2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

I ordered this this morning:


Along with a workout mat, sparring/workout gloves, and a flat weight bench. I'll be getting back my dumbbells from my parents. Its been about 3-4 years since I've lifted regularly. Since then I've toned fairly well, but have lost a bit of size in my arms and chest that I'm hoping to get back.

Anyway, what are some good dumbbell exercises? I know they can be used for pretty much anything so my options are almost limitless, but need some ideas to get the ball rolling. I also have a curl bar, but not sure if I'll use it for much.

I'm hoping to do this in addition to my Insanity workouts to give me a little push since I've felt I've plateaued a bit. I also know I need to do much better with my eating habits at home. I have a bad tendency of putting on the TV and eating dinner which typically causes me to over eat compared to actually sitting down at the dining table and eating dinner.

[boxboy99]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

Moving to Madcow 5x5 after almost a year on Strong lifts 5x5.

Pleased with Stronglifts but see some flaws.

Maxes:
Squat 310
Bench 205 (should be better but I'll get more volume now)
Deadlift 345
Overhead press 132
Row 170

Mostly at 3 sets of 5 so my maxes are higher.

[Antec]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

I ordered this this morning:


Along with a workout mat, sparring/workout gloves, and a flat weight bench. I'll be getting back my dumbbells from my parents. Its been about 3-4 years since I've lifted regularly. Since then I've toned fairly well, but have lost a bit of size in my arms and chest that I'm hoping to get back.

Anyway, what are some good dumbbell exercises? I know they can be used for pretty much anything so my options are almost limitless, but need some ideas to get the ball rolling. I also have a curl bar, but not sure if I'll use it for much.

I'm hoping to do this in addition to my Insanity workouts to give me a little push since I've felt I've plateaued a bit. I also know I need to do much better with my eating habits at home. I have a bad tendency of putting on the TV and eating dinner which typically causes me to over eat compared to actually sitting down at the dining table and eating dinner.

Man - that's a huge sex toy.

[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

Man - that's a huge sex toy.

Do any of you guys have any specific workout recommendations from Hasfit.com or similar sites?

I'm thinking I need to rotate through different workout programs during the year rather than solely using Insanity to combat plateau and waning interest. In between Insanity rounds I'd like to do another 30-90 "challenge" to keep the muscle memory down and my conditioning level up.

[Rules]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

Finally worked my way up to 5 miles a day. Still staying on the keto life style and very happy with the results. Probably going to start Insanity this coming Monday.

[bad_philanthropy]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

Usually run at night, and so a lot of the summer heat and humidity here in Toronto dissipates to some degree.

Other night it was still crazy hot and humid when I went out and felt like I'd never run a day in my life (despite being well nourished and hydrated). Totally gassed after 6.5km and had to pull the chute. I was pissed, went back out the next night in nearly identical conditions and put in 20k while feeling really good. I guess acclimating really is a thing.

At one point I was stopped at a light and it looked I had been swimming. My arms were dripping wet.

[roadman]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

Monday, I was on the treadmill, just jogging at a 5.5, (one of those days I forgot my headphones) and I heard a small "pop" in my leg. I didn't see anything swell up immediately, but I couldn't jog on it.

So, I asked if I could see a trainer and I started talking about my leg. He said, you can do the hot and cold method, and then, changes gears and ask if I wanted to come in for an assemment. The first thing that comes to my mind, is oh oh, sales pitch.

So, I go home and ice it up, take ibprophen, and then warm compress,etc... The next day I call the doctors office and it's feeling better. I was able to walk around, etc.....no swelling. My nurse said I probably have a muscle strain and it will heal in a week to a week and a half.

So, same day, I go see the trainer. He has me fill out some paperwork, we talk about goals, etc... he took my BMI, etc... He also took me out on the floor and showed me some shoulder exercises. So, after the shoulder crunches, he takes me back to his desk and starts showing me the different phases of their program. He will be with me once a week for 45 minutes for 6 months. I said let me talk it over with my wife and still no pricing. Wait for it..... I asked if there was a pricing structure for this program. For only $272/month...... yeah, two kids in college and $1800 later.

Ok, I am 54 years old and still have 65lbs to lose. I've lost 50lbs over the past few years, so, I don't need to be on a train wreak to lose the weight. I am currently doing split days and I have doing this since January. My trainer said it's a good thing to change your program every 3 to 4 weeks and I've read that elsewhere.

I've tried searching in google. Is there other routines out there that I should try for someone my age in toning/strengthening muscles?

Monday, legs, squats, lunges, leg press, leg extension(I've read the over 50 crowd shouldn't do this one because of pressure on the knees), leg curls, calf extensions, 150 sit ups and 30 minutes treadmill.

Tuesday, back and biceps. Roman back, back extension(heard the same thing as above), forearm exts, shoulder rows, concentration curls, hammer curl (rope) and curl machine. Treamill

Weds- Chest and forearms. Chest press, flys, incline, decline. OH Forearm, rope pull, forearm machine. 150 situps, treadmill.

Thurs. Shoulder- Military, backwards military, bent over roll, should lats, shoulder raise. Treadmill

Friday- Treamill.

Thanks for any help folks!!!!!!

[bad_philanthropy]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

Outside of the routine, what's your diet like?

How many calories/day are you taking in? Restricting calories some more while eating the right things will benefit you more for weight loss, and the weight loss will be the biggest definitely help in making you less injury prone for actually working out. I assume your diet is pretty good already considering the weight loss, but if you can get the weight down some more the effectiveness of your workouts will obviously increase.

Congrats on the 50lbs lost already. Huge deal.

[roadman]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

Outside of the routine, what's your diet like?

How many calories/day are you taking in? Restricting calories some more while eating the right things will benefit you more for weight loss, and the weight loss will be the biggest definitely help in making you less injury prone for actually working out. I assume your diet is pretty good already considering the weight loss, but if you can get the weight down some more the effectiveness of your workouts will obviously increase.

Congrats on the 50lbs lost already. Huge deal.

I'm consuming about 2000 calories a day on WW. Every time you lose 5 lbs, you go down about 50 calories.

I try to eat a lot of lean protein and have my good share of fruit. I need to incorporate more veggies for sure.

Also, I need to track what I eat on a daily consistent basis. I tend to get this arrogance behind me that I know how to do this, but then, I see myself plateauing currently.

[bad_philanthropy]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

I'm consuming about 2000 calories a day on WW. Every time you lose 5 lbs, you go down about 50 calories.

I try to eat a lot of lean protein and have my good share of fruit. I need to incorporate more veggies for sure.

Also, I need to track what I eat on a daily consistent basis. I tend to get this arrogance behind me that I know how to do this, but then, I see myself plateauing currently.

I definitely get into this myself at times—though I'm long past trying to lose weight I'm still trying to hit good numbers for me (for long-term lifestyle purposes). When I feel I've strayed a bit for a bit too long I bust out the food scale and myfitnesspal again.

You've already lost a ton of weight, but have you tried an actual cut? I'm not talking super aggressive, but when I was about thirty pounds overweight when I went down to about 1600 calories/day for three months and maintained a weightlifting routine and running routine. Lost pretty all the weight in that period (still had a few occasions where I'd go out to a restaurant or social gathering and have some beers and overeat).

It certainly sucked, and I did have to scale back my overall routine a bit, but in the end my ability to exercise and overall performance increased dramatically with the big weight loss to get down to a "light" body type. And, to my surprise, for the first time in my life distance running caused no joint pain, or pain of any kind.

Just an idea anyway. Sounds like you've got a the whole grasp of this stuff at this point.

[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

Does anybody have any recommendations for shoes? Something to wear for cross-training as I do Insanity, but will also wear them while lifting.

I've been alternating days between Insanity and free weights. So far its helped to get me off the plateau I was on and improve toning in my arms, shoulders, back and core. I'm only using dumbbells and a bench.

Initially Sunday was my complete off day, but for the past two weeks I've been running Insanity Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Lift days are Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.

Lift days consist of the following:

Spoiler

9 minute warm-up: Walk/Jog/Sprint 30 secs each X >Jump Rope Side to Side/Jump Rope/Mummy Kicks 30 secs each X2, Walk/Jog/Sprint 30 secs each X2

Light Stretching

Set 1: Air Bike Crunches, Bench Press, EZ Bar Curls, Seated Triceps Press, Standing Rear Delt Row X 3

Set 2: Russian Twist w/ weight, Butterfly Press, Concentration Curls, Standing Two Arm Triceps Extension, Seated Shoulder Press X3

Set 3: Leg Pull-In, Inclined Push-ups, Hammer Curls, Bench Dips, V Pushups X3

Suffice to say its a pretty lengthy workout that has me fairly tired by the end. Who thought Insanity days would end up being the "easy" days.

Going to the beach in a couple weeks. When we get back I'll probably switch out the Insanity for a similar cardio workout from Hasfit.com.

[tabarnes19_SDS]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

Does anybody have any recommendations for shoes? Something to wear for cross-training as I do Insanity, but will also wear them while lifting.

I've been alternating days between Insanity and free weights. So far its helped to get me off the plateau I was on and improve toning in my arms, shoulders, back and core. I'm only using dumbbells and a bench.

Initially Sunday was my complete off day, but for the past two weeks I've been running Insanity Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Lift days are Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.

Lift days consist of the following:

Spoiler

9 minute warm-up: Walk/Jog/Sprint 30 secs each X >Jump Rope Side to Side/Jump Rope/Mummy Kicks 30 secs each X2, Walk/Jog/Sprint 30 secs each X2

Light Stretching

Set 1: Air Bike Crunches, Bench Press, EZ Bar Curls, Seated Triceps Press, Standing Rear Delt Row X 3

Set 2: Russian Twist w/ weight, Butterfly Press, Concentration Curls, Standing Two Arm Triceps Extension, Seated Shoulder Press X3

Set 3: Leg Pull-In, Inclined Push-ups, Hammer Curls, Bench Dips, V Pushups X3

Suffice to say its a pretty lengthy workout that has me fairly tired by the end. Who thought Insanity days would end up being the "easy" days.

Going to the beach in a couple weeks. When we get back I'll probably switch out the Insanity for a similar cardio workout from Hasfit.com.

Have you tried the insanity upper body lift? I love routine and it's the hardest lift I have ever done. Mixes cardio with free weights.

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[Knight165]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

For guys that have trouble with time.

I've got a good time saver for biceps(and a little bit of lats in the process).

In another workout(other than bi-s......the point is that you don't have time for a full cycle)...

3 times....once before....once somewhere in the middle...and once to finish(or if you're really tight...just once to finish)

-STRAIGHT barbell.....the absolute heaviest you can curl....12 reps.
-30 second rest
-hanging chin up position with arms are 90 degrees for 40 seconds
-20 second rest
-hanging chin up at 90 for 30 seconds
-30 second rest
-hanging chin up at 90 for 20 seconds
-40 second rest
-half the amount of weight on you initial curl(or more if you can) for 12 reps to finish.

STRICT.

I picked this up from Athlean-X....and love mixing it in all the time now on leg days.

M.K.
Knight165

[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

Have you tried the insanity upper body lift? I love routine and it's the hardest lift I have ever done. Mixes cardio with free weights.

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I have not - didn't even know there was such a thing from them.

[tabarnes19_SDS]

Re: 2016 FITNESS CHALLENGE

I have not - didn't even know there was such a thing from them.

Give it a shot. It's awesome. 46 minutes based on pyramid principle. Starts at 6 min warmup with familiar insanity warm-ups. Then goes In to circuits of 12 to 10 to 8 sets.

1 circuit is 360 shoulder press
Static bicepts curls
In and out triceps pushups
Floor sprints

2 circuit
Squat biceps curls
Shoulder work
Tri dips
Box jumps

3 circuit
Flys with rotation
Pushups with front raise with weight
High knee abs

4 circuit
Bench with abs legs are in air
Back Flys
Ski abs

It's a killer 46 minutes

I've gained 15 lb muscle from it and maintained my cut. Have to pause now on chest presses. I do much more weight now than the guys do in video.

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