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Aug. 4th, 2015 12:55 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
vicarzOne product remaining of my labral tear reconstruction surgery is I spend a bunch of time around the stretching mats. This means I get to see a lot of special gym snowflakes who are more advanced than people using free weights, lever machine weights, or even cable-pull machines. I get to see the sit-up crunching arm swing masters, ball bouncers and swingers (what a party), and beached dolphin formnitions.
At Rosslyn, I stretch by the GHR machine. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/glute-ham-raise
People constantly get on the thing and...do sit ups. They hang in the air and do sit ups, so they’re literally upside-down on the thing. Worse, this is...really easy to do. I suppose you could make it like a reverse leg lift, but rather than keep the core extended and stable, they hunch up, swing their arms, and basically hurl their head towards their feet. Do people not feel momentum? Don’t people notice the lack of muscle soreness in their abs when they’re done? Isn’t this like the middle-school sit-up where you brace your feet so if you do a lot of “sit-ups,” rather than sore abs your quads get tired?
The most frequently done-wrong exercises seem to center around sit-ups (#1 by a wide margin), push ups (use dumbbells and alternate hands!), and leg press (extensions are close). Sit-ups are done by people who haven’t yet discovered the concept of fat reduction, who think somehow the fat around their belly will magically fuel their flopping-leg-ups into washboards. With a machine, there are countless ways to do things wrong - but most wrongs involve repeated clanking the machine, which would otherwise be noiseless if the thing were used properly.
I think a great key to “Am I an idiot in the gym” would have to be “Have I seen anyone do what I’m doing in competitions in the past 20 years,” or “Have I seen anyone do this, like this, in the gym within the last 5 years.” I mean old school is awesome, but it’s still being done. I know the gym takes a lot of research, and I’m not great about doing the research either, but it’s just always stunning to me how people stay stupid so long.
It’s like politics.
I did it wrong for a long time too. I worked out in a gym of morons, doing incline bench press on a universal machine - there were no free weights. Then when that gym closed, I moved to another and became MASTER OF THE SMITH MACHINE. On the plus side, I saw a white haired man with big muscles working out, making me realize age != death; additionally I felt strong and realized I liked sticking out as strong. A major upside was dating a gym instructor (briefly) and getting a LOT of free coaching from staff (great gym contract). The downside was doing it wrong, more times, for a long time. The final upside was they installed a free weight rack and I discovered...I sucked. It took time but I realized free weights were better than my “big weights lifted with help” philosophy.
The fact I used to do leg press, smith machine, and other idiotic-misplaced-ego-makers is why I’m so intolerant of that lunacy today I’m sure.
But it’s amusing to see all the doingitwrong crowd. They’re a diverse racial community, but homogenous no terms of age and gender - middle-aged to old men.
Oh, how is my hip besides swishy? I think I’m stronger than before surgery and nearly as flexible. I’m now at the point it’s hard to do this stretchy shit because I feel...competent. It’s been so long I’ve forgotten that it used to hurt when I lifted weights.
Somewhere between my friend blowing by and being hundreds of pounds stronger, while much of the time I’m hundreds of pounds of lifting stronger than people around me, I realize that what I do is a silly hobby that is no better than running, swimming, or anything else athletic. Once upon a time I liked strength training because the workouts were short...now it can be 2 hours in the gym alone, plus recovery time of much, much more. It’s pointless but my hobby nonetheless.
At Rosslyn, I stretch by the GHR machine. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/glute-ham-raise
People constantly get on the thing and...do sit ups. They hang in the air and do sit ups, so they’re literally upside-down on the thing. Worse, this is...really easy to do. I suppose you could make it like a reverse leg lift, but rather than keep the core extended and stable, they hunch up, swing their arms, and basically hurl their head towards their feet. Do people not feel momentum? Don’t people notice the lack of muscle soreness in their abs when they’re done? Isn’t this like the middle-school sit-up where you brace your feet so if you do a lot of “sit-ups,” rather than sore abs your quads get tired?
The most frequently done-wrong exercises seem to center around sit-ups (#1 by a wide margin), push ups (use dumbbells and alternate hands!), and leg press (extensions are close). Sit-ups are done by people who haven’t yet discovered the concept of fat reduction, who think somehow the fat around their belly will magically fuel their flopping-leg-ups into washboards. With a machine, there are countless ways to do things wrong - but most wrongs involve repeated clanking the machine, which would otherwise be noiseless if the thing were used properly.
I think a great key to “Am I an idiot in the gym” would have to be “Have I seen anyone do what I’m doing in competitions in the past 20 years,” or “Have I seen anyone do this, like this, in the gym within the last 5 years.” I mean old school is awesome, but it’s still being done. I know the gym takes a lot of research, and I’m not great about doing the research either, but it’s just always stunning to me how people stay stupid so long.
It’s like politics.
I did it wrong for a long time too. I worked out in a gym of morons, doing incline bench press on a universal machine - there were no free weights. Then when that gym closed, I moved to another and became MASTER OF THE SMITH MACHINE. On the plus side, I saw a white haired man with big muscles working out, making me realize age != death; additionally I felt strong and realized I liked sticking out as strong. A major upside was dating a gym instructor (briefly) and getting a LOT of free coaching from staff (great gym contract). The downside was doing it wrong, more times, for a long time. The final upside was they installed a free weight rack and I discovered...I sucked. It took time but I realized free weights were better than my “big weights lifted with help” philosophy.
The fact I used to do leg press, smith machine, and other idiotic-misplaced-ego-makers is why I’m so intolerant of that lunacy today I’m sure.
But it’s amusing to see all the doingitwrong crowd. They’re a diverse racial community, but homogenous no terms of age and gender - middle-aged to old men.
Oh, how is my hip besides swishy? I think I’m stronger than before surgery and nearly as flexible. I’m now at the point it’s hard to do this stretchy shit because I feel...competent. It’s been so long I’ve forgotten that it used to hurt when I lifted weights.
Somewhere between my friend blowing by and being hundreds of pounds stronger, while much of the time I’m hundreds of pounds of lifting stronger than people around me, I realize that what I do is a silly hobby that is no better than running, swimming, or anything else athletic. Once upon a time I liked strength training because the workouts were short...now it can be 2 hours in the gym alone, plus recovery time of much, much more. It’s pointless but my hobby nonetheless.
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Date: 2015-08-04 05:33 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-08-04 05:47 pm (UTC)(sometimes literally - I didn't do more than 540 when I did it). Or, as a hyooge guy who squats over 500 says via his t-shirt
"If deadlifts were easy they'd call them 'Leg Press' "
But if you're doing them along with squats and hex, that takes a lot of the downside out.
There isn't much form on leg press, but disasters remain. I've seen a few folks lately both using their hands to push on their knees, and hyper-extending their knees (plus bouncing) on each rep. Others either fail to lower the weight far (again, so they can brag about the hundreds of pounds they "lift" ) or bring it down fast so far they bounce off of the rubber guards.
Usually because the people doing it are trying to feel big by having lots of weight on a machine, doing it wrong even on a machine, then failing to do any free weights.
no subject
Date: 2015-08-04 05:57 pm (UTC)Then ran out of time, got kicked out and went to walk on the track.
no subject
Date: 2015-08-04 06:31 pm (UTC)Is the leg press making you tired? If you can do a squat 225 for 8, which isn't bad at all, then I doubt that 270 on the leg press would make you tired. You might do better doing volume on squats, or front squats,
or switching sides to do romanian deadlifts or GHR for hamstrings.
omg I hate dumbbell lunges - I only did 5x10 at 30 but I'm still learning how to do them. They make my ass hate stairs in the short term.
I haven't done leg press in a while, but I could do 540 for sets (of 10?) but can only squat around 315 or so now. ymmv
no subject
Date: 2015-08-04 06:38 pm (UTC)And yes, yes, yes, on the lunges. I also do step-ups with dumbbells when the platform is free, but I try to mix it up. I'm a 48-hour guy so long about Wednesday night I will be hating life (just in time for a 12-mile bike ride if the weather holds).
I have to pick a new primary-care doctor and--reading about your travails--I want to find one with some sports-care background so I can talk about these things without getting "Why are you doing that?" My last PCP's answer to questions about that stuff was "Because you're old" ... he was kidding but sort of dismissive about it; people alot older than us do this stuff and I want someone who takes it seriously.
no subject
Date: 2015-08-04 06:41 pm (UTC)You know I think my knees used to hurt too...I wonder if leg press is bad for knees? That would totally make sense.
no subject
Date: 2015-08-04 06:55 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-08-04 09:59 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-08-05 12:10 am (UTC)Notice this kid grabs the t-shirt on rep #2 to assist himself up with a pull even though he's only reaching 90 deg.
no subject
Date: 2015-08-04 10:55 pm (UTC)Not everyone is in the gym to lose weight or be able to lift heavier.
no subject
Date: 2015-08-05 12:08 am (UTC)Postulate what their goals might be when they bang on machines, do not-sit-ups, and fake weight as if they were strong without getting strong? I mean sure, maybe I don't understand yoga, but how are back-thrusting bicep curls or arm-tossing sit-ups possibly productive for any purpose?
no subject
Date: 2015-08-05 11:22 am (UTC)Still, is it your stance I shouldn't judge people even if it turns out they have no goals, or what they are doing will not help them attain the goals they do have?