Enhanced quality of life - the whole picture

[running]

Originally Posted by Gem

Yes, compound exercises such as squats need to be the foundation of the program - especially for strength.



Yes, the main benefit of the bench press is you can load heavier weight, but bench press isn't particularly safe, and dumbbells would probably be a better option for most for the reasons you describe here.



I would say that 45 minutes is a good minumum, and probably a great guideline for busy people, but once the body is conditioned to handle volume, one might want to take about 90 minutes.

We take 3 things into account - stress, adaptation and recovery. The body has to be put under stress to produce and adaptation. For a beginner 45 minutes will be a lot of stress, but for an experienced lifter, it's probably not going to be enough to force an adaption. Recovery is the last factor, which means rest, enough nutrients, and proper sleep.



Sounds about right, instead of sugars, low GI carbs. The amount of carbs would depend on various things like weight loss goals and type of training. Protein always stays the same, and a gram per lean body weight is about right.



Yes, in my case I work on strength, so my rep range is not more than 5, but there is also need for muscle building, which needs higher reps (with lighter weights), so I use rep ranged between 8 and 12 for muscle mass gains, and use lower reps to push the nervous system to maximum straining of those muscles. I would do 5 sets of each exercise, but I am quite well conditioned to that volume. 3-4 sets is perfect for most.



Good balanced workout program right there. I agree standing military press is better and safer because it requires proper glute and core engagement. Seated press is OK using dumbbells, though.



Yep, that protein profile sounds good.

yeah, i bet your right about going beyond 45 minutes. thanks for sharing.

i forfot one thing. the most important for me since i did a lot of physical work. weighted sit ups.

if i ever decide and am able to get back into it. i will run it by you and listen to whatever advice you may have.

in the mean time im gonna try to find something to do pull ups on to add to my current work out. thanks for the information you shared on that!

[Gem]

Originally Posted by running

yeah, i bet your right about going beyond 45 minutes. thanks for sharing.

i forfot one thing. the most important for me since i did a lot of physical work. weighted sit ups.

if i ever decide and am able to get back into it. i will run it by you and listen to whatever advice you may have.

in the mean time im gonna try to find something to do pull ups on to add to my current work out. thanks for the information you shared on that!

Yea, any playground is going to have something for pullups and aussie rows, and between wide grip/narrow overhand/underhand, there is a lot of variation just with those two. Coupled with pushups that's really pretty much the whole uper body. Being on the road like you are makes it hard to have an exercise routine, and diet is a hard too on the move. I see a lot of truckies in Australia are pretty fat, and I guess it's because of long hours sitting and roadhouse meals.

[running]

Originally Posted by Gem

Yea, any playground is going to have something for pullups and aussie rows, and between wide grip/narrow overhand/underhand, there is a lot of variation just with those two. Coupled with pushups that's really pretty much the whole uper body. Being on the road like you are makes it hard to have an exercise routine, and diet is a hard too on the move. I see a lot of truckies in Australia are pretty fat, and I guess it's because of long hours sitting and roadhouse meals.

its been a challenge. so far i havent gained any fat. nor am i fat. and the workout i shared incorporating up downs, running, and pushups has kept much of my muscle from going away. 230 something to 220 something. for me that ten pounds isn't very important. my core is actually maybe stronger cause of the up downs.

there is a mental strength gained from years of weight lifting and watching ones diet to stay fit. somebody in my view with that training also has the dedication that is needed for a meditation practice. one downfall i have found in staying in shape while a truck driver is not being able to shower when ever you want. but other than that i have been excited about making it work. hhere is a copy from another thread about what i take to eat out on the road. when i order food at a resturaunt out on the road i get steak typically. plus there are many eastern indian truck stops that have great indian food. so i get a lot of chicken curry. here is what i pack

copied from other thread.

im a trucker and trying to pack most of my food with me out on the road. usually out about 6 to 8 days at a time. i got a small fridge i bought that plugs into a cigerette lighter. works good. this is whats been working for me.

nutrient infused rice. using my home made broth replacing water to cook it.

i start with making a broth with.....

1. beef bones. tons of important nutrients in the bones.
2. fresh garlic. three of them. lol
3. fresh ginger
4. carrots
5. cabbage.
6. onions
7. leaks
8. tomatoes.
9. potatoes

towards the end just before adding the rice. remove bones.

1. two cubes of butter
2. green onions

Then cook the rice in that broth.

absolutely amazing tasting and full of nutrients in every bite. plus with two cubes of butter it gives the body plenty of fat to.

I also take

A few pounds or so of tri tip(beef) medium rare. beef has tons of b vitamins, amino acids and protein. you cant beat beef.

largest container of whole milk yogurt i can find.

lots of oranges.

Couple bars or so of 85% chocolate.

Tons of dry roasted peanuts.

A dozen or so of soft to hard boiled eggs.

cheese.

a few other things. but the above is the bulk of it.

Supplements. Dr Joell Wallach. Far above everybody else in his field based on my personal results. His products just plain work for me. so i take his healthy body starter 2.0 pack. 60 minerals, 16 vitamins, 12 amino acids, 3 essential fatty acids. 90 for life.

i also take a blend of superfoods i mix with it.

i avoid sugar like the plague. except the dark chocolate. now and then i will have some sweets.
__________________

[running]

looking back it was more like periods of time my exercise program was about weights. other times it was about running and pushups and so on. it was simply about trying to eat clean and stay in shape. much of which was from carpet cleaning a small business i had. the way i put it previously could sound like i was all about weight training in my life. that wasn't the case.

probaboy the best shape i was ever in was when i was in air crew school in the navy. we felt like we were professional athletes getting paid to work out. for pennies on the dollar compared to real professional athletes. but we felt cool none the less for that brief period of time. lol. we were either in the pool swimming, or outside the pool exercising. it was awesome! i think swimming may be the best overall exercise to be fit. since then i havent been in a pool once. there hard to come by and the chlorine has always made me nervous.

[Gem]

Originally Posted by running

looking back it was more like periods of time my exercise program was about weights. other times it was about running and pushups and so on. it was simply about trying to eat clean and stay in shape. much of which was from carpet cleaning a small business i had. the way i put it previously could sound like i was all about weight training in my life. that wasn't the case.

probaboy the best shape i was ever in was when i was in air crew school in the navy. we felt like we were professional athletes getting paid to work out. for pennies on the dollar compared to real professional athletes. but we felt cool none the less for that brief period of time. lol. we were either in the pool swimming, or outside the pool exercising. it was awesome! i think swimming may be the best overall exercise to be fit. since then i havent been in a pool once. there hard to come by and the chlorine has always made me nervous.

Yes basically the way I look at it is, the best exercise is the one that you'll do. A lot of fitness professional types harp on about 'the best exercises', but in the end, exercise is only good if you do it. I do strength training because I like lifting heavy as weight.

My niece is in the military cadets, and they are always running obstacle courses, doing military drills in the bush, crawling around in the mud, and she really loves it. Has a good active time with friends, gets proper professional fitness training, and comes home tired. She'll be way fitter and stronger than her sisters soon, as the youngest.

[Gem]

Originally Posted by running

its been a challenge. so far i havent gained any fat. nor am i fat.

And I remember you saying that driving the rig is great for your spiritual life. So in the bigger picture we are looking at whole people, and not reducing them to just being a body.

and the workout i shared incorporating up downs, running, and pushups has kept much of my muscle from going away. 230 something to 220 something. for me that ten pounds isn't very important. my core is actually maybe stronger cause of the up downs.

Yes the Burpee (up/downs) was named after the guy who invented it:

"The exercise was named in the 1930s for American physiologist Royal H. Burpee, who developed the burpee test. He earned a PhD in applied physiology from Columbia University in 1940, and created the "burpee" exercise as part of his PhD thesis as a quick and simple way to assess fitness.[2] The exercise was popularized when the United States Armed Services adopted it as a way to assess the fitness level of recruits when the US entered World War II. Consisting of a series of the exercises performed in rapid succession, the test was meant to be a quick measure of agility, coordination and strength". (wiki)

there is a mental strength gained from years of weight lifting and watching ones diet to stay fit.

Yes. It's the routine and the consistency, so moods like 'I don't feel like it' aren't going to work. When I started I didn't even think about doing the exercise. I just thought of going to the gym.

It's a trick I used to make it 'something easy to do', and driving to the gym and walking in the door was doable. If I thought about all the exercise it would seem hard, and then I might not go through with it, but just turning up at the gym? Too easy.

For the exercise, the way I approached it was, not so hard that I hate it, but not so easy that its a waste of time.

somebody in my view with that training also has the dedication that is needed for a meditation practice. one downfall i have found in staying in shape while a truck driver is not being able to shower when ever you want.

Yea that would suck.

but other than that i have been excited about making it work. hhere is a copy from another thread about what i take to eat out on the road. when i order food at a resturaunt out on the road i get steak typically. plus there are many eastern indian truck stops that have great indian food. so i get a lot of chicken curry. here is what i pack

copied from other thread.

im a trucker and trying to pack most of my food with me out on the road. usually out about 6 to 8 days at a time. i got a small fridge i bought that plugs into a cigerette lighter. works good. this is whats been working for me.

nutrient infused rice. using my home made broth replacing water to cook it.

i start with making a broth with.....

1. beef bones. tons of important nutrients in the bones.
2. fresh garlic. three of them. lol
3. fresh ginger
4. carrots
5. cabbage.
6. onions
7. leaks
8. tomatoes.
9. potatoes

towards the end just before adding the rice. remove bones.

1. two cubes of butter
2. green onions

Then cook the rice in that broth.

absolutely amazing tasting and full of nutrients in every bite. plus with two cubes of butter it gives the body plenty of fat to.

I also take

A few pounds or so of tri tip(beef) medium rare. beef has tons of b vitamins, amino acids and protein. you cant beat beef.

largest container of whole milk yogurt i can find.

lots of oranges.

Couple bars or so of 85% chocolate.

Tons of dry roasted peanuts.

A dozen or so of soft to hard boiled eggs.

cheese.

a few other things. but the above is the bulk of it.

Supplements. Dr Joell Wallach. Far above everybody else in his field based on my personal results. His products just plain work for me. so i take his healthy body starter 2.0 pack. 60 minerals, 16 vitamins, 12 amino acids, 3 essential fatty acids. 90 for life.

i also take a blend of superfoods i mix with it.

i avoid sugar like the plague. except the dark chocolate. now and then i will have some sweets.
__________________

It's excellent that you make and take your own tucker. Food is the main key innit. If you don't eat right, everything else will not work.

[running]

Originally Posted by Gem

And I remember you saying that driving the rig is great for your spiritual life. So in the bigger picture we are looking at whole people, and not reducing them to just being a body.



Yes the Burpee (up/downs) was named after the guy who invented it:

"The exercise was named in the 1930s for American physiologist Royal H. Burpee, who developed the burpee test. He earned a PhD in applied physiology from Columbia University in 1940, and created the "burpee" exercise as part of his PhD thesis as a quick and simple way to assess fitness.[2] The exercise was popularized when the United States Armed Services adopted it as a way to assess the fitness level of recruits when the US entered World War II. Consisting of a series of the exercises performed in rapid succession, the test was meant to be a quick measure of agility, coordination and strength". (wiki)



Yes. It's the routine and the consistency, so moods like 'I don't feel like it' aren't going to work. When I started I didn't even think about doing the exercise. I just thought of going to the gym.

It's a trick I used to make it 'something easy to do', and driving to the gym and walking in the door was doable. If I thought about all the exercise it would seem hard, and then I might not go through with it, but just turning up at the gym? Too easy.

For the exercise, the way I approached it was, not so hard that I hate it, but not so easy that its a waste of time.



Yea that would suck.



It's excellent that you make and take your own tucker. Food is the main key innit. If you don't eat right, everything else will not work.

that was very interesting about the up downs(burpee). that would make sense then finding out about it in the military. lol

i think if we thought about every rep and every set to do that day. not sure i would do it to often. lol. i keep my mind on how i will feel afterwards. how i will feel overall as somebody whom puts out the effort. then i think about how it would be if i didnt. and so on. i feel very lucky to at a young age kept some kinda exercise going in my life. habits can stick. it seems weird to say but cant think of a time where a month went by and i didn't exercise. today not like i used to. but i found for me to stay in shape running for 20 minutes one to two times a week is enough. up downs one to two times a week.

meditation is nothing more than duplicating the same thing but a different exercise to me. meditation i try to do daily. but if im to open like being to sore like weights i wait and acclimate or recover if it was weights. i actually get sore most often when i open up at a fast rate. so similiar to weights i would of never thought possible. in my experience the chakras are the muscles. lol

random thoughts about meditation being similiar

1. being consistent
2. patience
3. making a habit
4. gains may come quick or over periods of time.
5. cant grow faster than what the body can handle. meditation in my expereince is physical in that the energy is connected to the body. and the body can transform only at the rate it can.
6. pains since it is a body transformation is a sign of growth. to much doesnt make the transformation faster.
7. being consistent is worth mentioning again. year after year after year. religiously.

[Gem]

Originally Posted by running

that was very interesting about the up downs(burpee). that would make sense then finding out about it in the military. lol

i think if we thought about every rep and every set to do that day. not sure i would do it to often. lol. i keep my mind on how i will feel afterwards. how i will feel overall as somebody whom puts out the effort. then i think about how it would be if i didnt. and so on. i feel very lucky to at a young age kept some kinda exercise going in my life. habits can stick. it seems weird to say but cant think of a time where a month went by and i didn't exercise. today not like i used to. but i found for me to stay in shape running for 20 minutes one to two times a week is enough. up downs one to two times a week.

meditation is nothing more than duplicating the same thing but a different exercise to me. meditation i try to do daily. but if im to open like being to sore like weights i wait and acclimate or recover if it was weights. i actually get sore most often when i open up at a fast rate. so similiar to weights i would of never thought possible. in my experience the chakras are the muscles. lol

random thoughts about meditation being similiar

1. being consistent
2. patience
3. making a habit
4. gains may come quick or over periods of time.
5. cant grow faster than what the body can handle. meditation in my expereince is physical in that the energy is connected to the body. and the body can transform only at the rate it can.
6. pains since it is a body transformation is a sign of growth. to much doesnt make the transformation faster.
7. being consistent is worth mentioning again. year after year after year. religiously.

To understand motivation is pretty important, too, because in spirituality there a lot of emphasis on the positive, but duality dictated there is no positive without the negative. The motivation is the dynamic between these two. In my case I didn't exercise, but at the age of 49 I developed a podgy gut and became very weak in strength, and felt terrible at the sensation level just living in my own skin, so I would catch sight of myself as I walked by a window and the negative hate what I looked like, how I felt, and the path of deterioration I was on, but also there was the positive where I wanted to do something for myself and turn thr whole thing around, and instead of getting weaker, fatter and less healthy, do a 180 and get stronger, slimmer, healthier and better looking. Between that negative and that positive is motivation. I had the image of myself in a decade at age 60 - one path led to a dilapidated 60 yo and the other path led to a strong and vital 60 yo - I hated the former and loved the latter, and in this love/hate relationship with my self image I was motivated to train, diet and do what was best for myself.

I didn't know how to lift, but any workout you want is available on you tube, so I learned, followed you tube videos, instructional videos on how to do the exercises correctly, and practiced them at the gym.

I started lifting with bodybuilding routines, which I suggest is the best for starting to lift, because the isolation exercises help to establish the mind to muscle connection. People don;t understand that one has to train mindfully, with conscious awareness on the muscle being used, to connect mind and muscle, and thus train as a whole person. In this way, not only body is being trained, but the brain is producing new neutral pathways and forming the psychological profile of an athlete. Having built up that mindset, you train because of who you have become, and not because you have a lot of will power. Will power fails every time. It's a myth. The mind/muscle connection is the meditation. It transforms who you are as a person.

Now I'm dieting to lose the excess fat I put on during the last 8 months of strength programming. I have lose 12-15 lbs at least over the summer months, and I will - not because I have the will power, but because I actually think like an athlete having done the mind/body training.

[running]

Originally Posted by Gem

To understand motivation is pretty important, too, because in spirituality there a lot of emphasis on the positive, but duality dictated there is no positive without the negative. The motivation is the dynamic between these two. In my case I didn't exercise, but at the age of 49 I developed a podgy gut and became very weak in strength, and felt terrible at the sensation level just living in my own skin, so I would catch sight of myself as I walked by a window and the negative hate what I looked like, how I felt, and the path of deterioration I was on, but also there was the positive where I wanted to do something for myself and turn thr whole thing around, and instead of getting weaker, fatter and less healthy, do a 180 and get stronger, slimmer, healthier and better looking. Between that negative and that positive is motivation. I had the image of myself in a decade at age 60 - one path led to a dilapidated 60 yo and the other path led to a strong and vital 60 yo - I hated the former and loved the latter, and in this love/hate relationship with my self image I was motivated to train, diet and do what was best for myself.

I didn't know how to lift, but any workout you want is available on you tube, so I learned, followed you tube videos, instructional videos on how to do the exercises correctly, and practiced them at the gym.

I started lifting with bodybuilding routines, which I suggest is the best for starting to lift, because the isolation exercises help to establish the mind to muscle connection. People don;t understand that one has to train mindfully, with conscious awareness on the muscle being used, to connect mind and muscle, and thus train as a whole person. In this way, not only body is being trained, but the brain is producing new neutral pathways and forming the psychological profile of an athlete. Having built up that mindset, you train because of who you have become, and not because you have a lot of will power. Will power fails every time. It's a myth. The mind/muscle connection is the meditation. It transforms who you are as a person.

Now I'm dieting to lose the excess fat I put on during the last 8 months of strength programming. I have lose 12-15 lbs at least over the summer months, and I will - not because I have the will power, but because I actually think like an athlete having done the mind/body training.

everything is perspective. and your perspectives are right on imo. instead of becomimg what we dont want to be. but become what we do want to be. with that thinking im looking forward to getting older and older. with proper diet and well thought out exercise plan it is very possible i believe. i enioy and look forward to age.

will power only lasts until it doesnt. lol. thats my thoughts about will power after reading yours. i like what you said and its something i hadn't thought about enough. but reading what you said i agree.

meditation versus weight training continued

in weight training i have found it to be important to have good form. i have seen people develop improperly and get hurt by swinging as much weight as they can.

in meditation having proper posture is important for proper development. for example for me if my head is tilted down or im slunched over the energys path will not hit everything equally. sorta bypassing some of my crown and third eye. with proper posture the energy has a path of opening everything more up and equally. maybe i cant meditate as long cause the force of the current may become to much. but i will get more out of the time spent.

in weight training i have found for me that my shoulders were not as naturally developed as the rest. so i would do my shoulder presses first before getting into my other exercises. maybe doing an extra set or so. over time i became more equally developed.

in meditation i have found my other chakras are more open than my third eye. my third eye holds the rest back. so i more often than not start my meditation using harmonics that activate my third eye. doing so actually benefits them all. sometimes i just run through the whole meditation with that one harmonic. i have come a long ways in development of that weak chakra. my third eye is still behind but its making ground.

[Gem]

Originally Posted by running

everything is perspective. and your perspectives are right on imo. instead of becomimg what we dont want to be. but become what we do want to be. with that thinking im looking forward to getting older and older. with proper diet and well thought out exercise plan it is very possible i believe. i enioy and look forward to age.

will power only lasts until it doesnt. lol. thats my thoughts about will power after reading yours. i like what you said and its something i hadn't thought about enough. but reading what you said i agree.

Yes will power is a failure because you force yourself to something against your own will. It's really just a contradiction, and ya soon get too tired to keep that going.

meditation versus weight training continued

in weight training i have found it to be important to have good form. i have seen people develop improperly and get hurt by swinging as much weight as they can.

True. Perfecting the form is the way to go. That is part of the mind/body training, being conscious of the muscle sensation through the full range of motion. It's important because training consciously and with proper motion is what makes training enjoyable.

in meditation having proper posture is important for proper development. for example for me if my head is tilted down or im slunched over the energys path will not hit everything equally. sorta bypassing some of my crown and third eye. with proper posture the energy has a path of opening everything more up and equally. maybe i cant meditate as long cause the force of the current may become to much. but i will get more out of the time spent.

True, good posture in meditation is very beneficial in the long run, and after had practiced for a couple of years, it began to push my posture into position which allowed the better flow.

in weight training i have found for me that my shoulders were not as naturally developed as the rest. so i would do my shoulder presses first before getting into my other exercises. maybe doing an extra set or so. over time i became more equally developed.

in meditation i have found my other chakras are more open than my third eye. my third eye holds the rest back. so i more often than not start my meditation using harmonics that activate my third eye. doing so actually benefits them all. sometimes i just run through the whole meditation with that one harmonic. i have come a long ways in development of that weak chakra. my third eye is still behind but its making ground.

Pretty complicated subject area, but I usually find when I talk about the high spiritual path, people tell me what I say is just for beginners. But really it's for everyone, beginner, advanced doesn't matter. For the beginner it's mostly the agitations in aversion to pain, whereas for the advanced it's mostly the desire associated with pleasure, and in any case, the cessation of that quest for or avoidance of sensation of any type is what I generally speak of. From there we become alert to any slight disturbance to that balance of ourselves, and addressing this is pretty much the key to resolving imbalances that manifest.