* The 2011 Gym Rats Thread *

Delvis · 16 Nov 2011 at 16:54

Chest session in 5

stiv121 · 16 Nov 2011 at 16:56

Im getting cracks in my shoulders but only during flat bench it didn't used to hurt but on monday it was hurting but it i was still able to complete the workout not unbearable just sore if i lowerd the bar quite close to my chest mainly on my right side

Might try dropping the weights or changing it for some cables as my first exersize and leaving it out till last. Could I have done damage or doing damage ?

will see what its liek tonight and report back

Skillmister · 16 Nov 2011 at 16:57

semi-pro waster said:
Some of the things that groups like the Bartendaz or guys like Hannibal King do shows a bit more imagination though but some of that is still pretty impressive.

You'll know better than me but can it not also be as simple as bubbles in the synovial fluid in the joint being popped? If it's happening all the time then there may be more to it than that but that's at the simpler end of the scale I thought.

Yeah hannibal is awesome. I love the idea, true or not, that people train like that if they can't afford a gym. Sure beats robbing corner shops and shooting people

It happens every time, and when i do pushups so i'd imagine it's a bit different to that. Can't really say though.

kai · 16 Nov 2011 at 17:00

Skillmister said:
How long have you been lifting out of interest?

2 years training about 1 year with actual effort and form.

icecold said:
Don't forget to post a video!

Will do, will feel a bit like a **** asking someone to film me but will help me also - i guess.

icecold · 16 Nov 2011 at 17:40

Chris1712 said:
It's probably the same stuff that makes military press iffy for some people, this is a good article.

http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/most_recent/are_you_ready_to_overhead_press

Icecold, as much as I love your ridiculous mobility knowledge it gets damn annoying! Everything I do now I always realise, damn that doesn't stretch right or that's not balanced etc. etc. I wish I could book myself into somewhere that would just fix everything for me .

That's a great article!

Haha

tbh I'm the same now. I can't fix everything myself and it takes a long time for everything to be fixed properly by someone else. It's made worse by the fact that I'm constantly having to remember to use good movement patterns and not slip back into the old ones that got me into this mess in the first place. I tell myself that every time I do, I've wasted a physio session - slight exaggeration perhaps!

semi-pro waster said:
Some of the things that groups like the Bartendaz or guys like Hannibal King do shows a bit more imagination though but some of that is still pretty impressive.

You'll know better than me but can it not also be as simple as bubbles in the synovial fluid in the joint being popped? If it's happening all the time then there may be more to it than that but that's at the simpler end of the scale I thought.

From the little that I know of the actual mechanisms of cracking I think you're right, at least partially.

Wiki article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cracking_joints

There seems to be some truth to the idea that sometimes it's due to *something* restrictive in the joint being quickly made to be not so, but as far as I know not a great deal more is known.

kai said:
2 years training about 1 year with actual effort and form.

Will do, will feel a bit like a **** asking someone to film me but will help me also - i guess.

But then you'll feel like a hero when you smash out a PB :cool:

icecold · 16 Nov 2011 at 17:43

stiv121 said:
Im getting cracks in my shoulders but only during flat bench it didn't used to hurt but on monday it was hurting but it i was still able to complete the workout not unbearable just sore if i lowerd the bar quite close to my chest mainly on my right side Might try dropping the weights or changing it for some cables as my first exersize and leaving it out till last. Could I have done damage or doing damage ? will see what its liek tonight and report back

Your form is most likely off.

Have a read here: http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18268152

stiv121 · 16 Nov 2011 at 18:04

Yeah been looking at some vids

I think I was doing it too high and bringing the bar down too far

Will try all that and tucking my lats in more.

GSDog · 16 Nov 2011 at 18:19

I just had my weight, body composition, etc. taken at the gym for the first time since I joined exactly 8 weeks ago (16th Sep) and I've gained over 7kg in weight.

I was 60.9KG when I joined and I'm now 68KG exactly. The good news is that I haven't seemed to have gained lots of fat either - apparently my BF % has only increased by about 1%. I know quite a bit of that weight gain will be water and fat, etc. but I'm still very pleased with my progress so far and have been receiving positive comments from friends and family.

I'm making the most of my beginner gains by just eating and training as much and as hard as possible right now. All my weights have been increasing but I seem to have stalled a bit on the bench press. Any advice?

icecold · 16 Nov 2011 at 18:19

Not exactly.

You're lifting with your shoulders to far forward, which means the load is on the small muscles of your anterior shoulder instead of your chest.

There's no such thing as bringing the bar down too far.

tom_e · 16 Nov 2011 at 18:22

stiv121 said:
Yeah been looking at some vids I think I was doing it too high and bringing the bar down too far Will try all that and tucking my lats in more.

It also might be worth switching to using dumbbells for a bit, I've got bad shoulders which can give me the odd twinge if I go heavy with a barbell but have no issues with dumbbells and I feel I can work my chest more effectively.
I do still use a barbell every now and again though because there is nothing like pushing out the big weights

LiE · 16 Nov 2011 at 19:35

Got my friend to do another recording tonight. This is of my 2nd set of 15s on the last A session (so my 15RM). Start of the lift is missing because iPhone for some reason can't sent the entire thing!?. icecold your advise is very welcome as always. Things I'm aware of are my tight hips meaning depth is limited and perhaps too much turn out of my feet both of which I am trying to mobilize. Slight but wink at the bottom, however the lift overall feels very comfortable.

icecold · 16 Nov 2011 at 20:07

Pretty good for a max effort set!

Apart from the things you mentioned:
- back seems slightly loose
- knees could go slightly wider (although that might be because of the camera angle)

How is your thoracic mobility? From your deadlift vid and this one it seems like you have trouble keeping your chest up. This could simply be technique, but also a sticky thoracic spine. Actually, another explanation would be a very tight anterior shoulder/pec because of your huge bench.

LiE · 16 Nov 2011 at 20:21

Thoracic mobility is pretty poor because of my bench as you said. Still struggling with getting my hands behind the bar, you can probably see how much my wrists have to bend in the video. Got some good stretches to help?
Thanks!

Skillmister · 16 Nov 2011 at 20:49

Pretty tasty session today. Felt a slight niggle in my back on the walk to the gym

so i went easy on squats and didn't deadlift.
9,6 controlled BW pullups which is a new best. should get 10,10 soon.

was gonna take a new pic when i got in but my mum rang me and now i've lost my pump. fml

nice lifting LiE, made it look easy

it's about here, should i foam roll/hockey ball it?

icecold · 16 Nov 2011 at 21:22

Delvis · 16 Nov 2011 at 21:24

If it's niggling you now why not?

I almost ram a ball in to my right shoulder blade every week, always get a knot in there

Delvis · 16 Nov 2011 at 21:36

Ooh, also...

I've been noticing lately how bent my right knee and lower leg is....it's ridiculous...Almost like I have rickets in one leg

Hard to explain, but it's really bugging me

stiv121 · 16 Nov 2011 at 21:50

Woohooo

great session tonight. Fixed my shoulder problem with the bench press/incline/decline by bringing my lats, pinching my shoulder blades togither, arching my back on the bench more and doing the press further down onto the middle of my chest rather than over my collerbone. Felt the burn a lot more on my chest so happy days! =D

Pigeon_Killer · 16 Nov 2011 at 22:13

Mixed session for me tonight. Shoulder pressed 97.5K for 3x3 very easily then struggled with a 185K deadlift. Seemed very slow getting the weight off the floor although it felt easier once I got the first rep of each set up. Managed 4 sets of 5 reps on wide grip pillups before failing my final set for the third week running :mad:

Nitefly · 17 Nov 2011 at 10:28

Signed back up to the gym yesterday and gave myself an easy session to get back into the swing of things.

Jesus, I can barely move today! Worst leg doms ever! No idea how I used to do what I did, I think it'll take awhile to readjust

*** The 2011 Gym Rats Thread ***

* The 2011 Gym Rats Thread *