Weight once a month.
Also, remember that you might be losing fat while gaining muscles so weight isn't the best measurement...
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Fitness |OT4| Squat Booty, Summer Cuts, and Super Swoletrophy
- Thread starter Mr.City
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Weight once a month.
Also, remember that you might be losing fat while gaining muscles so weight isn't the best measurement...
L0st Id3ntity
Member
^He doesn't look like a beginner from that photo he posted (awesome progress btw) so I doubt that is the case, probably just water fluctuations.
I couldn't even hang less than a year ago now I do them weighted for sets of five. I got there doing negatives and hanging as long as I can, plus lat pulldowns and barbell rows.I need to start doing pull ups but they're so hard
I need to start doing pull ups but they're so hard
buy a set of bands and wrap them around the pullup bar, hook them to the bottom of your foot and do a pullup progression with them. It's what I did to reinforce good pullup form cause most people that do pullups mainly do half motion bro ups cause they are too weak to do a full one.
I need to start doing pull ups but they're so hard
for me the easiest way to get into it was with close grip, palms to your face (no hammer grip or chin ups at the beginning), small moves, no reps or sets, just working on being able to pull it off. Do one, stop and repeat, the first one is always the hardest.
and this, I have seen hundreds of half-assed pull-ups in these 3 months I've been going to a gym.
EDIT= Bah.. mistook Chin <-> Pull -_-
TheDarkStark
Member
Good mornings?
I need to work on my legs and hamstrings and buttocks which is why I started the deadlifts but it seems to work well for my back?
I need to start doing pull ups but they're so hard
Doing a pullup is something 90% of people have to work up to, they're really difficult to start out doing for nearly everyone who isn't in great shape, or very muscular.
Best way to strengthen those muscles is to do assisted pull-ups, most gyms will have an assisted pull-up/dip machine. If that's not an option do lat pull downs, and some core work.
My gym has an assisted machine. Can you explain the weight to me? I'm guessing less weight is actually harder?
I need to start doing them myself.
I'd recommend weighing yourself once a week or every two weeks. Once a month is unnecessary long of a gap imo if you are not a woman with a menstrual cycle.
I would still avoid the assisted machines, also anything else that isn't a straight bar. Yep, so more weight = more weight pushing you up, so less weight is actually harder. If you are terribly out of shape you can still buy some really heavy bands. Doing full range of motion pullups will do amazing things to your upper back and posture, i rehabbed a busted up shoulder from olympic lifting with pullups.
Yep. The weight is how much assistance you have pushing you up.
On beginning your first full pull-up, that's where I take Al Kavadlo as a reputable expert on the subject:
Of course the idea that there's a rule also implies that there are exceptions to the rule, but on starting pull-ups I would go with bands (and/or dead hangs, negatives and flex hangs) until your body composition and strength suffice for regular pull-ups.Al Kavadlo said:
You got it...
I finally graduated from that over the summer and am doing big boy pullups now. Feels good.
HisshouBuraiKen
Member
If you really can't do one then starting with the machine is fine. Do 3 sets of 5-8 and then a set of unassisted negatives, switch your grip for each set. Lower it by 5 lbs every workout. My wife has gone from using 70lbs to 35 for her sets and can do two actual pull-ups from a dead hang after just a couple months.
Yup, hittin the abs and lats and arms all at once, although I usually have to drop my legs after about 5 so I can finish the set
Yup, hittin the abs and lats and arms all at once, although I usually have to drop my legs after about 5 so I can finish the set
Bro-fist hehe
Silphonica
Banned
I've had some sort of fucking bad bacteria infection infecting my throat and bronchi/trachea, i've had high fever, puking blood, dizziness, headaches, sweats and all sorts of nasty bullshit. I've managed to maintain my lifts and weight throughout those 2 weeks, it could have went all terribly wrong.
I would hate to lose strength - i mean, I was so scared to. I feel your pain.
I second negatives as a way of building chin-up strength.
TheDarkStark
Member
I'm not going to argue and say Bands aren't better (they very well maybe), but saying you won't ever be able to do normal pull-ups using the assist machine is complete and utter bullshit. That's typical "my way is the only way" shit you'd expect from some "authority" on the subject.
I started on the assisted pull-ups machine at -50 lbs, I was able to reduce that by 10 lbs every week and now I can do 10 big boy pull-ups (Dead hang, full ROM, no kipping BS) at 180lbs, and soon I'll be hanging weights from waist while doing them.
FallingEdge
Member
A few weekends ago, I got sick and was out of commission for a few days. Lost some weight and of course, impacted me in the gym. Took about a week and a half before I felt better. As others have mentioned, it will just take some time and you will be back, no problem.
Okay, so I have decided my goal for this summer is to be at my current weight (236ish) but at a lower bf (currently 17, but want to hit 13). Pretty sure that it won't be possible but I still want to try or at least, make as much progress as I can. Even being around 232 @ 14/15 I think would be fine. Trying to emulate that pic I posted a few pages back as much as possible.
And my other two priories will be chest and legs/glutes. See what I really can get going there.
http://www.footyboys.com/products.p...parent_id=1&parent_id2=76&parent_id3=80&id=80
In all those pics, how do you get your leg to "stick out" on the side like that? This is uncharted territory for me as I am mainly a squat/good mornings/RDL kind of guy and have never bothers with leg press, leg curls, hack squat, single leg squat/deadlift and so on.
Mengy
wishes it were bannable to say mean things about Marvel
Don't get mad that you lost strength, setbacks are just a part of the game. I learned a long time ago not to make progression my only goal in lifting, but rather to make the long journey itself the goal. Think of it like you are waging a lifetime war against weakness in your body. Some battles are going to be lost due to common colds, flus, even injury or real life issues. Losses are going to happen. The important thing to keep in mind is that you just keep fighting the battles to win the war in the long run.
Dedication and persistence are much more important than progression at any one moment. Pick yourself up and make getting that strength back your new goal for now. Be happy that the iron has given you a new goal to strive for, and go after it.
You're getting hung up on his use of the word 'never.' It was his experience that clients had a difficult time transitioning away from a Gravitron pull-up assist machine - consequently he recommends bands, negatives, and flex hangs. As we admit, better tools to get the job done. Even regarding the previous quote of his, he qualified it with this:
Al Kavadlo said:
Even on that note, I'm sure you did plenty of deadlifts and rows on your road towards ten pull-ups. You used the pull-up machine as a tool to apply that strength to a vertical plane - evidently quite successfully.
As far as chin ups/pull ups go, I have a serious "swinging" problem when I do them. I usually have to stop at the bottom so I can stop my body from swinging a bit, and then continue.
That said, I can only bust out sets of 5-8. I think I seriously need to drop my body weight to be able to do them decently.
That said, I can only bust out sets of 5-8. I think I seriously need to drop my body weight to be able to do them decently.
I need to start doing pull ups but they're so hard
Can you do Chin-ups? Chin-ups will lead to pullups.
If you can't do chinups either, there are many ways to build chinup strength. The assisted machine is one of them (I used it for a couple of months before I could do a single "real chinup"; basically did a linear progression on the assisted machine where I would decrease the assisted weight by 5kg every week) but negatives, lat-pull-downs and band-assisted chinups all work as well.
Bands / negatives are probably best because they are the closest to a "real" chinup. When I transitioned from the machine to the real thing, my biggest issue was lack of stability: I was swinging like a pendulum, because the machine is holding you from underneath and doesn't really train that part of the movement.
I've posted this before but it's a great guide, so it's worth reposting: Developing a Pull-up
I had the same problem and the way I fixed it was by doing very strick chinups from a deadhang. If you are swinging it's also because maybe you lack abdominal / oblique strength (fixed by deadlifting / squatting / hanging leg raises).
I don't think it's a body weight issue. I weigh 225lb and can do sets of 12.
Holy shit dude. How long did it take you to put on that much weight?
TheDarkStark
Member
You're right, I did get hung on the word never. Never is a very definitive and absolute word, it shouldn't be tossed out there willy nilly. If he doesn't mean literally never, then he shouldn't have used it. Poor choice of words on his part. I got into an argument with somebody else here a few months back because he said "you have to do cardio to lose weight" which is just factually inaccurate, and confusing too newbies.
That said, you're right, I did do rows, deadlifts, etc to help strengthen my back. And I'd recommend anyone looking to strengthen their back do them as well.
Yes, I incorporate them into my workout when I can. I've got pretty good core strength and leg flexibility, so my grip usually gives out before my abs or quads.
When are you going to start incorporating weighted pull-ups or chins? I still do a fair share of pull-ups but weighted chins always make me feel that much more awesome. In my mind I think "if I gained X amount of fat I could still do this many pull-ups" for a quick laugh.
FallingEdge
Member
TheDarkStark
Member
Next day I do back hopefully. I've been battling cold/flu symptoms for like 2 weeks now, starting to think it maybe an infection, but I'm not running a fever and I haven't felt fatigued or chills so I don't know. If it persists much longer I'm going to have to go to a doctor.
My plan for weight pull-ups or chin-ups is to convince my wife to hang off of me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bioxwvcc72k
velociraptor
Junior Member
What is the correct techinque for the overhead/shoulder press? Should I lockout? Stronglifts says to lockout, Bodybuilding.com says it puts stress on elbow joints. I'm confused.
Also, there is that 90 day pushup challenge on GAF. The other week I decided to do it everyday until I dropped dead. Since then, my elbows have begun hurting every time I do pushups. No pain when pressing or using weights though. If I do 50 reps or more in pushups = pain! Should I be concerned?
Also, there is that 90 day pushup challenge on GAF. The other week I decided to do it everyday until I dropped dead. Since then, my elbows have begun hurting every time I do pushups. No pain when pressing or using weights though. If I do 50 reps or more in pushups = pain! Should I be concerned?
TheFightingFish
Member
I'm able to do sets of 15-20 pullups pretty well these days. So what I've started doing recently is using a towel (looped over the bar) to lower one of my grip hands below the other by about a foot or so. Then doing pullups where I'm doing 70% or so of the work with just one arm. I've found them a pretty good way to take things up a notch.
Lockout.
Stay away from bodybuilding.com.
http://startingstrength.com/index.php/site/video/platform_learning_to_press_2.0
http://startingstrength.com/articles/learning_press_rippetoe.pdf
http://70sbig.com/blog/2012/09/3-press-fixes/
And in my opinion that pushup challenge is a recipe for rotator cuff impringement.
velociraptor
Junior Member
For 2/3 years I've been stuck in the 8-12 range. I still am mind you. How are you able to do 15-20 pullups?
velociraptor
Junior Member
Thanks for the links.
I figured trying to crank out as many pushups as possible would be a recipe for disaster. Guess that explains the elbow pain I had.
This article almost certainly contains some helpful information for you:
13,064 Pull-ups in 5 Months
To this day 90% of my pull-ups are on rings or with a neutral grip.
TheFightingFish
Member
I purchased a pair of Rock Training grips like these and hung them from the door frame of my office door, then I do pullups every time I go in or out of the office door. No real program or anything.
edit: I do pullups on the lower smaller holds on those for building hand strength as well, really wish I had done this when I was wrestling in high school / college, it give you crazy hand strength.
I haven't progressed on pullups for a while too.
13 is my max and it varies all the time. Sucks. I go to failure for 3 or 4 sets. I do this once or twice a week.
MrOogieBoogie
BioShock Infinite is like playing some homeless guy's vivid imagination
dat feel when your butt > your gf's thanks to constant squatting
Pullups / Chinups should be done with a full Range of Motion. In other words, each rep should start from a deadhang.
Your elbows will be fine. Don't be that guy doing partials.
Speaking of pull-ups, anybody else doing muscle ups here? I think it's my proudest fitness achievement to be able to do them (right now i can do 3x5 without any kipping). Been also thinking about aiming for a one arm pull-up, but that could take some time. I read somewhere that for my weight, I should first be able to do pullups with 50kg (110lbs) extra weight or something like that.... right...
TheDarkStark
Member
Also worth noting: you should be lowering yourself at a steady controlled pace. Don't pull yourself up above the bar and then just drop all your weight at once, THAT is bad for your elbows, biceps, and lats.
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