Starting in January, a few of us began to do the Dr. Doug McGuff Body by Science workout. It's a type of High Intensity Interval Training that you can read more about in @ScioAgapeOmnis' post here.
For years, I had been doing various workouts, culminating in my once-a-week routine that was basically high intensity training, 1 set, blah blah blah. It was taking upwards of 40 minutes once a week.
Then, @Mark mentioned on FB that he had started the BBS workout, I think... And I realized I had purchased the book years ago but never finished reading it. At the time, it just seemed like "more of what I was already doing". Well, no...
I finished the book, and darn near fell of my chair.
So, as I said, a few of us guys here tried it. I began on 9 January 2018, and my plan was to give it 6 months and then report.
Well, son of a gun, suddenly darn near everyone here and at the Farm is doing it! And we're having some interesting results, so I figured I better report a bit early.
I'll report my results, and others can chime in if they want. Naturally, I am noticing muscle changes. Keep in mind this is a once a week workout for about 15 minutes if you do it alone. So, my workouts are ~3 times shorter and with more interesting effects.
The most interesting thing is the way I am sore after a workout. Immediately after, it's difficult to hold myself up - like, say, if I'm leaning on a table. I start wobbling crazily. By the next day, I'm usually fine. Sometimes, if I perform a repetitive low-intensity action like cleaning leaves out of the pool, my arms will ache very quickly, and then I have to rest for a minute or two. But I'm not incapable of doing stuff like before - IOW I'm not "sore" like I used to be.
This "weakness" is usually very short-lived, and it changes week to week (different muscles).
More interestingly, I'm noticing changes in certain muscles - doing only 5 exercises once a week instead of 12. For example, my arms are bigger in circumference... not because of my biceps (which is what guys usually look for) but because the triceps is larger and stronger. Who knew I even had those muscles?!
I worked them before and nothing happened.
Also, I noticed increased tone, strength, and a feeling of "solidity" in my legs and in my body in general. It's difficult to explain, but I feel more "sturdy" or "solid". This is especially interesting to me as a skinny person. That's exactly what McGuff claims the workout does: it sort of "reconstructs" and strengthens your whole musculoskeletal structure - but whatever, man! I'll take it. I think most of this is just naturally improved posture and movement in general as formerly neglected structures are strengthened. That's my theory based on McGuff's book, anyway.
In terms of the workouts, I have been steadily increasing in strength.
As for other effects, a few of us have noticed certain curious phenomena, such as suddenly having 3 bowel movements within 48 hours - which is definitely not normal! It almost appears to be like a "house-cleaning" effect going on.
It's also interesting to note the changes in other people, which covers everything from increased mobility to more toned muscles to the extremely vague yet visible "looking healthier".
It's even more fun when somebody flexes their arm and says, "Look! My jelly arms are disappearing!"
Since we're all doing neurofeedback at the same time, HIIT as described in Body by Science seems to be an interesting addition. We sort of fell into a kind of "holistic approach" to mind and body - in addition to diet and everything else we've been doing.
Well, the experiment is still ongoing, and it's difficult at this point to say who's on first for sure... But it's interesting enough that no one has quit yet. Given the intensity of the workout, I'd say that's a fairly good indicator that it's having a positive effect on everyone!
We have people ranging in age from the 20's to the 70's, and everybody is just chugging along nicely. So, anyone who visits in the near future, don't be shocked if we look like this:
I'd be interested to hear about others' experiences with this workout!
For years, I had been doing various workouts, culminating in my once-a-week routine that was basically high intensity training, 1 set, blah blah blah. It was taking upwards of 40 minutes once a week.
Then, @Mark mentioned on FB that he had started the BBS workout, I think... And I realized I had purchased the book years ago but never finished reading it. At the time, it just seemed like "more of what I was already doing". Well, no...
I finished the book, and darn near fell of my chair.
So, as I said, a few of us guys here tried it. I began on 9 January 2018, and my plan was to give it 6 months and then report.
Well, son of a gun, suddenly darn near everyone here and at the Farm is doing it! And we're having some interesting results, so I figured I better report a bit early.
I'll report my results, and others can chime in if they want. Naturally, I am noticing muscle changes. Keep in mind this is a once a week workout for about 15 minutes if you do it alone. So, my workouts are ~3 times shorter and with more interesting effects.
The most interesting thing is the way I am sore after a workout. Immediately after, it's difficult to hold myself up - like, say, if I'm leaning on a table. I start wobbling crazily. By the next day, I'm usually fine. Sometimes, if I perform a repetitive low-intensity action like cleaning leaves out of the pool, my arms will ache very quickly, and then I have to rest for a minute or two. But I'm not incapable of doing stuff like before - IOW I'm not "sore" like I used to be.
This "weakness" is usually very short-lived, and it changes week to week (different muscles).
More interestingly, I'm noticing changes in certain muscles - doing only 5 exercises once a week instead of 12. For example, my arms are bigger in circumference... not because of my biceps (which is what guys usually look for) but because the triceps is larger and stronger. Who knew I even had those muscles?!
I worked them before and nothing happened.Also, I noticed increased tone, strength, and a feeling of "solidity" in my legs and in my body in general. It's difficult to explain, but I feel more "sturdy" or "solid". This is especially interesting to me as a skinny person. That's exactly what McGuff claims the workout does: it sort of "reconstructs" and strengthens your whole musculoskeletal structure - but whatever, man! I'll take it. I think most of this is just naturally improved posture and movement in general as formerly neglected structures are strengthened. That's my theory based on McGuff's book, anyway.
In terms of the workouts, I have been steadily increasing in strength.
As for other effects, a few of us have noticed certain curious phenomena, such as suddenly having 3 bowel movements within 48 hours - which is definitely not normal! It almost appears to be like a "house-cleaning" effect going on.
It's also interesting to note the changes in other people, which covers everything from increased mobility to more toned muscles to the extremely vague yet visible "looking healthier".
It's even more fun when somebody flexes their arm and says, "Look! My jelly arms are disappearing!"
Since we're all doing neurofeedback at the same time, HIIT as described in Body by Science seems to be an interesting addition. We sort of fell into a kind of "holistic approach" to mind and body - in addition to diet and everything else we've been doing.
Well, the experiment is still ongoing, and it's difficult at this point to say who's on first for sure... But it's interesting enough that no one has quit yet. Given the intensity of the workout, I'd say that's a fairly good indicator that it's having a positive effect on everyone!
We have people ranging in age from the 20's to the 70's, and everybody is just chugging along nicely. So, anyone who visits in the near future, don't be shocked if we look like this:
I'd be interested to hear about others' experiences with this workout!
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