Quote :

"powerlifting is different than lifting for aesthetics."

Yes, it is. Training for aesthetics should still be driven by proper strength training and compound lifts.

[Edited on June 15, 2012 at 12:37 PM. Reason : ]

6/15/2012 12:32:48 PM

i was agreeing with you. its ok for a powerlifting coach to have some bodyfat because the end goal is not the same between powerlifting and aesthetics. i would love to work with jim wendler or mark rippetoe.

6/15/2012 2:16:05 PM

Quote :

"My comment about Planet Fitness' business model is more based on the fact that they would fail if the majority of the their members actually used the gym on a consistent basis."

that's why they have pizza Mondays

6/15/2012 8:01:06 PM

^ I hate that shit. Working my ass off on the elliptical and then they bring in a shitload of pizzas. I did enjoy the $20/month gym fee with unlimited tanning though.


I've lost 17.5 pounds so far according to my wii fit. Not too bad for a month's worth of diet and exercise. My appetite has decreased. I eat a lot less now and stay full for a lot longer.

I'm on day 14 of 30 day shred. I'm getting more definition in my abs, arms, and legs. However, I think I will add a strength training program to the mix. Peter recommended I do a big lift 3x/week. We're getting squat rack in a couple weeks and we already have a bench, so I just need to figure out what the 3rd big lift will be. Debating between dead lifts and cleans, or maybe I can alternate them. I really want to get my biceps and triceps back to where they were before my shoulder injury. I guess I'll have to do a bunch of curls.

I think my doctor will be impressed on the 28th for my last visit.

6/16/2012 6:18:36 PM

I've been riding an exercise bike 30-45 minutes ALMOST every day for the past month and eating fairly clean food and low calories

and haven't noticed any change

~2-3 pounds, but that's negligible

[Edited on June 16, 2012 at 6:31 PM. Reason : ]

6/16/2012 6:31:36 PM

you're doing something wrong

i guess that's obvious but it might help to hear it

6/16/2012 10:06:21 PM

Yea, I just have no idea what.

6/17/2012 1:08:23 AM

Not going to lose weight doing cardio. Switch to weight lifting. Problem solved.

6/17/2012 4:49:03 PM

I beg to differ

6/17/2012 5:03:12 PM

Pretend you only have the following options for creating a calorie deficit:

1) Run three miles
2) Eat that twinkie

Which takes less effort? Just put down the junk food, mane.

6/17/2012 6:22:43 PM

I don't eat junk food or drink soda

6/17/2012 6:35:52 PM

maybe you're a scientific anomaly

but probably not

eat less, exercise more

[Edited on June 17, 2012 at 10:09 PM. Reason : but you are trolling exactly the right amount]

6/17/2012 10:09:20 PM

Not trolling

6/17/2012 10:42:31 PM

Unless you are a fat Ass you aren't going to lose fat (beyond a few pounds) with cardio.

If you're eating a caloric deficit and not lifting weights you are guaranteed to lose a substantial amount of muscle though.

6/17/2012 11:26:18 PM

I'm going to defend cardio for once... If you are eating less, AND adding cardio, you'll create more of a net deficit ---> more weight lost.

However, cardio doesn't stimulate muscle protein synthesis. Ergo a higher percentage of weight lost will be muscle.

6/18/2012 8:30:21 AM

What about cardio + weight training + eating less? Should be a decent trifecta, no?

6/18/2012 10:23:46 AM

It could be. Weight lifting while dieting allows you to maintain muscle and strength. Fasted, low intensity cardio (hiking, for instance) will burn fat.

Weight lifting and long-distance/high-intensity cardio while on a deficit? I wouldn't do it. You aren't giving your body the energy it needs to maintain that activity level. You will, of course, lose weight, but a higher than optimal percentage of that will be lean mass. Body composition is what matters for health and appearance, not the number on the scale.

6/18/2012 10:50:21 AM

Yea...I didn't do any sort of activity today because aim just drained from the calorie deficit and constant activity.

Looks like I need to slow it the hell down and throw in some moderate weights.

6/19/2012 1:16:12 AM

So maybe some of you have had experience with this.

I'm pretty sure that I pinched a nerve in my shoulder, underneath the blade, about 2 weeks ago. Ive finally regained full range of motion on the shoulder and the neck but I'm still having issues with numbness and tingling in my hand. Any advice on working it out?

6/20/2012 12:39:50 PM

^I had that happen to me and the doctor didn't seem too concerned. It went away after a while.

6/20/2012 3:04:47 PM

I would avoid spine compressing moves. Ice it and do a good variety of stretching & rotator cuff exercises to strengthen the area

6/21/2012 11:47:46 AM

Woo, some numbers time. Between personal workouts on the weekend and training with MattJMM2 its feeling like more improvements are coming faster. (quick plug for capitalstrength.com)

07/07/12 - Current (Change since last measurement 2 months ago) [Change since starting to record 8/8/11]

Bicep: 12.5 (0) [+0.5"]
Forearm: 11 (-0.25") [+0.25"]
Chest: 42.25 (+1.25") [+2.25"]
Neck: 15.25 (-0.5") [-0.25"]
Waist: 38 (+0.25") [-0.5"]
Hip: 41 (+0.5") [0]
Thigh: 23.25 (+1.25") [+3"]
Calf: 14.5 (+0.25") [-0.25"]
Weight: 207 (+11lbs) [+12lbs]

Overall feeling great, nice to see that I'm still down in waist size even with 12lbs more.
Would like to see more results with arms, but that can only come in time. Also legs have made a significant improvement, glad pilgrimshoes made the remark at the start of the year.

Thanks still going out to CassTheSass, LunaK, and MattJMM2 for helping keep me motivated (x2) and training, respectively.

[Edited on July 7, 2012 at 5:06 PM. Reason : better without spaces maybe]

7/7/2012 5:03:26 PM

Keep up the good work!

7/8/2012 8:40:39 PM

This thread needs a bit of a reboot.

It's halfway through the year and the only person reporting progress is grimx

Awesome job btw grimx!

Who's still in this game with me?

Me, I'm back to plateauing... of course I've slacked off and have mainly stuck to my running which I know I shouldn't, I need to get back to working with weights more than just once a week. I'm going to revamp what I'm doing, take update pics and start over.

What's everyone else doing for that beachbody? Are you keeping up with your goals?

7/12/2012 12:21:11 PM

i'm down to 122 pounds. i need to start signing up for races again now that things have died down post-wedding. i'm now doing hour-long boot camp classes 3 days and a week and it's totally kicking my ass but i love it. i'm still doing body rock and also Zuzana Light work outs on my non-boot camp days. i'm still running when i am in the mood to run

recently i have started moving more into a vegan diet to help my allergy and i am definitely feeling a lot better. i'm not completely off the meat train - but i am trying to cut it out as much as possible opting for vegan meals during the week when i am home and limiting my fish and meat to when i am out.

7/12/2012 1:00:17 PM

I also need to start signing up for races

7/12/2012 1:17:13 PM

I'm still doing awesome. I don't make regular updates as to not make the rest of you jealous.

7/12/2012 1:35:16 PM

Quote :

"Down to about 199.7 from 218 in January. Still progressing on 5/3/1, seeing gradual aesthetic improvements in the mirror. but the lower back/ab fat doesn't wanna go. Still got a ways to go...185-190 at least."

That's from May 11th. I'm at roughly 193.5 now. Progress hasn't come as fast as I'd like to see, but strength hasn't dropped off or anything. .75 lb a week? I guess that's not terrible. Been killing it as far as macronutrient/calorie count goes, so all I can do is keep chipping away.

I started tracking shit on myfitnesspal, which helps me realize how easy it is to overeat. The difference between a decent rest day deficit at 2k kcal and 2.5k is a few bites.

7/12/2012 1:56:52 PM

I've been really busy lately and haven't gone to the gym in a little over a month. I've lost almost 10 lbs. Time to get back in there and get my bulk on.

7/12/2012 3:43:57 PM

Quote :

"Would like to see more results with arms, but that can only come in time. Also legs have made a significant improvement, glad pilgrimshoes made the remark at the start of the year."

vanity search, dowatnow?

i don't remember what i said.

[Edited on July 17, 2012 at 11:40 AM. Reason : t-rex mode, engage]

7/17/2012 11:36:39 AM

ooh, pilgrim talk shit to me so I can get motivated too

7/17/2012 11:47:14 AM

My progress is shit, that's why i'm not reporting.

I need to re-loose about 25 pounds before the fall. Well over the next three months (ish).

I'm going to do a consult with a nutritionist and we'll see where that gets me.

7/17/2012 2:03:05 PM

Good luck!


I have no problem with being active. My deal is with food. I must be back to over eating and I know I'm definitely not eating healthy like I used to. IE that pint of half baked which I bought and then ate in a matter of two days

So I'm back to using myfitnesspal. I liked it before, then I stopped using it cause I thought it was tedious trying to add in foods I ate while out etc, then I started a downward slope of overeating and plateauing

7/17/2012 2:48:35 PM

food is definitely the main issue for me. i do fine about 95% of the time when i am home because i keep the house stocked with the right kind of foods and keep prepared meals in the fridge which make it easy for me to eat when i am hungry and about to go crazy on anything i can find. my problem occurs mostly when i am not home - eating out at restaurants is tough because i am already limited and whenever i am at a friend's house or out of town, it's hard to find something that is healthy and won't make my body explode

7/17/2012 5:28:58 PM

pilgrimshoes (easier to vanity search)

Quote :

"vanity search, dowatnow? i don't remember what i said."

you said:

Quote :

"the was due to how often dudes are like "I want a bigger chest and biceps" and neglect the lower body. If your jean size goes up, but its due to quad/ham/glute strentgh, ain't no problem there. Don't let that hold you back. Also, what's more likely in terms of a real life use of strength? Picking up something heavy off the floor, or one arm curling a lady to safety who is dangling perilously from a cliff? "

which led to a stronger focus in squats and general leg work for the year.

7/18/2012 9:42:42 AM

^Nice PR yesterday on the squat btw

7/18/2012 10:11:59 AM

I hate counting calories!

I have 350 calories remaining for the day and I wont be able to exercise after work so I'm stuck at 350 plus I'm supposed to have dinner at Bonefish Grill tonight

7/19/2012 2:42:45 PM

Then make up for it over the next few days! One day off is fine, as long as you don't go on a cheesecake binge. Just make up for it gradually over the course of a week.

Are you trying to lose or maintain?

7/19/2012 3:22:27 PM

lose


and did you say cheesecake??


I'm supposed to stick to 1200 calories a day

7/19/2012 3:29:35 PM

Is that based on a one-pound-per-week loss or 2 pounds? If it's 2 pounds, then don't sweat it. You might be off by a little bit, but you'll still be fine. Just run an extra couple of miles at the gym tomorrow and you'll be fine.

7/19/2012 3:46:13 PM

2 lbs a week. So things like that can carry over? I guess in my head I was thinking that would be a no-no

7/19/2012 3:48:38 PM

If you go slightly over one day, but you're good the rest of the week, then you'll be fine. One pound is equivalent to 3500 calories. To lose 2 lbs in a week, you need a 7000 calorie deficit.

So yeah, you may not hit your goal exactly, but if you only go a little over on one day, it's not the end of the world. You'd still be pretty darn close to your deficit goal.

BTW, 2 lbs per week is intense!

7/19/2012 3:58:42 PM

1200 calories a day is intense!

i eat about 1600-1700 calories a day. i don't track my calories but just focus on meeting my daily food goals (5-7 servings of fruit and veggies, 3 servings of protein, 2-3 servings of healthy carbs, some good fats thrown in there) and i found that it was much easier for me than trying to look up and calculate everything via a calorie tracker app.

every once and a while (or when i change up my diet) i will write down everything i eat in a typical day and look it up to make sure i am staying within a good calorie range (1600-1800). it also helps me identify any areas that i could improve. for example, i love those lara bars and i found myself eating one almost every day.....until i learned how many calories were in one of them and i immediately cut back and now only have one every once and a while as a treat or when i am starving and don't have access to food.

7/19/2012 7:23:49 PM

Is it? I feel so hungry all the time! I just plugged in how much I wanted to weigh and by when and 1200 is what myfitnesspal told me to do

The event I was suppose to go to tonight was cancelled so I was able to get in my Thursday 4 miles so now I'm closing the day with 508 calories remaining to eat. Oops

So can I just carry those over to my rest day tomorrow before my long run of 10 miles on Saturday?

Should I change my goal of 1200 calories?

It must show that I really don't know what I'm doing. I want to lose weight but still have energy to train for this half. Plus I've begun weight training too. I'm just so hungry all the time this past week

7/19/2012 10:30:44 PM

It has to be related to the kind of food you eat, the frequency at which you eat, and your activity level. I'm 6'3", male, and somewhere around 192 lbs, and my rest days are at around 1700-1800 calories, but I'm pretty sedentary and I don't do cardio. Even though that's a pretty significant calorie deficit for me, I don't get hungry, certainly not hungry enough to where I'm uncomfortable.

One strategy is intermittent fasting, which I'm sure you've seen us talk about. Yeah, doesn't work for everyone, I know. The real substance of that strategy, though, is that small, frequent meals do not help control hunger. Ever notice how you eat breakfast, and within 1.5 or 2 hours you're ravenous? I have experienced this, and I think most early morning eaters have also gone through the same thing. I get hungry around 30 minutes or an hour after waking up, and within 2 hours hunger has subsided.

The other part of the equation is the macronutrient content of the food you're eating. My rest days usually involve 1-2 large meals. Yesterday, that meal was 11 ounces of ground turkey, a 4 egg omelette with cheese, a shit ton of steamed brocolli, and greek yogurt mixed with strawberries and protein powder (sounds kind of gross but the way I do it is delicious and girlfriend approved). It was high in fat, high in protein, and low in carbs. A lot of food out there is marketed as low-fat, but that's not what you want for staying satisfied. Fat, protein, and fibrous vegetables will keep you full. With that meal last night, I was actually uncomfortably full while still achieving a 400 calorie deficit.

If you're running 4-10 miles multiple times a week, you should really be eating more. If I'm getting this right, you ran 4 miles today and ate under 1000 calories. Anyone would be hungry after that. I would only go low carb (under 50g) on days where you aren't running or working out.

[Edited on July 19, 2012 at 11:50 PM. Reason : ]

7/19/2012 11:49:10 PM

If you're operating at a huge calorie deficit while training for a half-marathon, it'll be harder to gain strength/speed/endurance. Have you noticed that your energy is low when you're about to run? You may want to aim for one main goal (training for your race) with a more modest sub-goal (losing 1 lb per week).

Remember, if you're working out, you may gain muscle and lose fat. It may be more satisfying to focus on inches lost rather than pounds.

The most important thing is to set challenging, yet attainable goals. And sometimes 2 goals can be difficult to achieve simultaneously.

7/20/2012 6:29:18 AM

thanks for all of your advice. I thought 2 lbs a week was pretty moderate

So I changed my settings to 1 lb and now I have 1500 calories to eat a day yay!


This may have contributed to my frustration the last time I attempted to count calories a couple of months ago and the app told me to keep to 1200 a day. After awhile I got really upset and give up and went back to plateauing.

7/20/2012 9:18:23 AM

^ Probably a very smart move.

2 lbs per week is fine if you're on the heavier side and require more calories to maintain your body weight ... but since you're a healthy woman, you'd have to cut so many calories that you might jeopardize your energy and nutrition.

Not that it's impossible to lose that much weight. But if you find yourself getting frustrated, then a goal adjustment is a smart idea.

1200 calories is pretty easy to blow. I can only stick to that if I'm dieting down for a show or special event ... way too tough to maintain in the long term.





Caroline, when's your half-marathon? Which one are you running?

[Edited on July 20, 2012 at 9:47 AM. Reason : r]

7/20/2012 9:47:15 AM

I'm doing the Philly RnR Half Sept 16th and the Phila Half Nov 18th

My goal is to trim down to 130. This morning I weighed in at 137.4 and my height is 5' 7". I figured the less I weigh, the less fat I have to carry to the finish line.

7/20/2012 9:52:26 AM

Cut your hair, stand nude and run.

5 lbs right there.

7/20/2012 10:06:55 AM