The get fit, stay fit thread

[Aufc]

Guy at my gym wraps chains round his shoulders and just fires through pull-ups, no fair. I can do about 6 or 7 narrow and like you about 2 wide!

You can probably lift more than me on most compound lifts but i can rattle through 12 wide grip pull ups relatively easily. Can also do weighted ones (smaller number of reps). Funny old game

[Dons_1988]

12 minutes ago, MixuFixit said:

Got any tips? I try to consciously engage my lats to do most of the work but they tire out really quickly. I was considering doing something like small numbers of quite heavy lat pulldowns to get more strength in them.

I'm doing similar on lat pulldowns but one of the guys working at the gym basically told me to just do pull ups every time I go to the gym, regardless of what I'm exercising.

Got a bar at home now so just going to work on it every day.

[Aufc]

Got any tips? I try to consciously engage my lats to do most of the work but they tire out really quickly. I was considering doing something like small numbers of quite heavy lat pulldowns to get more strength in them.

Yeah lat pull downs work the same muscle. I do about 70-80kg lat pull down for sets of 10. Dont lean back as some people do. Also practise pulls ups with your palms facing each other as that should be easier. Then do chin ups whereby palms are facing you. Once you master these then you should manage the wide grip. Can also try eccentric pulls ups where you jump to the top position and lower yourself down slowly

[Muzza81]

14 hours ago, ICTChris said:

I am a member of a budget gym (Xercise4Less) and pay £15 a month.  I used to pay £60 a month for Nuffeidl but packed it in because I hardly went.  The Livingston Xercise4Less has better facilities for barbell lifting than Nuffield did - more proper squat racks with deadlift platforms and additional squat racks without platforms.  

I do miss having a sauna but I'm not paying £60 a month to have a swim and sauna every couple of weeks.

What Nuffield? I go to the one at the Omni and it is great. Full cost is £51 a month, which includes a corporate discount, and my work pay half on top of that.

Sadly moving to Pure at Quartermile soon due to a change in location, wont be near as good.

[die hard doonhamer]

4 hours ago, Dons_1988 said:

Anyone got any 2020 goals? I'm toning down exercise over Xmas then going hard again in January. By end of march I want to get to:

Squats - 120kg (currently 100)

Deadlift - 100kg (Currently 80)

Master pull ups 

Bench 80 (currently 65)

Body fat down to 12% (Currently 15-16% and have been stuck there for ages)

My 2020 goal is to get myself in to decent shape by the start of the cricket season is April/May so that I can push in to my clubs second XI (currently a third XI player). Need to improve my cardio fitness as well as my upper body strength.

[Aufc]

Started doing some crossfit kinda workouts but without the shite crossfit chat. 40 mins constant workout. Excuse my absolutely rotten child-like writing. Some sweat

[Daydream]

Ah ok, I don’t have kids myself so can’t comment.

From what I see the facilities for kids are pretty good to be honest but obviously haven’t experienced it. Can’t hurt to get a tour to help make up your mind?

It’s the best gym in Dundee but is renowned for its high pricing. If you live in DD5 you either go there and pay the ~£70 per month or you do what I do and pay £199 for a whole year at Douglas. Stumigoo knows this [emoji14]

[Gaz]

Finished up for work yesterday for a fortnight so won't have access to dumbbells / cable machines, just my own barbell and weights. Hoping to be squatting 115kg, deadlifting 120+kg and benching 65+kg all for reps by the time I go back.

[ICTChris]

What Nuffield? I go to the one at the Omni and it is great. Full cost is £51 a month, which includes a corporate discount, and my work pay half on top of that.
Sadly moving to Pure at Quartermile soon due to a change in location, wont be near as good.

I was a member of the one in Fountainpark. It was good but too expensive to justify me keeping it.

It had four squat racks in the gym, two with deadlift platforms. The Xercise4Less gym has six, four with platforms.

I did like getting a semi decent coffee or some scrambled eggs after a workout though.

[Muzza81]

9 minutes ago, ICTChris said:

I was a member of the one in Fountainpark. It was good but too expensive to justify me keeping it.

It had four squat racks in the gym, two with deadlift platforms. The Xercise4Less gym has six, four with platforms.

I did like getting a semi decent coffee or some scrambled eggs after a workout though.

 

I was in that one this week, wasn’t impressed. Not enough free weight space and I got charged £1.50 for a towel! It’s the worst of the 3 in Edinburgh I think. 

[dorlomin]

Pull up tips, when hanging at the bottom try to pull your shoulder blades back, it is called the active hang so you get more of your back muscles than shoulder muscles doing the work.

Tense your abs to reduce energy leaks (you will swing around less)

Arch your back so that your chest is pointing towards the bar. This will maximize the lats.

Try to envision driving your elbows downwards.

When you have done as many as you can, do a negative only pullup. That is from the top allow yourself to drop down slowly and controlled, the eccentric phase of your muscle movement  is stronger than the concentric, that is elongating is stronger than shortening. (This is true for all muscles). So you can get more loading into your workout. 

[jagfox]

7 minutes ago, MixuFixit said:

 

Cracking tips. The abs thing in particular I need to do as swinging is a problem for me.

[D.A.F.C]

Pull up tips, when hanging at the bottom try to pull your shoulder blades back, it is called the active hang so you get more of your back muscles than shoulder muscles doing the work.
Tense your abs to reduce energy leaks (you will swing around less)
Arch your back so that your chest is pointing towards the bar. This will maximize the lats.
Try to envision driving your elbows downwards.
When you have done as many as you can, do a negative only pullup. That is from the top allow yourself to drop down slowly and controlled, the eccentric phase of your muscle movement  is stronger than the concentric, that is elongating is stronger than shortening. (This is true for all muscles). So you can get more loading into your workout. 

Nice one, good advice.
Regarding doing more reps, I've done lateral pull downs and despite quite thin shoulders width wise I've built up to quite a heavy weight. Can do pretty much the entire stack of weights. Started pullups a month ago and can do about ten now after starting at three or four. Found just doing it almost every day helped but left shoulder started to ache a little but now ok.
The pullups seemed like a natural progression from the pull downs as sometimes I was almost pulling myself up off the seat.
Wish I'd started them years ago.

[Ralstonite]

On 20/12/2019 at 09:45, Suspect Device said:

Don't walk over any drains.

BMI of 16.1. That's very underweight.

 

Or you could be lying.

I could probably add a stone. I eat a whole food, plant based diet and do a lot of walking, plus I try to limit my fat intake as per Dean Ornish's recommendations. Reducing calorific intake is linked to longevity. 

[sugna]

On 21/12/2019 at 12:18, ICTChris said:

I did like getting a semi 

 

"Things Humph says about Samantha" thread for this pish.

[Torpar]

On 20/12/2019 at 04:03, Dons_1988 said:

Anyone got any 2020 goals? I'm toning down exercise over Xmas then going hard again in January. By end of march I want to get to:

Squats - 120kg (currently 100)

Deadlift - 100kg (Currently 80)

Master pull ups 

Bench 80 (currently 65)

Body fat down to 12% (Currently 15-16% and have been stuck there for ages)

My goal by the end of this year was to bench 250lbs (113kg), on Friday I benched 245lbs (111kg) and it felt pretty smooth. Attempted 250 and got stuck half way back up, it was also horribly lopsided.  The owner of the gym actually filmed it for me and talked to me afterwards about having a few sessions with one of the coaches (they don't seem to like the title of personal trainer) at the gym, so after resisting for years I'm going to book a few sessions in the new year. Then hoping to hit;

Squat - 275 lbs/125kg 1rm     225lb/102kg  5x3

Bench - 265 lbs/120kg 1rm   225lb/102kg  5x3

Deadlift - 325 lbs/147kg 1rm  275lb/125kg 5x1

[D.A.F.C]

[emoji38]

Merry fucking christmas

[Ross.]

Been a fat c**t the last few weeks, as is standard for the festive period. Wee trip back home now out the way and with her at the "Heavily pregnant" stage I fully expect my beer drinking to tank to new depths of low intake. Planning on 3 gym sessions a week, maintaining the weight regime but adding 45 minutes of real cardio back onto each session, rather than the 20 minute half arse cycle that has become a habit. Up to 85kg at the moment and want to get back below 80 for the start of April, without losing too much muscle. Definitely doable but I need to develop some very uncharacteristic discipline.

[Gaz]

On 20/12/2019 at 09:03, Dons_1988 said:

Anyone got any 2020 goals? I'm toning down exercise over Xmas then going hard again in January. By end of march I want to get to:

Squats - 120kg (currently 100)

Deadlift - 100kg (Currently 80)

Master pull ups 

Bench 80 (currently 65)

Body fat down to 12% (Currently 15-16% and have been stuck there for ages)

I've got about five weeks left of my winter bulk. By then I'm hoping to have my 1RM at 120kg squat, 140kg deadlift and 70kg bench. Downside to my winter bulk is my BF% will probably be near 20%

Then from the 3rd February I'll be starting a 16-week training routine for the Edinburgh Half Marathon. Aiming for under 1:40 - I got 1:40:42 in May. I'll still be lifting weights to maintain muscle mass but hoping by the time of the HM my BF% will be about 12%.

Then it'll be a long slow bulk over the summer and maybe more of a dirtier bulk leading into winter again. I think realistically if I stick to it I have a chance of a 1/2/3/4 by the end of 2020. My OHP is currently at 43.5kg for 3x5, squat is currently 107.5kg for 3x5, bench press 62.5kg for 3x5, deadlift 110kg for 1x5.

[Daydream]

I've got about five weeks left of my winter bulk. By then I'm hoping to have my 1RM at 120kg squat, 140kg deadlift and 70kg bench. Downside to my winter bulk is my BF% will probably be near 20%
Then from the 3rd February I'll be starting a 16-week training routine for the Edinburgh Half Marathon. Aiming for under 1:40 - I got 1:40:42 in May. I'll still be lifting weights to maintain muscle mass but hoping by the time of the HM my BF% will be about 12%.
Then it'll be a long slow bulk over the summer and maybe more of a dirtier bulk leading into winter again. I think realistically if I stick to it I have a chance of a 1/2/3/4 by the end of 2020. My OHP is currently at 43.5kg for 3x5, squat is currently 107.5kg for 3x5, bench press 62.5kg for 3x5, deadlift 110kg for 1x5.

Totally incongruous goals. Bulking for the 3 big lifts then cutting for endurance cardio. Good luck man [emoji1303]