*** The 2019 Gym Rats Thread ***

mrthingyx said:
As dumb as this sounds, LiE's advice is pretty much perfect: nail your brotein, and then chow down on EVERYTHING (fats first, then carbz).

Making mass gains effectively is a lot *harder* than some people make out because the sheer quantity of food required for the uninitiated person starting at about 70-80kg is quite surprising. Particularly if you're lifting five times a week and cardio-ing another two...

If you like nuts, then it's quite easy (but expensive)... but milk - by itself - is actually a good source of stuff, too.
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So true. I now have cooked breakfasts, full fat milkshakes and with 6 workouts a week and no cardio still struggle to put on mass.
 
I'm planning to order a few home gym equipment pieces for my birthday and I'm looking at a bench that can fold up. I've looked at the Fitness Superstore as they got a store here in my town.

I've got my eyes on this bench https://www.fitness-superstore.co.u...-incline-decline-utility-bench-pre-built.html, it holds just over 220 kg which at the moment would mean I could use 100kg in weights plus myself (that is some really wishful thinking at the moment) :D

I'm also looking at this set of dumbbells https://www.fitness-superstore.co.uk/body-power-45kg-spinlock-pro-style-dumbbell-set.html and a separate set of 4x2,5kg plates as the big set goes from 1,25kg/plate to 3,75kg/plate.

I'm also planning to get a 10kg kettlebell. Anyone got any ideas/suggestions or opinions about it?
 
neviditelny said:
I'm planning to order a few home gym equipment pieces for my birthday and I'm looking at a bench that can fold up. I've looked at the Fitness Superstore as they got a store here in my town.

I've got my eyes on this bench https://www.fitness-superstore.co.u...-incline-decline-utility-bench-pre-built.html, it holds just over 220 kg which at the moment would mean I could use 100kg in weights plus myself (that is some really wishful thinking at the moment) :D

I'm also looking at this set of dumbbells https://www.fitness-superstore.co.uk/body-power-45kg-spinlock-pro-style-dumbbell-set.html and a separate set of 4x2,5kg plates as the big set goes from 1,25kg/plate to 3,75kg/plate.

I'm also planning to get a 10kg kettlebell. Anyone got any ideas/suggestions or opinions about it?
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Just a bench and some dumbbells?

Kettlebells get very light, very quickly, too...
 
mrthingyx said:
Just a bench and some dumbbells?

Kettlebells get very light, very quickly, too...
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Skidder said:
How much space have you got? Could you fit a half rack? Your going to find those dumbbells pretty limiting quite quickly
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I live in a shared flat so I going to get the stuff in my room so a half rack wouldn't be possible to get. I was planning to get the dumbbells and then add heavier plates when they get too light for me. But I've not done gym work in many many years so I don't think it will be too quick. Same with the kettlebell, replace it with heavier ones when it gets too light. I'm going to start with building stamina more than sheer strength in the beginning. I've got a few pieces of resistance bands and push up bars already that I picked up previously.
 
neviditelny said:
I live in a shared flat so I going to get the stuff in my room so a half rack wouldn't be possible to get. I was planning to get the dumbbells and then add heavier plates when they get too light for me. But I've not done gym work in many many years so I don't think it will be too quick. Same with the kettlebell, replace it with heavier ones when it gets too light. I'm going to start with building stamina more than sheer strength in the beginning. I've got a few pieces of resistance bands and push up bars already that I picked up previously.
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I'm no expert and I'm posting based on my own experience but I think this sounds like a waste of money and a bad idea.

I just looked back through the thread to see if I could get some idea of where you are currently in your fitness.

How did you get on after the planning you did at the start of the year?

What's your goal?

I ask, because one hard-learnt lesson it took me a long time (too long!) to learn, was that weight/fat loss is all about diet. It's uncool, weights are more appealing, but ultimately I did what was by far and away my best fat loss by focusing purely on calorie control.

Before you buy what, for me, would turn out to be an expensive and bulky clothes horse, and some toe-stubbing objet d'art, I'd consider free alternatives that won't involve cluttering your room.
 
If you're just starting out and are short for space then google "Calisthenics for beginners" you can go very far with little to no equipment. Maybe get a pullup bar and some resistance bands.
 
garnett said:
I'm no expert and I'm posting based on my own experience but I think this sounds like a waste of money and a bad idea.

I just looked back through the thread to see if I could get some idea of where you are currently in your fitness.

How did you get on after the planning you did at the start of the year?

What's your goal?

I ask, because one hard-learnt lesson it took me a long time (too long!) to learn, was that weight/fat loss is all about diet. It's uncool, weights are more appealing, but ultimately I did what was by far and away my best fat loss by focusing purely on calorie control.

Before you buy what, for me, would turn out to be an expensive and bulky clothes horse, and some toe-stubbing objet d'art, I'd consider free alternatives that won't involve cluttering your room.
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It's going slowly but forward. I'm not so worried about losing weight, I'd rather reshape what I have. I'm working on being more effective with meal plans where I'm mainly trying to cut down the carbs.
I want more a more enduring strength than brute strength as that would be more helpful at work and better for me generally.

The bench I'm looking at is foldable and will fit in between the footend of the bed and the wall so it will be out of the way when not being used. And my room is a bit L-shaped so the weights will be out of the way for my toes when not being in use as well.
 
In polar opposition to my previous post, I've got some nice new calibrated rogue 50kg plates to play with tonight :D I am looking forward to squatting with them more than anything but that will have to wait until Saturday.
 
reiyushin said:
If you're just starting out and are short for space then google "Calisthenics for beginners" you can go very far with little to no equipment. Maybe get a pullup bar and some resistance bands.
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Pull up bar would be good, but all the doors in our flat are firedoors and got automatic closing mechanisms so makes it a bit tricky.
 
neviditelny said:
It's going slowly but forward. I'm not so worried about losing weight, I'd rather reshape what I have. I'm working on being more effective with meal plans where I'm mainly trying to cut down the carbs.
I want more a more enduring strength than brute strength as that would be more helpful at work and better for me generally.

The bench I'm looking at is foldable and will fit in between the footend of the bed and the wall so it will be out of the way when not being used. And my room is a bit L-shaped so the weights will be out of the way for my toes when not being in use as well.
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How much of a budget are you on? Selectabells are pretty good if space saving but having a wide variety of options is needed. I have some 32kg ones and they work very well (although ultimately don't get used much as I use barbell most of time)

Have you thought about TRX (or non brand equivalent)? You can hang of your door with a pad that is included which in my experience works fine and causes no damage. Great bit of kit and would work well in small space / shared
 
Skidder said:
How much of a budget are you on? Selectabells are pretty good if space saving but having a wide variety of options is needed. I have some 32kg ones and they work very well (although ultimately don't get used much as I use barbell most of time)

Have you thought about TRX (or non brand equivalent)? You can hang of your door with a pad that is included which in my experience works fine and causes no damage. Great bit of kit and would work well in small space / shared
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I've seen something like Selectabells but not understood how they work. With the bench, dumbbells and kettlebell I was looking at it would be around the £250 mark but I could go up to 300.
I've looked at TRX and it looks like a good investment as well.
 
You can get ironmaster adjustable dumbbells and kettlebell which share the same weight plates if you want both of those things for a compact home setup.

They're better than most adjustable dumbbells because they aren't ridiculously wide when they are set to a low weight (my Olympic dumbbells are comical to use) and are as close to normal fixed dumbbells as I could find

Edit : I've just seen your budget, I don't think you will be able to get these unless you find them second hand.
 
neviditelny said:
I've seen something like Selectabells but not understood how they work. With the bench, dumbbells and kettlebell I was looking at it would be around the £250 mark but I could go up to 300.
I've looked at TRX and it looks like a good investment as well.
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A question and some thoughts.

What's stopping you getting a gym membership and actually going to a gym?

Regarding dumbbells for at home, I have a home gym and went through a lot of consideration before getting my own dumbbells. I tried loadable handles before getting settling on a set of Powerblock adjustable dumbbells.

The biggest factor I found with the dumbbells is that very few sets actually offer you a variable length size for the dumbbell, and you might think this isn't an issue but when you only want to be using a light weight you end up with a really long empty handle that is restrictive in a number of movements.

You will be surprised how soon you might outdo a 22kg per hand set as well.
 
dirtychinchilla said:
Is there any reason why you wouldn't go to a gym? If you're in a shared flat with limited space it doesn't make sense to me to be working out at home with limited gear.
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Syla5 said:
A question and some thoughts.

What's stopping you getting a gym membership and actually going to a gym?

Regarding dumbbells for at home, I have a home gym and went through a lot of consideration before getting my own dumbbells. I tried loadable handles before getting settling on a set of Powerblock adjustable dumbbells.

The biggest factor I found with the dumbbells is that very few sets actually offer you a variable length size for the dumbbell, and you might think this isn't an issue but when you only want to be using a light weight you end up with a really long empty handle that is restrictive in a number of movements.

You will be surprised how soon you might outdo a 22kg per hand set as well.
Click to expand...

I work in the local hospital and live in a block of flats just behind it. The nearest gym is in town and as I mostly work night shifts traveling to the gym before or after work isn't so fun as I would hit the rush hour in the mornings. But behind the flats there is lots of fields and country roads where I can get the cardio in so I could do the weights at home.

Any recommendation links to the adjustable dumbbels so I can look into them?
 
I have powerblock dumbbells, they don't seem to be an easy find in the UK at the moment but I have the Powerblock Sport 9.0 with add-on sets so the dumbbells go from 1kg - 42kg per hand.

There are a couple of sets on ebay that you could get and arrange for courier collection.

They are not the cheapest but compact, quickly adjustable and very versatile.
 
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