[Coco with marshmallows]

Azathmaster, on 28 July 2018 - 04:06 PM, said:

2 new PRs right before my week vacation in the sun, hit a new Bench max at 250 and a new deadlift max at 405, which puts me exactly on 1000 lbs combined between squat, deadlift and bench. Great way to start off vacation!

Welcome to the 1000lbs club.

Next stop 1100 (still chasing that myself )

[Dolmen 2.0]

So in an effort to get myself off to a new start, I got enrolled at the gym again.

I have two things I didn't before.

Firstly: Time. my hours are flexible, the gym is a short walk away and I can feasibly work on a daily routine for 1 hour and 45 minutes a day. currently, we're doing a cycle of:

Monday: Cardio, Core, Back and/or Chest, light trap work as I am weak there.
Tuesday: Cardio, Core, Arms and Shoulders.
Wednesday: Cardio, Core and Legs, light Trap work.
Thursday: Cardio, Core, Back and/or Chest.
Friday: Cardio, Arms and focus groups. i.e. inner chest or "wings"

Secondly: Motivation and an excellent Gym partner.
My younger brother is a devoted gym-head. We were always in separate cities but for once, for a fairly decent stint of time, I get to train with him and follow his instruction. Being a year apart we have always competed but the last year has seen little brother grow exponentially stronger than me. I am jealous and super inspired, he was a thin kid maybe 50 kgs less than me. Even in his first year of gym I was naturally stronger. Now we are maybe 20 kgs apart and I feel no shame admitting he is the stronger...for now

I was never athletic, even when I played sports I was in it more for the fun than for excellence. Recently I find Excercise has become an invaluable source of happiness. I take regular walks and have kept a morning and evening home routine. I lost 15 kgs on my own, controlling sugar and eating less starch and it felt great. having hit 30 I think I have a lot of work to do to reach my next goal, losing another 10 kgs and seeing some form of abdominal muscle. And of course lifting more than my brother can, obviously.

So I think I'm gonna need help. Will log in weekly developments.

My first real query is with Cardio, specifically rowing.

Is Rowing better or worse than cycling or hitting the treadmill prior to heavy lift exercises?

Several guys say it's not effective cardio for them but I feel pretty activated after a 15-minute turn.

Am I missing something?

[Coco with marshmallows]

Dolmen 2.0, on 04 September 2018 - 10:02 PM, said:

Is Rowing better or worse than cycling or hitting the treadmill prior to heavy lift exercises?

Several guys say it's not effective cardio for them but I feel pretty activated after a 15-minute turn.

Am I missing something?

Personally speaking, because of the overall effect it has on your CNS and general fatigue levels, i find rowing more effective cardio.

HOWEVER - i would also point out that i do cardio AFTER lifting - i lift first. My warm up /activation for lifting, is lifting lighter and building up to the heavy sets.

Any time i've lifted after cardio i've found myself to be weaker, whereas if i cardio after lifting i find i can grind out the cardio effort.

[Cause]

I have started using a personal trainer. Pushes me much harder than I push myself, so thats good. Last time we did wieghts my arms too 3 days to recover. Not just DOMS but they actually lost so much strenght! I asked what I can do to recover faster and he suggested I could start creatine.

Does anyone here use creatine? Its not that expensive so I dont mind that. I worry more for two reasosn, I heard it can make you put on weight (Do not want) and Im worried if I work hard enough to make use of it. I have also heard before if you take it and dont work out often enough it wont do anything. Anyone have any experience, advice? I see the trainer once a week and will be aiming for 2 additional solo work out sessions. Maybe some extra running aerobics beyond that but probably not often. I can alwyas do psh ups and squats at home. I used to be able to do 60 push ups, I can currently do 10 so I will be working on that again.

[Aptorian]

You're a science wiz so you should just Google some proper research instead of taking our bro advice on creatine, but...

Basically if you lift weights you might as well take creatine.

The way I understand it, you do put on weight when you take creatine, but it's water weight. Not fat or muscle. Creatine isn't a hormone or full of calories. It doesn't create new muscle or fatty tissue. It's just a molecule. It's not noticable unless you're skinny.

The way I understand it, it sort of fills up your muscles, cells? And gives you the ability to push your body little bit harder. A few more reps, a bit more intensity. It builds up in your body over time so you should be taking it daily.

You get creatine naturally from eating meat, specifically red meat I think, but you don't get as much as you can store through your diet.

I believe that it's recommend you take 5 grams a day but look it up on the bucket. I take 10ish grams a day because why not. I'd rather be certain my stores are topped up than miss out. You just piss out what ever creatine you don't use. Just don't eat 25-50 grams a day or your kidneys will start complaining or catch fire.

Don't buy some overly expensive crap like Celltech. Creatine like protein powder is not a complicated product and shouldn't be very expensive. Look up a list of recommended brands in your country and price ranges. Typically in my gym they sell basic average price creatine and protein.

This post has been edited by Alternative Goose: 10 November 2018 - 04:00 PM

[Cause]

Okay I am so much worse off than I thought. I have gotten weak! Don't know when.

So specifically my chest is weaker than I thought or remember. I dislike benching on my own (incase I cant lift the weight). I was always told that free weights are better than machines but I have come to question the sage wisdom of this. So to train my chest what are good machines to use? The chest press? In theory what ever I can chest press I should be able to bench roughly speaking correct? I also find machines are faster and less hassle. So whats the maximum number of times a weak I should work on the same muscle group? My bench is embarrassing at the moment and I must fix this. I thought I was benching 60KG with the trainer the other day but apparently it was only 40, years ago as a beginner I did 80 and worked up from there. I have lost so much power!!!

Also when I run I get shin pain in the lower Fron third of my leg. Starts only during running and goes away when I stop running. Is this Shin splits? WEB-md seems to say shin splits pain lasts continuously. Will I adapt in time or do I need to rest to heal? get different shoes?

[Aptorian]

Free weights, cable machines, plate loaded, banded machines, etc. will all feel different and allow you to excert different kinds of force. Even different brands of the same machine may feel different. It's definitely not a 1:1 ratio between free weights and machines. As an example try curling a barbell and then see how much more you can curl in a cable machine, like the cross over station.

There's no shame in using a machine while you build strength. Though you could just use dumbbells instead trying to barbell bench. I switched to dumbbells half a year ago after I hurt my rotator cuff and I haven't looked back.

The chest isn't terribly versatile so for chest training there's really only two movements that work. Pressing/pushing away from you from different angles and pulling/squeezing your arms and chest together in a "flies" exercise. So press machines and peck-dec/flies machines. The third type of exercise I like for chest training is pullovers but it's much more than just a chest exercise. Try and find a pullover machine if your gym has one. Otherwise watch a YouTube instruction for dumbbell pullovers lying on a bench.

Typically people recover in 48-72 hours. So you can hit a muscle group twice a week. I wouldn't recommend more than that though unless it's a very specific program, like 5x5 and even that is only recommended for a few months.

Not much of a runner but I've had the shin pains as well. For some it's constant for others the leg quickly adapt. I'd Google some running tips.

This post has been edited by Alternative Goose: 23 November 2018 - 11:03 AM

[Cause]

Cool, got up to 50. Only 30kg to go to get back where I was a few years ago

[Dolmen 2.0]

I managed a deadlift of 100 kgs for 8 reps last week. Thats my body weight now which is cool. My arms are butter though. Barely able to curl 20 kgs and I struggle to bench 40kgs. My brother suggested i focus on sevens at 5, 15 and 20 kg runs 4 sets in a row and work triceps daily.

I find doing the circuit And Rowing daily made for a better overall increase in muscle but I was definitely weaker when i settled down to lift weights. This week i moved to a new city. Will have to do body weight training for a month or so till i can finalize the move and locate a branch of my gym I like.

Currently doing 100 situps,100 squats 3 plank sets and 40 pushups per day. The goal is to work up to the onepunch man workout but I HATE running so i might do more core than anything else.

[Coco with marshmallows]

again personal view so YMMV - sit ups aren't that great for abs/core workouts.

do leg raises/reverse cycles instead - way more bang for your buck, tire you out far quicker.

[Cause]

Okay so things are going well. I can already see thanks to my smart watch that my resting heart rate has improved and the workouts are getting easier. On some days anyways, I have days when I feel weak. I presume I need to pay more attention to my nutrition.

I have decided to establish some simple goals to reach. To keep me motivated and remind me why I am doing this. Thought Id share publicly for some accountability.

Goals:
Confidence - Rather than set some weight goal I realized what I rally want is to feel confident and comfortable with myself. I have decided then to set the goal in this way rather: I want to be comfortable to take my shirt off at the pool. I realized I don't care what I weigh, I care how I feel.
Be healthier - This goal is very important to me but its one I need to find a way to break down into a smaller more measurable goal. Its too nebulous otherwise. I think one thing I have identified is I want to be more flexible
Do a pull Up! - Since I became an adult I have not had the strength to do a proper pull up. I will need to improve my strength and lose weight to make this possible. Seems a very reasonable goal and something that I can focus on.
Do a 5 km Run, Do it regularly - I need to improve cardio, this seems like a very obtainable goal as a way to measure this as well as get several other benefits. I hate running, I always have. I downloaded an app to coach me to my first 5km. Progress has been slow due to frequent interuptions of the apps schedule but I think this is a very reasonable goal that I can achieve hopefully in the next 3-4 months. The app is a ten week programme.
Do 40 Push ups - I used to be able to do this easily but I have lost the knack. I want it back. Just need to do a few every day and build up from there.

[Coco with marshmallows]

good for you Dolmen, simple goals are a great way to keep yourself motivated.

in terms of the pull up, and provided you're truly interested in it, i recommend the following video for you to watch:






^ link in case it doesn't work

[Dolmen 2.0]

Coco with marshmallows, on 20 February 2019 - 10:21 PM, said:

good for you Dolmen, simple goals are a great way to keep yourself motivated.

in terms of the pull up, and provided you're truly interested in it, i recommend the following video for you to watch:






^ link in case it doesn't work

I like this.

I am currently rowing 5km in 21 minutes. I cant seem to go much faster but I think I can try make 7km for 30 minutes my regular cardio.

I do the new Gyms Circuit pretty easily. slowly starting to add weight here and there.

My las gym session had me clocking the seated dip machine which used to be a struggle.

I did four sets of eccentric rows and four sets of cable cross. I managed to do two other chest machines before I finished with legs.

I decided I'll be using Fridays to do free weights exclusively, This will be Cleans, Bench, Deadlift and Barbells. I might do Sevens and or Pull ups. I think I might manage 4 sets of 5 on my own, I'm still pretty heavy and soft about the middle but my upper body is much stronger than when I got started.

[Coco with marshmallows]

i'd heartily recommend anything by Brian Alsruhe if you're looking for tips/tricks, he's got masses of vids on his Youtube channel (neversate athletics) and puts himself across well.

[Aptorian]

I love Alsruhe. It always surprised me that he gets so few views. The guy is a beast and very entertaining.

Alan Thrall is also good if you want pointers on the big lifts and power lifting stuff. He sort of providers and easier digestible interpretation of Mark Rippetoes Starting Strength teaching + more strong man stuff.

If you're into bodybuilding I can also recommend John Meadows Mountaindog1 channel. The guy's got a million little tricks to get more out of your training.


Edit: The Athlean-X channel with Jeff Cavelier is also good if you want a more scientific, atlete minded advise. The guy has a hundred ideas to target muscles in alternative ways. And he uses his own body in a very visual way.


I'd argue you shouldn't take his advise as gospel enterily though. Some of his ideas just aren't practical for your average gym goer.

This post has been edited by Alternative Goose: 21 February 2019 - 09:33 PM

[Dolmen 2.0]

Alternative Goose, on 21 February 2019 - 09:26 PM, said:

I love Alsruhe. It always surprised me that he gets so few views. The guy is a beast and very entertaining.

Alan Thrall is also good if you want pointers on the big lifts and power lifting stuff. He sort of providers and easier digestible interpretation of Mark Rippetoes Starting Strength teaching + more strong man stuff.

If you're into bodybuilding I can also recommend John Meadows Mountaindog1 channel. The guy's got a million little tricks to get more out of your training.


Edit: The Athlean-X channel with Jeff Cavelier is also good if you want a more scientific, atlete minded advise. The guy has a hundred ideas to target muscles in alternative ways. And he uses his own body in a very visual way.


I'd argue you shouldn't take his advise as gospel enterily though. Some of his ideas just aren't practical for your average gym goer.

I watched a lot of Jeffs earlier videos, they helped me workout target areas. I think he is an athletic-minded coach first and power lift trainer second. I want to go the power lift route once my basics are in order. So far anything on Bodybuilder.com on weight training exercises has been great. I'll have a look at the other channels. That Pull up video made tons of sense and was way more entertaining.

I have a bit of a flu today, Everyone says I should stay away from gym for now so I'm gonna sit in and eat, will do the weight exercises tomorrow after a movie.

[Vengeance]

I haven't posted on here in a while. I have been free weight training for the last 9 months. At first it was only a day a week. For the last couple of months it has been 2 days a week for a total of two hours. I also have a gym on my floor at work that I will go to for a few minutes a couple of times a day. I don't have time to do a full work out before or after work. Kids...

My max bench press is 90. I am currently doing 1 set at 70 and then 2 sets at 80. Each set is 3.

I can front squat with my arms in the full clean position (elbows out) for 3 sets of 5 at 70 pounds. I am moving up slowly because I work on keeping my form correct so I don't put an pressure on my wrists.

Barbell deadlift of 80 pounds.

I inch my weight up. Mainly because I am just doing it to get slightly stronger and to stay in shape rather then body building.

I will usually finish my work out with a 10 minute row of 2200 meters.

[Slow Ben]

Vengeance, on 22 February 2019 - 04:09 PM, said:

I can front squat with my arms in the full clean position (elbows out) for 3 sets of 5 at 70 pounds. I am moving up slowly because I work on keeping my form correct so I don't put an pressure on my wrists.

Random, but i much prefer the cross grip on my front squats. I keep my wrists completely out of the equation.

This post has been edited by Slow Ben: 22 February 2019 - 06:08 PM

[Vengeance]

Slow Ben, on 22 February 2019 - 06:08 PM, said:

Vengeance, on 22 February 2019 - 04:09 PM, said:

I can front squat with my arms in the full clean position (elbows out) for 3 sets of 5 at 70 pounds. I am moving up slowly because I work on keeping my form correct so I don't put an pressure on my wrists.

Random, but i much prefer the cross grip on my front squats. I keep my wrists completely out of the equation.

I have tried that and I can increase my weight a little bit. I also think that it allows me to move my back more and screws with my form. Eventually I want to work in a full clean and jerk routine and maintaining good form and being used to my elbows out will make that easier.

[Coco with marshmallows]

both front squat positions have their uses. i find the elbows out i can get more weight as some of it is taken through the wrist and not the shoulders.

OTOH i find the cross grip far more stable overall.