Fitness Thread

[Konrad von Carstein]

Sounds like you're overdoing it. If you're going to do resistance and cardio on the same day, then do resistance first and finish off with cardio. Also, you don't necessarily need to be training the whole body in one session (although a well planned full body workout isn't necessarily a bad idea, especially if you're an inexperienced trainee). It also sounds like your training plan's really vague, which isn't a good way to get results; a well planned out training plan is crucial.

 

You never 'need' a protein shake, but it can be convenient and make it easier to meet macronutrient goals. Judging by the tone of your post, it pretty much seems like you're wasting your time by doing things in a really haphazard way and taking a shake because you've heard it's supposed to help.

 

This post isn't meant to seem harsh, but it's difficult to help here as you haven't actually said what your aims are.

 

 

I have a fair deal of respect for your posts on this thread, but, is the bit in bold entirely true? Are there not various opinions on this depending on aims (as you mention) and age etc.

I'm closer to 50 than 40 but in my mid 30's got exceptionally fit and toned doing cardio followed by resistance exercise with a cardio warm down.

 

I stress I'm not being an arse, just asking what your reasons are for your answer.

[Konrad von Carstein]

Cheers for the advice. I am a bit of a novice. Basically I want to bulk up a little. I have quite a lean frame tho so thought the protein would aid this.

When I do the cardio its mainly coz im worried that with trying to bulk up,I will grow a pot belly!

Your right,i need to get a plan. Maybe just 1or 2 sessions with a pt would help.

 

 

If you want to "bulk up" then, you should look at your diet and develop your exercise routine to compliment it to achieve your specific aims.

 

CL seems to be clued up on both and may offer pointers but there is lots of advice out there, a PT (in my experience) will only look at the exercise aspect and provide motivation (that a mate could easily offer so long as you have a good diet and exercise regime) during the 40 minute session that you have with him/her.

[Homme]

I didn't know there was a fitness thread when i posted mine yesteday.

 

Sorry

[Creepy Lurker]

Cheers for the advice. I am a bit of a novice. Basically I want to bulk up a little. I have quite a lean frame tho so thought the protein would aid this.

When I do the cardio its mainly coz im worried that with trying to bulk up,I will grow a pot belly!

Your right,i need to get a plan. Maybe just 1or 2 sessions with a pt would help.

 

To bulk up you'll need to be in a caloric surplus (ie eating more than you're burning off), so a bit of fat gain is unavoidable. If you're new to it you may well be in the 'noob gains' phase where you'll gain muscle and burn fat at the same time, but eventually a bit of fat storage is inevitable and what most people do is bulk up a bit, gaining muscle and fat, before cutting down again to retain most of the muscle whilst losing the fat. To bulk up you'll need to be in a caloric surplus (as I've said), and cardio will just make that more difficult as you'll be burning extra calories. I'm not saying not to do any at all, but if what you want to do is get bigger then your results will be poor to non-existent if you're overdoing cardio.

 

As far as the protein goes, people who train regularly do have a significantly higher protein requirement than people who don't but protein shakes are a triumph of marketing to an extent in that a lot of people think they 'need them' as soon as they've started training. I'd say that your optimum protein intake should be around 1-1.5g/lb bodyweight. Try to get as much of that from real food sources as possible and otherwise get your calories from carbs and fat...mainly healthy sources (loads of these are mentioned earlier in this post), but the odd 'unhealthy' treat's fine.

 

 

I won't go too much into the dietary side of things here because I think that it can be a bit intimidating for beginners (although if you have any questions I'm obviously happy to answer), but basically what I'm saying is not to worry too much about the protein shake; if it's convenient and you enjoy it by all means carry on with it, but don't feel that it's a necessity. And definitely get a proper programme done for you.

 

I have a fair deal of respect for your posts on this thread, but, is the bit in bold entirely true? Are there not various opinions on this depending on aims (as you mention) and age etc.

I'm closer to 50 than 40 but in my mid 30's got exceptionally fit and toned doing cardio followed by resistance exercise with a cardio warm down.

 

I stress I'm not being an arse, just asking what your reasons are for your answer.

 

I'm not saying that you can't get results doing cardio and then resistance, but most people I know tend to prefer to do it the other way around. Cardio uses up a lot of glycogen, which'll deplete your energy stores before lifting weights; cardio raises levels of cortisol (the stress hormone, which causes lean tissue to be burned as fuel) without also raising testosterone (which'll help to prevent that), while resistance training does raise cortisol but also raises T levels; and the fatigue caused by cardio tends to result in poorer performance on the weights.

 

As I say, doing cardio first won't necessarily destroy your results but resistance first tends to be more popular. Personally, I just do them on different days.

[Northernsoulboy01]

To bulk up you'll need to be in a caloric surplus (ie eating more than you're burning off), so a bit of fat gain is unavoidable. If you're new to it you may well be in the 'noob gains' phase where you'll gain muscle and burn fat at the same time, but eventually a bit of fat storage is inevitable and what most people do is bulk up a bit, gaining muscle and fat, before cutting down again to retain most of the muscle whilst losing the fat. To bulk up you'll need to be in a caloric surplus (as I've said), and cardio will just make that more difficult as you'll be burning extra calories. I'm not saying not to do any at all, but if what you want to do is get bigger then your results will be poor to non-existent if you're overdoing cardio.

 

As far as the protein goes, people who train regularly do have a significantly higher protein requirement than people who don't but protein shakes are a triumph of marketing to an extent in that a lot of people think they 'need them' as soon as they've started training. I'd say that your optimum protein intake should be around 1-1.5g/lb bodyweight. Try to get as much of that from real food sources as possible and otherwise get your calories from carbs and fat...mainly healthy sources (loads of these are mentioned earlier in this post), but the odd 'unhealthy' treat's fine.

 

 

I won't go too much into the dietary side of things here because I think that it can be a bit intimidating for beginners (although if you have any questions I'm obviously happy to answer), but basically what I'm saying is not to worry too much about the protein shake; if it's convenient and you enjoy it by all means carry on with it, but don't feel that it's a necessity. And definitely get a proper programme done for you.

 

 

 

I'm not saying that you can't get results doing cardio and then resistance, but most people I know tend to prefer to do it the other way around. Cardio uses up a lot of glycogen, which'll deplete your energy stores before lifting weights; cardio raises levels of cortisol (the stress hormone, which causes lean tissue to be burned as fuel) without also raising testosterone (which'll help to prevent that), while resistance training does raise cortisol but also raises T levels; and the fatigue caused by cardio tends to result in poorer performance on the weights.

 

As I say, doing cardio first won't necessarily destroy your results but resistance first tends to be more popular. Personally, I just do them on different days.

 

Many thanks for the reply. Very informative. Im going to get a training plan worked out for me. I have had a look at high protein foods but it seems that it would be pretty restrictive on what meals i could have. The shake tastes not bad and fills me up so will continue with it for now. Not sure it will help me put on weight though judging by how quickly it goes through me!

[weaversknowe jambo]

Has anyone tried the Tabatta training? Hearing good things about it..

[Creepy Lurker]

I do loads of tabata training. It's good cardio, but just another form of HIIT really.

[weaversknowe jambo]

I do loads of tabata training. It's good cardio, but just another form of HIIT really.

is it best to stick to about 8 rounds so should take 40 mins?

[Creepy Lurker]

is it best to stick to about 8 rounds so should take 40 mins?

 

One round takes four minutes, so eight would take 32. Guessing you mean one minute rest between rounds?

 

That'd be tough as ****. My Muay Thai coach likes to give us four rounds back to back (just going straight from one into the next), which takes sixteen minutes and is a very tough workout. Even with a minute between rounds, 40 minutes of tabata protocol would be extremely tough.

[Stuart McNeill]

I'm 20 years old tomorrow and for the last 5-6 years I've found it difficult to grt motivation to go and do gym work etc..

 

I used to be fit but I developed Ashtma and it's held me back from exercise and sports since!

 

However about 6 months ago I joined a gym and a 5 a side team and I was doing great with getting fit.

 

But I had to leave my 5 a side team because I was terrible compared to my mates and all they wanted to do was take it serious and win whereas I didn't care and just enjoyed it, so I peft not wanting to hold them back haha. So I went on holiday in August and ever since then I've never played 5's or went back to the gym.

 

So can anyone possibly help me with some sort of motivation/program for me and ways to stop ashtma playing such a big part in stopping me?

[Creepy Lurker]

Consult your doctor about the asthma thing; I doubt if anyone on here's qualified to give advice, and it isn't the sort of thing to talk to non-experts about.

 

As far as motivation goes, have you been following a proper programme at the gym? That helps most people. Otherwise, maybe take up a new sport?

[Stuart McNeill]

Consult your doctor about the asthma thing; I doubt if anyone on here's qualified to give advice, and it isn't the sort of thing to talk to non-experts about.

 

As far as motivation goes, have you been following a proper programme at the gym? That helps most people. Otherwise, maybe take up a new sport?

 

Got a handful of different kind of inhalers to be taking. Yes I was giving one when I was at Virgin but put it in the bin and forgotten about it, I might ask the guy at the gym and see what happens.

 

However with sports I feel I don't want to let people down with how shit I am at the sports haha.

[Creepy Lurker]

Got a handful of different kind of inhalers to be taking. Yes I was giving one when I was at Virgin but put it in the bin and forgotten about it, I might ask the guy at the gym and see what happens.

 

However with sports I feel I don't want to let people down with how shit I am at the sports haha.

 

'The guy at the gym' also isn't a doctor. Your doctor would be the person to speak to about what level of exercise would be sensible.

 

I actually meant an individual sport. I'm totally biased here, but a lot of guys who I've done Muay Thai with have started out in a similar situation to yours and ended up loving MT and training regularly. It's very intense, though, so if you have respiratory problems I'd make sure that you aren't putting yourself in any danger first.

[Stuart McNeill]

'The guy at the gym' also isn't a doctor. Your doctor would be the person to speak to about what level of exercise would be sensible.

 

I actually meant an individual sport. I'm totally biased here, but a lot of guys who I've done Muay Thai with have started out in a similar situation to yours and ended up loving MT and training regularly. It's very intense, though, so if you have respiratory problems I'd make sure that you aren't putting yourself in any danger first.

 

Well as long as I have my inhalers I'm capable of doing most sports but not for very long.

 

For MT do you need to have any really requirements (weight, height, etc..) and how much are classes if that is what you do anyway?

 

Thanks

[Creepy Lurker]

There aren't any height or weight requirements. As far as classes go it'll depend on where you train; I train at Headhunters MMA in Leith when I'm in Edinburgh (not there at the moment as I'm in Stirling at uni), and a monthly membership costs ?45. There are basics and advanced classes on pretty much every day, so you can train as much as you want within that. First session's free, so you don't have to pay without seeing what's involved first. You can also pay ?7 for individual classes rather than getting the monthly membership, but assuming two or more classes a week there's no point in doing that.

 

There are class timetables, directions, etc. on Facebook under 'Headhunters MMA'.

[Poseidon]

Have decided now is the time to start preparing for another marathon after a couple of years off and was wondering if there were runners with decent advice out there.

 

I'm already running 10 miles again and getting fitter, but I can't stop the urge to eat so much after exercise. The result is I'm not losing any weight and as I'm also throwing in hill runs its a killer to haul my ass up them. I've joined Pure Gym for the winter so I can still get along and do something even if I don't fancy getting out running. I'm 13 stone and reckon if I could get down to 12 by next spring I would have a pretty good do at doing a marathon in close to 3 hours.

 

So really i'm after a bit of advice on diet, what gym training I should be throwing in to aid the weight loss whilst improving the cardio. Oh nad keeping me motivated as well. I know I probably just have to stop eating so much rubbish and the rest will take care of itself but any advice, especially gym stuff to do would be appreciated.

Edited October 16, 2012 by jamboally

[JC]

There aren't any height or weight requirements. As far as classes go it'll depend on where you train; I train at Headhunters MMA in Leith when I'm in Edinburgh (not there at the moment as I'm in Stirling at uni), and a monthly membership costs ?45. There are basics and advanced classes on pretty much every day, so you can train as much as you want within that. First session's free, so you don't have to pay without seeing what's involved first. You can also pay ?7 for individual classes rather than getting the monthly membership, but assuming two or more classes a week there's no point in doing that.

 

There are class timetables, directions, etc. on Facebook under 'Headhunters MMA'.

 

I'm going to dive in here and recommend rick young's on duke street. I have trained at both headhunters and ricks and have to say I prefer ricks.

 

It can be duanting going to any of these places as you're not sure what to expect so its about the feel you get for the club. Both do free classes before you have to pay so give both a go and then make a choice. Ricks ground work teaching is at a world class level and his knowledge out of this world. If you think the Muay Thai maybe too intensive give the Brazilian ju jitsu a go.

[Creepy Lurker]

I'm going to dive in here and recommend rick young's on duke street. I have trained at both headhunters and ricks and have to say I prefer ricks.

 

It can be duanting going to any of these places as you're not sure what to expect so its about the feel you get for the club. Both do free classes before you have to pay so give both a go and then make a choice. Ricks ground work teaching is at a world class level and his knowledge out of this world. If you think the Muay Thai maybe too intensive give the Brazilian ju jitsu a go.

 

Never been to Rick Young's, but obviously I was going to recommend my own club.

 

They're really close together and both offer free classes, so definitely worth trying both!

[JamboCampbell]

Right guys, after a little advice!

 

I have read up online on this issue, but it contradicts itself vastly so wondered if anyone on here can shed some more bias towards one side of the argument.

 

Basically, the issue is whether doing alot of cardio can decrease muscle gain and development.

 

My main aim is too get more defined muscle and increase especially my chest and arms.

 

If I outline what my week entails in terms of working out, it is pretty varying as I thought this would be the best method in terms of keeping weight/fat down and toning up, whilst gaining small amounts of muscle mass.

 

Monday - Fartlek Run around 45 mins + 5 a side every 2nd week

Tuesday - Gym Full Body workout 1 hour + 5 a side now and again

Wednesday - 8-10k slow run/20 mile cycle + Football Training

Thursday - Gym Full Body workout 1 hour

Friday - Fartlek Run around 45 mins + Gym session working on legs and abs only 30 mins

Saturday - REST DAY

Sunday - 90 minute football match

 

I am pretty fit in terms of cardio etc so dont have too do too much more to develop in that department, but I do enjoy it and want to keep it up. I am just worried that this will affect (in a bad way) my aims of getting much more defined. Should I maybe even be doing more on arms and chest specifically?

 

Hope you can shed some light on this issue!!

 

Cheers!

[Snake Plissken]

JC

 

Seems like you're doing a tremendous amount of cardio there and if you're after some muscle gain, it'll be nigh on impossible with that volume of cardio. You should revise the balance of your routine, which at the moment is heavily geared towards cardiovascular work. You may consider shorter but more intense cardio workouts to compliment your weight training. Do you do your cardio first and then your resistance work? I'd reverse that if that's the case, weights followed by cardio is an excellent way to burn fat and allows you to put 100% into your weight training.

 

Generally, if you want to build muscle you should do compound exercises (exercises that incorporate several muscles) and follow those with isolation exercises.

 

Example: bench press (compound) followed by pec fly (isolation). Simply put, compounds build and isolations shape.

 

Try splitting your workouts, so instead of doing a full body routine, work a large muscle group (chest, lats, legs) and a smaller one (biceps, delts, triceps) on the same day. Really hit each group hard instead of doing a more general routine. I'm a fan of pyramid sets - decreasing the reps as you increase the weight (for example 12, 10, 10 and 8 reps) and I like to finish with a drop set. You work to failure and then take about a third of the weight off and work to failure and repeat until there's almost nothing on the bar.

 

The above is stuff I learned on my instructor's course a few years ago, I moved into a different career quite a while ago but I never lost my own interest in fitness.

[Sten Guns]

I was in Mexico in September.

 

Pre holiday I wanted to get cut. Done a fair whack of cardio. Whilst I did get cut and lose excess fat, my strength went down, as did my muscle mass.

 

Post holiday, I've upped the calories again, stopped the cardio, my strength has rocketed, lost muscle mass has returned and I'm looking "fuller" again.

 

So as SP said, it's bloody hard to do as much cardio as your doing, whilst also wanting to gain muscle.

 

So long as your diet is very good, you don't need any cardio to be honest. Weights and diet will easily see you get to where you want to be.

 

Edited November 1, 2012 by Sten Guns

[Walrus]

http://www.athleat.co.uk

 

Anyone ordered food from here? Quite pricey but good quality food.

[Creepy Lurker]

http://www.athleat.co.uk

 

Anyone ordered food from here? Quite pricey but good quality food.

 

Was thinking about it at one point, but haven't been able to afford it yet.

 

Also slightly put off by the fact they sell something called 'The Monthly Crossfit Paleo Grass Fed Meat Box'.

 

Crossfit and paleo...a match made in heaven. Like Jimmy Saville and Hitler.

Edited November 5, 2012 by Creepy Lurker

[The People's Chimp]

What gimmicky nonsense. Just go to a good butcher's FFS.

[Creepy Lurker]

What gimmicky nonsense. Just go to a good butcher's FFS.

 

There's some decent quality meat there which you can buy in bulk. You won't necessarily be able to get that kind of choice or that kind of bulk even at a good butcher's.

 

You could really say 'just go to a good xyz' in relation to absolutely any online shopping.

 

Edit: just had another look and the choice actually isn't as good as I remember. The jerky etc isn't too bad, and I suppose crocodile might be problematic for some (although I know a place in Gorgie where you can get it, so maybe not), but otherwise I'm sure it was better last time I looked, ages ago. Oh well. Second point stands: online shopping's also about convenience. I don't really see what's gimmicky about a website selling meat any more than a website selling books or clothes.

Edited November 5, 2012 by Creepy Lurker

[The People's Chimp]

It was more the fact it looked pretty expensive with no particular benefit, it being for 'athletes' aside. I buy hunners of stuff online and have no problem with online shopping.

[Creepy Lurker]

It was more the fact it looked pretty expensive with no particular benefit, it being for 'athletes' aside. I buy hunners of stuff online and have no problem with online shopping.

 

I think the benefit is just the convenience of being able to buy in bulk and get it delivered to you. Having said that, I do agree that it's a bit of a con to make that kind of markup on something that there's no special benefit to over the kind of stuff you could get at a good butcher's or even a wholesaler's.

[Sten Guns]

Tempted to get these for squatting / leg days.

 

http://store.skins.net/uk/mens-compression/a400-compression/a400-mens-compression-long-tights

 

Anyone any knowledge / opinion on them?

[TheOak88]

Tempted to get these for squatting / leg days.

 

http://store.skins.n...ion-long-tights

 

Anyone any knowledge / opinion on them?

 

?85 for a pair of underarmour leggings?

 

Why?

[Sten Guns]

They're not under armour and you can pick a pair up by Skins for around ?40 by shopping around elsewhere.

 

Anyway, you've not really answered my question. Haha.

[TheOak88]

What is the difference between them and under armour?

 

To answer your question I think they are just something to keep your legs warm when doing some sort of outside cardio vascular exercise in the winter.

 

I read the blurb and I still don't understand what they do TBH. They supposedly make you run faster? Would love to see the evidence for that. They improve muscle recovery? Would love to see the evidence for that.

 

I take it you are wanting them for weight training? I am still not sure what advantage they will give you with regards to weight training? All the blurb on the site seems geared towards runners and sports players wearing them

[Sten Guns]

 

Quick Overview

 

More oxygen to your muscles

Dynamic gradient compression delivers more oxygen filled blood to active muscles to increase power and stamina

 

Rock-solid base

Memory MX fabric maximizes your stability and control while channeling the direction of your leg muscles

 

Recover fast

Less lactic acid build-up, less muscle vibration and less pain in the morning

 

Copy and pasted the above. Basically the above attracted me to have a look in to them. All sounds helpful for leg day / squat sessions.

 

Just wasn't sure how true. Hence asking if anyone had any expierience of owning a pair......

[Mr Romanov Saviour of HMFC]

The put all that mince on the under armour tops as well. 'improves performance' etc

 

Bit of a gimmick imo

[Sten Guns]

Cheers. Ack well.

 

Got my squat up to 140kg now and it's been hurting for a good few days afterwords.

 

Guess I was looking for anything to reduce that.

[Mr Romanov Saviour of HMFC]

Speaking of leg work, I've been doing a lot more recently, and when I lie in bed at night, I feel a really weird sensation through my achiles. Not a pain as such, but it's fairly uncomfortable.

 

Is some shit about to get real in my achilles? Bear in mind I'm made of glass.

[BigC]

I've been back on it for the last 2-3 months...

 

Trying to just stay consistent and do 3 x workouts per week... One gym session, one big swim (100+ lengths) and one game of fives.

 

Need to start cutting down on the chocolate to start losing weight.

[Creepy Lurker]

Got my first interclub event with MT on December 13th, so that's what my training's focussed on at the moment. Don't really have a weight to make for it, though, so I've actually been eating at a slight surplus recently to try to gain a bit of weight. Felt like my lifts were all stalling a bit with the programme I was on before, some even going backwards, so I've gone back to a really simple strength training regime. Actually feel like I'm looking forward to going to the gym again, which is nice as it had become a bit of a chore.

 

As far as compression gear goes, the claims that they make seem to be something to do with the tightness keeping the body warm, which improves blood flow to muscles, which improves recovery. From the research I've looked at, which hasn't really been that extensive to be honest, it seems that there might be something in it, but even being very charitable to the companies involved the difference that compression gear will make is pretty minimal. A decent foam roller will cost a fraction of the price and be a lot more effective.

[Walrus]

Anyone tried hitting the Push, Pull, Leg routine?

 

Hurt my wrist the other week and used it as an excuse for not lifting for a week and a half, let the inner fatty inside me out as well!

 

Did Push last night, pull tonight!

[JamboCampbell]

JC

 

Seems like you're doing a tremendous amount of cardio there and if you're after some muscle gain, it'll be nigh on impossible with that volume of cardio. You should revise the balance of your routine, which at the moment is heavily geared towards cardiovascular work. You may consider shorter but more intense cardio workouts to compliment your weight training. Do you do your cardio first and then your resistance work? I'd reverse that if that's the case, weights followed by cardio is an excellent way to burn fat and allows you to put 100% into your weight training.

 

Generally, if you want to build muscle you should do compound exercises (exercises that incorporate several muscles) and follow those with isolation exercises.

 

Example: bench press (compound) followed by pec fly (isolation). Simply put, compounds build and isolations shape.

 

Try splitting your workouts, so instead of doing a full body routine, work a large muscle group (chest, lats, legs) and a smaller one (biceps, delts, triceps) on the same day. Really hit each group hard instead of doing a more general routine. I'm a fan of pyramid sets - decreasing the reps as you increase the weight (for example 12, 10, 10 and 8 reps) and I like to finish with a drop set. You work to failure and then take about a third of the weight off and work to failure and repeat until there's almost nothing on the bar.

 

The above is stuff I learned on my instructor's course a few years ago, I moved into a different career quite a while ago but I never lost my own interest in fitness.

 

 

 

 

Thanks for the info and advice mate! Since then I have cut cardio down to two fartlek runs a week plus 90min game.

Im now doing 4 sessions in gym, doing chest and biceps in one session. Back shoulders and triceps in second and legs in 3rd. 4th i really just abs and a wee bit of what I feel i havent worked hard enough that week.

Is there any advice you could offer in terms of the grouping of muscles in each session, e.g. Is the above OK or is it better to do bicep and triceps same day?

Doing the compound and the isolation then concentration reps as you said.

To be fair in the last month I have noticed much progress from dropping the cardio a bit whilst not feeling less cardio fit so thumbs up to your advice on that front!

 

JC

[Sten Guns]

If I were you, I would split those 4 days as;

 

Chest & triceps

Back & biceps

Legs

Shoulders (delts & traps)

[JamboCampbell]

If I were you, I would split those 4 days as;

 

Chest & triceps

Back & biceps

Legs

Shoulders (delts & traps)

 

 

 

Cool, any particular reason behind it or is it something you have done, or do, currently!

[Sten Guns]

 

 

 

 

 

Cool, any particular reason behind it or is it something you have done, or do, currently!

 

 

Chest & triceps

Back & biceps

 

Is pretty much the law mate.

 

When you train chest, the triceps are the secondary muscles used, so it makes sense to finish them off.

 

The same goes for back, the biceps are the secondary muscles used.....

 

Plus, if you trained chest & bi's, then the next day tried to train back & tri's, your session wouldn't be as effective because your biceps would be sore from the day prior, hampering your back workout, likewise for triceps.

 

That's the way I see it. Others may disagree.....

 

You didn't mention you train legs? Hence suggesting you spend a day on them. My overall shape / performance improved dramatically when I finally stopped neglecting squats. I would say its vital you don't skip legs. Learn to love the squat! Moreover, leg day breaks up the week, giving your upper body a rest, in turn maybe improving your next session.

 

Shoulders (delts & traps), suggested that gets its own day because, well for me anyway, it's a big workout. 8 exercises. 4 or 5 sets a time. A fair few of them drop sets. Don't really have the time or the energy to pair shoulder day up with anything, if I did, I wouldn't be giving that body part a fair crack of the whip

 

Finally, no matter what you do, IMO it's important you get the "big three" in. Squats, Bench & Deads. I used to only hit 33% of that. When I finally hit them all, I reaped the benefits. I don't think it matters what your goal is either. I see huge guys do all 3, as well as petite, athletic / toned girls.

 

[Mr Romanov Saviour of HMFC]

Totally agree on squats.

 

I've had a dodgy knee so have only really included them in the last few months, they make a massive difference.

 

My balance is better, posture is better, overall strength is better, I like to cycle and I feel stronger doing that and my knee used to feel extremely weak but I feel as if I could run a good few miles on it now.

 

Everyone says they dread them but it's probably my favourite exercise, it's the bench I dread. ******* hate it!

 

I need some new meal ideas. Been taking a chicken salad or salmon salad for lunch everyday but it gets boring, any ideas for good cold meals I can put in a wee box?

Edited November 26, 2012 by Alan Partridge

[Walrus]

Totally agree on squats.

 

I've had a dodgy knee so have only really included them in the last few months, they make a massive difference.

 

My balance is better, posture is better, overall strength is better, I like to cycle and I feel stronger doing that and my knee used to feel extremely weak but I feel as if I could run a good few miles on it now.

 

Everyone says they dread them but it's probably my favourite exercise, it's the bench I dread. ******* hate it!

 

I need some new meal ideas. Been taking a chicken salad or salmon salad for lunch everyday but it gets boring, any ideas for good cold meals I can put in a wee box?

 

Italian Salad with tuna and some balsamic vinegar put through it? (I realise this is another form of salad and fish but it's quite tasty)

[JamboCampbell]

Whats peoples thoughts on this workout, was gonna try it for 6 weeks to begin with see where it takes me although I have tweaked it a little to look like this:

Day 1 - Chest and Triceps

Day 2 - Legs and Abdominals

Day 3 - Fartlek Run

Day 4 - Back and Biceps

Day 5 - Shoulders and Abdominals & Fartlek Run

Day 6 - OFF

Day 7 - Game

 

Thoughts?

 

I was also after further advice on whey protein from folk who maybe use or have used it and the certain brands that are better ect!

 

[Nelly Terraces]

Anyone else a running addict? I can't stand gyms, they bore me senseless, so it's out on the road permo for me, I'll have clocked over 2500 miles by the end of this year - I chuffing love it, the best stress buster there is, and cheap/time efficient as well. I'm fitter than a butchers dog n'all, so there haha!

[51 Shirts -Moments in Time]

Hi Nelly, been running since the February. Did a couple of 10ks. In the last two months I have upped my mileage to circa 30 miles per week. In the new year I am doing the half kilomathon, then the meadows HM,followed by the Edinburgh Rock n Roll HM. Hoping for a time of about 1:50. Safe to say I am addicted. I am also hoping that I will have dropped two stone by Christmas Day (I did need to lose that though and could lose about a stone more). No where near you mileage but I also love it.

[Creepy Lurker]

I need some new meal ideas. Been taking a chicken salad or salmon salad for lunch everyday but it gets boring, any ideas for good cold meals I can put in a wee box?

 

It's difficult to say without knowing what you like, but just about anything can be cooked in bulk. Having said that, even just doing a wee marinade for the chicken or salmon can make quite a big difference. I like to mix soy sauce, natural peanut butter (smooth mixes easiest and is generally better for cooking with), lime juice, chilli flakes and garlic powder for a kind of satay type thing. Natural or greek yoghurt mixed with a bit of lemon juice and loads of spices (turmeric, cumin, coriander, chilli, etc) is good for a tandoori style marinade. Also try oven roasted veggies instead of salad (onions, carrots, sweet potatoes, peppers and courgettes work well)...or just eat something else if you're tired of chicken/fish and veg.

 

Anyone else a running addict? I can't stand gyms, they bore me senseless, so it's out on the road permo for me, I'll have clocked over 2500 miles by the end of this year - I chuffing love it, the best stress buster there is, and cheap/time efficient as well. I'm fitter than a butchers dog n'all, so there haha!

 

I don't understand how people can find running anything other than soul destroyingly boring! Fair play, though.

[Creepy Lurker]

Brb, building a commercial gym...think I'll only bother with two squat racks, then allow them to double up as the only area where anyone can bench. It's not like either of those are popular things to do.

[Walrus]

Brb, building a commercial gym...think I'll only bother with two squat racks, then allow them to double up as the only area where anyone can bench. It's not like either of those are popular things to do.