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Everything You Know About Fitness is a Lie (2011)

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

#261

Post by rada »

cage433 wrote: post #214
subwindow wrote: post #66

I read this article around the time it was first published, and it has changed my life. I know it sounds corny and cliched, but it's true. This article was the first seed in my head that I needed to change the way I was doing things. It took me about 18 months after reading it to actually buckle down and start lifting, but it's no doubt that the journey started here. I ended up reading "Starting Strength" and started…

Same here - literally life changing. I tried free weights a few years ago after reading the article - loved them - bought the Rippetoe book and didn't look back. I'm 46 now, before I began I was overweight and had frequent, severe back problems. I'm now two stone lighter, hell of a lot stronger and my back is just fine.

How long did it take for the back pain to go away once you started training? How often do you train and which weights do you recommend?

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

#262

Post by elptacek »

MaybiusStrip wrote: post #181
elptacek wrote: post #132

Well, actually... Daniel the author neglected to tell Nicole the illustrator that the thumbs on the squatter (first graphic) are in the wrong position -- according to Rippetoe, not me. :-) Humor aside, lifting heavy works for women, to. Women are afraid to get bulky. I got over the idea that lifting heavy wouldn't _make_ me bulky. This is just the way I am. Might as well make the best of what my DNA doled out. As for…

Weightlifter here. The squat described in that graphic is high-bar (bar between traps and delts) as opposed to the low-bar form championed by Rippetoe (and powerlifters in general). The back is more upright, so you can't really "trap" the bar just by resting your hands on it and pushing your elbows back, you have to wrap your thumbs around. You should still keep your wrists as straight as possible. Speaking of women…

Ah, that explains it. I do low bar and had forgotten there was such a thing as high bar. Do you suppose low bar works better if you have broad shoulders? Low bar certainly alleviates the sore neck problem.

JoAnn definitely not bulky. And cripes would I love to be able to bench 165! Sometimes I resent stumbling on this type of training in my 40s instead of my 20s.

Nia Shanks is something like 122lbs and (last I saw) could deadlift 315lbs. She is not bulky or "'roided out." It is because of her that I've set my goal at 315lbs. I've had two kids by c-section, though. Dunno if I'll get there or not. Sometimes stuff hurts.

Daniel makes this point in his article, in a way: goals are important. From what I understand, there are three goals: get strong, get lean or look good naked. All three are perfectly respectable goals in my book. Approach a random person in the gym and ask them what they are training for, "To lose weight." This is a meaningless statement we believe has meaning.

So far, the best response I've heard is, "Retirement." I forget who said it, though.

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

#263

Post by dhimes »

eru wrote: post #194
dhimes wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Depends what you are trying to do and your situation. Machines are safer , so if this is a concern for some reason (injury rehab, age, etc.), then machines in some cases can be better for lifting heavy weights.

Machine are only "safer" for very specific definitions of that word. They force you into a specific path.

very specific definitions

Ha! Hard to argue with that because you pluralized 'definition.'

But what I mean is, (1) If I'm doing a chest exercise, for example, with 270+ pounds, and I fail on a machine, I can get out of it. With free weights, I need a spotter and it's much trickier. (2) Perhaps more important: If I'm doing heavy legs (450 lbs, for example), with free weights I have to load a lot of weight on my back for a squat. This is dangerous even for younger men (I'm 50 years old) because slight distraction and they can hurt their backs in a way that is really hard to get over. Load up a weight machine and I don't have to worry about it.

I hit the stabilizer muscles doing light weight squats on a bosu ball.

So, yeah, in a perfect world I'd be 25 years old and doing all free weights. But I've adapted to my circumstances in what I believe to be a reasonable way.

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

#264

Post by elptacek »

scorpioxy wrote: post #204
elptacek wrote: post #132

Well, actually... Daniel the author neglected to tell Nicole the illustrator that the thumbs on the squatter (first graphic) are in the wrong position -- according to Rippetoe, not me. :-) Humor aside, lifting heavy works for women, to. Women are afraid to get bulky. I got over the idea that lifting heavy wouldn't _make_ me bulky. This is just the way I am. Might as well make the best of what my DNA doled out. As for…

Try convincing the women with that. I have no idea where they came up with the belief that lifting weights would make them bulky while it would take a man, on supplements, years and a lot of effort to develop a meaningful amount of muscle to be considered "bulky". They seem to be happy to walk for a half-hour on the treadmill and then run towards the scale as if that half-hour would actually do anything. It's really…

Unconvincing anyone of their convictions is a quixotic undertaking. I've had a few women approach me over the last year and ask me how much I'm lifting, and I've seen them watching me from afar. Alas, the way I am built, I am only going to reinforce the stereotype. My people were built to pull ploughs, apparently.

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

#265

Post by eshvk »

squarecog wrote: post #83
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…

Which CrossFit gym in SOMA are you referring to? (Mine is awesome, too. Just wondering if it's the same one.)

Not the OP but worked out at United Barbell and they are phenomenal. I am no longer convinced that CrossFit is the right thing for me to keep doing so I stopped it and replaced it by running 5+ miles and doing the big 3, but it definitely is the best thing that ever happened to me fitness wise.

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

#266

Post by andyakb »

corresation wrote: post #238
Swannie wrote: post #217

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Congratulations. You got lucky, and got a great trainer. The sad reality is this is the exception. I take my office gym for example - I don't go there, but a colleague does. We've discussed fitness over lunch a few times, he gets it. Guess what the trainers in the gym think about him? They personally do his workouts. They take his advice. They are happy for him to go up to other gym users and coach them, because he k…

They are professional coaches. He's a parts logistics troubleshooter. See the problem there? While your story is both anecdotal and second-hand, what you describe doesn't sound that remarkable: Information is largely free now. It is entirely possible if not probable that someone with an interest in a niche will learn more about specific subject matter than generalists who have to know about the whole field.

It isnt as though they were upset that their divorce attorney couldnt answer complex questions about patent law. Free weights should not be considered a niche for a personal trainer in a gym. Even just walking around a gym should show you that primarily you have 3 types of equipment, cardio, weight machines, and free weights, so it isnt as though there is simply too much to learn and understand for somebody whose job it is to be knowledgeable.

The issue with many personal trainers (and people you discuss fitness with in general) is that, for the most part, if your diet is good, doing pretty much anything in the gym will get you results. Many trainers have desirable figures and they know it and they constantly have people asking them for advice in their private lives and are paid to give it at their jobs. This causes many to simply assume that what they did is the "correct" way to workout when the truth is that had they dont most any routine with that devotion for many years, they would have gotten similar results.

This is much more similar to investing in the sense that the experts often give worse recommendations than you could find yourself with a few hours research. Im sorry this is too anecdotal for you, but if you walk into most gyms, talk to most people who have a clue about training, etc, then this is what you hear; people simply arent properly educated on personal fitness even when that is their job

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

#268

Post by mikedmiked »

subwindow wrote: post #66

I read this article around the time it was first published, and it has changed my life. I know it sounds corny and cliched, but it's true. This article was the first seed in my head that I needed to change the way I was doing things. It took me about 18 months after reading it to actually buckle down and start lifting, but it's no doubt that the journey started here. I ended up reading "Starting Strength" and started…

> I have to buy clothes made for fat people and just deal with the extra room in the midsection.

You should honestly consider learning some basic tailoring. I'm starting it myself - I buy 'vintage' clothes from charity shops and most wouldn't fit.

Buy a decent antique sewing machine if you want a cheap one.

Its a sufficiently rare but useful skill to make good conversation too. And you can vastly increase the perceived value of your clothes by claiming they are hand tailored! ;)

Here is a good forum to pick up knowledge: http://www.cutterandtailor.com/forum/index.php?showforum=26

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

#269

Post by tuzemec »

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 recently started reading "Think Like a Programmer" (http://www.amazon.com/dp/1593274246) and I find it quite helpful.

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

#270

Post by matwood »

mgkimsal wrote: post #62
IgorPartola wrote: post #30

I went to a "big box" type gym in January 2012 and hired a staff trainer. I told her that I wanted to lose about 20 lb, get stronger, and start running in mud runs. She started me off with basic body circuit training, working with her once a week and doing 3-5 more workouts the rest of the days. During this period I also watched my calorie intake. By May, I reached my goal on all three accounts, so she switched me to…

You really only devoted 5 hours per week?

Yes. When I was at my strongest (max DL was 525lbs, sadly I'm only in the 400s now) I spent only that in the gym. Lifting weights is both a physical and mental exercise that most people can only continue for ~45 minutes. Anymore than that and it's often useless work because it's not at a level that's still challenging.

Powerlifting tends to make for longer workouts because I would take more rest between sets. When I would do BB or cut workouts I would be in the gym ~30 minutes. Keep in mind that this 30 minutes was full on balls to the wall intensity. It's the intensity that matters and not the time. Also, many people do not know true intensity. I know I didn't learn it until I started doing BJJ training and puking multiple times during 1.5 hour sessions. Protecting yourself and competition has a way of drawing people out to the very edge of what they are capable of.

There was an article recently in Outdoor magazine where even amateur marathon runners are training differently. Instead of slogging out many many miles, they have cut miles and are doing less work but at maximum intensity.

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