Weightlifting people, here! Ongoing chat thread...

[MaidOfStars]

We are a bit cut off in the designated forum so here's a shiny new thread to populate.

Hello to anyone that hasn't ventured over to The Weights Room but is lifting/resistance training.

I found another squat rack at the Pure Gym on Bath street in Glasgow. So there are SIX squat racks and two Olympic platforms.

They also have a trap bar, which is a bit rare for pure gym and also a lower back hyperextension/Roman chair (good for the booty).

And my mind has just been blown by finding a safety squat bar.

This is a proper bodybuilding gym.

So great to have people to talk to about this. I'm going to start keeping a record on here, as it is really interesting to see what others are lifting.
This morning:
20 mins HIIT
165lb leg press 4 x 10 reps
30lb chest press 4 x 10 (form poor by last set of 10)
50lb abdominal crunches 4 x 10
50lb thigh curl 8 x 2 (meant to do 10 x 4 but muscles screaming at me)
(All on machines, as too timid to get down the bloke end of the gym where the free weights are.)

Those nordic hamstring curls look very challenging. I don't have enough core strength to even attempt those!

Congratulations Kate. No advice though - sorry.

Do you know what the shoulder thing is Maid?

I have to deadlift with a barbell as my gym doesn't have trapbars
I finding it surprisingly different. I’m small and the trapbar forces a wider grip that in turn changes the range of motion. You also can’t get as much squat-like movement with a barbell, hence lower weight.

form poor by last set of 10
Fewer good reps are better than more poorly-executed reps!

Shoulder thing: it hurts in my left anterior deltoid/top of bicep when I lift anything (even my handbag) to the front or side. I play a throwing sport and while I favour my dominant right-handed throwing for max power, I do occasionally use my left. Weaker side + less mobility + less stability = frequent pulling/jerking/overextension injuries here.

My weaker left shoulder is evident throughout much of my training. Obviously, unilateral work is imbalanced and far tougher on that side. But even with pull ups/push ups etc, whenever I fatigue, I very quickly start to shift more stress onto my stronger right.

I have a mantra to repeat during bilateral stuff - ‘focus on left, focus on left’ because I know my right will work naturally without specific thought.

Is it the sort of pain/niggle that a deep tissue massage could help?

I think it’s more an acute strain that I really should be resting

I had to google trap bar. I've never seen one before. I like my gym but I wish we had safety squat and bench press racks as its a pain to find a spot sometimes.

Maid I had that exact same thing. It's really annoying and painful and I think because you anticipate and tense against the pain, that makes it worse. It's gone now, after I was benched for 7 weeks with my bunions, so I think it is about rest, but easier said than done.

Good session with my PT today. He's really into focusing on the harder to reach muscle groups which is great as means I don't end up with massive biceps and traps and a hole in my back where my scaps should be . Still a bit frustrating as can take us a while to get into the position where it's hard enough but not impossible and I'm not stressing my surgery, but we're figuring out more stuff that I can do. Today

• Ring holds with knees to chest (15 sec hold, 10 sec eccentric)
• Ring pulls (4 x 6). Really hard without your feet to balance you as any imbalance between your arms makes you start swinging side to side
• Parallel bar holds (basically a hollow body hold in a push up down position)
• ring push ups (4 x 10)
• Plate behind the head tricep things (15kg plate 3x10)
• Hollow body holds

Johnny, you sound like you have really good upper body strength. Have you been doing weights for years?

This morning:
20 mins HIIT
Adducters - 55lb 10 x 3 wanted to do 4 sets but just didn't have it in me
Trunk Pulls - 20lb 10 x 2 on each side, so 4 sets total
Lateral Pull Downs - 50lb 10 x 2 and 45lb 10 x 2

Margo About 4 years- I did Crossfit for a few years and then switched to more structured training. I wouldn't say my upper body strength is particularly good but my trainer focuses a lot on bodyweight stuff so that helps.

I loved Crossfit when I did it Johnny. Before that I had been mainly a runner who did the occasional kettlebell or body pump class. I couldn't afford more than a couple of months there, and for a while I tried to replicate the structure by making up my own WODs but it wasn't the same obviously. However I'd never done any barbell movements before Crossfit so I totally credit it with introducing me to strength training.

Yes, despite the criticisms of Crossfit for being the wild west of the fitness world, it does deserve credit for democratising heavy lifting, particularly for women.

Two good sessions on Saturday and this morning doing a mixture of machines and DB stuff. Getting more efficient and put in a couple of supersets to save time without killing myself :-). Need to focus on my pull ups and my core. Too easy to say "ooh is that the time? Best get to work!"

I don't know much about Crossfit. Is it like circuits with weights?

This morning:

20 mins HIIT

165lb leg press 10 x 4
50lb abdominal crunches 10 x 4
15lb overhead lift 10 x 4
55lb abductors 10 x 4

Margo One of the issues is that there is no definition of what makes Crossfit Crossfit, so pretty much anyone can set themselves up as a Crossfit gym "box". Crossfit publishes a "workout of the day" (WOD) every day and some gyms just put the clients through that. However, most schedule their own workouts based around the basic principles to provide more structure and to fit it neatly into a 1 hour class slot. My gym structures it as A, B and C work and programmes on a 4 week cycle with designated upper and lower body days each week to make sure you progress in the key movements - so A might be 4 sets of 6 heavy back squats, B might be a superset of benchpress and pull ups and then C would be a 12 min conditioning piece alternating 3 exercises like box jumps, KB swings and burpees on either an "every minute on the minute" for set number of reps, or on a continuous "as many reps as possible". They then just do a WOD on Saturday which would be a 40 minute piece comprising weights and aerobic stuff in either a circuit or a pyramid.

Session with my PT today which was bloody frsutrating as I cannot stop my bastard shoulders from rolling forward on the lat stuff. It's like the neural pathway doesnt exist. I might as well try to drag the prowler with the power of my mind . Tabletop beckons [sad face]

Upper body session today. Was dreading it as haven't been to the gym since last Tuesday. It was good though! Really enjoyed it.

Bent over row 4 x 10 x 20
Bench press 4 x 10 x 20
Lat pull down 3 x 10 x 25
Lat raise 3 x 10 x 6
Front raise 3 x 10 x 6
Pull ups using total gym 3 x 10
Weighted plank 1 x 1min, 2 x 45 sec
Russian twists with 5kg 3 x 10
Bike: tabata (20 sec, 10 rest) x 5

I felt like I kept things really well balanced through out. Didn't push myself SO hard on one exercise that I couldn't do so well on the others. Felt like a good session where we focused on form rather than increasing the weights.

Nice one Oogle! Looks like a big session. I've never used a prowler Johnny but I always think they look like fun. Or 'fun'.

I've swapped one of the cardio days I've recently been doing for more weights. This would take me to 4 weights sessions a week (Mon/Tue, Thurs/Fri) and one token cardio day (Sat). I think that's the right balance for now.

This morning I went a bit wabbit during bulgarian split squats so had to grab an emergency protein bar from the gym vending machine, which was horrible and which nearly dislocated my jaw, but it was that or one of several varieties of lurid caffeine drink with no sugar in. I don't usually eat before the gym because I'm there so early, so my body is used to training on an empty stomach. I reckon I must be coming down with one of the various lurgies the rest of my family seems to have.

findo they are absolutely the opposite of fun. They are either massive quad burn or massive hamstring burn depending on whether pulling or pushing. I know what you mean about those protein bars- they're like rocks.

Quick session today before work- had to do my foot physio too so bit short on time.

• 5kg front raise 3x 10, alternating with 3 x 10 tricep dips off the bench
• 37.5lb hamstring curl 3x10 alternating with leg extension 50lb 3 x 10
• 3 x 10 single arm shoulder press 15lb alterating 30 sec tabletop hold
• Accumulated 12 neutral grip pull ups in sets of 2
• 3 x 30 second hollow body holds

Can anyone suggest some good accessory work to help me improve my rubbish bench press and shoulder press? I'm not really making any progress (but I am progressing on my squats/ DL, so I don't think it's down to diet/ rest/ etc).

How do you shoulder press? Standing or seated?

I can tell you what I do, if that helps at all?

Shoulders
Strict overhead barbell press - first I always did sets of 5 x 5 as a hangover from Stronglifts, but now I vary it. I might go heavier for triples and then do longer sets at the end, for example. This is still my favourite. I've been plateauing a bit with this recently though and am thinking about adding in push presses to get through the sticking point and get a chance at some heavier weights.
Seated dumbbell press (usually 3 or 4 x 10-12)
Landmine shoulder press (3 or 4 x 10-12)
Kneeling face pulls on the cable machine
lateral flies, reverse flies, front raise supersets

Bench- mainly I do variations of the standard bench press.
Bench press - but again, I vary the weight and the number of reps. So I might try for 5 sets of 4 reps at one weight, or I might go for sets of 10-12 at a lighter weight, or I might do an AMRAP set - as many reps as possible.

Floor press (you can do this on the bench with your feet up)
Close grip bench press (to isolate your triceps)
Incline bench press (about a 45% angle) - works your chest more
Dumbbell bench press

Rows are also supposed to help your bench - barbell or dumbell. There's also some crossover from shoulder strength to bench press strength, but not in the other direction.

If things feel like they're stalling a bit, the standard advice is to vary the stimulus, as you've essentially adapted to the current stimulus. So that can mean changing the weight and rep pattern as above, or for example working on speed/explosive power in the lifting/concentric portion vs slowing down the eccentric portion, or trying shorter rest periods between sets.

But also I would say sometimes progress just is slow and whilst that's frustrating it doesn't necessarily mean you're doing anything wrong. As long as you're challenging yourself regularly and - as you say - eating and sleeping enough, something will give eventually.

Managed to hobble to the gym again this morning- the fact that it is in my apartment building is my saving grace.

• 3x10 @10kg ( each hand) DB bench press.
• 5kg front raise 3x 10, alternating with 3 x 10 tricep dips off the bench
• 37.5lb hamstring curl 3x10 alternating with leg extension 57lb 3 x 10
• 2 x 10x lat pull down (I realised when I got home I forgot to do the 3rd set as saw a friend and got distracted). Focused on resetting between each rep to really get my shoulders back.
• 3 pronated pull ups (singles), then 2 x 3 neutral pull ups.
• 3 x 30 second hollow body holds. Cannot wait to get back on the big lifts so I don't have to do dedicated ab work anymore.

Thanks for the press tips! I do standing shoulder press

I’m wary of simply doing more of them as my left shoulder is prone to niggle. In fact, my ‘push’ day used to include both incline and flat bench presses and I found that too much for my shoulders in one session

Love reading what you are all doing. Have to look up some of them as I don't recognise them, but it is giving me ideas.

Today

HIIT 20 mins
Chest press - 45lb 10 x 2, 40 10 x 1, 35 10 x 1
Ab pull downs - 50lb 10 x 4
Leg extensions - 50lb 10 x 2, 8 x 1
Back pull downs - 50lb 10 x 2, 45lb 10 x 1

Do any of you struggle with break through bleeding when you push it? This has become a real issue for me. Possibly because I'm peri-menopausal (or I am assuming I am as I'm 48)?

Closet When you hit your limit on shoulder press, switch to push press. I do so, even mid set. The principle is to increase weight (and don’t forget that increasing a couple of kg on shoulders is a big % jump in absolute terms) and start with just one rep at the heavier weight, then 4-5 push presses. Then next time, try for two reps, then push press.

With a shoulder niggle, and I have my own to look after, maybe switch format so you don’t have too many push/shoulder exercises in one session? I pair agonist/antagonist, so will push up/bench then row, and push press then pull up.

Margot I don’t breakthrough bleed although I can see how it happens. I don’t feel I bear down when bracing, but could be doing it wrong!

This morning was a wipeout session. I’m completely spaced.

1. Kettlebell swings, heavy. My arse and quads are wrecked.
2. Negative push ups + bent over rows.
3. Sissy squats + ball slams. Just to wreck my quads a little more.

Maid - I badly worded my query about breakthrough bleeding. Rather than pushing , in the sense of bearing down - I meant pushing in the sense of working harder than usual - IFYSWIM. So, whenever I increase the amount of exercise & cut down food intake (and I don't mean starvation, just small overall reduction) I get breakthrough bleeding.