General Workout Routines and Questions

[Yukon]

I'm following my own programme. I used to get a lot of help from my dad, who's also a previous marathon runner, but after a while I started to develop my own from knowing more about my own body and my limitations and recovery time, but also just being able to go out and do what I feel like I can do on any given day. I don't tend to stick to my programme that often but it's a good thing to have as a foundation so I know if I'm slacking behind, on target or exceeding.

Because I run all year round, sticking to someone else's programme wouldn't benefit me unless I were to use it and adapt to it and extend it. The most miles in a week I've done this year was 57, that was a 5 day week which looked like this:

Mon(6), Tue(OFF), Wed(10), Thur(13), Fri(10), Sat(OFF), Sun(18)

That's a pretty challenging week, especially with the three consecutive days and only one day of recovery before a long run. I don't do that often, as to avoid any injuries, so most weeks would be in the range of 40-50, anything over 50 would be every so often just to make sure I'm maintaining the ability to cover long weeks.

I haven't made it through a race yet but I'm hooked.

This made me smile, I'm glad. Keep it up.

 

[Aldo]

I've been working extra hard in the gym lately and seeing a huge improvement! Doing a lot of sets to complete failure and getting into my new chest routine which is killer

 

[kikie]

A few hours to go before my weekly body pump session starts.

 

[Luminis]

Didn't poke my head in here in a while... Gotta be honest, the thread completely slipped from my mind. But I'm still going strong. Working out five days a week, every week. Strength is going up, especially since I'm bulking right now (currently at 193 lbs, as of today, which is the heaviest I've been since I started working out). Which is both awesome and frustrating.

Getting stronger is a great feeling, but it was a long and hard way to get my body fat down (which takes me much more work and dedication than it should, I feel), and gaining that back is just frustrating. How are you guys dealing with that?

 

[MarinaDiamandis]

You've just got to take the rough with the smooth sometimes. Over the winter it isn't so bad to have higher body fat, because it's cold and most of the time your body is covered, so accept it as part of the process, and look forward to the new gains that you can show off come next summer.

There are probably hundreds of thousands of guys that are bulking right now who feel just like you do, so keep in mind that you certainly aren't alone.

 

[Michael88]

Man working out isn't easy. Winter is going to be brutal on my body since I have no local gym and cycling will be near stupid in snow. There is one about 15-20 min away from my place but my gas tank will be empty going there every day. Do you guys have any particular winter routines?

Thats why I bought all the necessary fitness gear and free weights, I've never wanted to depend on a gym. Currently I shrug 310 lbs 10 reps, bent-over-row 185 8 reps, bench 300 7 reps and I have never been a member in a gym in my entire life. 👍

But the cycling-in-winter thing has made me curious, is there anybody here that actually drives on snow during the winter time? I hate home trainers but driving on snowy roads with my fragile road bike is total suicide. I thought about buying a mountain bike and getting some special snow tires, though I have no idea how exhausting it really is to drive on roads covered with snow slush / ice.

 

[Yukon]

Finished the Marathon in 3:56:24! Never felt better, it was by far the most accomplishing feeling of my life.

 

[TB]

I couldn't even run that far, never mind in under 4 hours. Nice job, Yukon!

 

[Yukon]

Thank you, TB.

 

[phillgt2002]

Thats why I bought all the necessary fitness gear and free weights, I've never wanted to depend on a gym. Currently I shrug 310 lbs 10 reps, bent-over-row 185 8 reps, bench 300 7 reps and I have never been a member in a gym in my entire life. 👍

But the cycling-in-winter thing has made me curious, is there anybody here that actually drives on snow during the winter time? I hate home trainers but driving on snowy roads with my fragile road bike is total suicide. I thought about buying a mountain bike and getting some special snow tires, though I have no idea how exhausting it really is to drive on roads covered with snow slush / ice.

I live In a tiny home so free weights is kind of claustrophobic lol. I could make some space. Driving in the winter is a bitch indeed. There are people that ride in snow but that's usually seen in races. I've never seen a person use a roadbike in the snow. I reckon it'd be hell. Frozen hell. I've never depended on a gym to exercise, i only did things at home most of the time. I used to go to the gym a few times a month but the membership racks up and id rather sit and sweat in the comfort of my own home rather than with 30 other people near me.

 

[Michael88]

There are people that ride in snow but that's usually seen in races. I've never seen a person use a roadbike in the snow. I reckon it'd be hell. Frozen hell.

Now I *really* want to give it a try. I have an old mountain bike, I see if I can get some ice tires with spikes, maybe it works well enough so I can complete at least my shortest cycling route which is about 10km long on a snowy winter day.
But I'll definitely be wearing protective mountain biking gear, the last time I rode my bike over ice I slipped and shattered my elbow joint.

I have a question about weight lifting, today a guy told me he did some 180 lbs / 81kg biceps curls. I know he is a really avid weight lifter but isn't a little bit much? Is biceps curling so much weight possible without cheating, roiding while maintaining a good form? (never seen him in person)
I've been lifting weights for 8 years now, at least 3 years of that very intensively, though even with my 18'' arms I can only curl 105 about 10 times with a good form and full ROM . Max 1 rep while maintaining a good form is about 130 if I remember correctly. I can do one armed negative curls with 90 though.
I don't want to call him a liar or anything, but he is almost curling twice as much as I do.

 

[Pako]

180lb curl sounds pretty extreme to me but I suppose it's possible. On heavies, we will curl straight bar at about 155lbs on the high side, on a good day. I suppose I could do 180lb if I clean and jerk it, but what is the point in that?

Edit: This guy does a pretty clean 180lb curl

 

[Michael88]

Yeah, I think that guy 's got a big mouth, he said it like he is curling the 180 a couple of times though, not just one max rep. I now think thats almost impossible.

Pako, I saw your pic in the '''pics of yourself'' thread, I'd believe you if you said you could curl monster trucks. 👍
Seriously, 155 is awesome, how many reps you do with that much weight? Shoulder-width grip or close grip?

 

[Pako]

Well...., I'm built mainly for show and no go. Seriously though, power lifting takes a totally different method of training that body building. With all that said, the heavies, or "Curl Squats" as I like to call them are generally at the end of the heavy sets and have worked up to the weight and am pretty pre-fatigued at this point. With the straight bench bar, my grip will generally be at armpit width for 5-8 reps with a good spot part way through. Lets me get some really good forced reps and nice negatives on the top end of the set. Great lift for mass building.

I haven't lifted that heavy since last year as I have been letting my biracial heal up, which it has been feeling much better this summer.

 

[Luminis]

Well, I decided to stop bulking. I might have gained a good bit of strength (and probably muscle mass), but I just can't deal with the amount of fat I'm gaiming. Guess I'll stick to going slow and steady all year round...

 

[Pako]

Well, I decided to stop bulking. I might have gained a good bit of strength (and probably muscle mass), but I just can't deal with the amount of fat I'm gaiming. Guess I'll stick to going slow and steady all year round...

I was just having this conversation with my lifting partner today. After loosing 65 lbs. this summer, I have gained about 8lbs. back. I already am "filling out" where I had good muscle definition. People say I still look great, but I can I can see the difference. I can also feel the difference. I feel stronger and am lifting harder as a result. I think if I stay around the 210lb mark and can still lift strong and heavy, that will give me just a little to strip in the spring after all winter of lifting hard and can hopefully gain some lean mass along the way.

I've increased my cardio this week, like I've started cardio back up and tonight will be my third night this week. I plan on 1/2 hour of cardio, Monday, Wednesday, and Fridays through the winter to burn off any access calories while I'm carbing out.

 

[Luminis]

Heh... I've gained about 9 pounds over the last six weeks or so. Obviously, without having anywhere near as much muscle on my body as you do, Pako. Which is why I feel like I'm slowly turning back into the fat slob I was a few years ago

 

[Omnis]

180lb curl sounds pretty extreme to me but I suppose it's possible. On heavies, we will curl straight bar at about 155lbs on the high side, on a good day. I suppose I could do 180lb if I clean and jerk it, but what is the point in that?

Edit: This guy does a pretty clean 180lb curl

No way is that clean. Look how much he uses his back. If you're not getting a full contraction there's no point in doing curls. Just do pulldowns or deadlifts instead.

 

[Pagey279]

Whilst at the gym today I was doing some cardio, on a machine that has a BPM measurer thingy. And I peaked at 225bpm, which seems very high, I've read around on the internet and your maximum heart rate should be 220 minus your age. So mine should be 199. Plus whilst exercising you should aim to stay between 50% and 85% of your maximum heart rate.

Should I be concerned about reaching such a high rate?

 

[shmogt]

Whilst at the gym today I was doing some cardio, on a machine that has a BPM measurer thingy. And I peaked at 225bpm, which seems very high, I've read around on the internet and your maximum heart rate should be 220 minus your age. So mine should be 199. Plus whilst exercising you should aim to stay between 50% and 85% of your maximum heart rate.

Should I be concerned about reaching such a high rate?

Wake up and test your heart rate. If that is high you have a problem.

 

[Pagey279]

My resting heart rate at the moment is 80bpm, which is completely normal (it's supposed to be between 60-100). I don't know why it peaks so high during exercise, I was only on a cycling machine and wasn't working particularly hard.

 

[Pako]

No way is that clean. Look how much he uses his back. If you're not getting a full contraction there's no point in doing curls. Just do pulldowns or deadlifts instead.

Was it a perfect, isolated bicep curl? No, but it was pretty clean man. He wasn't Marlin fishing like some I've seen.

I have a video for you.

Warning: Contains language not suitable for children. LOTS OF F BOMBS.

Are you going to tell this guy that he's cheating?

 

[ExigeEvan]

My resting heart rate at the moment is 80bpm, which is completely normal (it's supposed to be between 60-100). I don't know why it peaks so high during exercise, I was only on a cycling machine and wasn't working particularly hard.

The contact heart rate monitors aren't particularly accurate, I've been anything from dead to hamster on speed.

 

[shmogt]

My resting heart rate at the moment is 80bpm, which is completely normal (it's supposed to be between 60-100). I don't know why it peaks so high during exercise, I was only on a cycling machine and wasn't working particularly hard.

I wouldn't worry. I don't know how old you are but resting at 80 is kinda high. It's just not dangerous high so doctors class it still in normal. If you keep doing cardio your body will get used to it and it will start to go down.

 

[TB]

@ Pagey - my heart rate is quite high, as well, easily going into the 200's when doing cardio. As long as you aren't dizzy and/or gasping for breath, you're fine. And as said, the more you do cardio, the lower your heart rate will become.

 

[mcfizzle]

Yukon how did you marathon go?

I ran today and ran 3'37.09 for 8:16/mile. I was very happy with that. Went out with a 8'12 pace group and held onto that through 16.5 miles. At that point I picked up the pace to 7:55-8:00 and hit the wall at mile 21. I was unaware miles 18-21 were a gradual uphill. My quads and hamstrings were shot the last 3 and finished with a 9:26. I should have just stuck with the pace group rather than picking up the pace but live and learn. All around it was a great experience.

I hope yours went well. 👍

 

[phillgt2002]

I'm gonna start doing slight cardio in my home. I did a ton of leg raises and push ops and that got me going. This should work better than cycling. I need to get rid of stomach fat so it may melt away over the exercises during the winter. I also may throw in some free lifting but that depends on how I might feel after the core workout.

 

[Ryanswannell]

Building muscle mass is something I want to do, but I haven't been able to pay for a gym membership up until now as I have just recently got a job.

Around Christmas time last year I had a trial at the local gym, where I just decided to do various tricep and chest exercises just to get a feel of what it is like. I thought it was great,but I just felt a little bit intimidated as there were people around me who were pretty well-built and lifting much more weight than I was.

I'm 18 years old and roughly 5"7 at around 140lbs, with next to no muscle definition, but a little 'flabby' in areas, I even have a case of slight 'man boobs'.

I was just looking for any advice about becoming a new starter at the gym as I am unsure of exactly what I should do for good results, such as how often to attend and for how long each session, as well as anything else which may be important to do with diet or any other exercise. I don't want to go crazy or anything, just to get into better shape. If anyone could help, it would be greatly appreciated

 

[Luminis]

Are you going to tell this guy that he's cheating?

Hell no, I wouldn't! But that video is kinda funny! Was laughing my butt off when he told his biceps to grow

I was just looking for any advice about becoming a new starter at the gym as I am unsure of exactly what I should do for good results, such as how often to attend and for how long each session, as well as anything else which may be important to do with diet or any other exercise. I don't want to go crazy or anything, just to get into better shape. If anyone could help, it would be greatly appreciated

1. Don't overdo it; slow and steady wins the race, especially when you're starting out. Don't burn yourself out by going to the gym six days a week, at least not before you're used to it. At first, maybe three times a week, an hour each time. Plus some cardio, maybe.
   
2. Try to maintain good form. You're better off doing the exercises with less weight but good form. Made that mistake myself, injured myself and took myself out for a good bit.
   
3. Leave your ego at the door.
4. Don't compare yourself to someone who's been at the gym for years.
5. Have fun.
6. Remember that eating well is half the deal. I can recommend some of the recipies in this Youtube channel.
7. Listen to Pako.

That's the seven things I can think off

 

[Pako]

That's a great list Luminis. I would like to elaborate on points #4 and #7.

#4 - Don't compare yourself to someone bigger than you if you think you will get there in a week, a month, or even a year. Do compare yourself to someone bigger if if gives you motivation to work hard for what you want. I will often compare myself to much bigger guys to help me set goals for myself. If I was the biggest guy, motivation for looking forward to more gains would be hard I think.

#7 - LOL, nice one. We can all learn from each other. Any advise I give is just what has worked for me. I'm sure there are some basic truths out there that are accurate for everyone, but fine tuning and finding what works for you may end up being different than what works for me. Whether you are lifting for a BB competition, for a strength competition, or just to feel better, different methods will work better for some people than others. I can say, pay attention to your body and listen to what it's telling you. If the "plan" says do 3 sets of 10 and your body is saying to rep out 12, rep out 12. If your "plan" says to push 100lbs and you feel like adding an extra dime, go for it. If you are feeling like you just aren't warm enough and need to stay light so you don't rip and tear, stay lighter until you get good and warm. Please don't get me wrong, I think plans are great to have and scheduled routines are a must, but don't be so strict on the routine that you are ignoring your body and how it's responding.