The Weightlifters Thread

Week 2. Bout to go ham on these weights.


I decided to just reorder my workout rather than going push/pull. I'll do chest Mondays, back Tuesdays, legs Wednesdays and arms Thursdays. That will give my triceps enough time to rest between chest and arm days. Early on I can take Thursdays off and push arms to Fridays.

Shoulders? :)
 
I'm not sure what you mean by "a lot." Maybe I did get in over my head, as I'm sore as balls. This is the routine I was doing 2 years ago that worked very well for me, so I just picked it right back up.

Are you saying you think I should start out doing modest full body workouts or something? What makes this work out seem like a lot? Just curious.

I was under the impression this was the first lifting you've done. Nevermind my comment then.
 
Lateral raises. Lots of them with various weights and rep schemes. I prefer a little lighter weight and high reps. Burns like hell but worth it if you put the work in.
 
Do you think I pushed myself too hard in week 1 if my reps went down in week 2? I guess I didn't fully recover in one week, or I did more harm than my body was able to overcome?

I was sore all week to the point of barely being able to move each muscle group 3 or 4 days after working it out.
 
That's normal. As I mentioned, the recovery process takes nearly 100 hours, and that doesn't change if you're new or if you've been a gym rat for years. It will eventually get more tolerable, just have to keep at it. Stretching for you is most critical right now. I'd say get at least ten minutes of stretching in. Working in a couple yoga classes could accomplish the same thing.
 
Stretching before or after the workout? Or both? Or should I continue to stretch all week. I couldn't last week, as my muscles were so sore, but I did my best.
 
K, I will incorporate more stretching this week. Thanks for the reassurance that I'm not doing something major wrong.

I don't remember a drop-off like this, before, but I usually start off a little easier. I just kinda jumped right in this time.
 
I took one once after doing Insanity, and I swear it helped my legs tremendously. Not so much after weight lifting, though. There could have been other factors, too.
 
I like to steam, hop in a cold plunge, and them maybe sit in the hot tub. I have no idea what impact it has on my workouts, but it feels good
 
I love doing the polar bear plunge. I could go for an icy/hot pad for my back right now as it's 10x worse today than it was yesterday.
 
With regard to muscle growth? I ask because my wife is training for a marathon, and virtually everyone she knows says they are necessary to recover from the long runs.

Here's a good article for her to read:

Recovering from high-intensity athletics

Ice baths

Nothing feels better on sore muscles after a tough workout than a hot shower or, if you have access to one, a steaming whirlpool. Haven't we seen pro athletes doing this for years? Unfortunately, it may be the wrong way to go. It seems wherever you go now, someone is touting the benefits of an ice bath or, more technically, cold-water immersion.

It seems intuitive that cold would reduce the inflammation in overworked legs. Distance runners swear by the practice; they've been standing in buckets of icy water after races and workouts for years. An ice bath "constricts blood vessels and decreases metabolic activity, which reduces swelling and tissue breakdown," top ultra-marathoner Nikki Kimball wrote in Runner's World in 2008. (For ultra-wusses like me, Kimball notes that she wears a down jacket, a hat and neoprene booties and drinks hot tea during her 20 minutes in a 50- to 59-degree tub.)

This idea is not universally accepted, however. Kenneth L. Knight, a professor of athletic training at Brigham Young University who has spent his career studying cryotherapy for athletes, says there is no research to support or refute the effect of ice baths on inflammation, even if so many say it feels so good.

"There's no evidence that it's not good, but there's no evidence to support it, either," Knight says. "It's just out there."

In that 2008 study of rock climbers, cold-water immersion was the other method that researchers found helped maintain performance. (Passive recovery and electric stimulation were the ones that didn't pan out as well.)
 
Makes sense... I bet BYU doctors also support the no-alcohol after lifting line of thought :)

Most def.

In general I don't think science departments at religious universities are all that reliable, but I think this ice baths are a safe topic.
 

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