This digest contains the following messages:
1. Re: HIT Digest #193
by: <Beber0190@aol.com>
2. fitness plan
by: Lyle McDonald <lylemcd@onr.com>
3. Correction + abs
by: Lyle McDonald <lylemcd@onr.com>
4. Thoughts on my routine?
by: Karl Martin <karl.martin@mail2.law.und.nodak.edu>
5. Review (and help) on an HIT workout
by: Michael Yacht <yacht@sgi.net>
6. Intensity Regulation
by: Bob Schilling <Robert.Schilling@DOE.STATE.NJ.US>
7. Fat Loss
by: axtomas <por1axt@por10.med.navy.mil>
8. Re: Patellar Tendinitis
by: Mike Strassburg <MLSTRASS@hewitt.com>
9. Re: Patellar Tendinitis
by: Rachael Picone <repicone@excsci.umass.edu>
-------------------- 1 --------------------
Date: Sun, 27 Sep 1998 16:16:22 EDT
From: Beber0190@aol.com
Subject: Re: HIT Digest #193
In a message dated 9/27/98 11:36:59 AM Pacific Daylight Time,
hitdigest@geocities.com writes:
<< er of fat covering it. Any suggestions on how to get rid of it? Also
I seriously NEED abs!!! I have just started 3 days ago working on this
routine of 250 sit ups a day -- 7 sets of 30 one set of 40 and I kinda
space them out over one or two hours. Is this ok? I mean will it
produce good ab development and how long will it take b4 i can
possibly get those hard well defined abs? (i'm 15 and 72.5kg and
174cm -- just in case).
>>
Consider trying a low carb or ketocyclic diet. Works great. As far as
abs,
it could be a good idea, from my experience to cut it down on volume, focus
intensely on each rep, go nice and slow, be progressive, and perhaps use
added
weight if you want to develop size in that region. Also, when doing full
situps, I have been told that it helps to put a rolled up towel below your
lower back.
R'Josh
[Not to pick on you for you surely are not the only person who has done
this, but
PLEASE try to change the subject line when you hit "reply" so that it is
easier for people to
know what a message is really about.
Rob O]
-------------------- 2 --------------------
Date: Sun, 27 Sep 1998 15:53:12 -0500 (CDT)
From: lylemcd@onr.com (Lyle McDonald)
Subject: fitness plan
>Date: Fri, 25 Sep 1998 13:44:31 -0500
>From: "Matthew K Overly" <matthewko@goshen.edu>
>Subject: Suggestions regarding a fitness plan
>
>Starting this
>monday I planned to take her to the gym and show her how to properly use
>the equipement. I will take her through: leg extensions, leg curls, DB
>presses or/ the seated press machine, and front pulldowns.
Why futz with leg ext/leg curl when leg press will work both (plus glutes
depending on depth)? For someone just starting out, I prefer to work the
most muscles with the least number of exercises. You can basically hit the
entire body with 4 exercises: leg press, some type of chest press, some
type of row or pulldown, abs. And you might wnat to add a calf exercise,
and some type of row (for midback, important for posture), and some type of
back extension to her routine.
>She also would
>like some kind of stomach work so I thought I'd show her situps. I
>planned to use very slow to superslow speed and very light weights. I
>planned to take her through this routine Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for
>the first week. After that I thought that I'd change it to every two or
>three or four days.
In the beginning stages of training, I see no reason to start messing with
frequency. She should be able to train thrice weekly for at least the
first 4 weeks straight, maybe longer (I rarely had to worry about recovery
issues for beginners until weeks 5-8). This gives more opportunity for
practice, as well as seeing some progress (better form, weights increasing)
which is inherently positively reinforcing.
>I haven't decided yet and I don't know how to tell
>when it would be best. That's one of my questions for you all.
> Secondly: I thought I'd give her a brief teaching on nutrition.
>I just thought I'd tell her some of the basic things. Anybody have any
>ideas on
>basics? I repeat- b-a-s-i-c-s.
Surf to Cyberpump, go to Nutrimuscle, I have written three articles (one
each on protein, carb, and fat) dealing with the basics. Feel free to
print them, collect them, treasure them (sorry, not enough sleep last
night). Very basic although it's aimed somewhat more at bodybuilding than
general nutrition but the same basics apply.
Lyle McDonald, CSCS
"I am the walrus, goo, goo, ga joob" The Beatles
[It's ok Lyle, we treasure everything you write.
Actually, we really do.
Rob O]
-------------------- 3 --------------------
Date: Sun, 27 Sep 1998 15:53:20 -0500 (CDT)
From: lylemcd@onr.com (Lyle McDonald)
Subject: Correction + abs
>Date: Fri, 25 Sep 1998 13:43:30 -0500 (CDT)
>From: lylemcd@onr.com (Lyle McDonald)
>Subject: vegetarianism
>Related story, a good friend of mine was a strict vegetarian for 5 years.
>She combined her vegetable protein AND ate fish and chicken.
This is truly one of the dumber things I have said in a while. Of course 'strict vegetarian' and 'ate fish and chicken' are mutually exclusive conditions. While I know of many who call themselves vegetarian but eat chicken and fish (that is, they avoid red meat only), I would more accurately term this semi or pseudo-vegetarianism. Thanks to the SB in private email who pointed this out to me 'cuz I missed it totally.
>Date: Sat, 26 Sep 1998 09:32:22 -0700
>From: "Daniel Ng" <ngdan@mbox2.singnet.com.sg>
>Subject: I want Abs!!!
>
>Hi! I am just another amateur who has been lifting weights for more
> than half a year now. I am pretty muscular it's just that I have this
>layer of fat covering it. Any suggestions on how to get rid of it? Also
> I seriously NEED abs!!! I have just started 3 days ago working on this
> routine of 250 sit ups a day -- 7 sets of 30 one set of 40 and I kinda
> space them out over one or two hours. Is this ok? I mean will it
> produce good ab development and how long will it take b4 i can
> possibly get those hard well defined abs? (i'm 15 and 72.5kg and
>174cm -- just in case).
Please repeat this at least 5 times: Spot reduction is a myth.
[SPOT REDUCTION IS A MYTH
SPOT REDUCTION IS A MYTH
SPOT REDUCTION IS A MYTH
SPOT REDUCTION IS A MYTH
SPOT REDUCTION IS A MYTH
I feel much better now
Rob O]
If you can't see your abs because you have a layer of fat covering them, no
amount of sit-ups or crunches will help (this is a different issue than
individuals who are vey lean, but simoply have no muscular development in
their abs). This is because working a given muscle (in this case the abs,
but this would also apply to women working their hips/glutes or whatever)
doesn't preferentially remove fat from that area of the body. Think about
it this way: if spot reduction worked, people who ate a lot of food (hence,
working their facial muscles for thousands of reps per day) would have very
lean faces and very fat everything else.
Fat is broken down in response to one thing and one thing only: the
creation of a caloric deficit, which means that you either have to decrease
calorie intake or increase activity, to lose bodyfat. Now, you might
contend that adding a zillion ab crunches is increasing your activity. And
to a point that's true but the abs are a small muscle, and the caloric
expenditure is not going to be that high. I'd guess crunches may burn a
couple of calories per minute and I'm being generous. Weight training
burns 7-9 cal/min, cardio anywhere from 5-10 cal/minute (depends on
intensity but realize that 10 cal/min is a high intensity and most won't be
able to sustain it for long).
So instead of spending 30' (or more) doign crunches, you're better off
training abs like any other body group (that means with weight) for a few
minutes and spending the rest of the time (25'+) doing cardio or whatever.
Or you can just reduce your food intake by a few hundred calories per day,
which is the equivalent of doig 30' per day of cardio and has roughly the
same effect.
Another anecdote. same friend from above (the ex-semi-vegetarian, uhh
yeah). I helped her prep for a bodybuilding contest last year. She
followed a cyclical ketogenic diet (of course) and did maybe 3' of abs per
workout (broken into 2-3 sets of about 1' in length, with heavy loads).
Her abs were as shredded as anyone's at her contest.
Lyle McDonald, CSCS
"I am the walrus, goo, goo, ga joob" The Beatles
-------------------- 4 --------------------
Date: Sun, 27 Sep 1998 17:56:08 -0500
From: "Karl Martin" <karl.martin@mail2.law.und.nodak.edu>
Subject: Thoughts on my routine?
I have been reading this list for a little while now trying to pick
up a few pointers. Although what I have read so far is very
knowledgable I would like to hear a few comments on some beginner
stuff. I do have a very firm background in physiology anatomy and what
not..... But I have never lifted weights before, so I am looking to you
guys for some feedback. My question is:
Background: I have never really needed to lift weights becuase I have
always been kinda "big" for my size. Probably a culmination of germanic
genes. haha! >=)
Anyways I got married and started gaining weight. So I decided that
I wanted to get bigger and drop some weight.
Routine: I start out with 20 mins of cardio. I don't puch myself till I
drop
but I do it to the extent that my shirt is soaked with sweat after I am
done.
I usually ride the schwinn airdyne at #5 on the dial.
Next I use the cybex machines... (they resemble nautilus machines).
I usually do 10-11 machines 3 sets per machine. I usually complete
this in an hour. I have seen some good gains... over the last month and
a half.
I do as much weight as i can for 8-10 reps and then lower the wieght until I can do 8-10 more... etc for 3 sets. Now is this correct?
I have been able to lift 600 lbs more if you add up my gains over the 10-11 machines that I use. Of course I am looking for more gains. I seem to be making my gains slower now then I did when I first started.
Should I switch to free wieghts? I like these cybex machines becuase
they seem to make you do the exercises correctly with the proper range of
motion.
Can anyone give me some good advice on my routine???
thanks!!!!!!!!
Karl
-------------------- 5 --------------------
Date: Sun, 27 Sep 1998 23:39:42 -0400
From: Michael Yacht <yacht@sgi.net>
Subject: Review (and help) on an HIT workout
I've just moved to the HIT method of training (before this I was doing
standard pyramid training (3 sets of decreasing reps but increasing
weight). I've been pretty disappointed with that method and have
already seen significant increases in strength with the HIT method. But
my worry is that I'm not working out all my muscles.
My home 'gym' consists of:
2 dumbells (removable weight)
1 easy-curl bar
1 bench-press bar
1 weight bench with adjustable back (incline only) and a leg
extension/curl attachment.
1 mostly-broken universal machine with a working pull cable (good for
reverse fly, wide grip downward pulls, reverse military press, standing
tricep press, etc...)
Right now I'm working out 3 days a week (Wed, Fri, Sun), and doing 1 set on each of the following exercises with 8 reps to each:
1) Bench
2) Leg Extension
3) Leg Curl
4) Lat Pulldown (wide grip)
5) Reverse military press
6) Reverse pulldown (narrow grip)
7) Tricep press
8) Bicep curl (with easy-curl bar)
9) Fly
10) Reverse Fly (on the cable machine)
11) Stomach crunches
Am I missing anything? Am I overdoing any muscles? Any suggestions?
This workout, as is, takes about 35 minutes to do, which just feels a
bit .. fast. As if I should be doing more.
-Mike
-------------------- 6 --------------------
Date: Mon, 28 Sep 1998 08:35:58 -0500 (EST)
From: Bob Schilling <Robert.Schilling@DOE.STATE.NJ.US>
Subject: Intensity Regulation
"Kevin's" post stated phenomenal gains using "intensity regulation". I'm unable to find a description of this in HIT archive or Cyber pump archive. Can anyone point me to some info on intensity regulation?
Thanks
Bob
-------------------- 7 --------------------
Date: Mon, 28 Sep 1998 09:27:52 -0400
From: por1axt@por10.med.navy.mil (axtomas)
Subject: Fat Loss
>>>Grediagin A. "Exercise intensity does not effect body compsition change
in untrained overfat women" J. of the American Dietetic Association.
95(6):661-5, 1995
Jun
Conclusions:
Fat loss is a function of energy expended rather than exercise intensity.
Therefore, if fat loss is the goal and time is limited, persons should
exercise safely at as high an intensity as tolerated to expend as much
energy aas possible during their allotted time.>>>
>>I can't help to think but one thing. It's lean body tissue that most
efficiently burns fat. From what I understand, the brain is the biggest
calorie expenditure organ (pound for pound), but overall, it's MUSCLE MASS
that eats up the most calories overall. Build more lean body tissue, and
you'll lose more fat. Building lean body tissue is done best by placing
muscle mass under maximum muscle tension.>>
>>Andrew Baye is right if I read him right. Build lean body tissue to lose
fat!>>
>>Fred Hatfield II>>
I forgot to add that the aim of the study was to find out if the "fat
burning zone" of heart rate existed. If it did/does, the women exercising
at the lower intensity would have a greater loss of fat (which they did
not). And as the conclusion states: "if fat loss is the goal and time is
limited, persons should exercise safely at as high an intensity as
tolerated
to expend as much energy as possible during their allotted time". This
leads to a double bonus of greater number of kJ/kcalories used in the same
amount of time, as well as an increase in lean body mass. And as Fred
pointed out, muscle is an active tissue and uses up more energy. It would
have been interesting to see what happened to the women over a greater time
frame than the 12 weeks of the study.
Cheers,
Andrew Tomas
-------------------- 8 --------------------
Date: Mon, 28 Sep 1998 09:37:10 -0500
From: "Mike Strassburg"<MLSTRASS@hewitt.com>
Subject: Re: Patellar Tendinitis
I have also battled with Patellar Tendinitis over the past several years. I used to work through the pain much like you do, but I don't believe that's the answer. Here's what has helped me and will hopefully help you.
First, realize that PT is more of an "overuse" condition than an acute
problem. It took me many years to understand that. It's usually not any one
thing, but the stress of all the various activities that aggravates your
knees. So you have to choose what sports/activities that you really want to
continue doing, and eliminate or cut back on some of the others. I used to
play ice hockey 3-4 times per week and lift/run 2-3 times per week. My
knees always hurt. Now I skate 1-2 times per week and train 1-2 times per
week and they rarely if ever act up anymore. It's a tough decision, but
you only get one set of knees to last a lifetime.
Second, I started doing a lot of stretching for my hamstrings. This made
remarkable improvements almost immediately.
Third, I dropped squats entirely. That was my favorite exercise, so this
was quite a tough decision, but I don't regret it as I'm pain free 99% of
the time. I replaced squats with limited range leg presses. I purposely
shortened the bottom position by about 2" and my quads still get very sore
with no knee pain.
Hope this helps..........Mike
-------------------- 9 --------------------
Date: Mon, 28 Sep 1998 20:25:10 -0400
From: Rachael Picone <repicone@excsci.umass.edu>
Subject: Re: Patellar Tendinitis
>I have a problem that I'd like to hear some thoughs on.
>I have had patellar tendinitis (jumper's knee) in my
>knee for two years now. It hasn't kept me away from
>sports, but it's a distraction.
Kalle,
I can definitely relate as I have been experiencing the same annoying
condition for the past 6 months. I would be happy to give you my thoughts
and some treatment options that I have discussed with the trainers here at
UMass.
Although treatment depends on how severe your tendinitis and pain is, it sounds to me like yours is a manageable problem. The first and most important thing you can probably do for yourself is to ice the area after activity. It's a good idea to ice even on days/weeks you are not experiencing pain. (Ice your knee about 20-25 minutes at a time.)
>In the summers, I play (american) football and in the
>winter I concentrate on weight training.
Changing activities abruptly to a sport that requires a lot of running is certainly one way to aggravate tendinitis. Are you also weight training in the summer and running in the winter? I think that may help a great deal.
You have already noticed that taking time off does
not let the knee heal completely - this is because an increase in the
amount or intensity of activity is simply enough to aggravate it. My knee,
for example, became worse in the past few weeks: after taking some time off
and performing only small amounts of activity, I had to add a large amount
of walking to my day. I just wasn't accustomed to this and my knee became
worse. So resting and then all of a sudden starting activity again may lead
to pain. The best thing you can do is to *gradually* increase your activity
level, be it weight training, football, or walking around a large
university campus.
: )
A long warm up with gentle stretching is usually helpful before exercise.
As for specific leg exercises, I would recommend you try a seated leg
raise. Sit on the floor with your hands behind you. Extend your leg
straight out without bending your knee. (Bend your other knee with your
foot on the floor.) Raise and lower the straight leg to work on developing
quad strength. (You may want to add ankle weights) Squats are usually okay
though I wouldn't do them if you feel pain during the movement. Possibly
lower the intensity and don't squat down as far - this may help. Leg
extensions are not usually recommended but you may be able to progress back
into them slowly. Stretch your quads after exercise by lying on your side
and gently pulling your top leg behind you. (Keep in mind that you need to
develop total body strength and flexibility so make sure you also work
equally on your hips, hams and calves.)
If the condition worsens or truly becomes a problem, consider seeing a
sports medicine physician. Surgery is a last resort and it doesn't seem to
me like you are in any need of it.
Best of luck.
Rachael Picone
Graduate Student
Department of Exercise Science
University Of Massachusetts, Amherst
repicone@excsci.umass.edu
Want to search through old Digests? Then go to
http://geocities.datacellar.net/HotSprings/Spa/7780/search.html
for full text searching -- it's fun!
List/Digest Commands
SUBSCRIBE - subscribes you to the digest.
UNSUBSCRIBE - unsubscribes you from the digest.
To issue a command/request to the server:
Send a message with the command you wish executed as the
subject of the message to hitdigest@geocities.com
To post to the list, send a message to hitdigest@geocities.com
All posts that are deemed unacceptable in current format will be
returned to sender with "Unacceptable" attached.
If you have any problems contact the moderator Rob
Ohlhausen at rao-mail@usa.net or its founder Rob Spector
at rspector@earthlink.net.
************************************************************
Copyright 1998 HIT Digest
All rights reserved. No part of this digest may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical
including but not limited to any information storage and
retrieval system, except as may be permitted by the copyright act
as amended or in writing by HIT Digest.
No liability is assumed for the information provided on the HIT Digest. The opinions are those of the contributors to the digest.