anyone here that doesnt use supplements?


i dont use them, and I want to know better ways to manage day to day aches and pains

liek ive heard pineapple if good for joints...shit like that, foods, techniques whatever


i dont believe in supplements and I avoid aspirin and ibuprofen for anything other than real bad headaches

5/15/2009 11:29:53 AM

I'm sure you're already incorporating dynamic/ballistic/static stretching for recovery/soreness, yes?

5/15/2009 1:43:27 PM

why would anyone use ballistic or dynamic stretching for recovery?

or maybe I just misunderstood your point

5/15/2009 3:17:28 PM

its not a soreness issue, its aches and pains and tweaks

5/15/2009 5:41:20 PM

aches where?
pain where?
tweaks where?

What are you currently doing for exercise/activity? Any chance you may just need to back off what you're doing and get some proper rest?

5/15/2009 6:05:56 PM

When is the last time you took a week off? Hows your diet been? Have you been getting enough sleep (and no, 6 hours isn't enough)?

5/15/2009 8:04:17 PM

^^^Chris, where do you train for MMA at? I started taking a class for it twice a week at my gym, and it's making me want to look into taking classes somewhere else.

regarding basic aches and pains, fish oil is a natural anti-inflammatory. Maybe you could try adding more fatty fish to your diet? Just make sure you're eating wild fish and not farm raised fish.

5/15/2009 8:08:08 PM

another question... is it any more effective to work your muscles to the point of total exhaustion? for example i did chest yesterday then finished by doing pushups until i couldn't pick myself up. is that good?bad?useless?

6/2/2009 7:08:28 PM

It's good to work them hard/to exhaustion, but muscles only grow when they have time to rest. Are you doing a body part per day?

6/2/2009 7:17:28 PM

^^ I wouldn't do that on a regular basis...working to failure is VERY taxing on your entire system...if you do it too often your body may not properly recover. Every once in a while is fine. Other than that I'd stick to a basic set/rep scheme and consistently try to add weight to the bar week to week.

6/2/2009 8:36:32 PM

yeah do that only once in a while. over time you won't be able to do it to the point of exhaustion every time regardless. You'll get it down.

6/3/2009 7:51:50 AM

Depends on how you do it.

I did two 12 week stints of a workout that's going to failure on every portion of every rest pause set, but you only train each body part one exercise one rest pause set for 11-15 reps once a week (15 exercises per week). You do need to get there if your goal is to add muscle. Even if you are training like that if you eat and sleep right it's not a big deal, but I did stop recovering around week 11 both times, but kept getting stronger.


[Edited on June 3, 2009 at 8:02 AM. Reason : fg]

6/3/2009 8:00:45 AM

Working to total failure:

it is a misconception that you must "fail" on the last rep. failure can include and usually does include getting the last rep and not being able to do another.

if you take a basic program (we'll use the BFS that most are familiar with from high school strength training) and work in a 3x3, 5x5, 5x4x3x2x1, and then 8x6x4 in rotating weeks, you are to hit the six core lifts hard (to failure), but only add 2-5 auxillary exercises in 2 sets of ten. then you add five pounds to each set each successive week to every core set. odds are, at some point, you will not meet your goal (did 3x3 at 315, 405, 495 and next four weeks got 320, 410, but only got 500 twice). but that is okay, so long as you hit your set hard because you went to "failure," the next month will go up (probably).

also remember that working at 85% your max or above for 3 successive weeks on the same exercise can be detrimental. you have to throw in lower weights or change it up. powerlifters will go for hypertrophy (lower weights with higher reps) and bodybuilders will get stronger (higher weights lower reps). variety is the spice of life.

of course you cannot forget nutrition, rest, recovery. doing plyometrics will increase your ability to handle heavy weights and sprinting and jump rope are great ways to make your legs more resolute and recover quickly while improving coordination (which is surprsingly bad in most weightrooms)

[Edited on June 3, 2009 at 8:13 AM. Reason : .]

6/3/2009 8:12:58 AM

i feel obligated to report back and keep the thread alive. here are more of my findings

1) i understand why people turn to steroids. after the initial improvements things have started to lull and of course it's getting harder and harder.

2) green tea pills were brought up in the thread and i've using them for about 8 weeks now. Bottom line is that they do work . even while laying around you'll find your self warmer than normal. Despite them being effective at increasing your metabolism i don't recommend taking them AND working out. they seem to have a crash effect similar to energy drinks and i noticed when i took them on cardio days i couldn't go nearly as hard.i could see them being great for people who just want to flat out lose weight, but i also want to be in shape. As a result i've limited use of the green tea pills to my off days.

3) eating right is the most difficult part. i tend to run around all day and don't notice that i'm hunry until 2pm so i end up binging . i need to do a better job of planning my meals.

all that said and i'm now sittin at around 208 and i'm down to about 20% body fat. keep the thread goin for those who wanna bring their sexy back!

8/9/2009 4:27:23 AM

Nice man! Good to hear you're getting results.

An easy way to lose weight is to take in 500 calories less a day, and burn 500 more. If you do this every week you'll lose 1lb a week (and if you double that you'll lose 2lbs a week, etc).

8/9/2009 4:30:56 PM

any body have any tips as far as things to do before a taxing physical event i.e.running a 5k? let's say a week out what should my diet look like? exercise regimin? you should i run hard for 6 days rest and load up on carbs on the day before ?

9/30/2009 3:53:45 PM

You should incorporate beef in your diet (if not already), as it is an excellent source of lean protein, zinc and iron. The folks at the Boise, Idaho Ironman had beef as their "official protein of the Ironman". Beef is also good for your body's recovery afterward.

9/30/2009 4:09:11 PM

Quote :

"An easy way to lose weight is to take in 500 calories less a day, and burn 500 more. If you do this every week you'll lose 1lb a week (and if you double that you'll lose 2lbs a week, etc). "

500+500 = 1000 calories per day; 7000 calories per week.
A pound of fat = 3500 calories.
Sounds like you'd burn 2 lbs a week at that rate.
What am I missing?

9/30/2009 4:13:52 PM

^^lulz

[Edited on September 30, 2009 at 4:30 PM. Reason : I can't do shit right today]

9/30/2009 4:19:18 PM

I guess there is the fact that your body isn't 100% efficient at converting calories to fat, but I don't think that is the point.

9/30/2009 4:28:43 PM

Quote :

"You should incorporate beef in your diet (if not already), as it is an excellent source of lean protein, zinc and iron. The folks at the Boise, Idaho Ironman had beef as their "official protein of the Ironman". Beef is also good for your body's recovery afterward."

5k =/= ironman

your best choice for lean protein is more likely (skinless) chicken breasts

9/30/2009 9:01:33 PM

Quote :

"any body have any tips as far as things to do before a taxing physical event i.e.running a 5k? let's say a week out what should my diet look like? exercise regimin? you should i run hard for 6 days rest and load up on carbs on the day before ?"

I don't know if your diet a week out matters, but I think the day before you could eat a little more carbs than normal. You don't necessarily want to "carb-load" because a 5k isn't long enough for you to burn it all and you'll end up storing the unneeded carbs.

I would do carbs and lower amounts of protein leading up to the race (you don't want something heavy on your stomach). Avoid cream sauces and eat a little something an hour or so before the 5k.

10/1/2009 9:20:51 AM

Carb-loading isn't really necessary before a 5k. Maybe go a little more carb-heavy than usual, but you won't need too much for that distance. A half-marathon or marathon, however, is a different story. Carb-load for 2 to 3 days prior. Healthy carbs. Whole wheat pastas and breads. Fresh fruit.

10/1/2009 10:21:16 AM