Be Excellent To Each Other

I can never remember which is a pull up and which is a chin up. I can do several of one and a few of the other.

Awesome mate. I used to be able to do sets of those - 10 years ago lol. Fat chance now though - quite literally.

For back muscle stuff, I have to rely on lat pulldowns (some poxy machine in the old farts gym that I now frequent, not even a 'proper' bar/cable/weight stack, but at least it has two grip positions), as well as that old stalwart, seated rows.

I'm determined to improve though; at least my 'base build' is back now, and there's still plenty of stuff that can be done even in a sparsely equipped, machine-dominated CV type gym. I'm just about to go back this morning for another weights sesh, as it goes.

I've gone back to the start of C25k, and i'm upping the pace. 60 seconds running, 90 seconds walking *8. 20 minutes of activity that I did at a faster average pace than if I had run it all at my usual plod
I did the runs at about 14km/h (4:20 min/km-ish) compared to my usual plodding pace of 8.5km/h (7 min/km-ish).

Pretty pleased with that, a significant difference to what I was doing last time I did that run.

I've just started the C25K programme tonight, and did the first 20 minutes at an average pace of 5.0 mph.

Not bad considering that's the furthest I've gone for exercise, pretty much ever.

Well done Gaz.

I've been back in the gym today after about three weeks. Didn't fancy it, but glad I went.

I haven't been out for a run in a week, which I feel bad about. However 4 and a half hours of daily commuting at the moment means running can fuck right off for a few weeks!

Plan this week is to do three sets of eight reps wide-grip pull ups with 45kg assist. Then lower til I cna do it unassisted.

Super-setting that with clapping press-ups. I have a lot of motivation to achieve those successfully: don't want my face getting any uglier, splatted on the gym floor.

Ouch, fair play mate! Super-sets are really hard core; never done clapping press-ups myself (let alone as part of a super-set), even when I was in my prime.

Weights again for me tonight as well; I'm going to add dumbell flyes into the mix (as there's no butterfly pec dec machine in my gym, unsurprisingly - I have to rely on the Smith Press for chest stuff, flat and incline, 2 x 4 x 10rep increasing sets, max load around 250lbs for the 4th flat set, including the weight of the bar of course).

Quite pleased my traps have popped right out though; good old shoulder press.

I played rugby on Saturday for the first time in months and months.. It hurt, it was the sort of game the ref kept stopping the run of play, and it was scrum after scrum. The game was enjoyable just hard. My fitness is worse than ever.......

Saying that I went training in the rain yesterday, and enjoyed. It was a lot of fitness and tackle practice. Now all my body is stiff and aches.

Remind me sport and exercise is good for you!!

Cheers, dude.


Flyes on a bench are miles better than a pec deck anyway. I can do 60-70kg quite comfortably on a deck, but 18kg dumbbells provide a stern test for me on a bench. Where possible, though, I avoid machines in favour of free weights.

I was due to have a cardio class today, but I was the only punter who turned up. So it turned into an impromptu personal training session. I let slip about my asymmetry on my shoulders/upper back, and i turned out the PT had the same issue. So he showed me some excellent scapula exercises for half an hour that should do me a lot of good if I do them twice a week. Looking forward to finally remedying that discrepancy, as one side of me looks bigger than the other; turns out it's not as tightly muscled. But giving both sides the same scapula workout will apparently compensate.


Stretch.

You're a monster! I was going to come in here and promise to start my own fat burning routine very soon, but I'm gonna do it quietly and then announce it so I don't look a failure when I don't bother.

How's everybody getting on? Lost another 1lb tonight, that's 1st 11.5lbs to date. Going to try and make it to 2 stones for next week.

Yeah, i'm doing amazing!

<cough>

I'm now doing unassisted wide grip pull ups. Only 4, 4, 2, but it's something.

I'll have been trying for 6 months on Saturday.

Lost 24.5kg (54 lbs or 3 stone 12 in old money) - which has knocked 7 off my BMI.

I'm pretty chuffed.

On the flip side, I only managed 2 days of C25K so I ain't no fitter than I was really. You guys amaze me.

Some updates in here to be really proud of, guys. Well done.

I've put on a stone this year so the last couple of months I've cut out around 60% of the meat in my diet and also given up sausage rolls (mostly because Malc pointed out how fat in the belly I'd got since he last saw me at the cottage!)

I lost 5lb over the course of the cottage weekend, not entirely sure how. I need to get back out running, an excuse to get out of the house at least.

RUN, FORREST! RUN!

Then it's clearly good for our health and we need to do it more often!

Yet another argument for making it a twice a year thing, eh?

FFs I don't remember that either, I hope I did it in a friendly Joshie way at least (any way I'm hardly a rake at the moment and probably put on more than you)

Malc

Are you fucking kidding me?

Right? Check out stickman the stick!

Stickman with a fat belly though. That extra stone has gone all into the Buddha belly.

I'm making decent progress with both my CV and weights routines - training 5/6 times a week now, just like the old days.

Managed a 6km 30 min run last night, and as for weights, I've added dumbell flyes into the mix - 14-16-18-18kg sets (10 reps) with GOOD form, almost straight arms and a really good stretch each time. Almost Throughsilver Standard - not bad for an old man, eh?

Sadly though, my weight is staying resolutely at 15st dead, or just under - that'll be Mrs C's cooking lol. I've starting taking "Warrior Blaze" Thermogenic Fat Burners though, which are awesome - I actually get a buzz off them and they're great for concentration

http://www.bodybuildingwarehouse.co.uk/ ... at-burners

Let's see if they do what they claim on the tin these next few weeks!

I've been trying to do an hour or so on the bike each day and as many chin-ups as I can manage, also loads of stretching exercises as prescribed by the physio. Feel pretty good, much better than I thought this soon after my knee op. They even suggested I try a little light jogging again so I've just be going out and running round the block each day too and much to my surprise it didn't hurt at all and my knee didn't even swell up.

Good stuff. Amazing really considering what you've had done.

Yes, they said it would take a normal person much longer to recover and that I must be pretty amazing/special.

Must be the fresh Fleetwood sea air.

Good going, people. you're proud to be associated with me.

Ah, that's good stuff. Flyes are tough. The trainer this week had me do three sets of ten flyes, with a 20kg... on a Swiss ball, not a bench! That's not a brag; I thought I was going to die.

She also had me do a weird super-set thing to failure. Aforementioned wide grip pull ups, clapping press ups, kettlebell goblet squat, single arm cable row with reverse lunge.

I had a quota of reps to manage, in as many sets as it took. So the 10 pull ups took me three sets, but the 20 squats were done in one. The big fucker was the row/lunge (so you pull back with your arm, while bending one leg behind you - like a squat on a different axis). Had to do 30, with 42.5kg. Did them in sets of 20 and 10. Then she made me do it with 47.5kg. Per arm.

'To failure' has rarely been more apt.

Some pretty impressive stuff in this thread chaps.

I've list another 3lbs this week, really chuffed!

I checked out my BMI yesterday - at 6ft and 15 stone I am about 2mm away from obese. Lovely.

I'm actually a lot slimmer in the waist now and have put on a reasonable amount of muscle so I'm not going to get all bent out of shape about by BMI - just funny to see.

I'm training 4-5 times a week and have a 5k Fun Run coming up in November so I'm definitely in a lot better shape than I was 6 months ago. Can only do 15Kg on the flyes though so lagging behind The Man with The Darkest Hair in the History of Dark Hair and Captain LineUp

More surprisingly, according to my BMI, I'm actually within the healthy section of the scale. For the first time in living memory.

Time to go on a diet.

You fat bastard.

I seriously need to sort out a regular exercise plan, and one that doesn't involve great expense or running, because god do I HATE running. I love swimming but it's a mission to get to the pool and is actually pretty pricey

Any at-home exercise plans anyone can recommend? Something that I'll actually be able to motivate myself to do of an evening without pissing off the downstairs neighbours by being all clumpy?!

Fell running.

Fell running at home?

Exercise bike and Netlfix is working out pretty well for me at the moment. Looking forward to getting out running again more, though.

Did you graze your knee?

Has anyone had any luck getting fit or thinner using the Wii Fit?

When we first got ours I used it loads and was better at the games by the end of it, I don't know if I got any fitter?

Pauline used it as part of her weight loss program a little while back too.

Malc

No. Nobody ever.

Just do the C25K. It'd be:

Day 1: one stride
Day 2: two strides
Day 3: three strides and done! 5K!

Or, in my case "Shit this looks dull, I'll run for six miles and then not be able to walk properly for a hile and undergo an xray to find out that I've broken a bone in my foot before but never noticed because I'm hard as nails."

I'd do the C25K. I haven't as I'm not disciplined enough. I envy those that can. And do.

I'm definitely not disciplined enough! I used the Wii Fit for a while a couple of years back and really got into it - didn't lose much weight but definitely got more toned. That's currently my best option if no other suggestions come to light!

A kettlebell would be cheaper.

That's it, I've given in and gone with the C25K option! There's nothing quite as motivating as my mother giving me a load of her trousers because they're too big for her now. (Admittedly, she is a size 10 trouser at 61 years old, the moo!)

Trainers collected, app purchased, running playlist created. Starting tomorrow!

The chances of me sticking to this are pretty bloody slim, so any tips and encouragement (read: kick up the ass) would be muchly appreciated!!

Now all I have to do is figure out what to wear so I can attach my phone to myself...

Everytime I see this thread I think it's about medevil banqueting.

I found the course itself very self-motivating. You look at it and think 'I'll never do that', then you do, and that provides the encouragement you need to carry on.

You can get plenty of phone-holder type things from running shops - ones that go round your waist, or armband ones.