Fitness journey

[BatRam]

9 minutes ago, Wolfie said:

Word of caution about jumping in & doing too much straight away...

During first Covid lockdown I thought it's be a good idea to do start doing those daily Joe Wicks youtube workouts with miss Wolfie.

Day 1..... Joined late, so missed any warm up (if there was one). First 10 minutes of squats after not doing leg excercise for a good while. Had to stop. Legs on fire for the next 2 days & struggles with stairs. Never did it again.

Start slow & easy people & gradually build up!

ye the doms from starting again suck ngl hahaa

[BatRam]

29 minutes ago, Scott129 said:

Thanks for the tips 👍 

I definitely have issues with overall flexibility, especially my hips, so will look into some mobility work for that. Even when I was able to do squats, my depth was always terrible, which I guess was another symptom of that.

Nowadays, I avoid any sort of squatting movement completely. Just far too much discomfort in my knee.

Ye im guessing youre doing more machine stuff then? Ive found resting squats have helped me. as before i couldnt even get into an ass to grass bodyweight squat unless i had barbell on my back ( which forces you down into the position basically), by all means take my advice with a pinch of salt as it could be imbalances or anything thats triggering your hip issues 

[RadioactiveWaste]

9 minutes ago, BatRam said:

ye the doms from starting again suck ngl hahaa

Hello doms-ness my old friend,

You've come to torture me again,

Creeping whilst I was sleeping,

Lactic acid ruined everything,

And listen,

To the sounds of,

f**** sake all I did was stand up.....

[IanC]

2 hours ago, BatRam said:

Good on you for carrying on with fitness. Its a use it or lose it situation with health and well being as you age isnt it. you'd prob put a lot of youngns to shame nowadays haha

Definately - although i would add that once you have reached a certain level of fitness over a period of time and then take a break - you can get away with a couple of weeks away without too much harm. Much longer than that though and you will need to work your way back into it a bit - not unlike footballers returning from injury.

One thing i did find really useful was to invest in a chest strap heart rate monitor (Myzone, garmin, polar etc). Most people would be very surprised to find out that when working out in the gym - partcularly aerobic/cardio workouts - that they are just not working anywhere near as hard as they thought they were.

Wrist worn fitness trackers are just not in the same ball park for accuracy compared with the chest worn heart rate monitors. For those that train regularly the chest worn trackers are a great aid for tracking measurable improvments over a period of time such as a reduction in resting heart rate, improvement in blood pressure, healthier stronger heart - no matter how young or old you are when you make the decision to start.

[DarkFruitsRam7]

20 hours ago, Scott129 said:

My story's the opposite to everyone else's here 🤣

I've always been very skinny (about 6'1, 10 stone in Dec 2021). Started going to the gym 3 or 4 times a week and just generally eating more, and I'm currently up about 3½ stone. Went in at the deep end with calorie counting, protein supplements, creatine, etc., but I look so much better for it.

The only slight concern I've got at the minute is the cardio side of things. I've focused so much on lifting weights and getting bigger, that I've completely neglected my internal health. So now I've started dedicating a whole session to a combination of the bike/treadmill/stairmaster.

I also have a lot of aches and pains in my lower back and knees. I'm not sure whether this is me getting a bit older (31 now), a downside of me carrying some extra weight, or an injury that I've not paid enough attention to. It's on my list to see a physiotherapist or something.

I’m similar to you. Went to uni at 18, around 6 foot and 10 stone wet. Went to the gym inconsistently for a few years, then really started counting the calories after I graduated and got up to around 13 stone. I’m back down to 12 stone now but am hoping to get back up again soon.

When I first started, I had frequent lower back spasms. I went to a physio, he gave me a few stretches to do every day (I do them any time I exercise), and that largely sorted it.

I’ve started upping the cardio in the last year or so (part of the reason why I lost weight), and have had minor issues with knees, aches and pains. So I swapped some of my heavier squats (5 sets of 5) to lighter ones with more reps (3 sets of 12). Seems to have helped a little bit, but if the physio gives you any tips, let me know!

[BatRam]

1 hour ago, IanC said:

Definately - although i would add that once you have reached a certain level of fitness over a period of time and then take a break - you can get away with a couple of weeks away without too much harm. Much longer than that though and you will need to work your way back into it a bit - not unlike footballers returning from injury.

One thing i did find really useful was to invest in a chest strap heart rate monitor (Myzone, garmin, polar etc). Most people would be very surprised to find out that when working out in the gym - partcularly aerobic/cardio workouts - that they are just not working anywhere near as hard as they thought they were.

Wrist worn fitness trackers are just not in the same ball park for accuracy compared with the chest worn heart rate monitors. For those that train regularly the chest worn trackers are a great aid for tracking measurable improvments over a period of time such as a reduction in resting heart rate, improvement in blood pressure, healthier stronger heart - no matter how young or old you are when you make the decision to start.

ive got a fitness watch but unfortunately it just gets battered by the kettlebell and punches and kicks from opposition at kickboxing sparring haha. ive been meaning to get one to wear round the torso. although with my current body fat percentage , if i wear anything like that round me ill looked like a gammon joint 

[BatRam]

2 hours ago, Ram-Alf said:

Just to add from my last post, I now weigh circa 16stone, I walk for an hour every day except when raining, Sunshine is just around the corner so I can get in my garden and spend more time outside...praise the Lord ☺️

As for the nice things, I chomped through a bag of liquorice allsorts last night when watching a film, Film was good the allsorts were even better 😁  

enjoy it mate haha

[Mucker1884]

4 hours ago, DarkFruitsRam7 said:

I’m similar to you. Went to uni at 18, around 6 foot and 10 stone wet. Went to the gym inconsistently for a few years, then really started counting the calories after I graduated and got up to around 13 stone. I’m back down to 12 stone now but am hoping to get back up again soon.

When I first started, I had frequent lower back spasms. I went to a physio, he gave me a few stretches to do every day (I do them any time I exercise), and that largely sorted it.

I’ve started upping the cardio in the last year or so (part of the reason why I lost weight), and have had minor issues with knees, aches and pains. So I swapped some of my heavier squats (5 sets of 5) to lighter ones with more reps (3 sets of 12). Seems to have helped a little bit, but if the physio gives you any tips, let me know!

You're too modest mate.  Tell him about having a right arm like Arnie.

 

[DarkFruitsRam7]

10 minutes ago, Mucker1884 said:

You're too modest mate.  Tell him about having a right arm like Arnie.

 

Yeah but then I'd have to mention the left

[Bris Vegas]

This IMO is a great video and method of training which makes it enjoyable and will motivate you to do more.

Consistency will always win.

 

[BatRam]

On 07/04/2024 at 15:33, Bris Vegas said:

This IMO is a great video and method of training which makes it enjoyable and will motivate you to do more.

Consistency will always win.

 

I've seen that before, an interesting take on it, i found depending how long you spend researching you end up going round in circles regarding advice on the interenet. For example steve reeves era of bodybuilding did 3 workouts a week/ full body. Then fast forward youve got your bro splits , push pull legs . Lots of conflicting advice on nutrition n all sorts. But iv come to the conclusion that aslong as theres consistancy , decent nutrition , a minimum of 150g of protein , and pushing yourself close to failure on everything. youre winning 

[BatRam]

Currently nerding out on bruce lee stuff atm. The weights he was throwing round aint impressive , but he was just a stamina machine 🤣

[Shipley Ram]

On the bright side the worse the game the fitter I get.

[IanC]

20 hours ago, Shipley Ram said:

On the bright side the worse the game the fitter I get.

No idea of your age and weight - but that looks a pretty impressive, sustained effort - avg 17.5 mph over 2+ hours.

[Shipley Ram]

On 11/04/2024 at 19:00, IanC said:

No idea of your age and weight - but that looks a pretty impressive, sustained effort - avg 17.5 mph over 2+ hours.

Thats from me watching the game on the wattbike, I'm suspsuperstitious when the game in on, I feel its unluck to stop even if I really need to step off, and I can set a punishing pace if the game is painful to watch. That might be my theoretical speed for the power output but I couldn't keep that pace up on the road with hills and junctions slowing me. I'm mid 50's and just under 17 stone.

Back in 2014 I was 18 1/2 stone and got into club cycling, I ended up just under 15 stone but could bang out some big rides, I did 14 100 milers in 2017. It all came to a rather abrupt end, I hit a car, got a ride to hospital in a helicopter, 10 hours of surgery and 4 weeks in hospital and 6 months off work. I've never, and probably will never, get my fitness back to what it was. It has left me with a cyclist view of timings, 2 hours is not a big ride. This is the sort of ride I was putting in pre accident

Edited April 12 by Shipley Ram

[IanC]

On 13/04/2024 at 00:11, Shipley Ram said:

Thats from me watching the game on the wattbike, I'm suspsuperstitious when the game in on, I feel its unluck to stop even if I really need to step off, and I can set a punishing pace if the game is painful to watch. That might be my theoretical speed for the power output but I couldn't keep that pace up on the road with hills and junctions slowing me. I'm mid 50's and just under 17 stone.

Back in 2014 I was 18 1/2 stone and got into club cycling, I ended up just under 15 stone but could bang out some big rides, I did 14 100 milers in 2017. It all came to a rather abrupt end, I hit a car, got a ride to hospital in a helicopter, 10 hours of surgery and 4 weeks in hospital and 6 months off work. I've never, and probably will never, get my fitness back to what it was. It has left me with a cyclist view of timings, 2 hours is not a big ride. This is the sort of ride I was putting in pre accident

Such a shame about the accident,as the cycling was obviously beneficial and doing you good. Hopefully you can at least continue to do what you are currently doing

I did some oudoor cycling during the covid days (approx 20 miles 3 times per week) - but generally prefer to cycle on the indoor bikes, mainly due to the poor state of the roads,and having to take blood thinners following a stroke 13 years ago  - which isn't a good recipe in the event of coming off the bike with a high heart rate if you hit a disguised 6 inch deep water filled pothole.

I'm now 67,but still weigh pretty much my racing weight of approx 62 kg.

I do wish i had come across bi-athlons (bike/run),as that would have been ideal for me. Back in the day i had best times of....

5k in 15.19

5 miles in 25.30

10k in 32.16

10 miles in 54.05

Half marathon in 71.22

With the indoor bikes, outside of the spin classes (45 mins,3 times per week), i usually spend approx 20-25 mins, and try to keep the power to weight ratio around 2.5-3.5 watts per kg (ie around 160-210 watts for), but for much shorter time periods than you were doing. I would usually do 4 mins increasing effort (starting at gear 14,15,16,20 with recovery of approx 45 secs at gear 11 or until heart rate dropped by 40+ bpm,from 150+ down to 105), then repeat 4 or 5 times.

[BatRam]

On 10/04/2024 at 22:38, Shipley Ram said:

On the bright side the worse the game the fitter I get.

 

 

 

 

 

On 10/04/2024 at 22:38, Shipley Ram said:

On the bright side the worse the game the fitter I get.

 

On 11/04/2024 at 19:00, IanC said:

No idea of your age and weight - but that looks a pretty impressive, sustained effort - avg 17.5 mph over 2+ hours.

 

On 13/04/2024 at 00:11, Shipley Ram said:

Thats from me watching the game on the wattbike, I'm suspsuperstitious when the game in on, I feel its unluck to stop even if I really need to step off, and I can set a punishing pace if the game is painful to watch. That might be my theoretical speed for the power output but I couldn't keep that pace up on the road with hills and junctions slowing me. I'm mid 50's and just under 17 stone.

Back in 2014 I was 18 1/2 stone and got into club cycling, I ended up just under 15 stone but could bang out some big rides, I did 14 100 milers in 2017. It all came to a rather abrupt end, I hit a car, got a ride to hospital in a helicopter, 10 hours of surgery and 4 weeks in hospital and 6 months off work. I've never, and probably will never, get my fitness back to what it was. It has left me with a cyclist view of timings, 2 hours is not a big ride. This is the sort of ride I was putting in pre accident

 

On 15/04/2024 at 12:23, IanC said:

Such a shame about the accident,as the cycling was obviously beneficial and doing you good. Hopefully you can at least continue to do what you are currently doing

I did some oudoor cycling during the covid days (approx 20 miles 3 times per week) - but generally prefer to cycle on the indoor bikes, mainly due to the poor state of the roads,and having to take blood thinners following a stroke 13 years ago  - which isn't a good recipe in the event of coming off the bike with a high heart rate if you hit a disguised 6 inch deep water filled pothole.

I'm now 67,but still weigh pretty much my racing weight of approx 62 kg.

I do wish i had come across bi-athlons (bike/run),as that would have been ideal for me. Back in the day i had best times of....

5k in 15.19

5 miles in 25.30

10k in 32.16

10 miles in 54.05

Half marathon in 71.22

With the indoor bikes, outside of the spin classes (45 mins,3 times per week), i usually spend approx 20-25 mins, and try to keep the power to weight ratio around 2.5-3.5 watts per kg (ie around 160-210 watts for), but for much shorter time periods than you were doing. I would usually do 4 mins increasing effort (starting at gear 14,15,16,20 with recovery of approx 45 secs at gear 11 or until heart rate dropped by 40+ bpm,from 150+ down to 105), then repeat 4 or 5 times.

Sorry what is this from? like an indoor stationary bike? i'm intrigued 

For some reason it didnt say that anyone had further commented on this thread so i didnt reply

[Comrade 86]

On 10/04/2024 at 22:38, Shipley Ram said:

On the bright side the worse the game the fitter I get.

Would this burn off a Snickers 4-pack?

Asking for a friend...

[BatRam]

17 hours ago, Comrade 86 said:

Would this burn off a Snickers 4-pack?

Asking for a friend...

doubt it youth 🤣

[Shipley Ram]

On 24/04/2024 at 09:19, BatRam said:

Sorry what is this from? like an indoor stationary bike? i'm intrigued 

For some reason it didnt say that anyone had further commented on this thread so i didnt reply

I don't know what Ian is on but I'm on a Wattbike Atom, https://wattbike.com/products/wattbike-atom , and the screenshots are from Strava. The Wattbike hub does the actual recording but I upload to Strava as that where my outdoor rides upload to.