Bravery. Humility. Living in reality.

[Emissary2Ornj]

This is my battle log. Herein I ponder and investigate the following:

 

The battle to work out three times a week

• and not get bored
• and keep getting stronger
• and keep working hard every time
• with info on my current routines & equipment
• and why?

 

The battle to feed myself the highest quality fuel possible

• and not attach moral meaning to my food choices
• and understand why I want the foods I do
• and keep drinking boring drinks
• so that eventually fuel becomes just a thing, not an obsession
• with info on my current habits
• and future ideas/goals

 

Investigate/modify current mental models (my paradigms)

• about food
• about my most important people relationships
• about any internal thought pattern I encounter which is limiting me somehow

 

I pledge to:

Be brave

• face my thoughts/feelings
• get aware of numbing/distraction practices (taking responsibility for reality-avoidance techniques), w/self-compassion

Be compassionately curious

• about current habits/behaviors I'd like to change/progress in, such as:
  • current housekeeping practices
  • my tendency to resist outside suggestions/criticism (independent vs stubborn;)

and Be honest.

 

 

...And many other topics, to be discovered.

[Emissary2Ornj]

Fitness background:

I'm familiar with body weight movements from my prior time here on NF back in 2012-2013. I had made a decent amount of progress before back pain and injuries sidelined my workout habits. I had a major life change from 2014-2016. By the time it was all over I was newly married, back pain/injuries were no longer a thing, and I was spending a LOT of time outside in the woods.

Current, good-enough why:

I want to not lose the strength I gained this past summer stocking groceries in a very busy, too-small-for-the-volume tourist-area grocery store. To that end, I acquired some resistance tubes (never underestimate what you might find at discount bin/pallet stores!) and got to work in mid-November. I've worked out 8 straight weeks now. Now that I work out routinely, I'm coming up with some deeper questions and thoughts about what directions I might want to go with this. This community is a good place to find answers, I think. So, here I am, again: a few years older and I think, wiser (at least as far as understanding myself goes).

 

I'm a full-time RVer with my husband. By preference and necessity, I choose movements and workouts which require minimal, lightweight, compact, or no equipment. I enjoy walking but currently don't have a walking routine. The original Nerd Fitness philosophy meshes pretty well with how I look at physical fitness. I want my body to be ready for anything – jumping, running, playing, hiking, weeding, push-mowing, gardening, building, cleaning, crafting, sewing, firewood-getting – whatever. Some of those things I can already do, but I want to be ready for daily life. My focus isn't on losing weight, so much. I have a small body (5'2”!!!) and I'd love to see what power I can get out of this package. I like to amaze myself. I'm carrying some extra fluff on my lower body but it's cool – it'll either stay or go away or change shape. I don't worry about it and I'm not focused on changing it. I'm not in my final morph and this body will likely go through many shapes before I'm finished with it.

 

Fuel background:

I have some little-t trauma associated with my teenage experience w/my weight, body shape, emotional eating/bingeing, and attending Weight Watchers during that time. Lots of hidden, deep shame in that which I rebelled against by later becoming very self-forgiving about portions and appetite, and if I wanted it, I wouldn't deprive myself. I rejected associating guilt with food and believed I could eat decently without the rigid controls and guilt trips. I mostly proved that true, but have been very anti-tracking. Now I'm starting to see it as a way to take a closer look at what goes on with my body given my current habits. I'm beginning to see it as a neutral tool, not an emotion-laden pressure thing. Ain't growing up great? (At 39 yrs old, finally.)

 

For the past 5 years, I've eaten a moderately clean diet, making the best choices I could, except where fast food, potato chips, and box mac & cheese were concerned. This summer we got a lot of free food from work, and I ate more bread than had been my habit. But waay more veggies, too!! I've been wanting to do something about my emotional relationship with food, and I've had my doubts about the nutrients my budget diet was actually providing. This fall I added a vitamin & protein powder to my nutrition arsenal, and started keeping track of my food (what, not how much).

 

Then my husband decided he needed to make some changes, and wanted a reset, so he invited me to do a 10-day green smoothie regimen with him. Fair warning: If jumped on about this I will defend myself – it's entirely possible to do something like that and not buy into the fad science and unrealistic claims. More thoughts on that experience below. Currently, I'm eating at about a Level 4 on the NF diet. I don't really see myself giving up pasta at this point – although I've pretty much cut out bread. I'm tracking an estimate of my calories on My Fitness Pal.

 

I'm in a creative/experimental phase here, too. I have a few solid food choices that I know satisfy and fill me. I am mentally exploring other options, while also trying to find out if what and how much I'm putting in is actually sufficient. (edited to fix font size)

[Emissary2Ornj]

Thoughts on the 10-day smoothie thing:

My husband wants to make permanent changes and this regime created a definite space between old eating habits and new. I was very excited to see him wanting positive long-term changes and was not going to sabotage his efforts. I agreed to do it with him as a personal adventure. I've not done mentally hard things requiring discipline and perseverance on purpose very often (ever?) so I liked the challenge of it. It reminded me of the practice of fasting in various cultures. I'm not sorry I did it. Don't see myself doing it again, although now I have another weapon in my arsenal (several different smoothie recipes) for getting an aMAZing amount of greens into my diet, if I ever need it. It was cool to go through it together, too. An interesting experience. You're eating at a major calorie deficit, even with allowed snacks. I did what I could to pad my days w/more protein. That's the most hard-boiled eggs I've eaten in a while! I kept working out, but did scale back some days. I didn't do it for the unscientific “detox” or to lose weight. I did it for the buffer, and to support someone I love. (It's aMAZing to have someone else in the house on the team!) Also, after 10 days of no added sugar products, and no processed food, it's easier to be okay with the protocol “I don't eat that anymore.” I thnk a cold, hard stop versus a drawn-out weaning worked better for me. It's done. I don't want to go back. It also gave us time to go through our pantry and decide what we wanted to get rid of. Here's what I don't know, that I wonder – I wonder how my hormone cycle was affected. Like, was I actually getting the fats/carbs I needed? There was definite fatigue, mental and physical. I think you have to be really judicious if you do this.

 

Anyway – I have been so anti fad diet my whole adult life, and still am. I am much more a proponent of permanent, sustainable, lifelong changes. The sensible kind. But I'm glad I did this. Healthy smoothies are great! Just not as the main course, 3 x a day.

[Emissary2Ornj]

Today I worked out for 1 hr and 6 minutes.
I warmed up approximately 15 minutes:

• Bend or roll or twist all the bendy places, starting w/neck, moving to arms, elbows, wrists, hands, waist, hips, knees, ankles, toes
• Put feet & ankles through some GMB mobility drills
• Do some GMB dynamic stretches on knees, hips, groin
• Follow NF YouTube Beginner Dynamic Warm-up video (Staci's)

 

Other non-circuit mobility/strength/skills work (kind of the “Play” part of my workout):

• Calf raises 3 ways + 1:
  • Straight leg: 10-12 each foot (needed other foot to toe touch support) normal, pigeon, and duck
  • Bent leg: 10-12 each foot (ditto)
• GMB A-frame to squat: 5 minutes
• GMB hollow hold progression: 6 minutes

 

2x circuits: (My norm is 3 circuits. But there's SO MUCH wrist/arm work w/the floor movements, I may only do 2 for a while until wrist strength catches up.)

• GMB tabletop knee swings: 3 sets of 6 or 12 each side
• Resistance tube squats: 10 squats w/estimated 50# resistance
• GMB Bear crawl: 1 minute
• Side plank: 40 seconds per side

 

Stretching/cool down:10-15 minutes

[Emissary2Ornj]

Post workout details and Thoughts (Ponder):

Have to come up on toes to straighten knees in A-frame. (Calf and hamstring tightness probably limiting here; calves slightly more than hamstrings.) Walk back into body weight squat, as deep as I can go, feet flat. I have 2 choices here: I can stay up off the ground (but still parallel or slightly lower) w/chest up and back straight, or I can go all the way down w/rounded back and caved chest. I play around with both, exploring the mobility. Not sure yet what exactly is keeping me from moving my weight more over the mid-foot w/straight back. I assume ankle flexion? Tight calves behind that?

 

Hollow hold work is a lot of fun. I tuck chin, lift shoulders slightly, engage pelvic tilt, lift feet off floor w/bent knees. Then I extend feet, paying extremely close attention to keeping my low back glued to the floor. I pause for a bit then bring knees back up to 90deg. I notice my front neck working SO hard to keep my head tucked, which is curious to me. I love feeling my core hold my pelvis steady, and knowing how to engage it to re-tilt it when the back starts to leave the floor. My leg extension is currently about 1/5 – ¼ total. Not far, but I look forward to getting there.

 

Knee swings are a starting movement for leg threads. Those aren't a goal of mine, but the knee swings looked hard so I wanted to try them today. They are! I like. (I think I need to time these for consistent tracking, instead of reps/sets.)

 

Squats: I run 50# worth of bands through 2 ankle straps and clip ends to 2 separate handles. I step in the straps (so they're around my feet, not my ankles), press the handles up to collarbone-height, and squat from there. I am pretty confident in my form w/these; I've been doing them for about 2 months and they feel pretty good. My knees used to limit my squats. No longer. They track out over my slightly-turned out feet. They sometimes seem to flare out slightly at the bottom, but they still seem to be over my feet. If I was in front of a full length mirror I could better judge it, but I'm not. Haven't gotten to the point where I mess with videoing myself yet. So far, they feel solid, and I get pretty deep with them. The body balance is different w/bands vs body weight. I drive up through my heels, which remain flat on the ground through the whole movement. I added 10# of resistance today.

 

Bear:I focus on getting up on toes and keep legs straight and hips up. Also I focus on moving extremities at the same time. Also I try to notice what's happening with my shoulders. I mentally cue to push the floor away from me. I need to check back on their website to see if that's the correct cue.

 

Side planks: Front elbow planks are much more fun for me. I don't like side planks – the difficulty? I dunno. I am able to rest on feet, not knees, and they're plenty hard. No/minimal shaking, as with hollow hold practice.

 

Sometimes I do prescribed stretches. I prefer to allow my body to naturally stretch in myofascial release “unwinding” fashion. It seems to find the tight spots on its own. Today was unscripted.

 

Further thoughts: I am doing a LOT of arm/shoulder/wrist work with these floor exercises. I added in some backwards wrist stretches after my table top knee swings in each circuit. I usually try to include 2 locomotion movements in my circuits, but today I decided to just concentrate on the bear walk. I like crab. Monkey is fun – especially exploring which foot to push off with and how the movement flows – but it's a little problematic in the bathroom I work out in (coolest room in the 79degF house). I have to really be aware of my head position in space in relation to the cabinets and dividing walls. Frogger is fun. Bear is my favorite.

 

I'm still playing around with how much of these floor movements to keep in each workout. I have options: do I include every movement every time? (takes too long)

Do I pick 2 and include every time? (More time-efficient but neglects the discarded 2)

Do I pick 2 and alternate w/the other 2 the next workout? (Meh)

Do I pick 2, do them a week, and do the other 2 the next week? (This is sounding about right)

 

Things I like so far, after trying to incorporate GMB ideas for 8 workouts (over 2 weeks) now:

I like how my body feels like it's really worked hard, despite the movements seeming so basic. (My ego-brain, the achiever/accomplisher, is fighting the “slow down, pay attention, take a step back” direction I'm taking it in. It's all “No! Must accomplish! Must progress! Must compete!” It's... learning.)

I like how much these moves engage and push my core stability system. I want compound movements. I want whole-body workouts (b/c I believe they most closely mimic the every day grind I'm trying to imitate and am preparing for).

I like that I can give myself permission to keep doing squats and deadlifts and knee push ups, if I want to. If I like them, why not? If they make me feel strong and feed that accomplisher-brain, then what's the harm? And I need to realize here that I may need to back off on resistance or reps b/c of the different intensity. Or something. And that's okay, too.

[Elastigirl]

Very cool that you  are a full time RV'er .Where have you guys travelled?

I enjoyed hearing about your food journey, and how you learned to have a wiser attitude toward food.

I love GMB stuff! My body is so much happier when I spend time doing some of the movements

[Elastigirl]

When I'm just adding them to my workout, I tend to always pick Bear.  I like your plan of picking one a week to work on. That seems like it would make sure you rotate.

[Emissary2Ornj]

11 minutes ago, Elastigirl said:

Very cool that you  are a full time RV'er .Where have you guys travelled?

I enjoyed hearing about your food journey, and how you learned to have a wiser attitude toward food.

I love GMB stuff! My body is so much happier when I spend time doing some of the movements

Our trend has been Idaho for the summers, and the southeast US for the winters. Various routes.

Thank you for reading all that! I'm a very wordy nerd.

I'm looking forward to discovering what changes for me using GMB. So far, I think my feet and toes are stronger!

6 minutes ago, Elastigirl said:

When I'm just adding them to my workout, I tend to always pick Bear.  I like your plan of picking one a week to work on. That seems like it would make sure you rotate.

I read a couple NPR articles a few years back about hip hinging and J-spine posture (vs S-spine). Having that knowledge helped me pick heavy stuff up with confidence. It helped make squats and deadlift movements make sense. I think it's probably why I like bear, too - that hip hinge motion really helps stretch your hamstrings, and so does Bear!

[Emissary2Ornj]

On 1/7/2022 at 10:18 PM, Emissary2Ornj said:

I need to check back on their website to see if that's the correct cue.

Found the main Bear article. Note: try moving from tabletop to A-frame to Bear walk. (Haven't paid attention to how I've been getting into it.) Haven't come across anything for shoulder cuing, except to straight-line wrists, elbows, & shoulders.

 

Fuel notes:

Pretty sure I'm not going to worry about meeting a goal for protein any more. Came across a concept (I think on this challenge's general chat thread? page 2?) that twigged my brain: what's the ratio of input to result for any given thing I'm working on/worrying about/pondering? I don't know that the effort I would put into worrying about/actually hitting my protein goals would actually translate into comparative results in my daily life. I'm not a professional athlete and I'm not powerlifting. The changes I've made and the routine I've got going are going to take me far. I could keep tracking for a while to satisfy curiosity, but I'm pretty sure the goal component is gone for good.

 

I'd rather focus time, effort, and underpants-gathering on adding variety to my menu and my workouts. This decision feels GREAT. Didn't realize I was putting pressure on myself with it, until it's gone. Also, while ego/achiever-brain is all about focusing on the numbers, what I really want to know is how do I feel in my body, given the fuel I'm inputting?

 

Also I have another subjective evaluating tool handy: How big a difference is ____(w/e decision)___ going to make compared to how much time/money/effort it requires/stress it causes me?  This is cool.

 

[Alanna]

I'm looking forward to following your progress with the locomotion movements! I agree that focusing on a couple at a time would work well - maybe include one that has a lot of squatting (frogger or monkey) each week. As you become more comfortable with the movements and transitions between them, I think GMB Elements starts combining them in flows. You can probably work towards flows that incorporate all of the locomotion movements in one session, too .

 

22 hours ago, Emissary2Ornj said:

Also I have another subjective evaluating tool handy: How big a difference is ____(w/e decision)___ going to make compared to how much time/money/effort it requires/stress it causes me?  This is cool.

 

 

Definitely - it doesn't make sense to focus 80% of your energy on the last 5% of results. 

 

Paying attention to macronutrients is more important to me because my body doesn't like high carbs, but that doesn't mean they will be important to someone else. You may find your priorities change over time due to stress, goals, etc. - e.g., I currently don't track my food, even though it was helpful in the past.

 

[Elastigirl]

On 1/9/2022 at 12:21 PM, Emissary2Ornj said:

Also I have another subjective evaluating tool handy: How big a difference is ____(w/e decision)___ going to make compared to how much time/money/effort it requires/stress it causes me?  This is cool.

 

This is an awesome question to ask ourselves.

[Emissary2Ornj]

1 hour ago, Alanna said:

Definitely - it doesn't make sense to focus 80% of your energy on the last 5% of results. 

 

31 minutes ago, Elastigirl said:

This is an awesome question to ask ourselves.

Credit @Waldo, page 3 of the General Chat thread, for the concept. It's kind of one of those "D'oh!" oh-so-simple ideas with potentially magnificent far-reaching effects.

[Emissary2Ornj]

Today I got up earlier than usual to work out. (Husband and I had a project to do and I wanted to not miss a workout and be ready whenever. If I can maintain this habit, I would like to reward myself with attribute points. Or something.) I was finished before 9am.  Usually I'm 1hr-1.5hrs later. (I'm awake by 630 most days. Just not up. More on this later.)

 

Warm up: I tried this GMB YouTube video for the first time. About 20 minutes. Added usual foot/ankle mobility drills. Lots of wrist work in this warm up, which impacted my circuits, later. Will be taking another look at this, as I'd prefer to keep 2 locomotion movements in my circuit each WO.

Single sets/skills:

• Calf raises, 3 ways (straight leg) + bent leg: 10 each; did some 1 foot at a time, still need other toe for partial weight bearing.
• Tabletop to A-frame to Squat: 6 minutes play time. Only went as deep into the squat as I could keep my back straight, chest up, and feet flat. Lower than parallel to slightly deeper as I kept practicing. This transition always gets results which feels exciting.
• Hollow hold progression: 6 minutes play time. Front neck felt stronger today. Core still shakes. Using a band under my back to test pelvic tilt. If I can't pull the band out, I'm good. Got a smidge further into the pointed-toes leg extension. Guesstimate: 1/4 the full extension?

3xCircuits:

• Tabletop knee swings: For 1 minute each circuit; totals of 34, 30, and 30. (I do as many as I can, rest a few seconds, then finish out the time)
• Band deadlifts: 15, 20, 15 Switched from resistance tubes (estimated 75#) to 2 mini bands (1 fabric, labeled "light"; 1 rubber labeled "heavy" which felt about the same pull of resistance, 🤷🏻‍♀️) of unknown # resistance w/large carabiners for handles. Certainly felt heavier, and I didn't have to wrap my hands in the bands to get them low enough. But I have no idea if I actually increased the resistance. I have more mini bands; I have a bit of room to play here.
• Bear crawl: For 1 minute each circuit.
• Crab walk: For 1 minute, first circuit only (there was a LOT of wrist work in the warmup and in my workout. I opted to rest wrists & switch to
• Side planks: 30s each side per circuit, last 2 circuits only.

Stretching: 9 minutes

[Emissary2Ornj]

4 hours ago, Alanna said:

I'm looking forward to following your progress with the locomotion movements! I agree that focusing on a couple at a time would work well - maybe include one that has a lot of squatting (frogger or monkey) each week.

Thanks! And yes - I started doing that last week. I paired Crab with Monkey and Bear with Frogger. I forgot about that when quick-planning this AM's workout. Thanks for reminding me. I will do that again, but not switch between pairs as frequently.

 

4 hours ago, Alanna said:

Paying attention to macronutrients is more important to me because my body doesn't like high carbs, but that doesn't mean they will be important to someone else. You may find your priorities change over time due to stress, goals, etc. - e.g., I currently don't track my food, even though it was helpful in the past.

I'm getting nosy here, so feel free to decline to answer. In exactly (or generally) what way does your body not like higher carbs? I have guesses, like feeling sluggish or sleep or digestive changes - but could you share a bit? Reason: I'm interested in finding more out about my own body and how it reacts or what really fuels it well, and hearing your experience might give me more ideas on what to watch for. I know, in general, that protein and fat keep me full and satisfied without dragging me down after eating. Also, I wonder if or how various macro recipes can impact your hormones - be it their synthesis, or the cycle itself - and how we experience all that in daily life.

Obviously, I'm curious about lots of things - but taking the time and energy to track all of them, or research all of them isn't realistic. There must be balance!

 

(Side note: I like thinking that balance isn't the same as complete stillness, but consistency around center.)

[Emissary2Ornj]

I found a really cool site that I haven't fully explored yet. I'll link the page I found immediately helpful today here for safekeeping. And explore it some more.

 

Edited to say: This is entertaining stuff! Just skimming a couple chapters beyond the page I linked, the author refers to nutrition guidelines that I remember from the 90s. This is like finding a time capsule!

Edit the second: The author actually recommends microwaveable dinners as well-balanced meals. This must be dated before the shiny luster of industrial food manufacturing wore off.

[Alanna]

18 hours ago, Emissary2Ornj said:

I'm getting nosy here, so feel free to decline to answer. In exactly (or generally) what way does your body not like higher carbs? I have guesses, like feeling sluggish or sleep or digestive changes - but could you share a bit? Reason: I'm interested in finding more out about my own body and how it reacts or what really fuels it well, and hearing your experience might give me more ideas on what to watch for. I know, in general, that protein and fat keep me full and satisfied without dragging me down after eating. Also, I wonder if or how various macro recipes can impact your hormones - be it their synthesis, or the cycle itself - and how we experience all that in daily life.

 

 

I have PCOS, which often comes with blood sugar and insulin issues (or at least a predisposition towards them). I also have a family history of type II diabetes, so I probably have a genetic predisposition towards blood sugar issues. I find it easier to maintain my weight and I have more energy when I have a good amount of protein and fat with my meals/snacks and pay attention to the amount and types of carbs that I eat. I've also noticed that sugar tends to make me feel more anxious. I don't need to be super strict with my carb levels, though - I'm fine with a moderate carb diet as long as I'm exercising and following these other guidelines.

[Emissary2Ornj]

1 hour ago, Alanna said:

I'm fine with a moderate carb diet as long as I'm exercising and following these other guidelines.

Thank you so much for kindly indulging my nosiness.

[Emissary2Ornj]

Today I worked out for about 1 hour.

Warm up: Neck rolls, wrist prep (against floor), scapular shrugs and shoulder rolls (against door - less pressure on wrists), spine rolls, hamstring & quad/groin dynamic stretches from lunge, lunge rotations, toe/ankle mobility work, lateral steps

1x Calf raises: straight/bent knee 10 each, separate legs; 10 both legs together, pigeon & duck

3x Circuits:

Deadlifts 15, 15, 16

Bear walk X1 minute

Hollow hold 24 seconds, 35 seconds, 33 seconds (1/4 extension)

Frogger X1 minute

A-frame to squat about 3 reps in 1:15. GMB teaches to walk feet forward into squat. I've been walking hands back. I tried it their way today and it felt weird, not satisfying, didn't like it. This may just be my stubborn brain, or it may be perfectly okay to do the other way. I plan to keep experimenting both ways.

Stretching/cool down 15 minutes. Focused on hams, quads, calves, arms, wrists, sides; not really in that order.

 

Thoughts: I still think the workload on my wrists is heavy in relation to their current strength. I believe I will move the locomotion movements out of the circuit and into a 1x set for time after warm up. May bring back some basic bodyweight/band exercises, and decrease resistance if necessary.

There's a mental component going on here, but I don't know yet if it's result or cause. The feeling is lack of enjoyment (maybe just loss of beginner's enthusiasm? I'm over 2 months in to the workout habit), with a bit of resentment/frustration brewing. I don't feel overwhelmed, yet, exactly, and I don't want to get there. Oh! Also feeling limited by my wrist/elbow strength may be feeding into the frustration. So: make peace with my body as it is (live in reality), and adapt. I've got options. (This is one big reason I write. The answer at least partially gets revealed, eventually.) I'm actually kind of excited to explore these brain patterns (overwhelm, apathy) b/c I know they don't have to dictate what I do. In the past, they did. But the past couple years have been transformative in realizing that these brain-tracks are learned, not inherent. And that knowledge gives me power.

 

Thinking about adding a walk on my non-workout days. I have a go-to route here, it's just doing it.

[Alanna]

2 hours ago, Emissary2Ornj said:

A-frame to squat about 3 reps in 1:15. GMB teaches to walk feet forward into squat. I've been walking hands back. I tried it their way today and it felt weird, not satisfying, didn't like it. This may just be my stubborn brain, or it may be perfectly okay to do the other way. I plan to keep experimenting both ways.

 

I feel like the example they showed in Elements was walking hands back, but now I'm second-guessing my memory. Either way, I think your intuitive of practicing both is spot on!

 

3 hours ago, Emissary2Ornj said:

I still think the workload on my wrists is heavy in relation to their current strength.

 

It does just take time to build up tolerance to putting weight through your hands - I think it's probably tendon adaptations (which are slower than muscle adaptations) at play, too. 

 

It's fine to focus on other exercises that don't put weight through your hands while your wrists catch up! Maybe squat variations? 

 

[Emissary2Ornj]

 

Here is tomorrow's planned workout. I hope this works - I'm impatient with tweaking and ready to get back to knowing my robot protocols (w/planned switching-it-up programmed in).

 

Changes: moving A-frame to squat & locomotion moves out of circuits. Paring quadruped positions out of warm up to lessen early wrist overload/fatigue (adapting neck/shoulder work to sitting position). Adding compound body movements back in.

 

Further thoughts on warm up: In my opinion, the practical use of a warm up is to prep the joints for the workout and get blood flowing. This is a pretty tame warm up in that cardio is missing (like the NF YouTube vid I was doing the first couple months). No jumping jacks, mountain climbers, marching in place. I liked the cardio. But maaaybe it's not necessary. I'm thinking my 1-set work will provide a medium-effort point between "warm  up" and "circuits". We'll see.

 

Also, if anyone has any deeper knowledge about stretching during a warm up, I'd like to read it. I wasn't, b/c NF says nope (no static stretches), then GMB's warm up exercises seem to mostly be called stretches, albeit they keep saying "these are dynamic stretches [they're pulses], so it's okay to hold them a little bit at the end." Are they both right? I get the no static holds concept, but GMB seems to be sneaking them in. I prefer calmer, static stretching after my workout, no pulses.

 

Brain is freaking out at how much time this will take. I'm soothing it by showing it that even if I do each warm up exercise for 25 seconds each, that's only 6-7 minutes. And, really the whole workout could theoretically be done in 45 minutes or so. So that's that sorted. Self awareness note: Impatience seems to be a theme these days. Interesting.

All the circuit work (except hollow holds) is done w/resistance bands. I approximate these movements as closely as possible. I'm thinking, given my relatively high number of reps, I could figure out how to increase resistance. With deadlifts, at this point I think I'm going to have to fill a crate with jugs of water to get higher weight.

 

Warm up: wrist circles, forward wrists (heels down, heels up), backward wrists (palm down), sideways wrists (palms up bend elbows), forwards wrists (palms up bend elbows) [but it takes time yeah I know but it's okay]; rotate elbows; SITTING neck push/pull, scap shrugs, shoulder rolls; 4ped spine circles, low spine, side bends, frog stretch, lunge quads to hams/calves.
1 set mobility/skills:	Toe lifts: sides & rolls, Heel lift rolls, sprinter toe ups, calf raises (3 ways + bent), A-frame to squat (3 reps), Bear (3 reps/1 minute), Frogger (3 reps/1 minute)
2-3x Circuits:
Pendlay rows	10-15 @ 30-35#	adjust, repeat	adjust, repeat
Squats	10-15 @ 40-50#	adjust, repeat	adjust, repeat
Hollow hold	(form focus, for time)	repeat	repeat
Deadlifts (alternate tubes w/new band setup)	15-20@ 65-75#	15-20 @ w/e new bands are (adjust to lighter bands?)	15-20 @ 65-75#
Cool down: whatever

[Emissary2Ornj]

Did it! In 1 hr 13 minutes. I'm okay with that. Brain is okay with that.

WARM UP: worked! Keeping. I love the spine circles (from all 4s, lead with right lats, upper back, left lats, and chest down).

1X MOVES

Calf raises: did 'em all on both feet again (10 each). When I went on my walk yesterday I felt some left foot pain under the metatarsal heads. Possibly one-footing my calf raises is overdoing it. No prob.

A-frame to squat: 2 each way (walking hands back & stepping feet up) w/pauses in each end position. Need a vid here to be sure, but I feel progress in how far I'm able to keep head/chest up in squats w/flat feet. I love the progression here. Also played a bit with straightening legs (locking knees) in A-frame.

Bear: 3 laps forward/bathroom of the space. (It's like 6-7 feet long?)

3X CIRCUITS

Pendlay rows: 10x35# each circuit. This is a favorite of mine (hip-hinge!!!). I approximate as best I can w/tubes. The movement is basically as follows: 2 tubes clipped together, each end held in a hand, wrapped once around hand. Feet hip-width apart, step on tubes. Hip-hinge till back is parallel or almost to floor, keep chest forward/up, neutral or slightly extended neck, pull tubes toward body. Focus on moving with back & scapulas. I try to imagine holding a bar and hold my hands accordingly. I do let the bands go completely slack at the bottom. Here's a video of the movement I'm going for.

Squats: backed off resistance to form-check. 15x20#, 15x30#, 15x30#. Pleased with form. I plan to increase resistance if I can maintain form.

Hollow body hold: 1 minute each circuit. 1/4 leg extension. Raised arms to increase. Vid-checked - wow, I shake! Doing good at remembering to breathe.

Deadlifts: 10x75#, 10xbands (added "light" band to latex side), 10xbands. Bands still feel heavier than tubes. Need to add cardboard grips to carabiners, like this man did.

COOL DOWN: Whatever. Side bends felt extra good today.

[Emissary2Ornj]

Current equipment:

Tubes:

7 10 lb each; 70 lb total (using 3; 4 left)

1 15 lb

2 20 lb each; 40lb total

1 25 lb

1 30 lb

3 fabric bands (light, medium, & heavy)

3 latex bands (light, medium, & heavy; but scaled waaaay lower than fabric bands)

5-pack mini bands 5-15 lb, 15-20 lb, 20-30 lb, 35-40 lb, 45-50 lb (supposedly)

Accessories: 4 handles w/D-rings, 5 ankle straps w/D-rings, 2 door anchors

Theoretically, I also have a milk crate and empty jugs available. Haven't gone there yet.

 

15+10+10 for Pendlay rows

30 for squats

10+20+20+25 for deadlifts

Carabiner+heavy latex+light latex AND Carbiner+light fabric, also for deadlifts (the two are slightly different lengths. Not enough to be an issue, but enough to notice. Also, b/c I'm not sure exactly how close they are in resistance, I've been switching them from side to side).

I haven't discovered a way to use the mini band set yet. They are larger/longer loops than the 3-packs.

 

Thinking ahead: We're parked in a relative's backyard. Right now I go into their house and work out in the biggest bathroom. I'm a bit pensive about when we leave. If we're in campgrounds (sometimes we do that) there are often playgrounds. If we're in the woods dry camping, there should be plenty of room and privacy near the camper, especially given I'm doing mostly floor exercises. May need to buy some sort of easily packable mat in that case. Also might be good to have a few rules/protocols in mind for when those situations come up. "Oh, we're at a campground! I already know what to do," or "We're in the woods! Okay, there's an open spot."

[Emissary2Ornj]

Today I worked out for 1 hr and 25 minutes.

Warm up: added the NF YT vid b/c after 2 days' relative inactivity (Sabbath, weather, low on sleep) my hips especially were feeling tight. Wanted all joints to be really warm w/great blood flow.

1xMobility work

Calf raises 3 ways+1 10 each

A-frame to squat: Worked 2-3 minutes. Did a video form check. My A-frame is more an upside down boxy U. Not a straight line to hips on either end. I don't think it's shoulder strength limiting me here. I think it's more calves/hamstrings tightness. Knees are definitely bent. To straighten knees my feet have to be pretty far back. (I dunno that any of this matters? It's just where I'm at now. I could go ahead and lower hips to where I can keep legs straight, if that would serve any purpose.... 🤷🏼‍♀️) @Gemma or @Alanna, or other GMB folks, any thoughts?

Edit: okay, after looking at some pictures (not just GMB) I think I'm okay with the un-straight line my arms and back make. I would like to pay more attention to how I'm pushing back/away from the floor. Still curious about bent knees and where the limitation is, though.

Crab and Monkey: About 2 laps each

 

2xCircuits: trying to increase resistance on all "weighted" movements to where doing 8-10 reps is HARD but possible WITH good form.

Pendlay rows [8x40#, 12x45#], [15x50#, 8x55#] YES. Good resistance amount here.

Squats [15x35#, 12x40#], 15x50# Getting there, not there yet. Have to be aware to not overload elbows here.

Hollow hold 30seconds, 65 seconds. Continuing to experiment with hand position.

Dead lifts 10, 14 Increased fabric band to medium; latex side to heavy+medium. Definitely an imbalance in sides,😕 but these are actually hard now. Gotta get some cardboard grips on the carabiners, OW.

Cool down: 15 minutes

We're actually getting WINTER in central Georgia. It snowed for hours yesterday. Down here that's newsworthy. (I write as a relative northerner who grew up where snow was not news.) It's funny (both somewhat humorous and interesting) how it's an event down here. In Idaho, it can snow in June and September/October. We usually get to experience it if we're there. Down here, it's rare for it to snow during the day. My husband's memories of snow aren't of it falling - because it only fell at nighttime. He'd wake up and it would just be there, for a little bit at least.

[Alanna]

1 hour ago, Emissary2Ornj said:

A-frame to squat: Worked 2-3 minutes. Did a video form check. My A-frame is more an upside down boxy U. Not a straight line to hips on either end. I don't think it's shoulder strength limiting me here. I think it's more calves/hamstrings tightness. Knees are definitely bent. To straighten knees my feet have to be pretty far back. (I dunno that any of this matters? It's just where I'm at now. I could go ahead and lower hips to where I can keep legs straight, if that would serve any purpose.... 🤷🏼‍♀️) @Gemma or @Alanna, or other GMB folks, any thoughts?

Edit: okay, after looking at some pictures (not just GMB) I think I'm okay with the un-straight line my arms and back make. I would like to pay more attention to how I'm pushing back/away from the floor. Still curious about bent knees and where the limitation is, though.

 

I remember in the old version of Elements there were some A-frame exercises where you could focus on different things - e.g. you could either try to have straight legs (which may mean the top half of your body isn't in a straight line), or you could focus on having a flat back (which might require you to bend your knees). That way you could spend some time separately practicing the different strength/mobility requirements, as you suggested above, rather than just focusing on one position that is a compromise between the ideal leg and ideal back position.

 

Thinking of putting your hips as high as possible and pushing the ground away with your hands definitely helps. You might also be able to borrow some cues from yoga's down dog position if you want to look for articles/videos on that (I don't think they are identical, but the shoulder positioning/flat back aspect is reminiscent of A-frame to me). "Walk the dog" from yoga is good for stretching out the backs of your legs as well.

 

I'd also recommend double checking that your feet and hands are the correct distance apart (i.e., that you're setting up correctly with your hands under your shoulders and knees under your hips before you push into A-frame.

 

1 hour ago, Emissary2Ornj said:

It's funny (both somewhat humorous and interesting) how it's an event down here.

 

Ah yes, an event and usually a mini apocalypse 😅. I used to live in a southern state - in one winter storm, due to the combination of 1) the city not having the equipment to speedily salt and clear roads and 2) people having no idea how to drive in the snow, multiple people set their car engines on fire trying to drive up the same icy hill. 

[Elastigirl]

The study that most people get the information from about stretches, had the athletes  static stretching for long stretches. I can't remember the exact number , but it was pretty long.  That said, see what works for you. 

 

The same can be said for warm up. I  am doing the NF Journey workouts right now. I find their warm up too short. It takes about 3 minutes, I find it better to do a bit more and add a little cardio to warm myself up. Usually  just a couple sets of 50 jumping jacks, or running in place. Nothing huge, just a bit to  wake my body up. I would do some GMB elements stuff if I could remember to!

 

I think GMB actually teaches getting into squats both ways. I like it better from the A-frame. But I practice it from the squat too.

 

I asked the GMB trainiers about the A-frame. They said it is fine to bend your knees. They encouraged me to experiment and see what works. If I am working more on stretching my back and shoulders, I bend my knees a bit. If I'm trying to stretch my calves, I keep my knees straighter.

 

I'm impressed with your consitency in working out. And your ability to adapt , Have fun in the snow today!