February 1st to May 1st Transformation Motivation Thread.

[Asguroth]

Quick update - I seem to have caught the cold that's been going around, but I'm not letting it get me down. I'm excited because tonight I have the first training session I signed up for a few days ago. I can't wait to see what's in store. !

Soup! Eat it! Tea! Drink it!

Lol. Over the weekend I felt like a cold was coming on so I was able to nip it in the but by loading up on hot foods and liquids.Drank mint tea and made myself chicken soup with vegetables. The next day felt so much better no sore throat and no urge to cough. I also had a lot of oranges mostly to hit intake but because they tasted so good and oranges are great when you have a cold. Good luck with your session.

[Striation]

So I screwed up hard for 2 days so I am fasting to get back on track. Shooting for an average of a 1k deficit. 30 hours fasted so far. Seeing how long I can go. I tweaked something in my right front delt doing flat bench yesterday. It seems to happen to me often and every time I do it I swear off flat benching with a barbell for a while, lol. Always come back to it. I hope this doesn't take me too long to heal. Pressing downwards doesn't hurt so when I bench again I may stick to decline.

[loseitall90210]

chest, triceps, and 4 miles today...

no days off since jan. 20th...

[Frontman44]

Well week 1 following All Pro's with a workout partner is now complete.

Down side, my damn right shoulder is starting to give me problems again...think I may have done something to the RC. Gonna call the Doc's office and try to get my physical appointment moved up a couple weeks and tell her about it. We'll see what happens.

[Asguroth]

Are you guys making sure when you chest press you are doing it with proper form? I was watching a video of a guy pressing and he was saying how important it is to position arms and place where you lower arms so that you are using the majority of your chest to drive the bar up. If you are feeling sore or pain in your shoulder that probably means that you are using more of your shoulder muscle while bench pressing.

[MEwooding]

I actually had a great workout last night. Did deadlifts - sumo and regular (5 sets of 5 each) and then did some accessory upper body stuff, seated dumbbell press, triceps press, bent over barbell rows, and did about 15 min of cardio - 10 on the rowing machine and 5 with the heavy bag.

To answer the question about what kind of workout I do - honestly I have been making it up as I go along, focusing on the bigger / compound lifts since about may. I started back in march of 2013 with Jamie Eason's live fit trainer - and enjoyed it through month 2. However in month 3 she mixes hiit with lifting (not on alternating days or anything, she has you do "active rests" so when you rest between sets you're doing burpees or some sh*t and not actually getting rest) I felt like that was really compromising my lifts so that was when I quit. Personally I have hit PR's in the last month that I've been cutting, but I'm not cutting at a dramatic rate, and preserving muscle is a big priority for me since it's been hard earned. From what I've read as long as you're getting enough protein you shouldn't have to worry too much about losing muscle while cutting. (others can correct me if I'm wrong here.)

Asguroth: can you post that video? I'd be interested in seeing what technique he's talking about. Always looking for ways to improve my puny bench numbers :P and also not give myself any nasty tears.

[morrikj777]

My rice/whey isolate/casein 20lb brotein bag should be here today! Yay!

Good times, good times.

Regarding my lifts and if they're increasing on a cut... yes, they are going up. However, I can attribute most of that to muscle memory and the fact I have quite a bit of fat to lose. I'm probably going through noobie gain 101 again, but shouldn't last as long as the first round of weight loss that I did back in 2011. My mind is in full acceptance mode that all compound lifts will eventually plateau.

Also, my weight lifting seems to be more explosive ever since my workout routine went from right after work to before work in the early morning (4:00am'ish).

[captainquarters]

you guys find you are able to make any gains on your compounds during the cut? Or are you just trying to keep your losses to a minimum?

yeah ive been able to go up in a couple lifts.

any idea of the macros on chicken wings? they are already cooked, they were baked as well. cant find a reliable source.

[morrikj777]

yeah ive been able to go up in a couple lifts.

any idea of the macros on chicken wings? they are already cooked, they were baked as well. cant find a reliable source.

4oz serving is about 220 calories (0c/17f/17p).

[kureransu]

I want to make sure i'm not crazy..

I get about 17.5 hours of exercise in currently per week

I've not had a rest week since september.

I sleep 8 hours, and i'm still tired all day.

It takes me almost 6 days to recover from doms.

It also takes me a bit longer to recover from my soccer injuries, which are generally minor.

I have not lost a single lb in 6 weeks, despite having a 2000 calorie diet.

what's wrong with me?

[loseitall90210]

I want to make sure i'm not crazy..

I get about 17.5 hours of exercise in currently per week

I've not had a rest week since september.

I sleep 8 hours, and i'm still tired all day.

It takes me almost 6 days to recover from doms.

It also takes me a bit longer to recover from my soccer injuries, which are generally minor.

I have not lost a single lb in 6 weeks, despite having a 2000 calorie diet.

what's wrong with me?

puzzled...

perhaps it's your calorie deficit and wasn't counting right...

[outofmyhead]

I want to make sure i'm not crazy..

I get about 17.5 hours of exercise in currently per week

I've not had a rest week since september.

I sleep 8 hours, and i'm still tired all day.

It takes me almost 6 days to recover from doms.

It also takes me a bit longer to recover from my soccer injuries, which are generally minor.

I have not lost a single lb in 6 weeks, despite having a 2000 calorie diet.

what's wrong with me?

18 hours of training a week and ur on 2k cals ? If i were you id consult a doctor you are overtraining and borderline starving, cut that 18 to 6 with a proper program up your calories and youll see progress

[Asguroth]

I actually had a great workout last night. Did deadlifts - sumo and regular (5 sets of 5 each) and then did some accessory upper body stuff, seated dumbbell press, triceps press, bent over barbell rows, and did about 15 min of cardio - 10 on the rowing machine and 5 with the heavy bag.

Nice job. 10 sets of deadlift. Are you superwomen?

Asguroth: can you post that video? I'd be interested in seeing what technique he's talking about. Always looking for ways to improve my puny bench numbers :P and also not give myself any nasty tears.

This guy think explains it fairly well, not that long of video but many out there. Plus with this guy you can see how he postures his back.

[captainquarters]

4oz serving is about 220 calories (0c/17f/17p).

thanks man.

cutting is easy when im in class for the semester. So busy, dont think about food.

[kureransu]

18 hours of training a week and ur on 2k cals ? If i were you id consult a doctor you are overtraining and borderline starving

I didn't even realize i was doing that much exercise. I calculated it today. I never really counted my soccer games as part of my workouts. I've ben following this trainer, and doing the 45-50 min of cardio a day. I'm cutting out all the cardio from the routine and going to 2500-3000 cals

[kureransu]

18 hours of training a week and ur on 2k cals ? If i were you id consult a doctor you are overtraining and borderline starving, cut that 18 to 6 with a proper program up your calories and youll see progress

lol I have a proper program. I just play soccer. a lot.

don't know why i thought it was 2 different quotes. LOL

[Asguroth]

I want to make sure i'm not crazy..

I get about 17.5 hours of exercise in currently per week

I've not had a rest week since september.

I sleep 8 hours, and i'm still tired all day.

It takes me almost 6 days to recover from doms.

It also takes me a bit longer to recover from my soccer injuries, which are generally minor.

I have not lost a single lb in 6 weeks, despite having a 2000 calorie diet.

what's wrong with me?

If you have been doing that since September damn props. Though its likely that you are overtraining... and I am not a fan of thinking of the idea of overtraining since I am averaging 14-16 hours of exercise a week, but I relax for the rest of the day and stretch for like 10-15 min. If your noticing that your recovery rate has diminished then your body isnt able to keep up with your current activity only think your overtraining or your body hasnt had a good day to recover. I think a week of light weights at the gym will help, or a week off from the gym to let you fully recover and you will be good to go.

Not only that but I think you might need to increase your calories. 2000 calories given your activity and your muscle mass I would think you would lose 1lb a week at 2500-3000 . I would estimate your TDEE at maybe 3-4k off of my head.

[kureransu]

If you have been doing that since September damn props. Though its likely that you are overtraining... and I am not a fan of thinking of the idea of overtraining since I am averaging 14-16 hours of exercise a week, but I relax for the rest of the day and stretch for like 10-15 min. If your noticing that your recovery rate has diminished then your body isnt able to keep up with your current activity only think your overtraining or your body hasnt had a good day to recover. I think a week of light weights at the gym will help, or a week off from the gym to let you fully recover and you will be good to go.

Not only that but I think you might need to increase your calories. 2000 calories given your activity and your muscle mass I would think you would lose 1lb a week at 2500-3000 . I would estimate your TDEE at maybe 3-4k off of my head.

Well that's the thing, Over training is the last thing i think about because i do so much all the time. In the warmer months i play soccer and tennis. Between thee two i probably play 6 times a week. So i never thought about it. I think what did was the fact that I'm only playing soccer 2 nights a week, but i'm playing 2 games a day. The straw is the trainer i'm following is very, very intense, and it calls for 45 min of cardio a day. So, all that combined plus lack of rest pushed me over the edge. The calorie count dropped because i thought i may be eating a bit too much so i was cutting back 100 every week for change, and nothing. when i got to 2000 and only lost .6 lbs i decided to actually check my activity level and here we are.

I did when i cut last summer i had no problem, but the rotuine was doing was a lot less intense. So i think i need to take the K.I.S.S. route if i'm going to go that hard on soccer. I'm cutting out ALL cardio on the routine and lightening the weight up a bit the next couple weeks. I may just go down to 2 games a week. as well. I only posted to make sure i wasn't being silly. I always think i'm not hardcore enough to over train, so i never consider it something to worry about.

In other news, I just took a 3lb salmon out the oven..... Good eats a comin!

[live4gs]

This week has been a mix of emotions. Wife bday Saturday then out of town on Sunday. Came to see Wife's favorite aunt & uncle on Sunday. He is bed ridden with Alzheimer's. So we came to just help our aunt in any way possible. Bad part is she cooks like my mom. Too much and so good Mexican food! I brought shoes and and a few sweats but the weather is too cold & wet! Just got to do what I can do.

[morrikj777]

Soccer? Oh, you mean football.

Also, over-training is difficult to accomplish. I'm a firm believer the only ones that can possibly over-train are elite athletes or IFBB body builders. It's an over generalization and even those types of people know when to slow down. Just listen to your body.

[morrikj777]

This week has been a mix of emotions. Wife bday Saturday then out of town on Sunday. Came to see Wife's favorite aunt & uncle on Sunday. He is bed ridden with Alzheimer's. So we came to just help our aunt in any way possible. Bad part is she cooks like my mom. Too much and so good Mexican food! I brought shoes and and a few sweats but the weather is too cold & wet! Just got to do what I can do.

Ain't nothing to it, but to do it!

Get back to your routine when you can and then all will be well.

[Asguroth]

The straw is the trainer i'm following is very, very intense, and it calls for 45 min of cardio a day. So, all that combined plus lack of rest pushed me over the edge.

No offense but maybe shouldn't listen to that trainer lol. The best thing to do is listen to your body. You said you have been feeling sore from DOMS. Make sure you are stretching out, use a foam roller if your gym has one. Also just curious do you know what body fat % you are at? When you get close to single digits I read from many people on this forum you need to be cautious in regards to how fast you lose weight so you don't lose any of you muscle mass.

Also have you ever tried HIIT? Rather than just doing flat 45min do 15 min of cardio consisting of your running pace for 15-30 secs then jogging pace for 30-60 sec. You switch back and forth in the 15min and you probably will get a better calorie burn then running 45min.

[modpeach]

This thread is moving FAST! Good morning everyone.

My college had a delayed start today because of a "weather advisory" AKA rain + 35 degree weather. We Texans aren't the biggest fans of cold weather.

[kureransu]

No offense but maybe shouldn't listen to that trainer lol. The best thing to do is listen to your body. You said you have been feeling sore from DOMS. Make sure you are stretching out, use a foam roller if your gym has one. Also just curious do you know what body fat % you are at? When you get close to single digits I read from many people on this forum you need to be cautious in regards to how fast you lose weight so you don't lose any of you muscle mass.

Also have you ever tried HIIT? Rather than just doing flat 45min do 15 min of cardio consisting of your running pace for 15-30 secs then jogging pace for 30-60 sec. You switch back and forth in the 15min and you probably will get a better calorie burn then running 45min.

oh no it's not a personal trainer. it's one of the routines here on the site lol. Also i break the cardio up into 2 sessions. I know what HIIT is, i just don't care to do it. I play soccer and tennis. That;s enough HIIT for me. I have a foam roller at home and it gets it's use, as well as soaking in the tub with Epsom salt.

What's crazy is despite all this i'm still amped to do everything. I'm excited to hit the gym, always looking forward to the next soccer game, and loathe cardio like everyone else lol. I honestly just think i miscalculated. I was looking at it from the the you're eating too much, and not from the maybe you're doing a bit too much for what your intake is. I was really posting to verify that i may be a tad bit over trained. I too believe only the top of the top over train, so i didn't think it would be possible for me to. But my body is saying otherwise, so i'm going to take care of it accordingly.

I have no idea what by bf% is. I assume it's in the teens. probably like 17-19%? no idea honesty. Perhaps i'm too much of a critic of myself and i push a bit much. but my body has always handled it and paid back in spades. I'm just not recovering like i usually do and it's driving me mad. well the lack of weight loss too, but it'll all be handled. Like i said this process is all about failure. Now that i know where i failed, i can make adjustments to get on the good foot!

[celtic723]

No offense but maybe shouldn't listen to that trainer lol. The best thing to do is listen to your body. You said you have been feeling sore from DOMS. Make sure you are stretching out, use a foam roller if your gym has one. Also just curious do you know what body fat % you are at? When you get close to single digits I read from many people on this forum you need to be cautious in regards to how fast you lose weight so you don't lose any of you muscle mass.

Also have you ever tried HIIT? Rather than just doing flat 45min do 15 min of cardio consisting of your running pace for 15-30 secs then jogging pace for 30-60 sec. You switch back and forth in the 15min and you probably will get a better calorie burn then running 45min.

HIIT is definitely NOT something I recommend kure does.

It makes recovery even more difficult, and that being a problem already only exacerbates things.

If he's going to run that much he should try and knock 10 minutes off his cardio sessions.

You'd be amazed what 10 minutes less each cardio session does for improving recovery times.

[morrikj777]

This thread is moving FAST! Good morning everyone.

My college had a delayed start today because of a "weather advisory" AKA rain + 35 degree weather. We Texans aren't the biggest fans of cold weather.

During winter, I like to call Texas... Drunk Texas. The weather swings are so huge that's it's like watching a drunk person walk down the street swaying from left to right only to crash and fall over constantly.

It would be difficult for me to deal with that. I've been desert-ized by living in Phoenix for the past 13 or so years. Just hot and more hot, all the time.

[DystopianConan]

My window where my computer is looks onto my road (built up UK area) so I always see whenever a car or van stops near my house because of the noise etc. Since I have been waiting for a parcel the last few days no fewer than 6 courier vans have stopped within 4 houses of mine and not once has it been for me. Why has life forsaken me

[Nulllogik]

I asked a few pages back what routines y'all are on to maintain strength while cutting. One dude said PPL. that's the only response, so I am asking again. Share that knowledge!

Im doing (and have done) a 4 day split M (shoulders/calves/abs),T (back/bi), R (chest/tri), F (legs). Any other day I may do some LISS cardio. Eventually ill add LISS after every workout and each weekend morning.

[jayte]

Maintaining strength seems really difficult. I was stronger around 195 lbs , 20 lbs down and my bench has dropped by the same amount. I am also only able to do say five pullups at a time when they should be easier with less weight.

Feels bad man

I did look at that video discussing bench technique and it definitely apples. .. I don't use chest enough. Will do some light sets today to try and work on it.

I think it might be time to get a trainer to show me how to actually do these exercises. Has a trainer been useful to you guys?

Apologies for not posting much but I am following closely!

[Obispal]

AllPro week 4 heavy day in the bag, Felt a lot easier then last weeks light day, today has been a great day for me.

I am about to have about 5 weeks off from work, I think I will have to up my cardio while I am not going to work to make up for not walking to work/working 5 days a week, or perhaps just try and walk to places instead of driving while I am off.