Stay/get back in shape...Vol: Motivation

[i3]

Originally Posted by I3

Oh another.. what are you guys doing for recovery? I find that after EVERY leg day I can't walk/run the next.... I guess thats a good thing, but I want to speed up this recovery.

Also, when you have tournaments coming up do you continue with your normal routine or just do light cardo/weights?

Any ideas?

 

[mexclusive]

I3:

I use scivation xtend pre and post workout. I started using it about 2 weeksago and I feel less sore and im doing just about the same routine. I also do the cold/hot shower post and the day after.Another thing you might wanna try iscaffeine the day after. Im pretty sensitive to it so a cup of coffee in the morning does it for me.

Other than that i just suck it up even though at work I have to walk ALOT, most of the time im just moving side to sidelol

 

[verynecessary]

Originally Posted by I3

Originally Posted by I3

Oh another.. what are you guys doing for recovery? I find that after EVERY leg day I can't walk/run the next.... I guess thats a good thing, but I want to speed up this recovery.

Also, when you have tournaments coming up do you continue with your normal routine or just do light cardo/weights?

Any ideas?

i get the same thing after heavy leg days. sometimes i play bball the day afterwards. i have to fight through the soreness and tired feeling fora few minutes, and i don't have the explosiveness or quickness i normally do, but after a game or two my legs feel pretty mobile, and a lot less sore. afterwards, i stretch them out (a great feeling when they've got maximal blood flow going) and i'm good after that. it's somewhatcounterproductive for strength/mass gains to play all out though. i'll usually play 50 to 75% the speed i normally play.

also, the contrast showers seem to help me. try to aim the water to hit your legs, and use the hottest/coldest water you can take. if you have a hottub/jacuzzi and a pool that are close together, you can hop in one for 30 seconds and then the other one for 30 seconds, and repeat for a same effect, but moreintense.

nothing scientific here, but the sooner i had my post-workout protein/carbs, the less sore i was the days after i lifted. also, if you're willing to do alow volume leg workout (one or two work sets, fewer movements) the soreness and fatigue is kept to a minimum, and you can repeat legs sooner.

 

[jdb1523]

JDB1523 wrote:
A bit of a sticky situation here if someone can help me out: been doing a lot of cardio lately and I've had some occasional lock-ups and soreness in my knee. Today I got through 45 minutes (planned on doing an hour) and had to stop because of it. My dad is a surgeon and my mom is a nurse, and they both said to keep off it for a few days, which I obviously agree with. However, I do cardio every day no questions asked, so what I was wondering was what might be a good alternative workout since I'll be doing other things the next few days. I'm still going to lift, but I was wondering: should I do circuit training? core exercises? just a regular lifting routine? I'm obviously planning no cardio, no plyometrics, no jump rope, etc.

Thanks in advance guys, let's just hope my knee gets better quickly and I don't have to have fluid taken out or a bigger surgery.

"what kind of cardio do you normally do? there are all sorts of things that can cause knee problems. try self-myofascial release (foam rolling) on the outer part of your thigh to loosen up your IT band. many people's knee problems are due to this. you could also have a strength imbalance in your quads (stronger on one side of your thigh than the other) or between your quads and hamstrings. you'd have to do lifts to target the weaker muscles. also, if you do a lot of running, try chi running. even if you have the "best" running shoes for your stride, heel strike and weak feet/ankles can cause problems all the way up your legs, spine, back, and neck.

one more thing you might want to do is get your legs accurately measured by a doctor. even a difference of a 1/4" can be murder on your joints if do a lot of long distance type exercise.

in the meantime, you can do boxing like was mentioned, or complexes/circuit training with some light-weight squats. you can also do tabata protocol."



Ok thanks a lot. I had been doing 40-60 minutes of cardio, but cut it back to 35 with HIIT, and always on the stationary bike or the elliptical. I triedrunning about 2 weeks ago, not even at a fast pace, and my right knee literally just LOCKED UP, felt like a bear trap came down on it. I know you mentioned it,but I don't think I'll be doing squats. I'm probably going to see an orthopedic doctor regardless just to be safe, but I'll Google whatyou've mentioned to see what I can come up with. And how do I quote using Safari?

Still haven't figured that out. Edited w/Firefox...

 

[wj4]

Originally Posted by akf0dy7

Originally Posted by wj4

Originally Posted by akf0dy7

when doing cardio w/ fat loss in mind, what should i be aiming for as far as heart rate goes? i usually do 30 min cardio sessions and average a heart rate between 165-180.

How are you monitoring the heart rate? I personally don't bother to monitor my heart rate even though I now have the chest strap to do so, just to bothersome for me.

Look into HIIT if you wanna go this route. Your heart will be beating extremely fast from it and a session won't last more than 20 mins.

i use the heart rate sensors on the machines.

If you're talking about the handle bars, they're highly ineffective. I can go from 60-70 to 150-160 within a minute while not reallychanging pace.

 

[vancity74]

For those 9-5ers, what do you take with you to work? It's been a minute since I had an office job...

 

[keepzdasneakz]

I was just browsing the controlled labs site and I stumbled upon the trainer and his bio. It's pretty interesting because he tells you all of his trainingroutine and such too, as well as his own personal diet, in-depth.

Kane Sumabat

I'm gonna try and go for that higher-protein/fat, low-medium carb diet now.

 

[verynecessary]

Originally Posted by JDB1523

JDB1523 wrote:
A bit of a sticky situation here if someone can help me out: been doing a lot of cardio lately and I've had some occasional lock-ups and soreness in my knee. Today I got through 45 minutes (planned on doing an hour) and had to stop because of it. My dad is a surgeon and my mom is a nurse, and they both said to keep off it for a few days, which I obviously agree with. However, I do cardio every day no questions asked, so what I was wondering was what might be a good alternative workout since I'll be doing other things the next few days. I'm still going to lift, but I was wondering: should I do circuit training? core exercises? just a regular lifting routine? I'm obviously planning no cardio, no plyometrics, no jump rope, etc.

Thanks in advance guys, let's just hope my knee gets better quickly and I don't have to have fluid taken out or a bigger surgery.

"what kind of cardio do you normally do? there are all sorts of things that can cause knee problems. try self-myofascial release (foam rolling) on the outer part of your thigh to loosen up your IT band. many people's knee problems are due to this. you could also have a strength imbalance in your quads (stronger on one side of your thigh than the other) or between your quads and hamstrings. you'd have to do lifts to target the weaker muscles. also, if you do a lot of running, try chi running. even if you have the "best" running shoes for your stride, heel strike and weak feet/ankles can cause problems all the way up your legs, spine, back, and neck.

one more thing you might want to do is get your legs accurately measured by a doctor. even a difference of a 1/4" can be murder on your joints if do a lot of long distance type exercise.

in the meantime, you can do boxing like was mentioned, or complexes/circuit training with some light-weight squats. you can also do tabata protocol."



Ok thanks a lot. I had been doing 40-60 minutes of cardio, but cut it back to 35 with HIIT, and always on the stationary bike or the elliptical. I tried running about 2 weeks ago, not even at a fast pace, and my right knee literally just LOCKED UP, felt like a bear trap came down on it. I know you mentioned it, but I don't think I'll be doing squats. I'm probably going to see an orthopedic doctor regardless just to be safe, but I'll Google what you've mentioned to see what I can come up with. And how do I quote using Safari?

Still haven't figured that out. Edited w/Firefox...
yea, definitely let your orthopedist check that out. see if you can get measured too.

one thing about stationary bike is you're more prone to develop muscular imbalances, medially/laterally on the same thigh, and between your quads andhamstrings on the same side. elliptical is a little better, but it's still possible.

if you do HIIT, you should be done after 20 minutes. generally, you go for higher intensity, shorter rest for the greater cardio and fat loss effects. thisalso minimizes the time spend doing it.

 

[jdb1523]

^Thanks a lot verynecessary, you've definitely helped me out here.

 

[syxth element]

Originally Posted by Vancity74

For those 9-5ers, what do you take with you to work? It's been a minute since I had an office job...

I take my gym bag to work, leave it in the car. I have food in the cubicle area for preworkout.

 

[keepzdasneakz]

Hey guys, about how often should a beginner in HIIT do it per week? 3-4 times sound safe?

 

[verynecessary]

Originally Posted by JDB1523

^Thanks a lot verynecessary, you've definitely helped me out here.

np

Originally Posted by keepzdasneakz

Hey guys, about how often should a beginner in HIIT do it per week? 3-4 times sound safe?

since you're going for intensity, twice a week is plenty. if you're lifting also, more than two sessions of HIIT a week will more likelyslow your progress, and you might end up over training. if your conditioning is good, you could start of doing it twice a week, but if your conditioningisn't up to par, maybe once every 5-6 days would be better to start.

remember, HIIT is about intensity. keep your intervals short and intense, and your rest periods should be enough to almost catch your breath (at least whenyou start out). after a few sessions, your heart rate and breathing will recover a lot faster so then you can adjust your rest periods accordingly.

 

[i3]

Originally Posted by MEXclusive

I3:

I use scivation xtend pre and post workout. I started using it about 2 weeks ago and I feel less sore and im doing just about the same routine. I also do the cold/hot shower post and the day after.Another thing you might wanna try is caffeine the day after. Im pretty sensitive to it so a cup of coffee in the morning does it for me.

Other than that i just suck it up even though at work I have to walk ALOT, most of the time im just moving side to side lol

i get the same thing after heavy leg days. sometimes i play bball the day afterwards. i have to fight through the soreness and tired feeling for a few minutes, and i don't have the explosiveness or quickness i normally do, but after a game or two my legs feel pretty mobile, and a lot less sore. afterwards, i stretch them out (a great feeling when they've got maximal blood flow going) and i'm good after that. it's somewhat counterproductive for strength/mass gains to play all out though. i'll usually play 50 to 75% the speed i normally play.

also, the contrast showers seem to help me. try to aim the water to hit your legs, and use the hottest/coldest water you can take. if you have a hot tub/jacuzzi and a pool that are close together, you can hop in one for 30 seconds and then the other one for 30 seconds, and repeat for a same effect, but more intense.

nothing scientific here, but the sooner i had my post-workout protein/carbs, the less sore i was the days after i lifted. also, if you're willing to do a low volume leg workout (one or two work sets, fewer movements) the soreness and fatigue is kept to a minimum, and you can repeat legs sooner.


Cheers guys. I will give the shower thing a go, usually I just Sauna. I play ball the day after as well, and its quite intense so that training is reallydifficult - but I find after a few exercises the blood flow is there just enough to not make it painless. Perhaps I should up my carbs post-workout to around80g..

 

[keepzdasneakz]

^Good looking out. Yeah I'm just tryna burn off as much fat as possible while also lifting.

 

[vancity74]

Originally Posted by syxth element

Originally Posted by Vancity74

For those 9-5ers, what do you take with you to work? It's been a minute since I had an office job...

I take my gym bag to work, leave it in the car. I have food in the cubicle area for preworkout.

What are you eating on an average day?

 

[i3]

Originally Posted by verynecessary

Originally Posted by JDB1523

^Thanks a lot verynecessary, you've definitely helped me out here.

np

Originally Posted by keepzdasneakz

Hey guys, about how often should a beginner in HIIT do it per week? 3-4 times sound safe?

since you're going for intensity, twice a week is plenty. if you're lifting also, more than two sessions of HIIT a week will more likely slow your progress, and you might end up over training. if your conditioning is good, you could start of doing it twice a week, but if your conditioning isn't up to par, maybe once every 5-6 days would be better to start.

remember, HIIT is about intensity. keep your intervals short and intense, and your rest periods should be enough to almost catch your breath (at least when you start out). after a few sessions, your heart rate and breathing will recover a lot faster so then you can adjust your rest periods accordingly.

Yeah I try and squeeze in a HIIT session on my off day, besides its only 15-20mins tops. I train my legs 2x week and have intense training 2x a week. So HIITis really hard on the body, 3-4x a week is a lot!!!! 1-2x a week is definitely good and the results are awesome! Go hard.

 

[wj4]

Doing HIIT 3-4 times a week is way too much. If you're doing it right, it can take up to 48 hours for a full recovery. I wouldn't do HIIT more than 3times a week. If you're just starting out, I would go with one and work my way up to three.

 

[knightngale]

Originally Posted by verynecessary

Originally Posted by JDB1523

JDB1523 wrote:
A bit of a sticky situation here if someone can help me out: been doing a lot of cardio lately and I've had some occasional lock-ups and soreness in my knee. Today I got through 45 minutes (planned on doing an hour) and had to stop because of it. My dad is a surgeon and my mom is a nurse, and they both said to keep off it for a few days, which I obviously agree with. However, I do cardio every day no questions asked, so what I was wondering was what might be a good alternative workout since I'll be doing other things the next few days. I'm still going to lift, but I was wondering: should I do circuit training? core exercises? just a regular lifting routine? I'm obviously planning no cardio, no plyometrics, no jump rope, etc.

Thanks in advance guys, let's just hope my knee gets better quickly and I don't have to have fluid taken out or a bigger surgery.

"what kind of cardio do you normally do? there are all sorts of things that can cause knee problems. try self-myofascial release (foam rolling) on the outer part of your thigh to loosen up your IT band. many people's knee problems are due to this. you could also have a strength imbalance in your quads (stronger on one side of your thigh than the other) or between your quads and hamstrings. you'd have to do lifts to target the weaker muscles. also, if you do a lot of running, try chi running. even if you have the "best" running shoes for your stride, heel strike and weak feet/ankles can cause problems all the way up your legs, spine, back, and neck.

one more thing you might want to do is get your legs accurately measured by a doctor. even a difference of a 1/4" can be murder on your joints if do a lot of long distance type exercise.

in the meantime, you can do boxing like was mentioned, or complexes/circuit training with some light-weight squats. you can also do tabata protocol."

Ok thanks a lot. I had been doing 40-60 minutes of cardio, but cut it back to 35 with HIIT, and always on the stationary bike or the elliptical. I tried running about 2 weeks ago, not even at a fast pace, and my right knee literally just LOCKED UP, felt like a bear trap came down on it. I know you mentioned it, but I don't think I'll be doing squats. I'm probably going to see an orthopedic doctor regardless just to be safe, but I'll Google what you've mentioned to see what I can come up with. And how do I quote using Safari?

Still haven't figured that out. Edited w/Firefox...
yea, definitely let your orthopedist check that out. see if you can get measured too.

one thing about stationary bike is you're more prone to develop muscular imbalances, medially/laterally on the same thigh, and between your quads and hamstrings on the same side. elliptical is a little better, but it's still possible.

if you do HIIT, you should be done after 20 minutes. generally, you go for higher intensity, shorter rest for the greater cardio and fat loss effects. this also minimizes the time spend doing it.


what about those 4 min. tabata training sessions? how many times a week for a noob?

 

[quik1987]

Caught a cold so I'm taking a day off

 

[syxth element]

Originally Posted by Vancity74

Originally Posted by syxth element

Originally Posted by Vancity74

For those 9-5ers, what do you take with you to work? It's been a minute since I had an office job...

I take my gym bag to work, leave it in the car. I have food in the cubicle area for preworkout.

What are you eating on an average day?

I have about 5-6 meals a day. I'm lucky I work in the lab so I have a lot of downtime to eat snacks and extra meals in before and after lunch. I usuallyeat what I have available and when nothing else is I just eat oatmeal

 

[nealraj006]

I don't see anything wrong with HIIT 3 times a week, as long as it's your main leg training. Sprinters could use it, but if you want mass, then stickto weights. I train legs with weights once a week at most, the rest is just sprints and calisthenics.

 

[keepzdasneakz]

Originally Posted by wj4

Doing HIIT 3-4 times a week is way too much. If you're doing it right, it can take up to 48 hours for a full recovery. I wouldn't do HIIT more than 3 times a week. If you're just starting out, I would go with one and work my way up to three.

I guess the reason I don't perceive 1-2x a week as sufficient was because of my old tennis days in High school. We were running for about 2hours 5 days a week, sometimes even on the weekend. This running is by far the most intense I've done as well, first 30 min was a warm up right with 1 minof sprinting at the end, then we would sprint across 4 tennis courts and back ...good days only about 6 times...bad days....I've counted up to 12 once with45 sec breaks.

It was intense for sure, but some of the fatter kids on my team went down 2 pant sizes in a month and I remember losing 10 lbs easily in just 3 weeks. Plus Iwould eat like a beast after I got home.

 

[mrdoeboi]

So HIIT is good for fat burning looked at it on craigslist looks type intense

 

[keepzdasneakz]

craigslist?!

 

[josebronx]

wow this thread grew