aviduser Member

Without seeing you do them, it is hard to say for sure. My guess is that you are pulling on your head/neck too much. Try using your abs to hold you in the crunch position more. Start with 10-15 at a time, then work up from there. My workout today included 3 sets of 50 bicycles and 3 sets of 30 crunches. Fun.

On the days I am in the gym early (4 days a week), I have people waiting on me (trainer or class). On days I am out for an early ride, I am sometimes alone, and sometimes meeting people. One suggestion--if it is very hard to get up at 5 or 5:30 am, you need to go to bed earlier. Try hitting the hay at 9:30 pm for a few…

Bicycling Magazine is great and has some good books as well. I agree with the others who suggest you go to your local bike shop. They will help you out in terms of bike selection (if necessary), fit and other tips. Also, many LBSs have weekly group rides which are a great way to get out on the road and learn to ride with…

Whey (from milk) or soy protein are the most common varieties. I have read that whey protein is better post workout than pre, because it can lead to the production of more lactic acid in muscles. Personally, I have a soy-based protein every day in a fruit smoothie. I use Nature's Life Soy Protein - Super-Green Pro-96. It…

Wrong. You can't spot reduce. You can lose weight and expose muscle. You can tone muscle in specific places. Do it all. But you can't just lose weight in one place. Moreover, the troublesome places tend to lean out last. Sorry.

You most likely have muscle soreness from doing exercise you are not used to doing. Stretching, cardio using those muscles (eg, cycling for legs) and, yes, repeating the offending exercise can reduce the soreness. That initial stage of soreness is something you must work through. After a week it won't hurt anymore. IF YOU…

Protein powder can be used as a meal replacement, it just depends on what you do with it. My daily breakfast (usually post workout, but even on non-workout days) is a protein smoothie which is packed with fruit, fiber, vitamins and protein. My recipe is: 2 cups Silk Regular Soy Milk 1 cup frozen strawberries 1 cup frozen…

I agree with this post. For building muscle, you need good, quality, lean protein in your diet. You need higher carbs (fuel) if you are doing endurance training or intensive cardio (eg, running, cycling, swimming).

While this is true, part of changing your diet is creating a self-perpetuating trend toward eating less. Part of eating less is to increase the quality of the foods you eat--vegetables are more nutritious, less calorie-intensive and more filling. What the twinkie guy does not discuss is how eating high sugar, high…

Try Ratatouille instead. Eggplant parm has too much cheese, breading, fried stuff. Tastes good, but not good for weight loss. Ratatouille, on the other hand, has the eggplant you crave, and is low in calories and fat.

Just stick to the program. Plateaus are natural. It will pass. Mine did.

1 lb per week is fine. Try to come in under that calorie goal every day and you will lose a little faster. I have never done p90x, but I have seen some people get great results with it.

Polar HRM. I have the RCX5 now.

Alas, there really is a lot of crap in the forums from people who don't really know what they are talking about. You can and will build muscle while in deficit. Even better, the more muscle you build, the higher you metabolism will be, because lean muscle burns more calories than fat. Just stick with the program. Log you…

In terms of the length of an endurance event, at least according to Hammer's advice, the cut off is 2 hours. So for any rides of up to 2 hours, or even a little more, I tend to have a clif bar before, HEED during--1 bottle per hour, and gels. For longer events, I switch to perpetuem and enduralytes. I have not yet hit the…

I would not bother. Seems to me like a waste of time and money. Tracking of exercise (or activity) is really only useful if you are doing more than the usual day to day. Your ordinary activities are factored into your basal metabolic rate. Instead, spend your money on a good heart rate monitor and wear that when you…

Hello. I am also a cyclist and I have learned quite a lot about nutrition and hydration for endurance cycling. I would not recommend salt tablets--too simple. Try Hammer Nutrition's Enduralytes, which have a blend of electrolytes and are very popular with the endurance set. I am also a fan of Hammer's Perpetuem endurance…

This is an odd question. I think you will find that most of the people on MFP have lost weight with diligence, consistency and effort. I did. Do I take medication to aid in weight loss? No. Do I use protein powder? Yes, but that is as much incident to my other dietary choices and training regimen. Just be consistent and be…

Be sure to do a forum search, because you will find tons of comments on HRMs, recommendations, etc. It is a recurring topic. Good luck.

Try replacing the battery in your chest strap. Sometimes a weak battery can cause erratic HR readings.

I hated these. Too sweet. I like the clif minis if I need a little snack--100 cal. Also, a piece of fruit is great. An apple is 80 cal. and sticks with you for a long time.

My breakfast is 861 calories every single day. Sometimes, if I have ridden by bike a long ways, with a big calorie burn (1000+), I might add a pastry to my breakfast too. How do I get so high? Protein smoothie. Yum! Best is that I ate breakfast today at 7:30 am. It is now almost 2:00 pm and I have not had lunch yet. But I…

My advice: weigh yourself regularly. I weigh daily and look at the trends (steady, down, up). Adjust accordingly for your plan (I am now in a small losing phase after being in a maintenance phase once I hit my goal). This is important because you cannot ignore the number staring up at you. Second, the weekend is gone.…

Goals: Stick to the MFP calorie allowance, exercise 4+ days a week, make healthy food choices. I have hit my weight goal (though I adjusted it again for training purposes). I hit my goals. The key to success here is to stick to the plan. Set MFP for 1 lb/wk weight loss and aim to come in below your allowance every day…

My experience with pneumonia . . . . I had walking pneumonia for months. I continued to work etc. It did not go away until I made sure to get lots and lots of rest-- 10+ hours per night. So get some rest. You will be back and able to get strong again much quicker than if you try to push through.

My resting heart rate when fully recovered from my last workout is 36-38. So you have nothing to worry about. It just means that your heart pumps more blood for each beat. Be happy. You are a well-conditioned athlete!

My daily dessert is an apple and 3 Nairn's oat cookies. When I have a big workout, I might have ice cream, but I measure the portions (2 please).

Set your weight loss rate for 1 lb/week. Then try to stay consistently below your calorie target every day. I lost around 10 lbs/month average with this method. You need to eat. Also, when you exercise, eat more. I am not saying you have to eat back everything you burn, but it is ok to do so if you choose. It is also fine…

No way! Keep doing whatever you are doing, cause it is working. Fit is beautiful.

Slow and steady wins the race. You did not gain the weight in a few weeks or months, so don't expect to lose it that fast. Stick to the program, be consistent and you will reach your goals.