Anyone want to shape up in 2018? A continuing journey.......

rgambs

curmudgeoness said:

rgambs said:

curmudgeoness said:

rgambs said:

Are you on a mass gainer?

Me? No. The men I know/ who know me were concerned that I was not eating enough (my constant complaints of being hungry might have tipped them off).

Eat more lady!
Food is so good, I can't imagine having that problem lol

I'm trying. I suck at dieting -- seriously, I'm the worst ever at it -- so this is an odd position to be in. But my caloric requirement most days is about 3500 calories, and I can't eat much of anything before exercising (especially running), and I can't eat more than a handful of food at a sitting, and I have a bunch of food intolerances. So I tend to run a deficit of 1000 calories a day or so. I try to compensate with doughnuts and wine, lol, but until the Donut Bar opens a store closer to my home that's a twice-monthly fix. Plus I'm trying to eat more protein and oh, maybe drink less. I think I'm the only client my trainer has who is encouraged to take a day off and go eat doughnuts, lol.

Go to a GNC or something like that and get some mass gainer.  Make a shake or 2 every day and you'll get as much protein and calories as you need.

mcgruff10

markymark550 said:

mcgruff10 said:

Lifting has been great. I have to get more cardio in!

I really thought half of your abs workouts said ass. I was thinking you must be doing lots of hip thrusts and glute bridges

Great job though! Definitely putting the work in.

I love my ass! lol

FoxyRedLa

brianlux

FoxyRedLa said:

Hey Brian! You can lose some weight without exercise. Intermittent fasting is helping me a lot. I eat 1 to 2 meals a day at the same time. Zero snacking. I choose to only drink water and milk most of the time. Some coffee. 

I have a cross trainer/elliptical at home. I try to walk 3 days a week. They say walk to lose belly fat. 

The above is always what I strive for haha hasn't been consistent lately.

Thanks for some good tips, FoxyRed.

I have to laugh at the fact that I posted this question and then didn't look for a reply until now. ( Pssst, it's called "denial")
I actually have done some isometrics and stretching (to relieve my munchy cravings guilt, LOL).

OK, but I did get some carrots and celery to replace some of the the crackers and cookie snacks.  There in the fridge.  I should try try them sometime. 

P.S.  If you figure out how to be consistent with this stuff, let me know the secret, haha!

rgambs

brianlux said:

FoxyRedLa said:

Hey Brian! You can lose some weight without exercise. Intermittent fasting is helping me a lot. I eat 1 to 2 meals a day at the same time. Zero snacking. I choose to only drink water and milk most of the time. Some coffee. 

I have a cross trainer/elliptical at home. I try to walk 3 days a week. They say walk to lose belly fat. 

The above is always what I strive for haha hasn't been consistent lately.

Thanks for some good tips, FoxyRed.

I have to laugh at the fact that I posted this question and then didn't look for a reply until now. ( Pssst, it's called "denial")
I actually have done some isometrics and stretching (to relieve my munchy cravings guilt, LOL).

OK, but I did get some carrots and celery to replace some of the the crackers and cookie snacks.  There in the fridge.  I should try try them sometime. 

P.S.  If you figure out how to be consistent with this stuff, let me know the secret, haha!

Haha good luck!  I eat healthy snacks all the time.


And then I still have to go back for unhealthy ones too because sugars and fats are powerful drugs and I'm hooked.

FoxyRedLa

I must say Brian it is easier to stay consistent when you're getting results. As of this morning I am down 27 lbs since July and I struggled all of February. I'm in a rut. Trying to break out. But I think my goal will be 145. And I'll give myself maintenance room to 150. I think I'll be happy there. Those are numbers I haven't seen on the scale as an adult. I don't want to be skinny or model like just a smaller version of me  

I'm telling you the fasting is the only thing keeping me in the game - when I'm not exercising regularly. As well as I'm ok with no snacks. Gave up pop a long time ago will have pop or a white russian occasionally

I'm doing this for me and my kids. I'm seeing huge results just not in the mirror. 

curmudgeoness

Kind of an unremarkable February for me. Ran 238 miles, which is off my target of 65 miles/week. There was injury and a short vacation in there, and stepdown weeks have their uses, but... meh.

But I did manage to do pull ups for the first time, so that's cool, I suppose.

Next month, I have a big milestone in my sights: 20,000 miles!

markymark550

I've finished up the strength program I was on. I was able to up my max on the main barbell exercises by at least 20 lbs. Overall, I'm pretty happy with the results.
Squat: 225 -> 245
Deadlift: 225 -> 265
Bench Press: 225 -> 255
Overhead Press: 115 -> 155

I liked the program and it was easy enough to follow, so if anyone is interested just let me know and I'll get you the info. Now I'm trying to what to do next. Part of me wants to do a major cutting phase just to see how much muscle I really have, but I know I don't have the discipline for that. I'm thinking about splitting the week up into strength days and hypertrophy days.

curmudgeoness

markymark550 said:

I've finished up the strength program I was on. I was able to up my max on the main barbell exercises by at least 20 lbs. Overall, I'm pretty happy with the results.
Squat: 225 -> 245
Deadlift: 225 -> 265
Bench Press: 225 -> 255
Overhead Press: 115 -> 155

I liked the program and it was easy enough to follow, so if anyone is interested just let me know and I'll get you the info. Now I'm trying to what to do next. Part of me wants to do a major cutting phase just to see how much muscle I really have, but I know I don't have the discipline for that. I'm thinking about splitting the week up into strength days and hypertrophy days.

Would it be less unpleasant just to get your body fat measured? Or do you literally mean that you want to *see* how much muscle you have, meaning you want to know how you'd look if you were to cut?

curmudgeoness

My groin is healing, which is good. I'd like to get back to doing some heavier lower-body lifting, and I'm supposed to run a 5K next weekend, which means running fast(er); I'd like to be able to push myself without getting hurt.

Runs are going well: 10+ miles, easily maintaining an 8:45 pace. I can do four pull ups at a time, and I am super stoked about that. And my arms and shoulders look amazing.

I'm still working on getting enough fuel and sleep. We do have protein powder and protein shakes on hand, which helps. Running high mileage seems to act as an appetite suppressant for me, and if I don't force myself to eat then I'll end up like I was in Costco the other night, shaky and on the verge of tears because I had run 10.3 miles and lifted for an hour and had had maybe 500 calories all day. :-( As for sleep, I sat down last night to watch Seth Meyers on my laptop and dozed off passed out two minutes in; so I'm still not where I need to be, sleep-wise. 

rgambs

markymark550 said:

I've finished up the strength program I was on. I was able to up my max on the main barbell exercises by at least 20 lbs. Overall, I'm pretty happy with the results.
Squat: 225 -> 245
Deadlift: 225 -> 265
Bench Press: 225 -> 255
Overhead Press: 115 -> 155

I liked the program and it was easy enough to follow, so if anyone is interested just let me know and I'll get you the info. Now I'm trying to what to do next. Part of me wants to do a major cutting phase just to see how much muscle I really have, but I know I don't have the discipline for that. I'm thinking about splitting the week up into strength days and hypertrophy days.

Splitting time between strength and hypertrophy like that is a good long term strategy, but having just come off a successful strength program, many would advocate going to a hypertrophy only program for a few weeks at least.
Don't rule a cutting phase out altogether, you don't have to go overboard on it to see good results.  You may find that you hit a tipping point earlier than you thought.  I've been balanced on one for a few months.  I've bounced around between 179 and 184, and the difference is huge.  At 179 I look almost exactly the same as I do all the way down at 174, but when I get up to 183, I look virtually the same as 190.  The visual difference is dramatic for such a small difference.
If you can make it to a tipping point like that, you can maintain a better physique without going on too strict of a diet.

markymark550

curmudgeoness said:

markymark550 said:

I've finished up the strength program I was on. I was able to up my max on the main barbell exercises by at least 20 lbs. Overall, I'm pretty happy with the results.
Squat: 225 -> 245
Deadlift: 225 -> 265
Bench Press: 225 -> 255
Overhead Press: 115 -> 155

I liked the program and it was easy enough to follow, so if anyone is interested just let me know and I'll get you the info. Now I'm trying to what to do next. Part of me wants to do a major cutting phase just to see how much muscle I really have, but I know I don't have the discipline for that. I'm thinking about splitting the week up into strength days and hypertrophy days.

Would it be less unpleasant just to get your body fat measured? Or do you literally mean that you want to *see* how much muscle you have, meaning you want to know how you'd look if you were to cut?

I meant that I want to know how I would look if I were to go through a cutting phase. I'm so vain

markymark550

rgambs said:

markymark550 said:

I've finished up the strength program I was on. I was able to up my max on the main barbell exercises by at least 20 lbs. Overall, I'm pretty happy with the results.
Squat: 225 -> 245
Deadlift: 225 -> 265
Bench Press: 225 -> 255
Overhead Press: 115 -> 155

I liked the program and it was easy enough to follow, so if anyone is interested just let me know and I'll get you the info. Now I'm trying to what to do next. Part of me wants to do a major cutting phase just to see how much muscle I really have, but I know I don't have the discipline for that. I'm thinking about splitting the week up into strength days and hypertrophy days.

Splitting time between strength and hypertrophy like that is a good long term strategy, but having just come off a successful strength program, many would advocate going to a hypertrophy only program for a few weeks at least.
Don't rule a cutting phase out altogether, you don't have to go overboard on it to see good results.  You may find that you hit a tipping point earlier than you thought.  I've been balanced on one for a few months.  I've bounced around between 179 and 184, and the difference is huge.  At 179 I look almost exactly the same as I do all the way down at 174, but when I get up to 183, I look virtually the same as 190.  The visual difference is dramatic for such a small difference.
If you can make it to a tipping point like that, you can maintain a better physique without going on too strict of a diet.

I think I'm gonna do some more research on it. I think I am going to try to lose more weight. Since the start of the year I've been trying to drop some fat, fairly unsuccessfully. I might look into hypertrophy while cutting to see how taxing that would be.

rgambs

markymark550 said:

rgambs said:

markymark550 said:

I've finished up the strength program I was on. I was able to up my max on the main barbell exercises by at least 20 lbs. Overall, I'm pretty happy with the results.
Squat: 225 -> 245
Deadlift: 225 -> 265
Bench Press: 225 -> 255
Overhead Press: 115 -> 155

I liked the program and it was easy enough to follow, so if anyone is interested just let me know and I'll get you the info. Now I'm trying to what to do next. Part of me wants to do a major cutting phase just to see how much muscle I really have, but I know I don't have the discipline for that. I'm thinking about splitting the week up into strength days and hypertrophy days.

Splitting time between strength and hypertrophy like that is a good long term strategy, but having just come off a successful strength program, many would advocate going to a hypertrophy only program for a few weeks at least.
Don't rule a cutting phase out altogether, you don't have to go overboard on it to see good results.  You may find that you hit a tipping point earlier than you thought.  I've been balanced on one for a few months.  I've bounced around between 179 and 184, and the difference is huge.  At 179 I look almost exactly the same as I do all the way down at 174, but when I get up to 183, I look virtually the same as 190.  The visual difference is dramatic for such a small difference.
If you can make it to a tipping point like that, you can maintain a better physique without going on too strict of a diet.

I think I'm gonna do some more research on it. I think I am going to try to lose more weight. Since the start of the year I've been trying to drop some fat, fairly unsuccessfully. I might look into hypertrophy while cutting to see how taxing that would be.

A good option would be to go with intermittent fasting, particularly if you carb cycle as well.  
I think that's the general consensus (right now) on cutting fat without cutting muscle.
Hypertrophy workouts seem to tax me less than strength work, but most of that strength workout hangover is CNS overload, so it's hard to say how relevant that is.

mcgruff10

Hit some personal bests this week with back and chest. Life is busy right now with the kids so I haven’t been doing cardio but all my lift goals have been achieved. 

oftenreading

I finally got out on a long bike ride today. It’s been weeks. A major conference that I was organizing went off without a hitch this week, and my mom is finally out of hospital after 8 weeks. I have a little breathing room. 

curmudgeoness

Hi guys,

This is a big day for me: I hit 20,000 miles today! That's 20,000 miles since I resumed running and started logging my workouts in 2008, after illness had sidelined me. It has been a long slog, LOL. But I got sick in my late '30s and could not believe that I was in a condition where  couldn't even walk across the room without getting lightheaded; so I resolved to work my way back to health and fitness. It was hard work and there were plenty of rough spots along the way (my first half, OMG; my first full marathon, when my thyroid flared during the taper; that half-marathon I ran with a stomach virus....). But now, knock on wood, I feel good and I look good, and I never take my health for granted.

I'm looking forward to hitting the "run around the world" milestone next year. Onward!

markymark550

curmudgeoness said:

Hi guys,

This is a big day for me: I hit 20,000 miles today! That's 20,000 miles since I resumed running and started logging my workouts in 2008, after illness had sidelined me. It has been a long slog, LOL. But I got sick in my late '30s and could not believe that I was in a condition where  couldn't even walk across the room without getting lightheaded; so I resolved to work my way back to health and fitness. It was hard work and there were plenty of rough spots along the way (my first half, OMG; my first full marathon, when my thyroid flared during the taper; that half-marathon I ran with a stomach virus....). But now, knock on wood, I feel good and I look good, and I never take my health for granted.

I'm looking forward to hitting the "run around the world" milestone next year. Onward!

That's awesome and very inspiring!

oftenreading

curmudgeoness said:

Hi guys,

This is a big day for me: I hit 20,000 miles today! That's 20,000 miles since I resumed running and started logging my workouts in 2008, after illness had sidelined me. It has been a long slog, LOL. But I got sick in my late '30s and could not believe that I was in a condition where  couldn't even walk across the room without getting lightheaded; so I resolved to work my way back to health and fitness. It was hard work and there were plenty of rough spots along the way (my first half, OMG; my first full marathon, when my thyroid flared during the taper; that half-marathon I ran with a stomach virus....). But now, knock on wood, I feel good and I look good, and I never take my health for granted.

I'm looking forward to hitting the "run around the world" milestone next year. Onward!

Amazing work! You're an inspiration.

I have my own tiny achievement that pales in comparison. I climbed four times this past week (well, ropes three times, bouldered once). My first time in the climbing gyms since before my mom had her stroke. It felt good. 

Thoughts_Arrive

I have a pot belly.