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CarlKRobbo wrote: »Another random question.
I followed stronglifts for over a year, then strong curves for a few months, and right now I'm in the middle of a glute challenge that Bret Contreras wrote. However, I'm finding myself missing the big lifts and the progression and am thinking about going back to SL or possibly an intermediate program.
I've read the intro to Wendler's 5/3/1, and he mentions that if you don't know where you are weak and what accessories to add to fix those problems, you shouldn't run the program. My question is, how do you learn this? I can look at my bench numbers and know they're low in comparison to my lower body (well, all my arm lifts in general). But how do you go from that knowledge to designing a well rounded program.
Essentially, how do you gain the knowledge to transition from a beginner program where you just do the program as is to learning enough to do/semi-design (picking appropriate accessories as a part of the program) an intermediate program?
Ok, so Sara\SS probably word this better than me..... Experience.. Sounds like a short, sharp answer but it is true in a way..... (You'll see by my post below I need to learn more as well!)
Take Bench - If weak on lockout, then Triceps work helps, If weak off the chest, then Paused work Helps. It's about finding YOUR weak section of the lift, and then working out which relevant muscle group requires more work to elevate that lift.
If you take Squats - My weakness was "out of the hole" Paused squats fixed that (Although I am now weaker mid-lift)
Going from a beginner to being able to design your own program\accessories, is about learning your body, your limits, and that will in turn, highlight your weakness. You then program the relevant assistance in accordingly.
Random question, if I may?
I keep getting weak spots in the mid part of lifts? Now on squats
I can get out of the hole, but midway is where the work starts... I shall post a vid in form critique thread showing said issue.... Same issue on Bench - Off the chest, fine, Lockout fine, Midway is the weak point any idea's?
Post a video, that's probably the best way to take a look at it. We get a few other posters that comment on form vids so hopefully you'll get some good feedback.
I struggled with my lockout on bench, still do, but in my case it's not a tricep issue at all even though the school of thought around that tends to be to address the location at which the issue occurs.
But another school of thought is that the lockout is struggling because I'm just not fast enough before the sticking point. So for example rather than hitting board presses or floor presses to address the lockout, I just programmed bench more intelligently and got stronger on the bench. Faster off the chest = bar has more inertia going through the sticking point = no longer sticking.0 -
Ha. So, I'm assuming most of my problems could be helped if I buy a phone not from the stone age that will actually allow me to video myself. I really do think form is a limiting factor for me upping my weights. I watch more videos, drop the weights and try to improve, but I do think at this point I'm going to need someone more experienced to point out what's going wrong.
Maybe for christmas...0 -
I very recently (just three days ago) made the jump from going to the gym to having a cage at home. The cage I have doesn't have a dip station, and my best option right now is to use some stools and do them like in this video:
This style, with my palms flat on the surface, feels more straining on the wrist than doing them in a dip station where I have two parallel bars to grip. Is it okay to do them like this or should I try for a different set up where I have bars to grip?0 -
ElizabethMaryam wrote: »ElizabethMaryam wrote: »I'm 153 right now. I was 183 in Mid March 2014. I would like to get down to 115/120 but if I had more muscle mass, I'm not concerned as much about the numbers; but it would be nice to get back into my size 2/4's. I gained about 70 lbs three years ago when my blood pressure skyrocketed for no reason. It went back to normal 1.5 years ago and I've had treadmill tests, etc to make sure I'm fine to do whatever. My bp last Wednesday was 100/64. My main goal is to be healthy, improve my stamina and feel great
I would up protein a bit. I had a quick peak at your diary to see where you could take the calories from and your intake is pretty variable. This is not necessarily an an issue in itself, but it makes it hard to make a suggestion as to tweaking macros. I would try to get your intake a little more consistent so you can get at least 100g protein (a bit higher would probably be better). Also, people with thyroid issues tend to do better with lowish/moderate carbs - so try to keep those a little more consistent and to roughly 120 - 160g (depending on your intake levels and activity).
This is obviously a very high level suggestion without much data/information to go on, so please take the suggestions in that light.
I have a couple of links for vegan protein (as it sounds as if you have issues with animal based protein) that I will try to find and copy here when I do.
Thanks. Without getting into details the past few weeks have been awful and don't reflect how I was eating previously; but I had quite a number of family emergencies that I didn't cope well with, and ate a lot if comfort foods and basically tried to just survive. (I had even closed my account ... With my good info; but immediately regretted it because I knew I needed this site, and my friends here, to help me get healthy. So I came back but unfortunately had to open a new account, so my history is gone. And yesterday was like a day from h***; but it's a new day and I know I have to address emotional eating, as my stressors are not leaving any time soon ... lol. I do admit though that I physically and emotionally feel 300% better eating within my macros and calorie limit than I do when I just eat whatever and stay within or go over my calories.
I would be very interested in the vegan protein; but, due to my thyroid issues, I can't have soy protein .... So I'm not sure if there are good vegan options that do not use soy as their main source of protein.
With the macros you were suggesting for protein and carbs, it would mean that I would have to increase them both and lower my fat? Am I understanding correctly? My gram ratio for p/c/f is 90/90/53 ... with the percents as 30/30/40.
Thanks so much for your help.
Can you have wheat gluten (seitan)?
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Yes (I don't have an issue with gluten, so I'm assuming it's okay). I will look into it at the grocery store; but I never heard of it until this past week, when you mentioned it in an earlier comment. Thanks 0
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The_Enginerd wrote: »I very recently (just three days ago) made the jump from going to the gym to having a cage at home. The cage I have doesn't have a dip station, and my best option right now is to use some stools and do them like in this video:
This style, with my palms flat on the surface, feels more straining on the wrist than doing them in a dip station where I have two parallel bars to grip. Is it okay to do them like this or should I try for a different set up where I have bars to grip?
If I were in your position I would look for an alternative method if one exists, given that this method hurts your wrists (it would hurt mine too).
EDIT: Although, I'm just curious, are you using a similar grip to his where your fingers are curled over the edge of the bench rather than having them flat on the surface of the bench? The former might possibly reduce wrist strain and have you pushing through the heel of your palms a bit more. That's sort of an afterthought.0 -
If I were in your position I would look for an alternative method if one exists, given that this method hurts your wrists (it would hurt mine too).
EDIT: Although, I'm just curious, are you using a similar grip to his where your fingers are curled over the edge of the bench rather than having them flat on the surface of the bench? The former might possibly reduce wrist strain and have you pushing through the heel of your palms a bit more. That's sort of an afterthought.
Thanks, that was my gut feeling, but I thought I'd pose the question to the ETP group to verify with those with more knowledge and experience.
I did not the first time. I had used a different video for reference first and he had his hands flat and was using a chair/books and a counter top. While looking for another video to post, I found this one that better matched what I was doing. I tried it again with my fingers curled over the edge, and it reduced the strain but it is definitely more than with bars to grip.0 -
I posted this on the general forums as well, thought I would get more quality responses from you guys though.
The more I lift the more I understand that sometimes, barring any egregious form errors, one most tweak lifts to suit them. How do you know your squat stance is too wide. I generally ignore pain as I know I'm stiff in early sets and it will go away, however, I notice more and more that squats are causing me legitimate pain in, what I would describe as, the femoral head area.
I have always tried to squat as wide as possible since that's what all low bar videos say to do. I just wonder if I could lessen the pain by narrowing a bit but still keep the low bar style?
Thanks for your time.
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smittybuilt19 wrote: »I posted this on the general forums as well, thought I would get more quality responses from you guys though.
The more I lift the more I understand that sometimes, barring any egregious form errors, one most tweak lifts to suit them. How do you know your squat stance is too wide. I generally ignore pain as I know I'm stiff in early sets and it will go away, however, I notice more and more that squats are causing me legitimate pain in, what I would describe as, the femoral head area.
I have always tried to squat as wide as possible since that's what all low bar videos say to do. I just wonder if I could lessen the pain by narrowing a bit but still keep the low bar style?
Thanks for your time.
I would consider how it feels when you make a change and I'd consider how light it makes the bar feel and what position it puts you body in when you make a change.
Some examples: I find it easier to drive my knees out when I externally rotate my feet a fair amount. So I do it. I find that if I go too wide with my stance it becomes harder to keep my knees out AND it causes discomfort in my hips, so I use a fairly moderate stance.
Another random example: I would really like to widen my grip on bench to shorten my ROM but I can't manage to do so without pain in my shoulders, even when I tuck my elbows. So I don't go wide.
Another random example: My limb lengths place my back almost parallel to the floor in a proper conventional deadlift. The result is that my room for error is very very small in that I end up injured. I'm stronger at conventional (at least I was) than sumo, and my mobility when I started sumo wasn't great. So I switched to a narrow stance sumo and worked on widening it over time. My mobility also improved and now I'm slightly stronger in a sumo position and much more mobile, and it's removed a LOT of stress off of my back so I'm able to deadlift more frequently.
I realize this post doesn't directly answer your question. It's "mostly" personal preference on many of these technical aspects but you should also consider additional factors. I used the sumo deadlift as an example in that, my PREFERENCE was to pull conventional but after objectively looking at my situation sumo was a much better choice so I had to put the work in to get better at that method and acquire the mobility to execute it.
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smittybuilt19 wrote: »I posted this on the general forums as well, thought I would get more quality responses from you guys though.
The more I lift the more I understand that sometimes, barring any egregious form errors, one most tweak lifts to suit them. How do you know your squat stance is too wide. I generally ignore pain as I know I'm stiff in early sets and it will go away, however, I notice more and more that squats are causing me legitimate pain in, what I would describe as, the femoral head area.
I have always tried to squat as wide as possible since that's what all low bar videos say to do. I just wonder if I could lessen the pain by narrowing a bit but still keep the low bar style?
Thanks for your time.
I would consider how it feels when you make a change and I'd consider how light it makes the bar feel and what position it puts you body in when you make a change.
Some examples: I find it easier to drive my knees out when I externally rotate my feet a fair amount. So I do it. I find that if I go too wide with my stance it becomes harder to keep my knees out AND it causes discomfort in my hips, so I use a fairly moderate stance.
Another random example: I would really like to widen my grip on bench to shorten my ROM but I can't manage to do so without pain in my shoulders, even when I tuck my elbows. So I don't go wide.
Another random example: My limb lengths place my back almost parallel to the floor in a proper conventional deadlift. The result is that my room for error is very very small in that I end up injured. I'm stronger at conventional (at least I was) than sumo, and my mobility when I started sumo wasn't great. So I switched to a narrow stance sumo and worked on widening it over time. My mobility also improved and now I'm slightly stronger in a sumo position and much more mobile, and it's removed a LOT of stress off of my back so I'm able to deadlift more frequently.
I realize this post doesn't directly answer your question. It's "mostly" personal preference on many of these technical aspects but you should also consider additional factors. I used the sumo deadlift as an example in that, my PREFERENCE was to pull conventional but after objectively looking at my situation sumo was a much better choice so I had to put the work in to get better at that method and acquire the mobility to execute it.
Great reply, I have found all three of these things to be true in myself too. #teampovertybench #sumodeadlift4lyfe0 -
Using this thread to test group notifications and bookmarks0
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smittybuilt19 wrote: »I posted this on the general forums as well, thought I would get more quality responses from you guys though.
The more I lift the more I understand that sometimes, barring any egregious form errors, one most tweak lifts to suit them. How do you know your squat stance is too wide. I generally ignore pain as I know I'm stiff in early sets and it will go away, however, I notice more and more that squats are causing me legitimate pain in, what I would describe as, the femoral head area.
I have always tried to squat as wide as possible since that's what all low bar videos say to do. I just wonder if I could lessen the pain by narrowing a bit but still keep the low bar style?
Thanks for your time.
I would consider how it feels when you make a change and I'd consider how light it makes the bar feel and what position it puts you body in when you make a change.
Some examples: I find it easier to drive my knees out when I externally rotate my feet a fair amount. So I do it. I find that if I go too wide with my stance it becomes harder to keep my knees out AND it causes discomfort in my hips, so I use a fairly moderate stance.
Another random example: I would really like to widen my grip on bench to shorten my ROM but I can't manage to do so without pain in my shoulders, even when I tuck my elbows. So I don't go wide.
Another random example: My limb lengths place my back almost parallel to the floor in a proper conventional deadlift. The result is that my room for error is very very small in that I end up injured. I'm stronger at conventional (at least I was) than sumo, and my mobility when I started sumo wasn't great. So I switched to a narrow stance sumo and worked on widening it over time. My mobility also improved and now I'm slightly stronger in a sumo position and much more mobile, and it's removed a LOT of stress off of my back so I'm able to deadlift more frequently.
I realize this post doesn't directly answer your question. It's "mostly" personal preference on many of these technical aspects but you should also consider additional factors. I used the sumo deadlift as an example in that, my PREFERENCE was to pull conventional but after objectively looking at my situation sumo was a much better choice so I had to put the work in to get better at that method and acquire the mobility to execute it.
I did get a great deal of responses on the main forum, but this is one of the best bits I've heard, and if I'm not mistaken Dopeitup said something very similar. I basically have to find some way to be physically comfortable no matter what form variations I use or else I will eventually abandon the lift all together.
Do what works for you (within reason). Hey, I'm pretty sure you've said this many times.
Thanks SS. And also thanks again Dope!
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smittybuilt19 wrote: »smittybuilt19 wrote: »I posted this on the general forums as well, thought I would get more quality responses from you guys though.
The more I lift the more I understand that sometimes, barring any egregious form errors, one most tweak lifts to suit them. How do you know your squat stance is too wide. I generally ignore pain as I know I'm stiff in early sets and it will go away, however, I notice more and more that squats are causing me legitimate pain in, what I would describe as, the femoral head area.
I have always tried to squat as wide as possible since that's what all low bar videos say to do. I just wonder if I could lessen the pain by narrowing a bit but still keep the low bar style?
Thanks for your time.
I would consider how it feels when you make a change and I'd consider how light it makes the bar feel and what position it puts you body in when you make a change.
Some examples: I find it easier to drive my knees out when I externally rotate my feet a fair amount. So I do it. I find that if I go too wide with my stance it becomes harder to keep my knees out AND it causes discomfort in my hips, so I use a fairly moderate stance.
Another random example: I would really like to widen my grip on bench to shorten my ROM but I can't manage to do so without pain in my shoulders, even when I tuck my elbows. So I don't go wide.
Another random example: My limb lengths place my back almost parallel to the floor in a proper conventional deadlift. The result is that my room for error is very very small in that I end up injured. I'm stronger at conventional (at least I was) than sumo, and my mobility when I started sumo wasn't great. So I switched to a narrow stance sumo and worked on widening it over time. My mobility also improved and now I'm slightly stronger in a sumo position and much more mobile, and it's removed a LOT of stress off of my back so I'm able to deadlift more frequently.
I realize this post doesn't directly answer your question. It's "mostly" personal preference on many of these technical aspects but you should also consider additional factors. I used the sumo deadlift as an example in that, my PREFERENCE was to pull conventional but after objectively looking at my situation sumo was a much better choice so I had to put the work in to get better at that method and acquire the mobility to execute it.
I did get a great deal of responses on the main forum, but this is one of the best bits I've heard, and if I'm not mistaken Dopeitup said something very similar. I basically have to find some way to be physically comfortable no matter what form variations I use or else I will eventually abandon the lift all together.
Do what works for you (within reason). Hey, I'm pretty sure you've said this many times.
Thanks SS. And also thanks again Dope!
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^^Easy now Taylor Swift lol.0
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Without knowing my goals it may be difficult to answer, but, in general, would you consider the above "balanced"? I am still doing Strong lifts and am still progressing (very slowly), however I may like to switch it up in the near future. Thanks!0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-VkOqPK2JY
