Fitness General: Diet, Motivation, Body Positivity, and Memes

[StormEagle]

So, I wasn't really sure where to put this thread, so I defaulted to the politics subforum.

I was just curious to know what the various Sietch members here did for their physical health. I've been on my own fitness journey for three years now, and I was kinda wanting some new ideas for what to work into my workout plan or diet that might help me out.

For context, I started dieting and exercising when I hit three-hundred and sixty pounds. My knees hurt all the damned time, I couldn't bend over properly, and my breathing became labored with even the simplest form of physical exertion. This was largely due to my work environment at the time, and my own galling lack of self control.

Working overnight at a gas station filled with sweets and energy drinks does not a healthy diet make.

I quit that job around the same time I decided to start changing my diet and exercising. I went to work for one of the big "health food" grocery stores and started in a simple cardio program combined with a bodybuilder style split training.

I have, in the three years since this started, dropped down to two-hundred and seventy pounds, though in recent months, due to several birthdays and a vacation where I was around friends, I have climbed back up to the three hundred pound range. I hope to be back down to two-hundred and ninety before the year is done, and hopefully two-hundred and fifty by the end of next year.

My workout program is also about to change soon. Where before I was largely doing bodybuilder split work, I've become much more concerned about overall strength and conditioning. I have also done enough research, and enough exercises, that I think I can take a crack at designing my own personalized program.

My diet is largely just a calorie restriction, though I have cut out a few foods entirely. Namely soda and any and all fast food. I need to find a way to add more vegetables to my diet, though I've never found many that I actually like.

Onto the body positivity movement.

Oh boy. I'm going to try to keep this...not nice but not completely negative. The body positivity movement started from good intentions. No one should be made to feel lesser than others because they are overweight or have other health issues that make them less attractive in the conventional sense. However, there is a very real difference between making someone feel bad for their weight, and enabling a very serious issue.

Obesity is a problem. It leads into so many other health issues its unbelievable. It increases the chances of cancer for one, is one of the hallmarks of diabetes, and the strain it puts on your heart and blood vessels can lead to very bad outcomes very quickly. No one should be encouraged to stay obese, if they are at all capable of making the change, and I find the social media people that encourage this....disquieting at the very least.

There is a difference between saying "Hey, fatass! Do some situps!" and "Hey, Rachel! You want to come to the gym with me?" One is bullying, the other is not, and the body positive movement needs to learn the difference instead of meeting even the mildest of criticism or concern for an obese person with overwhelming hatred.

Also, if anyone even cares about this thread, feel free to post any gym motivation videos you find, or anything positive in general that inspires you towards fitness.

That brings this rambling opener to an end. Thanks guys.

 

[Bear Ribs]

Primarily yoga. I got my start from Hittleman's 28 day program and continued from there rotating a set of routines one per each day.

I supplement this with an evening walk of about 45 minutes.

 

[StormEagle]

Primarily yoga. I got my start from Hittleman's 28 day program and continued from there rotating a set of routines one per each day.

I supplement this with an evening walk of about 45 minutes.

I've been thinking about adding some yoga or some form of mobility training into my program. Something light on my days off from resistance training to limber everything up. Do you have any other programs you would recommend?

 

[Bear Ribs]

Eh, I only know the one that worked for me. I wouldn't feel comfortable recommending a program I couldn't complete myself.

 

[Deleted member]

My main exercise is a traditional Russian sword dance called the flankirovka which I perform with a shashka, though I also do some normal dancing in addition to it, and use an exercise bike; I walk around the town square as well. I try to get 30 minutes of intense exercise a day, and in addition to that, I soak in my hottub, set very high (107 degrees F) for a wet heat like that--because many studies have shown that hot sweat bathing immediately after exercise basically extends the caloric burn and workout to the cardiovascular system in a very positive way. At the same time, I rehydrate with mineral water or something else simple like that. For diet I have just put myself in the habit of eating a green salad at least 5 of 7 days a week, and I try for all 7, and to keep my overall fiber intake high; I also keep two of three meals overall to not more than 500 kcals. To me, the uniqueness and challenge of the flankirovka helps keep exercise interesting, so that I actually want to do it.

The arm strength you get from the flankirovka also helps me to work a 130lb draw lever-action crossbow with easy, smooth motions, which is a nice bonus I hadn't expected, as there were no obvious signs of it. Once you start, fitness creeps up on you just like a lack of fitness does.

 

[prinCZess]

Used to have a physically-active job that helped me out a lot--though even then I still had to supplement it with cardio and strength-training for more results and because I am a hopeless sucker for food--and breaking that bad habit for food has been the roughest this year as I adjust. First part of the year getting out of my active-job and becoming much more chair-bound as I finish up some schooling and the gyms closing because of the coughing business combined with restaurants I could go to for something healthy and 'Hey...fast-food tacos are delicious' reasoning on my part has been a series of sucker-punches that walloped me with the 'Covid-15' like nothing else. I should probably be thankful it hasn't been worse (I say, as we head into the two big food holidays for the US and I daydream of more waistline-horrors like cranberry sauce, stuffing and pie).

Getting back on the horse thanks to gyms getting back up, though and a modest resurgence of my lacking willpower. Lead a dance-class at my sister's gym/dance-studio three times a week and assist in her classes the other two weekdays, and I'm getting out on a little bit of hiking and cross-country thanks to hunting season in my spare time that has me back to my pre-Covid weight. I had managed to reach a bench-press max of 100 lbs. that I'd been off-and-on chasing since High School, but last I tried to replicate it I couldn't. So picking up weights again for something more than the occasional brief morning sessions I've been doing them might be in the cards.

As @Tyanna of Pentos alludes to, I think keeping the exercise interesting and something your brain has to engage a bit in is important. While it's easy to set on a treadmill listening to music or a podcast for [x] minutes and zone-out (something I'm plenty guilty of on plenty of occasions), I think you lose something and its very easy to lose interest because it 'feels' like you're doing nothing over time. Dance keeps me interested, and I think gives some additional motivation to push myself and work hard at the time since I know that if I fudge something I'll be popping onto my hind-end or faceplanting and that's a considerably worse result for my pain-averse self than being out of breath

On diet, avoiding pop & beer and that whole scene of sugar/carb-loaded drinks has been the biggest one I've followed for the longest time with most consistency--and honestly the one I've had least trouble with after getting into it. Coffee, tea, water (sparkling, mineral, or tap ) and the odd Diet Coke or caffeine-loaded chemical-concoction of an energy drink, or a hard liquor if I want something alcoholic, has always seemed easy to maintain. Even when I fell-down into fast-food, it was easy to order tea or water with the stuff for the slight decrease in calorie-count that means (even if that's definitely not the most financially efficient decision considering they charge you the same for water as for pop ).

Spinach & Spring-mix salads are the only vague suggestion I can make on the vegetable front. Doctored up with whatever other things you think to add, you can shadow the disappointment in pepper and some cheese, or, if you're inclined, Sriracha/hot-sauce as a dressing that's not as terrible-for-you as most dressings. That last one has been my only real 'secret' for years and has been solid enough for me to use such a salad for a whole meal...But I also really like vinegar and spicey taste, so...

As to body-positivity...I'd echo the opening's sentiments. A noble idea in the right context, but easily and somewhat-widely warped into something much more excusatory and victimizing of people who very much hold the capacity to correct unhealthy issues they have and should do that--for their own bodily health and, frankly, mental and spiritual self-conception and self-image of themselves. The one famous pop-star whose been vocal on this while being very obese the one 'personality' that comes to mind on the topic.

 

[Zachowon]

So being military keeping in shape is not difficult but expanding and improving generally is. I started going to the gym every weekend (Mainly because a friend was coming to visit and she made me feel lower because her bf went to the gym during the week, and I do PT so I decided to do extra on weekends) with a few exceptions here and there to explore Korea as well as relax after killer work weeks.

My Gym workouts are split into the three days (Fri, Sat, Sun) with extended weekends being every day as well for a work out.
I often do Chest/back/cor on Fri, Legs on Sat, and Arms on Sun. I use various machines and do resp of 25 for 4 sets. The weight increases around every 2 or 3 weeks.

Every now and then I do cardio on my own when not having PT, and my PT has been a workout in and of itself. Look up the Pre RASP PT and that will tell you what I have been doing every day for awhile now.

I have gained weight but in muscle not fat, and I often only eat once maybe twice a day. Breakfast and dinner or just dinner. often a footlong from subway and that is about it for dinner.

As for body positivity....

Let me put it this way, if you think health problems are healthy you have mental issues as well. Trying to encourage in a nice way for someone to lose weight is great, but if they do not seek it there isn't much one can do

 

[StormEagle]

My main exercise is a traditional Russian sword dance called the flankirovka which I perform with a shashka, though I also do some normal dancing in addition to it, and use an exercise bike; I walk around the town square as well. I try to get 30 minutes of intense exercise a day, and in addition to that, I soak in my hottub, set very high (107 degrees F) for a wet heat like that--because many studies have shown that hot sweat bathing immediately after exercise basically extends the caloric burn and workout to the cardiovascular system in a very positive way. At the same time, I rehydrate with mineral water or something else simple like that. For diet I have just put myself in the habit of eating a green salad at least 5 of 7 days a week, and I try for all 7, and to keep my overall fiber intake high; I also keep two of three meals overall to not more than 500 kcals. To me, the uniqueness and challenge of the flankirovka helps keep exercise interesting, so that I actually want to do it.

The arm strength you get from the flankirovka also helps me to work a 130lb draw lever-action crossbow with easy, smooth motions, which is a nice bonus I hadn't expected, as there were no obvious signs of it. Once you start, fitness creeps up on you just like a lack of fitness does.

That sounds interesting. I wonder if that could be adapted to use with an indian club or clubbell. I've been considering getting one to aid my overall shoulder health and improve my lateral strength and core stability. Traditional resistance training is great and all, but it doesn't exactly cover all the bases. I've also been trying to throw in more unilateral and asymmetrical movements to try and buff out any muscle imbalances and, in the case of unilateral leg exercises, just work on my balance in general.

Used to have a physically-active job that helped me out a lot--though even then I still had to supplement it with cardio and strength-training for more results and because I am a hopeless sucker for food--and breaking that bad habit for food has been the roughest this year as I adjust. First part of the year getting out of my active-job and becoming much more chair-bound as I finish up some schooling and the gyms closing because of the coughing business combined with restaurants I could go to for something healthy and 'Hey...fast-food tacos are delicious' reasoning on my part has been a series of sucker-punches that walloped me with the 'Covid-15' like nothing else. I should probably be thankful it hasn't been worse (I say, as we head into the two big food holidays for the US and I daydream of more waistline-horrors like cranberry sauce, stuffing and pie).

Getting back on the horse thanks to gyms getting back up, though and a modest resurgence of my lacking willpower. Lead a dance-class at my sister's gym/dance-studio three times a week and assist in her classes the other two weekdays, and I'm getting out on a little bit of hiking and cross-country thanks to hunting season in my spare time that has me back to my pre-Covid weight. I had managed to reach a bench-press max of 100 lbs. that I'd been off-and-on chasing since High School, but last I tried to replicate it I couldn't. So picking up weights again for something more than the occasional brief morning sessions I've been doing them might be in the cards.

As @Tyanna of Pentos alludes to, I think keeping the exercise interesting and something your brain has to engage a bit in is important. While it's easy to set on a treadmill listening to music or a podcast for [x] minutes and zone-out (something I'm plenty guilty of on plenty of occasions), I think you lose something and its very easy to lose interest because it 'feels' like you're doing nothing over time. Dance keeps me interested, and I think gives some additional motivation to push myself and work hard at the time since I know that if I fudge something I'll be popping onto my hind-end or faceplanting and that's a considerably worse result for my pain-averse self than being out of breath

On diet, avoiding pop & beer and that whole scene of sugar/carb-loaded drinks has been the biggest one I've followed for the longest time with most consistency--and honestly the one I've had least trouble with after getting into it. Coffee, tea, water (sparkling, mineral, or tap ) and the odd Diet Coke or caffeine-loaded chemical-concoction of an energy drink, or a hard liquor if I want something alcoholic, has always seemed easy to maintain. Even when I fell-down into fast-food, it was easy to order tea or water with the stuff for the slight decrease in calorie-count that means (even if that's definitely not the most financially efficient decision considering they charge you the same for water as for pop ).

Spinach & Spring-mix salads are the only vague suggestion I can make on the vegetable front. Doctored up with whatever other things you think to add, you can shadow the disappointment in pepper and some cheese, or, if you're inclined, Sriracha/hot-sauce as a dressing that's not as terrible-for-you as most dressings. That last one has been my only real 'secret' for years and has been solid enough for me to use such a salad for a whole meal...But I also really like vinegar and spicey taste, so...

As to body-positivity...I'd echo the opening's sentiments. A noble idea in the right context, but easily and somewhat-widely warped into something much more excusatory and victimizing of people who very much hold the capacity to correct unhealthy issues they have and should do that--for their own bodily health and, frankly, mental and spiritual self-conception and self-image of themselves. The one famous pop-star whose been vocal on this while being very obese the one 'personality' that comes to mind on the topic.

Not much of a dancer unfortunately. Wasn't so much born with two left feet, as I was born with two flippers and the balance of a drunken elephant. Suffice to say, not a good combination for dancing.

I might try the spinach. Never really cared for spring mixes. Maybe throw in some form of chopped chicken or steak for the protein load, and go with that hot sauce suggestion. I can't stand Sriracha, but maybe some form of low calorie buffalo sauce would work out.

So being military keeping in shape is not difficult but expanding and improving generally is. I started going to the gym every weekend (Mainly because a friend was coming to visit and she made me feel lower because her bf went to the gym during the week, and I do PT so I decided to do extra on weekends) with a few exceptions here and there to explore Korea as well as relax after killer work weeks.

My Gym workouts are split into the three days (Fri, Sat, Sun) with extended weekends being every day as well for a work out.
I often do Chest/back/cor on Fri, Legs on Sat, and Arms on Sun. I use various machines and do resp of 25 for 4 sets. The weight increases around every 2 or 3 weeks.

Every now and then I do cardio on my own when not having PT, and my PT has been a workout in and of itself. Look up the Pre RASP PT and that will tell you what I have been doing every day for awhile now.

I have gained weight but in muscle not fat, and I often only eat once maybe twice a day. Breakfast and dinner or just dinner. often a footlong from subway and that is about it for dinner.

As for body positivity....

Let me put it this way, if you think health problems are healthy you have mental issues as well. Trying to encourage in a nice way for someone to lose weight is great, but if they do not seek it there isn't much one can do

I usually go six days a week, but might be cutting that back to five and making the other three at home stretching workouts instead. I haven't decided yet. I'm thinking my next few weeks are going to be a dedicated pull/push/legs program, but I'm not fully committed to the idea yet.

 

[Deleted member]

I am not sure about clubs but @StormEagle you can buy a practice shashka made out of beech wood on ebay for like $40.00 with good balance. The real sword was only $700.00, made by some Georgian guy (of the Caucasus variety).

 

[Zachowon]

That sounds interesting. I wonder if that could be adapted to use with an indian club or clubbell. I've been considering getting one to aid my overall shoulder health and improve my lateral strength and core stability. Traditional resistance training is great and all, but it doesn't exactly cover all the bases. I've also been trying to throw in more unilateral and asymmetrical movements to try and buff out any muscle imbalances and, in the case of unilateral leg exercises, just work on my balance in general.



Not much of a dancer unfortunately. Wasn't so much born with two left feet, as I was born with two flippers and the balance of a drunken elephant. Suffice to say, not a good combination for dancing.

I might try the spinach. Never really cared for spring mixes. Maybe throw in some form of chopped chicken or steak for the protein load, and go with that hot sauce suggestion. I can't stand Sriracha, but maybe some form of low calorie buffalo sauce would work out.



I usually go six days a week, but might be cutting that back to five and making the other three at home stretching workouts instead. I haven't decided yet. I'm thinking my next few weeks are going to be a dedicated pull/push/legs program, but I'm not fully committed to the idea yet.

I plan on doing more but being in Korea and COVID kinda limits what I am capable kf learning. Would love to get into Army combatives which is a workout in and if itself.

 

[Abhorsen]

I've been losing weights on the following amazing diet:
I stopped using steriods (medical ones, not the ones that make you stronger). I've consistently been losing weight for avbout three straight months, and lost a total of about 15 pounds, and plan on continuing that.

Now how do I keep on this strategy? First, by not buying junk food. I just don't have any in my house, and ask that people don't give me any. Too keep up willpower while in a store, I get my groceries delivered. I have a consistent, slightly varied diet that consistently runs me at a caloric deficit despite my mostly sedentary lifestyle. I also make sure to walk to work to get at least some exercise in.

 

[Deleted member]

That sounds interesting. I wonder if that could be adapted to use with an indian club or clubbell. I've been considering getting one to aid my overall shoulder health and improve my lateral strength and core stability. Traditional resistance training is great and all, but it doesn't exactly cover all the bases. I've also been trying to throw in more unilateral and asymmetrical movements to try and buff out any muscle imbalances and, in the case of unilateral leg exercises, just work on my balance in general.

As you see, it's a sport for both men and women, but it's best to start with wooden practice swords...

 

[Zachowon]

As you see, it's a sport for both men and women, but it's best to start with wooden practice swords...

If I am going to get into something involving swords it will be either making them, HEMA, or join the IMCF and fight full contact armor fighting.
Because your fancy blade techniques are nice and all, but I like some weight behind my blows (I am 5 10 and 165lbs so..I don't hit that hard, I like weight over speed.)

 

[Rocinante]

I lift a lot, I run during spring/summer/fall and do HIIT workouts.

Until I got injured, I was working out 5 mornings a week and walks/runs on weekends.

Lately been recovering from lumbar sprain/bulging disc. Pretty much recovered from that. Three PT sessions left.

I've lost 80 pounds. 40 of it from carnivore and keto diets, the rest just from watching what I eat. Though there has been a lot of ups and downs through eating habits, experiments and injuries. I've done different elimination diets as experiments, to help diagnose some issues. Lost a lot of weight on them, but usually put some (but not all,) back on after stopping.

Things are going pretty good. I want to lose 30 more pounds and I'll look really muscular and cut.

 

[KilroywasNOTHere]

Personally i've always had a facination for sumo wrestling and kickboxing, but I doubt I could do either due to my lack of mobility.

 

[Spartan303]

Primarily yoga. I got my start from Hittleman's 28 day program and continued from there rotating a set of routines one per each day.

I supplement this with an evening walk of about 45 minutes.

How has that been working for you?

 

[Zachowon]

Personally i've always had a facination for sumo wrestling and kickboxing, but I doubt I could do either due to my lack of mobility.

I will get into kickboxing if my next unit doesnt do combatives

 

[KilroywasNOTHere]

I will get into kickboxing if my next unit doesn't do combative

any ideas for someone with a lack of mobility?

 

[Zachowon]

any ideas for someone with a lack of mobility?

What do you lack in mobility? I am not the most mobile or agile, but enough to work

 

[KilroywasNOTHere]

What do you lack in mobility? I am not the most mobile or agile, but enough to work

wheelchair bound.