tinkerer

This is modified from a question I posted in my challenge. Over the last couple of challenges, I've trained with a standard core workout as well as weighted pullups and weighted dips. I've made (I feel) reasonable gains in most areas except pullups. This got me to wondering why have my pullups not improved similarly? I had switched to weighted pullups as I felt I'd plateaued with just standard pullups and needed to change something. My overall AMRAP hasn't really changed significantly, however. I got to wondering about form and if I'm recruiting the proper muscles. If I was doing them improperly (for example using my arms instead of my back), would that explain things? I don't know but I found this article and video (below). The summary is that to match this technique I would need to extend my chest much more and pull to my chest instead of in a more vertical alignment. I tried it after my strength workout yesterday and following this method feels very different (e.g. this is not what I'm doing). Does anyone have thoughts or comments on this? I would like to modify my technique if there is something to be gained from it.

It's nice to have the appreciation of [boyfriend][girlfriend][wife][fiance][etc] regarding appearance. While there is an element of that goal which is personal, there is also a part of me that likes to stay in good shape for my wife because she appreciates it. From the sound of things, you don't have too much to worry about now but it's probably a good thing to keep fitness and nutrition as goals. Staying in good condition seems to be a better, easier, and healthier option than reacting once things have deteriorated. Sometimes it seems that participating on here leads us to be overly critical of where we are currently and how much we need to improve - just because it's a forum dedicated to improvement. I hope that your traveling is going OK!

In trying climbing shoes on at a store, one style was sometimes 2 or 3 sizes bigger than another style of the same brand. I think the size number probably doesn't capture enough to translate well when you're wearing a shoe as rigid and form fitting as a climbing shoe. That's my guess. I think Mad Hatter said it really well above. If you're fairly certain you'll be sticking with climbing, shooting for a shoe slightly more technical than the most basic flat-soled models might save you a little money in the long run. I say might because there is also a chance you'll go in a different direction and wish you'd bought something else.

Pullup Question: I have really been wondering about pullups lately. Over the last couple of challenges, I've gone from 5 hanging leg raises to 11, from 3 reps of dips with 30 pounds to 3 reps with 50, and from 25 to 35 seconds of L-Sit hold. Why have my pullups not improved similarly? I got to wondering about form and if I'm recruiting the proper muscles. If I was doing them improperly, would I experience a stall even after switching up my routine? I don't know but I found this article and video (below). The summary is that to match this I would need to extend my chest much more and pull to there instead of in a more vertical alignment. I tried it after my strength workout yesterday and following this method feels very different (e.g. this is not what I'm doing). Does anyone have thoughts or comments on this? I would like to modify my technique if there is something to be gained from it.

This made me literally lol. That must be a nice realization...but probably not as nice as realizing your ability to deal with things at work has improved. My wholehearted congratulations on that front!

Way to go on your first week! From your schedule it looked like that one might actually be the most weekly distance until your race. How are you feeling? It sounds as though you have impressed your friend.

Nice job on the first week! Having food laid out like that really seems to make the rest of life go more smoothly. To add to the shoes conversation, I have a pair of Katanas and a pair of TC Pros (both La Sportiva). The Katanas are a slightly less aggressive shoe than the Miuras and are a good match for the level of climbing I can accomplish. A more technical shoe seemed to add more pain than improvement when I tried them out. I love the TC Pros for outdoor climbing as they are another step less aggressive and therefore pretty comfy for multi-pitch adventures. I'd sum up my advice with saying that if you can get to a store with a small wall to try shoes out that is highly recommended. If you find one that you like - that is the best option.

Since this is nerdfitness, perhaps we could all put our heads together and come up with a design for a gyroscopically stabilized treadmill mount which could be constructed from things commonly found on research ships in Alaska. In the meantime, hopefully the messages of support are helpful when you are able to check in. I'm hoping the weather breaks at least enough for you to get in a run!

It's not as big of a leap as you might think, although owning a rope and harness would make it substantially more simple. In the event you become interested, a lot of communities have a climbing club that might provide an introductory class. The club I'm part of has a several day course (as in a couple of evening lectures and a couple of weekends outdoors) for around $100 which is run by volunteers from the club. I've also seen "gym to crag" courses offered at a few climbing gyms. How was the first week, Asa?

Week 1 Summary Wow, that week flew by! I actually feel that my training for this challenge has backed off slightly in intensity from the weeks prior. Probably the cause of that feeling is decreasing the strength training sessions from twice to once per week. Additionally, had my hill climb been zone 3 I would have needed a longer run to finish out my aerobic minutes goal. All in all, I'm feeling pretty good. The hike with a heavy pack yesterday was a good reminder that this training is necessary and that there is plenty of room for improvement. Goal 1: Complete 1 Max Strength / Core Workout each WeekWeek 1: Done! Goal 2: Go Rock Climbing each WeekWeek 1: Climbed indoors with friends. Goal 3: One Zone 3 Hill Climb each WeekWeek 1: Done, Accomplished with the combination of a Zone 1 Hill Climb and a Zone 3 4 mile run. Goal 4: One Hike each WeekendWeek 1: Completed with a 45 pound pack. Goal 5: Accumulate Zone 1 TimeWeek 1: 250 Minutes Done! Actual: 273 MinutesWeek 2: 275 MinutesWeek 3: 300 MinutesWeek 4: 210 Minutes Bonus Points:As part of the mountaineering class, I'm encouraged to schedule training hikes, runs, etc. for the other instructors and students. I would like to do at least two of these this month.Week 1: No Progress

Week 1 Day 4 Continued: Climbing I went climbing with my friends. The highlight was seeing some other friends that I haven't been able to catch up with in a few months. My climbing was not as good as it's been in recent trips. Week 1 Day 5: Rest Week 1 Day 6: Hiking A couple of my friends are getting into hiking and agreed to go on a short notice hike. I assumed we wouldn't be going too far so I loaded up a 45 pound pack (that is pretty heavy for me) and we set off. We ended up hiking a little over seven miles and my legs were pretty tired by the end of the day. However, this is exactly the kind of training I need to be doing so it was a great day for training. 7.1 miles, 2:58 hours, 968 feet of elevation, 104 avg BPM HR. I think this satisfies my goals for the week. I'll double check and post a summary tomorrow.

I'm slow to post but this looks like a really fun challenge. I'll be joining those following along now. Hooray for all of the fun things! I'm not sure what sort of advice to provide on choosing because I suffer from the same dilemma. Regarding cost, if you have an opportunity to climb outdoors during the summer months, climbing can be a relatively inexpensive sport. On the other hand, I constantly wish for new climbing gear which offsets any savings realized by avoiding gym memberships. I have found running to be a good way to meet new friends. Often, there are running groups which just meet up for a run and then socialize afterward. Classes (climbing or otherwise) are also a place where I have met a lot of friends with similar interests.

It appears that you are off to a great start! Nice job on running in the rain...it always feels like a double victory to stick with your plans despite uncooperative weather. Also, hooray for all of the new shots on your instagram! It's fun to catch a glimpse of Paris through your photos.

Be careful, man! Smileys are the gateway to gif posting.

Not actually all that cold. Probably around 10 degrees F or so... Oh, yeah. I didn't write that very well. What I meant to say is that for strength training I'm unsure if I'm supposed to keep my HR in a certain range, allow full recovery to resting HR, or something else. I haven't scheduled any of the group/conditioning hikes, yet. I was hoping to go on an adventure this weekend and held my schedule open for that. However, all of my regular adventure buddies (including my wife) are busy doing other things. I'm struggling with indecision as to how far to go, what hike to pick, how to publish it to the group, etc. I just need to jump on it and get it done. That particular exercise was a side plank combined with a dumbbell lift. I think the HR spike is because I'm doing 18 reps with each arm (peak HR on the second side) so it is a longer duration than most of the other exercises. It's fun to have a lot of workout buddies because usually (this weekend being an exception) there is someone to help motivate me to get out there and do things. I'm starting to miss running on my own though...

It's always fun to be able to perform something which others think is difficult and cool. Nice job Body image is such a tough thing. To some degree, I think most of us are training with hopes of having a body we believe is attractive. I know that from day to day my opinion of how that is working for myself can change drastically. Hopefully, the compliments at the gym and ability to do difficult things can balance out with any nagging thoughts about weight loss. I don't mean that shouldn't be a goal if you really want it to be one but I feel like we each judge ourselves much more harshly with regard to appearance than we ought to do. How are the mindfulness exercises coming along?

OK, where I did I leave off here...oh yeah, strength training. I used my HR monitor during my strength training workout to see how that looked. I don't think it changed much as far as my training approach but it was interesting to see how quickly your HR jumps when you are holding an L-Sit or doing pullups. I'm not sure if this is good form or bad form but anyone interested can check it out here: Week 1 Day 3: Hill Climb Zone 3 Hiking Well...this didn't go exactly as planned. I met up with my regular buddy and a new friend for the local mountain hill climb. My new friend brought along a 35 pound pack for training purposes. I had a 20 pound pack and my regular buddy just had a small hydration pack. We set off at a speedy clip but part way up we needed to slow down to keep together. I ended up with a Zone 1 workout (even on the way up) instead of Zone 3. That's OK because it was good to hike with someone new but I'll be honest I was a bit disappointed. And then I laughed at myself for taking things too seriously. My new friend said it was great and that he'd do it again so that is good news. 3.73 miles, 1:35 duration, about 1800 feet. Week 1 Day 4: Running I had been planning on a nice, relaxing, zone 1 run this morning. However, I also thought I needed some Zone 3 time after last nights hike. As a result, and because I was running with my marathon-training-for coworker, we went at a brisk 7:30/mile pace. It was a less relaxing but still very pleasant way to start the day. And definitely hit Zone 3 HR targets. 4.00 miles, 30:07 duration. In case anyone wants to see where I keep track of all the data, here's a link to my fancy Training Log spreadsheet. Planning to go climbing tonight, so I'll continue today's entry later.

Hooray! A new Talvi challenge! Your schedule is very precise. Are you really able to schedule your runs that far out and have your life work around it? If so, that is awesome. Looking forward to following along on your countdown to the big race.

Glad to have you back! Also, nice job with the yoga goal. Making a goal which is achievable doesn't make it count less. This makes sense, attribute points where appropriate but staying at level 10. Off to follow the new thread...!

Good luck at the race! We'll be cheering you on from our respective keyboards! Enjoy that lovely spring Seattle weather...

Last time I was traveling I made a plan to do something active once per day from the beginning. I often pack my shoes but rarely run. It turned out that planning the activity in advance made it a lot easier to find time to fit it in. I even ventured to the hotel gym one morning which I had never done. Conferences are rough because it seems like there is always something happening. I strategically picked points in the schedule where a break would do me more good than the conference activity and used those times to workout as well as to recharge my social batteries.

Haha...I feel like I've burned 10,000 calories. I try to discourage my companions from discussing where to go for food when we return because I find it really distracts me from enjoying the hike. According to my all-knowing GPS/HR watch, an "easier" hike of 3.75 miles up the mountain (taking it easy, not an easy trail) burned 640 calories and the same hike at a faster pace burned 869. The 14 mile hike/snowshoe trip a couple of weeks ago lasted 9 hours and supposedly burned 2766 calories. The watch knows distance, elevation, my weight and HR so I imagine it does OK at guessing.

Week 1 Day 2: Strength I had a late meeting this evening but was able to get in a strength training workout afterward. I am keeping the same routine that I've been using for the last 2 months with one exception. The training program I've been following has this really convoluted weighted pullup progression. 1x4, 2x2, 2x2, 4x1, 3x3, etc. Never the same, except when it is (to be different ). You are supposed to choose a weight that is just at the max to complete the prescribed workout for the day. I did that for the last two challenges and just did a standard progression for dips. My dips gains were better and I was always confused as to what weight to use for the pullups. So this go around, the weird progression goes away. Duration: 57 minutes. Tomorrow: I get to do a hill-climb hike with a couple of friends. To be honest, meeting new climbing friends is the #1 reason I'm helping...followed closely as SaltyDragon suggested by the fact that through teaching you wind up learning a bunch!

Moooore climbers! Woohooo! A three-story rock wall sounds like a great place to climb. I really like the way you started sorting through your priorities for the week. There are always certain things that must get done in order for the big goals to happen... Regarding climbing training, my fingers are often my limiting factor for climbing. If you are climbing twice a week that is probably a good amount of finger training. On the other hand, if you miss a day and are looking for a quick finger workout, there are options. You could google "finger board training" for a lot of information, but the simple starting point would be to hang from something by your fingertips for as many seconds as you can turn into three reps of hangs. (i.e. if you can do 20 seconds once, maybe shoot for 14 seconds three times.) A word of caution if you're just getting started. It's really easy to train your hand muscles faster than you hand tendons which can lead to injuries 6 months or so into climbing. Take a look at "open hand" climbing grips (vs. crimps) to help train proper technique to avoid hand injuries.

Hi Bambooroo! There are a number of us climbers on the NF boards and I think most of them are bouldering aficionados...you should find a lot of good company. That looks to be a pretty ambitious workout plan! How intense are your strength training sessions?