Fitness "Spartan" Beckerhead GAW discussion thread.

crimsonfalcon07

crimsonfalcon07

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Dec 27, 2010
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So, I think I'll go ahead and give this one a go. I may tweak it as we go, depending on what people's interest happens to be, but this one is going to involve fitness. I want this to be a "go above and beyond" type GAW, so it's going to run for a while so you have a chance to get it going. And it's not going to be a gimme for the crazy fit types like Qeth and Aikiguy. Yeah, I remember the numbers you two were putting out... They'll have to step up their game also.

For the sake of convenience, I'm thinking I'll arrange this like a US military PFT, involving pushups, abs, and run/bike/swim, because if you have all of those, you can rest assured you're doing pretty darn well. Open to Beckerheads only, but won't officially open for a while, so if you're interested, you have time to earn your Beckerhead number.

For pushups, I'm going to challenge you all to try out the Hundred Pushups workout, at hundredpushups dot com. I've done it myself several times, and worked up from a pushup max of 25 to a max of 160 consecutive pushups. It works very well. I'm currently working on clap pushups. The major advantage to the program is that, even if you can only do 4 pushups right now, you still have a starting place in the program. Some of you may hit this quickly, some of you may take a couple months. That's fine. I'll probably start this one Halloween, and end it New Years Eve (so that you can bring in those New Years resolutions at the finish line). You're required to post up or message me your starting point, and finish with a video of your ending point. How many points you earn will depend on your progress. If you're starting from week 6, you'll certainly need to hit at least the full 100 pushups to earn full points from this aspect of the challenge. If you're starting from week 1, or otherwise have reasons you can't do pushups or it's otherwise hard, accommodations will be made. 100 points to be earned.

For abs, I'm still debating. I'm contemplating bonus points for using a Becker knife to carve a six-pack, because, well, you know... There's the 200 situps challenge that might be useful. Regardless, I want you to challenge yourselves. 100 points to be earned here. Suggestions for a challenge that's accessible to all would be welcome.

For MYB, again, I'm torn. It may just be a matter of hitting 100 Becker points in one month, unless you regularly do more than that. Plan on it being double your usual MYB average. We might also make it a time-improvement game, based on how much you improve. Makes it harder on the people who are fit already, but I'm hoping to encourage the people who aren't fit and would like to be. 100 more points here, for a Spartan 300.

Prizes will be something suitable for your achievements. I can't say I can afford to buy or make a knife for everyone, but I'll certainly be giving out prizes to the first couple to reach the goal/accrue the most points, and for the person or people voted the most improved. If you put out and crush some personal records, there will be something in it for you. Prizes may include anything from a customized BK15, or a custom of my design, to a custom Becker influenced knife (ever wanted a 3V BK9 or RBK, for instance?), or maybe even a Beckizashi, if I get the prototypes done by the time the contest ends. I may dip into non-knife related stuff for other prizes depending on how many people accomplish the 300 point goal.

If you would like to participate, throw down with an "I'm in." Obviously, the contest won't start officially until the end of October, but you can feel free to start training up now. Any comments, whining, suggestions, etc, are also welcome.
 
I'm in....tough I'll most likely wash out.....
I'm currently at both ZERO pushups and just as many situps per week. Improvement in this area should be a piece of cake - or maybe I'll have to just put down the piece of cake. MYB - I've only been able to get out a couple days a week due to work schedule, but the pool is going to re-open next week and I should certainly be able to get over there to supplement the bicycle. If nothing else, maybe I'll be able to improve my attitude and lose some of the extra poundage before I'm snowed in for the winter.
 
Start of October I'm going to start a 2-class 35-hour/wk school/work schedule, I'll need all the motivation I can get to get outside.
 
See, the good news is the pushups routine takes about 5-10 minutes to do, every other day, and can be done from the comfort of your own home. My wife used it prepping for her PFT's, and went from 20 pushups to 65 in 6 weeks. She's a 5'2" petite woman who has never been an athlete. She never thought she'd get over 40, which was her best years ago in high school. Now she's consistently over 50 pushups, even while putting in 65 hour work weeks at the hospital. So, that part (and abs, if you're doing the 200 situps program) can be done from home/wherever. The MYB aspect will likely be the hardest one to do. For me, part of the hardest part of getting (and staying) fit is getting the motivation to go out. It's a heck of a lot easier if you can just get the motivation to do something, and then just start doing some pushups or situps. Once you start doing them, it's a lot easier to finish it, and then you feel pretty accomplished (and trust me, you'll feel accomplished after a few weeks of those workouts).

GSOM, it's not how many you are currently doing; it's how many you can do consecutively in a max test. If you need to do knee pushups, start there. I have a friend who was 360 pounds last year, and has lost 120 pounds so far. He had to start with knee pushups, but can now rock em out with the best. Giving up high fructose corn syrup did a lot for his weight loss too though. I'm fairly fit, and I lost 10 pounds in 2 weeks when I quit having the occasional soda at the movie theater. It's amazing how bad that stuff is for you.
 
I'm in.

I haven't participated in the MYB thread much, simply because I'm fairly active "on my own", and didn't feel the need to post what I was doing for my own motivation. That said, I've been wanting to get in a touch better shape lately, as I'm not where I'd like to be.

I somewhat sporadically do pushups and sit ups, but I bet with proper motivation I can beat some of my records. My record for consecutive "good" pushups is 88 (that was ~6 years ago). Right now I tend to do about 30 consecutively, maybe a few times a week. Roughly the same type of thing with situps (I usually do crunches though, they're easier on the back).

And KingMC. I know the feeling. In grad school my average work/school week was 60-90 hrs a week, and I can honestly say that exercise was one of the only things that kept me sane through it all. So good plan on making sure to keep getting some, it should help out a lot :). And good luck with the classes :thumbup:.

Oh, and if I somehow get selected to get a prize, I have exactly what I want in mind (I've been debating on having a custom 1/8in thick 3V BK16 made for months now, although that might be a bit much).

Good luck everyone, and many thanks to CrimsonFalcon for this extremely generous GAW :thumbup:.
 
Thanks Logan, i'll be doing multi-variable calculus and mechanics so this quarter should be exciting :p
 
KingMC said:
Thanks Logan, i'll be doing multi-variable calculus and mechanics so this quarter should be exciting :p
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Sooooo glad I never had to take those ones. I came close (used to be a Mechanical Engineering major, but switched before I had to take either of those), but didn't quite have to do it.

But really, the things that kept me sane, were lifting weights, and ironically the 30 minutes of gaming I set aside to do most days. Those two things let my brain/body relax, and didn't take terribly long to do. Now that I don't live next a campus gym anymore, I've not lifted weights at all, which is why this is more appealing to me, since I can just bust some pushups out in the comfort of my own home.
 
Good idea CF; should be a fun challenge. Although I'm honored to be mentioned in the post, I can assure you it was definitely NOT me rocking any crazy numbers for the challenges lol. I was lucky to get up to the 50 points or whatever to was by the last day. I'm thinking it was Rok (Rokclmb?) who you were remembering - he used to get his points in only one or two runs :)

I've been suffering with a slipped disc for like eight months, so it's been pretty much zero exercise for me this year. (Perks of being self-employed; no one to take over when you're sick or injured, so I just had to gut it out during the busy season). I just had my first chiropractic appointment last week, so hopefully he can get me mobile enough in time. I'll tell you right now there's no hope in h-e-double-hockey-sticks of me winning this challenge, but if anything, this sounds like the perfect motivation to get me back on the horse. Or at least in my trail runners.
 
Just a quick note that adding mileage too quickly to a running regimen can lead to knee problems, Achilles tendon problems, shin splints, plantar fasciitis, and other issues. Best to find a progressive training plan and stick to it, allowing for the fact that you still need to listen to your body.
 
Aikiguy said:
Good idea CF; should be a fun challenge. Although I'm honored to be mentioned in the post, I can assure you it was definitely NOT me rocking any crazy numbers for the challenges lol. I was lucky to get up to the 50 points or whatever to was by the last day. I'm thinking it was Rok (Rokclmb?) who you were remembering - he used to get his points in only one or two runs :)

I've been suffering with a slipped disc for like eight months, so it's been pretty much zero exercise for me this year. (Perks of being self-employed; no one to take over when you're sick or injured, so I just had to gut it out during the busy season). I just had my first chiropractic appointment last week, so hopefully he can get me mobile enough in time. I'll tell you right now there's no hope in h-e-double-hockey-sticks of me winning this challenge, but if anything, this sounds like the perfect motivation to get me back on the horse. Or at least in my trail runners.
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Oh, you're right. For some reason I had associated those crazy numbers with you. Hope you heal quickly. I'm all about getting back on the horse. Since it's an improvement-based challenge, you might do better than you think.

JWheel, yes, this one is 'Heads only. So if you aren't one, and want to participate, you have a month and a half to earn your number before it starts.

Guyon, good point. You could also swim or bike, which are lower impact on those types of things, but worse in other areas (shoulders, for instance).
 
Guyon is right-especially if tou have some mileage already.
Hill sprints take little time' little space, and offer some serious anaerobic benefits...and they're not as daunting as tabata sprints.
Cool idea CF.
 
Looks like I'm in.

Great idea CF! Thanks for the increased motivation! Way to make me get off my increasingly larger behind to start training again. End of October should be enough time for my hand to heal up for those push-ups!
 
KingMC said:
..i'll be doing multi-variable calculus and mechanics so this quarter should be exciting :p
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Not only do I now feel dumber but..
Guyon said:
..knee problems, Achilles tendon problems, shin splints, plantar fasciitis..
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..I now have all these problems just from reading this..

Awesome GAW Crims, can't wait to see what the winners get. If JWheel can temporarily use my BH status to enter, then go nuts bro. My BH number currently reflects the percentage of unfitness I stand at. This challenge would literally kill me..
 
Oh, I wasn't asking for myself 😝

Working 70 hours a week doesn't leave me time.
 
I just may do this. I used to have a six pack. I should get it ripped out again. Still have fours poking out. No weight lifting? Cool thread and great idea.
 
You can hit the gym in order to build muscle mass to help you achieve the goals, but I didn't want to make it mandatory, because not everyone has time or access for the gym to be feasible. Most anyone should be able to do exhaustion body weight workouts at home in 10 minutes. Point of this GAW is to provide a doable and effective way to start getting fit, and to provide a good challenge and prize for those who manage it.
 
Heyo, nice to be mentioned. I'd be interested in the scoring method, I do reps as well as timed these days and I may be able to keep track. Won't be able to do too much on mileage, though, so it'll be interesting how this plays out.

Edit: oops, looks like it's pushups, abs, myb only, no weights. Gonna bow out of this one. Good luck all!
 
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Qeth, if you want to rack up some points in another fashion, I'm open to that too. I just didn't want weights to be mandatory.
 
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