I started stage 1 this week, and have now done each workout once. Happy to be back after a number of injuries sidelined my fitness over the past couple of years. I did NROLFW in 2012 and had incredible results. So I'm really looking forward to the experience again. I found this thread helpful then, and so I'll try to post a few times a week this time around. Having people to ask questions of and friends to support is really motivating!

Dang, cut off my post. I almost died just trying the oly bar on 1a so for it to feel easy now is awesome!

Nice work. Not many are in stage one of the NROLFW book, just tends to be hit or miss but you can also post in the daily chat thread where most of us tend to post our different lifts and more.

somehow posted twice!

I just started the first workout today. I messed up the number of sets though, thought I was supposed to do 3 so I did 3. I had been doing some body weight training before so I had no idea how much weights to use. I definitely did not use enough as I got through 3 sets being less challenged then my body weight exercises.

I do have a question about the pushups though. I was able to do 3 sets of 15 pushups on my knees, which I had worked up to doing my body weight training before. I was making really great progress with the body weight training, getting rapidly stronger and I have also lost 20+pounds so far. But, part of why I wanted to try a new program was because I was getting stuck in the progressions of some of the exercises. Like with the pushups, I can do so many of those on the knees, but I still can't do a full proper pushup, so I thought with weight training I can increase more incrementally, but here I am still having the pushup problem. So next time I do this workout A, I will do the proper number of sets (2 instead of 3) and increase weight for the other exercises, but with the pushups, I can easily do 2 sets of 15 on my knees, but I can't do really even 1 proper full pushup. I know I wont make much progress doing that, as I have been doing that for a few weeks now trying to get to the next pushup level. I know the book says to use an incline to help you, however the only incline wide enough for pushups available at the gym I go to is the bench, so there is not much room there for incremental increase. Any thoughts or suggestions? I am starting to get a bit bummed out about being stuck there.

Great suggestions! There is a smith machine and I can see how that would work so you can increase the level by like 8inches or so at a time. What a great idea! I think that is going to work out well. Thank you!

@ddconney7

It's nice to see this group isn't dead! I'm currently on week 2 of Stage 1 so not that far ahead of you. I have lifted before so none of these movements are new to me but I'm used to lifting heavier for lower reps (5-8 usually) so doing 15 reps is quite a challenge. I'm amazed though at how quickly I'm getting through it. I get everything done in about half an hour. I know I should enjoy it now though because peeking at the later stages the workouts do get longer.

My starting stats (I am in the UK so I use kg but I'll convert in pathenteses)

Workout A
Squats - 10kg (22lbs, really focusing on form and getting nice and low)
Pushups - 4 aerobic steps (just below waist height)
Seated Row - 17.5kg (39lbs)
Step-ups - 2 aerobic steps with 2kg (4lbs) dumbells (I don't know whether I should be increasing weight or height for these, I think I'm going to stick with this weight and increase the steps until I can't do it/I run out of steps, then I'll start increasing the weight)
Jackknife - These were pretty easy, I'm definitely ready to add on more reps

Workout B
Deadlifts - 20kg (44lbs)
Shoulder press - 4kg (8lb) dumbells
Lat pull down - 20kg (44lbs)
Lunges - 4kg (8lb) dumbells
Swiss ball crunch - 14kg (31lbs)

Completed Stage 1 WO B. It was a good workout but too short. I added some additional set/reps because this is not very challenging. Also did 20 minutes on the treadmill and 10 minutes on the rowing machine.

Nobody has been here for a while, but I will take a stab at reviving the thread with my first month's Stage 1 progress! I started out a little random, because my gym didn't have the equipment to to do the workouts as designed (Smith Machines but no Squat Racks, no Olympic Bar, no steps, no Swiss Ball), but then I switched to a gym that has everything. I extended my time in the 2 sets of 15 because I was suddenly able to use the right equipment, though I didn't exactly start over.

So here I am now-

(Start/ Now)

Weight 145lb/ 148lb
Neck 14in / 13.5in
Biceps 11 in /same
Abdomen 37in / 36 in
Waist 35in / 33 in
Hips 38 in / 37.5 in
Thigh 21in / same
Calf 16in / same
Body Fat 27.3% /26.1% (using calculations from www.gymgoal.com/dtool_fat.html)

LIFTING (Weights include bar, dumbbells are total weight together)
Squat 45 lb / 80 lb
Deadlift 40 lb /65 lb
Cable Row 20 lb / 70 lb
Lat Pulldown 40 lb / 55 lb
Shoulder Press 20 lb / 30 lb
Push Ups BW- bad form floor / BW - good form 12" incline
Step Ups 35 lb / 50 lb
Lunges 40 lb / 35 lb (but much better form)
Jackknife no change
Swiss Ball Crunch no change


So, I am up in weight, but down in body fat, and I've lost a couple inches overall, along with increasing my strength. When I started, I could run 2 miles but it was just barely, and now I can do it with a lot less effort. Yay for progress!