Quote :

"i cant find a workout partner cause im a little guy i had one in college and its a pain in the ass and embarrassing asking him to take all that weight off everytime"

Pro-tip: You get stronger by putting the weights on and off the bars.

Being a little guy is not excuse -- everyone starts somewhere.

2/21/2010 8:30:28 PM

well the other side of the tale is that i actually do the "girls" workout in that i want definition and not to get much bigger

2/21/2010 8:58:45 PM

You're not going to get huge overnight. Lift something heavier.

[Edited on February 21, 2010 at 9:14 PM. Reason : It's a lot easier to look "defined" when you actually have muscle.]

2/21/2010 9:11:01 PM

How do girls work out different than guys? I had no clue there were sex specific exercises. Diet & willpower will dictate 90% of your results, be it lean tissue gain or fat loss.

Less excuses!

2/21/2010 10:29:07 PM

maybe fat people are happier because they get to enjoy more delicious foods

2/21/2010 10:30:19 PM

ThatGoodLock you can join us. I don't think its possible for you to be much weaker !

being an ectomorph is a blessing!


^^

The leg scissor machine is. "Oh is that why i dont fit in my jeans" - porcha

[Edited on February 21, 2010 at 11:02 PM. Reason : :-D]

2/21/2010 11:01:17 PM

Yeah, the two spread eagle machines are "girls only".

2/21/2010 11:30:51 PM

Quote :

"maybe fat people are happier because they get to enjoy more delicious foods"

I'd buy that in Italy where people take time to enjoy food. Rarely does such a thing occur here.

2/21/2010 11:36:10 PM

^^yes but they put those machines in there for our benefit

I was actually RXd by my PT to utilize those machines to help build up the legs/glutes and protect the low back

2/22/2010 6:35:18 AM

Quote :

"How do girls work out different than guys? I had no clue there were sex specific exercises. "

There are no sex specific exercises, but come on, are you blind? Every single gym you will go to in the entire world you will see men and women working out differently. (not everybody, but the vast majority)

2/22/2010 6:51:20 AM

^Girls are "afraid" to do what they see men doing because they don't want to get "big and bulky" so they end up doing a bunch of bullshit isolation exercises.

2/22/2010 7:59:10 AM

Yes it's complete horseshit. It's something women are taught by society at a young age. If you do x exercises you will end up looking like a dude, or you will get huge--nevermind the fact that most dudes can't look huge doing those same exercises.

"I just want to tone up." Right. You either gain muscle or you lose it, you either gain fat or you lose it.

2/22/2010 8:34:57 AM

Not true. Some women actually do bulk easily. They're not in the majority. It's a genetic thing. I bulk easily, but if you look at my brother, eleusis, it makes sense.

It's important to know your body type and know what kind of exercises that you need to achieve your goal. And you need a clear goal. For a lot of women, they just want to get rid of the fat, and they have a goal body in mind. But some people aren't realistic about the results they can achieve. Sure, I want to look like Marisa Miller...



...but it's not gonna happen. It's much more realistic to shoot for a body like Jessica Biel's or Jillian Michaels'.

2/22/2010 9:00:17 AM

^Glad to know the latter two are the realistic goals for women.

2/22/2010 9:11:00 AM

She said realistic for her body type, not for all women...

2/22/2010 9:17:42 AM

Those are definitely realistic body types for mesomorphs. Like I said, people should have a realistic goal in mind, and if you're shooting for a particular look, make sure that you're not setting yourself up for failure.

2/22/2010 9:25:40 AM

lollin' at people ITT complaining about restaurant portions

just don't eat so fuckin' much and show some restraint you children

I regularly eat only half my meal at a restaurant, box it, and take it to work for lunch tomorrow.

oh and don't get the goddamn dessert

2/22/2010 9:27:04 AM

psh, Biel over Marisa Miller any day.

Anyway, I too only eat half the food at restaurants. I just end up eating the other half for lunch or dinner later in the week. Also, people suck down WAYYY too much soda at restaurants too.

2/22/2010 9:44:17 AM

While we're on the subject of fatties and fatness and getting rid of said fatness...

I'd like to get some exercise in while my son is napping so I'd like to get either a treadmill or an elliptical machine. Which is better? I've owned a treadmill before and running was how I dropped weight back in HS, but I've heard good things about elliptical machines.

2/22/2010 10:08:34 AM

An elliptical is going to be lower impact thus "better for heavier people in the beginning," but some people don't like the movement involved in it. It will definitely be quieter.

However, with a treadmill you can run, which is more intense exercise. It will be louder, though. You can always walk on the treadmill, but it's still rather loud.

It also matters if you're in an apartment. I would hate it if someone had a treadmill above me.

2/22/2010 10:12:27 AM

Do you have knee problems? Elipticals have no impact vs. treadmills where you can put a pound on your knees.

I prefer running, however when I was very overweight, it hurt my feet to run an extended amount of time. I would say go for an eliptical machine and then if you decide you want to take up running as well, you can get a nice running stroller to take your kid out in while you get exercise.

2/22/2010 10:12:52 AM

ENDOMORPH FOR LIFE

2/22/2010 11:13:43 AM

even a caveman can do it!

2/22/2010 11:29:39 AM

Quote :

"Yeah, the two spread eagle machines are "girls only"."

Wait, what? Should I stop using the adduction/abduction machine?

2/22/2010 11:59:35 AM

hell no, those machines kick ass, NCSU has them pointed at the squat rack

2/22/2010 1:58:50 PM

^^Yea, I always felt a little silly doing those.

2/22/2010 2:09:08 PM

2/22/2010 3:39:26 PM

Jilian Michaels >>> Jessica Biel >>> Marissa Miller

2/22/2010 3:41:10 PM

Jackie Warner>>Jillian Michaels, but her body is just SICK. Not as realistic of a goal.

2/22/2010 3:47:25 PM

Diet should be less about weight loss and portion control and more about eating the foods that our bodies were meant to absorb. If we get back to the basics of meat, poultry, eggs, fish, vegetables, fruits, nuts and avoid processed foods like refined carbohydrates and grains (yes grains) we will have a much healthier populous. Too many people who fall within the normal body index are struggling with heart disease, diabetes, and other various maladies as a result of poor choices of food.

Paleo is the way to go.

2/22/2010 8:56:33 PM

^Yup, my point exactly. Most diets will have you eating pasta, bread, and rice cakes instead.

That's also what makes me resist this whole "people fail diets." For most of human history, obesity has been largely a non-problem. And suddenly, you want to convince me that Americans have no will power or self control? Did human nature change that much? Really?


[Edited on February 22, 2010 at 9:04 PM. Reason : asdfasdf]

2/22/2010 9:00:16 PM

^ For most of human history, not doing hard manual labor from sun up to sun down meant you died if the weather was out of whack for a week or two. It's only in the last 100 years or so that labor moved away from being all physical and the amount of food available became great enough that people can and do routinely throw it away.

2/22/2010 9:20:59 PM

Sorry, but I don't buy it.

Here's a lecture by Gary Taubes where he points out several populations that did not eat overeat, did do manual labor all day, and were still obese:
http://www.dhslides.org/mgr/mgr060509f/f.htm

2/22/2010 9:33:31 PM

as much as I want to hate the paleo diet, I kinda want to try it.

2/22/2010 9:45:09 PM

I hate veganism and raw food diets, but am tempted to try them as well...

But why in the hell would you want to hate paleo?!?!

2/22/2010 9:48:29 PM

My one month experiment with a paleo diet yield quite a reduction in body fat. It wasn't a very controlled experiment since I was ramping up my workouts at the same time.

2/22/2010 9:56:06 PM

^^because while getting my master's in nutrition, we would joke about not knowing the answer to an exam question and just putting down "eat a plant-based diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains" to get partial credit

it's pretty much beat into our heads

2/22/2010 9:56:28 PM

Are you saying you abhor meat and think whole grains are healthy?

Or are you saying fruits and veggies as the basis of your diet is too obvious?

2/22/2010 9:59:47 PM

you know whats delicious

raw brocolli and raw green beans and raw sweet pea pods

2/22/2010 10:08:24 PM

2/22/2010 10:08:48 PM

ok fine, dip it into yogurt ranch then

2/22/2010 10:09:28 PM

2/22/2010 10:09:40 PM

I was raised as an ovalactic vegetarian. The unfortunate part of your average vegetarian's diet is the lack of protein. Unless you're on top of things, you're going to seek out carbs instead of non-animal based proteins. I've known quite a few over weight vegetarians.

2/22/2010 10:12:43 PM

Eh, until someone can explain to me why it is that despite the fact that the paleolithic period ended 10,000 years ago it's only in more recent history that we're dealing with all these problems, I view paleo as a fad like most of the other diets that tell you to stop eating one thing or another all together.

2/22/2010 10:15:04 PM

I think that the idea of eating a paleo diet is a little wonky.

I've also heard the argument that we have weight problems and other health problems because of the lack of intestinal/gut parasites, but I'm not about to go out and get a tape worm.

2/22/2010 10:19:00 PM

MY TAPEWORM TELLS ME WHAT TO DO

2/22/2010 10:20:34 PM

Quote :

"Eh, until someone can explain to me why it is that despite the fact that the paleolithic period ended 10,000 years ago it's only in more recent history that we're dealing with all these problems,"

Sure. If you mean obesity, I'd say it's mainly because of refined sugars. They didn't really exist until a few hundred years ago. Consumption of sugar is going through the roof lately; that seems pretty obvious. Do you think kids in the 1800s were slamming down sodas and eating pop tarts for breakfast?

Quote :

"I view paleo as a fad like most of the other diets that tell you to stop eating one thing or another all together."

Surely, you must agree that certain foods are just plain unhealthy, right? Would you object to a diet that eliminates trans fat for instance and call it a fad?

Certain foods have no redeeming value. The only problem is that we disagree on which foods they are.

Quote :

"I think that the idea of eating a paleo diet is a little wonky."

Why? These are really the only possible reasons I can imagine, srsly:

1. You don't believe in evolution. We can stop discussing it at that point.
2. You don't believe evolution affects the foods animals eat. In other words, you think lions would be fine eating grass. We can stop discussing it at that point.
3. You don't believe 10,000 years is a "short" time period in evolutionary terms. A legitimate argument, but not one I agree with.
4. You don't believe humans ate meat, vegetables, fruits, and nuts for millions of years. Umm... ok



[Edited on February 22, 2010 at 10:24 PM. Reason : sdfg]

[Edited on February 22, 2010 at 10:29 PM. Reason : asdfasdf]

2/22/2010 10:22:22 PM

Quote :

"MY TAPEWORM TELLS ME WHAT TO DO"

you are my new favorite person.

Quote :

"Why?"

I don't think that there is anything wrong with what a paleo diet requires you to eat. If you're on top of things, you can make it a healthy balanced diet. I just think that the idea of returning back to our dietary roots while well intentioned is a bit kooky. Hence, my parasite comment.

[Edited on February 22, 2010 at 10:26 PM. Reason : .]

2/22/2010 10:23:59 PM

^^ I'm not sure what you ate as an ovo lacto vegetarian, but I find I have no problem meeting my protein needs as one. Options include legumes, soy products, dairy, nuts and eggs. The federal government doesn't even consider it a nutritional priority even for vegans and vegetarians. The real problem is getting enough other nutrients- particularly iron, calcium and B vitamins.

If anything, I have to obsess over getting enough quality carbs in my diet through whole grains and potatoes (which is funny, because I used to have the opposite problem).

2/22/2010 10:28:35 PM

Quote :

"I just think that the idea of returning back to our dietary roots while well intentioned is a bit kooky"

Kooky.... I'm guessing you really don't get the motivation behind the diet

2/22/2010 10:31:38 PM