Comments on: What you need and what you don’t

By: barefootwriter

barefootwriter — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 03:12:52 +0000

I’m with you! I bought an inexpensive pair of lifting gloves, then gave up on them.

Otherwise, my only special gear is my Vibram Five Fingers (you may not get away with these in a commercial gym), a notebook, and a wrist wrap for my one bad wrist (broken and surgically repaired a few years ago, it balks at bench presses).

By: JT

JT — Tue, 10 May 2011 03:12:26 +0000

Here is what you need. In fact it is all you need and it stows away in a little bag so you can take it on trips.
It sets up inside or outside. You can do at least 70 exercises, probably more. Most if not all require you to engage your core. I have used mine in Hawaii, CA, Texas, La, Tahoe, indoors and out.
Next, when you get the exercises down you can decrease the interval time between sets and viola! Your heartrate stays high while you are building strength. The trainer was designed and built my Navy SEALs to use to stay in shape in places like Iraq.
It is called TRX and you can find it at
http://www.trxtraining.com
They also have DVDs, classes around the world and a forum.
So, I use the TRX, I do kettlebells, push ups, pull ups and assorted core/ab training. Forget machines. You want to develop functional strength because that is what you use day in and day out!

By: Amie Spengler

Amie Spengler — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 15:14:09 +0000

I wear gloves, and use straps: my hands sweat a LOT and the gloves keep my hands drier so I don’t slip off the pull-up bar or drop the 45 dumbbell or 135 dead lift. And I add the straps (which, unfortunately being made for MEN, are a little big for my wrists and go on best OVER my gloves) in the 3rd or 4th set when my forearms give out – I use them doing the farmer’s carry with the 45 plates, too, because the darned plates are so thick my little hands can’t hold them.

My trainer often says, as we make adjustments to various things, “Little Amie, Big Gym”. I get a machine adjusted to where I’m in the right position and we have to grab a BOSU so my feet will not dangle. Think maybe you could hit up an article about us petitely-sized women working out in a place meant for people of a slightly bigger stature? I have to stand on my toes to climb on and off the pull-up station!

The other day in the gym, a fairly overweight woman was doing skull-crushers with a 15-lb bar, and clearly it was NO effort at all for her – just like going through motions. She did 3 sets. Seriously? She needs to review this site!!!

I’m 40, 41 in less than a month. I started at 185 in 2005, weigh 130 now after many years of trial & error & yo-yoing. Before & After pics on my Facebook page, with a few videos of a couple sets at the gym with my trainer. Found those VERY helpful for checking my form – hard to see where your elbows are sometimes, and if your butt’s out far enough, your knees are aligned properly, etc…

By: Stickman

Stickman — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 16:13:17 +0000

“Gloves are a pretty personal thing and if you want to wear them that’s fine. The danger in gloves is that the assistance they lend to your grip impedes your grip strength development.”

Do gloves really provide assistance to grip? I was helping a friend the other day with his deadlifts and he was having real trouble getting up past about 6 inches off the deck. I suggested he take his gloves off and the bar came up like a baby.

Mark Rippetoe says that gloves REDUCE grip strength because they increase the effective diameter of the bar – with squishy wobbly stuff at that. He only recommends them if you’ve got torn calluses or something similar that would actually prevent you from working out if you don’t use gloves.

However, for beginners, I guess it may not make that much difference because grip strength is perhaps less likely to be the limiting factor compared to, say, low back strength. Any thoughts from your own experience?

By: Mistress Krista

Mistress Krista — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 16:45:38 +0000

Proprioception: knowledge of where your body is in space, and what it is doing. If I ask you where your left foot is right now, you’ll need a half-second to think about it, probably. But if you have something poking your foot (i.e. providing mechanoreception, aka touch cues), you’ll know exactly where the foot is. Adding mechanoreception or touch cues (e.g. from a belt) helps give input about what the body is doing, and thus gives you additional information you need to make decisions about how to move.

By: su

su — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 15:37:34 +0000

can someone explain this about belts?
“Worn loosely, it can provide proprioceptive cues to keeping your spine in proper position. But as a beginner, you don’t need this.” I wear a belt for squats, deads, and presses but always pretty tight and was interested in this proprioceptive mumbodejumbo.

By: Mistress Krista

Mistress Krista — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 15:39:55 +0000

Cat: Try something like a small protein shake made with some carbohydrate — a very basic blend of fruit/protein powder will do fine. Even just a cup is adequate. Sip at the shake (don’t chug) throughout your workout. This should help keep BG constant.

By: Cat

Cat — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 20:40:06 +0000

i’ve got type 1 diabetes and it’s always been an issue for me to play sports or go to the gym b/c my bloodsugar drops (then i have to chug juice and usually get really unmotivated as well as feel kind of bloated). my endocrinologist suggested eating something high in fiber about an hour before going to the gym but this usually makes it so i get tummy aches.

do you have any suggestions for things i can eat beforehand that will keep my bloodsugar up without making my tummy want to defect?

By: Mike

Mike — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 03:29:17 +0000

The leather/foam belts always make me chuckle. Reminds me of Drew Barrymore’s brother in 50 First Dates:)

By: Bluehibiscus

Bluehibiscus — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 03:32:24 +0000

I love this site and recommend it to everyone. Thanks for the excellent information, tips and laughs – it’s nice to find an easy to read and understand site like this one