The ~New~ SWF GYM! Newbies and New Years Resolution Peeps Wanted!

[theeboredone]

I lost my before pics -_-. Kinda annoyed at that.

 

[Attila_]

I <WAS> going to Apex, before literally everything collapsed at once.

Heard about this... We were going to be housed together.

Hope everything worked out ok.

 

[Vermanubis]

Yeah, I was looking forward to meeting you and all the other internationals.

But yeah, thanks, dude, everything worked out alright. Just not the way I wanted it to.

 

[SharkAttack]

Weekly Summary #4 for 2013

1/21/2013 - 1/27/2013

Running: 46 Miles in 7:05:26 2013 Total: 168.40 Miles in 26:01:21 (2,331.60 Miles from 2013 Goal)

Biking: 0 Miles 2013 Total: 3.90 Miles (996.10 Miles from 2013 Goal)
Swimming: 0 Miles 2013 Total: 0.50 Miles (99.5 Miles from 2013 Goal)

Lifting: Lifted 3x (Monday, Wednesday, Friday) Did various arm machines, some free weights, and some leg machines.

I planned on getting in the pool this week, but it was either busy or closed when I went to lift. I figure something out to adjust swimming into the week, but its been somewhat hard to do so as of late. So glad I lifted.

As for biking, it has been really cold of late, but still I could have got some in if I dressed warm. So pathetic to not be biking somewhat, even if it's just a little.

 

[Vixen]

Hey guys. I'm at a loss. I hit my weight goal of 100 lbs lost, but I'm still pretty fat. I have absolutely no idea where to go from here. I already have a ridiculous amount of loose skin, and a lot of body fat left to lose. About 28% from my original 46%. Most of my existing body fat is on my stomach, sides, and arms.

5' 4.9", or 164.9cm

original measurments:

240 lbs
46% body fat
neck: 18 inches
Waist: 46 inches
hips: 48 inches
wrist: 12 inches

currently:

140 lbs
28% body fat
waist: 30 inches
hips: 36 inches
neck: 10 inches
wrist: 6 inches

 

[Claire Diviner]

Have you tried weight lifting? I mean, lifting light weights for toning? There's also sit-ups for the stomach too. Try experimenting with different exercises and toning.

I know this may sound weird coming from a fatty like me, but I was at one point a workout fiend about 4 or so years ago.

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

Hey guys. I'm at a loss. I hit my weight goal of 100 lbs lost, but I'm still pretty fat. I have absolutely no idea where to go from here. I already have a ridiculous amount of loose skin, and a lot of body fat left to lose. About 28% from my original 46%. Most of my existing body fat is on my stomach, sides, and arms.

5' 4.9", or 164.9cm

original measurments:

240 lbs
46% body fat
neck: 18 inches
Waist: 46 inches
hips: 48 inches
wrist: 12 inches

currently:

140 lbs
28% body fat
waist: 30 inches
hips: 36 inches
neck: 10 inches
wrist: 6 inches

Have you considered seeing a dermatologist and asking them about removing the loose skin in addition to seeing if you would be someone who would benefit from lipo.

What are you eating. Do you work a stressful job. How often do you exercise and what is your workout routine like. What weight are you aiming for.

 

[Vermanubis]

Mizuki, are you entirely sure those stats are accurate?

The difference between the two percentages accounts for only a 70lbs fat loss, which would mean you lost 30lbs of muscle, which is extraordinarily unlikely, unless you've been medically atrophied.

 

[Vixen]

Have you considered seeing a dermatologist and asking them about removing the loose skin in addition to seeing if you would be someone who would benefit from lipo.

What are you eating. Do you work a stressful job. How often do you exercise and what is your workout routine like. What weight are you aiming for.

I don't have insurance, otherwise I would.

I'm following a ketogenic diet. I originally based it off atkins diet, but modified it as I did research, and learned about my limits. Currently I eat around 12-20g net carbs, mostly from vegetables, cocoa, and tree nuts. LOTS of soluble fiber.

I eat around 65/30/5 Protein/Fat/Carbs

Exercise is 5 days a week. I run mon/wed/fri, and I work a very labor-intensive job Sat/Sun

Verm:

Did you take in to account atrophy due to hormone therapy, and keto?

Also when it comes to physical stuff like fitness, health, etc, I'm biologically male, and should be treated as such. What works for a biological female would not for me, though remember that hormonally I'm at female levels, so that does make an impact on how things affect me.

Also body fat % may not be 100% accurate. I based mostly everything off digital callipers. My loose skin might be an issue, though

 

[Vermanubis]

Yeah, I edited to account for medical atrophy. Though, still, 30lbs is a LOT of muscle to lose if you weren't already really muscular (talking bodybuilder in this case).

In any case, I can't imagine that at 140 you'd have that high of a bf%, so it's probably the calipers misreading. Just basing off of the pictures I've seen of you in LP, you don't at all look like you have a lot of weight to lose. I mean, you could hide it well with your clothing choice, but I think the problem right now might just be the loose skin. I have female friends who weigh in similarly and at similar heights, and being female, they're only moderately overweight.

Though, the best thing you can do to shed the obvious fat is commit to doing routine cardio--30 minutes of moderate intensity biking, swimming, jogging, etc. If you want to get REALLY slim, like, 10% and below, that'll take some more in-depth work. Once you get to the lower spectrum of bf%, diet becomes less and less effective.

Edit: I strongly disagree with the keto diet, primarily because it's meant for patients with neurological disorders. The best way to lose weight, in my opinion, insofar as dieting, is to just eat smart, rather than having a prescriptive diet. Keto does have known side effects, and in all cases I've seen of people on the keto diet, they lose some weight, but once it comes to the last 30+lbs or so, it just sticks like cement. In my (admittedly unprofessional) opinion, I think it has something to do with how it affects one's metabolism.

 

[Vixen]

Eating "smart" is subjective, though. As long as it's high protein, moderate fat, low carb, it works. How you approach it from there is entirely up to the dieter. I went with Keto, and paleolithic, because of the abundance of concrete science backing the approaches.

also, ZERO carb keto is perscribed to people with neurological disorders, not carb-inclusive keto.

 

[Vermanubis]

Aye, that it is, to a degree. The way I look at it, is that I've never heard of any diseases being linked to a balanced diet of carbs, protein and fats. I have, however, heard of health detriments linked to keto. Not to mention, both keto and paleolithic are in their infancy. As for the zero carb thing, it's impossible to live without carbs. I think the ratio for severe epileptics is probably similar to yours.

All that aside though, it's anyone's call what they want to do. Again, I just disagree because the diet is young, and risks a lot of unknowns of a primarily fat/protein diet versus a primarily carb/protein diet. I can't help but feel that the tremendous amounts of fat ingested with the keto diet alters one's metabolism is a less-than-healthy way. No doubt results come, but the question is at what cost. I guess my attitude towards the idea is the adage, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

Well, no duh. Your body chemistry is generally more exergonic since you're breaking down triglycerides to form fatty acids as a basic precursor which is also being broken down to form ketone bodies which is getting cycled through the bloodstream and bypasses the blood brain barrier being used as energy by the entire body instead of carbohydrates. Also these ketone bodies are cycled through other pathways and stripped likely of carbons to form the backbone of amino acids and other relevant molecules to tissue growth instead of using carbohydrates, since that is being highly restricted. Your body has a lower pH than if you weren't on the diet, leading to effects such as a fruity breath and the diet encourages the person on it in order to work out because bone density is compromised from a long and consistent period spent on the diet. Praxis though has been on the diet and he knows a lot more about it than I do. I think he has made some posts in this thread with pages on the topic. I'm too lazy to look them up, if I wasn't I would quote them for you in collapse tags. By complications, I believe that you're immediately thinking of cardiovascular complications like a heart attack, atherosclerosis/hypertension, hyperlipidemia, angina, arrhythmia which are already among the most prevalent causes of death in the United States. And maybe, hepatic toxicity, osteoporosis, liver & kidney failure. I dunno, there might be studies on it. But then again it is hard to have anyone do something long term and make sure they commit to it so that their mileage does not vary.

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

Edit: Sorry double post.

 

[Vixen]

i've been on Keto since Sept. 2011. Overall health is actually significantly higher overall. I also helped some athletic friends of mine, and the only reason they stopped keto is because they missed stuff like burritos/fried food. They liked the better energy, and they liked how little they had to eat to be satisfied.

:3

Also paleo isn't young. It's how we eat for most of our evolution. I also wouldn't call research going back to the 50s and 60s on keto diets young either.

 

[#HBC | Acrostic]

I don't believe in anything unless it is FDA approved. Not even the body and blood of Jesus Christ.

 

[Vermanubis]

Hepatic toxicity is among the foremost, I'd imagine, Acrostic. Eating too much of any particular macronutrient can adversely affect at least one kind of organ. Too much fat can, even before cardiovascular issues, overload one's liver. Too much protein can lead to renal complications, and too much carbohydrate kills the pancreas.

@Mizuki: Like I said, it's yours and anyone's choice what they want to do. I just still think it's an unnecessary risk. Out of curiosity though, by what are you measuring your health? e.g., vitals, triglycerides, etc.

 

[Thundermistress]

I personally think low carb's a little overrated, totally get we shouldn't be going overboard but I personally started losing weight once I actually put some carbs back into my diet, handfull of rice here, a little bit of wholegrain pasta there. Certainly makes eating more enjoyable for me on a whole.

Mizuki it sounds like you're generally on the right track in regards to exercise by running etc and keeping up the cardio, I think Claire's suggestion of using weights to tone isn't a bad one too. I was going to the gym for quite a while and keeping up a very steady routine until I started noticing my body changing, so might just be one of those times where you also need to be patient and keep pushing on.

I unintentionally lost 10kgs/22lbs over 2 years, unintentionally as I was just at the gym for fitness rather than weight loss, so it's by no means always a fast process right?

 

[NeverKnowsBest]

My lifts went up 10lb this week =)

Question about building muscle and size.

So for those who don't know what I'm about, last January I was 325lb, went on a low carb high protein diet, and did cardio for an hour a day and lost 100 lbs in 4 months (definitely not the best choice now that I think in retrospect.) I say this because a lot of muscle was lost with the fat and I became quite weak.

I started lifting in July curling like 15 lb dumbbells and benching 30 lb dumbells. Now a days I curl 45 lb dumbells and can bench 55-60 lbs. I noticed that my arms are getting a lot more toned but, I don't really feel like much size is coming on them. I know people say lift heavy to get more size but I lift as heavy as possible and I feel that getting toner is the only result.

Also I feel that it is important to know that I am still trying to lose more weight. I am shooting for about 180 with muscle.

Is it possible to gain size when I'm essentially on a cut?

 

[Vixen]

it's typically not possible to gain/lose at the same time without tricky dieting. it's usually one or the other.

there are health risks to keto diets, but they're extremely rare if dieting properly.

i was getting blood tests to determine triglycerides/cholesterol levels, etc. my blood levels were usually god tier just by not eating many carbs. There is a lot of empirical evidence that eating as few complex carbs as possible will significantly improve your overall health. Lowering your insulin saturation is usually the first step in a healthier body, and wheat/starch/corn are the three biggest causes of elevated blood sugar levels. Not sugar. The pasta you just eat, not the chocolate bar will affect your blood sugar, and weight more than anything else.

BTW I eat lots of home made chocolate. organic cocoa is suuuuper fibrous. Like 9g fiber per serving.

 

[himynameisruss]

Have you tried weight lifting? I mean, lifting light weights for toning? There's also sit-ups for the stomach too. Try experimenting with different exercises and toning.

I know this may sound weird coming from a fatty like me, but I was at one point a workout fiend about 4 or so years ago.

sit ups will do nothing more to help with getting rid of stomach fat than running, push ups, deadlifts or any other calorie burning exercise. no such thing as spot reduction.

 

[Claire Diviner]

sit ups will do nothing more to help with getting rid of stomach fat than running, push ups, deadlifts or any other calorie burning exercise. no such thing as spot reduction.

I suppose. I guess it just tones and tightens the abs. I mean, I'm no personal trainer. lol

On that note, I may get an elliptical at some point early this year. :3

 

[himynameisruss]

I suppose. I guess it just tones and tightens the abs. I mean, I'm no personal trainer. lol

On that note, I may get an elliptical at some point early this year. :3

i'd have to say that most of the population trying to lose weight think that by working out a target area they want to specifically lose fat at, that the fat is going to burn at that area specifically.

while working out a specific area of course does build muscle mass there, it will not cause your body to specifically burn the fat from that location.

your body burns fat from wherever it wants, regardless of what calorie-burning activity you are performing.



tl;dr

if you want to burn fat, don't worry about what exercise you're doing. if you're burning calories in a deficit, you're burning fat.

My lifts went up 10lb this week =)

Question about building muscle and size.

So for those who don't know what I'm about, last January I was 325lb, went on a low carb high protein diet, and did cardio for an hour a day and lost 100 lbs in 4 months (definitely not the best choice now that I think in retrospect.) I say this because a lot of muscle was lost with the fat and I became quite weak.

I started lifting in July curling like 15 lb dumbbells and benching 30 lb dumbells. Now a days I curl 45 lb dumbells and can bench 55-60 lbs. I noticed that my arms are getting a lot more toned but, I don't really feel like much size is coming on them. I know people say lift heavy to get more size but I lift as heavy as possible and I feel that getting toner is the only result.

Also I feel that it is important to know that I am still trying to lose more weight. I am shooting for about 180 with muscle.

Is it possible to gain size when I'm essentially on a cut?

if you're cutting you're burning fat by burning more calories than you're in-taking. this is the exact opposite of what you want to do when you're trying to build muscle. when you're cutting, you can expect to be either stagnant or lose mass.

regarding using higher weight to gain more mass, the optimal reps per set to gain mass are from 8-12. anything higher and you're building endurance and not strength.

 

[SharkAttack]

Weekly Summary #5 for 2013

1/28/2013 - 2/3/2013

Running: 12.2 Miles in 1:46:59 2013 Total: 180.60 Miles in 27:48:20 (2,319.40 Miles from 2013 Goal)

Biking: 0 Miles 2013 Total: 3.90 Miles (996.10 Miles from 2013 Goal)
Swimming: 0 Miles 2013 Total: 0.50 Miles (99.5 Miles from 2013 Goal)

Lifting: Lifted 3x (Monday, Wednesday, Friday) Did various arm machines, some free weights, and some leg machines.

I did worse this week than last week for running mileage. I did some speed training on Friday and felt an improvement in running 12 400's on the track compared to running 12 400's on the same track the day after Christmas in December.

In terms of lifting I feel stronger and have gone up on weights in some areas. I horrible when it comes to names of machines I've been on and should right them down. Some leg machines at my YMCA are called "Abductor ###" which doesn't describe anything. I do some free weights as well doing bicep curls. My muscle anatomy sucks, so I really can't explain more, which is very sad.

It's been icy and snowy, therefore riding a bike on land hasn't been possible. I rode slightly on a stationary bike, but didn't count it. I only rode it for about 8 minutes anyways and there was no mileage marker on the screen.

Didn't get in the pool last week, but today I finally got in and swam 18 laps. Even though I haven't been swimming, I felt stronger in the water and not as tired when I finished.

 

[deepseadiva]

Fitocracy is the shiz now omg. If anyone here uses it (which you should if you have a smart phone) - I'm MannyPerez on it. Add me!

 

[SharkAttack]

Weekly Summary #6 for 2013

2/4/2013 - 2/10/2013

Running: 4.2 Miles in 38:49 2013 Total: 184.80 Miles in 28:27:09 (2,315.20 Miles from 2013 Goal)

Biking: 0 Miles 2013 Total: 3.90 Miles (996.10 Miles from 2013 Goal)

Swimming: 0.50 Miles 2013 Total: 1 Mile (99 Miles from 2013 Goal)

Lifting: Lifted 4x (Monday X2, Wednesday, Friday) Did various arm machines, some free weights, and some leg machines.

I didn't do squat in terms of running. On the flipside I think I finally have a routine down to get in lifting, running and swimming each week. Biking is something I still need to work on. Thankfully the snow and ice are gone now, so I plan on biking while making errands more often now.

Weekly Summary #7 for 2013

2/11/2013 - 2/17/2013

Running: 22.6 Miles in 3:29:12 2013 Total: 207.40 Miles in 31:56:21 (2,292.60 Miles from 2013 Goal)

Biking: 0 Miles 2013 Total: 3.90 Miles (996.10 Miles from 2013 Goal)

Swimming: 0.50 Miles 2013 Total: 1.5 Miles (98.5 Miles from 2013 Goal)

Lifting: Lifted 2x (Monday and Friday) Did various arm machines, some free weights, and some leg machines.

I started off last week running sharp, but then didn't run for three days straight. Definitely irking when things get in the way. I have discovered thankfully that I can sleep from 3 AM to 7 AM and function quite well. Anything over 4 hours of sleep and I start to get to comfortable sleeping or something. I got in the pool only once, and yeah...I didn't bike again. I must not want the biking bad enough.

As of late when I lift I get dizzy near the end of my workout. I don't know if it's too much stress on myself when lifting, or if I'm not doing something else right. I tend to put just enough weight on each machine, or use just enough weight on a free weight to do 12 reps before my arms or legs get tired. Sometimes I go beyond 12, but that's if 12 was easier than expected, then I might go to 14 reps or 16. I have noticed that when I've incorporated my situps in my workout, I begin to feel this way as oppose to before. I usually get 20-22 in the first set, then do 25 pushups. I come back later on after doing some arm/leg machines, then get about 15 situps in followed by 25 more pushups. I get about 10-12 situps followed by 20-25 pushups later on after doing a few more machines of arms or legs.

I need to write down the machines I use and then put down the weights so I'm not so vague. It would also be nice to see how much improvement there is over the weeks.

 

[SnackAttack]

Went above 150 on my squat today! I did 165. Also, I'm so close to my goal weight of 150 that I can almost feel it. I feel like I'm gonna weight 160-165 by the time I go home this summer.

I also did preacher curls today. Those hurt so ****ing bad. They get results, tho.

 

[Vixen]

SharkAttack why do you use machines? There's a lot of documentation discouraging the use of them, and discouraging the use of spot-training. *free weight, compound purist.*

Any suggestions for beginning to run? I can barely run for 10 minutes without feeling like my whole body is going to collapse on itself.

 

[GoldShadow]

Went above 150 on my squat today! I did 165.

Nice! I think you and I are in a similar boat in terms of squatting. I've been working out seriously for several years now, but had completely neglected legs until relatively recently. As a result, my legs are relatively weak. I think I hit 155 or 165 last week.

Interestingly, I've finally got my form down such that my legs are properly positioned, I don't get knee pain, and I don't hurt my back, but the day-after soreness is mostly in my hamstrings and adductors while the quads feel unfazed (even when I skip deadlifts). This in spite of the fact that it's the quads which feel most fatigued during/immediately after a workout, and the fact that I follow up the squat routine with several sets of quad extensions. My first thought was that my legs are too far apart during squats, but I don't think so. I'm guessing it's because my hams/adds are weaker, relatively speaking, than my quads, and perhaps the limiting factor in my squat, and that they'll catch up eventually.

Any suggestions for beginning to run? I can barely run for 10 minutes without feeling like my whole body is going to collapse on itself.

That's pretty much how I felt when I got into running (again... played soccer in high school, ran on and off through college, then stopped for several years, and when I started up again I couldn't manage a half mile without feeling like I was going to die). Just start out slow. In fact, start with walking. Walking is great exercise in itself. Gradually up your speed every few days/weeks. You need to condition your legs and muscles to this kind of activity before you jump into something more intensive like running. You should be comfortably able to speedwalk for an hour or two before you try running. When you run, again, start slow and keep the distance manageable. Alternate between walking and running--run for a minute, then walk for a minute. Gradually spend less and less time walking during runs until you are able to run without slowing. Then work on speed, endurance, distance, etc.

There's also a program/regimen called "couch to 10K" that seems to have worked out for a lot of people. I've never looked at it myself, but maybe you can check it out.

 

[SharkAttack]

SharkAttack why do you use machines? There's a lot of documentation discouraging the use of them, and discouraging the use of spot-training. *free weight, compound purist.*


Any suggestions for beginning to run? I can barely run for 10 minutes without feeling like my whole body is going to collapse on itself.

I have friends that don't like to use machines because they say they get more of a benefit from free weights. I do like to use machines and use free weights together, but then again I haven't lifted seriously enough, I assume, to really understand why machines shouldn't be used, or at least not used frequently. I would like to learn more free weight exercises so I can benefit more from those. I should be watching some videos of different type of workouts on Youtube, or seek different types of free weight workouts from other people.

As for running, Goldshadow said it best. It's all about starting gradually and that will lead to improvement. Never underestimate any type of walk/run. These workouts can definitely make you feel better in time. Also try to have fun with it. One day workout on a track, the next in the park, even on the roads.

 

[Vixen]

The thing is that hard science proves that machines will never ever ever ever ever be as effective an exercise as free weights. There are tons of peer reviewed studies produced on the subject if you're interested in reading.

GoldShadow: I walk long distances, anyway. I also followed the c25k program but brickwalled. I can't even play DDR/ITG anymore. Used to be able to do 12+s, even when severely overweight. I tried to do so deep as a warm up the other day, something i would normally 90% or higher as a warmup and died. Not ran out of breath, but my leg muscles turned to mush.

I walk 10-15 minutes before trying to run. I can do about 10 minutes of running before my legs give out and i have to rest for the rest of the day

 

[Thundermistress]

In regards to running, if you're building it up again, just try to fit in 1 minute of running between 2 minutes of walking. I'm sure the couch to 5k or 10k suggests something similar, but doing this sort of thing helped me get my running levels up. If you just try to run flat out you're probably not going to get very far very quickly and it'll likely be discouraging. If you give yourself a little bit of rest between each minute run, you'll be able to take yourself further.

Been really irratated lately as I haven't been able to really push at the gym since hurting something in my shoulder a couple of weeks back. Now my back's really out of whack and I seem to keep finding new ways to hurt myself :/

 

[Vixen]

:D super form-fitting T. Breasts haven't quite grown enough to need a bra yet, but GOD DAMN are they sensitive.

 

[Grey Belnades]

Anyone have a beginners/noobie's guide to weight training/lifting? I'm thinking about going back to the gym.

 

[SharkAttack]

Anyone have a beginners/noobie's guide to weight training/lifting? I'm thinking about going back to the gym.

I don't unfortunately. I just wing it by trying different things. I'm basically new to lifting as well. Been working out 3x a week for about a month now.

 

[Vixen]

5x5 stronglifts is my recommendation.

 

[SharkAttack]

Weekly Summary #8 for 2013
2/18/2013 - 2/24/2013

Running: 10 Miles in 1:28:38 2013 Total: 217.40 Miles in 33:24:49 (2,282.60 Miles from 2013 Goal)

Biking: 0 Miles 2013 Total: 3.90 Miles (996.10 Miles from 2013 Goal)

Swimming: 0 Miles 2013 Total: 1.5 Miles (98.5 Miles from 2013 Goal)

Lifting: Lifted 4x (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday) Did various arm machines, some free weights, and some leg machines.
I really sucked this week for cardio. After this post I'm going to go for a long run at the park. As for lifting, I'm happy because I've been dedicated and feel stronger. I did 8 pullups straight, which is my new record. I even tied it earlier in the week. Some freeweights felt a bit easier than weeks before as well. Went up to 25 Ibs on dumbbell curls from 20 Ibs doing sets of at least 6 with each arm. Lastly, I lifted the whole 150 Ib stack on the inner thigh machine with a rep of 12. Not sure how this happened, belt it felt good to lift a whole stack. I'm not even close to doing this on any other machine.

 

[Grey Belnades]

5x5 stronglifts is my recommendation.

Sorry but what are those? I'm not entirely familiar with the names of the lifting weight exercises.

 

[GoldShadow]

It's a lifting program/regimen designed, I believe, specifically for people who are new to lifting. Never done it myself, but a lot of people swear by it. It (and similar programs) are meant primarily for large strength gains. The thing is, it relies heavily on the beginner effect--people who haven't lifted much before see much faster gains than people who do it regularly, hence why the people who try it make progress so fast. I've looked at the 5x5 Stronglifts routine before and it seemed absolutely brutal until I realized it's meant for people who aren't yet lifting anything too heavy or intensely. Seriously, bench press 3 times a week, squat 3 times a week, rows and deadlift 3 times a week?! Insane. So I'm sure SL 5x5 will get you relatively strong fast, but it doesn't include any other exercises. Pretty much just squat/deadlift, bench, and rows. It's very much a brute force method that hits the physically largest muscle groups.

Google it, there's a ton of info about it all over the place.

 

[Vixen]

They hit every muscle group because they are compound exercises, and has a ton of science backing it, proving it to be more effective than machines, and spot training. It focuses on strengthening your core muscle groups, because to be truly strong, thats what you need.