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[Splash Wave]

Can anyone link me to a good knee wrapping tutorial? I ditched 'em after always wrapping mine poorly, but I'm at the point where I feel it's unsafe to squat without them. I'm squatting 280 (3x5), and this is around the weight where I inevitably injure myself. I have terrible knees.

And should the wraps stay on between sets? Mine would always get loose, and rewrap was always necessary. Frustrating stuff.

edit: The videos I'm looking at tend to emphasize extreme tightness. Is this normal? This shit is really uncomfortable.

 

[yogloo]

I'd like to share here what is perhaps my favorite "before/after" so far. it's 16 months apart, the left is August 2012 and right is December 2013 some days ago.

(damn is the quality through photobucket that bad? it looks very blurry on my screen..)

August 2012: I was trying to get rid of my belly (which looked like this in May 2012, three months back) so I went jogging, doing basic bodyweight stuff like pushups, crunches and situps, a bit of pullups as well, was doing 3 chinups and I remember thinking I had the most badass routine ever. No gym membership whatsoever, everything outdoors. I wasn't dieting at all, I always ate what I wanted, I just went jogging at 9.5 mph for 45 minutes almost every day so i burned way more than I was consuming, whatever it was.

December 2013: eating well, training better and more intensive, lots of free weight exercises with barbell, dumbbell, some cable (not much thought) having both strength and volume goals.

You transformed from Edward Norton to a semi Leonidas.

 

[A More Normal Bird]

Can anyone link me to a good knee wrapping tutorial? I ditched 'em after always wrapping mine poorly, but I'm at the point where I feel it's unsafe to squat without them. I'm squatting 280 (3x5), and this is around the weight where I inevitably injure myself. I have terrible knees.

And should the wraps stay on between sets? Mine would always get loose, and rewrap was always necessary. Frustrating stuff.

edit: The videos I'm looking at tend to emphasize extreme tightness. Is this normal? This shit is really uncomfortable.

Yep, wraps are meant to be really tight, to help with the lift. Perhaps you would be better off with sleeves for your purposes?

 

[SeanR1221]

Can anyone link me to a good knee wrapping tutorial? I ditched 'em after always wrapping mine poorly, but I'm at the point where I feel it's unsafe to squat without them. I'm squatting 280 (3x5), and this is around the weight where I inevitably injure myself. I have terrible knees.

And should the wraps stay on between sets? Mine would always get loose, and rewrap was always necessary. Frustrating stuff.

edit: The videos I'm looking at tend to emphasize extreme tightness. Is this normal? This shit is really uncomfortable.

Wraps are meant to be cranked, extremely tight and very uncomfortable. Like, you'll barely be able to walk with them on, and you certainly shouldn't be able to bend your knees until you have weight on your back.

Honestly, 280 seems kind of low to be using wraps, and they're not for preventing injuries afaik. Like above, maybe sleeves will serve you better? Get some rehbands

http://www.jackalsgym.com/store.aspx?prod_id=RH-KS

As far as wrapping technique, I used this video to learn how to wrap knees for my friend when he was competing.

http://youtu.be/MCfruLGBv-0

 

[FallingEdge]

Fuck it, just pull the rack down to your level.

Trust me, if I could, I would.

For now, this donut is my rock in the fitness world.

nom nom nom baby

 

[Pete Rock]

Another vote for Rehbands, they are fantastic and really easy to put on. If I recall the instructions say to not leave them on for more than like 4 hours so I just leave them on for the hour I'm down there and they never slip. If you ever need to adjust them you just roll the top half down and pull it out and then slide it up on your calf, so your knees never get weird pressure on them from pulling on it like a sock or something. As per the Amazon reviews measure across your knee and then buy the next size down.

However I don't think they would really keep you from injuring yourself necessarily, if your knees do not track in the right path the whole time it's not really going to help with that. There isn't much "rebound" from them as they aren't as tight as wraps would be. All I know is my knees feel a lot less aches when I'm done and the next day feels better too.

My lifting partner tweaked his left knee a year ago going heavy when he was a heavy dude, and his form still has the same problem as then even though I watch him and try to explain to him what I'm seeing - he just says "yeah that's when my knee caves" and I'm thinking well, correct it and maybe that won't happen? He is an obstinate dude unfortunately, and I'm not even presenting it as a criticism just as an observation.

As soon as his ass hits past parallel and he really gets down into the hole it's like he shoves his groin forward a little bit and his knees flare out really quickly, and when this happens his heels come off the ground but only on the outside - so he rolls on the inside of his feet a little bit opposite direction of the knees, and then when he really "pushes" the knees go back in and the heels flatten out. It is very slight, but also very obvious enough to be a legitimately bad habit of either poor muscle memory patterns or laziness, or a little bit of both. You can tell he always just wants it to be over, and of course when it's near the last of the reps or the heavier weight all the other indicators come into play - when the knees go off on a tangent and his groin tilts his chest comes down and it all gets loose and his upper body leans forward a little bit and all the mechanics start working against him instead of with him.

But I do know what you mean, for me anything past 275 feels really heavy and in that regard I enjoy the sleeves keeping my joints as warmed up as possible from the first two work sets, feeling ready to crush the third every time.

 

[Splash Wave]

Wraps are meant to be cranked, extremely tight and very uncomfortable. Like, you'll barely be able to walk with them on, and you certainly shouldn't be able to bend your knees until you have weight on your back.

Honestly, 280 seems kind of low to be using wraps, and they're not for preventing injuries afaik. Like above, maybe sleeves will serve you better? Get some rehbands

http://www.jackalsgym.com/store.aspx?prod_id=RH-KS

As far as wrapping technique, I used this video to learn how to wrap knees for my friend when he was competing.

http://youtu.be/MCfruLGBv-0

Fair enough. And like I said--my knees are constantly injured in one way or another when I hit ~285 (it's a lot for me), hence why I feel like the extra support is necessary. Am I doing myself a disservice by using wraps?

edit: And I can get use to the fact that wraps are tight/uncomfortable, I just wasn't sure if that was the way they're supposed to fit or not.

edit 2: @Pete Rock thanks for the informative post! It could be that my form just gets worse around this weight--I'm not entirely sure. But I do know that I have bad knees. Like, I've had recurring issues since high school, so I feel like anything I can do to mitigate the likelihood of hurting them is a good thing.

 

[J. Bravo]

agh just found out my friend's cousin manufactures testosterone and could get me 10 weeks worth for $20. just gotta keep telling myself i don't need that shit yet, if ever. but it's soooo cheap....gotta stay natural. gotta stay natural.

 

[Brolic Gaoler]

Fair enough. And like I said--my knees are constantly injured in one way or another when I hit ~285 (it's a lot for me), hence why I feel like the extra support is necessary. Am I doing myself a disservice by using wraps?

edit: And I can get use to the fact that wraps are tight/uncomfortable, I just wasn't sure if that was the way they're supposed to fit or not.

edit 2: @Pete Rock thanks for the informative post! It could be that my form just gets worse around this weight--I'm not entirely sure. But I do know that I have bad knees. Like, I've had recurring issues since high school, so I feel like anything I can do to mitigate the likelihood of hurting them is a good thing.

I'm willing to bet your knees are caving in.

You do not need knee wraps for that low of weight. Knee sleeves and proper knee tracking in the squat is the answer.

 

[rokkerkory]

Yes sir. King of all shoulder exercises!

I've never done standing barbell OHP before, but you've motivated me to try next time i do shoulders!!!

I am gonna be careful because it looks like it can throw your back out of whack, which tends to happen to me as my lower back is weak.

 

[Cooter]

I've never done standing barbell OHP before, but you've motivated me to try next time i do shoulders!!!

I am gonna be careful because it looks like it can throw your back out of whack, which tends to happen to me as my lower back is weak.

That's awesome. Keep us posted on your progress. For me, my traps started really taking off when I added heavy OHP.

If you are deadlifting heavy your lower back should be plenty capable of handling heavy OHP.

 

[HisshouBuraiKen]

agh just found out my friend's cousin manufactures testosterone and could get me 10 weeks worth for $20. just gotta keep telling myself i don't need that shit yet, if ever. but it's soooo cheap....gotta stay natural. gotta stay natural.

Remember, you can't take any of that shit in a vacuum. There'd be other drugs and PCT to deal with too. It's just not worth the hassle.

Plus then the floodgates will be open and next thing you know you'll be on creatine or something.

I've never done standing barbell OHP before, but you've motivated me to try next time i do shoulders!!!

I am gonna be careful because it looks like it can throw your back out of whack, which tends to happen to me as my lower back is weak.

OHP can throw a lot of stuff out of whack if you do it wrong, watch your neck too. Just start with the bar and get the form down like any other big compound and in a few months you'll be reaping the rewards.

 

[FallingEdge]

That just sounds terrible. If you are going to do drugs, go pharmaceutical grade or bust.

 

[rokkerkory]

That's awesome. Keep us posted on your progress. For me, my traps started really taking off when I added heavy OHP.

If you are deadlifting heavy your lower back should be plenty capable of handling heavy OHP.

Sure I definitely will!

My back is my biggest weakspot so I am starting to DL to build it up. So still new there. I can only do sets of 185lbs on DL.

 

[Brolic Gaoler]

I've never done standing barbell OHP before, but you've motivated me to try next time i do shoulders!!!

I am gonna be careful because it looks like it can throw your back out of whack, which tends to happen to me as my lower back is weak.

Lock your glutes in before you begin the exercise and keep them locked. It will help. It will also prevent you from cheating.

 

[kevo_huevo]

I just watched this video of a chick in part because the title said she's a fitness coach. It was basically a music video of this chick showcasing her amazing body, just really scantily clad montage of her doing some exercises(I guess?).

The video got me feeling some type of way

The girls name is Brittany Renner, and the video is nsfw

 

[rokkerkory]

Lock your glutes in before you begin the exercise and keep them locked. It will help. It will also prevent you from cheating.

Thanks for the protip... is the form similar to when you are upright in a DL with just your arms and shoulders moving?

 

[Husker86]

How much am I losing by doing seated barbell OHP? My ceiling isn't high enough to do standing with weights on the bar. I started a month or so ago and really like the lift in general.

 

[Mark1]

Going ice skating tomorrow, but have the DOMs effect on my calves, should be fun lol.

 

[Brolic Gaoler]

Thanks for the protip... is the form similar to when you are upright in a DL with just your arms and shoulders moving?

Sounds like your DL might need some looking at too.

 

[rokkerkory]

Sounds like your DL might need some looking at too.

Yeah I don't doubt it... been going off youtube videos and trying to learn proper form. I know that's most important. lol

 

[J. Bravo]

Remember, you can't take any of that shit in a vacuum. There'd be other drugs and PCT to deal with too. It's just not worth the hassle.

Plus then the floodgates will be open and next thing you know you'll be on creatine or something.

lol @ the last sentence

but yeah i've done plenty of research on test cycles. the point is that i can get the main component for about 1/5th or 1/6th market price, which makes it very tempting and would let me spend more on cycle assist, nolvadex, etc.

 

[Brolic Gaoler]

lol @ the last sentence

but yeah i've done plenty of research on test cycles. the point is that i can get the main component for about 1/5th or 1/6th market price, which makes it very tempting and would let me spend more on cycle assist, nolvadex, etc.

How old are you? How long have you been training?

 

[J. Bravo]

How old are you? How long have you been training?

22 and only 7 months consistently. 1.5 years total. i know i'm nowhere near my genetic peak. i'm not going to seriously consider it for a few years, the guy isn't going anywhere and i just don't have the financial freedom to do it right now anyways.

i can dream of gains and size though

 

[Brolic Gaoler]

Quit fucking even contemplating test. You're looking for the easy route. IMO you're too young and far too new to training.

 

[msdstc]

Got home from vacation today feels good to go back to my free weights from the smith machine. Before I left hit some really good PRs!

205 twice and a 3rd one with a spot on the flat bench! Knees are back to about 100% going to work up my legs again, but VERY slow. What stretches dynamic or static are your favorites?

Also another PR with my shoulder press going up to 135 for 3x5, didn't max it, but it's getting a lot stronger. One thing I liked was the dumbbells at the hotel gym, did some standing overhead presses and it felt great on my shoulders.

edit- I'm quite chunky/fat now, but I'm so happy with the strength gains. I'm going on my cut in a week or 2 since I've hit/surpassed all my goals now, nervous i'm gonna lose all these gains .

 

[Cooter]

Got home from vacation today feels good to go back to my free weights from the smith machine. Before I left hit some really good PRs!

205 twice and a 3rd one with a spot on the flat bench! Knees are back to about 100% going to work up my legs again, but VERY slow. What stretches dynamic or static are your favorites?

Also another PR with my shoulder press going up to 135 for 3x5, didn't max it, but it's getting a lot stronger. One thing I liked was the dumbbells at the hotel gym, did some standing overhead presses and it felt great on my shoulders.

edit- I'm quite chunky/fat now, but I'm so happy with the strength gains. I'm going on my cut in a week or 2 since I've hit/surpassed all my goals now, nervous i'm gonna lose all these gains .

High protein, low fat, and lift hard. You will only lose a tiny bit. Mostly on bench and OHP. The rest should stay.

 

[Imm0rt4l]

Quit fucking even contemplating test. You're looking for the easy route. IMO you're too young and far too new to training.

My sentiments as well.

1.5 years isnt shit in the grand scheme of things. Youre going to rob yourself of the feeling of earning those gains and be chemically dependant on exogenous hormones. Maybe you have done the research and are capable of running them responsibly but why undermine your own physical capabilities? At the end of the day it is your choice though so good luck. And I hope the test is quality since its not pharma grade.

 

[msdstc]

High protein, low fat, and lift hard. You will only lose a tiny bit. Mostly on bench and OHP. The rest should stay.

Thanks a ton. I was thinkin for my diet I'll do 3 protein shakes a day with 1% milk... or should I use skim? I heard the small amount of fats are healthier in the 1% for calcium absorption and whatnot. That should take up about 1000 cals and 150 protein or so, the rest could be tuna and deli meats or something along those lines.

 

[J. Bravo]

Quit fucking even contemplating test. You're looking for the easy route. IMO you're too young and far too new to training.

da. I know.

it still interests me. I'll see where I'm at in December 2014...aiming for 300 bench 400 squat 500 dead.

also my friend says he squats 500+ but he only deadlifts 315??? He's got to be lying right?

 

[Cooter]

Thanks a ton. I was thinkin for my diet I'll do 3 protein shakes a day with 1% milk... or should I use skim? I heard the small amount of fats are healthier in the 1% for calcium absorption and whatnot. That should take up about 1000 cals and 150 protein or so, the rest could be tuna and deli meats or something along those lines.

I'm an advocate of getting most of my protein through food. I never have more than 50gs of powder a day. I would stick to green veggies, meats, and cottage cheese. I don't even drink milk when I'm cutting. After I get there I add it back in to my maintenance.

EDIT: I meant l low carb in my previous response. Not low fat.

 

[Imm0rt4l]

I really doubt he can squat 500 if hes only pulling 315. 500 with 1/8 rom maybe.

 

[Cooter]

I really doubt he can squat 500 if hes only pulling 315. 500 with 1/8 rom maybe.

This. So much this! Took my response. You can do a fake squat. Not so much when deadlifting.

 

[msdstc]

I'm an advocate of getting most of my protein through food. I never have more than 50gs of powder a day. I would stick to green veggies, meats, and cottage cheese. I don't even drink milk when I'm cutting. After I get there I add it back in to my maintenance.

Alrighty, wish cottage cheese wasn't the worst texture ever, but I'll just have to suck it up.

 

[Cooter]

Alrighty, wish cottage cheese wasn't the worst texture ever, but I'll just have to suck it up.

You don't have to eat it every day. Please note my edit. High protein, low carb, and lift hard. Fats are just fine. Don't worry about them.

 

[SeanR1221]

This. So much this! Took my response. You can do a fake squat. Not so much when deadlifting.

Oh you haven't seen it all my friend. People load weight up from the safety bars of the squat rack. Then they bend over, back rounded and the bar comes down to their knee then they stand back up straight. Deadlifting!

It's like some whacky rack pull deadlift cheat lift.

 

[Cooter]

Oh you haven't seen it all my friend. People load weight up from the safety bars of the squat rack. Then they bend over, back rounded and the bar comes down to their knee then they stand back up straight. Deadlifting!

It's like some whacky rack pull deadlift cheat lift.

?????

No shit?!?! I stand corrected. That sounds hilarious to witness!

 

[SeanR1221]

?????

No shit?!?! I stand corrected. That sounds hilarious to witness!

I had to wait about 20 minutes to OHP in the squat rack yesterday because some dude was doing 1/8th squats, Deads like that and dumbbell lunges. He did like....8 sets.

 

[Zoe]

Oh you haven't seen it all my friend. People load weight up from the safety bars of the squat rack. Then they bend over, back rounded and the bar comes down to their knee then they stand back up straight. Deadlifting!

It's like some whacky rack pull deadlift cheat lift.

That's a deadlift in the Les Mills programs.

 

[msdstc]

You don't have to eat it every day. Please note my edit. High protein, low carb, and lift hard. Fats are just fine. Don't worry about them.

Thanks man. Last cut I did a lot less cardio than I should've, but it still went well. I wanna throw cardio in there big time to speed it up. Is 5 days a week alright?

 

[Cooter]

I had to wait about 20 minutes to OHP in the squat rack yesterday because some dude was doing 1/8th squats, Deads like that and dumbbell lunges. He did like....8 sets.

I saw a guy grip the BB behind his back and do some kind of lunge/squat hybrid the other day. It was fascinating. I couldn't stop staring. Stupid people.

 

[Cooter]

Thanks man. Last cut I did a lot less cardio than I should've, but it still went well. I wanna throw cardio in there big time to speed it up. Is 5 days a week alright?

It's not necessary but it can help. Make sure you account for the calories you burn when determining your daily intake. Too much cardio and not enough calories is a recipe for strength loss. Keep the cardio short and I would do some variation of HIIT if you're going to do it.

 

[msdstc]

It's not necessary but it can help. Make sure you account for the calories you burn when determining your daily intake. Too much cardio and not enough calories is a recipe for strength loss. Keep the cardio short and I would do some variation of HIIT if you're going to do it.

This sounds really stupid, but a lot of my cardio is done through DDR, think that's alright?

 

[Onemic]

da. I know.

it still interests me. I'll see where I'm at in December 2014...aiming for 300 bench 400 squat 500 dead.

also my friend says he squats 500+ but he only deadlifts 315??? He's got to be lying right?

damn, how much do you do now for those lifts?

I'm thinking of doing yoga in addition to my cutting, that isn't too much right?(it would be once a week)

 

[Cooter]

This sounds really stupid, but a lot of my cardio is done through DDR, think that's alright?

Not stupid. That's fine. Just don't spend 5 hours a day playing it. ;-)

 

[J. Bravo]

I really doubt he can squat 500 if hes only pulling 315. 500 with 1/8 rom maybe.

that's what I said but he insists he's telling the truth. I may have to shadow him on squat day.

damn, how much do you do now for those lifts?

I'm thinking of doing yoga in addition to my cutting, that isn't too much right?(it would be once a week)

225x2 bench, 315x2 squat, 405x1 deadlift.
supposed to get 225 3 times today so we'll see how that turns out lmao

 

[Oblivion]

I discovered something very interesting yesterday. There appears to be one part of my body that looks like it's made substantial gains since I started:

Spoiler

my back.

It looks way more muscular and more defined than anywhere else. Must be cause of all those chin/pull ups I've been doing.

Admittedly, since it's a part of my body that I haven't really been paying attention to prior to starting out on training, I don't know if I've actually improved or it just seems that way cause, like I said, I never checked that area before. Still, I'm guessing it's reasonable to assume I've made SOME gains because I no longer feel my vertebrae when feeling my back.

I'll post pictures later if y'all care.

 

[Imm0rt4l]

Scotch eggs are the ultimate bulking food, anabolic as fuck.

 

[Onemic]

that's what I said but he insists he's telling the truth. I may have to shadow him on squat day.


225x2 bench, 315x2 squat, 405x1 deadlift.
supposed to get 225 3 times today so we'll see how that turns out lmao

1 set each?

 

[rokkerkory]

Okay tried standing OHP today for heck of it... Form was ok since didnt go heavy. Needless to say, got lots to work on haha