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Ask HN: Advice from people who strength train from home

62 pointsby optbuildover 2 years ago
I have a pullup bar and a Lebert Equalizer kind of thing. I live in a small room at my university. I am planning on training bodyweight or calisthenics as it is called popularly.<p>HNers who train from home using minimal weights or equipments, can you suggest a path for me.<p>I am looking for some hints on:<p>1. What is the bare minimum balanced routine I can start with?<p>2. How long should I stick to it before I see or feel actual results from it?<p>3. Diet? Eggs are easily available for me.<p>4. A bit about your journey. How you started and how have you progressed on parameters of strength, routine, size, energy, etc.<p>P.S: I came across this youtube channel: https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.youtube.com&#x2F;@Kboges where he suggests that to gain strength and general fitness you can train daily with 3 movements but not to failure. Is it possible?<p>My goals are to have enough muscle and strength so that I don&#x27;t get tired doing chores lifting something for my household. I want this to go far into my old age so that I don&#x27;t fall and spend my final years in a nursing home bed.

40 comments

bckygldstnover 2 years ago
1. I see reddit&#x27;s bodyweightfitness routine [1] recommended frequently (though I personally lift weights so don&#x27;t have experience with callisthenics)<p>2. Keep in mind that most influencers, actors, athletes, and trainers have gained their physique through genetic luck, drugs, unhealthy eating, camera tricks, lack of balance in life, and extremely hard work guided by one-on-one coaching. It might take you 12 months to look muscular if you&#x27;re a normal person doing a normal routine. Good strength routines will have you making regular small increases in resistance, so you will see constant small progress in strength on a daily&#x2F;weekly&#x2F;round basis from the beginning!<p>3. Spend a week tracking what you eat in an app like Cronometer. Those results will guide you on how best to modify your diet: the default macro&#x2F;micronutrient targets in the app aren&#x27;t a bad place to start. It&#x27;s often recommended to increase protein and calorie intake above those targets if you&#x27;re trying to put on lots of muscle.<p>Finally the sibling comment about goals is a great one. I&#x27;d suggest your #1 goal should be to not get injured, as injury will prevent you from achieving your other goals (and is very common when starting new sports&#x2F;activities!)<p>[1] <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.reddit.com&#x2F;r&#x2F;bodyweightfitness&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;routines&#x2F;bwf-primer" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.reddit.com&#x2F;r&#x2F;bodyweightfitness&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;routines&#x2F;bwf...</a>
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an_aparallelover 2 years ago
I&#x27;ll answer 1)<p>i really like www.startbodyweight.com<p>pretty detailed and simple for someone like me - who&#x27;s gone to the gym, but not gained from it, because of not sticking to a programme, and importantly, managing progression.<p>Startbodyweight is awesome because it starts from absolute couch potato.<p>One negative though - is 2 things required to setup:<p>a)somewhere to do chin ups b)somewhere solid to use thick nylon rope (for pulling exercise)<p>Start with the actual program, and work on the diet as you go. But look into balanced diets - eat eggs, nuts, chicken, (red meat ocassionally), fish, lots of leafy greens, cold pressed natural oils.<p>Avoid sugar.<p>Make time for this stuff - if you&#x27;re new to it - it will start by being a drag, eventually you will crave it.<p>I started HATING exercise, and hating early rising.<p>I start my morning with a top shelf scandinavian light roast (high in caffeine) - then my training session, shower, and big breakfast.<p>Cant think of a better way to start my morning! Gets me feeling focused and ready to attack the day.
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mailundover 2 years ago
Don&#x27;t stress it too much in the beginning! The real results will come from making it a part of your life and exercising regularly for many years.<p>Also try not to compare your own progress with that of others, we&#x27;re all on our own journeys!<p>Try to get some pulling motions (rows, pullups etc) into the mix as well as your pushing motions (i.e. pushups). Your posture will thank you!<p>I started with some simple calisthenics (pushups, squats, etc) during covid, and started going to the gym when things opened up again. I recently discovered that none of my blazers fit around my shoulders and chest anymore. It was a fun surprise, but it took a couple of years to get there.<p>To pseudoquote the jogger from BoJack Horseman: &quot;It gets easier. Every day, it gets a little easier. But you gotta do it [a couple of times per week]. That&#x27;s the hard part. But it does get easier.&quot;
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mcvover 2 years ago
I&#x27;m hopefully still at the start of my journey, because I haven&#x27;t gotten very far yet. Started last year with a personal trainer because I had no idea where to start. Bought a TRX, some dumbells and 2 kettlebells.<p>I don&#x27;t have a pull-up bar because I don&#x27;t see the point: I couldn&#x27;t for the life of my lift my own bodyweight; I&#x27;m first using the TRX to build up some strength.<p>My big problem, as always, is discipline. I haven&#x27;t done anything in months. I need to restart. The personal was rather expensive and I wasn&#x27;t entirely happy with him, but it does help a lot with the discipline.
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awbover 2 years ago
&gt; 1. What is the bare minimum balanced routine I can start with?<p>A combination of vertical and horizontal push and pull compound lifts will give you the biggest bang for your buck while maintaining a balanced physique.<p>Vertical push - Squat &amp; Overhead Press<p>Vertical pull - Deadlift &amp; Pull-ups<p>Horizontal push - Pushup or Bench Press<p>Horizontal pull - Bent over Rows or Bodyweight Rows
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idontwantthisover 2 years ago
Number 1 thing to remember is training is better than not training, as long as you aren&#x27;t injuring yourself. Don&#x27;t overthink it, and if it hurts, stop.<p>I use kettlebells at home and have been repeating this workout playlist <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.youtube.com&#x2F;playlist?list=PLhu1QCKrfgPUU1z33ILvaZf7fhkj7WUDN">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.youtube.com&#x2F;playlist?list=PLhu1QCKrfgPUU1z33ILva...</a><p>Kettlebell is great because you can do a full workout with a single piece of equipment.<p>If you dread working out, then just make it easier. 2 kg is better than 0 kg, 5 minutes is better than 0 minutes.<p>Don&#x27;t try to get everything figured out before you start. You will need to figure out what works for you, and good habits build upon each other.
rich_sashaover 2 years ago
My $0.02 -&gt; routine is the most important thing, by far. Doing less, consistently, will get you something, whereas doing a lot for a few weeks won&#x27;t. You can upgrade an imperfect routine, but you can&#x27;t change exercises you don&#x27;t do.<p>So start off with just something you really can keep up for a month, then consider upgrades to it.
xupybdover 2 years ago
Don&#x27;t over complicate it. Stay consistent be patient and you&#x27;ll get there.<p>Beginners gains are huge. Your first year will see huge improvements. Especially in strength.<p>I recommend Allan Thrall on YouTube and AthleanX. Once you&#x27;re past the beginners gains, Smolov is amazing at increasing strength. I&#x27;ve not found another program like it.<p>I lifted barbell only. Got my deadlift to 200kg, bench to 140kg, squat to 140kg.<p>It took about 8 years of lifting 1 to 3 times a week. Very casual and you could easily do much better than me.<p>Note I couldn&#x27;t do a single push up in one of my gym classes at school.
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raszover 2 years ago
&gt;at my university<p>Those usually have gyms with all the equipment and trainers. What you need the most is a routine and motivation. Start with an embarrassing whole body photoshoot from all angles to track progress. Eat 2x more by adding protein to your diet, make sure you arent lactose intolerant. Train 2-3 times a week rotating body sections. Keep a logbook. Dont forget the legs, ass is your biggest muscle, squats will make your whole body stronger.
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simonmesmithover 2 years ago
For what it’s worth, I’ll mention what works for me. I have no interest in any companies or products mentioned below other than using them and finding them useful.<p>I’ve weight-trained for decades and switched up my routine during the pandemic. I have only a small room available at home for this, which I also use as an office and music studio. So, not a lot of space.<p>I bought a pair of Bowflex SelectTech 552s (<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.bowflex.com&#x2F;selecttech&#x2F;552&#x2F;100131.html" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.bowflex.com&#x2F;selecttech&#x2F;552&#x2F;100131.html</a>), a stand for them, a bench, a stability ball, and mini loop bands. Then I started using the Fitbod app (<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;fitbod.me" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;fitbod.me</a>) to take the guesswork out of my routine.<p>This has been great. Fitbod will gradually ramp up resistance, vary your workouts, target different muscles based on recovery, and adjust your weight levels based on your performance. Then you can use the 552s to select the right weight it recommends.<p>Anyway, your mileage may vary, but I’ve been very happy with this setup for years.
irremediableover 2 years ago
The KBoges channel is generally very good. I&#x27;d take a lot of care in building up to daily training, though; you only get one body, and if you injure it you may never be the same. He does emphasise this in his videos, but in his shoes I&#x27;d be reluctant to even suggest daily training to people, because some significant minority of them will always go too hard at it and wreck themselves.<p>My preferred style of &quot;everyday training&quot; is strength training every few days, cardio most non-strength days, and walking a minimum number of steps every day (cardio counting towards it).<p>Push + pull + lower is generally enough to get fit and healthy, yes. It could be a good idea to split it more like push &#x2F; pull &#x2F; lower front &#x2F; lower back, because things like squats tend to work the quads way more than the hamstrings or glutes.
bitLover 2 years ago
Start with HIIT, 7 minute workout requiring only a stool and a wall; initially you&#x27;ll be able to do maybe 10 reps for each part in 30 seconds but slowly increase intensity until you are able to hit 60-80 reps&#x2F;30 seconds, then chain 1-2 more sessions in a row to make it all up to 30 minutes. That should give you a massive boost and initial trained state (in maybe 6 months). Then you can switch to a similar HIIT program with dumbbells. The key here is peak intensity for a very short time doing wonders but it&#x27;s tough and you&#x27;ll hate every single moment doing it while absolutely loving aftereffects.
felixhummelover 2 years ago
Our goals seem very alike, so I&#x27;d recommend this Book:<p>You Are Your Own Gym: The Bible of Bodyweight Exercises -- Mark Lauren<p>I actually read its German translation (AFAICT) called &quot;Fit ohne Geräte&quot;.<p>The book starts with some useful insights about basic motivation and eating habits.<p>Following its training program I went from slightly overweight to &quot;normal&quot; &#x2F; slightly muscular. I&#x27;m in my late 30s and can do all sorts of sports. Lifting my girlfriend comes easy.<p>Bonus points: First bodyweight training means that you need no extra gear and second there is little time investment of ~40m per day on 4 days a week.<p>Hope this helps. :)
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thelastquestionover 2 years ago
I just wanted to mention that I have been a big fan of TRX bands from <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.trxtraining.com" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.trxtraining.com</a>. (They seem to have a bunch of different products on there, but when I bought mine many years ago, they only made one thing. They all seem the same to me.) It&#x27;s just a single, small piece of equipment you can bring anywhere and is extremely versatile. It also allows for a scale of difficulty for various exercises to match your fitness level. I have not trained for extensive periods of time exclusively with TRX bands, but I&#x27;ve used them for many years alongside traditional weight training and when I don&#x27;t have access to the gym.<p>There are many online resources for TRX exercises and workouts, so I won&#x27;t expand on that here unless otherwise requested. That plus a backpack you can load up with heavy things can take you pretty far.<p>I second the other comments that have mentioned to avoid sugar. Different people may react differently, but I find my general wellbeing and discipline to have had a strong inverse correlation with my sugar consumption.<p>Regarding pushing to failure or not: I personally have found success pushing to failure (depending on the workout, on the last set at least), and, in general, I would recommend this approach. Likelihood of injury will increase as you push closer to failure, so remember to stretch, warm up, and focus on form. For some people, there may be a mental benefit to pushing to failure as well.
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devd00dover 2 years ago
Can&#x27;t answer all of the questions now, but if you are living in a small space, then I highly recommend &quot;Adjustable Weights&quot;. I have the type where you turn a dial on the weight and I can get anything between 4 and 20 kgs. It&#x27;s pricey, but a lot cheaper than buying all the weight sizes you want, or struggling with those weights you have to twist onto a bar. The convenience is what makes it great, but the small space it takes a major plus.
gaddersover 2 years ago
The best way to get stronger is to do the Novice Linear Progression in Starting Strength. However, that requires a barbell and squat rack. If you can, see if you can find a proper gym near you with the facilities. Follow the program, and eat as much protein and milk as you can.<p><a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;startingstrength.com&#x2F;get-started&#x2F;programs" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;startingstrength.com&#x2F;get-started&#x2F;programs</a>
WithinReasonover 2 years ago
For minimal equipment:<p>1. Get one standard 1 inch dumbbell (or 2, but 1 is already enough for a start) with matching 1 inch plates, e.g. a pair of 5, 2.5 and 1.25 kg to start with. You can add a dipping belt for weighted pullups.<p>2. Optionally, a kettlebell bar for the same weights, something like this: <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.amazon.co.uk&#x2F;dp&#x2F;B00B1DO6CS" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.amazon.co.uk&#x2F;dp&#x2F;B00B1DO6CS</a> it will need more weight plates sooner<p>For your actual questions:<p>1. With the above the easiest to train are arms: overhead press, curls, rows, arnold presses. On a bed maybe skull crushers for abs, maybe some basic deadlifts and squats. The latter need much more weight but it&#x27;s a start.<p>2. You will notice your strength increasing in a few weeks and might see something in the mirror after a month or two.<p>3. Protein mixed with milk in a shaker cup is the easiest. You can add peanut butter for extra calories if you need it. Only other supplement I recommend is creatine monohydrate, ideally before a workout.<p>4. I think you will eventually want to join a gym and do the &quot;big three&quot;: bench press, squats and deadlifts. It&#x27;s much more fun too. I got to 120, 140 and 220 kg on those.
ankaArover 2 years ago
Hi, I started a month ago going to the gym. Do not forget stretching and prepare your muscles with a routine to warm them up.<p>I&#x27;m started (starting from nothing) :<p>Day A: 1-dumbbell (db)drop squat, 3x12&#x2F;15-FF 2-One Arm db press, 3x12&#x2F;15-FF 3-Chest support row, 3x12&#x2F;15-FF 4-BW Slit squat 3xFF each<p>Roll ups, 3xFF Suitcase carry, just, try 3 times I still don&#x27;t understand that too much<p>Day B:<p>1-Pull Trhough 3x12&#x2F;15-FF 2-Reverse lunge 3x12&#x2F;15-FF 3-Pushups 3xFF 4-Lat pull down 3x12&#x2F;-FF<p>Again roll ups and suitcase carry<p>A and B on different days, with 1 day to rest.<p>Get some weights (10 lb maybe, try for yourself) to do A1&#x2F;2&#x2F;3, get an elastic band (comes in different resistance) for B1&#x2F;4.<p>After 2 weeks I can do both exercises in one day and today I&#x27;m starting every day. Equating will train your balance and back position to work better with your bar.<p>You will see results in 3 months.<p>Don&#x27;t eat just eggs, eat everything because you needs all the vitamins. Fresh vegetables, chicken, beef, pork, eggs, rice, beans, milk, etc. Talk to your nutritionist, weight yourself everyday, adjust your diet on the way.
fslothover 2 years ago
I love my simple kettlebell program.<p>Basically I just do kettle bell swings and pushups. I start with quick warming and stretches (a couple of minutes) then do intermittently kettlebell swings and pushups.<p>I train three times a week, each session lasts under 30 min. I walk around a lot daily and on a non-weight training day go for a brief jog.<p>This is as simple as it can be. I&#x27;ve gained visible musculature and have progressed to heavier kettlebells so I guess it&#x27;s doing something.<p>I believe the strength training regimen is good for me but I haven&#x27;t really analyzed it in a way that I could say it&#x27;s better than some other program would be.<p>I’m 42 - never been very athletic and my bmi could be better, but I feel much better with some ongoing exercise regimen than without.<p>I&#x27;m using the &quot;Quick and the dead&quot; procedure by Pavel Tsatsouline. You can find references and reviews by quick googling.
Eddy_Viscosity2over 2 years ago
Not sure if you can do it, but getting some gymnastics rings will open up a bunch of very effective body weight exercises. If you&#x27;ve never tried a dip on rings, its humblingly harder than on fixed bars. The rings and straps aren&#x27;t that expensive, but you need a place to hang them. Even if not in your room, if there is an area you have access like over the top bar of a swing set at playground works. See <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;fitnessfaqs.com&#x2F;product&#x2F;body-by-rings&#x2F;" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;fitnessfaqs.com&#x2F;product&#x2F;body-by-rings&#x2F;</a> for workouts.<p>Another is parallets. These aren&#x27;t that big and can be used for calesthenics training like planche. These are great, but it depends on the kind of strength and physique your aiming for.
kasperniover 2 years ago
Check out <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;gmb.io&#x2F;" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;gmb.io&#x2F;</a> and their elements program it is a great starter program with a schedule. You will get a really good mix of strength, movement and flexibility training. And it is a great base for getting into calisthenics if you want to get more serious.<p>There is no need to buy any equipment. You just need some floor space.<p>I think starting out with some kind of program as a beginner. Is a lot better than just buying a bunch of equipment and watching a lot of random YouTube videos. You will quickly get overwhelmed.<p>Also maybe start focusing on a routine first for a couple of months, and then look into your diet. Doing both at the same time as a complete beginner can quickly lead to information overload.
snozolliover 2 years ago
Doesn&#x27;t your university have a gym? Take advantage of it. Take a weight lifting class if you can. Look for a trainer if you can&#x27;t.<p>There&#x27;s no beating weights, in my opinion. Your stated goal is long-term health. I don&#x27;t think you can beat the bone density benefits of free weights.<p>Also, in my experience, people who concoct their own fitness schemes tend to ignore bad form and unbalanced routines. There are countless dudes on Internet forums showing off their pectoral gains while ignoring their awful posture.<p>If you refuse to use free weights, then take yoga classes. You&#x27;ll discover muscles you didn&#x27;t even know you have, and you&#x27;ll have your form corrected by the instructor.
sshineover 2 years ago
&gt; 1. What is the bare minimum balanced routine I can start with?<p>Get a pull-up bar. Find a calisthenics workout.<p>&gt; 2. How long should I stick to it before I see or feel actual results from it?<p>See results: A year.<p>Feel results: Depending on your starting point, much sooner.<p>&gt; 3. Diet? Eggs are easily available for me.<p>There are so many ways to go here.<p>&gt; 4. A bit about your journey.<p>I never exercised until I was 18. Then did martial arts, weight lifting, crossfit.<p>I&#x27;m 37 now and exercise every day. Usually a crossfit wod warmup followed by heavy lifting (I aim for 5x5 when I&#x27;m not doing progressive overload). I&#x27;m trying to go into bodybuilding, since I think I&#x27;ll never have the same chance or motivation hormonally later in life.
heavyset_goover 2 years ago
&gt; <i>2. How long should I stick to it before I see or feel actual results from it?</i><p>Depends on how much time you&#x27;re willing to dedicate to exercise and diet. Serious dedication and you&#x27;ll see undeniable results within a couple of months, &quot;transformative&quot; results after several months. On average, expect six months to a year.<p>Increased strength you&#x27;ll feel relatively quickly. The way body fat works means that you can build muscle without really seeing the visual results right away, though.<p>Also, keep in mind that body building is something that takes years, if those are the kind of results that you&#x27;re looking for.
berusiferover 2 years ago
Eat a lot of protein, at least 100 grams per day to start. For exercise just experiment with what you enjoy doing. And since you’re concerned about chores and shit I’d say focus on arms and legs. Compound movements like bench, squats and deadlift are amazing exercises. In like two months you’ll be much stronger.<p>Personally I’ve been lifting since 2020 (for aesthetics :P) but it’s been amazing for my mental and physical health. I started with some 20lbs dumbbells and achieved a lot with those. I’d say get a pair of something you can lift but can barely do 8 reps with
tsolover 2 years ago
3. Make sure you get enough protein and calories overall. Strength training also puts a lot of stress on bones and causes increases in density, so make sure you&#x27;re getting calcium too. Protein shakes make getting enough protein a bit easier. There&#x27;s a lot of talk about supplements but 99% don&#x27;t do enough to be worth it. If you want to go that route, use creatine. It&#x27;s the most well researched lifting supplement there is. It gives you a modest boost in endurance and strength. Good food and good sleep is honestly 50% of it.
quickthrower2over 2 years ago
I did home exercise for chronic fatigue using trx straps at first. I also for fun tried to do pullups on a handy beam nearby and even doing half a pullup regularly helps, it becomes one then eventually two!<p>Also a lot parks have cool gym gear you can use for free, monkey bars being quite fun (once should strength is good enough)<p>But alas I joined a gym. I love having control over the weight to the exact kilo and the variety, and also the social aspect and space separation for motivation.
aktenlageover 2 years ago
You have a lot of great answers, so I&#x27;ll just write what I haven&#x27;t seen from others yet:<p>Given that you want to be good at lifting stuff in the household: In my opinion there&#x27;s nothing better than the deadlift. It doesn&#x27;t require anything more than a barbell and plates, which doesn&#x27;t take up much space. You can buy those used and most probably sell them at the same price later, as they won&#x27;t lose value.
robertlagrantover 2 years ago
As a No S Diet [0] fan, I have to mention Shovelglove [1]. I&#x27;ve never tried it, and I haven&#x27;t read it through in years, unlike No S Diet, but I always loved the concept and the name.<p>[0] <a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;nosdiet.com" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;nosdiet.com</a><p>[1] <a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;shovelglove.com" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;shovelglove.com</a>
dzongaover 2 years ago
in college, the leanest I ever was i.e have veins across my lower abs. was when I was training in my room.<p>I had a pull up bar by my bathroom door. every time I walked through the bathroom door I did at least 10 pull ups.<p>in the morning I would do ladder push ups. I would start with 20 then do (n-1). to I got to 0.<p>sleep a lot too, if you gonna recover. volume is key.
foreignerover 2 years ago
Something that helps motivate me is tracking my progress. It also helps satisfy your inner geek . I use the FitNotes and Regularly apps on Android, both free (donation supported) and fantastic.
girish1729over 2 years ago
I simply do yoga head stand and pranayama daily. mayurasana is good too if you can do it.
Antoninusover 2 years ago
definitely checkout<p><a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.amazon.com&#x2F;Overcoming-Gravity-Systematic-Gymnastics-Bodyweight&#x2F;dp&#x2F;0990873854" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.amazon.com&#x2F;Overcoming-Gravity-Systematic-Gymnast...</a><p>and the corresponding subreddit
gmsover 2 years ago
What are your goals?
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peterbsmythover 2 years ago
ok let me give you a f!?k yeah.<p>i&#x27;m figuring we&#x27;re about the same in spirit given we&#x27;re on HN and talking home workouts.<p>i loved programming first then calisthenics came later. now i build software for calisthenics and train in las vegas with the best in the world.<p>go hard, man, go have fun.
joejoesvkover 2 years ago
resistance band are better than weights .. at least at home
rawbotover 2 years ago
I see HN is continuing its path into slowly becoming a subreddit.
mcintover 2 years ago
1. Bodyweight fitness, and cardio, starting with walks, progressing to jogs or runs.<p>2. As others mention r&#x2F;bodyweightfitness&#x27;s routine has a routine and progression to follow. The sub is also a good place to ask questions on the journey. I enjoy having goals of personal delight alongside it, for me handstands.<p>3. Others will have better diet advice. I aim to have general blood tests at least once a year. Address deficiencies. Beyond that journaling what you eat and when can help you learn what you&#x27;re consuming and give you clear reasons for adjusting your eating habits.<p>Eating a plant-first diet, though not strictly exclusive, I&#x27;ve had trouble with maintaining iron levels, until I remember to supplement with B12, and B*complex vitamins alongside the iron. Since fixing that 2 weeks ago, I&#x27;ve done spontaneous workouts often, feeling the desire to workout and just going.<p>4. For physical fitness, practical capability and physical resilience drive my goals. Fitness and workouts also aid mental capability and mental health. I track VO2 max as a metric I can&#x27;t game, but that&#x27;s a reliable indicator of current health.<p>I would encourage you to stress yourself in the achieving of chores. Push yourself harder than you know you can do, or have done before. Aim to tire yourself doing them, and you will grow stronger. Learn to enjoy the strain, lean into more, and you&#x27;ll find the tasks you do get easier and easier—-you may even take on harder tasks. Don&#x27;t aim for ease and happiness, aim for challenge and purpose, ease and happiness will take care of themselves.<p>I recommend approaching fitness and nutrition as multivariate problems of finding activities, habits, that work for you, that advance you toward your goal, and that you can train, especially as a game. That way when life forces changes in your habits, you don&#x27;t need to change goals, only find a new way to pursue that same goal under new constraints.<p>You have clear goals, although they&#x27;re a long way off. Simple reasons work, but it helps to have a metric to judge progress against, the more specific the better, and the more you can design in feedback, e.g. of charting your progress by hand on something you see daily, the more you can ingrain and affirm your goals. I appreciate tracking results, but I think tracking effort, workouts completed, is more valuable in the long run, than always expecting that I&#x27;ll improve performance.<p>awb, thanks, you&#x27;ve helped me understand how the kettlebell workout I do checks all these boxes.<p><a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.nerdfitness.com&#x2F;blog&#x2F;the-20-minute-beginner-kettlebell-workout-build-muscle-and-burn-fat&#x2F;" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.nerdfitness.com&#x2F;blog&#x2F;the-20-minute-beginner-kett...</a><p><pre><code> COMPLETE THE FOLLOWING KETTLEBELL CIRCUIT 3 TIMES: - 8 Halos (each side) - 10 Goblet Squats - 8 Overhead Presses (each side) - 15 Kettlebell Swings - 8 Bent Over Rows (each side) - 6 Front Rack Reverse Lunge (per side)</code></pre>
michaelteterover 2 years ago
Don&#x27;t underestimate the benefits you can get just from bodyweight exercises (no equipment necessary). This is especially true for someone just starting out, but it is still useful for an experienced weightlifter.<p>Exercises<p>The squat is one of the best health and strength building exercises you can do. Search the web for a breakdown of why it is so beneficial. You can do a standing squat with no equipment - although I find a full-height mirror useful for noticing left&#x2F;right imbalances and other mechanical problems that should be corrected. As you get stronger, and you can comfortably do a squat at least to the point where your femur is roughly parallel to the ground, you can then start holding something heavy in your hands to add weight to the exercise. Exactly where and how you hold is really up to you - and you&#x27;ll find a natural position which helps you balance. For a real challenge, and some variation, you can do a one leg squat (often with a chair or something behind you to stop on). This one can be challenging.<p>Push-ups are great, and obviously require no equipment. Search for tips on how to start, assuming you aren&#x27;t already capable of doing a single pushup with only your toes and your hands touching the ground. Keep it simple in the beginning.<p>Yoga is good to mix into your routine, as it will help you stretch and develop better flexibility (and balance!). You just need space and a mat, or a rug or other non-slippery but slightly soft surface.<p>The kettlebell swing is excellent. It requires only a kettlebell and a little space around your body. The kettlebell swing works multiple muscle groups at once, and it is also a cardio exercise. If you want to build a nice posterior, this will get you far. Search for &quot;Kettlebell Swing Tim Ferriss&quot; for a very clear guide. Side note - some people show and do other exercises with kettlebells which are very dangerous if you get fatigued and make a mistake. But this exercise is low risk to your body (although if you fling the kettlebell across the room, you&#x27;ll have another problem :) ).<p>Pull-ups are good, assuming you have a tall enough doorway that you can mount a pull-up bar. There are other wall and ceiling mount versions, but in all cases you must be really sure you&#x27;re mounting it in a way that it won&#x27;t break while you&#x27;re hanging!<p>Don&#x27;t do sit-ups. The aforementioned exercises will build a strong core. In general, don&#x27;t waste your time on isolation exercises.<p>Lastly, learn how to stretch, and try to stretch after the workouts. Current sports science says you shouldn&#x27;t do much stretching before - especially static stretches. But regular stretching after workouts will help you get more strength building from the work you&#x27;ve already put in.<p>Diet<p>There&#x27;s so much info on this (much of it conflicting). The general rule is to get a variety of vegetables, nuts, legumes, and other protein sources. Grains are not really necessary, especially since most of what you can get is highly processed. Protein shakes and other supplements are not necessary for 99% of people who exercise. If your diet is reasonable, you&#x27;ll get adequate protein for the level of muscle repair that you need protein for.<p>Avoid sugar, even if you&#x27;re not working out :).<p>My Journey<p>I had to take some sports class in college, so I picked weightlifting. It ended up being fun, and my teacher was good on teaching technique. So I continued on and off.<p>Later I went to Mark Rippetoe&#x27;s gym, and he started training me. You can search the web for him, and you&#x27;ll see he&#x27;s quite enthusiastic.<p>In my 40s I had a period where I prepared to compete at the amateur level. But I also was working in finance at the time, and there was a lot of drinking and partying. That&#x27;s not what you want if you want to get the most out of your workout effort. Still, I got really strong for my weight class (although I only competed on paper since I didn&#x27;t reach the level I was satisfied with).<p>Random Observations<p>Once you significantly increase your strength and muscle mass, even if you quit for years you&#x27;ll find it easier to get back to your previous level. It&#x27;s as if the muscles have a memory about how big&#x2F;strong they once were. Since I usually only workout for 2-6 months, and then life or travel throws me out for months or years, I have restarted many times. Each time I am shocked at how much strength and visible fitness I recover just after 3-4 visits at the bym.<p>After a couple of weeks of 2-3 workouts per week, you start to feel more energy. It&#x27;s really just the beginning where it feels super hard and tiring. Later, you can get exhausted but still feel energized. And believe it or not, you can start to feel so energized and motivated that you want to workout hard every day. You don&#x27;t want to do that, usually, as recovery time is as important as workout time. So don&#x27;t overtrain, even if you&#x27;re having a great time.<p>Anyone can do this stuff, and feel strong and capable and more confident. I&#x27;ve taught a few women and my kids. And for the ladies, don&#x27;t worry that you will bulk up. That will not happen unless you are training very seriously and with significant weight.<p>Good luck! It&#x27;s worth the effort.
westurnerover 2 years ago
(Secondhand) Total Gym XLS &amp; 4x 20lb 5gal bucket concrete weights on 1.25&quot; fittings, Basketball filled with sand, occasional Yoga, lately very occasional Inline Skating up and down a hill with wrist guards and a MIPS helmet with a visor<p>(Soccer, then former middle of the pack Distance Running; then also weight training resistance training in a Weider cage with an 45lb bar and adjustable spotter bars, high pulley, low pulley, leg extension; then Bowflex; and now TotalGym and I prefer it. Lol, you watch the infomercial and you see the testimonials and you think &quot;nobody&#x27;s that happy with their without ever&quot; and still I really do enjoy this equipment. (I have never been paid to endorse any fitness product or book.))<p><i>Calisthenics</i> says that &quot;time under tension&quot; is more relevant than number of reps.<p>The TotalGym is a decent to good partner stretcher. &quot;Don&#x27;t slam the stack, and don&#x27;t waste an opportunity to let it stretch you out&quot;<p>Dance music has a higher tempo. Various apps will generate workout playlists with AFAIU a BPM ladder<p>The &quot;high protein foods&quot; part of Keto.<p>My understanding of Keto: if you eat too much sugar (including starchy carbs) without protein, the body <i>learns</i> to preferentially burn sugar and wastes the protein; so eat protein all day. We do need carbs to efficiently process protein. (And we do need fat for our brains: there is a reference DV daily value for fat for a reason. Ranch, Whole Milk, and Peanut Butter have fat.)<p>Omega-3s and Omega-6s would be listed under &quot;Polyunsaturated Fats&quot; if it were allowed to list them on the standard Nutrition Facts label instead of elsewhere on the packaging.<p>Omega 6:3 balance apparently affects endocannabinoid levels. Endocannabinoids help regulate diet and inflammation.<p>Antioxidants: Vitamins A, C, E,<p>Electrolytes: Water + Salt + Potassium (H20 + NaCl + K)<p>There are many lists of foods to eat for inflammation and inflammatory conditions.<p>Foods rich in <i>anthocyanins</i> tend to be high in nutrients; for example, blueberries, chard, and other dark leafy vegetables and fruits. Blueberry smoothie; premixed, frozen, fresh and washed with sprayed water+vinegar in a clip-on colander.<p>Pressure cooking is a relatively healthy way to prepare protein.<p>You can make a dozen hard-boiled or soft-boiled eggs with one instant pot pressure cooker in ~20 minutes and with less water than conventional boiling.<p>50g&#x2F;day of Protein is 100% of the DV <i>for a 2000 calorie diet</i>, <i>when you&#x27;re not trying to gain muscle mass</i>. Bodybuilders consume at least 100g or 150g of protein a day.<p>Tired of e.g. tuna, eggs, beef; I learned of &quot;The No Meat Athlete Cookbook: Whole Food, Plant-Based Recipes to Fuel Your Workouts—and the Rest of Your Life&quot;, which has a bunch of ideas for vegan and vegetarian protein and nutrionally-balanced meals.<p>FWIU, vegan and vegetarian diets tend to have some common issues like e.g. magnesium deficiency.<p>I can&#x27;t be mad at the lion for being omnivorous; but frustrated at the lion for being greedy and selfish in regards to ecology and smell. &#x2F;? S tool reading infographic<p>Protein bars (20g: Huel, Aldi), Protein bread (10g&#x2F;slice), Muscle Milk Pro (50g), Huel, Filtered water: Wide-mouth water bottles, Fish Oil (Omega-3s DHA &amp; EPA), Olive Oil (&lt;~380°F), spray Avocado Oil (Aldi), Peanut Butter, Whole Milk, Multigrain Cheerios over Total (in the 100% DV cereals category),<p>Supergrains: flax, chia, shelled hemp seed. Super grains mixed into peanut butter = $25 health food store peanut butter.<p>Healthy Eating Plate: Water, Fruits, Grains, Veggies, Protein. USDA Myplate: people <i>need* Milk&#x2F;Dairy (which is indeed basically impossible to create a synthetic analogue of, in terms of formula or)<p>Some greens have little more nutritional content than water and fiber. AFAIU, Chard is as nutritious as Spinach, which has iron (which is what Popeye eats to hopefully eventually woo Olive Oil)<p>Ice water diminishes appetite. Bread has filling carbs </i>that you can eat with protein* (to stay closer to &quot;ketosis&quot;, for example)<p>HIIT says don&#x27;t rest for more than 15 seconds &#x2F; 45 seconds between exercises &#x2F; sets<p>My TotalGym workouts now are much more aerobic than when I started getting back to healthy and counted reps. I&#x27;ve put off adding more weight to the carriage bar (that certain TG models lierally support) for like a year and I&#x27;ve rounded-out in areas I mightn&#x27;t have as a result.<p>I don&#x27;t miss free weights, stacks &#x2F; universal machines. After trying rings with nobody else around in the backyard, the TotalGym wins.<p>Certain (my parents&#x27;) Bowflex units can&#x27;t be upgraded with more or heavier tension rods; though the weighted non-inclined rowing is cool too.<p>Watched a few &quot;Bodybuilding on a budget&quot; [how to buy protein at at discount grocery store] yt videos. I usually eat cold, but Instant Pot for the win; TIL grill char is carcinogenic. With a second Instant Pot, you can do veggies separately from protein, which takes much longer to cook.