I worked out for the first time in 2 years and I feel GREAT (33 lbs. down!)

[quote name='zman73']I enjoy the 8 minute abs workout on a daily basis, sometimes doing it twice a day back a few years ago

Luckily Ive never been fat (except for the first few years of my life), had a good metabolism growing up and was physically active, and our parents didnt always feed us the crap that seems to be the staple of most diets today... today, activity comes in the form of daily jogs and yardwork, once the wife gets out of nursing school we will join a gym again, Id like to bulk up to about 170...

What is sad is when I DONT work out, I lose weight, Id given up on it for a few months after a pinched nerve in my back had me afraid to do anything active. Id gotten down to the mid-low 150's, Im back to about 160 at the moment, my goal is to get the body fat down to the 6-7% I once had it when I was doing 5 and 10k races, and to begin running them again (had knee surgery a while ago and still trying to work out the kinks[/QUOTE]


What's this 8 minute ab workout? I've just been trying to do 10 minutes and situps which kills me.
I just want to reduce the belly fat and maintain my weight. I've started to have some junk food here and there but my crappy workouts kind of cancel them out.
 
[quote name='bobo2k4']What's this 8 minute ab workout? I've just been trying to do 10 minutes and situps which kills me.
I just want to reduce the belly fat and maintain my weight. I've started to have some junk food here and there but my crappy workouts kind of cancel them out.[/QUOTE]


Its a video series which includes arms, stretching. legs, etc... each in 8 minute increments, although I only do the stretch and abs (a good workout of a series of exercises in 45 second portions which target different parts of the abs

My wife found the dvd at Wllyworld for 9 bucks which included all the workouts
 
I need to get a new scale. I just got back into working out (just got done actually) and I'm feeling pretty good. I turned 21 in September so...you know how that goes. But hopefully I can stick with this new work out schedule. I dropped drinking anything but water (and the occasional beers) about 3 years ago, next up is take out...NO MORE!

Also, congrats Javery! I also think you may need to use Strell's version of your avatar...
 
[quote name='bobo2k4']What's this 8 minute ab workout? I've just been trying to do 10 minutes and situps which kills me.
I just want to reduce the belly fat and maintain my weight. I've started to have some junk food here and there but my crappy workouts kind of cancel them out.[/QUOTE]


Not trying to kill anyones ideas here. But working your abs out will not necessarily target the stomach fat. You simply need to increase your cardio exercise. This has been proven again and again.

You can have the strongest stomach in the world and still have a gut.

I would say run or something to lose the stomach fat.
 
[quote name='Snake2715']Not trying to kill anyones ideas here. But working your abs out will not necessarily target the stomach fat. You simply need to increase your cardio exercise. This has been proven again and again.

You can have the strongest stomach in the world and still have a gut.

I would say run or something to lose the stomach fat.[/QUOTE]


QFT on the cardio...hmmm all this gym talk makes me want to get a quick gym session in before class this morning.
 
[quote name='Snake2715']Not trying to kill anyones ideas here. But working your abs out will not necessarily target the stomach fat. You simply need to increase your cardio exercise. This has been proven again and again.

You can have the strongest stomach in the world and still have a gut.

I would say run or something to lose the stomach fat.[/quote]

This is 100% true. Increasing your cardio is the best way to lose weight. The gut will come off eventually even though it might take a while. For me personally I've noticed that if I do a ton of ab exercises it just pushes out any fat I may have in that area making me look worse. I always try to lose all the fat in my midsection before really trying to define the abs.
 
so what do you consider cardio>? just running/jogging?

im going to have to start doing it even though i hate it.. ive always been bad at running,, lose my breath real fast.. i do walk around that running track a few times though.

anyone ever use those waist straps that you put around your stomach.. they make you sweat a lot in that area
 
[quote name='guyver2077']so what do you consider cardio>? just running/jogging?

im going to have to start doing it even though i hate it.. ive always been bad at running,, lose my breath real fast.. i do walk around that running track a few times though.

anyone ever use those waist straps that you put around your stomach.. they make you sweat a lot in that area[/QUOTE]

Cardio is really any kind of exercise that is designed to raise your heart rate. Could be running and jogging. Can be walking at a brisk pace. Swimming and biking also work. If you hate running, maybe try something else. If you hate a workout, you are far more likely to quit on it.

Basketball, football, or soccer are other examples of good cardio exercise that you might not hate as much.
 
[quote name='guyver2077']so what do you consider cardio>? just running/jogging?

im going to have to start doing it even though i hate it.. ive always been bad at running,, lose my breath real fast.. i do walk around that running track a few times though.

anyone ever use those waist straps that you put around your stomach.. they make you sweat a lot in that area[/quote]

I do about 35-40 minutes on an elliptical followed by 15 minutes of running as fast as I can on a treadmill daily (I start slow but increase the speed every 2 minutes so by the end I'm running on level 10 which shows up as a 6:XX minute mile). I was doing OK with just the elliptical but ever since I added the sprinting I've noticed a significant shift in body fat. I also rotate ellipticals on a weekly basis (there are like 5 different types at the NYSC I go to) so my body doesn't get comfortable with any one of them.
 
I've been on a pretty strict body building regiment lately while trying to lose a little weight in my gut. I'm pretty sick of eating cottage cheese, tuna fish, and drinking water all the time. I'm trying to keep sugar out as best I can as well.
 
[quote name='Snake2715']Not trying to kill anyones ideas here. But working your abs out will not necessarily target the stomach fat. You simply need to increase your cardio exercise. This has been proven again and again.

You can have the strongest stomach in the world and still have a gut.

I would say run or something to lose the stomach fat.[/QUOTE]


I do the 8 minute abs plus jog... the 8 minute abs is a good workout, it does target specific areas... if I just jog, I dont notice a difference if I am trying to get a little more trim... but I add this and I DO see a difference
I jog almost daily at least 3 miles
 
[quote name='Snake2715']Not trying to kill anyones ideas here. But working your abs out will not necessarily target the stomach fat. You simply need to increase your cardio exercise. This has been proven again and again.

You can have the strongest stomach in the world and still have a gut.

I would say run or something to lose the stomach fat.[/QUOTE]


I stated that it was impossible to spot reduce fat but i already jog daily and I'm actually worried about losing more weight. Maybe I should just bulk up.


I found that 8 min ab thing and its pretty hardcore...for me at least.:cry:
 
[quote name='guyver2077']so what do you consider cardio>? just running/jogging?

im going to have to start doing it even though i hate it.. ive always been bad at running,, lose my breath real fast.. i do walk around that running track a few times though.

anyone ever use those waist straps that you put around your stomach.. they make you sweat a lot in that area[/QUOTE]

As I said before, Figure out your max heart rate and do whatever cardio you want at 65% of your max heart rate for 45 min to an hour. This is the optimal range, where 99% of your energy is taken from fat, as opposed to sprinting where it is taken from glycogen storages. For example, my usual cardio is 5 minutes warmup on stationary bike, 25 minutes at my 65% (135ish), then go directly to treadmill and jog for 25 minutes, and 5 minutes of cooldown at the end.

Doing this about 3 times a week, as well as eating a good fat burning diet (and i dont mean stupid atkins or south beach, those diets are fucking retarded) will have you burning fat in no time. If you really want to change, add in a workout split on top of this and you will look like the hulk in 3 months.
 
[quote name='bobo2k4']I stated that it was impossible to spot reduce fat but i already jog daily and I'm actually worried about losing more weight. Maybe I should just bulk up.


I found that 8 min ab thing and its pretty hardcore...for me at least.:cry:[/QUOTE]

If you are trying to bulk, keep one day of cardio in your workout split. It will keep some fat off while you stuff food in your face in order to gain that important muscle, but more importantly, it will keep your heart in good cardiovascular shape. When I bulked from 185 to 225 last year, I didn't do any cardio. Come the beginning of summer and the start of my cut, I would almost pass out doing the cardio since my heart was in such shitty cardiovascular shape, which in turn made doing the cardio very un motivating. Keep day of cardio, make a 5 day workout split, (ill even help you if you need it) decide if you want to do a clean or dirty bulk, figure out some foods to eat and you are good to go.
 
I'm curious to hear some of your routines... I do a three day cycle (repeating the same muscle groups every three days). I work out M-F and always take the weekends off. All exercises are done in 3 sets of 15 increasing the weight as I go (sometimes I don't make it to 15 on the third set).

Day 1:
Flat Bench (straight bar OR dumbbells)
Incline Bench (straight bar OR dumbbells)
Decline Bench (straight bar OR dumbbells)
Flys (crossover cables AND fly machine)
Tri Pulldowns (cable)
Over the head Tri
Dips

Day 2:
Lat Pull Down (Front AND behind the neck) [I know the behind the neck isn't supposed to be good for you but whatever]
Rows (machine AND dumbbell)
Lower Back (don't know what the exercise is called)
Curls (with curling bar, on the bench)
Curls (dumbbell, seated)
Curls (cables)

Day 3:
Squats (free standing AND back against the wall machine thingy)
Leg Curls
Leg Extensions
Calf Extenstions
Inside Leg Squeeze (pads on interior of thighs)
Outside Leg (pads on exterior of thighs)
Shoulder Press
Dumbbell shoulder exercises (reverse flys AND front extensions)
Traps

After I'm done lifting, I also run on the elliptical for 40 minutes and then on the treadmill for 15 minutes EVERY DAY and then hit the showers drenched in sweat.

Any suggestions/improvements or other routines you guys use? I still think I'm getting a pretty good workout by doing this but I know there will come a time when I need to switch things up to continue to be effective...
 
Here is what I do after I run for a mile to warm up..

Day 1
- Squats (free weights)
- Calf raises (free weights)
- Leg press (machine)
- Leg curls (machine)
- Crunches
- Side crunches
- More crunches

Day 2
- Lateral pull-down (machine)
- Back lifts (free weights where you have one knee on a bench and are hunched over, and lift the free weight up to work your back)
- Bench press (machine)
- Bench press (bar)
- Butterflies (free weights)

Day 3
- Biceps curl (free weights)
- Hammer curls (free weights)
- Preacher curls (bar)
- Triceps pull down (machine)
- Triceps behind head (free weights where you put a heavy weight, with both hands, behind your head and lift it up and down)
- Triceps extender (free weights, where you hold a weight in one hand and extend it all the way back)

So yea...that's mine.
 
Ill try to post one of my sample workouts later, but I just wanted to suggest mixing your routine every 2 weeks or so, or sooner. Even switching the order or your exercises, and the order of the days you do them in could help. I'm sure you've heard something along these lines before.

Also, you should try incorporating a "shocking method" into each workout. There are a bunch of them. One that is easy to do is a double drop set. It is essentially doing 3 three sets per set. Start with a weight, do your 15 reps, immediately pick up a differently sized weight, do say 12 reps, and then change weights one more time and do 10. Now you would take your break, and that would be 1 set, so do that 3 times. You can also try static holds, where you just hold the weight for a certain time at the exercises "stress point?". If you were benching, do your 15 sets, then try to hold the weight up for 30 seconds. This is a good way to get some definition and vascularity.

Finally, your workout hits most of the muscles, which is good as people usually do not do important stuff like legs. I might suggest adding in a trap exercise or two on the shoulder workout day, and a forearm exercise or two on a different day. Now you would be hitting all your muscle groups.
 
[quote name='afedock']Ill try to post one of my sample workouts later, but I just wanted to suggest mixing you your routine every 2 weeks or so, or sooner. Even switching the order or your exercises, and the order of the days you do them in could help. I'm sure you've heard something alone these lines before.

Also, you should try incorporating a "shocking method" into each workout. There are a bunch of them. One that is easy to do is a double drop set. It is essentially doing 3 three sets per set. Start with a weight, do your 15 reps, immediately pick up a differently sized weight, do say 12 reps, and then change weights one more time and do 10. Now you would take your break, and that would be 1 set, so do that 3 times. You can also try static holds, where you just hold the weight for a certain time at the exercises "stress point?". If you were benching, do you 15 sets, then try to hold the weight up for 30 seconds. This is a good way to get some definition and vascularity.

Finally, your workout hits most of the muscles, which is good as people usually do not do important stuff like legs. I might suggest adding in a trap exercise or two on the shoulder workout day, and a forearm exercise or two on a different day. Now you would be hitting all your muscle groups.[/quote]

Thanks - this is good stuff and exactly what I need to learn/figure out. Also, I forgot that I do a trap exercise with the straight bar (lifting it up under my neck with a closed grip while standing) on Day 3 - I need to update my other post. I don't do forearms though - I'll see if I can work them in.

The 3 day routine in a 5 day week gives me sort of a good rotation because the days don't repeat until 3 weeks pass. For example, this week I'm doing Day 1 (M), Day 2 (T), Day 3 (W), Day 1 (Th) and Day 2 (F) and next week will be Day 3 (M), Day 1 (T), Day 2 (W), Day 3 (Th) and Day 1 (F), etc. I don't know.

Are there any supplements I should be taking or maybe drinking protein shakes or something? I don't want to take creatine or anything that will make me retain water and bulk up - I'm looking to slim down as much as possible but stay cut - I also don't care how strong I am.
 
There are definitely supplements that aren't necessary if you have a proper diet but can be extremely helpful for us normal people. I would get whey protein, I buy optimum nutrition. Stay away from the muscle milk crap and mixtures of stuff like that.

Second, I would take some vitamins. Multi, C, E, calcium important . Chromium has been shown to help reduce fat around the stomach area, so you might want to look into that. Finally, I take a joint supplement (MSM, chondroitin, glucosomine, which you can find in all 1 capsule sold as a joint supplement) which keeps your joints strong and really helps with the injuries. I injured my lower back, it hurt for a year, and finally went away when I started taking these, so they are good.

Third, L-glutamin is really good stuff for working out. It helps with building muscle and helps maintain muscle, so while you are dieting you wont lose all your muscle.

All these things are completely safe. I don't take anything unnatural or that has negative side effects. I work out to feel better, not kill myself. People will tell you all sorts of crap to take. Take everything with a grain of salt and do your own research.
 
[quote name='afedock']If you are trying to bulk, keep one day of cardio in your workout split. It will keep some fat off while you stuff food in your face in order to gain that important muscle, but more importantly, it will keep your heart in good cardiovascular shape. When I bulked from 185 to 225 last year, I didn't do any cardio. Come the beginning of summer and the start of my cut, I would almost pass out doing the cardio since my heart was in such shitty cardiovascular shape, which in turn made doing the cardio very un motivating. Keep day of cardio, make a 5 day workout split, (ill even help you if you need it) decide if you want to do a clean or dirty bulk, figure out some foods to eat and you are good to go.[/QUOTE]

Would ya?
I'm currently 5'10 and around 162-165lbs.
Not trying to do much but to gain some mass but not in fat form.
What's a good diet/workout plan?
I've been meaning to buy a bench but am waiting for a good deal (CAG indeed).

Does the bowflex really work?
If it can do as advertised I wouldn't mind buying the 1000 dollar one from sports authority after i find that 25% off coupon they put out.
 
Holy. Shit. After a somewhat lackluster weigh-in last Friday (1lb. lost for that week), today when I stepped on the scale it registered a 3lb. loss for the week.

I'm down to 204lbs. for a total loss of 27lbs. since December 11.

I am unbelievably happy right now. I still feel like a good shit would lose another lb. too. My goal of 200lbs. is within reach and I think I will get there by the end of April - almost a month before my goal of Memorial Day (and 2 months before my original goal of July 4 weekend when I started back in December). I am most definitely going to keep going until I get to 190lbs. which I haven't been at in quite some time. Woo hoo!!!

Also, I had to be at work this morning to interview someone at freaking 7:30am because my boss is like a marine or something and gets in way early (and of course the interview is running late so I got here early for nothing). Anyway, the hour difference meant I had to be awake at 4:15am to get to the gym - there is a completely different crowd there. TONS of hot psycho workout chicks and also a bunch of dudes who were all jacked up. Odd...
 
Wow - the weight is melting off these days!!! Today when I stepped on the scale it registered another 2lb. loss for the week.

I'm down to 202lbs. for a total loss of 29lbs. since December 11.

I'm most likely going to reach my goal of 200lbs. in the next 2 weeks. There is no doubt that I am going to keep going until I get to 190lbs. Woo hoo!!!
 
I've been running outside...it feels great. I also ordered a refurbished iPod Shuffle, so that should make the run a little more enjoyable.
 
Way to go javery! Once I get done with my work this semester (hopefully April 17th!) I'm going to start working out again. I was doing so good earlier, but I haven't done anything for over a month and a half. I hope I can be as dedicated to it as you are right now. Keep up the good work!
 
I knew it was too good to be true. I was hoping to reach my goal today (200lbs.) but it looks like I'll have to wait at least another week - it would have been asking too much to go 3 / 2 / 2 in three consecutive weeks. Anyway, today when I stepped on the scale it registered a 1lb. loss for the week.

I'm down to 201lbs. for a total loss of 30lbs.(!) since December 11.

I'm definitely going to reach my goal of 200lbs. in the next 2 weeks and probably next week if I push myself. Then I can start saying I'm only 10lbs. away from goal #2. ;)

Woo hoo!!!
 
[quote name='javeryh']I knew it was too good to be true. I was hoping to reach my goal today (200lbs.) but it looks like I'll have to wait at least another week - it would have been asking too much to go 3 / 2 / 2 in three consecutive weeks. Anyway, today when I stepped on the scale it registered a 1lb. loss for the week.

I'm down to 201lbs. for a total loss of 30lbs.(!) since December 11.

I'm definitely going to reach my goal of 200lbs. in the next 2 weeks and probably next week if I push myself. Then I can start saying I'm only 10lbs. away from goal #2. ;)

Woo hoo!!![/quote]Job well done, sir. :applause:
 
[quote name='seanr1221']I've been running outside...it feels great. I also ordered a refurbished iPod Shuffle, so that should make the run a little more enjoyable.[/QUOTE]


I just noticed the deal Apple has on these, very very tempted to pick up one as my 60gb (although in a very handy arm band) can get a little annoying after a while

As for myself, Ive mainly stuck to runs (try to run between 21-26 miles per week), mixed in with my 8 minute abs workout (which I have to modify to make it more challenging) and some light weights/push ups

Plan on joining Planet Fitness in a couple weeks, so I can get true weight lifting in my routine
 
Congrats...I weighed in today at 213 which is roughly 25 pounds lost since mid Jan (when I joined the gym). Shooting for 200 first then lower. Congrats to all who are losing.
 
Sonuvabitch. I was told on Friday to be in by 8 this morning to get something done so I couldn't work out this morning (well, I could have but it would have involved getting up at 4:30 to do so and while normally on a Thursday or Friday and maybe even a Wednesday I would do it no problem I just couldn't kill myself this early in the week so I skipped). Of course no one was here and people are just starting to trickle in which meant I could have gone. Now I feel like shit. :bomb:
 
I haven't updated this thread in a while. For 3 weeks in a row I was unable to lose any more weight but last Friday I FINALLY lost the last pound to get to an even 200lbs. So far I'm at a 31lb. total loss and I feel great. In order to lose that last pound I had to change up my cardio routine - now I sprint on the treadmill for 35 minutes and I am a huge mess of sweat at the end of it every day. I think my body fully adjusted to the routine I had been doing. Also, I've put on quite a bit of muscle and I've been eating a little more to fuel my body so that made it hard to lose that pound as well.

I feel like I'm back on track and I am happy that I was able to reach my goal of 200lbs. by Memorial Day. My entire body is pretty well defined and I look like I used to 2 years ago before I quit working out. Sometimes I can't believe it's me in the mirror. Now I'm going to try and lose 10 more pounds this summer to get to 190lbs. It is not going to be easy but it will definitely be fun to try.
 
Congrats on reaching your goal. Reading your messages for awhile has encouraged me to lose weight again.

I just started weight watchers 2 weeks ago and have lost 10 lbs. I started at 241 and plan to get down to 185. I know it'll started getting harder to lose weight, but it's encouraging me. I'm very strict on my points and do a brisk walk for 40 minutes on the treadmill at least 3 times a week.

I plan on trying to do some weight lifting but really hate it. I get a free session with a trainer at the YMCA I go to, so I'll see if they have suggestions. I just want to tone up.
 
I really need to get back into the habit of running everyday. That way I can eat whatever I want guilt-free.

I haven't gained a pound, no matter my diet, in like 5 years.
 
man the lowest i made it was 201....

lately i have drifted off a bit so i wouldnt be suprised if i got back up in the 210's.. im trying to get back on track this week
 
I am going to start running soon, unfortunately, I've hit a wall in terms of free time/energy. Doesn't help that I just moved into a new apartment and have been working 2 jobs back to back for the last 2 weeks. Then I was hoping to start last week, and the temp dropped here to like 40 degrees and downpours. Real weak. Hopefully either this weekend or the beginning of next week I'll start running 3 days/week.
 
good job! i'm about 4 lbs away from 200, 50lbs lighter than this time last year. Although I didn't start working out till mid Jan.

Need to crank up the cardio for those last 4.
 
I finally hit a month mark. I'm back up to 215lbs. on bench and 45lbs. on dumbells. I'm also starting to do 20 mintues of cardio in the morning and 15 minutes at night. I love 24 hour gyms.
 
3 weeks into it I'm now 228...down from 236. I'm so mad that I have to do this again!

I was 265, and got down to 190 two years ago. I did the WW Points system, and I ran everyday and played basketball. But my wife told me I looked sick and because I did no weight training, I lost practically all my muscle. So I told myself get to 215, and then do weights and get back down to 190.

Well, then I forgot how much I loved food...but I'm back on track now. I'm actually starting to see a little toning going on. But I'm a little discouraged about not dropping the pounds as fast as I did last time.

Does weight lifting slow down weight loss? Am I replacing fat with muscle?
 
[quote name='Number83']Does weight lifting slow down weight loss? Am I replacing fat with muscle?[/quote]

Many people forget there true goal, which is ultimatley, to look better. True you may not be losing weight, because muscle weighs more than fat, but you will look and feel better because you are replacing your flab with muscle. You earlier incident where you became too skinny is a reflection of this. You had lost the weight, but it just wasn't what you expected. I think many people have this problem. My advice would be to stop worrying about the numbers and just go do what feels right. Numbers are just that, numbers. If you're looking and feeling better, who cares?
 
[quote name='Ranger Rick']My advice would be to stop worrying about the numbers and just go do what feels right.[/QUOTE]

No doubt. I haven't stepped on a scale but once or twice in two years. I weigh the same as I always have (210), but I'm fuckin' hot now.
 
I decided early on that I wasn't gonna worry about the numbers. I've dropped 4 inches in the waist and 2 shirt sizes and that was the main thing I was going for. I weigh myself now more for the heck of it instead of hinging my whole progress on it.

Now I want to move more towards getting more muscle on my arms and trimming and shaping my waist/chest.
 
I'm holding steady at 198-200 for the last month at least. It is going to take some serious adjustment to my diet and routine to lose another 10lbs. I'm not sure what to do because I can't possibly eat less without starving myself and I'm working out for almost 2 hours every day. I am quite toned and I feel great though so that last 10lbs. might be unnecessary. I would like a little more definition in my midsection though - right now you can see my abs if I tighten them but they are not noticable (other than the top 2) when I'm relaxed.

I did just start taking a multi-vitamin and some whey protein (80g/day) and I am shitting a ton more so that has to be good for something, right?
 
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