Witness the Fitness
The Blind Eternities forum
Posted on May 13, 2015, 7:20 p.m. by Epochalyptik
A thread about lifting, eating, running, or whatever else you do to get or stay in shape.
Share your accomplishments, strategies, tips, and questions. Set a new PR that you want to share? Go ahead! Got a favorite protein shake? Give up the recipe! Want to figure out how to get off the couch? Ask away!
NoPantsParade says... #2
Caligula: Huh. That's interesting. Maybe I was confusing it with running while fasting in the morning. Anyways, so I want to burn fat and build muscle to become more vascular, would you recommend eating a banana before working out in the morning? I'm already doing HIIT then abs after HIIT twice a week and 4 lifting sessions per week. Then I do some biking 3-4 times a week for about 30 minutes to an hour in the evening. I've seen pretty good results over the past 3 or so months since changing my goal, but I want to keep going. I'll give the fasting workout a try for a month and see how it goes. I follow up each workout with a protein shake (this one) mixed with liquid egg whites (3/4 cup = 4 eggs about 20 grams of protein) and occasionally hemp seeds or grounded flaxseeds. If it's lunchtime, I eat a PBJ sandwich as well. Normally before my workouts, I eat toast and jelly, a banana, and drink two glasses of water, or just one bottle.
May 20, 2015 2:12 p.m.
leg day was yesterday. routine as follows:
5 min warmup on elyptical at lvl 10. (I know 5 minutes isnt much, but i get bored out of my mind. it is enough to get the heart rate up.)
- Squats: warmup + 3 sets of 10.
warmup: 155 lbs
set 1: 185 lbs
set 2: 225 lbs
set 3: 245 lbs
- Leg press: warmup + 3 sets of 10.
warmup: 225 lbs
set 1: 275 lbs
set 2: 315 lbs
set 3: 335 lbs
- dumbell single leg split squat: 3 sets of 10
set 1: 25 lbs
set 2: 30 lbs
set 3: 35 lbs
- single leg deadlift: 3 sets of 10
set 1: 35 lbs
set 2: 35 lbs
set 3: 35 lbs
- dumbell step up: 3 sets of 15
set 1: 45 lbs
set 2: 45 lbs
set 3: 45 lbs
May 20, 2015 2:18 p.m.
@NoPantsParade i have been on a low carb diet since January 1st, and my wife can attest to the results.
i got the tip from a friend of mine who is a celebrity trainer / nutritionist, and his advice was to cut carb intake 8 hrs before you go to sleep. my typical sleep time is midnight, so I stop eating major sources of carbs around 4pm. I have heard bananas are actually bad for weight lifting, not sure the source on it yet, but i will dig it up for you.
try replacing the bananas with dates. better overall imo and wont bloat you up.
tibbes, i am writing up a fitness plan for a coworker, i will send you a copy once done. Hopefully i can finish it up by end of the week if not sooner. just really busy with work
May 20, 2015 2:24 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... #5
@NoPantsParade: Building muscle and burning fat are somewhat at odds. To build muscle, you need to consume at caloric surplus. To burn fat, you need to consume at caloric deficit. This is why bodybuilders cycle between bulking and cutting: you bulk to gain muscle (and fat, inevitably), then cut fat to reveal gains.
From what I've read, fat loss is best approached with a combination of HIIT and compound resistance training. Squats are great because they use enormous muscle groups and therefore burn a ton of calories.
Also, your body starts to cannibalize muscle after about 20-30 minutes of intense cardio, so be wary of overcommitting on that portion of your workout. The human body has evolved to save fat for as long as possible, which means it will, if pushed to extreme energy deficit, eat muscle for energy before being forced to turn to fat stores.
May 20, 2015 2:27 p.m.
Getting shredded is literally 70% diet. If your wanting to cuts fat and get "ripped" cut back on your carb intake and make sure your replacing it with lean protein coupled with your usual workout (maybe tone back on the cardio and decrease resting time between sets to keep your heart rate up) because like epoch pointed out, cardio likes to eat away muscle.
And I find a banana in the morning is super helpful, fills you up and it's just packed with nutrition for the muscles to feast on mid workout.
Also, depending on my level of soreness I'll have a 1/2 size pre protein shake before the gym to make sure I'm getting the proper amino acids in the muscles.
May 20, 2015 3:08 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... #7
Anyone have advice to guide the cutting process? I don't have a clear idea of what I should be doing here.
May 22, 2015 11:29 a.m.
by cutting you mean cutting fat?
6 pack diet plan is a great book by my buddy. there is a chart in there that shows ratios of food / calorie intake vs workout routines that really works.
want me to send you over the chart? Rehan has been training celebs for a while now, I know him personally, so can vouch for his work as opposed to other internet sensations
May 22, 2015 11:33 a.m.
Epochalyptik says... #9
I'd really appreciate that.
My gmail name is the same as my account name here.
May 22, 2015 11:37 a.m.
NoPantsParade says... #10
Would you mind emailing me that as well? It's [email protected]. Thanks.
May 22, 2015 11:39 a.m.
Cutting weight is all about calorie intake vs calories worked honestly. Comparing what food to eat for what workouts you do doesn't really work because everyone's body is different.
If you want to lean out Epochalyptik than you need to cut out high fat proteins (Red meat, Great for bulking, not so great for leaning out) and replace them with lean meat. (Turkey, Liver, Egg whites) and also cut out alot of excess carbs, bread and similar wheat products (replace with rice, quinoa, or cous cous) should be avoided.
Once you get a set diet down of vegetables and lean meats you'll start seeing a big difference.
And I can't stress sweat suits enough, They are amazing for your body while you work out and you will never feel better working up a huge sweat in one and showering it all off after :P
May 22, 2015 2:43 p.m.
MarySweeney says... #12
I have started my workout to lose fat and gain muscle. I am following this workout : Monday: Legs, calves, Tuesday: Training off, Wednesday: Back and biceps, abs, Thursday: Training off, Friday: Chest and triceps, abs, Saturday: Shoulders, calves, Sunday: Training off. You can also follow this routine for a week and can see the effect. I am doing all these workout with my gym partner, who makes workouts more interesting and enjoyable, and if you do not have partner, you can find a gym buddy.
May 23, 2015 2:07 a.m.
Epochalyptik says... #13
Speaking of back/biceps, I've been reading some articles that favor doing biceps either before or on back day because they assist with the important back lifts and doing biceps on a subsequent day would mean staring with muscle fatigue.
Thoughts? Is chest/tris into back/bis more effective than chest/back into arms?
May 24, 2015 7:32 a.m.
Doing arms and either chest/tris or back/bis consecutively was never a good idea. Your muscles are still recovering the next day and straining them again is no bueno. The same goes for doing chest/tris or back/bis and then arms the next day. Either do legs or something after arms or just skip a day.
May 24, 2015 10:24 a.m.
Epochalyptik says... #15
Maybe I should have been clearer.
Option A:
Chest/Tris/Shoulders
Back/Bis
Option B:
Chest/back
Arms
I typically try to put arms at least two days after any previous arm exercises, but I realized that this doesn't really add up when doing chest/back into arms.
May 24, 2015 10:48 a.m.
Doing a day for chest/back is pretty shitty. You need to focus on one big muscle group (I realize this isn't really the case with an arms day, but that's different) since there's another muscle that's supporting it, so if you do chest and back in one day then you're working four muscles. If you focus on either or then you get more work in on two muscles. Also, I have a separate day for shoulders just because I can't fit it in with anything else, but my right ACL in my shoulder is inflamed and the left one isn't too healthy either so it's usually a light day.
May 24, 2015 10:53 a.m.
Getting your body into a ketogenic state is by far the fastest way to cut weight while simultaneously protecting muscle mass from being metabolized alongside fat. It requires a tremendous amount of discipline to stick to it and it isn't cheap. But it's the fastest hands down. I essentially live in ketosis. I love it.
May 24, 2015 12:13 p.m.
bigguy99, while you're correct that focusing on a single muscle group will net a greater gains to effort ratio, most personal trainers and sports scientists will tell you these days that working opposite muscle groups in the same day is much better for your body, especially your joints. Chest and back are actually the most important two to do together to avoid spine and shoulder injuries brought on by muscle imbalance, weakness, and inflammation during recovery.
May 24, 2015 12:16 p.m. Edited.
I've never heard of that before and am still skeptical because I have done chest/back days, and they didn't seem great because I didn't feel like I had really worked anything.
May 24, 2015 12:49 p.m.
In terms of gains, the only reason you accrue more muscle mass when you focus on a single group isn't because you put more effort know it, but because your body can allocate all the calories you consume to repairing and rebuilding the worked muscle fibers. Working more than one group splits up those recovery resources, so you gain in each area but not as much in either.
May 24, 2015 1:18 p.m.
The muscle balance and injury issue really just comes down to form being affected by the recovering opposing muscles not being able to provide proper support due to weakness and inflammation. If you're aware of this and lift smart, focusing on form, you'll be fine. It's more or less a recommendation for people that don't know a ton about lifting so they just hop on the bench and tear their bodies apart.
May 24, 2015 1:21 p.m.
Oh, well then it doesn't affect me. I've been lifting for around five years now.
May 24, 2015 1:22 p.m.
Yeah, as long you're smart, you're fine. The number one cause of injury at the gym is a lack of knowledge. We've all seen those people.
May 24, 2015 1:25 p.m.
ThisIsBullshit says... #24
Yeah I went to the gym today and there were two guys in the squat rack loading up the plates with way too much weight and then they had the bar way too low on their shoulders and I was afraid they were going to hurt themselves.
Also their form was trash. Going down two inches counts as a squat right guyz?
May 24, 2015 1:29 p.m.
just have to make the L. 2 inches on a short stubby guy could be good form :)
May 24, 2015 1:32 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... #26
Mike Rashid had some comments about that kind of stuff in one of his leg day videos. Basically, once you're sitting in the top 1% of physical fitness, you're freer to experiment with forms and techniques that are normally considered dangerous. I think the example Rashid used was Tom Platz doing leg presses on his toes and basically going inches at a time at high weight. But Tom Platz had muscle development that could support that; it would tear you up if you tried to do that yourself.
I've personally been avoiding deadlifts for a while because I don't have anyone to check my form.
May 24, 2015 1:38 p.m.
Squats, deadlifts, cleans, and military press are probably the biggest culprits when it comes to injury. They look self explanatory but they're devastating on your body is done improperly. You're smart to avoid those deadlifts without a trainer.
May 24, 2015 1:42 p.m.
@ Epochalyptik Mike Rashid is a great role model and he's a good example of what doing the basics, heavy can do for you.
Him and Big Rob are people I follow alot. Calum Von Moger is pretty much a carbon copy of Arnold, and Stan Efferding is honestly built like a house.
For all you on Instagram I would recommend following Warriorsoulfitness.
The dude is a stud and continuously improves, and impresses and honestly provides alot of great information with his posts.
May 25, 2015 6:30 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... #30
I started using FitDay to track my macros. Great decision. No more loading up on carbs and neglecting the brotein.
May 25, 2015 7:41 p.m.
Just saw this thread, thought I would post.
My "workout" if you can call it that is rather fluid. I do Taekwondo training 2 nights a week and rock climbing 2 sessions a week (about 2-2.5hrs a session).
At Taekwondo, fitness varies from session to session. Last time we did:
50x pushups
50x tricep pushups
50x squats
50x lunges
50x switch lunges
50x situps
50x bicycle crunches
50x front kicks
50x knee lifts
50x tuck jumps
and 5 minutes of skipping. Then after that the actual taekwondo training starts.
At climbing we usually do 5(ish) overhangs to warm up on and then get stuck into whatever looks like fun. Recently I have been taking to campusing (no legs) one of the overhang runs. Its basically liek a big lot of chinups. For any climbing folk, its about a 14 however we go up to about a 16-17 on the overhang warmups and then up to a 20 on that harder ones. On straight walls, I max out at about a 23.
After that its hangboard time. So after using up all your strength climbing, the objective is just to hang.
This is my hangboard of choice:
the Mondo ICP Plus. I can use the lowest of the large holds (not the two circular ones at the bottom) - the ones that have about a 30 degree slope on them. The regime is:
7 seconds hang on easy, 3 second break
7 second hand on medium, 3 second break
7 second hang on hard, 3 second break
1 minute rest
7 seconds hang on hard, 3 second break
7 second hand on medium, 3 second break
7 second hang on easy, 3 second break
1 minute rest
7 seconds hang on easy, 3 second break
7 second hand on medium, 3 second break
7 second hang on hard, 3 second break
1 minute rest
1 minute hang on easy
I'm not looking to "bulk up". both my sports dicatate that my power to weight ratio is good. Currently I'm just over 90kgs (~200lb) at 6 foot 2. I want to drop some fat and put on a bit more muscle but not a huge amount.
Looking to build bigger lats though. Gives better control on the wall. So I foresee a future of typewriters.
May 27, 2015 2:33 a.m.
NoPantsParade says... #32
I found this article earlier today on Runner's World's Facebook page and gave it a read. It's pretty interesting even though it seems to apply to Ironman and marathon competitors. Interested to see what others think of it. I'm off to bed, but I'll just leave this here for now and discuss sometime tomorrow.
June 2, 2015 11:59 p.m.
As someone that lives in ketosis every day (by choice, not because of diabetes), I can honestly say that I've never had any of the issues mentioned there. Granted, I don't do a lot of long distance running, but I do lift and train on the heavy bag, and my strength and energy levels are fine.
As for the benefits, I greatly prefer the even energy levels as opposed to the peaks and valleys you get with blood sugar. You don't get as hungry during the day. You don't carry a bunch of excess water so you feel lighter and more agile. I really feel like I'm at peak performance in ketosis. Plus, the fact that it protects muscle mass while burning fat is awesome. You don't have to worry about burning up your own muscles when you do cardio and stuff.
I will say, it takes a tremendous amount of discipline at first. But once you've done it for a while, you won't even want carbs any more. In fact, if I have a cheat day now, I feel like crap and can't wait to get back into ketosis.
I've been doing this for years. If you ever have any questions, let me know. I swear by the effectiveness of a low carb (for me, almost no carb) lifestyle combined with old school calisthenics, boxing, and body weight workouts.
June 3, 2015 6:11 p.m.
@enpc - For lats, there's nothing better than wide grip palms out pull ups man. As a climber, I'm sure you know your way around a pull up bar. Just start working on those, focusing on perfect form, and you'll have all the lats you need.
June 3, 2015 6:18 p.m.
Sagarys: Totally forgot about those, cheers. Looks like I have another item to add to the regime
June 3, 2015 6:27 p.m.
No problem. I preach pull ups and push ups like the exercise gospel. Also, if you're looking to build up your strength to weight ratio, they make weighted vests that let you add a few pounds to your body weight when doing things like pull ups, push ups, tuck jumps, etc. Just don't run in it, it's bad for your back.
June 3, 2015 6:31 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... #37
Finally done with that drum of vanilla protein powder. Never again will I make that mistake.
It's like a drinkable form of hell, especially if you use water.
June 3, 2015 7:28 p.m.
It doesn't happen to be Isopure does it? I've got a tub of that I'm working on.
June 3, 2015 7:30 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... #39
Six Star. I bought it months ago to motivate myself to start working out again. It's what Walmart had.
June 3, 2015 7:32 p.m.
APPLE01DOJ says... #40
I been drinking the most brutal concoction every morning. Lemon juice, ginger, green tea, honey, a shit ton of cayenne. It burns going down & I have to chase it but do feel a lot healthier over all.
June 3, 2015 7:34 p.m.
Anything with ginger must be great, but I can't really handle hot flavors. Anything to substitute cayenne with?
June 3, 2015 7:35 p.m.
APPLE01DOJ says... #42
Yea just leave it out. You could also add apple cider vinegar. Forgot to mention but there's cinnamon in it too. It's to help cleanse your body, tastes beyond horrible.
June 3, 2015 7:38 p.m.
Sagarys: Yeah, I've seen those weighted vests. I've tried using a 10kg (22lb) one climbing once and damn that was hard. I've heard they're not good for dynamic stuff like tuck jumps (really bad for the knees) but for more static stuff like climbing they're a great way to get strong.
As for extra protein, do burgers after climbing count?
June 3, 2015 7:40 p.m.
What about the amounts? Don't want to get some awful mix and end up vomiting, haha.
June 3, 2015 7:40 p.m.
APPLE01DOJ says... #45
[email protected] if it's not too late to get that 6 pack book.
I try to eat a banana everyday. Don't know how it effects my work out but it helps prevent cramps overall.
June 3, 2015 7:45 p.m.
enpc, they're as bad for your knees as gaining 22 pounds of muscle. If you've built the foundation to support your knees during that kind of training at your body weight, you can safely increase it. Just pay attention and make sure you don't start experiencing joint pain. If you do, stop immediately. I use my weighted vest for just about everything short of running.
June 3, 2015 7:46 p.m.
APPLE01DOJ, salmon and tuna have exponentially more potassium in them than bananas do, and they're a great source of lean protein and omegas.
June 3, 2015 7:48 p.m.
APPLE01DOJ says... #48
Sorry Biggs didn't measure, everything was just "some" thrown into a blender.
Sagarys I'm a vegetarian.
June 3, 2015 7:49 p.m.
Epochalyptik, Isopure makes some really good stuff. And you can get it all on Amazon. You should check them out if you're looking for a new powder. They're the only ones I've found with a 100% zero carb zero soy, all whey protein powder. And it's pretty tasty.
ThisIsBullshit says... #1
lol from what I've heard it's actually impossible for girls to get butch without taking roids, your muscle just becomes more compact.
May 20, 2015 2:11 p.m.