Two personal best for me yesterday. 14.00 miles run, which I ran the first 10.20 before I walked, after that was a run/walk mix to the finish.  Time was 2:31 for 10:51 per mile average. This mild winter has been fantastic, yesterday was perfect for running.

I'm ramping back up again--I was lucky to get 2 miles.  I started running 3 min, walking 2 min.  Started back with boot camp last week.  Enrolled in a new contest at work--you keep track of the minutes you work out, stretch, etc., and the winner after 3 months with the most points gets an iPad.

I'm really getting to hate being in my body. Not because how I physically look, but because I have to call off workouts due to asthma attacks I can't shake. It seems like my body is actively sabotaging my attempts to build a positive self image.

I've had asthma all my life and It only really seems to get going when I exercise. Specifically anything to do with working my legs sets my lungs off. I know all the breathing strategies, but with them and medication it sometimes still isn't enough.

The reason why I'm posting this is because I've had an extremely unlikely idea that has offered me a glimmer of hope. I wonder if I've been miss-diagnosed all my life and I actually have something else. Now before I bring up this stupid concept to my doctor I'd thought i'd run it by my fellow chewers in this thread to see if it has any validity.

Here is a graphic description of my symptoms:

-First my saliva turns salty and thickens to the consistency of mucous.
-Then I get a deep ache in my lower lungs that makes it hard to breathe.
-Even though I force air in and out it feel as though my lungs have glued themselves closed and I start coughing.
-Sometimes I cough up a clear, thick liquid I assume to mucous, not a lot comes out.
-Finally I get dizzy and my head starts to tingle, pins and needles like. Usually that feeling spreads from my teeth to my gums, to my whole face and then my entire head.
-I can breathe easier standing up when this happens (Bringing air in though my nose and forcing it all out through my mouth), but usually have to hold onto something to keep my balance.

Is this textbook exercise induced asthma or something else?

YES!

 

I say that emphatically because I suffered from the exact same fucking thing, and God it pissed me off.  Nothing worse than feeling like your lungs are on fire and spitting shit up every 10 seconds.  

 

What worked for me was working out in a cleaner (eg less dust) environment and using an inhaler 15 minutes before hitting the gym.  Hasnt bothered me since.

 

I'm doing it. The points and leveling system is nifty. Makes me feel like I'm a RPG character.

Edited by Whiteboy Jones - 1/12/12 at 7:26am

What is this "Fitocracy"?

Just got an invite myself. It seems neat, I like how it magically imports my runkeeper runs and uses them to +1 me

http://www.fitocracy.com/profile/stalwyn/

If someone's got an invite, sure, send it my way.  I can't promise I'll keep up with it, but I'll do my best.  PM me.  Gracias.

Fitocracy is indeed legit.  Follow me: JabbaTheSlut so that I can therefore follow you and give occasional kudos.

Signed up to the gym, need to get back into a fit shape before I start shooting anything as the stress is just going to wreck me and knock my heart off it's arse. 

 

Looking for some good weight training methods from anyone here. Also, I know its recommended a lot, but there's not chance I'm running/jogging. I'm a bike man.

Advice appreciated.

Edited by SeanCE - 1/14/12 at 10:19am

 

 

http://www.chud.com/community/t/105812/going-to-the-gym/1300#post_3150828

Thank you! That's really helpful. RE: Meals, I'm on 2 small chicken and veg a day dinners. Steamed.  Snacks - bannanas, raisins and grapes, carbs reduced to a bit of rice. That should be okay right? Stone of muscle's gone to fat, need it back.

No problemo.  Dont mean to link spam, but...

 

http://www.leangains.com/2010/04/leangains-guide.html (best diet/lifting resource in existence)

 

http://www.chud.com/community/t/105812/going-to-the-gym/1300#post_3150419

 

http://www.chud.com/community/t/105812/going-to-the-gym/1350#post_3159106

 

http://www.chud.com/community/t/105812/going-to-the-gym/1350#post_3162896 (quick results from a board member lie therein)

 

Long story short: it's all about your macronutrients.  For the most part, you can eat whatever you want as long as it fits your macro (protein, carbs, fat) goal for the day.  I'm 165, can deadlift 330, wear a size 29 jean, and yet I have been known to demolish multiple pints of frozen yogurt and entire large pizzas on a weekly basis.

 

If you like eating nothing but grilled chicken and steamed veggies than more power to ya.  Just wanted to give you a heads up that losing weight and suffering by eating a bunch of bland, boring meals dont necessarily go hand in hand!

Good point, with my weight loss so far, I haven't changed my eating habits, Although my wife has said I don't eat as much, I haven't noticed that.

 

My runs since the 14 miler have been shit for the most part. I think I should have recovered a bit before going right back to normal routine. Solid long run this morning 7 miler in 1:11.  I'll take that, bout 25 degrees out, never got the feeling my legs were good and loose. I may have to add another layer to the legs. 
 

 

I"m doing the New Rules of Lifting For Women training that Jake turned me onto a while back - after a couple false starts, I'm going to do it goddamnit. So after a week of lifting.

 

HOLY FUCK is it normal to be this sore? I can't stand up or sit down without wanting to tear my hair out and scream a stream of profanities so filthy that ...I don't motherfucking know. I mean, it's the first week - but everything is fucking sore. Is it just telling me that "Bitch, you've been on your fat lazy ass too long"? Does it get better, at least? I take a day off in between, and I'm going back tomorrow before the recommended two days off, but holy fuck, it's like every damn muscle in my body is screaming and trying to tear itself away from the bone

 

Jesus tittyfucking christ. This is insane. Just ow. 

It's normal. You're using muscles you haven't used in awhile or ever! It gets better. However, soreness is one thing. If you are ever in pain, like sharp, intense aching, stop.

I find that light cardio, like biking or those elliptical machines can help with soreness. I'm guessing that it's because when you start moving blood through those muscles again it helps the body get rid of the Lactic Acid and other things that build up when you do strenuous exercise.

Just out of curiosity I looked this up on Wikipedia and it says a similar thing under the treatment section.

Delayed onset muscle soreness:

Personal advice -  I find drinking a pint of milk helps after a tough session.

After being an utterly lazy bastard over the holidays, just this past week I'm back into training, and yes, pain. All over.

 

But now, I also know of foam-rolling. Hoooooleeeeeee shiiiiiiiit. Oh my god. Oh my GOD.

I did some INSANITY workout earlier this week after over 2 months of slacking.  
 

PAIN.  SUCH PAIN.

 

And for almost exactly 72 hours!  When I woke up this morning, I felt much better.  So I did some cardio weights!  YES!

 

Right now, I just finished drinking some milk (with cereal)!  Thanks Sean!

I'm on Fitocracy as jamesmay81. Follow me. Again, if anyone needs an invite shoot me a pm with your email and I'll send you an invite. Site is still a bit raw, but there is a lot of good motivators. Been working to help keep me regular so far.

I weighed myself this morning and I'm officially 190.  Six months ago I was about 310.  Pretty happy with my progress. 

That's incredible. Great job!

5-10 bike warm up.

13 x 3 Leg Presses/Squats (I use the machine to level up, then bring it over to the squat, or if my knees are just off)
13 x 3 Leg Curls
15 x 3 Standing Leg Lifts
12 x 3 Bench Incline/Decline (use the machine to level up, then bring it over agh you know)
12 x 3 Front Presses
12 x 3 Front Rows (wide grip)
13 x 4 Tricep Extensions (Usually nose breakers and then a slightly more over head on your back variant)
12 x 3 Biceps (Usually front barbell curl)
15 x 3 Internal Shoulder Rotations
15 x 3 External Shoulder Rotations
13+ x 3 Crunches/Ab Work

Been really focusing on breathing, activating my core, and really fixing up my shoulders. I've been changing my workouts every 3-4 workouts.

 

Drink chocolate milk.  Recommended by lots of folks as a post-workout drink.  I sometimes mix in a little Quik with my chocolate protein powder as well.
 

 

I am now part of the Fitocracy.  Follow me at martianman68 if so desired.

Followed.

 

I'm, funnily enough, DSRandlett.

Yeah, I've been doing Fitocracy for a few months now.  It's great if you've got people who are doing about the same amount and start around the same time.  My fiance, brother, his girlfriend, and my father are all doing it and it's fun to see their activities and realize when you've been slacking.  The trouble is that it's also kind of easy to just quit going.

 

I haven't really been working out too much the past month after messing up my knee running right before Christmas and then being super lazy afterwards (some of that may have to do with my New Year's resolution to give up soda and caffeine).

 

I did just sign up for a triathlon swimming course at the fitness center I just joined.  I'm hoping that I'll be able to step up from my current crappy swimming technique to something that is actually useful.  I'd really like to be able to spend more time swimming for fitness but I feel like I'm working way too hard for the distance I go.

I have been in "get shredded"/cut mode since the beginning of this month and have seen a lot of progress.  Down 8lbs, currently weighing in around 194, trying to get to 188 - 185 because I want to have some serious abs by March 1.

 

I will say the biggest change that I have made is tracking what I eat using http://www.myfitnesspal.com - what an awesome site.  They have a free app for iphone/android/windows phones too, but I have only been using the website.  I have my profile set for 30%carbs/40%protein/30%fat which has been working quite well (the site's default setting puts protein WAY too low IMO). 

 

The leangains site that Closer posted is quite awesome, some really good info on there.  I bought a tub of that Micellar Creme chocolate casein protein that they recommended for making pudding and holy shit it is phenomenal - tastes just like chocolate pudding, is 100 cals and 20g protein for a serving.  As for plain protein powder, I use Trutein vanilla which can be found for ~$50 shipped for a 5lb tub and it tastes just like a damn McDonald's vanilla shake, even when mixed with just water.  Throwing strawberries into a blender with the stuff is also heavenly.  Using these, I have no real need for sugary cheat snacks.

 

 

For anyone who is or knows girls who are afraid of lifting heavy weights to get in shape/lose weight because they "don't wanna get too bulky", PLEASE read/forward this:

http://nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/  Very motivating and eye opening.

 

That site in general has a lot of great info and articles, their top ones are here:   http://nerdfitness.com/blog/top-posts/

 

Edited by gobblox - 1/31/12 at 10:42am

Quote:

Oh God yes, MILK and bananas (I like 'em as green as possible). Those help immensely with sore muscles.
 

 

Day 1 of IF and I just broke the fast....food never tasted so good!

Welcome to the club!  There's nothing like downing a 2,000 calorie meal right after a heavy squat or deadlift workout.

 

Your life has forever changed for the better.

Yeah I drink Muscle Milk or protein powder with milk always right after a workout, rarely feel sore.

I even keep the protein powder in my car, and take the milk with me in a thermos. After the workout, just toss in some protein powder and enjoy.

Today I had a red bull before a work out (an unplanned one, I was going to take the day off from working out, but a little stress kicked in) on top of meeting a friend whom I had to second hand smoke off of. Being a former smoker, I felt that urge again, but my workout sucked. Everything was just a notch harder to do.

It actually didn't kill me as much the 2nd time I did it (which was just last week).  Now that I got the measurements right with the amino acid supplement, I was hanging in there pretty well.  Although about a 1/2 hour before I went to eat, my stomach let out a big "AAORAURARORRGHGHGHIHUNGER!!!!!" that felt like it lasted at least 60 seconds.

 

Closer, I've been meaning to ask: what supplements/vitamins do you take/recommend?  I'm 31 and flintstone chewables just aren't cutting it anymore.

I just take a standard multi (think I got it from Whole Foods) and some fish oil.  I started taking some extra calcium a few weeks back to help me sleep a bit better.

 

I also take ephedrine (Bronkaid) and caffeine on workout days.  Same with Xtend (BCAA).  Everything else I get from food.

I would add aspirin or white willow bark(if you prefer natural) to that ephe/caff stack to protect your heart.

 

Rando, et al.,

 

Standard Process makes good whole food vitamins that I use with patients and myself.  Except for a few of their products they aren't designed for the long haul, just long enough for you to begin eating correctly to get your nutrients from food.  Most chiros who practice the way I do usually carry them as they are somewhat difficult to find outside of a health care professionals office because, as I said, they aren't designed to be long term; they are to nourish your body back to health while you learn how to get what you need from food.  If you need to find someone near you I can check to see if I have any colleagues working close by.

 

On the subject of nutrition, I am currently engaged in a several day discussion with another healthcare professional who has suddenly discovered the world of glycemic loads/indexing.  He is proselytizing like nothing else.  My God it is annoying. 

 

My side of the argument is that you need to expend more than you take in first THEN start working on better foods THEN begin worrying about micro issues like glycemic loads.

He, like any true converted, is skipping right to worrying about what foods are glycemically correct without upping his exercise("if you 'shut down' the pancreas you won't have to exercise as much").  As for choosing better foods he is vegan but overweight because he snacks all day long.

Anyone got an opinion?

So it looks like getting back into the gym will have to wait for a bit because today I handed in a letter of cancellation to my club. The chain I goto, Premier Fitness, was in the process of selling their assets and locations to another company, Physio Med. Premier was in a shit load of debt and owed multiple people/companies money so that's why they were selling. Essentially they're bankrupt. However, the receiver in charge of trying to restructure and refinance Premiers debts bailed when they wouldn't let him look at their financial records and bank accounts. It's a huge mess. A Hamilton news station did a report today on one of the clubs and how the city hydro department people came into the club and were going to shut off it's power for not paying bills.

 

I've had it with them. I know a few people who have cancelled their memberships only to have Premier continue to withdraw money from them or bill their credit cards. CBC News did an investigation on them last January as well as the Hamilton Police Department did a fraud investigation back in 2004. I also can't stand the equipment that constantly either breaking or broke. They never get it fixed quickly, they just let it go for months. The pool and steam rooms (which I never use anyways) are constantly not working. In other words... it's not a good place to work out. So I want out.

 

Now I just wait and see if they try and fuck me and continue to bill me. They should have one more payment to take from me and then I'm going to ask my credit union to put a stop payment on them.

 

Premier Fitness fighting for survival

http://www.thespec.com/news/business/article/676646--premier-fitness-fighting-for-survival

 

 

Clock ticking on troubled Premier Fitness health chain

http://www.thespec.com/news/business/article/675484--clock-ticking-on-troubled-premier-fitness-health-chain

 

 

Premier Fitness fined under Employment Standards Act

 

http://www.cbc.ca/marketplace/blog/2012/01/premier-fitness-fined-under-employment-standards-act.html

 

 

Premier Fitness leads in gym complaints: report

http://www.cbc.ca/news/story/2011/01/07/con-marketplace-gym-complaints.html

 

 

This a report from the Hamilton Police Department when they did a fraud investigation of Premier Fitness

 

http://www.thespec.com/article/7366--no-fraud-at-premier-fitness

 

 

 

So for the next little while (until I can afford a gym membership somewhere else) I guess it's time to just focus on cardio by running and getting my bike fixed.

Okay, about time I post this.

I've been taking allergen immunotherapy for nearly a year now in an effort to reduce my allergy triggered asthma attacks. This past year has been really bad for me breathing wise and I'm finally beginning to notice the positive effects of the treatment.

But, you might say, what does this have to do with going to the gym?

Well after a 10 month hiatus partly due to breathing problems and partly due to apathy, I returned to the gym this last Decemeber. The strange thing is I'm expirencing massive gains (for me) even though I'm not pushing myself too hard because if I do my breathing is fucked not only for the rest of the day, but fo the next two days as well.

Now, I can't say I've reached the muscle mass that I was at a couple of year ago, but these fast gains with relatively little effort has me wondering if it is a side effect to the immunotherapy. It's a stretch because I know there are no anabolic steroids associated with the therapy, but it's the only thing that I'm doing different compared to the past.

I mean these gains can't just be due to the muscle memory* from where I was before. Can it?

I guess I will find out if I ever surpass where I used to be and see if I still am making fast gains. I realize this makes it seem like I was huge a couple years ago. I wasn't, in the past It was always hard for me to gain muscle mass, which is why I'm surprised by this in the first place.


* I'm not sure it that's the right term. I'm referring to the effect that allows people who used to be athletic build muscle faster after a long period of inactivity than those who are true beginners.

It's entirely possible that before you started treatment that you were pushing yourself too hard. I assume that working around your symptoms involves a lot of rest and some stress management stuff? Your condition/therapy might be forcing you into better recovery periods than before, hence the seemingly accelerated gains.

That. Also, have you changed your food intake at all?

Actually I have changed my food intake, but not in the way you'd expect. I am sick of force-feeding myself protein so I've cut down on the whey products and really just eat solid foods before and after a workout even if they may not have the 40 grams that most people think they should eat. I do eat healthy though. My pre-workout meal usually is low fat cottage cheese and fruit and my post workout is a tiny 15 gram protein shake with some meat and veggies. At most I get 30 grams of my daily protein from shakes, though I rarely drink them on recovery days.

I also am allowing myself more cheats. Not necessarily cheat days, but there are a lot frozen yogurt shops where I live and every other day I usually pick up a small to medium cup of No Sugar added vanilla with quarter cup of blackberries and a spoonful of dark chocolate chips.

Overall I feel like I've not been putting in as much effort as I have in the past and am seeing more results.

Anybody have any thoughts on WHY WE GET FAT by Gary Taubes?  I have a friend reading the book who tells me how emotional the disagreements get when he brings up Taubes' conclusions on nutrition.

I like looking at that This Is Why You're Fat website...

I haven't read WHY WE GET FAT, but I've heard that it's basically a repackaging of GOOD CALORIES, BAD CALORIES for those less inclined to sift through the details of scientific studies. I think he makes some good points in GCBC and in his talks, but I think the carbohydrate hypothesis is an incomplete explanation of obesity. I think Robb Wolf (who advocates a lowish to moderate carb approach, too) is really onto something when he addresses the issues of sleep, stress management, gut irritants, etc. as contributing factors that need to be addressed and figured out on an individual basis. In other words, what Taubes is writing about is a good tool for the arsenal, but there's more going on with your body than the consumption of a certain kind of macronutrient.

 

Though I will say that, through my own personal experiments, I've learned to embrace fat and protein as a good sources of fuel and to shun most super-carby stuff like bread and pasta. I feel much better that way.

I just started a triathlon swimming course and it seems like just the thing I needed.  The first class was kind of a primer on basic swimming technique (something I'd never really had besides the swimming classes at the Y as a kid) and it'll extend a bit more into open water swimming and specific triathlon techniques by the end of the class.

 

I'm excited because about a week and a half ago I ran my first 10k (not the farthest I've ever run, but the first time I've ever done it in a race).  My time was over an hour so now I'm working on improving my time.  Once I can get my swimming and running sorted I'll be able to add a bit more cycling on there and be ready to go. 

 

On top of this I've been lifting weights 2-3 times a week and am starting to feel myself really getting back into shape.  In the several months I've been doing this I've lost 25 pounds (at least, since I didn't ever weigh myself at my fattest) am on pace to be back to a good weigh for my wedding in late July.  Definitely didn't want to have a bunch of wedding photos that I didn't want to look at because I was so fat.

 

Nice one Nachos, that's some good work.

 

I took the opposite approach to my wedding though - put on as much weight as possible so that in the future I could trim down again and in five or ten years peeps can look back at the wedding photos and say, "Man, Bucho is looking good these days, look how much he's got back in shape since back then."

So I've been really progressing well with my workouts. I've finally got over that initial hump of loathing my trip to the gym and am back to the mindset in which I look forward to my workouts. Actually I found that working out every day, as opposed to every other day, lessens my depression and increases my anticipation of my daily workout even more.

I've also found a happy medium of workout plans. I alternate my weightlifting days with biking days. Biking has really increased my recovery from weightlifting. I start out on my 15 mile ride feeling stiff in every limb from last night's trip to the gym and am amazed how loose I feel at the end of my route.

I have also been on gluten free diet for the last two months.

Sadly I can't say I've noticed any real positive effects from it and have come to the conclusion that I don't have any sort of sensitivity to wheat. But how else could I have found out?

On the other hand I think I'll stick with the diet because it is really easy to follow and it keeps me away from my favorite places that serve foods high in carbohydrates (Fast food, bakeries and Italian restaurants). I also like how it doesn't completely deny me from eating carbs. Corn tortillas, steamed rice and baked fingerling potatoes have become staples in after workout meals.

I was going to post this yesterday, but the sandman got to me and I cut my post short.

I been experimenting with a recipe in an attempt to satiate my cravings for sweets and wheat. I thought I'd share it here rather than the Chewer's recipes thread because I think it might get more use.

Low Carb Almond meal cookies base mixture:

Preheat oven to 375 F

1 cup of Almond flour or Almond meal

1/4 cup of Flaxseed meal

1/4 cup of vanilla flavored protein powder of your choice.

1/4 teaspoon of baking soda

A little less than a 1/4 cup of your preferred sugar substitute*

1 to 2 teaspoons of Molasses

1/4 of butter

1 egg

* Look at your sugar subsitute's guidelines for the right ratio to represent the same amount of sugar as a little less than 1/4 cup. The reason why I say to use a little less than 1/4 a cup is because the protein powder will already be adding sweetness.

If you want to forgo the protein powder than just increase the flaxseed meal to 1/2 cup or you can just use 1 1/2 cups of Almond meal. I get my Almond meal from Trader Joes, they are the cheapest by far where I live. Mix the sugar substitute, the butter, the egg and the molasses together till creamy and then add the dry ingredients and mix well.

From there you can do what you want with the fillings. Here are my two favorite variations:

Chocolate chunk:

1/2 teaspoon of vanilla Extract

1 crushed Simply Lite Low Carb Dark Chocolate bar (found by the checkstands at Trader Joes)


Then I'm working on a mixture to replicate the taste of my favorite italian Biscotti.

1/2 teaspoon of Anise Extract

1/2 cup of trail mix*

*The mix I prefer is Trader Joes Go Raw Mix which is a simple mix of cashews, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts and rasins.

Anyway after you choose the mix you want, place spoonfuls on a parchment paper covered cookie sheet and bake from 12 to 15 minutes. It should yield 9 to 12 cookies depending how generous you feel with your spoonfuls.

I know it seems like I'm whoring out Trader Joes, but It's just the cheapest place I found for almond meal and I was trying to limit my trips to the store so I bought everything else I needed there as well.

I'd appreciate feedback and maybe your own diet recipes as well.

Folks - dont question me on this....just try it:

 

http://www.amazon.com/PB2-Powdered-Peanut-Butter-Calories/dp/B002GJ9JWS

 

This stuff deserves some kind of Nobel prize or somethin.