Random Fitness Questions

Sunrise_Sunset · 26-07-2020 02:31PM

Cill94 wrote: »

Everything said above. It won't take long but best not to focus on time, just focus on making each session a successful one and don't rush back into it.

Also worth taking the time to reflect on why you stopped training during lockdown, so you can avoid a similarly long layoff in future.

I had no equipment. I tried online but everywhere was sold out. I attempted a couple of home sessions with 5 litre water bottles but the handles were awkward and it hurt. So I tried a couple of bodyweight only sessions after that, didn't love it, but it was ok, and then I just sort of gave up.

Sunrise_Sunset · 26-07-2020 02:35PM

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

It shouldn't take the same time as when you started from scratch.

But, and I get where you're coming from, think of it as a long game. I presume you want to be in pre-lockdown shape, or better, in a few years' time. So whether it takes 2 months or 4 months or 6 months isn't a big deal

Yeah I know it's a long game. And I'm no spring chicken either. I'm already seeing results in my upper body after 2 weeks (4 sessions), so hopefully the rest will follow suit. Strength wise I'd love to be back within a 2 month time frame, but if I'm not, then so be it. Appearance wise I think it may take longer, but I'm fine with that.

Alf Veedersane · 26-07-2020 02:44PM

Sunrise_Sunset wrote: »

Yeah I know it's a long game. And I'm no spring chicken either. I'm already seeing results in my upper body after 2 weeks (4 sessions), so hopefully the rest will follow suit. Strength wise I'd love to be back within a 2 month time frame, but if I'm not, then so be it. Appearance wise I think it may take longer, but I'm fine with that.

I'm no spring chicken myself

You probably won't be a million miles off in 2 months anyway so at least you'll have seen the speed of progress by then.

Aurelian · 26-07-2020 03:46PM

Has anyone experienced marked imbalance in muscular development left/right? If so, were you able to address it?

Alf Veedersane · 26-07-2020 04:15PM

Aurelian wrote: »

Has anyone experienced marked imbalance in muscular development left/right? If so, were you able to address it?

What muscles are you finding this with?

the baby bull elephant · 26-07-2020 04:22PM

Aurelian wrote: »

Has anyone experienced marked imbalance in muscular development left/right? If so, were you able to address it?

https://www.strongerbyscience.com/important-muscular-symmetry-strength-sports/

Alf Veedersane · 26-07-2020 04:33PM

the baby bull elephant wrote: »

https://www.strongerbyscience.com/important-muscular-symmetry-strength-sports/

There's almost always a Stronger By Science article to answer a question :pac:

Aurelian · 26-07-2020 10:31PM

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

What muscles are you finding this with?

Non technical answer - leg and back!

new2tri19 · 26-07-2020 11:39PM

I'm looking to build some muscle, I do 15 hours of cardio a week as a triathlete. Swim 2 hours , bike 10 hours , run 3 hours. Concerned as I'm getting older that I don't have alot of muscle mass. I've started to go to the gym at lunchtime. I've never done weights before but google said do compound exercises. I've been doing Barbell squats , Bench press , Row , pull ups , sit ups , deadlifts , cleans and shoulder press. I am doing a weight I can lift for about 6 reps , so 3 sets of 6 off 1 minute.
I am doing this twice a week and then one day of longer reps of body weight exercises like a 20 minute youtube workout. I do mobility and yoga on the days I don't do weights. I am starting to notice a difference my muscles look bigger , especially after lifting but go back down again a while later. I take 1 protein shake on days I do weights.
My question is will I get bigger or is the cardio going to ruin any gains I make. My aim is to have a good body not be thin like a runner or cyclist but more a swimmers build , noticeable definition on the upper body.
I've been told by a few people you can't get big with lifting unless you cut out cardio and eat loads. Eating loads I find hard.
Thanks in advance.

Mr. CooL ICE · 27-07-2020 10:50AM

new2tri19 wrote: »

I've been told by a few people you can't get big with lifting unless you cut out cardio and eat loads.

Re cardio: This is mostly wrong. Advice probably grounded in bro science and popularised by geared multiply lifters who need a CPAP to climb a flight of stairs.

Cardio is fine as long as it doesn't interfere with recovery of lifting weights. But 15 hours of cardio a week is a lot. If you could reduce it by the equivalent amount of time you are now spending in the gym, it might be a good starting point.

Yes, you probably need to eat more but it's hard to know without knowing how much you are eating now compared to before you started lifting.

Bearing in mind I know F all about training as a triathlete, but would you consider planning your training in phases? I.e. if you don't have an event for say, 6 months, to focus on weights and reduce your tri cardio for say 3 months? Then as the event approaches, gradually taper off weights and taper back onto the tri cardio? Weights isn't cardio exercise, but does work the cardiovascular system so it's not like you'll lose all of your tri cardio gains for the example 3 months above.

Alf Veedersane · 27-07-2020 11:13AM

Aurelian wrote: »

Non technical answer - leg and back!

Wasnt looking for a technical one

What exercises do you notice the imbalances on?

new2tri19 · 27-07-2020 11:34AM

Mr. CooL ICE wrote: »

Re cardio: This is mostly wrong. Advice probably grounded in bro science and popularised by geared multiply lifters who need a CPAP to climb a flight of stairs.

Cardio is fine as long as it doesn't interfere with recovery of lifting weights. But 15 hours of cardio a week is a lot. If you could reduce it by the equivalent amount of time you are now spending in the gym, it might be a good starting point.

Yes, you probably need to eat more but it's hard to know without knowing how much you are eating now compared to before you started lifting.

Bearing in mind I know F all about training as a triathlete, but would you consider planning your training in phases? I.e. if you don't have an event for say, 6 months, to focus on weights and reduce your tri cardio for say 3 months? Then as the event approaches, gradually taper off weights and taper back onto the tri cardio? Weights isn't cardio exercise, but does work the cardiovascular system so it's not like you'll lose all of your tri cardio gains for the example 3 months above.

Thanks thats promising that you can still bulk up while maintaining cardio training. I do ramp up and down the training and 80% of that cardio is easy stuff.
I am a peak training amount now mostly because the longer days means more long bike rides. When winter comes it will be closer to 8 hours.

The plan is to do weights now and work on form and mobility so I can do the exercises correctly , I've been working on hip mobility and squatting before putting any heavy weight on a bar as I don't want to get injured for starters.
Then when I get it dialled in I can spend more time lifting in winter.

In regards lifting to get bigger is it best to lift short reps with heaviest weight you can manage ? Also I do 3 sets of say bench press then move to squat then next excercse until done . Is it better to do 1 set of bench , 1 set of squat and then repeat the whole thing 3 times or is there any difference ?

I don't eat that much pretty standard every day , breakfast is cereal and coffee , lunch sandwitch and some fruit , dinner your standard meat and veg , tea and bar of chocolate. Snack very little , long bike ride a fullfil bar or 2 and same with hard swim ill take a fullfill bar. Before gym ill grab some kind of protein nut bar and have a protein shake afterwards. I'm 5ft 11 and 67kg I could probably do with getting that weight up.

I am dropping back the running as it's very hard to gain weight , my easy lunch time runs have been replaced by the gym. I'm just clueless on so many thinks when it comes to weights , like do you do your legs one day and upper body the next ? How many days a week to lift weights. You google it and there is so much conflicting information.

Alf Veedersane · 27-07-2020 11:39AM

new2tri19 wrote: »

Thanks thats promising that you can still bulk up while maintaining cardio training. I do ramp up and down the training and 80% of that cardio is easy stuff.
I am a peak training amount now mostly because the longer days means more long bike rides. When winter comes it will be closer to 8 hours.

The plan is to do weights now and work on form and mobility so I can do the exercises correctly , I've been working on hip mobility and squatting before putting any heavy weight on a bar as I don't want to get injured for starters.
Then when I get it dialled in I can spend more time lifting in winter.

In regards lifting to get bigger is it best to lift short reps with heaviest weight you can manage ? Also I do 3 sets of say bench press then move to squat then next excercse until done . Is it better to do 1 set of bench , 1 set of squat and then repeat the whole thing 3 times or is there any difference ?

I don't eat that much pretty standard every day , breakfast is cereal and coffee , lunch sandwitch and some fruit , dinner your standard meat and veg , tea and bar of chocolate. Snack very little , long bike ride a fullfil bar or 2 and same with hard swim ill take a fullfill bar. Before gym ill grab some kind of protein nut bar and have a protein shake afterwards. I'm 5ft 11 and 67kg I could probably do with getting that weight up.

I am dropping back the running as it's very hard to gain weight , my easy lunch time runs have been replaced by the gym. I'm just clueless on so many thinks when it comes to weights , like do you do your legs one day and upper body the next ? How many days a week to lift weights. You google it and there is so much conflicting information.

Couple of decent articles to read:

Cardio Isn’t Going to Kill Your Gains

Practical Considerations for Combining Cardio and Lifting

Mr. CooL ICE · 27-07-2020 12:49PM

Well it sounds like you're approaching this with the right frame of mind, i.e. working on mobility and avoiding injury, but a few things I'd like to point out.

What is your training schedule like now and how will it be in winter? If say, you are running in the morning before going to the gym and squatting, you wouldn't be doing yourself any favours. Doing your run the day before squatting would be better but still isn't ideal.

You'll need to eat more. How you do that is up to you. A protein shake after the gym isn't completely necessary. If anything, you'd be better off getting in some carbs after the gym as replacing your glycogen stores would be priority, especially if you're using the same muscles for cardio later that day. Consuming protein immediately after the gym/metabolic window is more bro science; just make sure you are consuming enough per day overall.

Getting bigger is mostly down to progressive overload, i.e. lifting a little bit more than you did the previous session. If you look at any of the beginner lifting programs out there, they all have the same thing in common; you do the same exercises with reps/sets over and over, but add a tiny bit more weight each session. You start light slowly get heavier and the body adapts by increasing muscle to deal with the stimulus of increasingly heavier weights. There are limits to how long you can run these beginner programs but the principals of progressive overload generally stay the same for all levels. tl;dr overall growth depends on the sheer number of reps you lift, so 3x10 can be the same as 10x3.

Before a program can be suggested, how much time do you have to train in your lunch breaks and is it 5 days/week?

Cill94 · 27-07-2020 01:02PM

new2tri19 wrote: »

..

Same as what lads above have said.

Main thing is to only chase one goal at a time. If muscle gain is it then you need to accept your cardio stuff is going to have to take a back seat. I would do the minimum needed to maintain your current fitness levels and then devote rest of your energy to the strength stuff and upping your food intake.

You’re new to strength training so I’d recommend at minimum following a reputable beginner programme and/or doing a few sessions with a coach who could teach you proper technique.

TJ Mackie · 27-07-2020 03:56PM

If someone is overweight (near obese on the BMI scale - 28/29) and goes from little activity to doing intense weights sessions 4 days a week while tracking calories, what is likely to happen in each following scenario -

- 500 calorie deficit
- 500 calorie surplus
- No surplus or deficit, maintenance hit

Let's assume that the right macros are all being hit and it's a good protein-rich diet.

I'm really enjoying doing the weights and I'm happier than I've ever been (there's that dopamine for you) and would love to build muscle, but not sure what happens if someone overweight combines a (good) calorie surplus with weights-heavy workout regime. Well, I've read what should happen but would be concerned the calorie surplus it was just go on as extra bodyweight and not necessarily muscle weight.

Likewise, worried about doing all those weights and having a deficit undo the hard work.

new2tri19 · 27-07-2020 04:21PM

Mr. CooL ICE wrote: »

Well it sounds like you're approaching this with the right frame of mind, i.e. working on mobility and avoiding injury, but a few things I'd like to point out.

What is your training schedule like now and how will it be in winter? If say, you are running in the morning before going to the gym and squatting, you wouldn't be doing yourself any favours. Doing your run the day before squatting would be better but still isn't ideal.

You'll need to eat more. How you do that is up to you. A protein shake after the gym isn't completely necessary. If anything, you'd be better off getting in some carbs after the gym as replacing your glycogen stores would be priority, especially if you're using the same muscles for cardio later that day. Consuming protein immediately after the gym/metabolic window is more bro science; just make sure you are consuming enough per day overall.

Getting bigger is mostly down to progressive overload, i.e. lifting a little bit more than you did the previous session. If you look at any of the beginner lifting programs out there, they all have the same thing in common; you do the same exercises with reps/sets over and over, but add a tiny bit more weight each session. You start light slowly get heavier and the body adapts by increasing muscle to deal with the stimulus of increasingly heavier weights. There are limits to how long you can run these beginner programs but the principals of progressive overload generally stay the same for all levels. tl;dr overall growth depends on the sheer number of reps you lift, so 3x10 can be the same as 10x3.

Before a program can be suggested, how much time do you have to train in your lunch breaks and is it 5 days/week?

Can go the gym for about an hour 2 to 3 times a week, I have been doing bodyweight exercises at home aswell one day a week can add more there.

Training now

Monday am - Gym lifting compound exercises 3 sets of 6-8
Monday pm - Bike 1 hour easy
Monday pm - Stretching and some core work

Tuesday am - Hip mobility 20 mins + full body mobility and stretching
Tuesday pm - Bike V02 max set or zwift race

Wednesday am - bike commute
Wednesday lunch - swim 1 hour
Wednesday pm - bike commute
Wednesday pm - easy jog 45-1 hour and yoga + stretching

Thursday am - bike commute
lunch - gym compound exercises
Thursday pm - bike commute
Thursday pm - rest or easy jog or bike session on zwift

Friday am bike commute
Friday lunch - swim 1 hour
Friday pm bike commute
Friday pm - rest or easy bike/run and core work

Saturday am long bike endurance
Saturday pm body weight muscle endurance youtube video 20 mins

Sunday am long run
Sunday pm rest or yoga or open water swim .

Winter ill likely drop the long bike endurance , the open water swim and ill cut back on the commute , i'll run home from work and cycle in so that I don't have to go for a run in the dark and cold later on. A few minor adjustments means that training reduces from 13-15 hours to around 8-10 .
Nothing is set in stone. I'd like to add weight training to my overall training plan and not have it as something i do for 3 months then stop. I think weight train is very important for athletes especially as we get older.

Cill94 · 27-07-2020 05:06PM

TJ Mackie wrote: »

If someone is overweight..

My 2 cents:

Eat maintenance calories.

Focus on getting stronger.

When newbie gains wear off (unable to lose fat and gain muscle simultaneously) then cut calories until you're at a healthy weight. From there you could look at a surplus to gain muscle.

Montageofhell · 27-07-2020 06:28PM

Hello. I was googling stuff and happened upon this thread. People seem to know what they're talking about so I thought I'd ask a few questions if that's fine?

So this is probably a common issue. I have lost a good bit of weight but I can't lose my belly fat! I'm basically skinny everywhere except my belly. Any tips on getting rid of the belly fat?

Then a follow up question. Just say I manage to lose my belly fat and I'm very skinny. If I try to bulk up by doing weights and eating more, will the fat just go straight back onto my belly first? Anyway of avoiding that?

Cheers,
Tony.

bladespin · 27-07-2020 09:56PM

Find your maintenance and stay on that for a while, start a building program, if your weight starts to drop then adjust your calories up, if you haven’t really trained properly before you should see good results, don’t worry overly about bulking etc until it becomes an issue.

silverharp · 07-08-2020 09:38AM

Seated row, any idea what the weights are or more importantly what the weight increase is between 10 and 11,I'd guess 4KG and then 5KG . I keep track of the overall volume as a number so just want to add it in correctly eg 1.25 x reps

Mellor · 07-08-2020 10:02AM

No way of knowing. could be up to 10kg. could be in lbs too.

bladespin · 07-08-2020 10:51AM

We used a force meter to measure a stack once, messed around with different pulleys and angles too, nice toy to have.

Cill94 · 07-08-2020 12:14PM

silverharp wrote: »

Seated row, any idea what the weights are or more importantly what the weight increase is between 10 and 11,I'd guess 4KG and then 5KG . I keep track of the overall volume as a number so just want to add it in correctly eg 1.25 x reps

As long as you use that machine consistently you'll be able to gauge progress based on going up that scale.

More importantly - it's just a row. The exact weight really doesn't matter.

Alf Veedersane · 07-08-2020 01:13PM

silverharp wrote: »

Seated row, any idea what the weights are or more importantly what the weight increase is between 10 and 11,I'd guess 4KG and then 5KG . I keep track of the overall volume as a number so just want to add it in correctly eg 1.25 x reps

Tbh, I wouldn't be bothered what the actual weight is on a machine like that. You're just trying to increase resistance and maintain good technique. What the increase is in a kg figure is largely irrelevant.

ancapailldorcha · 30-08-2020 11:54AM

Does anyone have any recommendations for sites about fitness routines, diet, recipes, exercises and such? I've gone back to my gym and have a routine but I'll need to change it at some point.

Thanks.

Mellor · 30-08-2020 12:16PM

ancapailldorcha wrote: »

Does anyone have any recommendations for sites about fitness routines, diet, recipes, exercises and such? I've gone back to my gym and have a routine but I'll need to change it at some point.

Thanks.

If the current routine is a good one, then there’s no real reason to change it unless your goals change.
Of course, may or may not be good depending where it came from.

ancapailldorcha · 30-08-2020 12:54PM

Mellor wrote: »

If the current routine is a good one, then there’s no real reason to change it unless your goals change.
Of course, may or may not be good depending where it came from.

The one I got was a basic one for my arms. I feel like I should be changing it up every so often as the body can get used to one specific routine. I'm also getting a bit bored of it.

Alf Veedersane · 30-08-2020 01:10PM

ancapailldorcha wrote: »

The one I got was a basic one for my arms. I feel like I should be changing it up every so often as the body can get used to one specific routine. I'm also getting a bit bored of it.

https://touch.boards.ie/thread/2058104438/1

The body gets used to it if nothing changes. But if you're changing the weight and reps, like most programmes will provide for, then it's not the same work being done.

ancapailldorcha · 30-08-2020 01:20PM

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

https://touch.boards.ie/thread/2058104438/1

The body gets used to it if nothing changes. But if you're changing the weight and reps, like most programmes will provide for, then it's not the same work being done.

How do you mean changing the reps? Like 5x5 instead of 3x12?

I think I should probably do something more than dumbell lifts and a few core exercises like work on my core, back, legs and chest.

Random Fitness Questions

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