Investment banking and going to the gym

I wouldn't get your hopes up if you want to get any sleep. Most of those that I know working as analysts this summer are getting home around 2am every night and getting to the office at like 8:30. But I guess you could go early if you can still function on 4 hours of sleep every night...

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Hmmm. I actually know very few analysts going home at 2. They all work in oil and gas. Most are stragiht chilling, somewhat bored actually. Banking is sllooooowww right now.

Who the hell lifts then only sleeps for 4 hours? You'll never achieve any gains with that little sleep.

just make time if it's important to you. hour for lunch/dinner=hour for gym (if you have a gym in ur building that is)

My group lets us go to the gym in the evenings for an hour or two, and it's notorious for how bad it's hours are.

It's just a question of whether you get your stuff done.

well, I'm not going to be an analyst, so maybe that will help a bit. Unfortunately, the gym is a few blocks from the building.

There must be some serious lifters doing banking.

Most days I just go after I come back from work, unless its past 1 am.

I used to do that, but I find that I'm way more productive if I can break up my day with a workout.

I can usually make time either during lunch or before dinner 3 nights a week or so. It's really just a matter of making it a priority.

- Capt K

If you eat your lunch/dinner at your desk, doesn't it make sense to duck out for an hour to work out? When you return to your desk, you can work while eating.

Also, if you need to actually be lifting for an hour, how long do you expect to be gone from you desk?

5 mins there
5 mins change
60 mins workout
10 mins shower
5 mins change
5 mins back

That's an hour and a half. If you can cut your workout to 30 mins and shower quicker, than maybe you could be gone from you desk for a cumulative one hour.

who the hell lifts 7x a week, you make gains on OFF days not at the gym. go 3x a week and eat right and youll be fine and its certainly doable.

I lift about 5 days a week plus I do brazilian jiu jitsu a couple of days a week. At my level, 3 times a week isn't sufficient.

sacrifice

Kimbo, it just doesn't work this way (unless you're at VP+ level). No one gives a s..t about your "need" to go to the gym daily - you are expected to work and are expected to have only 1 priority - work.
Maybe 2 times a week for a new analyst - in case he works well the rest of the time. But the way you want it to be is just totally unacceptable.
You should be not a "gym freak", but rather an "IBD freak" to start with.

Here is my workout routine from my summer. Pretty comprehensive workout plan for someone who drank a shit ton in college and wanted to get into shape over the summer, while also interning at a BB. Four keys - to get jacked/stay ripped you need to lift, eat, sleep, and sweat.

Lifting:
Between Monday-Wed - hit the gym once for 1.5 hours, do chest and arms
Between Thursday-Sat - hit the gym once for 1.5 hours, do back and shoulders
Sundays - legs (I always had time on Sundays, some of you might not)

So during the week I worked out 3 times, for a total of 4-5 hours, always lifting heavy. On days I didn't lift, I did 25 pushups when I woke up, some sit ups, manual squats, just to keep my muscles kicking.

Sweating:
I did light cardio every day - even if it meant running back and forth doing suicides in my 30 foot apartment. Break a sweat Every Single Day. This is key to shedding the fat.

Eating:
In terms of eating, eat breakfast at 9 am (Eat breakfast every day! when you wake up it really energizes you. Also, Red Bull is disgusting on an empty stomach), a fruit-based snack between 10-11, lunch between 12-2, bigger snack between 3-5, and small dinner 6-8. Then a meal at least as big as dinner around 10. Bed by 3 am, solid 6 hours of sleep every night.

The balanced eating keeps your metabolism going.

My lifestyle at school is fratty, so I was really out of shape at the beginning of the summer (210 lbs. and 16% body fat). On my eighth week I weighted 200 with 11% body fat. And my bench went up like 35-40 lbs. So while working an average of 75 hours a week, I managed to get stronger, lose fat, and get in overall better health. I DID get a solid amount of sleep too - at least 6 hours a night, and at least 7 a couple of nights a week.

I only drank on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, and only got really wasted on Fridays and Saturdays. Alcohol is a killer for the Saturday morning workouts, though, so sometimes I did my workout later in the afternoon rather than the morning.

The key is to realize that when you DO have time to work out, go heavy, but the actual lifting of weights is just one small part. Breaking a sweat every day, shedding fat, and eating in a healthy way that keeps you energized is all crucial.

Also, trust me, in banking looks and physical appearance DO matter. The social/networking aspect of this is aided. And also, how many really out of shape associates make VP? Maybe it was just my bank but they all seemed to look like athletes.

There is no reason to be lifting for more than 30-40 min. at a time. Unless you are an Olympic-level athlete or a professional bodybuilder, if you are lifting for 1 hour+, you are sitting around a lot of the time. Experiment with shorter rest times, you get much better results.

I feel like I've seen this thread about 10 times.

Looks matter in IB? What about that little thing called work? Does work matter in IB?

f9 - work matters more, looks matter too, though less.

i'd rather work with a good looking dude then a fat dude.

I think ideating is the only one in this thread who actually knows what he's talking about.

Are you a faggot, big unit?

You lift for 5 hours over three visits to the gym? Do you know anything about fitness or do you just pump iron to look good for your associate? If you really want to "get jacked" don't listen to this clown. You should be lifting for a maximum of 45 minutes with very little rest between circuits and sets. And you're not going to fucking shed fat by running thirty feet I don't care how many times you run around like an idiot in your apartment.

my post was meant to be sarcastic. Of course your work product matters more.

Are you a bigot, partyingtoohard? There's plenty of ways to lift and stay in shape. If you don't think you can get a work out running suicides of 30 feet, you're an idiot. And you'd seriously rather work in an office w/ an obsese dude than someone who stays in shape & eats well? Give me a break.

partyingtoohard - the hell is wrong with you? Unbelievably stupid response to my post of what I actually did workout-wise while still working 75-80 hours a week.

Different people have different styles of working out. For me, I didn't have many days to go to the gym since I worked a lot... so when I DID go to the gym I worked out multiple body parts (ie arms AND chest on the same day, back AND shoulders on the same day). I'm sure if you are in PWM you have plenty of time to go the gym everyday, do a single body part for 45 minutes, and then relax all day. In IB the three 6 hour periods a week I had off from work during the day I maximized my working out.

Also, yes, running suicides going back and forth over a 30 foot apartment IS a good cardio workout compared to the alternative - which is nothing. Sometimes you don't have time to go to the gym. Dumbass.

Everything I am saying would make sense to someone in IB and who tries to works out. So either you have never worked out for, aren't in IB, or are fat and depressed. I'm not gay, but when I go out with people from work I like being with people who don't attract negative attention. Its one of those "being in good shape is better than not" things.

But then, I see that you are a 'prospective monkey' so your opinions don't matter haha. You'll find that you can't just workout like you can in college when you are in IB, so you have to incorporate advice like my own in order to stay in shape.

Either way, don't be a dumbass.

Actually, partyingtoohard, I just realized you are a graduating high school senior (aren't you deciding between some non-targets or something.

Are you kidding me? You are telling me how to workout while in IB and you're like 16.

Sorry Ivan, but that aint gonna work for me. I'm not some 22 year old kid. If it doesn't work out, I'll just quit - it's that simple.

45 minutes is reasonable, 30 mins is cutting it too close.

45 minutes is reasonable, 30 mins is cutting it too close.

45 minutes is reasonable, 30 mins is cutting it too close.

whoa, triple post.

Everyone has reasons for quitting. I am curious to know why working out is so important that you would quit a job if you couldn't work out.

Also, when I first read your post, you reminded me of this douche, no offense.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=4JMOh-cul6M

"Everyone should fucking see how jacked and tan I am."

If you're really that dedicated, then get up in the mornings. That's what I did while I was in banking. I was in the gym five times a week. I was in a late group, so depending on the day I would be in the gym between 6 and 7:30. Even if I got home at 3 or 4AM I'd get up and work out. I felt better physically and mentally throughout the day, and I didn't spend time worrying about if my workload would allow me to take an hour after dinner. If you're too lazy to get up in the mornings, then there's no guaruntee you'll get in five times a week, simple as that.

yeah, sorry about that.

It's just that as I've gotten older, I've come to realize that working out and staying healthy are more important to me than any job I might have.

But were you able to train consistently on 3 to 4 hours of sleep per night?

I would miss days here or there (I usually lift 2 or 3 days on, one day off and sometimes I would resort to lifting every other day), but overall I was able to lift pretty consistently. I mean, if you're looking to put on size it will be difficult, but I was just looking to maintain what I had in college and keep the bad weight off.

I'm just looking to maintain until I find a job with a better lifestyle

I lift 3x/week. Any of my routines is < 30 min. in the gym itself (i.e. not including showering, etc.)

My longest one is usually back/biceps/traps, here was my last routine:
-4x6 dumbbell rows
-3x6 lat pulldowns
-3x5 cable rows
-5x4-6 preacher curls (alternating grips)
-2x5 hammer curls
-4x5 dumbbell shrugs

Usually takes me about 35 min. to work through that. I would superset the curls and shrugs and that is one of my longer routines.

....that working out for 1 hr every day probably improves your productivity so much, that it actually ends up saving you time by the end of each day?

If you're going home at 2am more than once a week, you're doing something wrong. Maybe this is it.

is a reasonable workout. I'm amazed that you're able to do all that in 35 mins though. When do you usually go? At lunch?

Frankly, whenever my energy level is highest. I know a lot of guys who pound a red bull or coffee and then go lift but I think that is really stupid.

Be honest with yourself, how much time do you spend sitting around the gym? If you go in with the mindset that you are there to do work, lift heavy and get out, you can drastically cut down your lifting time. It's ok to admit that you flex in the mirror, etc. but realize there is a time cost associated with it. The biggest gains are when you limit yourself to 1 min. max for rest with 90 seconds for big lifts (squats, bench).

I agree to an extent that minimizing your rest time is best for growth, but if you're doing heavy compounds to failure, I think even three minutes is reasonable rest time. Obviously that'd be ridiculous for something like tricep extensions, but when you're going balls to the wall on a set, sometimes 1.5 minutes is a tad too short for rest before the next set.

How about circuit training? It cuts down greatly on rest.
Better yet, if you're badass enough (not sarcasm), go HIIT.

Circuit training/HIIT are great to improve endurance and cardiovascular/aerobic ability, but I wouldn't rely on them alone to build/maintain mass.

That said, after one or two big compound lifts, if I'm running short on time I often throw in hard, fast sets of any of the following to break a sweat, get winded, and generally knock the crap out of myself really quickly so I feel like I got in a full workout:

-Dumbbell swings

-renegade man makers (http://www.gymjones.com/schedule.php?date=20051123)

-High-pull deadlift

-erg (rowing machine) sprints - 100 m on, 45 seconds off or 50 m on, 30 sec off

-w/45 lb (or higher) bar: 5xBarbell curl, 10xOH Press, 15xBent Row, 20xLunges (bar on shoulders) for time of <1 Min with 45 seconds rest

I guess the first three aren't really HIIT or circuits, but they are athletic, aerobic exercises that accomplish a similar result (i.e. really tired, really fast).

I wouldn't recommend doing HIIT when you still have a lot of work to do afterwards. HIIT leads to exhaustion. Lifting weights in a short period of time is okay, you're not going to be dead tired afterwards. I don't think most people can say the same about HIIT if you're doing it properly.

What exactly is HIIT training?

Like I said earlier, I don't expect to make any gains while working in banking, but it would be nice to maintain my strength (405 bench) and maybe even get in slightly better cardio shape. My goal is to lift about 4 days a week and do brazilian jiu jitsu 2 days a week.

Have you tried ROM? It's a full range of motion exercise machine, and apparently Tom Cruise and Silvester Stallone has one. You only do 4 minutes a day, one day upper, one day lower, for 5 days. Here is a link to the video: http://www.fastexercise.com/media/video1.html

You plan on doing BJJ on weekend or something?? Don't see how you could consistently train BJJ in banking at all. I have a hard enough time doing lifting and BJJ with college and a part time job, and I am just a student.

Cash, Rules, Everything, Around, Me
C.R.E.A.M.
Get the money
Dollar, dollar bill y'all

ROMs are like bowflex but more of a ripoff

Cash, Rules, Everything, Around, Me
C.R.E.A.M.
Get the money
Dollar, dollar bill y'all

I heard Bowflex works though.

I'll probably do bjj on saturday and try one day a week. Like I said, I'm not trying to be some super associate - just want to do what I have to do.

Where you gonna train - Renzos? Ronins ?
If anything written on here about IB associate lifestyle is true, godspeed to lifting 5x a week and bjj 2x a week. I don't see how you will make it a month in IB without going crazy from missing workouts and BJJ.

Cash, Rules, Everything, Around, Me
C.R.E.A.M.
Get the money
Dollar, dollar bill y'all