Women: How much do you lift?

um. none haha. I'm waiting to lose at least enough fat and just fat until i get down within my healthy range. I'm lifting my body fat everyday :P lol

um. none haha. I'm waiting to lose at least enough fat and just fat until i get down within my healthy range. I'm lifting my body fat everyday :P lol

You will lose fat quicker if you lift

um. none haha. I'm waiting to lose at least enough fat and just fat until i get down within my healthy range. I'm lifting my body fat everyday :P lol

You will lose fat quicker if you lift

^^^ that, and you'll maintain that coveted lean body mass!!! Dont wait, LIFT TODAY! lol

Bench: 165 Lbs (can I get a What?) x 1

Wow, nice work!

what what!!! thats freaking amazing...

thanks lady!!!

you are not the first person to tell me this- I don't really grasp how you can't squat a weight because of knees- but you can leg press almost 400 lbs.... that statement cannot reconcile themselves in my brain. the mechanics of a leg press are way more unnatural than a squat- so I'm not sure how that works.

I know a guy who's a trainer- very fit and very knowledgeable- said the same thing- I almost dropped my jaw on the dirty gym floor to hear him say that... I just don't understand it.

edit- not saying this to be nasty or mean- merely I actually literally don't understand it. it baffles me.

JoRocca, I think most people do not do the leg press properly, thus claim huge numbers on the thing. I actually HATE the leg press because of this reason... and it is an unnatural position. Might as well categorize it with the smith machine IMO.

ETA- Sorry, I messed up the quote. I only wanted to quote your comment, not the other.

I know the leg pressers you're talking about. The 360lb is my 3rd and 4th set of 10-12 reps. I'm going down about 3/4 (about 10 inches from my chest). If i wanted to do half leg press i could do 500lbs or something stupid like that.

I like the front squat and squat thrusts more. I personally don't like squats very much but they are a GREAT exercise. No arguments. I have very weak crappy knees so i'm trying to do more stabilizing workouts.

aka......martial arts, side to side movements, jumping squats, jumping split lunges, gradually doing a pistol etc. etc.

Leg press is MUCH EASIER - I do three types of Leg press............wide, shoulder, narrow/one leg. It's just more stable and you can't f up as much. You should be able to do about 2/3x the weight you squat.

Just a personal preference.

Thanks for the feedback! I will do those instead :drinker: I'm a beginner with this so I appreciate that

yeah- those things are 'okay'

but check out what's been posted? lots of compound lifts- rather than isolation stuff. it's not that those are bad (they aren't good or bad- they are just a thing)... so don't think you're 'wrong'.. it's just you can get A LOT more bang for your buck by doing compound movements.

I just did a big write up for someone- it's in the Golds x45 thread- near this one (or it should be- I can link it)
Whoop whoop here it is
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1115176-golds-gym-xr45

... check out new rules of lifting for women- starting strength or strong lifts 5 x 5 (I think that's more advanced) I've seen some people recommend Strong Curves as well. I personally haven't used them- but I know several who have- and they are good solid programs for beginners. Don't hesitate to ask- we all started knowing nothing and we learned on our own- the hard way and by researching and somewhere SOMEONE helped us. people who love doing this stuff- they are happy to help - so ask away. No shame- seriously- we all began somewhere.

Yeah I did download the NROL and looked at the workout plan and was afraid. My fear is that since I am new I wont be using the right form and make a fool of myself. I have a meeting with a personal trainer so I will ask them to show me, and tell them I am interested in compound lifts right off the bat. I love that post about the xr45, very informative especially the gym etiquette

preacher curls- 30# 3 sets of 8
dumbbell shoulder press-15# 3 sets of 8
Thigh abductor and adductor- 100# 3 sets of 8

Yeah I did download the NROL and looked at the workout plan and was afraid. My fear is that since I am new I wont be using the right form and make a fool of myself. I have a meeting with a personal trainer so I will ask them to show me, and tell them I am interested in compound lifts right off the bat. I love that post about the xr45, very informative especially the gym etiquette

good.

don't be afraid- google.

you know the names of these things now- so go to the interwebz (YAY what would we have done without google and youtube before now!!) and check out 'squat form'

'how to proprly perform a back squat or a front squat- or a dead lift or a X, Y Z"

Watch a LOT. I say this because if you watch ONE video- and it's a for sh%t video- you won't know. If you watch a lot- you won't be able to pick up the finer nuances but you'll have a much larger understand of what the proper form is. i don't have any right off the bat to suggest to you- but start with a broom stick or PVC pipe- something that is just a bar. and technically you don't NEED a bar to learn the motion- but it's certainly helpful.

Don't be scared- learning is a process and it's overwhelming- but there is an tremendous amount of information out there- so you can give yourself a good head start just looking on your own (knowing the names REALLY helps LOL it's certainly hard to just google form on stuff you don't know what it's called!)

Good luck starting out- and go ahead and ask whatever you need- here or start your own thread- no worries.

thank you!

Just posted this on my status this morning:

Stage 1 NROL4W completed, sixteen workouts in five weeks. My weight is steady at 148.5 lb, averaging 2100 calories a day. SQUAT: Started with body weight, two sets of 15, finished with 35 lb (total) barbell, three sets of 8. PUSHUP: Started on an incline using a bench, two sets of 15, finished flat, three sets of 8. SEATED ROW: Started with 40 lb, two sets of 8, finished with 60 lb, three sets of 8. STEPUPS: Started with two risers and 12 lb dumb bells, two sets of 15, finished with four risers and 25 lb dumb bells, three sets of 8. (Five risers got hard on my knees.) PRONE JACK KNIFES: Started with two sets of 8, finished with three sets of 15. DEADLIFT: Started with the bar (45 lb) two sets of 15. Finished with 85 lb (total), three sets of 8. DUMBBELL SHOULDER PRESS: Started with 12 lb dumbbells, two sets of 15, finished with 20 lb dumbbells, three sets of 8. WIDE GRIP LAT PULLDOWNS: Started with 50 lb, two sets of 15, finished with 60 lb, three sets of 8. LUNGES: Started with 5 lb dumbbells, two sets of 15, finished with 20 lb dumbbells, three sets of 8. SWISS BALL CRUNCHES: Started with two sets of 8, finished with three sets of 15.

Hey, I'll jump in …

Did legs earlier this week:
DL: 115
squat: 110
Hip thrust: 95 (this is a newer exercise for me)

Upper body today:
Bench press: 95
seated row: (cable machine) 100
bicep curl: 2x20
pullup: body weight - 40
dips: body weight - 30

I do most of these in 5 sets of 5; I also do it in a bit of a circuit (ie deadlift, side lunge, deltoid raises, repeat).

I agree with rieann84 … don't compare yourself to others! I lifted a few years ago (wow, it's been almost 10!) but am only 2 months into this new program. I'd be bummed comparing myself to people who've been lifting consistently for a year or more; at the same time there is still some muscle memory so the learning curve was much faster, so a new lifter who's been doing it for a couple of months probably wouldn't be at the same level and shouldn't judge her (or his) progress by mine. Either way compare yourself to yourself and celebrate your own PRs, not beating someone else!

I like strength training a lot more than cardio



Squats: 105
Deadlifts: 125
Lat Pull Down: 75
Bent over Barbell Row: 65
Overhead Press: 50-55, ugh. I have no upper body strength.

I do 6 reps per set (5) right now. Starting to lose my grip on the deadlift and my gym doesn't allow chalk. Don't want to wear gloves. Thinking about straps in the future. I started using a mixed grip but I need to cut that out and work on grip strength or i'll never do it.

Check out Versa gripps!!

Hummmm, old thread revived, COOL.............

*backs out to go lift some moar!