Weight lifters, strength trainers, and body builders. Raise your hand.

[CzeCze]

I had my 2nd training session today and my trainer told me she prefers using medicine balls, body bars, etc. as opposed to traditional weight machines. She finds them more effective b/c of the 'greater range of motion'.

In the gym here in CA, space is limited so it's hard to spread out and use all the implements you need on the gym floor. It'st just a lot easier to use the traditional weights.

At my gym in DC it's much easier to set up shop somewhere so I might try those strength excercises out later.

[Viv]

I do light-weight circuit training at least once a week; either that or pilates.

[Jack Flak]

I started weight training with my friend again this week. We usually do it until we get stronger, then quit until we're right back where we started....

[sleepy]

No never, I don't want my body to be to bulky. Strive more for speed and agility if there is any exercise. Mountain walks, or some kind of fitness workout, have to be something funny. So the workout comes as a bonus.

[Grayscale]

maybe someone who is into it can explain the benefits because i dont really understand them. what good is lifting so much weight?

i have tried a little of it but i didnt like it. if i do ever do anything with weights, it's smaller (under 50 lbs) with 15+ reps to avoid building unnecessary mass. past that, i just do climbing and that seems to work well, i havent gone over 210 lbs. and to me it seems like a lot of muscle would just mean more to carry.

this is from last year after the climbing season.. we will typically pack up to 70-80 lbs and sometimes a sled. actually, now that i think about it none of the really good climbers are particularly muscular, they just have strong legs and lots of endurance.

i guess im wondering, what sort of sports benefit from weight lifting? it seems like a lot of work for nothing

[Aimahn]

You raise a couple of interesting and very valid points about weightlifting in general that I sort of struggled with when I first started out. I think understanding and learning a little about the fields that are related to the culture would help you immensely.

To sort of answer some of your questions you really have to have in mind what you are lifting for, different objectives greatly influence the methods you partake in in regards to weightlifting. Rock climbers do not necessarily need the explosive power that offensive linemen in football need therefore it wouldn't be wise for them to have a regimen that incorporates a lot of heavy lifting.

To give you a superficial answer one of the biggest splits you will see is explosive(power * speed of contraction) which is what most olympic lifters and dynamic athletes(linebackers, sprinters etc) strive for, and endurance(continual expenditure of muscles) which is what cyclist's and rock climbers need.

It gets a little tricky because a lot of the time it has to be measured in the totality of what your doing. For example I used to play right midfield in soccer which requires explosive lower body power to run, shoot and to fend of defenders while at the same time I needed endurance to maintain that explosiveness throughout the match. In terms of my training regimen I really focused on heavy lifting for my lower body to get that power but I couldn't lose sight of the fact that I needed a lot of endurance so I made sure that I ran long distances which can have a negative effect on your explosive power( marathon runners look like they do for a reason).

Finally, I wanted to point out that to truly be "bulky" takes an insane amount of dedication in terms of nutrition( steroids anyone) and lifting that most people will never attain, so the idea of getting too big needs to be stripped from your head.

[Grayscale]

okay, that makes more sense. by the way i am referring to mountain climbing and not rock climbing (although i do that but im not limber enough to be any good )

i only played football when i was younger and obviously it wasnt something i took seriously, so ive never really played any sports where i could see a benefit. the closest thing is hockey but even then i figured the benefit would be negligible.

i can see how it could help adding "oomph" to someone like a linebacker, or as you said soccer kicking and taking off quickly. thanks for humoring me, i kinda always had a naggling suspicion it was a waste of time but i figured id ask someone who knew better.

[Aimahn]

yup, glad I could help. I think a lot of times people are a little misinformed by the media images of pro athletes, diet fads, weightlifting schemes and just the the whole atmosphere of weightlifting. If you're interested in taking it more serious I would suggest reading up a little bit on nutrition and exercise physiology, frequent some bodybuilding forums, and in general just read up on stuff before you make a definitive decision.

I say that because it's hard to separate some of the values and opinions that have been peddled to you by so many other misinformed people and also the marketing BS that plays up on peoples lack of knowledge and expertise in the area. I think one of the biggest things though is just understanding that endurance and explosion concept and proceeding from there.

Also try and integrate some of your mountain climbing routines with your weightlifting ones for example I would imagine your back is key for that sport so work on back exercises with a focus on endurance, work on your grip by doing fore arm exercises and so on. Nutrition is very big in terms of making gains so invest a decent amount of time on that.

Heres a link to my bodybuilding profile, so you can sort of see people who are a lot more well informed than me and see just the general culture of weightlifting. Its a great site with lots of information that will get you started really quick.

Bodybuilding.com - Aimahn's BodySpace

[wolfy]

I've been lifting about 10 years now. Have competed in a few powerlifting meets. I work as a gym instructor. Usually train 4 times a week.

[wolfy]

Originally Posted by Jen

I have a question. In the past, trainers have told me that I should only work out with weights no more than three times a week. That your muscles need a day to heal before tearing them up again otherwise working out will not be as effective. Is this correct?

You can train more often than three times a week. You could split your workouts into upper/lower and do each 2 times a week. You can also train your whole body more frequently as long as you are careful to vary your sets and reps for example Mon 5x5 Tue 2x20 Thu 3x8 Fri 2x12 . You have to be very careful about volume though.