ᕙ(⇀‸↼‶)ᕗ ||| The 2023/2024 Gym Rats Thread ||| ᕙ(⇀‸↼‶)ᕗ

First bit of strength work this morning back at the gym. Annoyingly i'd told myself i was going to do bits at home over Christmas but did sweet FA.
 
opethdisciple said:
Can someone recommend me some sets, reps and rest time for lateral raises and rear delt flys?

I want something I can add to my upper routine twice a week. I already do OHP.

Would something like 2 x 10-12 with a 2m rest be good?
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That is fine. Do rear and then lateral raises as a superset. Probably with 60s rest. And do them three times a week.
 
For those pushing big numbers on the squat... How on earth did you ever get there?

My problem is the my back simply isn't strong enough to go above 90kg.

Not just not strong enough but I get lower back ache as well.

So how do you do it? Belt? Just built for squatting?
 
opethdisciple said:
For those pushing big numbers on the squat... How on earth did you ever get there?

My problem is the my back simply isn't strong enough to go above 90kg.

Not just not strong enough but I get lower back ache as well.

So how do you do it? Belt? Just built for squatting?
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I'm far from strong (squatted 175kg a couple of years ago but probably down to 130-140 I reckon at the moment) but as with a lot of things strength related tends to be following some kind of structured program and consistancy.

You say you can't go above 90kg, what kind of routine are you currently following? Yes you can add a belt and it will (probably) help but won't solve the underlying issue(s).
 
Hi all ---

I am progressing with the home gym build slowly but surely (4 month old plus lots of leftover DIY lol). I have my rack and will be buying ~100kg of weights plus some adjustable dumbbells (up to 32kg ea). I have a Peloton so may throw in some cardio too.

Is there a YT channel or something I can follow for "starting from 0"? I am mostly farm muscle ( :cry: )/no tone/100kg 6ft. Not fat but no definition. I have no plan or structure to follow.

Goals are toning up/gaining muscle mass. I do need to improve cardio but whilst I could run (4:38 a KM 4 years ago according to Strava lol) I hate it. The thought of it fills me with dread.
 
dlockers said:
Hi all ---

I am progressing with the home gym build slowly but surely (4 month old plus lots of leftover DIY lol). I have my rack and will be buying ~100kg of weights plus some adjustable dumbbells (up to 32kg ea). I have a Peloton so may throw in some cardio too.

Is there a YT channel or something I can follow for "starting from 0"? I am mostly farm muscle ( :cry: )/no tone/100kg 6ft. Not fat but no definition. I have no plan or structure to follow.

Goals are toning up/gaining muscle mass. I do need to improve cardio but whilst I could run (4:38 a KM 4 years ago according to Strava lol) I hate it. The thought of it fills me with dread.
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Stronglifts, bro splits, Starting Strength are all great places to start, bearing in mind a couple of things:

- "toning up" is... something you should never say again. Using the term suggests you get your fitness advice from a celebrity workout video. What you're probably trying to say is "get defined," which leads me onto the second point...
- gaining mass is something that happens when your body is training whilst in a calorie excess. Noob gains do happen but this is largely water perfusion for the first few weeks/months. This is, interestingly, the opposite to "getting defined," which for 99.9% of the population happens in a calorie deficit.

Renaissance Periodization is an amusing channel which has a high science-to-opinion ratio, but is also highly complex and deals with a lot of advanced training concepts that make limited practical difference to most people.
 
dlockers said:
Hi all ---

I am progressing with the home gym build slowly but surely (4 month old plus lots of leftover DIY lol). I have my rack and will be buying ~100kg of weights plus some adjustable dumbbells (up to 32kg ea). I have a Peloton so may throw in some cardio too.

Is there a YT channel or something I can follow for "starting from 0"? I am mostly farm muscle ( :cry: )/no tone/100kg 6ft. Not fat but no definition. I have no plan or structure to follow.

Goals are toning up/gaining muscle mass. I do need to improve cardio but whilst I could run (4:38 a KM 4 years ago according to Strava lol) I hate it. The thought of it fills me with dread.
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www.aworkoutroutine.com

A Workout Routine Home Page

Learn how to create the workout routine and diet plan you need (for free) to lose fat, build muscle, and get the best results possible.
www.aworkoutroutine.com www.aworkoutroutine.com

You don't need a YT channel, most of them are either trying to sell you something or gain clicks by being controversial/going against traditional approaches. They always tend to take it to extremes.

Use above link and stick to it for 6-12 months before considering what the influencers have to say and largely ignore them anyway.
 
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dlockers said:
Hi all ---

I am progressing with the home gym build slowly but surely (4 month old plus lots of leftover DIY lol). I have my rack and will be buying ~100kg of weights plus some adjustable dumbbells (up to 32kg ea). I have a Peloton so may throw in some cardio too.

Is there a YT channel or something I can follow for "starting from 0"? I am mostly farm muscle ( :cry: )/no tone/100kg 6ft. Not fat but no definition. I have no plan or structure to follow.

Goals are toning up/gaining muscle mass. I do need to improve cardio but whilst I could run (4:38 a KM 4 years ago according to Strava lol) I hate it. The thought of it fills me with dread.
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Hello sir.

First, congratulations on embarking on the fitness/strength/conditioning journey. It is a life-long journey, if you stick with it.

Second, back in the day (a decade plus -- perhaps even 2 decades -- ago), I'd have pointed you in the direction of Ross Enamait's forum.

Sadly, Ross took down the forum and pretty much disappeared from the public-facing "online strength and conditioning scene", most probably (in my opinion), due to being disgusted by most of it (e.g., the rampant product pushing and grifting).

To the best of my knowledge, Ross decided to focus on training fight athletes (mostly boxers) in real life (yes, real life exists outside the internet) and only maintain a minimal online presence.

However, he still sells some books -- all of which are excellent -- at very low prices. The prices are so ridiculously low, in fact, that I feel that he is almost "thumbing a nose" to the industry, which is rife with overpriced books, e-books, courses and certifications. They are available on his site, here: https://rosstraining.com/blog/store/ . The key ones are Never Gymless (calisthenics) and Infinite Intensity (all modes of training).

As a starting point, I can't think of a better one.

As to Rippetoe and Starting Strength (mentioned above), I see that as a decent starting point for an introduction to barbell exercises for a total novice. However, long-term, I'm personally not on-side with Rippetoe's approach to the Squat (he recommends a low-bar squat; I prefer a high-bar squat), his somewhat dogmatic belief that the barbell training is the king of all training methods, and a few other odds-and-ends that Rippetoe (and his followers) are big on.

Ross said something often on his forums back in the day -- don't get caught in a cycle of "paralysis by analysis". Rather, get at your training, get at it hard, and start now. Get at it often, with intensity, but adhering to good technique, always.

You might want a structured program, or an ad-hoc training program. Both work, in my opinion, provided you keep on getting at it.

Best of fortune to you.
 
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After a bad year of real inconsistancy managed to get a little bit of training strung together in Dec/early Jan before having a couple of weeks of almost nothing again, but yesterday hit 100kg TnG bench for the first time in potentially over a year so at least things are trending upwards again so hopefully this year can hit some PBs again.
 
2024 was a really bad year for lifting for me.

I stayed consistent but pretty much had injury after injury so I didn't push any of my numbers.

Have a little bit of lower back pain at the moment so haven't been squatting or deadlifting but I'm hoping to start pushing again this year.
 
dlockers said:
Hi all ---

I am progressing with the home gym build slowly but surely (4 month old plus lots of leftover DIY lol). I have my rack and will be buying ~100kg of weights plus some adjustable dumbbells (up to 32kg ea). I have a Peloton so may throw in some cardio too.

Is there a YT channel or something I can follow for "starting from 0"? I am mostly farm muscle ( :cry: )/no tone/100kg 6ft. Not fat but no definition. I have no plan or structure to follow.

Goals are toning up/gaining muscle mass. I do need to improve cardio but whilst I could run (4:38 a KM 4 years ago according to Strava lol) I hate it. The thought of it fills me with dread.
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Check out Jeff Nippard's youtube, a lot of informative content.
 
Morning gents, I used to take creatine but stopped a while back and wanted to see what people recommended, tabs or powder?

Thanks
 
Well, finally back at the gym (2nd week in) and despite being weak as ****, it does feel good to be back again! Thankfully most of the New-Year resolution army has died off, so the gym isnt as busy anymore.

Despite only being back 2 weeks, I did get asked did I want the deadlifting platform yesterday because every time the person spots me in here, I'm always on it.. I dont know if thats a good or bad thing :D
 
Well that was demoralising. I've been using a guy who owns a local gym for some PT sessions as it's only €10 a week. Mainly focusing on core work as it's the worst kind of exercise :p

This morning he had me lie on my back and extend one leg whilst doing a backstroke motion with my opposite arm with an 8kg weight (yes i'm weak!). I commented this was heavier than i remembered and he commented he has a 63yr old woman who does that weight so figured i should be able to do it too :(
 
Martynt74 said:
Well that was demoralising. I've been using a guy who owns a local gym for some PT sessions as it's only €10 a week. Mainly focusing on core work as it's the worst kind of exercise :p

This morning he had me lie on my back and extend one leg whilst doing a backstroke motion with my opposite arm with an 8kg weight (yes i'm weak!). I commented this was heavier than i remembered and he commented he has a 63yr old woman who does that weight so figured i should be able to do it too :(
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one step at a time. You'll get there.
 
opethdisciple said:
For those pushing big numbers on the squat... How on earth did you ever get there?

My problem is the my back simply isn't strong enough to go above 90kg.

Not just not strong enough but I get lower back ache as well.

So how do you do it? Belt? Just built for squatting?
Click to expand...
It's been a while since i've squatted due to my knee, but proper bracing technique and glute work will help you hinge safely.
 
Deception said:
Well, finally back at the gym (2nd week in) and despite being weak as ****, it does feel good to be back again! Thankfully most of the New-Year resolution army has died off, so the gym isnt as busy anymore.

Despite only being back 2 weeks, I did get asked did I want the deadlifting platform yesterday because every time the person spots me in here, I'm always on it.. I dont know if thats a good or bad thing :D
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dont we have a little deadlift / squat long standing rivalry going on?
 
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