Posts by thatwallpaper

Original Post by fitnessgirll:

Oh, I 100 percent respectfully disagree. I did my dissertation on nutrition and can go on and on why eating smaller more frequent meals are essential to the body's metabolism and overall health.

Would you mind discussing what flaws you see in his explanation or in the studies that have controlled for total calorie intake and concluded no difference? That is not intended to sound like a challenge, I have no investment in which theory is right (not set to make millions on a diet book advising 2 meals a day). I'm going to eat small meals regardless because I like to eat regularly, but I'm interested in hearing a response to the emerging criticism.

In addition to the advice others have given, I would say to make sure you're actually taking in the amount of calories you think you are. Servings are frequently MUCH smaller than we assume them to be and people often forget to include condiments and suaces despite the fact that they can often make up as many calories as the bulk of the meal. If you don't already, take a couple weeks and use measuring cups/spoons and a scale if you can. After that, you'll really know what a tablespoon of dressing or sauce looks like or 3 oz of meat or a serving of pasta (Hint: they are never as much as you'd serve yourself). If you are already doing this and you've been at this program for a while (give it several weeks), then it may be time to reduce the calories.

A lot of people are expressing concern over the 1300kcal/day but if you are getting 2000-2500kcal/day on the weekends, that averages out to 1500 - 1643kcal/day which is perfectly reasonable for your size. Perhaps they are overlooking your comment about intake on the weekends. I consume fewer calories during the weekday to leave a little room for weekend drinks and/or dinner and it works quite well for me. But make sure you aren't getting too loose on the weekend with your calories.

Unfortunately you are probably going to be a bit awkward at first, but everyone is usually too busy scoping themselves out in the mirror to notice. At the risk of sounding like a total Rippetoe fangirl, I also recommend the Starting Strength DVD. A friend of mine had the DVD and I got to check it out while I was in my hometown last weekend (if I lived in the same city, I probably would have just taught him myself). It's very straightfoward instruction and focuses mostly on showing people of various bodytypes and mobility levels performing lifts at increasing weight. The variety of people is what makes it so valuable because a 5'4 petite woman with long legs squatting looks very different than a 6'3 large man with a long torso doing the same movement.

Stumptuous.com is geared towards women but it's applicable to men in both exercise instruction and forming a routine (the only thing I disagree with is how low she keeps her hips in the deadlift instruction pictures)

Exrx is also a great resource for exercises

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/ is an amazing source of information but I feel that the sheer amount of detailed information and science can be overwhelming for a beginner. It's certainly not necessary to know or understand all of the information he presents to see great progress. But there are some more straight forward articles in between the more technical articles. The exercise instruction is also good.

Genetics determine how you distribute fat. Your body is simply designed to hold onto fat last in the belly. Exercises can increase abdominal strength but that will do nothing for the fat over them. Reducing carbs can cut down water weight (bloat), but it won't actually remove fat. In order to get rid of belly fat, you have to keep reducing your overall bodyfat by keeping a calorie deficit (cutting out beer will definitely help that, unless you are replacing it with something of equal calories). And remember, while you are upset that your body clings to fat in the stomach area, there are other people with flat abs complaining because they carry fat on their hips/thighs/butt/arms.

I would recommend starting a more serious lifting routine that uses heavy weights and lower reps. It's great that you are doing squats, but five lbs won't challenge you after the first time you use it. I guarantee you can lift a lot more than you think you can. Focus on compound lifts (movements that use more than one joint such as squats, bench press, shoulder press, deadlifts, rows of all sorts, etc) rather than doing many small isolation lifts. Stumptuous.com is a great resource to help you put together a good routine. Starting Strength is a great book to get started and I know other trustworthy people on this forum recommend New Rules of Lifting (I haven't read it, but it seems reliable). Don't be intimidated by big lifts and big weights, if you do them you'll find they are FAR more efficient for achieving your goals.

A year is definitely doable, especially as a young person. I don't want to be a Debbie Downer, but really consider whether or not this is something you want to do. You're going to have to invest a lot of time and energy in the next year to get into marathon shape. If you're miserable doing it, you're unlikely to put in adequate effort. Even if you do, will all those hours and miles doing something you don't enjoy be worth it just to say you did it? There are other athletic events that you might find more enjoyable to train for.

With that said, plenty of people who don't enjoy running learn to enjoy it once they begin training more seriously. Running with a team is a great cure for people who are easily distracted.  Good luck, whatever you decide. I'm from the west coast, but my dad ran the Boston marathon several times and the whole energy surrounding the event is amazing.

Aside from time, a little bit of light activity is probably the best way to reduce soreness. I like going on a light jog when I have bad DOMS and it seems to bring down the intensity of the soreness. Even though you probably don't feel like moving, sitting still will only lengthen the amount of time it takes to recover.

Original Post by floggingsully:

Original Post by kmk33:

It also does a better job of explaining the essential moves for lifters and the exercises that accomplish them.

If you want an even better explanation of the essential moves, check out Starting Strength. 

 Seconding this. I think Rippetoe takes the cake when it comes to explaining proper form.

Although I've never read New Rules of Lifting, it seems legit and Stumptuous.com has some great programs. Don't shy away from the big lifts even if they seem intimidating, that is where you will get the best results. Just start with the bar (or less) until get your form down. Once your form is down, start piling on the weight.

My favorite exercise is the deadlift not only because it's a great full-body lift, but because it's a total ego stroke. I'm less than a month back into the gym after a pretty bad injury that dropped me down to square one  and I'm already repping over my bodyweight. Sometimes it's awesome to just feel like a badass. I love squatting too but I had to regain my hamstring flexibility and I'm just now able to up the weight significantly.

You will likely have to increase your calorie intake, but probably more important than that is to make sure you're taking in enough protein. The standard recommendation in the lifting community is 1 gram per pound of lean body mass, but .8g/lb is probably sufficient. Good luck! The first few weeks will probably be awkward and you'll suffer from some serious DOMS, but in a month you will be loving yourself for starting this program.

Original Post by amethystgirl:

I have heard people say that doing weights on the ball isn't a great idea, but I don't remember why. They also could have been talking about a bosu ball or whatever that thing is called.

It's not necessarily a bad idea, just not great for all lifts. The instability of the ball puts more stress on stabilizing muscles and joints (which include core muscles and the legs) which limits the force of the primary muscles. In other words, you're not going to lift as much weight on a ball as you do on a bench. This is not a problem on isolation exercises like bicep curls, where it doesn't hurt to gain some functional strength by using other muscles for stabilization. Compound (multi-joint) lifts already involve plenty of functional stabilization so you can end up compromising strength gains by performing lifts on an unstable surface. I'm sure some people have some concern about back issues, but I'm not sure that it's a problem so long as you don't have any pre-existing conditions.

If you are only performing cardio I would say it's unlikely that the gain is muscle. It could be water retention but it could simply be a flaw in the calculation.

Remember, calorie expenditure estimates are just that... estimates. There are a lot of factors that go into calculating how many calories an individual burns during exercise and it's very likely you simply burn less than the site calculates. A small discrepancy between the amount you believe you are burning and the amount you're actually burning could lead you to eat a calorie surplus that would easily explain a few pounds. If you are gaining weight, drop your daily caloric intake down by 250 calories. Play around with the your daily calorie consumption every few weeks until you find a balance. It's just a process of trial and error. Good luck.

Either leave the setting on sedentary and account for your activities or use the light setting (depending on the intensity of exercise you may even want to go to 'moderate') and that will include your activities in the general daily burn. But keep in mind that neither of these is going to be particularly accurate because there are a lot of factors that go into how many calories people burn. 

Personally, I gauge my calorie burn by measuring and documenting my calorie intake so I know the specific number going in and tracking the results over a few weeks. If I lose weight, I know I'm burning more than I'm taking in. If I gain, I'm eating more and if I maintain I'm about even. Then I adjust according to what my goals are. You start to get a feel for keeping the balance over time. There are some new tools for monitoring calorie expenditure like the bodybugg, but they are expensive and I don't know if they are accurate.

Good luck.

Carb-loading for endurance events does have a scientific basis, so I wouldn't simply label it an excuse to pig out. Unused glucose from carbohydrates (it can also be derived from proteins when necessary) are stored in muscles and the liver in the form of glycogen, an easily accessible energy reserve. During a race, your muscles draw from their glycogen stores and when this is depleted (general rule is about 90 minutes, but it varies), you will hit the wall. There are plenty of studies that demonstrate carb-loading techniques which can force your body to increase glycogen stores. However, if you consume sports drinks or carb gels (with appropriate amounts of water to process it) during your race, the need for carb loading is significantly diminished.

The downsides are that heavy carb intake will increase water retention, making you heavier (this is particularly significant if you're an endurance runner). And the high carb intake required for very strict carb loading can irritate the stomach and intestines which clearly you don't want. If you are consuming carbohydrates during the race, you will probably be fine with tapering activity and a moderate carb increase beforehand.

As a beginner, you can gain muscle mass while running a caloric deficit although that will taper off in a matter of months. However, you can still get stronger without gaining mass as the central nervous system is trained to use muscles more efficiently.

You should absolutely start now with weights. While running a caloric deficit, inevitably a certain amount of the weight lost is going to be muscle. If you load the muscle and force it to adapt to the stresses of weight while taking in sufficient protein, you will preserve the existing muscles and more of the weight lost will come from adipose tissue. As you lose weight that is largely composed of fat, it will reveal the existing muscle underneath. If you simply run a caloric deficit with little effort given to preserving muscle, your body will catabolize muscle at the same time you are losing fat. You may lose pounds, but your body composition may not get significantly better.

Additionally, the more lean mass you have, the higher your basil metabolic rate (the amount of calories you burn without any activity). As the body breaks down muscle, the amount of calories it takes to sustain that shrinking mass decreases significantly. You'll have to cut your calories more and more as you drop weight and it will be easier to regain should your exercise or diet habits slip. If you minimize muscle loss and maintain more lean mass, your body will burn more calories daily which should help with your overall weight loss goal.

I'll third getting it up off the ground and aerobic steps are perfect for that. I can explain how I was taught to perform deadlifts. Approach the bar and position feet so the bar is about as far out as the top of your shoelaces (The rule of thumb is actually to have the bar over the middle of the foot, but it's hard to tell where that is without someone looking from the side). Without lowering your butt, bend over and take your grip. Now that you have your grip, bend your knees to lower your shins until they touch the bar (resist the temptation to simply squat down, keep those glutes high). Bring the chest up, establish the lumbar arch and pull. The bar should follow very tightly along your legs. Make sure the bar actually rests briefly on the ground between reps so you are actually pulling deadweight. This is a good opportunity to reset your position.

Search around youtube for a video of Mark Rippetoe explaining how to set up deadlifts. The technique I was taught follows the same approach he teaches and it seems to be a good way to get beginners into the right position.

Edited to add: This video has a great explanation of proper form