lol... well what else should I be doing then? I'm not doing it for appearance. Just thought I'd state that for the record.

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LoL

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Ever tried a smolov squat cycle?

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How about flat bench and deadlifts?

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I've been making liberal use of the free (for UMass students) gym at school.

I can finally do a bunch of excersises I've always wanted to do, including-

Benchpress
Squats
Pullups
Leg Press

I can also take care of cardio without having to walk outside, which is going to be AWESOME in the winter.

The first day I was doing some deadlifts when one of the trainers came up to me and told me my form was so fucked up I was going to herniate or rupture a disc if I kept doing it that way. For clarity's sake, I would squat, bend over to grab the bar, stand up, then straighten my back. When he showed me the right way, my hip flexors and calves were so foreign to the motion that I couldn't even squat into the proper position without grabbing the bar.

I went over to the squat rack and it occured to me that the necessary motion was almost identical (back straight, chest puffed, heels flat) as the deadlift. After working on that for a while, I'm doing much better.

Today I made it to 275 on squats (2 reps), 325 on leg press (finally had the guts to try today, 5 reps), 335 on dead lifts (1 rep), and 210 on bench press (1 rep).

I'm in the 210-215 range (212 this morning), so I feel this is pretty good progress considering how unfamiliar my body was to these excersises.

In a question to Far Beyond Jim, when I went for the first time I made it to 170 on bench press. The next Friday, I made it to 185. On Monday I made it to 205, but on Wednesday I stalled out on 200. Today I made it to 210. For how long can I reasonably expect this rate of progress? I expect to at least be able to do one rep at my own body weight by some point next week.

All apparently random and unidentified numbers should be considered lbs.

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From one extreme to the other.

(For the uninitiated: a Smolov squat cycle is an insanely brutal program designed by a loony Russian which involves squatting up to three times a week. Mop and bucket territory. I am too scared to try it.)



Good observation. Most powerlifters don't train the squat and deadlift heavy at the same time because of the somewhat identical structures involved. Depends on your frame and lifting style somewhat - for someone like me, they are very similar as I deadlift very wide and squat wide-ish.

Be careful about fatigue in your lower back when starting out with this kind of training. Especially if you're tall. If possible, find someone who deadlifts over about 450 for reps, and they should be able to tweak your form if you ask them nicely.



You are still learning the motor pattern of the movement, so you're making progress very quickly. This rather pleasant scenario will sadly end in a matter of weeks. Then you'll have to work for your lbs like the rest of us.

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I was immediately excited when I was able to easily and correctly perform deadlifts on Monday, but when I made it up to 305 I was worried that my form weakened on the way back down and there was some immediate, minor soreness in my lower spine.

The pain didn't last very long (and wasn't TOO bad to begin with), but if you think it's a reason for concern, I'll look into it. For the record, when I made it to 335 today, I was struggling like a son of a bitch, but I made it back down with my back arched and feet just as flat as when I hoisted the bar off the ground.

On an unrelated note, do you consider this list of strength standards at all informative or accurate?

http://www.exrx.net/Testing/WeightL...thStandards.htm

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Four during the first mesocycle, including two very heavy sessions in a row.


Same here, although it would be silly to do so considering my rather shitty squatting numbers. I know one guy who did two base mesocycle almost back to back for the front squat. He was able to add about 20 kgs, and ended up with a 190 kg front squat. However, a few weeks later, his lower back got fucked, and he was unable to lift heavy for 4 months or something. Crazy cunt.

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I've been weightlifting at a gym for 8 months now, 1 of them on and off bc of a trip but I'm back to full speed now and am about to start my 5th cycle(5 exercise groups per week). I was making some pretty noticeable gain up until about a month and a half ago, and was pretty lean(I kick the shit out of myself with a good 15 of intense cardio) but started getting these unreasonably HUGE appetites that I just couldn't control, and so I've gained about 4-5kg. But I'm trying to eat less again so that's getting taken care of hopefully...

What I need some help with is my protein intake. I really think I'm not getting all the muscle mass gains I should be getting. I'm eating tuna as my main meal at least 3-4 times a week, eggs, chicken and meat(no pork though), but I've added up the content in all my daily meals and it really doesn't even come close to the 1-2gr. per pound of body weight in lb. I should be eating(so, between 200-400gr approx).

Would you folks suggest whey drinks? Or protein bars? I am assuming that the drinks contain a lot less calories right? I want to try a protein drink for a few months but I need to know: do they contain a lot of calories? I don't want to be ingesting any unnecessary calories, protein drinks don't contain many right? If they do, would it be wise to replace meals(eg: breakfast before working out) with just a protein drink or should they be used strictly as supplements?

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if youre going to gain muscle weight youre goign to take in tons of calories. i think steve was taking in like 4000 calories a day at one point and he didnt look like a big body builder. big guy, but not like ones you see in magazines

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I fall under intermediate for every category... probably not all that accurate.

^^ This site is pretty fuckin cool though, check this out

http://www.exrx.net/Calculators/OneRepMax.html



Try chicken, red meat, and egg whites.

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That kind of stuff is somewhat like metal genres - you have to call them *something*, it's just a bit silly when you do. ExRx is an excellent site overall.



Drinks, NOT bars. Make sure it's a protein powder and not a weight gainer (protein + carbs). Don't worry about calories, just fucking eat. Don't replace meals.

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That should not be per lb., it should be per kg. Convert your weight in lb. to kg and you'll find something a lot more reasonable. I'm shooting around 150 and I usually don't make it (about 1.5 g/per kg), but I'm at least above 1g per kg.

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I think I should have mentioned that that is 85% of my diet right now. But thx.



Oh damn so it is per kg after all? I must have read it wrong, I too thought it was pretty much impossible to eat that much if the ratio was to be done with pounds.



Coolies. Thanks, I'll be picking up one of those whey protein powders tomorrow. Just didn't want to risk taking something that would lead to weight gain of the undesired kind.

For someone who weighs 94kg and is 188cm tall, 20 years old, would my max benchpress of 55kg be too low? Is there some minimum for every age/height/weight group?

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It's definitely 1.5-2 grams of protein per POUND. yeah, it seems high, but if you're serious about gaining muscle, your diet must be serious too and you must eat, eat eat.

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I don't think so man, I just searched google and all of the pages I saw claimed 0.8-2.0 gr per kg not lb.

If I had to eat 200-400gr. per day, and a can of tuna has about 26 gr of protein, and 4 eggs being about 27gr, and a big steak coming in around 30gr, chicken being quite a bit less... you do the math.

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My protein intake per day is roughly equal to 1-1.5g:1lbs of my body weight. I'm 192 lbs. I bought a 3.8lbs two weeks ago of Pro-lab N-large whey powder but the formula is shit. It's roughly 54grams of protein PER 4 scoops. It's bullshit, I'm almost out of the stuff. I'm never buying that shit again so I'll have to blow more money this week on protein powder..

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http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/south4.htm

Bunch of info on protein and There is a link on there to a protein intake calculator based on weight. Looks like i was right.

I don't want to hear that's impossible to consume that much protein, cause when i get heavy into training, i pull it off. You have to be dedicated. My protein shakes have 54g of whey protein. I'll have one with water early in the day, then after i lift I make one with milk and a raw egg, which prob puts it up to 75-80g of protein. now that's already almost 135g of protein and i haven't even mentioned eating. eggs have 6-8g. if you eat 6 for breakfast, that's around 40g. so that puts you up to 165g. now after lunch, dinner, and everything else you consume, you can easily double your bodyweight in pounds with g of protein

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You nit. A big steak would be somewhere between 75-100g, and that's only normal-big and not even American-big.

General protein advice:

1) Eat a lot of it...
2) ...But don't go completely insane over it. Remember there are two other macronutrients.
3) Don't count the grams, for this is the Path of Gaydom.
4) YOU ARE NOT METAL UNLESS YOU HAVE A TWENTY KILO BAG OF PROTEIN IN YOUR KITCHEN.
5) I am metal, but I cry a lot.

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Now I fall under intermediate in most applicable category, too, and considering I've only been doing most of these excersises for two weeks exactly (@3days per), it can't be horribly accurate. Both you and I have found it to be a useful site overall, though, and Jim vouches for it. I'm compelled take Jim at his word because he's a curmudgeonly kangaroo fucker and for no logical reason.

Made it up to 245 on the bench today, but no gains on the squat or deadlift, still stuck at 275 and 335 respectively. I did make some slight gains on the assisted pullups, shrugs, and standing rows.

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My body weight is up to 187.5lbs now and on bench yesterday on my 4th set, i put up 275lbs for 4 good reps. It feels good to see improvement after a long plateau. My back strength seems to be increasing as well. On bent over rows, i'm up to sets of 235 for 8-10 reps.

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STORY:

Had woman trouble, got very angry, went to gym, did A LOT of bodyweight power cleans, now my lower back has invited devils with pitchforks to stab my spinal erectors over and over again. Hips were rising too early - elementary mistake. Feel stupid. And sore.

MORAL:

NEVER, EVER do anything in a gym that requires coordinated motor patterns in a bad mood. If you're going to rage out, make sure you do it with something that doesn't require good attention to detail.

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I feel your pain...women

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Pushpressed for the first time in a few months today. Got up to a single with 70 kg. Im rather happy, as it's been a while since I last tried this. Getting pretty close to bodyweight now, although it's not that much of an achivement when you're about 80 kg. Still, it will be pretty cool once I get there.

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The gym sucked on Friday. After EVERY SINGLE SET (literally), I was sucking wind and lightheaded. Many times I went to stand up after a set and had to sit back down, and one time fell to one knee. I have no idea what the problem was outside of the possibility of a premature caffeine crash. My muscles felt powerful and I made some minor gains in bench press (from 245 to 270) and squats (275 to 295), but I stalled out on deadlifts and pullups.

The thing that sucked was that I really felt like I was going to make some serious progress yesterday; I especially felt optimistic on the bench press- 8@180, 8@200, 6@220, 6@250, and 5@270. I was doing so well I jumped from 270 to 290, but I couldn't even get one rep. I took off ten and still couldn't get it up for one rep, despite getting 270 up for five.

I was feeling good about the squats, too, but after getting REAL deep with the 295, I couldn't get back up with 305. Oh well, I'm sure I'll do better next time. My next goals are 300 on bench, 340 on squats, and 375 on deadlifts. I'm currently on 270, 295, and 335 respectively. My goals are just arbitrary numbers that look good to me, nothing meaningful, really.

Anybody wanna take bets on when I reach those goals? Can I make it there by the end of October?

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Lots of natural strength, and/or you've been doing other sports? I exercise for 6 months (although not "full-time", if you understand) and I'm not even touching novice for any category yet. I know, I'm a joke.
I'm 10 pounds short of deadlifting my own bodyweight now, and I know I can go higher, but I've run out of weights at my home gym.

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My fitness program is continual starvation, lack of a disposable income and generally not being paid for services rendered.

So I'm actually starting to lose weight, I'm becoming more "fit" by sheer weight of economics.

Inflation and economic recession, my friends, may just cure the US's obesity problems.

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Well if you don't have a partner its only common sense to use machines. Otherwise freeweights are preferable in my opinion, but I do both.

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I find people at the gym at UMass to be willing to help each other out with this kind of stuff. I don't know anyone there, but someone is always willing to spot me if I ask. If I'm in a bad mood or not feeling well physically, I'll just keep to myself and use the machines so I don't need a spotter. As you said, though, free weights are highly preferable.

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Sadly, no. It's perfectly possible to be obese and simultaneously have bad redneck-style malnourishment.

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Maxed out on bench today at 315. Weighed in at 189.3lbs. I'd like to get up to about 205lbs or so.

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Assuming that you bench properly, that's a really solid lift.

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That's an insane lift, most folks can't even bench their own weight, I tried it myself........and ahh.....failed.

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Great work man!

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Noobs like me heed this advice. I wish these posts existed and I saw them months ago. I think I suffered that same fate, long story short - Squats and deadlifts on the same day, twice a week, heavy as I could for six months, never once took a break from training. Was training with a lot of anger and stress, form was probably getting sloppy towards the end. One day went to gym, put bar on back, ow ow ow, went home, could not lift or do much else for 2.5 months. In that time decided to see osteopath, massage (trigger point), chiro.

I only just went back to the gym recently and tried to squat light,. Problem is my back still holds a lot of tension, feels like it's the psoas and the erector process insertions. I only get relief by stretching A LOT everyday, and I can't squat comfortably unless I stretch and move all my hip flexors/erectors in between sets, deadlifts are even worse. It's fucked to say the least. To add to that, I just tore my left pec the other day and can't abduct my arm past 90°. I could cry.

So you got any good rehabilitation advice fbs? Aside from the obvious shit like stretching, rest, movement etc. Anything else you've found that helps?

I'd have to bench 353 to be at the same ratio of body weight to weight pressed. Good fucking work.

I felt awesome when I finally got up to my own bodyweight on the bench and just as good when I made it to 245. Every time I look at the chart on the wall, though, I see people like you who bench 1.5-2 times their own bodyweight and all of a sudden I don't feel so great.

I killed myself yesterday with repetition work on squats, deadlifts, and sumo deadlifts to change up from the strength/max work I had been doing. I hope the repetition work improves my form and overall strength, but I intended to take care of cardio that day too, and the last 10 minutes on the treadmill was excruciating hell on my lower back, so I had to cut it short. At work today, lifting boxes of canned juice (so the women on 2nd shift wouldn't have to do it) was pretty uncomfortable as well.

Yesterday I labored at 180 for rep work on the bench, so that means when I go to the gym tomorrow I'll have to find a way to kill 2 hours without doing bench press, deadlifts, sumolifts, or squats. FUCK.

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Heaps of stuff.

First, I'll tell you a story about the first time I hurt my back, because it's funny.

I was doing single dumbbell clean and jerks with something above 85lbs, by myself, in my own gym (so, by myself). I thrash them up, with the feeling towards the end that something is not quite right.

What was happening, of course, is that I was dropping my body sideways under the weight, stabilising it by bending my spine and holding it over my bodily center of gravity. It comes from working too heavy, and not having the shoulder/torso strength to hold the reps safely overhead.

I finish. I am fine. Then I bend over to pick up a piece of paper and my back locks up so hard I fall over sideways like a felled tree. I lie on the floor in the foetal position, in a great deal of pain. After several minutes, I can just about crawl. Anything 10 degrees under or over 90 degrees makes my back feel like it's being stabbed. I crawl into the bathroom, turn the shower on very very hot and kneel in the tub like I'm waiting for a prison sex movie to start.

Slowly, things unlock. I spend three weeks sitting gingerly, walking gingerly, not lifting weights and cursing the day I was born. I would say the problem recently was about only about 40% as severe.

Lessons:

1) Trauma builds up in backs. If you smash yours about a bit, when you're least expecting it, you'll bend it out of shape. This fits very well with the old weightlifting adage that people injure themselves with light weights - you respect heavy weights, so you do them properly. Drop down below about 65% and you think about the movement differently... and fuck it up. Sometimes, it fucks back.

2) Unilateral movements should NOT be maxed, should NOT be brutalised, should NOT be overdone. Be careful with anything that loads your spine unevenly. I do not do one-handed C&J, one-handed snatches, one-legged deadlifts etc. with anything about 5RM. EVER.

3) PAY ATTENTION TO THE WAY YOU FEEL. Oftentimes, only after you sod something up entirely will you notice how internal sensations translate into consequences. Try to learn as quickly as possible.

4) If you make the same mistake twice with an injury you are a) training too hard b) training too often c) training too carelessly or d) fuckbrained.

Things I did last rehab:

- Foam back belt. Usually designed to support old people, I pinched one off a friend and wore it continually, even on hot days, to keep the area warm.

- Hot and cold showers. These are demonic, but they stimulate blood flow like nobody's business. Get in the shower, shove the offending part under the water. Alternate as hot as you can possibly stand water with just-the-cold-tap water for 30 sec blocks. One of the guys I train with says these don't do anything for the injury, they just make you so uncomfortable it seems to hurt less! He is wrong, but funny.

- Reverse hypers. Fortunately, I have a gym with a reverse hyper machine. It looks like this. It is perfectly possible to do this movement without the weighted machine off a high bench. Ankle weights would be a good addition. This is from the reverse hyper machine website:

The Reverse Hyper®5356,359 and 6,491,607b2 decompresses the spine and has no vertical compression on the spine at all. This simple device allows for dynamic strength development in the concentric phase, while serving as a rehabilitation mechanism in the eccentric phase by gently stretching and depressurizing the spine and creating, in essence, an internal pumping mechanism, filling the spinal column with spinal fluid and the low back muscles with blood .Anyone who has injured their back knows that the pressure needs to be relieved and circulation restored to the injured area in order to rehabilitate. this can be used 3 to 4 times a week for therapeutic work but have also had clients that used every day with light weight to get tightness out of lower back area.

I agree.

- Breathing exercises. What's the other muscle group which stabilises your body between the bottom of your ribcage and your pelvis? Your abdominal wall (and obliques etc.). I used a hybrid breathing exercise which addresses both the 'deep' abdominal muscles and the rectus abdominis. It's a sequence. Think Tai Chi.

1) Stand normally, facing a mirror, no shirt (sounds gay but you need the feedback). Put your hands flat on the front of your thighs.

2) Exhale everything, let your chest drop, let your stomach distend outwards. You'll look ridiculous.

3) Suck your stomach in without inhaling. Think about pulling your navel all the way back to your spine. A little pressure from your hands on your thighs helps. With a little practice, you'll find you can suck your stomach in to a ridiculous degree. Hold this position for at least 5 seconds. It's harder than you'd think.

4) Simultaneously throw your hands behind your head & inhale massively. Your stomach will swell with air. Point your elbows at the ceiling. When in this position, clench down on your abs like you were about to take a gutshot from an angry troll and (this bit is weird) think about sucking your arsehole into your body. Hold this for at least 5 seconds.

5) Go back to 2) by exhaling while lowering your arms to your thighs.

So, there's 3 positions:
- hands down, exhaled, slumped
- hands down, exhaled, stomach way in
- hands up, inhaled, stomach tense

It's strange, I know. But I have found absolutely nothing like this for making sure my abs were doing a good job of stablising my torso movements. I've heard them described as your 'front-back'. There's more than a grain of truth to that.

Fuck, I think this is the longest post I've ever made.

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LOL

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More than usual, you retarded scrawny little shit.

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belly looks distended thanks to my curvy spine anyway

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Killer! I'll get right on to those. I'll have to wait a bit before I can do the stretch exercise, I don't think it's a good idea to be throwing my arm up like that at this point.

The reverse hyper makes sense. It's pretty much the same movement that I use to relieve tennis elbow.



Haha. Thanks for taking the time man, it's much appreciated.

Actually, I'm quite sure this isn't your longest post. That essay on the matter of provocative homosexuals still live in the memory of some of us. Or, at least, is resurrected now and then.

As for as taking care of your back, there are two simple exercises that's good to prevent damage, especially to your spine.
1) Lay down flat on your stomach. Then push up with your hands, while keeping your legs firmly on the ground. You'll look like those skihills used for jumping.
The point of this is to remove all weight from the spine and stretch out all those nasty little points of compression that you might get from lifting heavy straight up - or, lurky enough, from sitting down. No kidding, for hurting your spine permanently, all you need to do is sit a lot.

2) Lay flat on your back. Then fold up your leg and pull up your knee to the chin and grab the leg. You should feel this in your lower back, but take it easy if you're not used to stretching.

These are my standard remedies after a day in the forest or a hard dance session. Hope they are of use to someone.

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Hmm. Dare I ask?

If you're looking for more info on the above, they're called the Cobra and a lying erector spinae stretch. Checkittout.

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Sure you do. Or maybe you don't. How should I know?

Yea, that's pretty much what I was refering to. As for me, my teacher in showjazz has my everlasting gratitude for showing these simple tricks.
Interesting site too. Thanks.

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Is this something that is recommended for anyone who has been working with squats and deadlifts, or just people who are working through pain or with injuries?

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Lately I've been noticing substantial pain in my elbows when i'm benching. only when the arms are almost at the peak of the extension. No other exercises really seem to bother me other than bench. Anyone have any good advice on what to do about it? It's not enough where i can't do the exercise, but enough to make me nervous about the potential for serious injury.

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Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Elbow pain when benching is common doing a normal gumby/bodybuilding bench. I fucking hate bench pressing for several reasons.

1) Injury. Torn pecs and detached triceps. I would say these are the most common serious injuries in gym rats. Athletes only get them rarely, because many of them don't bench!

2) Better exercises exist. For shoulders and triceps? Anything overhead & dips. For pecs? Who cares. Some naff exercise like crossovers, probably.

3) Motor pattern vs. payoff. Learning to do anything really heavy requires you to invest time learning motor patterns/coordination and how the movement 'works'. If I'm going to do this, I would rather learn something that isn't just a tricep and shoulders exercise. I am yet to master split jerks, different pullup variations, a really solid bent press etc. etc., all of which are better exercises.

4) Me. My arm span is 6'8.5". I am 6'1". When I press off the floor, my triceps hit the floor and the bar is still 3 inches above my chest. I find bench pressing incredibly uncomfortable, and the bar dies off my chest with anything much more than bodyweight. Pure biomechanical disadvantage. Still pathetic, though.

Anyway, if you must bench press, read this stuff:

http://www.elitefts.com/documents/step_up.htm
http://www.elitefts.com/documents/jm-article.htm
http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=459490
http://www.t-nation.com/readTopic.do?id=459799

It's probably the angle of your upper arm to your body pissing off your elbow joint capsule.

Man, I'm writing a lot here lately. Could it be that I'm procrastinating and I really really really don't want to start this fucking marking? Surely not.

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Notwithstanding FBS's allusion to their use for erotical purposes, they're as useful for preventing as treating injuries. I don't know what it's called in English, but there is a fairly common back injury where the discs in your spince gets squeezed together, causing eighteen types of hell; I know a few who has it and they've been recommended these exercises. And at the same time, they're taught to for example dancers, as a way of keeping your back in good shape. As always though, when it comes to stretching, being careful is the watchword.

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herniated disk i believe

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I sucked on bench press, deadlifts, and sumo lifts today, but I made it up to full body weight on two pullup variations, so I'm happy about that, at least. I had an awesome caffeine crash during the middle of my workout that fucked over my all my deads.

I spent much of the workout on dumbbell benches, incline dumbbell benches, and barbell benches to beat my stabilizers into shape so I can make it back up to 250 on a real bench and be able to do it whenever I feel like it and not just on a good day. 250 is so fucking easy on a machine when you don't have to use your stabilizing muscles

I spent the rest doing pullup variations and dips. Does anyone else find dips to be much easier than pullups? Even well before I could do a pullup at bodyweight, I could do sets of 10 really deep dips without much problem. The other kids at the gym don't get half that deep, but then they put me to shame by doing sets of pullups at bodyweight, especially the skinny kids.

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well yeah dude, dips are MUCH easier than pullups. It's always easier to push than it is to pull. it's like comparing bench press to bent over rows in a sense.

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Fucking awesome page. Very useful for me.


I..... don't agree. I can do like 15 good pull ups, but only maybe half as many good dips. Maybe I'm doing dips wrong.

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really? hmmm...i dunno. I'm not sure how many dips i can do these days, but i know it's more than double the amount of pull ups. It just makes sense that your tri's can push more weight than your shoulders can pull.

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Wow. I'm out of shape and can still do at least 15 good pullups. The hand the semi hit doesn't like me when I do, though.

You've got me beat. I can do 10, if I put all of my effort into but on the other hand I can pull myself up and hang for quite a good amount of time.

Semi incident, happen recently?

The answer to this question is determined by a combination of levers, relative muscle strength, relative muscular proportion/distribution, coordination, practice, confidence, bar thickness, grip width and whether or not your name starts with a "C".

I.E. "X is harder than Y" is King Stupid.

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touche, fbs.

Deads and squats tonight. I used to hate leg day, but lately i've been actually looking forward to it.

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If anyone here thinks they are good deadlifters

you're wrong

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LoL

The last 30 seconds is HILARIOUS.

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rofl

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here you go guys (fbs)

lets see if you can diagnose me.


i went to my spine doctor yesterday. when i bend or twist to tie my shoes or put my hair up or whatever, i get a tingling on the top of my left foot. it felt ike some kind of nerve or electronic pain, but it wasnt coming down from my spine or ass or anything, it was isolated.



....give up?


because my spine is fused in the middle (7 vertebrae) the work that would be done in the middle (the majority of bending and twisting) gets thrown onto the areas above and below the fusion. this is normal wear and tear for someone who had my operation. and it will be the bane of my existance when im much much older. the specific nerve that is bugging me right now stems on the lower portion of my spine.

now why is that one bugging me? because i have woefully ignored my lower back area. if you dont keep the muscles around the bone strong, it goes to shit a LOT faster. the last time i did anything for my lower back was many years ago with a physical therapist. i did a few exercises and stretches and ended up bedridden for two days, taking muscle relaxers and vicodin all day. that scared me off of lower back exercises.

my lats are pretty strong and i do MULTIPLE exercises for them.


moral of the story: dont ignore something because its weak. sounds like common sense doesnt it? this just goes to show you i am destined to work out for the rest of my life.

got a script to go chat with a physical therapist about some stuff i can do for my lower back, and also for my neck. because of my spine my neck comes out at a turtle-ish angle and it seems to me that is getting worse (i feel like my neck muscles are weaker and its harder to hold up my neck. feel free to post a picture of john paul II)


so ill let you guys know how that goes i guess. im just happy to see that BECAUSE ive kept my lats and upper back strong, i havent had any problems from that area. so it really does work. this nerve pain could be permanent, or it could go away

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Ronnie Coleman will crush you.

YEAH BUDDY!

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YOu have to see some dude named Weisel Diesel, that guy is a joke.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSvaUTOTdc4

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Freeweights are the shit. If you don't have a spot, then get some dumbells. Dumbells even put alot of stress on the support muscles which give them a better intensity.

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repped 225 for 14 times today. died out halfway on the 15th. Still though, it's a personal best. Not bad considering how much i drank this weekend. I might stick with higher rep workouts for the next week or two, just to give my elbows a break from the heavier weight.

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I started push ups and set ups 2 days ago, my muscles hurts fucking bad....I wanna loose some belly....due to beers...

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Don't overdue it man. I was doing far too many for about a week and got of the schedule do to being too sore.

got off the schedule due to

and if you want to lose the beer belly you have to do cardio bob, not those exercises. it helps to build your ab muscles but as fbs will surely tell you there are better ways, and the equally if not more important key to abs is fat reduction

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In my humble oppinion, the interesting thing about abs is not how well they show, but how hard of a punch they can take.

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A little rip from a Jamie Hale article...

Machines are inferior to free weight movements. They inhibit stabilizers, destroy neuromuscular patterns, often begin from mechanically weak positions, require no balance, and can often lead to injury due to repetitive restricted lines of movements and ranges of motion performed over and over. They have their place, but their place is very limited for most trainees, particularly athletes.

I like Jamie Hale.

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Yeah, I try to stay away from Machines and do free weights. I only use machines for legs because I fucked up my lower back when I was a kid so I cant do freeweight deadlifts or squats.

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I pulled a heavy magnet on wheels all around my driveway and garage that I just had roofed the other day to collect nails and staples they missed. I thought my arms would get a workout, but it was the ole bum and upper thighs. I was walking backwards most of the time. It felt good though.

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I've joined a powerlifting club. My first meet will be in December. Hell yeah.

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Nice one. Gear or raw? What total you shooting for?

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There's a geek living inside each and everyone of us. Me? I could never, ever lay off buying the next Pratchett book.

Preparing for an audition in a little more than a week. Handstand with variations coming along nicely.

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Raw for this first one, but I'll go for gear next time.
400 kg total with 130 - 100 - 170 would be cool, although I think something like 125 - 90/95 - 160 is far more realistic. I lose way too many bench kgs with the "press!" signal, and I'll probably be damn tired when its time for the deadlift, so priority one is just get to get more whites lights than red really, and not be too daring with the weights.

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Hmph. If they're your numbers, then you're losing kgs on your squat and probably quite skinny. You need to train for several years, eat everything you see, and get brutal. You 165?

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I'll be in the 82,5 class, I guess that's 181 in lbs? And yeah, I'd say Im skinny (184 cm, about 80 kg bw). My squat is definetely weak, especially compared my deadlift. I started training the deadlift almost a year before I squatted properly though, that might be part of the problem too.


No fucking doubt.

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Oh man. I wish I could mail you a farm, so you could eat it.

Have you learned to squat wide? Many lanky men find progress with the legs out. I learned to squat wide first, then switched over to sumo a lot more recently. With long arms, this makes the range of motion of a sumo about 60% of conventional. I pulled my old PR the first time I tried sumo.

I'd also get some knee wraps straight away for squatting, because you'll probably find yourself weak in the hole and want rebound out. Knee wraps won't affect your technique to anywhere near the degree that gear will. If you do this, don't get mega-tight wraps of death, stick to the entry-level Inzer or Metal ones.

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started physical therapy today for prevoiusly mentioned nerve problems


she had her fun with my neck too. felt like a turtle getting its head ripped out of its shell

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I used to squat rather wide (though not quite like WPO lifters), but that made it damn near impossible to get much deeper than parallel. It also beat the shit out of my groin. A medium stance just seems alot more comfortable right now.

Pulling sumo is something I am considering though. Convential feels right, but I haven't really tried sumo all too much, and my physique looks like it would fit it.

And I've already order wraps, although I won't be using them for the meet.

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Yeah, it takes a while to learn to get depth. You'll find a lot of stuff in your legs & hips are tight as shit. It's not something you can jump into easily, but it's much easier (like it was for me) if you learn to squat wide first.

If you're going to stay relatively light, the transition to gear will be critical to getting your lbs up. What federation you in?

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I'll try to gradually work my stance wider. That'll take some time though.

I am planning in getting heavier for sure,though not super heavy. I think 100- class in a few years could be reasonable.

Im in IPF.

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posted this in the alcohol thread, thought it would be fitting here..what do you richard simmons mother fuckers think about this?

http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Health...hydration/7563/

http://www.erdinger-non-alcoholic.c...ort&aktiv=sport

i'm thinking of giving it a go after my next run...which will hopefully be today at some point.

I have several questions regarding sumo vs. regular deadlift.

1. If you landed a personal record on sumo, would you be able to count that as a deadlift? Or are the differences enough that it must be considered a distinct exercise?

2. Is it normal to be able to lift more on a sumo deadlift than a regular deadlift?

3. Should you utilize both forms during the same workout?

I just destroyed my personal record on the deadlift today, but last week I destroyed my previous record on the sumo. I was stuck at 335lbs. for a few weeks, then made it up to 355 going sumo last week. I couldn't make it past 335 with regular deads. Today, I made it up to 375 on a regular deadlift, but couldn't even get the bar off the ground at 365 going sumo. Is this entirely insignicant, or is one considered more difficult than the other?

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i exercise at 815 AM so that doesnt quite work for me

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just have one beer.

If you were a powerlifter, there's no distinction. For those of us who want to smash our hamstrings, there is a big difference.



It depends on many things. But if you're comfortable with the form, it's likely because the stroke is so much shorter.



No. Too brutal. Pick one.



Again, it depends. It's probably learning new motor patterns, training fatigue of different body parts. You shouldn't max every week, especially when you shift between styles rapidly. Back off to some heavy doubles/triples and don't worry so much about putting up the next number.

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Stupid pointless dumbfuck research done by shitwit quasi-scientists who are more interested in press releases than finding out anything worth more than a pinch of chimp cum.

This Richard Simmons motherfucker drank too much last night. No, wait. It was rehydration.

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Well considering alcohol lowers your testosterone level, i wouldn't suggest it, unless it was non-alcoholic beer, which I would never waste my money on. Just drink water or gatorade or something.

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well in the name of "science" i gave it a go last night after running for about 1.5 miles. hah can't say i noticed anything significant. didn't feel dehydrated though. also have to admit i didn't pick the best beer for something like that..it was 7.5% abv and was a pint and 6 fl. oz.

had water later of course..would've regardless though.

I do situps right when I wake up in the morning, walk about 1 to 3 miles a day depending on what's going on and I lift weights every night. If I get into a routine, I don't mind it.

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Shame this died. Y'all getting fat for Christmas?

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yeah im sure ive put on a pound or two, nothing big but the combination of busy schedule /good sweets doesnt equal a six pack

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Oh god yes, I was hovering around 180 since last week..I'm about 188 this week.

Three turkey dinners in two days and lots of drinking; the gym opens tomorrow thank fuck.

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last day of physical therapy. this cycle was actually pretty successful, my nerve damage seems to have fixed itself mostly. and i only had two muscle spasm events

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Gym's closed... band's in Germany... work is off... what's left but reading, writing and drinking? Don't even need to leave the house. I normally tell fitness to fuck off from 26/12 -> 1/1.

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