Fitness and Exercise

[Animeniax]

Wow those are impressive squat and deadlift totals, time to focus a little more on the upper body. How many sets of each are you doing? Or do you mean 1 set of 5 reps ()?

I wanted to improve my upper body strength so I do bicep curls to start every workout, whether it's a chest or leg day.

Also, about pre-workouts, I've found that eating some dark chocolate seems to give me the same boost as the pre-workout samples I used.

[Buffalobiian]

Pretty sure those are 5 rep maxes.

I can't do squats these days since my ankle injury left me incapable of bending my foot upwards much without pain. Hopefully it'll heal and not remain like that forever.

Two days ago we went for a hike. I either seam to be a beast at it (no significant backpack weight) or am just too eager to die.

[enkoujin]

Wow those are impressive squat and deadlift totals, time to focus a little more on the upper body. How many sets of each are you doing? Or do you mean 1 set of 5 reps ()?

Four sets pyramiding up. Bench is 5 lbs; squat and deadlift are 10 lb increments. The last set are my PRs.

I wanted to improve my upper body strength so I do bicep curls to start every workout, whether it's a chest or leg day.

You might want to watch out for overtraining biceps if you work out a lot during the week. From reading articles, full body and compound exercises are the way to go to improve strength (pullups, BB row). I guess you could sneak in a bicep isolation regime after some compound exercises consisting of hammer, inclines, standing EZ bar curls, etc. a couple times a week to keep them growing.

EDIT: Don't forget to eat big. +200-400 calories over your BMR.

I can't do squats these days since my ankle injury left me incapable of bending my foot upwards much without pain. Hopefully it'll heal and not remain like that forever.

If you want to go back to training while your ankle is still a little sore, try stretching a lot. You can also try using ankle braces and going on the leg press for a bit before going back to squatting. For now, ice it a lot, let it rest a lot, and embrace the breaks from leg day.

I hate doing legs.

[Animeniax]

Ahhh, PR= personal record. Have you tried weight-lifting gloves and/or a spotter? I think you could easily get to 135 on your bench with those minor changes.

I alternate between preacher curl on the bench and free-standing full-range bicep curls with the curl bar. I've only recently been able to do 65lbs comfortably without pain in my wrists.

I eat over my BMR, but mostly the wrong kind of food (too much fat and carbs). I need to fix that but what's the point of being in shape if it means you can't eat delicious food?

[enkoujin]

Ahhh, PR= personal record. Have you tried weight-lifting gloves and/or a spotter? I think you could easily get to 135 on your bench with those minor changes.

I actually did bench 135 last week, but I needed a spotter. I don't report PRs I can't do by myself - just a personal thing.

EDIT: I also don't use gloves because they reduce your grip strength, can kill your technique, and don't prevent calluses. Embrace your calluses, man. Might use gym chalk later, though.

I alternate between preacher curl on the bench and free-standing full-range bicep curls with the curl bar. I've only recently been able to do 65lbs comfortably without pain in my wrists.

Did you see a doctor about pain in your wrists? That could be dangerous. Do you still have pain when doing dumbell alternatives?

I eat over my BMR, but mostly the wrong kind of food (too much fat and carbs). I need to fix that but what's the point of being in shape if it means you can't eat delicious food?

If you're dirty bulking, which I'm sure you are, just eat whatever as long as it fits your macros. I'd probably avoid bad foods like candy and whatnot. If you're clean bulking, try to drop down to 1-2x cheat meals a week.

[Animeniax]

I actually did bench 135 last week, but I needed a spotter. I don't report PRs I can't do by myself - just a personal thing.

I don't think it's any less valid because you have a spotter. I tend to lift heavier and more successfully in a gym around other people because of the fear of failure and ridicule. When I work out at home, I tend to take it a little easier and have less motivation to push my boundaries.

I also don't use gloves because they reduce your grip strength, can kill your technique, and don't prevent calluses. Embrace your calluses, man. Might use gym chalk later, though.

I don't see any issue with grip strength and most broscientists say you can lift heavier with good gloves on due to the padding. I can't use my bench bar without gloves because the knurling is too painful on my palms.

Did you see a doctor about pain in your wrists? That could be dangerous. Do you still have pain when doing dumbell alternatives?

Nah I'm old school, only see a doctor when it's really serious or non-functioning. I only got the pain when lifting heavy weight. Now the pain is gone as my arms have gotten stronger. I imagine the pain will return when I start doing heavier bicep work.

If you're dirty bulking, which I'm sure you are, just eat whatever as long as it fits your macros. I'd probably avoid bad foods like candy and whatnot. If you're clean bulking, try to drop down to 1-2x cheat meals a week.

Not really trying to bulk, just enjoy eating. I take protein to help with weight gain but I really hate managing a diet, even if it would help my weight goals.

[Buffalobiian]

If you want to go back to training while your ankle is still a little sore, try stretching a lot. You can also try using ankle braces and going on the leg press for a bit before going back to squatting. For now, ice it a lot, let it rest a lot, and embrace the breaks from leg day.

I don't think that would work since I go into pretty severe pain once the angle between my foot and leg is below 70 degrees or something. Ankle brace won't do that. I was playing basketball today actually, and my foot was forced into such a position from landing too hard, and it feels like a re-sprain each time (though it isn't, because the pain mostly resolves after another 2 minutes or so).

Just for the sake of correct definitions, base metabolic rate (BMR) is calculated using various weight and body size measurements to see how much your body burns when you're doing nothing but staying alive (hence base metabolic rate). What you guys are talking about is daily expenditure, which takes into account your exercise expenditure as well. Hence you want to eat (according to you guys) an extra 2-400 calories more than you're actually spending so that it can go towards muscle growth, not just 2-400 more than what it takes to live (BMR).

Granted, BMR does actually go up if you're exercising, but that's usually not taken into account and I don't believe that online calculators are estimating this when they're asking for activity levels either. I think they're just calculating energy expenditure.

[Animeniax]

@Buff: can you run without pain in the ankle? I imagine you'd achieve acuter angles than 70 degrees during a run. I get the best workout for my calves from running.

[Buffalobiian]

@Buff: can you run without pain in the ankle? I imagine you'd achieve acuter angles than 70 degrees during a run. I get the best workout for my calves from running.

You can get away with the angle problem by reducing stride distance and keeping a more stable ankle. I can sort of "run", but I can't sprint or change directions on my right foot very well. Keeping the foot planted while twisting the leg a little bit sets it off really badly.

Hmm... come to think of it I wonder if I should take an xray to rule out bony fragments from an avulsion or something.

[Animeniax]

Yeah I'd suggest you see a doctor to make sure it's not something that could get worse. I learned that lesson the hard way this week, finally going to the dentist after a tooth broke 3-4 months ago. Turns out all the pain was from the broken tooth getting infected. Now I need a root canal or extraction. Also have 8-10 cavities that need to be filled.

[Penner]

I'm also going in for a root canal at the end of the month. Never had one of those done before so i'm not sure what to expect lol

Also have 8-10 cavities that need to be filled.

Jesus man, most i've ever had at one time was three :P

[Animeniax]

I'm also going in for a root canal at the end of the month. Never had one of those done before so i'm not sure what to expect lol

Jesus man, most i've ever had at one time was three :P

Is extraction an option for you? For me it's the furthest back molar on the left side, so losing it would not affect my ability to eat as the lower tooth still catches half of the tooth next to the bad one. It would also not be a cosmetic issue, obviously. However I'd rather not lose a tooth (and getting it replaced isn't really an option financially) but I don't want the root canal operation either. I think the pain is overstated, but from what my genprac dentist said, it will take some work to clear out the tooth of calcium deposits, and of course it's more expensive than just having the tooth removed.

I haven't been to the dentist in almost 9 years. So 8-10 cavities isn't so bad .

[enkoujin]

@ Buff: you're totally right about the incorrect terminology. My bad.

Nah I'm old school, only see a doctor when it's really serious or non-functioning.

I haven't been to the dentist in almost 9 years. So 8-10 cavities isn't so bad .

I'm probably not in the right to say this, but you need to take better care of your health, man. If you can go to the gym several times a week, you should be able to see the dentist at least once a year, and floss and brush properly every night.

[Animeniax]

I'm probably not in the right to say this, but you need to take better care of your health, man. If you can go to the gym several times a week, you should be able to see the dentist at least once a year, and floss and brush properly every night.

Well I was born behind the 8 ball so to speak, so taking care of my health is a bigger chore than it should be. I didn't go to the dentist because I didn't have proper dental insurance, not for lack of care for my well-being. I try to eat right and stay active, but yeah underneath I think I'm rotting away.

[LaZie]

I was bored and decided to try deadlifting for the first time. Now I've done romanian deadlifts before, but this is a first for regular deadlifts. How's my form? This is 225lbs/102kgs.

[Animeniax]

Wow 225lb is impressive. For the bad stuff: your butt is too high in the air. Your back should never go parallel to the ground like that at the start and at the end. I think the type of lift you're doing works the back and shoulders more than the legs and is not a deadlift. A personal trainer told me to start from the standing position, then lower the bar to the ground, then raise it to standing again and that's one rep. That will get you to bend the legs more and go lower, better working out the legs and less strain on the back. Also, you should pinch the shoulder blades together as you lift. To do the move correctly, you'll probably need to drop weight. I was comfortable doing 185 until I found out my form was all wrong so I dropped to a lot less weight. Keep it up though. Deadlifting is one of the best overall exercises.

[LaZie]

I'll definitely keep my hips lower and the bar closer to my shins next time around.

[LaZie]

Here's a new video. This time it's at 185 lbs.

[Animeniax]

Much better. Keep those shoulders up and that butt down. Maybe spread the feet a little wider too. Otherwise looks good from this angle. Did you try doing the corrected form with 225lbs? Was it impossible?

[Penner]

I've only been back to training for a few months now since the new gym opened here (before that i gradually got lazier and lazier, which eventually led to me not training at all for over a year ) and i also have a habit of getting my hips/ass too high up when i deadlift, been working on keeping better form and using my legs more and not hitting the lower back so much lol, and as Ani said earlier, i also had to drop the weights down a bit for that :P