
Fitness Crazed - mhb
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/25/opinion/sunday/fitness-crazed.html?hpw&rref=opinion
======
jds375
Here's a link to Starting Strength[1]. I highly recommend it for people
looking to bulk, tone, and put on some real muscle. It did wonders for me and
I'm sure it will for you too. I also recommend doing these powerlifting
exercises (such as squats, bench, and deadlift) with a focus on FORM first
instead of weight. It'll prevent you from getting injured and payoff when you
start lifting real heavy weight. I highly recommend these videos to teach you
powerlifting form[2][3][4]. Also, the nice people on r/fitness over at reddit
won't mind giving you a form check if you post a video of you lifting.
Seriously, start now. It'll change your life.

[1]
[http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0982522738?pc_redir=1400896569...](http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0982522738?pc_redir=1400896569&robot_redir=1)

[2]
[http://youtube.com/watch?v=2ME8gEN54Ao&feature=kp](http://youtube.com/watch?v=2ME8gEN54Ao&feature=kp)

[3] [http://youtube.com/watch?v=EHx1gYTA-
Rw](http://youtube.com/watch?v=EHx1gYTA-Rw)

[4]
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xS2wLZSdeDg](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xS2wLZSdeDg)

~~~
cjf4
Unless your rail thin and a teenager, I'd avoid Rip's diet advice. It will
undoubtedly get you fat.

Lyle McDonald's bodyrecomposition.com is, as far as I'm concerned, the best
nutrition resource on the internet. Lyle does a great job of taking clinical
research and boiling it down to practical applications for people who train.

~~~
zacharycohn
Diet != losing weight. The GOMAD (gallon of milk a day) diet is not designed
for you to lose weight. It's designed to maximize daily caloric intake, which
in turn maximizes speed of recovery.

Once you're done with starting strength, you switch to something like IF
(intermittent fasting) to cut the excess fat. Then you end up with lots of
muscle and no fat.

You can either lose fat or gain muscle. It's incredibly difficult to do both
at the same time.

~~~
cjf4
GOMAD is also specifically designed for teenagers with no fat or muscle that
don't know how to consume 3000 + calories/day (and I believe Rip usually wants
them in the 4-5000 range). What I'm saying is that this is an inefficient
approach for almost everyone outside that demographic that has any sort of
interest in improved appearance (i.e. almost everyone).

Your body can only build muscle at a certain rate, and the rest of the caloric
surplus is going to be converted to body fat. So what I'm saying is if you are
willing to pay a little bit of attention to macro nutrient intake, you can
gain muscle with much less of the associated body fat that comes with bulking.

This way, you have to much less to cut. More importantly, you learn how to eat
properly which is essential for long term success.

~~~
zacharycohn
The point is to have a caloric surplus. Because then you can guarantee maximum
recovery.

------
KyleBrandt
The first few chapters Rippetoe's "Practical Programming for Strength
Training" explain a lot of the theory behind strength training.

One of the first things it does it clarify the difference between exercise vs
training. Exercise is just "working out", whereas "training" is a long term
plan to improve certain aspects of the body's ability.

Unless you are specific about what your goals of changing your body and your
body's abilities are, then it will be hard to get "results" since "results" is
not well defined.

Some example results:

    
    
       * Get bigger chest and arm muscles
       * Be able to run long distances
       * Be able to perform certain feats of strength: Lift heavy things, do certain gymnastics poses
       * Have certain muscles or muscle groups be defined
       * Any sport specific activity: climbing, rowing, golf, basketball, etc
    

Muscle composition and neurological response develop differently to different
training. Endurance, balance, speed, range of motion, and lifting heaving
things are all different. And you can develop those abilities in different
muscles and movements.

Applying this context to any fitness article I read has clarified a lot for
me.

------
enraged_camel
Starting Strength works because it's easy to understand, follow, and see
results from. By far the primary challenge newer folks face is establishing
the discipline and consistency, and that's a lot easier to do when you're
motivated by increasing the weight on the bar regularly.

My favorite quote from the book is from the very first page (which is probably
very relevant to the HN crowd):

 _A weak man is not as happy as that same man would be if he were strong. This
reality is offensive to some people who would like the intellectual or the
spiritual to take precedence. It is instructive to see what happens to these
people as their squat strength goes up._

~~~
Technophobe
I'm much happier since I've stopped lifting. I did Starting Strength until I
could squat 1.5x my body weight, but I never enjoyed going to the gym, and
realized I didn't really care much for the muscle I put on. If anything, it
was annoying having such big thighs. I haven't been to the gym for a couple of
years now and couldn't be happier. I do quite a bit of cardio (competitive
table tennis), and that's it.

~~~
tormeh
Definitely. In my opinion, you shouldn't do something you don't like, and I
don't like going to gyms, so after multiple years I've now quit and it feels
pretty good. I think it's important to find another sport you like though. Now
I do climbing and experiment with other things. Much more enjoyable than
grinding three days a week.

------
Swizec
Finally a fitness article that says "Just do it". There really isn't a silver
bullet to this stuff. If you keep working out, you will become stronger and
eventually if you also eat reasonably well you will start looking better as
well.

It's as simple as that. No miracles required, just a bit of patience.

Personally the solution I've found works best for me follows two simple rules:

1\. Never be hungry and never be stuffed.

2\. Do a simple 15 minute bodyweight routine 3 to 4 times a day. Do nothing
every 4th day.

When conditions are right (I'm living in Ljubljana) I will also add boxing
training 3 to 5 times a week and I've been running every day lately because I
can't do boxing. It works really well. I look bloody amazing naked.

edit: The only problem I have with this much working out is that when I can't
do boxing for an extended period of time I have too much energy and become
edgy. Like, things just make me angrier than they should and I have trouble
sitting still. The running helps, but isn't quite strenuous enough.

edit2: The BEST part of working out this much is all the food you get to eat.
And with much greater delight than if you're not working out.

~~~
ramblerman
Could you elaborate on your 15 minute bodyweight routines? Would it be mostly
interval type stuff like (1 minute burpees, 10 second break, 1 minute pushups)
etc.. ? or what do you do?

I'm only asking out of scientific curiosity to "looking bloody amazing naked"
of course ;)

~~~
Swizec
I'm too lazy for interval and interval only works if you have someone else
doing the timing. I've tried doing it on my own but it doesn't work well
because of fiddling with the timer.

I started with this:
[http://imgur.com/gallery/v49W4](http://imgur.com/gallery/v49W4)

Now I just continue with the same -> 100 pushups (4 different types), 130
situps, 200 crunches (4 different types), then either 100 side-to-side, 70
leg-lifts, or an alphabet (spelling out the alphabet with extended legs), 2
minute plank (2 different types), and 60 squats.

If I am pressed for time I can squeeze that into some 13 minutes. If I don't
stop chatting on whatsapp/skype/fb it takes about 20 to 25.

------
quickpost
Google referral link (to avoid subscription block):

[https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&c...](https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CCkQqQIwAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2014%2F05%2F25%2Fopinion%2Fsunday%2Ffitness-
crazed.html%3Fhp%26rref%3Dopinion&ei=hkCCU4zGKMuPyASgr4KIBA&usg=AFQjCNEsc5r8nidRqZkjJroh9Tf0XS2Arw&bvm=bv.67720277,d.aWw)

------
zacharycohn
Since this article didn't elaborate on Rip's suggested diet, and I haven't
seen another post here that did... here it is: ff GOMAD, or Gallon Of Milk A
Day, is the diet that commonly is combined with Starting Strength (SS). The
general idea is that, in addition to eating a lot of food, you drink a gallon
of milk a day.

It is not for the protein in the milk. It is not for the added calcium. It is
a straight up calorie per dollar play.

A gallon of whole milk is 2400 calories, and costs about $3. It's basically
the best dollar to calorie ratio that exists at the grocery store.

Why do you need the extra 2400 calories? For recovery. SS operates on a linear
progression. Every other day, you lift a few more pounds than you did the day
before. In order to achieve that (safely, and sustainably), you need to be
fully recovered by your next workout.

There are many aspects to recovery, but the primary bottleneck is fuel. Which
is calories. So the rationale behind GOMAD is to remove the bottleneck. Give
the body more fuel than it could possibly use in a day to spend on recovery.

If your typical diet is 3000 calories from food (not unusual when on an
aggressive exercise plan), GOMAD will up that to 5400. The exact upper bound
on calories your body can actually burn in a day on recovery is variable -
depends on the person, the day, the workout, etc etc etc.

But the usage ceiling is definitely lower than 5400 calories. So we give the
body more fuel than it could POSSIBLY burn, to give it the ability to recover
as much as it is humanly possible between workouts.

You do have to do something with those extra calories. It DOES turn into fat.
You do gain a little fat when doing SS+GOMAD. But you have to chose one - lose
weight or build muscle. It’s incredibly difficult to do both, while also
demanding gains in a reasonable amount of time. So typically once someone
finishes a SS cycle, they switch to IF (Intermittent Fasting) or something to
cut the extra weight.

Then you end up much stronger, and leaner.

Hope that was helpful in clearing up the GOMAD diet, and the rationale behind
it.

------
michokest
My story with fitness echoes this post closely. Gyms have long had the
motivation to push the latest machines or fitness fads, because that's how
they retain customers with the promise of a new program that'll change
everything.

After a ton of research, the only thing that worked for me was bodyweight
workouts and barbell training.

To drop my weight I followed bodyweight programs at home. 20 minute short
sessions with squats, push ups, etc. Far more challenging than it sounds! You
can see pics of how I dropped 20 lbs in this post:

[http://micho.biz/post/74209049445/leaving-teambox-back-to-
sq...](http://micho.biz/post/74209049445/leaving-teambox-back-to-square-one)

Then I jumped onto barbell training, complemented with bodyweight sessions.

Starting Strength has been the best resource I've followed so far. For a small
time investment a week, I've been progressing in technique and strength
steadily over the last months.

The fitness field has been a huge motivation personally for me, which
ultimately made me leave my previous startup and found
[http://8fit.com](http://8fit.com) to help people like me follow that learning
path.

~~~
a8da6b0c91d
I've done a lot of olympic lift training over the years and am competent at
it. I am very much pro machine. The modern machines are excellent at
preventing injury while providing an ideal strength training movement. The
barbell stuff is these days fetishized for no good reason.

People get hurt using barbells all the time. It is easy to mess up and tweak
something and then be a bit injured for a few weeks, even if you know what
you're doing. It is much harder to mess up with the good machines. The barbell
doesn't have any special advantages. In fact, loading up the plates is a
nuisance.

------
logn
A related article (2010) "Everything you know about fitness is a lie" \--
[http://www.mensjournal.com/magazine/print-view/everything-
yo...](http://www.mensjournal.com/magazine/print-view/everything-you-know-
about-fitness-is-a-lie-20120504)

------
arasmussen
Lifting is something I'm pretty passionate about. I go 5 days a week and don't
follow any specific program, just do my own thing. Honestly, if you're in the
gym 5 days a week, you're going to see results. Plain and simple, no matter
what you're doing. I've always felt the programs were basically saying "do
these things in the gym this much then you'll see these results" and it's like
yeah I can do almost anything in the gym for that amount of time and I'll see
those results...

I feel like supplements are similar to personal trainers in terms of that
"client confusion". I've taken a lot of different supplements and doing
research online versus talking to someone at GNC will return offensively
differing results in what you should take for which reasons.

~~~
gonzo
you might consider dropping a day. 2 on / 1 off / 2 on / 2 off

I found that 5x/week led to an overtrained state.

~~~
mewks
It strongly depends on the person. If you get enough sleep and you have high
testosterone, you can pretty much train every day. Your advice does hold true
for most of the population though.

------
egypturnash
My fitness regime: Dance class a couple times a week. Yoga a couple times a
week as well. Live in a city I can walk around, don't have a car. Right now
the dance is pole dance. Which you will probably laugh at - but think how much
strength and flexibility you need to climb up a pole, invert yourself, and do
splits while slowly twirling back down to the ground.

And yeah, just keep doing the same thing on a regular basis. I have a chin-up
bar in my bathroom door. Almost every time I pass that way, I try a few times.
I've gone from "can't get off to the ground" to "can easily lift and lower
myself". Now I'm trying to work on more reps.

------
NoMoreNicksLeft
I have trouble understanding the basis for articles like these. As far as it
goes, asking which exercises might provide the best real-world gains is a
sensible question, but the question of why a 40 yr old man wants to be able to
push 235 lbs away from his chest when lying reclined is never even asked.

Does he know why he wants this?

From a biological perspective, a specimen might want to be able to do this to
signal to potential mates that he is worthy of reproduction (the reason why we
do alot of the things we do that no one ever quite explains). But at age 40,
this is a suspect answer... without knowing any details of his personal life
it seems unlikely that he's finally looking to settle down and start a family.
Besides, if he is a late bloomer, the success of his career and his paycheck
matter much more than body fat percentage. A male's ability to provide benefit
to a female just doesn't lean much towards the "fighting off sabertooth
tigers" anymore, nor even in the western world towards "fighting off other
males".

I'm continually surprised how much time, effort, and money people will waste
on these activities that seem devised to attract mates when they want few or
no children, when they already have mates, and at times even when they have
mates superior to any they're likely to acquire in the future. It's almost as
if even as the desire to reproduce erodes, their desire to attract
reproductive mates increases.

~~~
jere
>From a biological perspective, a specimen might want to be able to do this to
signal to potential mates that he is worthy of reproduction

You've made a lot of assumptions about his motivations. In _Starting Strength_
, Rippetoe basically makes the claim that these exercises are _the_ most
effective way to improve someone's overall health and fitness. His attitude is
probably best summarized by the following quote:

>Humans are not physically normal in the absence of hard physical effort.

Now, I'm not going to argue with you about whether humans need exercise to be
healthy or if so, which kinds. But for the people who do come to that
conclusion (that apparently includes the author), there's plenty of motivation
beyond attracting mates.

~~~
NoMoreNicksLeft
> that these exercises are the most effective way to improve someone's overall
> health and fitness.

This doesn't explain anything, however. It's tautological... he wants to
increase his fitness, _to increase his fitness_?

> Now, I'm not going to argue with you about whether humans need exercise to
> be healthy or if so,

To what end? To eke out another 3 years at the end of his life, probably in a
nursing home?

If he was trying to avoid diabetes, that makes sense to me, that affects
anywhere from 10-40 years of your life, and is a very extreme quality-of-life
factor.

This doesn't explain the ever-present fitness craze.

~~~
jere
>If he was trying to avoid diabetes, that makes sense to me, that affects
anywhere from 10-40 years of your life, and is a very extreme quality-of-life
factor.

Sure and two of the biggest factors in preventing/treating diabetes are
exercise and weight maintenance.

>This doesn't explain anything, however. It's tautological... he wants to
increase his fitness, to increase his fitness?

Nope. He is performing weight bearing exercise to, not only become better at
performing those exercises, but also with the goal of achieving better body
composition, bone density, stamina, mental well being, etc. These have huge
impacts on quality of life. You've established that you don't value longevity
and quality of life, but it shouldn't be hard to understand why others seek
that out.

~~~
NoMoreNicksLeft
> Sure and two of the biggest factors in preventing/treating diabetes are
> exercise and weight maintenance.

60 years ago, your grandfather's generation had no problems with this at all.
They didn't go to the gym.

While exercise is a factor, these people have taken the required level of
exercise and kicked it up 10,000%.

> Nope. He is performing weight bearing exercise to, not only become better at
> performing those exercises, but also with the goal of achieving better body
> composition,

Better in what sense?

Again, you're being tautological.

> mental well being

Huh? The only way it increases his mental well being is that he believes that
if he doesn't meet some abstract ideal he'll have failed... an ideal which he
chose in the first place.

The hamster doesn't run on the wheel because it thinks that being a fatty is
deplorable, but because it's become mentally ill trapped in its cage.

> You've established that you don't value longevity

My maternal grandfather weighs 300 pounds. He turns 81 this year.

How much longevity would it buy me? Any number of years (realistically more
like months) that I'd get will be at the end of my life, when it matters
little.

> and quality of life,

My life's quality is already pretty high. What is it that I'm missing? Being
able to hike up a mountain?

~~~
sheepmullet
>60 years ago, your grandfather's generation had no problems with this at all.
They didn't go to the gym.

My grandfathers generation got a lot of daily exercise. My grandfather was a
farmer and was on his feet for 10+ hours every day.

>Huh? The only way it increases his mental well being is that he believes that
if he doesn't meet some abstract ideal he'll have failed

?? Regular exercise has dramatic effects on stress levels and general
cognitive ability.

> My life's quality is already pretty high. What is it that I'm missing? Being
> able to hike up a mountain?

You can have an amazing quality of life without ever reading a book after high
school...

You can have an amazing quality of life even if you are born paralyzed from
the waist down...

You can have an amazing quality of life if you are deaf or blind...

You can have an amazing quality of life despite being in massive debt...

------
dylanz
I've been following Wendlers 5/3/1 for the last 3 months, and have noticed a
ton of improvement. My personal goal is to get strong and not big. The
foundation of 5/3/1 is to improve strength, and there are supplemental
routines to get big, get lean, etc etc. So far so good! Would love to hear
others opinions if they've tried 5/3/1.

~~~
jds375
Right now I'm doing 5/3/1\. It works great once your linear gains start to
fade. That being said, I feel beginners should do more of a starting strength
or strong lifts program since there is so much room for growth and high reps
help develope good form.

~~~
dylanz
Great feedback, and that's what I've read other places as well.

I started 5/3/1 with absolutely no background or experience in lifting, but
I've spent a lot of time focusing on making sure my form is good. That said,
you "do" start pushing a lot of weight pretty quickly once you calculate your
1RM. I do admit it was a bit intense at first, but I've actually really liked
the process. I really like Week 4 and how it makes you take it easy (finally
get a bit of a rest!), and the slow addition of weight to your monthly
iterations.

------
socrates1998
I agree that you don't need any new fancy techniques and equipment to get in
shape.

However, doing the same week every week just isn't very fun.

Most of the problem with being and staying in shape is the lack of interest in
it.

The author enjoyed weightlifting because he had never done it before and he
saw himself getting stronger, which is very fun the first time you do it.

The most important part of a fitness program is interest and motivation. A
close second should be safety, but generally you can get into decent shape
doing almost any sport or activity.

For me, this article's fitness program, Starting Strength, sounds insanely
boring, but that is because I have been doing these lifts off and on since I
was 15 years old. And I did them a lot in college for football, so, it no
longer appeals to me.

I say, find something that is interesting to you and do that thing. It can be
yoga, martial arts, soccer, basketball, walking, whatever, as long as you
really enjoy it you will do it hard enough to get in shape and improve your
health.

~~~
zacharycohn
It is called STARTING strength for a reason. :)

In my experience (which is not universal), the workouts aren't boring though.
Running on an eliptical for an hour is boring. Getting into the gym, warming
up, doing my workout, cooling down, taking a shower, changing my clothes, and
walking out of the gym in 45 minutes isn't boring - it's awesome.

~~~
socrates1998
I am glad that you found something you enjoy that keeps you in shape.

But, boring is very subjective and I think weightlifting is boring because I
did it for so long and I have done all I can do with it.

My point isn't that this particular program is boring or not, I just think
interest trumps content in regards to fitness.

So, if you like it, then do it.

------
wbhart
I found that strength training really pushes your nervous system hard. The
training worked ok, and I could lift 220kg at the end. But I also developed
anxiety issues. Nowadays I do much higher repetitions at lower weight, pushing
muscle endurance much more, not one repetition maximum lifts which increase
the load on your nervous system.

I also, without fail, include 30 minutes of cardio in every session. This
appears to be critical if you are like me and prone to anxiety attacks. I'm
still progressively overloading, but if I can't do 3-5 sets of 20 repetitions
at a given weight, I don't do it at all. And I've seen others in my gym who
have unbelievable physiques doing the same. So it does work, so long as you
keep increasing the weight as your body adapts.

------
Spearchucker
14 years ago I snowboarded off a cliff into the top of a pine tree, and pulled
my arm from its socket. In 2009 I fell ~20ft into the sea whilst kitesurfing,
badly dislocating the same shoulder. It resulted in a pretty crazy shoulder
operation that needed a lot of work to get back range of motion and strength.

I started with physiotherapy and once the range of motion was back I slowly
moved onto weights (using Starting Strength). It went well, but I can't claim
to have loved it like I do snowboarding.

A friend suggested going to a Krav Maga[1] class he attends. I haven't looked
back since, and do between 2 and three sessions a week. I dropped the weights
and Rip's diet advice, and went back to eating like I always do (pretty
healthy, good mix of red meat and pasta and potatoes, vegetables).

I've put on weight (always been slim), strength is back to what it was, and
I've not been this fit since I was conscripted in 1988.

Whilst I'm sure weights would do more for how I look (secondary for me, I've
always been good with girls anyway), Krav Maga does more for how I feel. I
guess there's no silver bullet that works for everybody. You try a few things
on, and keep what suits.

[1]
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krav_Maga](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krav_Maga),
and
[https://www.wittenburg.co.uk/Entry.aspx?id=ce9c6cf4-6b3e-419...](https://www.wittenburg.co.uk/Entry.aspx?id=ce9c6cf4-6b3e-4194-8739-ad9165e37d26)

------
jqm
The fitness regime I got more out of than anything else has been interval
training.

I worked out with weights for years and occasionally would do some cardio. I
think the logic was... cardio doesn't make you look good in a swimsuit like
lifting weights does, and at the time impressing ladies and intimidating other
guys was priority (lets don't lie to ourselves about motive here!).

Then, I got a little older and impressing ladies became less important and
general health and a sense of well being more important. I read an article
that made me realize many of the same principals of weight training can be
applied to inner muscles as well. A knowledgeable person wouldn't go to the
gym and lift 5 pound 300 times and expect to get stronger. Instead they would
lift 80% of what they could 5 times in sets. This is what builds strength.

The same principal applies to interval training for heart and lungs. Rather
than getting on a treadmill for 45 minutes at a slow slog you push yourself to
a percent of max heart rate for like 3 minutes in sets (the same as weight
training). The workouts don't take that long and I found they greatly improved
my feeling of health and general vigor. There are a number of studies on the
benefits of improved heart stroke volume etc. from interval training which I
can't find at the moment.

~~~
Dewie
HIIT is a good form of interval training for people who want to do cardio but
are also afraid that cardio will detract from their "look good in a
swimsuit"-look.

> , and at the time impressing ladies and intimidating other guys was priority
> (lets don't lie to ourselves about motive here!).

Let's not project, either.

~~~
jqm
"Let's not project, either."

hehehe

Well, I was just speaking from what I remember as a 20 something... I doubt
I'm unique in this regard but probably it doesn't apply to everyone.

------
JAFTEM
I have many friends that in the past wanted to get more fit and healthy and
they've always felt the need to do a lot of research or look for some sort of
crazy program that they think is necessary to shed off the weight or gain
muscle. I always try to just push them in the direction of starting out with
the "big four" that this article mentioned: the bench press, the squat, the
dead lift, and the clean and press. All you need to do is look for videos
online that demonstrate the motion and proper form and try to mimic this with
a light weight [1]. As your form gets better, you can naturally add more
weight. From there as you gain more experience, you can start working on
exercises that isolate different body parts and of course incorporating
cardio.

In my humble opinion, it's best to just jump right in, create a routine, and
start learning from experience. Refer back to videos online for proper form in
trying new exercises, and from first-hand experience you will see what works
and what doesn't.

[1]
[http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/](http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/)

~~~
Someone
_" wanted to get more fit and healthy [...] to shed off the weight or gain
muscle"_

Those are two, three, maybe four different things. The typical marathon
runner, for instance, is fit, not fat, but also not muscular, and may or may
not be healthy; a sumo wrestler is surprisingly fit and muscular, but also
fat, and a body builder is muscular, but need not even be strong (world
champion weight lifters look quite different from body builders)

The optimal training program depends on what you want to achieve. That's also
what this NY Times reporter seems to be confused about. Training programs
focussing on getting fit (especially those focusing on endurance fitness) may
have a side effect of looking better in the mirror, but if that is your goal,
there are better/faster ways to get there.

~~~
dublinben
I'm aware of the differences between "functional" muscle and otherwise, but
you can't be an elite level bodybuilder without being strong. Ronnie Coleman
(8x Mr Olympia) is stronger than more than 99% of the human race.

------
davycro
I followed the Starting Strength regime for about 7 months and had great
results where I added about 15 lbs of muscle to my frame. Its a fantastic
method for building a foundation of strength and muscle. My biggest complaint
during the process was that it was difficult to track my progress. To my
surprise none of the iPhone applications out there were very good for tracking
lifts and I ended up tracking with the Notes application. Recently, I stumbled
upon the StrongLifts app, which is tailored for a different lifting regime,
but one that is somewhat similar to Starting Strength. StrongLifts is executed
perfectly, in my opinion. If I wasn't in school, I'd try and build a
StrongLifts clone retooled for Starting Strength. I think there would be a
huge market for that app.

I would like to see an iPhone application that tracks your progress in the
Starting Strength routine. The app StrongLifts would be a great starting
place. StrongLifts has a fitness regime that is similar to Starting Strength,
and is executed beautifully. I love the idea of combining a fitness program
with a smartphone application.

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schmoofer
I've done Strong Lifts before in the past before and had good results (mainly
with legs, squats went from just the bar to 225 lbs in 3 months), and I've
tracked it all in a spreadsheet. I've always thought it would be a good idea
if we can all publicly aggregate our tracked progress (for just squats,
benchpress, deadlift, etc.) and see a collective chart of it so we can
visualize how we compare to the average (and if we're doing something wrong).
Of course, different body types and diets are factors, so filters may be
applied (i.e. mesomorph body type, >3000 calories, etc.). Would anybody be
interested in using something like that, in mobile/browser form?

------
_august
When I started my research, I did eventually land on Starting Strength,
however I lacked access to a proper gym. Eventually I started looking into
bodyweight fitness.

I found some routines online and and created an interactive version with
videos [1] so I could make it easier to get started.

If you're looking to get started at home and don't have barbells accessible, I
highly recommend bodyweight fitness. It's working well for me, and it's
actually quite fun. As an added benefit, you gain new skills with your body
(such as handstands).

[1] [https://fitloop.co](https://fitloop.co)

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jwallaceparker
This new workout book from Joe Manganiello (actor from True Blood) is pretty
incredible.

[http://www.amazon.com/Evolution-Cutting-Breaking-Mental-
Buil...](http://www.amazon.com/Evolution-Cutting-Breaking-Mental-
Building/dp/1476716706/)

He details the workout he used to transform his body for his role of Alcide (a
werewolf) on True Blood.

There are also a few chapters dedicated to motivation and mental approach.
They're well-written and he doesn't pull any punches. Highly recommended.

------
davidcbc
Good article, however the author overlooks the most important factor of any
"exercise", "training", "diet", "strength/size building" program.

Diet.

Starting Strength is a great strength program, however if you are eating
garbage you are still going to look like garbage. Someone doing a fad exercise
routine and eating right is going to have better results than someone doing an
optimal training routine with a poor diet.

------
yodsanklai
To each his own but I find it easier to get fit as a side effect from
practicing a "regular" sport, like swimming, climbing, running, boxing etc...
I feel it's less artificial and much more entertaining.

However, not many sports can give you those huge muscles people get from a
proper strength training with high protein diet.

~~~
thisrod
I agree with that in principle. The problem is that you have to do those
sports a lot in order to stay fit, and people start companies, write books and
do other things that leave them with too little time for it. Climbing over a
lifetime beats weightlifting, but weightlifting beats sitting in a chair for
two years.

Also, olympic lifting might look like brute force, but it's actually as tricky
and interesting as swimming or gymnastics.

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marincounty
I walk/run every night in order to feel better mentally. I wish I didn't need
too, but without exercise everyday I don't feel well mentally. It's been the
Only medicine that has ever worked on my brain. My body still looks like chit,
but I don't care anymore.

~~~
hollerith
Your blood cortisol levels might be too high. Contact info in my profile if
you want to hear more.

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gonzo
Rip is great. I even got him to admit that a valsava isn't recommended for me.
(ascending aortic dissection survivor, and yes, I lift.)

------
Shivetya
the nice thing about fitness is you need no tools more than your own body,
though shoes do help.

Really. Only your body and the space to use it.

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cjf4
Kind of surprising that this article didn't use the word "periodization",
because that's really what it's advocating.

~~~
nasmorn
No he describing a training void of periodization. He does the same routine
for a year just increasing weight. In a per iodized regime he would maybe
start with low weight high reps then move to 8-12 reps the doing maximum
strength training with 5 reps. This is usually only necessary if you start
plateauing on your current regime.

------
hackaflocka
Everyone is different.

No two people respond the same to the same exercise.

No two people respond the same to the same diet.

Period.

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smegel
> outdated barbell movements

I stopped reading about here.

~~~
fhars
Then your reading comprehension is probably lacking. You do realize that the
article is a strong defence of classical barbell excercises?

~~~
smegel
Defence from what? His own faulty preconceptions?

~~~
zacharycohn
Society's faulty preconceptions, yes.

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ahmett
I do not have a NYTimes subscription, please consider not posting from this
website.

~~~
tormeh
Set your cookies settings to not block but delete on exit all cookies from
NYT.

