Fitness, fitness, and more fitness!
- Thread starter shineyourlight
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77 gym failures. A good biblical number. Wonder if it was a coincidence. Forgive how many times might be equated to fail and try again how many times.
It's 11:43 in length.
Some of these are just hysterical.
A few I cringed.
But most are funny.
[video=youtube;nlgGazxmz1Y]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlgGazxmz1Y[/video]
It's 11:43 in length.
Some of these are just hysterical.
A few I cringed.
But most are funny.
[video=youtube;nlgGazxmz1Y]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlgGazxmz1Y[/video]
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I started working out again around mid October of last year. Since 16 years old I had been active on and off in keeping physically fit. Either training with weights, or running, or martial arts, or yoga, or a combination of all or some of them at one time.
For health reasons I became a vegan in 1994 and lost about 40 pounds of pure muscle in about 5 months. I was big and strong, and had even participated in a amateur body building contest at one point prior to becoming vegan.
I was cool with that, as that is when I became a Christian and started fasting a lot and put my attention to matters of the Lord.
Of course many of my secular friends thought I was crazy, or sick (one even said - did I have aids?) and commented how great I looked before and how painfully skinny I was now. Granted, I have a medium bone structure trending a bit toward smallish, so I did look drawn out compared to before.
About 4 years ago I started thinking, "I am getting tired of feeling so weak (because despite extraordinary endurance and flexibility for my age, I was weak) and of the way I looked. I was getting tired of people telling me I was a small guy. I am only 5'9", which is about medium height, so I know I am not a big guy by any means, but I was so thin; and that coupled with my height, people were telling me I was a small man. Which was true, because I really did not displace space at my height combined with my light weight.
So it was that in 2012 I decided I have to start working out again with weights. But with a lot of personal stuff going on, I was not able to consistently start working out again until last October.
Anyway, it is about 10 months and 15 pounds later, and I have a new physique.
While far from having Mr. Olympic type muscles, at least I no longer look rail thin.
Its all muscle mass mass to, no fat, as I have been running or working out on the heavy bag to keep lean, since I am eating more calories then I have since I became a vegan.
My stomach is flat with definition, as I have been doing ab work consistently, and my bodies muscles are defined, besides growing substantially in size. Something closer to a Bruce Lee look, but a bit larger, as opposed to the muscular mass of a Mike Tyson who was defined, but had less definition then Bruce Lee, to use a example of two guys closer to my height class.
Its not all about the cosmetic though. I started working out again because I felt so weak. To the point I was losing functionality with certain things I took for granted years ago. Like being able to balance myself on one leg for a few minutes, or jumping as high as I liked, or moving furniture around, or loosing nuts on a car, etc.
With Gods help I will continue, and who knows, maybe in another 10 months will observe yet another leap forward in the way I look, and more importantly my health. I even feel like I got a little bit smarter since I have been working out, and also like I am more alert. Maybe its in my mind, but I do think the changes I have I have noticed those in those areas are real.
Anyway, yeah, I am writing this because I have a feeling a achievement; hopefully it doesn't sound like I am bragging or egotistical. I don't think I am.
But I am writing this more to encourage anyone here, male or female, who may be discouraged, or who may think they can't do it, or who may have hit a lag in their workouts, or whatever other negative thoughts or adverse situatons may be holding them back from obtaining their goals.
You can do it.
I am 57, a widowed father raising two young girls, a vegan, and I have business interests that take up some of my time.
So whatever your circumstances, God will provide a way for you to live a balanced life and pursue your dreams.
For health reasons I became a vegan in 1994 and lost about 40 pounds of pure muscle in about 5 months. I was big and strong, and had even participated in a amateur body building contest at one point prior to becoming vegan.
I was cool with that, as that is when I became a Christian and started fasting a lot and put my attention to matters of the Lord.
Of course many of my secular friends thought I was crazy, or sick (one even said - did I have aids?) and commented how great I looked before and how painfully skinny I was now. Granted, I have a medium bone structure trending a bit toward smallish, so I did look drawn out compared to before.
About 4 years ago I started thinking, "I am getting tired of feeling so weak (because despite extraordinary endurance and flexibility for my age, I was weak) and of the way I looked. I was getting tired of people telling me I was a small guy. I am only 5'9", which is about medium height, so I know I am not a big guy by any means, but I was so thin; and that coupled with my height, people were telling me I was a small man. Which was true, because I really did not displace space at my height combined with my light weight.
So it was that in 2012 I decided I have to start working out again with weights. But with a lot of personal stuff going on, I was not able to consistently start working out again until last October.
Anyway, it is about 10 months and 15 pounds later, and I have a new physique.
While far from having Mr. Olympic type muscles, at least I no longer look rail thin.
Its all muscle mass mass to, no fat, as I have been running or working out on the heavy bag to keep lean, since I am eating more calories then I have since I became a vegan.
My stomach is flat with definition, as I have been doing ab work consistently, and my bodies muscles are defined, besides growing substantially in size. Something closer to a Bruce Lee look, but a bit larger, as opposed to the muscular mass of a Mike Tyson who was defined, but had less definition then Bruce Lee, to use a example of two guys closer to my height class.
Its not all about the cosmetic though. I started working out again because I felt so weak. To the point I was losing functionality with certain things I took for granted years ago. Like being able to balance myself on one leg for a few minutes, or jumping as high as I liked, or moving furniture around, or loosing nuts on a car, etc.
With Gods help I will continue, and who knows, maybe in another 10 months will observe yet another leap forward in the way I look, and more importantly my health. I even feel like I got a little bit smarter since I have been working out, and also like I am more alert. Maybe its in my mind, but I do think the changes I have I have noticed those in those areas are real.
Anyway, yeah, I am writing this because I have a feeling a achievement; hopefully it doesn't sound like I am bragging or egotistical. I don't think I am.
But I am writing this more to encourage anyone here, male or female, who may be discouraged, or who may think they can't do it, or who may have hit a lag in their workouts, or whatever other negative thoughts or adverse situatons may be holding them back from obtaining their goals.
You can do it.
I am 57, a widowed father raising two young girls, a vegan, and I have business interests that take up some of my time.
So whatever your circumstances, God will provide a way for you to live a balanced life and pursue your dreams.
That's awesome! Glad to hear you're achieving your goals. Heavy lifting is something I've only been doing for about a year. I ran track/cross country, as well as played basketball and soccer, so I was never Mr. Muscles and I never needed to be, but I'm about 6'3, so at one point I was pretty thin.
I'm not where I want to be, but I've seen quite a bit of progress in the last year. One thing I've found is that working out not only helps physically, but mentally. You just feel better about yourself in general. It definitely takes patience and dedication though!
I'm not where I want to be, but I've seen quite a bit of progress in the last year. One thing I've found is that working out not only helps physically, but mentally. You just feel better about yourself in general. It definitely takes patience and dedication though!
My squat is going up. So that's good.
Deadlift is going up a little too.
Bench is doing the wave. Up then down then up again. I think it might have something to do with doing them right after heavy squatting. I'm just not used to doing bench after heavy squats.
But it could have been the 3 softball games I played on saturday too. I hurt my right arm a little throwing too hard. Maybe I'll do better on friday, which is intensity day...
Deadlift is going up a little too.
Bench is doing the wave. Up then down then up again. I think it might have something to do with doing them right after heavy squatting. I'm just not used to doing bench after heavy squats.
But it could have been the 3 softball games I played on saturday too. I hurt my right arm a little throwing too hard. Maybe I'll do better on friday, which is intensity day...
This morning was chest & triceps. Incline barbell bench press, flat dumbbell press, weighted dip, close-grip barbell bench press, and barbell lying triceps extension, etc. Legs & abs tomorrow 
I typically would only do 2 or 3 of those exercises on any given lift day.
And it would all be with the barbell.
I've been thinking about doing some dumbbell work. The overhead press hurts my shoulders so I was thinking if I turn my hands and elbows inward with the dumbbell that might help with it. Not pronated or supinated but whatever the grip is called that's in between. Like the grip you would have on the xbox controller.
Yeah I don't usually do all of that, but it's part of the new routine I'm trying. I'm in week 2 of 'Heavy Hitter', then I'll finish with 2 weeks of 'Intensity Boost', which I haven't even looked at yet. I'm definitely feeling it by the end of these workouts. I mostly follow the workout plan, but I do add some of my own stuff to it.
Here's the link if you wanted to look at it:
Workout Routines: Gain 10 Pounds of Muscle in 4 Weeks | Muscle & Fitness
Yeah I hate the overhead press. I know what you're talking about grip-wise, but I haven't tried it that way before.
Here's the link if you wanted to look at it:
Workout Routines: Gain 10 Pounds of Muscle in 4 Weeks | Muscle & Fitness
Yeah I hate the overhead press. I know what you're talking about grip-wise, but I haven't tried it that way before.
I'm not going to do squat, bench and deadlifts on the same day anymore. I'll be separating bench from squat and deadlifts and do them on separate days.
Mondays and Fridays for squats and deadlifts and Tuesdays and Thursdays for bench. Monday will still be volume day and friday will be still be intensity day.
My shoulders and elbows get too stretched out and sore from squats so my bench suffers. I figure if I wait 1 day I can work on bench separately and still make some gains. Maybe.
I know when it comes to it I won't be able to get my normal max in bench after maxing out squats, but thats the way it goes until mobility and flexibility get better. I've been working at that too and it is getting better, just slow. Like my bench gains.
Mondays and Fridays for squats and deadlifts and Tuesdays and Thursdays for bench. Monday will still be volume day and friday will be still be intensity day.
My shoulders and elbows get too stretched out and sore from squats so my bench suffers. I figure if I wait 1 day I can work on bench separately and still make some gains. Maybe.
I know when it comes to it I won't be able to get my normal max in bench after maxing out squats, but thats the way it goes until mobility and flexibility get better. I've been working at that too and it is getting better, just slow. Like my bench gains.
