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On May 10 2011 04:55 sJarl wrote:
Went to my old gym (a standard commercial gym) today with some friends.
I never knew how good my new one is until today. Pick your gyms wisely, it will greatly affect your lifting.
There's only one gym in my town and all it has is one Smith Machine and one 25lb barbell =/.
Couple questions: When I'm squatting, my butt seems to go up first when going up from the squat. I was getting lower back pain after squatting and I think that this was probably why. What do you guys recommend I do to fix this?
I tried lowering the weight and that seemed to fix it but I think I only started to have bad form the last few workouts and I've been increasing at 10lbs per workout. I fear this might happen again when I get back up to this weight.
Also, I'm also curious if you guys have any experience and advice with using the Smith Machine. Although I think the squat and bench press are supposed to be vertical lifts, it feels unnatural when I do them on this machine.
Thanks in advance.
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Do you mean your hip? You are supposed to drive upwards with your hip. Post a video if you have the means. Otherwise, look online for proper squatting techniques.
Re smith machine, I think Decaf said something along the lines, "the only time I squatted on a smith machine, I carried it out of the room with me". Don't use it.
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Yea, I wish I didn't have to. But like I said, there isn't a squat rack/rack of any kind at the gym. What I mean is I tend to go up with my hips and my upper body gets left behind a bit and it ends up putting a lot of stress on my lower back.
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So you mean you bend forward more as you come up (i.e. the space between your chest and your legs decrease)?
You are probably doing too much weight. Don't worry about numbers, but focus on form instead. You probably won't have this problem when you move up to your current weight because your body would have grown stronger by then.
Try finding a gym with a squat rack? I suspect the smith machine may contribute to your problems. Also, a squat done on a smith machine is not really a squat... the machine does most of the stabilization for you and the machine is restrictive in terms of body movements.
You can do front squats on a bench press, if your gym lets you...
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its worth driving an hour to a decent gym imo, aslong as u dont fall asleep coming home
today...................
practicing form on 40kg squat. again. then lowered to 30kg. (i was around 65kg 4 sessions ago before realising how shit i was and now spent 3 sessions just trying to get proper form)
had a lot of help from a guy today, but, with his reccomendation
i started using a wooden bar to stand my heels on. he said its much better for my body type (187cm, long limbs) to put my heels on this bar. it did make achieving better form much easier (still damn hard for me)
does anyone know if i should keep using the bar?
idk if i have too many weak points like weak back or legs to be squatting for shit with proper form. i thought it was just my flexibility that was the problem. im on session 9 (plus 2 warmups) of doing squats and still fucking lame ass. im this close to paying for a trainer, but i dont want him to say "use the wooden bar to stand on" if im not really menna use it
guy also said i mite wanna look at a weightlifting belt. tons of ppl here seem to use them. idk will have to read
on the positive side, 55kg bench at lassssst, after a lot of being shit scared to try it. reps went 5, 6, 4 or 5 (lost count), 5!!!! motherfucking yes!!!
still cant do a 2nd chin up after the initial kickup one, zzzzz
oh i saw something weird today, guy (quite tall) got one of those box things that you can put barbell on to raise it higher eg for rows. so like he stood on the box , so he was about 7 inches higher from the ground, then deadlifted from the ground infront of him. i was like uhhhh...what the flying fuck
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Yeah don't use a smith machine. In my experience you can never squat and achieve 100% form with a smith machine. With the machine you are not using as much of your core stabilizers, which as Cambium said probably contributes to your back problems.
What happens instead is exactly what you have described. Your legs are able to push upwards without mechanical interference but your upper body is actually restricted by having to use a bar path that is not completely in line with how you'd naturally squat.
it restricts the natural range of motion. See each of us has our own biomechanics (the mechanisms that distinctly tie our individual bones and muscles together) and hence we have an individual movement pattern (range of motion) when doing the squat, or anything else for that matter. For example a guy with a long torso and stocky legs will not squat remotely close to how guy with a short torso and long legs does. The smith machine has only one range of motion for either of these individuals because the bar runs on rails in a fixed path (straight up and down or a slight diagonal). Every individual must conform to no matter their distinct movement pattern. This can be devastating to your skeletal system over time.
Taken from the SS wiki.
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Ed
Age: 19 || Height: 5'10" || Weight: 231lbs
Starting Date: 5/23/11 || Goal Date: 09/01/11
Weight goals -- Drop down to 200lbs or under
Training goals -- Be able to do 100 push-ups and sit-ups, run a mile in under 10min
Nutrition goals -- Cut out fast food, already lost my soda addiction so thats a plus
Misc -- Current workout plan for this summer is 5mile bike, 20 laps in my pool, 20 push-ups, 20 sit-ups every day except weekends. Hows that sound for a first timer? Too hard? Too easy?
This is my first time im really trying to work out. I've been overweight most of my life so any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated!
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On May 09 2011 22:00 zatic wrote:Show nested quote +On May 09 2011 18:56 MarCoon wrote:So basically I had my first session now and I took my measurements. I am really looking forward to this now and I am so pumped :D Thanks for all the support from you guys! Edit: I should maybe add my weight goals, which would 75kg until 07/15/2011. I think this should be doable if I eat enough. I don't have any goals regarding lift weights yet, since I just sarted and I don't care about "toning" or anythign liek that. I just want some bulking done and get some strength for now  What gym do you go to?
Right now I gotta go to McFit, but I am looking into other "non-commercial" gyms and see if I can go there.
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On May 10 2011 00:41 vicariouscheese wrote:Show nested quote +On May 09 2011 23:48 Alventenie wrote:
So i woke up this morning with a decent amount of soreness/inflexibility in the left side of my neck. Its taking me some time to get it stretched out so that it doesnt hurt when im moving it. Any idea what this could be from, or how to fix it? Did you bench yesterday? and perhaps rest your head on the bench while doing reps?
i had an issue on my second set where i apparently wasnt on the bench correctly because my right shouldblade was not on the bench. If thats it ill just be more careful getting into position to bench.
im going to the chiro on wednesday though anyway.
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Good work. Press is supposed to be the lowest lift.
@FFGen: I don't really know about that bar. It sure helps but it doesn't really fix anything. What you really need to work on is that mobility. BTW what kind of shoes are you using?
What the guy was doing is a legit exercise but 7 inches would be quiiiiiite high. A platform and stiff legged deadlifts can give you some serious hamstring action.
@Dimmu: If there is only a smith machine and no free bar then you just got to work with what you have while you find something better. I don't hate the smith machine but things like squats must be though differently in the smith than freeweight. I always used the smith machine for squatting like a hack squat for example.
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On May 10 2011 08:08 Artemis wrote:
Ed
Age: 19 || Height: 5'10" || Weight: 231lbs
Starting Date: 5/23/11 || Goal Date: 09/01/11
Weight goals -- Drop down to 200lbs or under
Training goals -- Be able to do 100 push-ups and sit-ups, run a mile in under 10min
Nutrition goals -- Cut out fast food, already lost my soda addiction so thats a plus
Misc -- Current workout plan for this summer is 5mile bike, 20 laps in my pool, 20 push-ups, 20 sit-ups every day except weekends. Hows that sound for a first timer? Too hard? Too easy?
This is my first time im really trying to work out. I've been overweight most of my life so any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated!
At your weight I would mix the exercise up a bit. One day cycle, the next swim and so on. It gives the body time to recover.
A few tips for cycling. Keep your heartrate below 80% of max. Unscientifically this means if you are gasping for breath you are pushing too hard. Pedal at 90 strokes a minute, nice fast action but easy on the legs. It shouldn't feel like pushing weights at gym!
Honestly, looking at your weight the programme seems onerus. Don't start with a bang be so sore you can't move the next day. Try your programme but be realistic, if its too much then cut back to something that is challenging but achievable for your current level of fitness.
My friend was your weight a few years ago and he recently ran the London marathon, so good luck!
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barefoot for squat, otherwise shit cheap old need replacing
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On May 10 2011 07:23 FFGenerations wrote:
its worth driving an hour to a decent gym imo, aslong as u dont fall asleep coming home
today...................
practicing form on 40kg squat. again. then lowered to 30kg. (i was around 65kg 4 sessions ago before realising how shit i was and now spent 3 sessions just trying to get proper form)
had a lot of help from a guy today, but, with his reccomendation
i started using a wooden bar to stand my heels on. he said its much better for my body type (187cm, long limbs) to put my heels on this bar. it did make achieving better form much easier (still damn hard for me)
does anyone know if i should keep using the bar?
I use weightlifting shoes which have like a .75 inch wooden heel which i guess accomplishes the same thing. I would probably just squat barefoot w/out them but thats just me.
idk if i have too many weak points like weak back or legs to be squatting for shit with proper form. i thought it was just my flexibility that was the problem. im on session 9 (plus 2 warmups) of doing squats and still fucking lame ass. im this close to paying for a trainer, but i dont want him to say "use the wooden bar to stand on" if im not really menna use it
guy also said i mite wanna look at a weightlifting belt. tons of ppl here seem to use them. idk will have to read
Yes you're probably weak in a lot of places you didnt know existed. Doing proper squats and deadlifts (back flat, chest up, drive your hips) will fix this.
You don't need to pay for a trainer, most of them suck. A lifting partner is always good though. Between that and videos you should be able to figure everything out.
on the positive side, 55kg bench at lassssst, after a lot of being shit scared to try it. reps went 5, 6, 4 or 5 (lost count), 5!!!! motherfucking yes!!!
still cant do a 2nd chin up after the initial kickup one, zzzzz
oh i saw something weird today, guy (quite tall) got one of those box things that you can put barbell on to raise it higher eg for rows. so like he stood on the box , so he was about 7 inches higher from the ground, then deadlifted from the ground infront of him. i was like uhhhh...what the flying fuck
eh some people do this. personally i find it to be useless and rather just do normal deadlifts.
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First day in my plan to become huge!
Clean and jerk: 135x3, 185x3, 205x2, 1x 225,245,265,275,285(fail jerk T_T) -> 3x225, 2x245
Snatch: Some work from the high hang at 135 to get under the bar then 3x155,165,175
Squat: 3x5@315
OHP: 5x135,155,155
Chin up: 8,6,6
Sprint intervals 2x400m (i walked inbetween the sprints, legs too shot to jog lol)
Notes: i already miss my oly club  Shitty bumper plates (and they're in pounds) and shitty bars :-/ And platforms have some sort of weird lamenated wood instead of plywood so its kinda slippery/weird/softer. but they did just get some new hard rubber ones so maybe i'll try that out next time. Next work out i'll go heavy snatch/light cj/front squat/push press.
Need to eat more: so far today 6 eggs, 3 pieces turkey bacon (wtf), 1/4-1/2 pound of chicken and beef each, sweet potato, 1/4 gallon whole milk. Time to cook up some dinner! Gonna be sore as fuck tomorrow. Also left my pre work out and fish oil at school like an idiot.
I need to get into contact with the russian oly lifter that lives near me! He trains his daughter and i'm pretty sure she could kick my ass lol. Plus he's got a bunch of badass Eleiko gear.
No homo "before" pics @ 94kg. Hopefully i'm 2x this size in 4 months. Lol @ tiny chest:
+ Show Spoiler +
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Oh, totally forgot my biggest question.
As my deadlift and squat approach 80 pounds, I'm running out of weights. I got a powerrack from my cousin (well, will have in a month or so) but need some sort of barbell set, it would seem.
Advice>?
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Damn I was tired today. More than that I think I definitely didn't get enough calories in my system today before lifting tonight. My squats were decent I guess but could have been better. Tried adding 10lbs to bench for 135 but I only did one set, then dialed it down to 130lbs for the remaining two sets. Even then I only did 5-4-5 reps what the fuuuuck. DL was also pretty exhausting. I need to sleep soon and then eat a big breakfast tomorrow.
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I second joining a gym. If you just buy weights you'll have to keep doing that. I dunno, I'd join a gym. Besides, getting out for the day is always nice as well.
Can anybody edit this for me?
+ Show Spoiler +
I finally figured out what I wanted
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On May 10 2011 10:11 Cambium wrote:
^join a gym?
QQ
Cheapest one around is $55/month and it's shit equipment.
Can't drive yet tt
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EPT![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/nZpZT.jpg)
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