Stronglifts 5x5 for Women

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Standard Bar vs. Barbell?

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KaterinaTerese
KaterinaTerese Posts: 345 Member
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I've done 3.5 weeks of SL, and had an weird workout on Friday. I went to my normal squat rack, loaded up 45lbs and went to go down and... no go. I felt like the weight had doubled from Wednesday. At first I thought it was just that I wasn't QUITE ready for those extra 5lbs. The bar looked different from the ones I usually see on that rack (the same length, but the "cross-hatch" pattern on its body was off).

Is it at all possible that I had been working with a standard bar instead of a 45lbs barbell for the last few weeks and finally met my match? In which case, I feel like a total idiot and will have to start over again...

I don't know the difference between them beyond the weight. How can I tell which is the real barbell without going around the weight room comparing? I work out on my own, and just feel like it's just such a stupid question to ask anybody at the gym!

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  • Weebs628
    Weebs628 Posts: 574 Member
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    Are you sure they're the same length? At my gym, the lighter barbells are shorter than the standard barbells.
  • KaterinaTerese
    KaterinaTerese Posts: 345 Member
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    Are you sure they're the same length? At my gym, the lighter barbells are shorter than the standard barbells.

    Yeah, they look almost exactly the same. Except the knurling/cross-hatch pattern and that it wasn't very shiny, lol
  • KaterinaTerese
    KaterinaTerese Posts: 345 Member
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    It was about 6' in length
  • zanyzana
    zanyzana Posts: 248 Member
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    I have a women's Olympic bar which is 15kg rather than 20kg. It has a slightly different crosshatch pattern in that the crosshatching is on the ends of the bar, with the fatter bit on the outside of it. At the gym, the heavier Olympic bars have the crosshatching in the centre of the bar as well as where mine has it. This is a terrible description, but hopefully you can work out what I'm trying to say!
  • girlie100
    girlie100 Posts: 646 Member
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    a 6' Oly bar (takes 2" plates) is 15kg around 35lb and a 7' Oly bar is 20kg around 45lb
  • KaterinaTerese
    KaterinaTerese Posts: 345 Member
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    Well, this morning it was normal looking, and the plates fit on properly, so maybe I just needed that extra cup of coffee!! Dropped back to 40lbs and moving forward on Wednesday!

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