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Yay! Back on NF after a long absence. My long-term physical goals are still to improve my ninja-weasel shenanigans in the woods, and I remain an assassin at heart, but I've been experimenting with simple barbell workouts lately. My goal with the lifts is to feel comfortable with the form, get my numbers to the benchmark the coach describes as "sufficient to support vigorous recreational activity", and then focus on more interesting activities that put that strength to use. PRIMARY GOALS: Get my form right for the barbell squat. I’ve been screwing around with this stuff for a few month, but it is time to get some coaching. This month I’ll be taking video and posting to the coaches on the Starting Strength forums. If the squat is looking good, I'll work on other lifts. Workouts will be fairly minimal, maintenance level, due to time & energy – low-bar squat, one other lift, and some chin-ups. Lose a little fluff. This is in the experimental phase, but I'd like to get back in the ballpark of 15% bodyfat. (I’m steadily creeping towards 20%.) Tracking and measuring item-by-item is a little much for me at this point, but I looked up the most common things I eat, and made a list to help me ballpark estimate what 250kcals of food looks like. MyFitnessPal gives me a calorie goal of 1500, which is six of those 250kcal portions. I’ll add another portion or two if I am seriously hungry, and see what happens. SECONDARY GOALS: Keep moving. I'm not hitting the workouts hard, but I want to stay consistent. I've been making excuses for missing workouts, sometimes good excuses, so I have a list of alternate workouts that I can substitute if I am "too busy" or on the road. YOGA! A daily yoga practice is important to me, even if it is only a small thing. Sun Salutes every day, preferably in the morning. Five minutes. No excuses. Violin practice. Aiming for 3x/week, ~20 minutes. I also want to take a few videos I can send to my mom. 17 PREVIOUS CHALLENGES: