The Exercise / Workouts / Good Health Thread

[Duncan Glenday]

This thread is to discuss our health regimes, workouts or exercise routines, and interesting physical or athletic activities or plans.

I'm looking forward to seeing who's active
OR
Who would like to get more active and could use encouragement / discussion / etc.

Any interest?


Note: I originally took encouragement to start hikes and mountain climbing from Colin Robinson, who used to be an active PE-member, and posted long descriptions of his "mountain walks" in the UK.
So - PE-sourced encouragement can be a real thing!

[Duncan Glenday]

My current status : Pretty fit, though sadly, not at my peak.

I'm principally a cyclist (just did 35 miles this afternoon). but also walk, hike, and go to the gym - and try to do something 4 to 5 times a week.

The walks are good low-stress exercise.

The hikes tend to be stressful and long, across tough terrain.

The gym is to build core strength to support the other exercises.

The cycling tends to be very high intensity, and my coach just started up this fall's indoor training studio. It's a 1-or-2 times / week intense session with your bike on a smart-trainer, and she walks us through increasingly difficult programs, usually peppered with HIIT intervals. At the end, it feels like it takes all of my energy to fall of the bike in a pool of sweat and cry like a baby! (Kidding - but they're very tough.)


Looking forward to seeing who else has health maintenance routines, OR who'd like to start a routine.

[Duncan Glenday]

Question : Do you log or track your activities? I use Strava. (There are a few prog music personalities who're also using Strava.)

[Jerjo]

I have been doing a couple miles of walking 5-6 times a week since May. I just about have my treadmill set up to go again so I can take it inside once the snow falls. My default app for counting steps is Apple's health app on my phone, which they befouled with their latest update. I tried another and it was so stuffed with ads and gimmicks I ditched it on Day Two.

[Sputnik]

I'm happy to participate.

About 15 years ago, I started lifting weights. I started really small, with just a single 20-pound bar, doing a variety of simple exercises, and I was amazed how fast I made progress. I then got some weight sets, squat racks, and a bench and got more into it. When a gym opened near our house, my wife and I joined (she had gotten into weights as well) and we did that for many years, until COVID hit, and we retreated to our home equipment. Since then, we've purchased more home stuff - more weights, another squat rack - and we each workout three times per week.

My current routine is three sets of dumbbell military presses, reverse incline pullups, dumbbell or EZ-Bar curls, dumbbell bench presses or pushups, lateral raises, farmers walks, and squats. I do enough weight to push to near failure on the last few reps/steps of my final set and adjust weights or reps accordingly over time. I work in super-sets of two or three exercises, so I get a very good cardio workout as well. When I started lifting, I lost about 15 pounds, going from near 160 to about 145, and that's where I am today, with vastly more muscle tone.

I log what I'm doing on a simple piece of paper, adjusting weight and reps as I go. On occasion, I change up the exercises, but I haven't done that for a long time. The ones I'm doing get the main muscle groups I feel I need to hit, and I'm in far better shape today at 60 years old than I was before I started lifting 15 years ago, so I'm not strongly motivated to make huge changes.

I personally feel that consistency is the key, and that you're doing something that you don't find onerous. I'm surprised how much I love the weights and strength training. I thought it would be boring, but I find it endlessly interesting and challenging and feel lucky I discovered this exercise. I recommend folks trying it because it really is the best "bang for the buck" in terms of time invested. Happy to answer questions if anyone is interested in trying it out.

Bill

[Shadow]

EXERCISE! I thought you said extra fries.

[Vic2012]

^

I do pushups, dips, planks, at home. And I avoid bread, pasta, pizza, rice, corn, potatoes.(but I cheat a lot).

[SteveSly]

EXERCISE! I thought you said extra fries.

[SteveSly]

I have always had some level of exercise routine, but when I retired 3.5 years ago I was determined to get in better shape since I had a lot more time on my hands. My daily routine, when not travelling was:

1 hour weight routine
3-mile walk
30-to-45-minute stationary bike at high resistance

My recent knee issues have put a crimp in that, but I am back to a point where I am doing weights that I can do while sitting in a chair or bench, walking about 1.5 miles with a cane, and 30 minutes exercise bike with lower resistance. My next knee replacement will be in November, so trying to keep myself in as decent shape as possible before then. It will be a while before I can get back to normal exercise after that, but I will slowly work back into it.

I am not particularly good with my diet. I love pizza, fried foods, ice cream and sugar in general. I also love micro-brew beer. In order to maintain weight, I typically fast at least one day a week for 24 hours and never eat more than 2 meals a day. I currently weigh around 180, which is a bit heavier than I would like to be, but I got over 200 at one point a few years ago. When I had my knee infection back in the spring I got down to 168 at one point as I had no appetite. I have found it harder to keep weight off since I retired. I had an incredibly stressful job and worked a lot of hours which helped keep the weight off while employed, but now with more time on my hands and no stress it is easier to put weight on.

[Trane]

T
Any interest?

Carying around sufficient extra weight that this hampers somewhat my choices of activities (I won't go for mountain hikes, but even in pedestrian-only downtown trip), but I also lack time to "waste" in exercising. Even cycling (electric or traditional) has become an issue because of equilibrium issues. Bed kness (sports issues when a young man) don't help on top of the extra weight.
This time issue is a real preoccupation of mine (a normal weekday for me should be 28h long and a weekend day should include an 8h night on top of the weekday), soooo I procrastinate this exercice thing into delegating it to once I'm retired (4 years away, max), but I know this could be too late, then (if I ever reach it: lost two ex-colleagues earlier this month; one was retired only for three years and the other still had three to go before reaching it)

Of course that "time waste" could result in extra quality lifetime in the not-too-distant future, but I'm not interested in assisted-living or therapeutic obstinacy (a real medical "evil" drift IMHO, if only for financial purposes), so have no will to live until 80 or 90.

I'm probably more into quick-rewarding pleasures/leisures at the expense of my moral/intellectual integrity , but it doesn't mean that I don't claim the latter as mine as well. Sex drugs & RnR (or women, wine & songs, nowadays ) seems to be my destinty, but at least now, I hope I won't die before I get too old.

All kidding aside, I sometimes start up an exercice resolution, which last until the first sweat drops gets past my eyebrow and stings my eyes.
I know, I'm a lost cause.

My daily routine, when not travelling was:

1 hour weight routine
3-mile walk
30-to-45-minute stationary bike at high resistance

I wish I had that kind of time to myself, though this looks like a quarter of your awaken day is spent to that task.
I hope I get it (free time) once retired, but I'm more likely to convert it to more earthly pleasures enjoyments.

EXERCISE! I thought you said extra fries.

Ed, I'm stealing that one away from you.

[SteveSly]

I wish I had that kind of time to myself, though this looks like a quarter of your awaken day is spent to that task.
I hope I get it (free time) once retired, but I'm more likely to convert it to more earthly pleasures enjoyments.


.

As mentioned in my original post this regimen was post-retirement. I never had that much time when I was working. I typically worked 50 to 60 hours a week, so once I retired I somewhat replaced my workday with exercise. It is about a quarter of my waking day, but not that I am no longer working I have the time to do it.

[Vic2012]

One thing I learned years ago, as I've aged into my mid 60s, there is no need to over exert yourself. Stay active, move your ass, and go easy on carbs. That works for me. I could stand to lose 10 lbs., but at least I'm still hovering around 180lbs. If I was eating bread and pasta regularly I'd weigh over 200. Been there, done that.

[Sputnik]

One thing I learned years ago, as I've aged into my mid 60s, there is no need to over exert yourself. Stay active, move your ass, and go easy on carbs. That works for me. I could stand to lose 10 lbs., but at least I'm still hovering around 180lbs. If I was eating bread and pasta regularly I'd weigh over 200. Been there, done that.

This is totally true. If weight control is the goal, diet is vastly more important than exercise, and carbs really are the killer. We reduced carbs (virtually eliminated them) years before we started strength training, and it definitely kept my weight in check. Exercise converted a lot of my remaining fat to lean muscle, which took off another 10-15 pounds (or about 8% of my body weight), but I was starting from a good place because of my diet, and that has helped me to maintain my weight over time.

I also agree that you don't need to overexert yourself. Rest is as important as exercise, especially if you're doing a challenging routine. Three to four times a week for an hour is plenty for strength training.

Bill

[Duncan Glenday]

I'm happy to participate.

About 15 years ago, I started lifting weights. I started really small, with just a single 20-pound bar, doing a variety of simple exercises, and I was amazed how fast I made progress. I then got some weight sets, squat racks, and a bench and got more into it. When a gym opened near our house, my wife and I joined (she had gotten into weights as well) and we did that for many years, until COVID hit, and we retreated to our home equipment. Since then, we've purchased more home stuff - more weights, another squat rack - and we each workout three times per week.

My current routine is three sets of dumbbell military presses, reverse incline pullups, dumbbell or EZ-Bar curls, dumbbell bench presses or pushups, lateral raises, farmers walks, and squats. I do enough weight to push to near failure on the last few reps/steps of my final set and adjust weights or reps accordingly over time. I work in super-sets of two or three exercises, so I get a very good cardio workout as well. When I started lifting, I lost about 15 pounds, going from near 160 to about 145, and that's where I am today, with vastly more muscle tone.

I log what I'm doing on a simple piece of paper, adjusting weight and reps as I go. On occasion, I change up the exercises, but I haven't done that for a long time. The ones I'm doing get the main muscle groups I feel I need to hit, and I'm in far better shape today at 60 years old than I was before I started lifting 15 years ago, so I'm not strongly motivated to make huge changes.

I personally feel that consistency is the key, and that you're doing something that you don't find onerous. I'm surprised how much I love the weights and strength training. I thought it would be boring, but I find it endlessly interesting and challenging and feel lucky I discovered this exercise. I recommend folks trying it because it really is the best "bang for the buck" in terms of time invested. Happy to answer questions if anyone is interested in trying it out.

Bill

Bill, thanks for posting - interesting reading!

In my late 40s I started a pretty intense lifting program, which I did for several years. I became a real "gym rat" at that time . Then after several years, I started mountaineering, and then cycling. So I inverted from high-weights / low- reps to high-reps / low-weights, and added a lot of cardio. It was amazing - and tragic - to see how quickly all that bulk melted off

Gym rats sometimes call your "reverse incline pullups" "Australian pushups". (Cheezy joke - if we were on the other side of the planet, we'd be pushing, not pulling.)

We used to be fairly strict on changing up the exercises every few months, to induce "muscle confusion" - and build more rounded musculature on each group.

I used to log details of each workout in a forum (something like PE), as did many others, and we'd track each other's workouts and give kudos, offer advice, answer questions, and so on. Now, I simply add an entry "Gym" on Strava, though it automatically logs full details of my other workouts. E.g. my 37 mile bike ride yesterday afternoon - where Strava can show heart rate, cadence, speed, power, and much more. As an analytic personality, I like to track that sort of stuff.

About 14 years ago when I was 53-ish I started focusing on mountaineering (climbed Kilimanjaro among others), cycling (did many races, both short and fast, and ultra-distance), extreme hiking (sometimes 40+ miles in a day but never less than 15), and kayaking (did a few races, most recent was in May).

But I re-joined the gym a few months ago. I did many full-body workouts, similar to your program, but 2 weeks ago I changed it up and started a 3-day split:
Chest / Triceps
Back / Biceps
Legs / Shoulders / Core

I really like doing "super sets", as you do. Huge time saver, and they build a bit more intensity into each program.

My plan isn't to (re)build a lot of bulk, but rather to increase overall conditioning, to support my cycling / climbing / kayaking / etc. activities.

This bears (re)quoting:

I personally feel that consistency is the key, and that you're doing something that you don't find onerous. I'm surprised how much I love the weights and strength training. I thought it would be boring, but I find it endlessly interesting and challenging and feel lucky I discovered this exercise. I recommend folks trying it because it really is the best "bang for the buck" in terms of time invested. Happy to answer questions if anyone is interested in trying it out.

[Sputnik]

In my late 40s I started a pretty intense lifting program, which I did for several years. I became a real "gym rat" at that time . Then after several years, I started mountaineering, and then cycling. So I inverted from high-weights / low- reps to high-reps / low-weights, and added a lot of cardio. It was amazing - and tragic - to see how quickly all that bulk melted off

It's astounding how fast you lose muscle mass and how quickly gains are lost without maintenance. I feel it after a two-week vacation, and my wife lost an incredible amount of strength in her legs when she fractured her kneecap recently (she's fine now). If you'd really built up some bulk, I can only imagine how disappointing it would be to see that vanish.

Gym rats sometimes call your "reverse incline pullups" "Australian pushups". (Cheezy joke - if we were on the other side of the planet, we'd be pushing, not pulling.)

I love it! That's what I'm going to start calling them!

We used to be fairly strict on changing up the exercises every few months, to induce "muscle confusion" - and build more rounded musculature on each group.

Yeah, that's highly recommended if you're seriously into building bulk, and my trainers at the gym encouraged it. For a home gym, you're much more limited in exercise options, and I've found I can maintain where I want to be with a consistent routine, though I often mix up the order of exercises (I do have a couple of variants of some exercises, like bench pressor or pushups).

About 14 years ago when I was 53-ish I started focusing on mountaineering (climbed Kilimanjaro among others), cycling (did many races, both short and fast, and ultra-distance), extreme hiking (sometimes 40+ miles in a day but never less than 15), and kayaking (did a few races, most recent was in May).

Holy crap, that's amazing!! I'm very impressed. It appears losing some "bulk" hasn't eliminated your strength and overall health. You're way ahead of where I am!

But I re-joined the gym a few months ago. I did many full-body workouts, similar to your program, but 2 weeks ago I changed it up and started a 3-day split:
Chest / Triceps
Back / Biceps
Legs / Shoulders / Core

I really like doing "super sets", as you do. Huge time saver, and they build a bit more intensity into each program.

My plan isn't to (re)build a lot of bulk, but rather to increase overall conditioning, to support my cycling / climbing / kayaking / etc. activities.

That's awesome! This makes a lot of sense, assuming you have the time and motivation, which you clearly do.

Do you find doing the splits allows you to focus more on the specific areas you're working and that you make more progress (or progress at all)? That's something I could experiment without much disruption.

Bill

[Vic2012]

I also agree that you don't need to overexert yourself.

Yeah it's not worth tearing a ligament or a meniscus. I have wrist pain because of weight lifting injuries from 40 years ago.

[Trane]

As mentioned in my original post this regimen was post-retirement. I never had that much time when I was working. I typically worked 50 to 60 hours a week, so once I retired I somewhat replaced my workday with exercise. It is about a quarter of my waking day, but not that I am no longer working I have the time to do it.

Sounds/looks like Melatonin could be quite useful to you. It's much better than all of those (addictive) sleeping pills , in case you tried those.

According to my brother (occasional user), you must not be in a rush in the morning, though.

[Jerjo]

I took 5 mg of Melatonin for years, it worked quite well getting my ADHD head to crash. I recently upped it to 10mg.

[SteveSly]

Sounds/looks like Melatonin could be quite useful to you. It's much better than all of those (addictive) sleeping pills , in case you tried those.

According to my brother (occasional user), you must not be in a rush in the morning, though.

As mentioned in my previous comment, I did try Melatonin and to be honest, I could not tell that it had any impact at all. I know it works for some people, but it did not seem to make any difference in my body.

[Duncan Glenday]

Regarding 3-day split

That's awesome! This makes a lot of sense, assuming you have the time and motivation, which you clearly do.

Do you find doing the splits allows you to focus more on the specific areas you're working and that you make more progress (or progress at all)? That's something I could experiment without much disruption.

I don't really have the time especially since I'm following other activities each week - cycling, hiking, kayaking in better weather, etc.

My understanding of the 3 (or whatever) day split:
- It assumes you'll be doing gym 3x/week. Sadly, I don't, but I'm trying to get it up to that frequency.
- You work each muscle group hard, then that group has a week to fully recover / repair / grow before being hammered again.

Yeah it's not worth tearing a ligament or a meniscus. I have wrist pain because of weight lifting injuries from 40 years ago.

One of the things that I find frustrating, as a not-so-young person :

- FIRST, you have to gradually build up the strength in your tendons and ligaments. That's very frustrating because your muscles can usually build up far faster - so while you're building up those ligaments, it feels as if you're ignoring your muscles and it's hard not to increase the intensity too soon.

- WHEN your tendons and ligaments are built up okay, THEN you start working the muscles.

Failure to do this will cause common gym injuries - like tennis/golfers elbow, tendonitis or tendonosis, etc. I think I've had them all because I was too ambitious when I first started - even as a "young" late-40s.

Also - perfect form is crucial for avoiding gym injuries. I also learned that the hard way - tried doing deadlifts far too heavy when I was far from ready, and using terrible form. I actually cracked a rib! I learned fast

As mentioned in my previous comment, I did try Melatonin and to be honest, I could not tell that it had any impact at all. I know it works for some people, but it did not seem to make any difference in my body.

Melatonin only works for a short time span. You need to try going to sleep withing 20-or-so minutes after taking it. If you delay longer, the effect has worn off and it seems as if melatonin doesn't work.

[Sputnik]

Regarding 3-day split

I don't really have the time especially since I'm following other activities each week - cycling, hiking, kayaking in better weather, etc.

My understanding of the 3 (or whatever) day split:
- It assumes you'll be doing gym 3x/week. Sadly, I don't, but I'm trying to get it up to that frequency.
- You work each muscle group hard, then that group has a week to fully recover / repair / grow before being hammered again.

Makes sense. I've heard it divided into upper body/lower body that you'd do with 2-3 days rest between each tranche, but it's the same principle. I've always been a bit skeptical that this would work for me. I've found work a bit less strenously but with consistence works well for me, but I'd be curious about your results when you've worked up to the proper frequency.

Bill

[SteveSly]

Regarding 3-day split



I don't really have the time especially since I'm following other activities each week - cycling, hiking, kayaking in better weather, etc.

My understanding of the 3 (or whatever) day split:
- It assumes you'll be doing gym 3x/week. Sadly, I don't, but I'm trying to get it up to that frequency.
- You work each muscle group hard, then that group has a week to fully recover / repair / grow before being hammered again.




One of the things that I find frustrating, as a not-so-young person :

- FIRST, you have to gradually build up the strength in your tendons and ligaments. That's very frustrating because your muscles can usually build up far faster - so while you're building up those ligaments, it feels as if you're ignoring your muscles and it's hard not to increase the intensity too soon.

- WHEN your tendons and ligaments are built up okay, THEN you start working the muscles.

Failure to do this will cause common gym injuries - like tennis/golfers elbow, tendonitis or tendonosis, etc. I think I've had them all because I was too ambitious when I first started - even as a "young" late-40s.

Also - perfect form is crucial for avoiding gym injuries. I also learned that the hard way - tried doing deadlifts far too heavy when I was far from ready, and using terrible form. I actually cracked a rib! I learned fast





Melatonin only works for a short time span. You need to try going to sleep withing 20-or-so minutes after taking it. If you delay longer, the effect has worn off and it seems as if melatonin doesn't work.

I do weights every day when not travelling, but rotate what I do so I only do the same exercise every 3 days which kind of the same system.

I know exactly what you mean about tendons and ligaments. When I had my knee infection issue earlier this and had the pic line in my arm I could not do any kind of exercise for more than 2 months. When I started up again I had to start with really light weights and work back up. Even with that I still get tendon and ligament pain especially in my wrists and one elbow. When I have my next knee replacement in November I will have at least a month when I won’t be able to do any weights, so will have to start out light again.

Regarding Melatonin. I tried it every way it was recommended and I could not tell that it had any impact at all on my sleep or even drowsiness.

[Jerjo]

For the past 23 weeks, per my phone, I've been walking outside 5-6 times a week. My treadmill, which I keep in the basement, started acting up in February. Just all sorts of electrical fuckery, controls not responding, speed becoming random, etc. A friend told me to try putting a rubber mat underneath it, that static electricity could screw up treadmills. I got one a few weeks ago. It's a bitch to move something that heavy, I had to get help to get the treadmill centered on the mat. I walked outside yesterday, the wind chill was in the 20s; my face and ears got a little too cold for prolonged exposure (in my youth this wouldn't have bothered me - I'm old now). So today I tried to see if the treadmill worked and damn, it acted like it did in its prime. No glitches, just rumbled along counting the time and mileage. Looks like my workout plan for winter in back in force. Now I just have to get my left elbow working again so I can do some resistance training.

[Sunlight Caller]

Good thread idea Duncan, anything that motivates us to keep moving is a plus!

I hadn't seen you post any mega-rides on Facebook recently, so I wondered if you were still in the saddle, but you looked suitably trim in your recent holiday pictures, so I was assured that you were still following a healthy lifestyle.

My soon to be 64 year old knees can no longer run, so much of my daily exercise comes from brisk walking. We got ourselves a friendly and bouncy Fox Red Labrador two years ago, and she keeps me out in the fields for 60-90 minutes a day, walking anything from 5k-10k, all soundtracked by podcasts and my crazy and continually expanding music collection.

Aside from that I have a Peloton, but recently I have lost motivation for the classes, and need to re-engage. When I am on a motivated streak, I can do several months of daily cycling, but not long classes, but enough to burn some calories and get a real sweat up. I also have a Concept-2 rower, and enjoy alternating between the two.

We recently joined a local tennis club. I am not a great player, I haven't held a racket since my twenties, and because of my ACL injury I cannot twist or even move above a plod / jog, but an hour flies by and although I lose every set, I really enjoy myself.

I enjoy swimming too, but I since the arrival of the dog I have done this much less, because she always wants early morning attention, and I used too get my swim in after dropping my wife at the station for her commute to London. Now I have to negotiate time off with the pooch if I'm to get to the pool

[thedunno]

I like to run 3 times a week combined with an ' active lifestyle' . I work in my vegetable garden, i cycle everywhere as much as possible (which is quite normal when you are Dutch). and go for active relaxation.
Combined with a plant based and alcohol free diet I try to keep in shape. I dont have to be able to run marathons but the main goal for me is to be fit for my biggest hobby (apart from prog); mountain hiking and climbing. As I get older it is more hiking than climbing.

The main issue is that I have severe wear on my hips. I got operated on my right hip 9 years ago but the last 2 years my left hip starts playing up more and more. I try to ignore it and will keep on hiking up those mountains until I drop down (literally).