What's Your Workout Today VSGers? - Fantabulous Friday!

Just because its a Holiday Weekend doesn't mean you can let up now, in fact you should have more time to get some exercise over the next 3 days than normal, so I expect to hear some sweat stories!

Let's Hear It!

Can you point me toward beginner workouts? I'm not sleeved yet. I can walk 3 miles on the treadmill even though i'm a red sweaty beast after. I'm looking to incorporate light weights and good stretches. Any info/website appreciated.

Here are a couple. Its never too early to start, sleeved or not. Walking is the best exercise for you. If you are walking on a treadmill, remember to put he incline up to at least 1, otherwise the belt is just moving your feet. Your goal should be a 4 incline at 3mph, that is a great walking workout. If you want to really get some burn out of it, every 2 minutes put the incline up to 6 or 8 for 30 seconds to 1 minute. This will spike your heart rate. Once or twice a week try to do those 3 miles on the street or sidewalk. Walking outside is very good for you and it is much more difficult than on a treadmill but you will get a lot out of it. I don't know how much time you have before you get your surgery but you should also be trying to build as much muscle as you can while you can still eat. Eat some oatmeal for breakfast and try to eat some black beans and brown rice a couple times a week on weight training days. You lose a lot of muscle between pre-op diet and when you can return to full foods, so any muscle you build now will help you to burn calories later. I lost over half my muscle mass and if I had to do it all over again, I would have spent 6 months in the gym pounding out weights before starting the process. Its much harder to build muscle after surgery, so get as good a base as you can now. 

It is fantastic that you are doing 3 miles now, you will kill it later and the momentum you have now will carry you through to ultimate success. GREAT JOB!!! KEEP IT UP! The sweat is just your fat crying in fear! The red is your old body telling you to stop, but the new body inside you won't let it!

In addition to these below there are a lot of great videos on YouTube, search for fitness blender, jamie gerson, and any specific exercises you are interested. I would strongly urge you to start squatting now, especially with the extra body weight you have now and later with a barbell. Squats are the absolute best exercise you can do and they work the biggest muscles. Make sure to learn how to do them correctly (keep your butt out and push through your heals). 

Today I have gone to the gym and did 2 miles on the treadmill for 40 minutes at 3.0 speed and incline varying up to 10% and a minimum of 5%.

I should be going back to the gym tonight again (with fiance this time) and doing the bike and some arms I believe.

That's great!

Have you been cleared for full exercise yet? If so, when you go back to the gym, forget the bike, you did cardio today. Grab a 10lb kettlebell and start with some kettlbell swings, then do some kettlebell snatches (10 each arm), then grab 2 10lb kettlebells, one in each hand do a squat into a  calf raises, then back to 1 kettle bell and get on the ground and do some russian twists. Do 4 sets of 10 reps in succession, meaning do each of these exercise once through 10 each (or each arm) then repeat the sequence for 4 total sets, that should give your fiance enough time to finish his bike time.

My double workouts this week really paid off. My goal was to be below 210 before Labor day and this morning I was 209.9!

Workout #1 - 4 to 6 mile Run/Walk

Workout #2 - Legs/Back/Biceps - Adding deadlifts today (maybe romainian deadlifts, not sure) and maybe some leg presses.

Today is my big day.  It's my final appt.  I am really stressed over it. I have to make my number or no surgery.  I think I am there but self doubt has creeped in.

I am getting off from work early today so I am going to hit the gym before I go.  Planning on doing cardio.

Keith, will working out first reduce water weight or increase my weight  with fluid in my muscles? I am working out from 12:30-1:30.

My appt is at 2:45.

If you are doing cardio, you will weigh less when you come out of the gym than when you went in. If you want to sweat as much as you can, do some intervals. You have 1 hour of cardio, so here is what I would like to see you do:

20 mins treadmill (4% incline, 3mph, this is your base), every 2 minutes push the incline up to 8 for 30 seconds and then bring it back down to 4.

Then jump over to a rower.

15 mins, if there is a resistance adjustment, set it at about the middle of the range, just enough to give you a bit of a challenge but not enough to make it difficult. Start at a moderate pace that you feel comfortable with, then every 2 minutes go as fast as you can for 20 seconds.

Then jump on an eliptical machine.

15 mins. Get yourself a comfortable incline and pace. Something that gives you a bit of a challenge but that you know you can do 15 minutes of. Then after a 2-5 minute warm up, look at where your heart rate is. Then go as fast as you can for 20 seconds, i mean give it everything you got, then return to the previous pace and watch your heart rate when it returns to the number you had before you started the all out effort, do go all out again for 20 seconds and return, do this as many times as you can for the 15 mins.

Spend whatever time you have left in the gym stretching.

This sounds fun....in a sick sort of way. :) 

 I love this challenge.  The fun part is I KNOW I can do it!!

 

I did it!!!

This workout kicked my butt.  I was really starting to feel it when I hit the elliptical. I loved challenge and was proud that I able to complete it.  And yes, I was soaking wet from sweat!!

The end result, I crushed the min weight goal by 6 lbs!!  That means I am full thrusters for surgery on 9/12.

Doc wants me to do more weight lifting to build as much muscle possible before surgery.  My PT is HAPPY to accommodate!

I think I will I have some sore muscles the next 2 weeks!!