• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Fitness |OT6| Defying gravity, Quest madness, and Muscle Shaming

Status
Not open for further replies.
Zoe

Zoe

Member
Chocobro said:
Yep! That was the ones posted earlier. The weights are accurate? If I were to have 1.25lb in one side, what is the actual total weight? I'm just wondering because the sleeve/pouch weight.
Click to expand...

I never weighed the pouch, but it would just be the fabric. It's not like other ones where there's a built-in weight.
 
I

Imm0rt4l

Member
Jet Jaguar said:
Guys, I need some help please with developing the tear drop muscle (vastus medialis), but using only free weights (I don't have access to machines).

My vastus lateralis is trained/developed quite a bit more than the vastus medialis and is causing an imbalance.
Click to expand...

Try front squats, and you gotta be lean. a lot of people do hyper extensions, but honestly they're not really good for your joints, but if you opt to do em anyways then go light.

edit: I guess leg extensions aren't even an option anyways
 
M

MrToughPants

Brian Burke punched my mom
fredrancour said:
BELIEVE IT OR NOT, I just spent the past semester doing a research project on exactly this. I have problems like this too. I'm an engineering student and had a class that was basically "how to measure shit scientifically." Muscle activation sensors were one of the tools available to us.

The project amounted to " do various shit and see what activates the VM best." I decided to do this because word of mouth/ broscience had utterly failed me in figuring out an effective way to do things.

DISCLAIMER: I had a sample size of "only myself" since I had no real way to draw in other participants, and this is probably not good enough to actually get published in a physical therapy journal, so take it with a grain of salt. I don't know how much variety exists b/t different people with imbalanced quads. It's possible all my data could be completely irrelevant to any other human. WITH THAT SAID:

Basically, the thing that looked most promising was doing front squats, starting from an empty bar and progressing up in weight very slowly. I previously only really did low bar. Compared to low bar, front squats made the VM work was harder and didn't make the VL work harder at all. This sounds good to me because I want to keep the VL where it is for a bit while I make the VM catch up.

The "progress very slowly" bit matters a lot. As I added weight to the bar, the other muscles of the leg could be seen activating harder and harder to move the bar while the VM just worked as hard as it originally did. In other words, every other part of the quad was activating hard enough to disguise how imbalanced I was. If I was busting my ass to try and set PRs, I would likely only make the imbalance worse.

I should really write the rest of this paper now....

edit: and I only did barbell exercises because I normally do those, and needed to limit myself somehow. I kind of want to buy my own EMG sensors to expand the research to more movements. Or maybe I can borrow them when no classes are in session..... The profs would probably be thrilled at the idea of someone caring that much.
Click to expand...

Awesome post, keep us updated if you do anymore research with an EMG and post some data.
 
Y

yogloo

Member
Is it possible to do bodybuilding just with dumbells? I was skimming through starting strength and it seems that you would need barbell and a squatting rack.
 
A

AdventureRacing

Member
Onemic said:
This is why I aint never gonna try to do cleans without a coach to critique my form.
Click to expand...

I'm kinda wondering if i should go down this path as well. I haven't hurt myself or anything but i know my form is a little off (my lack of finger flexibility causes similar problems to doing front squats). I won't go to heavy until i feel confident i guess.
 
A

A More Normal Bird

Unconfirmed Member
fredrancour said:
BELIEVE IT OR NOT, I just spent the past semester doing a research project on exactly this. I have problems like this too. I'm an engineering student and had a class that was basically "how to measure shit scientifically." Muscle activation sensors were one of the tools available to us.

The project amounted to " do various shit and see what activates the VM best." I decided to do this because word of mouth/ broscience had utterly failed me in figuring out an effective way to do things.

DISCLAIMER: I had a sample size of "only myself" since I had no real way to draw in other participants, and this is probably not good enough to actually get published in a physical therapy journal, so take it with a grain of salt. I don't know how much variety exists b/t different people with imbalanced quads. It's possible all my data could be completely irrelevant to any other human. WITH THAT SAID:

Basically, the thing that looked most promising was doing front squats, starting from an empty bar and progressing up in weight very slowly. I previously only really did low bar. Compared to low bar, front squats made the VM work was harder and didn't make the VL work harder at all. This sounds good to me because I want to keep the VL where it is for a bit while I make the VM catch up.

The "progress very slowly" bit matters a lot. As I added weight to the bar, the other muscles of the leg could be seen activating harder and harder to move the bar while the VM just worked as hard as it originally did. In other words, every other part of the quad was activating hard enough to disguise how imbalanced I was. If I was busting my ass to try and set PRs, I would likely only make the imbalance worse.

I should really write the rest of this paper now....

edit: and I only did barbell exercises because I normally do those, and needed to limit myself somehow. I kind of want to buy my own EMG sensors to expand the research to more movements. Or maybe I can borrow them when no classes are in session..... The profs would probably be thrilled at the idea of someone caring that much.
Click to expand...
The bolded is the only part of your post I question. Even if a higher weight brings the other muscles more into play, you said the VM activation remained stable. Therefore, training with higher weights and increasing strength would be increasing the strength of the VM at peak activation. If you haven't done front squats before and have a weaker VMO, then it will likely be the limiting factor in the lift, meaning that increases in your front squat will be bringing it back in line with the other quadriceps muscles. OTOH, if the contraction decreased absolutely (not relatively) at higher weights or if form broke down that could suggest an inhibiting imbalance. In this case, your results may not apply to the poster who seemed quite certain they had an imbalance, but more information is needed to say for sure. Cool stuff btw, thanks for sharing, I'm just kind of thinking out loud here.
 
S

SeanR1221

Member
Wife and I are going into Philly today to see Christmas light and get sushi...so I figured Id hit the gym early. Step outside and everything is covered in ice. Nope nope nope.
 
M

MrOogieBoogie

BioShock Infinite is like playing some homeless guy's vivid imagination
Not my pic, but one that serves its purpose:

c246f-Image0138a.jpg


My lower back does a similar thing when I'm seated: it sticks out just like the guy's in the pic. I've always had this. Anyone know why this is it? Or is it just another one of those "Chalk it up to genetics" things?
 
M

MegalonJJ

Banned
Cheers for the advice guys, and the epic post by fredrancour.

I shall begin front squats asap.

One of my friends mentioned lunges to target the tear drop too; can anyone confirm that this is the case please?
 
C

Chocobro

Member
Zoe said:
I never weighed the pouch, but it would just be the fabric. It's not like other ones where there's a built-in weight.
Click to expand...
Oh I see. It would be asking too much if I were to have you weigh it :p I'll consider the weight to be negligible.
BlueScrote said:
Ah, missed that since I was scanning for links. I've seen Zoe post the ankle weights everytime I ask, so they're probably the way to go.
Click to expand...
It's OK, just trying to save you time by not having to wait longer than needed :) I might go ahead and buy them, but I need an extra $9 to get that free shipping and use the $7 Amazon promo I have ($5 of which expires tonight).

Lastly, I'll go with Pete Rock's way of moving back up from a deloading instead of my friend's suggestion of alternating between DB and BB BP and OHP. Thanks brah!
 
S

sphinx

the piano man
so I am #team"northamerica" again.

Took a 23 hour trip from germany to mexico and will stay at my parents. The local gym uses everything in lbs, whereas the german one has everything in kgs..that sucks... last time I mistook the weights and thought I had lifted more than I did, was disappointed.

plus, I think some bars aren't olympic bars, I think they weight less than 45 lbs...will check tomorrow.

but today it's a sunny sunday 11:00 AM so I am going to do some jogging and be happy as shit.

tomorrow I'll try to break an OHP PR if I figure out the weight, lol.
 
P

Pete Rock

Member
This posture correction video is really helpful, I've only been doing it twice a day but sometimes I'll do it between sets of OHP and it is great to remind yourself of the feeling of correct posture with your ears over your shoulders, the crown up and back, instead of the chin down and jutted forward.

Two good yoga practices that have helped me tremendously with DL setups are Earth Touch & Pyramid. Your flexibility might be not quite good enough to put your palms on the ground flat by your feet, but you can still practice hinging at your hips while keeping your back flat and locked out, lowering your arms as far as possible. There is a very specific feeling to this that I try to replicate when I setup with the bar over the middle of my feet, before lowering my hips and push my shins against it.
 
C

Chocobro

Member
sphinx said:
so I am #team"northamerica" again.

Took a 23 hour trip from germany to mexico and will stay at my parents. The local gym uses everything in lbs, whereas the german one has everything in kgs..that sucks... last time I mistook the weights and thought I had lifted more than I did, was disappointed.

plus, I think some bars aren't olympic bars, I think they weight less than 45 lbs...will check tomorrow.

but today it's a sunny sunday 11:00 AM so I am going to do some jogging and be happy as shit.

tomorrow I'll try to break an OHP PR if I figure out the weight, lol.
Click to expand...

Haha. Oh man...As a senior majoring in ChemE, I hate working on things that aren't in the SI units (kg, liters), but I'm grateful everything is in American units (pounds) once I'm in the weight room.

1kg = 2.20462lb, use your smartphone calculator to get an estimate. Now go smash that OHP PR! :)
 
C

Cooter

Lacks the power of instantaneous movement
Onemic said:
My dream is to MP as much as Sphinx does.

Damn my 135 5x5 plateau!
Click to expand...

That's damn strong dude. I can count on one hand the number of people OHPing a plate for reps at my gym. I have a feeling your dream will soon turn into a reality so you better start dreaming some more...

EDIT: Inspiring as usual Mr. Gaoler.
 
O

Onemic

Member
Cooter said:
That's damn strong dude. I can count on one hand the number of people OHPing a plate for reps at my gym. I have a feeling your dream will soon turn into a reality so you better start dreaming some more...

EDIT: Inspiring as usual Mr. Gaoler.
Click to expand...

Thanks man. Seeing the stats posted here makes me feel so inferior doe... I never know when people post stats if they're doing that weight for reps/sets or a 1 - 5 RM. I actually have no idea what my 1 - 5 RM is on any lift I do, I'm too damn scared of something going horribly wrong and the bar falling on me or something to even attempt it.

and gatdamn that's impressive Gaoler.

Also, I've been watching some of Leroy's vid's on youtube after someone posted a vid he made about training hardcore or something. Anyone try the suggestion he made towards increasing bench press gains, where you get a spotter to help lift a weight you know is too heavy for you and you dont press it, but just hold it for a few seconds before putting it down? I wanna try it for my bench press 5x5, where my gains have begun to slow down(currently at 210), but I'm not sure if doing it as a warmup right before I actually start the 5x5 will burn me out quicker. The dude still has huge as fuck arms for an 80 year old. Bigger than anyone in my gym that's for damn sure.
 
M

MrOogieBoogie

BioShock Infinite is like playing some homeless guy's vivid imagination
1871 said:
Easily their worst so far. :(
Click to expand...

What? No, not by a wide margin. Even if I'm not laughing at everything in the video, I am always absolutely AMAZED by the quality of the writing. Sometimes he'll say a joke that isn't even that funny but it's amazing in how clever it is. I'm sitting here going, "This guy and his writers are fucking talented."

Flow-chart idea executed to perfection. This is the only YouTube channel I've EVER subscribed to. It's that good.
 
F

fredrancour

Member
A More Normal Bird said:
The bolded is the only part of your post I question. Even if a higher weight brings the other muscles more into play, you said the VM activation remained stable. Therefore, training with higher weights and increasing strength would be increasing the strength of the VM at peak activation. If you haven't done front squats before and have a weaker VMO, then it will likely be the limiting factor in the lift, meaning that increases in your front squat will be bringing it back in line with the other quadriceps muscles. OTOH, if the contraction decreased absolutely (not relatively) at higher weights or if form broke down that could suggest an inhibiting imbalance. In this case, your results may not apply to the poster who seemed quite certain they had an imbalance, but more information is needed to say for sure. Cool stuff btw, thanks for sharing, I'm just kind of thinking out loud here.
Click to expand...

Well my line of thought with the comment was "Push VM as hard as possible while not pushing rest of quad at all" = chance for VM to catch up.

I guess I'll see in a couple months after doing front squats for a while.
 
N

Noema

Member
GK86 said:
If I'm looking to gain weight (125 now), what should I look for in a protein powder? Or does it not really matter? I searched in the thread, but didn't really come across anything.
Click to expand...

How tall are you?

Looks like you need to do the Seefood diet.
 
S

sphinx

the piano man
Chocobro said:
Haha. Oh man...As a senior majoring in ChemE, I hate working on things that aren't in the SI units (kg, liters), but I'm grateful everything is in American units (pounds) once I'm in the weight room.

1kg = 2.20462lb, use your smartphone calculator to get an estimate. Now go smash that OHP PR! :)
Click to expand...

Cooter said:
Lift the world over your head Sphinx! No fear.
Click to expand...

I will give it my best shot but I am not sure it's a good idea to go for PRs using equipment/machines I am not used to. I'll just make sure I eat well through the day and try and go for it.

Onemic said:
My dream is to MP as much as Sphinx does.

Damn my 135 5x5 plateau!
Click to expand...

you are mistaking me, I don't OHP 135 5X5 lol :)

Brolic Gaoler said:
New 5rm for OHP 235lbs. Edit: lol oddly enough that's where the discussion is. Haha.

http://youtu.be/DXGjN2BLyE8
Click to expand...

so damn impressive

You are GAF's Press King. if I were a mod here, I'd give you the tag immediately.
 
O

ohhthegore

Member
Was able to knock out both 315 on deadlift and my sets of 145 on OHP today which were new personal records for me. Twas a good day. Took a selfish to show my bulking beard, man I hate bulking I want some muscle definition :-(

ukiWsLN.jpg
 
C

Cooter

Lacks the power of instantaneous movement
rokkerkory said:
I can't even fathom over 200lbs standing OHP... my god.
Click to expand...

It's all relative. I feel the same way about Brolic's numbers. As you climb the ladder past 200 on OHP it just seems natural because your deadlift, squat, and bench are much higher. It's definitely a major milestone because of the satisfaction OHP and it's slower progression brings.
 
M

manipulate

Member
Paging form/mechanics people!

Hey guys. Been having a lot of problems with my squat for ages. Basically, my balance sucks ass, and combined with this, as the weight gets heavier, my squats look increasingly like good mornings.

Firstly, I have a torn meniscus in my right knee which is relatively agonising while I warm up, and makes stretching horrible, but by the time I'm doing my heavy/work sets it's not too bad.

Anyway, my balance is terrible - the only way I can hit parallel depth without toppling over forwards is to make my stance super wide and to have my feet flaring out really wide. That's not so much the problem though, I think, but I thought I should mention that.

The problem is as I start to get near parallel, if I'm doing heavyish weights (>100 kg) I find it incredibly hard to keep my chest up, which makes the bar come forward. Then suddenly the weight isn't over mid-foot anymore, and when I rise, my butt comes up first before anything else. Apparently this is a commonish issue for people with long legs and short torsos.. I've started doing front squats on Wednesdays to try and fix this but nothing seems to help. Any halp pls?
 
I

ILoveBish

Member
I have to say, been going through some things that aren't even a big deal, but they really got to me, and i ended up not going to the gym for 2 weeks. Thankfully i was finally able to talk myself into going back, and picked up right where i left off on my 3s week and finished no problem and without any carbs. I feel at least 10,000x better now, not going to the gym takes a huge toll on your mental condition once you are used to it, i feel like i wasted away 2 weeks, but its just part of the process of life.

Don't let things get in the way to hit the gym if you are upset about something, going and lifting will definitely make you feel a heck of a lot better.
 
O

Omegasquash

Member
Ok, been hitting the gym 3 - 5 times per week since September, and it's been awesome, but two weeks ago I did something to my left pec. I was doing dumbbell flyes and came down too fast/far. Felt a sharp pain, and tried one more set, but the pain told me to back off, so I did.

I saw my doctor, who confirmed that it was either a mild tear or a mild pull, and to go easy. I've been doing that, but continuing to exercise....just lighter weights, super attention to form, and going slow, slow, SLOW.

Has anyone experienced something like this in the past? I'm pretty bummed about it, as my chest is an area of focus for me that's been paying off. I don't believe that I'll lose much progress in that area, and I've not let the injury hamper me in other areas of my body...in fact it's forced me to do more things (like squats, which I hate but can't deny are awesome). With the holidays HERE, I'm just worried that it's an opportunity for loss as opposed to gain and I want to minimize that as much as possible.

ILoveBish said:
Don't let things get in the way to hit the gym if you are upset about something, going and lifting will definitely make you feel a heck of a lot better.
Click to expand...

I can't agree with this enough...I've had plenty of times where I'm down in the dumps, but forcing myself to go lift before eating, or hit the gym instead of relaxing on some games while the kids nap makes a WORLD of difference mood and outlook wise. Go run a 5k on a treadmill and then lift. An hour 30 and you'll feel damn good.
 
M

Mik2121

Member
Hit biceps and triceps today and I'm feeling great. Both arms feel slightly sore but in a good way, tomorrow they'll probably hurt a bit because I did a ton of stuff, oh well!

In two days (tomorrow my gym is closed) I'll be doing shoulders, which are one of my favorite parts to do.
Anyone else really enjoy doing shoulders? I feel like they help a lot making you look good.
 
C

Chocobro

Member
manipulate said:
Paging form/mechanics people!

Hey guys. Been having a lot of problems with my squat for ages. Basically, my balance sucks ass, and combined with this, as the weight gets heavier, my squats look increasingly like good mornings.

Firstly, I have a torn meniscus in my right knee which is relatively agonising while I warm up, and makes stretching horrible, but by the time I'm doing my heavy/work sets it's not too bad.

Anyway, my balance is terrible - the only way I can hit parallel depth without toppling over forwards is to make my stance super wide and to have my feet flaring out really wide. That's not so much the problem though, I think, but I thought I should mention that.

The problem is as I start to get near parallel, if I'm doing heavyish weights (>100 kg) I find it incredibly hard to keep my chest up, which makes the bar come forward. Then suddenly the weight isn't over mid-foot anymore, and when I rise, my butt comes up first before anything else. Apparently this is a commonish issue for people with long legs and short torsos.. I've started doing front squats on Wednesdays to try and fix this but nothing seems to help. Any halp pls?
Click to expand...

Someone page Noema pronto.

A few questions that might help us guide you in the right direction:
1) Sounds like you're low-bar squatting, right?
2) Are you squatting barefoot, in flat-sole shoes, weightlifting shoes, or in running shoes?
3) Do you brace your core when squatting?

My initial guess might be that your core isn't strong enough or you're not breathing properly.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

How Baldur’s Gate 3 adapts its expansive RPG gameplay for your DualSense controller
News Game Dev
11
2K
darrylgorn replied
Persona 3 Reload | Review Thread
Analysis Review Hype 2 3
107
9K
Grildon Tundy replied
Diabetes-gaf - Warnings and Encouragement
2
67
4K
ChazAshley replied
[Gematsu] TGS 2023 official live stream program schedule announced
News
3
1K
ElCasual replied
Emio - The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club | Review Thread
Analysis Review
39
2K
Thick Thighs Save Lives replied
Top Bottom