Saber Forum

In order not to necro an old thread, I've started working towards getting in shape again. I've been doing Insanity, which lives up to it's name. So seriously, if you're thinking about doing this workout use caution, you can wreck your body very easily doing these get fit quick routines.

It's been ridiculous with having a kid, injuries, and just life in general to dedicate the time necessary to getting the results I want. I finally feel like I'm actually getting somewhere though, even though I still have a long long way to go.

Anyways, I'm feeling good today so I figured I'd post a progress pic, I'm only week three into the program, and it's a 10 week program I think? So like I said, long ways to go to get to where I really want to be, but I finally feel good.

(http://i745.photobucket.com/albums/xx91/Lucien_Kane/6216DB68-2B68-48EC-8EAA-7AF6F69E0BFE-6110-000005C17A4213AE_zps78000def.jpg) (http://s745.photobucket.com/user/Lucien_Kane/media/6216DB68-2B68-48EC-8EAA-7AF6F69E0BFE-6110-000005C17A4213AE_zps78000def.jpg.html)

Good job! I did the Insanity program once and I felt great afterwards! 

I avoid anything that sounds painful, and Insanity definitely fits.

That said, my wife is getting an exercise DVD set shortly to chase away any lingering pregnancy weight, and she's challenged me to do the exercises with her.

Frankly, my main problem is eating poorly, but I'll do this to keep her company, and who knows, maybe I'll get the bug?

You don't look at all bad for someone 'out of shape', so I think you'll be okay. I know a couple of years ago I got quite serious about losing weight, and was down to 200lbs at one point, but I crashed (I suppose I should say ballooned) when we moved house and I lost focus. It'd be nice to shift some of the weight again - but more sensibly this time. Getting to, and staying at, around 210-215 would do me, I think.

Thanks for the kind words!
Cutting soda (mostly) out of my diet has helped me a lot, and watching my calorie intake. I'm pretty much plateaued at 160lbs I'm hoping to stay about this weight, but lose a little more fat.

Yeah and doing the fitness stuff with your wife will help her stay motivated too.

It always makes me happy to see people working towards better health and fitness.  Points for you, Lucien!  I look forward to seeing your "after" photos when you finish the program.

Haha me too! I'm looking forward to completing this circuit. Then I just have to figure out what I want to do next.

I lost 150 lbs in a year and half using myfitnesspal.com that ap and website support is awesome ... When you really watch your caloric intake you realize how bad you are eating ... 370 to 220 plan on getting under 220 by the end of the year

My fitness pal is awesome!

I gained 20 lbs of muscle doing nothing but different types of pushups and crunches. I looked really good for about 2 months....then I stopped and I've lost 15 lbs. :(

I need to get back to it this summer.

I agree, I've been a little lax lately but MAV uses it religiously and he's in fantastic shape (partially also due to his incredible workout schedule).

Anyway, you're looking good Lucien!  Keep up the good work, I remember your pics from before and you've definitely come a long way.  Although I think what you've lost in fat you've gained in beard ;)

The beard looks good, is what he's trying to say. :P

Lol I actually trimmed the beard yesterday for a job interview. It's still long, but I shaped it and trimmed it down pretty good. This week has been terrible for me. I was wiped out Monday, and I've been busy in addition to my son not sleeping. Which means I'm not sleeping. If I suck anymore this week I'm probably going to start this week over, or just start the program over. I tend to do that if I miss too many days lol.

Dude I'm jealous!  It's every nerd's dream to grow out a Jedi beard, and the best I can manage is stubble (just gets funny looking after that lol)

You do have an epic beard.
I've been meaning to get back to my Tae Kwon Do club and get fit. However due to three shoulder dislocations I'm forced to do a session of push ups every couple of days, combining that with lots of walking around my small town, bike rides and intense saber practice I manage to keep reasonably slim.

Yeah you gotta heal up... That being said, I am a terrible patient. I hate having to be on any type of rest program. So I feel your pain.

So, just because I was curious, I tried one of the Insanity workout DVDs.  I was able to get behind it up until the "warm-up" stopped and they went into six minutes of static stretching.

This may be opening up a bag of angry cats, but I would suggest just...  skipping that part of the video.  Just fast-forward right through it.
Your muscles are already primed for exertion by that point; you've done movements similar to the rest of the workout with gradually-increased intensity up to that point, so your muscles are as ready as they're going to be.  Recent research has shown that stretching before working out reduces performance in both potential and actual output categories.  Without getting into the actual biology of it, here's a source:

http://wellbeingwire.meyouhealth.com/physical-health/more-evidence-that-stretching-before-exercise-is-a-bad-idea/ (http://wellbeingwire.meyouhealth.com/physical-health/more-evidence-that-stretching-before-exercise-is-a-bad-idea/)

If you follow the trail, it'll eventually lead you to the research journals, should you be interested in reading them.
The long and the short of it is that pre-workout stretching reduces explosive muscle performance, as said above, which is a major problem when the workout you're doing is primarily burst-oriented, which Insanity unquestionably is.

The rest of the workout was good, and every bit of what BeachBody says it is.  I enjoyed it, and I want to continue the program.  I'm just going to be skipping the six- to eight-minute stretching segments.

No definitely not opening an angry bag of cats.

I agree with you completely, Insanity, and P90X both get results quickly, but they also tell you to do really dumb things. I've you've got to take a week off, take a week off.

If the yogaX dvd kills you in a bad way, don't do it. Find another workout to do that day that involves meditative stretching.

There are moves on these DVDs I don't do, there are days I don't work out simply because my body isn't feeling it.

The stretching is excessive, especially the pre workout stretching. Even the after workout stretching is not a fantastic idea, but I've noticed if I don't do it my muscles will just be obliterated later.

What I like to do after Insanity though is do a proper cooldown with my lightsaber. I'll go out and relax and go through some free form with my saber. Many times I start by going through Niman, and Shii Cho, then I'll bump it back up to some Soresu, Ataru, and Juyo. Then I'll cool it back down with Niman and relax. I try to go through full ranges of motion, and I start slowly and end slowly.

It's not too bad. For me the important thing is keeping it up every two days as it's winter in Oz at the moment and I'm down south the cold is not my ally for doing exercise  :P

How right you are.  So many people injure themselves on these programs because they don't listen to their bodies.  Good on you for listening to yours!

That is exactly how I finish, too.  Usually I do the same with my bo.

Anyone here tried DDP Yoga? I know a lot of people have had good experiences - and being a wrestling fan I quite like the idea of it working - but it's a lot of money to take a chance on.

I did insanity and realized that it makes your knees want to murder you. I switched, and got a fit bit and did nike kinect trainer on the xbox, added a walk in daily and maintained my normal fencing routine (2x per week , but having kids is hard to keep fencing at the level I am accustomed to and to keep my normal routine). With those slight tweaks and watching my massive intake, I managed to drop 25 lbs in a year. Now I do kettle bells and sprint work outs to maintain and slight build.