Words of Wisdom from Non Beginners (Things We Wish We Knew)

That and powerlifting. It does really help getting strong, it’s just not worth it for me.

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Ah gotcha, you mean risk vs reward of working up near max effort all the time.

I agree, unless youre hell bent on competing youd be better off from both a injury/wear and tear POV working hard in the 3-12 rep range, its also better from a hypertrophy/aesthetic POV.

Good point my man (if thats what you meant).

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I more mean gaining weight to get stronger. I and most others can gain pure fat, and get stronger. Better leverages, compression of the joints and muscles, lower rom.

But I’d rather be a bit weaker and lean. I don’t think maxing it all the time is good, but I do like lifting heavy. I use all sorts of rep ranges for different goals.

Word to live by 100%. Super strong =/= healthy

I wish my 22 year old dumb ass understood that but … EGO BRAH

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In no particular order:

  • Only compete with yourself.
  • Strive to establish perfect, strict form.
  • Eat 3 bigger meals and 2-3 smaller meals a day.
  • Learn to balance frequency, intensity and volume.
  • Focus on quality workouts instead of quantity (focus on training - NOT the phone).
  • Be curious, try different programs and approaches in order to learn what you respond to AND to resist adaptation.
  • Don’t forget high rep workouts for added stimulus and to keep some muscular conditioning.
  • Ask questions, read books, learn from more experienced lifters.
  • Log your workouts.
  • Don’t wait 20 years to try HIT - you may be a responder.
  • Start with basic compound movements, learn to master them.
  • Lifting is a lifelong journey. What do you need to keep consistency? Develop working strategies.
  • Do other things in life to not get OCD about training.
  • Respect the need for rest to grow properly.
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Its easy to get stronger - just lift heavy things until they are not heavy anymore.
Food / recovery is as important as the rest.

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First and foremost: be honest with yourself about your goals. Do you want to compete in something? Do you want to dance at your granddaughters wedding? Do you want to take your shirt off at the beach to show off? Are you just trying to get more girls into bed?

All of these are valid goals, but be honest with yourself about which one is the real reason, because if you want real results, you’re going to have to work hard for a long time, best make sure your ladders up against the right tree.

Also, because this can’t be repeated enough, time, effort and consistency will matter far more than anything else. And since consistency is just effort applied over time, you could say effort and time are the two keys.

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Don’t make other people’s goals your own. Figure out what YOU want to get out of the gym.

Train to be an athlete. Don’t neglect conditioning, mobility and accessory work.

Overhead press at least as often as you bench press, even if you’re a powerlifter. And do face pulls. Your shoulders will thank you.

Keep your options open. You may THINK that bodybuilding, or powerlifting, or whatever you’re doing right now is what you’ll still want to be doing in 10 years. But it may not be. Make sure your training isn’t sooooo specific to these goals that it’s hard to transition to something else if you become interested in something else. If you’re a bodybuilder, you’ll still benefit from some heavy barbell work. If you’re a powerlifter, you’ll still benefit from high rep work, and movement.

Do carries, of all types. At least one type of carry every week.

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This. I spent my first 20 years of lifting not doing anything really correct regarding nutrition. You can build a muscular physique on a crap diet, but outside of the genetic elite you are never going to be muscular AND LEAN without a proper nutrition plan.

@flipcollar You don’t count. I know you eat icecream on a cut… :joy:

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  1. Put the fucking phone down
  2. Put the fucking phone down
  3. Based on 1 and 2, you don’t need as much rest between sets as you think
  4. Don’t under estimate Time Under Tension
  5. Slow your reps, maintain control
  6. If you can’t lift the weight with proper form, then its too heavy for you
  7. Stick to the basics…squat, deadlift, benchpress, chins, rows.
  8. Don’t forget to include rest days
  9. You won’t shrink to nothing if you take a vacation and can’t lift. Stop obsessing over it
  10. If you want to see drastic changes in your body, then you have to make drastic changes in your diet.
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I believe just one carry a week has benefitted me in so many different ways and I’ve not even tracked it like I probably should. I just do 2-3 sets until my grip gives out. I do it with kettlebells, I do it with dumbells, and I do it with the trap bar depending on what’s available/what I feel like.

  • Grip strength. I have yet to need straps. I can trap bar deadlift 200kg and hold for 4-5 seconds before dropping despite not going near that weight with carries. It’s also always other muscles that give out before my grip on higher rep sets (of pretty much anything). I don’t see anyone else in my gym managing past 140kg without straps.

  • Because of the above, my forearms look half decent and I get a really satisfying pump

  • Little bit of added conditioning

  • My upper back is my best feature

  • My stability in lifts is never a problem

  • I feel like my calves are well-developed despite never even thinking of them whilst training

  • I genuinely feel like it’s contributed to shoulder health. I feel so solid in my shoulders ever since I started doing them.

Maybe it can’t all be attributed to carries but if I think it works for me, that’s all I need.

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That’s awesome to hear carries have helped so much! I agree with everything you said here.

I’d definitely recommend incorporating the other 2 main ‘types’ of carries, if you can. Those would be front carries and back carries. I think front carries are amazing, that’s main way I train carries. You don’t have to use an extremely heavy load, and you get a lot out of it. So this would be like sandbags kegs, stones, whatever you can pick up in front of you, wrap your arms around, and walk with.

Back carries work in a very different way. Grip is not a limiting factor, so you can end up going extremely heavy on these. I’m basically talking about yoke carries here. These are prioritized secondarily in my carry routine, because training heavier means you can’t train as frequently or as high volume, but they really are great. Just very taxing in comparison.

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Maybe a good way to get into them for me. I could do a farmer / sandbag medley to get quite a lot of bang for the buck. I have done farmers in the past, and yolk in the past. Not doing them currently.

Additionally, find a nutrition plan that supports training and works for you. IF can work, carnivore can work, a combination of stuff may work - experiment and decide what you individually can do.

Some of my “words of wisdom”

  1. Take some sets past failure with partials/drop sets
  2. Don’t knock yoga/isometrics
  3. Dips are king for triceps
  4. Stop doing lateral/front raises until your shoulders are already decently capped (yours probably aren’t)
  5. Veggies >> Fruits
  6. Don’t stress over missing/skipping a workout
  7. You won’t look like Chris Bumstead or Big Ramy or Arnold in his prime.
  8. Find a gym that lets you grunt while working out
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Does carrying my mischievous cocker spaniel upstairs and to the bath count for front carries?

I also have a blind dog who sometimes steps in his own excrement I have to do it for? v_v

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hahahha I love it. I’ve got a 14 year old pug who can’t go up/down my stairs or jump onto my bed. She can barely see/hear. I feel you.

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