ExRx.net

Well, I have been a lurker of this forum for quite a few years, decided to get serious about health last year, actually made a few posts... Actually I was going through my old posts and noted where I had stopped (in the Journal section). The next day I was doing squats in a "V-Squat" Machine and pulled a muscle in my lower back, managed to get home, then I couldn't move for a couple days. I remember calling in to work. That put me out of the gym for about a month and then I never really got consistent with it again. Got down to about 268 pounds and stayed there for a couple of months then slowly crept up, got "serious" again, checked it and the cycle repeated. Earlier this year I bought some power blocks, a bench and a power tower (to go along with my cardio equipment) vowing that I would establish a regular routine, well that didn't work to well... I used the weights maybe once or twice. heck I even bought a TV for the room, an internet enabled blu-ray player and routed cat 6 to the wall behind.... Oh well. Then in June of this year I completely stopped. Put the fat back on and lost most of my (minor for most of you guys, but decent sized for me) accomplishments. Alas, now I am back in the saddle and I hope for another good while. Just did my first workout with the weights at home a couple of days ago and waited for (and looked forward to, if you can believe) the DOMS. The DOMS is here and it is a nice little way of the body reaffirming that I am using the muscles I intended to use.

Not sure why I feel compelled to post this but I just wanted to relay that I think this forum is awesome (maybe it provides some sort of accountability on a subconscious level). Some deep insight here on just about any topic...

So my focus remains the same. Weight loss, BF reduction, increase aerobic performance and strength gain.

I must say it is a bit demoralizing to fight over territory that I had already conquered already, but it is good motivation to not let this slip happen again. But there are some nice things, integrating weight lifting to the plan from the get go instead of thinking one day, "you have a lot of muscle mass in your legs for moving around all that junk... maybe I should do something to encourage the body to keep it."

So the program is basically cardio daily with 1 maybe 2 days of rest during the week and a full body routine atleast 3 days a week (most with weight sizes that are embarrassingly small, but hey I haven't used my upper body for jack, except for tapping keys on a keyboard).

Anyways, there it is.
Thanks,
Neal

Neal, good to hear from you. By now you probably realize that machines like the V Squat allow you to push more weight with your extremities than your core can adequately support. You need to build that core support while working on your extremities or else injuries like that will result. A proper program of compound exercises using free weights will do that for you.

Best of luck and feel free to bounce ideas of of us as you see fit.

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Let thy food be thy medicine, and thy medicine be thy food.~Hippocrates
Strength is the adaptation that leads to all other adaptations that you really care about - Charles Staley
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Thanks TimD

I find finally that it vworks best to invest captital at a rate commensurate with your proven dedication. Like a reward, as opposed to some external pressure to "earn" what you already spent. I dont know, sounds good in my head.

Good to have you back. I don't recall offfending you yet,.

Oscar, At this point I had lost about 80 pounds. So yeah I enough cred in the bank for that setup imho. No offense yet...

Stu, yeah I agree about the machine. Although I recall the weight load being quite light for squat. Maybe 80 or 100 lbs. I figured it was my short and tight hamstrings. But yeah the point is the same I was lulled into the "safety" of the machine. I figure I can still get in that same trouble doing really light or even unloaded squats. If that makes sense.

Thanks for the welcome backs. This is a great forum.

Neal

'Fighting over territory I've conquered already' keeps me in the gym. I hate it so much I just think about having to look through my book and cry about how much I used to lift. This ensure I don't miss many sessions. If I have two weeks off I feel like I've had years off!

dude you are far too young to be talking about how much you used to lift! Get yourself on a bus to Glasgow, me and KPj'll sort you out

I'm on the same boat - fighting to get back to where I was. I just see it as addressing issues that were holding me back from getting even further

A bump on the road...

KPj

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Thanks TimD

Neal--good job getting back into it. Stay active here for encouragement! We're all on the same road.

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Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan

I am young but have still been training about 7 years. The last 4 years have been more serious though. I'll still take the trip up to Scotland though!