TrilliumFortnight

God I hate this band. Some of the worst Australian "hardcore" around. Sorry CF, but there is plenty of good stuff around, keep digging.

Hope the ribs do well with rest. Best of luck for the comp!

Is there much difference between doing bent-over rows from free standing with a barbell, to resting one knee on a bench and using a dumbbell? I used to do these with a dumbbell, one side at a time, keeping my back flat and parallel to the floor and my knee resting on a bench. Since starting stronglifts I've been doing rows standing freely with a barbell and it feels odd, like a lot of the strain is in my glutes, plus it is more difficult to lift in a straight line to my chest. Are there advantages to one or the other?

Yeah, as above, you're looking a lot fitter and should be proud of what you've accomplished already. Concentrate on doing exercise that makes you feel good, rather than focusing solely on gains. When I get discouraged I have a nap, do something other than whatever I was feeling discouraged by, and get back to it feeling rested and enthusiastic

Thanks for the advice and encouragement all. Here's my log from this week: Stronglifts #5 (Mon - 14/02/11) Squats: 25, 5x5 Dumbbell bench press: 22.5, 5x5 (the barbell bench was busy for way too long so I used dumbbells instead) Barbell rows: 22.5, 5x5 Chin ups: 9, 5, 5 Stronglifts #6 (Wed - 16/02/11) Squats: 27.5, 5x5 Deadlifts: 45, 2x5 Press: 17.5 5x5 Pull ups: 8/5/4/(break) 5 Workout (Fri - 18/02/11) Lat pull down: 56k, 10, 49k, 2x10 Machine rows: 49k 3x10 Squat: 20k 3x10 Machine flies (pulling upward): 20k 10, 10, 8 Barbell curls: 21k 3x7 Dumbbell clean & press: 12.5k 3x10 Diagonal "lateral" raise: 10k 3x10 Triceps bar: 21k 12, 12, 8 Machine flies (pulling downward): 20k 3x10

Swimming is fantastic for lung capacity and general toning, and yes it counts as cardio. No impact and low stress on joints makes it a good activity to combine with jogging. Plus, as others have said it can help with soreness and so on.

Hey! I've been more or less vegan for around seven years and just started casually lifting weights a few months ago (after years of pretty casual but regular exercise with activities like yoga, swimming, cycling, trekking). I'm a pretty slim build, male, around 182cm and have usually been 65kilo's, but I've gained about 5ks in the last few months with weight training. I've just started the stronglifts program, but have decided to mix it up a bit, doing workout A (Mondays), workout B (Wednesdays), then a higher rep/lower weight workout on Fridays. Maybe it's misguided, but the reason I'm not staying strictly on stronglifts is that I'm not really in it to get really bulky, I'd prefer to stay slender but add some size and, my main goal, functional strength. My diet includes a lot of bread, legumes, nuts, rice, pasta, and veggies. I'll try to post what I'm eating now and then, but am not nearly organised enough to keep track of everything (I live in a collective and generally share cooking, so I don't always know exactly what I'm eating or how much of it). Any advice or comments you want to throw my way would be really appreciated Stronglifts #1 (Mon - 31/02/11) Squats: 15kg 5x5 Bench: 20kg 5x5 Barbell Rows: 17.5kg 5x5 Pull ups: 8, 8, 7 Stronglifts #2 (Wed - 02/02/11) Squats: 17.5kg 5x5 Deadlifts: 40kg 1x5 Press: 12.5kg 5x5 Pull ups: 6, 6, 6 Workout (Fri 04/02/11) 20 mins pilates 30 mins kettlebell (12kg): clean and press, overhead squats, rows, windmills, one armed swings, snatches Stronglifts #3 (Mon - 07/02/11) Squats: 20kg 5x5 Bench: 22.5kg 5x5 Barbell Rows: 20kg 55 Pull Ups: 5, 6, 6 Stronglifts #4 (Wed - 10/02/11) Squats: 22.5kg 5x5 Deadlifts: 42.5kg 1x5 Press: 15kg 5x5 Chin ups: 8, 8, 8 Workout (Fri 11/02/11) Lat pull-downs: 56kg 3x10 Bench press: 10kg 12reps, 15kg 10reps, 12.5kg 10 reps Squats: 20kg 3x10 Barbell curls: 21kg 3x7 Lateral raises: 9kg 3x10 Machine flys: 20kg 3x10 (pulling upwards), 2x10 (pulling downwards)