• Cyburbia is a friendly big tent, where we share our experiences and thoughts about urban planning practice, the built environment, planning adjacent topics, and anything else that comes to mind. No ads, no spam, and it's free. It's easy to join!

Health šŸ„ Health and Fitness Programs

michaelskis said:
That's why sardines are awesome!
Click to expand...

One of my favorite lunches in the summer is a can of sardines, a bunch of sliced up radishes, celery, onions, and cucumbers, some watermelon or berries, and a handful of pretzels or crackers.

It gets me my protein and fiber and once I've put some sardines on the plate, my kids like to react like it's the most gross thing in the world and won't even come near me so I get a good 30 minutes uninterrupted!

As long as I don't wash it down with a sugar-filled Arnold Palmer or something, it always feels like a pretty healthy lunch too.
 
WSU MUP Student said:
One of my favorite lunches in the summer is a can of sardines, a bunch of sliced up radishes, celery, onions, and cucumbers, some watermelon or berries, and a handful of pretzels or crackers.

It gets me my protein and fiber and once I've put some sardines on the plate, my kids like to react like it's the most gross thing in the world and won't even come near me so I get a good 30 minutes uninterrupted!

As long as I don't wash it down with a sugar-filled Arnold Palmer or something, it always feels like a pretty healthy lunch too.
Click to expand...
That sounds really good. I have done something simiar but it was red onion, tomato, and cucumber that I toss into vinegar and salt the night before to pickle them. I sometimes add a bit of Dijon mustard to my sardines.
 
WSU MUP Student said:
One of my favorite lunches in the summer is a can of sardines, a bunch of sliced up radishes, celery, onions, and cucumbers, some watermelon or berries, and a handful of pretzels or crackers.

It gets me my protein and fiber and once I've put some sardines on the plate, my kids like to react like it's the most gross thing in the world and won't even come near me so I get a good 30 minutes uninterrupted!

As long as I don't wash it down with a sugar-filled Arnold Palmer or something, it always feels like a pretty healthy lunch too.
Click to expand...
michaelskis said:
That sounds really good. I have done something similar but it was red onion, tomato, and cucumber that I toss into vinegar and salt the night before to pickle them. I sometimes add a bit of Dijon mustard to my sardines.
Click to expand...
You two be like:

Black And White Eating GIF by Bayerischer Rundfunk
 
michaelskis said:
That sounds really good. I have done something simiar but it was red onion, tomato, and cucumber that I toss into vinegar and salt the night before to pickle them. I sometimes add a bit of Dijon mustard to my sardines.
Click to expand...

The cucumber, red onion, vinegar mixture is a favorite in our household as well (I also add a little sugar when I am mixing it all up). I just made up a batch on Tuesday afternoon and then finished it up last night with my dinner.

The fancy grocery store around the corner has a really good "pub mustard" and I'll put a big dollop of that on my plate and then add some of that to my pretzels and/or sardines. If I've got them, I usually throw beef stick or two on there as well.
 
Hawkeye66 said:
I love pizza. I love chips and salsa. Life isn't fair.
Click to expand...

I love ice cream and burgers and beer. I gave up on relying too much on my actual weight to gauge my fitness a long time ago and now am generally more concerned with how my clothes fit or how big my manboobs are at any particular moment.

Around the start of the pandemic and #WFH I began weighing myself weekly because I noticed a lot of weight loss (thanks primarily to improved diet, not snacking at a desk, and constantly going out to lunch) and my clothes were literally falling off of me. 2+ years later and I've kept up the weekly weigh-in, not so much because I'm concerned (in reality, I think I developed a lot more healthy habits during the pandemic and I've managed to keep nearly all the weight off, even after returning to the office part-time) but because I just enjoy the numbers, charting it out, seeing patterns, etc.

A buddy of mine and I both have Garmin watches and even though he is in DC and I am in Detroit, we like to use the stats on our Garmin watches to compare our runs, VO2 Max loads, "training effects", resting heart rates, etc. It's become sort of a friendly competition between the two of us and has also encouraged me to change up my running patterns quite a bit over the past few months. I used to go heavy on the loooooonngggg, sloooooowww runs and only get a day in at the track once a week, and even then it would be sort of an inefficient workout with very little rest between intervals. I've learned that I really need actual rests between each interval to really get the HR going, concentrate on shorter intervals than I would normally do (but many more of them), and now I try to also get out to the track twice a week. It seems to have made a significant impact on my HR numbers and overall speed on days I'm not not at the track so I must be doing something right.
 
WSU MUP Student said:
I love ice cream and burgers and beer. I gave up on relying too much on my actual weight to gauge my fitness a long time ago and now am generally more concerned with how my clothes fit or how big my manboobs are at any particular moment.

Around the start of the pandemic and #WFH I began weighing myself weekly because I noticed a lot of weight loss (thanks primarily to improved diet, not snacking at a desk, and constantly going out to lunch) and my clothes were literally falling off of me. 2+ years later and I've kept up the weekly weigh-in, not so much because I'm concerned (in reality, I think I developed a lot more healthy habits during the pandemic and I've managed to keep nearly all the weight off, even after returning to the office part-time) but because I just enjoy the numbers, charting it out, seeing patterns, etc.

A buddy of mine and I both have Garmin watches and even though he is in DC and I am in Detroit, we like to use the stats on our Garmin watches to compare our runs, VO2 Max loads, "training effects", resting heart rates, etc. It's become sort of a friendly competition between the two of us and has also encouraged me to change up my running patterns quite a bit over the past few months. I used to go heavy on the loooooonngggg, sloooooowww runs and only get a day in at the track once a week, and even then it would be sort of an inefficient workout with very little rest between intervals. I've learned that I really need actual rests between each interval to really get the HR going, concentrate on shorter intervals than I would normally do (but many more of them), and now I try to also get out to the track twice a week. It seems to have made a significant impact on my HR numbers and overall speed on days I'm not not at the track so I must be doing something right.
Click to expand...

I bike 45-60 miles a week and swim a couple. Or I was until our pool broke down, yet it does little because any deviation from like a 1,500 calorie a day diet causes me to gain weight.
 
WSU MUP Student said:
I love ice cream and burgers and beer. I gave up on relying too much on my actual weight to gauge my fitness a long time ago and now am generally more concerned with how my clothes fit or how big my manboobs are at any particular moment.

Around the start of the pandemic and #WFH I began weighing myself weekly because I noticed a lot of weight loss (thanks primarily to improved diet, not snacking at a desk, and constantly going out to lunch) and my clothes were literally falling off of me. 2+ years later and I've kept up the weekly weigh-in, not so much because I'm concerned (in reality, I think I developed a lot more healthy habits during the pandemic and I've managed to keep nearly all the weight off, even after returning to the office part-time) but because I just enjoy the numbers, charting it out, seeing patterns, etc.

A buddy of mine and I both have Garmin watches and even though he is in DC and I am in Detroit, we like to use the stats on our Garmin watches to compare our runs, VO2 Max loads, "training effects", resting heart rates, etc. It's become sort of a friendly competition between the two of us and has also encouraged me to change up my running patterns quite a bit over the past few months. I used to go heavy on the loooooonngggg, sloooooowww runs and only get a day in at the track once a week, and even then it would be sort of an inefficient workout with very little rest between intervals. I've learned that I really need actual rests between each interval to really get the HR going, concentrate on shorter intervals than I would normally do (but many more of them), and now I try to also get out to the track twice a week. It seems to have made a significant impact on my HR numbers and overall speed on days I'm not not at the track so I must be doing something right.
Click to expand...

Weight and BMI are irrelevant. According to them, I am overweight. Unfortunately "Science" has used those as an indicator of fitness for way too long. We have a scale, but it also measures other body metrics that are far more meaningful including body fat percentage, bone density, and muscle percentage. Another measure that is important is insulin sensitivity. I agree that VO2 max is a terrific measurement of cardio efficiency. I am also a fan of heartrate variability as well. You are spot on with your thoughts about how clothes fit and how you feel.

Earlier this year I noticed that my Apple watch could not keep up with what I wanted it to do. I was tracking my sleep with it at night and then charging it while I was in the shower, and then wearing it all day. So I bought a Whoop based on recommendations from some podcasts and some articles that I read regarding the metrics that it tracked, how it was recharged, the battery life, and the accuracy. So far I am really impressed with it. It has no screen so you need to keep your phone with you, but it tracks the recovery periods at night and the strain your body experiences not only during workouts, but throughout the day. By using this along with some of the metric recommendations that it sent me, I too expanded out my rest periods between sets from 30 seconds to somewhere between 90 and 180 seconds and it made a world of difference in total weight I was able to move.
 
michaelskis said:
Weight and BMI are irrelevant. According to them, I am overweight. Unfortunately "Science" has used those as an indicator of fitness for way too long. We have a scale, but it also measures other body metrics that are far more meaningful including body fat percentage, bone density, and muscle percentage. Another measure that is important is insulin sensitivity. I agree that VO2 max is a terrific measurement of cardio efficiency. I am also a fan of heartrate variability as well. You are spot on with your thoughts about how clothes fit and how you feel.

Earlier this year I noticed that my Apple watch could not keep up with what I wanted it to do. I was tracking my sleep with it at night and then charging it while I was in the shower, and then wearing it all day. So I bought a Whoop based on recommendations from some podcasts and some articles that I read regarding the metrics that it tracked, how it was recharged, the battery life, and the accuracy. So far I am really impressed with it. It has no screen so you need to keep your phone with you, but it tracks the recovery periods at night and the strain your body experiences not only during workouts, but throughout the day. By using this along with some of the metric recommendations that it sent me, I too expanded out my rest periods between sets from 30 seconds to somewhere between 90 and 180 seconds and it made a world of difference in total weight I was able to move.
Click to expand...
Yeah, BMI and weight aren't accurate for me either. Thanks to my northern European/Scandinavian background, I'm a big guy. My routine has always included weights, so there's plenty of muscle mass on me. I've had people think I look good and are concerned about me loosing too much weight. However, the BMI says I'm still obese.
 
Last edited:
michaelskis said:
Weight and BMI are irrelevant. According to them, I am overweight. Unfortunately "Science" has used those as an indicator of fitness for way too long. We have a scale, but it also measures other body metrics that are far more meaningful including body fat percentage, bone density, and muscle percentage. Another measure that is important is insulin sensitivity. I agree that VO2 max is a terrific measurement of cardio efficiency. I am also a fan of heartrate variability as well. You are spot on with your thoughts about how clothes fit and how you feel.
Click to expand...

Whose Yur Planner said:
Yeah, BMI and weight aren't accurate for me either. Thanks to my northern European/Scandinavian background, I'm guy. My routine has always included weights, so there's plenty of muscle mass on me. I've had people think I look good and are concerned about me loosing too much weight. However, the BMI says I'm still obese.
Click to expand...

I think they've changed the guidelines since I was in the Marines, but it used to just be a straight up measure of BMI based solely on height and weight and if you were above a certain point it could effect your chances at promotion, and above a certain rank, if you cannot get promoted you may not be eligible for reenlistment. For officers and staff non-commissioned officers you also used to have to submit a series of pictures in uniform, including a full-body picture in profile. Over the years, I worked with more than a few guys who were big into body building or weightlifting and going off of BMI based on height and weight, they were generally grossly overweight even though they'd have some insanely low bodyfat percentage and, depending on their build, their pictures weren't doing them any favors either. They'd have to go through a big hassle to go to the Naval Hospital, get measured with calipers, get paperwork signed off by a nutritionist, etc.
 
Got a fasting blood sugar of 132 when I got tested for my annual exam last month. So lately I've been skipping breakfast, eating much less for lunch and eating moderately less for dinner. No measuring food, counting calories, weigh ins, mandatory times or amounts of exercise, or really any other metrics involved. That's been my informal plan the last three and a half weeks. So far it seems to be working.
 
Maister said:
Got a fasting blood sugar of 132 when I got tested for my annual exam last month. So lately I've been skipping breakfast, eating much less for lunch and eating moderately less for dinner. No measuring food, counting calories, weigh ins, mandatory times or amounts of exercise, or really any other metrics involved. That's been my informal plan the last three and a half weeks. So far it seems to be working.
Click to expand...
I've been doing similar for several years and it helps me stay steady, at least.

Also: Don't forget proper hydration.

Sassy Link Neal GIF by Rhett and Link
 
Maister said:
Got a fasting blood sugar of 132 when I got tested for my annual exam last month. So lately I've been skipping breakfast, eating much less for lunch and eating moderately less for dinner. No measuring food, counting calories, weigh ins, mandatory times or amounts of exercise, or really any other metrics involved. That's been my informal plan the last three and a half weeks. So far it seems to be working.
Click to expand...
* Disclaimer * I am not a doctor!

Did you also get an A1C test done and what did your morning look like the day you had your blood sugar taken? Stress can cause a spike in morning blood sugar as well.

Sounds like you are doing a lot of the right things. As Mendel mentioned, hydration is also super important. But water alone is not good hydration. I am a fan of mixing a bit of salt and 5 gams creatine powder into my water. The other suggestion is also adjusting what you eat. Focusing on a lower glycemic diet, such as a Mediterranean diet has really great results as well. Finally, I personally like to take Berberine after I finish my last meal of the day. It is a great OTC option to Metformin.





* NOTICE *
I hereby proclaim that I hate running. I really enjoy working out, but mostly resistance training and functional fitness. I don't mind the Peloton bike, but I hate running. I am scheduled to run another Tough Mudder for this Saturday, (15K) and over the past 6 weeks my morning workouts have shifted from resistance to running to build up my endurance. I am going to be able to finish the event without to much issue and the obstacles will be the least of my worries. But I have come to hate running and I am so looking forward to next Monday morning getting back into the gym.

Having said that, I will likely sign up for the same event for next year as well.
 
My health and fitness journey started in 2015. After losing a ton of weight, I started going to a CrossFit box in 2017 and am still going to this day. I absolutely love it. And I'm the running joke that all I talk about is CrossFit.

The mantra that you can't out train a bad diet is probably the single best advice I would give anyone trying to get healthier. The types and amount of food Americans eat is actually quite disturbing. When you are eating the right food, you don't really need to eat a whole lot at all, especially if you're just trying to maintain weight. That's why intermittent fasting works so well. It mimics our ancestors who had to actively work for their food and would often go many hours without eating.
 
I've also lost a bunch of weight. One of things I do, is watch what I eat and how much. America sends mixed messages about eating. I think a lot of that is due people making money off of food.
 
Whose Yur Planner said:
I've also lost a bunch of weight. One of things I do, is watch what I eat and how much. America sends mixed messages about eating. I think a lot of that is due people making money off of food.
Click to expand...

Real food and cooking at home is almost vilified.

A few years ago I saw an ad saying that it has "Grains, vegetables, dairy, and 25 grams of protein!" It was the Big Mac from McDonalds.

Same thing with a lot of these supplement companies as well. There are very few of them that actually deliver and most of them have ingredients in them that hurt your progress more than it helps. Read the label, if it has any sugar or sugar like element, it is going to do more harm than good.

My morning preworkout is a cup of black coffee followed by a bottle of water with a little salt and 5 grams of creatine.
 
I finally, hopefully, kicked the Coke/Diet habit. I haven't had one in three weeks. I do drink one cup of coffee in the morning with the sugar and half and half. Kicking the Diet Coke habit was harder than the diet. Then again, I went cold turkey on the coke.
 
Diet Dr Pepper is my worst habit. I've kicked it a couple times and the monkey just keeps coming back. Most of the other stuff I eat is normal. Eggs for breakfast, home cooking for dinner and usually just a sandwich or something simple for lunch. I could eat more fruit though.
 
I may have screwed up when I bought a case of Shiner Holiday Cheer simply because I could get my hands on it this past weekend. Supplies of this seasonal beer locally are hit or miss and finding it available at all is a win. Thing is, I kinda feel obligated to drink it now. I grilled steaks last night and drank two of them, all the while rationalizing in my mind how I would later offset the consumption.
 
michaelskis said:
I have started to see several advertisements for different health and fitness programs in an effort to get people in the doors before the new year starts.

Between Cross Fit, HIIT, MovNat, Ninja Warrior, Powerlift, Zumba, Pilates, Yoga, and a crap load of other lifestyle based programs, it is almost overwhelming and one really has to start wondering how any of them can claim to be 'the best' when every person's needs are different.

Is there a particular program that you do? Is it a strength, cardio, or stretch based platform and how do you like it? Is it exercise only or is there a dietary component to it? (for example, I know a several yoga people who are vegans and several power lifters that are high protein, high fat, and low carb)

Personally, I am doing a hybrid program that has elements of MovNat, Cross Fit, and Power Lift and I am going with a clean eating (low processed) meal plan. But I am also training for another mud filled 1/2 marathon obstacle course next fall.
Click to expand...
I have posted elsewhere that my program since 1978 has been Hatha yoga. Have had at least a dozen teachers.

What I like most is that you get flexibility, balance, and strength in one kind of routine, all without sweating.

Early morning, depending on the day ahead, 20 to 40 minutes.

Some teachers are way better than others though. Best one I had left the area ten years ago, but I stayed with her a solid five years one evening a week. She was all about strength.

The last one was a little too woo woo, the kind of teacher that changes their name to something Hindu and all.

You have to shop around for good ones. I live near a big college town where it is hard to throw a rock without hitting a certified teacher.
 
Maister said:
I may have screwed up when I bought a case of Shiner Holiday Cheer simply because I could get my hands on it this past weekend. Supplies of this seasonal beer locally are hit or miss and finding it available at all is a win. Thing is, I kinda feel obligated to drink it now. I grilled steaks last night and drank two of them, all the while rationalizing in my mind how I would later offset the consumption.
Click to expand...
Not to derail the conversation, but I think you can make an exception for Holiday Cheer. Typically only a couple of dozen make it our market and they go quickly.
 
bureaucrat#3 said:
Not to derail the conversation, but I think you can make an exception for Holiday Cheer. Typically only a couple of dozen make it our market and they go quickly.
Click to expand...
Sorry I didn't get that this was a beer thread. We know, only indirectly, some local distillers who generate volumes of products way short of legal minimums, ergo why look for a license?

I have a pint of a very small local mead that I will have to plan to open.
 
Does anyone want to join me in running a Tough Mudder next year. Not sure I am going to run the DC location as they won't be doing the 15K next year. But if there is a group interested, then I am in.

toughmudder.com

Tough Mudder USA | Mud Run & Obstacle Race

Tough Mudder is your best chance to test your teamwork, conquer best-in-class obstacles, and let your inner party animal go wild.
toughmudder.com toughmudder.com
 
fringe said:
I have posted elsewhere that my program since 1978 has been Hatha yoga. Have had at least a dozen teachers.

What I like most is that you get flexibility, balance, and strength in one kind of routine, all without sweating.

Early morning, depending on the day ahead, 20 to 40 minutes.

Some teachers are way better than others though. Best one I had left the area ten years ago, but I stayed with her a solid five years one evening a week. She was all about strength.

The last one was a little too woo woo, the kind of teacher that changes their name to something Hindu and all.

You have to shop around for good ones. I live near a big college town where it is hard to throw a rock without hitting a certified teacher.
Click to expand...

As I've gotten older, I am starting to feel the effects of what running 2,000+ miles a year is doing to my body. A friend of mine has been pushing me to start integrating some yoga into my routine for some time now. Maybe I should look to see if I can find a lunchtime yoga class for days I WFH.

Another friend of mine from grad school opened up a yoga studio after she graduated and it's still going strong. She has classes a couple times a week geared specifically towards runners. I'd love to go to one of those but unfortunately, that's 40 minutes away and I'm definitely not that motivated.
 
...during pandemic my wife did some zoom yoga classes but she said she tended to drift away without the confinement aspect of in person class.
 
michaelskis said:
Does anyone want to join me in running a Tough Mudder next year. Not sure I am going to run the DC location as they won't be doing the 15K next year. But if there is a group interested, then I am in.

toughmudder.com

Tough Mudder USA | Mud Run & Obstacle Race

Tough Mudder is your best chance to test your teamwork, conquer best-in-class obstacles, and let your inner party animal go wild.
toughmudder.com toughmudder.com
Click to expand...
Nope.

:p
 
fringe said:
...during pandemic my wife did some zoom yoga classes but she said she tended to drift away without the confinement aspect of in person class.
Click to expand...

I've thought about that but, like your wife, I think I'd need the added focus of being there in person with the instructor, especially when I'm first starting out and don't really know what I'm doing.
 
We had about 7" of snow at our house yesterday and I went out to shovel the driveway in the evening. It turned out to be some of the wettest, heaviest snow I've had to shovel in a long time. I was wearing my Garmin watch at the time and later noticed that my HR had really climbed while I was out shoveling, almost like I was doing a HIIT workout or something. I think Garmin needs to add "Shoveling Snow" to their list of trackable activities!
 
Snow shoveling is know to give people heart attacks. I'm glad I took a prescription of move out of the snow.
 
I've been using the same app to track my workouts at the gym for a few years now. I am not lifting to "get big", but more so to remain active and maintain weight (I'd much rather be out running but after an injury in 2023, I've cut back my miles considerably - though I did still top 1,000 miles last year and am aiming for at least 100 miles a month this year) and since I am not trying to be some sort of powerlifter, I use my app to also generate workouts for me each time I go to the gym (though I often edit those workouts). I usually have the app set to have a Push/Pull/Lower but back in the early fall, to keep things interesting and novel, I switched it out to a Full Body split with a daily focus on recovered muscle groups. Yesterday I went back to PPL and after yesterday and today's workouts, I am definitely feeling the change.

Also:
DVD said:
Snow shoveling is know to give people heart attacks. I'm glad I took a prescription of move out of the snow.
Click to expand...

Courtesy of today's Detroit Free Press:
When should you stop shoveling snow yourself? How old is too old?
 
Looks like I'm too old to shovel snow according to that article. Good thing I don't have that problem.
 
Presidential Physical Fitness...I assume no longer done in school? Too many overweight kids. Never did great. I think I had the lowest certificate one year. Was that Bronze? I could never do all the pull ups or run the 600 yards(?) in the right amount of time.
 
As mentioned in another post, I met with a trainer last week as part of a 30 day program at my gym. One thing he told me was to cut the weight lifting back to 3 days a week and fill in those two days with cardio. Normally I would say BS, but this guy is seriously jacked. So why not.

This morning was the first of a cardio circuit that included running, walking at a steep incline, stair steppers, and elliptical. And then I realized that I get to do something that I normally would not do... the ice bath. A few months ago, my gym took one of the two hot tubs in the pool area and swapped the heaters for chillers. This morning it was 45 degrees and I made it 10 minutes before I had to get out.

When you are weight lifting, if you are looking to build muscle, you don't want cold afterwards because the heat-shock protein that go into the repair of your muscle tissue shuts down. So instead I spend 12 to 15 minutes in the sauna instead. But with cardio, cold is good as it lowers inflammation and improves circulation. There are studies showing improved hormone production as well.
 
I want to try Kyokushin Karate, the style that is full-contact with real sparring. My late friend Brandon held a Black Belt in it, and I want to give the style a try in his honour. Pads are only used in training; competitions (for advanced belts aged 21 and up) are barebody (just your dogi and an athletic cup, no additional protection) based on real striking not point sparring, no pads, no helmets, just balls. The nearest Dojo that teaches it is in Rochester, 1h20 mins away.

I used to train on and off in Judo and Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu in my 20s, came "this close" to making Yellow belt in Judo until my Senior year of College got insane, and was charting a track to BJJ Blue Belt until COVID hit. I'm getting the urge again and really need an activity to help get my weight and cardiovascular in check. Something beyond just "Yoga" or "go running" or go lift at "The Gym".

The Jiu-Jitsu/MMA milieu has always been insanely douchey, and Joe Rogan has just made it worse in the past 15 years. I will have to choose my BJJ gym wisely, thankfully I already have some Buffalo area fighter friends who are pointing me in the direction of some less bro-y clubs :) Just gotta get off my ass and actualize it!
 
Back
Top