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Why strength training? A programmer's perspective

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Re: Why strength training? A programmer's perspective

#81

Post by blitzar »

yapyap wrote: post #32
graup wrote: post #30

I also think about this regularly. I'm with the author regarding the metrics (time efficient, healthy, skill component). But still, I find strength training extremely boring and going to the gym annoying. I tried a few times but it never clicked for me – what am I missing? Does anyone have other ideas for incorporating exercise into my daily routine? I enjoy a bit of walking, cycling, and doing 5-10 minute mobility e…

> what am I missing going with a friend maybe?

Best thing I ever did for exercise was hire a personal trainer. 1) I went to the gym with 0 thought about what I would be doing that day, just turn up and the trainer said "lift that 10 times" and I did. 2) I finally understood 'gym buddies' as here was I renting one.

100% this can be replicated without a trainer - but having a clear and exact excercise plan for each session and someone to talk shit with between sets makes a world of difference.

Re: Why strength training? A programmer's perspective

#82

Post by nunez »

uhngureff wrote: post #25
louthy wrote: post #9

I started strength training a few months back (using The Pump app [1]), still a relative noob, but it's the first time I've been able to stick to any exercise programme (usually my ADHD brain loses interest and goes off to something else, like sitting on the sofa). Even though in the early days you don't notice much physical difference (other than the steady increase in weight you're able to lift), I've just watched…

> Even though in the early days you don't notice much physical difference People who do weight training always leave out the fact that you feel sore after a lift. Even the next day. This can feel like pain to the unaware and can be scary or off putting enough to become a deterrent to keep at it. It can leave you feeling weak, but often the soreness is surface level and in fact you are still stronger even with the sor…

Rippetoe and Baker talk about this in Practical Programming for Strength Training.

Heavily depends on the movement. 3x10s are fine for accessory exercises but will be too much volume for compound movements (if strength is the focus) and can actually retard progress in later stages (because training for strength is incredibly taxing once you go heavy enough).

That said, literally anything will work when you're just getting started, so this retardation won't show up until later (when you're unbelievably sore all of the time but are not progressing on the lifts).

Most strength programs are developed around 3x5 for the core lifts, as this is a good balance between strength and recovery. In fact, you will likely do even less than this once you're advanced enough (1x5 super heavy deadlifts, once a week, for example) so that your muscles have time to recover and build.

Re: Why strength training? A programmer's perspective

#83

Post by voisin »

nottorp wrote: post #27
uhngureff wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Even though in the early days you don't notice much physical difference People who do weight training always leave out the fact that you feel sore after a lift. Even the next day. This can feel like pain to the unaware and can be scary or off putting enough to become a deterrent to keep at it. It can leave you feeling weak, but often the soreness is surface level and in fact you are still stronger even with the sor…

> People who do weight training always leave out the fact that you feel sore after a lift. Even the next day. It's absolutely normal to feel sore after any kind of exercise? If you don't you're in top shape for it, congratulations. But it ain't going to happen when progressing.

Some might argue that if you don’t feel sore at all you haven’t pushed yourself enough, and if you feel so sore it takes days and days to recover then you pushed yourself too hard. Finding the sweet spot is important. And I think this applies to strength as well as running and other exercise.

Re: Why strength training? A programmer's perspective

#84

Post by caeril »

Aromasin wrote: post #72
graup wrote: post #30

I also think about this regularly. I'm with the author regarding the metrics (time efficient, healthy, skill component). But still, I find strength training extremely boring and going to the gym annoying. I tried a few times but it never clicked for me – what am I missing? Does anyone have other ideas for incorporating exercise into my daily routine? I enjoy a bit of walking, cycling, and doing 5-10 minute mobility e…

Good weightlifting should rarely feel boring - maybe only one week in every 4 or 5 during a de-load week (when I'm aiming for 3-4 reps-in-reserve), but boring feels good then because you're resting after weeks of hard work. If anything, you should feel fearful when training. A good weight-centric workout, at least when targeting hypertrophy, hurts . I feel equal parts scared and excited. I think what you're missing i…

> If I know I did 120kg for 7 on the bench last week, I know I need to beat it either by increasing weight or increasing reps.

This is the case for some of us, yes, and for us, this is obvious.

What I've found, however, is that most normies don't actually have an internal drive to monotonically increase stats. For 90% of people, vanity is the only driver that works.

Re: Why strength training? A programmer's perspective

#85

Post by nunez »

graup wrote: post #30

I also think about this regularly. I'm with the author regarding the metrics (time efficient, healthy, skill component). But still, I find strength training extremely boring and going to the gym annoying. I tried a few times but it never clicked for me – what am I missing? Does anyone have other ideas for incorporating exercise into my daily routine? I enjoy a bit of walking, cycling, and doing 5-10 minute mobility e…

Finding something enjoyable that keeps you moving can be really tough. Just gotta keep experimenting.

You definitely don't have to force yourself into the gym. It'l just frustrate you, and you won't progress as much as you could if you enjoyed it.

I've been weightlifting for 12 years now, but I HATED the gym for a long time before it clicked for me. (Doing the Starting Strength program was "it" for me. It was something I could progress with that didn't feel like bro-science, and I could do it alone, as I HATE working out with other people. I'm not saying this to push SS on you; the point is that you are much more likely to do something consistently if you enjoy it!)

I would say that 30m of activity per day is enough for most people as long as it's consistent and your food diet is balanced. Believe it or not, Americans work out much less than this on average! (Average Exercise minutes have been going up over the years, fortunately.)

To the latter part of your question, I would look into bodyweight compound exercises. These don't require gear (resistance bands at most) and can be WAY more challenging than loaded weight training. You can also fit a circuit into 10min/day easily. This is how I kept my strength levels from regressing too much during COVID.

Re: Why strength training? A programmer's perspective

#86

Post by Sakos »

jf22 wrote: post #20
Sakos wrote: post #4

While I've had many physical hobbies, weight lifting has been the one that has been most beneficial to my health and my overall level of fitness. That said, don't skimp on cardio. If any bro tries to tell you that it'll impact your gains, ignore them.

Cardio will impact your gains but that shouldn't matter to you unless you're trying to maximize muscle growth.

Exactly my point, yeah. The significance of the impact is also debatable and not nearly as much as one might think, especially if you do proper programming.

I don't lift weights to compete, I lift to be healthy, strong and generally fit. That means maximizing different aspects of my physical fitness overall, even if that means a particular aspect might be weaker than if I only focused on that exclusively.

Re: Why strength training? A programmer's perspective

#87

Post by voisin »

nonninz wrote: post #67

One of my hangups to start strength training at the ripe age of 41, is that I'm terrified of hurting myself. Apparently to do "proper" strength training you need to focus on the free weights, or compound lifts, rather than gym machines that guide your movements. I.E. squats, deadlifts, bench presses, etc. The problem is that these are EXACTLY the type of exercises that an untrained, anterior pelvic tilted computer lo…

I started strength training this year (I’m 40). I started StrongLifts 5x5 on Jan 1 and have been consistent with the 3x per week. You start with just an empty bar to focus on form, and build up, 5lbs per exercise per day until it becomes too much and then you slow the progression. It was perfect for building proper form and then building strength. Haven’t been injured yet and I’d recommend it easily to anyone our age who is a beginner. The website is extremely informative and there are lots of YouTube videos to supplement for form cues.

Re: Why strength training? A programmer's perspective

#88

Post by nunez »

binary132 wrote: post #69
nonninz wrote: post #67

One of my hangups to start strength training at the ripe age of 41, is that I'm terrified of hurting myself. Apparently to do "proper" strength training you need to focus on the free weights, or compound lifts, rather than gym machines that guide your movements. I.E. squats, deadlifts, bench presses, etc. The problem is that these are EXACTLY the type of exercises that an untrained, anterior pelvic tilted computer lo…

Get a trainer.

THIS.

You can also check out "The Barbell Prescription" by Andy Baker. This book is like Starting Strength but for the 45+ demographic. (Interestingly, Starting Strength can be used for this demographic also.)

There have been documented instances of older folks reversing degenerative conditions after picking up strength training. You're also never old enough to get stronger!

That said, finding a trainer that knows what they are doing is the fastest way to progress. I'm biased towards the Starting Strength community as these trainers undergo an intensive program before they are certified to be an SS coach (on top of their past intensive training), but there are many other qualified trainers out there.

Re: Why strength training? A programmer's perspective

#90

Post by polishdude20 »

nonninz wrote: post #67

One of my hangups to start strength training at the ripe age of 41, is that I'm terrified of hurting myself. Apparently to do "proper" strength training you need to focus on the free weights, or compound lifts, rather than gym machines that guide your movements. I.E. squats, deadlifts, bench presses, etc. The problem is that these are EXACTLY the type of exercises that an untrained, anterior pelvic tilted computer lo…

The age old advice that bad form will wreck your body is false. Now, yes, extremely bad form when lifting heavy weights may cause injury. But when starting out and learning the movements, the weight should be light. Usually it's not the technique that causes injury but other things like increasing volume too quickly from what you're used to, life stressors, lack of sleep etc.

It's very rare to start doing a set of squats for example and all of a sudden have a catastrophic back tweak because of your bad form. Lifting is safer than most sports!

Check out this article on barbell medicine about pain and their other stuff too:

https://www.barbellmedicine.com/blog/pain-in-training-what-d...

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