The Fitness Thread !
- Thread starter G33kgod
- Start date
So lately i been running around 55 minutes in Treadmill. And my knee started to hurt. I did no exercise. Just running.
Last week was complete rest. This week again started weight training after a 7 month period or so. Mainly focusing on leg strengthening also.
I have read that having a strong leg will make it easier for me to run longer. True? I plan to run from next week. Pain on knee sometimes i feel.
I bought a knee support sleeve thingy. But i plan to shift to crepe knee support. Advises to stop the pain and avoid pain?
Last week was complete rest. This week again started weight training after a 7 month period or so. Mainly focusing on leg strengthening also.
I have read that having a strong leg will make it easier for me to run longer. True? I plan to run from next week. Pain on knee sometimes i feel.
I bought a knee support sleeve thingy. But i plan to shift to crepe knee support. Advises to stop the pain and avoid pain?
so, you were waiting for this to happen to you... no? and 99% chances that you ran on zero degree incline.
@m-jeri Nice to know that you like to run long distances. I like sprints; just in case I need to catch a bus or a pick pocket
I haven't seen you personally and I am not a physician either. But when I imagine 98kg frame running long distances, I feel a lot of stress on legs/joints. Personal opinion on health/food/exercise posted online or in health magazines shouldn't be taken word-to-word (including mine). Each person has a unique body structure and therefore, a perfect technique for one may not work for another. So, I'd advise you to get in touch with your gym instructor or a general physician to get to know if you are not harming yourself by running so much.
I've personally seen a few instances where people hurt themselves for running too much, without getting their body examined by a professional beforehand.
@aquaticbullet an example where heavy body weight wrecks knees. i've seen this happening to numerous fellow gym goers.
When you're injured, or you have a disability.
Guidance, not assistance, unless you meant assistance in gaining knowledge. Learning the form should be the priority over getting assistance from anyone.
In fact, machines cause injuries because they don't allow one to target all the muscles evenly.
I am actually searching for one with no machines, and only found one, and even that is 5km from my place. Almost every other gym has machines, and they serve only one purpose, to fool people by appearing fancy. These gyms also make do with inferior trainers in the guise of exercising machines.
It doesn't matter if they're separate or all-in-one. They work on the same principles.
Cardio machines are a different matter, though one shouldn't depend on them too much. Max I'd recommend is 20-30 minutes of them.
Every gym around my place (except one) has these useless machines, instead of having a decent power rack, an Olympic bar, and weights.
They're meant for indoor cardio, but people use it as such.Most of the gyms boast of treadmills and cross-trainers, which in my opinion are meant for offline social networking.
Rightly ROFTL by @Rockfella.
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Read this article. The fuss is just fuss.
A lot of runners running on ground also get injured, and it's mostly due to bad form. Sometimes due to improper shoes, or a mix of both. The same holds true for running on a treadmill.
http://oeshshoes.com/2014/01/my-scientific-personal-advice-for-treadmill-training/
rdst_1
Innovator
I agree with gaurav on this. I used to face pain in my shins whenever running on a treadmill or even on ground. I tried to maintain my form by keeping the core tight etc. but it didn't work. So since then I switched to cycling and swimming. Many heavy guys at the gym complained of the same but kept going on. I decided to spare my knees of the torture.
i meant 'assistance' provided by the machines... so as to not lose the proper form. injured people use machines to isolate the injury and keep training... i put a novice in the same category.
Guidance: in my opinion, indian instructors can't provide any guidance. so, i asked him to rely on machines in the beginning.
the last i used any machine was in year 1997. i've learnt a lot in the meanwhile. i suggested machine to a new user to avoid any injuries. those stabilizers can be trained later on with free weights, which requires some knowledge and practice about proper form. a new user can be productive on machines from day 1... while learning the ropes on free weights might take forever.
i've used some good machines for isolated training, so i just shared my experience.
you guys know better about cardio... i just don't need it. i've always been lean due to heavy weight training only. just once in a while i'd do cardio to beat the calorie scores of fellow gym goers. FYI, all of our machines (cardio + weight) were fitlinxx equipped; so, it used to be fun to see where you stand against other runners.
and i am happy for him and other steroid users. you guys are in a different league... you follow bulk-n-cut routines and i always eat clean to stay ripped. bulking is not my cup of tea. i strictly follow my routine and my chances of skipping workout would be once in a year; whereas you guys might not even touch cold iron in winters (Rockfella).
- i share only my own experience and not ask people to follow some random websites.
- for me safety comes first. i take precautions wherever necessary. machines, inclines, no-belts etc come under the umbrella of safety for me. i've seen some bad cases of gym-injuries, including one death. thankfully, i never had to skip gym or a particular exercise because of an injury.
thank you for explaining! i was expecting this reply. you are right.
i've been following this thread for quite long and let's just say that our training methodologies are different. all of us have different body types and so is the need for different stimuli.
BTW, i just opened your link on the inclines... and it talks about 1% incline. were you serious when you posted that link or you just copy-pasted whatever came first on google search? how long have you been running on inclines? please share your own experience.
rdst_1
Innovator
Nopes. It won't cause damage to your legs. Infact it distributes your weight more properly and hence saves your knees.
that text wasn't meant for you. i quoted the numbers for blkrb0t to indicate what i meant by inclines.
anyways, here's what i was discussing with aquaticbullet:
obviously you can't run for 55 mins on a 10~15 degrees incline. i used inclines for HIIT based cardio. and you are running marathons.
i'll have to check my logs for exact numbers but at a broad level, following is what i used to do. it was on a programmable treadmill, so i didn't have to break my concentration midway by constantly fiddling with the controls:
Program1 (14~16 mins):
- at 0°: 4Kmph for 1 min
- at 0°: 7Kmph for 2 mins
- at 0°: 11Kmph for 3 mins
- at 7°: 11Kmph for 10 secs
- at 7°: 6Kmph for 2 mins
- at 10°: 10Kmph for 10 secs
- at 7°: 7Kmph for 2 mins
- at 15°: 11Kmph for 16 secs
- at 5°: 6Kmph for 3 mins
- at 0°: 4Kmph for 3 mins
Program2 (14~20 mins):
- at 0°: 80~100 BPM* for 2 mins
- at 5°: 100~140 BPM for 3 mins
- at 15°: 140~190 BPM for 15 secs
- at 10°: 100~140 BPM for 3 mins
- at 15°: 140~190 BPM for 10 secs
- at 10°: 150~170 BPM for 2 min
- at 5°: 100~140 BPM for 3 mins
- at 0°: keep jogging/walking until BPM is 67~78
*speed automatically varies to maintain the target heart rate.
the High Intensity part would change every week. i did similar programs on exer-cycle and elliptical cross trainer as well. they were fully programmable too. i used to feed the workouts on the machines online, before hitting the gym.
machines would beep before changing the pattern but speed/inclination changes were gradual to avoid accidents. safety is paramount for me, so i'd always wear the safety clip.
aquaticbullet
Forerunner
Umm I guess we are on crossroads here due to some misinterpretation (Which is my fault).
By strength I mean just the bodyweight exercises like the ones I mentioned in my earlier posts such as push ups, squats, lunges etc. I dont wish to go gun ho at the weights and try to build muscle when I have flab to burn.
I have been doing a thorough reading and the following is my conclusion :
Cardio is beginning of the fat loss regime which is accentuated with the strength training. Why ??
Because strength training helps to develop muscles which burn calories way faster than the fat. Also for a newbie the basic strength training helps him/her to develop muscles which are again used to train harder during cardio. For eg :
We need to focus on glutes,calves etc through strength training so that they can support the knees during running and hence there is comparatively less impact.
@Others : Please correct me if I am wrong.
P.S : Can you please throw some light on SS and SL programs ?
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aquaticbullet
Forerunner
1) Only you know about your body well. Over-enthusiastic instructors can do more harm than you doing the exercises at your own pace. An instructor cannot tell you if the pain/soreness you experience is because of exercises you performed the right way or wrong.
2) And you wouldn't come here asking for opinions if your instructor was that good
1) I was stressing on doing any type of cardio the HIIT way only. You'll be done in less time and burn more calories.
2) Running on inclined surfaces (roads, treadmill) avoids 'stomping', which in turn protects your feet/shins/spine etc. And of course, you'll burn more calories. just try running on 10~15 degrees inclination and you'll notice how smoothly your feet lands on the surface.
Point taken and I do second this. I ran on 2% incline (Would increase gradually) and it felt much better. However, we do need to pump in more energy which is gooood.
Yes, you can utilize this time to train 'harder'. Only you can judge your body, so I am unable to say if you can train 'longer' as well.
1) My idea is that the body/muscles breakdown during training and need time to recuperate.
2) By training harder (and not longer) you'll build more muscles. More the muscles, faster the fat loss.
3) If you can ensure equal attention to training:rest:nutrition, then go ahead with longer exercise periods.
4) Muscles build only during resting periods and not on the gym floor.
Yes I know of the proverb the muscles are not build in gym but in kitchen and I am taking proper rest. I just hope that this alternate cardio + Strength does not hinder my muscle building in any way.
Yes, it should be but there's only a small amount of time for which you can engage your muscles to the fullest. Muscles tear/breakdown during exercise (and body builds more muscles during rest/sleep). If you continue to over-exert your muscles then they'll take much longer to get back in shape... and you'll loose momentum/feel sore/less energetic etc.
Try the double-shift routine and see how your body behaves. It may prove beneficial for you if you do it for a month or two.
For now, I have stalled the idea of hitting the gym twice a day because strength has left me limping for the past couple of days. I will stick to this regime for a week and afterwards I would switch to following:
day 1 : Cardio - Running inclined, Cross - HIIT, Cycling - HIIT and basic stretching.
day 2 : Strength in the morning. In evening light cardio.
REPEAT for 6 days a week.
There are two ways to lose fat:
1) do long cardios and only-body weight exercises: Lose some fat and lose muscles as well.
2) do heavy weight exercises and few minutes of HIIT cardio: Build muscles as well as lose fat.
I will switch over to option 2 once I achieve a better part of my goal.
Can't comment on the endurance training as it could be very focussed on one particular aspect such as, marathons or holding breath underwater. Other aspects (such as body fat) is ignored while training for sumo wrestling. I've no further knowledge on endurance training.
Sorry, you were talking in terms of reps and numbers, so I assumed you'd be doing weight training as well. BTW, why are you paying for gym (and instructor) when you are not touching weights? Just using cardio machines?
Yes, using cardio machines. Other reason is motivation and focus. Looking at the well ripped guys just makes me more motivated to train harder and at gym there is nothing else to do. If i start doing the strength exercise at home I am pretty sure my mom would keep on badgering me with other household chores in between the reps.
Overkill? Not really. Maybe your body is taking this regimen quite well. My logic is that doing more reps (or working out too long) increases overall stress/cortisol levels and may affect joints. And one starts to lose muscle-size if one's over-exerted.
My logic of working on cardio for atleast 45 minutes is that I need to burn calories to make a deficit to my day's intakes. I can't do HIIT as of now due to my weight so I have to go through this. Also, till now running at a stretch has not caused me any discomfort (Touch wood), just sweat and we all know "Sweating is Fat crying"
- I am very much interested to see your exercise log.
I would definitely keep on updating my progress and the regime changes here.
- All of my ideas/logic are not based off just websites/books only. I read a lot and tried numerous combinations (food/exercise) to understand how my body behaves; and it took me around 2 years to arrive at anything concrete (as it's hard to see the benefits of one exercise regimen before 3-months' trial).
- I am out of gym for the last 2.5 years but not out of shape. All of these years (in and out of gym) my waist size remained the same. I've lost muscle definition without weight training but I am still energetic. Good part is that I managed to retain 3 out of those 6 packs.
That's just great.
Comments in bold.
rdst_1
Innovator
There are a lot of theories and everyone's body reacts differently to different approaches. I had read that doing cardio after strength helps lose weight faster. Reason given is that once you have used your energy during strength training, the body burns fat to generate energy needed for running/cardio. It worked for me and I lost around 15kgs at a steady pace. It might work for you but only you can come up with a routine that works for you. Also losing weight early will be easy and work despite the regime you choose. Only once you hit a plateau will you be able to truly find out what works for you.
aquaticbullet
Forerunner
What was that steady pace ? And can you share what strength training you took up ?