Post: #276

How do you guys warm up before lifting?

Post: #277

Running for 5 minutes with some light weights on whatever muscle group i am doing usually does the trick.

Post: #278

I do a dynamic warm up with bodyweight exercises. bw squats, jumping jacks, leg lifts, l-sit progression, etc. I can usually tell when I'm warmed up by my squat mobility. I'm pretty tight until I've done a couple of rounds and then all of a sudden my hips open up and I know it's time to get underneath the bar.

Post: #279

I do the agile 8 as was recommended to me a few pages back. You can find it on YouTube -- another dynamic warm up.. Although ensams suggestion sounds intriguing. Agile 8 has helped my mobility quite a bit..

Post: #280

I usually spend 5 minutes on the bike/row machine followed by 5 minutes of dynamic exercises. It depends how old you are though, I see a lot of the more knowledgeable old heads (around 40-50) at my summer gym spend a good 30 minutes warming up.

Post: #281

I don't warm up much, other than starting from light weights.

I used to spend ages warming up because I needed to, otherwise my body wouldn't be ready. Then I asked myself: why do I need to warm up so much? Did our ancestors have to do so much shit before they got ready to work, battle, hunt or run away from predators? Can you imagine Grok the caveman doing hip flexor stretches all the time just in case a sabretooth tiger decided to chase him down the next moment? What makes us so different to them?

When I figured out the answer, I stopped the damages I was doing to my body daily that required lots of mobility drills and warmups, so now I don't require much to get ready for heavy lifting.

Post: #282

(10-27-2014 10:20 PM)StrikeBack Wrote:  I don't warm up much, other than starting from light weights.

I used to spend ages warming up because I needed to, otherwise my body wouldn't be ready. Then I asked myself: why do I need to warm up so much? Did our ancestors have to do so much shit before they got ready to work, battle, hunt or run away from predators? Can you imagine Grok the caveman doing hip flexor stretches all the time just in case a sabretooth tiger decided to chase him down the next moment? What makes us so different to them?

When I figured out the answer, I stopped the damages I was doing to my body daily that required lots of mobility drills and warmups, so now I don't require much to get ready for heavy lifting.

Yeah I hardly do anything other than a couple of lighter sets.

I'm sure they're mostly psychologically preparing anyway.

Even in my 32 years I have heard the theories on warming up and stretching yo-yo so many times.

Post: #283

(10-28-2014 05:03 AM)CrashBangWallop Wrote:  

(10-27-2014 10:20 PM)StrikeBack Wrote:  I don't warm up much, other than starting from light weights.

I used to spend ages warming up because I needed to, otherwise my body wouldn't be ready. Then I asked myself: why do I need to warm up so much? Did our ancestors have to do so much shit before they got ready to work, battle, hunt or run away from predators? Can you imagine Grok the caveman doing hip flexor stretches all the time just in case a sabretooth tiger decided to chase him down the next moment? What makes us so different to them?

When I figured out the answer, I stopped the damages I was doing to my body daily that required lots of mobility drills and warmups, so now I don't require much to get ready for heavy lifting.

Yeah I hardly do anything other than a couple of lighter sets.

I'm sure they're mostly psychologically preparing anyway.

Ditto.

Do you guys stretch and if so when?

Post: #284

I do some stretches to relax my joints, mostly my wrists, elbow and knee joints. Then I warm up using compound movements with just the bar, and then I proceed to warm up with just a little bit of more weight.

After that I proceed to do my real lifting.

Post: #285

I've never really felt any difference in warming up or stretching as an isolated thing. I walk briskly to the gym which gets the pulse up and then I run 1 or 2 low weight sets first. It would be interesting if there is any proof of how warming up prevents injuries as I seem to get more minor injuries now.

Post: #286

(10-28-2014 05:40 AM)Deluge Wrote:  

(10-28-2014 05:03 AM)CrashBangWallop Wrote:  

(10-27-2014 10:20 PM)StrikeBack Wrote:  I don't warm up much, other than starting from light weights.

I used to spend ages warming up because I needed to, otherwise my body wouldn't be ready. Then I asked myself: why do I need to warm up so much? Did our ancestors have to do so much shit before they got ready to work, battle, hunt or run away from predators? Can you imagine Grok the caveman doing hip flexor stretches all the time just in case a sabretooth tiger decided to chase him down the next moment? What makes us so different to them?

When I figured out the answer, I stopped the damages I was doing to my body daily that required lots of mobility drills and warmups, so now I don't require much to get ready for heavy lifting.

Yeah I hardly do anything other than a couple of lighter sets.

I'm sure they're mostly psychologically preparing anyway.

Ditto.

Do you guys stretch and if so when?

I only ever stretch between sets to be honest.

And then only gently for a second or two.

Again though this probably started as just something to kill the downtime between sets for me.

Psychology is so important when lifting I'm tempted to conclude that you should do whatever makes you feel more comfortable lifting with intensity.

Post: #287

^
True that. Your mind is a very important part of lifting, and for that matter, all athletics.
A good thing to do before lifting is close your eyes, breathe, and visualize yourself destroying those weights.
Learn to use your head to really pump yourself up. Imagine yourself on a platform deadlifting 600 pounds with 5 cute girls watching.

Post: #288

I was in an accident a few days ago.

My left chest is strained or something. I did a back workout the day after, and a leg workout the day after that. Took a day off to rest. Today was chest, I tried to bench just an empty bar and got searing pain in my chest. Looks like Im out of the gym for a while.

Post: #289

I started the wallstreetplayboys.com workout plan on October 1st - I've been to the gym at least 4-5 times a week. Going to the gym is the only thinking keeping me from going insane since starting my current work assignment...

Post: #290

(10-28-2014 08:52 PM)AntiTrace Wrote:  I was in an accident a few days ago.

My left chest is strained or something. I did a back workout the day after, and a leg workout the day after that. Took a day off to rest. Today was chest, I tried to bench just an empty bar and got searing pain in my chest. Looks like Im out of the gym for a while.

Get your ass on the leg machines!

Post: #291

I need some of the very knowledgeable guys here to give me some advice. I'm in pretty good shape, around 12% BF and have an athletic muscly look (imagine swimmer/footballer (soccer).

My pecs appear to be a good size and of a similar size, however I've noticed the distribution of muscle in each one isn't the same. My right pec (dominant side) has a lot more muscle at the bottom, like the bottom half of a convex shape. My left pec has more muscle further up, like the bottom half of a concave shape.

What is the ideal shape, and how can I train the 'wrong' pec to change?

Post: #292

So the dude who used to live here a) must have been a weak pussy and b) left a grand total of 95lb weight on a shitty barbell set.

goal will to be get back into lifting while I cut weight until I have my shit together to start lifting for real (logistics not motivation). and ultimately lose the weight I've put on this past little while.

Not a lot of weight. I could max out most lifts with the weight I have as of now.

so to avoid a total waste of time I think my best bet is some kind of circuit using lots of supersets or some shit.

thinking of doing something 20 mins daily. I'd like to incorporate cleans but this bar fucking sucks and I'd rather not put a hole thru the wall.

100 pushup sit ups and squats in the morning before work.

squats
press
Romanian deadlift
curls 4 the girls
skull crushers
rows

all high rep. then maybe the next day do

lunges
floor press
more Romanian deadlifts
reverse curls
close grip Bench from floor
rows for days

then try to beat my 10x circuit time each day or something

what do you guys think. any lifts you'd think be better suited to a circuit than what Ive got?

Post: #293

You would have to do a shit load of reps ha ha
I would look into getting a pull-up bar and a kettle bell.
Do tons of pull-ups and kettle bell swings.
You could do that as well as high rep weights.
Another thing could be progressing on certain bodyweight exercises,
practice one leg squats, one arm pushups, etc.
Burpess are good too. For kickboxing we do these things called leg cranks,
its just bodyweight x40 squats, x40 lunges, x20 jumping lunges and x10 jump squats one after the other with no rest.
completing all those is 1 set of leg cranks. First time i did three sets my legs were sore for a week

Post: #294

Sharing a routine I've been doing for the last 3 months with great results:

Monday, wednesday, friday
Working out
A)
Squat
Military press
Deadlift
Lateral raise
Shrugs
Calf raise

B)
Squat
Incline bench press (stopped flat bench because of shoulder discomfort and incline feels much better)
Rows
Dips
Pulldowns/pull ups

Tuesday and thursday
BJJ training
Pushups
Horizontal rows
Ab work
Curls
Neck work

Saturday
Stretching or walking

Post: #295

(10-30-2014 04:50 PM)britchard Wrote:  What is the ideal shape, and how can I train the 'wrong' pec to change?

Muscle shape is genetically determined, you can't change it. You can only train to unleash its full potential.

Look at Arnie's biceps - they're quite different. The right one - his fav, it's featured in every photo - has a nice high peak, while the left one is longer and relatively flatter. If there was a way to change it, he would.

Post: #296

Got a weird popping feeling in my abs while doing bent over rows yesterday. No pain but it felt weird. The weight was a little lower than I usually use so I dunno what was going on. Gonna take a week off and play it safe.

Post: #297

Hey guys, lately ( last week or 2 ) after each set of dips, when I put my feet on the ground and take the tension/load off my Tris/chest I feel a very brief shooting pain through my right pec, its the only time I feel the pain, the exercise itself feels fine, its only that split second ending the set. Does this sound like tendonitis or maybe a slight tear? I do dips 3 times a week, 4 sets of 7, I add a rep every week, does it sound like I'm overdoing it?

Post: #298

(11-01-2014 01:27 PM)aeroektar Wrote:  Hey guys, lately ( last week or 2 ) after each set of dips, when I put my feet on the ground and take the tension/load off my Tris/chest I feel a very brief shooting pain through my right pec, its the only time I feel the pain, the exercise itself feels fine, its only that split second ending the set. Does this sound like tendonitis or maybe a slight tear? I do dips 3 times a week, 4 sets of 7, I add a rep every week, does it sound like I'm overdoing it?

Does it hurt when you do other chest exercises? Push-ups?

I'd suggest de-loading a bit, maybe switching to 6 sets of 5 or something to get some volume work in.

Also a goal like "one rep added every week" is nice for silly programs like 100 pushups but you really have to understand your body and see when it's time to "pump the brakes." Think about doing a few weeks at your current rep range until you feel like you can beast out the next level.

Post: #299

I also do weighted pushups and feel no pain at all. And its not like I'm struggling and compromising form (I feel very comfortable doing the exercise, it feels great) to do 7 reps, I usually go to failure on the last set and can get to 9-10 reps. Like I said its only at the end I feel the pain. I think what I'll do is one more week and then take a week off from everything to let my body recover.

Post: #300

How about one week of just pushups? I started having a slight tweak in my neck from doing pullups. Took a week off and now it's fine. Sometimes there are small parts of your body that are lagging behind...and just need time to catch up.