thread of getting sw0le

Your not you're obv

Thanks for the help, Hiisi! My inability to even answer your question probably says a lot about my stagnancy. I don't know what a progression means. Is that just the amount that I increase the weights by?

Ironically, I'm starting to wonder if I do need to see a trainer. Maybe I've gone as far as I can on my own? I've had some friends who know what they are doing correct me along the way, and I did Crossfit for a while (though my own workout sessions aren't nearly as intense or lift-minded as all that; I don't do too many clean and snatches or jerks or whatever those weird Olympic-style weight lift moves are called).

uh oh, I'm giving advice on the sw0le thread, I hope nobody dies

Evan, working on lifts that don't stress your shoulder is a good idea, but I would also suggest that you try to rehab your shoulder as thoroughly as possible. Often people get a persistent shoulder injury and just keep working through or around it, but unless it is clearly getting better over time (i.e, it doesn't affect your posture, you can move it through the normal range of motion without pain, its strength is steadily becoming equal to the strength of your other shoulder) you could be looking at a chronic problem that is not going to heal very well if ignored. If that is the case, you can do a lot to fix your shoulder in a relatively short period of time, but continuing the same workout is probably not part of the solution.

A trainer might be able to help with this. Better still, see a sports-oriented physical therapist; a few visits could change your shoulder situation completely.

Or take your life in your hands, do some Googling on "shoulder injury rehabilitation" and "shoulder mobility," experiment until you find a few non-weighted exercises that feel good, and do them on your own. I was complaining about Kelly Starrett upthread, but it's worth looking at his YouTube videos about shoulder mobility and exploring some of his recommended exercises. A physical therapist is a big help in a situation like this because he or she can show you what to do, coach you to do it well, and give feedback on how it should feel, but if you are careful and patient and use good judgement about the difference between discomfort and pain, you can accomplish a lot of rehabilitation work by yourself.

There are all kinds of other workouts you can do while you are getting your shoulder right.

Keep talking shit & I'll turn this into a picture thread, including befores. You'll die from choking on vomit.

If you haven't had a doc look at the shoulder, it might be worth a visit and some PT. Friend (Crossfit guy) who had persistent shoulder pain for over a year finally went in and it turned out he had a torn labrum and needed surgery.

Yeah, I saw a pair of orthopedists about the shoulder two years ago; the smart one who diagnosed it wasn't overly concerned about it. He told me the exercises to avoid (presses, especially at certain angles); so I started doing lots of flies instead. Gradually I've worked more press-type exercises back into my routine as the shoulder as gotten better. It took a long time (AC injuries aren't nearly as serious as other shoulder issues, but man, they linger), but it rarely ever bothers me anymore, so mostly I'm being cautious.

I'd like to work dips back into my routine, because I felt I saw results from those, but I think those are especially bad on the shoulders. Haven't found a good replacement for those.

I feel like honestly I just need to ramp up the amount of weight I lift by like 20%, because I could handle that, but I am a little nervous about injuring something.

does your gym have one of those helper foot lever things for pull-ups? a lot of those have middle set of bars for doing assisted dips

Yeah I used to use that machine all the time for pull-ups and chin-ups; now I use a pull-bar to sort of simulate the same moves without actually lifting my whole body. Maybe it's time to get back on that machine and see how it feels.

I also used to use the tricep press machine (which was essentially like a dip machine), and I was always able to do A LOT of weight on that one, relative to ppl much bigger than me. I miss that machine; I was good at it.

The Nautilus assisted-dip machine is really good, if you happen to have a Nautilus-equipped gym nearby.

I believe general recommendation for pull ups and dips is to use bands rather than the machines for the assists since you building better supporting muscles in that fashion, but I am not a professional weight lifting advice giver.

Most dip machines are pretty bad -- the current Nautilus model is an exception that's easy to find around.

I don't know what brand our pullup/dip assist machine is but it's the kind where you put your knees on a flat platform and I really hate using it (I do unassisted dips but my pullups are not very strong). Something about putting your legs/knees in that position seems to inhibit the movement/posture you want for a good pullup and probably for dips as well.

Something about putting your legs/knees in that position seems to inhibit the movement/posture you want for a good pullup and probably for dips as well.

OTM in ime . I worked on those stupid things forever and it really didn't help with my PU or Dips much at all.Not until i started using some bands and doing a lot of negative work was i able to get my first PU .

They are definitely better if you are overweight-but-not-weak, but I have also left those machines behind.

also good for building PU strength are Ring Rows with like TRX straps/rings

Inverted rows on rings or a TRX--style thing are pretty much my favorite upper body exercise.

I do lots of those! Do they give you good results?

Right now I'm looking for some good arm exercises. I want bigger arms.

dips + pullups

I have found the lifter wisdom to be true that if you want bigger arms, just do your standard pulling/pushing exercises (dips, pullups, bench press, pulldowns, rows, etc). No need for separate arms work.

pullups are the best

unfortunately i can only do like five these days. i've been meaning to try a weighted pullup routine, outlined here, as it is supposedly very, very effective (or so the authors claim).

I haven't done a curl or a tricep press in many months but my arms are bigger than they ever were when I did that kind of stuff.

i still can't do one. my excuses are i'm a girl and i'm long but i need to work harder. i have bands. i'd feel awkward bringing them to the gym but who cares i guess.

i've been working on my planks to help with push-ups. you get better at those so fast. i just alternate between 3 and 4 sets when i'm done with everything else and increase the number of seconds of planking each time. it doesn't feel like torture anymore.

I can only do 3 pullups at a time, but I believe even three good pullups, if you can do multiple sets, will develop you.

So I hit the assisted dip/pull-up/chin-up machine today and, yup, I think that is exactly what I was missing. I can feel that I hit some muscles that have been neglected lately. So I'm gonna try to integrate those exercises into my routine and see how the shoulder responds. I appreciate the advice!

i am weirdly good at pull ups (can do a few sets of 12). when i was a kid i couldn't even do one. the only thing that i can attribute it to is i used to walk on hills a lot so i think i have like weirdly overdeveloped lats or something, because i feel it there more than in my arms when doing pull ups.

i used to be crap at push ups when i first started, but what worked for me was starting with wall push ups. also do some light dumbbell tricep exercise, like extensions. when i did them lying down, it felt more comfortable to me and a little easier as a beginner.

i mostly do close-hand pushups, but even when i do regular ones, i feel like strong triceps are more important

ime!

i am awful at push ups, i hate them

I am terrible at pushups and even with objective upper body strength gains/longer plank holds, I still can't do them for shit!

Awesome for push-ups - the Slingshot (https://www.howmuchyabench.net/) It was originally used for bench pressing but the light basic one has gotten popular for push-ups.

It slides over your arms keeping your elbows into a good position, then it's stretchy so it makes the press back up a little easier and so it kind of equalizes out whatever muscles are your weak spot.

I am not going to buy something to facilitate pushups I mean c'mon it is not like my job or life or sanity or personhood or anything is dependent on my ability to do pushups.

i would pay money but only like $5

Squatted for the first time in a couple weeks after working on flexibility and mobility and man it was a different experience. Felt the burn in parts of my core I didn't know existed.

Was only able to hit parallel but my back was much straighter and was able to keep my knees from pulling inward.

yeah i love squats

One of the things I found really helpful was to hold onto some kind of strap or band (I used the TRX straps at the gym and my resistance band around the post of my couch at home) just taut enough to stabilize yourself and then get yourself down into as close to an ass to grass squat position as possible and hold it, move around in it a little, etc., then eventually push down through my heels and come up like I was finishing a squat. When I started to feel comfortable with my ability to hold and come out of the position I moved a little closer, i.e. so the tension on the band or strap was lower and I was relying more on my own strength and balance. The only drawback of this was that the strap tended to pull my back forward, so it took extra focus to keep it straight.

How can the floor dumbbell press be a triceps exercise and the bench dumbbell press be a chest one, getting swole is so weird

It's great though I love itttt

So I have reincorporated dips and pull-ups/chin-ups into my routine, and my bad shoulder is starting to hurt just a little more. Nothing serious or alarming but gotta keep an eye on it. Man I hope I don't have to cut those exercises out though; they are really effective.

There's pain and there's pain. If you're not certain that this is "good" pain (stiff or crampy from exertion, will lead to muscle growth) see a doctor.

xxp - you can also use a doorknob for assisted squats, one hand on each side body perpendicular the door edge

How can the floor dumbbell press be a triceps exercise and the bench dumbbell press be a chest one, getting swole is so weird

It's great though I love itttt

― Gravel Puzzleworth, Monday, March 7, 2016 9:52 PM (Yesterday)

i think it's bc of the reduced range of motion since your elbows have to stop at the floor idk though

i know some people think it's antiquated/based on old school ideology, but the first book i bought when i first started lifting was this:

http://www.amazon.com/Strength-Training-Anatomy-3rd-Edition/dp/0736092269/ref=pd_sim_14_5/178-8186630-4175835?ie=UTF8&dpID=51mZtLjh1zL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR123%2C160_&refRID=08A5DH5ESVT2SWK0NBQ9

and i have to admit, it helped me learn what movements engage what muscles

it does have some bad advice, in my experience, but as a biology/physiology book, it taught me to understand my body (movements) better

I think I might be sidelined for a few days. My shoulder hurts like hell; it's one big tender ball of knots, some of which are running down my spine.

That's not really consistent with my AC joint injury, so it could be a coincidence (maybe I slept wrong or tweaked something?) but the correlation is too strong for me to ignore. I may be done with dips and possibly assisted pull-ups and chin-ups :(

It really sounds like you need to see a doctor and/or get a referral to a physical therapist.

Yeah I'll check in with my orthopedist again if it doesn't feel better in a few days. But I think I just got greedy, and tried to do some exercises I knew might be iffy. My shoulder had been doing much better when I was avoiding them.

yday was first day at gym! Someone flirted with me I think which was hilarious and kind of weird. It was rly weird bcz some muscles were sore that had never ever been sore before, like I felt like someone punched me in the pecs

I bike 4 mi to the gym from work and 1.5 mi home after so I'm thinking of cutting down on cardio while I'm there, still doing like maybe 10 min warmup on the treadmill, but focusing most of my energy on weights

Ate meat loaf and a protein shake when I got home too, felt v gym

i went to an adult gymnastics night last night (nb - i have never done gymnastics) and learned to do some flips, it was p cool

not really swole related

it's a continuum

Thanks harbl!

What's a realistic newbie mass gain goal for a month? Like 2lb? I'm super skinny-built, gonna force myself to eat though.

hi Gravel!

two pounds of lean mass, sure, doable but takes work + 5 to 10 lbs of water, fat depending on how clean you're eating depending on how you're lifting depending on your age depending depending. keep track of what you're eating, make sure you're getting good rest.