OT: Fitness and Nutrition Part IV - Let's get jacked up Edition

[Paddyjack]

Doing them before with a lighter weight allows to activate the posterior chain. Good way to get the blood flowing.

Also, a dude told me my squat sucked once and that i was gonna injure myself if i kept doing it... I was doing good mornings, with like 50 pounds on the bar...

This is why people should shut up and not give advice to others in the gym.

 

[DramaticGloveSave]

Doing them before with a lighter weight allows to activate the posterior chain. Good way to get the blood flowing.

Also, a dude told me my squat sucked once and that i was gonna injure myself if i kept doing it... I was doing good mornings, with like 50 pounds on the bar...

Just today I was doing them with a single plate on the bar, and this hot jacked little lady (musta been 100 pounds) who Id never seen before started squatting 185 right beside me, with tremendous form and depth, and I could see this look in her face in the mirror as she wrestled with whether to give me some squat pointers or not... and I suddenly became incredibly self conscious lol

 

[Mrb1p]

This is why people should shut up and not give advice to others in the gym.

I told him yeah, it's fine theyre good mornings... He was like oh, well that looks dangerous anyway.

 

[DramaticGloveSave]

This chick was a site to behold. Very petite but unreal tonage and her ass was the firmest and proportionally large ass I'd ever seen. I swear she must be an Instagram ass model who squats everyday in order to pay her bills. It's the only theory that makes sense.

 

[holy]

Lmaooo damn, that must've been one heckuva behind, I'm expecting you to bring it up 10 pages from now.

 

[MasterD]

3- Curling 60 pound isn't considered as being strong.

For a powerlifter of course not. For a beginner comparing to general population, it's very good.

 

[Mrb1p]

For a powerlifter of course not. For a beginner comparing to general population, it's very good.

Still should not be a strength goal.

 

[Suiteness]

Unfortunately, I have to stop any heavy pressing/pulling movements because I injured my finger...open gash/wound, really disappointing but it's impossible to grip anything heavy right now. Fortunately, I'm still able to do squats but I'm worried going too heavy because I still need to grip the bar. Hopefully I won't lose too much on my gains as I'm still in the middle of a cut (trying to get from cut->shredded now).

Perhaps do Trap bar deadlifts in the meantime, you sholud still be able to pull heavy weights on those.

Speaking of deadlifts, do you guys have any cues before pulling or ya'll just grip it and rip it?

 

[Mrb1p]

Perhaps do Trap bar deadlifts in the meantime, you sholud still be able to pull heavy weights on those.

Speaking of deadlifts, do you guys have any cues before pulling or ya'll are just grip it and rip it?

I set up super tight on top, keep that tightness and just rip it.

Imo, deadlifting is one of the simplest moves... Benching is where i struggle. Keeping a strong base, staying tight, scapula placement, bat track, heh...

 

[Suiteness]

I set up super tight on top, keep that tightness and just rip it.

Imo, deadlifting is one of the simplest moves... Benching is where i struggle. Keeping a strong base, staying tight, scapula placement, bat track, heh...

I'm the opposite lol deadlifts is my weakest of the three, I constantly have to think about how to do it while I can just bench or squat without thinking about it.

If you'd see me deadlift, you would probably think I'm mentally deranged the way I set myself up for the lift.

 

[Mrb1p]

I'm the opposite lol deadlifts is my weakest of the three, I constantly have to think about how to do it while I can just bench or squat without thinking about it.

If you'd see me deadlift, you would probably think I'm mentally deranged the way I set myself up for the lift.

As long as you stay tight you should have no problem deadlifting conventional. Obviously theres some advanced techniques such as bar roll, balance, etc... but its a fairly simple move. What do you struggle with?

 

[DramaticGloveSave]

Ya for deadlift I only think about my hand and feet placement and then my breath and keeping my core engaged and then just rip it.

Squats and bench I have to do all those things, plus pinch my shoulder blades, consider bar path, eyeline etc... much more complicated IMO. In fact I'm constantly tweaking my squats and bench, including some fairly major overhauls. Deadlifts the only thing I've really changed has been trying different grips.

 

[firstemperor]

Perhaps do Trap bar deadlifts in the meantime, you sholud still be able to pull heavy weights on those.

Speaking of deadlifts, do you guys have any cues before pulling or ya'll just grip it and rip it?

I can't grip anything heavy right now at all oh well, taking a break to work purely on accessories (abs, some lighter dumbbell stuff but heavier in volume) and mobility work (taking even a week off gives me mad, mad DOMS that are worst when squatting).

Plus, since I'm on a cut....I'm slowly losing strength which sucks badly...most notable on pressing movements so far but it has moved to my deads a bit. Squat seems to be ok, but I was doing these the most (3 sessions a week on average).

As for deadlifting, most important cue I would say is keeping your chest out and tight. For some reason, everyone I know that casually lifts has either stopped squatting, or suffered a bad back injury from DL/squatting, so make sure to keep proper form always I would say. Though there's definitely some inexact broscience going on with all lifts.

Speaking from experience, I would say be very careful over-tweaking and overthinking your heavy lifts, especially if your not reworking it completely at a lighter weight...that's how injuries can happen.

 

[Mrb1p]

Bench stresses me a whole lot. I have a stupid fear of dropping it on my neck. Makes my hands super sweaty and it sucks and its dangerous.

 

[Kriss E]

This is why people should shut up and not give advice to others in the gym.

If someone doesn't know what a good morning is then their knowledge of fitness is rather low. Not sure how one with such low knowledge gets the confidence of walking around the gym giving advice, unless of course, he's just an old man who worries.

 

[Kriss E]

Still should not be a strength goal.

Why not?
If one comes from a very weak starting point, curling 60lbs is a very good strength goal.
I warm up with 60lbs so obviously this doesn't apply to me, but if I have a client who struggles with 40lbs, then there is nothing wrong with a 60lbs objective.

 

[Kriss E]

Ya for deadlift I only think about my hand and feet placement and then my breath and keeping my core engaged and then just rip it.

Squats and bench I have to do all those things, plus pinch my shoulder blades, consider bar path, eyeline etc... much more complicated IMO. In fact I'm constantly tweaking my squats and bench, including some fairly major overhauls. Deadlifts the only thing I've really changed has been trying different grips.

Aren't you also thinking about your shoulder and back position in the deadlifts? Pretty sure you are focusing on bar path as well during the DL.
Also...how do you do major overhauls in BS and BP?...A major overhaul pretty much changes the exercise..so what exactly do you mean by that?

 

[MasterD]

Perhaps do Trap bar deadlifts in the meantime, you sholud still be able to pull heavy weights on those.

Speaking of deadlifts, do you guys have any cues before pulling or ya'll just grip it and rip it?

Check out the how to deadlift video on YouTube on the Starting Strength channel, very easy to understand.

 

[Paul Dipietro]

Why not?
If one comes from a very weak starting point, curling 60lbs is a very good strength goal.
I warm up with 60lbs so obviously this doesn't apply to me, but if I have a client who struggles with 40lbs, then there is nothing wrong with a 60lbs objective.

Warming up with 60lbs... Jesus Christ

 

[DramaticGloveSave]

Aren't you also thinking about your shoulder and back position in the deadlifts? Pretty sure you are focusing on bar path as well during the DL.
Also...how do you do major overhauls in BS and BP?...A major overhaul pretty much changes the exercise..so what exactly do you mean by that?

When I take in my breath and engage my core, my back is in a good straight position and will stay as so (almost) through the lift. And the bar basically just travels up and down.

For squat, when I first started lifting, my feet were about shoulder width apart and straight out, my back would be very upright through the lift, and I'd only get down to about 90 degrees in terms of deep I could get. I squatted like this for quite some time. Eventually I made some tweaks, and now my feet are wider apart with toes slightly out, there's a bit more forward lean through the movement, and I get my ass to the grass.

For bench, when I first started I was doing it bodybuilder style, I had my elbows flared out at nearly 90 degrees and my bar path would just be straight and I'd bring the bar in the high/middle of my chest. Great for the chest, but brutal on the shoulders. Eventually I made some tweaks, and now my elbows are tucked more and I bring the bar lower on my chest powerlifter style.

 

[Mrb1p]

Why not?
If one comes from a very weak starting point, curling 60lbs is a very good strength goal.
I warm up with 60lbs so obviously this doesn't apply to me, but if I have a client who struggles with 40lbs, then there is nothing wrong with a 60lbs objective.

Curling 60's achieves nothing. You don't curl to be strong, you curl to look good.

Even pro Bb's like Kai Greene and Heath curl with fairly low weight, it kinda defeats the purpose of curl's if you go heavy.

 

[Paul Dipietro]

Curling 60's achieves nothing. You don't curl to be strong, you curl to look good.

I sure as hell workout to look better first, and to be "strong" second. Regardless, both go hand in hand especially in the beginning

 

[Mrb1p]

I sure as hell workout to look better first, and to be "strong" second. Regardless, both go hand in hand especially in the beginning

It's fine, every body has goals of his own and it really doesn't matter, it's just that there's some optimal exercise/rep/weight/wtv for every goal and curling 60's isn't a staple of big guns.

 

[Kriss E]

Curling 60's achieves nothing. You don't curl to be strong, you curl to look good.

Even pro Bb's like Kai Greene and Heath curl with fairly low weight, it kinda defeats the purpose of curl's if you go heavy.

I think you are being a little too anal here. Some people have fixed numbers in their mind that they want to reach. It isn't necessarily that they think hitting that number means they'll be super strong or look good, they just want to hit it.
I had an objective of 8 reps at 135lbs. It had nothing to do with how strong I would get or thought my biceps would be huge if I got there. I just wanted to be able to put a plate on each side of an olympic bar and curl it for 8 reps. Completely useless and entirely egotistical, but f*** it, I wanted to do that.

So if someone has that 60lbs number they are eyeing out, it's totally fine man. Anything that makes a person come back into the gym to workout is good in my books.

 

[Kriss E]

Warming up with 60lbs... Jesus Christ

That might drop a bit now that I'm back home for the holidays...
Can definitely remove the "might" out of that sentence, it will definitely drop.

On another note, I forgot how many juice heads there are in gyms here. It's hilarious.