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Y helo thar everyone. Chanced upon this site from a friend of mine on FB. Looks very interesting and after about 2 hours of browsing I figure i'll give it a shot.

A little about me for a basic intro/possible critique.

26yo, 5'10, 205 lbs, Deployed army guy with time to focus on working out and getting in better shape. I know the stigma of "everyone in the army is in really good shape" but that is not always the case. Hence why i'm here. I'm not in the best of shape but i'm meeting most of the army standards (I can pass a PT test and make tape but not weight)

I already had my own weight loss success story but managed to muck it up due to bad food choices. My new goal is get down to about 170, lose my middle, tone up everything else, and get in a better state of fitness for when i eventually go back to being a civilian. I have a little over 3 months left out here (I wish i'd found this place earlier) and Overall i'd like to drop about 20 pounds in that time.

The advantage of most army guys is the unit based physical exercises and NCO's harping on them constantly about staying in shape ETC. Since i was individually deployed I don't have that luxury and have to do everything myself. So what i'm looking for from you fine people is a basic critique of my current workout and ways I can improve it/make it more interesting because doing the same thing over and over gets boring.

MWF: 30 MINS cardio (elliptical or treadmill), 3 sets 10 pushups, 3 sets 10 hanging leg raise, 3 sets 5 pullups (assisted), 3 sets 5 tricep dips (assisted)

TRS: 20 mins cardio (elliptical or stationary bike), 2 sets 30 situps, 2 sets 1 min plank, 2 sets 30 supine bicycle, 3 sets 20 oblique crunches

Sunday is a rest day.

As far as chow goes, i dont have too many options but a salad goes with every meal, with lean meats (if available) and some rice (white. unfortunately no brown rice here)

Comments and suggestions are always welcome. I've got nothin but time out here. I'm not an infantry joe so i have lots of sitting time during the day while I do my job. Thanks in advance guys and gals!

You want a workout? Sprinting to a bunker during a rocket attack is one helluva workout! :-D

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Is the cardio required to be bike or elliptical based? if not I'd try something like this body weight workout. Gets the blood pumping the same way but builds muscular endurance much more intensely.

Also consider changing up your body weight sets you are doing to 5 sets of 3 for the dips and pull-ups with only a minute or so in between. It helped me to do full ones much more quickly.

The chow seems a tight pickle, but I think many people here would recommend subbing in protein instead of carbs whenever you can. And don't worry if it's lean or not. Your body is much more likely to store rice/pasta than it is meat fat. You'll find yourself fuller faster and longer.

Good luck! Lots of support can be found here!

One day at a time. No excuses. Battle Log | Current Challenge - Bleep All the Things

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Also, I'd recommend throwing out the "20 lbs" thing... I assume if you lost 25 pounds of fat and gained 15 pounds of muscle, you wouldn't complain that you only lost 10 pounds, right?

I learned the long and slow way something that's a mantra around here: 80% of good health (be it energy level, fat loss, or muscle gain) is good diet. Many of us have found the best results with paleo/primal, however, although that may be difficult for you while in service.

One day at a time. No excuses. Battle Log | Current Challenge - Bleep All the Things

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Dio, The cardio isn't required, but it keeps the legs moving and my run time down. I'll definitely sub in the body weight workout on the lighter cardio days. I'll work with those increased sets too, sounds like something to try since i've been getting slow gains with my current workout. I can throw out the weight goal, it's something i'd like to see myself at and if I build more muscle i'm sure i'll be down to it which is fine, just something to set my sights on. The chow is the main problem. Being in Afghanistan, damn near everything is cooked with rice. Not to mention the DFAC choices of veggies and fruits is very limited/nonexistent some days. I'm usually able to scrounge up enough for a salad with carrots, broccoli, and some days if i'm lucky, fresh cucumbers. But to be clear, you're suggesting limiting/taking out the rice completely? If thats the case would you recommend augmenting it with more protein sources such as an extra serving of chicken or beef or whatever mystery meat they feed us that day?

You want a workout? Sprinting to a bunker during a rocket attack is one helluva workout! :-D

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But to be clear, you're suggesting limiting/taking out the rice completely? If thats the case would you recommend augmenting it with more protein sources such as an extra serving of chicken or beef or whatever mystery meat they feed us that day?

I have a hard time specifically "recommending" anything other than "it might be worth a try" since everyone works differently. However, grains in general often pack a much larger caloric punch than veggies/meat and are more likely to create insulin surges that force you to store it. If you were burning a ton of energy, then rice isn't too bad (or if you were trying to gain/maintain fat). If you were to replace your rice with like amounts of protein and fat you may find your muscle-strength increase dramatically with your current workouts. If you replaced it with veggies you may find your muscles stay about the same but your body fat decrease quickly.

I have completely cut out grains (rice, pasta, bread, et cetera) and have dropped 30 pounds and almost 10 inches on my waist in roughly 3 months. My strength gains haven't been nearly as fast as some cross-fitters who are devoting a lot more time and energy to training than I am (I only do simple sessions three times a week) but I've definitely seen advances (including being able to do a decent number of unassisted dead-hang pullups)

One day at a time. No excuses. Battle Log | Current Challenge - Bleep All the Things

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