Fit by 60! - TomO's Pledge

This may sound rude, but I'm with you on slight weight gain right now so I understand--you were about 232 not too long ago, right? So is this a slight stagnation right now?
 
Curvie Girlie said:
Sounds like you're very careful! Man you're smart! I hope to be as wise as you at 48 :)

WOW! I can't even GET to 98% of my max--my effin' heart rate just doesn't get very high lately--even if I'm jumping up and down repeatedly. I think high knees does, though--that is some hard shit!

I do, sometimes, but I've been concentrating on high weight. You're right--I'm going to lighten up the weight and go below parallel on Monday.
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LOL, at 48 I wasn't at all wise. At 58 I think I'm beginning to understand what "wise" means as a concept. But wisdom is like the Buddha -- if you see it, run!

I think I was probably pushing it a bit TOO hard yesterday. I'm not sure getting up to 98% of max is necessarily a good thing. I think from now on, if I get above 95%, I'm going to back off a bit.

The heavy weight without form is not worth it. I see countless guys doing squats with 3 45 lb. plates on both ends. They go down about 6 inches and then pop right back up with a big grunt. Aside from that just being plain stupid, they don't realize they're probably damaging their knees. As you rise in the partial squat position, especially with a lot of weight, virtually all the load is on your knees. If you go below parallel, your quads, hams, glutes, and hip flexors take on the load, preserving your knees. Sounds counter-intuitive, but it's true.

I dropped down to 231.2 for 1 day. I forgot that this is what the scale gods and GOM do to taunt me at the beginning of a new Round. I drop to the weight I'll get to when I win the Round. If I'm stupid, which I usually am, I get all excited and think, "Yay, the scale gods and GOM have given up! No more plateaus!" Then two days later, I'm back to the weight I was before. I'm only on day 15 of Round 4, though . . . Still a ways to go.
 
TomO said:
LOL, at 48 I wasn't at all wise. At 58 I think I'm beginning to understand what "wise" means as a concept. But wisdom is like the Buddha -- if you see it, run!
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WHOOPS! I meant 58 *blushing furiously* Hmmm, run?!? :confused:

TomO said:
As you rise in the partial squat position, especially with a lot of weight, virtually all the load is on your knees. If you go below parallel, your quads, hams, glutes, and hip flexors take on the load, preserving your knees. Sounds counter-intuitive, but it's true.
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Cool! I always try to go as low as possible, next time I'll just use the plain old bar, go below parallel, and then slowly add more weight to where I can do it comfortably.

TomO said:
I dropped down to 231.2 for 1 day. I forgot that this is what the scale gods and GOM do to taunt me at the beginning of a new Round. I drop to the weight I'll get to when I win the Round. If I'm stupid, which I usually am, I get all excited and think, "Yay, the scale gods and GOM have given up! No more plateaus!" Then two days later, I'm back to the weight I was before. I'm only on day 15 of Round 4, though . . . Still a ways to go.
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Yes, BUT you still drop weight. Frustrating, isn't it?!?! Grrrrrr. You're all right, Spider.
 
Exercise Log - 5/25/2007

Weights "A"
53 minutes
590 calories

View attachment 3567

I felt inspired today to up my weights in every single exercise, and I did. :jump:

BB Squat went up 5 lbs. to 220 lbs. -- 15 lbs. more, and I'll be at body weight!

Bench Press went up 5 lbs. to 160 lbs.

Pullups improved by one level, to 13.

Standing Military Press went up 5 lbs. to 110 lbs. Barely made the last rep of the last set, though.

One Arm Dumbbell Row went up 5 lbs. to 85 lbs. That's an increase of 20 lbs. in a little more than one month, so I'm happy with that.

Calf Raise went up 15 lbs. to 375 lbs. This is no big deal; it's a machine, so it's not the same as free weights, but it seems to be helping my calves not lose any more muscle.
 

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TomO said:
I felt inspired today to up my weights in every single exercise, and I did. :jump:

BB Squat went up 5 lbs. to 220 lbs. -- 15 lbs. more, and I'll be at body weight!

Bench Press went up 5 lbs. to 160 lbs.

Pullups improved by one level, to 13.

Standing Military Press went up 5 lbs. to 110 lbs. Barely made the last rep of the last set, though.

One Arm Dumbbell Row went up 5 lbs. to 85 lbs. That's an increase of 20 lbs. in a little more than one month, so I'm happy with that.

Calf Raise went up 15 lbs. to 375 lbs. This is no big deal; it's a machine, so it's not the same as free weights, but it seems to be helping my calves not lose any more muscle.
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DAMN!!​

Wow!! :eek2:

Hey Tom, you are amazing!!!

You really going below parallel with those squats? *winking*

Hey is it a Leo Thing to try to push ourselves beyond the limit?
 
congrats on stepping things up a notch in your weights workout. you mentioned something about 98% max heart rate not being a good thing from the other workout though. are you experiencing some sort of side effect from taking it that far?

also, ive been following the little discussion on squat form, and figured i would post a reference that I trust. if you have the patience to read through the whole thing (not that long, but can get somewhat complicated), you might find that not all of what you believe about squats is quite so set in stone.

Squat Analysis

note that danger of injury has much more to do with knee rotation, knee extension (past or short of toes), and inadequate flexibility.

EDIT: Personally, I advocate the use of wider stance squats, with slightly more outward toe point, to my athletes. one of the biggest causes of lower body injuries in sports is due to the quadriceps being overdeveloped in comparison to the hamstrings. a wider stance will put more stress on the hams, as well as help to limit stress on the knee. of course, alot depends on how well people stick to the form, dont allow knee rotation.
 
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Curvie Girlie said:
You really going below parallel with those squats? *winking*

Hey is it a Leo Thing to try to push ourselves beyond the limit?
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Yes, these are all below parallel. The Leo thing -- maybe. I'm right on the edge (July 23) - maybe that's why I was lazy for 57 years. :)

Risty said:
Good job in upping your weights in all the exercises, that's awesome!
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Thanks, Risty.

CoachCrimson said:
congrats on stepping things up a notch in your weights workout. you mentioned something about 98% max heart rate not being a good thing from the other workout though. are you experiencing some sort of side effect from taking it that far?

also, ive been following the little discussion on squat form, and figured i would post a reference that I trust. if you have the patience to read through the whole thing (not that long, but can get somewhat complicated), you might find that not all of what you believe about squats is quite so set in stone.

Squat Analysis

note that danger of injury has much more to do with knee rotation, knee extension (past or short of toes), and inadequate flexibility.

EDIT: Personally, I advocate the use of wider stance squats, with slightly more outward toe point, to my athletes. one of the biggest causes of lower body injuries in sports is due to the quadriceps being overdeveloped in comparison to the hamstrings. a wider stance will put more stress on the hams, as well as help to limit stress on the knee. of course, alot depends on how well people stick to the form, dont allow knee rotation.
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Thanks for the link, Coach. I had read that article before, but it's always good to review it. You know, I think I'm going to widen my stance a little bit. Now that the weight is getting a bit heavier, I think it might help. I appreciate the tip.

The heart rate - no, no ill effects at all. But then, I don't want to have any ill effects, either! I'm actually not sure it's not a good thing, but I figured 95% is high enough for me.
 
Monday, May 28, 2007

Weight: 232.2 - Round 4, Day 17

Yes, if I stay at that weight, I'll declare myself the victor of this round, not by a knockout, but at least by a judgement. I prefer to wait, though, and see if there's a more decisive win by the end of the month.

Saturday we left early in the morning to go to Santa Barbara. My wife participated in one of those outdoor chalk painting festivals, and while she was doing that, I put on my 30 lb. photo backpack, and went on a hike up the hills. I have to say, I am in MUCH better shape now. This was a solid uphill climb for around 2 1/2 to 3 miles, and I was able to go right to the top without stopping or even slowing down much. Nut that I am, I had a heart monitor on, so it made it almost like a session on the step mil -- except with MUCH better scenery. Still, knowing that my heart rate was only at 142, for example, let me know that I was still a long way from my max, so I was able to push myself. There were lots of youngsters on the trail, too, and I passed them all. That made me feel pretty darn good! On the way down, I took it slow and took lots of photos of the plants.

The eating on Saturday didn't go so well. After my hike, I went with Marlene to a nice coffee shop on State Street, to do some people watching. They had this apricot bread pudding that just called out my name, and I was seduced. Then, back at my brother in law's house, there was a bag of macadamia nuts singing to me. I didn't keep exact track of the calories, but I figure it was around 3,200 for the day. Still, with the hike at 1,020 calories, I came out roughly even for the day.

Yesterday, I resolved that every time I put something in my mouth, I would ask myself WWCD (What Would Cym Do?). As a result, I did quite well: 2,387 calories for the day. Again, I broke even, this time because I didn't do any real exercise except walk around a bit.

ps. Thanks, Cannon!
 
TomO said:
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Yesterday, I resolved that every time I put something in my mouth, I would ask myself WWCD (What Would Cym Do?). As a result, I did quite well: 2,387 calories for the day. Again, I broke even, this time because I didn't do any real exercise except walk around a bit.
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Tom, that literally made me laugh out loud! Just never, never, ask yourself that question in the presence of homemade New York style cheesecake or you'll be sorrrreeeee:rotflmao: Great job on the weight increase...soon as I add another 100lbs to my squats I'll be right up there with ya:cool:
 
WOW! You are a TOUGH man, Tom!!

Coming out even is great--your weight is great, and it's really difficult to consider you an overweight person. It just seems silly.

WWCD!! I like that!
 
Thanks for your post in my diary, Tom. You have me smiling here too. I'm glad you got your workout in lovely surroundings for once. :)
 
Wow, a visit by three of the most lovely women on WLF. This is my lucky day!

Cym, I remember eating cheesecake at Junior's in Brooklyn (?). Yes, that's the one time when I won't ask WWCD!

Val -- Thanks, LOL, but look at me from a side view, and you'd think calling me "overweight" would be quite charitable. :) At least now, most of the fat is coming off my gut, because it's already come off all the easy places.

Felici thanks. It is nice to do the workout outside. I hope when I get enough money one day to get one of those recumbant bikes. I really miss bike riding, but my neck can't take the regular bikes.
 
Tom, sounds like you had a pretty good weekend all in all. glad to hear it. sticking to it over vacation will probably be my toughest test of them all. always had the mindset that vacation means time away from EVERYTHING. will have to note to self that doesnt include healthy lifestyle, lol. awesome that you seemed to have succeeded at that one.

sounds like youve got a new club to start on the forum, the WWCD club, lol. i know id join it. could just be a little something for people to pop in and say one thing they did each day like cym would do, lol. keep em honest in their fight against the fat.
 
CoachCrimson said:
Tom, sounds like you had a pretty good weekend all in all. glad to hear it. sticking to it over vacation will probably be my toughest test of them all. always had the mindset that vacation means time away from EVERYTHING. will have to note to self that doesnt include healthy lifestyle, lol. awesome that you seemed to have succeeded at that one.

sounds like youve got a new club to start on the forum, the WWCD club, lol. i know id join it. could just be a little something for people to pop in and say one thing they did each day like cym would do, lol. keep em honest in their fight against the fat.
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Hi, Coach. Actually, the toughest time for me is family get-togethers. My wife has a huge family, and there's always enough food to feed an army, and much of it calorically dense - lumpia, pancit, etc. It takes a lot of will power to stick to the chicken adobo and salad.

As for the WWCD club -- I wonder if cym would mind if we made bumper stickers? :rotflmao:
 
Exercise Log - 5/28/2007

Cardio Coach Vol. 5
65 minutes
1,030 calories
Max HR: 162 (95% of max)
Avg. HR: 141 (83% of max)

View attachment 3581

I almost didn't go in to the gym today. I really, really felt like vegging out. But that little voice in me kept saying, "It's the little things that count. The days when you don't feel like working out, but you do anyway. The lure of the donut shop that you ignore. The tiredness you feel but decide to overcome. This war is not won through a few big battles. It's a guerrilla war against a might foe, won by a thousand small battles."

So, I went to the gym. I was tired, so I decided just to match the speeds I got to the last time I did this workout, on May 15th. I was able to do that, and derived some satisfaction in seeing that my HR's were slightly below the 15th. That means I'm in slightly better shape than I was then, so that's a good thing.
 

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That voice has left me. I need to get it back. I'm getting up early tomorrow and doing my walk. I know I am the one who can get the voice back. I put it there in the first place.
 
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