The Sports/Fitness Thread

Discussion in 'Random Thoughts' started by OJneg, Oct 21, 2015.

  1. Cspirou

    Cspirou They call me Sparky

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    @ergopower - I probably posted this earlier but I remember being totally fine with regular elevated heel tennis shoes for awhile. Until one day I went on a hike and my calf muscles and ankles were totally killing me when going up hill

    I noticed that my calf muscles were a lot shorter than they should be and decided to seek zero drop shoes right then. The typical recommendation is to stretch regularly but it seemed obvious to me that the shoes weren’t helping

    You do have to be careful with switching right away though. It’s a bit like keeping your arm in a cast for months and then expecting your arm to be the same after getting out of the cast.
     
  2. OJneg

    OJneg The Most Insufferable

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    1. I would try doing the same workout loads off the treadmill. The treadmill does not feel natural for me personally, screws up my gait totally. Just totally disconnected from the road. You might have a similar problem. If you experience the same issues on the road, then it's probably not the treadmill.
    2. I became a barefoot, zero-drop enjoyer years ago now and I have not looked back. The Altra brand is my choice of shoe. I use the Escalante on the road and a Lone Peak on the trail. Since it sounds like you have wide feet, it may be an inadequate toe splay causing a distorted footfall. Keep in mind, if you go this route you will essentially have to relearn how to run. Your calves will be on fire from absorbing the impact on every footfall, instead of heel striking and letting the cushion absorb it. Most people seem to not get past the first few weeks of retraining their stride and revert back to their old shoes. Once you learn it though, you will have a healthier stride and stronger calves IMO.
     
  3. Deep Funk

    Deep Funk Deep thoughts - Friend

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    What is your opinion on burpees?

    The military/navy burpee (6-count) is pretty effective based on my experience. Thing is I will mix it up because after years of martial arts you know footwork/legwork is more than going from standing to squat to plank.
     
  4. randytsuch

    randytsuch Friend

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    I've been using my treadmill regularly for the last year and a half. We remodeled back then, and made an exercise room with the treadmill and elliptical next to each other, in front of a tv. So I run and watch something, and it would be a lot harder to run without the tv to watch. So running outside isn't going to happen. I also think the cushioning on the treadmill is better then running on the street or sidewalk.

    This week I've been using the elliptical and its fine. I haven't used it in years, and didn't really like it back then, preferred the treadmill. But now I'm fine with it, and could use it instead of the treadmill if I had to. But plan to try alternating and see how it goes.

    Randy
     
  5. Justin S

    Justin S Friend

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    Ahahaha, When I was boxing in a previous life, they were the ultimate full body exercise (w full kick-out+pushup etc). We would start with them, end with them. They're awful. They're the best, I am glad I don't have to do them/I miss them.
     
  6. Cspirou

    Cspirou They call me Sparky

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    My unintuitive advice for beginners is to go completely barefoot. No transitioning with minimalist shoes first

    why? Because you don’t want to walk/run the ‘wrong’ way when completely barefoot. You will likely totally avoid heel striking and adjust your foot strike to have less impact.

    You also pace at the right rate. Stop your session if you feel discomfort or blisters. While blisters aren’t great, you recover from that much faster than an Achilles injury. As the soles of your feet adapt, your muscles should have developed as well.
     
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  7. OJneg

    OJneg The Most Insufferable

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    My point is the cushioning can be the problem.
     
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  8. OJneg

    OJneg The Most Insufferable

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    I like the kettlebell turkish get-up as a better equivalent. I sometimes do slow get-ups (5 minutes under load, slow and controlled, switching arms) on a cold day to get warmed up for the main routine.

    I see no reason to do burpees. Coaches of high-school athletes and drill instructors use it primarily as a punishment tool to exhaust their subjects. No real hypertrophy potential. If you want high-intensity cardio, stationary bike or just sprints are the better option. My workout time is too scarce. If I was locked in a 10'x10' solitary confinement cube, I might consider them to prevent myself from going insane.
     
  9. crazychile

    crazychile Eastern Iowa's Spiciest Pepper

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    I hate burpees but see the potential benefit. For me being old and tall they're still really difficult after the first 10 or so. I can do 100 if I have to, but I've got to do some 10 sec breaks after a while and break them into sets of 5 or 10. I know a lot of taller guys that have the same problem, but my age and weight probably contribute to the hatred. I have a similar issue with Overhead Squats. I have to go pretty light on the weight or they are really uncomfortable. But shorter people seem to do better so maybe it's partially a geometry thing. I don't hate them as bad as burpees though.

    I've done the "Roxanne" warm up a few times. Play Roxanne and every time Sting sings Roxanne you do a burpee. The last 30 sec of that song gets to be sheer hell.
     
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  10. OJneg

    OJneg The Most Insufferable

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    I've only ever played "Roxanne" as a group drinking game.
     
  11. randytsuch

    randytsuch Friend

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    Had not thought about the treadmill cushioning as a potential problem.

    My treadmill has an option to turn a handle to defeat the spring shocks. I've been using the the springs enabled, if I change I'd be running on a piece of wood with no give, but wood is not as hard on running on the streets.

    Another thing I could try.

    Randy
     
  12. Deep Funk

    Deep Funk Deep thoughts - Friend

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    Sometimes a few sets of burpees or hindu/wrestling squats are really good to get the blood flowing again.

    I have found a new gym and new improvements to my training regime. More cardio (running and jump rope work-outs) in the coming times. I want to be able to run a 10 KM without issue again.
     
  13. Vansen

    Vansen Gear Master (retiring)

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    Overhead squats are probably the second hardest exercise to do with a barbell following the snatch. One exercise I use to help get better at both of those is a drop snatch. Use a five pound metal bar or empty barbell to start with and work up from there. The drop snatch will help with stability and the receiving motion will help you find the best stance for an overhead squat.
     
  14. Deep Funk

    Deep Funk Deep thoughts - Friend

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    I tried to combine power/calisthenics and cardio today. Note to self: start the run before everything else.

    I did the run in the end and it went okay but when your fresh and emptier (less water in the body) you can run longer. I can do a decent 5KM next week.
     
  15. luckybaer

    luckybaer Friend

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    Been a real struggle since November 2021 when I first contracted COVID. That was probably delta variant, but it took me a few months to be able to run with any authority. Unfortunately, almost a year to the day after my first COVID experience, I caught it again! This time, the COVID wasn't the only challenge - pneumonia and myocarditis, too! Good grief.

    Anyway, I just started running 400M/walking 400M <-- and doing this for only 2 miles. I finally got to this point after some ups and downs and nearly 4 months of only walking (sometimes a little rowing). I had to build up from a s-l-o-w-l-y paced 1.5 miles to a quicker paced 2 miles. I also made sure I didn't do two "challenging" walks two days in a row.

    I'm still being cautious, and watching my heart's metrics. I've also practically eliminated alcohol - although I did have my first two beers in almost 6 months over the past 3 days. I'll slowly build up again, and I think I'll rejoin the gym this summer to go and lift/treadmill/elliptical while my younger son works out.
     
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  16. OJneg

    OJneg The Most Insufferable

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    I think it is more prudent to run second, particularly if running performance is not something you're trying to progress. Obviously whichever activity you do first you'll be able to exert to a higher degree. I have found that I can maintain typical pace times after a lifting session, and I lift hard each session. On the other hand, even a middling effort on a run (pace or overall time) will fry my CNS enough that I just won't be able to progress the lifts. Better off treating any runs as a full body workout and spacing your day-to-day rest intervals accordingly.
     
  17. tokystar

    tokystar New

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    I usually running every morning to keep my body in fit
     
  18. EagleWings

    EagleWings Friend

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    Is anyone here into a long-term, strengthening regime?

    I was into fitness back during school days and and neglected it after leaving high school 18yrs ago, except for a couple of brief gymming months. In the past, I have stuck to training with low weights to maintain a leaner physique for the sake of low maintenance. But I am hitting gym again and unlike the past, I am training with heavier weights and I am already seeing the benefits of improved strength. So I am thinking to pursue a strength building program and was wondering if any of you guys had any insight/experience/story/ advise to share.
     
  19. Xecuter

    Xecuter Brush and floss your amp twice a day

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    I started down a strength pathway around 2013 training 4-5 days a week strength training.
    I had a goal in mind to bench 100kg for 8 clean reps. I weighed about 75kg at the time. I trained on my own then progressed with personal trainers then started training with professional trainers around 2019 (people who had a track record with athletes), i learned a lot about mobility, stretching and the tiny little details that maximise your efficiency in lifts and presses.

    I will say I was natural the entire time i was doing strength training and power lifting and that slowed my progress by many years. I saw guys with worse genetics, beat my PRs in 6 weeks on gear but stuck to my guns and just kept grinding. I did take creatine and obviously needed to supplement protein. I never had a desire to compete in competitions just with myself.

    I made plenty of friends at the gym but never found it to be a social experience. I finally reached my goal in 2021, I had increased my weight to around 88kg, I was comfortably benching 100kg for reps and maxing out at 140kg, dead lift and squat was over 200kg.
    I realised at this point that I was heavier and bulkier than suited me, that I no longer had any interest in pursing the sport further because the only way for me to really progress was to use steroids. So I decided to do what I had always wanted to do and was to scared to pursue which was BJJ.

    I started around mid 2021 and achieved purple belt in 2 years. I have way more friends from doing it, I find it mentally far more stimulating. I'm down to around 80 something kilos and haven't done any lifting since I left the gym 2 years ago.
    I spend a lot more time doing stretching and mobility now and feel i am 999x happier than I was as a gym rat.
    I'm still stronger than average but BJJ is a different kind of conditioning. I come home drenched in sweat every night, pondering how to counter something or how I could refine something.
    I know steroids are abused a lot in BJJ too but I just don't feel the same way about it as I did with lifting.
    Also now I can strangle 99% of people which is cool :)
     
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  20. ergopower

    ergopower Friend

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    I've been a (shitty) cyclist and runner for over 25 years now. I realized I should be balancing that with some strength training, and I have been doing 5 x 5 for 10+ years. I chose this because it is pretty time-efficient; and it's designed for overall, practical strength, especially your core. No curls or other dick-measuring crap. I have added pec fly and delt on a machine because I have some shoulder weakness from my youth. I made pretty good progress going to the gym 3 times/week. At my age now, I'm just trying to hold steady.
     
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