At what point does one stop adding weight when weightlifting
Discussion
RTB said:
That's impressive, it would put you towards the upper end of the NFL draft. Can you run 40 yards in under 5 seconds though? 
I don't do the 100kg test very often but everytime I do I always think I should do it more and then forget for 3 months.
Here's a question that's relevant to the topic:
Say I wanted to get 25 reps at 100kg would I be better finding my current 25 rep max (say 70kg) and adding weight each week, or would I be better sticking at 100kg x 11 and trying to add a rep every week? I feel like the first approach would be best but I don't know why I think that.
I could once, I was one of the fastest on the rugby pitch, could run 10k in under an hour too at 20stone.I don't do the 100kg test very often but everytime I do I always think I should do it more and then forget for 3 months.
Here's a question that's relevant to the topic:
Say I wanted to get 25 reps at 100kg would I be better finding my current 25 rep max (say 70kg) and adding weight each week, or would I be better sticking at 100kg x 11 and trying to add a rep every week? I feel like the first approach would be best but I don't know why I think that.
I'd say the first one, do the GTG/flow method. And don't go to failure, I think press-ups would help you too.
Halb said:
RTB said:
That's impressive, it would put you towards the upper end of the NFL draft. Can you run 40 yards in under 5 seconds though?
I don't do the 100kg test very often but everytime I do I always think I should do it more and then forget for 3 months.
Here's a question that's relevant to the topic:
Say I wanted to get 25 reps at 100kg would I be better finding my current 25 rep max (say 70kg) and adding weight each week, or would I be better sticking at 100kg x 11 and trying to add a rep every week? I feel like the first approach would be best but I don't know why I think that.
I could once, I was one of the fastest on the rugby pitch, could run 10k in under an hour too at 20stone.I don't do the 100kg test very often but everytime I do I always think I should do it more and then forget for 3 months.
Here's a question that's relevant to the topic:
Say I wanted to get 25 reps at 100kg would I be better finding my current 25 rep max (say 70kg) and adding weight each week, or would I be better sticking at 100kg x 11 and trying to add a rep every week? I feel like the first approach would be best but I don't know why I think that.
I'd say the first one, do the GTG/flow method. And don't go to failure, I think press-ups would help you too.
If you want to get more reps at 100kg, programming should be aimed at increasing your 5, 3 and 1 rep maxes.
Sure, do some sets at 100kg for practice, but getting stronger is what will help most. When 100kg becomes 58% of your max, you'll get a lot more reps than when it is 80%.
Getting f+cking big is what will help most. Strength is mostly about hypertrophy once you've become proficient at the technique.
If I wanted to increase reps at 100kg quickly, I would do something like this:
3 bench days per week.
1 heavy day (cycling up from around 80% of 1RM to about 90%) - 20-25 total reps or so.
1 volume day (cycling up from around 65% to around 75%): 30-40 total reps
1 day for a variant like close grip bench press or dumbell bench press across the rep ranges.
And then just eat lots and lots and lots. Bench press loves fat people.
Sure, do some sets at 100kg for practice, but getting stronger is what will help most. When 100kg becomes 58% of your max, you'll get a lot more reps than when it is 80%.
Getting f+cking big is what will help most. Strength is mostly about hypertrophy once you've become proficient at the technique.
If I wanted to increase reps at 100kg quickly, I would do something like this:
3 bench days per week.
1 heavy day (cycling up from around 80% of 1RM to about 90%) - 20-25 total reps or so.
1 volume day (cycling up from around 65% to around 75%): 30-40 total reps
1 day for a variant like close grip bench press or dumbell bench press across the rep ranges.
And then just eat lots and lots and lots. Bench press loves fat people.
LordGrover said:
I stopped adding more weight when I started to get too many niggles and tweaks. Not proper injuries, but forever feeling not right, or having to go careful in my daily life.
I still paddle at the shallow end, doing similar to you; squats, deads, benchpress, ohp and rows, though weights are very much lower than I used to lift/attempt. Still challenging enough to make it worthwhile though. As others have said, varying different aspects like number of reps/sets, tempo, volume, etc. helps keep things moving along, albeit slower than 'doing it properly'.
Just out of interest, how has this affected you in terms of how you look now vs to a time when you were lifting heavier? I know you’re one of the seasoned guys on here.I still paddle at the shallow end, doing similar to you; squats, deads, benchpress, ohp and rows, though weights are very much lower than I used to lift/attempt. Still challenging enough to make it worthwhile though. As others have said, varying different aspects like number of reps/sets, tempo, volume, etc. helps keep things moving along, albeit slower than 'doing it properly'.
TRD
There are a whole load of factors, as I see it, that are holding you back.
In no particular order -
In addition, from what you say, I find it very hard to believe that you are pushing yourself.
Put simply, if you really wanted to, you could be benching 100kg this time next year.
However, as others have said, you've got to WANT it, and work f
king hard to achieve it.
Edit: As didely also said, if you don't enjoy it, find something you DO enjoy, but I think the salient point coming away from this thread is that whatever you do, you need to give it 100%.
There are a whole load of factors, as I see it, that are holding you back.
In no particular order -
- Your alcohol consumption.
- Your mental outlook
- Your diet
- The fact that you train alone at home
In addition, from what you say, I find it very hard to believe that you are pushing yourself.
Put simply, if you really wanted to, you could be benching 100kg this time next year.
However, as others have said, you've got to WANT it, and work f
king hard to achieve it.Edit: As didely also said, if you don't enjoy it, find something you DO enjoy, but I think the salient point coming away from this thread is that whatever you do, you need to give it 100%.
Edited by TheJimi on Sunday 23 September 11:31
I could prove to you that I am pushing myself but I have no desire to end up with a barbell on top of my neck! If you don't believe me then there's not much I can say except I have always been a weakling so although some of the factors don't help I am clearly at a disadvantage genetically, but if people don't believe me then I dunno what else to say.
I don't doubt that you THINK you're pushing yourself but I suspect the reality is something different.
Read through all your posts on his thread, and count up the negativity and excuses you make.
That is not the language or mental attitude of someone who genuinely pushes oneself.
People are way stronger or more capable than they think they are.
Read through all your posts on his thread, and count up the negativity and excuses you make.
That is not the language or mental attitude of someone who genuinely pushes oneself.
People are way stronger or more capable than they think they are.
Edited by TheJimi on Sunday 23 September 11:40
About a year ago an old friend (not interested in the gym at all) wanted yo come to the gym with me, to try and get into it. So I did what I considered an easy lead-in routine where I wouldn't push myself (no crazy circuit ala crossfit), just basic exercises and rest periods. After (can't recall if it was one or two) occasions he basically left it alone because he saw the effort I was putting in and realised he, in relation to me wasn't, even though he did think he was putting effort in. This wasn't about weight or volume, just about perceived intensity.
Halb said:
About a year ago an old friend (not interested in the gym at all) wanted yo come to the gym with me, to try and get into it. So I did what I considered an easy lead-in routine where I wouldn't push myself (no crazy circuit ala crossfit), just basic exercises and rest periods. After (can't recall if it was one or two) occasions he basically left it alone because he saw the effort I was putting in and realised he, in relation to me wasn't, even though he did think he was putting effort in. This wasn't about weight or volume, just about perceived intensity.
RPE, something I'm sort of getting into.Alan Thrall does a good explanation. See if I can find it.
TheJimi said:
I don't doubt that you THINK you're pushing yourself but I suspect the reality is something different.
Read through all your posts on his thread, and count up the negativity and excuses you make.
That is not the language or mental attitude of someone who genuinely pushes oneself.
People are way stronger or more capable than they think they are.
I think there may be something in this.Read through all your posts on his thread, and count up the negativity and excuses you make.
That is not the language or mental attitude of someone who genuinely pushes oneself.
People are way stronger or more capable than they think they are.
Edited by TheJimi on Sunday 23 September 11:40
Some people are able to push themselves very hard without external stimulus and others need some encouragement/fellowship/competition.
I often train alone, am disciplined enough to do so and do work quite hard, but I know that I can push myself much harder in a race situation or speed training with somebody else.
E.g. Time trials I struggle with,bit others can push themselves hard solo.
I would still suggest that you try something else -A sport/activity that requires strength, skill and fitness,with others if possible, rather than just standard gym work (X sets of Y, then Z etc. the same every session) which doesn't seem to be a prime interest (and isn't for me).
These are a great exercise: http://mtntactical.com/knowledge/ode-to-the-sandba...
"Never Let Go" by Dan John makes some interesting points
|https://thumbsnap.com/jV2R0ctZ[/url]Edited by MC Bodge on Sunday 23 September 12:46
TheJimi said:
I don't doubt that you THINK you're pushing yourself but I suspect the reality is something different.
Read through all your posts on his thread, and count up the negativity and excuses you make.
That is not the language or mental attitude of someone who genuinely pushes oneself.
People are way stronger or more capable than they think they are.
I’m sorry but I don’t agree that I’m not pushing myself. If, on the set I failed the other day, I tried to do one more rep, I would have found myself trapped under the bar, and that is no joke. I’m not sure what else I would have to do to prove that I am pushing myself. I do train alone though so have to consider my safety which means I will probably stop a rep shy of failure anyway for obvious reasons.Read through all your posts on his thread, and count up the negativity and excuses you make.
That is not the language or mental attitude of someone who genuinely pushes oneself.
People are way stronger or more capable than they think they are.
Edited by TheJimi on Sunday 23 September 11:40
TameRacingDriver said:
I’m sorry but I don’t agree that I’m not pushing myself. If, on the set I failed the other day, I tried to do one more rep, I would have found myself trapped under the bar, and that is no joke. I’m not sure what else I would have to do to prove that I am pushing myself. I do train alone though so have to consider my safety which means I will probably stop a rep shy of failure anyway for obvious reasons.
That's just one aspect. It sounds as if you might need to build on your work capacity.Anyway, I'd avoid bench press for now (you are rightly concerned about safety, which must be holding you back to some degree), especially solo, and do the pressup variations/progressions and things like the sandbag getups shown above.
TRD knows a lot better what he is doing than we do.
Some people are weak.
Some people respond badly to some (or all) training.
In almost every single weight training stuff, some of the participants don’t get stronger (or even get weaker). They are forced to work hard. They are monitored. But they don’t make gains.
Some people are weak.
Some people respond badly to some (or all) training.
In almost every single weight training stuff, some of the participants don’t get stronger (or even get weaker). They are forced to work hard. They are monitored. But they don’t make gains.
MC Bodge said:
That's just one aspect. It sounds as if you might need to build on your work capacity.
Anyway, I'd avoid bench press for now (you are rightly concerned about safety, which must be holding you back to some degree), especially solo, and do the pressup variations/progressions and things like the sandbag getups shown above.
Yes I think you’re probably right, and yes the safety element is always in my mind when I’m doing them which has to hold me back as you say, but still.....Anyway, I'd avoid bench press for now (you are rightly concerned about safety, which must be holding you back to some degree), especially solo, and do the pressup variations/progressions and things like the sandbag getups shown above.
ORD said:
TRD knows a lot better what he is doing than we do.
Some people are weak.
Some people respond badly to some (or all) training.
In almost every single weight training stuff, some of the participants don’t get stronger (or even get weaker). They are forced to work hard. They are monitored. But they don’t make gains.
I honestly think this is what it is... at school I was probably one of the smallest, weakest lads in my year at school, the periodic arm wrestling contests were something I tried to avoid, but when I did, I was utter crap at it.Some people are weak.
Some people respond badly to some (or all) training.
In almost every single weight training stuff, some of the participants don’t get stronger (or even get weaker). They are forced to work hard. They are monitored. But they don’t make gains.
The irony is I probably don’t look as weak as I actually am... although I don’t exactly look much other than fairly average.
I used to be a proper gym obsessive in my 20s and so I had access to machines, so didn’t have to worry about failing and hurting myself, and I found it very difficult to progress still at a certain point.. despite eating the suggested amount of calories which just slowly resulted in me putting weight on in all the wrong places.
I think these replies have been helpful actually... I think I definitely need to find something else. As another poster said, I don’t have the ‘passion’. Maybe I just don’t want it enough? I do every session feeling like I ‘should’ do it rather than ‘want’ to, if that makes sense.
TameRacingDriver said:
I honestly think this is what it is... at school I was probably one of the smallest, weakest lads in my year at school, the periodic arm wrestling contests were something I tried to avoid, but when I did, I was utter crap at it.
So you keep telling us.Before you even lift a weight, you're already in a negative mindset. Anyone who lifts with any degree of seriousness, will tell you that mental conditioning has a huge impact on lifting ability.
TheJimi said:
So you keep telling us.
Before you even lift a weight, you're already in a negative mindset. Anyone who lifts with any degree of seriousness, will tell you that mental conditioning has a huge impact on lifting ability.
Fair enough. I’m starting to think it’s my brain that needs sorting before I start with anything else. I will admit to being very negative and pessimistic in general, I’m just not sure what to do about it.Before you even lift a weight, you're already in a negative mindset. Anyone who lifts with any degree of seriousness, will tell you that mental conditioning has a huge impact on lifting ability.
I’m of the opinion that if you really pushed, you’d get it.
I train alone, I push my self, I always assume I’ll reach my targets- and I do. I’m confident that with the proper motivation, you can to. You’ve already assumed you can’t do something, so you’ll not. But if you’re not enjoying it, you’ll not push, so it’s self defeating.
I train alone, I push my self, I always assume I’ll reach my targets- and I do. I’m confident that with the proper motivation, you can to. You’ve already assumed you can’t do something, so you’ll not. But if you’re not enjoying it, you’ll not push, so it’s self defeating.
Mothersruin said:
Halb said:
About a year ago an old friend (not interested in the gym at all) wanted yo come to the gym with me, to try and get into it. So I did what I considered an easy lead-in routine where I wouldn't push myself (no crazy circuit ala crossfit), just basic exercises and rest periods. After (can't recall if it was one or two) occasions he basically left it alone because he saw the effort I was putting in and realised he, in relation to me wasn't, even though he did think he was putting effort in. This wasn't about weight or volume, just about perceived intensity.
RPE, something I'm sort of getting into.Alan Thrall does a good explanation. See if I can find it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXQaEq4_2lY
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