Poll: ***The all new gymrats thread***

[Nate--IRL--]

Awesome thanks for the advice Nate

edit: Just had a look at HIIT and its benefits and that seems a very good option, would you suggest I do this for all of my cardio or just a proportion of it?

Depends on your goals, I never got into it, but a lot of people swear by it. I'm happy with Steady State cardio myself. It really is up to you, try it for a while, see what you think.

Just remember that if you want to build mass you must have a calorie surplus, and any type of cardio will be working against this, so don't over do it. I would maintain that some cardio is always needed, just for general fitness, how you go about that is up to you.

Nate

 

[Jonny L]

Cool, I'll give that a go. Another thing I've been wondering about is rest periods, how much would you suggest? I've tried both working out everyday and just Monday, Wednesday, Friday and I find that even though I only have 2 days rest per body part I achieve higher gains by exercising everyday. However, I don't want to injure myself or inhibit upon further gains.

thanks

 

[Freefaller]

If I'm beasting myself I've often done DLs and Squats on the same day! It's not easy, but I want to break the 30Tonne barrier in a session

Compounds are so so important for building big slabs of muscle. BORs, Squats, DLs, Powercleans, Flat/incline bench are basically all you need. All the isolation work works in conjunction with these not as an alternative.

 

[Jonny L]

Ah I see, sorry for being stupid but what are BORs? Can't find it on google

thanks for the help guys

 

[Ironic Namesake]

Bent over rows

 

[Jonny L]

So looking at the workout plan now, what would you suggest I should swap out for the BORs and Powercleans?

Day 1: Chest, Biceps and Forearms

- Bench Press 3 x 8
- Incline Bench Press 3 x 8
- Dumbell Flies 3 x 8

- Dumbell Curls 3 x 8
- Barbell Curls 3 x 8
- Hammer Curls 3 x 8

- Reverse Barbell Curls 3 x 8
- Wrist Curl 3 x 8

Day 2: Back, Shoulders and Neck

- Wide Grip Pullups 3 x 8
- Deadlifts 3 x 8
- Dumbell Rows 3 x 8
- Good Mornings 3 x 8

- Shoulder Press 3 x 8
- Front Raise 3 x 8
- Lateral Raise 3 x 8
- Shrugs 3 x 8

- Neck Flexion 3 x 8
- Neck Lateral Flexion 3 x 8
- Next Extension 3 x 8


Day 3: Legs, Triceps and Abs

- Squats 3 x 8
- Leg Extensions 3 x 8
- Calf Raises 3 x 8
- Weighted Lunges 3 x 8

- French Press 3 x 8
- Tricep Extensions 3 x 8
- Kickbacks 3 x 8

- Stomach Crunches 3 x $
- Leg Lifts 3 x $
- Side Crunch 3 x $


thanks

 

[pieplough]

Far to many curls on day 1 man. I just do 1 set of bb curls on bi's

Too many exercises per day imo, 4-6 is a better ammount.

Focus on getting compounds in because untill you have some mass they are not as effective. You dont need any of those neck moves. Kickbacks are a waste of time too.

Just my 2p

 

[Cristian]

I'd go for 4 sets for the bigger groups, but you do more than one group a day, so it's up to you.
not even I do 3 sets for biceps, even though I have a separate arm day weekly.
forearms will be fine with just one exercise.
on legs you can do 4xsquats, 3lounges, 3 quad extensions and 4 calf raises.
2 exercises for shoulders will be ok.
3x3 for neck is waay overkill.
2x3 for abs would be enough.

 

[Jonny L]

Cheers guys I'll amend that now,

thanks for all the help.

 

[Mirage]

Had a reasonable day at the gym today, can't wait for next weeks legs:

3x8 70KG DLs - Really struggling with these, not from a back/leg point of view but I lose my grip on the 8th rep of set 2, and from the 6th on set 3 . Straps don't seem to help much.
3x8 260lb Leg Press (This can go up next week)
3x8 140lb Leg Curl (As can this)
2x8 140lb Leg Extension, 1x8 120lb Leg Extension
3x8 Back Hyperextensions with 15KG plate
3x8 40KG Back Squats, Normally do these first but the rack was in use, legs were destroyed by the time I got to them!

I then thought it would be a good idea to get on the bag and do some kicking. I spent the first 20 mins hobbling and having to stretch my hams and lower back! After which the muscles loosened again and I had a really good 25 mins!

 

[Volcs]

Cheers Wardie.

Yeah I think they are also dangerous if you arch your back or don't stick your arse out far enough etc. I really do like them though even though I only usually rep 80kg with a PB of 4x100kg (on a smith).

.

I don't think doing them in a smith will do you any favours either, it doesn't really promote a natural movement

 

[AmDaMan]

Yeah i've been told this, but it's all I've got

 

[Cristian]

Did legs today

Squats (ATG)
10 x 60
9 x 80
7 x 100
6 x 105

Quad extensions:
10 x 50
10 x 60
8 x 75

Leg curls:
10 x 40
8 x 50
skipped the last set cause hammstrings were still kinda sore from DLs on tuesday.

Seated calf raises:
10 x 60
10 x 80
10 x 100
8 x 125 the superseted with 6 x 100, 6 x 75, 10 x 60

Quite a good session, all in less than an hour.

 

[dun]

Did legs today

Squats (ATG)
10 x 60
9 x 80
7 x 100
6 x 105

Quad extensions:
10 x 50
10 x 60
8 x 75

Leg curls:
10 x 40
8 x 50
skipped the last set cause hammstrings were still kinda sore from DLs on tuesday.

Seated calf raises:
10 x 60
10 x 80
10 x 100
8 x 125 the superseted with 6 x 100, 6 x 75, 10 x 60

Quite a good session, all in less than an hour.

Nice one, but your gyms seated calf raise must be different to mine, or you have crazy calves

This is very similar to ours: http://www.shapefit.com/calf-exercises-seated-calf-raises.html

 

[Steedie]

Set some personal bests today, which I'm really pleased about as it was Legs/Back day and it's the area, particularly legs, I seem to progressing least quickly on

Squats:
80kg x 8
90kg x 8
100kg x 8
110kg x 8 (PB)

Standing Calf Raises:
80kg x 10
90kg x 10
100kg x 10
110kg x 10
120kg x 10 (PB)

Deadlifts
80kg x 8 (x3) (PB)

Seated Row:
55kg x 10
57.5kg x 10
60kg x 10
60kg x 10

Leg Extensions:
70kg x 10 (x4)

Lat Pulldowns:
55kg x 10 (x4)


Feeling it now. Is it strange that I can do more weight with calf raises than squats? I was thinking surely you have more power in your upper legs than lower

 

[Cristian]

Nice one, but your gyms seated calf raise must be different to mine, or you have crazy calves

This is very similar to ours: http://www.shapefit.com/calf-exercises-seated-calf-raises.html

yep, looks almost the same, but ours has the seat a bit more backwards so I'm guessing I lift less from my body weight.

I used to do the standing ones 5x15 with 150kg and I didn't feel much at all so I switched to these. My calves are really a pain in the but, they hardly grow no mattter what I throw at them, currently about 16.5 inches, also being very tall makes them look even smaller.

Steedie, that's some heavy squatting, congrats. The seated row and lat pull downs seem a bit too far behind though.
standing calf raises are a lot easier than squats because there is a lot less motion involved, and the calves are quite strong as well.

 

[GBB]

Is it strange that I can do more weight with calf raises than squats? I was thinking surely you have more power in your upper legs than lower

It's because of leverage and the distance you're moving the weight. With a squat you're moving the weight a lot further with less natural leverage.

 

[Freefaller]

Friday:

T-Bars:

8x40+bar
8x60+bar
8x80+bar
8x100+bar
8x120+bar

DS:2x120+bar, 4x100, 6x80, 8x60, 10x40

KILLER!!!!

Each of the above were supersetted with cable bent over pull downs

6x10x100kg

BORs:

10x60
8x80
8x90
8x100
7x100
5x120

Wide grip pull down:

10x80
8x90
7x100
6x100

V-grip pull down:

8x80
8x90
8x100
6x100

Wide grip chins:

6xBW
5xBW
5xBW

DEAD!!

Really happy with the t-bars and BORs - need to start upping those weights. Was just a quick session. I really wish I had a cable row machine though

 

[Nate--IRL--]

Quick question gents. I've recently begun to use the leg press (2nd time yesterday) and would like to know what others put on it compared to their squat.

I squat 110kg for 3x8, and on the press I managed 200kg for 3x8, does that ratio sound about right?

Nate

 

[Mundu]

I really have no idea what to do at the moment. I have been seeing an improvement so know I need to keep it up but I really want to loose my belly and fat on my thighs but still want to continbue to bulk until I feel I can really see a noticable difference as at the moment I still look skinny fat just not as skinny as before.

1) When I wake up after deadlifting I have an aching in my wrist and hands. I have tiny wrists and small hands but wanntied to know if this is common?

2) I really want to start incorporating pull ups into my routine as I can't isolate myself properly on my all in one bench like you can on a pull down machine in a gym. I have read about using negatives to build up strength but was wondering if it's best to do these everyday? As for push ups is best to do these in sets as with my workout and if so how many days a week should I be doing them?

3) At the moment I think my diet is suitable:

Wake- whey,oats and skimmed milk
Breakfast - 2 eggs and granary bread
Lunch - pasta and a source of protien
Lunch 2 - some pasta from marks and sparks usually
Dinner - home cooked meals with protien, carbs and veg
Pre Bed- quark and water shake

4) I was on the routine from Gordy Rs FAQ basic 3 day split, push - pull- legs then swapped triceps with biceps after a few comments on here.

This is what i'm doing at the moment but I've been limited by the weight I can put on the bars but that isn't holding be back at the moment as I'm still weak. Should I go back to the push, pull

Flat Bench Press - 3x8 40kg
Incline Dumbell Bench - 3x8 15kg (finally got more weights for the dumbells)
Flys - 3.8 7.5kg
Dumbell Shoulder Press - 3x8 10kg
Bicep Curl - 3x8 22.5kg
Hammer Curl - 3x8 10kg

Deadlifts - 3x8 70kg
Bent Over Row - 3x8 17.5kg
Pull Downs - 3x8 35kg (not sure about my form on my all in one bench)
Skull Crushers - 3x8 20kg
Close Grip Bench Press - 3x8 35kg

Squats - 3x8 55kg
SLDL - 3x8 40kg
Static Lunges - 3x8 30kg
Barbell Calf Raises - 3x8 40kg (need to add more)

Any advice is always appreciated.