Getting into shape...

Tabasco said:
In just the past 6 months, I've gained almost 50 pounds. This hasn't hurt my success with the ladies at all; on the contrary, it has improved dramatically. That having been said, if I continue on my present course I'm going to become a fat bastard. Nobody likes that. Also, heart disease runs in the family.

So, basically I need some advice on how to get into shape.

I used to jog every morning - I was a stick figure. I don't want to be like that again. I'd rather bulk up. Any thoughts?
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I've yet to see anyone suggest how to keep from getting bored out of your mind while keeping in shape. The only way I know how to do that is to participate in active sports. For me, its skiing my ass off during the winter. It's a sport I love and my work-outs during the remainder of the year are geared towards getting better at it. In the past year I've gained 10# and its all in my thighs and butt; as my wife says "the skiing muscles". I also substitute off-season workouts with other competitive sports that I like, even if I'm not as competitive, like ultimate, racquetball, biking and tennis. I've always sucked at distance running even though I have the physique for it so I do wind sprints instead for cardio workouts. When I can't do a sports activity for a workout I make sure I have my mp3 player at the very least.
 
If you guys actually did any real work....
Paying at a gym to sweat and not making money off of your exeretions. How conservative is that?
 
Threedee said:
You get to look and feel good, and people around you will have more respect for you. Its also nice for getting girls.
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Go out and help your friend on a project. You get to look and feel good, and people around you will have more respect for you. You may get some exercise and help your friend save money instead of spending it.

Yeah gyms are good for those who like to be led thru life and told what to do.
 
uscitizen said:
Go out and help your friend on a project. You get to look and feel good, and people around you will have more respect for you. You may get some exercise and help your friend save money instead of spending it.

Yeah gyms are good for those who like to be led thru life and told what to do.
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Well, I happen to be friends with several of the employees at the gym I go to, so I am working out and helping my friends at the same time.
 
uscitizen said:
Go out and help your friend on a project. You get to look and feel good, and people around you will have more respect for you. You may get some exercise and help your friend save money instead of spending it.

Yeah gyms are good for those who like to be led thru life and told what to do.
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your a grumpy old man just like the movie usc,
this young man your making fun of is protecting our nation.
I hope he gets more model fit chicks in gyms than he can handle.

PS I pay $80mo for a tennis club, and I can't even take advantage of all the hotties.
 
Topspin said:
your a grumpy old man just like the movie usc,
this young man your making fun of is protecting our nation.
I hope he gets more model fit chicks in gyms than he can handle.

PS I pay $80mo for a tennis club, and I can't even take advantage of all the hotties.
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Not all of them, well does that mean some of then?

I just like to razz people about gyms.
Like hiring someone to mow your lawn and then paying to go to a gym.

Just seems non productive to me in a way.
Now green exercise equipment that would generate electricity thatr would be used keep the beer cool...

PS don't go off on that flag waving crap with me.

also:

I do not deny being a grumpy old man :D
Kinda proud of it actually.
 
uscitizen said:
Not all of them, well does that mean some of then?

I just like to razz people about gyms.
Like hiring someone to mow your lawn and then paying to go to a gym.

Just seems non productive to me in a way.
Now green exercise equipment that would generate electricity thatr would be used keep the beer cool...
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Going to a gym can give you a regulated, organized workout designed to do the most good for the individual. And often safer than working on some project.
 
Solitary said:
Going to a gym can give you a regulated, organized workout designed to do the most good for the individual. And often safer than working on some project.
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True if you are into vanity bodybuilding and such especially.

Not just one project, many projects.
Do something productive with your time money and energy.
You do not have to have washboard abs and such to be in a healthy lifestyle.
Not speaking from personal experience on the abs or healthy lifestyle though :D

Much of my generation was proud of doing work.
Now it seems to be a topic to be avoided and relegated to the "little people".

Many of my generatiion are to blame for not teaching their children the value of a job well done.
Heck you can go to jail now for trying to get some productive work out of a kid.

And yes children should not work in mines and such, however I think we have gone a bit too far in the other direction.
 
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Tabasco said:
In just the past 6 months, I've gained almost 50 pounds. This hasn't hurt my success with the ladies at all; on the contrary, it has improved dramatically. That having been said, if I continue on my present course I'm going to become a fat bastard. Nobody likes that. Also, heart disease runs in the family.

So, basically I need some advice on how to get into shape.

I used to jog every morning - I was a stick figure. I don't want to be like that again. I'd rather bulk up. Any thoughts?
Click to expand...

Yea, don't worry about bulking up or being a stick figure. I recommend combination training. A mix of low impact cardio (cycling, roller blading, swimming, I don't recommend running as it's to high an injury factor) mixed with some resistance training.

There's 3 things I strongly do advise. Get a good entry level book on exercise physiology and learn the biological principles about exercise and how it works, what works and what doesn't.

Study up on nutrition. Proper exercise goes hand in hand with good nutrition

Get a heart rate monitor. It is a fantastic investment. The biggest mistake most people make is going out to hard or to slow. With the HRM you get instant feed back about the level of intensity your working at.

The hard part is finding a form or forms of exercise you enjoy and will be consistent at.

For me I enjoy road cycling. I used to be a USCF cat 3 racer. When I was doing that with combination training (duathlon and triathlon training) I was in fabulous shape and I had a very athletic build, not like a stick figure runner.

I could give you much more advice but it would take up to much space here.
 
Threedee said:
I've been steadily getting more and more out of shape over the past couple of years. Currently, I'm going to a gym with my roommate to try and get back on track. Most important thing is aerobic fitness though, so you're going to have to do some running.
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Aerobic is important for building up a base of fitness. Running, actually is very difficult to do aerobically as most people will shift over to anaerobic levels of work. Cycling is much better IHMO. Having said that, you need to have a good mix of aerobic base, anaerobic threshold (AT) training and anaerobic training.

Aerobic takes up most of the volume of time you train, anaerobic the least amount of time, AT is significantly more in volume than anaerobic but much less than aerobic conditioning, however, you get the most bang for the buck with AT training, particularly when you have a limited schedule. You can often substitute resistance training for AT training. But most of your time commitment should focus on low impact aerobic conditioning.
 
Solitary said:
Muscle mass will burn more calories just sitting still. So building muscles will help reduce fat % somewhat.

That said, some sort of aerobic exercise is important to good health.

Three sorts of exercise would be best.

1. Aerobic
2. Anaerobic
3. Stretching

1. Running, swimming, bicycling, or whatever you can do.

2. Weight training is good, but I believe the Fury methods are actually better in many ways. Plus you don't have to join anything or buy any weights. Your own body is the weight.

3. I recommend Tai Chi or a good Yoga program. These will help your body make the most of what you do to it and give it.
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Indeed properly conditioned muscles (regardless of mass) will burn up more calories, on a per unit basis, at rest than at work if one trains properly so as to raise their basal metabolic rate.

A good indicator of this is your resting heart rate. Measure your heart rate in the morning when you first wake up and as you progress in your fitness program you will notice that your resting heart rate is getting lower and lower. This occurs for three reasons, you're increasing the percentage of your lungs vital capacity that you use, which means your utilizing oxygen more efficiently at a cellular level, also it means that the hearts stroke volume is increasing, increasing the rate at which oxygen can be delivered at the cellular level. It also means that your basal metabolic rate is increasing meaning that at the cellular level the body has become more efficient at using oxygen and simple sugars to produce ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate) which is the cells molecular fuel.

As I said previously, as you become more fit, your resting heart rate will lower. When I was at my top form when I was racing, mine was as low as 40 bpm. A good measure for a normal person is between 60 and 70 bpm and for a casual fitness enthusiast 50 is a good number to shoot for. One of the advantages of tracking your resting heart rate is that if you notice a sudden increase in your resting heart rate, it's ussually an indicator you've over done it the day before and that the body needs rest to recover. That's good feed back on pacing your self and not over doing it.

I wouldn't get bogged down about any one particular type of exercise. It really boils down to what floats your boat and what works for you. What you enjoy doing. But as I said early, take the time to lear about the fundamentals of exercise physiology, nutrition and biomechanics. If you have a fundamentally sound and basic working knowledge of these three, you'll do just fine in what ever fitness program you choose.
 
Southern Man said:
I've yet to see anyone suggest how to keep from getting bored out of your mind while keeping in shape. The only way I know how to do that is to participate in active sports. For me, its skiing my ass off during the winter. It's a sport I love and my work-outs during the remainder of the year are geared towards getting better at it. In the past year I've gained 10# and its all in my thighs and butt; as my wife says "the skiing muscles". I also substitute off-season workouts with other competitive sports that I like, even if I'm not as competitive, like ultimate, racquetball, biking and tennis. I've always sucked at distance running even though I have the physique for it so I do wind sprints instead for cardio workouts. When I can't do a sports activity for a workout I make sure I have my mp3 player at the very least.
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This is may be the last time you hear me say this. I agree with you 100%. That's is just soooooooo critical to any successful fitness program. Being active and doing things that you find are fun. I put my bike on a stationary trainer in the winters and it boors me to tears inside of 15 minutes, but get me out on the road with some curves and hills and I'm having a blast and can go for hours. Mixing it up, keeping things fresh and having fun doing it. That sure is key!
 
uscitizen said:
If you guys actually did any real work....
Paying at a gym to sweat and not making money off of your exeretions. How conservative is that?
Click to expand...

LOL I know what you mean. My father in-law is a farmer. He's 70 years old and he's in better shape then most 30 years old. When I talk about working out he ussually has some smart ass comment along the lines of "Why don't you try working?" LOL
 
Mottleydude said:
How would you know? You're just a wet behind the ears kid.
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Cool, you just go on appologizing for USC while he methodically trashes everything good about life from sports and fitness to pro-social behavior in general.

Thankfully, your preceeding four or five posts were excellent, and I'm impressed with your body of knowledge about fitness.
 
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