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Fitness, Lifting, Nutrition, and All That Good Stuff
I've noticed on the Achaea Discord server that a lot of us are pretty heavy into fitness, weightlifting, powerlifting, etc., from folks who compete to those looking to start hitting the gym and looking for pointers.
So! I figured we could use a fitness thread. Somewhere to ask questions, brag about new PRs, get form checks, share resources, post gym selfies/progress pics, talk nutrition, all that good stuff.
Obligatory reminder to keep things positive. No body shaming, fatphobic language, or just general meanness. The only belligerence should be belligerent positivity 
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that being said, I haven’t hit the weights regularly since Canadian thanksgiving, rip gainz
I'm not confident enough to hit a gym, so in the past week I've downloaded a few apps to test that give set workouts in the comfort of home. I'll stick the ones I find worth it and easy to follow here for anyone else who wants to try them out. Maybe if there are people out there scared to go to a gym you'll want to do some light bedroom stuff with me? (Giggity).
Currently I've dedicated myself to an app called Splits in 30 Days - Splits Training. Because I sit at a desk most of my time I have short tendons in my legs. When a lot of workout regimes start with a warm up of touching your toes and you can barely reach mid-shin it becomes a bit disheartening... not to mention squats... omg I just can't get my ankle to bend like that (guys seriously wtf).
If somehow after the 30 days I can do the splits it would be amazing, I am doing the routine more just to help with joint flexibilty. I have shitty ankles and shitty hips but maybe I can make them a bit better. So far the routine have been very easy to follow and light, the diagrams are informative, and the trainer prompts give tips and god blessed count-downs for when you're not sure how much longer you need to press on.
HOWEVER : The first day the last exercise in the routine is this weird frog pose on the floor and you're suppose to pulse back and forth to stretch out your hip flexors and I just laughed and made ribbet sounds then laughed again and failed. Cannot shake the thought of a frog air humping the floor. That's my only complaint so far.
Here's a squat, 455 x 2. I've hit 475 x 2 since this but the struggle is too embarrassing to post.
https://imgur.com/alWozEO
The power belly is also shamefully real...
I recommend anyone shopping for protein use to this site: https://labdoor.com/rankings/protein/quality
It's an independent lab that does Mass Spec on commercial protein products to assess how accurate their labels represent their contents, determine their safety, and their value (g protein/dollar). They do other supplements too.
Edit: ...Yo if I throw my referral code for MyProtein in this chat would that qualify me as a grade A asshole?
>_>
If you want to get me free stuff.
Do one or more of these things:
Download a calorie counting app (I use my fitness pal) and input your calories intake before you go to bed.
Get a fitness tracker or an app to track how many calories you are burning.
Read labels, start tracking macros (fat, carbs, protein intake mainly). Eat fresh and organic as much as possible. Follow 80/20 rule (80% home made meals, 20% eat out), the restaurants are packing salt and sugar into foods because they care about you coming back, not about your nutrition. Salt and sugar is cheap (and bad for you), use spices as much as possible. Replace things as you go (ie yams instead of white potatoes) with a healthier variation gradually, this way you won't hate your new nutrition plan overnight.
Keep healthy snacks available (I love turkey jerky as a filling snack between meals)
Eat whole fruits, avoid juices. Whole fruit a lot more filling, juices have a lot of the nutritional benefits removed and packed with sugars.
Find out your basal metabolic rate, this is important as everyone is different based on body fat/lean muscle composition. Add about 300-500 calories to this number based on your daily non exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT). This is how you will know how many calories you currently burn per day without working out. Calories in versus calories out is the key to fat loss.
Join a gym that offers classes/group training. It takes about 21 days for most people to build up a habit. You'll get motivated, some instruction and you don't need to find a workout buddy (who will likely flake and drag you down). This is how you'll find a routine you can keep. My advice, do a early morning class before the kids/work/excuses get in the way. Nothing is going to eff up your routine if you workout at 5am. You will have time to go home, get the kids ready, prep for your workday. You will not only lose weight, you'll set your day off on the right step which will cut down on your caffeine dependency and improve your mental health and mood.
Do some cardio for 30 minutes 5 days a week. Can be spin class, running/walking, HIIT, rowing, climbing, grappling. The key is to get your heart rate up for an extended time, it will burn calories and improve your overall heart health.
Sleep 7-8 hours per day, you'll recover faster and burn a lot of calories while you sleep.
Drink half an ounce of water for every pound you weigh (200 pounds, drink 100 oz of water) and .8-1g of protein for every pound you want to weigh (200 pounds, 160-200g) of protein. This will help you maintain the lean muscle you do pack on.
Men, aim for 12-18% body fat.
Women, aim for 20-30% body fat.
Body types and genetics vary for everyone. Don't worry about others, this is a personal battle. You versus you, fuck the haters. The biggest part of finding something that will really work for YOU is finding a Why? Why am I working out at 5am on a Saturday? Why did I leave my comfy warm bed at 5am? You need a strong why to motivate you. Revenge body from a break up? Doctor's order? Want to look awesome on social media? Have running a marathon on your bucket list? Want to be healthy for your children?
Almost 75% of men and 66% of women in the US are overweight or obese. Don't feel ashamed, you aren't alone. But do something about it rather than blaming others or finding excuses. Take ownership of your situation and just do something about it.
Also as far as anyone being nervous about being judged or anything in the gym. Ain't no one gonna judge someone at the gym, atleast at the gyms I've gone to. Everyone has been friendly, and offered tips here and there. Everyone there is there for self-improvement, and thats the name of the game.
To add a few more recs:
I'm a huge fan of Squat University. It's run by a physical therapist who really knows his stuff. Really great videos for improving technique, increasing mobility, all that good stuff.
@jujimufu on instagram is hilarious. He doesn't do instructional videos or anything, but is just one of the funniest dudes on the internet with his various hijinks and/or shenanigans.
Lift Vault is one of my favorite resources. They have spreadsheets for a bunch of lifting programs - it's a must-use if you're a spreadsheet nerd like me. You can just pop open the Google sheets app on your phone and easily track your lifts. They're pretty in-depth and well organized. A lot will estimate your 1RMs, include graphs to visualize your progress, etc.
EatThisMuch is a good reference for getting started with nutrition. It will suggest a macro range based on your body and goals and has some recipes, as well. And for tracking your intake, MyFitnessPal is helpful and easy to use.
Www.mcdonalds.com and www.burgerking.com.
If you want something a little healthier, try chipotle.com.
(Sorry, not much else to add to this thread. It took me getting ass cancer and 3 months so far of chemo to hit my goal I worked on for over a year prior). And my doctor literally said the calories from fast food were very much spmething I should add into my diet since I hate fast food.
Currently my unhealthy ass is doing keto, which seems to be working out pretty well, and I recently ramped up how committed I was, so hopefully that picks up the pace as well. I'm an impatient son of a bitch.