Six months ago I found r/BWF and calisthenics - wanted to share my progress! (32/M)

[terryasiedu1990]

@cow_boy Nice progress

 

[cow_boy]

@terryasiedu1990 Thanks!

 

[mrslambrou]

@cow_boy nice job my man

 

[cow_boy]

@mrslambrou Thanks dude

 

[liturgynerd]

@cow_boy I have to wonder about the form on some of these exercises...numbers seem a bit too good to be true over such a short period of time. Good on you definitely just don’t be cheating yourself, quality over quantity.

 

[cow_boy]

@liturgynerd Form is my #1. I have an athletic frame, build muscle quick and was coming back from a long time off. My before numbers were low because of atrophy post injury.

Also, I busted my ass. I totalled 110 workouts in 180 days, averaging 75 - 105 min per.

 

[hunterfl]

@cow_boy This is great! Hats off on the progress. As someone who is injury prone, I really appreciate your post and recovery. I had 2 ACLs reconstruction surgeries one in 2017 and the last one Sept 2020 :-/ was nervous about clots too.

As I'm still recovering, I was looking into calisthenics and specifically some muscle building, especially since I can't hike or climb for a few months and gyms are mostly closed.

 

[cow_boy]

@hunterfl It’s the best. With so many alternative workouts, you can always change it up if ones bugs you. Jump in!

 

[dahager3049]

@cow_boy How can you fit that many sets in your workouts?

I am doing RR (2 Push, 2 Pull, 2 Legs, 3 Core) in about 1h45min. And thats "only" 3 sets per exercise and not 10.

 

[cow_boy]

@dahager3049 I’m not necessarily doing that set count every workout, that’s just a new max. I’ll often do heavier vest and 5 sets instead, for example.

Also, I stack workouts doing rests and my leg/ab circuit only take 10-20 min a piece.

 

[lekanfoye123]

@cow_boy Were you plant based before you started your routine or after? I’ve gone plant based for IBS/potential Crohn’s (my mother had it and I have some stomach issues) and feel great. But if there’s body composition changes that come along with it that would be awesome.

 

[cow_boy]

@lekanfoye123 I’ve been plant based for 8+ years. It’s only slightly harder to eat shitty than being omni. I focus on fruits a lot. I can eat as much as I want, and then usually only have one big meal a day.

 

[lekanfoye123]

@cow_boy I’m on Invisalign now so I only eat twice a day now, hoping the inability to snack all day can help me. I seem to be the only one who doesn’t lose weight when going plant based haha

 

[missysylvester]

@cow_boy Crazy numbers. I'm nowhere near that and I've been at it for 7 to 8 months.

I'm not sure how can you fit all those sets and reps in 1h 45m though.

 

[cow_boy]

@missysylvester Those are maxes, not done every workout necessarily. I often workout longer - 90 min is an average. Ab/leg circuits have cut down my times.

 

[mora68]

@missysylvester I'm only just at that level with pushups, but my pulluos still lagging behind, and I'm in for 15 months now, OP is a beast

 

[sarah2012]

@cow_boy That’s amazing! Any tips on how you prevent injury?

 

[cow_boy]

@sarah2012 Always warm up and cool down. Do warm up sets. Gradual increases on reps/set. Stretch AM/PM. Don’t work to fail

 

[sarah2012]

@cow_boy When trying to avoid working to fail, how do you progress every workout but avoid failure. Example - if I did pull ups 7-7-7 on Monday, on Wednesday should i go for 8-8-8 even if i am barely finishing on the 8th?

 

[cow_boy]

@sarah2012 Go to fail once ever couple weeks to test your limit. Key is not to do it every set, every workout. Use it sparingly. Then adjust your reps based on new max.

Also, reducing reps and adding weight helped me up my rep counts faster than anything else.