*** The 2010 Gym Rats Thread ***

Thought I'd bump that the Powerhouse Fitness sale ends today. With upto 30% off selected lines I've just saved a tidy package on some Kettlebells as I have some cash to burn :p

Just a heads up for anyone wanting any plates, bars etc or just another whole in their pocket ;)
 
Yeah I took advantage and got some 20kg plates and an EZ curl bar which hopefully will make triceps a lot easier to train, I hate using a straight bar :(
 
Last edited:
Yeah. Sale offers and reduced prices I can't resist. The only reason I grabbed some kettlebells (I've never even used one) is because I'm planning on doing a workshop/qualification at the end of March and they look like fun :) Plus they were also a load cheaper than the companies running the workshops were selling them for.

EZ bars make reverse curls a lot more comfortable. I have poor wrist rotation/motion so find they're a big help.
 
I did a bit of work with kettle bells in the summer, I really enjoyed them and getting the proper technique was really challenging, but important. You can work pretty much any muscle you want to with them as well, you can do a really wide range of exercises with them.

What weights did you get?
 
Just had a great chest/tris session banged out 10reps of incline 28kg dumbbell press for 2 sets before dropping the weight :). Then hit the tris with a lot of volume and some supersets.

Also makunouchi that videos craaaaazy :eek::eek::eek::eek:
 
Makunouchi said:
I did a bit of work with kettle bells in the summer, I really enjoyed them and getting the proper technique was really challenging, but important. You can work pretty much any muscle you want to with them as well, you can do a really wide range of exercises with them.

What weights did you get?
Click to expand...

Yeah. I've just got back from my Push split and popped a few sets of TGU's in before my tricep isolation.

Dumbells, started nice and light with 6KG, 2 reps on either side alternating. Working my way up in 2KG increments upto 12KG either side. With my rotator cuff history I'll be keeping it nice and light until I'm confident enough with my technique and form.

Whilst I didn't find the whole move in itself particulary challenging it is quite taxing! At certain points you can really feel your core getting a hammering, I also felt my trunk getting worked too. It's also very hard to breathe when your arm is extended above your head and stomach is stretched! It feels like one of those exercises you don't feel very 'safe' doing, though I guess it's the same for most new exercises you try!

I grabbed cast iron ones in 4KG, 8KG, 16KG and a rubber coated 12KG one. I'd of grabbed them all in cast iron but 12KG was out of stock :(

These weights should be sufficient for the majority of the exercises, at least while I start out and learn them and the correct form. A steal too at £75 considering they usually go for nearer £25-30 each.

The Kettlebell Instructor Course I plan on doing has the option to buy discounted KB's upon completion so will probaly pick up some heavier ones for the future :)
 
Sounds good Benny. For the overhead movement, I hope you are making sure to add the 'punch' at the top so you don't mess up your wrists and bruise the hell out of your forearms.

Today was leg day for me, so I was trying out some of the tips and advice you guys gave me after last time. I was definitely able to go lower which was great, although I did feel it slightly more on my lower back, but not enough to be worried about. No videos of it but I will make one next time just to check everything is still ok.
I didn't manage to up the weight this week but as I was going lower my legs felt like they did a lot more work, especially the hamstrings, I could feel them kicking in at the bottom really vividly (if that's the right word).

So I did 62kgs for 6 sets of 10 reps, and then immediately went inside to do this little exercise:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVHsd_zvCkQ

I had 40kgs on my shoulders which is out of shot. It's a lot harder than it looks and was actually pretty painful. In fact I had to make three videos after I realised in the first two I made I was whimpering loudly like a scolded puppy :D

Then I did calf raises holding 25kgs, 10kgs more in a backpack. I just wanted to check, there's no potential problems with really stretching out at the bottom below parallel is there? like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1TWWu3xFvo I can't see why there would be...
 
Makunouchi said:
Sounds good Benny. For the overhead movement, I hope you are making sure to add the 'punch' at the top so you don't mess up your wrists and bruise the hell out of your forearms.
Click to expand...

For now I'm just using DB's, I'll have a few days play with my KB's before the course. I've watched a few KB Snatch videos and it does look like it could be quite harsh on the forearms.

snip
Click to expand...

Yeah you'll find you can really feel it more in your glutes the lower you go as you get a bigger ROM.

That static hold you've done against the wall you can do at the bottom of the rep for the squat, doing it against the wall will place more emphasis on the quads if that's what you're after. Or if you're feeling brave on each rep pause half way down for 3 seconds, pause at the bottom for 3 seconds, come halfway back up with a 3 second pause then complete the rep. Might want to try this as a front squat because it's safer if you fail.

I've got a few calf issues so currently deciding not to train them anymore. Fairly sure it's soleus related. Bigger the R.O.M the better I would imagine, I've always come down as far as possible but try to lower yourself down as opposed to fall without control, so your keeping tension and less likely to strain or pull something.

An idea if you don't want to have to carry loads of weight is to do one foot at a time, considerably tougher! You can also hold the weight by means of a plate pinch or false grip for a way of adding in some forearm work :)
 
after hurting my shoulder again :mad: ive had 2 weeks off and hitting the gym again tomorrow so i thought id throw up my new workout for some critique.

its 3 sets of 8/10 reps btw (i do them back to front duno why)

Warm Up
Spiderman Press Up 10 x 3
Dumbbell Squats 10 x 3 18kg
Rotator Cuff Warm Up 10 x 3 6kg

Main Work Out
Dumbbell Tricep Above Head 8 x 3 16kg
Bicep Curls 8 x 3 14kg
Renegade Dumbbell Rows 10 x 3 18kg
Chest Fly on Bench 8 x 3 18kg
Shoulder Press 8 x 3 16kg
Barbell Clean and Push Press 8 x 3 10kg
Lat Pull Down 8 x 3 55kg
Chest Press Bar 8 x 3 65kg
Barbell Dead Lift 8 x 3 70kg
Press Up Both Arms on Ball 8 x 3 Med ball
Lat Raise 8 x 3 12kg
Front Raise 8 x 3 12kg
Lat Raise Vertical Up/Down 8 x 3 6kg

Abs Work Out
Hanging Leg Raises 5 x 2
Hanging Knee Raises 10 x 2
Decline Board Leg Thrusts 12 x 2
Lying Leg Thrusts 15 x 1
Ab Scissors 10 x 1
Stability Ball Crunches with Arms Straight 10 x 1 Blue Med ball
Stability Ball Plank Hold 70 seconds x 1
Floor Side Plank Holds 40 seconds x 1 per side
 
Hey guys, I was just wondering if any of you seasoned gym-goers would mind making a sticky about all the different (at least standard) exercises I see floating around in here and what area of the body they work? It really would save us less-seasoned chaps infinite amount of time searching online every time an unfamilar excercise is mentioned. :o

Thanks!

*scampers away*
 
I often go through sites like that to give me some inspiration for new movements. However, I'm a bit "old school" in that I just love my big compound movements and feel there's very little substitute for them and that all isolation movements are a supporting or "completing" movements. I know this isn't strictly correct, but I wouldn't ever stop doing big compound movements. That said, for the complete package you do need the subsidiary exercises for sure!
 
Niir said:
after hurting my shoulder again :mad: ive had 2 weeks off and hitting the gym again tomorrow so i thought id throw up my new workout for some critique.
Click to expand...

Do you do all that in one workout? :/

Dips, squats, deadlifts, bench, overhead presses, hang cleans, pullups then add some curlz in at the end. Doing what your doing might get results, but doing these lifts will get them faster.

Look up some proper programs, or look at bennys split which he posted somewhere in here.
 
Niir said:
Snip
Click to expand...

Ditch the seperate 'Ab Workout'.

Look a few pages back as I've posted my recent Push/Pull split which will probaly suit you quite well. Big compounds are key.

You've started with arm isolation which is fine if you are pre-exhausting. But then you've got compounds and isolations in a strange order.

If you want work legs & abs on a seperate day and then use a push/pull for an upper split.

You'll find you wont be able to keep doing all of that up for very long. Not if you intend on training with any decent frequency. The CNS can burn out very quickley believe me I know!
 
While you're here handing out advice BennyC can I run my workout past you please :p

Legs:
Back squats
Front Squats
Calf Raises

Back:
Deadlifts
Widegrip Pullups (+chins if pullups didn't go to failure)
T-Bar Rows OR BOR's
Shrugs

Shoulders:
OHP
Side Raises
Front Raises
Reverse Fly
Chest:
Dips
Dumbbell Benchpress
Flies

Arms:
Barbell Curls
Dumbbell Isolation Curls
Hammer Curls
Barbell French Press
Overhead Dumbbell French Press

I've grouped together the things I do on the same day, so basically the only things I do together are shoulders and chest, everything else gets in own day. However that's not the order I do them in in terms of when they come in the week, I generally will pick one of those groupings based on what feels the most rested.
Anything wrong with that order or exercise choice?

Thanks in advance :)
 
Last edited:
on the arms day take a curl exercise out and put something else that trains your triceps.
your triceps is 2/3 of your arm whereas your biceps is only 1/3 and doesn't need as much volume.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom