*** The 2018 Gym Rats Thread ***

Soldato
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Somewhere in the middle.
Been doing Wendler 531 for about 5 or 6 weeks now.

Absolutely love it. The app is easy to follow and the exercises are very challenging!. Deadlift day today and it was brutal in this heat.

Nice to feel my bench press returning too.
 
Soldato
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I've lost about 8 stone recently and for the first time in my life I am going to join a gym next week. I know I want to do weights as I have quite a physical job and have started getting aches so I want to build up some muscle. Also since I have lost my weight I have gained a bit of loose skin, so my question is what would be the best exercise to tone it back up.

Depending on your age you may find the loose skin rebounds to some extent or another - or if you're like me you'll just have to live with it.

Mine is always going to be there it seems, but its unnoticeable unless I have my shirt off and even then it just looks like a bit of a paunch and its hardly the end of the world. I found in the early days Palmers Cocoa Butter seemed to help matters, that might just be a placebo thing, but it smells like chocolate so who cares?!

Your mileage may vary, but I found that when I first started going to the gym after a long period of time being a bigger guy I had some mobility issues that prevented me from doing certain movements at all, or from completing them properly. There is a lot of work you can do yourself to work on form, icecolds mobility thread on these forums is great. I ended up paying for a few PT sessions which really helped me, and gave me the confidence I needed to walk into the free weights area for the first time... and I've not left since.
 
Associate
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Scunthorpe
Depending on your age you may find the loose skin rebounds to some extent or another - or if you're like me you'll just have to live with it.

Mine is always going to be there it seems, but its unnoticeable unless I have my shirt off and even then it just looks like a bit of a paunch and its hardly the end of the world. I found in the early days Palmers Cocoa Butter seemed to help matters, that might just be a placebo thing, but it smells like chocolate so who cares?!

Your mileage may vary, but I found that when I first started going to the gym after a long period of time being a bigger guy I had some mobility issues that prevented me from doing certain movements at all, or from completing them properly. There is a lot of work you can do yourself to work on form, icecolds mobility thread on these forums is great. I ended up paying for a few PT sessions which really helped me, and gave me the confidence I needed to walk into the free weights area for the first time... and I've not left since.
Well done you. Don't have any mobility issues and I am 37, also thx for the tip about Cocoa butter. Got a free session with a personal trainer on Sunday so going to see what she says.
 
Man of Honour
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21 Nov 2004
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Finally off work and able to hit the gym in the mornings with it lovely and quiet. Getting in a session each day before I go away next week.

Since it is my birthday month Nike gave me 25% off. So went on a shopping spree. New Metcon 4s on the way (I have the originals and love them) plus some other goodies.

AC joint pain has gone away, so it is clearly a flat barbell bench thing since no other movement bothers it. Hit 4 reps of 50kg dumbbells today which is a new record for me. Shame we don't have heavier dumbbells.

Myprotein seem to have started giving free gifts on orders over £50, so stuck one of their tank tops on there. I really like it actually. Nice texture, pattern, fit.
 
Soldato
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22 Mar 2007
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3,875
Second session today, 30 minutes of uphill walk on treadmill and an hour of weights. Sweated like Jimmy savile in a toy shop but feel amazing. So good for the mind as well.

I don't know how people can do weights and cardio in one session. I'm not knocking you, I'm impressed you can manage both (though I hope you did the cardio post-weights). I'm still knackered from legs days after doing my workout and getting in that HIIT session is sometimes a real pain, there's no way I could do it in the same workout.
 
Man of Honour
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I don't know how people can do weights and cardio in one session. I'm not knocking you, I'm impressed you can manage both (though I hope you did the cardio post-weights). I'm still knackered from legs days after doing my workout and getting in that HIIT session is sometimes a real pain, there's no way I could do it in the same workout.

It’s quite counterproductive to do so too. Depends what your goals are, but the two should be split in almost every case.
 
Permabanned
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Greetings all!

I'm literally brand new to these exhausting pastures. Joined my Trust gym last week and did my first session on Friday, mainly cardio on the crossfit and cyclers.

Do you lovely people have any tips for a beginner? As someone who just wants to lose weight as appose to just bulk up, is there any order in which I should be doing things?

Cheers :)
 
Permabanned
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It's literally all diet, exercise compliments weight loss it doesn't drive it.

Well, when I say JUST want to loose weight, looking a bit better wouldn't go amiss either xD

I've cut a lot of crap out so far. Sticking mostly fruit, veg and grain. Not entirely sure that'll give me the energy I need going forward, but I guess we'll find out :)
 
Soldato
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South Wales
I don't know how people can do weights and cardio in one session. I'm not knocking you, I'm impressed you can manage both (though I hope you did the cardio post-weights). I'm still knackered from legs days after doing my workout and getting in that HIIT session is sometimes a real pain, there's no way I could do it in the same workout.

I don't because of the heat at the moment but I often do 30 minutes of cardio (which is run a mile as fast as I can then HIIT sprints) after deadlifts. I play rugby so doing cardio while already part exhausted is relative fitness.
 
Man of Honour
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Well, when I say JUST want to loose weight, looking a bit better wouldn't go amiss either xD

I've cut a lot of crap out so far. Sticking mostly fruit, veg and grain. Not entirely sure that'll give me the energy I need going forward, but I guess we'll find out :)

If you want to lose weight, weights are good way of doing it... you won't turn into aArnie overnight or even in a couple of years, so treat your body to the strength it deserves.
 
Soldato
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Inspired by Martin MacDonald's writings and self-experiment, I'm currently finding the upper end of my maint. calories after a couple of bouts of 4 weeks of a heavy deficit w/1 week diet breaks vs. the usual moderate deficit for a prolonged period. Highly recommended as a kind of halfway - although leaning towards the former - between the misery of doing something extreme like RFL/PSMF and a normal cut.
 
Man of Honour
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My last shoulder session was embarrassing. I was exhausted and my form sucked. I went home, went to upload my workout and realised I had gotten all of my weights wrong and was working 8 weeks ahead of where I currently am.

My squats have finally come back to me. I think the belt just fixed some poor habits and form that had crept in with high weights. They feel good again. Working on my January max lift, but at least with good form.

Slightly anxious about my next deadlift sessions since I failed the entirety of my last session. A year of doing it on a Friday afternoon and then switching to Thursday 8am probably didn’t help.

Greetings all!

I'm literally brand new to these exhausting pastures. Joined my Trust gym last week and did my first session on Friday, mainly cardio on the crossfit and cyclers.

Do you lovely people have any tips for a beginner? As someone who just wants to lose weight as appose to just bulk up, is there any order in which I should be doing things?

Cheers :)

Squats and deadlifts (with good form) will help fat loss and muscle gain in the long run. Diet is essential. Most importantly, find what you enjoy in the gym and make the gym a part of your routine. For example, without my own music selection I could not keep going in the gym.
 
Permabanned
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Squats and deadlifts (with good form) will help fat loss and muscle gain in the long run. Diet is essential. Most importantly, find what you enjoy in the gym and make the gym a part of your routine. For example, without my own music selection I could not keep going in the gym.

Awesome, cheers. I'll get watching a few deadlift vids before tonight's session and try get a good idea of the appropriate stance.
 
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