101–110 of 370 posts
Chemotherapy. :( Before I had cancer, I got heavily involved in weight-lifting. Honestly, the time between ages 27-29 were the best years I've ever had in my life, health-wise. Being in shape is so much better than being out of shape. Your entire life changes for the better.
Do try the barefoot walking technique. Its really worked well for me.
I'm pretty sure I solve some of my biggest problems while I let my mind wander on my ride home. It can be intimidating at first so I don't recommend immediately hopping on a bike and riding in traffic, but take a few weekends to get a feel for the bike of your choosing (lots of great commuter bikes out there) and then slowly get used to riding with cars zooming by you.
I've been doing this for a few years now and have never had more energy at work.
1) Going to the gym. I've been doing a 4-day split each week (Legs + Abs/Shoulders/Back + Biceps/Triceps + Chest). I recently added 15 minutes of HIIT on a bike before starting my workout.
2) Going outside. I recently moved to Boulder so this has been an easy one. Being out in the sun regularly has made me feel a lot more happy and energetic.
3) Drinking water. I try to drink 2.5-3 liters of water a day. I track it using the FitBit app. It's harder than you think - I basically have to chug a liter when I wake up if I want to succeed for the day. I haven't noticed feeling much different, but I've gotten sick less in the last year than previous years.
4) Using a standing desk. I alternate between sitting and standing. Right now I'm standing ~25% of the time, and I'd like to increase that to 50% by the end of this year.
5) Investigating hobbies. I'm learning how to fly fish. Also working on designing and building a small aquaponic system.
6) Sleeping more. I've been trying to get ~8 hours of sleep each night.
It started the Wednesday a 7pm(with lamps half of the year). Then a second ride on weekends. 60-100km/week now.
I got back my 18 years' weight. And feel stronger and healthier than ever.
I tried many indoor trainings of all sorts, but felt them hard to keep with, in the long run.
MTB is fun. And put you in direct contact with nature few hours a week. You can even build your own bike, adding a tech dimension to it.
Walking 10,000 steps every day. You may argue that the number 10,000 is a myth, but walking frequently and having a goal is not ;)
Also, moving throughout the day - not just 5000 steps in the morning and 5000 in the evening, but regular movement making up a significant percentage of the total. I use a Jawbone band which buzzes me if I've been sitting still for 30 minutes, and then I try to find some excuse to walk around for a few minutes. I don't think activity bands have really yet been designed around preventing health problems associated wit…
The Fitbit Surge's default watch display, "flare" shows radial lines for each minute you're active and dots for inactive minutes this hour. It's easy to see when I last got up and walked around.
A fun side effect is that when you go out to get lunch and bring it back to the office, just looking at the watch face you can count how far a walk it was in minutes and how long you stood in line.
- Run or lift weights, or both. But be careful with your back (keep it straight) and shoulders (lift the weight in front/above your head, not directly above. Same for pullups) when lifting, and your knees when running (land with your metatarsus first, not your heel).
- Sleep and eat well.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Grip training is good, but I'm not sure it's necessary for someone who is untrained. You'll get a fair amount of grip training by doing deadlifts. Kettlebells are also ok, but pretty suboptimal. They are harder to incrementally load, the technique is more complicated, less of an emphasis on strength etc. Turkish get ups have absolutely no place being recommended for novices/untrained population, sorry to disagree the…
So rather than a basic gripper, you would rather have a 'untrained' person start with deadlift? Deadlifting is one of the most complex weight lifting movements there is.[0] I know its tempting to defend beliefs and I like Rippetoe as well. I have done starting strength. My point is just be open enough to listen to Pavels ideas. For Pavel its not about building muscle and adding weight, for Rippetoe it is. And there i…
Press, clean and jerk, and snatch are certainly complex, but deadlift not so much. Turkish getups are a great way for a beginner to drop a kettlebell on their head.
From my experience being a gym rat, a majority of beginners have decent deadlift form with minimal training.
I'm 45 and have tried a number of different things. Here's what's made the most difference for me: - Sitting desk but use TimeOut to remind myself to stand every 30 minutes. I tried standing and treadmill desks but they didn't work for me. - Paleo/keto diet. I have much more energy and my bloodwork's improved. - 5x5 Strong Lifts - 16/8 intermittent fasting - Get enough sleep. This and diet are ridiculously important.…
What's 16/8? And how can you get up at 4:30 and also "get enough sleep"?
I presume this means he has two meals -- a late dinner and an early breakfast.
There are other models too, for example 20/4.
Strength training 3x a week. Why strength? Strength is the most generalized adaptation there is. Training to be strong improves every component of fitness: strength (duh), power, agility, balance, flexibility, endurance (all 3 types) and coordination. I would also make the argument that in day to day life strength is the most important attribute of fitness for someone in the western world. The ability to carry a bunc…
I think most people will find Strong Lifts 5x5 to be a better choice than Starting Strength, as it does not require power cleans, which are usually forbidden in most gyms. They are both more or less the same though, and focus on compound lifts.