Day One

[LeafUF]

I do confuse them... with more weight.

[Dreamliner]

That's what I'm talking about!

For my money, confuse your muscles with more weight + walk + cultivating the art of eating less = lifetime leanness.

[Dreamliner]

Granted, that's probably not going to land me an infomercial opportunity.

[Dreamliner]

Goblet squats and towel-grip pullups today. Goblet squats while wearing 30-lb weight vest. Worked up to set of ten with 83 lbs. At some point I'm going to be limited by my ability to hold the dumbbell in front of me, let alone heave it into position.

At that point I suppose I could: (1) add sets (2) add reps (3) or maybe switch to goblet step-ups.

[LeafUF]

Does working out at home limit you in any way?

[Dreamliner]

Originally Posted by LeafUF

Does working out at home limit you in any way?

I'm not sure what you're asking but I do fine in these respects:

I've ditched the exercises which require a spotter.

I've learned how to push myself reasonably hard.

I prefer a quiet, zen-like atmosphere.

Limited in this respect:

Obviously I have to think outside the box on how to load certain exercises sufficiently. I had thought about getting a squat rack. But it would probably be better at this stage if I didn't load my spine so much.

[Dreamliner]

Made the world's cheapest Prowler. Scavenged a neighbor's trash for a tractor trailer tire, flipped on top of a square of cardboard and pushed.

Only thing is I'll probably go through a lot of cardboard. Although this particular square is probably good for another two or three workouts.

[StrangeGator]

Don't know what I would do without my gym. I'm sure I'd figure something out, but I thrive on convenience and structure. I changed from a $140 a year gym to a $140 a month gym recently because it was closer. It was actually more complicated than that. My wife's new job reimburses us for gym memberships at certain chains, including my old one, but the new one is two minutes from our house while the old one is about a 15 minute drive each way. I'm getting in significantly more workout time now.

[LeafUF]

I have a friend who recently moved to Chicago and when she told me the prices of the clubs there I was floored. I am a gym person and have been for a long time but I dont think I could pay the prices they are asking there. In DC I started out paying $50 a month at WSC and thought that was ridiculous. Eventually changed to a $10/month place that was basically a dungeon but it had what I needed.

[oI2ange]

damn...i pay $50 a month for my gym. that being said, my gym has pretty much anything you could want- sauna/vapor room/huge pools (indoor and out)/rock wall/free classes/obviously tons of weights/machines/etc.

[Dreamliner]

Played an hour of tennis, with my son today, and was pleasantly surprised with my conditioning.

Afterwards worked up to 215 X 5 deadlift and did a few pistols.

[LeafUF]

After 5 days off I managed to bench 250 yesterday and dead 305 today.

[StrangeGator]

I was paying a little over $10 a month at Bally Fitness before we joined Midtown. It was nice enough. The new place looks like the lobby of a West Hollywood hotel. As I tell my friends, "Midtown Fitness; where the women train like women, and the me do too." I've never seen so many men lifting dumbbells slightly larger than their fists. Actually, some of the women train pretty hard. They have some intense classes. The place is creepy quiet though, except for really bad seventies music piped in at low volume.

[Dreamliner]

Skater Squats (love how these feel) + Straddle Deadlifts (love how these feel) + tire pushes (hate how these feel).

[Dreamliner]

Tried something new today. It's usually referred to as snatch-grip deadlift from deficit. Typically, you see guys standing on an aerobic step to increase ROM. I just used smaller plates. The smaller weights and wider grip put me, I'm guessing, about 3'' closer to the floor. Basically, it's more strenuous and I can't use as much weight.

That said, I was pleasantly surprised when I was able to ramp up to 175 X 5 with less discomfort than I generally experience with the conventional deadlift.

Powerlifters often use this technique to increase power off the floor. I'm hoping that if I can work up to, say, 225 X 5 ... I'll be able to get my double-bodyweight deadlift conventional style.

[Dreamliner]

I'm hearing the siren call of bodyweight training again. Pistols are becoming easier and less painful. Popped off some handstand pushups yesterday. Am getting back into eccentrics and static holds as well.

[Dreamliner]

Got over 30K steps today. That's undoubtedly a walking record for me.

[LeafUF]

Started the Smolov Jr. cycle that I posted about in another thread. I am going to update it over there but felt like giving this thread some love as for the first time in a long time I am trying something a bit different.

[Dreamliner]

This is an orphaned thread. Did some lever pushups and towel-grip pullups today. Finished off with jump squats and mountain climbers 10 ... 9 .. 8 ... you know the drill.

Took a long walk and sprinted up the few, very shallow hills I have around my neighborhood.

[LeafUF]

I am back at work on 531 after my short smolov Jr experiment. Have made a few changes here and there, mainly I am squatting and benching twice a week. Considering doing all 4 lifts twice a week with once being much lighter as a way to practice my form. I like doing the extra lifting as it seems to help on my heavy days.