@whroll Best of luck! I’m sure you’re gonna achieve your goal, the human body is amazing, you can really push it past all its limits.
I personally have felt great and safe at 20%
And I would definitely recommend you a professional if you’re trying to low it. At least for me it was very easy to lose control once I started losing fat, I just wanted more and more, but that’s just my case! Maybe if I had some help it wouldn’t have been so traumatic
@mayne70 I don't really have any goals other than the nebulous "move more" and hopefully prevent some of the things associated with aging and being sedentary. I'd love to weigh less, but right now I'm not willing to change much about what I put in my mouth. I (hypothetically) run 3 days a week and work two days with a personal trainer. I'm dealing with some foot pain, so the runs are 3 miles and if I'm not feeling it, I skip runs. I don't really track what I do with the personal trainer other than showing up and doing what she says.
@mayne70 I have goals, but no they aren’t very very specific goals … if that’s what you mean
For example, I’m trying to lean out. Do I have a bf% goal? Not really. Do I have a weight goal? I mean… kind of, but it’s not like I have to be x amount of pounds in x amount of weeks/months.
I am increasing my strength. Am I trying to do heavy barbell squats? Not necessarily.
I got sick a few years ago, and I was also managing a nerve issue. I got the go ahead to work out and get strong again. I’m not prepping or anything, I’m not trying to hit the 200 club. I’m just trying to fix things.
@mayne70 Me. Im 45, female and met w/ trainer w/ goals to be “balanced and healthy.” I’m spending time warming up, stretching for the first time and considering it to be a practice in self care and mindfulness.
@mayne70 Yeah, sure. My two main goals are to "be as strong as I can reasonably be" while "liking what I see in the mirror" (includes being able to do whatever I have to do at home without struggling, because I live alone). Other than that, be mentally and physically healthy, make sure my older self is healthy (I'm nearing the end of my 40's), and, like... feel good?
I do have an unstated goal to one day beat my old deadlift all-times high, just because (and also because I love deadlifts).
Yes, I track my numbers and progress, and yes I do have a program. But I'm really enjoying the journey a lot more than I am looking forward to any feat of strength. Guess it helps that I used to lift rather heavy before the pandemic, so I know that all of that good stuff is going to happen anyway, as long as I'm serious about my training. No need to chase it.
@mayne70 My mom is really struggling with her health. When she was my age, she was thin, but not active at all. I am not thin, but I am really active (I swim 3x a week, run 2x a week, and lift 2x a week). I hope that because I am putting this effort in now, when I am her age I won't be having as many health problems. So, no defined goal apart from just working to be as active as I can.
@mayne70 Eh, I find a lot of goals leave me to comparing myself to others and comparison is the thief of joy.
My goals are mostly just to be active every day. 5-6 of those days are actually work outs. 1-2 might be a good house clean or a walk, etc. It's what I've been doing for 6 years now. I don't have shredded abs but I can carry heavy shit and get through most workouts without feeling like I will die. So I'll take it!
@mayne70 It's really funny you bring this up. I work as a trainer and I've hired several business coaches in my career. They all tried to hammer down my specific reason for exercise and what my niche is
What kind of goals do they have? Why? You have to get this down so people know who you're trying to talk to
I've found as I've worked with more and more people, my best clients are similar to you. They just want to get stronger and in better shape. They don't have anything specific in mind, they like doing it because it's fun and a challenge. It's part of who they are.
@mandaresh “It’s part of who they are” - that really clicks with me. I guess I consider myself to be fairly self-motivated in a healthy way. I’m competitive with myself. I want to do better for myself. I don’t need to compare to others to understand if I’m progressing or not.
@mayne70 Me! I use regular exercise to maintain my mental health and to help with the aging process. So to a certain degree, it doesn't matter what I do for exercise, as long as it gets my body moving and I enjoy it. I do a mix of walking, pilates, yoga, and strength training. The downside of that is that sometimes I get overwhelmed with too much freedom of choice. Occasionally I wonder if having a more defined fitness goal would help with deciding what workouts to do, but I wouldn't want it to add any stress to my stress-relieving hobby.
I am currently following the SBTD program because I did get overwhelmed with choice. But the real goal is just to continue moving during a time that would normally see me quitting everything due to some much mental work on my part.
@mayne70 I was literally just thinking about this the other week. I don’t have any clearly defined goals in terms of fitness at all and I felt like I was doing something wrong lol.
I want to increase muscle mass, lose fat and be stronger and more fit. I see this as a lifelong “journey” if you will that will, naturally be part of my lifestyle.
The only clear goal I have is to stick to my strength programs x amount of weeks, and finish x amount of sessions every week.
@jakeh Right? Just executing a program is a good enough goal for me. I just see all these 1 rep max goals etc etc, and I’m like, am I doing it wrong? Like that’s cool that you did that, but also doesn’t mean much to me because I have no idea where I stand on my 1rep maxes… and what they would even be close to…
@mayne70 I want to be healthy enough to not be in pain or have to retire early. Strong enough to do my job and my hobbies without struggling or asking for assistance (with the basics, asking for assistance when the stuff is real heavy is just smart and should be done). And toned enough so i feel I look good and when I flex I want it to be defined muscles.
Also I want to bike to work without being completeluy winded and broken, or do a light 2hr hike without having to rest for the entire day lol. So my goal is basically to be strong enough to fully enjoy life. If I have some belly fat or my thighs rub together, who cares.
@mayne70 I guess it doesn't sound very defined to say "I want to be in good -or the best - condition to continue playing the sports I want to play and do the physical things I want to be doing, without getting injured." But then I also derive pleasure from most physical activities that contribute to fitness. Is "defined goals" counting numbers and such? Coz I don't lift and I don't care much about my weight.
