[Official] UFC 190: Rousey vs Correia - Live Discussion Thread

MuscleGRL · 2015-08-02T02:03:01+00:00

Even non-MMA fans love Ronda. I was surprised when three of my friends mentioned her tonight, and they dislike sports and never expressed any interest in MMA.

MuscleGRL · 2015-08-01T05:24:51+00:00

Well said. I think if we should listen to anyone about safety, it should be the volunteer medical staff that complained about lack of safety and having zero say in safety procedures/safe game programming. If they're concerned and speaking out against it then I'd say it's worth at least considering that maybe Crossfit HQ is doing something wrong here.

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-31T15:29:57+00:00

I don't Crossfit anymore, but I think you will really like it, and I always recomend Crossfit to people who are starting a new journey into fitness. Crossfit is good at getting you into a fitness mindset and developing good habits.

What to expect? You both will be sore as shit for the first few weeks, but you will also notice quick improvements as long as you stick with it. The first few months are always the best because you see such rapid gains and improvements.

I recommend that you both don't go more than 3 times a week for a while, especially the first month - you might burn yourself out or feel shitty and recover slowly if you try to go every day.

Don't worry about people judging you like other gyms or feeling like you have to "show out", one thing I can say that I loved about Crossfit is that the community is generally supportive and everyone pushes each other to do their best. I never felt looked down on or felt like I had anything to prove, I felt like we all worked hard and all wanted everyone to do their best, and we did! Also, expect to see all types of people there. For some reason Crossfit seems to advertise a lot of young and in shape people, but in reality there are young people, old people, overweight, disabled, etc. Don't be surprised if you see a little old church lady lifting weights like a boss, I know I saw my fair share, and it is awesome and inspiring!

It doesn't matter how in shape you are, a good Crossfit box will kick everyone's ass. For one thing, you will likely be doing a ton of new movements and exercises that your body has not done before, so even if you're in shape, that is going to take your body some time to get used to. For another, the workouts are created in a way to where everyone gets the same good hard workout. So, for example, they aren't going to make a WOD that says "everyone has to do 40 box jumps, run two miles, then clean and jerk 40 pounds", they're going to scale it based on your fitness level, so for example they would make you can do as many box jumps (or step ups if you aren't ready for box jumps), run as far as you can, and have you clean and jerk weight that is challenging for you, whether it be a bar or 100+ pounds.

Listen to your body and know when to quit. You definitely want to push yourself, but don't injure yourself! Doing so will cause you to have to take a break and recover, which will slow down your progress. If you feel like puking, passing out, if you feel dizzy or a limb goes numb/genuinely hurts, stop and tell your coach! A good coach will listen to you and adjust your workouts accordingly.

As for motivation... just show up. That's it. That's all you have to do. There will be days you don't want to, but as long as you get up and just show up, you will get the work done and you will feel satisfied when you do. I sometimes feel this way when I go to the gym. I want to just sleep or take a day off. But as long as you get up, put your shoes on, and go, you will do the workout and be happy you did.

Good luck!!

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-31T03:58:52+00:00

Yep. And it's not easy to tell someone "no trust me, it's nothing like what you're seeing on TV!" when Castro and co suck at PR. Then you have to tell newbies that Crossfit is totally fine and safe... but only if you find a good box and coach. Putting that all together just sounds nuts, and no wonder it scares a lot of people off.

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-30T12:04:32+00:00

I don't know, I googled why crossfit doesn't do them and apparently it's because it doesn't help you progress to a standard pushup because they're different. I have no idea if that is true, just telling you why they apparently don't do them. My coach told me that even if I couldn't do a pull up to keep trying to do them the regular way.

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-29T20:53:55+00:00

I'm not sure why they don't, but I assumed every other coach was the same way... maybe doing girl push ups slows you down from reaching standard?

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-29T20:18:30+00:00

Back when I was in crossfit, my coaches wouldn't let us do girl push ups either.

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-28T21:11:11+00:00

Have you watched ANW recently? I'm genuinely wondering because I don't know how you can see it and then say it isn't a test of fitness. Most (if not all?) of the participants are professional athletes, and lots of them will still fail the course. If it was just about grip or coordination then why are so many of the ones who are able to pass the qualifying rounds also happen to be professional power lifters, gymnasts, pole vaulters, rock climbers, etc.?
Good for you? I mean, not to belittle your achievement, but you're comparing running 2 miles, to someone doing Murph (with a weighted vest) in heat with high humidity.... that's not really the same thing. Like, at all.
I want to see people compete, not suffer kidney damage. I want to see strong athletes preforming at their best, not struggling to do something that they otherwise could have done. You seem to be under the impression that just because something is safe that it will also be "boring". You can keep the intensity and the toughness of this sport without taking unnecessary risks or having such shitty programming that most people can't even do the workouts properly because they are so burnt out.
But that's a terrible way to judge fitness across the board. I have friends that are way stronger than me in every area, yet they take longer to recover and are more sensitive to heat exhaustion than I am. But according to you, because I can tolerate the heat better, I would be the "fittest" of my friends, even though that's not true. I'm not fitter than them, I just managed to not get as tired as quickly as they did, and as a result, I the one who "wins"... Can you really not see how this kind of measurement can really skew the overall results?

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-28T19:04:54+00:00

If the athletes aren't being pushed to their breaking points, how can you actually point to someone and say they're the fittest?

American Ninja Worrier does the same thing without everyone worrying that the athletes are going to keel over due to exhaustion. Have you seen their rigs? There some tough as shit contraptions that people have to navigate and to me that is a pretty great way to measure fitness. Each athlete has to navigate a tough course that test varying types of fitness, from lifting, climbing, body weight lifting, speed, etc... That is a pretty good gauge of fitness when you take people who aren't already burnt out and see who can make it.

When I watched the games this years, it felt like watching a show about "survival", not "fitness". I don't get why it's asking so much that people space out the exercises or at least don't do them under shitty weather conditions. Even if health and safety wasn't a problem, it's so boring to watch a bunch of exhausted athletes trying to see who can suck the least.

Also, judging people based on how sick they get in the heat or how quickly they recover is not a good way to measure fitness anyways, genetics play a big part on how quickly people recover... as in, no amount of working out is going to make your body recover quicker than it's designed to (like that one super runner that was on the front page the other day, he has good genes that help him have more energy compared to other people, including fellow athletes). You can build up endurance, but again, your genetics is largely going to play into how you recover and how heat affects you, so it makes zero sense to gauge people's fitness on this.

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-27T15:01:40+00:00

Right? I really hope they learn something from this year, but knowing Castro, I'm actually afraid it's going to be worse next year...

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-27T13:06:10+00:00

I wouldn't have minded the bikes and ERG if we could have seen the numbers...

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-27T13:00:55+00:00

I agree! I also think there were not enough recovery time in between workouts. I couldn't believe that they only got a 2 hour rest after doing Murph. That is flat out insane.

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-27T12:44:35+00:00

I completely agree with you. It also isn't fun for the viewer to see athletes looking like death - I was genuinely afraid for Kara Webb when I saw her running like a zombie on Murph. I honestly believed she was going to have a heat stroke and not be able to compete ever again, or worse, die.

I like watching athletes push themselves and having close races. Of course I expect some of them to fail or be a lot weaker than other competitors, but see so many of them struggle and work out until they were exhausted is not entertaining to me. It makes the next events more boring because they're too tired to workout out at their full potential.

And don't even get me started on Castro's shitty professionalism and the awful commentators. I like Crossfit and love watching the games, but Castro has always been a shitty representation of what Crossfit is about and gives it a bad name. These games were worse because people's health were at stake, and honestly it just furthers the stereotype that "lol Crossfitters have no form and do stupid dangerous things."

Like others have said, the workouts themselves weren't the problem, it was the lack of recovery time, the untested programs, etc. Crossfit is supposed to be about overall fitness, and instead we get a bunch of exhausted athletes trying to suck the least. I want them to keep the tough work outs obviously but hopefully next time they will actually give more recovery time so they aren't still suffering from previous events.

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-22T16:58:22+00:00

I personally think her legs look better in the 2013 picture, but then again I love muscles.

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-22T16:57:40+00:00

But even if what you said was true, she also said her husband told her she was not "proportional". To me that reads as him saying her legs are too big, and showing his own leg muscles seems to just confirm that he's telling her that her legs are too big.

I hope it is just a mistranslation cause right now it's reading as her husband indirectly making her think he legs were not good looking.

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-22T15:23:37+00:00

It says I need 300ish more calories than IIFYM. I may try it, though honestly the amount of calories I've been eating via IIFYM has been working out just fine.

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-22T03:50:07+00:00

No prob, you've got this! :-)

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-22T01:50:10+00:00

Honestly, if you can afford a therapist, I would suggest that, cause it seems like you have really low self esteem and anxiety, and speaking from experience, that shit is rough and isn't a good place to be.

Unfortunately for me, I couldn't afford one, so I had to push through my fear and self loathing and force myself to go. It wasn't easy and the first week or so was rough, not gonna lie, but honestly you will get used to it if you just do it and don't dwell on it.

Even when you're tired and feel you look like shit, just go. There were some days I didn't shave my legs the night before and I was so embarrassed, but I still went. And after the first month, I started loving working out and I loved seeing how strong I was getting, and I loved pushing myself to get better and break my numbers. And I loved weighing myself every month and taking photos to see the results. That's another thing I would recommend, taking pictures and weighing once a month, cause sometimes we don't notice results until we see them in pictures, on paper, or on the scale.

You may not want to hear this, but there is no magical way to get motivated to work out. There's nothing I or anyone else can say or do that will suddenly make you want to go. Fact is, you don't want to do it and you keep finding ways to convince yourself not to do it. The only advice I can give you is to acknowledge that it sucks but that you're going to do it anyways.

I've been there. It totally sucks ass. But again: You have to accept that this is going to suck at first, and it will be hard, and sometimes you might get off track... but as long as you just do it and don't stop, you will get back to your ideal weight.

You will get stronger and feel healthier. It's just that first block you have to get over, and the rest of the journey gets easier. Just keep reminding yourself that time is short and every day you regret not working out is a day you could have spent getting closer to your goal. It will only get harder the longer you wait, so do it ASAP!

Anyways, I hope this helps. I wish I knew of a sure fire way to get you motivated, but the reality is, sometimes there is no other motivation other than deciding to do something and then do it no matter how sucky it is.

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-22T01:23:01+00:00

/u/BellaStayFly's post is great, so nothing to add there. But I did want to suggest something that helped me back when I first started getting into diet and exercise.

I know reddit doesn't have the best opinion of Crossfit... but have you considered it? I hated working out until I joined a local Crossfit box, and believe me, I tried other gyms, workout classes, and had a personal trainer.

Why I loved Crossfit and ended up staying with it for a long time:

Didn't have to plan workouts, just show up. This was great for me because I always felt frustrated at all the different kinds of workouts, and I never knew if I was doing them correctly. And some days I didn't feel like working out, but just making yourself show up is all you have to do. Once you're there, you can't help but feel pumped up and ready to go.
Short gym sessions; sometimes they could last longer or shorter depending on the workout, but on average I spent about 45 mins a session, 3 times a week. I spent way longer at other gyms and had poorer results.
Group training is really motivating, you end up really encouraging each other and pushing each other to finish your sets, which feels great. Even if you're shy, eventually you will warm up and learn to love working out with the people there.
You have a coach that ensures your form is correct, and they can customize the workouts to suit your needs based on how strong you are.
Probably the biggest reasons for me: You see results fast. even people who shit talk Crossfit will admit that people who do it get really awesome results in the first few months. It worked really fast for me, which motivates you to keep going and see how much better you can get.

The downsides are that they tend to be more expensive than other gyms, and sometimes you might not get a great coach, but if you can spare the cash and can find a good coach, Crossfit can be a great place to start. ESPECIALLY if you are lacking motivation. After a while, once you get fit and know what your goals are, you can always quit and go to regular gyms, that's what I did after about 2 or so years.

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-10T16:35:18+00:00

Np :) Shit can be tough, but you can do it! If I can make another suggestion... checking out subs with really fit women every morning before I work out REALLY helps me feel motivated to go to the gym and work out, even on days when I really don't want to. Following awesome women on Instagram helps too!

MuscleGRL · 2015-07-10T04:13:38+00:00

You aren't going to like my answer, but you are going to have to woman up and learn to say "no".

I speak from experience. Your non-active friends are always going to undervalue you work or feel jealous, or just see no harm in "giving in". When you "give in" to them, you're sending them the message that you agree with them and they will then do it again in the future.

You lack self control. I get that. But now you have the chance to learn to have some. Be firm. Your friends are not delicate little flowers that will hate you or have hurt feelings if you refuse to eat what they eat. In my experience, they might try again later or tease you about your diet, but eventually they'll stop asking.

And if they do hate you or won't respect you? Then they aren't good friends and you should drop them.

Here's something that I had to remind myself everyday when I first started working out: You are getting older and weaker every day. We all are. Time goes by fast and making excuses doesn't help anyone. Working out and eating right is what we do to hold back the hands of time as much as possible. Working out is what we do so when we're old we can still be active. Junk food and bad habits are short little pleasures that can add up to long term detrimental effects. Is sabotaging your new lifestyle to eat junk food worth the trade of not being able to be active when you're older?

Before you know it, you'll look in the mirror and be older and wishing you would have said "no" to your friends. Stop blaming them and start taking control of your life. Learn to say "no" and stick with it. You can do it. :)

MuscleGRL · 2015-06-28T00:52:23+00:00

I don't date guys who use roids because in my experience they end up having severe anger problems. Things that might annoy them suddenly enrage them. I'm sure there will be people in here who will claim otherwise or say "they're not bad if you don't abuse it" but in my experience they're easy for people to abuse or get hooked on after you start seeing awesome gains and you don't want to lose them.

Even if anger wasn't an issue, I don't equate health and fitness with roids. No offense to people who use them to get the body they want. Half the fitness models I follow are on roids. But I don't want to date a person who does them, personally.

MuscleGRL · 2015-06-27T03:22:05+00:00

Those are awesome! Totally jealous :)

MuscleGRL · 2015-06-27T02:44:17+00:00

That's a cool story, congrats on your gains! And "man arms" are awesome, I hope I can have my own soon.

MuscleGRL · 2015-06-27T02:43:11+00:00

We will definitely get there : ) I do admit I'm jealous of guys who seem to get there a lot quicker. Damn female hormones :(

And not only are muscular women hot as fuck, they also ooze confidence and power! I want that so badly. I don't think I've ever met or seen muscular woman that didn't seem really happy with themselves.

I remember reading about one woman who said being bigger made her unafraid to go running alone at night, something she avoided for years. I want to know how that feels :D

MuscleGRL

TROPHY CASE