thread of getting sw0le

I think it might be time for me to start with this mobility stuff, therein might be the key to my squat problems.

more mobility is always a good thing, but my flexibility is awful and my squats are fine fwiw

I borrowed the Starrett book, I was pretty eeeeehhhh on the whole thing. Like the Paleo people, fetishizing and over-complicating something ('mobility is important' 'eat whole foods') that should be super simple.

Everyone over the age of 30 should probably be doing daily stretching and/or yoga is a much simpler way to put it, but then you can't sell an enormous $40 hardback I guess.

i think mark rippetoe has a hot bod and i would like to hug him you guys are so weird

it's a body that says i'm strong and i love to eat fu

the thing is, from a purely aesthetic view as opposed to a practical strength view, I am already well on my way to having current Mark Rippetoe's bod

I swung past that bod after about 10 months of serious traditional bodybuilding, and I started as a fat ass. You want strength, go to a weight lifter; you want to look good, go to a body builder; you want fitness and back health, go to a physical therapist. For best results, combine -- my trainer is a competitive body builder with an advanced PT degree.

I've actually now gained 10 lbs since I started lifting. Some of it is definitely muscle, it's clearly visible, and since I've been lifting like 7 months that kind of gain would be pretty normal from what I've read. I think the last couple of lbs of it may have been fat though - pants fit a little tighter this morning in the waist.

Is it possible that you are wearing your pants a little higher now -- at the waist rather than below the gut? Happened to me and I was pleased when my partner pointed it out.

isn't the waist... below the gut already

waist vs hips, I think

ok i'm an adult man and i have not known what a waist was until now :/

vindicated by wikipedia, sorta:

In modern clothing the region referred to as the waist is considerably below the waist as defined anatomically. With the advent of pants and skirts that do not require support from above, the clothing waist moved down to a position where the body starts to expand to form the buttocks and a support is therefore available. The waistline of clothing is now generally well below the anatomical waist.

Your confusion is not insane, at least.

The thing is that both huge-gutted fatsos and simply big dudes who are reasonably fit but a little chunky can both wear pants with a 40" waist, but the relation of pants button to belly button will be very different. Dig?

the difference between my gut and my 'clothing waist' is the reason MY PANTS KEEP FALLING THE FUCK DOWN

what is my workout?

Okay I'm on this it's fun I go like 4x a week now beginners gains are fun but like how is anyone suppose to learn form? Like I got an hour's training thing and the whole time I was trying to learn to squat and the guy would randomly say "that's wrong" or "that's right" on movements that felt exactly the same? And like every youtube video is like "don't do it this way, you'll get hurt" and I can barely see what's going on when it's on the screen in front of me, let alone when I'm going it.

get someone else to take a video of you, compare it w/yatoobs, see what you think

Is that really what people generally do?

i don't know, that's what i did! and you know what? i looked good, dog

in many exercises it seems that good form is a corollary to good posture. the bad form I tend to see (including my own at times) is a direct result of people so used to hunching over they don't even realize they are doing it and basically it takes a lot of mental re-wiring to overcome that.

i think it's a bit unproductive to look at rippletoad's current condition and hold that against his training advice. the guy's old and full of injuries from a long lifting career. kinda like with so many olympic coaches. you don't have to go that hard, and his dietary/lifting advice for beginners has not much to do with how he looks now.

im sure his advice is great for getting strong, just got to be sure thats what u want

the other part of this is that my wife has flat-out told me that super muscley bodybuilder types terrify her and I would like it if the end point of my fitness regime didn't terrify my wife

don't worry about it, getting ripped out like that takes a total revamp of your whole diet & life

Oh I know; my oldest brother was a bodybuilder. His eating habits/regimen was something I viewed with equal measures of awe and horror.

All I'm really saying is that I am not going to knowingly eat 6000 calories a day.

yeah getting ripped is extremely hard, getting strong and fat on the other hand

i just want that long lean muscle everyone keeps talking about

just looking to build a long lean muscular peen any tips appreciated

1,100-1,200 reps w no weights is what I'm hearing builds prime lean muscle the fastest

oh my god this guy in the gym yesterday. repeatedly doing some type of high knee raise in the middle of the floor. poor guy is standing there waiting for him so he can get by with his barbell like um...can i just switch places with you...i wanted to add BECAUSE YOU CAN DO YOUR STUPID MARCH LITERALLY ANYWHERE YOU ASS

Hi everyone! I am popping back in here and am in such need of advice! I am looking at two gyms this week and joining one of them. My goals are:

Lose 15-20 pounds
Maybe get some muscle definition and slight toning, wanna look lean and healthy but don't need 2 get sw0le or build mass all that much, idk
Not modify my diet too much, just sorta work out to keep my weight in check, idk maybe I'll cut down how much I eat and add a few protein shakes shakes here and there

I plan on going 3 days a week for I guess, what, like an hour? Is that normal? but I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT TO DO!!! I have spent days googling and trying to read advice and I just have no idea where to start. I am so desperate for like someone to hold my hand and show me what to do so that I don't hurt myself. Can I just use machines? Free weights scare me.

Do I do different things on different days? Do I do all of body stuff every day? oh god what

If you want to lose 15-20 pounds you'll either need to modify your diet considerably or engage in a lot more intensive aerobic activity. If you want to get stronger then I'd say Starting Strength is a good starting point.

do yoga and eat only flax seed

xp alex I bike abt 7-10 miles a day in spring and summer to/from work so I will be doing that v soon

like i'm not rly unhappy w/ my strength or anything but I want my v small belly to git and idk it'd be cool to have petite biceps who knows. also my lung capacity is 50% what it should be (bcz ribcage) so while I have a good amt of endurance, intense anything (like sprinting a block) makes me very very winded

in many exercises it seems that good form is a corollary to good posture. the bad form I tend to see (including my own at times) is a direct result of people so used to hunching over they don't even realize they are doing it and basically it takes a lot of mental re-wiring to overcome that.

― ryan, Wednesday, February 24, 2016 8:13 AM (4 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

This is otm, especially the "mental re-wiring" part -- trying to learn lifting is really making me more aware of certain brain-body connections and of how hard it can be to do seemingly simple kinds of movement that I'm not used to.

Hey Stevie - Not an expert, but here's my two cents. The most important thing when you start going to the gym is to find a routine you can stick with and commit to. Basically all you're trying to do, imo, is get to the gym and keep going to the gym. What you do there doesn't matter much at first. No point overloading yourself with schedules and goals you can't realistically stick with. Going to the gym really sucks at first, but once you get into the habit of it, it becomes pretty easy. Go there, spend an hour there, and count is as a victory when that hour is up.From there you can refine your workout and find something that works for you.

Three times a week for an hour is a perfect starting goal. It is very, very doable, and you'll see results fast. Four times some week is better but maybe unrealistic at first; two times you won't see any returns at all. So three is a great start.

For strength exercises, I like full body exercises and compound exercises (discussed up thread) that work multiple muscle groups. Think push-ups, bench presses, planks, dead lifts, squats, etc. Don't get too caught up in all those machines that only work one small muscle, at least at first. Compound exercises are much more efficient.

If you're trying to lose weight, maybe do a half an hour of strength and a half hour of cardio? I don't do much cardio, but if you can do it for 20 minutes, you get a small endorphin rush that makes going further a little easier. Think of it as your reward for sticking with something shitty. Do a different workout every day you are there. The more variety you get, the more muscle confusion you create, and the more returns you see.

Diet wise, just cut out most refined carbs and all flagrant added sugar from your diet. Focus on protein and veggies.

A few simple steps and you'll see a lot of results (that belly will go away really fast). But again, don't get too lost in the weeds to start. Just force yourself to go for an hour three times a week, and that's 70% of the battle.

^ 95% of the entire diet/workout industry made irrelevant in one post

muscle confusion is not real. it's ok to do the same thing every time. or alternate every other time. you can even go twice a week if 3 is going to overwhelm you. i sometimes go once a week because my job is hard and it still works.

in fact, you will make better progress and be able to track progress more effectively if you do not just fuck around with a new thing every day

agree with that.

my advice to all is do something you're going to keep doing, that is fun and productive. stevie you won't get that huge doing some weights unless you try to. free weights are fun. you can do dumbbells. like db bench press, standing press, rows, goblet squats, lunges (s0re), etc. just start with something light and go up the next time (however it is hard to do this every time with 5 lb increments so you can do less reps when you increase). good thing about all of those is you can do any of them every time you go to the gym if you want. and how to do them is all over youtube & pretty intuitive. also not scary. most of the dudes in the free weight area have no clue what they are doing. i am a gym anthropologist.

i might get a new job soon. or at least this year. when i do i'm going to go to a new gym and go like all the time. it's all i care about!!!!!

btw i did some sprints yesterday. because it was warm. i have not run all winter. i thought 30 seconds would be easy. oh boy. i felt like my lungs were on fire. i'll try 15 seconds next time.

my advice to all is do something you're going to keep doing

― #amazing #babies #touching (harbl), Monday, February 29, 2016 7:19 AM (5 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

most important thing^, second most important thing is dont get injured

do free weights tho not machines lol

machines are fine, tbh, depending on your goals (ie esp. if concerns are mostly aesthetic) - plenty of bros do nothing but machine circuits and look 'good.'

There's no such thing as toning or any of that - if you want to get rid of a belly/beer gut, it really boils down to 'eat less'/'eat better.' Some form of relatively low-carb whole food is the easiest way for most people that I've seen.

machines r bad

I feel more inclined to use machines bcz it seems like they wd be safer and I'd be less prone to injury?

Also thinking abt paying for like idk 5 personal trainer sessions and being like "ok this is my body and this is what i want, help me"