thread of getting sw0le

you don't have to worry about calluses once you rub off all your skin

https://media.giphy.com/media/fDO2Nk0ImzvvW/giphy.gif

no gloves on the thread

i should have guessed but oh my god are there a lot of lifting gloves memes

I mean honestly it's more about the fact that it (supposedly) inhibits form, mobility and development of grip strength then about being a tough guy. I'd gladly wear gloves if it wasn't thought to get in the way.

if it's not about being a tough guy then i don't want anything to do with it

i went without gloves the first two years, then started taping the weights

gloves don't inhibit anything for me

unless you wear massive ones

i'm talking about light ones just to reduce friction

tbf that pic is real but also not quite real

http://mashable.com/2016/06/08/jk-simmons-justice-league-how-so-jacked

http://i.imgur.com/9PWuD3D.gif

check out my progress guys what do you think

http://cbssports1.cbsistatic.com/hub/i/r/2016/06/27/41c27cb1-ed28-4725-afa1-8f7c0851b52a/resize/620x/085bc9c32cb839fe52bfb33f73ff7173/iranianhulk062716.jpg

Disturbing.

http://streetfighterdojo.com/sf4/images/characters/portraits/player1_zangief2.JPG

Today hit

305 X1 deadlift
125 x 2 overhead press

Small milestones

niiiiiice

185x3x2 bench press

yes, I am using this as my journal

hell yeah! your post are serving as motivation for me to get back into the Swole after doing next to nothing the last few months

been taking a break from heavy lifting and been doing a workout centered around running (sometimes sprints), chest-to-bar pull ups, dips, and dumbbell overhead press. it feels surprisingly comprehensive but don't think I'll get much actual swoleness from this routine.

My chest feels sore in the best way today. Reaffirms the feeling that I broke through a wall on that bench.

pullups dips and presses are legit sw0le trix iirc

I was on a work trip recently and used the fitness center at the hotel, and I felt like a real fucking badass for having the thought "Aw man, they only have dumbells up to 50lbs" for the first time in my life. I remember when it was a challenge for me to do 35's over my head, like for most of my adult life.

Cool to reread my own old posts ITT -- In October I was complaining that sets of 135x10 deadlifts were hard, now they are my warmup.

Trying my first "cut" (the "scare quotes" are to show my "ironic distance" from "bro science" because I am "chickenshit" and want to "distance myself" from "potential failure") by going down from a surplus of 3200 calories (+500 over maintenance, more or less) to a deficit of 2200 calories (500 under). My goal for now is to stick out 12 weeks and move back to eating at a surplus. It's not too bad so far, but I've found I am absolutely incapable of finishing my third set of squats. I've read enough advice that a reduction in volume is OK if I'm not forced to drop weight, but if I start failing that second set I'm going to have to start adding in more food.

I'm still able to get through every other exercise without trouble and I'm even making progress on the other lifts- finally benched a plate for 3x5 a couple of days ago, which isn't terribly impressive but was a nice milestone.

Are you on some kind of bodybuilding program?

Sticking with Starting Strength, just not adding more to my lifts unless I feel like I can rather than working toward pushing them up every week. It's worked ok for me but I've put on a not inconsiderable amount of weight with it and I'd like to work off some of the excess fat before Labor Day if I can.

I hate to counter internet folk wisdom with more internet folk wisdom, but I was under the impression that "bulking and cutting" were measures that only really make sense for bodybuilders and don't really work with a program like starting strength. But I'll try to find a source later.

I hate the terminology, but it seems like it would hold up from a basic calories in/calories out standpoint.

I think the concern is losing muscle along with fat if you have too much of a calorie deficit. But tbh it's hard to find a source in either direction that looks remotely reliable.

In my case I've basically maintained the same calorie level and the same weight while making slow but steady lifting gains (which I would assume means I must be losing at least a little bit of fat and gaining at least a little bit of muscle in the process). You may also not need that kind of caloric surplus to begin with if you're not fully doing the starting strength thing of constantly increasing weight.

But I'm not shredded or anything, if that's what you're going for.

SHRED BIG OR GO HOME

I'M BOSS OF THIS GYNM

GYM

I'M BOSS OF THIS GYNM

― illegal economic migration (Tracer Hand), Friday, July 8, 2016 10:49 AM (1 minute ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

lol @ this typo

Basically I started out chunkier than I'd like, made OK progress on SS (mostly held back by not eating enough for the first couple of months) but and six months or so managed to put on about 10 pounds, which is hopefully not all fat. And while I'm sticking with SS lifts because they're basic and it's literally impossible to just get a straightforward program recommendation on the internet, for what I want to do (concentrate on losing fat while maintaining strength) everything I've read recommends eating a moderate caloric deficit while lifting as heavy as I can. Maybe I'll fuck up and lose another year of work, but who knows?

yeah sounds reasonable

losing fat isn't just maintaining a caloric deficit, it's training your metabolism to burn fat instead of sugar/glycogen/protein ---not just when you're working out, but when you're just existing

the best way to do this is through low-and-slow aerobic exercise. like, really slow, almost doesn't feel like exercise slow. and for a really long time. you might hate running or cycling or swimming or rowing, but you probably can tolerate at least one of them. do a couple few hours of that in addition to weight lifting, and you will probably shed fat even on a calorie neutral diet

the endurance sports literature is pretty much unanimous on this --- "base miles" are needed for endurance and for weight loss.

I already walk at least 2-3 miles a day and finally replaced my stolen bike (thanks, philly) with the goal in mind of never taking another can"b or Uber again.

hmm, interesting. I've noticed that I tend to lose weight really fast when we go on vacations where we hike.

easy-going hiking is a great example --- your HR is elevated, but not too much. your body is encouraged to make use of the many dozens of thousands of calories available in fat form, instead of plowing into your glycogen reserves, or worse, protein

"conversational pace" is what gets bandied about the most, and, in the case of hiking with friends or family, the most likely to be maintained just out of social decorum. when you're out alone it's tempting to go faster, because you're out for exercise, right? and isn't the point to work hard? but virtually all professional endurance athletes (eg cyclists) spend the bulk of their time just puttering about.

some google terms -- MAF heart rate 80/20 LHR

my own experience has been that I lost more weight after a couple months of long, easy runs (1-2hrs) that didn't feel that hard than I did after a similar period of doing shorter (30-45min), considerably more intense runs that left me gassed

i climbed a lotta outdoor staircases on my last weeklong trip to LA and lost 7 or 8 lbs.

cardio definitely

if you lift a few times a week running even 30 mins a week or every couple of weeks or hiking will do wonders

only thing is if you are avoiding high impact exercises i would go for cycling as it does wonders for your calves and legs

swimming is good if you still have quite a big of energy to expend

bit

hovering around 185 past coupla weeks after being stuck at 165 since last summer. ^_^

the endurance sports literature is pretty much unanimous on this --- "base miles" are needed for endurance and for weight loss.

well, yeah...

but consider the source, man! then Lift Weights Faster pfft

i'm into 8-10 ish 100m sprints 3x / week. noticing better lung capacity, mobility, feeling lighter while hitting the same lifting numbers, more of a fat burn than i had with longer runs. also, yoga will rip you up and shape you by using your sw0le mass against you. fuck endurance sports man, lyfe is an endurance sport.

the exercise i crave is all about cycles into and out of intensity

hit 275# C&J after some time off! was really surprised by that.

jesus

i'm doing a pretty awesome job lately

not hueg numbers but being able to do things i didn't used to be able to