Alright, I got really long arms and legs, so I'm a bit behind as far as putting up big numbers in the gym, so should I stop worrying about that so much and get my muscular endurance back? I've been doing Scrapper's stuff lately, holy crap am I a sissy lol I don't really have a choice as to what to do for the next month, but I was just wondering about after that. Thanks.
P.S. I don't know what the deal is with the thread title, maybe I'm just searching for the best way to train for people to call me strong.
What about changing my routine to more sets and less reps, like maybe 8-10 sets of 2-3 reps? Wouldn't that lead to better strength and explosiveness, then maybe I could do a really high rep BWE routine once or twice a week. If it helps, I'm training for MMA and maybe some novice Highland Games this spring. Thanks.
I think I figured out the thread title, I was just thinking "man I gotta get stronger" but how can I call myself strong if I can barely bench my bodyweight (as happens if I don't lift for a while)? Likewise, how can I call myself strong if I can only do like 10 pushups at a time (ok I exaggerated a bit there though)? I can't. I must have both.
Westside.
That's at www.elitefitnesssystems.com or something like that right?
Yeah, go to articles.. then the Testosterone section. Read the Eight Keys series by Dave Tate first.. then just skim around and read shit.
Eight Keys is awesome though.. explains everything and gives you a beginners program. Its 4 parts.
You'll love WS dude..
Should I get some Converse All-Stars to lift in too? lol Actually, I have heard they were probably the best shoes to lift in, but I don't know.
Actually, I have heard they were probably the best shoes to lift in, but I don't know. Super cheap, super comfortable, no heel. I wouldn't deadlift or squat in anything else. OTOH, I wouldn't want to do a lot of running in them either.
Yeah, they're great for training squats and DLs,.. you gotta get some. But not so good for bench pressing. You'll probably want something with a heel.
I love allstars for squatting but prefer wrestling shoes for deadlifts. The allstars have a thick sole and thus the bar has to travel a slightly greater distance than in wrestling shoes.
I dont even wear shoes when I lift.
Just work on the strength part.
Traing more and you will get stronger. You can put up big numbers later just that you won't be world record numbers, unless you are also genetically gifted (shorter arms help etc).
Just work out what you want and stick to it. It will take a few years and you can put up decent numbers. 5 months ago I was benching on 132lbs now I am doing the same on 165lbs. Only 4lbs off my body weight for 6r and 5s. Going to move up next time. I don't have really short arms but you can still get decent numbers if you want.
Just focus and be patient. You put in say a good 4yrs in to benching and you should hit over 300lbs easily unless you are very young. That is a pretty decent number! Not the best but highly respeciable for under 200lbs guys!
On the other hand my squat is a mean mofo.....
10 press up is a joke if you can't hit that! Get at least 20 min.....
Koing
Yeah I was joking about that lol
Maybe I just hold myself to standards I'm not working hard enough for, I'm not satisfied impressing people, I want to astonish them, you know?
Yeah. Do some OL and shift some big ass weights then that will more then likely astonish them.
Or do back summesaults in the gym. That always astonish's people when I do it on occasion :D.
Splits is also good, or any act of flexibility.
Just work hard you will peak in 5-10yrs time.
I definately want to be in my prime at 25-33yrs and maintain for as long as I can.
Koing
Yeah, that was kinda thinking about changing the direction of my training. I've astonished people with my endurance, leanness, and flexibility (I'm not that flexible, but moreso than all the baseball players I work out with lol) so I was thinking about training more in the area of my strengths than trying to bring my weaknesses up to par.
I have astonished myself with some lifts though, and they were actually below average lifts. But when you consider that 5 years ago I was a 6'4" 165 lb. kid benching 85 pounds, approaching average is astonishing lol
BTW, Ryno, you were using Westside when you were putting on all that weight recently, right? So were you getting good gains in both size and strength?
if you're a sissy for doing Scrapper's stuff, then I'm ready for another episode of QEFTSG (queer eye...). Scrapper's workouts are great muscular endurance training. IMHO those will get you strong too. But if weight training/lifting is your measurement of strength then I dunno...most of the responses above come from good resources. I'd forget about worrying about your long arms and legs as an excuse and just get in the weight room and train your powerlifts which would help you build a strong base. Whether you train 5x5 or some WSB or a pyramid style lifting program, you will need to satisfy two factors in strength training: Proper technique and Diet.
Diet no longer means "losing weight" as we might think because of all the magazines in the supermarket with words 'New Weight Loss Diet' etc. In my opinion diet means a change to your current way of eating. After that diet change then you have an improved way of eating for a specfic goal (whether it's a healthy life or a strong, healthy life). You may have to eat more (protein, fats, and healthy carbs) everyday to gain that strength and weight. Then proper technique comes into play when doing your lift. The lifts being squats, deadlifts, and bench press (or substitution like weighted dips). Those would basically help you build a power base which in turn helps you get stronger and sometimes bigger. I wouldn't even worry that much about your bench press as the lift to gauge strength. I would concentrate on your true base, your legs, which supports you and moves you. Everything else usually follows. Besides you're doing Scrapper's workouts...I would think that was enough already. Just add more food to Scrapper's workouts.
Yeah, J. I was training WS when I gained all that weight.. more progress in 6 months than in the 2-something years before it.
I've made alot of changes lately, but when I was strictly PL.. my DL was up.. shit -- close to 150-175 lbs.. My squat up over 100 lbs.. Bench up about 75lbs.
It works. No doubt about that.
I've been reading about this stuff for years now and strength is still kind of a mystery to me.
I know when I'm getting stronger, but I don't think you can use any particular exercise to accurately measure how your going to perform under other circumstances. Sometimes my numbers have gone up, but I've felt weaker outside of the gym.
I think it's best not to worry excessively about the numbers and concertrate on how you feel physically and how your performing in whatever you need to use your strength for. Progress is always welcome, but it's important to remember that more push-ups and heavier lifts are not the goal (unless you compete in PL or are being tested on pushups).
Westside has been popular on this board, but alot of what distinguishes Westside has been the special methods they use to improve performance on specific lifts. Unless you're a powerlifter, lots of that skill specific stuff with blocks, bands and chains is kind of unnecessary. As Dave Tate said in a recent article, it's all about working on particular weaknesses. For people with more general goals, Westside doesn't have any new answers.
What I do like about Westside is how they balance out gpp, hypertrophy, speed and max strength training. There are some useful lessions there, but I think any mixed anerobic protocol will work fine as long as your not overtrained.
Ayla108, my bad, that was pretty unclear. NO ONE is a sissy for doing Scrapper's stuff, what I meant was when I tried going from lifting weights to Scrapper's workouts I FELT like a sissy it was so hard lol That's some great stuff, and if you don't have good muscular endurance it will make you feel like a sissy. Any time it is an accomplishment just to complete a workout, you know it's working.
I think I've reached a conclusion. Treat the time between fights like the off-season in any other sport, heavy lifting, get bigger and stronger, then when I have a fight coming up worry about the muscular endurance part. Oh and I ordered some olive drab All Stars from www.eastbay.com, I got the green color because it was the cheapest pair they had lol