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Whenever I need to feel good about myself I load up my BJJ video reels. Just watched them and got all pumped up. Makes me sad I'm too busy with school/career to compete on a serious level any more :'(

Hurt my shoulder playing basketball yesterday so I had to put off lifting for today.

Also, I need to improve my vertical, do you guys have any recs ?

celebrating my new deadlift on the last day of my bulk

EDIT:spahdfgo if by "vertical" you mean overhead press try clenching your butt, it's weird but it works.

Nah, vertical jump

Starting strength is way too vanilla for me. Any recommendations for good beginner routines?

Edit: Looking for something with a little more variety I suppose. SS is just boring IMO.

spend a month (or more) getting your form down on oly lifts and then do a routine from catalystathletics

alternately build a routine around the things you want to be better at

After a bit of research I think I found the plan for me.

Figured I'd post the link here for anyone else who comes here looking for a novice routine.

Went for my squat 1RM on saturday, didn't expect to get as much DOMS

Been away from the internets for a while but thought this would be a first post. Reached my goal of swimming a mile a few weeks ago. Felt really good and now I can do it easily (although I doubt it's very fast). I feel smoother and more fluid than I did at the start too. That video teck linked me helped me visualize the stroke process rather than just floundering. Excited to progress but don't really know what a good next milestone would be good swim-wise.

Curious question, i've learnt swimming in the past, but all my other swimming colleagues (at that time) swim faster than me. What EXACTLY propels you forward faster?

more surface area moving water with the resultant force vector propelling you forwards and a minimaztion of drag. that is to say, energy used should be used to direct your forward and your body position should be good.

anon yep its about gliding through the water as smoothly as possible, even while stroking. try this: push off from the wall, and do a single stroke. how far can you go? what's slowing you down? keep experimenting with head position, body orientation. you'll find as you get a better feel for what works you'll go farther on that single stroke.

skate skiing this morning. really does a number on all your major muscle groups.

At the mall trying to show the SO how slim clothes don't go with lifts that make your thighs grow:




Also, anybody got any bulking stories or recommendations? I'm working on a (slow and clean) bulk trying to gain 20 pounds of muscle over the course of however long it takes.

Started trying to do some HIIT while I'm waiting on my back and knees to feel better.

I think I'm going to die.

Gameplan for new year: I get back from vacation on Jan 1, and my parents have a one week pass at their gym. Gonna hit hard that week since other than that I've got a month with no gym available. Anonomous suggested I just continue to follow Greyskull and add in accessory workouts on the off days. I wish they had a pool, I'd love to get some laps in.

Once back at college, turning the bulk up to full. Aiming for 200 lbs. Hoping to get my squat to 2 plates and my bench to 165 by summertime.

started doing heavier deadlifts and back feels good finally. you youngins -- please value your bodies, getting injured sucks.

rj- swimming is great but its opposite of gains. its a hell of a thing trying to improve your freestyle and bench press a the same time.

My cardio is shot though, to the point where running more than a block leaves me winded. I'd sacrifice some small gains for better overall fitness.

Haven't hit the gym in 3 weeks since I'm home and I'm dying. Loss of energy sucks. Anyways, I've hit a plateau. I'm not sure if I want to bulk or go lean, but I'm at that point where I need to change up my routine. I'm scared of bulking and all my clothes not fitting me, which happened this year, so I'm leaning towards lean. Also, can't find the motivation, possibly due to senioritis.

Happy 2014 guys! Tis'll be a big year for me, both physically and in fashion. I'm definitely going to train more BJJ/Lifting and compete more, no excuses. Changing up a whole new program for the new year, probably with compounds and more accessory lifts for more aesthetics than strength.

rjbman Dude, remember i asked if you did any sports besides lifting? I was thinking you could pick up a new sport that you fancy, to boost your stamina. Swimming is good, just need to eat more for more gains!

omgimacarrot Do a cut? then bulk again when you hit your goal BF%. What happened to me the past year (2013) is that i cut, most of the year, got to around 13% BF or so. Well, what i meant was, I'll continue doing a cut until i reach 8%, only then i'll start bulking again. I've read somewhere where people suggested that you should get to a really low body fat before you bulk, which also made quite a bit of sense to me. It was a pretty long post about how everyone cares about aesthetic, and how most people would rather be slim/low BF% than fat but slightly muscly. Something along the lines of that, at least. But well, however you want to do it, cut first or bulk first is all arguable and subjective but i find that this works best for me.

anon what's your cut like? is doing a cut sustainable in the long run?

also guys, its time for swoleproblems. the other day i was putting on a suit for new years and i literally couldnt fit into any of my suits. i prob have a bit more BF than a year ago but a lot of it has to do with my enormous badonkadonk, legs, and back from lifting. im a bit depressed because now maybe 2 out of my 5 suits fits.

so now im thinking of going back to doing more endurance stuff, but i love my gains. any way to balance that shit out?

I started a Keto diet as a New Year resolution. I anticipate I'll notice its affect on my athletic performance before its affect on my fashun performance so I'll post updates here.

I got through 2 days of "keto flu" (aka a hypoglycemic state) and feel really good and even now. Very curious to see how it affects my training. I've read anecdotal stuff here and there about how it's good and bad for this and that but I'm done with anecdotal bullshit and ready to get on the mats and see how I do (please don't tell me your story about how keto hurt your gains/lifting/performance/whatever - I'm just gonna see how it works for my body).

My goal is to go from 195lbs 16% bodyfat to 175lbs 5% bodyfat. I intend to reach my goal between April and June. If I decide not to continue Keto I plan to transitition to Paleo.

5% bf is a bit unrealistic. I don't think you realize how low that is.

i read that keto can make your hair fall out so fuck keto

pros dont actually stay at sub-10% BF longer than they have to, right? (e.g., weigh-in or a show or w/e)

i get a weird visceral reaction from the whole paleo thing. i think sometimes the people who "do" paleo are just so damn vocal about it annoys me. but i can see the benefit of cutting out sugars, carbs, and trying to eat clean.

i did keto tho for about a month and i didnt see any weight loss (maybe one or two LBs) but maybe i wasnt on it long enough.

I lost a good deal of weight on keto, but it sucks for athletic performance. I do cyclical keto which helps but after two days of bjj I'm carb depleted and have zero energy, so my cardio sucks for the second half of the week. I should do a more moderate carb balanced diet but deep down I'm a fat kid and I like carb up days.