Vintage

My guess is that some of this has to do with the fact that it's an introductory offer designed to get new clients started, particularly if he doesn't anticipate you sticking around as a client beyond those 5 sessions. This is where your situation differs from Slate's, who is an established client not leaving anytime soon.

I think whether the price is reasonable depends on the programming and whether he's charging $70 for a program you can use long-term or asking for what amounts to $140 per week. $140 for a progressive program that will last you for the whole 5 week period and beyond could be reasonable depending on the quality and nature of the programming. 

I work for a CF gym that does a huge amount of private training and individual programming (keep in mind that quality CF style programming can be complicated and generally isn't one workout that you repeat over and over) and there are several ways this is handled. 

1) "Exclusive Coaching" is individualized programming design, generally for our top-tier, competitive athletes. They pay $189/month for 4-6 days of workouts per week. These are very detailed (warm-up, mobility work, prehab exercises, lifting segments, conditioning etc) and customized to them. They're required to keep training logs and upload them for their coach to see every Sunday so that programming can be adjusted. But they pay normal hourly rates ($100/hour) for in person, one-on-one training. 

2) PT clients that come once or twice per week and then pay for an additional workout that gets assigned each week. Standard rate for this is $15-20 per workout (for trainers whose hourly rates are $80-100). 

3) PT clients who get assigned "homework" - usually simple stuff that needs to be done in between sessions or more often to address a goal or need. Mobility, shoulder stability work, pull-up singles as part of a grease-the-groove approach, track sprints, etc. Or clients like Slate who want to add an extra workout in on top of their PT sessions. This is usually one simple routine that will be repeated many times and isn't charged for. 

I'd agree that 3x12 is a lot of reps, in part because it's tough to increase weight when you have to do 12 of them. I'd also suggest starting reps lower, increasing them over several weeks and then increasing weight, dropping back down in reps. If she wants to do that. Honestly, I'd try to get her to go low reps high weight on her main lifts, and put the volume in the accessory work. 

I might try lower volume on deadlifts but add in extra accessory work for them. Romanian deadlifts, rack pulls, good mornings, barbell hip thrusts, weighted step ups and lunges, glute ham raises, hip extensions, heavy kettlebell swings - all of these will target the muscles that women want extra work on (glutes, back and hamstrings) without as much taxation on the CNS and issues with fatigue. Glutes tend to be one of the few places that women do want hypertrophy, so this is a good place for accessory work. 

It sounds like that's pretty much how this went for previous generations... people with dysplasia were generally just told they have bad hips and to manage it until the arthritis got so bad the hip had to be replaced. Hip replacements can be a great thing for people but they don't last forever and younger people do tend to wear them out faster because they're more active. Plus there will always be some activity restrictions. The idea with this surgery is to avoid early replacement (they actually call it hip preservation surgery) and allow the patient to keep their natural joint. The surgery and recovery for a PAO is worse than for a replacement, but if it works there are no mobility or use restrictions and the replacement may never have to happen. 

It's tough to reconcile major surgery like this with my actual pain levels - I've probably had worse pain from bad ankle sprains and a lot of days I barely limp and it doesn't feel any worse than bad post-workout soreness. But then I hear stories like your dad's and know that I need to be thinking of this as preventative. 

I tried out super low box jumps - doing them slowly and focusing hard on landing lightly and on taking off and landing evenly/squarely. It seemed to go ok - no pain at least. It was actually really encouraging to be able to do it - I've gotten so protective of my hip and apprehensive of pain that I've started moving very gingerly and cautiously, so getting comfortable leaving the ground again was good. 

Hip thrusts seem to be a no-go, however. I've got pain wrapping from my glutes to the front part of my groin today. I'm not completely sure why, but I'm wondering if I'm tilting my pelvis oddly at some point to keep the bar in place or initiate the movement. It may be worth trying again with an empty barbell or even a small sandbag at some point.

Next on the list to try are slow step-ups (using a 2121 tempo). The trick will be finding a box that's high enough to allow a controlled eccentric without creating too much flexion. I want the tempo both to add time under tension and to help me pay attention to form (and to know when it's breaking down under fatigue) - my hips are so unstable that I tend to tilt sideways and do all sort of rotating on single leg movements. I'm also adding dragon flag work in as my new gymnastics skill focus (yeah, I know, wrong forum), and overhead carries (I had taken out loaded carries but I'm hoping these will be a good compromise since the added weight on my hips will be so much less than with a farmer's walk). 

Also in case anyone's bored enough to wonder what the hell is going on, a slightly longer explanation of what's gone wrong:

I've got severe dysplasia in both hips, with a torn labrum in the more symptomatic one. Essentially the abnormal shallowness of my hip sockets plus the weird angle of the socket and the femur make the whole joint unstable and prone to deterioration and early arthritis. The (absolutely terrifying) fix is a PAO, where a surgeon cuts off the chunk of the pelvis that forms the hip socket, moves it into a more ideal spot, and sticks some giant screws in to hold it in place while the bone grows in to fill the gaps. I'm likely 3-4 months out from surgery, after which it'll be a few months before I can put weight on the hip and probably 5-6 before I can even begin to ease back into actual training. Then I might be repeating the process on the other side. The time-frame on this has been a real mind-fuck, as has the lack of clear answers about what will happen if I ignore pain to train in the meantime. 

I think you've gotten a lot of great tips on how to deal with the dining hall and gym, but I'd gently suggest that maybe this "paranoia" is a symptom of something else. Going off to college is a huge life transition and living on campus is full of ups and downs and new sources of stress. I'm wondering if the new eating issues are a response to that. I remember being away at school my first semester was tough because I didn't have friends there yet that were close enough to talk about really personal stuff with but I also didn't want to tell my parents or people back home that things were a little scary.

You might consider checking out the counseling center at your school. I'm not saying you need to commit to anything long-term, and I'm not trying to say that there's anything majorly wrong or that your eating issues are back. But maybe see if there's someone available to meet once or twice for a sort of check-in. Big life changes are a very normal reason for seeing a therapist. Spending a few hours unloading your worries can be a huge help, and you'll know that there's someone to talk to if things do get to be too much or food issues start worsening. 

Of course I could be totally off the mark. But give it a little thought.

I'm not one to collect specialty kitchen items, but a while back I invested in a silicone muffin pan. Egg muffins, mini meatloaves, and nom nom paleo's spicy tuna cakes (my absolute favorite snack) all pop out perfectly with no effort and easy clean up. Definitely worth the purchase.

I've had one on my right wrist for years. It bothers me mostly with snatch grip overhead, but anything wide grip seems to hurt it a bit. 

For everything but snatches I narrow my grip and that helps, but wrist wraps also make a big difference so you might try that.

That goes back to the "not all cf gyms are equal" issue. Some have random programming, but others definitely don't. 

Ours for instance runs in 6-12 week cycles that are laid out in advance, with testing weeks between cycles. We don't always do the same set of tests in each of those, but we do retest frequently. The programming and the testing workouts are selected to fit the goals for the cycle. We build week to week, have athletes reference previous sessions to choose weights or set time goals, and provide logbooks for people to record everything. Sometimes it's hard to see the patterns and progressions in the metcons (strength or skill segments are easier to see) until you start thinking about things like specific energy systems, recovery ability, or work capacity. CF gyms that are good at what they do can give members the feeling of variety and keep things interesting but also create measurable results over the long-term. 

But smart programming takes knowledge, planning, and a good amount of effort, so you definitely won't find it everywhere. 

When you're looking at a gym, there are a couple of things to check for: are there members who have been there for years? Talk to them and find out if they're still seeing progress. Do any of the coaches participate in classes and train with the same programming? Do they include dedicated lifting sessions and skill work in classes or is it nonstop metcons? 

Thanks guys. I'll have to try box jumps again at a lower height, and maybe some leg extensions and hamstring curls (though I'll feel ridiculous doing that in public). To some extent more than the muscle loss I'm worried about decaying coordination, movement patterns and other largely neurological aspects. Plus I feel like my back, knees and ankles are less healthy than when I started babying my hip. I did unweighted box squats not quite to parallel today and I'm hoping they'll prove to be ok. 

Hip thrusts are a good idea too El Exorcisto. I do banded glute bridges in warmups but for some reason didn't think about barbell hip thrusts. 

Fortunately my doctor supports the "try it and see" tactic for the most part. 

Long story made short: I've got a progressively worsening hip issue that I've just found out will require major surgery and a long recovery - but there's a good chance I'm 6 months away from that or more. I'm struggling to program in a way that will keep me training, help me preserve as much muscle as possible and drive off the squat-deprivation blues. 

The restrictions: No high impact, no loaded hip flexion, no unloaded flexion past 70 degrees, no aggressive, loaded hip extension (ex. kettlebell swings), no loaded single leg movements. Did I mention I'm not allowed to squat or deadlift? I'm still having withdrawal symptoms. 

I typically train at a crossfit gym, so there's a lot of variety, but I have structured, purposefully planned out programming. I've got the upper-body strength stuff covered - I'm still able to run my modified 5/3/1 on bench and ohp only, plus pull ups, accessory work and gymnastics on the rings. 

What I need help with is ideas for programming core and lower body work when I'm so restricted. This is one time where machines will come in useful I think, and I have access to them at the university gym in addition to all of the standard crossfit equipment at my gym... but I have absolutely zero idea how to build an effective program with them. Does anyone have any resources or ideas for where to start?

If you're consistent with your mobility work and really put time and effort into it you'll probably see pretty rapid improvement. Mobility issues can actually be a much faster fix than strength or muscle control problems, provided you actually work on it. The other thing is that mobility issues cause form issues, and there's a good chance you'll need to put some focus and effort into retraining yourself to actually use your improving mobility. 

Ah, ok. I think I get the question. Others' understanding may differ, but I've never understood muscle pump and lactic acid buildup to be precisely the same thing (though they can be related). Muscle pump is more about the increase in blood flow to the muscles - it's designed to increase the nutrient flow to the muscles during and after exercise (following strength training your body needs the increase in nutrients to rebuild the muscle fibers you've broken down, which is part of the process of getting stronger). Muscle pump can last for a day or two. Lactic acid, on the other hand, is built up when you're working in an anaerobic state. Your body is constantly clearing out lactic acid, but if you work in an anaerobic state for long enough and with little enough rest, the lactic acid will build up faster than your body can clear it. Your muscles start burning and performance plummets. 

You've got a few options then. If you're strength training and lactic acid is building up to the point that you're unable to complete a workout, then you probably need more rest between sets. Moving around a bit can help lactic acid clear (walk around, bend and unbend your legs, shake out your arms, etc). Having carbs in your system (consuming carbs before a workout and during if it's a long session) can keep your glycogen reserves from bottoming out, which helps with lactic acid buildup. 

In the longer term, lactic acid threshold and your body's ability to recover can be improved. It will happen naturally as you get more training experience, but specific training like sprint intervals are a great way to maximize thist. Look up lactic acid threshold training for some specific ideas. 

I'm not sure I understand what you mean by "muscle pump". Maybe explaining what you're referring to and what specifically causes it will help get you some more help.

I've been training at a crossfit gym for 2 years and working there for about 8 months. One of the biggest things I've learned is that every gym is unique, and each person approaches things differently/ We're sticklers for form and technique, smart programming, great coaches and taking care of bodies to prevent injury. No one gets praised for vomiting and there are mandatory recovery/light days, particularly for those who workout 4-5 days per week. It creates a culture where individuals feel comfortable scaling weights or movements. We have members who don't do any sort of kipping movement, for instance, and they're supported in that. That said, this varies by gym and the best way to find out is to go there, watch a class, do a class, talk with coaches and members, etc. Ask around. How proactive are coaches and members with scaling and modifying movements? Are coaches coaching or just cheerleading? 

A lot of us do have a tendency to push past where we should - sometimes that works out and sometimes it doesn't. But the thing is crossfit didn't make me that way. I've always been stubborn and driven to push hard, and crossfit tends to attract people like me. Fortunately I'm at a particular gym where that's well tempered by people who encourage me to look at the bigger, long term picture. 

For the specifics of that gym, I don't see anything particularly problematic. Their programming doesn't seem to include dedicated strength and lifting sessions within their main classes, but they offer separate olympic lifting classes. I know that there are some people who are successful at learning oly lifts on their own, but I doubt I would have been one of them and I don't think I'm alone in that.  I'd encourage you to check it out. Be observant and ask questions (I'm in charge of inquiries and prospective clients at our gym, and I LOVE when people have specific questions. When people don't ask questions or respond much I feel like I'm giving a generic sales pitch instead of being able to have a conversation about whether we're the right place for them)

How many leg days do you do per week?

One option if you've got 2 is to have one (the one where you have a spotter) be a true heavy day (if you can do it for 10 reps it doesn't qualify - stay in the 2-5 range) and then the one when you're by yourself be a speed, explosive power and/or volume (you're already headed that way with this with things like box jumps). 

The mention of bear complexes brought tears to my eyes. Oh the painful memories.

Lifting weights faster is fine - they should just be light enough to keep you moving at the pace you're shooting for and with good form. For conditioning work I (or my coach) lay out the goal time/speed/work to rest ratio first and then choose my weight or the difficulty of the movements. Is my goal to move continuously for 50 minutes? Or am I wanting short 30 second all-outs with 2 minutes of recovery in between? Those call for different weight and difficulty selections. 

Conditioning options you might like (besides barbell complexes, which are fantastic):

sled pulls or pushes (poor man's sled drag/pulls involve a tire, some lightweight chains or rope and a stretch of grass)

loaded carries (a weighted backpack, sandbag, kettlebells, plates, small children...)

russian kettlebell swings

sprints (running sprints, stationary bike sprints, rowing sprints)

wall balls, ball slams, box jumps, jump roping

rope climbs and handstand walks (start with wall walks if you don't have these)

I did a conditioning workout not too long ago that involved man-makers, bear crawls, plank walk-ups and airdyne sprints that left me hoping for death for quite a while afterwards. It definitely wasn't boring.

Remember too that you don't need to jump straight in to pre-planning and prepping all of your meals. I started with just my weekday lunches at first. Then added dinners Mond-Thurs. Then breakfasts. Then snacks. The important thing was that I designated certain meals as ones I always pre-planned and others as ones I figured out on the fly, so I developed solid habits and a consistent system. I'm sure you've realized by now that everyone has their own way of doing things that works for them depending on daily schedule, cooking likes and abilities, food preferences, family size, etc, and building up slowly will give you a chance to start figuring out your own individual system. Plus the more you cook (and particularly bulk cook) the more efficient you'll get at it, so you'll be better prepared to add more meals as you go along.

Darkside Strength did a video on this not too long ago...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJ8cDzbAfAg#t=12

Start simple.

For lunches and dinner, you essentially need some protein (meat), a green veggie (or multiple veggies) and something carb-ier (this depends on your carb intake goals... it can be potato, squash, rice, carrots...). So for the week, calculate how much meat you need and cook some veggies, then portion it all out. 

If you have a grill you can go that way for the meat. Otherwise you can roast it all in the oven, toss it in a pan with some oil, or put it in a crockpot. Simple seasonings or a basic sauce. For instance, 2-3 lbs of chicken breasts and a jar of salsa in a crockpot for 6 hours on low will produce good results. Add some chopped jalapeno, onion, lime juice, cumin and chile powder to get fancy with it. Eat it in pieces, shred it, put it on a salad, stuff it in a bell pepper and bake it for 30 minutes, etc. 

Veggies: start out by roasting them. Toss them in olive oil with salt, pepper, and whatever seasonings float your boat, spread them on baking pans and stick them in a 425 degree oven until they look perfect. Get fancy by drizzling vinegar or citrus juice on them afterwards. You can also steam them or toss them in a skillet. 

Breakfasts: Utilize your leftovers. Cook some extra meat and veggies. Chop them all up and either make an egg casserole with them or have them ready to throw in a skillet with a couple of eggs in the morning. 

Resources:

-well fed and well fed 2 are fantastic cook books in that they not only have great recipes, they also devote a ton of space to things like spice mixes and sauces you can make at home to dress up your meats and veggies (this makes it easy to add variety if you cook a lot of meat in a fairly straight way and dress it up differently throughout the week), a bazillion ways to make meatballs and burger patties. It goes through a lot of the "ok, so how do I actually go about cooking all of my meals from scratch without having to quit my job?" stuff.

-nomnompaleo.com

-civilizedcavemancooking.com - the guy has some fantastic meat recipes and doesn't get overly complicated

Note: I'm not paleo, but I use a lot of paleo cooking resources, simply because it's often easier to add a moderate amount of rice under a stir fry, wrap something in a tortilla, put some beans into something, add some cheese etc. to a paleo recipe than the other way around. Since I base my diet off of meats, veggies and healthy fats (the paleo stuff) and add in the extras as I need/have room for, it makes sense to do it that way. 

Staci, have you checked at UT? Not their masters swim team but with the recsports program. 

Thanks, Vintage. Good to hear from someone my height who has had success.

I guess I just got nervous because this is the lowest I've ever been and this is also about where I started regaining on previous attempts.

That's understandable. You might take this moment to sort of mentally stand up to that fear. What would happen if your calories weren't low enough and your weight loss stalled or you gained 1-2 lbs back? The all-or-nothing, catastrophizing part of your brain is jumping straight to "I'll gain it all back and this will all be a waste of time and effort and even my dog will hate me and..." But that's not reality. Your weight loss stalling out or putting back on a pound or two (whether this happens because of a mis-estimate, because you have a few weeks of less than stellar choices, or because you make a conscious choice to take a break from focusing on weight loss [which, incidentally, you will probably need to do at some point, which is why I bring this up]) does not mean you'll put the weight all back on. It means you'd have to look at the data and make adjustments.  The belief that you won't be able stop the process if it starts trending in the wrong direction is faulty and tends to be a self-fulfilling prophesy. You're in control of the process now through your choices, and you'd be in control of your process then. 

It's way too common for people to attribute positive changes and choices to their own power and effort but less-desirable ones to fate or being out-of-control. Don't let yourself fall into that trap. 

JesterShay, I'd say that 1600 cal/day sound absolutely reasonable. I'm your height - I started at 205 lbs and I'm about 130 now. I've never had to drop below 1500 cals/day to see steady weight loss as long as I'm exercising. I've got a lot of muscle mass to support now and I train heavily, but I maintain at around 2300. 

But your own results are going to be far more accurate than any calculator can be, because people are different and there are a lot of variables at play. Eat at 1600/day for a little while. Happy with your results? Stick at it. Not losing weight? Drop it by 150-200 cals. 

The last thing I'd consider is that if you're hungry a lot, tired, miserable, craving food, etc, and as a result you're eating stuff you didn't plan to eat, much larger portions, going after junk food, and so on then you might end up eating a lot more calories and a lot more junk than if you just intentionally knocked up your calories and planned to eat an extra 200 cals of satisfying, nutritious food. 

Among other things, articles like that really do reflect an attitude that's pervasive in our society - the idea that women can never get it right but should constantly be aiming to be visually pleasing to every stranger that catches sight of them. 

I hear the same thing when women complement me on my muscular legs and arms and ask how I got them, but then after they hear my description of my workouts and nutrition they say "oh no, I wouldn't ever want to lift heavy weights or workout like that because I don't want to get bulky/big/muscly/manly." They like the look on me, but can't imagine feeling good about it if it were them. In the same conversation they've managed to bemoan their lack of muscle and also express fear of gaining muscle. 

I know that I look "too bulky" for a lot of women's tastes and that some men are intimidated or turned off by women who sweat and have muscle and don't need them to carry all the heavy stuff. But I'm taking Dumbledore's advice and not holding out for universal popularity. Hopefully Jessica Simpson's doing the same. 

On facebook: stumptuous

http://mollygalbraith.com/

http://www.niashanks.com/

http://www.girlsgonestrong.com/

http://www.negharfonooni.com/blog/

Those are female-focused ones, though I don't really seek those out. 

I definitely batch cook - if I don't I end up eating junk, both because I end up short on time but also because I use batch cooking as a reason not to eat out/eat unplanned stuff (sure chick-fil-a sounds amazing right now, but I've already got food cooked that needs to be eaten or it'll be a waste of money).

Crockpot shredded chicken is definitely a go-to for me. It works with a jar of salsa dumped over it. I'll add in carrots and other veggies as well. Beans too if I need extra carbs. This works with pork as well. Chili is easy. Meatballs - I make huge batches and freeze them in bags. Roasting veggies is easy to do in large quantities (chop them, toss them in olive oil, spread them on a baking tray and stick them in the oven till they taste yummy). This week I made a pan that had a bunch of zucchini, cherry tomatoes, a red onion in wedges, carrots, mushrooms, and a whole head of peeled garlic cloves (left whole) with some balsamic vinegar and basil tossed on at the end. Also a tray of broccoli with diced up bacon. And one of crispy brussels sprouts with garlic salt.