Women lifters.....

Here's one other question...kinda dumb I guess, but do you workout with someone for all this lifting? I find I'd really like to have a permanent spotter so I can push myself more. But, omg, I'm scared to death to ask one of the guys standing around to help. Don't want to bother them...:blushing:

I'm a newbie so my weights aren't that impressive.

Squat: 45
Deadlift: 60

What is the difference between a "squatting rack" and a "Smith Machine"

Squat rack, or preferrably a power cage is just that, a rack or "cage" where you can load your weights at chest level, lift them off the rack, do your squats freely then put them back on the rack. You need this if you are using a barbell. The cage has lower horizontal bars that you set below where the bar would be on your lowest (*kitten* to grass) squat, so if you can't get back up you can put it down on the bars.

A smith machine, aka the devil, has a bar in a locked linear position, up and down, sometimes on a slant, which does not allow you to develop balance, core stability and forces you into an unnatural squat position.

Thanks for responding. I get it now. I use the rack. Just didn't know a machine like that exsisted. Thank you for the help.

Sorry, I didn't realize there were 13 other people answering your question at the same time. I think your question was very helpful to others though, who might tend to use the smith and/or otherwise unfamiliar with the equipment. My previous gym had only a smith and no squat rack.

Here's one other question...kinda dumb I guess, but do you workout with someone for all this lifting? I find I'd really like to have a permanent spotter so I can push myself more. But, omg, I'm scared to death to ask one of the guys standing around to help. Don't want to bother them...:blushing:

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/jamie-eason-livefit-trainer.html

This is an incredible plan. It's a 12 week program, that slowly escalates. I highly recommend it. I have been through the whole program, and am doing a second round now. I started from phase 2 the second time, because the first 4 weeks were a little too easy by the time I had gotten through the program. I have never been so strong, and see definition I never thought I would! I have been doing weight lifting for a while, but I love to have a full plan at the gym, I work so much harder, and it takes out the guess work when I'm there making me much more focused.

Check out this group
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/102-new-rules-of-lifting-for-women-nrol4w

Here's one other question...kinda dumb I guess, but do you workout with someone for all this lifting? I find I'd really like to have a permanent spotter so I can push myself more. But, omg, I'm scared to death to ask one of the guys standing around to help. Don't want to bother them...:blushing:

I agree with the above poster.. Jamie Eason 12 week live fit trainer is excellent. I have been through it twice now. I just switched up and am doing TNation workout. It comes from the same guy who helped Jamie Eason write her program. Its just more intense and incorporates deadlifts, squats.. and lots of them..

Deadlift- 135lb
squat- 135- on a great day... like badger does.. *kitten* to grass!

Those are the only ones I really count at the moments. We just started this Monday! Im so excited about it!

Which one are you doing? I pulled up the website and saw there were a few... I'm very interested!

I agree with the above poster.. Jamie Eason 12 week live fit trainer is excellent. I have been through it twice now. I just switched up and am doing TNation workout. It comes from the same guy who helped Jamie Eason write her program. Its just more intense and incorporates deadlifts, squats.. and lots of them..

Deadlift- 135lb
squat- 135- on a great day... like badger does.. *kitten* to grass!

Those are the only ones I really count at the moments. We just started this Monday! Im so excited about it!

Which one are you doing? I pulled up the website and saw there were a few... I'm very interested!

Which one? The Jamie Eason live fit or the T Nation?

I have posted this write up about Strong Lifts 5x5 a couple times... it's a great program for beginners and worth a look! It's always awesome to see Women getting into heavy lifting!



Ahhhh Strong Lifts... I love this program because I think it's perfect for someone who is new to lifting to really see some good results. I have been lifting for 5 years now and every so often I will do a strength cycle based completely on the 5x5 protocol and always see a gain of some sort.

I just finished a SL cycle at the end of December and I checked my PR's over the last couple weeks.

Stats Before:
HT: 5'8''
WT: 191#

My PR prior to starting:
BS: 175#
SP: 105#
DL: 275#
BP: 130#
PC: 145# (I don't really like barbell rows so I only do them for the first 2 weeks then I switch to Power Cleans, if you are unfamiliar with this exercise, I reccommend sticking with the rows)

Stats After:

HT: 5'8''
WT: 168#

My PR after:
BS: 245#
SP: 140#
DL: 325#
BP: 165#
PC: 180#

Please keep in mind that I have been lifting for a while.

That being said, I think 5x5 is a great way to get into lifting, especially for women as it emphasies form and technique for the basic "big 5" lifts. You will gain strength, you will gain muscle, you will lose fat and you will feel like you are eating like a horse! However you will be using every single calorie that you put in your body and continue burning long after you have left the gym. The best advice I can give you is go on the strong lifts website, check out the videos on form, look up videos by mark rippetoe or mike burgener or louie simmons or Christine Beauchamp (little powerhouse female lifter) and LEARN the proper form first.

Squats- ALWAYS below parallel, best to start with high bar as low bar might be uncomfortable for new lifters and please for the love of cookies DONT USE THE SMITH MACHINE!!! It is one of the most UNNATURAL movements you can do with your body, when I see people using it I just want to cringe at what they are doing to their knees! Also you will create a gross muscle imbalance as the Smith Machine only strengthens (albeit not as much as free barbell) your major muscle groups while ignoring completely the supporting muscles. You will find that your lifts will dramatically decline if you have been Smithing it for a while then switch to loaded barbell.
Press- Please no bend in the knees to help the weight up... it's a shoulder press not a push press.
Deadlift- for the love of your vertebre, make sure you learn how to BREATHE properly before you attempt any big weight, look up valsalva breathing and learn the proper stance.
Bench- Yes there is a right way to Bench, watch videos by the people above, not some random dude on You Tube...chances are they are doing it wrong.
Row- core tight, core tight, core tight, oh and did i mention, core tight!
Power Clean- again I will stress not to attempt this movement unless you are familiar with it, or have exposure to olympic lifting. The goal of the 5x5 is to get stronger not hurt yourself.

The best way to get started is to research first, spend some time lurking on the strong lifts boards, catalyst athletics has great lifting resources and if possible go to a gym that has a coach that is trained to TEACH power/olympic lifts, just because a trainer "does" the lifts doesn't make them qualified to TEACH the lifts to an inexperienced or new lifter.

Start slow, learn the way your body feels when you have correct form and how it feels when you are doing something incorrectly. You will be sore, you need to rest on off days after about week 4 but can still do something like rowing or light calisthenics. You will eat more food than you ever thought possible, yet if you choose the right kinds of food, your body will transform. You will get an *kitten*, thick legs and a strong back...good luck finding jeans ( Can you say GAP)

Most important of all...STICK WITH THE PROGRAM...do it as is, start low...the empty bar might feel to light so you might be tempted to pile on more weight... DONT DO IT! There is an app on the iphone that will track your SL workouts...when I do a cycle I always start with an empty bar because even though I know I can do more, it allows me time to reinforce the correct movements and build to a greater max load.

If anyone has any questions about the program, please ask, I will do what I can to help get you started. I am by no means an expert, but I can try to answer alot of the questions beginners ask ( I was there once too)! Good Luck and get strong!!

I am checking out the Jamie Eason plan but wanted to find out if those who recommend it did just the exercise portion, or you followed the nutrition and supplements.

I am eating clean and following the guidelines of both my trainer and Tom Venuto's BFFM program and was looking for something that would help with the actual exercise portion.

Also she recommends cutting out cardio for phase one but I still have 40 lbs to goal and really don't want to cut that out.

Alot of the things she recommends are inline with BFFM but alot of them are not, such as the supplements and the cardio.

You really should follow the nutrition part, if you want to see maximum results. At least try to follow it as well as you can. I did not do such a great job with this, I built muscle and kept fat. My workout partner followed the plan, built muscle and lost fat. Im still happy with my results but changed workouts to switch it up a bit to get that fat off and am watching what I am eating now. As far as the cardio, my workout partner and I included cardio.. only about 20 mins after our workouts, except leg day.