2019 Health & Fitness Thread

jrock645- Ah, OK, thanks for explaining, I gather you have a serious need to deal with the cortisol and estrogen, hope you`re doing what`s right for you. Gotta say it`d take something mighty important for me to risk any side-effects like those.
 
jrock645- Hope you have done your research on the supplements that you are using to control Cortisol and Estrogen.

Lots of stuff out there is pretty useless.

I`m guessing that your Doctor will be doing blood tests periodically to check for fluctuations in the levels those two hormones.
 
Marine Clerk said:
I`m guessing that your Doctor will be doing blood tests periodically to check for fluctuations in the levels those two hormones.
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That`s what I was hoping. Unless there`s a definite, properly determined, reason for being concerned about such stuff I`d never give it a second thought (I`d write it off as more money-grabbing BS from the supplement industry, which continues to market "progress in a jar" to the unwary).

But when there *are* issues then yeah..the proper medical/pharmaceutical interventions can undoubtedly make all the difference. Finding good Docs who really know from such subjects can be tricky though, it`s a pretty rare specialty, at least in my area.

One of the reasons I think it`s great that someidiot is working at getting in better shape is the whole "perception of credibility". When a medical professional isn`t in good shape I knee-jerk to unflattering assumptions; I actually refused to see an ophthalmologist over his morbid obesity, couldn`t get past the assumption that there`s something haywire with how he thinks (saw another in that practice instead and I did explain why).
 
well, I`m still working on it. I`ve found some keto Facebook groups and I think they`re a bit more liberal with fat and calorie intake, which hasn`t necessarily been good for me. I mentioned at the beginning of the thread that I weighed in at around 255 on 1/3. At the doctor`s on 1/8 I was 252. Today I`m 237.

Haven`t been good about using the Peloton since I got it. I have various excuses, but I need to stop making excuses and just do it.
 
someidiot- I`ll repeat my broken-record about not putting artificial time deadlines/false urgency into the mix. I`m a firm believer in not rushing this sort of thing. IMO you`ve already lost the "quick/easy weight" that one sheds when first changing stuff for the better, and now you`re going into the "this`ll take a while" phase.

However long it took to put the excess weight *on* might be how long it`ll take to get it off. That was always the case for me.

On the Peloton...

-What`s the Plan with regard to workout frequency and duration?
-What time of day are you planning to do it? How does that fit with your usual schedule?
-Do you find it, uhm...if not enjoyable, at least doable? Or is it something you dislike so much that you have to genuinely force yourself to do it?

In my case, the Aversive Effect regarding the ~2 minutes of work on the AirDyne is so severe that I could never rely on it for the majority of my cardio; I just wouldn`t do it because the experience is so unpleasant (and I`m one highly self-disciplined guy). The StairMaster sure isn`t pleasant (IME effective cardio is simply too grueling to be anywhere close to "enjoyable"), but it`s not so bad that I won`t do it and it`s the only form of cardio I`ve found that I can say that about. I will admit that I`d probably be better off if I *did* do the Air a lot more, but I`m not gonna torture myself like that.

I`d give some serious, conscious thought to your "excuses" for not using the Peloton, rather than trying to just dial up the ol` willpower. Maybe they`re not just "excuses" but more like "valid reasons" and a different regimen/plan would make it something you`d do more readily.

How does your wife like it so far?

Oh, and on the FB groups- do you think they`re credible? I`d wonder how they could possibly know what`s right for *you* and maybe you can`t extrapolate too much from what works for others.

Why not just "don`t consume more than you need, don`t consume much crap, do consume the right stuff"? Absent extraordinary factors, IMO the whole "Diet" thing is awfully simple by the time you make it something you`ll really do, all the time, for the rest of your life.
 
I`m *still* working at getting all dialed-in myself! The idea was to get the diet/exercise all figured out by the time I turn 59, and then just Do That for a year and hit 60yo in great shape (and then keep it going indefinitely). But...I dunno if I`ll really be on schedule for that as I`m still tweaking things with more ideas to try out (e.g., Planks, thanks to jrock645). Good thing I have that long-term perspective and know to avoid that false urgency...this stuff takes as long as it takes.

But oh man, I really do want to get there by 60.
 
My plan right now is MWF at 5am-ish. This works well with my work schedule. I do like it.. or at least tolerate it. The reason I haven`t done it more in the week that I`ve had it is that I got it on Tuesday and used it, so I didn`t want to do it again Wednesday morning. On Friday I had a big surgery that I wanted to be on my game for, so I didn`t want to be worn out or sore from working out in the morning. I`m also on call and have pretty much been in the hospital since Friday morning.

I do want to get in to a rhythm and I have supportive people (who also ride the Peloton) who will help with that. My wife hasn`t actually used it yet. She`s been pretty busy with the kids and work while I`ve been on call.

The FB groups are good. But I`m not as dedicated to it as they are. I don`t weigh and chart all of my food to make sure I hit my daily macros. Basically I just try to make sure I have minimal carbs and that`s it.
 
someidiot- Hey, that makes perfect sense about why you and your wife haven`t been on it...not "excuses" at all IMO :D

[INSERT appreciation for the kind of Hospital hours you`re keeping!]

That`s great that the Peloton is OK for you, bet that`ll make all the difference.

See how the MWF scheduling works; that`d be awfully frequent for me, but hey I`m old (or so they tell me) and doing it too often can indeed make me feel a little overtaxed, and it can compromise my Leg Days too. FWIW, until my mid-50s I did well with Cardio every three days, with an extra day after doing Legs (which I always do on a Cardio Day, a few hours after the Cardio).

I`ll be interested to hear whether you get sore from the Peloton once you`ve acclimated to doing it regularly. I`ll *sometimes* feel just a little quadriceps soreness after the AirDyne, but I simply *NEVER* get sore from the StairMaster even when it leaves me lying on the floor gasping for breath...just doesn`t challenge my muscles that way any more.

I *really like* that you`re not being over-the-top about the diet. I dunno about all that weighing/charting stuff, sounds pretty, uhm...extreme to me, wouldn`t want to do that forever. Just limit the (bad) carbs, don`t overeat or get hungry (that must be tricky with your schedule), and get in the habit of exercising (again, tricky with the schedule, huh?)...you oughta be fine without making it all a huge production. With all the day-to-day variation in weight and caloric/macro requirements I think it`s easy to overdo the attention to, uhm...minutia. It`s a marathon, not a sprint, and there`s a limit to what most people are gonna do forever; make things too tough and it`s easy to say "oh, [screw] it".
 
I`d hit a plateau on Back days. Gee, no surprise after decades of doing this stuff (no, I won`t accept that my age factors in ;) ) but it still bugged me. I don`t really expect any significant growth, but still...

I was getting good and sore, so...hmmm, what could be suboptimal? I figured it must be recovery-related, so I decided to take my own usual advice and blamed overtraining, decided to rest longer.

Dialed back Back Day a little (I usually do ~8 sets, lots of areas to hit from lots of angles), and waited 15 days (did work Bis a little in the meantime since little muscles like those oughta recover pretty fast). That`s just one extra recovery day, but it made a difference! I was able to add weight/reps/both to every set while maintaining good form. I dunno if I`m actually gonna change my workout schedule since my usual "which days I do what" fits into my life so well, but it did reinforce the importance of recovery. Guess I really oughta do fewer sets while still hitting everything, or maybe not carry the Drop Sets on so long, or something..

Same ol` same ol`..
-Train hard enough to potentiate adaptation (and/but no more)
-Eat enough of the right stuff to fuel both workouts and adaptation (and/but...)
-Recover sufficiently for adaptation to occur
-Train again before decompensation occurs

Do those and, unless you`ve really hit your genetic potential, you`ll make some form of progress.

But Back Days really do go on forever; all those muscle groups in the back, then Bis, then Rear Delts, and then usually Core...that`s one very long workout, at least for me (I still rest a *LONG* time between most sets and I don`t mean just 3-5 minutes).
 
Picked this up for 1k from a coworker. Made out like a bandit.

Power rack, dbl adjustable bench, weight stand, bar, 4x45# bumpers, 2x35# bumpers, 2x25# bumpers, 2x15# bumpers, 2x10# bumpers.

Sold my old bench and weight set in less than an hr. Me thinks I shoulda charged more lol. $100 is good for something I bought 15 years ago for 230 IMG_0188.jpgIMG_0189.jpg


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I’ve hit a real wall mentally. My bodybuilding style keto meal plan that was working so brilliantly, I can’t bear to eat anymore. The daily chicken breast, eggs, steak and protein shakes make me want to throw up. Fell off the wagon this week and really just kinda ate whatever. Really not much appetite, so I’m not even eating that much so I doubt it’s too damaging. It’s not like I’m stuffing down 3k calf a day of garbage, I’m eating just to get something down because I have little interest in food at this point.

Hopefully just a short term thing and won’t matter.

Cutting back on the cardio, back to 3 full body weight lifting sessions per week. He Wednesday workout is a not to failure workout meant to get a pump, drive blood and nutrients into the muscles and get out. Quick workout that took me a whole 16 minutes the other night.
 
Consistently using the Peloton. Actually really enjoying it, and it`s making me want to do more.

I`m going to start a push-up challenge type thing, or something similar.

The last couple of days I weighed in at 228-229. Haven`t seen the 220s in at least 2-3 years.
 
minerigger- Wow, that *was* a great bargain! Why`d you sell your old stuff?

jrock645- I went so ballistic about my concerns regarding your supplements that I`d feared I`d given offense and prompted you to ditch this thread. Sorry...but it did sound scary to me.

I dunno about doing sub-max workouts, seems like that`d just compromise recovery. I`ve never seen anything to suggest that getting a pump is in-and-of itself beneficial other than doing the "100 rep" thing for recovery, and that never worked for me. The "drive nutrients into the muscle" hasn`t been clinically supported AFAIK, it just doesn`t work that way.

(There I go being all critical again :o )

I guess I`m not surprised that you burned out on the Diet, some people can stick with it but nobody I`ve ever known could do it long-term. Wonder what kind of "normal food" diet would both work for you (with regard to your goals) and remain palatable...I can`t remember, did you ever figure your caloric/macros needs in an objective/arithmetic manner?

someidiot- Ah, I`d wondered how the Peloton was working out! That`s great that you can actually *enjoy* it!

I dunno about the Pushup Challenge. OK, I`m kinda biased as pushups injure me and were never productive compared to exercises that *don`t* injure me. If you do it, keep in mind how TypeII Muscle Fibers work; dong a zillion pushups might look impressive and give a sense of accomplishment, but that doesn`t mean it`s a good idea ;)

That`s some impressive weight loss already, shows what being active can do. Remember that it`s a marathon, not a sprint, and that slow and steady wins in the long run.
 
I haven`t been on a scale since my last Physical (in 2018), but I`d figured I oughta lose about 3lbs. of fat to get my abdominal definition the way I want it. Been working towards that for quite a while now (not just a few months) and I`m getting there.

Still haven`t incorporated Planks (but do still intend to), but I`ve been able to zero in on my Internal Obliques a lot better by changing the angle of the resistance on my (limited ROM) Trunk Twists.

I`ve also changed the incline for my Reverse Crunches to make them a little easier so I can go for higher reps, trying to tweak how the muscle fibers respond to get them to do what I *DON`T* want happening with my other muscle groups. I know how it works when I don`t want it to happen, hopefully I can get it to work *for* me in this case. So far, so good.

Cardio: After considering some studies that Winnett and Bass referenced, I`m doing fewer Intervals but making them harder. Also trying to really stick with the "brisk walking" to avoid arterial stiffness, IMO I need to do more than just the Dog Walks.

EDIT: If I`d just quit one or two of the unhealthy meals I have each week, I`d probably lose that fat in no time, but the different exercising will provide other benefits so I can rationalize my chosen approach :o
 
To be honest, the not to failure workout feels good to me. I’d been pushing a lot of cardio for a bit, cutting back for a month, and replacing what was a cardio day with that. I really don’t feel like it hurts my recovery. I also remember Darden suggesting it as a means of potentially helping recovery.

Diet is back under control, and I’m no worse off for taking a break for a week or so. Just doing standard keto, will probably until April. Means there’s plenty of good stuff I can eat. Scrambled eggs with pimento cheese, heavy cream in my coffee, chicken wings, lettuce wrap versions of deli sandwiches, salads chock full of stuff, etc. I even bought some low carb protein cheese puff type things, and they’re not bad. Also some protein chips, and some keto friendly cereal(with unsweetened almond milk). I’m usually not big on these convenience foods but change of pace is needed, and being sustainable is important.

Standard keto is sustainable for me. Plenty of stuff I can eat that tastes good, and I feel better and my body just works better in ketosis. And I get a cheat meal each week to enjoy whatever I want. What I’ve been doing lately is like bodybuilder contest prep to prepare for the wedding. Never meant for it to be sustainable long term.
 
jrock645- Training to failure isn`t necessary for progress; lots of Olympic athletes *NEVER* train to failure yet achieve/maintain great condition and performance.

And yeah, it seems that different people do better/worse with different approaches to recovery. IMO it`s best to find what leaves you feeling better/not worse and seeing where that takes you.

jrock645 said:
..[diet]..being sustainable is important
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Yes indeed! You mentioned a keto-friendly cereal; I eat tons of Zone (labeled, made by Nutritious Living). If I ever catch myself feeling hungry and won`t be making a proper meal, I eat some of that stuff. It`s undoubtedly much higher in carbs than you`d want, but I seem to metabolize it just fine.

Heh heh, one of my numerous quirks (to put it nicely :o ) is that I have zero interest in variety when it comes to my fare; I could eat the same thing every meal every day forever and not really care much.

What I’ve been doing lately is like bodybuilder contest prep to prepare for the wedding. Never meant for it to be sustainable long term.
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I can see pushing the limits to prep for the wedding, I`d just never be able to back off once I got into my desired condition. Eh, another of those "just me.." things, I simply *HATE* any kind of backsliding...in anything. That`s what happened with the Detailing, I got a vehicle just the way I wanted it once, and then they all had to be like that all the time.
 
someidiot- I`d consider Creatine Monohydrate, which works *GREAT* for me; been using it nonstop since the mid-`90s. Oh, and, of course...[INSERT usual Fishoil recommendation :D ].

But generally IMO most of that stuff is of no real value to most people.

Ribose can be beneficial in some cases (we give it to our dogs along with their Creatine) and I keep reading about it being recommended for people going Keto, but I never got anything out of it. Never got anything out of most supplements, but Nitric Oxide stuff does indeed give a great pump (which I actually found counterproductive) and some people who oughta know (e.g., Mercola) think it`s important.

Whose/what Fiber do you use...soluable, insoluable?

I eat a good cup or more of Fiber1 (original) daily along with the Zone Cereal (which also has a fair amount) and the "real food" sources, but when it comes to my Fiber Supplement my long-time (decades) fave got discontinued :( I`m currently using a roughly 50:50 mix of Psyllium Husk Powder and Acacia which works fine with regard to regularity (we`ll see about how it`s tweaking my Cholesterol numbers in a few weeks) but I miss my old reliable.

Gotta watch what`s in Fiber supplements...check out the sugar in Metamucil! (I`d never take their Sugar-Free stuff any more than I`d drink a diet soda as IMO such stuff is worse than real sugar.)
 
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