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.

Welcome raging girl

Finally got signed off by the consultant this week - I can now do what I want without worrying about damaging the surgery but I still need to work within my comfort levels. Not sure if I'm happy or not - happy because I can finally do cardio after 6 months so I should be back trail running after the summer, sad because I am currently limited to gym cardio (bike or elliptical) which suck my will to live. I do need to lose some poundage though so it's probably a good thing on balance.

I'm going to try to get a DEXA scan next week so I have a baseline for body comp. It's gonna be bad though. I'm currently 68kg at 168cm. Used to be 62-kg- ha ha. I'll eat my Easter eggs first though

Easter work out

3 x 8 DB bench press @ total weight 90lb/41kg
3 x 5 strict pull ups neutral/semi-supinated grip
3 x 8 quad extensions @75lbs/34kg
3x 8 single leg hamstring curls at 30lb/13.5kg
3 x 8 parallel dips
3 x 1 min plank

All sandwiched between 2 x 20mins elliptical

The gym was annoyingly busy this morning. Not so many people, but the ones who did come were the sort to use the squat and bench racks. So I had to do leg presses and walking lunges, then dumbbell shoulder presses and chest presses on the multi-functional cable machine. I did manage to get a rack for barbell rows. I know that I got a thorough workout, but I like to stick with the precise program. This week I'm supposed to be doing everything at 80% of my 1rm.

That is annoying! What are people at your gym like about working in? Here they just really don't understand the concept, so if I offer they'll say no and then just stand around waiting.

I went to a new gym today which is in a sports club we go to. Weirdly I'd never been into the gym as when we're here I've always got the kids with me and they're in the pool.

Anyway, it's actually a really good gym. Most excitingly it has one of those abductor machines which the gym in my apartment doesn't have and a rack with (wait for it) safety bars. Woo-hoo. I usually don't have a spot so this is great news.

I can't really work in on squat racks because I have such drastically lower weights. On the power cage/deadlift platform, I'll share with someone if they're squatting while I do deadlifts or something like that. We just set up our own bars.

Just recording here that deadlifting 50kg in sets of 5 seemed like an easy break from using the leg press (is that it’s name) loaded up with 100kg in sets of 8. Which felt like huge weight to press.

Of course a friend of mine (a trainer herself) scoffed that 100kg is a good warm up weight

Clearly, I have a long way to go ...

what's happening lifters?

Not much to report here other than the physio saw my feet and was a bit horrified so now I've got a tonne of exercises to do to improve flexibility.

I've been working on improving my bench (managed 3 x 10 x 40 kg today), strict press (3 x 8 x 26kg) and deadlift. Squatting is parked pending major mobility work as at the moment even my air squat is a bit shit.

Johnnycomelately1

Would you mind telling me where and how much your dexa scan is please

It’s at the University of Hong Kong so sadly probably not much use to you- sorry! Think it’s about 40 quid equivalent.

Dexa without a clear medical reason isn't allowed in the UK

Really? I know a lot of people who get them. What’s the issue other than it’s an X-ray?

That is crap

I had one done two weeks ago. And I have just bought one for a friend’s fortieth birthday present!

Sorry

Www.bodyscanuk.com

They're the only entity I've heard of in the UK doing them. I have no idea how they do it as I was told no one will do them.

Maybe it’s a case if it’s not illegal but they’re not legally covered if they do them for non medical reasons so if people got one a month for 10 years and then got some sort of side effect they could sue. I limit myself to one every 6 months max.

The person who told me that was a research scientist working in sports physiology. He works in one of those labs you see on telly, like with Michael Moseley, where they put athletes on treadmills with wires all over them. I was saying that I would love to be tested in one of those places, or at least have a DEXA scan and we talked about how there are clinics all over the US for consumers and casual athletes but it hasn't caught on here. He said his lab has it but it can't be done commercially "even though the level of radiation is less than you're exposed to on a flight to Spain."

(Funnily enough, just this past week I met a physicist who happens to work on the subject of radiation on aircraft. But that's beside the point.)

It was in a clinic in London
It was brilliant
Pricey

I managed to build to a deadlift 1 rep max of 105kg today (156% body weight). No-one was more surprised than me when the bar actually came up. Then benched 51kg for 7 reps, which was my 1 rep max at the end of last year. I feel like the slog is finally coming to fruition. My trainer was like "you should enter a powerlifting contest.........oh actually, i forgot that your squat is terrible" . He's right tho. I need to do squat mobility but it is just so boring and painful

Well done Johnny, that is brilliant!

I'm cutting back on the weight training because I'm enjoying running so much now that the weather is lovely. So, instead of 3x a week (and 3x a half hour of cardio) I'm running 4x a week for longer times and only lifting twice a week, full body. I have upped the intensity of the upper body lifts a bit and lowered the intensity of the lower body. Today I only did a few sets of walking lunges with light dumbbells and I only did them for the sense of balance for my body. But on Monday I did do heavy squats. I don't want to be fatigued for tomorrow's parkrun.

I'll go back to the focus on the weight training in a few months.

I did it!!!! I have finally managed a 100 kg deadlift ! (at 72kg bodyweight)

Now to improve my squat and bench

Wow! Can I ask how long you've been training at lifting? I managed 70kg (at 80kg bodyweight - that needs to go down to 68kg at the very most -I'm working on it). in about the first month of weekly PT training torture but then a few weeks later I totally failed & freaked out at 80kg (well, I got it an inch off the floor). My PT reckons I should eventually be able to lift 100kg (I'm almost 60, btw).

He's been on holidays so I've had no PT session for 10 days. Instead I've been running and going to Pump classes (which I used to do a lot more). Very different, although I noticed that I found the weights I used to use quite easy & had to increase them. I've clearly gained in strength in 3 months of weekly PT sessions. If I were really rich, I'd have a PT session 3 times a week.

My next goal is to learn how to set up all the free weights machines myself - I'm too nervous to do it without the PT there. Silly, I know.

@TheRagingGirl I have been training powerlifting properly for a year, and generally messing around with weights for about another year before that. I am 39, so the gains aren't coming too easily, but I'll keep at it!

Ultimately I want to qualify for nationals in powerlifting (probably in another 2 years)

Gosh, competing- that’s impressive!

At 59 I’m pleased with small gains... I don’t look or move like I’m almost 60 and I have more energy than most 20 year olds I know, but I do get injured more easily. And I get so stiff and sore!

@TheRagingGirl competing at the level I am at is really not that impressive! I just do local comps so far, where anyone can have a go. In another year I'll be in the Masters category and it's easier to qualify for big competitions then, so I'll have a better chance.

I definitely feel a lot better than I did in my 20s, and I wish I had started this years ago!

Glad you’re enjoying your training and reaping the benefits of it, getting a PT makes such a big difference! You'll be lifting a lot more weight in no time you'll see; once you get the technique right, your body will adapt to the weights and just keep getting stronger