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Danger in the Gym - Page 2

post #16 of 28
5/25/07 at 7:50pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by deaddog View Post
I'm interested in this b/c after a long hiatus I'm back to lifting but am using dumbbells for bench rather than barbell/smith b/c it appears to help with some sore shoulder issues - I can get the dumbbells down closer to my chest with far less shoulder strain/pain than I could with barbell.

I'm doing 55 dumbbells, sometimes 60's and trying to figure out what that equals in barbell weight. What leads you to this 145=45/50 correlation?

thanks

It's emperical and not extremely scientific but although in a barbell bench press you are lifting the bar, its contribution to the overall stress on muscle fibers is less than the plates that are on each side. That said, barbell bench press (especially with a narrow grip) will work the center of the chest a bit more. I would say 55 lb dumbells on the bench is pretty similar to 155 or so on the bench, though although as I said before, there are different groups of stabilizing muscles being worked by dumbbells and less work being done by the middle of the pectorals, at least IMO.
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post #17 of 28
5/25/07 at 8:09pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by deaddog View Post
I'm interested in this b/c after a long hiatus I'm back to lifting but am using dumbbells for bench rather than barbell/smith b/c it appears to help with some sore shoulder issues - I can get the dumbbells down closer to my chest with far less shoulder strain/pain than I could with barbell.

A large reason why dumbbells are more comfortable, and a reason why they seem heavier than a barbell is the freedom in your range of motion. Barbells limit your range of motion on one axis, e.g. your grip width doesn't change, thus your body doesn't have to stabilize in that axis in the same way it does when your grip width can/does change. Barbell = 2 axis work primarily. Dumbbell=3 axis work. Now, of course, this is generally true for pressing (bench and overhead), but isn't always an explanation when it comes to other motions.

The comfort has to do with the arc your arms can move through, due to the 3 axis freedom, allowing your shoulders to rotate in the most efficient manner.
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post #18 of 28
5/26/07 at 2:05am
Look up HST - drizz linked me to it, and it is incredible. I will say the first workout is extremely difficult due to fatigue. After doing squats and deads, working chest is tough. However, you will see noticeable gains in strength and appearence in 2-3 weeks. I have been seriously training for 2 years and found it very difficult at first.
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post #19 of 28
5/26/07 at 2:21am
Thread Starter 
Just out of curiosity kshah, what was your starting bench before HST and what is your bench now, after HST. I found this http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/wotw39.htm and I'm thinking about trying it. I don't want to put on too much muscle but I guess if I tone down accordingly, I'll get the results I want.
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post #20 of 28
5/26/07 at 3:06am
Quote:
Originally Posted by impass101 View Post
Just out of curiosity kshah, what was your starting bench before HST and what is your bench now, after HST. I found this http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/wotw39.htm and I'm thinking about trying it. I don't want to put on too much muscle but I guess if I tone down accordingly, I'll get the results I want.
The biggest misconception most novices make is thinking they're going to get huge. It won't happen by accident, trust me. HST will get you very good results in terms of hypertrophy, as well as strength, but isn't a magic bullet and won't make you into arnold overnight. I posted my results of HST from one cycle a month or so ago. Long story short, I gained 11 lb of muscle in a 8 week cycle with about a 500 calorie excess daily and ~300g/protein per day. With my current workout I've since cut about 6-8 lb more fat/water and added a few more pounds of muscle in a month (lowering my creatine intake by 50% has helped me lose some water weight) Overall about 6 mo of intense lifting with lots of protein gained me just around 1-1.5" in chest, which isn't really that noticable (although the decrease in bf% through the 6 mo was)
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post #21 of 28
5/26/07 at 11:57am
Thread Starter 
Ah good. That's a lot of protein to be taking in. How much protein should I be taking? I really hope it's not 300 because that would be quite costly in supplements or even regular food. Right now I'm taking in about 150ish a day from a mixture of a normal diet and whey protein shakes.
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post #22 of 28
5/26/07 at 1:09pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by impass101 View Post
Ah good. That's a lot of protein to be taking in. How much protein should I be taking? I really hope it's not 300 because that would be quite costly in supplements or even regular food. Right now I'm taking in about 150ish a day from a mixture of a normal diet and whey protein shakes.

1 gram of protein per pound of body weight is about the right amount.
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post #23 of 28
5/27/07 at 12:30pm
Also, as has been discussed, keep in mind the timing issue of protein intake. I've had the best results when taking in about 30 - 40 grams of protein every three hours. If you take in more than that at one time, a lot of it is going to go to waste because your body can only process a certain amount of protein at a time.

Also, some types of protein are absorbed by the body much faster than others. For example, whey is absorbed extremely fast so it's best to take it right in the morning when you wake up (because your body hasn't had any protein for 7 hours while you were sleeping) and right after your workout. But, whey is not good to take right before going to sleep. Right before going to sleep the best protein is the casein protein found in things like milk and cottage cheese. I like to eat 2 tablespoons of natural peanut butter with my cottage cheese before bed because the fat in peanut butter is a good fat and it helps to slow digestion of the protein even more.
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post #24 of 28
5/31/07 at 3:28am
I work out alone 99% of the time. power rack is good if you have it. However, when I know I am going to try to hit my max, I will use a machine. some call that blasphemy but I will probably try to max out only once, maybe twice a month. The machine is simply safe, period. As for trying to do high weights with barbells, you will probably be able to roll the bar off your body if you can't lift it, but that's certainly not ideal. The risk of pulling a muscle from the sudden strain is very high. I've had to roll the bar off once in my life.
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post #25 of 28
5/31/07 at 6:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tarmac View Post
I work out alone 99% of the time. power rack is good if you have it. However, when I know I am going to try to hit my max, I will use a machine. some call that blasphemy but I will probably try to max out only once, maybe twice a month. The machine is simply safe, period. You will probably be able to roll the bar off your body if you can't lift it, but that's certainly not ideal. The risk of pulling a muscle from the sudden strain is very high. I've had to roll the bar off once in my life.

Wait, you're talking about using a machine to do a 1RM?
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post #26 of 28
5/31/07 at 6:27pm
2x
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post #27 of 28
5/31/07 at 8:59pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by drizzt3117 View Post
Wait, you're talking about using a machine to do a 1RM?

yeah, is that bad?
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post #28 of 28
5/31/07 at 9:11pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tarmac View Post
yeah, is that bad?

Yes, you're going to get far less effect from a machine than a power rack then barbell simply because it's completely stabilized and you have pretty limited range of motion. I would definitely not use a machine especially not for 1RM. Get a spotter and just use free weights.
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