2018 Health and Fitness Thread

[hondaguy2582]

My preferred squatting style Koji squats plus barefoot: https://youtu.be/xIcOQ````0c

 

[hondaguy2582]

https://youtu.be/xIcOQ````0c

 

[Accumulator]

Owning a white car has resparked my interest in detailing!

Yeah, I`ve always enjoyed *every* aspect of owning my white cars! Still kinda miss that last Crown Vic...

Almost to 100,000 posts I see. Good to see a veteran still on here.

Heh heh, "more detailing, less posting" comes to mind, but the cars just don`t need done that much these days.

My preferred squatting style Koji squats plus barefoot..

Couldn`t get the link to work...but those are with chains/etc. as added resistance right? I like the idea of making the squats harder towards the peak-contraction point that way. I`m doing the same kind of thing by adding the bands, but my days of back squats are basically over (with no downside).

Adding chains never worked for me...the progression just wasn`t right, sorta like how the Nautilus Cam was wrong for me. Great thing for those it *does* work for though! I did use them with some success back when I was doing Wrist Roller work.

I am doing some Zercher Squats every few Upper Leg workouts. But *not* barefoot. I have wear-and-tear issues to the point that I have to be in just the right shoes with just the right insoles when I`m doing Leg Work, or I`ll be sidelined and that can`t happen.

 

[Accumulator]

Im def seeing better reaults with the interval training by doing less...

Aha!

I think part of my struggles in maxing my HR is just not having enough juice in my legs to pish hard enough. With fresh legs i can hit 170 or so. Less is more...

That makes sense.

Eh, I bet it could`ve gone the *other* way too...not like I know it all...but you don`t know for sure what`s best for *you* until you try different approaches and I genuinely believe that most people train too much but not hard enough.

And I still think we`re splitting hairs in the "which wax is best on red?" manner. Just doing this stuff, without quitting or OVERdoing it...staying at it forever...will make all the difference that really matters. The diffs in mortality/etc. between people who are "fit" and "VERY fit" (cardio-wise) are pretty negligible. What`s *NOT* negligible is what happens when people stop doing serious exercise because of [INSERT all the reasons, excuses, etc.].

See, im learning.

Yes, indeed!

 

[hondaguy2582]

Yeah, I`ve always enjoyed *every* aspect of owning my white cars! Still kinda miss that last Crown Vic...



Heh heh, "more detailing, less posting" comes to mind, but the cars just don`t need done that much these days.



Couldn`t get the link to work...but those are with chains/etc. as added resistance right? I like the idea of making the squats harder towards the peak-contraction point that way. I`m doing the same kind of thing by adding the bands, but my days of back squats are basically over (with no downside).

Adding chains never worked for me...the progression just wasn`t right, sorta like how the Nautilus Cam was wrong for me. Great thing for those it *does* work for though! I did use them with some success back when I was doing Wrist Roller work.

I am doing some Zercher Squats every few Upper Leg workouts. But *not* barefoot. I have wear-and-tear issues to the point that I have to be in just the right shoes with just the right insoles when I`m doing Leg Work, or I`ll be sidelined and that can`t happen.

I use kettlebells and the wobble/rotational effects adds into the balance and stabilization generally missed in traditional squatting. Apparently can`t post Youtube links here(not sure whats wrong on my end?)?

Reason I went back to barefoot is I am only reserving olympic shoes and reebok speed trs for max attempts(2-3x per year). I find my feet and calves are much stronger, more flexibile, and the glutes get activated. Banded deadlifts have the same effect on me as I have to pull through the entire range of motion instead of coasting at the top! Fred Hatfield(RIP) had compensatory acceleration training in his powerlifting days. I find this is the best way to get stronger without having to tax your Central Nervous system all the time. Apply it to your main lifts, and you will see a huge increase in your strength down the road with only using 60-80% of your max!


Glad your spending less time on cars and living life more. I find myself spending less time on vehicles as well, but still wash and protect them to keep the contaminants at bay!

 

[Accumulator]

hondaguy2582- Thanks for explaining! Sounds like you and I pursuing different goals (hope that doesn`t come across wrong, it`s *NOT* intended as a criticism/etc. at all) and it sounds like you`re on the right track for what you`re after.

Yeah, you`re smart to work on balance and to avoid overtaxing your nervous system! It took a friend`s life-altering injury to get balance on my radar and I didn`t realize how important the nervous system`s various factors are until I finally started paying attention to what was going on (instead of listening to others)

Yeah#2, the banded Deads oughta be very good for exactly the reason you stated, and I do the same with my squats...what a diff that makes!

I haven`t really blown off the Detailing the way I once did back in college, more the case that I just don`t need to do much of it any more. My wife`s car gets used all the time so it needs done regularly, but most of the time that`s the only one that needs anything. Gee, I haven`t driven the S8 for years, recently put about 20 miles on the Crown Vic after *it* sat for years too. My life`s just not so car-centric any more. I do still keep those engine compartments and undercarriages kitchen-clean though

 

[jrock645]

Cardio day today. 7 minutes of HIIT, then 20 minutes on the elliptical with HR at 148. Then did my glute/hamstring exercises for my back, some planks and an oblique exercise. Lifting tomorrow.

Gonna try a new schedule this week, for a couple weeks and see how I feel. It’s gonna be M/W/F, but lift on Monday and Friday, cardio on Wednesday’s. Hoping that keeps me fresh, gives rest between lifting and cardio so I can push it on the bike.

 

[Accumulator]

First StairMaster cardio in three weeks, went better than last time when I`d done it sooner. Still the worst 2 minutes I experience regularly though. I simply DO NOT GET how people go longer while still maxing out...not just the cardio demand, but muscular endurance too, I`m simply *gassed* after four truly maxed Work Intervals At least I didn`t fall off the bike prior to my cool down this time.

jrock645- I like the sound of that new schedule. And that work on the elliptical sounds (if I`m recalling your Max HR correctly..) very good for preventing Arterial Stiffness.

I`m curious what you do for:
-warmup for the HIIT
-Obliques

It took me a while to come up with good effective movements for my Obliques, but at least I knew better than to do that "trunk twist with barbell on shoulders" thing that some people apparently still do. Sure wasted a lot of time on Side Bends with DBs though

 

[jrock645]

I do a moderate 12-15 minutes on the elliptical to get the blood flowing and a bit of a sweat started before I do anything at the gym. That and a couple minutes of stretching.

As for obliques, I’m still figuring out what works. I do some side planks. I tried the twist machine yesterday. Honestly felt more in my gluteus than obliques from that. I remember doing the side bends years ago with 45lb plates. I don’t think my back could handle those now.

What oblique movements work for you?

 

[Accumulator]

Ah, that sounds like a good warmup, though 12-15 min. would be too much for me. (I do recall that your warmup is just right for getting you into the right HR zone.)

What oblique movements work for you?

The way your Side Bends make you worry about your back is a big part of why I quit doing them. Never had a problem, but didn`t want to either! You could try doing them from a *HIGH PULLEY* instead (gee, maybe I oughta do those too) as that oughta sidestep the spinal concerns (if you do `em right).

I still do some Trunk Twists with an elastic band, but my primary (and by *far* most effective) is to..oh gee, how to explain this one?!?...Side Crunches.

These might be similar to your Side Planks:

-Lie down on floor on right side. Bottom leg slightly bent, top leg straight. Lower arm bracing against floor for stability. Top arm positioned over head (hardest) or lying on top of torso (easiest).

-Use Obliques to lift torso off floor...ha! right...do as best you can!..trying to at least get the bottom shoulder up off floor, do as many reps as possible.

Lift the torso just just UP, but also a little bit forward, just don`t turn it into an Abdominal exercise; keep the stress on the Obliques.

-Repeat for other side, one set per side.

I start out with my upper arm over my head, when I can`t continue I lower it down atop torso, finally end up swinging it to impart some momentum (yeah...) as it helps me continue the set and does still work the Obliques as long as I don`t go overboard with that cheating.

I tried all sorts of Oblique movements, thought I`d really like Hanging Side Bends from the pullup bar, but what I described above works best by far. Took a LONG time to be able to really do `em with decent form, sure glad I stuck with the movement even though I was cheating something awful for a while. Gotta be careful with that to avoid injury.

The Trunk Twists with the elastic band aren`t all that demanding but are still worth doing IME, just not on the same day. But they wouldn`t get my Obliques the way I want them by themselves.

IF the Trunk Twist Machine is decent it oughta work fine for the Twists. The way it hit your Glutes might just be an acclimation issue..something really different...or it might be from using too much weight on something unfamiliar. Twists are a high-rep movement IMO; so are those Side Crunches but it takes a while to be able to do a lot of them whereas with the Twists you can use a lower resistance and do plenty right from the jump.

 

[jrock645]

Definitely wasn’t too much weight. I was able to do 40 reps per side in a nice controlled, slow manner.

My shoulder workout yesterday(as part of a full body workout) got it done for sure. Shoulders haven’t been this sore in a while. Lateral raises, presses and upright rows.

 

[Accumulator]

jrock645- That "40 reps" sounds just right for that movement!

What did you use for the Lateral Raises? And the others for that matter...(I mean "what equipment" not "what weight").

Note that while I get all critical about some movements, if it got you good and sore then it *WORKED* so I won`t snipe at it I`m just curious.

I did try some Standing Cable Laterals the last time and they worked well. I think I got that "pre-stretch" starting position figured out, but i still did the 1 1/4 reps for as long as I could.

 

[jrock645]

Lateral raise was machine, like a nautilus type. Overhead press machine for presses. And a preloaded barbell for the upright row.

A lot of the soreness is in rear delts/teres major. Even lats a bit but that may be from dips.

 

[Accumulator]

jrock645- Ah, that sounds good! I really like that you got your rear delts!

I do wonder whether the "nautilus-like" machines have that same (wrong for delts) progressive resistance curve that the Nautilus ones have though...eh, as long as they work for you, that`s what counts

Heh heh, I kinda have to watch that my Terres Major doesn`t take over when I`m trying to work other areas.

And yeah, try as I might to target just the, well...targeted muscle groups..I end up getting some spillover effect. Work Chest, feel Lats; work Back, feel (outer) Pecs. I figure it`s not a problem, but still..I even feel my Upper Legs a little today after working Lower Legs yesterday.

I`ll be very interested to hear how the Dips work for you long term! I eventually dropped them from the rotation but sure do think they`re a great exercise. Lots of ways to tweak what you`re doing with Dips.

Do the Front Raises ever seem to negatively impact your Chest work? I had to work like crazy to keep my Anterior Delts (which don`t need any isolation work) out of the action when working Chest (especially the upper areas), hence my general disdain for Front Raises. Might just be me, but I had to limit my Delt work to the middle/rear heads and the Front Raises don`t seem to work those.

 

[jrock645]

I havent done a front raise in years. Mainly just do the laterals an rows for shoulders. And i had the same problem with incline press, yet its generally viewed as one of the top chest exercises.

 

[Accumulator]

jrock645- Ah, YMMV strikes again Incline presses are the only pressing movement I do and thus a major portion of my Chest Work.

But yeah, took me forever (decades ) to get them just right so they`re effective.

The one I cannot do is Decline Presses, which is OK since my lower Pecs don`t need that anyhow.

 

[jrock645]

Ill be adding inclines back in about a month. Gonna do flat bench in the smith heavy, 6-8 reps. Then db inclines in the 10-15.

I definitely feel declines strong in my chest, as opposed to shoulders but not sure if it leads to any real benefit.

 

[Accumulator]

jrock6435- I`ve always found it kinda funny how the Declines just don`t work for me. Injuries (thankfully very minor), poor results...I mean, sheesh, this is a standard movement that`s worked great for countless people! But not for me. Eh, I never got anything much out of Flat Presses either, or Barbell Bench Presses period for that matter.

I sure think it`s great that you`re able to isolate your pecs (from your shoulders) with the Declines though. You`re "greasing the groove" (as Pavel would say) neurologically speaking and building a great mind-muscle connection. I bet you`ll realize the benefits when your *other* Chest Movements start being "more chest/less other stuff" just the way you`d like

Do you get good results with that low rep range? For a long time I was all about that, but these days I`ve upped the rep range considerably. But then I`m not trying to build strength either....

 

[phatkid77]

Ooops

 

[Swanicyouth]

Down almost exactly 100lbs.

6’1” was about 288 lbs at worse. 185 lbs now. Eat constantly - it’s just what I eat.

TBH, was pretty EZ to loose 100. Took a little over a year.

A lot easier to detail & work on my cars now