SultanOfSwing

I'll run in temps up to about 90, but anything over that and I have to seriously consider if it's worth it. I've played a few soccer matches in 90+ heat and it gets bad. At least in a match, I can sub out and rest for a while before coming back in but even if I decide to stop a run, I still have to walk home

A few busy weekends have hampered my progress as well, but there's not much I can do about those.

Millhouse

5x5 is incredible.

I went from squatting 20kg bar to 105kg (1.5x body weight) in 10 weeks. Gained 4kg over the same period.

I'm now doing German volume training. Awesome.

Maste

I played soccer in 95 the other week. Absolutely F@@K that idea ever again. I can run and boss a game from midfield all game back in the UK weather. Here, I was breathing out my ass within 20 minutes!

SultanOfSwing

I'm primarily doing it to maintain strength and muscle mass while I (attempt to) lose weight to get down to where I should be. It has had the benefit of increasing my general fitness and endurance levels though and I think it's directly benefited my running times and ability to last longer during my soccer matches before needing to sub myself out.

I was able to go from a empty 45 lb bar up to a 305 lb squat but I felt my form was off and I wasn't getting deep enough, so backed down to 225 lbs. But then I had an injury and had to sit out for 6 weeks. Had my deadlift up to 285 as well.

I'm back up to a 170 lb squat tonight (after a series of successive deloads for just not going to the gym when I should) and it feels like my form is better now so we'll see if I can get it up to 3 plates before I start to fail reps.

My hope is that as well as maintaining functional strength and endurance, building some base of muscle will help offset the risk of loose skin when I finally do cut down to where I need to be weight wise.

Millhouse

I run in Dubai in 40C at night. You get used to it but you do slow down!

SultanOfSwing

Oh yeah, it'll kill you all right. It's worse when we have a light turnout. We're just a rec league, and we play 8v8 on the U12 fields but we have constant, open substitutions. However, get 8 people showing up and you've no subs so you're basically the walking dead by the end of the first half

Millhouse

Very impressive numbers. Well done.

Form will drift off. I found that the really high weights screwed form and oddly started to give me foot pain. GVT is a great alternative as the weight is a bit lower but the volume is much higher (10*10).

A personal trainer told me to do yoga on rest days. That helped for sure.

I cannot congratulate you enough. Stuck at it.

Look into carb cycling too, although im not committed enough for that to be honest - plus I'm not overweight (anymore).

SultanOfSwing

The program I was on had me up to 305 lb in just over 17 weeks. If I stay on track, I should be back to 300 lbs again in early December, barring any injuries. I wish my bench press and overhead press were more impressive, but I'm cutting so there's no way they will progress the same as my lower body lifts.

I certainly will stick at it, though. My unofficial target weight is around 160-165, but I'd be happy with anything below 185 to be honest. I'll be 40 in two years, so that's my timeline.

I took a quick look at carb cycling and I actually naturally end up doing something similar just through my CICO type diet, so it's good to know I have the right idea, even if I can't always stick to it.

Millhouse

Great work. You're doing this at a great time in life too (I started at 35 and I'm now coming up to 39). I went from 72kg to 59kg and am now 71kg. The gain has all been muscle, the loss was all fat. Clothes fit great and I've never been stronger. Various back and shoulders pains have all but gone now.

The beauty of weights is that the more you put in the more you get out. Unlike football or golf where a basic skill is required lol!

SultanOfSwing

Good stuff. Your starting weight was below my goal weight

That being said, I was at 245 lb (111 kg) at my highest and at one point last year before it all went to shit, I was down to 209 lb (95 kg) so I know it works. I just need to reign in the diet and stick with it. I was below 220 lbs for the first time in ages this morning, I don't think it's unreasonable to think I could drop 40-60 lbs in two years if I stick at it.

Maste

i was 160lbs, now I'm 145lbs or there abouts. I'm trying to build muscle with home workouts as I can't afford the gym! Which sucks. Any good routines or suggestions?

Millhouse

I'm not very tall and have a small frame...

210lb and squatting 300 (i.e. 1.5x) puts you very firmly in the "strong" category. Most people are happy to get to their body weight.

If you were doing 300, then under GVT you'll be doing 200lb, 10 x 10.

Benching, if you can do your body weight that would be classed as very good, too. I got to exactly my body weight but then just got scared. My OHP is pathetic, from what I'm told that's normal.

40-60lb in two years is very doable and sustainable.

Do look into yoga, it helps with flexibility and thus reducing injury risks.

5x5 misses one supplementary exercise, add in some pull ups on the deadlift day.

Millhouse

Compound exercises. Squats, push ups... look into the app called "7" (or maybe called "seven") - try and do a couple of loops (i.e. two to three loops of it). I sometimes do it when travelling and can't get to a gym, it's brilliant (and is what got me started into all of this in the beginning)

SultanOfSwing

Try this:

https://www.reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness/

Build muscle using just your own bodyweight as resistance. I've never tried it but apparently it works.

That does factor in to it, of course.

I can't remember what my weight was when I was in the 300lb squat range, but it was 215 or less, I think. I'm working back up to a bodyweight deadlift in the next couple of workouts and a bodyweight squat will be back on the cards in a month (or sooner if I can lose more weight between now and then, of course).

I think the highest I got my bench up to was 125 lbs and that was a struggle for me, but this was due to form and the fact that 5 lbs per workout was just too much to add for smaller lifts. I have some fractional plates and now I add 2.5 lbs per workout for OHP and bench. It'll be 100 lbs tonight but again, I read that while you're losing weight you can't expect your press to go up too much because you can't consume the calories needed to do so.

I will have to start going to the gym late at night again, so I can practice pull-ups with nobody watching. Though the bent-over row is a similar motion as far as I know.

Millhouse

Don't forget to sleep, and eat tonnes of protein. Stay off the granolia bars, they taste great but are utter crap. Pull ups are always an embarrassment .