Building Strength

I take a lot of medication which messes with my energy level. I noticed that I started feeling much more energetic and much healthier/clear headed after I 1) took more Calcium + Vitamin D (one of my medications leaches calcium from my bones) and 2) started juicing more veggies and fruits throughout the day. I have a Jack LaLanne juicer and I juice spinach, carrots and an apple once a day. I also juice oranges and strawberries about every other day. I swear by the stuff. So in addition to everyone else's strength training recommendations, I can honestly say that the 2 actions listed above have helped considerably to keep my energy level up, and my system running well.

As far as nutrition and building strength; Alot of people don't get enough protein. When I was lifting and running hard I was taking/eating almost a gram of protein per lb bodyweight. That would be One hour of lifting and 1.5 hour track workout a day. Fast and slow release protein is good and should be taken right after workout. I'm probably around 0.5 grams/lb body weight now. Other things are important like amino acids (i.e. glutamine among others) are also important and then there are things like creatine..... Nutrition is important and you should read up on it.

Probably should consider getting more sleep as well..oh graduate school! Yeah…you didn't mention graduate school. Once you cut that graduate school thing out you'll have boundless energy, superhuman strength, and the planets will always be in perfect alignment. :bouncing:

Could be nutrition…but if you're at a 3 week point I would suspect that your body has adapted to the stress and you're hitting a plateau. Without knowing specifically what type of strength routine you're doing, I'd offer up these questions: 1)How often do you change/use different exercises? 2)Do you train body parts on the same day, some on one day and others on another, one body part per session, etc…? Do you mix up the order that you train body parts, and if you do more than one exercise per body part, do you mix that up as well? 3)Do you change your rep range? 4)Do you change types of equipment, i.e. cable pull-downs vs. pull-ups or chins? 5)Are you getting enough sleep at night? 6)Are you giving yourself enough time to fully recover between workouts? In my opinion I feel this is a big one as I believe many lifters do not give themselves enough recuperation time. When you get stronger and can lift heavier weight, you put more stress on your body and therefore need more time for your muscles as well as your nervous system to recuperate. Those are a few things to consider imho, I'm sure there's other things to consider. Are you eating enough :banana:

Do you do lots of cardio? Add weights more every 2-3 weeks so that you have to work hard to finish each set. Good for you!!

Thanks everyone...I should have clarified...I am only lifting free weights (5lbs) and doing three exercises with them...(standing bent at the waist 90degree angle: bring arms back to hip, bring arms in front along side ears, and modified flys--arms out to sides level with back). I do 3x12 of each of those exercises every night (as per my physical therapists directive). In the mornings I do the push-ups as mentioned below, and an abdominal sequence and squats and deep knee bends. I have been doing that 6 days a week. I do cardio 6 days a week as well...swimming 2x, running 3-4 times, biking 1-2times. Having said that...should I reduce the push ups to every other day or is it okay to do those everyday? I know when you're lifting you generally want to work groups alternatively by day...but never really thought about that with push ups? Based on your comment below about mixing up the order of exercises...never thought about that as well...I always do the morning routine in the same exact order. Probably should consider getting more sleep as well..oh graduate school! Thanks everyone!

I take a lot of medication which messes with my energy level. I noticed that I started feeling much more energetic and much healthier/clear headed after I 1) took more Calcium + Vitamin D (one of my medications leaches calcium from my bones) and 2) started juicing more veggies and fruits throughout the day. I have a Jack LaLanne juicer and I juice spinach, carrots and an apple once a day. I also juice oranges and strawberries about every other day. I swear by the stuff. So in addition to everyone else's strength training recommendations, I can honestly say that the 2 actions listed above have helped considerably to keep my energy level up, and my system running well. I've always considered getting a juicer...but I'm scared that I will hate the taste of everything that comes out of it? Have you come across any good healthy recipes that taste decent?

So...I'm slowly getting back into things (swimming, running, biking)...just getting in shape in general. I've been doing push-ups in the morning (15 on the perfect push-up/ 20 with my legs on the yoga ball) and lifting (5lb weights, 3x12 Flys, forwards, backs) at night. I felt a lot of strength improvement over the first 2-3 weeks (I've increased the # of push-ups from 10/15) but now...not so much. In fact, I feel like they are much harder now than they were last week at the same repetitions. So my thoughts on the issue is that I am not getting enough nutritional intake to support strength growth. Anyone have suggestions? thoughts? ideas?It's just fatigue. What you should do is do that every three days, not every day. On every third day you can have a new exercise like legs, abs and arms. I like to focus on arms, so I rotate an aerobic day with a strength day.

I've always considered getting a juicer...but I'm scared that I will hate the taste of everything that comes out of it? Have you come across any good healthy recipes that taste decent? Any fruit combination really works well. It's the veggies that get me scared. I have found that if you put an apple in with anything, it all just tastes like apple. Spinach, carrots and apple really just taste like an apple. I'm kind of wimpy when it comes to weird tastes, so I'm sticking with what I know and what I will drink. For me, it was worth the money. I use it 1-2 times a day.

Yeah…you didn't mention graduate school. Once you cut that graduate school thing out you'll have boundless energy, superhuman strength, and the planets will always be in perfect alignment. :bouncing: Haha I CAN'T wait!