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Made in gb
The Daemon Possessing Fulgrim's Body





Devon, UK

I think it's important to find a gym who's "vibe" feels right.

I've seen gyms ranging from something resembling the Fight Club basement all the way through to some (in hotels most often) that look like starship command centres.

I've only regularly attended a couple, but I've never seen anything resembling the stereotype. The worst was a small-ish gym that wasn't so much about ridicule as there were always the same cliques of 3 or 4 who would hog certain bits of equipment for 20-30 mins at a time while everyone did their sets then move on and do the same on another apparatus. That could be frustrating, but I never witnessed anything like hostility or ridicule.

We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't. - Frank Howard Clark

The wise man doubts often, and changes his mind; the fool is obstinate, and doubts not; he knows all things but his own ignorance.

The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense!” Professor Brian Cox

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Made in gb
Ridin' on a Snotling Pump Wagon






I’d agree even in my limited experience.

Just did my Sunday session. Cross Trainers are the work of the devil. Managed my first set of five minutes, but my left thigh was aching.

Switched it up doing 15 minutes on the reclined exercise bike, covering a little over 3 miles worth of exercise.

Floor exercises were quite good fun, once I got into the rhythm. Though plank hops aren’t easy when the step board thing is half your body length…

   
Made in gb
Decrepit Dakkanaut




UK

The only solid tip I've picked up on over the years with regard to weight is that unless you are under training/medical guidance and/or extremely overweight (at which point you should be getting medical advice anyway); then one of the best ways to lose weight is to make small changes.

So instead of a sudden diet and big exercise program, make smaller changes to your current diet and exercising. The idea being that the small changes you make become part of your daily and regular routine to the point where you're not "on a diet" or "on a training regime" you're just living as normal, just making changes to how you live. Small steady changes have a greater chance of being retained and the result is that by changing lifestyle and diet for hte long term you can improve your health and have a greater chance maintaining it.

Because now you're now "on a diet" which you'll come off once you hit your goals. You'll just hit your goals and maintain them.

I've seen plenty of people who go on sudden diets and lose a lot of weight (often also a lot of strength and body condition too) very fast. They then stop dieting and before you know it all that weight is back on. As weight and body healthy is a result of how you live and eat, if you diet for short term periods you'll only achieve short term body change.


I think it also works out better because you lose that "on/off" sense of a diet in your mind. There's no "now I'm off now I can relax or binge eat" and you lose that layer of mental "I'm on a diet stress" which can, sometimes, make eating during a diet feel like a punishment.





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Made in gb
Ridin' on a Snotling Pump Wagon






Yup. I’ve nothing against what might be fairly called fad diets for specific weight loss goals - such as a Wedding, date, holiday or what have you.

But for permanently better health, it’s the old Less Cake, More Exercise, and reeducating yourself.

For instance, I bought an Air Fryer in the January sales, and I love it. I can have decent chips without stinking out my flat and clothes, and it’s somewhat healthier.

Now it doesn’t mean I have a free ticket to enjoy chips every single day. But it does mean when I do have them (currently once a week with my fishcakes) they’re not undoing good work in the gym and other healthier meals.

Likewise by cooking Madras from scratch, I’m greatly reducing the salt, as it’s solely used for seasoning, and not preservation. It’s also super easy to do if you’ve got a blender to do your initial paste.

I do however need to work on my 5 A Day, because nutrients are important!

It’s also important to realise it’s as much about your calorific intake and usage as eating Strictly Healthily. For instance, I do love me an Eclair every now and again, and usually have a couple a week. I just need to be aware of how much sugary treats I’m eating and moderate it from there. I certainly have no intention for feeling Guilty or Naughty for having some sweety treaty in my gob!

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2021/09/19 14:49:53


   
Made in gb
Decrepit Dakkanaut




UK

We also got an air fryer and yeah once you figure out its quirks and the right kind of chips to put in it; they work great.

The deep fat fryer still does some things better, but ours hasn't been on once since we bought the air unit.

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You cannot do better than deep fried oven chips. Sadly!

That’s the way Granny used to it, and they were magnificent, if not even remotely healthy!

   
Made in gb
Decrepit Dakkanaut




UK

You know what they do best that you can't get anywhere now - doughnuts! Not the ones supermarkets sell today which are more doughy, I'm talking the real deep fried kind that are a touch more fluffy inside and have a soft oil outside; with the underside being just a touch crispy

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You need to go to the coast to get those. Freshly deep fried and soaked in powdered sugar!

   
Made in us
Grim Dark Angels Interrogator-Chaplain






A Protoss colony world

Oh man, I pretty much fell off the exercise wagon a couple of years ago, and my body has suffered for it. I was good about going to the gym at least 3 times a week, sometimes 4. As a result, I've gained back all the weight I lost, and then some. Haven't weighed myself in a while, because I'm actually afraid of what I'll find out, but I know it's around 350 pounds, which means if I don't do something about it soon I'll be very lucky if I live to be 50. To say nothing about ever finding a mate. I have a gym membership, and the gym is within easy walking distance of my apartment, so no excuses there. Sometimes it's hard to make myself just get off my fat ass and go. I also really need to lay off the junk food. I live alone so I don't want to cook fancy meals, which leads to me just eating a lot of frozen meals and ordering out and otherwise consuming unhealthy processed crapola. But, at least when I drink soda, I stick with sugar free/diet sodas almost exclusively, which I'm sure has helped me. Yes, there's bad chemicals in diet sodas, but I'd rather take my chances with those than with high fructose corn syrup which could make me diabetic.

My armies (re-counted and updated on 11/1/23, including modeled wargear options):
Dark Angels: ~15000 Astra Militarum: ~1200 | Adeptus Custodes: ~1900 | Imperial Knights: ~2000 | Sisters of Battle: ~3500 | Leagues of Votann: ~1200 | Tyranids: ~2600 | Stormcast Eternals: ~5000
Check out my P&M Blogs: ZergSmasher's P&M Blog | Imperial Knights blog | Board Games blog | Total models painted in 2023: 40 | Total models painted in 2024: 7 | Current main painting project: Dark Angels
 Mr_Rose wrote:
Who doesn’t love crazy mutant squawk-puppies? Eh? Nobody, that’s who.
 
   
Made in gb
Ridin' on a Snotling Pump Wagon






I can recommend baby steps.

With an active gym membership, just try once a week to get back into the rhythm, more if you like.

The food intake can also be tackled one day at a time. Whilst my various kitchen gadgets weren’t exactly cheap? They do save me money in the long run, and make my meals healthier.

   
Made in gb
Using Inks and Washes





This thread inspired me to get off my bum and restart my aerobics this morning.
Lots of high knees and arm scissors today.
   
Made in us
Shadowy Grot Kommittee Memba






Awesome timing! My partner has classes in person for the first time at this new school, and unfortunately the public transit option that was a factor in why we moved in where we did dried up in covid, so I found myself in the situation of having to hang around a university for an hour and a half 3 days a week - but lo and behold a fairly cheap gym 2 minutes away!

I've been doing decently well on what I jokingly call my 'video game diet' - in that I have an exercise bike in my TV room and any time I play my video game console I have to be on the exercise bike - but now that I'm fairly consistently holding steady at a good weight I like I figure I'll use the newly found gym time to add some consistency and some weightlifting, maybe try to get back to my arms looking like they did when I played football in high school.

The main problem with the video game diet is having to have a switch game I'm excited to be playing, then I'll be getting like 1-1.5hrs on the bike consistently as I work my way thru Witcher 3 or dark souls, but when I'm just going back and replaying fire emblem or stardew valley I'll just do like 30m and get bored.

"Got you, Yugi! Your Rubric Marines can't fall back because I have declared the tertiary kaptaris ka'tah stance two, after the secondary dacatarai ka'tah last turn!"

"So you think, Kaiba! I declared my Thousand Sons the cult of Duplicity, which means all my psykers have access to the Sorcerous Facade power! Furthermore I will spend 8 Cabal Points to invoke Cabbalistic Focus, causing the rubrics to appear behind your custodes! The Vengeance for the Wronged and Sorcerous Fullisade stratagems along with the Malefic Maelstrom infernal pact evoked earlier in the command phase allows me to double their firepower, letting me wound on 2s and 3s!"

"you think it is you who has gotten me, yugi, but it is I who have gotten you! I declare the ever-vigilant stratagem to attack your rubrics with my custodes' ranged weapons, which with the new codex are now DAMAGE 2!!"

"...which leads you straight into my trap, Kaiba, you see I now declare the stratagem Implacable Automata, reducing all damage from your attacks by 1 and triggering my All is Dust special rule!"  
   
Made in gb
Ridin' on a Snotling Pump Wagon






Reckon I’m now fit enough to be walking to, as well as from, the gym.

   
Made in gb
Stubborn Dark Angels Veteran Sergeant






Bit late to the party with the DOMS talk, but a qualified PT, strength and conditioning specialist and sport science lecturer here.

In theory you can train without ever getting doms and they are not required, but this is super hard to achieve and manage as everyone is different. A bit of aching from doms is fine though. It will also reduce as your body becomes more trained, the first few times it happens can be rough and it's just because you have indulged in too much volume (too many reps and/or too much weight).

My rule of thumb that I give to most people is, if you have worked them so hard your thighs are literally shaking at points from walking the day after (let alone walking up stairs or getting up off a chair), you have overdone it and should potentially take a few extra days rest from a hard session, but a bit of active recovery to get the blood flowing back into the muscles is all good and will help to recover quickly (get on a treadmill and work your way up to a brisk walk), and make sure you are absolutely hitting a good amount of protein per day, 150-180g per day at least, 200g per day till recovered ideally.

Do not Ice the muscles though, that blunts adaptation, which you want and the reason you have doms, you body is adapting with inflammation. If you ice the muscles, you will promote quicker recovery, but much less adaptation, meaning you are likely to get doms like this more often in future.

This message was edited 3 times. Last update was at 2021/09/20 18:38:20


My hobby instagram account: @the_shroud_of_vigilance
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Made in gb
Ridin' on a Snotling Pump Wagon






When it comes to weight work, I am thinking of extending my work outs to start trying to cut into my belly fat. Nothing strenuous, and won’t be using free weights.

Can anyone make sensible suggestions as to target weight, machines and set/rep stuff?

   
Made in gb
Stubborn Dark Angels Veteran Sergeant






So, weights are a lot about technique, also called form. Form comes before everything, including weight and even feeling like you have had a hard workout, e.g. you may feel like you haven't actually had a workout with just the weight movements whilst learning the lifts.

I'd start with a routine such as strong lifts 5x5 (free program) https://stronglifts.com/5x5/

It includes a comprehensive form guide, a free app still I believe etc etc.

Start literally with an empty barbell (20kg) and start adding the weight prescribed (+2.5kg, per every time you next do a movement). It includes the Squat, Deadlift (can probably be skipped if you struggle with the technique), Bench Press, Overhead Press and Pendlay Row. All doable movements. No other accessories required for a long time if you follow this program, maybe a few bicep curls if you want.

Do this first in your gym sessions, and follow your usual routine after, it will ensure you learn better form quicker if you learn the movements when fresh. Legit novice program, best way to go, and follow the program, even if it feels too easy. If you did it 3x a week, the squats go from 20kg to 50kg in a month so the weight will get up to heavy fairly quick (going from a 20kg squat to 110kg squat in just 12 weeks is nothing to be sneezed at).

Plenty of other novice plans around but I prefer 5x5 for it's simplicity and focus on technique. Once you have a grip on the movements, you can then change up the plan if desired, just to cure boredom if needed. I wouldn't switch till you can do at least 120kg squat and 70kg on the bench press to be honest though. Once you want to change the plan, there's plenty out there that have specific focusses if you know what you want.

This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2021/09/21 20:07:50


My hobby instagram account: @the_shroud_of_vigilance
My Shroud of Vigilance Hobby update blog for me detailed updates and lore on the faction:
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Made in gb
The Daemon Possessing Fulgrim's Body





Devon, UK

Targeting a problem area with specific exercise doesn't work. All you'll do if you start lifting targeting your abdominals is a six pack covered with the same amount of flab you started with.

If you want to shrink your belly then you're best off pushing your cardiovascular work out in length, but keeping the intensity mild and mitigating your calorie intake. While this will have the positive effect of overall weight loss, you won't have any say in where from, so you may find you have to lose quite a bit before your belly shrinks.

Sod's law says that the place you want to.shrink will be the last to go, but that seems true of everyone and whatever they perceive is the problem area.

For lifting the rule of thumb is it's heavy weights and low reps for growth, lighter weights and higher reps for tone, but I'd not be prepared to put numbers on that for someone I don't know. It might be worth booking a PT session with a real human and getting an educated baseline to start with.

We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't. - Frank Howard Clark

The wise man doubts often, and changes his mind; the fool is obstinate, and doubts not; he knows all things but his own ignorance.

The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense!” Professor Brian Cox

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Made in es
Inquisitorial Keeper of the Xenobanks






your mind

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
When it comes to weight work, I am thinking of extending my work outs to start trying to cut into my belly fat. Nothing strenuous, and won’t be using free weights.

Can anyone make sensible suggestions as to target weight, machines and set/rep stuff?

Having read thru the thread, noting eg your like of the alcohol…
Cut belly fat by
First off, cut all sugar.
Second, trade beer for wine preferably organic red…
Generally, do this:
Intermittent fasting/reduce meals/eat within a window of less than 6.hours per day… easiest skip breakfast in morning, eat with a 4to 6 hour window daily, eat low carb last meal if possible, higher carbs post workout better than otherwise,
In this vein, exercise fasted,
In this vein, HIIT induces hormonal changes which will cut belly fat (again, fasted),
On topic answering above question, This can be achieved with eg rowing machine, stair climber, elliptical, bike, heavy bag, sprints, others… mix it up day to day and don’t go overboard meaning you need to push yourself for sometimes literally seconds as with sprints before walking for a minute then sprinting again and so on…

Me lately I climb the bike up the next mountain a few times a day, such that by the top I am breathing about as hard as possible.
Toss in a hundred push-ups a few times a week and some band work here and there, eating basically what I want from 2 or 3 to 6 or 7 pm plus dog walking after meals (walking after meals is very important) and yeah, getting back after two years locked down in very unfavourable downright depressing unhealthy conditions,

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2021/09/21 20:24:40


   
Made in us
Regular Dakkanaut





What Jeff mentions above is basically 100 percent what i have done the last couple months to drop around 30lbs aside from the HIIT which I have not yet added but plan to.
   
Made in gb
Ridin' on a Snotling Pump Wagon






I’m not dropping the beer! No way! If it helps, it’s not Lager, but Cask Ale. I’ve never developed a taste for any wine outside of cookery, and not about to start now.

I have however seriously cut down. Not only am I big fella, but I’ve always had a high alcohol tolerance. That lead to…..unintended quantities. And boredom lead to unintended frequencies. Though I must stress not a dependency. Even when the depression has kicked in, I can take or leave it.

I now pub no more than three times a week, start later, and don’t stay until closing.

But anyways, that’s a fat old no to giving up beer.

I don’t need or want to get ripped. I just want to turn my belly into muscle, or get it toned up.

   
Made in gb
The Daemon Possessing Fulgrim's Body





Devon, UK

https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/alcohol-support/calories-in-alcohol/


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Again, to emphasise, you do not turn fat into muscle. Your muscles are already there, you need there to be less fat so you can see them.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2021/09/21 21:36:03


We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't. - Frank Howard Clark

The wise man doubts often, and changes his mind; the fool is obstinate, and doubts not; he knows all things but his own ignorance.

The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense!” Professor Brian Cox

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Another reason I’ve cut down

   
Made in gb
The Daemon Possessing Fulgrim's Body





Devon, UK

As long as you realise that your "cut down" is still going to be in most people's "frequent" and set your expectations accordingly.

We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't. - Frank Howard Clark

The wise man doubts often, and changes his mind; the fool is obstinate, and doubts not; he knows all things but his own ignorance.

The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense!” Professor Brian Cox

Ask me about
Barnstaple Slayers Club 
   
Made in gb
Ridin' on a Snotling Pump Wagon






Indeedy. Can always cut it down further.

   
Made in gb
Decrepit Dakkanaut




UK

I think unless you are in a medically dangerous situation (at which point you get professional advice from a trained medical people not randoms on the net) then making a series of smaller staged changes has a greater potential to help than one big change.

Again its back to making those small sustained changes instead of just huge swings where you make a big change, see a result, but then ease off and lose those results.



I'm not against big changes, where they are sensible, like dropping all alcohol and such. However I think for many people, unless you get a big motivational shock or similar, then its easier to sustain a change when it comes in smaller steps.

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Shadowy Grot Kommittee Memba






Personally in terms of exercise and losing weight I honestly do not feel like the exercise helps me quite as much as the feeling of having a routine and having something I'm actively working towards. If the calorie-counts on the exercise machines are to be believed (and i am somewhat skeptical of them) my 1.5hr exercise routine with 1hr of cardio in there I'm only actually burning 400-ish calories. 1 beer I dont drink or 1 meal I cut out meat from gives me nearly the exact same benefit. IDK if the half hour of muscle training is doing anything, I'm not an exerciseologist but it does I guess make sense that if you keep your muscles sore and repairing you get some kinda benefit in terms of building up less fat because the nutrients gotta go somewhere.

And to echo what others have said - the idea that you can 'target' specific areas to burn off fat is kind of just fake nonsense. The best thing you can do if you have a typical 'problem area' like a big gut (which is what I've always kind of had going on, even when I was at my absolute fittest in high school doing varsity sports) is just to build some muscle in other areas to increase proportionality.

If your chest, shoulders, and leg muscles are in decent shape and suitably big, a beer belly will stand out a whole lot less. Cardio is for your health, weights are for your ego. Dont take that the wrong way though, that's an important part!

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2021/09/22 16:43:14


"Got you, Yugi! Your Rubric Marines can't fall back because I have declared the tertiary kaptaris ka'tah stance two, after the secondary dacatarai ka'tah last turn!"

"So you think, Kaiba! I declared my Thousand Sons the cult of Duplicity, which means all my psykers have access to the Sorcerous Facade power! Furthermore I will spend 8 Cabal Points to invoke Cabbalistic Focus, causing the rubrics to appear behind your custodes! The Vengeance for the Wronged and Sorcerous Fullisade stratagems along with the Malefic Maelstrom infernal pact evoked earlier in the command phase allows me to double their firepower, letting me wound on 2s and 3s!"

"you think it is you who has gotten me, yugi, but it is I who have gotten you! I declare the ever-vigilant stratagem to attack your rubrics with my custodes' ranged weapons, which with the new codex are now DAMAGE 2!!"

"...which leads you straight into my trap, Kaiba, you see I now declare the stratagem Implacable Automata, reducing all damage from your attacks by 1 and triggering my All is Dust special rule!"  
   
Made in gb
The Daemon Possessing Fulgrim's Body





Devon, UK

Resistance training does burn calories, but the longer term benefit is that muscles are expensive, metabolically speaking. So if you grow your muscle mass, the number of calories you burn simply sitting on your arse (BMR, base metabolic rate) increases.

That's why you see strength athletes eating many times the standard recommended daily amount of calories, they not only have to feed their gains, but they have to maintain what they have and not have the body start to break it back down for energy.

Most people (me included) won't want to make the sacrifices needed to build those sorts of gains, and if there's a lot to lose then diet is still the best option, but if you can train your body to burn an extra 10% every day, it can help support weight loss or make it easier to avoid putting it back on.

We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't. - Frank Howard Clark

The wise man doubts often, and changes his mind; the fool is obstinate, and doubts not; he knows all things but his own ignorance.

The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense!” Professor Brian Cox

Ask me about
Barnstaple Slayers Club 
   
Made in gb
Ridin' on a Snotling Pump Wagon






You know, I’m fully up on the whole “men need 2,500 calories a day” thing in terms of watching your intake.

But what I don’t know, and have admittedly never really looked into? Is what level of activity that recommended intake assumes.

I know it also fluctuates from person to person based on their size (for instance, I’m 6’2”, so would likely need a higher daily intake than someone say, 5’4”), and how much it might fluctuate.

It’s not something I feel confident Googling, as there are too many woo peddlers out there for my limited knowledge to be able to safely identify.

   
Made in gb
Decrepit Dakkanaut




UK

See I think the only way to get viable advice like that is talking to an actual doctor and having them check you out and talk about how you live.

The "general" guidelines are pretty much just that. Heck the body mass index (BMI) basically only works for a certain type of person - anyone doing a lot of physical activity often ranks higher than they should.



The variations are huge and many times trying to stick to one very specific generalist theory can end up messing you up because you're aiming for things that might not suit your lifestyle and body.

There are bits you can pick up on to generally eat, live and be healthier. Beyond that I think you really need to talk to professionals who also need details on your body to really start to get to grips with the ins and the outs of what will work for you.



It can also hinge on what you want for yourself. When you aren't in medical danger zones (ergo the extremes) then a part of what defines what exercise and diet works for you, is the lifestyle and activities that are part of or that you want to be part of your life.
Some of these might be very specific goals, others might just be more general.

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I was measuring my heart rate last time on the treadmill, and whilst it could of course be better, it was comfortably within normal for my age range.

I was genuinely surprised given my admitted unhealthy lifestyle!

   
 
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