Actifit and Appics recently announced a joint competition for participants to set a fitness goal and then track their progress using both apps. You can follow entries on the #getinshapechallenge tag!
I'll participate myself to see how much weight I can lift overhead at the end of the challenge! I also thought I would raise the stakes a little bit by inviting you to leave a guess in the comments of how much you believe I'll be able to lift. The user with the closest guess will then receive 100-300 STEEM when the challenge is done, based on where or not you also choose to participate or will invite a friend to join in too! More info on this at the end.
To the right is me performing a set of 5x5 overhead presses with 50kg. To the left is Aleksei Lovchev, holding an insane 264kg for the world record in clean and jerk + snatch total. Or maybe it was the other way around...
Steem dApp collaborations ftw!
First of all, I just want to add that I thought this was a tremendous idea for a handful of reasons. It’s an effective way to grow each app’s userbase by introducing users from one to the other. These apps are complementary and almost reminds me of PumpUp, a fitness app with a built-in Instagram that got viral fairly quickly and attracted massive investment. And finally, all of Steem benefits from a growing ecosystem, as one Apps growth adds new demand for STEEM and also new users who can cross over to your app or community.
So I think more Steem apps should follow this example wherever applicable and are thus happy to be a part!
My challenge!
My goal is quite simple: To lift as much weight as possible above my head by the end of the challenge (6 weeks from now). This will be the goal that I'll set for my own participation in the #getinshapechallenge, and also something I thought it would be fun for people to try and guess. It will also be my goal to increase general shoulder strength from my current workout of 50kg 5x5 overhead presses.
Some simple rules for my final lift:
- I must finish a complete “lockout” of the barbell and be able to stand freely with it above my head for at least a second (No partial rep that just barely gets the bar over my head).
- The barbell cannot be “supported” by the use of a smith-machine or balanced by a spotter, but must be a “free weight” that I carry all by myself.
- I can choose any lifting method. (Practically speaking, this means either a standing military press, a power press, a push jerk or a clean and jerk.)
In other words: I just have to get the damn barbell above my head through any normal Olympic lift and keep it there for a second. I don't have any wish to either lose weight or gaining significant new muscle mass. However, with this challenge, I won't care if I gain some weight or body fat as I optimize my meal-plan for pure strength gains.
Background and motivation
While I've been in good shape most of my adult life, I have long thought about learning more Olympic style lifts, as well as improving my explosive strength! So this challenge is going to be a lot of fun, as I'll have to also learn some new techniques and train in a way that I'm not fully used to.
Current fitness
To help your guessing out quite a little bit, here are some details on my past weight-lifting experience and conditions:
Current Size:
Height: 183
Weight: 79 kg
Current weights on workouts:
Bench press: 85kg 5x5
Barbell squats: 110kg 5x5
Deadlift: 120kg 5x5
Over-head press: 50kg 5x5
(Most of which can be seen in my video on Appics yesterday here.)
As is probably clear from the above, I am already in really good shape and have been so for the past ~10 years. Working out has always been a natural part of my life, and I've kept it going since my late teens. As a result, I have been able to build and maintain what I consider the right balance between being muscular and athletic.
Obviously, for this challenge, the over-head press is the most relevant movement. That said, If I'm going to lift as much as possible, the clean and jerk is certainly my best option. Now, I've never performed this movement, and I also know that I will have to work a lot of shoulder mobility and technique in order to perform it with maximum weight.
Past injuries and its consequences
But perhaps the biggest obstacle I'll have to lift heavy is the fact that I’ve dislocated my left shoulder twice. This series of injuries began with a snowboarding accident where I fell 4 meters on a big jump and landed directly on my shoulder on blank ice, knocking it completely out of the socket.
The second time was less than two years ago, where I got into an awkward position in a wind tunnel and failed to consider the vulnerability of my left shoulder when attempting to pull myself out the door mid-air. The result of which you can see below:
X-ray from April 11. 2018 when I dislocated my left shoulder again for a second time.
So I’ve been hesitant to put the shoulders at too much risk or under too much stress. Additionally, the shoulder's mobility is not quite where it ought to be. However, after having patiently carried out daily strengthening exercises, I feel ready to push the limits again. So I thought this would be a fun opportunity to get started and share the journey as I go!
I've even thought about how fun it would be to perform an impressive lift, or do a handstand pushup, on the two-year anniversary of my injury. Also, I believe strongly that one of the best traits anyone can have in life is the ability to turn frustration into motivation. Does it suck to be injured? Ofc! But it's also a chance to come back stronger and punch life even harder than before. So let's see how far I can turn this one around ;).
The Prize to the best guess:
Whoever makes the closest guess to the weight of my final lift will win! The guess must be made before this post reaches payout, aka in 7 days from now. To incentivize more participation, I'll raise the stakes a bit for those of you who choose to participate and who encourages others to do the same!
The final prize can then be:
100 STEEM To the winner with the best guess if they did not participate.
200 STEEM If they also participated in the challenge themselves.
300 STEEM If they both participated, and managed to invite a friend from outside of Steem to sign up and participate as well!
To finish, I'll therefore challenge @howo to show how many pull-ups he can do, and/or if he can perform a muscle-up, by the end of the challenge!
I'll also be doing my best to provide daily content on my strategy, workout-plan, meal-plan, etc. So stay tuned! And good luck to everyone else doing the #getinshapechallenge !
So how much weight do you think I will be able to lift over-head at the end?! Leave your best guess as a comment below! ;)
Olympic weightlifting is an extremely technical sport. A coach would probably have you learn the movements with an empty bar for the first two-three weeks and then slowly progress, focusing on being flawless.
If I understand correctly, you are self coached and train just for fun: with a good push press from the rack you could easily do 85 kg.
If you clean the weight to your chest, the lack of technique could probably limit you in feeling the clean portion heavy, and there I would say 75 kg.
You're right! It's very technical, and I'll have to program in hours of training with very light weights, or indeed just the bar. As well as improve shoulder mobility, as I'll have a hard time keeping my left elbow forward with a wide grip after a clean. (If I decide to go that route)
To do a push press according to my rules, I'll need to lift it out of the rack first and carry it standing on the floor. Which I assume will leave me in a similar position as after a clean.
But it will be fun to see!
Those are decent numbers for your size. Can i ask how long you have been going to the gym and doing weight training? Theres a thing called "newb gains" meaning you move up weight levels much faster during the first couple months.
When i just started i went from 70kg Bench press to 150kg in about 3 months. After that it slowed down quite a bit.
If youve been really active with weights already id say you could go to 60kg in 6 weeks with your overhead if you push yourself. If you havent been really active and was just doing it recreationaly and now youll put in the work and make a nutrition plan (protein and more protein) id say 65-70kg would be possible.
Thanks man!
I've been a gym regular for about 12 years. However, after the shoulder dislocation 20 months ago I was set back quite a bit and had to spend 4 months with rehabilitation. Then took a while to get fully back to training and never focused as much on heavy lifts.
I'm passed getting the "noob gains", however, I also see that because I've been very fit in the past, I already have good mind-muscle-connection, well established routines for workouts and meals etc, and also that my gains come back faster as my muscles have already been bigger in the past (funny how it remembers :p).
As I said to someone else, I last trained with 50kg overhead presses 5x5, but because I haven't done the low rep range a lot (mostly done 3x10 dumbell presses for hypertrophy) I expect to be able to add an additional 2.5kg to every workout for a short while at least until I plateau. But keep in mind that these are standing military presses without any involvement of my legs, which I will for sure include in the final lift.
Well, what can i say, good luck. ;)
I used to do a lot of strength training before, and I still have my old notes (Wendler), and taking into consideration that we have pretty similar physique I will guess that you can max out with 80 kg. Your shoulder are of course a risk here, and I do not know if I could recommend maxing out. I will not participated in the challenge myself, as I stopped exercising a few years ago. I am still in peak shape though:) Good luck!
That's a good guess! I really don't know, as I have never attempted a one rep max on anything but a bench press (and that was 7 years ago!) Where I did 115.
Will be fun to find out! I'll for sure need to practice movements just as much as training for strength. And of course think about safety first.
I know you used to work for ESA, or perhaps you still work. Anyway, there is a Norwegian company called Orbital Machines that are going to make electric turbopumps for launch vehicles. I participated in the first round in 2018, even though I have no knowledge of the space industry. Perhaps something you could be interested in (https://folkeinvest.no/kampanje/orbital-machines-as-2)? I would of course be interested in any negative sentiments you might have concerning the concept.
I'd say...85. If my mind serves me well on that last video of yours you lifted 45? So that would be a massive progress.
Hey...6 weeks from now Steem might be worth a lot...just saying :P
85 sounds like a good guess to me! Will be happy if I can achieve that :).
In the last video, I did 5x5 with 50kg, and will increase that to 52.5 on my next workout. Since I haven't really focused on low rep shoulder presses before (mostly done 3x10 dumbbell presses) I expect to be able to increase it quite steadily until I plateau.
Nothing would make me happier than giving away 300USD+ worth of rewards to the winner at the end :D
100kg. clean and jerk
GOOOOOO FREEEEEEED RIK AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! :)
Haha! Feeling pumped just reading that😁!
We'll see! Maybe if I don't get to reach 100, I should still do a "road to 100 kg overhead series"?🤔
Either way, it's going to be fun and interesting!
I'm gonna guess 90kg.
After all, it's 6 weeks, and I believe you only have to do it once. If you're intense in your training, you can probably get it up past 75kg...so the question is how far past?
Best to guess something someone hasn't guessed yet.
I'll be really happy if I can achieve that! Not impossible, but will have to work a lot on my technique and also the explosiveness. Will be fun to see ;).
Oh boy, this is really fun. I don't know anything about lifting and converting pounds to the Metric system is just too much for this person, but I'll be watching and I love the fun contest and especially combined with other projects and apps!
Good luck getting in shape!
Haha, I'll add the Lbs to the numbers that I currently have, and allow those who want to place their guess in Lbs too :P. (Though I thought google made this easy for people in 2020!!)
I would still encourage you to leave your best guess! It's often funny to hear what people with no clear picture of what a realistic achievement would be, or what they themselves would consider impressive, and see how it compared :P
I’m going go with 85kg. GL!
Thanks! That's not a bad guess. Sure will depend on how well I'll be able to master the technique and improve shoulder mobility tho!
I ll say 95kg. 😁
Posted using Partiko Android
Thank you for making a guess! I'll be posting regular updates for people to see the progress ;)
It is a good thing to try.
I think you can lift 75 Kg over-head.
Good Luck @fredrika
Thanks! Let's find out :)
120kg would be easy for you to do.
Oh wow! That would be amazing :D.
Haha, I'll try my best to consider safety first :p
nah i bet you could do around 65kg only..
Thanks for making a guess! I probably would not have dared to hope for much more than 65kg myself either following the last injury and the slow rehabilitation process.
But now I'm fired up to push harder and hopefully blow past that!;)
65 kg
I'm a say 63.2 kgs, metaphorically banking my steem reputation on it. GL!
Thanks for adding your guess! Will be fun to see, so stay tuned :)
A cool challenge would be a X days to a muscle up.
Agree! This is where it would be cool to have a betting app on Steem where a user's followers can place their own bets against each other. I see a lot of famous Gaming streamers do this on whether or not they will win a game, and then the viewers chip in based on what they think.
There are also fitness apps out there that lets you bet on whether or not you'll be able to reach certain weight goals etc. Would be a way to make @actifit more fun too, and make good use of STEEM ;).
Maybe something we could build?
Totally impressed by this @fredrikaa.
And a great contest #winwithsteem
Thank you @pennsif! And yes, we need more fun ways to get people engaged and posting!
You should take a guess yourself ;)
I'm worried about the shoulder. Don't damage it again.
I'll go for 68.4kg (but I know nothing about weightlifting!)
Yeah, that will probably be my biggest challenge here. Going to be important to include more shoulder stabilizing exercises including rotator cuff muscles etc. As well as some static overhead squats to get the shoulder more used to holding the weight up. Promise I'll think about health first!
I will follow with interest. Good luck!
And here's the post with an invitation to join for those on Twitter!
I'm going to go out on a limb and say 60Kg.
With the kind of drive and motivation you have, I'm guessing that you will lift about 95kg.
Well, I'd say 75kg. Okay I know that's pretty small but I'll just leave it at that 😂
Well, my guess is that you'll be able to lift about 77kg :) I hope you have fun while you do the challenge!
Congratulations @fredrikaa!
Your post was mentioned in the Steem Hit Parade in the following category:
I think 70 kg but it is just a guess, I have no knowledge on that area at all...
Posted using Partiko Android
can u lift mjolnir of the mighty thor odinson.
Posted using Partiko Android
Great to see such a hype around the getinshape challenge! I agree with you that's good for the dapps to collaborate and push each other forward.
Well my guess is 82,5 kg. I wish you good luck and be careful with your shoulder:) Happy weekend and lifting!
Hi @fredrikaa. Thanks for this contest and my guess is 90 kg.
Cheers!
Posted using Partiko Android
With your dedication and hard work you can achieve the highest goal. You might be lift upto 90KGs.
He might be 70kg in my opinion.Seeing him, I think 70kg would be a lot to see. Thanks so much for arranging such a Contest among us.
My guess : 76.5 Kg
I don't know your meal plan. I for myself find a ketogen diet with one day carb-loading the best to gain muscle.
Good luck!
@fredrikaa, My guess is 90 Kilograms.
Enjoy your Fitness Journey and stay blessed.
Posted using Partiko Android
My guess: 70 Kg
Oh. @fredrikaa. I gottcha on this one. You will be able to lift 40kg weight. I got it 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍.
Posted using Partiko Android
Thanks for leaving a reply! Though I can already lift 40kg overhead and could probably do 20 reps without problems.
My guess is 87 Kg
Posted using Partiko iOS
My guess we may weight 75kgs at end of the challenge.
I’m gonna go with 75kg! You got this!
Over 9000.
You are a big guy. I bet you could get up to 80 kgs
might B
777Kgin memories of 777 projects lol :)
initiated
by @nathanmars
Keep 💙 On !
Steem ♨ On !
Posted using Partiko Android
I think you'll lift 90kg! I believe in you!
I'm going to go with a 'scientific approach' guess.
You're doing 50kg now, you weigh 79kg, have a previous shoulder injury, and have set a 6 week challenge for your self.... I'm to go with 65kg which is 30% increase in weight. Then I'm going to add 3 more kg because others have guessed 65kg, and 68kg represents 86% of your body weight. So 68kg <-> 86% looks like a good number.
As you've gathered by now, my scientific approach is a BS number pulled out from the thin air, but hope you will make it! Good luck!
Thanks for the creative and fun comment😅. But the 50kg I do are for my workout where I do standing overhead presses with 5 sets of 5 reps. For the challenge, I can also use a different method to push the bar up with my legs together with my shoulders. So I could probably do that with 65kg today (although I haven't tried).
73 kg
!trdo
Congratulations @shitsignals, you successfuly trended the post shared by @fredrikaa!
@fredrikaa will receive 1.63217025 TRDO & @shitsignals will get 1.08811350 TRDO curation in 3 Days from Post Created Date!
"Call TRDO, Your Comment Worth Something!"
To view or trade TRDO go to steem-engine.com
Join TRDO Discord Channel or Join TRDO Web Site
Good one
Posted using Partiko Android
Congratulations @fredrikaa, your post successfully recieved 1.63217025 TRDO from below listed TRENDO callers:
To view or trade TRDO go to steem-engine.com
Join TRDO Discord Channel or Join TRDO Web Site
It's on ! I'd say a good 65kg knowing your capacity to rapidly improve.