Gym etiquette and general info.

[deep]

Originally Posted by Subsonic Chronic

In my studies, they say that sticking to high loads and low reps (4-6/set) will increase strength without increasing size too much... but what's been the experience of Tribers?

Depends on your build. If you're more fast twitch then it might be the best range for gaining size. 1-3 RM would be more neurologically taxing than hypertrophic. Might be an interesting experiment to try with cardio / calisthenics for fight endurance.

[ChrisD]

Originally Posted by KiX

in general, doctors aren't the greatest at figuring that shit out. get to a physio or some sort of rehab-focused practitioner.

also, if you think you pulled or strained something, stay away from anti-inflammatories. although it is good for pain relief and reducing related inflammation, recent studies show that ibuprophen interrupts the healing/repair phases too much, weakens tissues and significantly increases the risk of re-injury. i recommend ice for the inflammation (15-20 mins on every hour) and tylenol for pain instead.

Going to try and see what the deal is over lunch, seems to have subsided though. Thanks for the tip, much appreciated.

[kaniz]

Still burnt out from the weekend a bit, think I'll just call this week a 'rest week' and get back at things Monday.

I'd hate to fully fall out of a routine after doing so well for the past 3 months.

[Bacchus]

Havne't posted in here in a while, but here's an update

i'm almost upto 160lbs (the weight i was at in febuary, before starting to work out). However, i'm still at a size 31 waist (the same size i was wearing at 140-144 in june)

Hit a PR of 275x2 on my deadlift yesterday....made me super stoked. I changed up my big lifts to a 10,8,6,4,10 pyramid routine (from 5x5) about 3 weeks ago - and it's working out much better for me. Better pumps, easier to add weight the next week.

Hit a flat bench PR this week as well.


so all in all, things are really looking great and I'm loving my progress. I've actually had to give away two pairs of skinny pants i bought this spring, because they don't go up my legs anymore (even though other pants with that waist size fit)

[Bacchus]

Originally Posted by kaniz

Fairly new to squats myself - but loving them. I used to think that a seated leg press was equivalent to a Squat. I was afraid of free-weights for awhile and only stuck to machines.

Then, I tried a squat and realized - no, no carry over at all :P On the leg press I was able to do over 300lbs pretty easily. With my Squats? finally just worked up to 50lbs :P

And even though it's a low weight - by the end 3 sets of 12 - I'm a sweaty mess and feeling it.

Few weeks ago I decided to try them on a Smith machine, pushed the weight up too fast with bad form (went from 40 to 60)- my knee's hurt for a week after.

Gave the squats a rest for a week and gone back to just using a bar bell & doing a box-squat for now. Starting to feel much better with my form - going to try and work up to a full ROM w/o a box before increasing the weight again.

I feel a bit silly doing squats with a near empty bar, but meh - it's about personal progress - not trying to out-do the guy next to you. Rather progress slowly doing it right, then push too hard, fuck it up and wreck my knees for a few weeks again.

good job, buddy! Don't feel silly, you'll work your way up. I started doing squats with a near-empty bar in april, and am now doing full ass-to-grass squats at 225.

You'll find that squat and deadlifts are the exercises where you'll continue to make huge jumps even as your other exercises have reached a plateau


Good to see you doing well. i haven't seen you in a while (long before you've started trainining) and same here anyways.

[Bacchus]

Originally Posted by deep

curls with the palms down or palms facing towards the body engages in other muscles like the brachialis, brachioradialis in addition to the biceps brachii

werd.

i've found i got more "width" to my bicep since i've stared doing reverse grip curls in my routines.

I'm pretty sure it's due to the brancialis..

[Balzz]

Originally Posted by Bacchus

Havne't posted in here in a while, but here's an update

i'm almost upto 160lbs (the weight i was at in febuary, before starting to work out). However, i'm still at a size 31 waist (the same size i was wearing at 140-144 in june)

LOL I'm almost down to 160.

[ChrisD]

Originally Posted by Balzz

LOL I'm almost down to 160.

WHAT!!!!!!!

ITS ALMOST FALL! Back onto bulking season

[Bacchus]

Originally Posted by Balzz

LOL I'm almost down to 160.

nice 1. must be lean, mang.

my goal in feb. was to be 165 @ 10% within the year. hope and bulking to 175 over winter, and go from there. lookin attainable though.

[deep]

Originally Posted by ChrisD

WHAT!!!!!!!

ITS ALMOST FALL! Back onto bulking season

duck season

[derek]

mongo season, shoot!

[Subsonic Chronic]

Last night after getting home from training I was 170 on the nose, and that was after about 4-5 lbs of liquid (water + protein shake) so I was probably around 165 immediately after class.

So long good ol' days of being 185-190, but at least a 155lb fighting weight is easily within reach now.

[derek]

i'm in the 160 - 65 range, that seems to be my adequate weight when i'm coasting. i've been as heavy as 175 (a long time ago actually) and a lean as 155. right now 163.

i'm living slovenly for the next week as i'll be in london. once i'm back though, it's to the gym. oct, nov, and dec will be fun.

[junglisthead]

talking about weight...

i was 267 a year ago, prior to signing up to the gym

i now weigh 212

wooo size 40 pant down to a 34, only problem is that i have to buy new clothes

[jazzsax]

I can totally relate. A few years ago was 265, then 235 alast winter. Down to 204 and working lower. Never felt better.

Still alot more to go!

[Bacchus]

Originally Posted by junglisthead

talking about weight...

i was 267 a year ago, prior to signing up to the gym

i now weigh 212

Originally Posted by jazzsax

I can totally relate. A few years ago was 265, then 235 alast winter. Down to 204 and working lower. Never felt better.

great work boys.


i was 160 and a size 34 6 months ago. after i dropped to 145 and size 30-31, so i decided to buy skinny pants to enjoy my new slim figure.

only, i started hypertrophic training and now all three pairs of pants (less then a few months old) can't even go up past the thight.

lulz



still a size 31 though

[Balzz]

Originally Posted by ChrisD

WHAT!!!!!!!

ITS ALMOST FALL! Back onto bulking season

I'm afraid of bulking now...but losing strength sucks too.

[ila]

This is a somewhat gym-related question:

Can any of you recommend a knee tensor/brace that I can buy in a store that will stabilize my knee for agility moves? Extreme dodgeball agility moves?

I partially tore my ACL a while back and I bunked up my knee last night in a dodgeball game. I think little extra support/stability will be key.

Thanks for your help

[atomic]

I'd see a specialist to take a look at the knee, then determine which brace would be right for you.

Trainer's Choice has a line of soft braces. The patellar tracking brace has extra J-support designed to keep your patella stable while exercising.

They're around a hundred bones and can be picked up at Shoppers. Most insurance companies should cover the expense.

On an unrelated note, people that cough a lot in the gym should just stay the hell home.

[guysmiley]

Did you get your condition diagnosed by a physician? Ligament tears in your knee seriously suck as most require surgery to regain the most function form your knee. I’ll tell you what my doc told me re knee braces: there isn’t very much evidence to support a brace making a big difference when it comes to protecting the ACL during movements that cause a large force on the ligament.

That being said, they do offer some protection against smaller forces and also extend a measure of psychological benefit. Which one to choose depends on your preference with respect to the trade off between size, weight, profile, and cost.

I currently use the DJ Playmaker when playing sports although, to be honest, I once forgot it and used a plain tensor instead and could barely notice the difference. $10 vs. $300, but YMMV.

[ila]

Originally Posted by guysmiley

Did you get your condition diagnosed by a physician? Ligament tears in your knee seriously suck as most require surgery to regain the most function form your knee. I’ll tell you what my doc told me re knee braces: there isn’t very much evidence to support a brace making a big difference when it comes to protecting the ACL during movements that cause a large force on the ligament.

That being said, they do offer some protection against smaller forces and also extend a measure of psychological benefit. Which one to choose depends on your preference with respect to the trade off between size, weight, profile, and cost.

I currently use the DJ Playmaker when playing sports although, to be honest, I once forgot it and used a plain tensor instead and could barely notice the difference. $10 vs. $300, but YMMV.

haha...thanks!

I absolutely got my partial ACL tear diagnosed by a physician. A sports medicine specialist at U of T, actually about 10 years ago. I spent about 3 - 4 months in physiotherapy after that at York U and since then I've been pretty active, still playing hockey and running with no problems. I opted out of surgery at the time, because my specialist told me if I could still function at 90% and I was happy with it, why bother risking making it worse after a surgery?

Anyway, I jammed it pretty hard last night during a dodgeball game. I'm hoping a brace might help that.

Thanks for your help, guys!!

[ChrisD]

Originally Posted by Balzz

I'm afraid of bulking now...but losing strength sucks too.

Bro, Im heading back today after that injury I was telling you about, we shall see how it goes. BULKING SEASON!!!!

[R4V4G3D_SKU11S]

Why do certain guys grunt on every rep of every exercise? I find it very distracting and annoying when I'm in the middle of my own own sets. Its possible to exhale forcefully without making a noise.

Would it be bad etiquette to ask someone to take it down a notch on the grunt?

[deep]

carried away with the valsalva maneuver

[Balzz]

Originally Posted by R4V4G3D_SKU11S

Why do certain guys grunt on every rep of every exercise? I find it very distracting and annoying when I'm in the middle of my own own sets. Its possible to exhale forcefully without making a noise.

Would it be bad etiquette to ask someone to take it down a notch on the grunt?

Maybe you should just pay attention to your own lifting? *shrug*