***The 2020 Gym Rats Thread*** ᕦ( ͠°◞ °)ᕥ

[Somnambulist]

These Bulgarian split squats are so hard to pull off. I barely did 2 sets of 4 just bodyweight. And with awful form...

How are you setting them up? There’s a certain amount of individuality when it comes to the height and distance of where you can plant your non-active* foot in such a way as to be comfortable and efficient, e.g. a standard bench may be too high for some people. My preference has always been to use a racked barbell or the Smith machine bar and a squat pad (one of the few actual uses for it) or rolled mat to provide some cushioning since you can adjust the height appropriately.

If balance is an issue then buy a wooden broomstick handle (also a good random thing to have in a home gym for doing shoulder dislocations and some other mobility work) and use that as a sort of walking stick-like aid.

*The rear leg will never be totally inactive in any split squat variation, but the goal should be to minimise how much it helps drive you back up - it should just be there for stability - which obviously makes it harder but also means you won’t have to use as much weight.

 

[Somnambulist]

In the gym, step/calf raise thing against the wall (2 of them). It's just the balance that's a problem. Feel like I'll fall over.

Fair enough. You can try experimenting with the lead foot position - ideally you want to feel your weight evenly distributed through your foot from beginning to end - as if it's too far forward/back it can make the balance aspect more awkward. Also is it just balance in general from start to finish or the act of descending into a lunge-type position? In either case you could either use an aid or work on some simple balance work during the week (look for beginner yoga balancing poses as there are some like tree pose you can do cleaning your teeth!).

 

[Somnambulist]

Yep gyms closing again, 4 weeks but I bet it goes on for longer again. RIP re-gained gains.

 

[Somnambulist]

Will it just be 4 weeks? I can't justify spending hundreds on some dumbbells and plates - no room for barbells, racks and all that at home - but if it goes on for months like last time... maybe? Argggh.

I might ask my gym if they'd be willing to rent some plates out then just buy some DB handles and an EZ bar. I got by with just bodyweight okay last time but I need something to do RDLs with this lockdown as all my hip hinging strength went AWOL without a suitable bodyweight alternative.

 

[Somnambulist]

Perch a sofa on your back and go for some good mornings. That, or a dining table.

Or some banded pull-throughs...?

Honestly they’re a bit rubbish - I tried them during lockdown and with one band I could literally rep it out forever, but the next it pulled my entire body back unless I leant so far forward it made a mockery of the exercise.

Thinking out loud but since the gym isn’t renting plates out, I’ll just have to buy some and split them up between home and work for training: I only need about 20-30kg for weighted push-ups, pull-ups and inverted rows for the 6-20 rep range, and tbh that will be more than enough for true single leg work and they sell plenty of sets like that, so I just need some extra plates and then I can probably get away with 60-80kg for RDLs for 12-20 rep range stuff.

My vest has different attachments to take either 1” or 2” plates so I’ll probably stick to the former as they’re generally cheaper than the oly plates - I have no plans or space for barbells and racks and since they won’t take up much space and I’ll be back at the gym as soon as it opens, it doesn’t matter if they’re a bit cheap and cheerful.

 

[Somnambulist]

They're not ideal, sure, but it is only four weeks and it keeps you moving.

If it makes you feel any better, I am watching my gains evaporate because of bike work which limits time under the bar... In my own gym!

I know, I just don’t trust that:
1) this will just be 4 weeks, since the last time we had ‘we’re just flattening the curve’ it ended up being nearly 4 months
2) this will be the last lockdown
3) that my gyms are financially secure enough to survive repeated lockdowns

It might pay to have some sort of Plan B for training, as best I can anyway.

 

[Somnambulist]

Yeah I’m looking on FB marketplace but people are selling rusty old stuff for barely less than new prices.

I don’t want the Bowflex-type adjustables because I can’t use those with my vest. The 2” Oly DB handles tend to look really long which would make them awkward, but then the standard 1” tend to have low max load limits either because the plates are big or the stems are short. Decisions...

These sort of things seem a nice compromise - compact, likely fairly accurate plate weight.. but I’d have to get the 40kg a side set then also some 1.25kgs and maybe 5kgs... and that’s about £400. Should probs just look at some iron plates and try and keep it as cheap as possible though.

 

[Somnambulist]

+1

My daily work rucksack content consists of a lunchbox, coffee thermos, push-ups bars, and gymnastic rings. All optimized for lunch break workout. Concept 2 Model C at home and I haven't been to the gym for years.

My upper body staples for lockdown 1 were push-ups on bars w/feet elevated, dips, ring pull-ups and feet elevated ring rows, then some band stuff for bis/tris/shoulders (done more in of the vague hope of providing stimulation than expectation). Maintained okay but need to add load to keep the reps down to an approproiate level but that’s what the EZ Vest is for. The trouble with callisthenics stuff is the variations to make exercises harder often get a bit ridiculous when it’d be easier just to make myself heavier.

I absolutely can’t bring myself to do several sets of 30-40 pistol squats or step-ups again though, I need weight for leg training or I’m going to go loopy!

 

[Somnambulist]

I never really learnt how to do them per se; between working on my squat depth and yoga I developed good ankle flexility* and balance, and my squat numbers aren’t terrible for my bodyweight so when I tried to do pistols I got the hang of them pretty quickly as I had both the mobility, strength and balance. I now use my lifting shoes* and do them by the edge of the stairs or on a box so my free foot doesn’t have to be lifted quite as high throughout, because I’m more interested in taking each working leg through a full ROM than anything else.

*this is the no1 reason most people can’t do them. If you have limited dorsiflexion then you can’t get your knee forward past your toes. If you can’t get your knee forward, your hips will be too far back and you’ll fall over backwards. You have to be able to keep your centre of mass over the middle of your foot from top to bottom. I can do them barefoot fine but use lifters (shoes with hard sole and heel lift that’s between 0.65-1”) because they provide a lot of lateral stability and provide the equivalent of even more flexible ankles, which makes just concentrating on going down and up easier.

The other reason people struggle is they might already do leg work but when they go to pistol they’re not used sitting on their calves in that deep position and so haven’t built up strength at the bottom to initiate standing back up.

My tips would be:
Balance - have something next to you to hold on to, or tie a resistance band to something and use that like a rope to keep you steady, don’t rely on it and you’ll need it less and less over time. Do single leg balance stuff when you’re cleaning your teeth or waiting for the coffee/tea to brew.

Flexibility - sit in a bodyweight squat for 5 mins a day, opening up your hips and leaning onto each thigh to push the knee forward and stretch the calf/get the ankles down on the floor. If you have weights you can do loaded hip and ankle stretches too which I like.

Strength - if all you’re doing is single leg bodyweight work, use an assisted variation where you can still get full ROM and complete reps, then over time use less assistance... and if you lift already then you might well have the strength already, you’re just lacking one of the two above.

 

[Somnambulist]

That’s why I ended up doing more step-ups (just above knee height) than pistols last lockdown; puts the pelvis in a better position I find as loaded pistols require you to be a proper mobility freak who can do a solid L-sit to avoid butt-wink unless you’re elevated and can let the front leg droop a bit without it hitting the floor. BSS I find it really easy to push through the rear leg too much, which explains why I was doing them with 25kg DBs in each hand at one point - really have to strive to get 90% of the load in the front leg only, which obviously saves having to hold nearly as much weight for multiple sets.

As for knee pain, yes it’s about a) stability and not moving in a way that’s jarring for your joints, but also b) strengthening said joints/ligaments in the desired position, so you might be able to move x load y times with your muscles but need to scale it back and spend time building it up slowly (e.g. increasing volume via sets or reps rather than adding weight) to let your connective tissue catch up.

 

[Somnambulist]

It’s fun/depressing knowing elite strength people. My acquaintance Mr. Tennant just pulled 371kg on a stiff bar with calibrated plates, no belt Yuri Belkin style and no peak as a final open gym day challenge.

Absolute unit

 

[Somnambulist]

Funnily enough I'm friends with his trainer - Acos. I hadn't put 2 and 2 together until now.

Small world isn’t it! I miss training with the powerlifting crew but they all went to Crayford because Muscleworks jacked up their prices after lockdown... it’s only 5mins down the road from me and it’s just not worth a much longer drive just to save a few quid a month.

 

[Somnambulist]

Crazy, especially given he doesn't actually look that huge considering the weight.

He’s around 100kg, 6ft. Been training since he was 14 (is 24-25 now) so to me is a good example of what’s possible with elite genetics + work ethic. He’s very anti-PED too... I think when you’re naturally that gifted at getting bigger/stronger you probably don’t understand why normal people get tempted.

 

[Somnambulist]

Yeah he’s an animal in the gym. Was all bodybuilding and volume as a teen then he got obsessed with getting stronger 5 or so years ago and records started to fall.

 

[Somnambulist]

Caved. Bought:

Mira Fit oly dumbbells (about 5kg w/collars on) - short handle versions as regular oly ones are about 50cm across making them awkward for presses etc. Adjustable ones were either too light, too expensive and you can’t use the weights for anything else. Cheap vinyl stuff or cast-iron did not appeal, so had to get something half decent.

Pro Plates online - 2cm thick powder-coated steel 2” hole plates, got 4 x 1.25, 2.5 and 6 x 5kg - should be able to fit 6 x 5kg on each DB due to the plate widths. These are also calibrated, supposedly, so weights should be accurate.

Re the latter, there are a LOT of UK start-ups manufacturing these sorts of plates now because of the shortage of kit. Looked at used stuff but people are taking the **** with prices and I’d rather have something new than some rusty old thing that’s been left in a garden shed. For 10/15/20kg plates I’d definitely get ‘proper’ ones but these will do for DBs and attaching to my EZ Vest.

If the gyms open in 4 weeks then so be it, but I’ve read they might want more lockdowns in the New Year and I suppose they’ll always come in handy if I move and have to hunt for the best gym in the area. And of course, if ever I have a home-gym then I’ll have got some starter bits.

 

[Somnambulist]

Yes. Extra sets for arms, obviously!

I’m probably going to get a wrist/forearm roller + mini loading pin too since they’re cheap and the Theraband I got for my golfer’s elbow is too easy now.

 

[Somnambulist]

Don’t use collars/clips, tip bar so weights come off one side, gravity will sort out the other side. If your press is that wonky that you’d need collars/clips, sort that imbalance out. If you press enough for the bar to seriously bend.... you probably wouldn’t be posting on OCUK.

 

[Somnambulist]

Pathetic how expensive some of the kit is at the moment. It's giving second hand sellers the nerve to mark up the prices as well. Was speaking to a guy on 3 days ago about picking up his bench and a few plates. Contacted me to say he couldn't sell because he'd be 'out of town' for a few days. Saw an identical ad up this morning requesting £120 more for the bundle... ridiculous. He'd obviously been inundated with offers and thought he could make a little more.

Getting to the stage where I'm going to have to buy some stuff on credit. Refuse to pay the prices some of these sites are asking for though. We could do our whole kitchen up for less. Wish I could get some of the cheapey Argos style stuff but (disguised boast time...) it's just not heavy enough.

A workmate showed me a FB marketplace post from his area where some woman had picked up a rusty bench, bar and plates for free from some kind soul a few weeks ago before lockdown 2 was announced, and then had it re-listed for a couple of hundred quid, although people were livid and calling her out on it. It’s nuts.

I have no ETA on the skinny steel plates I ordered but there are loads of similar pop-up brands doing the same thing. They’ll do for the Mira Fit short handle Oly DBs which came today (impressed!) but I’m not sure I’d use them for a full set-up as they’re a bit home-brew looking. They are priced somewhat sanely at least.

 

[Somnambulist]

Changing my routine.

Working out 6 days so will do Push/pull/legs X2.

One day for heavy weight low rep (strength) and one day for 80-85% of max 1RM high reps (hypertrophy).

I'm thinking max 2 minute rest per set on hyper day and 3 minute on strength.

What do you guys think?

Listen to your body with rest periods and do the the next set when you feel ready. Artificially shortening rest periods (when doing standard sets) leads to less gains over time because not allowing fatigue to dissipate from the previous set negatively effects subsequent set performance and so hurts progressively overload, which is the most important thing for gains. If you want to improve your conditioning, do that separately.

You can train like that if you want. Block periodsation and specificity is important if you’re an athlete competing in 1RM attempts but if you’re not it doesn’t matter nearly as much; about 80% of my lifting per week is in the 6-12 range but 10% either side of that is 4-6 and 12-15.

All relevant but more specifically from about halfway. Eric coaches an IPF world champion powerlifter (Bryce Lewis) and many elite natural bb’ers as well as competing himself in both disciplines so he’s not just a researcher.

 

[Somnambulist]

Good stuff guys. So many different ways to program your routine. I do like this idea of powerbuilding lol, never heard of it before.

It’s really just a powerlifter’s off-season training w/some bicep curls, lateral raises and stuff like that for areas that the competition lifts + assistance variations don’t hit tacked on at the end. I always found it a bit boring because the vast majority of the work is just built around doing variations of the same 3 movement patterns (squat, bench, deadlift) for 4-6 sessions a week.