Archive for January, 2010
I do curls and various types of pull ups but my hands seem to give out before my muscles do. I’m looking for a nice pair of gloves or wrist straps that could help out with that. Would you recommend wrist straps or gloves? and why? Thank you 
My boyfriend weightlifts and he uses gloves called new grip, which have a wrist strap so it supports your wrists as you lift as well. He says they are really good and I know another couple of people who have used them also who said they are great. Here is a link to their website. Hope this helps.
http://www.newgrip.com/
What exercises is it important for and should you use it all the time or just for heavy lifts?
I dont use one at the moment but have had some back issues in the past and now I am starting to push heavier weights I was wanting to know if I should get one.
Yes it is really necessary when doing wight lifting excercises in upright positions that have resistance on the back.
You shouldn’t wear it for a long time though.
Here are some little things to explain =]
A weightlifting belt has two main purposes. It reduces stress on the lower back while the person is lifting in an upright position and prevents back hyperextension during overhead lifts. A belt reduces low back stress and also providing more support in front of the bones of the lower back.
Wearing a belt also causes the lifter to be more aware of the position of his or her back.
The belt does not need to be worn too tightly for an effect.
However, a belt must be worn tightly to maximize its usefulness.
This is physically taxing and should not be done for long periods of time. Research has shown that wearing a tight belt during exercise can elevate blood pressure. For this reason, belts should only be used on two primary occasions. The first is when performing maximal or submaximal lifts in exercises such as the squat or deadlift, in which the weight is supported by the lifter’s back. The second is while performing exercises, such as the military press, which may cause the back to hyperextend. The belt should be loosened to allow blood pressure to return to normal levels in between sets.
Weightlifting belts are not necessary for other types of weight training exercises in which the spinal erectors do not work against heavy resistance. For example, the use of a belt will not affect performance on exercises such as the lateral pull down and leg extension. Belts also have little or no effect on performance weight loads that are fairly light . However, elevated blood pressure that results from using a belt can increase over time, even when fairly light work or aerobic activity is performed. Lifters with heart disease and blood pressure problems should exercise caution when wearing a tight belt for long periods of time.
Constantly wearing a belt can also cause decreased strength development in abdominal muscles.
Also be careful that wearing it for a long time could result in weaker abdominal muscles in the long run.
Strong abdominal muscles are important in maintaining trunk stability in the absence of a support belt. Studies have shown that substantial IAP can be achieved by simply holding oneUs breath while lifting. It is also important not to be too dependent on belts while training as they may not be admissible during competition.
They are most effective when used for maximal or submaximal lifts in which the spinal erector muscles work against heavy resistance. However, many ill effects, such as high blood pressure and abdominal muscle weakness, may result from improper use of weightlifting belts.
They should be used sparingly in training.
Im going to start boxing training for fitness that may include sparring and I was wondering what I should be looking for in boxing gloves for this purpose so I know what to buy..
Im male in my mid 20s and about 6.0 ft or 186cm.
cheers
For sparring, you’ll want to order at least 16 ounce gloves, preferably 18 ounce even.
Out of all the brands available for a low or average price, I only trust Ringside. It’s the highest-end glove on the average affordability scale. It’s just amazing that such a good company contracts their only option of shipping through the shittiest and most corrupt shipping company in the world- UPS. If you live in Alaska (like I do) or Hawaii, you will pay a minimum of $43 for shipping, even if your order a key chain or shirt. On top of that, your order will always take two weeks to reach you rather than the guaranteed two days, but that’s fine because after Ringside and UPS deny you a refund for it (by not replying to your emails), you just call your credit card company and have the insane shipping charge reversed. But all that is if you live in Alaska or Hawaii.
Other than Ringside, if you’re willing to shell out big money for top notch gloves that will last quite a while and that will remain intact and will serve you like gloves should, get Cleto Reyes or Grant. It’s what all the professionals use. The only thing you should buy from Grant is their "Professional" line of gloves, not the other glove models. Other than the Professional gloves, you should order nothing from Grant other than maybe their boxing trunks. A lot of Grant products are overpriced trash (their $30 neck strengthener can be found elsewhere for $9 easily). The problem is that Grant is another American company (they only really care about making money), so they don’t store or ship their products with any care of preservation of product quality, so roughly half of your items will be as if they got sat on by an elephant upon opening the box.
That just leaves Cleto Reyes as the other high-end brand to get. I’ve never personally tried them myself, but I know they’re held in extremely high regard among the boxing group in general. Most of the pros use Cleto Reyes as their brand, their especially used by people who punch hard because the padding in the Cleto Reyes gloves are distributed throughout the glove and not just on the knuckle area, meaning it makes your opponent feel one hell of a punch from you.
So essentially:
3.) Rindside
2.) Grant
1.) Cleto Reyes
But remember, if you want jacked up product and shipping costs, as well as customer service incompetence and complete corruption and rip-off tactics, by all means order from Everlast or Title. Their business is selling cheap (and often previously used), half-broken, Chinese-made products at 5x their value, while shipping it at additional unreasonable rates, while being governed or oversaught by no one with any moral or ethical values towards keeping the company name at what it once was. Some will say that only their lower-end stuff is garbage, but it’s the same with a majority their higher-end stuff as well, trust me. Funniest of all, you’ll order an item when it’s on sale and they’ll confirm that the item in question is indeed on sale, but they’ll secretly bill you for the standard item price and other sneaky little corporate bullshit like that. It’s sad, really. So remember Everlast and Title as a total no-no.
I know wrist wraps are generally for very heavy weights. At 5′8 and 160lbs I only lift light/medium weights however I have very really small,skinny wrist and occasionally I feel them sore and fatigued after benching (I have never before had any injuries to them and only recently started to bench press) would using some wrist wraps be a good idea? will they offer a slight support?
like these
http://www.target.com/GoFit-Diamond-Wrist-Wrap-Weightlifting-Gloves/dp/B00012SDEW/sr=1-7/qid=1222495480/ref=sr_1_7/601-5291151-9721760?ie=UTF8&index=target&rh=k%3Awrist%20wraps&page=1
It sounds like you’d benefit from wrist wraps.
Safety comes first.
Go checkout http://www.cagedanimal.net post your question in the beginners cage and you will get tons of relative info and support.
I would love to hear what any women are doing to show appreciation to their spouses. I am married to the most wonderful person, and I would like to keep some ideas handy so I can spontaneously surprise this incredible man. He likes football, baseball, weightlifting, classic mustang cars and he likes shoes. (he has lots of pairs). Thank you wives or husbands for any help!
Well I do small things..Like when my husband comes home from work sometimes he calls and says he is on his way home and he has had a hard day at work. I start him a bath with bubbles, candles and a glass of his favorite drink (pepsi). when he gets out have a hot towel ready for him with his favorite pj’s..order pizza and watch one of his favorite shows or play a game that he likes…
Or
Maybe go buy him a outfit with shoes included. When he comes in from work tell him his clothes are on the bed, take a shower and get ready…take him to a nice dinner or dancing…or buy the type of clothes that you can go to a sports bar and have some hot wings and a drink..Good luck
I know this is a stupid question but I seriously don’t know: If you put a 20 lb weight on one end of a barbell and another 20 lb weight on the other end of the barbell, are you lifting 20 lbs or 40 lbs?
You go by total weight lifted. The plates on each side + the bar + collars.
A typical weight for 5 foot solid bar with collars is 25 lbs.
Olympic bars are 45 lbs. Springs collars weigh almost nothing. Official Olympic collars weight about 5 lbs each.
So I am a skinny almost 17 year old guy here and wanting to gain muscle. I have thought of buying some dumbells for myself but what is a good weight of dumbells for me to start out at but as the same time the same dumbells get me the muscle I want?
it depends how strong you are. Get one of the ones that you can adjust the weight by putting plates on them. Those are much more versatile, and cheaper. Get some used on craigslist, as it is MUCH MUCH cheaper than at the sporting goods store.
By that I mean what is the maximum that a 13 year old could do without hurting themselves. Also pull ups,crunches,flick ups (when you hold a weight in your hand and flick your wrists) and backward pushups( when you go on the side of a bed face the opposite direction and go up and down. They help your triceps)
Personally, I was able to to 100 or more when I was that age without any detrimental effects. Most of my friends could do maybe 25 or so.
The most challenging exercises I used to do was using a peg board climber and going from a headstand to walking on my hands.
I am currently lifting 10lbs free weight for my biceps and triceps and overhead press. Should I continue to increase the weights and when should I just maintain lifting a certain weight and not go any further with increasing the weights? Thanks
When lifting the weight becomes easy for you. I would recommend increasing your weight load when you can easily do 20 reps. It is largely up to you what goals you want to achieve too. If you are looking for toning..just increase reps until you can do 15-20 with a little difficulty. This is generally a good range for toning. Try 12 lbs and see how it feels. For muscle growth usually 8-12 rep range is good.
My buddy says that back in the day his dad could deadlift 800 lbs at a weight of only 185. I call bs on that. what do you think? I’ve seen his dad, and though he has a large frame, he’s not overly huge.
yes its very possible just dont bust a nut
