TMedina

Heh.  That's one way to punch Bro culture where it hurts.

They don't keep them; they definitely make them - certainly before an election.

Heh.  The gym I use has a series of kettlebells lined up in a row - I just start at one end and work my way down.  The wee tiny ones (which are actually huge, but apparently hollow) are just enough to get my body and mind working together in the correct form before I end up with the heavier ones.

Aesh: don't run on broken legs.  Your body needs time to recover - when you make it back to the gym, it might take a workout or two to remind your muscles what they're there for, but it won't be like starting all over from scratch.

I promise.

This is a video of Staci doing her then PBR 400 pound deadlift.  Note her arms in relation to her body's position to the barbell.  Slow the video down to 1/4 speed, and pay attention to the 14 second mark forward.

1. She steps up to the barbell and positions her feet.

2. Step bends over from the hips to grab the barbell - knees are slightly bent.  Arms are straight.

3. At the 30 second mark, she begins the pull - her hips sink down and she begins to pull/stand.  

4. At 0:33, you can see her expression change and the muscles tense as she engages.

EtA: Georges, without a form video, it's difficult to know exactly how you're setting up - I *think* you need to sink your hips more to keep your grip on the bar and knees into position.  Question: are your shins touching the bar?

Congrats on graduating!

Doh!  Sorry, I forgot to include the link - sorry about that:  http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/now/whey.html

Stress eating is a thing - there are some schools of thought that suggest it's a hard-wired behavior for survival; pack on the calories and quick sugar fixes for optimal fight-or-flight scenarios.

Which doesn't help you, per se, except to say it isn't just a matter of willpower and self-control.

I suggest that you not beat yourself up about "falling off the wagon" - especially with so much stress in your life.  It might be that as a whole, the "cheat" system doesn't work for you and a more moderated approach might be the better answer.

Good luck!

I don't actually breathe while I pull - I assume the position, suck in a deep, belly-expanding breath, hold it and execute.  Are you breathing while pulling?

You mention your hearing is off in your right ear - enough that it also affects your balance?

Yeah, it's never a bad idea to have an emergency backup in place.  

Also, check out http://www.doyouyoga.com/challenge/

It's a great intro to yoga, absolutely free, and will combine strength as well as stretching elements.

A little about me: yoga is on my to-do list, although I started looking at it as "advanced stretching" rather than a practice in and of itself, I'm starting to come around to the idea of yoga for yoga's sake.  I'm also planning on signing up for the 30-day challenge - just not this immediate second.

But I wanted to make a couple of observations about being too fat for yoga:

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/oct/11/fat-girls-do-yoga-too

http://jessamynstanley.com/

http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/fat-yoga

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lauren-cahn/there-are-no-fat-people-i_b_4709130.html

And the poetry proper to sum up some things:

In the spirit of Brekketechie, and for future reference:

1. mobility

2. sweat retention - probably the biggest reason I've actually spent money on gym clothes, rather than wearing cotton shorts and a t-shirt)

3. comfort

4. fashion (whoa, dude!  Killer brand XYZ attire!)

5. showing off - some gyms are meat markets and/or some people go to show off.

This checklist can be applied to almost every piece of clothing folks choose to wear to the gym.  Because at some point, one or more factors entered into the equation.

That brings back memories - I was a sales clerk at Staples and this scruffy guy was following this reasonably attractive, well-dressed lady around the store, making the most outrageous propositions.

So, I ask her if she needs assistance and start, ah, flexing just a bit in his general direction.  

Turns out they've been married for twenty years and he's just a practical joker.  But he/they had a good sense of humor about the whole thing.

Have you considered whey protein shakes?  I don't know how, or if, that might conflict with your intolerance of cow milk, although you can find soy-based protein powders, as well as "lactose intolerance friendly" variations.

I like this stuff:  the natural, unflavored version tastes like nothing.  A little texture, but almost no taste, which means it mixes well with almost everything (at least, everything I've tried - milk, water, flavored supplements, other whey protein powders).

Good luck!

You can replace burpees with something else that is equally full body - or mostly full body: jump in place.  Or do a squat jump.  The idea is to keep moving and crank your heart rate up.  Go for jump squats.  Or jumping jacks.  Or "wacky jacks" : 

Videos are great tools - they can give you ideas, show you how some exercises are supposed to look, even what not to do at times.

So, you have a video.  Do you like it?  Do you like the way you feel at the end of it?  What don't you like?  Why?  Can you change it?

Ultimately, the idea is to take the underlying concepts and use them to gauge and evaluate new material to see if it works for you.

It's not a bad workout, although since I'm at work I've only skimmed a minute or two of it - what don't you like about it?

That's some lovely work.

Huh.  Beside the fact it didn't occur to me?  No reason in particular.

Welcome!  I was going to make a "slay the wabbit!" joke, until I got to the "brown belt in hap kido" part.

Just a note - Bruce Lee was actually a huge believer in weight training.  Food for thought.

Deadlifts are the one exercise I get hooked on - once I complete a set of 5, I can't make myself step away.  They're like frigging Pringles.

I do once a week - Wednesdays.  Strong Lifts advocates one set of 5 deadlifts every other exercise period; I just portion it a little differently: Mondays are "A", Wednesdays are "B", Fridays back to "A".  Slack off on the weekend, then repeat on Monday.

If I were being true to the program, an actual exercise progression would be: Mondays A, Wednesdays B, Fridays A, Sundays B, Tuesdays A - and so on.  I just don't have good luck making it to the gym on the weekends, so a basic MWF arrangement works best for me.

Edited for clarity (I hope).

I really really want to pick up the phone, yell EAT A DICK, and then hang up again.  I think it's a twisted workplace fantasy.  It's fun in my mind but I think IRL not so much a good idea!

...well, that kind of depends on where you work, I suppose.

And by like, I mean "eeeyyyoowwcch!"

Have you considered something like either yoga and/or bodyweight drills while traveling to stay generally limber?