*** The 2011 Gym Rats Thread ***

[Andr3w]

I really need to go to the gym today, i'm doing stronglift 5x5 and I don't like missing days but I have the ****'s! Can't stop running off to the toilet to squirt out brown water

Not felt right for a few days, seem to have lost a lot of weight and muscle mass recently as well, not sure whats going on.

Maybe i'm dying

 

[Psycho Sonny]

I read flat shoes (such as converse) were best for deadliftiing. What do you guys reckon?

deadlifting provides no shock to your knees. therefore i dont really think it matters too much what you wear.

i think its mostly made up though, that barefoot and flat shoes is best for lifting, i would like to see a professional physio's point of view on the matter rather than a broscientist.

as for running and movement, flat shoes are the worst thing you could wear, the foot is supposed to absorb shock by having a natural arch in it. look at the side of your foot with no socks on, see that arch, its not their by chance, your body needs it to be there, its a part of evolution.

so therefore i think the best shoes to wear when doing anything are those with an arch inside them, so they promote and use your natural arch.

flat is the worst.

all of my information comes from a physio who works in a hospital for the NHS, im going to take their word over some broscientist with no qualifications on the matter.

so if you are deadlifting i reckon it would be best to either go barefooted or use a shoe with a decent arch in it. flat shoes are bad for your stance and the bio-mechanics of your leg.

 

[richjs]

Is it possible to do stronglifts on part of your body and hypertrophy on another? My upper back is somewhat disproportionately weaker than the rest of me. Also I'm not really interested in putting on muscle on my arms as they are already around the size I want.

I was just thinking of Hypertrophy for everything except upper back and tris/bis, so 3x8 for everything apart from 5x5 for these.

 

[Psycho Sonny]

Is it possible to do stronglifts on part of your body and hypertrophy on another? My upper back is somewhat disproportionately weaker than the rest of me. Also I'm not really interested in putting on muscle on my arms as they are already around the size I want.

I was just thinking of Hypertrophy for everything except upper back and tris/bis, so 3x8 for everything apart from 5x5 for these.

yes it is possible, although for hypertrophy sometimes a pyramid setup may be better. 1 x 12, 1 x 10, 1 x 8.

 

[richjs]

Right cheers, will drop the weight a little and try the pyramid setup as I haven't changed up in a while, then progressively up the weight.

 

[Psycho Sonny]

Right cheers, will drop the weight a little and try the pyramid setup as I haven't changed up in a while, then progressively up the weight.

just do whatever works best for you, changing it up is always good, i like to change my routine once every 3-6 months, depending on my goal.

i do strong lifts to lose weight and i do hypertrophy stuff whilst lean gaining.

 

[roysters]

found this quite interesting

http://stronglifts.com/weight-lifting-shoes-squats-deadlifts/

 

[roysters]

mind you, you won't see me deadlifting with Ballet Slippers anytime soon... lol

 

[Psycho Sonny]

found this quite interesting

http://stronglifts.com/weight-lifting-shoes-squats-deadlifts/

that guy is a broscientist, he has no qualifications what so ever. in fact i dont think he has ever even done a personal training course. he re gurgitates broscience in most of his blogs.

he says you should be eating 6 times a day, etc.

Eat Every 3 Hours. The easiest way: breakfast, lunch, dinner, post workout, pre bed and 2 snacks in between. Benefits:

Less Hunger. Eating more smaller meals vs. few big meals will decrease your stomach size. You’ll feel full faster and your waist will trim.
Less Cravings. Not eating for long periods usually causes overeating at the next meal or ending at the candy machine.
Eat at fixed times every day and your body will get hungry at those fixed times. Example: 7am, 10am, 1pm, 4pm, 6pm, 7pm & 10pm.

he is just simply a broscientist with a huge following.

his routine works because its simple and uses progressive loading and complex movements. the man is no genius, yet makes a lot of people believe he is. a lot of the stuff he says is right, but there is a lot which is not.

find me someone with medical qualifications (physio or orthopaedic doctor / surgeon) who says flat shoes are good for lifting, anybody?

 

[Skillmister]

find me someone with medical qualifications (physio or orthopaedic doctor / surgeon) who says flat shoes are good for lifting, anybody?

Are there any people with medical qualifications who say flat shoes are worse for lifting?

 

[Djdom56]

Actually flat shoes are better for your feet you just have to not heel strike as much. This is the whole principle behind Vibram FiveFingers and barefoot running. The idea is that instead of landing heel first which will cause you all sorts of problems, the foot actually works better if you land more towards the toes on the middle of your foot so that there is minimal pressure on the impact of the heel. The best way to learn is to try running barefoot and landing on different areas of the feet.

The foot in itself is an amazing shock absorber, it has been designed to work thousands of years ago when there were no shoes so ideally we don't even need to where shoes although this isn't always practical. Shoes like Oly lifting shoes are aweful for you because they will destroy what little range of motion you may have. They lead to shorter Achilles tendons by having a raised heel which also cripples ankle flexibility.

Anything with a heel, obviously the worst being high heels but I hope you guys aren't wearing them , aren't very good for you, just the same as things like Ugg boots tend to mean that the wearer relies on the high tops for ankle support. I'm sure there are loads of resources out there which are great if you are interested in further info .


Also, roysters: Bare foot is the best thing for deadlifting because it reduces the distance you have to move the bar. In powerlifting meets I have to wear deadlift slippers:

 

[Psycho Sonny]

Are there any people with medical qualifications who say flat shoes are worse for lifting?

my physio

im not talking about the bottom of the shoe being flat (the part which touches the floor). im talking about the inside of the shoe, where your foot goes in. flat shoes are bad for your legs bio mechanics, they should have an arch.

 

[Psycho Sonny]

Actually flat shoes are better for your feet you just have to not heel strike as much. This is the whole principle behind Vibram FiveFingers and barefoot running. The idea is that instead of landing heel first which will cause you all sorts of problems, the foot actually works better if you land more towards the toes on the middle of your foot so that there is minimal pressure on the impact of the heel. The best way to learn is to try running barefoot and landing on different areas of the feet.

The foot in itself is an amazing shock absorber, it has been designed to work thousands of years ago when there were no shoes so ideally we don't even need to where shoes although this isn't always practical. Shoes like Oly lifting shoes are aweful for you because they will destroy what little range of motion you may have. They lead to shorter Achilles tendons by having a raised heel which also cripples ankle flexibility.

Anything with a heel, obviously the worst being high heels but I hope you guys aren't wearing them , aren't very good for you, just the same as things like Ugg boots tend to mean that the wearer relies on the high tops for ankle support. I'm sure there are loads of resources out there which are great if you are interested in further info .


Also, roysters: Bare foot is the best thing for deadlifting because it reduces the distance you have to move the bar. In powerlifting meets I have to wear deadlift slippers:

yeah so basically what i said was along the right lines then.

barefoot because it uses your natural arch or a shoe which has an arch inside it.

 

[Hedge]

yeah so basically what i said was along the right lines then.

barefoot because it uses your natural arch or a shoe which has an arch inside it.

This is confusing me, how is bare foot on a flat floor different to a foot in a flat shoe?

 

[icecold]

yeah so basically what i said was along the right lines then.

barefoot because it uses your natural arch or a shoe which has an arch inside it.

No, you are totally wrong.

I particularly loved the bit where you accused people of being broscientists when you're the biggest example of this I have ever seen.

Please stop giving terrible, baseless advice.

 

[Psycho Sonny]

This is confusing me, how is bare foot on a flat floor different to a foot in a flat shoe?

this is a flat shoe

________________
________________

this is a shoe with an arch

______^^^^_____
________________

understand?

im not talking about the bottom of the shoe where the shoe touches the floor (that can be flat). im talking about the inside of the shoe where your foot touches the shoe.

 

[Psycho Sonny]

No, you are totally wrong.

I particularly loved the bit where you accused people of being broscientists when you're the biggest example of this I have ever seen.

Please stop giving terrible, baseless advice.

my advice comes from a physio who works in a hospital

 

[icecold]

That just makes him wrong too, sorry. Unfortunately being a physio or even a doctor doesn't automatically make you right.

Lifting heavy off anything but a solid flat surface is bad for you. Walking in compressible trainers is also bad for you, because it weakens the foot.

Hedge is actually correct, flat shoes are fairly analogous to barefoot. Problems with this only arise if people heal strike, or if they've used a raised heal for so long that their achilles tendon has shortened.

 

[semi-pro waster]

im not talking about the bottom of the shoe where the shoe touches the floor (that can be flat). im talking about the inside of the shoe where your foot touches the shoe.

While I'm impressed by the graphics I think the question was why does it make a difference wearing shoes with nothing supporting the arch in your foot when compared to lifting in bare feet i.e. both surfaces are flat beneath your feet so why does it matter that one is the floor and the other is your own portable "floor"?

 

[Psycho Sonny]

That just makes him wrong too, sorry. Unfortunately being a physio or even a doctor doesn't automatically make you right.

Lifting heavy off anything but a solid flat surface is bad for you. Walking in compressible trainers is also bad for you, because it weakens the foot.

Hedge is actually correct, flat shoes are fairly analogous to barefoot. Problems with this only arise if people heal strike, or if they've used a raised heal for so long that their achilles tendon has shortened.

what is the deal with this heal business? are you saying shoes like timberland boots are bad for you? im asking this seriously as i have a knee problem which has got worse by incorrect shoes and incorrect bio-mechanical movement.