starting out with the 5x5 and getting to the 50% weight?
qkcam
Posts: 67 Member
I loved the videos I found his talk on form and breathing very helpful. I am wonder how do i find and get to the 50% weight? also i tend to have rather large quads and calves. i really don't want them to get any bigger- wondering if doing lighter with the squats maybe a better idea for a. starting out making sure i have proper forum and b. to avoid getting bigger legs. any thoughts?
thank you
thank you
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Do you currently lift? If so, you can use a weight you know you can comfortably lift for 5x5. Don't go too heavy because you'll stall quickly. Most people start with the 45 pound bar just to get comfortable with it and to get their form down. I was already lifting when I started 5x5, so I started with 95 pounds. It was light enough for me to comfortably do 5x5 and fix any form issues I may have had, but it was heavy enough to feel like a good workout for me. I was also able to progress from there because I had a good lifting base prior to SL.
As for starting weight, you should start out with what feels somewhat light for you personally. You want to be comfortable under the bar plus make sure that your form is spot on before progressing. It's easier to fix form issues when the weight is light than when it gets heavy.0 -
that is a great suggestion! thank you .. i tend to push myself too quickly. I was up to 75# on squats yesterday. but you are right about form. when you say start at 45 then would that be all sets warm up and 5 sets with that just to practice? i also know i am not ready to try a 45" overhead press just yet- thanks !0
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i'm not the expert but as far as i know, warmups should always be at a lighter weight. they're not meant to be lifting per se. it's more like you're just booting up the muscles you're going to use, reminding them how to go through the range of motion, getting some blood/nutrients into them, alerting your nervous system that they're going to be doing some work so they can be ready to fire more efficiently once you get serious . . . stuff like that.
personally, i'd be especially careful with the ohp and bench press, because i've had some shoulder issues since before i lifted. the individual muscles that make up your entire shoulder capsule are all pretty small and they can get hurt a lot more easily than your hamstrings or quads.
on the other hand, squats are pretty much a total-body lift, so just doing those first at your real working weighgt might take care of any warming-up needs for the later lifts. i can't remember what the sl site says, but i'm kind of onside with rippetoe, who says you ALWAYS warm up with the empty bar (i.e. a really light weight, so whatever that would be for you in ohp) no matter how heavy your working sets plan to be.
in other words: don't ask me, i guess i'm no practical help at all ;-)0 -
I have big calves and thighs. I've been doing strong lifts for months now, if you see on the May check in my squat work weight is 225lbs. You know what? My calves are getting SMALLER. All my wide calf boots are all floppy looking. My thighs are shaping up too.
As you lose weight your legs will trim up, you aren't going to bulk up (considering you aren't eating to bulk and taking funny supplements). It's a total myth you'll get big by lifting heavy, if it was true all the guys would be hella jealous, especially in the calf department.0 -
For warm up, it depends on what you have available. My gym has some fixed weight barbells that range from 20 lbs to a lot higher, with vary types of bars. They aren't near the squat racks though and I've never brought one over. I have used them for OHP when I couldn't use the rack or power cage. They do come in handy. If you don't have anything available less than the bar weight, you can do fewer sets for warm up. And I found I did less warm up sets in the beginning when the working weight wasn't very high. Once I could lift more, the warm ups increased a little and definitely helped.
I still do some warmup sets for bench press even though they are an accessory for me since NROLFW doesn't include barbell bench press (which made me sad so I added it once a week anyways). Even though it's one of the last lifts and I'm warm, I still do a set with the bar and a couple lighter ones before my working set. On deadlift I didn't warm up much because it was at the end but I like it enough that I do 1 set now at 135 then do whatever other weight I'm working on because I like doing more than one set when doing the lower rep numbers (15 for stage 1 in NROLFW not so much a fan).
Quad wise, generally speaking the body won't get larger unless you're working towards that goal and have the nutrition on point for that as well. They may retain water a little at times from the heavy lifting but doing lighter weights won't be the factor in that. Yes for form, always, to avoid injuries but lifting heavy and 5x5 are known for strength gains, not necessarily linked to size gains.0 -
what is "NROLFW" ? I used lighter weights today and tried some different things with form .. following the video they guy mentions squatting below a 90 degree angle and it was better for the knees. when i tried that with just the 45" bar it hurt pretty bad, and not in a good way- his knees must be younger than mine! is there a way i can set up MFP to notify me when messages are updated? thank you everyone for your feed back i am going to take more time to read over the next couple days. : )
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It's just the quicker way to say New Rules of Lifting for Women. It's a book that includes a workout routine that consists of 7 stages, though technically stage 6 is optional. The book is focused on changing the mindset that women shouldn't lift heavy weights and has some interesting aspects but if you're already okay with lifting and know you won't magically get bulky, it's nothing ground breaking. The workouts are different and helped me learn some new things though.
Proper form does help with how your body reacts along with just getting used to doing the motion. I have bad knees and arthritis in my back but haven't had problems with squatting parallel or slightly lower. But it felt awkward at first since I'd always avoided doing squats in the past.
As for forum updates, I don't know of any way. I just happen to check the forums when I'm online. There are other sites that do that, you can opt to get emails when someone responds, but I always change the setting to not receive those emails.0 -
it took me two or three months and some trial and error to learn how to squat without sending my knees into a fit. i actually quit for probably almost a month because i was afraid i had done some real damage to them. it also took me a handful of weeks before i was able to squat with the bar, so there's that side as well.
if your knees are hurting on the 'inside', i.e. if it feels like it's structural in some way, then i've got no right trying to hand out advice. but assuming that's not the case then i'm a fan of parallel-or-below my own self. it took me a long time to understand why and get convinced though. so for what my experience is worth:
squatting is not about controlling your descent and then pushing yourself back up with your quads. you actually sit back into your hamstrings and everything else at the BACK of your legs. it's like sitting down into a giant slingshot, and those muscles should be doing just as much as your quads to control your descent. then once you hit the bottom of your rep and start back up again, then you're pulling the hamstrings back to a more shortened state, and that automatically straightens your legs without you having to do too much else. and that pushes you upright again.
so you're not pushing DOWN against the floor through your quads when you squat. you're actually shortening your hamstrings and glutes, and letting them push you UP from below. it actually does feel exactly like that, once you get the trick down. i'ts like when you're climbing something and someone physically gives you a boost from underneath.
it took me some serious experimenting and futzing around before i figured out how to get it to happen with my own legs, but the relief to my knees was practically instantaneous and permanent. it makes sense actually, because not only do stronger posterior-chain muscles support your knees from the back as well as the front, but also doing it that way takes a LOT the pressure off your quads. which in my case meant my overworked quads weren't putting all that pressure on my kneecaps anymore. i thought i had wrecked them for real, but they cheered up right away.
so check out prepatellar tendonitis, if it feels like that's the kind of 'not happy' your own knees are, and something in this might be helpful to you. but again, if you think there's any danger of actual injury to your knees then please ignore me. i've never even met your knees, but you probably know them quite well.0 -
some body types can get a bit bulky when they lift heavy- i think i am one of those- as i do get bigger esp certain parts of my body quicker than others- as for the knees, lots of good feedback and info.. i will have to keep experimenting- the pain oddly was different on each side.. the knee on left was in the knee- on the right leg the pain is down the outside of the leg from the knee down. today i am very tired very tired and extra hungry- trying to stick to calories .. i guess the 5x5s are boosting metabolism. i have to get to know my knees better by the way!
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some body types can get a bit bulky when they lift heavy- i think i am one of those- as i do get bigger esp certain parts of my body quicker than others- as for the knees, lots of good feedback and info.. i will have to keep experimenting- the pain oddly was different on each side.. the knee on left was in the knee- on the right leg the pain is down the outside of the leg from the knee down. today i am very tired very tired and extra hungry- trying to stick to calories .. i guess the 5x5s are boosting metabolism. i have to get to know my knees better by the way!
I saw a reddit post awhile back that the consensus was if there was indeed women who get bulky just from lifting heavy they should lift just to prove it. As it is false unless you are eating to bulk and taking hormones. Normally we have the testosterone to pull it off.0
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