How to deal with impatience?

mutantspicy

ijsantos2005 wrote: »

Am I the only one who thinks it’s weird that he’s complaining about 90 second rest times? Wait till you’re lifting heavy and resting 5+ minutes...

Well I admittingly just started with barbell lifting again like 6 weeks ago. So I'm not lifting huge weight yet, trying to be careful But now I have my sea legs under me, I'm ramping up fast and expect to be squatting 3 plates within the next 6 to 8 weeks. I do rest like 2 mins on my squats and dead lifts. For the past year prior I was doing high volume body building stuff with dumbells mostly. There was a lot of pyramids, super sets, giant sets, etc. So I'm used to short rest periods, I recover pretty quick and have quite a bit of endurance. Now I want to build strength. Its just really time consuming. And to your point, my impatience has caused me to fail at a couple sets I shouldn't have. Its whole different mentality than what I'm used to.

mutantspicy

pbryd wrote: »

mutantspicy wrote: »

I find myself looking at my timer, waiting for that 90sec rest to go by. I don't think there's anything to do about it, because I making some of most significant body changes I've made in years. But damn, I feel like waste so much time.

If 90 secs feels like too long, then I'd have to question if you are training hard enough, especially on the compound movements.

Buy hey, if you're making gains, then it's obviously working.

Yeah thats why I made the post. As I continue to climb in weights that 90secs is going to climb as well. And I'm all ready getting stir crazy. I just need to change my mindset for this.

MegaMooseEsq

I’m a beginner to strength training and definitely have struggled with impatience. I usually use my rests to log my set and maybe dance around a bit to keep warm (I work out in my basement). When I’m doing something that calls for a longer rest I usually plan on having some laundry to fold, although I’m finding this works better in the winter than the summer because of sweat.

mutantspicy

MegaMooseEsq wrote: »

I’m a beginner to strength training and definitely have struggled with impatience. I usually use my rests to log my set and maybe dance around a bit to keep warm (I work out in my basement). When I’m doing something that calls for a longer rest I usually plan on having some laundry to fold, although I’m finding this works better in the winter than the summer because of sweat.

Yeah I mean I have a one track mind.. Lol. If I'm in work out mode, I don't want any other distractions. Lately, I've been flexing the muscle group I'm working on or playing air guitar or walking around in circles. Today I went up on my dumb bell presses from 80's to 95's and I needed the 90 secs to 2 mins between my sets. Time just seems to creep when I'm waiting, but I was able to stay pumped up. Having Motorhead play in the back ground seems to help.

Davidsdottir

jdscrubs32 wrote: »

I just people watch which. As my weights have gone up on stronglifts, so has my rest periods between sets and thus so has my people watching.

Yup. I end up watching other people at the gym. There's a badass little chick and I love when she's deadlifting next to me.

joemac1988

pbryd wrote: »

mutantspicy wrote: »

I find myself looking at my timer, waiting for that 90sec rest to go by. I don't think there's anything to do about it, because I making some of most significant body changes I've made in years. But damn, I feel like waste so much time.

If 90 secs feels like too long, then I'd have to question if you are training hard enough, especially on the compound movements.

Buy hey, if you're making gains, then it's obviously working.

I'm with @mutantspicy . When I'm lifting heavy, if I DON'T rest long enough, I'm going to miss the next lift. Might want to take a look at that.

LiftHeavyThings27105

Jaiho_Lancs wrote: »

Try Brian Alsruhe - giant sets. Basically in between sets he trains the antagonist body part

Bench - to Row
Dips - Pull up

That way you get more volume in and do more than just standing around... equally it doesn't harm your recovery time as it not the part you are training if that makes sense.

The guys channel is a gold mine of strength and conditioning stuff.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dcr-JtlmtVc

+1 on that (Brian Alsruhe). I have been preaching him for some time. I learned a ton from his "How to:" Series (a three-part series on Bench, on Squat, on Deadlifts).

Golden stuff there.....plus, amazing human being. All around good dude! With a strong gym and a great following.

LiftHeavyThings27105

quiksylver296 wrote: »

I had squats this morning. Five sets of seven at 6 RPE, then four sets of one at 8.5 RPE. It took me almost an hour and a half. I have to go back this afternoon for bench, deads, pull-ups and rows. That's just the powerlifting life.

Yes, ma'am! That is how it was for me, too! When I was doing it. Going to take a year off of Squats and Deadlifts (and was so close to three plates on the squat and four plates on deads) to let my "sensitive" lower back heal. Anyway......you gotta let the body recover from that one set to kill the next one, too!

LiftHeavyThings27105

When I was doing the power lifting thing and getting up there in the weights (for me....not really all that impressive numbers, but a lot for me) I was super focused and would concentrate on proper breathing between sets. I would also visualize all of the queues for the next set of whatever....

I played sports in high school and college and was (and still am) very much into visualization. I mean, how in the hell does someone hit a 96mph fastball or an 84mph curveball, right? The brain....see the ball, hit the ball, trust your hands. That comes with a lot of visualization. At least, for me.

It worked well for me with lifting. The first time I pulled with three plates, I remember it well. I had two plates on each side and the 35lbs (so, 295lbs). I had - at that point - never done 300lbs (or higher). So, for the next two minutes and 30 seconds I sat where I always sat, focused on getting my breathing correct and just visualized three plates on each side and me pulling that *kitten* off the floor with perfect form and technique. I l killed two birds with one stone...…+300lbs and three plates.

That 90 seconds - 180 seconds in between sets can really put you in a great place, mentally. If the mind thinks it can do something...….

mutantspicy

LiftHeavyThings27105 wrote: »

When I was doing the power lifting thing and getting up there in the weights (for me....not really all that impressive numbers, but a lot for me) I was super focused and would concentrate on proper breathing between sets. I would also visualize all of the queues for the next set of whatever....

I played sports in high school and college and was (and still am) very much into visualization. I mean, how in the hell does someone hit a 96mph fastball or an 84mph curveball, right? The brain....see the ball, hit the ball, trust your hands. That comes with a lot of visualization. At least, for me.

It worked well for me with lifting. The first time I pulled with three plates, I remember it well. I had two plates on each side and the 35lbs (so, 295lbs). I had - at that point - never done 300lbs (or higher). So, for the next two minutes and 30 seconds I sat where I always sat, focused on getting my breathing correct and just visualized three plates on each side and me pulling that *kitten* off the floor with perfect form and technique. I l killed two birds with one stone...…+300lbs and three plates.

That 90 seconds - 180 seconds in between sets can really put you in a great place, mentally. If the mind thinks it can do something...….

Thanks for that! When I played football, I used to visualize my 3 step power move all the time. Power of the mind is something that's for sure, and I suspect as I creep toward the 300 mark its going to become more necessary to keep my head in the game.

LiftHeavyThings27105

mutantspicy wrote: »

LiftHeavyThings27105 wrote: »

When I was doing the power lifting thing and getting up there in the weights (for me....not really all that impressive numbers, but a lot for me) I was super focused and would concentrate on proper breathing between sets. I would also visualize all of the queues for the next set of whatever....

I played sports in high school and college and was (and still am) very much into visualization. I mean, how in the hell does someone hit a 96mph fastball or an 84mph curveball, right? The brain....see the ball, hit the ball, trust your hands. That comes with a lot of visualization. At least, for me.

It worked well for me with lifting. The first time I pulled with three plates, I remember it well. I had two plates on each side and the 35lbs (so, 295lbs). I had - at that point - never done 300lbs (or higher). So, for the next two minutes and 30 seconds I sat where I always sat, focused on getting my breathing correct and just visualized three plates on each side and me pulling that *kitten* off the floor with perfect form and technique. I l killed two birds with one stone...…+300lbs and three plates.

That 90 seconds - 180 seconds in between sets can really put you in a great place, mentally. If the mind thinks it can do something...….

Thanks for that! When I played football, I used to visualize my 3 step power move all the time. Power of the mind is something that's for sure, and I suspect as I creep toward the 300 mark its going to become more necessary to keep my head in the game.

That.....and everything tight af! :-)

Muscle_for_Fitness

I usually try to do some sort of mobility drills, activation, or just work on form during early sets. Once I get into my heavier sets, I rarely do anything but focus on letting my muscles recover. I will pair my accessory lifts together so my rest periods are much shorter.

mutantspicy

Muscle_for_Fitness wrote: »

I usually try to do some sort of mobility drills, activation, or just work on form during early sets. Once I get into my heavier sets, I rarely do anything but focus on letting my muscles recover. I will pair my accessory lifts together so my rest periods are much shorter.

So you are saying you do some activation, mobility and muscle control during your warm up sets? The program I'm on now has me doing my heavy sets up front then the smaller accessory lifts. Of course it requires warm up sets before lifting the working weight.

Which overall, tonight went way better! Maybe just talking about it and airing it out helped. I don't know. But I had a mentality that this was going to take however long it takes. Lower Body Strength day - I'm doing a PHAT like program. Normally this day takes me 50 to 60 mins, today 89 mins. I did more warm up sets, and took more time between sets. My squat went very well, I'll move up again next week to 255. But my dead lift went up 30 lbs to 275. I plan to stay there for a while. I need to work on my grip strength, which is my road block with deads. I got my reps but had to switch to mix grip pretty quick each set. I also realize that once I get thru the next 6 week block, I'm gonna have to consider changing my program so that squat and dead power lifts don't happen on the same day. We'll see.

ricka1962

Nothing wrong with waiting 90 seconds, but if you're ready to go sooner, why wait? Take a 60 second rest, or even a 30 sec rest. Then see how you feel after the next set? Personally, I find the shorter rest sets get more intense for me. Still get hypertrophy too.

The key is (for me) is to maintain the same volume for time under tension.

robertw486

You just can't rest quickly. It sucks.

I usually just zone out and/or people watch. Sometimes watching the people that are killing it would be the motivation to just suck it up and take the rest break. Watching the people that do nothing in the gym would be motivation to not waste my time and make sure I kill it on the next set.

comptonelizabeth

This is going to sound hippy dippy and I expect to get a woo or 2. But, mindfulness? I find it helps massively with impatience of any kind. Stay in the moment instead of thinking ahead. Find at least 3 things you can see, hear, feel, smell and taste (shouldn't be hard in a gym!) Works for me in all kinds of situations.

deputy_randolph

I have to rest for a couple of minutes between heavy sets. I usually go to the bathroom. Peeing on the platform isn't as glamorous as it sounds.

mutantspicy

comptonelizabeth wrote: »

This is going to sound hippy dippy and I expect to get a woo or 2. But, mindfulness? I find it helps massively with impatience of any kind. Stay in the moment instead of thinking ahead. Find at least 3 things you can see, hear, feel, smell and taste (shouldn't be hard in a gym!) Works for me in all kinds of situations.

Well I'm a hippy who does yoga so.. You're not going to get any complaints out of me. And yeah, its really just a mental thing. I went several years of doing total body circuits and then really high volume body building, there was always this get in, get it done, get out attitude with that, every workout is 30 to 40 mins. Now that I'm circled back to this hybrid of power lifting and hypertrophy training its just a different mind space. I think just acknowledging it out loud, has already helped. I just to need to accept there is no reason to rush it or hurry, its all about lifting that weight!

stanmann571

Bring a paperback.

quiksylver296

deputy_randolph wrote: »

I have to rest for a couple of minutes between heavy sets. I usually go to the bathroom. Peeing on the platform isn't as glamorous as it sounds.

Amen, sister.