Kept me sane while in undergrad/grad school. Kept at it now almost 15y after... although no-where near as often as when I was mid 20s.... Damn injuries.
But who needs to spend long hours at a desk? Does not take much to get up, move around, whatever.
I was a rock climber in my youth, but then got fat. Now that I'm losing the weight (had bariatric surgery in late May) I want to get into a climbing gym.
I know a lot of architects who are into bicyling and/or trail running. I'm more interested in hiking. I try to get a good woods walk in at least once a day.
Xc skiing / Alpine skiing / Road Biking / Mtb Biking / Trail Running. unfortunately none of it is particularly specific to improving my lower back. Bending over a drawing board and hand drafting many years ago was pretty brutal for keeping my core and lower back strong. Struggle with it still, I should be at a stand up desk and keep saying I should get one but can't seem to find a set up I like.
Jan 25, 22 3:00 pm ·
·
SlammingMiruvor
how much direct back (posterior chain) work from a strength training perspective have you tried? like reverse hypers, rows, glute bridges, hyperextensions, ghrs?
As atelier nobody says, martial arts. Actually I'd amend that to say combat sports, as there's a bunch of nonsense 'martial arts' that won't do much of anything. The benefits extend to increased confidence in addition to all of the benefits of other intense exercise.
I miss training a ton. Haven't been since COVID started but at least we put up a heavy bag in my office's basement gym, and a handful of us have actually competed as amateurs in boxing (4 of us).
Lastly, get up and walk around during the day. Stand up occasionally. Give your eyes a break, too
while i don't doubt the fitness part, doesn't the martial part put a bit of beating on you?
Jan 25, 22 3:38 pm ·
·
bowling_ball
Not necessarily. You can train boxing without sparring, for example. But I would recommend Jiu Jitsu for a lower impact workout, but be warned that it can be hard on the neck and back. But again, it's up to you how hard you want to train. And go to a legit gym that will actually work with you, not just set you free in a room full of maniacs
Jan 25, 22 5:00 pm ·
·
atelier nobody
"while i don't doubt the fitness part, doesn't the martial part put a bit of beating on you?"
Depends on how good you are...
Jan 26, 22 3:20 pm ·
·
proto
I'm expecting magical ninja shit with no impact is not what we're referring to here. You kick someone, I expect that your foot has to deal with the impact, no? Even grappling involves a bunch of strength and resistance on the body by others: bruises, strains, joint stretching, etc, right? [as a 50yo with 2 back surgeries, i'm a hair cynical about contact sports as a fitness regimen :)
]
lifting my kids has greatly enhanced my upper body strength and chasing after them has done wonders for my overall cardiovascular fitness whereas the roughhousing and cuddles do wonders for my mental fitness
weight lifting for developing strength to carry a 150+ sheet full size set up the stairs after BarkerBlue(Bay Area print service) drops it off- I've done done it many times - the pandemic eliminated that, Yay! Building departments and plan check are forced to use BlueBeam like the rest of us
I'd love to get back into soccer as fitness. I played a lot growing up and through high school. I never tried to take it further other than some intramural league play in college, but my HS coach thought I should have and "had what it takes" or whatever to play at a collegiate level.
I've never been more fit than when I was playing regularly. I've looked into it though and all the local adult leagues play games really late on weekdays and in locations that are about an hour's drive from where I live (more if I'm on public transportation). It's hard for me to justify the time spent when it would take away so much time from my family. If they had games on weekends I'd be all over it, but they won't because that's when all the kids have their games and there are inherent conflicts with family and fields to play on.
I’ve gotten into it through own kids. The Detroit area has a lot of very poorly publicized men’s soccer leagues. No web presence, low fees, etc. I got into it through contacts made coaching my kids. Indoor leagues are much easier to find.
Jan 27, 22 3:37 pm ·
·
shellarchitect
I’m pretty terrible, most of the guys played in college or better. No one has much endurance but these guys are all
a thousand times better than me.
I've got plenty of coworkers that have invited me to come play in their leagues which is how I know about them, but my schedule doesn't really work for them.
There used to be some pickup games on the weekend in a neighborhood park nearby, but about the same time I discovered them, the city put in a cricket pitch in the same spot and now there's always some type of match/practice going on during the weekend and there's not room for both on the grass at the same time. I'm not complaining, it's fun to watch even though I understand none of it. I just wish I knew if the soccer was displaced somewhere else or given up entirely. I honestly haven't looked that hard for it so I can only blame myself.
the last time i played soccer with a group of industry friends i ended up with a fractured shoulder and learned to use a mouse left handed. now i stick to stuff at the gym. this is middle aged life.
Cycling mostly for me. Been getting more into core workouts, stretching, and a little yoga as I've gotten older and realized these things are important. Need to make sure I get upper body work in there too.
At the moment I average just under an hour each day. Some days are longer and some days I don't do anything, but it's around 6 hours a week overall. This goes up during the warmer months and I'm out on my bike more often and longer on weekends.
1 hour of road/gravel cycling per day about 3-4 times a week has done wonders for my body weight, strength and most importantly, mental health. I wouldn't have survived the last couple of years after the death of a family member, and then covid without cycling. To the OPs post, try to get out as much as you can, most of the architecture gruntwork can be done faster with a clear mind.
Consistency across days rather than weeks goes a long way I've found. Before the pandemic, I was mostly a weekend warrior type going for long rides on the weekends and not really doing much during the week. With WFH I started going on shorter rides more regularly during the week as a way to get out of the house. I dropped close to 15 pounds in like the first 6 weeks of the pandemic (I attribute that mostly to diet rather than exercise alone). Then I dropped another 3 or so over the course of 2020 (which was more related to exercise I think because my diet through the pandemic has stayed pretty consistent).
Then I got lazy and wasn't as consistent through 2021. Maybe a ride mid week if I could swing it, and more time spent on the weekend than during the week. I slowly gained back 8 pounds and it was staying pretty steady all last year.
Now I've started being more consistent again through the holidays until present day and I'm seeing it start to slowly come back off. Overall, I've probably spent close to the same total amount of time each week on the bike, but (for me anyway) I see better results if I'm doing it daily or every other day rather than going all out on the weekends.
I dropped a good 30 lbs (the weight of my small dog, lol) in about 8 months of biking. Now I have plateaued it seems. Eating and traveling during the holidays didnt help the cause either. I need to get back on the bandwagon and lose about 20 more lbs to get to my optimal weight.
Interesting coming back to this after almost a year and reflecting on how I did through 2022; actually pretty consistent. I did drop off a few months ago and need to get back into it. I did a couple of workouts over the weekend so that's a start.
I'm adding a screenshot of my weight over the last 3 years. Y-axis is weight but I've cropped off the actual numbers (nobody needs to know my actual weight). Horizontal lines are 2 pounds apart and the overall graph shows a 20-lb spread from bottom to top. Values are a moving 42-day average of my weight (otherwise it would look a lot more jagged with fluctuations ... also the highs would be higher and the lows lower).
Our bodies were designed for movement so it is s crazy that we design so many spaces for people to spend so much time sitting at desks in chairs. Recommend that people listen to “The Align Podcast” and “ The Model Health Show”- I’ve shifted to working lying on my stomach in a cobra pose or sitting on the floor to keep hip mobility.
workouts: 2x a week body weight/strength, 2x a week long cardio (cycling or running) 5x a week 30-min of walking, 1x a week Pilates on a reformer and 1x a week lap swimming. I want to add back in a team sport once I get over an injury. Also, give up caffeine, eat more plants, sleep a lot more and have some fun…work all nighters are BS and oppressive.
Tom Brady’s “TB2” program has s lot of good advice about the need for rest (you don’t need to buy his supplements). I am in my late 40s and people often think I am in my early 30s because I have more energy than they do. I am more focused on keeping mobility, power and strength versus being a certain size/weight at this point. When I am 80, I want to be that person who can still run a 5k because my joints and hips are intact.
Great topic. I'm finally back to the gym and it feels fantastic to do some regular activity again. The fact that it's outdoors (under a big tent) makes it even nicer.
Am gaining some muscle back and boosting the heart rate with the help of 80s music in my buds. The biggest barrier is mental, trying to stifle rude comments when someone is occupying a station while stationary-- texting or otherwise enraptured with their device.
I am a bike commuter, I have a standing desk at work, I go for runs at lunchtime, and a few days a week I do strength work after the kids go to bed. Right now I put in around 40 miles of running a week, about 80 miles of cycling, and am working on being able to do one-armed pull ups.
Also - sleep is very very important. Bodies need recovery time.
alternate days between brisk walking 4 miles, running 4 miles, and mma 10-12 rounds. I usually take recovery days 1-2 times a week. I hike when I have time. That’s my favorite. I do basic push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups, etc for strength. Weights once in a while, but need to do more. I eat a mostly Mediterranean diet. Probably eat vegetarian 3/7 days a week. Plenty of fruit and vegetables. Red meat maybe once a week if that. I’ve almost completely cut out commercially processed foods. I’ve been preaching to family members who struggle with weight the benefit of walking. It’s the most underrated form of exercise. My sister lost 30 pounds doing nothing but daily 3 mile walks. When I had a severe neck injury I did nothing but walking for 4 months and maintained most of my cardio conditioning upon returning to more intense exercise. Walking is the best.
Lost almost 20lbs road biking, but the last 6 months have been the worst, with really bad projects and meetings every morning + evening. I think Ive gained 15 of those 20 lbs back.
Lap swimming. Mind goes blank, full body workout, zero impact, & allows your compressed muscles to relax. Only drawbacks are smelling like chlorine and getting up early to jump in cold water.
physical fitness for architecture
What type of fitness program works best for architects? I'm thinking crunches and back curls for core strength and long hours at a desk.
Gym bouldering.
Kept me sane while in undergrad/grad school. Kept at it now almost 15y after... although no-where near as often as when I was mid 20s.... Damn injuries.
But who needs to spend long hours at a desk? Does not take much to get up, move around, whatever.
I was a rock climber in my youth, but then got fat. Now that I'm losing the weight (had bariatric surgery in late May) I want to get into a climbing gym.
I'm 6'-3" and 250 pounds. I climb in the mid 10's trad.
My bouldering partner is about the same size Chad. He's in the mid-range bouldering difficulties and 5.10 on lead (on his good days).
I know a lot of architects who are into bicyling and/or trail running. I'm more interested in hiking. I try to get a good woods walk in at least once a day.
Work on your grip strength and forearm and hand flexibility to fight off carpal-tunnel.
Crunches and core work to avoid the classic skinny-fat architect paunch.
Swimming, running, or endurance sports to counter the long hours stationary at a desk and copious amounts of alcohol, caffeine, and cigarettes.
Meditation and introspection to counter the mental health challenges and crippling stress and anxiety.
Please tell me you're taking the piss and understand that crunches won't do shit to prevent a tummy paunch.
yeah, that's the only place I'm taking the piss in that comment.
Not the best for overall fitness*, but martial arts train your mind to respond rapidly under stress† as well as your body.
(* Take it from a fat martial artist.)
(† Assuming it's a real martial art - beware of "martial arts" schools that never teach you to fight.)
Xc skiing / Alpine skiing / Road Biking / Mtb Biking / Trail Running. unfortunately none of it is particularly specific to improving my lower back. Bending over a drawing board and hand drafting many years ago was pretty brutal for keeping my core and lower back strong. Struggle with it still, I should be at a stand up desk and keep saying I should get one but can't seem to find a set up I like.
how much direct back (posterior chain) work from a strength training perspective have you tried? like reverse hypers, rows, glute bridges, hyperextensions, ghrs?
As atelier nobody says, martial arts. Actually I'd amend that to say combat sports, as there's a bunch of nonsense 'martial arts' that won't do much of anything. The benefits extend to increased confidence in addition to all of the benefits of other intense exercise.
I miss training a ton. Haven't been since COVID started but at least we put up a heavy bag in my office's basement gym, and a handful of us have actually competed as amateurs in boxing (4 of us).
Lastly, get up and walk around during the day. Stand up occasionally. Give your eyes a break, too
while i don't doubt the fitness part, doesn't the martial part put a bit of beating on you?
Not necessarily. You can train boxing without sparring, for example. But I would recommend Jiu Jitsu for a lower impact workout, but be warned that it can be hard on the neck and back. But again, it's up to you how hard you want to train. And go to a legit gym that will actually work with you, not just set you free in a room full of maniacs
"while i don't doubt the fitness part, doesn't the martial part put a bit of beating on you?"
Depends on how good you are...
I'm expecting magical ninja shit with no impact is not what we're referring to here. You kick someone, I expect that your foot has to deal with the impact, no? Even grappling involves a bunch of strength and resistance on the body by others: bruises, strains, joint stretching, etc, right? [as a 50yo with 2 back surgeries, i'm a hair cynical about contact sports as a fitness regimen :) ]
Rock / Gym climbing.
Weight Training / Stretching / Core Exercises
Mountain Biking
Cross Country Skiing
Hiking / Backpacking
Traditional Archery
Frequent breaks throughout the day to move for 15 minutes.
lifting my kids has greatly enhanced my upper body strength and chasing after them has done wonders for my overall cardiovascular fitness whereas the roughhousing and cuddles do wonders for my mental fitness
crunches - for core
Running for energy
weight lifting for developing strength to carry a 150+ sheet full size set up the stairs after BarkerBlue(Bay Area print service) drops it off- I've done done it many times - the pandemic eliminated that, Yay! Building departments and plan check are forced to use BlueBeam like the rest of us
skiing, cycling, running, swimming, flyfishing, hiking with a dog - in that order if i get a choice
ideally, min 1hr/day
I've found soccer is a great workout, better than solitary running / walking and the social aspect is great too.
Stretching seems to be getting more important (unfortunately)
I'd love to get back into soccer as fitness. I played a lot growing up and through high school. I never tried to take it further other than some intramural league play in college, but my HS coach thought I should have and "had what it takes" or whatever to play at a collegiate level.
I've never been more fit than when I was playing regularly. I've looked into it though and all the local adult leagues play games really late on weekdays and in locations that are about an hour's drive from where I live (more if I'm on public transportation). It's hard for me to justify the time spent when it would take away so much time from my family. If they had games on weekends I'd be all over it, but they won't because that's when all the kids have their games and there are inherent conflicts with family and fields to play on.
I’ve gotten into it through own kids. The Detroit area has a lot of very poorly publicized men’s soccer leagues. No web presence, low fees, etc. I got into it through contacts made coaching my kids. Indoor leagues are much easier to find.
I’m pretty terrible, most of the guys played in college or better. No one has much endurance but these guys are all
a thousand times better than me.
I've got plenty of coworkers that have invited me to come play in their leagues which is how I know about them, but my schedule doesn't really work for them.
There used to be some pickup games on the weekend in a neighborhood park nearby, but about the same time I discovered them, the city put in a cricket pitch in the same spot and now there's always some type of match/practice going on during the weekend and there's not room for both on the grass at the same time. I'm not complaining, it's fun to watch even though I understand none of it. I just wish I knew if the soccer was displaced somewhere else or given up entirely. I honestly haven't looked that hard for it so I can only blame myself.
the last time i played soccer with a group of industry friends i ended up with a fractured shoulder and learned to use a mouse left handed. now i stick to stuff at the gym. this is middle aged life.
Not sure if thumbs upping that is ok, but it's always good to know one's limits, right?
Cycling mostly for me. Been getting more into core workouts, stretching, and a little yoga as I've gotten older and realized these things are important. Need to make sure I get upper body work in there too.
At the moment I average just under an hour each day. Some days are longer and some days I don't do anything, but it's around 6 hours a week overall. This goes up during the warmer months and I'm out on my bike more often and longer on weekends.
1 hour of road/gravel cycling per day about 3-4 times a week has done wonders for my body weight, strength and most importantly, mental health. I wouldn't have survived the last couple of years after the death of a family member, and then covid without cycling. To the OPs post, try to get out as much as you can, most of the architecture gruntwork can be done faster with a clear mind.
Consistency across days rather than weeks goes a long way I've found. Before the pandemic, I was mostly a weekend warrior type going for long rides on the weekends and not really doing much during the week. With WFH I started going on shorter rides more regularly during the week as a way to get out of the house. I dropped close to 15 pounds in like the first 6 weeks of the pandemic (I attribute that mostly to diet rather than exercise alone). Then I dropped another 3 or so over the course of 2020 (which was more related to exercise I think because my diet through the pandemic has stayed pretty consistent).
Then I got lazy and wasn't as consistent through 2021. Maybe a ride mid week if I could swing it, and more time spent on the weekend than during the week. I slowly gained back 8 pounds and it was staying pretty steady all last year.
Now I've started being more consistent again through the holidays until present day and I'm seeing it start to slowly come back off. Overall, I've probably spent close to the same total amount of time each week on the bike, but (for me anyway) I see better results if I'm doing it daily or every other day rather than going all out on the weekends.
I dropped a good 30 lbs (the weight of my small dog, lol) in about 8 months of biking. Now I have plateaued it seems. Eating and traveling during the holidays didnt help the cause either. I need to get back on the bandwagon and lose about 20 more lbs to get to my optimal weight.
Interesting coming back to this after almost a year and reflecting on how I did through 2022; actually pretty consistent. I did drop off a few months ago and need to get back into it. I did a couple of workouts over the weekend so that's a start.
I'm adding a screenshot of my weight over the last 3 years. Y-axis is weight but I've cropped off the actual numbers (nobody needs to know my actual weight). Horizontal lines are 2 pounds apart and the overall graph shows a 20-lb spread from bottom to top. Values are a moving 42-day average of my weight (otherwise it would look a lot more jagged with fluctuations ... also the highs would be higher and the lows lower).
Our bodies were designed for movement so it is s crazy that we design so many spaces for people to spend so much time sitting at desks in chairs. Recommend that people listen to “The Align Podcast” and “ The Model Health Show”- I’ve shifted to working lying on my stomach in a cobra pose or sitting on the floor to keep hip mobility.
workouts: 2x a week body weight/strength, 2x a week long cardio (cycling or running) 5x a week 30-min of walking, 1x a week Pilates on a reformer and 1x a week lap swimming. I want to add back in a team sport once I get over an injury. Also, give up caffeine, eat more plants, sleep a lot more and have some fun…work all nighters are BS and oppressive.
Tom Brady’s “TB2” program has s lot of good advice about the need for rest (you don’t need to buy his supplements). I am in my late 40s and people often think I am in my early 30s because I have more energy than they do. I am more focused on keeping mobility, power and strength versus being a certain size/weight at this point. When I am 80, I want to be that person who can still run a 5k because my joints and hips are intact.
Great topic. I'm finally back to the gym and it feels fantastic to do some regular activity again. The fact that it's outdoors (under a big tent) makes it even nicer.
Am gaining some muscle back and boosting the heart rate with the help of 80s music in my buds. The biggest barrier is mental, trying to stifle rude comments when someone is occupying a station while stationary-- texting or otherwise enraptured with their device.
I am a bike commuter, I have a standing desk at work, I go for runs at lunchtime, and a few days a week I do strength work after the kids go to bed. Right now I put in around 40 miles of running a week, about 80 miles of cycling, and am working on being able to do one-armed pull ups.
Also - sleep is very very important. Bodies need recovery time.
alternate days between brisk walking 4 miles, running 4 miles, and mma 10-12 rounds. I usually take recovery days 1-2 times a week. I hike when I have time. That’s my favorite. I do basic push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups, etc for strength. Weights once in a while, but need to do more. I eat a mostly Mediterranean diet. Probably eat vegetarian 3/7 days a week. Plenty of fruit and vegetables. Red meat maybe once a week if that. I’ve almost completely cut out commercially processed foods. I’ve been preaching to family members who struggle with weight the benefit of walking. It’s the most underrated form of exercise. My sister lost 30 pounds doing nothing but daily 3 mile walks. When I had a severe neck injury I did nothing but walking for 4 months and maintained most of my cardio conditioning upon returning to more intense exercise. Walking is the best.
single biggest positive change was to get a stand up desk
and walking to work more
Lost almost 20lbs road biking, but the last 6 months have been the worst, with really bad projects and meetings every morning + evening. I think Ive gained 15 of those 20 lbs back.
Lap swimming. Mind goes blank, full body workout, zero impact, & allows your compressed muscles to relax. Only drawbacks are smelling like chlorine and getting up early to jump in cold water.
Also the speedos.
yes
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