Today's Pic:
212lbs

Oct '07:

I started exercising after the MLK break in early January of this year...289lbs

212 as of this morning...-77lbs in ~6 months

very very rewarding...don't plan on stopping til I'm at least under 200lbs and I shed this excess skin...I hope it does shrink....with my shirt off I feel like a deflated pregnant woman rather than a really fat kid

the stretch marks on my stomach makes it look like my body is crying

7/16/2008 6:17:09 PM

LOOKING GOOD . NOHOMO

7/16/2008 6:32:13 PM

^^congratulations. If you keep at it, the excess skin should eventually shrink back some. Your skin is very resilient when you're young. The older you get, the less likely it is for your skin to tighten back up.

7/16/2008 7:12:25 PM

to do an substitute version of crossfit, all you need is a barbell, a pullup bar and space.

Things like rings, kettlebells and a rower make it more interesting, but there are standardized substitutes for rope climbs, rowing, etc etc.

If a gym doesn't have enough open space for deads (all you really need) then why are you even going to it?

[Edited on July 16, 2008 at 8:12 PM. Reason at home, in a garage, park or yard?]

[Edited on July 16, 2008 at 8:12 PM. Reason : marines do WODS on ship decks]



In reality w/ the money you spend on this and it pullup bar, you could get a used oly bar and weights. That is ALL you really need to get in shape. You can do oly lifts, presses, floor presses, row variations, squats, and deads. Add 30 dollars for a set of saw horses and your options expand greatly. Dan John's From the Ground Up is based on this idea.

[Edited on July 16, 2008 at 8:15 PM. Reason : ]

[Edited on July 16, 2008 at 8:18 PM. Reason : ]

[Edited on July 16, 2008 at 8:20 PM. Reason : ]

7/16/2008 8:11:45 PM

that's awesome porcha, good job

7/16/2008 8:15:25 PM

Hell, you can do bodyweight and gymnastic based stuff for free w/out p68r.

7/16/2008 8:17:24 PM

some people like the structure without needing to do research and comparing various workouts.

it takes some of the work out of working out (har har). and if it works, good job.

i might give it a shot. im pretty small, but work out with weights a few times a week. i can tell a difference, but the strucutre and diet guides might be nice. 120 bux aint shit anyways though yeah you could do just as much for less.

7/16/2008 8:23:42 PM

I wouldn't look at crossfit or p90r2d2 for gaining lean body mass.

[Edited on July 16, 2008 at 8:36 PM. Reason : although, you probably would for a while if you are untrained]

[Edited on July 16, 2008 at 8:37 PM. Reason : ]

7/16/2008 8:34:23 PM

hey, we're moving and don't need our heavy duty doorway pullup bar anymore.

$25. It telescopes to fit different widths and attaches w/ 3 big screws on each side. It has brackets so its removable. holds 350lbs.

7/19/2008 10:15:36 AM

PICTURES IS WHAT I NEED

7/19/2008 3:20:32 PM

http://www.dickssportinggoods.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1832283

$20!

7/19/2008 3:46:41 PM

BTTT.

Anybody actually purchased it and want to make a copy?

9/4/2008 12:50:32 PM

I actually just started this week. I was lifting weights moderately starting last month and was doing the plyo and ab ripper once a week since I didn't have weights at home. Then went out and bought a few weights and decided to give this a try for a month and see if there are any noticeable changes. But I remember when i first tried the plyo, I couldn't move my legs the next morning. It worked muscles i didn't know were there.

9/4/2008 1:33:16 PM

you know what a great workout?

Running and lifting weights.

9/4/2008 1:46:23 PM

The same thing happened to me after doing plyo the first time, woke up to goto work and it was hell trying to walk down all the stairs to the car lol

9/4/2008 1:55:39 PM

i was probably in the best shape of my life as of 9/1 then my physical therapist told me I can go ahead and do squats for the first time in 9 years.....

so I did...even with light weights, and the girlie way with the ball against the wall....also did half-lunges too...I was so incredibly sore for the next 3 days, it was rough...I work out my quads and hamstrings on the machines consistently but those squats/lunges really work out more than just those

dunno if I'll ever go back to free weight squatting again...probably move from the smith machine to the max rack next...I herniated my disc with free weights in the past...never again...

I like to do back extensions and good mornings pre-squats/lunges too after I stretch out

9/4/2008 5:03:01 PM

awesome way to get in shape. i did it for about a month, but even with my modified routine i was losing weight (i'm already too small).

i could tell changes in fitness level (as with most workouts) within a week. the cardio is really great and you do feel like youre getting your moneys worth.

that said my goal is to build, so im dropping back to more of a lifting routine. the workouts in p90x seemed difficult when not also doing the cardio, so im back to my own routine. ill go back once i build up a bit.

9/4/2008 5:10:16 PM

Quote :

"dunno if I'll ever go back to free weight squatting again...probably move from the smith machine to the max rack next...I herniated my disc with free weights in the past...never again..."

sorry, but the smith rack is the LAST thing you should be playing w/. Learn nto squat properly and start off light, and you should have no problems. PM me for more discussion, if you want.

[Edited on September 4, 2008 at 8:19 PM. Reason : strike out the "LAST" comment, you shouldn't be in one PERIOD.]

9/4/2008 8:17:23 PM

woo yoga x tonight! Actually i've started to notice 1 vein starting to pop out of one of my arms.

[Edited on September 4, 2008 at 8:31 PM. Reason : .]

9/4/2008 8:31:03 PM

Quote :

"But you also have to buy a membership to a gym to do Crossfit...and have enough discipline to be able to do it by yourself. And you can't do Crossfit at every gym. I've got a membership to a gym that has a location in downtown Charleston and in Mt. Pleasant 15 minutes outside of town....and with the space in the gym downtown, there is no way you can do Crossfit there. And if you want to do it at home...you have to spend a decent amount of money off the bat for some good equipment. And that's if you have enough space to do it at home/in the yard. "

Like others have said, you dont need a membership to do crossfit. Even at crossfit oriented gyms, you can pay 10 bucks on certain days that you need to do very specific things. THere are substitutions for just about everything so you can do crossfit in a normal gym. Just be prepared for people to look at you funny.

As far as doing crossfit at home (which is what I primarily do) you really dont need to spend a bunch of money at all. You just have to be creative. Instead of swinging a kettlebell, I swing a cinderblock (35lbs). I bought an olympic weight bar and some weights for $35 off of craigslist and I have a pull up bar. For the medicine ball, I took an old bball and filled it up with 18.5 lbs of sand and sealed it back up. It maybe cost $5. I can do about 80% of crossfit with that alone and the other 20% i do at the gym because I dont have enough weight to do what I want.

Been doing crossfit for a month now and I love it. I thought I was in decent shape starting out but crossfit kicked my ass. I can definately tell a difference in just a month and I love how random a lot of the excercises are. Lots of new exercises that Im having to learn and get my form down. Overall though its worth a shot.



[Edited on September 4, 2008 at 8:36 PM. Reason : sdf]

9/4/2008 8:34:52 PM

I think I'm going to try the Ab Ripper X routine in my Tuesday AbSolutions class.

I'll see how it goes.

9/5/2008 3:57:01 AM

Who's got the hookup on this P90X?

9/5/2008 11:16:28 AM

^^ flexibility was a problem for me on those routines

9/5/2008 12:00:51 PM

i got the videos on my computer

9/5/2008 12:12:10 PM

I had them all on an external harddrive, and was in the process of burning them for some peeps.

I just moved into a new house, and when I tried to hook up the external harddrive to continue the burning process the damn external drive started smoking!

I'm trying to see if I can recover any of the files, but it's not looking pretty.

9/5/2008 12:20:36 PM

begonias, are you a PT with the NCSU gym? I'm assuming the Linda I saw friday afternoon working with some woman in the rec center was you...if it was, you guys were working on dips while I was on the torso twisting machine

9/6/2008 6:28:55 AM

yep that was me!

(in my way too big PT shirt)

9/8/2008 2:48:48 AM

id be interested in this or any info on it

REALLLLLLLLLLLLY want to get a good program going, i feel like im so stagnant and cant get any results

9/8/2008 3:09:24 AM

I've got another day or so on the torrent download for the videos.

already got all the documentation and have been reading through it.

9/8/2008 2:59:32 PM

^ lemme get a copy bro. i will pay

9/8/2008 4:01:35 PM

lol

my roommate's boyfriend wanted to do this




we looked it up on the internetz and thought it was the funniest thing ever
[plz don't tell him, kthx]

hehehehe

9/8/2008 4:10:09 PM

someone get me the workouts or whatever

the video, whatever you can

im interested in doing this, would even consider a TWW blog to see if it really works

9/8/2008 4:46:22 PM

if you look around on youtube and stuff you can see it clearly works if you actually follow the regimen. People seem to get some pretty good results.

still got a few more gigs to download, shit is taking forever.

9/8/2008 9:11:24 PM

yeah, you'll notice it working within 1 week fitness wise though result speed may vary.

9/8/2008 9:53:57 PM

Ive never done this p90x thing, but after reading more about it im willing to bet the most effective part of this program is merely the fact that it sets a routine that people can more easily stick to when someone is dictating it to them. Not that that is bad at all, in fact im sure its GREAT for a lot of people - i know plenty of people who cant motivate themselves enough to set up their own workout.

but I havent seen much that I havent seen elsewhere, and muscle confusion is already a known positive to avoid plateaus.

9/9/2008 7:46:20 AM

thats the major advantage I see to it. I'm too lazy to actually figure out a workout plan for myself that will work. Its just easier for me to find one that already works and use that. Now the hardest part is just to stay motivated.

9/9/2008 11:04:12 AM

If you just need a pre-organized plan, why pay so much for it? There is a plethera of good books w/ laid out routines by known coaches, online articles, or crossfit. These are all free or much cheaper (the books can be 20-40ish, but not nearly as expensive as p90x and more versitile).

9/9/2008 1:06:11 PM

porcha looks like P-Riv now... wow good job man.

9/9/2008 1:12:07 PM

agreed

9/9/2008 1:13:28 PM

I'm not paying for shit. (or waiting 4-6 weeks for deliver wtf?)

god bless the internet.

9/9/2008 1:58:26 PM

^^ haha woops meant to be agreeing with arcgreek

9/9/2008 2:02:32 PM

i'd like to at least look at these things and see whats up, i swim pretty regularly (~2 miles 3 days a week at a good overall pace) but haven't been able to hit the gym up very frequently lately, though i plan on going later today finally (duke employee perks at the duke university gym are pretty decent)

as a result i haven't been able to get rid of some of the excess weight i do have and would like to get the bf% down a good bit.

(i also need to start running some (not much but some))

9/9/2008 2:02:38 PM

Quote :

"If you just need a pre-organized plan, why pay so much for it? There is a plethera of good books w/ laid out routines by known coaches, online articles, or crossfit. These are all free or much cheaper (the books can be 20-40ish, but not nearly as expensive as p90x and more versitile)."

hook me up

i cant find any workouts that fit me well and I just dont have the overall knowledge to set up my own workout

thats why i think this would work well for me, and it seems to be teh type of work I want/like to do.

9/9/2008 2:41:56 PM

I just ordered it. I will take before and after pics. From what I have read, its a shit ton of work. It should be fun.

9/9/2008 3:00:18 PM

Good luck sticking to it...I know most people find it hard when they have to workout at home (procrastination). If you don't have the motivation to go to a gym, I doubt you have the motivation to stick with a DVD program.

NOT TO MENTION, the muscle confusion bullshit is nothing more than periodization...at some point your body will adapt to the routines on the DVDs and then what!? Will they have P90X DELUXE EDITION 2 Super Body Confusion for you to buy and use!?

[Edited on September 9, 2008 at 3:25 PM. Reason : ]

9/9/2008 3:24:18 PM

the thing is, for most people, the plateaus arent nearly as bad as they make it seem. In all of high school I didnt drastically vary my routine at any point (sure I mix it up now and then b/w free weights and cable weights etc. when my growth slowed just to help me break the plateau but nothing major) and I never had any problems.

muscle confusion DOES work, its not some magic bs. But there isnt any crazy science that needs to be applied to it. I generally react to plateaus as opposed to doing a really varied routine to prevent it. When I hit a plateau, I will slightly mix up the movements I am doing for that muscle group, switch to cable weights from free weights for certain muscles for a few workouts (or the opposite depending on what I was doing originally), or keep the same routine but back down in weight and work back up. Doing this has always worked for me.

My 200 to 250 trek on bench in HS had a few plateaus in it (215 and 235 if I recall), and while im sure some of your numbers might dwarf mine, these were solid numbers for me at the time- I was weighing about 125-130 max. Each time I just dropped back down in weight a bit and worked back up and through it. for example I think I was trying to bump my last set from 210 to 215 and was having trouble. Dropped down to 200 and worked back up the next 3 or so sessions and then hit 215 solid etc.

[Edited on September 9, 2008 at 3:48 PM. Reason : ]

9/9/2008 3:46:56 PM

^ called deloading

9/9/2008 3:58:48 PM

soooooooooooooo if you dont believe in it


find me a good workout to stick to

9/9/2008 3:59:58 PM

I know lots of people start out with Starting Strength: http://www.startingstrength.net/workouts/

9/9/2008 4:14:52 PM

Starting Strength is a very good book/plan. I would really recommend picking up teh second edition of the book, because that link really doesn't do the book justice--thorough explantions of form are obviously missing. Ripptoe lays it out in a very easy to follow manner.

Practical Programming is the followup for Starting Strength. Another excellent book.


JT3, what exactly are you looking for? Strength? FatLoss? Hypertrophy?

[Edited on September 9, 2008 at 4:31 PM. Reason : ]

9/9/2008 4:31:10 PM