i only eat organic peanut butter

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Oh okay. Just thought I'd mention it cuz I know you like pb.

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smuckers creamy organic ftw

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Good thing you don't eat Peter Pan, you may have gotten salmonella poisoning

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Will do, thanks!


Bought a 20kg dumbbell set. Was going to buy 50kg dumbbell + bar set, but it was $100 more and I couldn't carry it.

So I just been doing arms, almost everyday, with little gain so far.

Checking out bodybuilding.com for exercises that do my shoulders with just dumbbells... My shoulders are freakishly skinny.

lol that shit only matters if youre 2 or 82

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You get pretty damn sick, you just don't get fatally injured.

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yeah sure *eats cookie dough*

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Ignorance of youth.

I'm amazed how the little bit of non-gym related working out I do and better body form has eased my snow shovelling skills. I just have to watch keeping the air warm or my asthma does it's dance. The first shovelling got my stomach feeling butterflies which was really weird, but the next day when I did it I was fine. Hubby said he got the same feelings after he shovelled, but he messed up his back for awhile.
Walking in the yard through 3 feet of snow is also a fun workout.

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Haha yeah

That new Y opens today I believe, why not start up again eh?

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Im almost able to do front squats with the weightlifter grip now. I should be good in a few weeks, no more crossed arms front squats!

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Use grips (or hand towels, or a couple of pieces of rope) to hold the bar until you get used to clean grip. It's a good thing to learn.

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Thanks, I'll try that until I get the hang of the grip.

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Your shoulder position is where it's at for learning clean grip. Drive your elbows up and get comfortable in the hole, and it'll all just magically come together. Front squats are lovely like that... fuck up too much and the bar will drop and smash you in the knees. Great learning curve, that.

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I seem to have no problem at all with getting my left elbow high enough, while my right is way to low. I also have real inflexible wrists, which doesn't exactly make the situation better. Im working on that though.

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Wow, this guy's got some muscles and talent. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7IG4i03WZk
Somehow I can't picture any of you doing it, but I guess that's a good thing.

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Jesus woman, watch the damn thing for more than 10 seconds and you'll realise it's a muscle suit. That's this mad ugly Russian.

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Really? WAY TO RUIN A FANTASY!!!! Bitch.

He looks better without the suit. It still looks like he's got a nice taper to his upper body.

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I want to do this to you so very, very much.

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Yeah, I prefer to compare myself to Chuck Liddell since I can punch like he can.

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fbs-- You would not. You'd have to touch me if you did that. Silly guy.

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Cro Cop.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZhsm-IAeuo

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I got my max bench up to 285lbs now. Not too bad for weighing only 180lbs.

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has everyone been slacking off? i had to go back to find this thread.

walked mostly..but jogged a good bit of it..a total of 6.25 miles. i'm never doing that again unless i'm wearing some thick or brand new socks! i have a few blisters on each foot now..was really fun on the way back.

haha damn that sucks

I haven't been to pt since i fucked up my hip. I'll be there monday but i'm gonna be "light duty" and not do anything. Most definitely my last time there. I'm going to tell my O recruiter i'm not doing it, and if he doesn't want to comprimise and see my point, i'll tell him i'm done.

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Gotta love how this thread pops up every other month.

I hope to be able to pushpress my bodyweight this year. Would be pretty cool.

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i have petered out on lifting because im not dedicated enough to take anything to the next level. im basically resting on my laurels now, same routine, etc. everyone else in my area who used to lift stopped going to the gym all together , save the execrator...so i guess im doing better than that.

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I had a physical last week and have gained about 5 pounds. I already started walking more regularly again just recently, but the weight gain and an upcoming cholesterol test are getting me remotivated.

Plus I've got Bob home now and he cleared out the gym equipment so it's accessible in the garage now. Cool.

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Not really. I'm still working out 5 days a week plus lots of long distance walking and power/speed walking. I'm just not at a point where I have anything significant to add to the thread. FBS basically keeps this going because he is about as much an expert in fitness as Mark O'Shea is an expert of snakes. I'm just a regular guy who works out a lot, as are most of the other people in this thread that work out on a regular basis.

If he wants to get off his fat ass and post something new for us to read, I'm game.

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Well at least it's better than quitting altogether

I'm about ready to quit smoking, I've been smoking 2 packs a day for almost a year now. I took about a 2 mile walk through the wet-assed snow today and was like, "why the fuck can't I get any oxygen??"

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well if anyone can do it cold chicken, its you



in sam news- fuck the exercise bike, im all about running/eliptical from now on.

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That is an excellent, excellent goal.

For the uninformed:

A push press is an overhead press where you slightly 'dip' under the bar when you push it out overhead. It's essentially halfway between an overhead press and a jerk.

Overhead press vs. Jerk.

(Note that the above video is a CLEAN and jerk - a clean gets the bar to your shoulders, the jerk puts it overhead. Also note that I haven't discussed the military press - that's a seated overhead press.)

Hence, a push press looks like this. Screaming like a bitch and not being able to rack the weight is optional.

There are lots and lots of reasons I like this lift.

1) Weight used. Because it's easier than a strict military press, you get a much heavier negative when the weight comes down. Done for reps, it pigfucks the triceps.

2) Core pressure. Anything that puts a heavy weight overhead teaches you how to pressurise your torso properly. This is absolutely and completely necessary for squatting and deadlifting properly.

3) Learning curve. It's easier to learn than a full-blown olympic weightlifting jerk, which has some technical aspects that you should learn from a good coach.

4) Much nicer to the shoulders than bench pressing. Dear God, I fucking HATE the bench press. It's responsible for more busted shoulders than every other movement put together. The push press has a fairly similar training effect, and you're much less likely to develop a chronic injury.

5) Safety first. What, a huge fucking bar going up over your head is SAFE? Yes, it damn well is. The first natural reaction when you don't think you have control of a push press rep is to either 1) lower the weight or 2) push it away from you. It's especially safe if you have rubber 'bumper' plates, because then you know it's perfectly OK to drop the weight.

6) Very forgiving movement when your form becomes loose. When you feel yourself starting to miss reps, you can always dip a little lower under the bar, 'cheat' a little more safely. Compare this to cheating on a bent-over row, where you start to flex your lower back... ugh. Fuck that shit.

7) Good 'real world' movement. I noticed a long time ago that movements where the body is standing and free of any surrounding equipment most often have better training effects, especially for people training specifically for sports (i.e. deadlift > squat, BO row > machine row/T-bar, chins > pulldowns, push press > military press)

8) It feels cool.

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Yeah, Pushpress is great stuff.
I used to do seated presses. When I converted to strict standing press and later pushpress, I remember how I almost fell over several times. Having to actually stand up straight with a weight overhead was fucking brutal at first. Now, I could never go back. Doing them seated may give you strong shoulders and triceps, but overall you'll still be a pussy if your torso can't support shit.

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for now, i'm just working on losing my beer gut and dropping off extra pounds. once i get in shape or at least not so chunky, then i'll start working on weight training and whatnot.

I've got a new training rep that uses no wieghts at all. 100 hindu squats, 50 hindu push ups, 100 various set ups, 20 back bridges and 25 normal push ups. really kicks the shit out of you

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I have a couple of questions. Since I'm in the poorhouse, I can't afford to either go to the gym or buy a rack. Because of that, it is necessary for me to clean & jerk before I start my overhead presses. Is it healthy to have to do the clean & jerk every time I start a new set?

Another question. A lot of times when I do overhead presses, instead of pushing the bar up in front of my face on the way up, I work from behind my neck/head and up. I do this because I feel a lot more in my pecs when I press in front of my face, and I feel it would be more prudent to work on some muscle groups in my back and shoulders as opposed to my pecs. I have a feeling I probably shouldn't be doing it that way because I've never heard of anyone else doing it that way. Is this something you would verbally shit on me for doing?

Last question(s). How much more difficult would a clean & jerk into a set of 10 overhead presses be than a set of 10 push presses given the same weight? Would it be more difficult at all?

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What the shit? Healthy? Of course it's healthy. Cleans rule.



I don't like behind-the-neck presses, but there's nothing inherently wrong with them. Some people love them, in my experience usually short-limbed bastards.



Push press is noticably easier than a clean + strict press. (So generally you'd use more weight for a push press... which negates the question.)



So does being smashed over the bridge of the nose repeatedly with a four-by-two. A program like that won't be much help for long without new movements or weights.

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no but increasing it every week until being able to do 500 hindu squats in 13 minutes. This also the excerises that the USA army does

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Doing 500 of pretty much anything will result in endurance and pain tolerance, probably not much else.

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thats what it does builds up endurance and works the lower body

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Ive lost 12 pounds since joining a gym in february.
I found a collar bone!

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That's great! Congrats!

I stretched to lift my portable sewing machine yesterday and then it got caught on a box beside it. I was stranded midair holding it for a few moments while I felt my back doing something it shouldn't. It hurt up the left side of my back and rear end and down the front of my leg. It's better today than yesterday, but it hurts when I move too much. I felt like such a dumbass when I did it. walpurgis is said he'd take me to the doc if I think I need to. He's such a sweetie.

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Today's unknown exercise technique: short bar bending

This is about the most fun you can have with your clothes on, and is up there with tearing phonebooks and packs of cards for me. As the name might imply, short bar bending means you take a small piece of steel, wrap it up, and bend the little fucker.

I've been bending for about 9 months now, and besides a few minor injuries, it's been all peaches. I have a half-bucket full of busted pieces of steel that were previously straight. Hooray!

GRIPFAQ on bending
David Horne talks bending
The GripBoard - the world's best bending resource
This silly bastard is totally obsessed with bending

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so you're a bender huh?

so i'm 5'9" about 195 lbs and have a nice beer gut. i've been walking with light jogging/running (still trying to get used to the whole exercise thing again) and i'm following this guide i got for naval ocs. which has various increments of building up your walking into running longer and longer distances. http://www.nsgreatlakes.navy.mil/ot...al_training.htm that should be a link to the guid they have posted. its a pdf. since i hadn't run at all in the last 9 weeks or whatever it asks..i started at the bottom of the chart which is walking 2 miles in 32 minutes 3 times a week. before that i walked 5 miles one day and 6 another with a little jogging here and there until i was almost gasping for air. after that it goes to walking 3 miles in 48 minutes, then it really starts moving up (i forget what it is though..i just know they give you less time to do the same..i'm thinking 3 miles in 25 minutes or something)

my question is..being the slight tub of lard that i am, should i just go with this, or should i just run for longer periods of time to burn more fat or what? i guess i should just go longer to burn more fat and whatnot..but i'm not very knowledgable about this stuff. i figure the whole running thing would be that much easier if i wasn't so hefty. so maybe i should focus on something more geared towards losing weight, then get into the conditioning for ocs?

thanks.

edit...also, should i completely give up drinking beers such as stouts, porters, various ales, etc. if i hope to get things swinging in the right direction? or do you think i would be able to keep losing weight and still enjoy some fine beers from time to time. i just don't know how bad for you they are in regards to losing weight, and it could be like swimming against the current.

Read your naval program thing, hated it. It's designed to prepare you for entry into the services, which is a very different thing to dropping fat.

I've said this many, many times and it's still true - short intense interval exercise should be your best friend. An easy protocol:

1) Find a wide open space.
2) Run hard for 15-20 sec
3) Slow down, walk 45-60 sec
4) Do it again, 12 times
5) Die

"But surely that's not long enough, not hard enough, wah wah wah..." Try it.

High intensity interval training - read about it.

Fat loss is largely dietary. Clean your diet up and do interval training. If you want to know how, ask.

Fat loss ideal - no drinking at all. Fat loss less-than-ideal-but-still-OK - drink liquor but not much. Fat loss totally-counterproductive - drink lots of beer. Beer is full of carbohydrates. However, I understand you still need to drink beer (it was in the contract when you started listening to metal.)

My solution for it is this: don't drink shitty beer. Two Belgian ales is OK. Enjoy them. A six-pack of Miller Light or some such similar shit is bad.

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thanks...i've never heard of this hiit but i'll give it a shot. i read a few of the other pages and one of the guys says:

"I would recommend an aerobic capacity of 30 minutes steady output at 75-80% before adding interval training to your routine."

basically he is saying i should be able to do aerobics almost to my full ability for 30 minutes i assume? i guess i could manage that, but honestly i am pretty fucking out of shape. i could always start at lighter intervals with more emphasis on rest periods. i know i'm jumping the gun here, but if i were to do at least one set a day for 6 or 12 minutes (depending on how much it kicks my ass the first time i try 6) how long do you think it would take for me to notice any loss of weight?

i'll give it a try tomorrow after work. theres a decent sized park about half a mile down the road i can head down there and run around the outer edges. maybe head over to the grocery store thats right next door...grab some water and something small and healthy as a snack like some fruit or something. then go back to the park for another session, then head home.

i have to work on the beer thing...thats my biggest enemy right now i guess. i've slowed down quite a bit, but an example would be: last night i had more than a pint of belgian style quadrupel and three of four pale ales.

tonight i've only had one lager and will probably have one more at least...and maybe a pint of hefeweissbier dunkel.. if only beer was good for us.

Fuck him. When I did phys. we used interval training with cardiac patients. He's obviously thinking of something more hardcore. Anyway, the nice thing about exercise is there's a rate limiter built in: if everything starts to hurt and you're bleeding out your eyes... stop! Tres science.

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Today's workout:

STRONGMAN EXERCISE:

Overhead supports, worked up to 5 sets of 20sec intervals @ 80kgs

BACK/BICEPS:

Close grip explosive chins 5*3
Bent-over rows (done FAST) 5*3
Negative chins, 20sec, 3
Bent-over row isometric hold, 20sec, 3

FAFF-AROUND WORK:

Straight-armed pullovers 4*10-12
Straight-armed pulldowns 3*10-12
Single leg donkey calf 3*10-12 each side

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fbs--Seriously, I'm still in pain from my "sewing machine lift" I did the other day. I got everything from my lower left side around my waist area, above and below, to the front a ways and down the front of my left leg. It's not as bad as it was, but if I'm on my feet too long I seem to be getting a little light-headed. I've been drinking water, taking my vitamins and minerals, and eating a little extra protein. If I sit for awhile and feel tired I'll nap for a few minutes since rest is good to help repair.
Anything I can do to help that feeling or just not push myself quite so much? I feel like I'm hyperventilating.

And it ain't just old age.
Thanks

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fbs, i tried that hiit today. damn! i just did the 12 minute one in more than 12 minutes ha. i stretched a bit..started walking at a normal speed then after a minute walked faster until the 4th minute i just started running for 30 seconds, then jogged for 30, then ran 30, then i walked a couple minutes cause i was out of breath and my throat was dry as hell.

did that for a few more sets and on the last one i ran a minute. then i just walked a couple minutes on the way back to my house to wind down. stretched some more when i got inside. my knees hurt though. i did some stretches that i thought would help my knees out..but they are still sore. if they still ache like that tomorrow i'll probably take it easy and just walk for a longer distance then try the hiit again the next day.

i can definitely feel it though. i didn't even feel as tired after i went 6 miles walking fast and jogging here and there. even one of my roommates laughed at how red my face was when i came back. ha i had said before that maybe i'd go to the park and do a full set, go to the store get some water and a small snack then do it again...i don't think that would happen. maybe on the weekends i could do one in the morning and one later..but other than that i don't think it will be happening until i've made significant gains in endurance.

two questions..any ideas on stretches or work outs to help my knees not feel like shit? or is that just something i'll have to deal with until i can actually run without dying? ok so that was just a second part of the first question.

the second question is: would it be better to walk at a decent pace for 20 minutes to get my heart going or whatever they say about how you don't really burn as much until after so many minutes of exercise, or is that just another myth those hiit people want to bust? thanks again..i think i found my new exercise routine.

now i just have to control my urge to drink a bunch of beer all the time.

edit..and i've been coughing a bit since i got back...my throat feels scratchy. its almost like my lungs are clearing shit out that was there from smoking. haven't smoked at all today yet.. i don't smoke cigs..but i do love that green. have been smoking less the last week or two though. eventually i have to quit..but i'm holding out since who knows how long it will be until i could smoke again if i join the military. theres always the chance i won't even want to smoke again once i'm all clean and healthy, but for now i still love it.

I think you might find that's the case about getting fitter and not really wanting to smoke the green. I think for a few I've talked to it's like one high replaces the other. Make sure you're getting enough water. Dry throat isn't good, but probably isn't that bad either. Just stay hydrated.

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Oh you mad old bat, use a barbell next time. I have absolutely no way of making a meaningful diagnosis from here, especially from such vague information. Here's something useful I can tell you though - if it's nerve-related, often it won't get noticably better quickly; but if it's strictly muscular, you'll find yourself gradually getting less sore and stiff. When did you do it, exactly? And could you be less vague about exactly what hurts and how it hurts?

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Don't stretch before you run, stretch after. Stretches: hamstring, quad, groin, glute, hip flexors/psoas + anything that feels tight or annoyed. Stretches can be found here: www.exrx.net

Get a good fish oil & glucosamine supplement if you can afford them, they're superb anti-inflammatories and cheap.

There's no problem with walking to warm up, just don't kid yourself thinking it's a workout. It does very, very little.

The idea of 'you only burn calories until you've been walking/running X far or for Y long' is a silly, outmoded and completely incorrect idea based on a basic misunderstanding of physiology.

Make sure you shoes fit properly, and don't jog on your heels when you're moving quickly, run on the balls of your feet like a sprinter. You'll find as your basic coordination improves over the first 6 workouts or so that you 'jolt' your knees a lot less as you run. Right now you've just subjected them to some relatively rude stress, considering what they're used to.

And, as with any exercise program, don't overdo it to start with.

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Okay. I was bent over a small amp extending an arm outward to grasp the handle of my sewing machine case that was sitting on the floor. There was a box sitting beside it and the base of the case was bigger than the the top. I had a big gap between body and case. I think I was lifting with just one arm, too. My left. Part way up I felt my back start hurting and I couldn't sit the case back down or lift it without it hurting more. I got it up a bit higher and perched it on a box that wan't very stable. I'm in pain all this time. I lifted it up with both hands and moved it to my table very carefully. If you put your opened hand on your waist that's about where it hurts only all the way to my spine and down my butt. (damaged my beaute glute.) Also down that same left side front of my leg.
It's getting less sore. I haven't taken much for pain, but I'm getting occasional pins and needles in my back and my leg aches. I did the icy hot thing as soon as it happened and took half a darvocet. Meds hit me hard so that's why I took a half. It's hard to stand upright completely unless I do it slowly.

Is that enough detail? Hubby's saying I probably should have seen the doc, but I hated to do that if it wasn't going to do any good.

Bitch of it was I was sawing branches off my fruit trees and raking out my flowers the day before and I was fine. I lifted that one little thing wrong and boing.

Oh yeah, I did it about 3 days ago.

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oh..my roommate who used to run track and field said to stretch before and after..that navy guide just says before. i figured it would do me good to do both, but that was just an assumption.

as for fish oil..i have a big bottle of vitamin e. those fish oil capsules. they fucking stink! but my mom recommended them since my dads side of the family has a history of heart trouble..all the more reason for me to get in shape. i also take a multivitamin..some generic centrum like thing.

yea i guess i just have to get used to exercising a little harder than walking, even if it was for a much longer distance.

do you know if eating spicy food speeds up your metabolism?

Do both. Although when stretching before its not a good idea to "stretch well." Meaning take it easy as you can hurt yourself by stretching cold muscles too hard, but its definitely a good idea to stretch before.

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Put your fish oil capsules in the fridge and just shake the bottle now and then to keep them from sticking together. They won't smell as bad either. I keep my flax pills in there, too.

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i guess its a combination of the exercise i've gotten over the last week and a half or so, with drinking less beer, and eating better food..but today i weighed myself at my usual grocery store and i have lost about 7 or 8 pounds since i last weighed myself. i'm on my way. i guess this calls for a double chocolate stout! i wish i had one, but i don't..

Just after. General rule - you don't want your muscles looser before you use them, you want them warm. There are plenty of other viable reasons to stretch before, but none of them apply to you and what you're doing.



I know they stink. Keep the bottle in a Glad bag and man up.



Only negligibly. Not enough to start out on an all-cayenne-all-the-time diet, though.

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I weighed myself drinking last night; 210lbs on the dot with jeans, shit in my pockets, hoodie, ect. So realistically I'm probably 205 lbs.

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getting the bmx out this spring/summer.

go on night rides, gonna get an ipod and listen to the team america soundtrack, that "montage" song on repeat.

Realistically, closer to 200. Jeans wear a lot, as does a hoodie, not taking into consideration if you were wearing anything underneath the hoodie, what you had in your pockets (I have TONS of shit in my pockets), whether or not you were wearing shoes, etc. Could be as much as 205+, could be as little as 195. Probably about 200 even.

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I was not wearing shoes, it was at night(had 6 beer in me at the time), and the hoodie wasn't very thick. Although the shit in my pockets alone must have been a couple of pounds...my friends always make fun of me because my sides look like saddle bags.

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I owe you another thanks fbs. After training those exercises you prescribed me a few months back, I can't believe the difference in my legs, not to mention the speed at which I'm progressing. I've been using that damned leg press for over 4 years and I don't think it's even helped in the slightest. But those squats and deadlifts are fucking awesome! They've shown me just how weak I really am.

Today I got my deadlift up to 60kg's for 8 reps. My initial goal when you recommended those exercises was to be able to deadlift and squat my own body weight, now I'm only 8-10kg's off with the deadlift. The weight's pussy by your standards but I'm happy with my progress so far. Squat, I can still only manage 45-50kg with what I think is good form. I don't have any training partner's so everything is trial and error for me, and I take a lot of caution when trying new things. It's working out though, and I'm getting there. So really, thanks again for that.


Now I have a question regarding some research I plan on sharing with this older bloke at the gym. He's been helping me out with a few things and seems quite knowledgable. But recently he's started doing a course in personal training/fitness/whatever, and has pretty much completely reversed his opinion with regard to like every exercise. After only 4 weeks mind you. Personally I think he's getting way to exicited and carried away with this stuff, telling me I'm training too much (3 days a week, lower one day, upper the next), he reckons I should only be doing one day a week and doing all muscle groups in that one day. I have hardly any knowledge on what's best with regard to frequency but this doesn't seem right to me

His main argument against a lot of these exercises is what function they have in real life. I think there's some "functional fitness" fad going around at the moment and he's been sweeped up into it. But I think, is that even a valid point? We're all in there for different reasons, and that shit sounds like it's more suited for old women or something lol.

He has been telling me a lot about too much pressure on the spine with regard to squats and good mornings. Sais I should be squatting with dumbells held at my side and and that I only really need a bench press and lat pulldown and a few bodyweight exercises in my workout.

I also just added a barbell shoulder press to my regime last week (after reading the recent discussion in this thread actually) and he's going on about that being the worst possible exercise for my shoulders and stuff, and again asks me when do you use that movement in everyday life. Basically I just let him talk now, take what he says on board but don't say anything. I really don't care that much but I wanna just hand him some research so he can give it a bit more thought. Maybe open his mind a bit with regard to these things as it seems to have been slammed shut after starting this course.

So after all that, all I really wanna know is what you think about the info in the links provided below before I give it to him. It all seems to make pretty good sense to me, but you're the expert so I thought I'd see what you have to say...

http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/0827.htm

http://www.mindandmuscle.net/mindan...ew.php?artID=62

http://www.mindandmuscle.net/mindan...ew.php?artID=40

http://www.elitefts.com/documents/back_your_bench.htm

Deadlifts make for functional fitness damnit.

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Haha, don't sweat it. He never said anything about the deadlifts.

Edit - I don't know what is meant by the term functional fitness. In one of the articles I read it said something about that term being thrown around to often in the wrong context.

Edit 2 - I had a read. That term seems pretty broad. You'd think almost any exercise is gonna help you in some way outside the gym.

Glad I helped.



Sensible. However, I'd recommend training with a partner if at all possible. Safer, more intense.



Without the tiniest hint of a shadow of a doubt, your special friend is a moron. It doesn't seem right to you because it's INSANE. Ignore each and every bit of advice this man gives you, because he is a dangerous fool.



A word about 'functional fitness' - it's a disgusting pseudo-scientific pile of shit. Mention it to any trainer worth more than $1 an hour and they'll go purple in the face and start smashing your balls with a 45lb plate. It's a fucking cancer growing on the balls of real fitness, and this odious friend of yours is one of its metastasized polyps. The contempt that real trainers and trainees have for people like this is infinite, and it's not just because they're ignorant AND weak, it's because they're damn arrogant about it and insist they know everything.

You're completely correct, by the way. Slaboffuck's previous comment is dead accurate too - what could be more 'functional' than PICKING SOMETHING HEAVY UP OFF THE GROUND? Ugh.



I can't comment without just screaming a torrent of filth. So, SO wrong.



Look, if the man is *telling* you all of this stuff, he doesn't want his mind opened. He's a grown man, and not your responsibility. If he wants to wallow in stupidity, fuck him.

Here's an experiment for you:

1) Go to a really serious, hardcore gym
2) Find some people who are really, really strong
3) Look at the way they train

They will not take one single piece of this man's advice seriously. And if you told them about it, they'd laugh.



All the sites you listed are substantially more intelligent than this friend of yours. The first site I don't know, mindandmuscle.net is good.

However, the single most honest and informative source on the Interwebz is your last link - www.elitefts.com - which has so many good strength athletes on its staff I never remember who half of them are. The kind of guys who've been training for 40 years, squat 1100lbs and have forgotten more about training than I'll ever know. Their articles are great. However, this also means it's often an advanced site - right now, there is absolutely nothing you need to know about the merits of different powerlifting gear, how conjugated periodisation works or different neural activation methods and muscle fibre typing.

So, instead of reading their article section, stick to the Q&A - http://asp.elitefts.com/qa/ - and only if you have specific questions.

The best place to start is the Testosterone Nation Beginners forum - from http://www.t-nation.com/index.do it's on the left-hand side taskbar. Browse the whole thing, I bet it'll clear any number of questions up for you. There are excellent T-Nation articles for beginners, too. Got some for you:

http://www.t-nation.com/findArticle.do?article=288ba2
http://www.t-nation.com/findArticle.do?article=284big2
http://www.t-nation.com/findArticle...05-104-training

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Understood.

After reading that I can't help but wonder. Isn't there some sort of committee or regulations or something with regard to who is actually teaching these so called trainers?



Fair call. Mainly out of curiosity I wanted to see what he had to say in response to those articles too.



It'll be hard to find a hardcore gym in this town haha. I'll have a look.



Excellent, I'll check 'em out.

Cheers for that mate, much appreciated.

Not really, mate. Sorry. The vast majority of fitness stuff almost everywhere is essentially unregulated (regardless of what you read). Regulation isn't to make things sensible, effective or even sane. All it really does is dumb things down until the probablity of getting injured is almost zero.

That also means that no-one actually DOES anything.



If you'd like, I'll dig you up some things that will have a more salient effect on him than technical articles about scapular health/retraction and the finer points of bench pressing form.

If you're looking for a gym with balls...

Brisbane - Steve How Lum
Mail: PO Box 14, Spring Hill, Queensland, 4004
Email: secretary@powerlifting.org.au
Mobile: 0418 153 550

Townsville - Sean Muir
Mail: PO Box 211, Townsville, Queensland, 4810
Email: seanm@tropicalbodies.com.au
Mobile: 0421 700 471
Phone (W): (07) 4772 0773

These guys are from the Powerlifting Australia website. Ask them if they know anyone who trains near or around Noosa Heads.

University of Queensland has a powerlifting club that does very well. Ask them.

I'll if anyone I know can help you.

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That's pretty fucked.

By regulation, I meant that with regard to something along the lines of an Australian standard. I'm suprised there isn't one actually.



That'd be great. Cheers.



Thanks for that man.

Brissy and townsville are a bit far for me but I think there's a University of Queensland up here on the coast. I'll check it all out.

Oh, there is an industry standard, and it's better than many other countries. But that still doesn't stop it from being a heaping bowl of gayflakes.

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Bit messed up really ain't it. Not that I want a trainer, but it must make it pretty hard for those who do to find a decent one who knows what they're on about. So many would be getting jibbed, without even realising it.

Hey, it's a silly fucking world. People with low expectations hire people to fulfill them.

Read some good stuff today you all might like:

"• In a meta-analysis (combining the results of a bunch of studies), pre-workout stretching was not shown to improve performance or decrease the rate of injury. In fact, it was shown to decrease strength. Research on jump height after stretching showed mixed results.

• "Regular stretching" causes no decrease in performance and in fact leads to increased strength, improved jump height, and less frequent injuries."

Damn, it's like there's a fucking echo in here. Go science!

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Que? So what's the difference between regular stretching and pre-workout stretching?

One reason when i do my PFTs i NEVER stretch my arms before doing pullups. Always felt it was an "old wives tale" that it helped so i didn't, and i felt got good performance out of it. But i did all sorts of crazy preperations for pft rituals.

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Deadlifted 140 kg for a single today, and probably could have done abit more. That's pretty close to twice my bodyweight actually, and I've done clean pulls instead of deadlifts the past 5 weeks. Good stuff.

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The 'stretching' thing - it's called tendon slack. Look it up, if you'd like. It's not something a lot of people know about. Short version: stretching makes you noticably weaker for 15-30 minutes afterwards.



Arguing with me is fine. But don't argue with large amounts of well conducted research, unless you want to look like an idiot. Stretching is healthy and good. Most muscleheads should do more of it. It's just not so great immediately before a workout.



I'd imagine PRE-WORKOUT stretching is done before a workout.

And REGULAR stretching is done regularly.

I bet you gave your English teacher haemorrhoids.



Good lift! Clean pulls are a good deadlift builder if you're weak off the floor.

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I interpreted regular as "standard stretching", not regular as "stretching done on a regular basis", hence the confusion.

Tried Good mornings for the first time today, loved em. Worked up to a few sets of 8s on 60 kg, which felt pretty easy. I'll start doing these regulary as an assistance exercise from now on.

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I beat you with 5 kg's (145 kg) man ha! But my weight is at 91 kg so...


Whatever I did singles on 130, 135 and 140 before that so I still beat you!

Fucking gym is closed since its easter, I WANT TO DEADLIFT GOT DAMNIT!

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Cunt, I did doubles on those weights except 140. I win.

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Bloody hell, good job mate!

Question. From the time you started lifting, how long did it take you to get to this point? I ask because I'm trying to set a bit of a guideline with regard to progression. Not sure how often I should be upping weight. It's been pretty much weekly for the last couple of months.

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Cheers man!

Well, I remember when I first started deadlifting a year ago, I did sets of 12 with somewhere between 40 and 50 kg (fuck, I really don't miss doing deadlifts for high reps). Of course, it was more of a techinque issue that held the weights back then, but I still was really weak. Im gonna take a wild guess and say my max single was around 80 kg or so when I started.
You're pretty new to deadlifting, right? You'll probably be able to have pretty fast progress for some time, which is really great. If you can up the weights weekly, I don't see why you shouldn't for as long as possible.

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Awesome. Yeah I've only fairly recently started, since fbs reccomended them a few months back. Usually I try to add 2.5 - 5kgs each week. Seems like ok progress but like I said, I don't really have any way to gauge myself, I never see people deadlifting in the gym I go to. Anyway, thanks for replying man.

Say, those of you who take Whey Protein supplements... Which brand do you take or prefer - and do you pay attention to the sweetener that's used?

I'm a bit reluctant to take aspartame (not hard to figure out why), but every supplement I've seen that doesn't use this, has sucralose instead. That's also what I take at the moment (brand: Maximize) but there seems to be somewhat of a controversy going on with that, too.
Of course, two doses of 35g protein powder a day is not exceeding the advised daily limit sucralose, which is 9 mg/kg of body weight per day... At least, that's what I think? I'm not sure how many of that sweetener is in the product.

But hey, we all die sooner or later, so in the end, what does it matter.

Any thoughts on this, though?

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I use bulk protein that has no flavourings, colourings or additives. It's cheaper and it means I don't pay for any of the shit that goes into it. Most proteins are total shit when it comes to quality, and more still are marked up to a seriously unnecessary degree.

I get all my protein from www.myopure.com.au - I use their WPC, WPI, caesin, bulk sugars and BCAAs. Check the site out... if you're currently paying normal store prices for protein, prepare to have your face raped with surprise. Remember, all prices are in Kangabucks, not USD.

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I use gainer from Weider, must work, I gained 18 kg's last year :P.

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Started cycling again as of last week, am currently doing a 6 mile (10km) route, but that is on a map, so it doesn't include any inclines or declines. Have done it 4 times now, and have got it down from 1hr with breaks to 40mins without any breaks... will probably carry on with the same for a week or two before i adjust the route to take on a massive incline that takes a good 20mins of solid cycling to overcome... it's only about 1km extra, will be fun

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I had 1 1/2 bags of whey powder in my cupboard and a darn mouse got into the unopened one. The shop I got it at carries a product in a canister about the same size as the stuff I was buying. What I was getting was about $4-5. This new stuff in the fancy pacakge is $19.99. Bullcrap. Wally's got some strawberry whey mix here so if I want to use some I'll just use that.

Maybe since I'm a regular customer down there I can ask her to order the other for me. There's a thought.

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he's right. i've been a runner for a few years now, and i run at least 3.2 miles about 6 days per week. i also mountain bike sometimes, which usually involves at least 8 miles and plenty of hills. still, because i won't change my eating or beer-drinking habits, i can't seem to trim down my mid-section enough. at least i have scaled it back from nightly to weekends, but the biggest mistake i ever made was starting to drink.


about cheap beers.. miller light is straight garbage. i used to enjoy a few heinekens or pale ales almost every night, and never felt any negative effects other than being counterproductive to my exercise. but for a time i drank miller light on a regular basis and it began to give me anxiety symptoms and shit (the following day).. i never liked that beer, it was just around and me being irish and bored, i began drinking it. i know someone else who drank it regularly and was a miserable fucking person, but when they stopped, their attitude changed big time. i've never seen or experienced this with a good beer. stay away from that shit.. spend the extra bucks for a good beer or don't drink at all.

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I think that's one of the oddest things I've ever read, but that's an interesting idea about beer.

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^ it's not about *all* beers, just the cheap garbage like miller lite. i love beer, but i'm a beer snob with good reason

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anyone had good results with this? i tried it recently with a speed rope and it kicked my ass pretty good, but i prefer to run. i want to try intervals with my running because i think i've reached a plateau and i'm not burning enough fat. i'm reluctant to try because i like to keep a consistent pace, especially because i'm always running to music.

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Come into the the Alcohol thread, a few of us kinda hijacked into "The Official Beer Thread"..

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I hate whey protein.

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This isn't a "yay let's run and enjoy the great outdoors at a seasoned pace" protocol. This is a "fuck, there goes my spleen" fat loss protocol. Screw the music.

Jump rope is great. Try slow/fast intervals, or single/double intervals, or anything at all, really.



Don't talk about my religion like that, you miserable fecal stain!

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So this high intensity interval works with pretty much any exercise?

Riding a bike has it's perks. My legs feel like they've been used and I walk funny after a long ride to classes.

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You walk funny because you get fucked in the ass on a regular basis, not because you just started riding a bicycle.