Myweponsg00d

It depends on what you want the buddy there for. If I want someone to spot me, I ask someone whos in the area of the free weights. Some rules for this: never ask anyone for anything when they have weights in their hands. Never ask anyone for anything within 30 seconds of when you think they are going to start their set. Never ask anyone to spot you for more than 3 sets on a single exercise. And never ask for a spotter without being willing to return the favor. If I want a partner, as in someone to go with, work with, train along side with, then I use craigslist. I find it very hard to go to the gym with people I know. I have a very strict mental focus in the gym. Every time when I have gone with friends, they end up talking about random stuff in between sets...I go to the gym to work, work hard, and work even harder. Its hard to focus on benching when you got someone gossiping in your ear about their cousin's friend's grandma. I really reccomend the craigslist approach. I have a few people in my phone who I know absolutely nothing about except for how much they squat, bench, etc.

Hey, cool. I haven't been playing often but I'll add ya. To help you with your food dilemma: the first thing I would suggest is to really make sure you have tried multiple preparation styles of foods. For example, the classic peparation of oatmeal disgusts me. I think it is a big gluey mess. When I eat my oats, I usually eat them raw like a regular cereal. I also drink them down in shakes, put them in eggs, or in my yogurt. Some things are just really good for you to eat. Like sweet potatoes for example. They are nutritious like a vegetable, but starchy and loaded with healthy carbs too. It is really hard to find that combination elsewhere. Once again, try to get creative and see if you have really tried them every way. Mashed? Sweet potato fries? Cold? (bake them, then refridgerate. I love a sweet potato right out of the fridge) Also, don't give up on them. When I was in high school I hated stuffing at thanksgiving. Then I went to college, came home, and suddenly had an intense craving for the stuff. Your tastes can change quite extremely, especially if you expose your body to them more often. I mean the main idea is just to eat protein and carbs/veggies. Just because a meal plan suggests eggs for breakfast doesnt mean you need to eat them. You can replace the eggs with an equal ammt of protein from milk, meat, cheese, beans, nuts, peanut butter, etc. But if you make your body learn to like eggs then your diet will be more diverse. I really have to encourage you to try as hard as possible to eat those foods you dont like at the moment. If you say "I dont like eggs or beans, so I wont ever eat eggs or beans" Then that means you have more meals where you are going to be eating like chicken or something. If you cut out all of your less favorite foods then you are gonna end up eating the same limited number of foods each day. I might not necessarily love oatmeal, but chugging down a glass of milk+oats is better than eating rice rice rice every meal of every day. (IMO)

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If you dont have a problem with making a big investment, then go ahead with the squat rack. Make sure you have a wide range of plates. You should be able to set all weights in increments of 5 pounds. A lot of times, people buy weights, and they only have the plates that would add up to like 135, 155, 185, 225. You need to be able to do 135, 140, 145, 150, etc. To build strength you have to continually try to lift heavier and heavier each week. It takes a wide arrangement of plates to make sure this is possible for both your barbell and dumbell exercises. For eating healthy in a busy life--I have lots and lots of tupperware containers. (not sure if "tupperware" is a universal term...basically it is plastic containers used to store leftovers and such. These are great for preparing healthy food in advance and taking it with you to work and such. You can also buy Cliff bars, Luna bars, or Larabars. Beef jerky, dried fruit, and nuts are great grab-and-go foods. When it comes to eating foods that you don't quite like, make sure you have tried to eat it in several different ways. Look for recipies on the internet or try to be creative and make it up yourself. For example, I dont really like bananas much myself. In fact, it is really hard for me to actually peel and eat a banana. But what I do is cut up the bananas into small slices ahead of time, like at the beginning of the week I feel 4-7 containers with cut up banana. For some reason, I like it a lot more if it is already sliced, so I dont have to bite into it with my front teeth and then bite the gross looking part I already bit. You can also toss them in some juice--I use orange juice a lot or lime or lemon. Even cranberry. Also here is a secret: Stevia. Stevia is a natural sweetener. So yes, it has "sugar" in it. BUT a packet of stevia is only 1 gram of sugar and it is VERY sweet. I would usually put 2 packets of sugar in my coffee, but I only use HALF a packet of stevia. This means I went from nearly 10 grams of sugar to only 0.5 grams. Try some stevia on some sliced bananas. Its like candy... :thumbsup: I used to hate cottage cheese but now I make it into cottage cheese ice cream. Just need to get creative =P

:lol: How do you find getting the bar on your back? I could always lunge with more than I could safely lower to behind my neck, so it always felt a bit weird getting the weight there. I guess if the squat rack's close that'd help but at my old gym there was a bit of a walk to the indoor track. No training for rowing at the moment so just going to the gym every other day to keep things ticking over and unwind. I've got squats, cleans and a few other shoulder exercises planned for tonight. Maybe some snatches too. Yeah my gym has plenty of squat racks so I usually use the rack. I feel nice and dangerous stepping out over the side of the rack and walking a nice heavy barbell over to the open floor. lol. My gym has an open area pretty close though. Or...you can try the Steinborn lift :lol: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qls96q4Phs4 I must say I never tried it myself.

This one is a little scary, not so funny, but still one of the stupidest things I've done in my life. I used to work at Arby's and it was late at night. It was only me and the manager in the store. These two people came in fully dressed in black with black hoodies on. One of them had a REALLY similar build to one of the employees that worked there, so I thought it was some kind of joke. They started yelling and came after us. The one that I thought was an employee threw me down on the floor and took my cell phone. I was like smiling and stuff, down on the floor with my hands on my head. Then they held a gun to my manager and I finally realized that we were in fact being robbed. And the one that looked like the employee ended up being a woman. I felt [developmentally delayed]ed. Guess you cant be expected to respond well in that situation though.

I have played with 5 per team and it was exciting still. 7 would work fine. On offense the mandatory positions are center and quarterback. The center is the one who snaps the ball, the QB is the one who takes the ball first (usually). So thats 2 people. On top of that you would want at least 1 person who could go out for a pass, and 1 person who is back for the run. So I would say at a bare MINIMUM you need 4 people per side. 7 should be great. The padding is definitely a part of the american sport. I haven't seen many rugby games, but the techniques of tackling in football usually involve hitting very hard with the shoulders. It also is a good way to make sure that people are pushing and hitting as hard as they can, without hurting people. Football is a slow paced sport, theres usually 30-45 seconds between plays, so people play very hard since they have time to stand still and recover. But, if you are playing amateur football, you don't really need the padding. You won't be using the advanced tackling techniques and such, so you can get by without harming people. Also, there is a version of football called "flag football". In this version, you have a belt around your waist and a flag on each side. Instead of tackling people, you have to pull out one of their flags. It is also common for amateurs without padding to play something called "Two hand touch". Which basically means that if someone touches the ball carrier with both of their hands, they are "down". I should warn you though, two-hand touch can cause a friendship to be tested. "I got you with both!!!!" "No you only touched me with one!" Many many nasty arguments have started this way. lol :razz:

I agree, binding could be a lot more exciting if you had more flexibility. They should definitely consider updating it, especially with the new "roles" they are adding. Adding more options would let people customize their setup instead of being forced to logically pick the best weapon. I thought maybe there was a bug or something I didnt know about.

Whats wrong with binding, again?

I mean, its just ridiculous the lengths that people go to. Take dungeoneering for example. People are like "These shields arent any good...with all the time it takes to get the dungeoneering level..." Its just ridiculous. Back when slayer came out, nobody was like "Sure it would be cool to get whips, but think of all the TIME i spent training the skill! Is it even worth it?? I could make more money by merchanting for the same ammount of hours it takes to get 85 slayer!"

I would disagree. I think its this widespread attitude that poisons the once light-hearted enjoyment that most people had with this game. Now things are such serious business. And updates are either "efficient" or not. Its a freakin game...You can take it competitively if you want. But you need to understand that this is just YOUR way of playing the game, and it is rediculous to diss this kind of an update just because using these are "less efficient" or something. The halos are cool, and fun. I like the update. For people who just dont want to buy as many prayer pots will love these. People who do nothing but formulate numbers for this freakin videogame will rage and never use them. But I dont think anyone should call them useless...I think theyre great.

The players of this game never cease to amaze me. Items like these halos come out and everyone is immediately just breaking it down to how many hours it would take to get it and being like "yup, not actually usefull". It's a game... Take something like world of warcraft...raiding takes 5-10 hours per week and then in a few months all the time you raided wont really mean anything once the new badges come and the new raid comes out. Sometimes you gotta just play the game because you like it, and not because the thing you are doing makes sense mathematically...rofl

On a professional team, there will be seperate players for offense and defence. In a college game, you MIGHT have someone play both sides for a small college. In high school, it is somewhat common for the star athletes to play both sides, especially with a smaller high school. There is also a "third side" called "special teams". These are the group of people that go out on the field for a punt, field goal, and kick-off. These are usually a combination of the offense and defensive players--whoever happens to be the best at the position. But there is a special person called a "kicker". It is very rare for a professional team not to have someone specifically designated to kick on the kickoff, punt, and field goal. A professional game will last about 3 hours. A university game lasts slightly less than that. But if you are playing with your friends I don't think it should last that long...The 3 hours accounts for a break called "half time". The scoreboard varries a LOT game per game. If two very good teams play eachother, each side can have over 40 points if the offenses are playing well. But, good teams can also have ridiculous defense. Sometimes a game with two good teams will have 10 or less points on each side. I would say an average score is something like 14-21, 21-24, 28-31, or 14-17. Something over 30 points would definitely be "high scoring" and under 10 points is probably "low scoring"

Walking lunges with 135 on my back. I usually do stationary lunges with dumbells on my side. This was...painful to say the least. :thumbsup:

Creatine--Creatine is a substance that is naturally found in the body and in many foods including red meat. The exact science behind a creatine substance is complicated (and I dont really fully understand it all) but the main idea is that your muscles use creatine in the chemical process of contraction and such. Taking creatine will basically "hydrate" your muscles and it has been shown to help your muscles endure more punishment. You need to make sure that you hydrate with PLENTY of water when on creatine. When the creatine sends fluids to your muscles, that creates a greater hydration demand on your body. You should also note that since creatine is sending more fluid to your muscles, this can sometimes give people a little bit of a "puffy" appearance. I would definitely reccomend TRYING creatine. It works for me, but some people don't have sucess with it. The whey you linked--it is important to understand that the whey you linked to is not really great to have as a simple shake. That whey is just a source of protein that is mainly intended to add into things like pancakes or oatmeal. If you want something to drink down with water after a workout, you would be better off with something like the 100% Gold Standard whey that I linked to above. Food log--the main things I would focus on are calories and protein. These are going to be the most important for maintaining your energy and building/maintaining muscle. You could also log carbs and fat if you want to. Some people find it overwhelming to log a ton of things at first. Experienced loggers have memorized nutrition stats for most foods. But if you are just starting, it can be very frustrating to have to look all that stuff. Start off with a simple calorie or calorie+protein log just to get a vague idea of how much fuel you are giving your muscles. Squat rack---honestly if I were you I would use your local gym (unless it sucks). I think that the act of GOING TO the gym is an important part of my training. I like the fact that there is a building that I go to specifically to bust my [wagon]. But, if you can focus at home and honestly do a really hard work out, then yes a squat rack would be a great thing to buy. They are quite expensive though...plus you need to buy the barbell + all the plates and stuff. It can cost a LOT of money. But yeah, most of my workout is done with squat rack, a bench (one that can incline and decline), barbells and dumbells. If you want to build strong/huge legs you need to be squatting.

lmfao

Wow...14k castle wars games...

I still think to this day that RSC is better. If there was a consistent population that played, I would never play RS2 anymore I'm with you on this one.. but I think that it really is dead, the last opening lasted for about 1 week before the servers were completely barren. Yeah I know its dead...and it will always be dead. People just don't know how to appreciate a game for what it is. Most players look at games and say "Are the graphics better? Are there more characters? Are there more items, quests, etc? Is the game more realistic? Oh, therefore the game is better." All that stuff is so superficial. Its like looking back at Zelda: Ocarina of Time and calling it a bad game. In my opinion that game is STILL the best game ever made. Does it have the best graphics? Is it the longest game? Is it the hardest game? Does it have the most weapons and other features? No. But the gameplay gives an incredible, enjoyable experience. Thats how I feel about RSC

I still think to this day that RSC is better. If there was a consistent population that played, I would never play RS2 anymore

Alright, well now that you have clarified what you want out of your program that helps us a little bit. Since you are mostly concerned with athletic performance, you dont need to worry too much about bodybuilding nutrition. To gain aesthetic muscle and lose fat, bodybuilders develop sophisticated systems of carb-counting, calorie counting, etc. In fact, when you are trying to put on muscle for looks, I would say that most of your efforts come OUTSIDE of the gym. It is important (for a bodybuilder) to always eat his food in proper quantity, proper time, and give his muscles ample time to absorb nutrients and grow to their full potential. For an athlete, I would say it is more of an opposite situation. From a performance point of view, all that matters is whether your running is getting faster, your lifts are getting stronger, etc. You still need to eat good foods, but it isn't something that you need to lose sleep over. I'd still suggest keeping a log for about 2 weeks, to get a really good idea of what you are putting into your body. Then, asess how you have been feeling. If your workouts lack energy, try to eat more carbs or increase your calories. If your muscles feel like they are sore, start eating more protein. If you feel depressed or mentally fatigued, you might want to increase your fat intake. Analyze your diet, see how you are feeling with your training, and then go from there.

3,000 calories will include your protein supplement. Whey protein isn't a huge source of calories though. Most of them are like 100-200 calories at the max. The kind of supplement I am talking about is: http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/opt/whey.html You have to be careful because you can't just go into a store and buy whatever big tub you see. You might end up with this: http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/cs/gainer.html The first supplement I linked to is simply a protein supplement. It is powdered whey, with some amino acids addded in. The second product is a "gainer protein". This is a product that is absolutely crammed with carbs, protein, and fat and has a huge caloric value. Before you start taking anything, it is important to decide what exactly your goals are. From an athletic point of view, it sounds like you are just trying to get stronger as your main priority, and any size that comes with it would be an added bonus? If that is the case, I would definitely just stick to a plain old protein powder. But, if your main goal is size, you could consider using a weight gainer shake (in addition). I don't really know much about rugby, but if the demands are anything like american football, I know that size could play a big role for you. Clearly defining what your priority is will definitely change what your program (and nutrition) should be like. In response to the "types of foods" question, I'll just list off some of my favorite foods. Theres 3 important groups of foods: carbs protein and fat. For carbs I like oatmeal, rice, grits, whole weat pasta, whole grain breads, corn tortillas, and all types of fruits and veggies. For protein we have eggs, milk, beans, cheese, chicken breast, salmon, talapia (any fish really), tuna, whey, cottage cheese, and lean beef. For fat, theres almonds, cashews, walnuts, sardines, olives, olive oil, flax oil, and eggs. I noticed you said you dont like eggs and milk and beans. You absolutely don't NEED to force yourself to eat these things. However, I will say...these 3 sources of protein are BY FAR the cheapest. Dried beans are ridiculously cheap, and are a source of fiber. A gallon of whole milk has 2500 cals and is only 3-4 dollars. Eggs are also really cheap, the yolks are an awesome source of phosphorus, AND egg whites are...well...really just the most incredible source of protein. As for pre/post workout: 30 minutes before I start my work, I like to fuel up on carbs. Maybe some rice. More likely though I will eat some fruit, or dried fruit. After a workout, especially if it is a hard weightlifting day, you need to replenish with some protein and carbs. Post workout I usually mix some whey protein with water, and eat 2 bananas. You could also do something like a chicken breast sandwich, tuna salad with celery, or some turkey with melon or something. Just try to keep the protein light (whey, tuna, eggs, or white meat poultry) and make sure your carb is relatively low in fiber (i.e. dont eat oatbran as your post workout carb). This is so your body can easily break down the food and help muscles repair (when you lift you create millions of tiny rips in your muscles). Can you specify what you are looking for mainly? If your main priority is just strength and athletic growth then you will be looking to gain weight slowly and gain pure muscle. If you want size to be your main priority, you need to jut pack on the calories and you will gain a ton of muscle, but also a little body fat. When body-builders look to add mass, they accept the fact that it is easier to gain fat+muscle and then lose the fat later. It is easy to lose fat without losing muscle, but it is more difficult to gain muscle without gaining fat. It might sound strange to you: "Do you want bigger muscles or stronger muscles?". Most people think that bigger=stronger and stronger=bigger. But if you don't care about muscular SIZE, then you can get a lot stronger a lot quicker. Similarly, if you dont care about strength, you can get a lot bigger a lot quicker. Now, dont take me wrong, I'm not saying that bodybuilders are weak. I am just saying that the fastest strength comes from a strength routine, and the fastest size comes from a bodybuilding routine.

Well, I can help you with the weight gain department. You are on the right track thinking about "protein shakes" but there is a lot more to it. Simply increasing your protein is not going to let you put on big weight. If you eat a high protein diet at normal calories, you WILL put on SOME muscle, but it will take a long long time and you probably wont see a huge muscle gain if you have low bodyfat. So, basically the way to gain and gain big is to eat more food. Sounds simple? It isnt. You need to be eating at least 3000 calories per day. Most people aim for around 3500 to be safe. Im eating around 4k a day atm, since I also feel like I have a ridiculous metabolism. Gaining muscle is just like gaining fat. In order for your body to put on any kind of mass, you have to give it more energy than it needs to survive. Also, you should be eating every 2-3 hours. If you want to build muscle you need to eat a ton of protein. However, some studies have shown that you cant absorb more than 40 grams at a time. If you only ate 3 meals this limits you to 120 grams of protein per day. You should eat a gram of protein per pound of bodyweight. What I reccomend you to do is to make a food log for one whole day. Then go to nutritiondata.com and see how many calories you are actually used to eating. If you write down the times you eat, and post the log here, I can help you create a strategy to help you gain some bulk.

To answer the part of your post talking about supplements: things like protein powder are mainly used by bodybuilders. If you aren't concerned with appearances too much, then a protein powder is less mandatory. Still, whey protein can help aid in muscle repair and recovery. Increasing protein intake in your diet can also help accelerate fat loss. http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/opt/whey.html There is a link to a good, basic protein powder that you can try. The thing might SOUND expensive (the tub I buy usually costs 40-50 dollars) but when you break it down to how much you are paying for the nutrients, it is really cheap. For example, if you wanted a boost of 24 grams of protein, you could eat a can of tuna (which is 80 cents where I live) or you could have a scoop of whey (the protein I linked to comes out to be only 55 cents per scoop.) Not to mention that protein powder has a load of amino acids in it that help the body in many ways. For other supplements, I would say to definitely make sure you are taking a multi-vitamin, and a fish oil or flax oil supplement.

purepure asked about supplements so I thought I'd answer his question. I said in my post that if he wanted to talk any more about it we should PM. I asked you about something that I think you skipped over. I wanted to know if you are still doing the same routine that you posted awhile ago? And also I wanted to know if you are aware of the lack of lower back exercise that was in that program.

Theres no real way of knowing how healthy it is at this time. We like to think that we understand most things very well, but when it comes to food, there is a lot of scientific debate still waging... Some studies will tell you that over 100 grams is unhealthy. Others will tell you that your body wont bother doing anything with protein if you have too much--it will just turn it into waste. Pro body builders do up to 400 grams per day. I find that you should eat as much protein as you want to have in lean muscle mass. For example if you weigh 130 lbs with very little body fat but want to weigh 150 lbs, you should eat 150 grams per day. If you weigh 200 lbs and are fat, and you want to weigh 180 lbs when you are skinny, eat 180. One thing is for sure. If you eat a diet that is especially high in protein, you should always make sure to consume around a gallon of water per day, spaced evenly from the time you wake up to the time you go to bed. When protein is digested it creates harmful waste products. If you dont have enough water, your body wont be able to expel that waste. As far as "huge differences" are concerned, I would say that a protein supplement is a huge part in my fitness regimine. I find it is an amazing tool to have for breakfast and for post work out. I'm not saying that every day you need to have your protein shake at the exact same time. Sometimes I eat lots of egg and breakfast meat for breakfast. Sometimes I eat chicken, turkey, or egg whites after my workout instead of a shake. But a protein powder is a great way to make sure you get the nutrients you need every day. You might not feel like cooking up some eggs one morning, but it takes about 5 seconds to throw some powder in a bottle and shake it up. Think of it as a multi-vitamin almost. If you had constant availability of every type of produce on hand and you made sure to eat the same foods every day, you could get all your vitamins from food. But most people cant do that, and it would be very hard to do so. Similarly, I would find it unnecessarily difficult to maintain my protein intake if I didnt have a powder. Plus you can throw the powder into some other stuff also. Protein pancakes or protein oatmeal is FTW \:D/