Gym strong/fitness vs real world strong/fitness
Gym strong/fitness vs real world strong/fitness
Author
Discussion

Megaflow

Original Poster:

10,583 posts

243 months

Monday 6th October
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I thought I'd put this in a new thread to avoid diluting the original. I read the thread below and it hit home.

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

I have been going to the gym on and off since 1995, and I am pretty strong/fit in the gym world, but as I get older, just turned 50, it occurs to me it is just not cutting it in the real world anymore...

I sit in front a desk during the week, but I quite like doing manual stuff around the house and the cars at the weekend and it is really starting to be noticeable the difference between gym strong/fit vs real world strong/fity.

The question is, what to do to change that and build some real world strength/fitness?

mcelliott

9,674 posts

199 months

Monday 6th October
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What sort of numbers are you getting in the gym, loads of people go to the gym, many of them doing the same thing day in day out without any noticeable gains in strength

Blue_star

312 posts

34 months

Monday 6th October
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This is where genetics comes. I dont think you can make massive leaps forward. You can maximise results by getting proper trainer, rotate couple over the tear but thats it. Keep up the cardio. Just my opinion

horsemeatscandal

1,971 posts

122 months

Monday 6th October
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You shouldn't need a great deal of strength for almost all DIY jobs or working on the car and given you've been in the gym for 30 years I'd suggest that maybe isn't the issue. However, doing those things, you're often in uncomfortable or unnatural positions for extended periods of time which can lead to a bit of pain and stiffness, so maybe it's time to work on your mobility and joint health a bit more if you aren't doing so already?

I always recommend Pilates for questions like this. In my experience it's part yoga, part calisthenics, part resistance training and you definitely find yourself holding uncomfortable positions for extended periods, albeit in a healthy way.

Good luck with whatever you do.

Edit: I guess that just covers the strength part. For fitness, my guess would be that long walks and interval training incorporating some kind of moving of weight (generally referred to as conditioning) would beat emulate real life fitness requirements.

Edited by horsemeatscandal on Monday 6th October 12:06

WH16

7,535 posts

236 months

Monday 6th October
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The big difference is endurance.

As a builder/squaddie/farmer/whatever you are constantly using your body, 8 hours+ per day, 5+ days per week. Lifting, twisting, bending, walking, reaching, carrying.

No gym routine comes close (outside perhaps professional sportspeople, but even then it will be heavily based on their particular activity) to the sheer volume of 'work' that kind of vocation generates.

Most of us would be humbled by our grandparents when it comes to overall fitness.

Ultimately it all comes down to optimisation. Recreational training will optimise you for whatever it is you are training for, whereas hard manual labour optimises you for hard manual labour.

Kawasicki

13,833 posts

253 months

Monday 6th October
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My dad grew up in an era of hard manual labour, I was exposed to hard physical work in my teens… since then most half way wealthy countries have given up on it, as it is a waste of time and energy, and it’s hard.

J4CKO

44,966 posts

218 months

Monday 6th October
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Meh, you would likely be knackered by now if you had done hard labour.


MC Bodge

25,534 posts

193 months

Monday 6th October
quotequote all
Megaflow said:
I thought I'd put this in a new thread to avoid diluting the original. I read the thread below and it hit home.

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

I have been going to the gym on and off since 1995, and I am pretty strong/fit in the gym world, but as I get older, just turned 50, it occurs to me it is just not cutting it in the real world anymore...

I sit in front a desk during the week, but I quite like doing manual stuff around the house and the cars at the weekend and it is really starting to be noticeable the difference between gym strong/fit vs real world strong/fity.

The question is, what to do to change that and build some real world strength/fitness?
Interesting question.

I think that it comes down to long-term maintaining of doing a broad range of movement activity, endurance, strength (training) in different planes of motion and suppleness. Efficient movement makes a big difference.

In my case, I am in my late 40s and work sitting at a desk.


My recipe:

I eat healthily, avoid snacking and drink moderately. I'm a lean 81kg, 5'11.

I cycle to work, I am active at lunchtimes and outside of work. I have always been this way in various sports. I liked contact sports and still like outdoor sports.

I skip, run (preferably off road), cycle, ruck (for training and do mountain activities) I often combine those in circuits with various bodyweight exercises. I also use maces, clubs, kettlebells, sandbags in a range of motions, up to reasonable sizes. I am not obsessive about it or doing huge volumes.

What I am able to do is days of labouring without problems. I am quite flexible and agile. I've no idea what I can gym lift, but I can pick up and carry 3x2 council paving stones. I can get up and down without making noises.

On a recent multi-day, arduous, very scrambly mountain hike, my conditioning was good and I found it to be fine.

What I have noticed is that I have a decent anaerobic/strength threshold. If I stay below that threshold I can just keep going. That level appears to be above many people's. I will admit that it is quite satisfying.

Edited by MC Bodge on Monday 6th October 13:54

Megaflow

Original Poster:

10,583 posts

243 months

Monday 6th October
quotequote all
horsemeatscandal said:
You shouldn't need a great deal of strength for almost all DIY jobs or working on the car and given you've been in the gym for 30 years I'd suggest that maybe isn't the issue. However, doing those things, you're often in uncomfortable or unnatural positions for extended periods of time which can lead to a bit of pain and stiffness, so maybe it's time to work on your mobility and joint health a bit more if you aren't doing so already?

I always recommend Pilates for questions like this. In my experience it's part yoga, part calisthenics, part resistance training and you definitely find yourself holding uncomfortable positions for extended periods, albeit in a healthy way.

Good luck with whatever you do.

Edit: I guess that just covers the strength part. For fitness, my guess would be that long walks and interval training incorporating some kind of moving of weight (generally referred to as conditioning) would beat emulate real life fitness requirements.

Edited by horsemeatscandal on Monday 6th October 12:06
Mobility and joint health is probably a better description of what I am after. Thank you. I’ll have a look for Pilate classes near me

Kawasicki

13,833 posts

253 months

Monday 6th October
quotequote all
J4CKO said:
Meh, you would likely be knackered by now if you had done hard labour.
Are you directing this at me?

horsemeatscandal

1,971 posts

122 months

Monday 6th October
quotequote all
If I've interpreted what Bodge has said correctly, I'd also mirror what they said. Functional training, as they call it, is going to give you better all round health benefits than static and/or hyper-isolated standard gym lifts. You won't get the same strength or hypertrophy benefits, but it doesn't sound like that's what you're after at this point. Most importantly, keep it simple and enjoyable.

J4CKO

44,966 posts

218 months

Monday 6th October
quotequote all
Kawasicki said:
J4CKO said:
Meh, you would likely be knackered by now if you had done hard labour.
Are you directing this at me?
Nobody specific, just an observation that a lot of chaps that do hard manual labour, like builders can suffer later in life, just get worn out, more chances for injury than desk jockeys like myself.

Where we tend to get fat and weak.

MC Bodge

25,534 posts

193 months

Monday 6th October
quotequote all
J4CKO said:
Kawasicki said:
J4CKO said:
Meh, you would likely be knackered by now if you had done hard labour.
Are you directing this at me?
Nobody specific, just an observation that a lot of chaps that do hard manual labour, like builders can suffer later in life, just get worn out, more chances for injury than desk jockeys like myself.

Where we tend to get fat and weak.
The trick is not to over-do it or under-do it!

MC Bodge

25,534 posts

193 months

Monday 6th October
quotequote all
horsemeatscandal said:
If I've interpreted what Bodge has said correctly, I'd also mirror what they said. Functional training, as they call it, is going to give you better all round health benefits than static and/or hyper-isolated standard gym lifts. You won't get the same strength or hypertrophy benefits, but it doesn't sound like that's what you're after at this point. Most importantly, keep it simple and enjoyable.
I think you have interpreted it correctly.

I wouldn't like to call it "functional training" because that upsets some people. It's just a fairly broad range of quite old/new fashioned activities.

I have good dynamic strength and good strength endurance.

MC Bodge

25,534 posts

193 months

Tuesday 7th October
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People often refer to "Core strength", but it seems that many only think of it as linear abdominal crunch training.

My view is that Core (body) strength, including rotation/anti rotation and static resistance is the key. The sort of thing that rugby or wrestling develops. It is the chassis - which also contributes to the very important posterior chain, then leg strength, grip strength, shoulders and finally upper arm strength. The limbs are peripheral.

The modern gym emphasis appears to be on big arms first, then possibly the chest.

Edited by MC Bodge on Tuesday 7th October 08:10

biggbn

28,384 posts

238 months

Tuesday 7th October
quotequote all
Interesting video here. Hooper is always a good watch and talks a lot of sense.

https://youtu.be/OgPrh18qUzU?si=vzT7KeejsKd_l0t9

Megaflow

Original Poster:

10,583 posts

243 months

Tuesday 7th October
quotequote all
MC Bodge said:
People often refer to "Core strength", but it seems that many only think of it as linear abdominal crunch training.

My view is that Core (body) strength, including rotation/anti rotation and static resistance is the key. The sort of thing that rugby or wrestling develops. It is the chassis - which also contributes to the very important posterior chain, then leg strength, grip strength, shoulders and finally upper arm strength. The limbs are peripheral.

The modern gym emphasis appears to be on big arms first, then possibly the chest.

Edited by MC Bodge on Tuesday 7th October 08:10
That is an interesting take on it.

I looked for Pilates classes at my gym and they are all around lunch time during the week!

Core classes could be another option.

mcelliott

9,674 posts

199 months

Tuesday 7th October
quotequote all
To me they compliment each other, I have been doing heavy manual labor work since I was 16, so almost 40yrs, I run a ground works and landscaping business so we under take every aspect of stuff involving the use of very heavy machinery, brutal work, even lending out lighter equipment such as pole cutters to friends so that they can cut a small hedge they come back complaining their shoulders started hurting after 5 minutes!

My gym exercises revolve around pull ups grip work bag lifts and carries, overhead pressing and bench work , the stronger I get in the gym the easier my job becomes, strength is strength.

Edited by mcelliott on Tuesday 7th October 09:34

Megaflow

Original Poster:

10,583 posts

243 months

Tuesday 7th October
quotequote all
mcelliott said:
To me they compliment each other, I have been doing heavy manual labor work since I was 16, so almost 40yrs, I run a ground works and landscaping business so we under take every aspect of stuff involving the use of very heavy machinery, brutal work, even lending out lighter equipment such as pole cutters to friends so that they can cut a small hedge they come back complaining their shoulders started hurting after 5 minutes!

My gym exercises revolve around pull ups grip work bag lifts and carries, overhead pressing and bench work , the stronger I get in the gym the easier my job becomes, strength is strength.

Edited by mcelliott on Tuesday 7th October 09:34
Yes, I think the strong is not the greatest description, hence the fitness I added as well.

The thread has taught me I need to be looking at mobility, joint health and core strength.

Hoofy

78,919 posts

300 months

Tuesday 7th October
quotequote all
Interesting thread. It's something that's been on my mind for a long while - the idea that strength training is great but you need to do more than that. It's why I believe that we should test our fitness in the "real world" hence playing some kind of sport (for me it's mainly tennis - you have to sprint, lunge, leap, react etc if you want to win). That's why I do other training eg long walks, balance training, flexibility, mobility.

Here's a good summary of the components of fitness: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zxd4wxs/revi...

A young adult at my tennis club commented a couple of weeks ago that I run like a 20 year old. I'm nearly 55.