ActivTrax

HorrorChix89

We all know the arguements...High Weight, Low Reps vs Low Weight, High Reps. We all have our own opinions and no one cares about what you have to say if it conflicts with their beliefs.

My reason for posting this is I'm a member of 10Fitness which may or may not be in other states. They use a site called ActivTrax that gives you daily strength training workouts depending on what your goals are. I had to take a strength test with one of the trainers at the gym. She set the weight pretty high on one of the machines, then had me do up to 20 reps (or until I cried). If I could do 20 reps easily she put a higher weight.

ActivTrax is High Reps. The highest you can do is 20 reps with 3 sets. Sometimes it's only 15 reps. Sometimes I can get to 15 or 20 in each set, sometimes I stop short due to too much weight.

I already know what the majority of the comments are going to be, but I still would like to read some of them.

Nopedotjpeg

I'm not sure what the question/prompt is. What is it you're looking for an opinion on?

HorrorChix89

umm...High Weight, Low Reps vs Low Weight, High Reps and the fact that my gym program is telling me to do sets of 15-20...

Nopedotjpeg

My knowledge is still limited in comparison to many on here, but really it's all about goals.

My biggest problem with that program your gym gave you is that it sounds like a one-size-fits-all program. And it's rarely ever that simple.

I lift heavy because I want to eventually be a part of a sport that is all about lifting heavy. However, talk to a dedicated marathon runner, and the strength training they do will probably be lighter and high rep because their sport calls for endurance.

A good program should be based on your goals; and your goals should be rather specific.

meshashesha2012

i think many gyms give that advice to women because they dont want to frighten them about heavier weights. besides that i think many women have too much mental blockage when it comes to lifting heavy weights, so a gym telling them that's what they should do would probably run into lots of resistance. but i do give your gym credit for having you use the highest weight you can for those 20 reps. they could have been like "never go over x amount of weight".

anyway, i dont see why it has to be a this vs that argument. it's your body do what you want. if you arent sure what you want then try one way for a month then try another for a month and compare and contrast.

i think wht some eventually decides on doing is going to be down to their goals. if you want to be strong and powerful then you're going to have to go for high weights low rep.

i personally prefer high weights low rep because i really dont have time to be spending hours in the gym doing 60 reps of each and every exercise.. neither time nor the patience. plus when i did work out like that i never saw any difference in my real world strength. you know like when one of the wheels break on your suitcase and you have to carry it at the airport, or when your building's elevator in out and you have to lug bags of groceries up 4 flights of steps.

finally i lift heavy because i like the challenge of seeing what my limits are.

HorrorChix89

They have it set where you can choose from a set of goals. Then it selects workouts based on them

Frequency: (Number of days per week doing strength training):
2 Days | 3 Days | 4 Days | 5 Days Or More

Intensity:
Lighter | Normal | Heavier

Training Type: (Determines which muscle groups are worked and how often):
Full Body | Isolated Muscle | Lower Body Emphasis | Lower Body Only | Opposing Muscle Groups | Push/Pull | Splitbody | Super Slow | Upper Body Emphasis | Upper Body Only

Time of Each Workout: (Approximate, not including warmup, abs or cardio):
15-25 Minutes 25-35 Minutes 35-45 Minutes
45-60 Minutes

Result Desired:
Endurance | Improving Health | Mass Building | Strengthening | Weight Loss and Toning

Then you choose what equipment you want to use

Include barbell exercises?
Include dumbbell exercises?
Include plated equipment?
Include selectorized equipment?
Include spotter-recommended exercises?

Lastly, you include your weight goals, activity level, and how much weight you want to lose weekly.

I just keep seeing people say "Low Weight High Reps are BS! And your stupid for trying it!!!! *roidrage*". So I wanted honest opinions on it since my gym gets a lot of people on this program.

Nopedotjpeg

Since that's actually a good deal of customization, my question is, how did you customize it? What was the goal you chose from that list?

HorrorChix89

@meshashesha20: It's not aimed at just women. This isn't a "woman only" gym. They have men using the gym and this program as well. So you can just say they're trying not to scare women away.

HorrorChix89

Since that's actually a good deal of customization, my question is, how did you customize it? What was the goal you chose from that list?

I have mine set to:

4 Days, Normal Inensity, Split-body, 25-35 Minutes, Weight Loss and Toning.
No barbells, no plates, no spotter. Only dumbbells and weight machines
Lightly Active with Lose 1lb/Wk

Nopedotjpeg

Since that's actually a good deal of customization, my question is, how did you customize it? What was the goal you chose from that list?

I have mine set to:

4 Days, Normal Inensity, Split-body, 25-35 Minutes, Weight Loss and Toning.
No barbells, no plates, no spotter. Only dumbbells and weight machines
Lightly Active with Lose 1lb/Wk

The thing I've always wondered with things like this. What is toning? Anytime someone has tried to define it for me, it ends up sounding like a synonym for spot reduction.

HorrorChix89

I know you can't spot reduce, I'm pretty sure they mean slim down, lean out, replace fat with some muscle, etc. Not exaclty just make certain parts look better. It's more of a whole body type thing...if that made sense. It worked in my head lol

Nopedotjpeg

I know you can't spot reduce, I'm pretty sure they mean slim down, lean out, replace fat with some muscle, etc. Not exaclty just make certain parts look better. It's more of a whole body type thing...if that made sense. It worked in my head lol

I really wish I had the proper knowledge to talk about this because I'm going to end up sounding like I'm talking out of my *kitten* here, but it's 4:30am so **** it I'll talk out of my *kitten*. lol

Any beginner muscle gains on a calorie deficit aren't going to be happening for long. When it comes to fat loss and strength training, the theory behind it seems to be that you are trying to preserve your muscle. This helps with fat loss because muscle is less calorie efficient than fat, and takes more calories to maintain. Hence, your BMR essentially increases (or at least decreases much slower). Additionally, this will lower your body fat percentage because you're keeping your lean body mass close to a constant instead of sacrificing it along with the fat.

meshashesha2012

@meshashesha20: It's not aimed at just women. This isn't a "woman only" gym. They have men using the gym and this program as well. So you can just say they're trying not to scare women away.

okee dokee.

have fun with your program

HorrorChix89

I know you can't spot reduce, I'm pretty sure they mean slim down, lean out, replace fat with some muscle, etc. Not exaclty just make certain parts look better. It's more of a whole body type thing...if that made sense. It worked in my head lol

I really wish I had the proper knowledge to talk about this because I'm going to end up sounding like I'm talking out of my *kitten* here, but it's 4:30am so **** it I'll talk out of my *kitten*. lol

Any beginner muscle gains on a calorie deficit aren't going to be happening for long. When it comes to fat loss and strength training, the theory behind it seems to be that you are trying to preserve your muscle. This helps with fat loss because muscle is less calorie efficient than fat, and takes more calories to maintain. Hence, your BMR essentially increases (or at least decreases much slower). Additionally, this will lower your body fat percentage because you're keeping your lean body mass close to a constant instead of sacrificing it along with the fat.

Okay call me slow (or it may be that it's 4am) but I read that 3 times and still confused on what you're saying. Are you saying that you can't really gain that much muscle eating at a deficit?

Nopedotjpeg

I know you can't spot reduce, I'm pretty sure they mean slim down, lean out, replace fat with some muscle, etc. Not exaclty just make certain parts look better. It's more of a whole body type thing...if that made sense. It worked in my head lol

I really wish I had the proper knowledge to talk about this because I'm going to end up sounding like I'm talking out of my *kitten* here, but it's 4:30am so **** it I'll talk out of my *kitten*. lol

Any beginner muscle gains on a calorie deficit aren't going to be happening for long. When it comes to fat loss and strength training, the theory behind it seems to be that you are trying to preserve your muscle. This helps with fat loss because muscle is less calorie efficient than fat, and takes more calories to maintain. Hence, your BMR essentially increases (or at least decreases much slower). Additionally, this will lower your body fat percentage because you're keeping your lean body mass close to a constant instead of sacrificing it along with the fat.

Okay call me slow (or it may be that it's 4am) but I read that 3 times and still confused on what you're saying. Are you saying that you can't really gain that much muscle eating at a deficit?

You can gain some muscle in the beginning. I'm not sure for how long. But from what I know, you need to be eating a caloric surplus to eventually gain much muscle.

HorrorChix89

I'm not trying to bulk up, but I know strength training aids in weight loss along with calorie deficit. At least that's what everyone says