The New Fitness thread

[krautcroissant]

That is awesome Smokehouse!

Those are some seriously good speeds and times and I love the Specialized!!!

After the last couple of cycles here I have reconfirmed that I am not an endurance athlete. 2 Hrs of exercise is the max for me. Those long 4 hr+ rides are not for me.... Must be something to do with my body-type... or maybe I could train myself to do it. Whichever, I am getting too old for that I am happy with 45 - 90 mins of exercise, even when riding the bicycle.

Put hats off to you Smoke... that is awesome! Much respect and keep it going!

 

[smokehouse]

That is awesome Smokehouse!

Those are some seriously good speeds and times and I love the Specialized!!!

After the last couple of cycles here I have reconfirmed that I am not an endurance athlete. 2 Hrs of exercise is the max for me. Those long 4 hr+ rides are not for me.... Must be something to do with my body-type... or maybe I could train myself to do it. Whichever, I am getting too old for that I am happy with 45 - 90 mins of exercise, even when riding the bicycle.

Put hats off to you Smoke... that is awesome! Much respect and keep it going!

Thanks!

As for being an endurance rider...it depends. First off, I'm 36 and just starting this and know many really talented riders in their 40's-50"s...when endurance cycling come in the picture things change. kit, form, nutrition, planning and mental stamina all become very important.

First off, you need a good kit (cycling shorts with a quality chamois, good cycling shoes) and you need a bike that is set up for endurance road riding.

Second, you need to master good form, when riding clipless you can actually switch muscle groups mid ride to give certain parts a break.

Lastly is mentality and nutrition. Much after 2-3 miles on the saddle, it stops being mostly physical and becomes more mental. I was shocked at the amount of focus it takes to rough out a 4-5 hour ride. I really have to stay focused at that point or I begin to fall apart. Nutrition also comes into play big time. I consume 24oz of fluids every hr (busted up into 15min intervals) and I drink no matter how little I want to. I also consume at least 100 calories/hr. I run Hammer HEED in my bottles and Hammer GEL packs. Neither contain sugar and get their high carb count from maltodextrin. Low sugar is extremely important because it will remove crashes and GI issues. One other thing to consider is low protein intake on sessions running 3+ hrs...for sessions under 2 hrs your body will mostly consume carb stores...after that however you will begin digesting muscle unless you provide your body with simple, easy to digest proteins.

....I can go on and on...if you ever want to hear more about this, let me know...

 

[Average Joe]

just added this stuff to my dietary regime:

http://vegasport.com/product/vega-sport-sugar-free-energizer/

60 days into my routine and was getting burned out towards the end of the week (6 days on; 1 day off)

this stuff definitely has me bouncing off walls 20 minutes after drinking it

only lasts about an hour when my routine is typically an hour and a half, but i'd still recommend it

i know there's plenty of pre-workout energizers out there, but this is a superb company that uses only natural, plant-based ingredients

 

[ggallegos1]

The only way am I going to run is if I'm late to a bus.

Cardio is cardio i guess.

Just discovered this thread, lots of great advice here.

Going to run my first marathon this sunday, so hopefully if my knees and hips dont give out I will do another in 6 months time. Been doing lots of calisthenics w the army and on my own, so maybe sometime in between I can do some spartan races for the hell of it.

Goal: to compete in the world's toughest mudder and do at least 4 laps in the 24 hour period. May God help me on that lol

 

[krautcroissant]

Smoke, that is some great advice there, and I think it hits the nail on the head. I wasn't mentally prepared for that ordeal, and I need more nutrients if going beyond two hours!

Gallegos, good luck with the marathon. Now that is something I would/could not do

 

[Average Joe]

 

[Average Joe]

decided to break away from convention and do something different so i just signed up to a rock climbing gym

i'm more interested in Bouldering than i am Climbing, but i'll probably climb for a bit for variety

but yeah, just did my first Bouldering session and it was awesome

my hands and forearms fatigued pretty quick (after about an hour i was getting close to being tapped) but it was my first time so that was expected

managed to tackle a few of the V2 and V3 climbs which i thought was good for a beginner

definitely will be spending a lot of time in that gym in the new few months

 

[ggallegos1]

Your forearms and your grip are going to be killer afterwards.

Finished my first marathon in 4:07, which I was a bit disappointed about seeing as my goal was under 4 hours. However, its motivation beccause my next one is in february in Central Park. Should be fun if i take training a bit more seriously this time around lol

 

[skate323k137]

Finished my first marathon in 4:07, which I was a bit disappointed about seeing as my goal was under 4 hours. However, its motivation beccause my next one is in february in Central Park. Should be fun if i take training a bit more seriously this time around lol

I broke 2 hours this year*


*on a skateboard

But seriously, I did break 2 hours for a skateboard marathon, which landed me in the top 10 of about 60 competitive riders. My best time last year was about 2:10, so a solid improvement. I pace about 4.5 mins/mile on a longboard on a good day, and I have a friend who can pace right around 4 mins/mile the whole time. Dude's a beast. If I acutally started running again I could probably keep up with him.

Winter sucks here, the best workout I get is an hour or two of ice skating once or twice a week.

 

[smokehouse]

I broke 2 hours this year*


*on a skateboard

But seriously, I did break 2 hours for a skateboard marathon, which landed me in the top 10 of about 60 competitive riders. My best time last year was about 2:10, so a solid improvement. I pace about 4.5 mins/mile on a longboard on a good day, and I have a friend who can pace right around 4 mins/mile the whole time. Dude's a beast. If I acutally started running again I could probably keep up with him.

Winter sucks here, the best workout I get is an hour or two of ice skating once or twice a week.

I don't have it as bad as you...but in Illinois it gets pretty funky in the winter as well. I'm going to try to ride as much as possibly but wet, snow or sub 30F is a no-go for me. I have an indoor trainer that I mount my bike to, it's not the most fun thing on the planet. but with the right training video, I can seriously kick my own ass pretty well. I do lose the endurance though, the stamina to do hours on the saddle. I'll see where I sit come this spring, but if I'm going to do a real century...I'm going to have to be able to tolerate 4 hrs on the saddle by early June at the latest. If not, I won't be ready to tackle 6-7 hrs by late July, early Aug...

I despise winter...

 

[ggallegos1]

Winter is my fitness cockblock, but i have no excuses until I go into the longer running sessions (8+ miles). then treadmills are a no-go because nothing in the world can motivate me to stare at it for more than an hour at a time while running.

 

[Kazuki Dash]

Winter sucks here, the best workout I get is an hour or two of ice skating once or twice a week.

I don't have it as bad as you...but in Illinois it gets pretty funky in the winter as well.

I despise winter...

Winter is my fitness cockblock

I did recently happen to stumble across a page that provides an insane amount of variations for equipment-free routines, and since winter is already fast approaching I'm sharing it in the hopes that it may have things you guys may find useful when indoors:

http://neilarey.com/100-no-equipment-workouts.html

I'm going to be spending my fair share of time trying out different ones myself.

 

[Average Joe]

winter invites laziness

it's in our nature to want to store fat and be sedentary during cold months

but it's also a good time to break away from your conventional training methods and do something different

don't use snow as an excuse to be lazy; use it as a motivator to experiment

 

[MilkManX]

Well I pulled my groin sparring so I am on a recovery plan of Push Ups,Leg Raises,Boxing heavybag rounds(dont want to chance kicking right meow.) Basically experimenting till I heal and can go back to KB Strong program.

Good news is that @ 6' tall I am 204lbs and fit easily into 34" pants. 7 years ago it was 294lbs and 44" inch pants.

 

[smokehouse]

Well I pulled my groin sparring so I am on a recovery plan of Push Ups,Leg Raises,Boxing heavybag rounds(dont want to chance kicking right meow.) Basically experimenting till I heal and can go back to KB Strong program.

Good news is that @ 6' tall I am 204lbs and fit easily into 34" pants. 7 years ago it was 294lbs and 44" inch pants.

I jacked myself up pretty good digging a family out of their home after last Sunday's tornado (Washington Il). Managed to pull a rib, sprain my wrist and then cause myself a good 2-4 days of pretty nasty muscle pain. Everything has passed save the wrist...which I broke many ears ago racing bikes. It will nag on for a while, I'm sure I'll be fine by spring. For now, riding doesn't hurt but hammer curls and push-ups are out...

 

[MilkManX]

Wow! That is great that you could help them. I would go see a doc for the wrist though.

 

[ggallegos1]

Signed uo for the central park marathon in the end of February, so being docile in winter is not a viable option anymore. I'll try out these routines and let you know how I like them, anything to change up the routine would be great.

 

[krautcroissant]

Winter.... yeah.... to me it means less being out cycling and only mornings in the park doing pull-ups and the other calisthenics stuff.
It also means more time at home and actually posting on my favourite website

However... winter is not, and never has been, detrimental to my work-outs. In facts I do love putting the gloves on and getting onto the bars or into the freezing cold cellar gym that we have here.
No..the opposite... winter always seems to have a kind of motivating effect on me. Christmas food etc plays a part.. I love gorging on all the food and working out extra hard to put it all to good use!
I am in pretty awesome shape right now. Hand-stand push-ups have given me some size on the shoulders. Still working on beefing up the chest though

Just a lil update from me and a bump to this thread. Keep working hard everybody... don't let the cold stop you!

 

[Spike Spiegel]

Just an update. Placed sixth in my comp... which really pisses me off. :/

 

[Rot]

Just an update. Placed sixth in my comp... which really pisses me off. :/

Spike pal…

…You ever consider Uber Chav Pink Shorts was the best decision? Seriously man…. i love you… but possibly you may need some fashion advice…

ESPECIALLY at comps…

xROTx

PS. Also… possibly a Haircut with a Nike Sign shaved in would be awesome too...

 

[smokehouse]

First off…Spike…you're a stud man, you look great. Keep it up.

Second…figuring I'm one of those cycling homo's…here's the latest pic of my bike, added a new seat post today:

 

[smokehouse]

First off…Spike…you're a stud man, you look great. Keep it up.

Second…figuring I'm one of those cycling homo's…here's the latest pic of my bike, added a new seat post today:

Weather is under 20F outside…indoor trainer for now

 

[Maury V.]

I'm getting back into fitness after a two month break. While I was in Korea, I was very active in running hashes, not driving, playing touch rugby, soccer/football, and just being overall active. It wouldn't surprise me if I gained all the weight I lost originally back! This gut of mine is killing me and I want to get rid of it.

So far i've done the following:

Indian squats
Planks
DDP Yoga
pro wrestling conditioning
running and walking
Push ups (looking to do 100 at a time in two months)

Most of my motivation from working out comes when I have people to exercise with. I was so spoiled in Korea that I just lost motivation when I came back home. NO ONE here wants to do ANYTHING unless it involves sitting on their ass or getting drunk. It's saddening, I tell you.

 

[MilkManX]

I train alone at home. At the dojo I have people to spar with.

Home I focus on strength. If you have a plan and a goal its not bad training alone.

 

[Average Joe]

i just got a new place that provided me with a small, but workable dedicated fitness room

been doing a lot of Joe Donnelly inspired weighted routines and just started mixing in more calisthenics (freestanding handstand/handstand presses coming along nicely)

trying to find that balance between being able to lift heavy things efficiently and being able to manipulate my own body weight freely is quite interesting and not as dichotomous as you'd think

anyway, took this shot at the beginning of December:



not a great shot, but whatever