Rusty740 Member

I was struggling to answer this one. At first I thought "explosiveness" was what she was thinking, but I'm guessing that it's actually strength because the complaint is that the drills are wearing her out fast and if she had more leg strength it might fix that. I take it for granted that cardiovascular endurance is already…

Strong is fantastic. I've been using it for about 6 months. It is by far the best, simplest, most intuitive app available. You will not regret the few dollars for it. No, I don't work for them :) It won't help you program your workout, but you'll be able to put in and track anything you do. Just look up the programs on the…

It's not going to happen. Eat at maintenance, get some protein, do other exercises that don't hurt your back. It's hard to gain muscle, it's hard to lose it as well. You could drop your training to 50% and keep the muscle you have. You could also lift super super light just to keep you muscle memory (recommended). Rest and…

Garage sales are excellent places to find a barbell and some weights that no one has used in a hundred years. I got a set for $7. And regardless of your past experience lifting heavy weights, start light, you're muscles and joints are not experienced enough (nobody's are) to start heavy.

There are a few really good guidelines. Specificity is the most important. Work the muscles you want to build, seems obvious, but if you only have 60 lbs, you may have to do more isolation because with isolation, you use less weight. Always lift at 60% 1RM or greater, don't bother lifting more than 90-95% 1RM If you are…

This^. and to add, you'll get sore if you start something new. Either cardio or a new exercise, once your body becomes adjusted to it, the soreness will either go away, or be less sore depending on how much you push it. Soreness is generally good if it doesn't result in you not being able to complete a similar workout…

Without getting too detailed, your program seems alright. Now with 5x5 @ 80% your going to get really strong if you up the weights with regular progression. Everyone benefits from a range of reps and corresponding weights, so you might want to add some 8-12 reps some time too, and maybe some 12-20 occasionally. I'm s…

I know what you're saying and it's true there's got to be a balance, but OP said it's the kind of sore that she likes, and generally speaking (not all the time, like you've said) soreness is a good indication of some kind of growth. Trying to read between the lines, but if she is continually able to workout like this, and…

Yeah, it's definitely time to relax about this. On the scale of things that matter, it's like -3 out of 10.

Look for dairy products like cottage cheeses, lean meats like chicken & turkey, and many beans and lentils. One of the ones that surprised me most is just good old fashioned frozen green peas. Edamame are great too.

So this^ This is good. "soreness" is a really good proxy for muscle/strength growth. It's not perfect, but you can definitely rely on that feeling (the good kind of sore) as an indication you're going in the right direction.

If you are trying to lose weight and it's going allright, eat all the ice cream you want. - seriously. First we demonize fat, then sugar, now carbs in general. There's nothing wrong with them by themselves. You'll find that the balance of your macros is important for satiety and that you need carbs for some things like…

Dry cottage cheese curd. It's the kind that goes in lasagne (but you don't want the rest of the lasagne :tongue: )You'll have to add something to it to make it tastier, or you can put it on top of salads. Mix it with 1% cottage cheese 50/50 ratio. Check out these macros.

@heybales brings up a good point about sleep. For recovery it's number 1. If you are trying to dial in your cardio vs lifting ratio/timing etc. but not getting enough sleep, it won't matter, the lack of good sleep recovery will trump everything else.

I vote this^ too. You'll need to get your volume up for chest too. You can prioritize your chest by doing those exercises first, but if that's really a focus for you do some extra sets of 8-12 at 60-75% 1RM and see how your recovery goes. If you can't do the same thing the next week, increase until you fail, then you found…

Gainers are a waste of your money, drink full fat milk instead.

That much cardio won't hinder. Lots of cardio will, but moderate for 30 minutes, nah, you're good.

Yes you could but it's really not going to work well. To build muscle you really need to lift weights that are at least 60% of the maximum you can lift. While doing bodyweights, the best you'll be able to do in most cases is 50% or so unless you do something like chin-ups or wall push ups, then you can use a far amount of…

Not less than 15, not more than 23. I'm going with 19. Tough call though, your waist is getting thinnish (you're not sucking in are you :tongue: ? )so you might be 16-17 too.

Running is catabolic if you do lots of it. Running a few times a week won't do anything, but marathon training will. I've no doubt increasing sets and reps could make an athlete perform better (quickness, strength), but the athlete might lose muscle bulk at the same time. Bodybuilders aren't performance athletes, they're…

This^ is pretty much why I just guess and think I'm close enough :)

I think your lifting regime will be fine. Very little volume is needed to 'keep' muscle, but I'd say your close to the minimum, which is what you want anyway so that's good IMO. The biggest thing affecting your muscle will be the extra running you'll be doing. Running isn't great for keeping muscle (all that Cortisol), but…

That's really interesting. I'm just thinking that the body uses a range or processes to produce energy and I imagine it produces ketones regularly for everyone as soon as the liver is done with the stored glycogen. (I think) I'm not sure producing ketones would mean someone was 'in' ketosis, I dunno, probably splitting…

It doesn't really matter if the home scale is inaccurate so long as it is consistent. It is more important that you know if your BF is going up or down, than it is to know exactly what your BF is. Do as much research as you can to come to the best estimate you think is correct by not using the scale. Tape measure…

I've got your stats, except I'm 40. At 5'6" 65 kgs I'm sitting at around 14-15% on a bulk. When I was losing weight, I was probably at 15-16% at 65 kgs. I'd say at 68 you'll be less than 20% give or take. I'm gonna go with 18%.

I am glycogen depleted. I lost 7 pounds in the first few days (gym 5 days a week, swim a mile each day). I am in ketosis for much of the day I think. At least if I check it I am. Just checked and I am in the small range for ketones. I already had to change my workout to break them up more. I often can't manage three body…

Yeah I'd go with 18-22% ish (possibly less), everybody's different and we don't know if you're sucking in ;) lol and we can't see your legs or face. Face is a good indicator when you get sub 15%.

Here's the basics for you really quick. 3 times per week full body program will be best for you. Stonglifts or Strongcurves is a great place to start. Google them. You will start with just an empty bar and add 2.5 lbs or 5 lbs about every week. Do not worry if the weight feels too light, you want to learn the proper form…

First of all well done to recognize the value of lifting. You won't regret it. Start as soon as you can. Are you able to join a gym or is this an 'at home' thing?

You've got this. One thing I realized after trying to lose weight, and succeeding for the first 10 lbs or so was "oh no what have I done, I can't eat as much food as I want too". I had to come to the realization that this was a life change, a permanent thing, but there's good news. If you are consistent and make your…