ChrisLindsay9 Member

Nice work! 3 sets of 5 is respectable for starting out. You'll probably be up to 3-4 sets of 10-12 real soon.

Fitness guru, Will Brink, is a big fan of sandbag training. http://www.brinkzone.com/training-programs/the-benefits-of-sandbag-training/

Genetics and other factors play a role in how people can look at certain bodyweight/height. But just going on what you've wrote here, I'd say that you may want to play around with the numbers a bit. For a lean, 4-pack look, I am thinking that right now, 2838 calories might be a bit high. Your diet looks pretty solid, so it…

Unfortunately, there are no exercises of reducing fat around your stomach. Bodyfat actually diminishes through calorie-deficit diets. And genetically speaking (for most people), fat around the stomach is usually the last place where it diminishes. Now, I wouldn't dissuade anyone from doing stomach exercises, because I…

Good advice here. I also have a weak lower back. But doing extra lower back and hamstring, glute work has been huge for my deadlifts (and to some degree, back squat). I do my deadlifts and squats on separate days, but I treat them both as leg/back days in a sense. So on my deadlifts day, I will start off by doing my DLs.…

It looks like your strength training program is going well for you. Those are some nice lifts. So, it sounds like you want to get shredded. That is, you want to build lean muscle mass and reduce bodyfat, so you can get that cut look and get at least a visible four-pack? It's probably going to be a challenge to do without…

I've heard a lot about it through family and friends. The more active your imagination, the better it works. If I were to incorporate more running into my fitness program, I would most likely use this app as a means to keep me from getting mentally distracted on other things.

Congrats! That's a great story. I hope you find continued success and benefit with the running.

I'm somewhat of a novice, so from a novice's perspective, it looks pretty good. There are some experienced folks who may find some subtle things to critique. But I don't think there's any glaring issues with it. What I'm not sure about are the lengths of time between reps? I don't know if they are too long? Or perhaps you…

I like C4. Since I workout in the evenings, I need it after a day of work to give me a little bit of energy. On the weekends, where I work out earlier in the day, I'll take Ergo Pump, which has less of a stimulative effect. Whatever you choose, I would suggest taking about 1/2 the recommended dose for the first few times…

I think you pulled your chest muscle. I have had this happen to me plenty of times, and your description reminded me of those times. Prior to increasing my fitness through strength training, it would happen if I slept in a certain position, after sneezing, and lowering myself into a tub or basin (similar to a dip), etc.…

I can touch the top of my knees while standing, and not have to bend over. So, I think I'm good with conventional for awhile, haha.

I think it would be easier for us to understand why you are considering it, and then we can elaborate on those reasons with facts, anecdotes, and whatever. Do you have any reasons/goals/thoughts about it currently?

Great story! Congrats on the personal bests!

Nice work Casey! Good lifts! I'm subscribing to your channel. I'm less than six weeks out from my first PL meet, so last night was deadlifts; 300x7 at a bw of 128lbs. (a PR for reps) Here's video: https://vimeo.com/73737158 My first rep was a little shaky, but I think my subsequent reps were pretty good. I'll probably…

haha, yeah I was doing it for awhile, but it seemed tedious. I purchased "The Workout Log" by Joe Oliver from Amazon. I like how it's laid out, organized, and all that stuff. Also gives you ways to track your weight, body measurements, etc. And I like it over a standard notebook because it gives me that "structured" feel…

Congrats! And nice effort! Really inspiring!

Grimendale gives excellent advice, and this is no exception. Good luck to you, and congrats on the weight loss. That's terrific. With your persistence, I would bet you will find some success with lifting. Take progress pics for yourself as motivation!

Congrats on the weight loss and kicking the smoking habit. It seems like you have the perseverance and discipline to be successful with any nutrition or fitness program you start. There are some popular strength/muscle building programs that people recommend on here; Stronglifts 5x5 and Starting Strength (Mark Rippetoe).…

I like certain pop music that have a pretty good tempo or have upbeat lyrics, so here are some songs that I have enjoyed listening to during my workouts. Time To Pretend - MGMT (probably my favorite workout song at the moment) A Real Hero - College & Electric Youth Seein' Red - Unwritten Law Lights Out - Santigold Winter…

Thanks! I was wondering the same thing earlier this year, because I wanted to be able to put up respectable numbers before I signed up for an event . So someone in this forum had posted a website with a metric that I used in my training. http://www.exrx.net/Testing/WeightLifting/StrengthStandards.html My goal was to be…

Good luck, April! My first PL event is in October. It's exciting! I had a similar experience as you, in that I was weight lifting for awhile and was having a decent time with it. But I've come to love a more powerlifting approach to weight training. I'm addicted to the iron big time!

Very nice! I'm making some progress as well. I'm holding off on going for a new PR until my first PL meet in October. But I have been testing my 1RMs with a pause at the bottom every few weeks (specifically for the event in mind, so that I can be sure I know what weight my first and second attempt will be) - and that has…

Regarding accessory work, what's your approach to the weight, sets, and reps? Do you mirror the main lift in terms of the intensity? That is, on the 65%-75%-85% (5/5/5+) week, do you dial back the weight a little on accessories and go for more reps? And on the 5/3/1+ week, increase the weight a little and decrease reps? Or…

My understanding is that resistance training/circuit training emphasizes muscular endurance, whereas strength training focuses on increasing overall strength/power. If you're training at the topmost resistance levels with the machines and using the heaviest handweights for 10+ reps, you're probably doing more circuit…

I can't comment on whether your diet strategy is optimal in this regard (that might be better answered in the Food and Nutrition section of the message boards), but your diet will be the biggest determination for slimming down the problem areas. The Barre and Pilates workouts will help improve your conditioning, endurance,…

I think it's great that you want to incorporate strength training into your fitness program (lifestyle?). With your work ethic and dedication, I'd bet good money that you will excel at building lean muscle, as well as achieve a host of other benefits as well. Good luck to you!

Awesome! If my math is correct (and it usually is not), that'd be about 11pm Saturday night in the U.S. Eastern time zone. Putting in reminder now.

Good suggestion. Thanks!

I agree with this. Use the calories burned through strength training as a baseline and then adjust to fit your program and goals.