Fitness

Hey all, hoping someone can chime in here. Ime closing in on my mid 50s, and have fallen far out of shape. The past decade has been a loss (physically) and covid made it worse. Post covid i have discovered that ive lost all willpower/discipline when it comes to dieting. I've lost considerable amounts of weight twice in my life, and both times slagged off and put it all back on for various reasons/excuses. My recent efforts have just all fallen flat.

Ongoing depression finally forced my hand, to do a couple of things I was previously very resistant to... I got my testosterone checked, and it was low, so I have gotten testopel treatment.. and that has made a definite difference in several ways. I always said I would not supplement testosterone... But I feel better today than I have in years. It hasn't been a cure all, but in general, it has made me feel better. The second thing, was finally getting on the standard GLP1. Again, something I never thought I would do, but again, desperate times...

For more background, I am a generally large framed man with a comfortably fit weight of around 260-280. Less than that I start to look sickly. However, I am well above that, and around 340, though I am losing. I am going to the gym and since I am doing solo workouts, mostly using machines, and still trying to figure out the weight ranges to use on them. It has been a slow process. I have always worked out with free weights, but I feel safer now on the machines, since I don't have a spotter. Right now I am just doing a push day, a pull day and a leg day. As I proceed I plan on adding reps to duplicate muscle groups in each of these.. but right now, I am just doing 3 sets of each exercise.

My primary focus is currently to keep moving and keep at it in the gym. I do not expect to get ripped, but I do want to build muscle.. I hope that getting some power back is possible. Anyhow, I felt like that was all a lot of background for my main question... Is a whey powder like Gold Standard something I should be taking to supplement my exercising? I used it when I was very regularly in the gym before, but I was also younger and much more fit. I didn't know if that owuld be considered flushing money down the toilet or not. I have already ordered some Creatine HCL, on the recommendation of a trainer at the gym. I have done some reading on it, and realize there is some debate on if it is better than Creatine monohydrate, worse, or generally undecided... But I figured something was better than nothing, and I didn't want to deal with possible side effects from the monohydrate.

At any rate, I appreciate any input that anyone more learned on the topic can offer.

Thanks!

Currently, I am in a cut. I try not to overeat. Eating enough protein and more than TDEE-500kcal. Sometimes my calorie deficit is larger than 500kcal, especially if I go cycling or hiking. On those days, I simply add another protein rich meal consisting of Tofu and some vegetables, just to get enough calories out of fear to lose muscles. Do I have to do that?

When is an aggressive cut good? Only if you need to get to a certain weight for a competition?

I can not find any primary or reputable source, only blog posts about it.

Edit: this sounds good https://macrofactor.com/cutting-calculator/

With energy deficits smaller than about 500 Calories per day (which would equate to losing about 1 pound or 0.5kg per week), subjects (on average) were able to experience a bit of body recomposition (losing fat, while gaining a little muscle). With deficits larger than 500 Calories per day, subjects tended to lose lean mass, with the rate of lean mass loss increasing as energy deficits grew

Meaning, avoiding an aggressive cut is advisable if you don't have to get below a certain weight

Which lifting belt can you recommend (for amateurs) in Germany/Europe?

I've read strengthshop a couple of times but that may have been just ads, so I don't know if I simply pay an ad premium.

Belt A for ~50€ is made out of Amara Synthetic Leather. That should be good, right?

Belt B for 100€ is made from premium synthetic Amara leather. Probably the machine had more room to move around. The belt looks easier to use.

As an amateur, not looking to become a professional, but I still training two times a week, what would you recommend? 50€ is an OK price to pay for a belt I guess, 100 looks a bit expensive.

A: Weightlifting Double Prong Buckle Tapered Belt, Black - 8MM B: Black Lever Belt, 13mm - IPF Approved

My little hands are weak and I'm having trouble holding on! Do you guys have any strap recommendations? The Internet is useless ai advertising garbage

Edit: bonus if they don't have big logos screaming EXTREME MAX SKULL DEATH GRIP or other "tough guy"stuff

It's the one-rep max calculation of Flexify. How weak am I? How much progress did I leave on the table for not working out properly? That's what you get if you only fuck around and don't follow a proper program.

It's in kg and I'm in a cut. I really like how strong I became

Do you move your (lower) back back and forth during the exercise?

I find mixed recommendations online. so far, I think it is better to keep the lower back stiff and focus on arms, shoulders and upper back. Also, you don't move the back when doing barbell rows which is the same movement.

For example, jeff nippard moves his back at 6:00 min in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAXkl-AdJFg not as strong as others do, but still.

Here, they keep the back perfectly straight https://www.muscleandstrength.com/exercises/seated-row.html

In my gym many people (all that I witness) move their back.

So most of us are pretty firmiliar with the concept of home gyms. What I'm building is a bit different. I'm building a "small 1 bedroom apartment gym".

This has some differing challenges. For example, when I looked for a bench press a few months ago, I COULD have spent a few hundred dollars on a really solid built bench with no give. But in a small apartment gym the first and most important question is "where am I going to put this?"

And in my case, I bought a bench press at the end of December, which appears to no longer be on amazon anymore. But I found this one which looks identical just to give you an idea of what I went with. Just imagine this, with no logo printed on it. I swear this company just bought the one I have, and printed their logo on it. Otherwise mine looks exactly the same.

So, you can see how it folds up.

Well now I've got an oppertunity to buy either this machine for $75. Condition is said to be "as new as possible".

Or I could buy this machine for $575. Condition is listed as new.

There's a $500 gap between the two, but it looks like I could put either one under my bed.

Is there any reason I don't get the $75 one? Or is the total gym THAT good, that it justifies an extra $500?

I am looking to get a budget exercise bike for my wife and I to use. Neither of us are super active but want something basic and simple that we can use for 30 minutes or so a few times a week to keep us in shape. We have a new baby so need something at our house that is fast and simple. Doing some research I was thinking about getting this YOSUDA exercise bike with Magnetic resistance bike

I want something that is magnetic to reduce wear and tear and will fit our sizes. (I am 6 ft 1" and she is 5 ft. 1"). It says it works for 6 foot so it should work for me if just a little small. Has anyone used this? Do they like it? Is it cheap junk?

I was wondering why people warm up in sweatshirts. I guess it helps

I am 38 years old. I'm 6'3" and grew up an athlete. In my 20s I gained a bunch of weight and lost it all and got down to about 225 from 315. I had two kids and got lazy during covid. I am currently at 330 and want to get back down.

I know that a caloric deficit is my answer and I'm going to start counting calories every day. My problem is that I can't motivate myself to exercise in a routine. I play ice hockey on Fridays, and I want to work out 3 or so other times a week. I have a membership to LifeTime fitness for free through work, but it's 30 minutes away. I have a Peloton that I really love riding and doing HIIT. I also have dumbbells, a bench, and resistance bands for strength.

I try to wake up at 5:30 to work out. I tell myself that I'm too tired and go back to bed and that I'll work out in the evening. The evening comes and I want to hang out with my kids and then when they go to bed I want to be with my wife. So, I tell myself I'll workout in the morning. I'm full of excuses.

I know what you are going to say. You just have to do it and it if you want it so bad, you'll find a way. I've been telling myself this same thing for 6 years. I'm 4 weeks into sobriety and thought this would all fall into place, but it's not. It's too cold and snowy here to walk in the evenings.

Do you have any books that will help me figure this out? Advice?

I've been hitting the gym 3 times a week for about two years now and seen pretty good results. Well, life happened and I can't really find the time for that anymore, so I'm trying to adapt my routine for twice a week. Was wondering if anybody has an opinion on it.

For most of my fitness journey I've been doing GZCLP with variation exercises for tier 2 and the rep range for tier 1 modified to 3x5, then 3x4, then 3x3, because who even has the time to do 10 sets of 1 rep? Now that I will only be going to the gym twice a week my genius idea is the smash the 4 GZCLP days into 2, while following a similar progression scheme to the original. Something like this:

Day 1:

• T1 Barbell squat
• T1 Overhead press
• T2 Romanian deadlift
• T2 Incline dumbbell bench press
• T3 Lat pulldown

Day 2:

• T1 Deadlift
• T1 Barbell bench press
• T2 Split squats
• T2 Dumbbell shoulder press
• T3 Lat pulldown

So far I've done one week of this and feeling ok. I tried to superset the T2 lifts, but the general fatigue is getting a bit too much that way so I'll probably stop. Any thoughts on what I can change or do you guys think this is a balanced enough workout?

I started working out six months ago, and today I reached my 69th session. I’m currently cutting because I want to get leaner. My progress is slow, but I’m definitely moving forward, and losing weight too.

It’s incredibly important to track the weights I lift; otherwise, I’d have no idea whether I’m making progress. It’s not always steady, I go back and forth with my working weights since there are good and bad days. As long as I record everything and see overall improvement, I think that’s perfectly fine.

I do wonder if I could lift more, and progress faster, if I weren’t cutting. I eat about 1-1.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, following a vegan diet, which means lots of tofu and seitan.

I focus on the big compound lifts and add isolation work whenever I feel like it. Sometimes I do certain exercises, sometimes I skip them. it’s roughly a full-body workout with a touch of fuckarounditis.

Today, I confidently pressed 8×27.5 kg, 8×32.5 kg, and 8×32.5 kg per dumbbell on the incline bench, which made me really happy. My goal is to bench 100 kg within a year. Let’s see if I can make it happen!

Full book for those curious: https://archive.org/details/the-way-to-live

My abridged edit:

PDF: https://mega.nz/file/5xN2VZpJ#zEAL3MiB7GUabaCyq_hi65qv6WixUjwa4AlRgLRWWNA

DOCX: https://mega.nz/file/p5cVAAqK#YGLIN_w8BBetvyPcZ-mMQ7bJv3qplIBA0PEtlSMSVB4

ODT: https://mega.nz/file/gwEBVQjD#HYTJHFT2dkLj7ZeMAG2LSvEBtn_xZzY9btBdr4EeHkU

or

https://archive.org/details/workout-classically

My edit contains only his exercises with example drawings. For ease of use / printing out.

This is from a time (1908) before steroids existed or the time of targeting specific muscles with so much specialized equipment.

I'm a big fan of this workout routine because you do not need to buy so much hardware for your home gym. I figured it could be worth sharing my edit since I've been enjoying chasing this classical weight lifter aesthetic and my own results.

There are 14 exercises without any equipment at all, many more with weights and very few other tools.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/58096221

Changes are highlighted in red.

Most notably, there seems to be three rule changes relating to technique:

• Squat: Must use a full grip. Thumbless grip is no longer permitted. There's also a minimum height for bar position now.
• Bench press: No sink-and-press
• Deadlift: Clarifications on what it means to lock out with your shoulders back.

I am looking for a home strength routine which is more than just a list of exercises but also includes guidance about when and how much to increase my load. I know that there is a guidance of "Just increase the load once you get comfortable with it" but that does not work for me because I assume I am taking it too easy, increase the load too often, and end up with a lot of messy notes, workouts I cannot complete, and constantly thrashing back and forth between different levels.

I am fine with a fitness routine that is a document, like Couch to 5k or 100 Pushups or an app, assuming it is priced reasonably for my use case.

Desired level: I am not looking to get super buff, just enough to keep my muscles healthy Duration: 30 minutes 2 or 3 times per week, so I can alternate it with cardo Equipment I have: adjustable dumbbells and an adjustable bench

i genuinely am so surprised, but there's great help to overcome bigorexia or bodydysmorphia so i am not worried. i trust people will find their way and help eachother

Hey, im skinny fat... currently 83 kg, started last year at 83.9 kg, droped to 75.5 kg and since july slowly going up in kgs sgain

I was able to do 1 Wide Grip Pull Up and 0.5 Close Grip this time last year. Now I can do 5x6-8 weighted Neutral Grip Pull Ups with about 5 kgs on me.

So I must have also gained muscle.

But if I look in the mirror I still didnt change lol.

Im 175 cm, 83.3 kg now and male. Id say thin arms, belly,...

Here is a pic for reference if me.

What would you guys do if you were me? Skinny arms, fat belly/ chest, skinny legs.

Working on few key lifts...

• Overhead Barbell 5RM is 45 kg
• Bench Dumbbells is 5RM 27.5 kg
• Barbell Squart 5RM 80 kg ...

So not very strong either lol. I think I barbell Benchpress 65 kg for 5 Reps Max :(

Trying to hit 2800 kcal a day and about 2g protein per kg/ bodyweight. Doing upper lower splitwith cardio zone 2 on wednesday and saturday

Though still on the weaker side, today I was able to pull 5 more kg in about half of the exercises, and been going there somewhat sporadically. Luckily my job compensates for when I don't or can't go.

Seeing progress surely is uplifting.
♪ happy auster noises ♪

So, I have those powerblock weights. They go up to 50lbs.

I'm thinking of getting a bar attatchment that turns the dumbells into barbells.

They have 2 different styles.

A straight bar, and a curl bar.

I can only get 1 of them for now. Eventually I'll get the other. But which one should I get? What's the difference?