Fitness/Diet Accountability Thread

[BPPLEE]

Back
TG Pull Ups x 10,10,10
Heavy Mace x 100
15 lb Clubs x 20
10 lb Clubs x 10,20
X3 Seated Rows ss/w Expanders x 10-10,
X3 Seated Rows x 10,10,10
Heavy Mace x 100
10 lb Clubs x 30
One Arm KB Swings x 10ea
KB Swings x 30
410 reps
Good workout

 

[BPPLEE]

I bought the BodyBlade Pro. I know it’s a gimmick and I feel dumb doing it but I got it today and it actually works. It’s something else to add variety to my workouts. Tenses the muscles, takes my breath if I do it long enough and improves coordination, especially on the left side.

Bodyblade: Rapid Contraction Technology through Vibration and Inertia

Bodyblade® was created in 1991 by physical therapist Bruce Hymanson with the goal of providing his patients a functional method of training the body that could adjust to the level of any user.

bodyblade.com

 

[timewerx]

lately I ate contaminated food and did not eat nor drink for one whole day (no appetite). What's worse than "Standard American Diet"? Is definitely eating contaminated food!

I was able to do most of my weekly workout all but the long Saturday session I can definitely feel the lack of energy from the forced food and water fast. No problems with skating but imposed on the stair climbing. I feel like my legs can take it but my brain seemed drifting off to unconsciousness. I reached the top floor of our building on foot, with no recollection how I got there!

 

[FireDragon76]

The past two days I've been very tired, and last night I slept alot (nine hours). I still feel like I'm getting over COVID. I have been focusing on resting and eating more today, and my heart rate variability and resting heart rate seem to be improving from yesterday. My resting heart rate is about 57, down from 63 yesterday.

My current fitness tracker isn't so good at giving the user tools for gauging recovery. You get resting heart rate and "stress", which is basically heart rate variability. And you have to interpret them largely on your own, looking at trends. Companies like Garmin seem to a better job feeding this data into analytic algorithms and giving you a single score based on a baseline gathered over time, and which can give you more immediate and actionable feedback. So that's what I'm looking into now. The inexpensive fitness trackers are basically only good as step counters and crude heart rate monitors, in my experience. When you become more physically active, it's important to manage not only the intensity of physical activity, but also the volume. Too much low intensity activity can still be physically draining over time.

 

[timewerx]

The past two days I've been very tired, and last night I slept alot (nine hours). I still feel like I'm getting over COVID. I have been focusing on resting and eating more today, and my heart rate variability and resting heart rate seem to be improving from yesterday. My resting heart rate is about 57, down from 63 yesterday.

My current fitness tracker isn't so good at giving the user tools for gauging recovery. You get resting heart rate and "stress", which is basically heart rate variability. And you have to interpret them largely on your own, looking at trends. Companies like Garmin seem to a better job feeding this data into analytic algorithms and giving you a single score based on a baseline gathered over time, and which can give you more immediate and actionable feedback. So that's what I'm looking into now. The inexpensive fitness trackers are basically only good as step counters and crude heart rate monitors, in my experience. When you become more physically active, it's important to manage not only the intensity of physical activity, but also the volume. Too much low intensity activity can still be physically draining over time.

First of all, in order to determine recovery based on Rest HR, then you have to be pretty d*** sure you have established your baseline Rest HR with bleeding accuracy. Pardon my French but if your Rest HR data is garbage then whatever tool you use will also give you garbage results.

I didn't have my Rest HR calculated or estimated but measured directly (actual Rest HR) at the optimal conditions to get your Rest HR - right after waking up in the morning and settling to a comfortable seated position and conscious after at least two days of rest from any exercise or any significant physical activity.

Once I established my Rest HR, I aim to reach it at least 2 days per week which means for me, two days of recovery. My actual Rest HR is 37 bpm and significantly under 40 bpm which is fairly common among professional and collegiate athletes who partakes in aerobic sports like running (I run, cycle, and skate).

To have my Rest HR dip to at least 40 bpm for two days per week is good enough recovery for me. I never actually measured nor tracked my HR variability, I didn't have any tools for it. Just aiming for my actual Rest HR 2 days per week enough to progress me to professional level of cardio fitness.

I also worked around my actual Max HR to make sure I'm accurately hitting the HR zones. Estimates of Max HR tend to be lower than the actual (maybe, it's safety net, I don't know for sure but pro athletes would definitely be using actual Max HR to train at specific zones).

 

[FireDragon76]

I bought the BodyBlade Pro. I know it’s a gimmick and I feel dumb doing it but I got it today and it actually works. It’s something else to add variety to my workouts. Tenses the muscles, takes my breath if I do it long enough and improves coordination, especially on the left side.

Bodyblade: Rapid Contraction Technology through Vibration and Inertia

Bodyblade® was created in 1991 by physical therapist Bruce Hymanson with the goal of providing his patients a functional method of training the body that could adjust to the level of any user.

bodyblade.com

I've thought about trying a Shake Weight in the past. Body Blade might be better for core exercise, just because the blade is so big.

 

[BPPLEE]

I've thought about trying a Shake Weight in the past. Body Blade might be better for core exercise, just because the blade is so big.

I’m glad that I went ahead and got the BodyBlade Pro. Reviews of the cheaper versions say they don’t last. This one is solid and it does work the muscles. I got a workout in this morning before work, it’s so convenient. You can produce a burn in the muscles in a few minutes and it really helps with coordination on the weak side.

 

[FireDragon76]

First of all, in order to determine recovery based on Rest HR, then you have to be pretty d*** sure you have established your baseline Rest HR with bleeding accuracy. Pardon my French but if your Rest HR data is garbage then whatever tool you use will also give you garbage results.

Resting heart rate actually is capable of fluctuating, like in response to overtraining or illness.

To have my Rest HR dip to at least 40 bpm for two days per week is good enough recovery for me. I never actually measured nor tracked my HR variability, I didn't have any tools for it. Just aiming for my actual Rest HR 2 days per week enough to progress me to professional level of cardio fitness.

Most smart phones now days can determine your HRV using the camera and flash on the phone. Like resting heart rate, you have to track it over time, however.

 

[timewerx]

Resting heart rate actually is capable of fluctuating, like in response to overtraining or illness.

Daily Rest HR fluctuation isn't actually a symptom of overtraining unless you're talking about fluctuations in a very short timeframe like seconds (heart palpitations).

You can easily get same levels of daily Rest HR fluctuations in the perfect workout plan without overtraining.

Overtraining is much more closely correlated to your "Baseline Rest HR" which for practical purposes is treated as a fixed value, not fluctuating, not like a moving target that needs to be tracked down with precision. Not like that.

To avoid overtraining, you simply need to get your Rest HR dip to the Baseline Rest HR at least once a week. It doesn't need to be daily.

Because in a good weekly training plan/structure, there would be high training load days (to drive the physiological and metabolic adaptations) and light training load days for recovery. The Rest HR would obviously be higher during the high workload days and lower during the recovery days.

To achieve a near-constant Rest HR every morning close or at the baseline Rest HR, everyday is really not a good goal. In order to do that, you should avoid any exercise above Zone 1 intensity (recovery intensity) and keep your workout sessions under 45 minutes.

This is not a good goal because your exercise performance will quickly hit a plateau. You'd want your exercise performance to get better so your workouts will eventually feel easier or you can do higher intensities, burn more calories without burning out.

Because if your exercise performance isn't improving, your workouts will always feel hard and feel drained of energy after your sessions. Worst case scenario, you may even lose all motivation to exercise if exercise feels so hard every time.

Most smart phones now days can determine your HRV using the camera and flash on the phone. Like resting heart rate, you have to track it over time, however.

It's not as accurate, not even remotely close as the bulky digital blood pressure device my mom is using. I've once determined its accuracy by manually counting my pulse by feel in one minute. The bp device on the other hand is dead accurate.

 

[FireDragon76]

Daily Rest HR fluctuation isn't actually a symptom of overtraining unless you're talking about fluctuations in a very short timeframe like seconds (heart palpitations).

You can easily get same levels of daily Rest HR fluctuations in the perfect workout plan without overtraining.

Overtraining is much more closely correlated to your "Baseline Rest HR" which for practical purposes is treated as a fixed value, not fluctuating, not like a moving target that needs to be tracked down with precision. Not like that.

To avoid overtraining, you simply need to get your Rest HR dip to the Baseline Rest HR at least once a week. It doesn't need to be daily.

Because in a good weekly training plan/structure, there would be high training load days (to drive the physiological and metabolic adaptations) and light training load days for recovery. The Rest HR would obviously be higher during the high workload days and lower during the recovery days.

I think a post-COVID world changes the calculus a bit. At the very least, many people should be careful with high intensity exercise, and avoid situations where they could be exposed to COVID during recovery.

To achieve a near-constant Rest HR every morning close or at the baseline Rest HR, everyday is really not a good goal. In order to do that, you should avoid any exercise above Zone 1 intensity (recovery intensity) and keep your workout sessions under 45 minutes.

This is not a good goal because your exercise performance will quickly hit a plateau. You'd want your exercise performance to get better so your workouts will eventually feel easier or you can do higher intensities, burn more calories without burning out.

If you are trying to manage weight with exercise alone, that's a recipe for overtraining. Exercise isn't the best tool for managing weight. The human body can also vary wildly in just how many calories are burned as a result of exercise (see the Constrained Model of Exercise, for instance).

Because if your exercise performance isn't improving, your workouts will always feel hard and feel drained of energy after your sessions. Worst case scenario, you may even lose all motivation to exercise if exercise feels so hard every time.



It's not as accurate, not even remotely close as the bulky digital blood pressure device my mom is using. I've once determined its accuracy by manually counting my pulse by feel in one minute. The bp device on the other hand is dead accurate.

It's reliable enough now to track heart rate variability . Even athletes now days are using cameras on their phones to track HRV, because it's simpler than using a chest strap in many cases.

 

[timewerx]

I think a post-COVID world changes the calculus a bit. At the very least, many people should be careful with high intensity exercise, and avoid situations where they could be exposed to COVID during recovery.

You only need to avoid overtraining to avoid compromising your immune system.

Unstructured workout routine is really more the cause of overtraining than avoiding high intensity. High intensity in the right proportions is needed for adaptations and is part of any good workout plan.

If you are trying to manage weight with exercise alone, that's a recipe for overtraining. Exercise isn't the best tool for managing weight. The human body can also vary wildly in just how many calories are burned as a result of exercise (see the Constrained Model of Exercise, for instance).

No symptoms of overtraining for me.

Keep in mind that workout intensity will be relative to your fitness level. A Zone 2 workout to a pro athlete might be Zone 4 to a less fitter individual if they try to exercise at the same power output level.

If you can exercise at high wattage while keeping it within Zone 2, you'd burn lots of calories with relative ease and avoid overtraining as well.

Ironically, the reality of the situation is close to the saying, "the rich keeps getting richer and the poor keeps getting poorer". The fitter, you get, the easier it gets to lose weight through exercise.

Motivation is a massive factor to increasing your workout load without resulting to over-training. The psychological factor is definitely a massive factor. Probably because the brain can be a huge energy drain to either glucose or ketones. Find a workout that you'll love to do. At the time being for me, it's skating as cycling is becoming quite stressful due to heavy traffic all the time and risks it brings with it.

For some people it could be salsa dancing that's effective exercise for them. Whatever is quite fun to do.

My diet would be better than a "SAM" (Standard American Diet). Never ice cream, soda on the fridge. No snack bars, no snacks of any kind, no cookies, no cakes. I don't really like them much anyway. I feel worse when I get stuffed on these if somebody gave us loads of these for free.

 

[FireDragon76]

My body fat has been holding steady at around 20 percent for almost a month. My visceral fat has fallen slowly, as has my waistline (It's now solidly 36"). Weight has remained more or less the same (165-166 lbs.).

At the moment I'm just trying to prevent weight gain, while eating healthy. I don't want to focus on restricting calories too much, or too much physical activity, because I'm still dealing with recovering from illness. I have been eating a bit more fat in my diet from nuts (particularly walnuts, but sometimes some peanuts too), but otherwise my diet isn't very different.

 

[FireDragon76]

Today I was feeling under the weather. It reminds me of time I had a bladder infection years ago, and was dealing with alot of fatigue. Everything feels like a chore.

 

[BPPLEE]

Todays quick workout
400
10 lb Mace
Overhead Swings x 20
One Arm Swings x20 right, 20 left
Reverse 1 Arm Swings x 20 right, 20 left
Right to Left x 20
Left to Right x 20
Back and Forth x 60
200 reps, rest 30 seconds
7 lb Mace
Overhead Swings x 20
One Arm Swings x 20 Left, 20 Right
Reverse 1 Arm Swings x 20 Left, 20 Right
Right to Left x 20
Left to Right x 20
Back and Forth x 20 (my grip gave out at this point)
5 lb Clubs High Swings x 20
KB Swings x 20
200 reps
400 reps total
My forearms were burning and my grip was gone.
My goal is to work up to 3 rounds for 1200 reps

 

[FireDragon76]

I am experimenting with disabling PAI on my fitness tracker and just tracking steps and minutes of activity and logging it with Google Fit. Hopefully I get better battery life, too.

I've been checking my heart rate variability with this app a few times a day:

Pulse HRV by Camera BLE ECG - Apps on Google Play

Pulse HRV Heart Rate Variability using Camera, BLE, ECG with additional device.

play.google.com

I also ordered a Bluetooth pulse oximeter off Amazon that also measures heart rate variability. It could be handy to have around.

HRV has improved since yesterday. We walked down to the gas station and I bought some electrolyte drink and a Payday bar, and I think that helped, considering I haven't eaten alot today, mostly napping because I didn't sleep well last night. I just did some a few thousand steps of walking and I used the air walker for fifteen minutes.

I want to stay on the positive side of recovery and not become depleted, and not do anything strenuous right now. I tracked individual activities and tried to keep my heart rate under 105. I also tried to pay attention to how I felt- if I felt like I was getting winded at all, I backed off or took a break for a few minutes. I checked my HRV about a half hour after I got back home and it had improved alot, which is good. It means the exercise probably wasn't depleting. Last night it dropped down to 20ms, but this evening it was 66ms, which is a big improvement.

Some people with Chronic Fatigue and Long Covid like the Garmin Vivosmart fitness trackers because it takes alot of the trial and error out of managing activity and fatigue. That allows some people to engage in light exercise without crashing. I may look into getting one and seeing if it works for me. I'm mostly going to focus on walking and only slowly add resistance training back in after a few weeks.

 

[FireDragon76]

I went to bed feeling good last night. I wake up this morning, check my HRV, and it's 46ms. Still good, but on the lower side of what's "good". Resting heart rate during the night was 59, though, which is higher than it has been, and I only slept about 5 hours and 15 minutes. Subjectively, I don't feel so well. I've got a bit of feeling of malaise and heaviness when I breathe, that I didn't have yesterday, as well as some soreness in my joints.

I should probably try to take it easy today and space out physical activity, focusing on walking, and avoid things like resistance training until I can get rid of any feelings of malaise. Maybe I'll switch from drinking coffee, to drinking more green tea.

 

[FireDragon76]

I ended up feeling better later, had a cup of coffee at a cafe with my dad, and I walked about ten thousand steps today (not all at once, that would be kinda dumb given my present circumstances), and did some calisthenics. Nothing too serious, or so I thought. And I feel far more tired than my maximum heart rate would suggest. That seems to be common in overtraining scenario or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. The anaerobic threshold isn't where it would be predicted to be, is what I've heard as an explanation.

I went ahead and ordered a Garmin Venu SQ off Amazon. It's refurbished and it's rose gold and white (it seems to be a popular color scheme with women- though I have owned some gold accented watches in the past, never a white watch though), so it didn't cost all that much in post-COVID dollars (I guess rose gold and white isn't a popular color scheme). It can pair with a chest strap, which is a feature I really want to have to measure higher intensity workouts in the future, and the inbuilt sensor is very good for doing steady-state cardio. The most important feature for me will probably be the continuous HRV measurement and Body Battery, since I do such a lousy job on my own of gauging how much activity is too much.

I've got enough activity this week that I'm probably not going to do anything tomorrow in terms of exercise. My S.O.'s birthday is tomorrow and we are goign to go check out a new Vegan restaurant downtown.

I think the coffee messes up my sense of how fatigued I am. It gives you a bit of a false sense of energy, and maybe crashes you later?

 

[BPPLEE]

Did chest and arms today and several sessions with the BodyBlade. I’m stronger and have more endurance but I really need to stick with WW and lose 50 more pounds

 

[FireDragon76]

I've lost about a pound and a half, down to 164.5. Unfortunately, it looks like most of the weight loss was lean mass. The Bello app also says I've gained a surprising amount of visceral fat. I took readings twice just to be sure, and both are higher than on the last check about four days ago.

My waistline hasn't changed.

Losing lean mass is probably due to COVID infection, and maybe glycogen depletion. Gaining visceral fat could be due to the fact I've been eating more calories from fat in my diet, perhaps. That's just my hunch.

 

[BPPLEE]

Just did a 400 rep Mace workout followed by a quick session with the BodyBlade. I will work Shoulders and Triceps later today.