Sad Thing at the Gym!

So I just moved to Montreal and my buddy asked me if I wanted to go workout with him at this local gym in a Montreal suburban city. I said yeah no prob.

So it was me, him, and his workout partner. So I do my own stuff you know. 4 chest exercises 3X6 each, which I think is enough reps and sets. Has been pretty good to me in the past to build size and strength and the best is that I’m in and out in about a hour.

Oh man, my buddy and his partner on the other hand, they did like 15 sets of 10 reps each in total for their chest. So I tell them, man, you guys are doing 150 reps for chest that’s just nuts, where did you find that workout or who did it for you. So he tells me the guy behind the counter did (I guess he was the owner). I tell him that that is way too many reps and you spend way too much time. He agreed that it did take him lots of time. When the workout was done we go see the guy who made the workout for him and his workout partner. My buddy makes him understand that the workout is way too long. I start listening to the guy explaining why they should stick to it and then I say: Man, 150 reps for chest only is crazy, way too much! My buddy continues by telling him that I only do 3X6 and sometimes 8 X 3. The guy looks at me super insulted and tells me: “Yeah ok, but you it’s for pure strength only. That workout I made is for hypertrophy not strength.”

Guys I kid you not. The worst is that he made them pay $30 each for that crappy workout that by the way does not include any kind of flat bench press because it supposedly does not build size like the incline, no squat, no deadlift, no overhead press, nothing.

This is sad because there are guys like that in every gym and that’s what they tell newbies to do. My suggestion is that if you see a newbie in the gym doing a “weird” workout go see him ask him about his goals and ask him to see his workout then unbrainwash him.

It is funny you mention this. Just last Friday a friend of mine joined us for benching. We are doing the Waterbury Method and it was 10x3 for flat bench day.

He starts telling us about his work out and how he goes super slow and normally just does the weight for sets of 10. I guess 3 or 4 sets, then does the same for incline, then again on decline, then on cable cross over and finally pec deck.

Oh he also does not squat, just leg press and no deads or anything like that.

I tried to explain some of the things we are doing and why but I don’t think he was real receptive. The gym trainer got him started on this and he has managed to lose 55lbs since he started.

I’d like to know where the good gyms are, the gymes that have guys like Waterbury and CT at them. Seems like everyone around here is clueless, Heck most look like they never work out.

The state of training in most gyms is pretty bad. A lot of guys dont want to hear shit though. Its like they are sure what they know cant be wrong.

I use to spend time trying to guide newbies but it can be a waste of time if your not careful.

Be a good example and the people that really want to know will ask. Maybe?

[quote]Todd S. wrote:
He starts telling us about his work out and how he goes super slow and normally just does the weight for sets of 10. I guess 3 or 4 sets, then does the same for incline, then again on decline, then on cable cross over and finally pec deck. [/quote]

sounds like a (bad) variation on Alessi’s Meltdown plan. Long Ecentrics with normal concentrics. I tried Meltdown 1 and after one week decided it should be renamed the “Pukeing Death Cycle”

La’
Redsol1

Just remember…Everyone knows everything.

I’m all for helping people out…Only if they ask for it. It’s one thing to answer some questions and give tips to those who want it and ask for it…but it’s a totally different thing to barge in one someone’s routine and tell them they’re wrong, (even if they really are). One of my biggest pet peeves is jerks in the gym who think they know it all about form, new age lifts, etc. Don’t be that guy! You all know who I’m talking about…the one who always wants to take you out of your routine and “show you something”. The last guy like that we had in my gym, we kicked out.

[quote]lostinthought wrote:
Just remember…Everyone knows everything.

I’m all for helping people out…Only if they ask for it. It’s one thing to answer some questions and give tips to those who want it and ask for it…but it’s a totally different thing to barge in one someone’s routine and tell them they’re wrong, (even if they really are). One of my biggest pet peeves is jerks in the gym who think they know it all about form, new age lifts, etc. Don’t be that guy! You all know who I’m talking about…the one who always wants to take you out of your routine and “show you something”. The last guy like that we had in my gym, we kicked out. [/quote]

Yeah that’s true for sure. I really didn’t think about that one. I do wait for questions before I start helping.

Honestly, though, some newbies don’t want help at all. In my last days at Queen’s University I see this kid trying to bench 165. 1,2, 3 reps can’t get the 4th one and drops the bar on his chest. I run to save his ass. 4 minutes later he comes back from water break on his way to the bench and I ask him if he needs a spot. He tells me that he does not. I say fine but don’t be shy to ask. To my big surprise he puts 185 lbs this time. Of course he can’t go more than 2 reps and drops the bar on his chest. This time I let the guy next to him save his ass and never asked him if he needed my help. What an idiot!

sad, im on the south shore of montreal, sad to see that most gyms trainers are terrible…

[quote]TheFrenchMenace wrote:
My suggestion is that if you see a newbie in the gym doing a “weird” workout go see him ask him about his goals and ask him to see his workout then unbrainwash him.
[/quote]
Emphasis on “newbie.” On the other hand if you see someone who does not look like a newbie doing strange stuff that you think is wrong, just STFU and mind your own damm business.

My gym? Meet ‘StrapMan’:Skinny, pale as a ghost, scrawny moustache on his vapid face, straps flapping off his wrists, huge belt across his scrawny midrif, pontificating about everyone’s ‘form’. Can’t lift jack, makes with the groaning on 15 lb dumbells…drives me nuts!! Tried once to make eye contact with me…

Helping others out? I always do my own thing and only help if asked - waste of precious time otherwise.

Yeah buddy of mine at work said i can do sets of three all day, and i was like go through my workout see if you can, couldnt even get through the workout or barely did, we was impressed and love it shows some people can be so ignorant of certain ideas or workouts that are proven to work

Hey FrenchMenace,

Look on the bright side, dude. At least your friends weren’t doing frat curls in the squat rack for 150 reps. Then you would have had to kill them.

It would be a funny story if they didn’t pay for that program. It is a bummer story. I think I’ve seen a similar workout in an old (90s) muscle magazine.

I’ve learned, over the years, to “empty my cup” each day when it came to weightlifting and weight training. Just so I wouldn’t go up to someone who may be totally messing themselves up in a rack and correct them from an IDLH. Everyone has a purpose to train and ‘faith’ runs strong in humans. There are many, many more still faithful to the “not as effective” training parameters. Of course, when someone like us T-members bring up better ideas we are treated like idiots because it’s not found in their PT’s books or on the gym wall. We can’t save the world/west so directly it seems.

As said before everyone knows better than you so STFU.

Actions speak louder than words. When you’re piling plates on the bar, doing the real exercises, and getting the results heads will turn. Thats when you’ll have monkey see, monkey do.

Besides helping others that won’t be helped is eating away at your valuable lifting time.

High school weightlifting myths are retarded especially. It was junior year of high school, i’m box squatting like upper 200’s, I dont know, i do much more today (mid 400’s at 170 bodyweight) but you know, it was high school back then. My two friends come up, biggest guys on the team at the time, both squatting high 3’s or low 4’s, they ask me what im doing. I try and explain why this works, why i squat wide, why 20 rep squats down to their ankles with a narrow stance MIGHT not be good for them (though 20 rep squats are killer). All i get is dumbfounded expressions and “you’re retarded dude”.

I kid you not, two days later the coach gets the whole team doing box squats. I laughed my ass off. As of now, both guys who were talking to me can no longer squat because of knee pain (at 19! years old!).

The monkey see monkey do theory has worked well in my experience but only with newbies that have not been “prescribed” a workout by an “authority” in the field of fitness and nutrition. I used to be one of them. I would do whatever my football coach told me to do and today I realize it was pretty bad.

Whatever, I guess, let’s just hope that they don’t hurt themselves or waste too much time before they realize it too.

On a different note, I’m doing the 8X3 this for the month of May for squat, bench, and close grip. Hope to gain back what I lost during my last two weeks of university. Anyone else doing the 8X3?

[quote]TheFrenchMenace wrote:

This is sad because there are guys like that in every gym and that’s what they tell newbies to do. My suggestion is that if you see a newbie in the gym doing a “weird” workout go see him ask him about his goals and ask him to see his workout then unbrainwash him.
[/quote]

FrenchMenace, I admire your charitable attitude and your willingness to help people, but I say don’t help unless they ask or come to you. You will spend way too much time helping people who probably don’t want the help. Somebody above already said that everybody knows everything. Let them continue stumbling through. Or tell them to check out this web site.

Ian King once said something like (I am not direct quoting) that he doesn’t give out advice unsolicited in a gym because mostly they don’t listen anyway.

Robert Burns (Scottish poet) once said:
A man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still.

So, don’t waste your time. How do you feel about Jehovah’s Witnesses who come to your door to show you the path to righteousness?

Just help those who are really looking for it.

TheFrenchMenace:

Everything works for a while. Who are you to say that 150 reps for the Chest won’t work?

[quote]ZEB wrote:
TheFrenchMenace:

Everything works for a while. Who are you to say that 150 reps for the Chest won’t work?[/quote]

I look at my buddy after 3 months of working out and I look at myself after 3 months of working out.

Note: We look pretty much the same so I’m guessing what works for me will work for him also.

[quote]TheFrenchMenace wrote:
ZEB wrote:
TheFrenchMenace:

Everything works for a while. Who are you to say that 150 reps for the Chest won’t work?

I look at my buddy after 3 months of working out and I look at myself after 3 months of working out.

Note: We look pretty much the same so I’m guessing what works for me will work for him also.[/quote]

??? (typing question marks while trying to fathom the logic behind that statement)

[quote]TheFrenchMenace wrote:
ZEB wrote:
TheFrenchMenace:

Everything works for a while. Who are you to say that 150 reps for the Chest won’t work?

I look at my buddy after 3 months of working out and I look at myself after 3 months of working out.

Note: We look pretty much the same so I’m guessing what works for me will work for him also.

[/quote]

Well, I would have to disagree with that assumption. What works for one may not work for another.

He may not look as good as you. However, no matter what he does he may not look as good as you! Don’t get me wrong, I am not claiming that doing his program is the single best route to size and strength. My original point was that just about anything (reasonable) will lead to some sort of gains in the short term.

I have done programs where I have used high reps exclusively and made significant gains in size and strength, for a while. I have seen the reverse of this as well.

It depends doesn’t it?