It definitely can be a major GI irritant! And if you’re doing carbonated energy drinks, the carbonation can contribute to the problem too. I get that cutting caffeine isn’t likely doable in the foreseeable future, but it’s something to consider trying if/when the opportunity presents itself. If you’d like to talk about other, more feasible changes, just shoot me an email or text and we can chat!
I’ll double down with @QuadQueen I was a total energy drink and diet soda addict. My consumption of both could be measured in gallons per day. And since it was my baseline, I never realized just how much my guts were ALWAYS upset until I just plain stopped consuming them, and suddenly I rediscovered what “healthy” and “normal” is supposed to feel like. It involves NOT having my guts bubbling all day.
I’m also certain I was taking in at least a gram of caffeine a day, if not more. I’m now down to 2 green teas a day, and I actually have to water them down pretty substantially, or I can feel my stomach start to turn. I also imagine it’s why I’ve seen some solid muscular growth these past few training cycles: I don’t have a ton of stimulants eating away at me.
Totally get the need to be “on” in your situation. Part of me wonders it just plain caffeine pills would be a better solution.
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Yes. MOG her dad with your intake at the hotel breakfast buffet. This is the only way.
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Blasphemy!
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Notes:
- first time lifting with the whole ship onboard and at sea. Went in after a long day, gym was absolutely packed, shoulder to shoulder. Half the guys were doing 1 set every 10 minutes, superset with joking around with their buddies for the remainder. Some power racks taken up by two guys doing barbell curls and calf raises respectively, and almost no one training with any intent. Was an irritating experience.
- stole a rack, got to deadlifts. Weights moved well. Didn’t go for a PR with 385, just wanted to hit a solid set without letting bar speed slow, 8 reps was pretty good for that. Also, brought my Versa Grips along. Never really used them for high reps on deads, and discovered that they start to slip pretty badly on higher reps. May be a limiting factor.
- for the 531, I’m doing PR sets and then a few joker doubles or singles if I’m feeling good, but no strain on the jokers.
- belt squat felt weird. Was doing it in my deadlift slippers which was probably a part of it.
- I definitely think I have some sort of stomach thing. Three days of eating ship food. Going out of my way to eat very healthy, small portions, but my guts just gurgling, and I’m so bloated that it took serious effort to get my belt on today, which is crazy considering how it fit monday. Made getting into position tough on deads, but was fine after the first rep.
@jdm135 lol, it’s the best job I never want to do again
@taylortooswift ill have to look into that. Anyone with a mustache that impressive has my complete faith lol
@QuadQueen i am going to live in deep denial of this until forced to address the issue lol. Actually though, I’ll probably reach out when I’m back on land to ask for a bit of stomach advice!
@T3hPwnisher i try not to use caffeine pills, mainly because I get too tempted to pop them like candy when it really gets bad. Just too easy for me to take too much. Maybe I should try again though.
@Strengthish this is the way
@alex_uk hear hear!
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Those bastards deserve the Brig
I’m sure that sloshing around on open water isn’t helping your stomach. Belt squat can be weird until you figure out where to stand. I always use my weightlifting shoes, and usually stand on two small boxes to get a full ROM
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Dude this is exactly what I’ve been putting up with for the last 6 months. However, you forgot the groups of 4+ people lifting together and taking a hour per set.
My ship has a strict 1 hour policy and 30 person cap. So it helps a little but it’s still cramped.
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Well, at least constipation won’t be an issue… lol
I will be here and you know how to get a hold of me!
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Dude… I wish I had pictures from the old days lifting in the ship gym.
I always used the Aft gym unless forced otherwise. The drinking fountain had a weird issue where it would pressure up with air, then spew foamy water all over the place unexpectedly. I had laid my phone there once (while lifting in port on duty) and it got soaked and ruined. (This was a nokia with actual buttons you had to press, mind you)
We would do abs - holding a broomstick behind our heads, doing twisty situps on the decline bench until we almost puked. We called it “crucifixion”.
I’d forgotten (until my recent Vinson visit) about the stairs. But from my berthing - and most likely yours - to the aft gym was about 6 flights of stairs. Thinking about coming down after a leg day…
There were always dumb fucks (a relative term) hogging equipment or taking too long between sets or doing calf raises in the smith machine (our only squat rack).
The stupidest thing I saw (which now maybe isn’t so stupid, but it sure seemed like it) was this dude walking on a max-incline treadmill, holding multiple 45lb plates, sweating his ass off and huffing. Someone asked what he was doing and his response was priceless: “Gotta do what I gotta do to protect my family”. We quoted that mockingly for a long time. But in retrospect, I mean, it’s good practice for carrying multiple 50lb kids out of danger.
It’s busy at the beginning and the end of deployment - motivation is high at each point for different reasons, but it lags in the middle.
Stay cool out there.
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Work for today:
Notes:
- actually looked in the mirror shirtless today. It’s insane how bloated I look. I can feel it too. Makes me feel a bit better about how tight that belt was lol, at least I got some confirmation “yep, it’s the bloat”
- still trying to slim down a bit this underway. Planning to do velocity diet on days I don’t lift, my own attempt at some pseudo modified fasting. Really, just two days a week to limit the damage of cafeteria food.
- actually lifting felt good. Did some high speed turns on my top set of bench that legit almost had me fail the 6th rep, but I was good after that. Again not a true PR set, but capped it when bar speed was slowing more than acceptable.
- amazing the workload I’m able to get done. I think the gyms so busy that I just feel rushed, but I got through this whole workout in 45 minutes. Super short rest periods, which are their own form of adding intensity
- about to rack out, 26 hour day today…. Hoping this won’t be a pattern.
@taylortooswift we don’t have the 1 hour policy, but we do have the 30 person. Ironically, our “fit boss” today set himself up a circuit using a bench, a rack, and a cable. Everyone wanted to murder him lol
@QuadQueen as always, your the best, and the advice is entirely appreciated
@jdm135 i got a good chuckle out of the Nokia story haha! I like the mezz gym myself, though I do steal away to the khaki gym for my conditioning, never anyone there. And the stairs are honestly low key fantastic, I consciously try to walk around a ton as I view it as my sneaky way to stay in shape underway lol
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Work for today: 45 min LISS elliptical
Busy day. Trying to break a sweat every day, and cramming in some cardio does wonders for giving me energy to keep going for a few extra hours. Ironic, but it’s a great mid day boost
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Sounds suspiciously functional. The CrossFit-Industrial complex must be behind this
Squat: 135x5, 235x5, 270x5, 310x7, 335x1, 5x5x235
Db RDL: 3x15x50
Leg extension: 4x15x80
Cable crunch: 3x15x135
Conditioning: 30 min elliptical
Notes:
- Rocking of the ship affects squat more than any other lift. Had to really slow down my descent, lift is a lot tougher. Also, the gym only has smooth Olympic bars, so I was a bit cautious doing low bar. Don’t think I’m going anywhere near PR territory underway, will focus more on quality rep accumulation.
- Need to work on mobility. The time at a desk, the small beds, the cramped quarters, I feel like the tin man without oil. Knee was screaming during squats.
- The de-fatification process is going well. Belt fitting better than a few days ago. Could just be the bloat leaving, but I still look pretty damn bloated, so I think it’s less fat on top of the bloat lol.
- Lower back still sore from deadlifts, but we definitely a weak point on squats today.
- I feel my numbers right now, after a little break from the gym and adjusting to lifting at sea, are pathetic. But then I look at the rest of the gym, and I feel like a hulk lol. I think the quality of people at my gym at home has skewed my standards of what most people can do, and I find myself pleasantly surprised by my strength in comparison to other sailors
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Man the movement of the ship can make 225 either 200 or 315 haha shit sucks
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Deadlift: 315x3, 365x3, 405x+ (5), 315x5, 315x5, 315x5, 315x5, 315x5
Heels elevated goblet squat: 50x12, 60x12, 70x12, 70x15
Superset:
Face pull: 40x20, 50x15, 50x15
Cable crunch: 60x15, 70x15, 70x15
Chest supported db row: 50x10, 50x10, 50x12
Conditioning: 22 min elliptical (cut short by work flail)
Notes:
- definitely need to bring straps. 405x5 is an easy set for me, and it felt it, but the bars just too dang slick, and for the life of me I can’t get a good hold with the versa grips. Annoying, but still getting in decent work, just not able to push like I’d like without grip giving out
- need to start stretching more. Just the ship life has me sore as hell, probably from just not moving as much as I normally do
- sailors are very, very flirty. Which I am very, very much not allowed to reciprocate (to say nothing of the whole “me not being single part”), which has lead to some pretty hysterical gym interactions. The brazenness compared to a public gym is shocking.
- annoyed to cut my conditioning short, but duty calls lol
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Is chalk an option ?
I recently tried liquid chalk and was pleasantly suprised at how hood it was. My gym ran out of chalk (what kind of fkn powerlifting gym even is this). Another member offered me his liquid chalk and it was bang on. So good I decided to buy some for myself to keep in the gym bag for emergencies.
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Lifting chalk isn’t allowed. I actually had the same idea with liquid chalk, thought it would be my workaround. I was very swiftly corrected lol. Great idea though
Work for today
Bench: 135x5, 165x3, 185x3, 205x3+ (8), 235x1, 165x5, 165x5, 165x5, 165x5, 165x12
Lat pulldown: 145x12, 145x12, 160x11, 130x13
Press: 115x12, 115x10, 115x7, 95x8
Kroc row: 100x21
Tricep overhead ext: 70x12, 70x12, 70x9, 60x10
Hammer curl: 30x12, 30x12, 30x10+3
Conditioning: 1 mile run 7:43
Notes:
- bench was garbage. Ship was rocking like crazy, ended up hitting the safety bars on my first 4 reps just from gravity not being straight lol. Definitely had more than 8 reps in me if the set was clean.
- crazy busy in the gym today, so lots of substitutions for accessory work. Shoulders shot after bench
- easy run, just testing waters again, feel like I’m prolly good for sub 7 if I go all out
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You’re making me think twice about hitching over a crooked bar
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Is not caring about what is allowed an option? Or nah
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