your body your health

[lionlimb]

5'11", 125-127 lbs

Yes smoke, no drink (occasional neat scotch).

I have Celiac disease, so no gluten.

I don't buy unhealthy foods (processed, sugary, whatever) when I grocery shop, but if I want something bad enough to go to the store specifically to get it (Haagen Dazs and Mexican Coke are big offenders) I get that shit and enjoy every bit of it.

Morning:
- Good coffee
- Cigarette
- Carrot / spinach / kale / ginger juice (because CANCER)
- Silken tofu / whey / blueberry / fig or banana / tahini smoothie

I cook a lot of asian food, lots of rice, lots of veggies, lots of garlic / ginger / chiles, lots of kimchi. Lots of good fats.

This is probably bad, but I adapt to my roommates -- when I was living with dudes, it was low carb but heavy meat every meal, and I was making cake and pie on the daily. My current roomie is a vegetarian chick, and now I eat a lot of rice + egg + veg meals.

I don't really label any food as "bad" or "outlawed", I just try to make sure that I get lots and lots of really good foods. Seems to balance out pretty well. I just try to be careful when I'm at the store, and only buy single ingredient foods, so that I have to cook when I get home.

I'm tall and pretty skinny, so people always assume that I'm "healthy", but I'm actually in terrible shape.

I make this deal with myself that I'm allowed to watch kung fu movies if I lift / bodyweight while doing so. Most effective system I've ever found -- whenever I get tired and cranky, someone does something badass, and I immediately think that if I keep pumping my little barbells, I'll totally be able to run up walls and shit too.

I walk and play with my dog whenever I feel guilty, and I work two non-sedentary jobs. I need to start doing Yoga again.

I wish I could exercise more, I would love, LOVE to be badass, but whenever I push too hard I get really sick again. If my health does ok this spring, I really want to check out the local crossfit box. I love lifting, my body loves lifting, I am in desperate need of muscle, but I'm scared of pushing myself too hard, and I'm scared of gyms. I'm scared that someone's gonna make me do cardio.

[etgreg]

lionlimb

Well if you keep doing this -

Morning:
- Cigarette

You want be able to manage serious cardio anyway.

You need to pick your routine carefully. If your trying to put on muscle weight the serious cardio will keep it from happening. I don't believe in doing light cardio. Muscle weight just makes me slower and I need the speed.

I say you have great potential with your height and weight, so get started now not later. I know most women and men would die to have your body type.

I can make a suggestion; routine for you later, but mine would just keep you really toned, and not a lot of muscle weight.

[lionlimb]

Yeah, yeah, I know. My heart's already shot from the Celiac, so I'm hopeless at cardio. I'd like to be doing something to work my heart and lungs, but I really don't want to get into aggressive calorie burning territory.

I'd love to hear any suggestions; realistically, I'm very unlikely to ever build up a lot of muscle (I've a history of serious malnutrition, and my family has these invariably long, lanky arms and legs), I'd just like to be stronger. I get sick easily, and as I'm so weak to begin with, I spiral down really quickly and just turn into a limp, fatigued noodle. I keep thinking that if I could get a higher level of baseline strength, I wouldn't go downhill quite as quickly when I'm sick.

[0JSIMPS0N]

Have you ever seriously tried to gain weight? Forget your "history of serious malnutrition" and your familiy's issues. Seems like you want yourself to fail before even trying. Self-fulfilling prophecy

[0JSIMPS0N]

merz you rosenrot and galia can form an 0jsimps0n fan club and ill start all of you ladies off with an autographed t shirt

her whole post can basically be reduced down to "woe is me", it doesnt sound like she has put in a real effort to gain weight before with the amount of excuses she has waiting in her back pocket. could be wrong though, which is why im asking

[cowsareforeating]

while i dont know what to offer you -- since i dont know you...

I'll unfortunately have to agree with OJ here.
You don't sound ready to put in the suffering/change/habits that will change your situation. You're capable of it, but something is keeping you mentally from being there.

[laika]

^we seem to have a couple amateur shrinks hanging around here.

[cowsareforeating]

lol ill take that in good humor, but i'm trying to be realistic with what shes typed.

and im actually trying to be helpful

[lionlimb]

I do have some legit bodyfail. I was actually bedridden for about two years, had to give myself injections every day, do a big IV every weekend to get any nutrition (OMG WOE IS ME whatever, my history of malnutrition does not belong in scare quotes. My belly doesn't work; I almost died and shit.).

However, I wasn't intentionally trying to beg for pity on the internet, and yeah, I could totally see how it would sound like that. I'm starting with what I got, but it's my choice what I do with it.

I've not ever made a concerted bulking effort. I don't really care about the aesthetics, just the practical effect. I was lifting every day for about a year and did get stronger / toned up; I've been lazy about finding a gym since I moved. I still hit the protein hard every day and lift at home, just not as regularly.

Y'all are right in that I really do just need to get off my ass and join the local box.

[CDG Diffusion Line]

- Cigarette
- Carrot / spinach / kale / ginger juice (because CANCER)

that juice isn't as protective against cancer as quitting tobacco would be.

google attributable risk.


here's a start: http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/canc...verall-results

[cowsareforeating]

hmmm from your experience with your body -- what sets your body off? it seems like you maybe jumping in TOO hard if that makes sense? How bout starting off gentler with yoga or perhaps inadvertent exercise like hiking..?

I understand how hard it can be when it feels like your body REJECTS your efforts...

has there been a reliable trigger for feeling really bad?

[lionlimb]

Yup, I know. I'd like to think that the massive amounts of fruit / veg I pummel into my body do some good, but I know it's not exactly balancing out.

I smoke a few a day, 2-5. I'm trying to get back down to 1/day, then to the occasional smoke as a very special treat indeed.

and re: cowsareforeating, yeah, you're very right. I'm actually starting regular yoga in April in a class setting (instead of at home) so I can do some slow build up before trying to jump into something like Crossfit.

As far a trigger goes, it's usually cardio / calorie-loss related, or just exhilaration. I obsessively love concepts of toughness / badassery, and I still have trouble knowing my own limits (I can tough things out pretty hard in the moment), so it's easy to get all pumped up like Yeah! Fuck yeah! I'm gonna push harder! It's gonna be awesome! and there's so much of that ideology / rhetoric around working out (especially in contexts where it's a lifestyle). I think that's why I get cautious / nervous about gym settings, because I know that I'm likely to get caught up in the rush, then pay for it later.

addendum:
In case you want the specifics -- my small intestine has no vilii, so it's very difficult for the nutrients to go from my digestive tract into my bloodstream. This was the case for a very long time before I knew what was wrong, and so I just kept sucking it up / working harder, so I seriously abused my adrenal glands, forcing them to over-produce just so I could keep functioning. Essentially, they wore out. Not in a yuppie homeopathic "adrenal insufficiency" way, in a 60/40 blood pressure, passing out every time I tried to walk more than a block way.

I've made a lot of headway, but I can't really "go into debt" when it comes to energy-burning without consequences.

[cowsareforeating]

perhaps maybe a very regimented exercise regime?
I know you're not into bodybuilding persay or cosmetic exercise, but it seems like you like really hard-core cardio intense or circuit intense

I mean.. it really seems like weightlifting or something that isn't like YEAH ONE MORE REP OR 10 MORE MINUTES KEEP THE BURN would be better?

You're probably going to have to do weird exercises where you don't break a sweat (low rep lifting/resistance) etc etc.

at least initially.

[lionlimb]

Definitely. I pass on cardio completely, the dislike of circuit exercise is what keeps me lingering away from CrossFit, but I love (and my body loves!) weightlifting. I don't have specific bodybuilding / cosmetic goals, but I'm not freaked out by the thought of gaining some bulk. I'm not a naturally structured person, so having a highly regimented lifting routine would be a very good thing. I think that's why I liked my old gym program so much -- it was highly regimented, but weightlifting / bodyweight only.

Good thoughts, thank you.
Gonna do some lifting tonight and do some more research on local gyms.

[vitalj]

My body, like rick owens says " Buy less clothing and go to the gym"