In Fitness and in Health
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Actually, according to the only proper study I'm aware of in this area, weightlifting (by which I mean Olympic style lifting) is one of the safest sports you can participate with general wight training, powerlifting and bodybuilding not far behind:
Results are in the table near the top of this page: http://www.exrx.net/WeightTraining/Safety.html
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Yea, been training Crossfit and eating paleo for about a year now and am in the best shape of my life, its really great and you never know what to expect going in there so it keeps me from getting bored and stuck doing the same things week in week out.
Wow! $200 a month?? That's crazy! I pay £35 a month for unlimited classes here in the UK
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Forget the gyms and do what Doug did. Buy some kettlebells and move on to Girya Sport or equivalent. Forget the aerobic style workout with kettlebells and do it simply.
Doug, I'm glad it's working out for you, and I should start training more, but is just a additional strenghtening for me…
Did you get those competition kettlebells yet? They're soo much better balanced. They take lifting to next level...OK. I need to shape up - what do I need to buy/do?
I would firstly get a standing desk Giles, http://www.conset.org.uk/product/prodone/499/default.aspx sitting on your ass all day is bad (I am ordering one), the older you get the worse it gets, so get standing. Second i'd get a chin up bar in the house, start jogging, and do press ups every day. Those three exercises should take care of most of your needs. No need for any weights just be your own dumbbell.
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OK. I need to shape up - what do I need to buy/do?
Assuming you're after general fitness, and not wanting to compete, I'd comine running, cycling or rowing at a decent intensity for aerobic conditioning, and throw in some resistance work with weights to build muscle.
If you want to lift weights then find a powerlifting or Olympic weightlifting club that has a coach, or hire a decent personal trainer, and learn proper form. Stick to the big, basic compound exercises like bench presses, squats and deadlifts, rather than all the poncy arm curls that bodybuilders go in for.
The EXRX site that Unharmed linked to is good.
In general, do what you enjoy, and make sure it's intense enough to make you sweat. But if you want to control weight with exercise then you'll need to do 200 to 300 minutes a week.
Diet? If you want to lose weight eat less, and if you want to gain it then eat more. Avoid too much saturated fat (or fat in general), processed sugar or red meat. Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables, and make sure you've got your nutritional bases covered.
Most of the big name diets work because they follow some or all of the above. The GI diet has scientific backing, as it was developed to help with diabetes. If your cholesterol is high then look into the Portfolio diet, and there are studies showing it's effective. And there's evidence that intermittent fasting has health benefits.
The only supplements that have evidence they work are Creatine, protein powders, sports drinks and caffeine. The rest are by-and-large a waste of money.
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I'm going to preface this with these are my experiences and your mileage may vary
I've been lifting weights for nearly 20 years. Last May, I suspect I tore something in my shoulder
Before anyone jumps in, my form is good and I'm pretty sure that shoulder would've torn regardless if I was lifting or not. In fact, I don't think it tore during the act of lifting weights. My opinion of lifting weights is that if your form is good, you shouldn't get hurt. That being said, injuries occur and I believe they are related to underlying issues. Personally, I would prefer to tear my shoulder in training where I have a spotter than if I was standing on top of a ladder installing a ceiling fan (I mention this because I'm doing this later today). Injuries are injuries, and other than avoiding doing stupid things, I don't try to avoid them. I have no desire to leave a pristine corpse when I die.
All this being said, I had to take a break from lifting. About the same time I hurt myself, this video went viral:
I wound up trying DDP Yoga to rehab my shoulder, and had tremendous success with it. After a week, back pain (from doing something stupid) and neck pain (was in a guillotine hold years ago and the guy wouldn't let go after I tapped out) was mostly gone. After about two months, my shoulder was 100% again. I emailed Diamond Dallas Page letting him know what his workout system did for me and he actually replied. Super nice guy, super down to Earth. I cannot say enough good things about this system because it greatly improved my quality of life
DDP Yoga is essentially Vinyasa yoga mixed with isometrics, calisthenics, pilates and body weight exercises. It is highly effective for getting into shape or recovering from an injury. My wife and son have had a lot of success with this as well.
I started looking into weight training again, and with the guidance of Injunjack and Zhivago, settled on kettlebells. I wasn't too impressed with the kettlebell instructors I've seen in my area (they work in my usual gym), did a lot of research and invested in the Skogg System, mainly because his reviews emphasize that his instruction is excellent and he focuses on having proper form.
He starts off the bat with a very good instructional video of the six basic moves, and some general kettlebell information and safety. There are three different ways to vary intensity of a kettlebell workout: time/tempo, reps and weight
He has two workouts that are time based, one is a round style where you do a single move for thirty seconds, the switch to the other hand. Depending on where you are, you go from one minute to four. That makes for a total of 24 minutes of movement at the highest level. The other time based workout is an interval based training, where you do one move with one hand for thirty seconds, immediately transition to another move, then switch hands. You do anywhere from three sets of this to twelve. It's tough at the highest level
He has two workouts that are more power based, where you can either do all six moves with one hand, with increasing numbers of reps per move, then you switch, or you can do a ladders workout, where you do a number of reps, switch, do the same number of reps, then move onto the next movement without a break. I know, it's confusing. You have to watch the videos.
I'm currently doing Skoggs "Virtual Skogg" system, where he mixes the six basic move with other movements, including plyometric movements and body weight exercises. It's a great workout and is good if you get bored with doing the same basic movements over and over and over again
I really enjoy kettlebells and will most likely never go back to weight lifting. It's fun, I can get my cardio in with my weight training, and it's fast. Being able to work out at home is a huge plus for me. The movements used in kettlebells also translates easily into real life. I easily bring up many bags of groceries up the stairs (I live in a town house). Putting something over head, something that is irregularly shaped, is easy for me now. Nothing is more awkward to push overhead than a round object, and training with that gets your body ready for it in real life. Isolating muscles (such as in weight training) doesn't always translate well into real life where muscles have to work synchronously together. The plyometric aspect translates well too in that lifting a suitcase into the back of a Jeep is usually an explosive movement. Additionally, my stamina is now the best it's ever been. I can't remember when was the last time I was winded
So what do you need? Well, for DDP Yoga, the DVDs and a mat. I like the Aurorae mats, though Manduka seems to be the gold standard
For kettlebells, I have about 48 square feet of rubber matting, that cost me about 50 bucks (you can get them on Amazon, the brand of the mats is Cap Barbell) and kettlebells. I have not gone the way of the competition style bells, one because they're expensive, and two because the regular Cap Barbell kettlebells work fine for me. I even like that they vary in size because I like to train in a way that will allow me to adapt quickly. I started with a 15lb bell to get my form down, then very quickly moved onto 25lbs, then 35lbs, then 45lbs. After four months, I still use those so it's a good investment. If you have overly sweaty hands like me, a sock of chalk helps. Kettleguards are wristbands with plastic inserts that will prevent excessive bruising when you first start. Those are a good investment. Lastly, I use Vibram Fivefingers for footwear when I work out with kettlebells, though plenty of people train barefoot. Regular sneakers are not good for kettlebells, you need to be able to "grab" the ground with your toes. It's really a total body workout
And I never have to leave my house to workout.
I've really gotten into kettlebells now, so with the Virtual Skogg workouts, you need more bells. Ultimately (adding more as funds are available) I will have a 10, two 15s, a 20, two 25s, two 35s, two 45s, two fifties, one sixty, one seventy, and one eighty. I will use all of them regularly (I might even get doubles of the higher weights eventually, not sure). Note, Cap Barbell is an American company so they have their bells in lbs, many companies use the traditional "poods", and measure in half pood increments, which is about 8kg
I'm not the biggest I've ever been (at one point in my life, I had a 405lb bench press, a 455 deadlift, and a 525lb squat), but I feel I'm more "in tune" with my body, and I'm more effective in day to day tasks.
Again, this is my own personal opinions and experiences. Your mileage may vary, and what works for my body type might not work well for your body type or life or interests
