B.S Exercise Physiology. ask me your training questions

[tank2003]

Bulging at l4/l5 and l5/s1. I had the do deadlifts and strengthen the core, if it doesn’t come right see me in three months talk with surgeon. I ended up having prolo therapy (injections of dexstrose into and around the discs as well as damaged ligaments between the lower back and glute on the right hand side. The idea is it causes more scar tissue to grow around those areas and stabilise them).

20 months on I’m almost certain I should have opted for the surgery because I’m not entirely 100% despite countless hours spent rehabbing and strengthening and $$$$ spent.

I’m happy enough with deadlifts to forego RDLs. At the moment I’m just squatting and deadlifting to get my strength back. Is that adequate for the hamstrings? Roughly 2:1 ratio of squats to dead’s.

I’m also keen for ideas on abdominal exercises. I’ve seen athleans one with the engaging the glutes and hamstrings to inhibit hip flexor crunch but have found it to aggravate the back. At the moment I alternate between reverse crunches on a dip station and Swiss ball ab rollouts every training session.

SON OF A BITCH!!!!!! I just spent 15 minutes typing out a reply and the cot damn forum gave me a "404 not found" when i submitted it.....

Anyway...avoid surgery if you can. I had an l5/s1 discectomy and it fixed the disc issue, but it left scar tissue on my sciatic nerve so now i have nerve damage down my left leg. Cant remove it because its not severe enough and surgery always results in more scar tissue.

Did you watch Athlean x's video on disc issue fixes without surgery?



My advice to you for abs/core work is to try focusing on abs from the "legs" rather than from the upper body. The abs basically perform a "pinching" motion. Usually, when it comes to muscles, they are most movable where they insert and dont move at all where they originate. In the case of the abs, they originate on the pubis and insert on the xyphoid process (very bottom of the sternum) and the cartilage of the ribs but thats not really relevant here. So in the case of say, the ab wheel, people are just unaware of the function of the abs. They may feel some contractions there, but they also let the thighs and the glutes do most of the work rather than letting the abs pinch which results in the arms and thighs coming together (you need to arch your back a little too though).

That wasnt a "from the leg" exercise for the abs though. I was scared to death to do those after my surgery, but when i relaxed my thighs and glutes, it didnt bother my athrtitis or sciatica at all. The idea of "from the legs" exercises is to raise your pelvis up at least 45 degrees, because the pelvis is where the abdominus rectus originates. If you want to FULLY engage the abs, you HAVE to move it. If you, say for example, sit in the captains chair and do knee/leg raises where you only bend at the waist, then you are pretty much only working hip flexors.

This exercise is very similar to knee/leg raises. Hang from an overhead bar (when you hang from anything, the core in general engages to steady you so you get a little extra bang). Now you are just going to do either knee or leg raises but you are going to raise your pelvis 45 degrees. If that is too easy, then try to touch your heels to the bar you are hanging on. Be sure not to let gravity dictate how fast your legs come down though

Lie down on your back arms by your side (palms down). Raise your legs up perpendicular to your body. Now raise your feet to the sky (bringing your pelvis off the floor). Slowly lower your legs. If its too hard,it might be easier if you lie down near something solid (like a power rack or something) so you can hold onto it (hands over your head. i can think of a more clear way to explain that right now. I hope you get it)

[2RDEYE]

hey tank do you know what factors increases sweating? i never sweated before the concussion, but nowadays my amount of sweating differs significantly and I sweat a LOT. like after 10 minutes on the stairmaster my shirt and forehead are completely soaked, like dripping wet. i actually change shirts midworkout because i get so sweaty. it's becoming an annoyance.

[tank2003]

hey tank do you know what factors increases sweating? i never sweated before the concussion, but nowadays my amount of sweating differs significantly and I sweat a LOT. like after 10 minutes on the stairmaster my shirt and forehead are completely soaked, like dripping wet. i actually change shirts midworkout because i get so sweaty. it's becoming an annoyance.

do you monitor your heart rate? caffeine intake? do you drink green tea (or tea in general)? Green tea has EGCg in it (it's a compound called a catechin) that, among other functions like antioxidization and inhibition of free radicalization, it raises your core body temperature so you end up burning more calories. EGCg is also found in cranberries, strawberries, blackberries, kiwis, cherries, pears, peaches, apples, and avocados. Nuts: pecans, pistachios, and hazelnuts. Catechins are found in red wine, broad beans, black grapes, apricots and strawberries. Also, epicatechin concentrations are high in apples, blackberries, broad beans, cherries, black grapes, pears, raspberries, and chocolate.

Stress iin general effects heart rate, which can effect your sweat response. It's not a stress to assume that your TBI has caused damage to a part of your brain/CNS that influences thermoregulation

Edit: Found this

Sweating Disorders after Traumatic Brain injury are common with multifactorial causes; lesions of the cerebral hemisphere, hypothalamus, and pons have been thought to be involved in the phenomenon of hyperhidrosis. Unilateral hyperhidrosis contralateral to lesions after TBI is observed infrequently. The available data is inconclusive on the exact origin, the pathways involved and prognosis of the patient.

[2RDEYE]

do you monitor your heart rate? caffeine intake? do you drink green tea (or tea in general)? Green tea has EGCg in it (it's a compound called a catechin) that, among other functions like antioxidization and inhibition of free radicalization, it raises your core body temperature so you end up burning more calories. EGCg is also found in cranberries, strawberries, blackberries, kiwis, cherries, pears, peaches, apples, and avocados. Nuts: pecans, pistachios, and hazelnuts. Catechins are found in red wine, broad beans, black grapes, apricots and strawberries. Also, epicatechin concentrations are high in apples, blackberries, broad beans, cherries, black grapes, pears, raspberries, and chocolate.

Stress iin general effects heart rate, which can effect your sweat response. It's not a stress to assume that your TBI has caused damage to a part of your brain/CNS that influences thermoregulation

Edit: Found this

**** that doesn't sound good lol.

strange enough i am taking a **** ton of EGCG........ lol

i take 500mg of the green tea extract every morning with my coffee. i don't monitor heart rate or caffeine. but i do only take a tablespoon of instant coffee every morning and that's it. i think it may be the green tea extract. but i'm also taking grape seed extract, 2 tablespoons of cacao powder in my coffee, and blueberry extract in the morning, plus beetroot powder.

i think that may be the major factor of why i'm sweating, though the concussion seems like it plays a huge role too. but hyperhidrosis seems to be a consistent thing while my excessive sweating happens only in the gym. hopefully i don't have hyperhidrosis

i'll try switching my supplements to after my workout tomorrow.

[tank2003]

**** that doesn't sound good lol.

strange enough i am taking a **** ton of EGCG........ lol

i take 500mg of the green tea extract every morning with my coffee. i don't monitor heart rate or caffeine. but i do only take a tablespoon of instant coffee every morning and that's it. i think it may be the green tea extract. but i'm also taking grape seed extract, 2 tablespoons of cacao powder in my coffee, and blueberry extract in the morning, plus beetroot powder.

i think that may be the major factor of why i'm sweating, though the concussion seems like it plays a huge role too. but hyperhidrosis seems to be a consistent thing while my excessive sweating happens only in the gym. hopefully i don't have hyperhidrosis

i'll try switching my supplements to after my workout tomorrow.

i would imagine if you had hyperhrdrosis, you'd be hitting up the threads where miscers are desperate to stop their pit sweating or considering botox injections in their axillary glands. lol.

why do you take egcg? You trying to drop weight? I started keto on sept 6 and have dropped 30ish lbs. I ordered some thermo green tea (now brand) off amazon to try it out. The first 2 days, i would take it on an empty stomach and watch youtube videos for a while and it made me puke. Well...dry heave. Now i make sure to eat somethign right after. I'm seriously kicking myself now for the way i dropped weight for the army in 2009 and 2010. I dropped 60 lbs to make wieght for Army OCS. I pretty much just did long distance running. COMPLETELY disregarded all my schooling and barely did any resistance/weight training because my recruiter just said "your only concern is making weight" (because in the military, if you are above their BMI, they use this retarded tape method where they measure your neck and waist then put it in a formula with your age and it spits out a final "body fat percentage").Anyway, long story short, i got skinny fat. But i was still pretty strong.

Now i'm hovering at 250 lbs, but i'm still losing inches. My arthritis is still brutal, but the nerve pain (sciatica) isnt nearly as bad. My strength is about as strong as ive ever been. My highest bench press was 465, but i dont really BP much at all now so i cant really compare. But on pretty much all lifts, I do 15 reps. The keto diet and low reps just does not mix well because ketone bodies dont result in much oxygen production int he mitochondria. Higher reps are much better. I will say though, my legs work is progressing well. I finished my last leg press workout with 612 for 20 reps (3 sets). Highest ive ever gone because the gym i use to lift at doesnt have a traditional leg press machine. Just a ridiculous machine contraption that needs to have the guide rods oiled nearly every day

[2RDEYE]

i would imagine if you had hyperhrdrosis, you'd be hitting up the threads where miscers are desperate to stop their pit sweating or considering botox injections in their axillary glands. lol.

why do you take egcg? You trying to drop weight? I started keto on sept 6 and have dropped 30ish lbs. I ordered some thermo green tea (now brand) off amazon to try it out. The first 2 days, i would take it on an empty stomach and watch youtube videos for a while and it made me puke. Well...dry heave. Now i make sure to eat somethign right after. I'm seriously kicking myself now for the way i dropped weight for the army in 2009 and 2010. I dropped 60 lbs to make wieght for Army OCS. I pretty much just did long distance running. COMPLETELY disregarded all my schooling and barely did any resistance/weight training because my recruiter just said "your only concern is making weight" (because in the military, if you are above their BMI, they use this retarded tape method where they measure your neck and waist then put it in a formula with your age and it spits out a final "body fat percentage").Anyway, long story short, i got skinny fat. But i was still pretty strong.

Now i'm hovering at 250 lbs, but i'm still losing inches. My arthritis is still brutal, but the nerve pain (sciatica) isnt nearly as bad. My strength is about as strong as ive ever been. My highest bench press was 465, but i dont really BP much at all now so i cant really compare. But on pretty much all lifts, I do 15 reps. The keto diet and low reps just does not mix well because ketone bodies dont result in much oxygen production int he mitochondria. Higher reps are much better. I will say though, my legs work is progressing well. I finished my last leg press workout with 612 for 20 reps (3 sets). Highest ive ever gone because the gym i use to lift at doesnt have a traditional leg press machine. Just a ridiculous machine contraption that needs to have the guide rods oiled nearly every day

i'm actually just taking egcg for the brain benefits lol. but the stuff it does with fat is a huge benefit as well cause i gained so much weight in fat cause of this stupid **** i'm going through. i went from like abs in may-june, and then july-now i'm like super pudgy. my belly and love handles grew so fast. i don't want to cut though i don't think it would be good for concussion recovery. i'm like burning excess calories through cardio though so i can still take in as much nutrients as possible. i'm doing an intense hour of cardio 6 days a week a long with an hour of lifting 6 days a week.

[AutistTrigger]

Your thoughts on rack pulls?

[tank2003]

Your thoughts on rack pulls?

They dont really accomplish anything since you are going through such a limited ROM and that is counter intuitive of the entire idea of the premise of exercising in the first place. Just pick it up off the floor

[SH1Franco]

When testing maximal aerobic capacity (VO2peak/VO2max), how long a time period should be averaged?

After completing a thorough intense test, one will achieve high oxygen consumption. As a result, the maximum average should last 60 seconds or shorter? The unit we use is liters per minute or we divide absolute values ​​by body mass, but we still express it as minutes per minute.

[tank2003]

When testing maximal aerobic capacity (VO2peak/VO2max), how long a time period should be averaged?

After completing a thorough intense test, one will achieve high oxygen consumption. As a result, the maximum average should last 60 seconds or shorter? The unit we use is liters per minute or we divide absolute values ​​by body mass, but we still express it as minutes per minute.

did you recently cover the basics of VO2 max in class and feel the need to ask me in my own thread just to let me know that you are aware of VO2 max and anaerobic/aerobic thresholds?

[2RDEYE]

want to shorten the time of my workouts, i can't help but think more sets = more growth. is there a way to get the same growth but less sets. like i always do 5 sets of everything, but now i'm getting bored lol is it okay to just take off a set and shorten my rest times or increase the amount of reps?

[tank2003]

want to shorten the time of my workouts, i can't help but think more sets = more growth. is there a way to get the same growth but less sets. like i always do 5 sets of everything, but now i'm getting bored lol is it okay to just take off a set and shorten my rest times or increase the amount of reps?

That is one way to illicit some growth. There are tons of ways to do so.
-Eccentric Loading (negatives): Load up more weight than you can concentrically handle (requires a spotter on the big compound lifts and some ISO lifts) and SLOWLY lower the weight through the eccentric phase. Then do whatever you need to do to get the weight back up and repeat. You do the neuromuscular damage (the good kind of damage) during the eccentric phase which forces the body to repair it bigger and better than before
-Concentric failure: select a high enough weight to where you WILL fail at 10-12 reps
-Isometric failure: This is where you are contractign the muscle, but there is no change in the angle of a joint. Ex: Standing Cable Bicep ISO hold. Set up the cable pulleys at about shoulder height (use the cables that are directly across from each other not the ones that are REALLY close together. not sure what setup those are called though To reach the ones i'm referring to, your arms will be held out like you are on a cross. You need this to be shoulder height so you can engage the long head of the bicep along with the short head. Load up about 85% of what you think your max is, and then curl the load and hold where you elbows are at about 90 degrees. Keep that position until failure. Obviously, this tactic isnt ideal for ALL exercises (like BP or squat because of the likliehood you'll drop the weights on your face or injure your back)
-Drop sets: Choose a weight where you normally would and go until failure. Then IMMEDIATELY drop down in weight and go to failure. Then IMMEDIATELY drop down in weight and go to failure. I'd do MAYBE 4 sets of this if its your first time because its pretty intense and you dont want to over do it on your first day. This is more suited for stubborn groups like the arms but can be used for BP and squats and whatnot. You just need a spotter there for safety. The limiting factor for this tactic is your tolerance for pain (this will burn your chit up like you've never experienced before. If it DOESNT burn, then you need to work on your mind-muscle connection
-(Not sure what to call these so i'll just call them...) Drop set Alternates: Kind of tough to explain so i'll just use an example
Ex: Bicep curls
-Start doing Bilateral (both arms at the same time) DB Curls (go to failure then immediately...)
-Move to Alternating DB curls (you'll be hella surprised at how you think you are spent doing bilateral curls but can still crank out more reps when you switch to alternating. Once you hit failure, move to...
-Drag curls: Sort of like a cheat curl except you add flexion at the elbow. Allow your elbow to drift back some when you curl. Your ROM will be GREATLY reduced, but you'll still be using your biceps some. It will essentially be looking like you are dragging the DBs up your side
(You can always mix cheat curls in there, but make sure they are at the end and you are doing them right. Only use cheat curls as minimally as possible to get the weight up. Dont cheat any more than you have to)
-Occlusion Curls/Band Curls: Arnold used these. He literally tied a rope around his biceps (where the delts met the biceps) to block the flow of venus blood from leaving the biceps. It forces a specific metabolic response that triggers growth. You dont HAVE to have a rope though. You can just do a curl, and stop about 80% of the way up and hold it there for about 5 seconds then release and repeat. Dont stop too high because the pull of gravity lessens the higher you go (unless you are using a cable/tension band)
-Pyramid Sets: Work your way up or down in weight and reps on any exercise. Mix it up even more by mixing up your weight:reps ratio too. Meaning dont just linearly go up in weight and reps. Make the jump to HEAVY weight, but decrease your reps and then drop back down to lower weight and increase rep volume
-Time Under Tension: Time your reps to where the eccentric phase lasts 3 seconds and the concentric phase lasts 1 second. If you can stretch your set out to at least 45 seconds, then you've just maximized Time under tension
-Pre-Fatigue: Work your biceps before you work your Back. Work your triceps before you work your Chest/Deltoids. ISO your thighs before doing squats/Deads/leg press
-Add Bands to your regular regimen: When you add bands, you add increasing tension with each rep. Russia, i believe pioneered this technique with BP and Squats. You HAVE to develop power with band training because the longer your limbs, the more tension the band creates
-Increase Frequency: Target a muscle group 2x per week. Just make sure you macros are on point, you are resting enough and your soreness is gone by the time you hit that group the 2nd day

[2RDEYE]

That is one way to illicit some growth. There are tons of ways to do so.
-Eccentric Loading (negatives): Load up more weight than you can concentrically handle (requires a spotter on the big compound lifts and some ISO lifts) and SLOWLY lower the weight through the eccentric phase. Then do whatever you need to do to get the weight back up and repeat. You do the neuromuscular damage (the good kind of damage) during the eccentric phase which forces the body to repair it bigger and better than before
-Concentric failure: select a high enough weight to where you WILL fail at 10-12 reps
-Isometric failure: This is where you are contractign the muscle, but there is no change in the angle of a joint. Ex: Standing Cable Bicep ISO hold. Set up the cable pulleys at about shoulder height (use the cables that are directly across from each other not the ones that are REALLY close together. not sure what setup those are called though To reach the ones i'm referring to, your arms will be held out like you are on a cross. You need this to be shoulder height so you can engage the long head of the bicep along with the short head. Load up about 85% of what you think your max is, and then curl the load and hold where you elbows are at about 90 degrees. Keep that position until failure. Obviously, this tactic isnt ideal for ALL exercises (like BP or squat because of the likliehood you'll drop the weights on your face or injure your back)
-Drop sets: Choose a weight where you normally would and go until failure. Then IMMEDIATELY drop down in weight and go to failure. Then IMMEDIATELY drop down in weight and go to failure. I'd do MAYBE 4 sets of this if its your first time because its pretty intense and you dont want to over do it on your first day. This is more suited for stubborn groups like the arms but can be used for BP and squats and whatnot. You just need a spotter there for safety. The limiting factor for this tactic is your tolerance for pain (this will burn your chit up like you've never experienced before. If it DOESNT burn, then you need to work on your mind-muscle connection
-(Not sure what to call these so i'll just call them...) Drop set Alternates: Kind of tough to explain so i'll just use an example
Ex: Bicep curls
-Start doing Bilateral (both arms at the same time) DB Curls (go to failure then immediately...)
-Move to Alternating DB curls (you'll be hella surprised at how you think you are spent doing bilateral curls but can still crank out more reps when you switch to alternating. Once you hit failure, move to...
-Drag curls: Sort of like a cheat curl except you add flexion at the elbow. Allow your elbow to drift back some when you curl. Your ROM will be GREATLY reduced, but you'll still be using your biceps some. It will essentially be looking like you are dragging the DBs up your side
(You can always mix cheat curls in there, but make sure they are at the end and you are doing them right. Only use cheat curls as minimally as possible to get the weight up. Dont cheat any more than you have to)
-Occlusion Curls/Band Curls: Arnold used these. He literally tied a rope around his biceps (where the delts met the biceps) to block the flow of venus blood from leaving the biceps. It forces a specific metabolic response that triggers growth. You dont HAVE to have a rope though. You can just do a curl, and stop about 80% of the way up and hold it there for about 5 seconds then release and repeat. Dont stop too high because the pull of gravity lessens the higher you go (unless you are using a cable/tension band)
-Pyramid Sets: Work your way up or down in weight and reps on any exercise. Mix it up even more by mixing up your weight:reps ratio too. Meaning dont just linearly go up in weight and reps. Make the jump to HEAVY weight, but decrease your reps and then drop back down to lower weight and increase rep volume
-Time Under Tension: Time your reps to where the eccentric phase lasts 3 seconds and the concentric phase lasts 1 second. If you can stretch your set out to at least 45 seconds, then you've just maximized Time under tension
-Pre-Fatigue: Work your biceps before you work your Back. Work your triceps before you work your Chest/Deltoids. ISO your thighs before doing squats/Deads/leg press
-Add Bands to your regular regimen: When you add bands, you add increasing tension with each rep. Russia, i believe pioneered this technique with BP and Squats. You HAVE to develop power with band training because the longer your limbs, the more tension the band creates
-Increase Frequency: Target a muscle group 2x per week. Just make sure you macros are on point, you are resting enough and your soreness is gone by the time you hit that group the 2nd day

does it all increase muscle growth equally or is there a certain technique that would be better? i'm guessing it's all the same

pre-fatigue sounds pretty sick. might do that for back days.

[tank2003]

does it all increase muscle growth equally or is there a certain technique that would be better? i'm guessing it's all the same

pre-fatigue sounds pretty sick. might do that for back days.

Well, what REALLY determines hypertrophy is Time Under Tension. But that is assuming that you are doing everything correctly: Getting adequate nutrients, resting enough and especially doing the exercise CORRECTLY and getting a GOOD contraction of the muscle

Watch this video and it will give you some really good info



the pre-fatigue is a pretty radical technique. I would recommend that you reduce your loads when you do your compound/big lifts for the first few workouts until you establish normal numbers. The few times i tried to do this, I told myself i was going to try the same weights i would on a normal workout and i ended up with HORRIBLE form and muscle strains. So just take the precaution to keep good form

[ScramFranklin]

Props for keeping this thread alive. I haven't been working out much lately because I was doing a heavy volume program before.. and after a few months, my "inner elbow" started hurting on standing barbell overhead press. Like the part of my elbow you would see if I was flexing my bicep at you. It only hurt on the negative portion of the lift, right when I got to about my eye/nose and below. Even with light weights. I took a month back and it still was a problem.

A shame because it's my favorite lift.

[tank2003]

Props for keeping this thread alive. I haven't been working out much lately because I was doing a heavy volume program before.. and after a few months, my "inner elbow" started hurting on standing barbell overhead press. Like the part of my elbow you would see if I was flexing my bicep at you. It only hurt on the negative portion of the lift, right when I got to about my eye/nose and below. Even with light weights. I took a month back and it still was a problem.

A shame because it's my favorite lift.

It's called Golfer's Elbow. Specifically, a doctor would diagnose it as Medial Epicondylitis






I use to arm wrestle with friends a TON and this use to bother me a bunch

[ScramFranklin]

It's called Golfer's Elbow. Specifically, a doctor would diagnose it as Medial Epicondylitis






I use to arm wrestle with friends a TON and this use to bother me a bunch

Dude thank you. I haven't even lifted in a while, but it still hurts when I use my phone a lot or sleep with my arm bent. Your'e a lifesaver. Repped.

[tank2003]

Dude thank you. I haven't even lifted in a while, but it still hurts when I use my phone a lot or sleep with my arm bent. Your'e a lifesaver. Repped.

Another thing to try and look out for is flexing your wrist when you dont really need to. Like Jeff mentioned in one of the videos (when doing pull ups) we tend to flex the wrist for a little extra umph when strength is lacking a bit. Me and my buddy use to arm wrestle a TON and his default form is with the wrist flex as far as possible. Same with his curling. Wrist is always curled at the top of the motion.

[2RDEYE]

u know much about cardio tank? i usually do an hour of cardio after an hour of weightlifting everyday, i kind of want to do more but not sure if it'll affect my muscles, like am i breaking muscle, or am i still running on glucose. i want to try burning calories purely through cardio, i don't think dieting would be beneficial for me with my concussion, but i am getting a little squishier than i'd like

[tank2003]

u know much about cardio tank? i usually do an hour of cardio after an hour of weightlifting everyday, i kind of want to do more but not sure if it'll affect my muscles, like am i breaking muscle, or am i still running on glucose. i want to try burning calories purely through cardio, i don't think dieting would be beneficial for me with my concussion, but i am getting a little squishier than i'd like

I'm guessing you are doing LISS (Low Intensity Steady State) cardio? Have you ever tried HIIT (short periods of HIGH intensity bursts followed by intervals of low intensity rest). In the army we did this (1 min sprints with 2 min walks. REALLY helped my 2 mile run time but it works best when you REALLY give it your all and go balls to the wall. Anything less and you ar cheating yourself). Here is a study I found from McMasters University in Canada

High intensity workouts are good for muscles and for memory: McMaster study

3 groups (control, group who did 45 min LISS, group who did 9 min HITT: 20 sec sprint and 2 min low intensity/rest repeat 3 more times). What they found was:
1. The control group's cardio health didnt change (of course)
2 The 45 min LISS group's cardio health was the exact same as the HIIT group's despite the HIIT groups doing MUCH less time

Because of my back problems (sciatica), i can only do cardio on the elliptical and can only manage 12-20 min before the pain is too much and stuff goes numb. But i alternate between HIIT and LISS. Our bodies WILL adapt to regular stimulus so its good to change it up. LISS is useful though because if you do it long enough (15 min or longer for people in good shape), your body will switch to burning fat as the primary energy source. But it takes weeks and weeks of LISS to get your body into doing this because it certainly doesnt want to burn fat as fuel. It REALLY helps if you are in ketosis though

[2RDEYE]

I'm guessing you are doing LISS (Low Intensity Steady State) cardio? Have you ever tried HIIT (short periods of HIGH intensity bursts followed by intervals of low intensity rest). In the army we did this (1 min sprints with 2 min walks. REALLY helped my 2 mile run time but it works best when you REALLY give it your all and go balls to the wall. Anything less and you ar cheating yourself). Here is a study I found from McMasters University in Canada

High intensity workouts are good for muscles and for memory: McMaster study

3 groups (control, group who did 45 min LISS, group who did 9 min HITT: 20 sec sprint and 2 min low intensity/rest repeat 3 more times). What they found was:
1. The control group's cardio health didnt change (of course)
2 The 45 min LISS group's cardio health was the exact same as the HIIT group's despite the HIIT groups doing MUCH less time

Because of my back problems (sciatica), i can only do cardio on the elliptical and can only manage 12-20 min before the pain is too much and stuff goes numb. But i alternate between HIIT and LISS. Our bodies WILL adapt to regular stimulus so its good to change it up. LISS is useful though because if you do it long enough (15 min or longer for people in good shape), your body will switch to burning fat as the primary energy source. But it takes weeks and weeks of LISS to get your body into doing this because it certainly doesnt want to burn fat as fuel. It REALLY helps if you are in ketosis though

i kind of do both. i do 30 minutes HIIT on stairmaster, and then i do 30 minutes incline walking. but it's not enough for me. i kind of want to do more. like 40 minutes on stairmaster and then 40 minutes of incline walking, just worried it might end up eating my muscle.

[tank2003]

i kind of do both. i do 30 minutes HIIT on stairmaster, and then i do 30 minutes incline walking. but it's not enough for me. i kind of want to do more. like 40 minutes on stairmaster and then 40 minutes of incline walking, just worried it might end up eating my muscle.

Have you ever tried a HIIT circuit with free weights or otherwise (battle ropes, jump ropes, burpees, bear crawls, Sprints (HELLA GOOD for kcal burning. Highest HIIT you can do besides swimming?

[jesusxchrist]

Do you know what a hard and painless bump below the kneecap (pretty much on the tibial tuberosity I think) could be? It feels as if I hit my leg really hard against it but I haven’t. The only thing I can think of is that I’ve been training legs these past two weeks now that I have more free time on my hands, so maybe it’s just inflammation of the tendon from over exertion since I almost never used to hit legs?

[2RDEYE]

hey tank is there any way you could really overdevelop one obliques compared to the other? i added weight sidebends to my routine to see if I could harden up or build my obliques, but i'm worried one side of my torso might look so jacked up compared to the other.

[tank2003]

Do you know what a hard and painless bump below the kneecap (pretty much on the tibial tuberosity I think) could be? It feels as if I hit my leg really hard against it but I haven’t. The only thing I can think of is that I’ve been training legs these past two weeks now that I have more free time on my hands, so maybe it’s just inflammation of the tendon from over exertion since I almost never used to hit legs?

my first thought is "cyst" but i'm not at all sure that they arent painless

hey tank is there any way you could really overdevelop one obliques compared to the other? i added weight sidebends to my routine to see if I could harden up or build my obliques, but i'm worried one side of my torso might look so jacked up compared to the other.

its always possible to overdevelop muscles on one side. But you need to identify WHY one side is getting more stimulus.
EX: Say youve been working hard to get some hypertrophy on your triceps (via push downs) and one is growing more than the others. One cause could be that one shoulder is more rounded than the other (common problem these days with people being addicted to video games, cell phones and computers not to mention having weak back muscles and stronger chest/shoulder muscles) so instead of retracting the scapulae properly and THEN doing the push downs, the user takes some of the focus OFF the tricep and puts it on different muscle groups, allowing one tricep to grow better than the other.

Another possible reason is a weak mind muscle connection. The obliques arent muscles that we cant "flex" wildly on command (like we can the pectorals or the biceps) so our mind muscle connection to them is likely pretty substandard. Training them is probably helping that but could still use some targetting

[2RDEYE]

its always possible to overdevelop muscles on one side. But you need to identify WHY one side is getting more stimulus.
EX: Say youve been working hard o get some hypertrophy on your triceps (via push downs) and one is growing more than the others. One cause could be that one shoulder is more rounded than the other (common problem these days with people being addicted to video games, cell phones and computers not to mention having weak back muscles and stronger chest/shoulder muscles) so instead of retracting the scapulae properly and THEN doing the push downs, the user takes some of the focus OFF the tricep and puts it on different muscle groups, allowing one tricep to grow better than the other.

Another possible reason is a weak mind muscle connection. The obliques arent muscles that we cant "flex" wildly on command (like we can the pectorals or the biceps) so our mind muscle connection to them is likely pretty substandard. Training them is probably helping that but could still use some targetting

ah seems too complicated for obliques. it's not really like my biceps that i can see

[tank2003]

ah seems too complicated for obliques. it's not really like my biceps that i can see

well, yeah. i was just using biceps and shouldering "rounding" as an example of favoring as a means of effecting developing differently. I mean, it doesnt seem quite as likely that the obliques will have a huge discrepancy in size but to say that its impossible is just untrue

[TheDukeUSMC]

What is your opinion of Starting Strength?

[tank2003]

What is your opinion of Starting Strength?

Dont know a thing about other than it's Ripptoe's creation. But ive never had any issue with any of his approaches so i'm sure its absolutely fine

[2RDEYE]

how come i'm the only one in the gym making faces when i lift am i just working 100x harder than everyone