Health & Physical Fitness/Training Thread

[Riggo Reincarnated]

Do you emphasize more cardio or strength in your routine and why?

 

[purbeast]

It is all about your goals.

I personally don't do any cardio right now but am very soon starting low intensity steady state (LISS) cardio where I will fast walk on a treadmill at an incline for like 25 mins. I play basketball every now and then too.

My workouts though with the weight lifting are super intense so it's kind of like cardio in a sense. I've even had people comment to me at the gym that they will compliment me on how intense I am with everything at the gym.

 

[Riggo Reincarnated]

I'm in decent shape for my age but would like to primarily get rid of belly fat. Even when I was in great shape, my build was around 5'11 and 200 lbs. Right now I'm closer to 250. There was a point when I was over 300, so I've made some progress but have somewhat stagnated.

It was a lot easier to cut weight in 20s and 30s than now, that's for sure.

 

[purbeast]

If you're just trying to lose weight and not too interested in strength training, I'd just do some cardio and clean up your diet. You could lose weight strictly by changing your diet and doing no cardio, but cardio will help a bit as well. In the end, all the cardio is doing for you (in the sense of losing weight) is making you burn more calories for the day. Obviously there are other benefits to cardio, but I'm just talking about the weight loss benefits of it.

 

[Riggo Reincarnated]

If you're just trying to lose weight and not too interested in strength training, I'd just do some cardio and clean up your diet. You could lose weight strictly by changing your diet and doing no cardio, but cardio will help a bit as well. In the end, all the cardio is doing for you (in the sense of losing weight) is making you burn more calories for the day. Obviously there are other benefits to cardio, but I'm just talking about the weight loss benefits of it.

I want to increase my BMR - I think I'll likely need to lift and put on more muscle to do that.

 

[purbeast]

I want to increase my BMR - I think I'll likely need to lift and put on more muscle to do that.

Well yeah, you didn't mention that as a goal in the previous post just that you wanted to lose belly fat.

But lifting and cardio will both help increase your BMR so yah if you have the time to do it, definitely incorporate it.

 

[SkinsFTW]

I just have some questions, for anyone who might have an idea, before going and asking one of my doctors. I'm not sure if anyone here might know what is going on. It's very weird.

The thing is, the doctors aren't going to know either, they'll just give me some crazy prescription that will put me to sleep. I know this because I've already been given dozens of wrong prescriptions for every other thing I've mentioned for 4 years. I've dropped at least 30-40 because I know that they don't work, for different things. I have a sleeping pill prescription that will knock me out cold for 24 hours but I don't want that. I'd rather try to figure out how to sleep normally.

Sorry about the long story but it does seem to be required and I'm not mentioning everything.

I've had some crazy medical problems in the past 4 years. In 2021 I weighed 190ish. Was in good shape too. I wasn't overweight. I started losing weight for seemingly no reason. In July 2021 I found out that I had stage 4 pancreatic cancer and by the time it was removed 3 months later I was at 115 and had my left leg amputated, spleen and gallbladder removed along with over 1/2 of my pancreas and stomach.

Then I spent a year on chemo and never gained any weight. Randomly puking up everything. I slept for hours after everything I ate. I was basically a zombie. Eating food was like a knock out pill for me. I ate and then passed out, literally. Hard to explain but it just passed out.

I had no control. At 48 years old. I weighed between 115-124 for 3 years. I looked like, no joke, a concentration camp survivor. I was a skeleton. I have no idea how I lived. I was told by everyone that I was a miracle.... but at what cost?

I want to emphasize this, I never had energy to do anything for years. I would wake up at 9-10, take my antibiotics, sleep, eat food already prepared for me by my wife at 12-1, sleep for 2-3 hours, then try to stay awake until I took another antibiotic at 10pm then sleep until 9-10 again.

Now 2 years later after some radiation seems to have killed the cancer that moved to my liver, I got my right knee replaced and have a prosthetic for my left leg so I'm going to get physical therapy 2-3 times a week. I should be back to normal.

I've been to physical therapy 5-6 times now and I noticed that after going, or even after exercising at home, I have way too much energy and I can't even consider sleeping. I mean, I'm like a dude who took 5+ effidrine pills to try to stay awake driving cross country. I'm wired. All the time!

I slept some Friday night, (after not sleeping Thursday night) woke up super early, went to physical therapy at 1pm Saturday and haven't slept more than an hour since.

What the hell can I do?

My blood sugar is normal. I usually have to take insulin because of the pancreas removal but it's not high now. I drank milk, ate peanuts, nope. Eventually I pounded some whiskey, nope. Nothing works. I see the sun out now like I'm a crackhead. Should I mow the lawn?

I have a rowing machine and an exercise bike. Am I supposed to just go drain myself on one of those for 5 hours? LOL!

My doctor isn't going to help, so I just want to see if anybody has a different perspective on too much energy.

I can't be the first person to have this happen.

 

[Chris]

I read through this several times to make sure that I absorbed all that you have detailed. I have absolutely no clue as to the cause and have never come across anything like it in my decades of fitness experience; either personally or from clients from every possible starting point.

If I’m reading correctly, this presented after your radiation treatment?

(And, damn dude, you’ve really been through it. God bless you for your determination and fortitude through such a difficult journey.)

 

[SkinsFTW]

Well actually I've been completely lethargic all day for years since all this started. Now as soon as I exercise I am basically on crack. Nothing to do with the radiation. It's only after I go to the gym.

I guess that I should appreciate it, but I'm over 50, can't sleep at all. My wife thinks I'm an asshole. I don't plan on any of this, lol.

Anyway, I'm missing a few semi important body parts. I guess it's just out of wack hormones, but I don't know if I can deal with this for long.

I won't expect doctors to understand this either. I know that they will only throw me some drugs because they have no clue and no incentive to find out what this is.

 

[Chris]

I’m often lucky to make it back home when finished at the gym. 😉

What happens if/when you don’t go to the gym?

 

[SkinsFTW]

Well I have physical therapy at the gym under contract with the VA so I need to go, I also want to exercise at home now that I have a knee replacement and a prosthetic. I have my own equipment.

I guess that I could just not do any of that and go back to sleeping 14 hours a day, but I'm 50, not 80. And my wife is 35 so she's not going to have any of that, lol.

 

[Chris]

Well I have physical therapy at the gym under contract with the VA so I need to go, I also want to exercise at home now that I have a knee replacement and a prosthetic. I have my own equipment.

I guess that I could just not do any of that and go back to sleeping 14 hours a day, but I'm 50, not 80. And my wife is 35 so she's not going to have any of that, lol.

I get all that. It’s a mystery for sure. I was wondering if what you are experiencing is truly exercise induced. I can easily see why you would think that, I probably would, as well. But there is only one way to find out for sure.

 

[Boone]

SkinsFTW - I think it's possible you are seeing 'cause and effect' where there is none. The timing of your insomnia and starting PT may be coincidental. Of course, I don't know this - but it is possible the two have nothing to do with each other. Have you had your thyroid checked? Not only is it the most likely issue in terms of feeling hyper or hypo-energetic, but it is highly sensitive to radiation, chemotherapy, and other oncology treatments.

I get you have had some bad experiences with MDs. But there are good ones out there. I think it's awesome that, having gone through what you've gone through, you are trying to get back to a more active 'normal' lifestyle. I also have a 'weird' medical history, but 'weird' does not mean unexplainable. There IS a reason you are suffering from feelings of hyperactivity and insomnia and I hope you'll get checked out so you can continue to make positive improvements in your life.

 

[SkinsFTW]

Yeah I'm going to get it checked out for sure sometime. It also could be my blood sugar. Exercising seems to stop my blood sugar from going way way up like it usually does. So instead of having high blood sugar and passing out my body is actually using the sugar and im not used to being energized like that.

I'll know for sure soon if I will even need to take my insulin everyday anymore.

 

[SkinsFTW]

FYI.

IF you ever feel the need to work out, just watch an Arnold movie or video. Even if you don't want to, these videos are probably going to change your mind.

 

[Chris]

 

[Ashburn Dave]

I sleep like a baby if I take a little toke a few hours before bedtime.

 

[Chris]

After 55 days on the bench with a tweaked back I returned to the gym this morning. I had begun to believe that my gym days were over. I’ve never been so happy to be wrong.

Bad backs are the MFer of all MFing injuries, especially when they occur for no apparent cause or reason. When my back goes out I can’t do even simple things without considerable pain. Like putting on an taking off socks, sitting on a toilet, oh, and standing up straight.

I was able to find a very talented massage therapist/physiotherapist here. Along with her efforts and my own twice daily contrast therapies and sauna (in the house), I am back, baby…but I’ve got some work to do. I did, however, cancel the order for the wheelchair. 😉

 

[Boone]

Yes - there are few things worse than throwing out your back. One of the things I did a few years back is to buy a Teeter inversion table. I try and get on it at least every couple of days for 5 minutes or so. I have never had my back go out when I was consistently using it. It has made a big difference for me. Glad you are healed up and back!

 

[Chris]

Yes - there are few things worse than throwing out your back. One of the things I did a few years back is to buy a Teeter inversion table. I try and get on it at least every couple of days for 5 minutes or so. I have never had my back go out when I was consistently using it. It has made a big difference for me. Glad you are healed up and back!

I have one in Florida but I couldn’t fit it in my suitcase. 😉