Howdy all,

I wanted to take some time to share my fitness goals. I have been through many times in the past where I wanted to do this or that. Sometimes I wanted to be really strong and body build, other times I wanted to run a lot and be lean. This time I have a compromise of the two extremes.

My goal, being general, is to be able to compete (with my friends) on a high level athletically. This will include sports such as softball, ultimate, running, cycling, swimming with softball really being my biggest focus. I love baseball but can't compete at the level that is available to me and softball I can play with more people and have a lot of fun. Also, as with almost anyone, my secondary goal is too look better and feel better.

Current Status:

6'1" 230lbs (Gained about 15lbs since last year: mostly fat)

I am a Grad Student with classes, a research job and I am also very involved with my church. Time is not in my favor but I do try to make the most of it.

Plan of attack:

I played softball this summer and while I was very happy with my performance, I did not have the necessary power needed to hit home-runs. Therefore, I am beginning my regimen in the weight room. I work out with my room mate (which is a big help for sticking with it) 5 days a week. We do upper body (including core/abs) on MWF and lower body on TTh. Our workouts consist of some of the basics (bench, curls, squat, leg press, etc..) and we throw in a lot of different ways to work out all of our muscles. Also, he has a basketball background so we throw in some fun cardio basketball workouts some days.

For cardio, I currently rely on sports. I'm playing rec league flag football currently and I play ultimate frisbee every Saturday. I'm also trying to work in swimming on TTh with my gf (shes a good swimmer)

Goals:

My goal in the weight room is to get to what I feel is "strong enough" I would like to be able to bench 205x8 and hit a 1 rep max of about 240. I really don't know what I want on squat but I am thinking the 350 range is good for me.

After I reach my weight lifting goals I want to maintain them but not hit the gym as often as I transition into more cardio exercises. Cardio will be focused on speed and agility while also incorporating some long runs and bicycle trips on the weekends.

This is all I really have for now. Feel free to share your thoughts, ideas or encouragement.

In my experience, for sports needs that are mostly not power based (as in not Sumo) and for recreational needs, a circuit training with mixed cardio is a good place to start. Remember speed kills, so when some are worried about the strength pissing match and they pack on mass, you can be faster and lighter if you train right.

Oh, it is good to see another ultimate frisbee player, killer cardio if played in a high level league.

Well that whole thing "worked" for me.

Throwing up a summary (probably more for myself than anything)

I ended up working out most of the semester with my roommate. We sometimes were good at motivating each other, but many times not . In the spring semester I worked out with another friend who is a workout champion and was getting up at 5-530 5 days a week. I gained a lot of strength and got to the point where I benched 205x3. As the semester winded down I really started to tail off because of stress. I got discouraged because I hadn't lost hardly any weight in this entire time despite the fact that I worked out so much.

So, I changed tracks and started a leangains paleo diet. I initially started dropping weight like crazy (8 pounds in the first week), but then found that the cost of the foods I was eating plus the preparation time was killer. I again tailed off and now, nearly one year later i am the same weight as my first post (though I would say stronger).

I guess I'm preparing for my "new school year's" resolution. I do not have classes, am finishing my thesis and should now have a LOT of time to focus. I am going to experiment with new methods. I am also going to stick to the leangains paleo because I loved tailoring my eating that way, but I've also learned many ways to do it reasonably. I am highly considering getting a juicer so that I can incorporate more vegetables into my diet. Also, I am going to cut my workout to 3 intense weight sessions a week. One sprint session, and then get my cardio through sports activities, walking the dog (she loves 2-3 mile walks), etc.

I'll update later on more exact plans. I'm also going to start a personal log in order to help keep track.

Congrats. It's a good one. I really appreciate you that you take such decision. Just be careful that you take balanced diet always. Actually it was too harmful for our health To take access or less vitamins or other  minerals. And also take some exercise. It was also most important.