bro, I don't care how big they are. Every time, I intend to go at it like a wolverine. I'm gonna give it everything I've got. But I don't care if I lose. There's a lot to learn losing and it's only going to give me more drive to climb that mountain."

Never thought I'd be on this path that I'm on. They say God laughs when we make plans and man he must have been snickering when he gave me this opportunity. Thank God He did. For as long as I can, I plan to stay on it and to give it my all.

Oh, and IF it ever happens, where I get to walk out on stage and they play music... I think I may have found my theme music.


Nothing else seems to get me so pumped. I know, I know, don't get ahead of yourself... But I can still dream.
 
Is it the same technique for ripping phone books apart?
Ok, so I waited to reply because I wanted to ask Mr. Stapleton. He said that it's a bit different for sure. And a lot of it is wrist rotational strength along with a good pinch grip. But he also said that it's much, much easier for him to do than to tear a deck of cards. Which makes me wonder if I could do it already... Gonna have to go find me a phone book I think... Somewhere. They seem to be a bit rare these days.

BTW. The grip that I show in the pic of me tearing the cards is the exact same grip I use to tear them. If you want, I can take more pics and explain it in detail for you.
 

notseqi

Member
I am really digging my shoulder and chest exercises again, after regular warmup (4set high rep dirty OHP) and DL or squats I tend to hit my chest from every possible angle, then move to shoulder and back.
Earning weird looks when people see me unloading barbells and machines, then doing my real slow/high rep exercises while most others rush through them as if they had to be somewhere other than the gym.

Is it even worth getting bumper plates as deadlifts are the only exercise that I plan to do that will make regular contact with the ground?
There is some harsher setting-down of the barbell involved in Deadlifts, not including the few times you have to be quick because your grip is slipping or just plain exhaustion.
I agree that you won't need bumper plates, especially if you're lifting on rubber but I'd still put a thin layer of cushioning down for DLs, i.e. half a yoga mat on each side or anti-slip mats.
 

hard_boiled

Neophyte
I've added diamond pushups to my arms routine.


They hit the triceps, chest, & a little bit of shoulders. They are excellent for functional strength, build the shredded horseshoe tricep look, & provide a killer pump. Add in holds for 5 seconds at the top & they make a great final exercise for burning out the triceps.
 
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Aquabag (21", 190lb) arrived! My friend helped me hang it up in the garage.. I bought 7oz gloves because that's what he recommended, though he also got me a pair of minimal "Taekwondo" gloves with very thin knuckle padding. Filled to the brim, it's a pretty stiff bag. It's the only punching bag I've owned, so I can't really compare or review after just one week but... it accepts punches and kicks 🤷‍♀️ I will get the small 15 lb slip bag next month and hang it like a tetherball.

Isometrics and flexibility exercises are showing their value now that I am sparring a few times each week. Learning the kicks and lunges is much easier when I'm not tripping over myself or losing balance. Being able to learn a move slowly and deliberately is much easier when the muscle chain already has the stability to hold the arm or leg out or to twist the body in such-and-such way. Kicking practice on the bag is much easier when I've already been doing balance exercises on one foot / on the ball of one foot for months, etc etc. I think the Judo drills are my favorite (so far) because it's easy to add an object to the throwing shoulder to simulate a partner and turn it into a weighted exercise. "Ken ken uchi mata" practice and "O goshi" deep squat drills are two favs.




OH MY GOD PLEASE
I feel enormous happiness for the Michigan gym wizards who will be able to rejoin the gym life. 🏋️‍♂️🧙‍♂️
 

jufonuk

not tag worthy
Found a great resistance band workout vid on YouTube for upper body.


think will do that twice a week and some ab work

In between do HIIT stuff 3 times a week
Walk a lot and eat less.
Found a good channel from a guy in the U.K. called Joe Wicks.

I’m at beginner level but everyone gotta start somewhere

plus when kids are back in school properly. Cycling swimming cardio boxing also

I want to take it bit by bit. I’m still a fat git but this will help. I’ll post results when I can.
Also posting it here to make it official innit.

edit: also thanks to VlaudTheImpaler VlaudTheImpaler for making me Change my mind and see that resistance bands can seriously work.
 
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jufonuk

not tag worthy
Excellent resources jufonuk jufonuk , keep sharing what you're using and reporting back on how well it worked for you. This thread is a sort of living document for each participant's progress and setbacks.
Thanks. Will do. Before lock down I was getting Into weight loss. Lock down I was helping home school etc so weight loss that fell by the wayside. Now I feel more motivated to workout. So been trying different things.
 
There is some harsher setting-down of the barbell involved in Deadlifts, not including the few times you have to be quick because your grip is slipping or just plain exhaustion.
I agree that you won't need bumper plates, especially if you're lifting on rubber but I'd still put a thin layer of cushioning down for DLs, i.e. half a yoga mat on each side or anti-slip mats.

Thanks, I am looking to build my own platform based on what I’ve seen on YouTube. Here’s the video.

 

notseqi

Member
Thanks, I am looking to build my own platform based on what I’ve seen on YouTube. Here’s the video.


Now that I have checked the video I am reminded that your feet should be on a more stable platform than rubber, not a bad idea. Wasn't able to DL without shoes due to Covid which I normally did - would probably feel quite unsafe on rubber.
The 4 rubber mats look like overkill but you prolly gotta stack some if you want to reach the platforms height.

Send pics of your DIY progress :^)
 

rykomatsu

Member
Since COVID shutdowns in March, it took me 5-6mo to get back to where I was back in Feb. Happy to say that I PR'd on backsquat today by 10lb from Feb. Felt really really good, even though I was wrecked from working out last night. Been feeling pretty good starting to get out of the rut over the last few weeks.
 

God Enel

Member
Ok, so I waited to reply because I wanted to ask Mr. Stapleton. He said that it's a bit different for sure. And a lot of it is wrist rotational strength along with a good pinch grip. But he also said that it's much, much easier for him to do than to tear a deck of cards. Which makes me wonder if I could do it already... Gonna have to go find me a phone book I think... Somewhere. They seem to be a bit rare these days.

BTW. The grip that I show in the pic of me tearing the cards is the exact same grip I use to tear them. If you want, I can take more pics and explain it in detail for you.

of course. It’s always interesting maybe I’m gonna try it myself just to see how many I can rip without training. It’s gonna be way way less than you. What was your starting number or cards?
 
of course. It’s always interesting maybe I’m gonna try it myself just to see how many I can rip without training. It’s gonna be way way less than you. What was your starting number or cards?
So, the first stack that I ever tore through was 18, but that was after arm wrestling practice and I wasn't trying to find my max, just trying to beat my friends max of 16. Then I tried 22 after a couple days. It was pretty easy for me. So I went all the way up to 30 and that seemed like a good starting place for me. What I'd call my max at the time. Now I'm adding 2 cards every week and doing wrist strengthening routines in-between. General arm wrestling stuff.

I'll see what I can do when I get time to put together a little tutorial or something with pics and such.
 
I had this suggestion come up on my feed



I decided to do this after my HIIT(which I’ve completed both after typing this)

omg I feel like a new human.
Wow. I will do this every time get some flexibility.
I’m 42 and I don’t want to ache lol

If you are willing, try adding in resting squat mobility practice as well as hanging from the rings / pullup bar. These helped me tremendously after I lost a lot of weight but hadn't really done any serious fitness training (and I wanted to safely get back into it).

The resting squats add a huge amount of hip flexibility and strength, as well as ankle strength. Start with the basic resting squat, 30 seconds to a minute at a time, if it is too hard at first.



A dead hang shouldn't be hard to figure out: the only tension should be in your hands holding on. Arms, shoulders, scapula, back, and hips should all be hanging loosely. This builds your hands and wrists while opening up your entire back.

Cold showers / ice baths help with the soreness the next morning. Do a cold shower each time to fortify general health.
 

Drake

Member
Wake up. 2 cups of black coffee and it's time for arm day and a 2-3 mile run. Still trying to build up my cardio after 5 months of nothing.

After that going to walmart and buying a cheap ass bike. There is a 60 mile bike path close to my house that I've been walking on that I want to explore more of. Can cover more ground on a bike.
 

haxan7

Banned
So after quitting alcohol about 2 months ago, I lost about 15 lbs. I've been doing 20+ mile bike rides a few times a week since then, in addition to Ring Fit Adventure on Switch.

I want to get on the path to getting bulked up and ripped... I'm not exactly sure where to start. I'm 5'10, about 168 lbs at the moment. I have at least 10 lbs of body fat to lose still, mostly around the belly from years of getting drunk every night. I'm naturally thin / hard gainer.

Where do I even start? How often should I focus on working out? What exercises should I add to my routine?

I have a Gold's gym membership that I've barely used since signing up in 2013
 

Tesseract

Banned
So after quitting alcohol about 2 months ago, I lost about 15 lbs. I've been doing 20+ mile bike rides a few times a week since then, in addition to Ring Fit Adventure on Switch.

I want to get on the path to getting bulked up and ripped... I'm not exactly sure where to start. I'm 5'10, about 168 lbs at the moment. I have at least 10 lbs of body fat to lose still, mostly around the belly from years of getting drunk every night. I'm naturally thin / hard gainer.

Where do I even start? How often should I focus on working out? What exercises should I add to my routine?

I have a Gold's gym membership that I've barely used since signing up in 2013

i would do a bunch of crunches, sit ups, jumping jacks, jump rope, burpees, push ups, dips, squats, pull ups ...

keep it simple and clean, plenty of reps with lots of protein
 
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Here you go breh. You're about my height, just an inch taller and around the same weight. I'm sitting at a healthy 170ish atm after lots of conditioning. This is what I recommend to newcomers. Also, congrats on the healthy choices mate. I've said it before, but it takes a warrior mentality to do that. Keep that feeling and join us in this mountain we climb called fitness.


And remember,

3FlpZ1L.png


Your diet is crucial. Just pick a good, healthy meal plan and stick with it. Don't worry so much about counting calories and such or even meal sizes. Just know that you're eating healthy and that that food is literally being used as materials to build your new body. Just like a building, it's only going to be as good as the materials you give it. After you start and get used to it, you can play around with fasting meals and such.
 

SpiceRacz

Member
So after quitting alcohol about 2 months ago, I lost about 15 lbs. I've been doing 20+ mile bike rides a few times a week since then, in addition to Ring Fit Adventure on Switch.

I want to get on the path to getting bulked up and ripped... I'm not exactly sure where to start. I'm 5'10, about 168 lbs at the moment. I have at least 10 lbs of body fat to lose still, mostly around the belly from years of getting drunk every night. I'm naturally thin / hard gainer.

Where do I even start? How often should I focus on working out? What exercises should I add to my routine?

I have a Gold's gym membership that I've barely used since signing up in 2013

I would start with the big 3 - Bench, Squats, & Deadlifts. Would also throw in some overhead press and pull ups especially. If you're having trouble with pull ups, start with lat pulldowns or use the assisted pull up machine. Once you're comfortable with those fill in the gaps with other exexercises. Eat plenty and don't be afraid to gain some fat.
 
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So after quitting alcohol about 2 months ago, I lost about 15 lbs. I've been doing 20+ mile bike rides a few times a week since then, in addition to Ring Fit Adventure on Switch.

I want to get on the path to getting bulked up and ripped... I'm not exactly sure where to start. I'm 5'10, about 168 lbs at the moment. I have at least 10 lbs of body fat to lose still, mostly around the belly from years of getting drunk every night. I'm naturally thin / hard gainer.

Where do I even start? How often should I focus on working out? What exercises should I add to my routine?

I have a Gold's gym membership that I've barely used since signing up in 2013
Glad to see you check in haxan7 haxan7 Keep learning about your physiology and adjust as you go, that's what I've been doing. I'd say the most important thing is to avoid injury on your way to getting ripped, which means lots of stretching, lots of tendon work, lots of isometrics. Build up that foundation.

My four best pieces of equipment are my 35lb kettlebell, my gym rings, my heavy resistance bands, and my 12 lb medicine ball. Each tool has quite a lot of utility and will be used until they wear out or I do.

One handed farmer walks are an easy way to get rock-solid core, as long as you do them consistently, every day. Walk a mile with a 35lb kettlebell held to your side in one hand, switching hands as you go. Then work up to 2 miles. Overhead 1 handed farmer walks will build you wrist to ankle. Generally, you should focus on full-body exercises like these that build up your transverse muscle chain (the "X" across your back). Turkish getups are excellent full-body builders. Kettlebell swings build the much-neglected lower back in a spine-safe way.

Hope you make more progress so that you can brag about your impressive results.

EDIT: oh yeah and do VlaudTheImpaler VlaudTheImpaler 's rice bucket thing. I still do it several hours each day.
 
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Cutty Flam

Banned
So after quitting alcohol about 2 months ago, I lost about 15 lbs. I've been doing 20+ mile bike rides a few times a week since then, in addition to Ring Fit Adventure on Switch.

I want to get on the path to getting bulked up and ripped... I'm not exactly sure where to start. I'm 5'10, about 168 lbs at the moment. I have at least 10 lbs of body fat to lose still, mostly around the belly from years of getting drunk every night. I'm naturally thin / hard gainer.

Where do I even start? How often should I focus on working out? What exercises should I add to my routine?

I have a Gold's gym membership that I've barely used since signing up in 2013
Start off slow and stick with your program, adding as you go, as the days and weeks pass by and you gain more endurance, size, strength, power. 2-3 times per week would be a good start. Could ramp it up to 4 times a week if you'd like if your body is fully recovered for it and able to keep up with that level of frequency

I would structure your first workout something like this just to be safe. The first three weeks is usually when people injure themselves because they do not understand and apply the concept progressive overload / do too much and fail to allow the body to properly adapt to the stresses of training.

1) Warm up until light sweat with some form of light cardio for a week, then move up to moderate intensity cardio after your body adapts to the stress you put it through. Probably a brisk 15-20 minute walk and then if you're able to maybe a few minutes of jogging, finish off the warm up with dynamic stretches / movements

2) Resistance Training (Full Body):
-Bodyweight Squats: 3/6-8 reps
-Pushups 3/4-6 reps superset with pullups if you can do them. Pullups 3/4-6 reps

3) Core/Balance/Proprioception:
-Crunches: 1/10
-Wood Chops on 1 Leg 1/10 each leg (can make it harder if you close your eyes)
-ABCs hanging from bar (try to trace out as many letters of the alphabet with your knees [toes later as you become stronger] and stop shortly after you begin to shake)

4) Cool Down
-Spend 5 min doing light cardio, stretch each muscle group lightly for 30 seconds, maybe try some foam rolling for a few minutes then call it a day

See how you feel the next day. I doubt that session would injure anyone and it's a god starting point just to get a feel and then guage where you're at; get an overall feel for your general fitness level. If you want to progress rapidly and gain a lot of muscle + strength the right way, focus on becoming efficient with the multi-joint movements (Squats, Deadlifts, Overhead Press, Pullups, Pushups, Bent-Over Rows w/ Dumbbells or a Barbell) and you can always do your accessory exercises (things like bicep curls, tricep extentions, Neck curls and extensions with a plate, forearms, calves, etc.) afterwards

I think every workout should have these to ensure you're training your body through all of the planes of motion to better avoiding any muscle imbalances that may cause a potential injury sometime down the line (include all these in your next workout btw, you can start with whatever sets and reps scheme you're comfortable, but I advise people to include all these movements and to pick at least one exercise for each movement):

*Warm Up ----> Light movement for several min, moderate movement for several min until light sweat, dynamic stretches and movements
*Warm Up Sets ----> 1-2 or however many sets you need to warm up before performing your "working sets"
*Resistance Training ----> Include the movements below
-Knee Dominant Movement / Exercise
-Hip Dominant Movement "
-Horizontal Push Movement "
-Horizontal Pull Movement "
-Vertical Push Movement "
-Vertical Pull Movement "
-Rotational Core Movement "
-Bridging and Core Stabilization Movement "
*Cool Down ----> 5-10 min of light cardio, deep breathing, static stretching, could do some dynamic stretching, yoga movements/poses, foam rolling, myofascial release, any kind of light massage

Hope that helps. Feel free to ask anybody in the thread any questions. I can't even tell you how much this thread has helped me out, learned a lot and improved a lot since posting here. I try to post here as often as I can to learn and keep myself in check -- sort of mold better habits and perfect things, aspects of my approach. It's like the perfect thread to brainstorm, share and learn about fitness and overall health / wellness IMO
 

rykomatsu

Member
Well I'll be damned, they were ALL sold out. Had no idea that was a thing. WTF is up with all the bikes being gone?

Haha, outdoor activities were like the one thing you could do with covid for a while, so a lot of outdoor activity equipment is/was in high demand.

A lot of manufacturing stopped, and when capacity came back online, I guess some (a lot of?) vendors didn't really want to increase capacity for what they see as a temporary bump in demand.
 

haxan7

Banned
Thanks all. I’ve been reading and absorbing your advice all day, as well as watching lots of YouTube videos about different fitness topics. I ordered a jump rope earlier. Definitely going to start off slow and focus on stretching / not getting injured. Seems like the way to go is build up a foundation then add more and more as I go.

Workout wise, today early in the afternoon I did about 30 minutes of Ring Fit and threw about 30 pushups into the mix. Then took a 20 minute run before dinner. I’m planning to shift away from the ring fit and make my workouts more in line with what’s been shared here.

I also totally forgot about warming up first so Cutty Flam Cutty Flam probably saved my butt there.
 
haxan7 haxan7 RingFit is still a good warmup/cooldown. Lots of stretching, jogging, and light exertion in that game. Something to consider before you give up on it or swap it out, even if you reduce playtime to only 10 or 20 minutes. Jump rope is a good idea. Building up your lower calves and your ankles will pay huge dividends.

I'm going a bit against the grain here, but have you thought about whether working out for a straight hour a few times a week is what will be best for you?

The soviets spent several decades testing their athletes and discovered that the best interval is a 5 to 10 minute rest after pushing your heart with a few minutes of springy or weighted exercise. You do not keep pushing until your heart is racing and you're sucking wind. You want to intentionally back off. Focus on your breathing and bringing your heart rate back down. Wait a full 5 to 10 minutes (no 1 -2 minute rest breaks). You WANT your heart rate to spike and then to drop back down to resting. You do NOT want to "keep your heart rate up" using this method. Repeat 10+ times each day. 5 minutes here for some kettlebell swings and some squats, then rest for 5 to 10 minutes. 3 minutes of throw-and-sprints with the medicine ball then rest for 20 to 30 minutes, whatever fits into your schedule. 5 minutes of gym ring holds and false-grip rows, then rest a bit more, etc etc If you have longer gaps between, that's fine too. You're not thinking in terms of each session or even each day, but you are racking up hours on a per week basis. If you like to track or take notes, train for total number of sets per week, not focusing on reps nor weight on a given day. You don't want to be like my frustrated wife who checked the weigh-scale every day and would fret over a pound up or down. "Weigh" yourself from week to week and judge by your improvements over a longer span of time.

Consider how this routine presents an environmental variable to your body: every day, you are spiking your heart, then bringing it back down (hopefully with Wim Hof breathing), a dozen times every day. Over and over. A body conditioned to do this will have the foundation for anything else.

This cycle of micro-stresses and micro-recoveries allows you to work out every day, all day. Then you slowly ramp up the intensity of each particular exercise. I started with 35 lb kettlebell swings. Now I can do 1 handed 60 lb American swings, and I'm moving to the 80 lb by winter. I know that "training every day" is often seen as a hardcore endeavor and/or bad advice that pushes people too far, but working out every day, all day (in tiny increments) means that by the end of the week, I can fit in 10 to 20 hours of total muscle-tension for the week whereas a dedicated gym rat who goes M, W, F can only fit in 3 to 5 hours a week (assuming the gyms are even open lolCOVID). This improve your heart and lungs and also your body will be in a near-constant state of "afterburn effect" calorie consumption. All of this assumes that you are backing down once you start to get winded, allowing your body to properly recover.

It's all about consistent application over time. It's a numbers game. Back in January I first posted that I was only doing RingFit and some bodyweight exercises. EviLore EviLore gave me a nudge toward kettlebells and I've been improving ever since I got one in March, exercising every single day. The method works as long as you faithfully increase the difficulty bit by bit (on a weekly/monthly basis, no need to rush).
 
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