Lifting support thread!

[Work2live]

Thought I’d start this thread as a few people thought it’d be a good idea.

It might be a nice place to support each other and talk about lifting in general, ask for tips and advice on workouts, how to get enough protein etc.

All levels very much welcome, from complete newbies to those who’ve been weightlifting for years! 💪🏼

How is everyone doing? I ended up having an enforced break due to covid. Did a workout on Friday and today, going to try and do a bodyweight only session tomorrow so I can keep up the habit. Back on the handstands!

I'm doing great thanks. Sorry to hear you had covid. Going 4 times a week now and still upping the PBs. Fingers crossed for a bodyweight squat tomorrow, I'm only 5kg off

Ooh good luck @RayKray that'd be a nice milestone. I feel quite proud that I didn't do my usual anxiety thing and drop the weights right back down. Worked up to 45kg deadlift on Friday and same for squat today, so about 75% of max. Did lots to warm up and cool down to reduce the likelihood of DOMS, but feel that's given me a good baseline so that I can get back to pushing myself soon enough.

@Proteinpudding , sorry to hear about covid but it is great you are back in the saddle.

@RayKray , go you, that's brilliant. Such a milestone. Let us know how you get on.

I'm doing fine but been a bit disrupted by weather (I train outside a fair bit) and work. Things have eased up so I should be able to get back into my routine this week despite the snow by using indoor gym at quiet times!

Hello everyone! How are we getting on? - I have stalled with pull up progress a bit because of weather and other things, but trying to take satisfaction from the fact that I am carrying on. I don't dare run outside as scared of slipping, so missing that as well, but have made myself go on the treadmill and cross-trainer at the gym.

@RayKray how did your squats go?

Meh I've had a bit of a crappy week for a whole load of reasons, lots of bad stuff coming together at the same time to make life a bit more stressful which made my lifting suffer too. So lots of fails, alongside progress in accessories though. But it's good to fail sometimes for a load of reasons, including reminding myself just how heavy those weights are! When I just can't shift the bar and think wow that's so heavy, it reminds me just how strong I was to move it the previous week, and how strong I'll be again next time. So all good really.

Sorry to hear things haven't been going as well for you either @MsMartini . It's a funny time of year isn't it

Hey @MsMartini thanks for the roll call! Sorry to hear you and @RayKray have had a bit of a tricky time, I too am finding it really hard to find time for the gym. Sort of trying to keep up with my running though the icy conditions don’t help!

Oh sorry to hear that @RayKray - but you are dead right about fails. I hope things improve for you soon, and you get a decent break. And @GoTheFcukToSleep , yes hard to find time. I haven't got any particularly good excuses 😀- just disruption caused by weather and train strikes and lots to do! I usually train outdoors as well and the cali set up inside my gym is just not as good, and often crowded.

Sorry to hear people are having a hard time, it’s definitely a weird old time of year and one where historically I’ve struggled to stay consistent. The weather really affects me, and having so many social plans makes it difficult to find the time to train and make better food choices.

I was really hoping this year would be different, but I’ve come down with some awful flu this week - aches, fever, fatigue, sore throat and cough. I haven’t felt this ill in a long time and I’m gutted to have to take yet more time off from training.

I hope everyone has a lovely Christmas though, whether it involves lots of much needed rest, or powering through and training!

Hope you start feeling better soon @Work2live !

I have to say, having a home gym and not having children means this time of year is quite a different experience for me - work is winding down, fewer classes on. So I'm more focused on strength training and have more time than most.
Decided to really focus on deadlifts for the time being. Had two sessions relatively light after my covid enforced hiatus, and then yesterday got up to two sets of 60kg. I'm sure I could go heavier, I think it's a combination of psychological + sometimes technique slipping. So I'm going to try and do DL three times a week, twice lighter and focusing on form and one where I go heavy and try to increase the weight. Filmed myself yesterday and think I'm keeping my hips a bit too high (over compensating, used to do more of a squat) so I think adjusting that will help with the leg drive as well.

Still working on Handstands and managed some limited ROM handstand push ups, using the wall to support. Hope to keep trying and improve those, was happy just to not face plant!

@Proteinpudding mine's all programmed for me, and I do all the powerlifting lifts, but I indeed have a light deadlift day (well 55kg) for form and a heavy deadlift (currently 75kg) day so you're onto something there

And my understanding is deadlifts are the most technical out of the three (deadlift, squat, bench)

@RayKray I used to think squat was more technical, but now I think that's more about understanding and working with ones own mobility. I could well believe deadlift is the most technical! I was thinking of practising the lighter lifts to really try and get the muscle memory ingrained. Seems like I was on a similar proportion with the numbers as well, as did two days at 45kg and one at 60kg! I think my PB in the past was 70kg.

My squat pb is 65kg, bench and row are both 40kg and OHP is 30kg. So I keep telling myself that those numbers mean I've got capacity to progress my deadlifts, I've got the strength, just need to recruit it properly and not doubt myself!

My numbers are similar so you're probably right. I find there's a lot more to think about with DL. And I mean both physically and psychologically. If something isn't quite right I have to reset whereas bench and squat I could grind it out more.

My DL 1rep max is 100kg, and my back squat 1rep max is 67k, so if you’re doing 60-65k squats, you should be able to go really quite heavy in deadlifts. I can do sets of 2 or 3 DLs at 90 and 95 kilos, and I’ve done sets of 5 reps at 64 kilos.

At the moment, my trainer is giving me medium weights and lots of reps, so the other day I did a descending super set of squats at 45kg paired with shoulder presses, using 12kg dumb bells (so 24 kilos overhead). Started at 20 reps, and took off 2 reps each set, all the way down to 12 reps (5 sets).

My quads and shoulders were a bit shredded after that!

But I agree, deadlifts are more technical, although I find them easier to go heavy than squats.

I've never done a 1RM. The least I've done is 5. Would be interesting to experiment and see.

I think it’s to enable you to lift more. It gives you a sense of progress- even if you don’t lift that much regularly.

So I’d warm up with about 10 reps at just 45 kilos. Then we’ll jump to maybe 3 reps at 85. Then each set the weight goes up - but not so many reps at each weight that you get too fatigued. Probably only 1 or 2 reps at say, 90 then 97, then a try for 100!

It’s a balance between getting used to lifting much heavier than usual, so you’re not scared of the weight ( not being freaked out took me ages) but you don’t fatigue yourself.

But today I was doing 5 sets of 5 reps at only 80 kilos. Today was banking strength and moving well in the lift.

Sites like this estimate your 1 RM too strengthlevel.com/

My end of year target was 10 pull-ups, and I am stuck on 9 (palms facing - been too cold to train this outside on the proper bars as I need long rests between sets, and that's the only comfortable grip for me on indoor rig). Still, given weather, work and other disruptions like Christmas, if I can more or less maintain that, I'll try to crack it in the NY!

Thanks @MsMartini . I know that site only too well for checking my lifts. The first time I got an intermediate was a glorious day!

YESSSSS!!!

Just looked again and I'm intermediate for both deadlift and bench now. Just squat to go which I'm only 5kg off the elusive bodyweight squat which puts me at intermediate.

Stay away from 1rm. Thats ego lifting and is what i have been told by everyone i have mentioned it to who has experience.

The only positive about a 1rm is its a big number
The negatives are all linked to injury and pain.

I have decent Personal Bests but they are all achieved in either 1 set of 5 (deadlifts) or 4 sets of 4 (Squats & Bench)

@Tessasanderson it does depend on your goals though... I'm training for powerlifting where 1RM are essential. But that said we're working on strength right now hence the sets and numbers going up at the moment so it's interesting that even with that type of programme the focus isn't on 1RM. But I will need to in the future for the specificities of powerlifting rather than ego.

And update on progress. I have indeed gone above bodyweight on squat by some margin now. After last week's crap week this one has been a really good one.

I certainly don’t regard my 1RM as an ego thing. It’s a marker of progression and a set of things work towards. And my PT seems to keep all the numbers in his head - he also marks PBS as, for example, doing a set of 3 “touch and go” deadlifts at 90 as a significant PB.

And no injuries for the last couple of years. Increasing strength progressively and really getting the nuances of technique and form are good barriers to injury.