Time to get Fit thread

[stangmx13]

I think part of the reason that beer hit me so hard was because I am now definitely over-trained. Last night's ride was supposed to be some stiff VO2Max intervals - 30s at 140%, 2min at 110%, 30s at 60% x2... then spin for 10min and repeat all that 3 more times. We got through the warm-up, the primers, and one set... then it started dumping buckets. So the ride was cut short. I went to finish the intervals today and could barely do the warm-up and primers. The single set I did was so low quality that I bailed and rode home. This was day 7 in a row, totaling about 250miles. And only 2 of those days were chill rides. So no one should be surprised I'm over-trained. At least now I know exactly how it feels and am really finding out how important rest & recovery are. Tmrw is a rest day, then I will do a few Zone2 days before getting back to intervals.

VO2Max is a punishing metric. The two effective ways to increase it are to decrease BF% and to spend time at high heart-rates. The first is difficult for all those reasons we know and the second is outside of any comfort zone, ie it'll hurt. The payoff can be amazing though, so it's all worth it.

 

[two wheel tramp]

I’ve been losing body fat all year and still have a lot to spare.

None of this has been easy, really. I have realized i’m far more disciplined than i give myself credit for.

 

[Mike95060]

I think part of the reason that beer hit me so hard was because I am now definitely over-trained. Last night's ride was supposed to be some stiff VO2Max intervals - 30s at 140%, 2min at 110%, 30s at 60% x2... then spin for 10min and repeat all that 3 more times. We got through the warm-up, the primers, and one set... then it started dumping buckets. So the ride was cut short. I went to finish the intervals today and could barely do the warm-up and primers. The single set I did was so low quality that I bailed and rode home. This was day 7 in a row, totaling about 250miles. And only 2 of those days were chill rides. So no one should be surprised I'm over-trained. At least now I know exactly how it feels and am really finding out how important rest & recovery are. Tmrw is a rest day, then I will do a few Zone2 days before getting back to intervals.

VO2Max is a punishing metric. The two effective ways to increase it are to decrease BF% and to spend time at high heart-rates. The first is difficult for all those reasons we know and the second is outside of any comfort zone, ie it'll hurt. The payoff can be amazing though, so it's all worth it.

Don't take this the wrong way but, im selfishly relieved to hear you are overtraining. Your volume and intensity has been fucking crazy the last month or so. (You trying to win cobbler?? ) "Punishing" is the right word for VO2 Max gains. Those intervals sound brutal.

I'm on my 5th day of an unbalanced HRV and Garmin is still recommending rest. I can't explain the HRV dip other than maybe holiday stress. I'm not sick and even though I was putting in some good work the last month or so, there were no indicators of overreaching or overtraining. I have done one swim in the last 7 days and that's it. No runs. No rides. Its fucking with my head at this point. Patience it really hard to have when you are trying to train with a events on the calendar.

 

[two wheel tramp]

calm ur tits, Mikey!

agreed that idle days mess with the head. i drove into town again last night to get my walk in.

 

[stangmx13]

Don't take this the wrong way but, im selfishly relieved to hear you are overtraining. Your volume and intensity has been fucking crazy the last month or so. (You trying to win cobbler?? ) "Punishing" is the right word for VO2 Max gains. Those intervals sound brutal.

I'm on my 5th day of an unbalanced HRV and Garmin is still recommending rest. I can't explain the HRV dip other than maybe holiday stress. I'm not sick and even though I was putting in some good work the last month or so, there were no indicators of overreaching or overtraining. I have done one swim in the last 7 days and that's it. No runs. No rides. Its fucking with my head at this point. Patience it really hard to have when you are trying to train with a events on the calendar.

Yep, I am def trying to "win" Cobbler and all my races, ie go as fast as a possibly can. I will be nowhere close to the actual front because that's like me racing a moto against GP racers . I think I'd be happy with 25-30% behind the winning time next year. My best race this year was 35% behind.

My volume is def nuts, but my Garmin Load isn't that high. I've been sitting around 800-1000 Load for the past two months. So I don't think load is the problem. I think the problem is how I'm getting that load. I've been doing a lot of sweet-spot rides - rides where I sit around Z1.5-2 for most of the ride but attack climbs and some segments with friends. It's fun, but they are taxing without producing too much load. That makes me push harder on other rides, looking for load. And in the end, I'm just tired. I think I need to go back to more efficient way to accumulate load - more intervals, less fun rides. And I need to make sure Z2 or fun rides stay Z2 the whole time.

I would have given up on Garmin's rest recommendation by day 3, lulz. But that HRV metric may be concerning. How much lower is your HRV than your normal? 20%, 40%?

 

[Mike95060]

You better start riding solo if you wanna stay in zone 2, ask me how I know

It not that far off. I'm probably going to do an easy run today or tomorrow because I just can't take it anymore.

 

[stangmx13]

HRV in the high 30s is kinda low for our age group, esp given your fitness. It is weird that it's not increasing with rest days. To me, that implies some other stress. Maybe holiday stress - trying to get work done and dealing with family stuff. It all adds up. An easy run will probably be less stressful than "normal" life this time of year . Maybe it'll go up after a good run and sleep.

https://www.whoop.com/us/en/thelocker/what-is-a-good-hrv/

My Whoop metrics showed that my HRV is nearly an outlier. I've got a Forerunner coming tmrw so I get to compare and see how accurate the measurement was.

 

[Climber]

Don't take this the wrong way but, im selfishly relieved to hear you are overtraining. Your volume and intensity has been fucking crazy the last month or so. (You trying to win cobbler?? ) "Punishing" is the right word for VO2 Max gains. Those intervals sound brutal.

I'm on my 5th day of an unbalanced HRV and Garmin is still recommending rest. I can't explain the HRV dip other than maybe holiday stress. I'm not sick and even though I was putting in some good work the last month or so, there were no indicators of overreaching or overtraining. I have done one swim in the last 7 days and that's it. No runs. No rides. Its fucking with my head at this point. Patience it really hard to have when you are trying to train with a events on the calendar.

In the track world, for sprinters and jumpers, the science (and history) shows that you should have a recovery week once every 4-6 weeks to give the body a chance to get ahead of the training breakdown of cells. That's an entire week where you're putting a much lower load on your body yet doing enough to not drop off in performance. The idea is that you increase your loads each week, have a recovery week, then increase the load each week. This avoids plateauing caused by over-training which is really a breakdown of your cells that your body hasn't been given sufficient recovery time to fully rebuild. In Track, these are called mesocycles.

I can't say how the distance (middle and long) handle things as I haven't had the advanced training in them and I do know that there are differences in how they train as they're living in the aerobic world (with some time spent in anaerobic world for middle distance) instead of anaerobic and Creatine Phosphate (instant ATP production for 6-7 seconds) world.

 

[stangmx13]

Thnx for the search terms Climber.

Here are two high-level articles that apply to cycling.
https://www.trainingpeaks.com/blog/...-understanding-the-3-cycles-of-periodization/
https://www.trainerroad.com/blog/training-periodization-macro-meso-microcycles-of-training/

I def have been pushing too hard for too long. I think it's time for some extra rest followed by a return of harder shorter efforts.

 

[two wheel tramp]

Who is getting psyched about next year's goals and a new, non-wonky thread? I am figuring mine out so that they are not weight-based and are more fitness-based. I definitely want to get my HDL up.

I also found a close-up face pic of me from January this year and a more recent pic. Both are from Mexico because lucky me! arty I am sharing them here because I am proud of my progress and health gains.

I didn't take measurements of my body at the beginning of the year, but based on my Aerostich barely zipping and my clothing sizes, it's safe to say I lost about 8" off my waist. I will take measurements close to the new year so I can measure progress in 2024 a bit closer. I went from a 3x in women's clothes to an XL, meaning I can shop at damn near any shop I want now. I went from a 2-mile walk leaving me breathless and taking 45 minutes to knocking the same one out in 37 minutes without much struggle and then walking another 3-5 miles on top of that - and I can walk hills again!

 

[stangmx13]

That's a great progress pic

I like progress face pics a ton because ppl often look happier.

 

[Climber]

Who is getting psyched about next year's goals and a new, non-wonky thread? I am figuring mine out so that they are not weight-based and are more fitness-based. I definitely want to get my HDL up.

I also found a close-up face pic of me from January this year and a more recent pic. Both are from Mexico because lucky me! arty I am sharing them here because I am proud of my progress and health gains.

I didn't take measurements of my body at the beginning of the year, but based on my Aerostich barely zipping and my clothing sizes, it's safe to say I lost about 8" off my waist. I will take measurements close to the new year so I can measure progress in 2024 a bit closer. I went from a 3x in women's clothes to an XL, meaning I can shop at damn near any shop I want now. I went from a 2-mile walk leaving me breathless and taking 45 minutes to knocking the same one out in 37 minutes without much struggle and then walking another 3-5 miles on top of that - and I can walk hills again!

Wow, TWT, what an amazing transformation!

You're doing a great job and you'll live longer if you continue as you're doing!

 

[Climber]

Thnx for the search terms Climber.

Here are two high-level articles that apply to cycling.
https://www.trainingpeaks.com/blog/...-understanding-the-3-cycles-of-periodization/
https://www.trainerroad.com/blog/training-periodization-macro-meso-microcycles-of-training/

I def have been pushing too hard for too long. I think it's time for some extra rest followed by a return of harder shorter efforts.

I'm always up for exchanging information with others!

Glad I could offer you some useful knowledge, as I've benefitted from your knowledge!

 

[Holeshot]

Whoa, great progress R! That's way more than I expected. Life changing stuff.

 

[two wheel tramp]

thanks. there’s more work to do and my focus is changing from scale number to fitness. (thanks to this thread)

 

[Mike95060]

Can we archive this in the "best of?" I think it fits.

 

[two wheel tramp]

If it fits, it sits.

 

[Chill]

It's been a minute, life has been throwing a series of curve balls...

Back in April of 2022, a rough breakup and a long stretch of uncertainty ahead, I decided it would be best (for a variety of reasons) to cut my alcohol consumption by 90%. Boom, 5-10 pounds off in a couple weeks.

March 2023 I join City Sport in Berkeley. They have EVERYTHING, it is convenient, the kid is looped in, there is motivation. Despite its convenient location, parking is a hassle and the gym itself is soulless. I barely go and do the "I'll hang onto the membership because I want to go" thing. Finally end membership October 2023, zero gains.

On December 6th 2024 I sign up with Berkeley Barbell Club, a small, neighborhood, no-frills, strength training gym that is walking distance from my apartment. Turns out the two owners worked with and trained with Liam Bauer, co owner of Truth Not Trends (HIIT, strength training, on College at Broadway in Oakland). Liam is awesome and I trained with him in 2018 (he made a Taft rally). Berkeley Barbell Club is a great space and the vibe is welcoming. They post a couple workouts on a blackboard, someone is always there to answer questions about form/method. Can't say enough about the place. Connor and Kody are creating a unique neighborhood gym.

December 7th, I get laid off. I go to the gym. I start going 3-4 days a week and start making more intentional eating decisions. Since January 6 I am averaging 5 days a week, my diet is more focused, I feel better than I have in a long long time.

For years I would say that lifting is not my thing, that gym time is to support "X". But I am totally digging weight training and the results have been bonkers. Yesterday, the 26 year old trainer woking with a reluctant teen says "you want big arms, you gotta work them. Look at Christian, he's jacked!" I'm 55 yo, what the actual fuck?




Who's doing what? Strength Training, very little cardio at the moment but increasing.
What are your goals? Would like to get weight down, increase agility, increase muscle definition.
What is your strategy? Leaning on my gym community.
What is your biggest challenge? Diet, late night sweets.

 

[Climber]

It's very good that you're weight training and have reduced you alcohol intake, those are very good steps in the right direction.

However, since you're 55, I would strongly urge you to make cardio the priority in your plan, definitely don't stop with the lifting, but for your health you will get the most benefit out of doing cardio 5 days a week along with your lifting and if your schedule keeps you from doing one, don't sacrifice the cardio for the lifting.

My

 

[Sharxfan]

Chill, for the late night sweets thing try getting some protein bars. I have a Sams Club here and their protein bars have some sweetness so it allows me to eat one and still be healthy and also curbs my late night sweet habit as well.