The New Fitness thread

[Electric Grave]

Hard to rise pro without consistency, I'm going through the same problem with the weather here in MA. I've also been slacking sometimes 'cause I'm not getting up early enough to have time to do it. Last year I was riding between 125-150 miles weekly, this year I'm barely reaching 100 weekly, it's been pretty sporadic as opposed to almost daily. My average speed has also come down, it's just a matter of getting more time in, summer just officially started the 21st, so I'm hoping I can get out there more. I was gonna ride today but again woke up far too late. Tomorrow is gonna be a wash out here.

On another note, I check the weather everyday, anything under 30% chance of rain I usually ignore and just go riding. Do you abide by the forecast to a T, or do you gamble a little as well? I use the wether channel website and phone app, what do you go by?

 

[miisalo]

I installed more tatamis to my home gym/dojo and put weights and bench aside (when I don't use them)

Now its possible to 6 people train kickboxing while have room to move and 8 people to train with limited movement. It nice, because now we have been training there twice a week this summer when our clubs dojo is closed.

Me last august:

And now

Still need to go down maybe 8kg.

 

[MuppeT]

you are a machine! no way you need to go down 8kg... it will be a mistake.

 

[Average Joe]

I did a couple of push-ups and ate some almonds--what do I win?

 

[Late]

I did a couple of push-ups and ate some almonds--what do I win?

Have you already gotten over the fact that your big toes are not of equal length?

p.s I hope those almonds were activated.

 

[White Devil]

I was in great shap back in 2009, then grad school hit and I stopped self care. Im still trying to get back to that. Haven't been to the gym in 6 weeks. Every time I start doing well there and losing weight I need to pick up more hours at work and then I burn out. On the bright side I've actually lost like 20lbs since getting married in 2013.
Fortunately I have an awesome trail across the street from my home, so when I'm pressed for time I do this versus drive to the gym. Think I took this pic in November

 

[ggallegos1]

I was in great shap back in 2009, then grad school hit and I stopped self care. Im still trying to get back to that. Haven't been to the gym in 6 weeks. Every time I start doing well there and losing weight I need to pick up more hours at work and then I burn out. On the bright side I've actually lost like 20lbs since getting married in 2013.
Fortunately I have an awesome trail across the street from my home, so when I'm pressed for time I do this versus drive to the gym. Think I took this pic in November View attachment 26537

That's a hell of a trail man. I'd love to run down that for the scenery.

I got my ass kicked this month, so the marathon running starts Monday. I am gonna start slow because my knees suck.

 

[BeefJerky]

I got my ass kicked this month, so the marathon running starts Monday. I am gonna start slow because my knees suck.

You still planning on doing the Boulder Marathon at some point?

I have a light mountain bike that I mostly use to get around town (I don't need a car where I live), so I'm probably doing at least 25-30 miles a week on it just from my necessary commuting, it's a lot of fun on dirt and gravel paths too, I go down by the river a lot. Doing a little yoga is great for my back pain, serious, my back sucks. I have a pull-up bar on my bedroom door and a physically demanding job, those help.

I use common sense when deciding what to eat, if it's dripping grease or has a ton of added sugar, I probably won't eat it, but nothing crazy like a vegan diet, even though I mostly eat vegetables and grains, I'm not a crazy person. Quitting smoking a few months ago helped out tremendously as far as having the energy to be active.

Found a pair of these at the thrift store I used to work at and picked em up SUPER cheap. I don't use them as much as I thought I would, but they definitely make jogging easier (I have a really bad knee, thanks snowboarding), and they're a lot of fun just to hop up and down in. I highly recommend them for anyone with any joint problems that wants to jog/run/whatever.

It's really all about building good habits and having reasonable expectations. I'm not a Calvin Klein model, but there's a 99% I won't keel over from a heart attack before I'm 45.

PS: @White Devil: Where is that? Is that in NJ? Gorgeous.

EDIT: A pic from my jaunt down to the river on Friday.

Spoiler:

 

[smokehouse]

Hard to rise pro without consistency, I'm going through the same problem with the weather here in MA. I've also been slacking sometimes 'cause I'm not getting up early enough to have time to do it. Last year I was riding between 125-150 miles weekly, this year I'm barely reaching 100 weekly, it's been pretty sporadic as opposed to almost daily. My average speed has also come down, it's just a matter of getting more time in, summer just officially started the 21st, so I'm hoping I can get out there more. I was gonna ride today but again woke up far too late. Tomorrow is gonna be a wash out here.

On another note, I check the weather everyday, anything under 30% chance of rain I usually ignore and just go riding. Do you abide by the forecast to a T, or do you gamble a little as well? I use the wether channel website and phone app, what do you go by?

It depends. This month has just been insane...and by insane I mean "all time record breaking". Were over 12" of rain for the month of June alone. It rains so much, I just can't get on my feet miles wise. At this moment, they're calling for rain M, T, W, F, S, S...so 6 out of the next 7 days. Our streets are flooded, our sewers are backed up, the ground is mush...the Illinois river has overflown its banks and then some...

The attitude around here is just fucking terrible. My wife even made mention of it...everyone is so fucking grumpy at this point. All it seems like we're doing is waiting for that next fleeting moment in between the rains storms.

My normal goal for 4th of July weekend is a 100K ride. A. It's currently slated to rain the entire fucking weekend. B. I haven't even had the opportunity to stretch 50 miles in yet...let alone 60+. Early May wasn't too bad and I was slated to be in the 50s with little problem by now...that's until it rained every weekend for 6-7 weeks straight.

The past few years have been on giant ass fuck for us...June 2014 was almost this bad and July 2014 was no better. I threw in the towel for endurance riding by end of July last year and stuck to shorter, 1 hr HIT sessions. Getting a nice weekend day was just too rare to even attempt to get the miles up.

Needless to say...I'm pretty frustrated...

 

[BeefJerky]

Bump.

Any of you used Google Fit? I like it, it's fun, it's just chillin' on teh Android and tells me how long I ride my bike or hike and I can tell it when I do other stuff and it puts it all in a colorful graph and you can set daily goals for yourself and even count calories if that's your thing. Pretty koll. Beffeh liek.

Also...

 

[smokehouse]

Well...summer '15 is already pretty much over.

Managed some 50 mile rides and a season long of 100K...some I'm pleased enough.

A buddy of mine just finished IronMan Wisconsin last night, 16hrs and 20min. What's amazing about it is that 2 years ago, he was well over 400lbs (and 5' 10" tall). Even now, he still around 260lbs or so...so he no stick figure. It's a pretty amazing achievement, I'm very proud of him.

In honor of his efforts, I've decided to get the lead out myself. We have a local town that does a sprint tri in June...I think I'm going to do it.

It's a 1/4mi swim, 15mi bike and 3 mi run. Joing a local place for $80/mo that has a very large indoor swimming area designed for lane swimming...and an indoor track.

I guess we'll see how this goes....

 

[LoneSage]

In honor of his efforts, I've decided to get the lead out myself. We have a local town that does a sprint tri in June...I think I'm going to do it.

It's a 1/4mi swim, 15mi bike and 3 mi run. Joing a local place for $80/mo that has a very large indoor swimming area designed for lane swimming...and an indoor track.

I guess we'll see how this goes....

Psh, that's child's play. You could do that easy peasy.

 

[smokehouse]

The swim and ride? Sure...a 15 mile ride is a warm up at this point and I actually am a very strong swimmer...I just need to get back in swimming shape.

The run? Actually...not so much, I am fucking terrible at running...and I mean terrible. At this point, I can run a mile at a 12min/mile pace...and stumble through 2 at around 13 or so. 3 miles falls into the "no way in hell unless I walk" category.

Not sure what it is with me an running...but even in the service, I sucked at it (and that was at 150lbs and on 19 year old legs). Flat feet and pronation issues have always plagued me.

Well see how this winter goes...

 

[LoneSage]

I did a ten miler a few years ago and barely gave preparation a thought. I have been plagued by flatfeet my whole life and managed to do it in 1:51, which is embarrassingly slow, but I did it. 12 minutes isn't fast, sure...but you can get down to 10 minutes with some training.

Like I said, easy peasy.

What about Tough Mudders? This seems to be a thing now. I wouldn't mind trying it.

 

[ggallegos1]

Well...summer '15 is already pretty much over.

Managed some 50 mile rides and a season long of 100K...some I'm pleased enough.

A buddy of mine just finished IronMan Wisconsin last night, 16hrs and 20min. What's amazing about it is that 2 years ago, he was well over 400lbs (and 5' 10" tall). Even now, he still around 260lbs or so...so he no stick figure. It's a pretty amazing achievement, I'm very proud of him.

In honor of his efforts, I've decided to get the lead out myself. We have a local town that does a sprint tri in June...I think I'm going to do it.

It's a 1/4mi swim, 15mi bike and 3 mi run. Joing a local place for $80/mo that has a very large indoor swimming area designed for lane swimming...and an indoor track.

I guess we'll see how this goes....

The toughest part is training for transitions, essentially each individual event would be easy, but training your body to do each sequentially is much more difficult. Google some simple triathlon tips and it will save you a lot of time and suffering.

I did a ten miler a few years ago and barely gave preparation a thought. I have been plagued by flatfeet my whole life and managed to do it in 1:51, which is embarrassingly slow, but I did it. 12 minutes isn't fast, sure...but you can get down to 10 minutes with some training.

Like I said, easy peasy.

What about Tough Mudders? This seems to be a thing now. I wouldn't mind trying it.

I did a tough mudder in 2011 and had a blast. My brother and I were in very good shape, but we were sore as hell after. They are very relaxed in terms of competitiveness and its a good environment

 

[smokehouse]

I did a ten miler a few years ago and barely gave preparation a thought. I have been plagued by flatfeet my whole life and managed to do it in 1:51, which is embarrassingly slow, but I did it. 12 minutes isn't fast, sure...but you can get down to 10 minutes with some training.

Like I said, easy peasy.

What about Tough Mudders? This seems to be a thing now. I wouldn't mind trying it.

Yeah...I'll work on the run all winter at that indoor track, I imagine I'll do fine.

The "mudder" thing isn't really my cup of tea...nor is the current cyclocross obsession either...

The toughest part is training for transitions, essentially each individual event would be easy, but training your body to do each sequentially is much more difficult. Google some simple triathlon tips and it will save you a lot of time and suffering.

I can currently do a 15 ride/1mi run...I've been doing that for a few months now. Now...that's no swim involved, so it will definitely be different.

I did a 10mi ride/1mi run for the first time 6 or so weeks ago just to see if I could...and I did. I've actually been riding my heavy ass comfort bike to build more leg strength...thing weighs some 20+ pounds more than my road bike...

 

[smokehouse]

I'm going to chuck it out there at running is just pure fucking misery. Why anyone in their right mind would choose this over cycling is beyond me. Anyway...did a rather pathetic 1.5 mi run at 11min/mi pace last night. Fucking killed me, my HR was 192 when I finally hit the brakes.

I have a long way to go, that's for sure.

 

[cdamm]

I'm going to chuck it out there at running is just pure fucking misery. Why anyone in their right mind would choose this over cycling is beyond me. Anyway...did a rather pathetic 1.5 mi run at 11min/mi pace last night. Fucking killed me, my HR was 192 when I finally hit the brakes.

I have a long way to go, that's for sure.

man oh man. i miss running. my knees wont allow it at all anymore. i can do a light jog of about a mile but then im done.

when doing distance running i know it sounds cliche, but it is all about the 'runners' high when you break through a wall and the endorphins kick in.

for a run- it really is all about the shoes. Light with good support. i'm a new balance man myself- but my raggedy 1157's need replacing and they dont make them anymore . i need to find a good replacement and maybe buy a few pairs when i find a winner since they tend to kill off lines quickly.


on the bike side- im up to 10-12 miles a day after getting my ass kicked on a 3 mile hilly ride my first week out. feels good to see progress.

 

[ggallegos1]

man oh man. i miss running. my knees wont allow it at all anymore. i can do a light jog of about a mile but then im done.

when doing distance running i know it sounds cliche, but it is all about the 'runners' high when you break through a wall and the endorphins kick in.

for a run- it really is all about the shoes. Light with good support. i'm a new balance man myself- but my raggedy 1157's need replacing and they dont make them anymore . i need to find a good replacement and maybe buy a few pairs when i find a winner since they tend to kill off lines quickly.


on the bike side- im up to 10-12 miles a day after getting my ass kicked on a 3 mile hilly ride my first week out. feels good to see progress.

+1 on the shoes, they will make or break you depending on your foot form and running form. Also, see if you can get a biddy who is decent at running to evaluate your running form, breathing, and such. It will make life much easier

 

[smokehouse]

Just thought I'd pop in here to post some positive results.

First off, went and got an evaluation at a local running store. The customer service, time they took with me and their level of knowledge was outstanding. I wish I had a local cycling place like that...it would have saved me a good amount of pain having to learn on my own. Landed up with a pair of Saucony Guide 8 shoes...great fit, super comfortable.

Began my "training" yesterday and truth be told, I'm pleased with the results. For the moment I'm going to stick with the "complete not compete" plan and just get some time in. I ran 1.5 miles total with a .25 warm up, 1 mile run, .25 cool down. Didn't pay attention to time, did monitor HR. Did a nice pace on an indoor track and managed a solid run in the high 160's HR wise. Definitely not where I want to be...but better than before.

Cleaned up, went for a swim. Did my best to us what freestyle form I remember from over 20 years ago. Swam 7x 25yd laps in the pool. Again, baby steps.

The session left me feeling good...no real pain issues, the run went smooth...very positive about all of this.

 

[ggallegos1]

Just thought I'd pop in here to post some positive results.

First off, went and got an evaluation at a local running store. The customer service, time they took with me and their level of knowledge was outstanding. I wish I had a local cycling place like that...it would have saved me a good amount of pain having to learn on my own. Landed up with a pair of Saucony Guide 8 shoes...great fit, super comfortable.

Began my "training" yesterday and truth be told, I'm pleased with the results. For the moment I'm going to stick with the "complete not compete" plan and just get some time in. I ran 1.5 miles total with a .25 warm up, 1 mile run, .25 cool down. Didn't pay attention to time, did monitor HR. Did a nice pace on an indoor track and managed a solid run in the high 160's HR wise. Definitely not where I want to be...but better than before.

Cleaned up, went for a swim. Did my best to us what freestyle form I remember from over 20 years ago. Swam 7x 25yd laps in the pool. Again, baby steps.

The session left me feeling good...no real pain issues, the run went smooth...very positive about all of this.

That's awesome man, glad to hear the Right shoes ad mindset are making a difference

 

[cdamm]

thats awesome, smoke! keep going and building it up! soon you will lol at where you started. nothing is better than looking back at where you started from and seeing real progress.

 

[smokehouse]

Slow but sure progress. Did a 2mi run today + .5 warmup/cool down. Did run a timer, averaging 10 min miles at this point. Pretty shitty, but at least I'm doing the distance. Then went and swam 200yds in the pool. Form is getting much better in the pool. Bricks suck, that's for sure.

Tomorrow is a long swim then a 15-20 mile ride right afterwards...

 

[ggallegos1]

Slow but sure progress. Did a 2mi run today + .5 warmup/cool down. Did run a timer, averaging 10 min miles at this point. Pretty shitty, but at least I'm doing the distance. Then went and swam 200yds in the pool. Form is getting much better in the pool. Bricks suck, that's for sure.

Tomorrow is a long swim then a 15-20 mile ride right afterwards...

How are you handling recovery days and soreness? That's awesome progress for such a short time frame

 

[smokehouse]

How are you handling recovery days and soreness? That's awesome progress for such a short time frame

Although I have a bit of a gut…and some small man boobs, I wasn't in bad shape to begin with. I was still riding 50-65 miles rides this summer and could do a med paced 30 mile ride with ease (50-65 would take it out of me pretty well…)

I think I already had the cardio heath base to work off of, I just didn't have the muscle form down yet fro swimming and running (and still don't, to be honest).

My current week looks like this:

Mon- OFF

Tue- Run night, currently a 1-1.5 mile run with an additional .5 cool down. I'll do some light lifting after the run.

Wed- OFF

Thurs- Swim night, possibly going to ramp it up to 300-400 yards depending on how things go. (Last week was 250 yds.)

Firday- OFF

Sat- brick day set #1, 2 mile run + warmup/cool down, 200 yd swim.

Sun- brick day set #2, 300 (or so) yd in the pool, 15-20 mile outdoor ride (as long as mother nature allows it).


That's for now and probably through the end of the year…we'll see. By end of year, I'd really like to be up to a 5K run and 400yd swim. If I can do a 450yd swim, this will actually be longer than the tri I am training for.

Now…after Jan 1, I'm going to beef it up:

Mon- OFF

Tue- Run night, 2-3 mile run with an additional .5 cool down. Light lifting after the run.

Wed- Indoor cycling trainer, 50min-1hr

Thurs- Swim night, 300-400 yards.

Firday- OFF

Sat- brick day set #1, 2-3 mile run -w- warmup/cool down, 300-400 yards swim.

Sun- brick day #2, 300-400 yards swim in the pool, Indoor cycling trainer-50min-1hr

Soreness?

I have these three things:

https://www.thestick.com/cgi-bin/commerce.cgi?preadd=action&key=SG-1900

http://www.theracane.com

http://www.amazon.com/SPRI-Super-High-Density-Rollers/dp/B00BI748PM

Of those three…"the stick" is the absolute best. I roll my legs out before and after a session…makes a big difference.

This next part could be a placebo…who knows…but on top of my regular foods, I take these two:

http://www.amazon.com/BSN-SYNTHA-6-...1443302057&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=syntha+six

http://www.amazon.com/BSN-Amino-End...e=UTF8&qid=1443302084&sr=1-4&keywords=amino+x

…and, thanks to the Hulkster…I also say my prayers and eat my vitamins….

The swim is going to take the longest…I now know that. The breathing aspect of freestyle swimming is a serious pain in the ass. I keep messing it up and it will make you flustered fast.