Fitness |OT| A New Era Begins

HammerOfThor · Mar 25, 2020

I bought a few kettlebells. I'm trying to learn swings. These are so hard, probably because I'm activating muscles I've never otherwise used and instinctively want to use my arms, not my hips. Cleans have been easy to learn so far.

I'm using these two videos as guides:

The yoga stretch he does and the wall squats are painful lol

Using the pole to keep my back straight has been extremely helpful.

Psychotext · Mar 25, 2020

I'm really, really, really hoping that I'm well enough to do an exercise session tomorrow.

I wouldn't care if I only use like 40% of my max HR... I just really need to do something to feel better.

Temascos · Mar 25, 2020

I can't even work up a sweat in strength training, I want it to happen but it's just not clicking with me. Burpees, jumping jacks, planks, you name it and I feel completely unproductive doing it.

jvalioli · Mar 25, 2020

Temascos said:
I can't even work up a sweat in strength training, I want it to happen but it's just not clicking with me. Burpees, jumping jacks, planks, you name it and I feel completely unproductive doing it.

Burpees and jumping jacks aren't really strength training movements. I only sweat during lower body hypertrophy training.

Mobius and Pet Octopus · Mar 25, 2020

I would not consider sweat as a good marker for intensity, because I can certainly sweat while doing burpees but they do not creation enough tension to be considered a good strength training movement.

leder · Mar 25, 2020

Just started having some pain that feels like a strain in the middle of my bicep. When I try to google bicep strain I only get results for elbow and shoulder tendon tears. Anyone ever experienced this before? I'm guessing it'll be fine in a week or so with rest and ice?

ArkhamFantasy · Mar 25, 2020

Temascos said:
I can't even work up a sweat in strength training, I want it to happen but it's just not clicking with me. Burpees, jumping jacks, planks, you name it and I feel completely unproductive doing it.

Whenever i was doing my standard 3x8 with 3 minutes of rest in between i wouldn't sweat either. When i switched to a program that revolved around a circuit with 30-60 seconds of rest i would sweat alot.

Oliver James · Mar 25, 2020

jvalioli said:
Even during normal times you can exercise too much. This reads to me like you shouldn't be exhausted all the time, should drink water and sleep a lot. All of those things are also true for strength and hypertrophy training. I think the 45 minutes for 3 days is an arbitrary number since every person has a unique work capacity.

The only thing is it says you should be focused on strength maintenance. I'm not Dr so I don't know anything about that. I doubt even if I was trying I could gain any strength without real equipment anyway.

Yeah, that's my takeaway from it, that one should maintain whatever they have and not exert too much or one could have their immune system compromised. Not really sure about gaining strength without real equipment because bodyweight is a thing.

CherryWoodFuton said:
The

RPE (rate of perceived exertion) is a pretty good tool to gauge when you are accumulating the right amount of fatigue. For those that know the scale, an RPE range of 6-8 is ideal especially for us that don't have access to a barbell/dumbbells, pull ip bar, etc

I'll look into that, thanks!

jvalioli · Mar 25, 2020

Oliver James said:
Yeah, that's my takeaway from it, that one should maintain whatever they have and not exert too much or one could have their immune system compromised. Not really sure about gaining strength without real equipment because bodyweight is a thing.
I'll look into that, thanks!

Sorry, the strength comment was about myself and not in general. Since I train powerlifting I really only care about strength in the 1-3 rep range and there really aren't good bodyweight routines that will mimic deadlifting enough to keep my numbers up. I'll at the very least lose the mechanics of those movements and will have to retrain them. Shouldn't take too long tho as long as I don't lose any muscle mass.

Fwiw I don't know your level of experience but RPE can be very hard to gauge properly for beginners.

Laver · Mar 26, 2020

Poland is under curfewsince Monday. I can't train outdoors anymore, which means I can't train muscle-ups. The goal was to do 5 in one set on my birthday in June, now I have to kiss that goal goodbye.

jvalioli said:
Sorry, the strength comment was about myself and not in general. Since I train powerlifting I really only care about strength in the 1-3 rep range and there really aren't good bodyweight routines that will mimic deadlifting enough to keep my numbers up. I'll at the very least lose the mechanics of those movements and will have to retrain them. Shouldn't take too long tho as long as I don't lose any muscle mass.

Interesting. What hinge exercise are you doing in the meantime?

Fwiw I don't know your level of experience but RPE can be very hard to gauge properly for beginners.

Not only that but things like recovery are a very individual thing that you have to figure out for yourself. Eg. I can't do full body workouts 3 times a week as 48 hours is not enough time for my joints to recover. I tried it several times in the past and I always got joint aches after 2 weeks. With split programs, I have to work out more frequently (4-6 times a week), but I always give myself at least 72 hours before repeating the same exercise which allows to me push myself way harder and is sustainable long-term. However, there are people who can do full body workouts 3 times a week just fine.

CherryWoodFuton · Mar 26, 2020

For those who don't want to fuck with RPE 2 reps until failure should be a good enough stimulus for bodyweight exercises

TurtleSnatcher · Mar 26, 2020

jvalioli said:
Burpees and jumping jacks aren't really strength training movements. I only sweat during lower body hypertrophy training.

Same here. I only sweat during lower body training. Never any upper body work.

jvalioli · Mar 26, 2020

Laver said:
Interesting. What hinge exercise are you doing in the meantime

Banded deadlifts
Banded hip thrusts
Banded hip pull through things. Forget what the actual name for this is
Banded single leg RDLs
Single leg heel touches
Sprinter lunges

I normally deadlift twice a week. High volume in the 300-350lb range and singles to triples in the 400-500lb range. Hip thrusts for volume once a week in the 400-450lb range.

sixteen-bit · Mar 28, 2020

If you own a pair of those Bowflex selecttech adjustable dumbells, they're selling for like $800-$1200 on eBay now. I'm thinking about dumping mine and just re-buying whenever they get back in stock at retail...

The gyms being closed and the scam buyer horror stories are the only things making me reconsider.

Psychotext · Mar 28, 2020

Makes me laugh, I have a comically good home gym... that I can't currently use because I'm still too sick to work out. lol

Mobius and Pet Octopus · Mar 28, 2020

I am hoping gyms reopen soon. While I am enjoying my current routine, I want to get back in the gym anyway. Plus, I had some work opportunity set aside because of all these closings... really shitty.

ArkhamFantasy · Mar 28, 2020

Best to plan for gyms to be closed for another 3 months at least.

DvdGzz · Mar 28, 2020

Lost another 5 pounds since this started. Reduced calories to about 2300 from 2800 since I can't lift no heavy ass weight. Pushups, pike pushups, pullups, single leg squats, and taking my dog for walks is all the exercise I get now. Miss deadlifts.

TurtleSnatcher · Mar 28, 2020

Yeah - I'm down about 2 lbs as I've been locked in for about 2.5 weeks.

I don't expect gyms to be open for another few months.

Tuorom · Mar 28, 2020

Y'all should go for a walk and come back with a nice boulder! Tough on the forearm skin though haha

jvalioli said:
Banded deadlifts
Banded hip thrusts
Banded hip pull through things. Forget what the actual name for this is
Banded single leg RDLs
Single leg heel touches
Sprinter lunges

I normally deadlift twice a week. High volume in the 300-350lb range and singles to triples in the 400-500lb range. Hip thrusts for volume once a week in the 400-450lb range.

Have you ever done nordic ham curls?

jvalioli · Mar 28, 2020

Tuorom said:
Y'all should go for a walk and come back with a nice boulder! Tough on the forearm skin though haha

Have you ever done nordic ham curls?

I have not done those but I do bridge curls on the floor. Not sure which is more difficult. What do you use to weigh down your feet when doing Nordic ham curls at home?

Tuorom · Mar 28, 2020

jvalioli said:
I have not done those but I do bridge curls on the floor. Not sure which is more difficult. What do you use to weigh down your feet when doing Nordic ham curls at home?

Nordic ham curls are much more difficult than bridge curls. Most people only do it eccentrically because the concentric portion is very hard.

You'd need something heavy and that wouldn't move. Perhaps a barbell and some chops to prevent rolling, a solid, low railing, if you can slide your feet under something raised....

tellNoel · Mar 29, 2020

Glad to see i'm not the only one that doesn't sweat during most of my workouts. I always found that to be weird, but i've been making gains, so hey, whatever lol

Adventureracing · Mar 29, 2020

I think I'll use this time to focus on cardio a lot more.

Deleted member 29280 · Mar 29, 2020

Greasing the groove with chin ups going good since i installed a pull up bar a couple weeks ago.

In January I struggled to do 1 perfect chin/pull up with full rom. Now i can do 3 dead hang chin ups as my max when im fresh and it seems to be really blowing up my biceps and forearms.

Important to note im more overweight (fat) than i want to be, 5'10 male and 200lbs so I consider this huge progress.

Yesterday I done 22 reps of chins in total which is probably the most i ever done in a day. For the most part I was doing 2 consecutive reps per set but i think that's too close to failure for GTG training at the moment, my arms are sore today haha. Going to go back to 1 rep with rest in between and that should spare some fatigue and DOMS on my arms.

Mobius and Pet Octopus said:
I would not consider sweat as a good marker for intensity, because I can certainly sweat while doing burpees but they do not creation enough tension to be considered a good strength training movement.

As Pavel Tsatsouline would say, do not confuse strength training with conditioning/endurance training. If the goal is to get as strong as possible then having a constantly elevated heart rate isnt necessary in the slightest as resting longer in between sets of lower reps (1-5) of relatively heavy lifts is better for strength training.

I prefer to keep them separate to get the maximum benefits of each. But you can also become a freak beast like Brian Alsruhe and do giant sets with everything (something like pullups to deadlifts to barbell rows to burpees, etc)

rokkerkory · Mar 29, 2020

Definitely feeling less strong with all this focus on hiits. Oh wells, get a head start on leaning i guess.

Mobius and Pet Octopus · Mar 29, 2020

Nature said:
As Pavel Tsatsouline would say, do not confuse strength training with conditioning/endurance training. If the goal is to get as strong as possible then having a constantly elevated heart rate isnt necessary in the slightest as resting longer in between sets of lower reps (1-5) of heavy weight is better for strength training.

I prefer to keep them separate to get the maximum benefits of each. But you can also become a freak beast like Brian Alsruhe and do giant giants with deadlifts and squats.

That is pretty much my point. Strength/hypertrophy gains are about progressive overload/time under tension. Burpees, for most people and especially trained, will not promote much strength gains but is excellent for mitochondrial/energy improvements which to be fair can assist strength training.

Deleted member 29280 · Mar 29, 2020

EDIT: Does anyone know if there's any evidence to the idea that running fasted (as in the morning) creates protein/muscle breakdown?

Mobius and Pet Octopus said:
That is pretty much my point. Strength/hypertrophy gains are about progressive overload/time under tension. Burpees, for most people and especially trained, will not promote much strength gains but is excellent for mitochondrial/energy improvements which to be fair can assist strength training.

True. If you can afford them id switch exercises like burpees out for heavy kettlebell swings... which give you similar cardio conditioning while developing some real strength in your grip, lower back, hips, glutes etc. it's one of the best bang for your buck exercises.

ArkhamFantasy · Mar 30, 2020

Nature said:
EDIT: Does anyone know if there's any evidence to the idea that running fasted (as in the morning) creates protein/muscle breakdown?

Most everything points towards the time of training/eating isn't going to make much of a difference, if at all. It's what you're doing/eating that matters.

DvdGzz · Mar 30, 2020

I figured out some ways to keep the weight heavy to avoid muscle loss. Dips between two chairs, one-armed chest pressed off an arm of the couch, pullups with and without a 25 pound dumbbell between my ankles, one legged squats while holding a dumbbell in one hand(working on balance but you can use your other hand to steady yourself on couch or wall.), and stacking a couple dumbbells and doing one armed shoulder presses(heaviest I own are 25s). I also own a 13 pound weighted vest that has been helping.

Psychotext · Mar 30, 2020

Nature said:
EDIT: Does anyone know if there's any evidence to the idea that running fasted (as in the morning) creates protein/muscle breakdown?

Have a scroll through these: https://suppversity.blogspot.com/search/label/fasted cardio

Deleted member 27765 · Mar 30, 2020

Gym equipment is worth more than gold right now. I sold a bunch of stuff I wasn't even using for 2-3 times what I paid.

Mobius and Pet Octopus · Mar 30, 2020

Nature said:
EDIT: Does anyone know if there's any evidence to the idea that running fasted (as in the morning) creates protein/muscle breakdown?

I think all exercise is going to cause some muscle protein breakdown. But then you eventually eat and have elevated muscle protein synthesis that should exceed the breakdown. As long as you eat enough protein, your MPS should exceed MPB.

Deleted member 29280 · Mar 30, 2020

Thanks for the replies. So fasted cardio in the AM is fine, drinking a scoop of whey beforehand may be better? I can handle fasted cardio much more than I can if i eat even an hour beforehand.

I'm going to start getting doing some jogging up to 5-6 days a week again ontop of strength training/intermittent fasting to help me breakthrough this fat loss plateau. Every time in my life that I lost significant body fat its because i did a lot of running while my diet was atleast decent, sometimes in spite of a shitty diet.

TheHyeOne said:
Gym equipment is worth more than gold right now. I sold a bunch of stuff I wasn't even using for 2-3 times what I paid.

A couple months ago I was trying to sell a pair of adjustable dumbbells and all I could get was people trying to buy them off of me for half of what i was asking lol

PoppaBK · Mar 30, 2020

DvdGzz said:
I figured out some ways to keep the weight heavy to avoid muscle loss. Dips between two chairs, one-armed chest pressed off an arm of the couch, pullups with and without a 25 pound dumbbell between my ankles, one legged squats while holding a dumbbell in one hand(working on balance but you can use your other hand to steady yourself on couch or wall.), and stacking a couple dumbbells and doing one armed shoulder presses(heaviest I own are 25s). I also own a 13 pound weighted vest that has been helping.

Yeah weighted pull-ups are the one exercise where I feel like I can max out on a 'big' exercise with the stuff I have at home. I use a rugged back pack for the weights.

EssBeeVee · Mar 30, 2020

managed to get some resistance bands off amazon. not the same ones i had years ago but this will do as they offer lifetime warranty (either signals its cheap and will give me a huge welt or they are confident).

we'll see.

i have these 40" or so bands i can do some body workout as well. the ones you really use for lifting and such but they are so versatile enough for non weights.

Tuorom · Mar 30, 2020

Nature said:
EDIT: Does anyone know if there's any evidence to the idea that running fasted (as in the morning) creates protein/muscle breakdown?

ArkhamFantasy said:
Most everything points towards the time of training/eating isn't going to make much of a difference, if at all. It's what you're doing/eating that matters.

True but your body is always working. Doing fasted cardio will likely lead to catabolism as your body is looking for things to use as energy or building material.

I doubt it is a big deal though as Mobius said, if you're eating enough there will be material to offset the loss (which probably isn't anything to worry about to begin with unless you're a top tier athlete).

Here's an article (keep in mind T-Nation is most concerned with competition for the most part):
https://www.t-nation.com/training/fasted-cardio-roundtable

TLDR

Fasted cardio is good when:
- your goal is body comp change; lose fat/weight (diet is still king)
- is not strenuous ie. is easy (walking) so it uses the oxidative energy system (which uses fat as energy)
- you use it for recovery purposes

Psychotext · Mar 30, 2020

Tuorom said:
Fasted cardio is good when:
- your goal is body comp change; lose fat/weight (diet is still king)

Just to note, there are very few studies that back that up. In fact, every single one I've seen recently points to no significant difference in body composition.

Mobius and Pet Octopus · Mar 30, 2020

I would love to see a RCT on a fat adapted athlete body recomp following a ketogenic or low carb diet (for at least 3 months minimum) that utilizes fasted exercise. I think a problem with these fasted exercise trials is that it takes time to become adapted to it and if they are too short they are really just measuring an adaptation period. If someone is struggling with performance of cardio during a fasted state, they are simply not fat adapted. Increased fat oxidation means very little if the fats are not being utilized well. There is just no profit reason to prove that fasted cardio works because you cannot sell a preworkout supplement for fasting ;)

Laver · Mar 30, 2020

DvdGzz said:
I figured out some ways to keep the weight heavy to avoid muscle loss. Dips between two chairs, one-armed chest pressed off an arm of the couch, pullups with and without a 25 pound dumbbell between my ankles, one legged squats while holding a dumbbell in one hand(working on balance but you can use your other hand to steady yourself on couch or wall.), and stacking a couple dumbbells and doing one armed shoulder presses(heaviest I own are 25s). I also own a 13 pound weighted vest that has been helping.

I'd advise you to do bodyweight pistol squats until you get the balance and form right. You will not develop the proper sense of balance and the required strength in stabilizing muscles if you keep doing hand assisted squats.
These two videos might be helpful:

The Complete Pistol Squat Checklist | No Mistakes!

Big Legs, No Weights:👉 https://limitlesslegs.comFollow Me: https://www.instagram.com/FitnessFAQshttps://www.facebook.com/FitnessFAQsThis video by FitnessFAQ...

www.youtube.com

How To Pistol Squat | Calisthenics Routine (Follow Along)

𝐃𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐀𝐩𝐩 👉 https://www.saturnomovement.com⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ────────────────── ⋅☉⋅ ────────────────── ⋅ ⋅ ⋅The Pistol Squat is without a doubt one...

www.youtube.com

In any case, if you bite the bullet and commit to learning the pistol squat it shouldn't take too long provided you have the ankle mobility (it took me personally 4 days or 3 training sessions, but YMMV).

Mobius and Pet Octopus · Mar 30, 2020

I get why it is called a pistol squat now. You make a pistol with your hand at the bottom.

Laver · Mar 30, 2020

Mobius and Pet Octopus said:
I get why it is called a pistol squat now. You make a pistol with your hand at the bottom.

Haha the idea is to keep your hands steady throughout the movement. That way you don't create momentum by waiving your hands. It also makes the exercise slightly easier as it shifts the center of mass slightly forward (weighted pistol squats with weights in extended hands are even easier for that reason).

cheebdragonite · Mar 30, 2020

Oh man, I can't even keep my leg straight during a pistol squat. It's a lot harder than it looks. 0_0

Anyway, parks just closed in my county earlier, so no pull-ups unless I buy a bar, and I was looking forward to using my wooden rings too. :( I may just keep using my bands and do lat pull-downs instead.

Mobius and Pet Octopus · Mar 31, 2020

I think I am getting close to ending my bulk. I will be doing a fairly low cut afterwards, focusing more on swapping out fat for protein than a deep caloric restriction. Part of me wants to do a steep cut and the other wants to do a small cut and just have it last longer. I think I will do a longer cut with less of a deficit considering the whole virus situation as it will be easier with less potential stress.

Zojirushi · Mar 31, 2020

That Athlean X Full Body workout is totally fucking me up lol

Edit: I meant the "Perfect Home Workout" thing.

ArkhamFantasy · Mar 31, 2020

Zojirushi said:
That Athlean X Full Body workout is totally fucking me up lol

I'm fortunate enough to have a home gym and i'm doing his max size program, it's awesome.

Jason's Ultimatum · Mar 31, 2020

My gym closed until 5/1 for now. I was getting stronger at the gym thanks to my 5/3/1 incorporated reps/sets into my program. I think I'm going to buy resistance bands this weekend. So high rep burn outs unto failure for all body parts.

Oliver James · Mar 31, 2020

I don't have Athlean's Xero so I'm just using Ring Fit. Well at least we'll see if this thing actually works or not.

I Don't Like · Mar 31, 2020

Anyone have one of the cheap indoor bikes? Need a folding one and looking at these two:

Amazon.com : Exerpeutic Folding Magnetic Upright Exercise Bike with Pulse : Exercise Bikes : Sports & Outdoors

www.amazon.com

Amazon.com : ATIVAFIT Stationary Exercise Bike Magnetic Upright Bike Monitor with Phone Holder, High Backrest, Adjustable Resistance Band for Arm & Leg : Sports & Outdoors

www.amazon.com

Don't see much of a difference except first one has more reviews, costs more and will take longer for delivery, so I'm kind of leaning to the cheaper second option. I'm not ready to buy a real indoor bike (my place is small) but this would be perfect. Just found out we're remote working at least through April and I want to add to my limited home workout equipment. Plus I can stick this out on the balcony on nice days as it's getting warm again.

Tuorom · Apr 1, 2020

https://www.t-nation.com/training/the-best-damn-no-weights-workout

Something to think about or add to your home routine