Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)

archive.mensjournal.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

51–60 of 343 posts

Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)

#51

Post by malbs »

This is one of the best fitness articles I've read. Of course, that's me suffering from confirmation bias, because in 3 years of being on a health kick, I came to the same conclusions after talking to various people with a similar interest.

My progression went:-

Cycling -> Running -> Machines -> Body Weight Exercises -> Discovering Rippetoe/SS -> Barbell (Power Rack)

The barbell is the king, and the great thing is in my gym it's always (95%) free. Everyone is on the cable machines.

Now I try and get all my friends and family doing some sort of 3x5/SS program because it. just. works. I even have my daughters doing it!

Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)

#52

Post by analog »

dbecker wrote: post #46

This article is largely rehashing what everyone I know already thinks. BUT, if you are going to claim to contradict widespread views, you should appeal to evidence. If I disagreed with anything in this article, there is nothing here that would make me change my mind. The author cites how bad he felt that some trainer calling him "little girl weak" as a reason we should lift heavy weights? Honestly, I couldn't care le…

Being 'little-girl weak' after some time following a regime at a commercial gym sort of is evidence. And squatting 40lbs definitely is little-girl weak.

Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)

#53

Post by malbs »

tomasien wrote: post #2

This is a solid article, but the title is just wrong. "Free weights are better than machines" is not a "little known" fact, it's a well known fact by anyone who has cared to read the internet re:fitness since 2009. So is "lifting weights is much more efficient than cardio". I say this only so that you don't read this and think these are some kind of fringe theories. They're widely, WIDELY known and 100% true.

Actually I think you'll find that they're not widely known.

(Sweeping generalisation) Most women avoid free weights because they don't want to put on muscle and look like a body builder. Doesn't happen. Hell, some men have that same attitude because "hey I don't want to get bulky". My comment is "well if you discover that secret, you should market it because millions of people will buy it"

Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)

#56

Post by mylittlepony »

aadilr wrote: post #33

I love the way this article dispels misconceptions and ends with practical solutions. Does anyone know of an article that does the same for becoming a great developer rather than continuing to wade in the novice waters of programming?

I don't know about an article, but tell me what you've learned so far and I can try telling you what to do next.

Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)

#58

Post by joshschreuder »

malbs wrote: post #51

This is one of the best fitness articles I've read. Of course, that's me suffering from confirmation bias, because in 3 years of being on a health kick, I came to the same conclusions after talking to various people with a similar interest. My progression went:- Cycling -> Running -> Machines -> Body Weight Exercises -> Discovering Rippetoe/SS -> Barbell (Power Rack) The barbell is the king, and the great thing is in…

That's good to hear. I've only recently started working out, and started on free weights with a Power Rack and Barbell (doing Stronglifts).

Glad I'm not partially wasting my time, and going onto the good stuff!

Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)

#59

Post by ajscherer »

tomasien wrote: post #2

This is a solid article, but the title is just wrong. "Free weights are better than machines" is not a "little known" fact, it's a well known fact by anyone who has cared to read the internet re:fitness since 2009. So is "lifting weights is much more efficient than cardio". I say this only so that you don't read this and think these are some kind of fringe theories. They're widely, WIDELY known and 100% true.

2009 and the internet? This has been the dominant conventional wisdom in all fitness media for at least a decade. If you open any fitness or "men's" magazine in any given month you will find at least one article telling you that: strength training is better than cardio, free weights are better than machines, and lifts that use multiple major muscle groups in coordination are best. The funny thing is that every one of these articles acts like it is the first time any of this has ever been written down.

It's the exact same way with articles advocating diets relatively higher in protein and fat. An assertion of novelty seems to be a mandatory element of any attempt to market anything fitness related.

Re: Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)

#60

Post by brianmwang »

davidtyleryork wrote: post #15

At Betable, four of us do CrossFit. It's not sadistic as the title says, though I'm sure that can depend on the gym. The one in SOMA is pretty supportive and accommodating, probably because they deal with a lot of startup engineers :) Anyway, was struck me about CrossFit and really any group exercise routine is how much more it makes you tax your own body. When you're at the gym, you don't push yourself. You run comf…

"...how much more it makes you tax your own body. When you're at the gym, you don't push yourself."

Says who? This seems like a false premise to me.

Post reply on HN