35
votes
How to build muscle strength without exercise?
Stop Making Excuses
"I have six [to] eight years of trial-and-error evidence to show that I am incapable of building strength to any measurable degree from any form of exercise."
Either ...
- 25.7k
26
votes
If "bro splits" don't work, why is literally every muscular guy in my gym doing them?
That's because your gym is a typical commercial gym where majority of people don't have any idea what they're doing and they're just going with the motions. Go to a gym that caters to strength ...
- 6,016
22
votes
Accepted
Can I get an honest review about my workout plan?
Welcome to the Fitness SE!
Making your own program
When it comes to making your own program, the general rule of thumb is one simple rule: Don't.
The reason for this is something you've already ...
Alec♦
- 17.3k
16
votes
Re: Touching your toes (not mentioned in 30)
Being able to touch the toes depends mainly on two things:
hamstring flexibility
body proportions (relative length of legs, torso, and arms)
It is not possible to change body proportions, so, to ...
- 1,959
15
votes
Accepted
Should squats come last in a workout-plan?
A workout should ideally follow a relatively strict ordering.
(Warm-up)
High-skill/coordination exercises or movements which you are still learning, e.g. agility drills, Olympic lifts, gymnastics
...
- 25.7k
12
votes
Accepted
Safe way to train for the front and back flip?
Don'ts
The biggest mistake people make when learning to flip, is that they try to flip into pools and onto mattresses.
This is a mistake because it doesn't prepare you for the inevitable challenge ...
Alec♦
- 17.3k
12
votes
If "bro splits" don't work, why is literally every muscular guy in my gym doing them?
The critique of bodybuilder split routines is not that they don't work. They obviously work, so anyone who says they don't is either ignorant or speaking without thinking. It's that a bodybuilder ...
- 25.7k
10
votes
Workouts for increasing T levels?
Please stop saying that you have shit genetics, everyone here, except you agrees that you have fairly normal genetics and you are just comparing yourself to the people who have either been in the gym ...
- 2,380
8
votes
Is circuit training superior to conventional weight training?
I found these two studies:
(1) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21659889
finds that circuit training (given the same volume, but less time), is indeed superior: same strength gains, more fat loss,...
- 307
8
votes
Can I get an honest review about my workout plan?
I think Alec's answer is really great but I'd like to add some more thoughts for you (a bit too big for a comment). I agree, it's not a great workout but not necessarily just due to exercise choice. ...
- 4,587
8
votes
I don't feel my ab workouts
Just to get this out of the way
Probably one of the most commonly uttered phrases around here, but it can't be said often enough: A flat belly is made in the kitchen, not in the gym. It doesn't matter ...
Alec♦
- 17.3k
8
votes
Accepted
Which is the role of glutes when extending your legs?
We need to clarify some terms. "Extension" means movement of a joint which increases the angle between two body parts. So elbow extension is the movement that increases the angle between the ...
- 10.5k
7
votes
For bench press, should I use dumbbells, a barbell, or the Smith machine?
In order to understand how to pick the implements, you need to know what they are doing for you. I'll rank the implements in order of difficulty--assuming you have the same total weight, they will ...
- 45.6k
7
votes
Self Training vs Personal Training at the gym
I will give you the same answer that I give people when they ask me if they should hire a coach for [insert sport here].
If you are progressing towards your goals, and you are happy with your ...
- 22.6k
7
votes
Tips on having six packs and losing fat and keeping the muscles I have
First you should have clear some concepts.
You don't burn fat on belly by doing abs, nor do you make ab muscles visible by doing abs. As it's said, abs are made in the kitchen.
Doing abs workout, ...
- 229
7
votes
Weight loss for morbidly obese woman over 40
The most important rule of thumb for gaining/losing weight, is that this happens in the kitchen.
Dietting
Weight is lost when the calories you consume amount to less than the calories you burn over ...
Alec♦
- 17.3k
7
votes
What is the best exercise to increase the size of my chest muscles?
The reality is there are 3 or 4 ways to expand your chest visually in order:
Chest Muscles
Lat Muscles
Shrink Waist
Enlarge Shoulders
A good starting point will be Dumbbell Bench Press (generally ...
- 448
7
votes
Struggling with barbell row and overhead press - StrongLift
Squat - 110 lbs BP - 75 lbs Row - 80 lbs OHP - 55 lbs DL - 165 lbs
As you can see the barbell row and the OHP are lagging behind.
Your row is stronger than your bench press which is actually ...
- 14.9k
7
votes
Would this work for a teen looking to get lean?
There's a very common misconception here. Many people think that certain types of exercise will give you one body shape or the other. The reasoning is (more or less explicitly), that since power ...
- 2,725
7
votes
Accepted
Workout to the failure is enough to get stronger. What is the need to have sets?
The number of sets you do increases what we call the total volume of work being done. The more volume of work you do, the stronger signal your body gets that it needs to grow.
If you do only one set, ...
- 715
7
votes
Accepted
Does supplimenting creatine cause belly fat to increace or stomach to bloat?
To answer the valid question here:
Does Creatine cause bloating?
Yes, the water retention usually seen with higher (>10g) loading doses can exceed five pounds (more than two kilograms). Lower doses ...
- 6,954
7
votes
Accepted
Normal life with heavy weights
Now, some work has actually been done on this where scientists looked at what would happen if you were crushed by 2.5g:
There was the hyper-g work done on chickens, for example, by Arthur
...
- 6,954
7
votes
Accepted
Homeworkout alternative to deadlifts
There is no single alternative to the deadlift, because the whole point of the deadlift is that it does so many things so dramatically.
It can be loaded more than nearly any other exercise. If this is ...
- 25.7k
6
votes
Self Training vs Personal Training at the gym
If cost is an issue, Why not see a Personnal Trainer once a month when your program needs changing, or every other week. If you get a good one, you will benefit greatly, not only from their ...
- 1,832
6
votes
Is once-per-week training enough for building muscle
Yes, you will see improvements, but they will be slow.
The residual training effect table on exrx.net (found here, screenshot below) describes how the body retains changes in body state and motor ...
- 4,494
6
votes
Can doing the same kind of exercise workout daily provide any good improvements?
What you’re describing is Exercise Adaptation, or, “training plateau”. It’s a common response to exercise stress. From the National Academy of Sports…
The principle of adaptation refers to the ...
- 6,641
6
votes
Can doing the same kind of exercise workout daily provide any good improvements?
Most "guys in the gym" have absolutely no idea what they are doing.
There are certain exercises that you can really do pretty much every day for the rest of your life with good results. If you were ...
- 14.9k
6
votes
Accepted
Number of reps for lean muscles
8 pounds is not heavy enough
I doubt that you're so weak that 8 or 10 pounds is a challenge. How much does your purse, backpack, or briefcase weigh? Have you carried a 20 pound baby recently, or ...
- 25.7k
6
votes
Would I gain from this?
Yes. Any exercise is more effective than no exercise.
Depending on how much you used to lift, it will come back quicker than it would in an untrained person. Part of the lifting process is neural ...
- 22.6k
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