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Resolutions for programmers (2012)

matt.might.net

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Re: Resolutions for programmers (2012)

#71

Post by dasboth »

richmt wrote: post #48

On the health note, the single most beneficial thing I did for myself this year was to start lifting. 6 months ago I started committing 3 days a week to a strength training program which I've strictly followed since. Making gains in the gym has motivated me to sleep better and eat better which both have had huge effects on every aspect of my life. Not only that, but the exercise has helped a ton with anxiety I've had…

This is exactly what I want to do in the coming year. What was the biggest barrier for you to start, and how did you finally overcome it?

Re: Resolutions for programmers (2012)

#72

Post by rbinv »

dasboth wrote: post #71
richmt wrote: post #48

On the health note, the single most beneficial thing I did for myself this year was to start lifting. 6 months ago I started committing 3 days a week to a strength training program which I've strictly followed since. Making gains in the gym has motivated me to sleep better and eat better which both have had huge effects on every aspect of my life. Not only that, but the exercise has helped a ton with anxiety I've had…

This is exactly what I want to do in the coming year. What was the biggest barrier for you to start, and how did you finally overcome it?

Honestly: just start (with low weights). That's what I did, anyway. Work your way up and focus on proper form.

Re: Resolutions for programmers (2012)

#73

Post by EdwardMSmith »

richmt wrote: post #48

On the health note, the single most beneficial thing I did for myself this year was to start lifting. 6 months ago I started committing 3 days a week to a strength training program which I've strictly followed since. Making gains in the gym has motivated me to sleep better and eat better which both have had huge effects on every aspect of my life. Not only that, but the exercise has helped a ton with anxiety I've had…

The single biggest physical improvement to my life was core strengthening. Basically 15 minutes of crunches, plank, and Russian twists every other day.

No more back aches at all. I never realized just how much and how constant the back pain I had was. Even when I was sleeping - tossed and turned all night.

Re: Resolutions for programmers (2012)

#74

Post by rbinv »

sharps_xp wrote: post #68
richmt wrote: post #48

On the health note, the single most beneficial thing I did for myself this year was to start lifting. 6 months ago I started committing 3 days a week to a strength training program which I've strictly followed since. Making gains in the gym has motivated me to sleep better and eat better which both have had huge effects on every aspect of my life. Not only that, but the exercise has helped a ton with anxiety I've had…

For myself, 1 year ago, the idea of going to the gym 3 times a week was inconvenient and I just did not want to do it. I got over that obstacle by paying an uncomfortable premium on gym membership/personal trainer. The inner conflict went FROM $60 gym membership/long-term health vs going home TO $175 gym membership/long-term health vs going home. I chose the gym a lot more often then, and I am much more healthy than…

What's up with the all caps "FROM" and "TO"? SQL habit?

Re: Resolutions for programmers (2012)

#75

Post by beachstartup »

donkeyd wrote: post #65
beachstartup wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

for those of you who might be thinking about this sort of thing around the new year - if you're serious about fitness don't forget to track your calories and/or clean up your diet! if you're chronically overweight, or underweight, you might be just making things up in your head about your inability to lose or gain weight - "what isn't measured can not be improved."

While I somewhat agree with you, I'd like to add that this is not a necessity. If you don't want to be serious about fitness, because you just want to be healthier, just do the lifting. This will already be a great improvement. If you become used to it, feel better about yourself and feel like there's more room for improvement, then start watching you diet.

yeah well, i guess if you're not serious then by definition you should just eat whatever you feel like. do lift though. it's not just for bros!

seriously though... most of us tech types here on hn start lifting only after our body starts to decline after years of abuse, in our early 30s. my productivity really took a hit. which is as good a reason as any to start.

Re: Resolutions for programmers (2012)

#76

Post by cabinpark »

richmt wrote: post #48

On the health note, the single most beneficial thing I did for myself this year was to start lifting. 6 months ago I started committing 3 days a week to a strength training program which I've strictly followed since. Making gains in the gym has motivated me to sleep better and eat better which both have had huge effects on every aspect of my life. Not only that, but the exercise has helped a ton with anxiety I've had…

I was very lucky, growing up, to be the son of a sports medicine doctor because, from birth, healthy eating and exercise and their benefits were grilled into my brain.

Unfortunately I see too many people in my job (academia) who don't exercise despite the huge potential benefits to their productivity and life. So this makes me wonder: what is it about exercise that turns people off? Is it a communication issue? Is it the lack of confidence? Lack of knowledge? It seems that there are constant pushes in the media to be more healthy and exercise but it never seems to stick.

Re: Resolutions for programmers (2012)

#77

Post by base698 »

richmt wrote: post #48

On the health note, the single most beneficial thing I did for myself this year was to start lifting. 6 months ago I started committing 3 days a week to a strength training program which I've strictly followed since. Making gains in the gym has motivated me to sleep better and eat better which both have had huge effects on every aspect of my life. Not only that, but the exercise has helped a ton with anxiety I've had…

I even more urge people taking this advice to read and go slow. It's super easy to hurt yourself if you end up with bad technique or go up in weight too fast--anything more than 5 lbs at a time is too fast. Read Starting Strength for some of the technical background and get some help from a friend who actually knows what proper technique looks like.

Re: Resolutions for programmers (2012)

#78

Post by matthewaveryusa »

Davertron wrote: post #15
voltagex_ wrote: post #11

#8. I'm currently waiting to see what comes back from fsck on a 4TB drive connected to a Raspberry Pi (don't ask). Drive is 390 days old according to SMART and reporting unrecoverable read errors. Most of the stuff was in other locations but I know there was one repo I was waiting to push... waited too long, I guess.

I was going to say, if these are in priority order, move #8 to the top if you're not already doing it! That way you get the benefits of it moving forward :)

This was on my todo for years. I never liked the idea of using a cloud solution for privacy and price reasons. I recently bought a QNAP NAS which provides amazing custom backup solutions. I raided the disks, and continuously backup all personal data directly to AWS Glacier, making sure to encrypt it first. Private and very cost effective since the only time I would need to retrieve from glacier would be in case of both local drives failing (theft, fire?) I sleep better at night now.

Re: Resolutions for programmers (2012)

#79

Post by cabinpark »

dasboth wrote: post #71
richmt wrote: post #48

On the health note, the single most beneficial thing I did for myself this year was to start lifting. 6 months ago I started committing 3 days a week to a strength training program which I've strictly followed since. Making gains in the gym has motivated me to sleep better and eat better which both have had huge effects on every aspect of my life. Not only that, but the exercise has helped a ton with anxiety I've had…

This is exactly what I want to do in the coming year. What was the biggest barrier for you to start, and how did you finally overcome it?

If you've never been to a gym before or done weights, please, please, please get a personal trainer for a session or two to show your the correct form. I see way too many people at the gym who have shit form but "lift" a lot of weight and it is ineffective and can be dangerous. Form is way more important than weight. Remember, many exercises are designed with a specific muscle to target and if you don't do it properly, you won't get any of the benefits.

Re: Resolutions for programmers (2012)

#80

Post by richmt »

dasboth wrote: post #71
richmt wrote: post #48

On the health note, the single most beneficial thing I did for myself this year was to start lifting. 6 months ago I started committing 3 days a week to a strength training program which I've strictly followed since. Making gains in the gym has motivated me to sleep better and eat better which both have had huge effects on every aspect of my life. Not only that, but the exercise has helped a ton with anxiety I've had…

This is exactly what I want to do in the coming year. What was the biggest barrier for you to start, and how did you finally overcome it?

I got lucky. I had a friend who had been lifting for years, so I didn't have to go alone when starting out.

If I had to make a recommendation for a beginner who might feel stressed out going while being overweight or skinny, I'd suggest you do some research into a program to follow strictly first, then go with a good plan. I recommend reading through Starting Strength for your first time.

Also like everyone says, no one is going to fault you for trying to get in shape. Most people are actually willing to help out if you talk to them and let them.

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