Polyglot Fitness Challenge 2021

Ongoing language-learning challenges, and team challenge logs (but not individual logs)
jmar257
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Re: Polyglot Fitness Challenge 2021

Postby jmar257 » Thu Aug 26, 2021 12:14 am

IronMike wrote:Best I ever did with DL was 325lbs. Best for squat, 225lbs. And I'm coming back quickly (after the lockdown) in DL. Squat, not so much. Can't believe how much 115lbs in squat hurts.

Lol my deadlift and squat are about 100lbs apart as well--515 DL, 405 squat (granted, the squat was easy). I forgot to mention earlier I recently switched back to low bar squatting after doing high bar for years, to help relieve some IT band issues (and it seems to be working).

Ug_Caveman wrote:Doesn't bother me too much as I never personally took to deadlifting as an exercise, deffo a squatter/presser (having short limbs on a fairly long torso probably contributed to that - most gym-people I know hate squatting, and ESPECIALLY front squatting, which I love :) )
I cannot emphasize how much I hate front squatting. I don't think I've ever gone much above 205, maybe 225? with it. I say this as someone who back squatting (high bar) 315x3x8 not too long ago, I am just not good at front squats and also hate them (these two facts are related).

Ug_Caveman wrote:I assume deadlifts staying fairly strong in periods of not training them comes from kind of asymmetrical carryover - lots of things carry over better one way than the other - along with the fact the deadlift is remarkably simple as an exercise.
I agree with this, I can pretty much not deadlift for the better part of a year and when I come back can pull 405 for a few doubles or triples so long as I've been squatting and barbell rowing and doing some heavy shrugs in the meantime. The biggest thing this past time I resumed deadlifting (after maybe a year not doing conventional, just lighter Romanians and stiff legs as assistance) was my grip--not even strength, the knurling of the bar just hurt the f out of my hands, which I guess had gotten soft from not handling that much weight recently.


Uh something language related...I finished lesson 49 in Assimil GWE, so onto the active wave. Also I was paired with a Brazilian at Brazilian jiu-jitsu recently (weird, right?) and he didn't speak much English, so we got by with Portuñol, some English, and a good bit of pantomiming. It was pretty fun though.

coldrainwater wrote:One of my biggest weaknesses has always been a lack of focus on technique. Since I learned to lift the same way I learn languages (highly independent and almost completely self-taught), I end up with obvious gaps.
I'm completely self-taught and have very good technique (so I've been told by powerlifters, not just a self-assessment), but the thing was I got into it at an age where I didn't mind spending hours upon hours researching and tweaking. If I were picking up lifting now as an adult I don't know if I'd had the patience for that. The one exception here is one you mentioned: cleans. I do them occasionally but at some point I realized the rabbit hole was too deep on Olympic lift form, and just said good enough. Probably not the best but...I don't do them often.


coldrainwater wrote: Had I wanted to go higher on the DL I think I still would have been back to training squats since my legs were shaking like a leaf on a tree and were basically unsafe during the lift. I could have identified that weak point without even maxing out. The DL is basically a simple lift and many people consider it mostly just a brute strength movement (noting how so many pros end up rounding the back after a certain weight threshold).

It's a very simple, brute strength lift which is probably why I like it. It's also easy to troubleshoot--either you're weak off the floor and need to work the quads (deficit pulls, squats, etc.) or you're weak at the top and need to work upper/mid back (heavy rows, shrugs, etc.). You're right regarding the round back, round-backed deadlifting isn't that dangerous provided you keep a neutral lower back (important always when lifting!) and don't actually flex the spine (i.e., start with a rounded upper back and don't move it from that position). Granted, if you're not a serious powerlifter or strongman (atlas stones literally cannot be done straight-backed) there's no need to mess with it and risk injury.

I like talking about lifting, as you can probably guess...
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coldrainwater
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Re: Polyglot Fitness Challenge 2021

Postby coldrainwater » Thu Aug 26, 2021 12:47 am

I like discussing it as well. Perhaps one of the biggest benefits of having lifted consistently and being 'in-form' more or less for many months consecutively has to do with what I perceive as a much lower likelihood of injury in my day to day life. I am just postulating, but I think this is much less due to limit strength and much more due to frequent practice and a general state of readiness.

In my case, it is what I am capable of cold that perhaps gives me the most protection. Even if I have only been say squatting for a couple of months, perhaps with a relatively light weight (135lbs), the protection I get when I get up, move around, lift light/moderate furniture, sit wrong for a while or make sudden unexpected movements, seems protective in a very functional way that I would not want to give up due to sloth. My plan is to make it a lifelong activity to the extent possible and to encourage it in others (mainly leading by example). Safe basic lifts, even and perhaps especially with light/moderate weights can work very well to enhance overall fitness (and likely enhance your chosen sport or cardio activity).

That idea reminds me of the powerlifting concept of GPP (general physical preparedness).
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Re: Polyglot Fitness Challenge 2021

Postby clara » Thu Aug 26, 2021 6:11 am

Language learners who love to lift, this is amazing!

I happened upon powerlifting by chance -- the nearest gym to my house is a PL gym. The owner has deadlifted 900lbs. :shock: My best squat and deadlift are similar to IronMike's, ~235lb and ~350lb (I use metric plates). I didn't start lifting until I was almost 40, and it has been amazing for my health and general sense of fitness. I'm always recommending it to my friends, but they mostly ignore me.

Since my surgery in March, I haven't been back to the lifting gym and miss it. Instead I've been indoor climbing. I just upped my frequency from 2-3x per week to 3-5x per week which has been brutal. Once my recovery improves I'm going to get back into lifting, maybe another month from now. Pre-pandemic, I was climbing 3-5x per week, lifting 3-5x per week, and hiking. Now I feel like an unfit potato in comparison.

I'm a bit afraid of going back to lifting. The beginning of the pandemic forced me to take 3 months off, and my first week back was BRUTAL. I could barely walk after squatting less than a plate! It took me 3 months to get back to pre-pandemic numbers. This break has been longer, so I expect my return to be even harder.

Not sure what else to say about lifting... Hm, how does everybody feel about sumo vs conventional style? I'm a conventional deadlifter myself. I've tried sumo, but it is hard on my hips. I'm surprised how many people say sumo is easier.

Also, have you learned lifting terminology in your TL? I'm lucky in that my favorite conversation partner loves lifting, and we've talked a decent amount about it, but he's actually not that familiar with Spanish terms for lifts since most of what he knows is from Youtube videos in English!
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Re: Polyglot Fitness Challenge 2021

Postby Ug_Caveman » Thu Aug 26, 2021 3:37 pm

clara wrote:Not sure what else to say about lifting... Hm, how does everybody feel about sumo vs conventional style? I'm a conventional deadlifter myself. I've tried sumo, but it is hard on my hips. I'm surprised how many people say sumo is easier.

I usually pull conventional (or occasionally with snatch grip), although I have the hip flexibility to go sumo. As I'm not a competitive powerlifter I don't get too bogged down in sumo vs conventional discussions (and I know arguments between powerlifters on the [so-called] 'correct' form of the big three exercises can get pretty heated.)

I think what is 'easier' often depends on personal morphology (something I wish I'd understood when I first started lifting.)
clara wrote:Also, have you learned lifting terminology in your TL? I'm lucky in that my favorite conversation partner loves lifting, and we've talked a decent amount about it, but he's actually not that familiar with Spanish terms for lifts since most of what he knows is from Youtube videos in English!

Funnily enough I have lifted in a Dutch gym before, sadly I didn't need to interact with anybody beyond the front desk staff while I was there so didn't pick up any terminology :cry:

Similar situation several times when on holiday in Belgium and Spain - no one else was around in the gym so didn't pickup any Dutch, French or Spanish terms. I do know some German lifting terms from perusing old GDR/DDR material on how they trained their athletes and I'd love to learn Russian one day just to access all that sweet USSR training material *love eye emoji here*
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jmar257
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Re: Polyglot Fitness Challenge 2021

Postby jmar257 » Thu Aug 26, 2021 10:59 pm

coldrainwater wrote:In my case, it is what I am capable of cold that perhaps gives me the most protection. Even if I have only been say squatting for a couple of months, perhaps with a relatively light weight (135lbs), the protection I get when I get up, move around, lift light/moderate furniture, sit wrong for a while or make sudden unexpected movements, seems protective in a very functional way that I would not want to give up due to sloth.

Totally agree, it makes me safer when practicing stuff like jiu jitsu or just in every day life (I find it hilarious, and sad, that the typical office safety briefing warns people about picking up things weighing over 50lbs by themselves). Having stronger muscle, bones, and connective tissue is vital to staying injury free and mobile into old age.

clara wrote:Not sure what else to say about lifting... Hm, how does everybody feel about sumo vs conventional style? I'm a conventional deadlifter myself. I've tried sumo, but it is hard on my hips. I'm surprised how many people say sumo is easier.

I prefer conventional and I think a lot of guys tend towards it (notable exceptions include Dan Green and Ed Coan, the latter who really switched because of injury). I recall reading years ago that sumo tends to be better for women because of their wider hips/lower center of gravity, but it ultimately comes down to what you're most comfortable with because everyone's limb lengths, etc. are different. Also, my squat is so much lower than my deadlift there's no way I'd pull more conventional. I like to good-naturedly give people crap about pulling sumo though.

clara wrote:Also, have you learned lifting terminology in your TL? I'm lucky in that my favorite conversation partner loves lifting, and we've talked a decent amount about it, but he's actually not that familiar with Spanish terms for lifts since most of what he knows is from Youtube videos in English!

No, I know a few terms in Spanish (and have been meaning to watch the AthleanX Español YouTube channel more). Years back I tried to find a lifting site in French, but all I found was a forum where people used English terms ("je faisais les box squats" isn't too helpful).
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Re: Polyglot Fitness Challenge 2021

Postby IronMike » Fri Aug 27, 2021 12:37 am

clara wrote:Language learners who love to lift, this is amazing!

I happened upon powerlifting by chance -- the nearest gym to my house is a PL gym. The owner has deadlifted 900lbs. :shock: My best squat and deadlift are similar to IronMike's, ~235lb and ~350lb (I use metric plates). I didn't start lifting until I was almost 40, and it has been amazing for my health and general sense of fitness. I'm always recommending it to my friends, but they mostly ignore me.

Love this! And if my wife were in here, she'd love this too! She's been lifting since 16, when her high school offered weight-lifting class as an alternative to required phys-ed. (Yes, she was the only girl in the class.) Now, we're both 54; she's still lifting, I started seriously at 50. Then the 15 (or so) months of no lifting due to the pandemic. My overhead press goal for 2020 was 135lbs, which I'd like to hit this year, if possible. My DL goal for 2020 was 400lbs. Right now, I'd just like to get back to 325. ;)

But I'm in agreement. When I lift, I have fewer other problems like cranky knees or hips. My wife also recommends lifting to friends, especially in our age group. It's amazing what it does for one's health. That and walking.
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Re: Polyglot Fitness Challenge 2021

Postby Caromarlyse » Fri Aug 27, 2021 5:35 pm

IronMike wrote:
clara wrote:Language learners who love to lift, this is amazing!

I happened upon powerlifting by chance -- the nearest gym to my house is a PL gym. The owner has deadlifted 900lbs. :shock: My best squat and deadlift are similar to IronMike's, ~235lb and ~350lb (I use metric plates). I didn't start lifting until I was almost 40, and it has been amazing for my health and general sense of fitness. I'm always recommending it to my friends, but they mostly ignore me.

Love this! And if my wife were in here, she'd love this too! She's been lifting since 16, when her high school offered weight-lifting class as an alternative to required phys-ed. (Yes, she was the only girl in the class.) Now, we're both 54; she's still lifting, I started seriously at 50. Then the 15 (or so) months of no lifting due to the pandemic. My overhead press goal for 2020 was 135lbs, which I'd like to hit this year, if possible. My DL goal for 2020 was 400lbs. Right now, I'd just like to get back to 325. ;)

But I'm in agreement. When I lift, I have fewer other problems like cranky knees or hips. My wife also recommends lifting to friends, especially in our age group. It's amazing what it does for one's health. That and walking.


Me too, me too (both lifting + age)!
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Re: Polyglot Fitness Challenge 2021

Postby Ug_Caveman » Sat Aug 28, 2021 12:14 am

IronMike wrote: My overhead press goal for 2020 was 135lbs, which I'd like to hit this year, if possible.


I'll never forgive this blasted pandemic for stealing my greatest gym achievement - a 200lb OHP - the most underrated and (in my opinion) badass lift of them all 8-)

For anyone looking for videos which may give gym terminology in certain languages, I know this series in French (which I presume uses Swiss slang and accent) detailing the lifting regime of the athlete Werner Gunthor (it's a four part series which gradually becomes less about lifting and more about athletic development, but may help with terms):



There's also these fairly old (black and white) USSR videos in what I assume is either Russian or Ukrainian with a similar bent to them:

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Re: Polyglot Fitness Challenge 2021

Postby Mista » Wed Sep 01, 2021 9:02 pm

My weight loss project is going slowly but well - I have lost 8 kilos so far this year.

In June, as the gyms started opening up again, I finally managed to buy some weightlifting equipment. I don't do the heavy liftling it seems everyone here is doing, I prefer less weight and more repetitions, but having some weight is a lot better than none, even if my main goal is mobility rather than strength. When it comes to weightlifting, I appreciate the effect a lot more than the actual activity, so I started out with a small program of 4 different exercises, all with ten reps and three rounds, which I do once a week after running a coopertest. I'm currently working with 14 kg. Later in the summer, I added another small program, focusing on core muscles, which I do on another weekday.

I've also revived some of my goals from last year. Sports arrangements are now allowed (with restrictions) here in Norway, which means that I'll be running a 5 km race this weekend. My goal is to finish below 30 minutes, or at least below 31.08, which is my current personal record. I ran 2.12 km in 12 minutes a week ago, so I think it's within reach. On a good day, at least.

Two weeks later, I'll be running my first 10 km race. When I was looking at this earlier this year, I discovered that Oslo Marathon were arranging "virtual editions" of their races during the pandemic, so I have participated in a couple of those. A virtual race does involve actual running, but you have to do it on your own or with your friends or family, register the time and distance on your sports watch or through their app, and then send in the results. So I did this and ran a 10 km race on my own at Easter and again in May, which means that I have a sort of personal record: 1h13. My goal this time will be 1h10. I had to report my expected (realistic) completion time to them, because we will be divided into covid-restriction cohorts based on it, and I chose the option 1h10-1h00, so it will be a little embarrassing if I can't make it.

One thing I discovered when running those virtual races, was that I couldn't run continuously for much more than 1 km. The main reason for that was that I had a tendency to run too fast, and that's something I have been working on this summer. And that's where languages come in, because audiobooks are great to have when you need to force yourself to run as slowly as possible. It's also how I got into the habit of running cooper tests weekly, because I wanted to experiment with how fast I could run and still keep going for 12 minutes without taking walking breaks. My running routine this summer, then, has been one cooper test a week and one slow and continuous jog with audiobook. I have increased gradually the distance of that jogging session, and lately I have been doing 6.7 km. I haven't actually run as far as 10 km since that virual race in May, so for the upcoming race, I guess I will have to depend on my newly improved ability to evaluate and adjust my speed.
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Re: Polyglot Fitness Challenge 2021

Postby IronMike » Thu Sep 02, 2021 1:15 pm

Mista wrote:One thing I discovered when running those virtual races, was that I couldn't run continuously for much more than 1 km. The main reason for that was that I had a tendency to run too fast

Pacing is so important! I definitely know where you're coming from. My first 10K was way back in 1983? 1984? I had no idea how to train for it. I just did a mile run every night for a few months prior. (Seriously) Day of the race, I lined up near the front. My dad was at the side and asked me if that was smart, maybe should I line up at the back? "Whatever, boomer, I know what I'm doing."

Gun goes off, and so do I. I lead the pack through the first mile. Did it a bit over 5:00. Second mile? 11+ minutes. Entire 10K took me over an hour. Learned a huge lesson on pacing. And after that, my dad bought me a book on how to train for running. ;)

Here in my middle ages, I've learned another lesson on pacing. Four years ago I attempted 20 Bridges, which is a swim around Manhattan. I knew I could do the time (9-12 hours). Just needed to keep swimming. Upon starting at the southern tip of Manhattan I put my head down and got into my 'forever' pace. Two hours into it I started to worry as I saw a jetski volunteer come up and talk to my kayaker twice. Uh-oh. What's going on.

Turns out I had only swum 5 city blocks in 50-something minutes. The East River's current had gone slack then turned. Unsure if early or as expected, but for all intents and purposes I had been swimming in place for almost an hour. I wasn't going to make it to the Harlem River. The race director gave me two choices: quit, or be moved up river to the Harlem and continue, but get a DNF (did not finish). I chose the latter. (I had flown 5000 miles from Moscow to swim. Wasn't going to quit 2+ hours and only 7 miles into a 28.5 mile race.) I finished. Swam about 27 miles in total. 9 1/2 hours total, not counting the 15-20 min waiting in the boat for my kayaker to catch up. Still a DNF. :(

Bottom line: My forever pace was way too slow! Completely the opposite problem I had way back when in that first 10k run. Thus my comment: Pacing is so important!

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