The healthy habits thread

[robin3mj]

Chapeau Justin. Keep it up.

I started this thread with half a mind towards quitting drinking entirely and it has been up and down. Started 2024 about 3lb down from same time last year but there has been swings of +\- 5 lbs or so in between. Still about +8 to where I want to be.

I’m doing dry January again and wife and I are going to see how far into the rest of the year we can take it. We’re going to England in March and I imagine she’ll have some nice wine with her folks then but I’d like to push through a big trip and see what happens.

My Whoop recovery has been very high of late except for two days after I got the flu/covid double vax last week.

9:30 or 10pm bedtimes are huge for me, and after an easy start to the year (two low key rides this week) my plan is to get back to mixing up riding, rowing, Peloton, and lifting, with good stretching sessions in the hotel whilst traveling.

[j44ke]

Regular core workouts will help with the mid-section. I've started up with the Pilates Series of Five. Again. I hate it, but it is what must be done first to get to the good stuff. I actually start with a roll-up to get everything moving. Then go onto the 5. Later I'll add in the 100 at the end. My goal is to keep these going at least until spring. The exercises are all on YouTube, but as form is important for working the proper muscles, taking several beginner Pilates mat classes is a good way to improve. Women and ballet dancers are almost always better at getting the proper form, so look for videos accordingly. A lot of men do the routines from the perspective of strength rather than smoothness which requires developing strength to achieve. Go for smoothness.

[dgaddis]

Regular core workouts will help with the mid-section. I've started up with the Pilates Series of Five. Again. I hate it, but it is what must be done first to get to the good stuff. I actually start with a roll-up to get everything moving. Then go onto the 5. Later I'll add in the 100 at the end. My goal is to keep these going at least until spring. The exercises are all on YouTube, but as form is important for working the proper muscles, taking several beginner Pilates mat classes is a good way to improve. Women and ballet dancers are almost always better at getting the proper form, so look for videos accordingly. A lot of men do the routines from the perspective of strength rather than smoothness which requires developing strength to achieve. Go for smoothness.

That'll help with developing strength in the core, but not losing fat. There is no way to target fat loss in in specific areas outside of surgery or something like that.

But I have been working on core strength. I've got an ab roller wheel, that thing is TOUGH.

Pull-ups and push-ups both hit the core too, and one-armed KB swings and get-ups both do as well since the weight is asymmetric. I especially noticed it when I moved from the 35lbs KB to the 44lbs KB for the on-armed swings - as the rep count and fatigue builds you really start feeling tension in odd places as your core becomes more engaged to resist twisting and whatnot.

[robin3mj]

iPhone response. Apologies Dustin, not Justin.

[j44ke]

That'll help with developing strength in the core, but not losing fat. There is no way to target fat loss in in specific areas outside of surgery or something like that.

But I have been working on core strength. I've got an ab roller wheel, that thing is TOUGH.

Pull-ups and push-ups both hit the core too, and one-armed KB swings and get-ups both do as well since the weight is asymmetric. I especially noticed it when I moved from the 35lbs KB to the 44lbs KB for the on-armed swings - as the rep count and fatigue builds you really start feeling tension in odd places as your core becomes more engaged to resist twisting and whatnot.

No doubt! Whatever you are doing keep doing it! I've just been surprised by how much of what I thought was mid-section fat was actually lack of muscle tone.

[dgaddis]

Did my first attempt at the Simple & Sinister challenge, following the timeline but with lighter weights, 35lbs for the get up and 44lbs for the swing. Challenge is as follows:

100 one-arm swings, sets of 10 every 30 seconds. One minute rest. 10 get-ups, one every minute.

The swings were tough! I've done 100 swings with that weight plenty of times, but never that fast. Each set takes about 20 seconds to do 10 swings, then you only get 10 seconds of rest and you have to go again. I was struggling hard by the end, but I got 'em.

The get ups were way easier. It takes about 30 seconds to do one, then you get a 30 second rest, so it's not so bad. When I finished I tried the get-up with the 44lbs KB, which I hadn't tried yet, but I got it on both arms without too much trouble, so it's time to step up.