that is a great start !

Food is a funny thing.
Everyone has an opinion about it whether they are trying to get in
shape or not.
I've come to realize
that people have complicated reasons for choosing the foods they
will or will not eat.
Ironically it's rarely because of the results that eating one diet over
another can produce.
If you break it right down to the scientific basics,
nutrition is very simple:
- In order to lose fat you must eat less calories than you burn no matter
what those calories are.
- In order to gain muscle you need to eat just enough calories and protein
in order to allow for muscle growth...if you eat any more than this minimum
amount you will simply gain fat.

Nice job!

I'm on a perpetual bulk up.

Weight loss tips for those who are interested:
http://whatishouldhavelearnedinstudyhal ... nd-tricks/

a few months ago I dropped a knife and since I am a spaz I tried to catch it, and got the point right where my ring finger joins my hand.
It seemed to heal up fine but certain motions are just not comfortable any more.
Lat pulldowns are brutally painful
I already wear padded lifting gloves - any other suggestions?

What's going on with the hand? Have you had a follow-up? Maybe there's some deep damage there, or infection? Because it should be healed by now, if it's just a deep laceration.

ONe thing I did to keep training when I had severe tendinitis was to purchase 'hooks'. Or 'lifting hooks'. If you have padded gloves these are the next step. If it's just lats that are causing pain, hooks should eliminate it because you won't be gripping the weight with your fingers.

Lifting straps might help too; but they would only mitigate the pain because on heavy sets you will have to grip hard with straps. No gripping with hooks, though. So that would eliminate the pain.

I didn't even go to a dr, just let it heal on its own. There's no infection and I don't even notice it 95% of the time. I'm a bassist and it's my fretting hand - haven't had a single problem.

But pulldowns with the bar putting pressure there just kills me. I'll check out lifting straps and/or hooks. If those don't work I guess I can always cut out that particular exercise. I haven't had problems with other exercises...I mostly use freeweights and the hand pressure for those is more on the palm I guess.

thanks for the help

No worries man. STart with straps.

Straps are very important tool because they take the pressure off the forearm, and allow you to pull 100% with your back. I actually release my thumb from the bar when I do it. Helps a lot.

Got back into the gym routine and loving it. Sort of working on my diet, but since I'm trying to bulk I'm having trouble just eating more than I do at the moment. Going to see about eating 6 meals a day instead of 3.

Diet is almost the hardest part of fitness and working out, and it's almost just as important as the actual physical work. My time is so consumed, that if I'm lucky, I'll eat 2 meals in a day. I'll usually only eat 1 meal(breakfast, eggs and oatmeal or something like that), and then have a snack or two throughout the day... it's a little easier on weekends, but even then, my diet is so far gone, I don't have the appetite to eat 3 meals a day plus other things.

I need to figure this shit out or going back to the gym is almost going to be a waste of time.

My bodyweight training and bodyshaping training ends this month. I've registered for Ju-Jitsu and advanced bodyfitness. I'm getting into decent shape but I still need to lose weight. Its more of a personal agenda. I'm 6 ft and around 83kgs (185 pounds odd), which really is okay and I'm not fat (fuck you all ) and I'm trying to drop about 20 pounds around my sides. My shoulders, chest and bi-triceps are in top shape, just control my diet and put my head down to my exercises and I should reach my goal!

The hell you arent, tubby! Get that cupcake out of your mouth and drop and give me 20!

how do you know if you are training hard and pushing your limits?
WHEN THIS HAPPENS TO YOU, you know you are training hard!!!!
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=257 ... =2&theater

wooo!

I weighed myself last night- 197! Staying under 200 feels like it just might be within reach! I would like to get even lighter, I wanna have as little bulk to carry around when I do the Spartan Race in June, but we'll see how feasible that is.

Getting back on track nutritionally helps (obviously).

I've lost 20+ lbs in the last 7 weeks.

I've went from 250.6 to 230.4 just by improving my diet and not snacking late at night. I only workout maybe a couple times a week, nurtition has played a huge role in losing weight.

BRAVO!

Lol. Many good memories of Bikram.

Have never liked the gym, but begrudgingly went when I was in the army and for sporadic periods my first couple years while in school afterwards. I've always dug running to some level, and have had (usually brief) periods when I would get back into it for a month or 3 and then quit for a year or so.

Currently starting my 7th consecutive month of faithful, 3 times a week running (all outside, no treadmill)-- started doing the couch to 5K thing, then did some 5K maintenance, now I'm doing 13 to 18 miles a week-- doing a day of speed work, then a day of tempo work, and then a distance day-- and it feels fuckin' awesome. The next couple weeks I'll be closer to 20 miles in a week , so I'm thinking about doing a half-marathon next year. My wife did one last year and loved it, so we'll probably knock one out together.

Being 41 and feeling better than 31 rules.

Congrats, zeke!

Having a goal has always helped me with fitness. That's cool you can do that with your wife too.

I started going to the Y in north york instead of the downtown one. Place is kind of a shithole by comparison, but that may only be because the downtown one is very well equipped. Bonus is that instead of closing at 12am, this one is 24/7.

I don't know what the deal is up here, but people are just assholes at this gym. Nobody puts their weights away, and two people will happily occupy both squat racks for 45 minutes. Because your routine really needs to consist of 20 sets..

Or when people occupy squat racks for the purpose of benching when several unoccupied benching stations remain available.