Amateur marathoner here. Those lying side leg raises with toes pointed down are THE BOMB!
Here's a great vid by Strength Running that illustrates that exercise and several more: http://strengthrunning.com/2011/02/the-itb-rehab-routine-vid...
Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)
91–100 of 343 posts
Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)
#92Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's good to hear. I've only recently started working out, and started on free weights with a Power Rack and Barbell (doing Stronglifts). Glad I'm not partially wasting my time, and going onto the good stuff!
I use google docs to track everything, I have 3 years of daily weight measurements, keep a track of my lifts, keep notes on everything.. http://www.arcturus.com.au/sean/weekly_weight_2010.png http://www.arcturus.com.au/sean/weekly_weight_2011.png http://www.arcturus.com.au/sean/chart_latest.png Large gain of 5+ kilos this year - trying to get squat past 140kg, hah. Playing rugby next year. The biggest key is keeping…
Great stuff!
I have a wireless scale from Withings that logs my weight for me, and I try to stand on it every day or two. I think I should get a tape measure and start tracking that too.
Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)
#93This is a great article (even as a repeat), and well-timed for the annual influx of "resolutionists" at the gym come January 1.
If you haven't lifted or trained seriously before, and have been looking for a solid guide and starting point, you could well do worse. If you're looking for further reading, the suggested library (Rippetoe's Starting Strength and Practical Programming, Zatsiorsky's Science and Practice of Strength Training, Schmitz's Olympic-Style Weightlifting and Gambetta's Athletic Development: The Art & Science of Functional Sports Conditioning) is solid. I'd add Schuler & Cosgrove's The New Rules of Lifting* more for its fitness and nutritional background than its training program, though that too is good.
For community, Reddit's /r/fitness, /r/advancedfitness, and /r/weightroom are good.
The one significant omission from Duane's "Men's Journal" article is of HIIT (high intensity interval training) and Tabata intervals (http://www.rosstraining.com/articles/tabataintervals.html). As with strength work, it's amazing how little a time investment can provide returns. Your work sets for both lifting and high-intensity cardio training can be completed in a very few minutes.
The other key point is that consistency over time, rather than instantaneous effort, is what pays dividends. Lift for a week and you'll be sore. Lift for a month and you'll start feeling things. Lift for a year and you'll see results. Lift for 5 years, and it will be obvious to even the most oblivious. And you can look forward to benefits throughout most of your life, not just your 20s and 30s.
Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)
#94This article is largely rehashing what everyone I know already thinks. BUT, if you are going to claim to contradict widespread views, you should appeal to evidence. If I disagreed with anything in this article, there is nothing here that would make me change my mind. The author cites how bad he felt that some trainer calling him "little girl weak" as a reason we should lift heavy weights? Honestly, I couldn't care le…
Being 'little-girl weak' after some time following a regime at a commercial gym sort of is evidence. And squatting 40lbs definitely is little-girl weak.
His claim at that point is that raw strength is more useful for general fitness and injury prevention than what he was doing before (which was stability ball training).
While his poor squat performance shows that his stability ball workout wasn't building raw strength, it's quite possible that doing squats wouldn't improve his balance. So which has the biggest benefits for injury prevention?
The article presents no evidence one way or the other. You (and I) may think raw strength is more important. But then we are agreeing with the author only because he's saying things we already thought.
So the article promises to show us why our beliefs are wrong. But we have no reason to accept the author's claims, except that they reinforce our current beliefs.
Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)
#95This is a solid article, but the title is just wrong. "Free weights are better than machines" is not a "little known" fact, it's a well known fact by anyone who has cared to read the internet re:fitness since 2009. So is "lifting weights is much more efficient than cardio". I say this only so that you don't read this and think these are some kind of fringe theories. They're widely, WIDELY known and 100% true.
it's a well known fact by anyone who has cared to read the internet re:fitness since 2009
Or anybody who picked up an issue of IronMan magazine, dating back to at least the late 80's or early 90's.
Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)
#96Cardio machines are innocent enough, as they won’t actually make you any less fit, but maintaining cardiovascular fitness doesn’t really take much more than breathing uncomfortably hard for about 20 minutes, three times a week. And we all know that swimming, hoops, bike riding, and even Ultimate Frisbee can get the job done, and that treadmills or elliptical trainers are a pale substitute. I think the author is overl…
There are alternatives to cardio machines that are far less expensive. A jump rope or kettlebell can provide ample and safe workouts for most. The advantage of activities (basketball, cycling, Ultimate) is that they're engaging, getting past the "but it's sooooo boring" issue of just grinding out your 20 minutes.
And at the high end of the out-of-shape scale, just getting out of the house and walking would be a great start.
Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)
#97Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's good to hear. I've only recently started working out, and started on free weights with a Power Rack and Barbell (doing Stronglifts). Glad I'm not partially wasting my time, and going onto the good stuff!
Last comments! What I really regret not doing, was taking a daily photo.. I do have a couple of photos (by luck, not by planning), Also, get a tape measure! starting point, began cycling to work about 2 weeks after this photo was taken (~118 kg, ouch) http://www.arcturus.com.au/sean/2009-09-15.jpg 6 months later with riding every day and body weight exercises (~97kg) http://www.arcturus.com.au/sean/2010-03-22.jpg I w…
Great stuff mate! SL says do front, back, side photos every 2 weeks, which I've been doing, but haven't been doing measurements. Think I'll start on that too.
One of the fun things about working out is it appeals to my love of keeping and viewing personal statistics :)
Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)
#98I like how every general fitness article refrences "brad pitt in fightclub"...brad pitt in fight club was a little under 160 lbs so beyond aesthetics,I doubta 156 lb male had any real functional strength.
There are a lot of middleweight boxers that would probably disagree with that assessment.
Its in fact a ridiculously dumb statement.
I live in SE Asia and one of my workers here is about Bruce Lee sized but he can lift more, and for longer, than anybody I know. No wonder as he has been doing hard manual labor since he was a child. You think youre going to be stronger if you go to the gym 3 times a week?
Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)
#99I love the way this article dispels misconceptions and ends with practical solutions. Does anyone know of an article that does the same for becoming a great developer rather than continuing to wade in the novice waters of programming?
Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)
#100Well thanks for confirming the impression I got from my one and only ever experience at a gym: Not only is it boring but its also a huge waste of time. I remember it took me 2 hours until I felt like I had done something - and the best machine seemed to be the chin-up bar. I dont need a gym for that?! I think for general body health, any exercise is better than none but some are more effective than others. Top to bot…
A good gym is a godsend. But what you're looking for isn't going to be one of the plastic-and-chrome palaces but something that's got tons of weights, power cages, chinning bars, adjustable benches, dumbbells in a wide range of weights (200# is a good upper limit, higher isn't bad though you can usually manage with a barbell and landmine), bumper plates and platforms, chalk, glute-ham raise, kettlebells, ergs, foam and PVC rollers. If you see prowlers, ropes, and chains, you're in heaven.
Yoga has its place, however asanas are only a small part of total fitness. "Western fitness" is based on empirical results and studies, while much traditional yoga is founded on mystical explanations (and don't even get me started on Auyurveda). If you explore deeper, I think you'll find that Western fitness has in fact examined and adopted those parts of yoga which are shown to be useful and effective.