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.

That sounds good, Johnny. I have gone up to 75 kg on squats, And discovered doing one-armed shoulder presses that I am much stronger one side, so am trying to do a few more of them to even myself up. Anyone got any tips for that?

Basically always start with your weaker side and keep the weight the same for both sides, even if easy for the strong side

Excellent, thanks, will do that.

I'm having some issues with a niggle in my knee and a pulled muscle in my shoulder but I'm planning on getting back into it properly now holidays/colds/snow are all out of the way! I know my knee improves massively when I do regular exercise so no worries there.

Mixing it up a bit with my PT now - we're alternating between lower body, upper body, full body & circuits. Muscle mass is highest it's been and body fat % at lowest point (although just back from a weekend away so likely to have increased )

I need to concentrate on sorting my eating out and getting to the gym 3 times a week. I plan on starting to run 1 or 2 mornings a week when the weather improves too.

I feel like I've stalled a bit with increasing weights so aiming to work on that as of next week.

I've been sticking to my full-body barbell program. (squats, rows, overhead press three days a week. Then I do bench and Romanian deadlifts twice a week) On alternate days I'm running.

I initially missed all the accessory lifts but now I think this is actually working for me. I'm not seeing any detriment to leaving out the hip abductors, face pulls, Lateral raises and hip thrusts.

Good job oogle and just, but I have to ask, what is a "face pull" ????

Couple of small victories today

• I graduated to 30lb DB for 3x8 one armed seated shoulder press. It wasnt pretty, but it got done. I know everyone says "form" etc, but at some point you have to make the weight jump and when the increment is 2kg+, it's not going to be perfect for the first few efforts

• I got my 4th pronated pull up using the rock climbing grips. My PT has been getting me trying to concentrate on raising my chest up to meet the bar to avoid shoulder scrunching and it's really paid off.

• I need to do more lower body but still quite limited in what I can actually do and also, you dont see the impact so quickly. Arms just get jacked. Legs need persuading, especially when you're a classic pear like me.

I do face pulls on the cable machine but can't describe them so have taken this from a website

Starting position:
Stand in front of a pulley set at approximately head height.
Grasp one end of the rope attachment in each hand using a supinated (underhand) grip.
Step backward so that the rope is taut and your arms are stretched out in front of you.
Assume a staggered stance (place one foot in front of the other) and lean backward to help you balance.

Execution:
Exhale as you pull the rope toward your forehead.
As the rope nears your face, externally rotate your shoulders so that you end up making a double biceps pose.
Hold for a count of two.
Inhale as you reverse the motion and return the rope to the starting position in a controlled manner.
Repeat.

Johnny victories look great! 30lb is great, I've got such a long way to go until I'm there!

I'm the same with my lower body - my arms look amazing but my legs seem to take so much longer to get there. I do still push to work them once a week though and I am starting to see a difference. I do a lot of calf raises so they're looking good! I like squats as I think you see a big difference to the bum quite quickly. I do prefer upper-body workouts though!

I like how solid and firm my body now feels. I have been working out consistently for 16 months, now. I've only missed for the occasional illness, travelling or blizzard. I don't see huge progress in the mirror, but I definitely see a big difference from when I started. Honestly, since I'm not going to be changing my diet a huge amount, I don't expect to see huge changes.

I love, love, love squats, Oogle. I am trying to build my upper body strength up. I think I am losing weight very slowly but my shape is changing (I have shoulders and a waist!), especially since I started doing heav(ier) squats and deadlifts. I love the feeling of being more solid too, Just, and never feeling tired (unless I have overdone it in the gym)

I like back squats, hate front squats (too much finger pain) and despise overhead squats because zero flexibility so I can barely squat the bar.

I have only done a back squat.

Did my first ever chin-up today

Yay! Awesome. First one is always the hardest. You’ll probably build volume really quickly now

Thank you! I am very chuffed, have been doing single negatives for weeks, needing a nice sit down afterwards so I was very surprised I could do it. Volume as in reps or volume as in me ?

I benched 60kg for a 1 rep max!! (narrow grip, no leg assistance on the arch, failed 62kg). All those DB bench press sessions in my apartment gym with the crappy plate DB that are impossible to stablise have paid off.

At this rate of progress I'll be able to bench a car by Christmas

(I can now also officially bench more than I can squat due to leg atrophy post bunion op but let's not worry about that for now)

Yay Johnny! I have never benched (may be about to start) but know that is very impressive.

Today was a long, hard workout. I did 5x5 at 95% of my 1rm of Squats, overhead press and barbell rows. Then I did 5x5 of Romanian Deadlifts and Bench Press at a heavy weight (but I haven't really established a 1rm for those). The squats, ohp and rows are done 3 days a week. One day I add the RDL, one day I add the bench press, and one day I do all five (so that the RDL and bench are both done 2x a week).

I'm about to start another cycle. I have to establish my 1rm's. Over 6 weeks I do 70%, 80%, 90%, 75%, 85% and 95%.

May switch bench and Overhead Press, so I can give more priority to the bench press and just maintain the ohp.

Can anyone talk to me about heel raised squats? I struggle with regular squats (although I still do them) and never really feel my glutes are activated enough.

Are heel raised squats ok, ie, not dangerous for the knees or anything? When I do them I can feel my glutes springing into action

I found they helped to start with, until I was confident with form. My PT recommended I used that method to start with, just put plates under my heels. She is very careful, and wouldn't have suggested it if it was going to be dangerous. I have an old knee injury that flares up very occasionally, which she knew about. I no longer need to use the plates, but it helped with gaining confidence.

Heel raised squats are used to compensate for lack of mobility (typically in the ankles and abductors) which prevent you getting to parallel, and should actually prevent injury by allowing your knees to track over your ankles rather than falling in, and also stop you over extending your back to get depth.

The only real downside is that they don't fix the lack of mobility (you'd need to do dedicated mobility work for that) but unless you plan to compete it's not a massive issue and even then you can just buy lifters (shoes with a big heel/toe drop).

Another solution is to do front rack squats (bar in front of you) which helps create balance and stops you falling over backwards.

Johnny - it's funny you should mention weakness in the abductors as I've been told I have that and I really struggle with squats. Just don't feel my glutes are activated at all. Very disheartening as my arse is the one thing that REALLY needs serious work!

Don't suppose you can recommend any exercises to improve abductor mobility?? bit cheeky

Mobility and weakness are often two sides of the same coin, because the muscle cant work because the tightness on the other side prevents it contracting properly. (That's a bit simplistic but I find it helps to think of it like that).

Does your gym have an abductor machine as that would be first prize? - you sit on it and can either put your knees inside or outside the pads? If not, you can do side leg lifts etc. Cossack squats where you squat low in a wide leg stance and then move your weight from side to side are also good. When I'm with my trainer he also does some stuff where he will pull my shoulders (that's my problem area) into position and then I try to hold and control the eccentric, but hard to do on your own.

I was trying to do toes to bar today. I thought I'd almost got it but the video review confirmed that I look like that elephant in Ice Age that thinks its a possum and tries to hang in trees . Need to work on those hip flexors.

just marking my place to learn this new language

About 2 months ago I took the plunge and committed to a weekly PT session. He is getting me using weights and I’m learning correct technique finally, after years of pump classes and running.

My main thing is being strong for the 5-6 hours ballet & contemporary dance I do each week, and it’s working.

Along the way I am really enjoying deadlifting -personal best is 70kg about a month in to training (I’m almost 60) I tried 80kg last week but could only get it about an inch off the floor. My trainer is a beast and tortures me with all sorts of stuff and there are moments - generally about 40 mins into a 60 min session - when I think I just can’t go on, but I’m really enjoying it actually.

Not quite brave enough to start using the free weights on my own in between PT sessions, but I have added in lat pull downs and assisted weight pull ups into my twice a week running sessions. It’s helping my strength in pirouettes and grand battements (throwing your leg up in front, side and back) immensely. My ballet teacher has noticed the change.

(Weird reason to take up weight lifting I know).

Nothing weird about it!

Welcome!