What Do You Guys Do It For?

[MANWHORE]

I read and trained and read and trained and
read more and more and trained more and more...

Now, I don't train much and I don't diet, because I
have it right where I want it

 

[KillaBig]

I do it for ME! ME! And some good pussy..

 

[Walker]

great responses guys...I respect everyone's beliefs...I wasnt trying to say that someone who benches heavy but cant do other types of exercises heavy is a pussy or weak...I was more or less trying to get an idea of how well rounded most were.

Ive always tried to lift heavy, heavy for me is considered pussy light for others....we are all at different level, body types etc...I started lifted at about 140lbs at 6 feet tall...im tall and lanky...ive got a runner's type body ..I can run 10 km's no problem... Im at 174 lbs now still lean...( working on it)

But the more Im reading around the forum I see the injuries that some encounter, some from previous accidents they have done in their haywire days...some directly associated with heavy lifting...

so heres a question.... for those who tend to associate a injury with lifting heavy...If you could do it all over again to prevent joint pain or injuries etc...would you train any differently...would you lift lighter....?

Im asking because up until recently I was lifting pretty heavy for a guy my size( I say this because some would think its light)...and was having pretty bad elbow pain....so I rested it took a easy and have since taken a different approach to my lifting strategy...before I was focused purely on stacking as many plates as I could for everything...sacrificing form for weight and ultimately suffering ...So now im more focused on isolation, deep reps ,and going lighter and proper form...I feel the burn just as much if not more, and getting the same cosmetic look , but I am not as "strong"...

Some may not agree...but for myself i do it for the way I look at myself in a mirror, wife loves the way I look...

So the question...would you rather look good and possibly make a attempt to lower the possibility of injury or have both strength and the look and risk injury lifting injury?

Im trying to think long term as Im trying to learn from some of the experiences ive read around here ...I just dont want to be in my 40's with crazy joint problems or back pain because I wanted to be a beast in my young days...Im 28 and still have a long way to go.. (i hope)


I appreciate all your input whether it positive or negative...take it for what its worth...

~ Walker

 

[Blacken]

I originally lifted to get bigger failed miserably as a teen (no concept of diet) went 3 years strong, I got stronger but didn't gain an ounce.

In my 20's I lifted as something to distract me from depression not expecting to make any gains as it didn't happen before. Learned diet and grew 85lbs not all muscle obviously but I finally didn't feel like a twig anymore. I was hooked, took me awhile to want to lose the fluff I put on as I was a twig forever and felt I would become one again.

So what drives me I think I'm just addicted to progression in various forms. I set up things I want to tweak and love slowly getting those tweaks to become a reality. Be is lifting better, performing better, having a smaller waist whatever it is I want to change at the time. Progression drives me same with life outside the gym.

 

[weighted chinup]

Good post Walker, there are some good questions to be asked there.

In my opinion a lot of the time people assume or believe that getting stronger / strength is not necessary to build an impressive bodybuilder physique, and while this might be true for guys with freak genetics / impressive muscle bellies, insertions, the reality is getting stronger in any given lift overtime is the most guaranteed way to add size on to your frame.

If you can squat 2x your BW for reps in an 8-12 rep range and you train with enough volume, you will have impressive size on your thighs, there is no denying this.

Can you give the same guarantee for a leg workout that consists mostly of light poundage's, squeezing, and with little emphasis put on progressive overload?

It can get confusing as well because you will often hear on bodybuilding forums other lifters who believe strength doesn't matter for building a physique, focus on perfect form/range, squeeze, etc, but then you find out many individuals who preach this method of training are able to bench 300 plus pounds for reps....I don't think its reasonable for guys that strong to say strength is irrelevant, it is clearly playing a role in their physique development, probably more so then they think.

I don't consider what I do to be lifting heavy because I train with an 8-10RM....I would consider lifting heavy to be anything that is high effort / tension and low fatigue, so basically anything in the 1-5RM rep range. But getting stronger in my major lifts in that 8-10 rep range is absolutely critical because that is where 90 percent of my own development comes from.

The high fatigue / high rep sets that I do for leg extensions definitely add some size on my thighs, but realistically 90 percent of my thigh development is coming from Front squatting, by doing front squats for lots of volume and continuously getting stronger.

 

[FuriousWO]

Total honesty, I do it purely for sex. Look good = sex w hotter chicks. I'm shallow like a kiddie pool. My wife is hot so I have to stay in shape. I forgot about this for awhile and let myself go, but I'm back now

 

[ironnut]

Id say i love working out and the compliments that come along with it. Not mention chicks panties getting wet when you enter the room. But really just for me the cocky prick i am.

 

[Blacken]

great responses guys...I respect everyone's beliefs...I wasnt trying to say that someone who benches heavy but cant do other types of exercises heavy is a pussy or weak...I was more or less trying to get an idea of how well rounded most were.

Ive always tried to lift heavy, heavy for me is considered pussy light for others....we are all at different level, body types etc...I started lifted at about 140lbs at 6 feet tall...im tall and lanky...ive got a runner's type body ..I can run 10 km's no problem... Im at 174 lbs now still lean...( working on it)

But the more Im reading around the forum I see the injuries that some encounter, some from previous accidents they have done in their haywire days...some directly associated with heavy lifting...

so heres a question.... for those who tend to associate a injury with lifting heavy...If you could do it all over again to prevent joint pain or injuries etc...would you train any differently...would you lift lighter....?

Im asking because up until recently I was lifting pretty heavy for a guy my size( I say this because some would think its light)...and was having pretty bad elbow pain....so I rested it took a easy and have since taken a different approach to my lifting strategy...before I was focused purely on stacking as many plates as I could for everything...sacrificing form for weight and ultimately suffering ...So now im more focused on isolation, deep reps ,and going lighter and proper form...I feel the burn just as much if not more, and getting the same cosmetic look , but I am not as "strong"...

Some may not agree...but for myself i do it for the way I look at myself in a mirror, wife loves the way I look...

So the question...would you rather look good and possibly make a attempt to lower the possibility of injury or have both strength and the look and risk injury lifting injury?

Im trying to think long term as Im trying to learn from some of the experiences ive read around here ...I just dont want to be in my 40's with crazy joint problems or back pain because I wanted to be a beast in my young days...Im 28 and still have a long way to go.. (i hope)


I appreciate all your input whether it positive or negative...take it for what its worth...

~ Walker

Having had my ups and downs with injuries I can say I think both have there place. Make no mistake this is based on personal experience so I'm not saying this as fact.

I feel if you lift heavy for extremely long form slowly gets shitty at this point the joints take the blunt stress and the muscle works far less.

If you lift light and focus completely on form it does work the muscle but if our body doesn't need it it will lose it so you don't get stronger.

So I think both counterbalance one another.

I also base this theory on when i lift balls to the wall I grow until I suddenly don't. I also don't feel it in the muscle as much. My form gets sloppier as the weights go up.

I use strict form now I suddenly grow again till I don't. I also start to slowly get weaker.

More so now I go heavy as fuck take a step back get the form solid then go back to lifting heavy as fuck.

This is what works for me
I

 

[HuckingFuge]

I think everyone needs to leave their ego at the door and lift what they can lift. there will always be someone strong and better built than you or the next guy. I do wish I would of never done 1 rep or pushed weight to were I couldn't do less than 4 reps. I think I wasn't lifting very smart when I went lower than 4 reps. that is just my thinking on it. I also think I hurt my shoulders more trying to throw up heavy ass dumbbells. I could easily do 120lb dumbbell presses for shoulders, but getting them up hurt me more than the actual movement. shit like that you need to think about too. I should of stopped at a weight that was easy to throw up and went for reps.

 

[Walker]

I agree huge...

 

[Wings_of_pain]

Where in gods name did i even come close to personalizing my question...it was merely used as a example.....i train to be well rounded...that is all the topic was more or less to gauge the motivation of the guys here ...im not butthurt at all lol you clearly took my intentions the wrong way...and fyi...you dont know me at all...

1) never claimed to know you, nor do I care to get to know you.

2) I do agree in being well rounded but I think a better example of the 'curl bruh' types would be a guy who goes to the gym everyday to do curls and some weak chest presses. Because I don't think I've ever seen a curl bruh bench more than 300. Most of them are imbalance, as stated, and tend to have shit programs, eat shit food, and have shit motivations (ie bitches are going to love my ill proportioned biceps and chest).

3) I lift because I tend to hate people and would be out doing very, very bad things if I didn't have this as a means to get out that aggression and hurt from my fucked life. But I also lift because i dream of becoming an elite powerlifter, and lastly because it keeps me from going back to my addiction to opiates. But I have to lift heavy because I'm a powerlifter but also because I don't think that you should ever look stronger than you actually are. I can't tell you how many guys at the local commercial gyms I have seen who seem to be all 'puff' wherein they are big and pumped but weak as shit and don't work legs. They look like they could bench a ton, then Get on it and hit 185 for sets of 5. It's like dude what are you doing that you look like that yet I'm hitting the same reps with over 100lbs more on the bar?!?!

 

[Walker]

I respect that brother... everyone's goals are different. ..

 

[ironnut]

I think everyone needs to leave their ego at the door and lift what they can lift. there will always be someone strong and better built than you or the next guy. I do wish I would of never done 1 rep or pushed weight to were I couldn't do less than 4 reps. I think I wasn't lifting very smart when I went lower than 4 reps. that is just my thinking on it. I also think I hurt my shoulders more trying to throw up heavy ass dumbbells. I could easily do 120lb dumbbell presses for shoulders, but getting them up hurt me more than the actual movement. shit like that you need to think about too. I should of stopped at a weight that was easy to throw up and went for reps.

Yeah id have to say im right with you on this, the lifting injuries from heavier weights really kick your ass as you get older. And certainly when your in the gym compare yourself to you and no one else. In fact i just gave this advice the other day to a kid in the gym.

 

[flexx89]

im pretty narcissistic so thats why i train. my diet is good, but i dont give a fuck about cutting or bulking, for the most part i eat whatever i want, whenever i want. i maintain low bf b/c i wanna eat right [95% of the time] - not cuz i have to in order to reach my goals. the second reason aside from staring at myself in the mirror daily is the high i get from working out. love the high i chase it every workout. training gives me something to look forward to every day, something that has yet to fail me in generating happiness, something that only i control and that nobody can take away from me. thats why i train

 

[romaleos]

Injury is such a broad term. Are you talking acute or chronic? Pain associated with muscle fiber or connective tissue damage? I don't know any athlete who is not in pain. Like they say "no pain no gain".

Honestly, if you are not in pain you may not be doing it right. And of course if the pain never goes away or gets worse then you're really not doing it right.

I always ask my athletes WHAT ARE YOU TRAINING FOR? If you want the glory and the women, maybe it's worth sacrificing your body to injury. If you just want to be HEALTHY, then I tell them GTFO!!! lol j/k. Seriously, if the reward or end goal is not there, why shorten your life. Then again, what is life worth living if you never really lived it?

I have no real answer. But I do know that the question of heavy or light is more a question of philosophy more than health.

The question you really need to ask is HOW DO I WANT TO LIVE MY LIFE?

 

[HuckingFuge]

Injury is such a broad term. Are you talking acute or chronic? Pain associated with muscle fiber or connective tissue damage? I don't know any athlete who is not in pain. Like they say "no pain no gain".

Honestly, if you are not in pain you may not be doing it right. And of course if the pain never goes away or gets worse then you're really not doing it right.

I always ask my athletes WHAT ARE YOU TRAINING FOR? If you want the glory and the women, maybe it's worth sacrificing your body to injury. If you just want to be HEALTHY, then I tell them GTFO!!! lol j/k. Seriously, if the reward or end goal is not there, why shorten your life. Then again, what is life worth living if you never really lived it?

I have no real answer. But I do know that the question of heavy or light is more a question of philosophy more than health.

The question you really need to ask is HOW DO I WANT TO LIVE MY LIFE?

I'm referring to connective tissue. you screw up your connective tissue it will hinder you badly. I always train to failure. if you can walk after leg day you did not work your legs.

 

[Blacken]

I think everyone needs to leave their ego at the door and lift what they can lift. there will always be someone strong and better built than you or the next guy. I do wish I would of never done 1 rep or pushed weight to were I couldn't do less than 4 reps. I think I wasn't lifting very smart when I went lower than 4 reps. that is just my thinking on it. I also think I hurt my shoulders more trying to throw up heavy ass dumbbells. I could easily do 120lb dumbbell presses for shoulders, but getting them up hurt me more than the actual movement. shit like that you need to think about too. I should of stopped at a weight that was easy to throw up and went for reps.

Speaking about ego at the door I used to do dumbell presses now I tend to shy away from dumbells in any sort of pressing motion. It just seems like to much of a pain in the ass to set them up to press them at a substantial amount of weight. By the time I'm done hoisting them up I feel like I drained a good chunk of energy which could have been put to the set had it been with a barbell instead. Wonder if I'm the only one that thinks like this.

 

[HuckingFuge]

Speaking about ego at the door I used to do dumbell presses now I tend to shy away from dumbells in any sort of pressing motion. It just seems like to much of a pain in the ass to set them up to press them at a substantial amount of weight. By the time I'm done hoisting them up I feel like I drained a good chunk of energy which could have been put to the set had it been with a barbell instead. Wonder if I'm the only one that thinks like this.

that was what I was referring too, when doing dumbbell shoulder presses. hurting myself getting the heavy weight up. not the weight being to heavy to lift

 

[Ozzy619]

Speaking about ego at the door I used to do dumbell presses now I tend to shy away from dumbells in any sort of pressing motion. It just seems like to much of a pain in the ass to set them up to press them at a substantial amount of weight. By the time I'm done hoisting them up I feel like I drained a good chunk of energy which could have been put to the set had it been with a barbell instead. Wonder if I'm the only one that thinks like this.

I have this mind set too. Its much easier using the barbell from a higher position, rather than starting from a pressing position right away, especially with no spotter. When i do dumbbells its to finish off or burn out.

 

[flexx89]

see i feel the opposite.i go heavy on barbell and db presses. 8 weeks on test e 1.5 weeks on var and i banged 120s for sets of 10 on db bench, barbell was 300x8 a few weeks ago. i like db bench heavy cuz i can keep my arms in the whole time and elbows tucked, just poppin out half reps. the hardest part is stabilizing the db's as i lie down, but if you cant get the first rep by yourself with db's i think the weight is too heavy. i see kids asking for spots on any dumbbell press and the first rep is basically done by the spotter, then they do their reps with awful ROM.. thats ego lifting for sure