> If not, and you're honestly following the program, we can talk about what else to look at.
Lifting heavy shit sucks. Some people like it sure, but it really, really sucks. It doesn't work for me, and it doesn't work for others either.
I have a bit of a suspicion that muscle fibre type (fast vs. slow twitch) has some bearing on whether or not you like it but someone like me ( a slow-twitcher ) needs endurance sport rather than weightlifting in order to be able to continue doing it (psychologically) for more than a couple months. So swimming, cycling, running, rock climbing, etc. doesn't build muscle as quickly or effectively but it increases your caloric deficit by multiples and for some is a much better way of changing lifestyle.
"No pain no gain." If what you're doing doesn't feel at least a little uncomfortable then you aren't pushing your body enough. You don't want literal pain of course; always listen to your body. But it should feel difficult.
Perhaps you should build your fast-twitch muscles in different ways. Lifting heavy shit builds strength/power but does not build lean, functional muscle. There is such a huge variety of movements to work different parts of the body you could fill an hour's worth exercise with just a fraction of them. Body weight exercises can be very challenging and easy to start doing at your home. Personal trainers can show you exercises to do at home or the gym, as well as a multitude of free YouTube videos (but I should recommend you get a trainer to evaluate your form first so you don't hurt yourself). P90x is a very successful program and BeachBody has a couple other series which are also very challenging and provide results (I am not advertising for them; please torrent their videos if you want)
Lately I have gotten lazy so i'm doing Thai Boxing on mondays/wednesdays, kettlebell and other mixed exercise on tuesdays/thursdays and yoga on saturdays/sundays. I can't believe nobody has mentioned how surprisingly difficult yoga can be (especially the "power yoga" varieties) but I would recommend you try it if you want a less stressful beginning to a regular exercise program.
If you want to build more fast-twitch you should look into efficient plyometric exercises. Isometrics for strength (which can still be done with only bodyweight!)
That's one of the fun things about most crossfit boxes: they incorporate a variety of lifts in the WOD to maximize the lean muscle and not turn you into a body builder. (If you have the equipment at home you can do WODs by yourself or replicate them at your local gym)
A lot of weights. I'd say "a ton", but that'd be undercounting just 45#s by a factor of 4.
3 power cages, with lifting platforms and bumper plates. DBs to 200# (I'm still at about 120#). Another squat cage. A few Smiths to keep the bros off the real boys' toys. Recent some TRX gear (ring pull-ups FTW). 10 chinning bars, a couple of dips stations, GHR, bar jacks, chalk, and other goodness. Lots of machines for people who like that sort of thing.
A Rippetoe quote about this: "Only people willing to work to the point of discomfort on a regular basis using effective means to produce that discomfort will actually look like they have been other-than-comfortable most of the time. You can thank the muscle magazines for these persistent misconceptions, along with the natural tendency of all normal humans to seek reasons to avoid hard physical exertion."
Lifting heavy stuff is pain in the ass, it takes up lots of time, requires you to adjust your diet and schedule accordingly, and necessitates the learning of proper technique. It's quite a bit of work, but for many the payoff is worth it.
> Lifting heavy shit sucks. Some people like it sure, but it really, really sucks.
I was there. Then I had an ascending aortic dissection (I managed to survive mostly unscathed), and post-recovery, started weight training. (The doctors were ... amused.)
I HATED it for a while, but eventually got to where it has become a bit of an addiction.
About the only thing I don't do is the 'valsalva' maneuver. Too much risk there for me. (My aorta is dissected from the site of the repair (mm away from the aortic valve) to somewhere in my right iliac artery (thigh).)
If I can lift, anyone who doesn't have serious back injuries or NM issues can.
My predicted 1RMs are consistently well above my actual maxes.
Once I start moving a weight, I can hit it for a lot of reps. Doesn't mean I can pick up the bar with what I would be predicted to hit, or even get within 20-50# of that number (depending on the lift). A friend was watching me squat the other day and thought I was spent at 3. I managed 16 reps.
Back in the day when I swam competitively I was best at middle-to-long distance, similarly biking and hiking. Classic Newtonian body here (once in motion, tends to stay there).
While my strength numbers aren't quite where I'd like to see them, they're good given circumstances, and while I haven't been training for mass/hypertrophy per se, I'm finding clothes shopping is increasingly a PITA: jeans, slacks, shirts, even boxers. I simply don't fit the designers' patterns any more.
What's been your specific training experience? I started with a sort of fart-around 8-12 rep mostly-machines program, graduated to a couple of years of 5x5, and for the past couple of years have done largely Wendler 5/3/1. The last two are beginning and intermediate strength programs, for those not familiar with them. I find that if I can get into the 3-5 rep range (and occasional heavy singles) I'm generally going to see good results.
My experience with swimming was that it helped a bit with excess fat, but as many have noted, there's only a limited weight-loss benefit to the activity. There's a lot of speculation as to why, the upshot is that swimming and drastic fat loss aren't closely associated.
I never made substantial progress with strength training until I switched to isometric training, which has several lifestyle advantages:
-Easy scheduling - only a 5 minute daily routine is necessary, making it more like brushing your teeth than "hard training."
-Low risks, low energy consumption - the worst that can happen is that you spike your blood pressure, which happens with isotonic methods as well. There's little wear and tear in the performance of an isometric hold, hence overtraining is difficult, while motivation is easy.
-No real equipment needed. Doorframes, steel bars, walls, self-resistance, etc., are all acceptable. This also makes it easy to switch up the holds.
Anecdotes, historical records, and modern science all indicate that it's about as good as the isotonic methods in most respects, and it's certainly a lot simpler to keep up with.
Unless you're willing to back those claims up with some specific cites, I'd dispute that.
Isometrics have their place, particularly in rehab or for mobility-challenged trainees (say: an arthritis sufferer unable to do proper squats). Or, as you note, when other equipment is wanting.
Given the general principle of SAID (specific adaptation to imposed demand), or more concisely, "specificity", there's a distinct different between a static contraction, and moving a joint through a full range of motion against resistance in both concentric and eccentric phases.
The short answer is "because it's what's been shown to work" (where "it" is full ROM training).
"Specificity" refers to the adaptation of muscle to stimulus, and I was answering specifically why isometric and full-ROM training are different and will have different results: They will differ in response because they differ in stimulus.
If you want to read detailed technical literature, I'd suggest you do your own Google Scholar search on hypertrophic response from isometric vs. full-ROM training modalities. I'm not particularly interested in the results.
What I know is that there have been few serious bodybuilders (the guys who are most interested in training efficiency in developing more muscle mass) over the past 75-100 years who've advocated isometrics. Your standout oddballs are Herschell Walker (and he pimps calisthenics, not isometrics) and Charles Atlas (a modified "dynamic tension" model, not strictly isometric). There are occasional iso advocates, but they're well off the mainstream.
So: if you're currently untrained, and you don't have any limitations on full-ROM training modalities, your best bet is to do a freeweight, compound-movement, whole-body training program, about 3x weekly. This will do the most to add muscle to your body with the least amount of training and effort. Standard modifications would be to substitute a two-part split and 4x schedule, possibly 5x, if you have the time for it. Training volume, recovery needs, and training frequency won't let you go much beyond this. And retain an advantace over the first option.
If you're interested in disputing this, I'd encourage you to research the claim yourself (it's a pretty conservative and widely accepted one), find its critics, and judge their arguments and data on their merits. I'm not particularly interested in the question at this point.
Vehement agreement. I got myself fit by discovering that I really liked learning burlesque dancing. Which meant that twice a week I'd get off my ass and exercised for an hour.
What really matters is that you find something you like to do that burns calories, and that you keep doing it on a regular basis. Bonus points if it's something that exercises your whole body and gets all your muscles in shape - as I advance and my teacher shows me new subtleties, I keep on finding ways to make muscles complain that I barely knew I had.
Lifting heavy shit sucks. Some people like it sure, but it really, really sucks. It doesn't work for me, and it doesn't work for others either.
I have a bit of a suspicion that muscle fibre type (fast vs. slow twitch) has some bearing on whether or not you like it but someone like me ( a slow-twitcher ) needs endurance sport rather than weightlifting in order to be able to continue doing it (psychologically) for more than a couple months. So swimming, cycling, running, rock climbing, etc. doesn't build muscle as quickly or effectively but it increases your caloric deficit by multiples and for some is a much better way of changing lifestyle.
Good comment, otherwise