Am I getting bad advice from my gym?

CatherineElizabeth13 wrote: »

It seems no one can ask advice anymore without someone saying the poster is being antagonistic or the post seems dodgy

I'm new to lifting. I wanted advice to get the most out f my sessions. It's confusing when a weight loss community say one thing and a qualified trainer says another. I just wanted opinions.

You asked good questions in a straight forward way. Nothing wrong with that. I have no doubt you can express yourself clearly and well in person too. Don't sweat it.

CatherineElizabeth13 wrote: »

It seems no one can ask advice anymore without someone saying the poster is being antagonistic or the post seems dodgy

I'm new to lifting. I wanted advice to get the most out f my sessions. It's confusing when a weight loss community say one thing and a qualified trainer says another. I just wanted opinions.

You got great advice.

And I advised you not to put a wife against a husband. You don't have to take it. I just don't see the point. Go to the wife for advice but you already made it clear that you cannot afford her.

well, you most definitely seem to have some misconceptions and i'm wondering if you're really relaying his information properly.

If he DID say that women should never work out in that manner, then yes, he's an idiot. But really, the answer is women shouldn't have to train any differently from men.

HOWEVER, if you are someone who is very overweight, a beginner, or deconditioned, I also don't recommend you begin just lifting heavy weights. This is an injury waiting to happen. You should begin performing RESISTANCE exercises now. Not "strength", "heavy lifting", etc.

Your exercise routine should be tailored to your current capabilities. It should be progressive and periodized. While one person may be capable of starting with either hypertrophy or maximal strength training, that doesn't mean that you are.

So to your statement that women "must lift heavy" "should lift heavy" and "should lift heavy NOW"? That's not true in every circumstance and it's ludicrous to suggest that. Especially for " for woman as overweight as myself ".

CatherineElizabeth13 wrote: »

Everything I've read on here and online in general suggests that women should heavy lift.
The advice for woman as overweight as myself seem to be to lift heavy from the start, don't wait until you're close goal weight as it will help to prevent muscle loss through deficit eating and help with skin sagging.

Am I right so far?

So I had a discussion with the guy who owns my gym (his wife is a champion body builder). He told me he absolutely won't allow me to do high weight low reps as women should only do low weight high rep.
To me it seems a bit counter productive based on what I've read on here. And I'm not sure his wife would agree with his thinking on women lifting.

I would like to hear peoples thoughts.

First of all, since when does the gym owner have any say on what you do as long as it is not damaging equipment or blatantly dangerous (that is, something even "men" shouldn't be doing). I agree with others, if he is going to be a horses behind about this, go to another gym.

CatherineElizabeth13 wrote: »

Having thought about it since posting. I think the reason he refuses to allow women to heavy lift is because they have "kindly" created a WOMEN'S ONLY weight section full of barbie bells and even a low weight barbell

Ha, yeah, that makes me think he's worried about having another lifter in "his side of the gym". F him. And if he tries to kick you out, ask him to point out in the contract you sign where you're prohibited from using certain gym equipment.

rainbowbow wrote: »

CatherineElizabeth13 wrote: »

rainbowbow wrote: »

If he DID say that women should never work out in that manner, then yes, he's an idiot. But really, the answer is women shouldn't have to train any differently from men.

He did say women shouldn't lift heavy. Then referred to the New Rules of Weight Lifting for Women as "feminism gone wild".

then he's an idiot.

Regardless, my point still stands that you should begin RESISTANCE training (in general), now. Not necessarily "heavy lifting".

The point isn't correct though. SL 5x5 starts you with just the bar and slowly builds up to heavy lifting. There is zero, non-medical reason, why you can't start lift straight away.
You will be starting with little to no weight but that is the idea. You learn form before adding weight.
When people say start heavy lifting, they don't usually mean, go and whack your body weight on the bar and have a go at squating it or benching as much as humanly possible from the get go.

rainbowbow wrote: »

CatherineElizabeth13 wrote: »

rainbowbow wrote: »

If he DID say that women should never work out in that manner, then yes, he's an idiot. But really, the answer is women shouldn't have to train any differently from men.

He did say women shouldn't lift heavy. Then referred to the New Rules of Weight Lifting for Women as "feminism gone wild".

then he's an idiot.

Regardless, my point still stands that you should begin RESISTANCE training (in general), now. Not necessarily "heavy lifting".

Yeah, he's an idiot. I agree with Rainbowbow, it makes sense to start out with resistance training and proper form before you go to heavy lifting.

Regardless, my point still stands that you should begin RESISTANCE training (in general), now. Not necessarily "heavy lifting".

I disagree.

Heavy is a relative term. She doesn't need to do one max reps or even 50% of max. She'll figure that out with continued study and practice.

We already know she can lift because she's lifting at home. If she couldn't lift, didn't have the strength, then yes, body weight or so-called "resistance" training might be appropriate, but that's not the case here.

In my opinion this is just about learning safe form.

Of course heavy is a relative term (?). But lifting heavy often refers to lifting in a certain repetition range (i.e. max strength, or even the hypertrophy range depending on who you're talking to).

As to your comment about 50% of max (?), here's a handy guide you can use to understand what i'm talking about and get a general idea of the different acute variables people can use when training.

• Endurance training is the rep range 12-20+. This is generally performed at 60-70% of your 1 RM. This is also performed with pretty low volume of 1-3 sets and a slow tempo. Rest periods fall within the 0-90 second range.
• Hypertrophy training is the rep range 6-12. This is generally performed at 75-85% of your 1RM. This is performed with higher volume 3-5 sets and a moderate tempo. Rest periods fall within the 0-60 second range.
• Maximal Strength training is the rep range 1-5 sets with a volume of 4-6 sets. Intensity is 85%-100% of your 1RM. This training requires much longer rest periods (3-5 minutes) between sets.
• Power training is the rep range 1-10 at 30-45% of your 1RM or less than 10% of your total body weight. It's high volume with 3-6 sets and a fast/explosive tempo. This training also requires a much longer rest period of 3-5 minutes.

I don't know why you said "so called body weight/resistance". Resistance training is any exercise that causes the muscles to contract against an external resistance. The external resistance can be dumbbells, barbells, tubing, cables, machines, your own body weight, etc.

I was advising her that she needs to be performing resistance exercise in general. She may not be ready to be lifting in the max strength rep ranges, especially if she is overweight and deconditioned as i stated. My advice was that she needs to begin resistance training and start a progressive and periodized plan, which should be tailored to her current physical capabilities.