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I didn't think I was old enough yet to need a weightlifting belt, but it's helping tremendously with my lower back, primarily during squats, lunges, RDLs and deadlifts.

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  • Goofyboy
    Goofyboy

    210lbs this morning!!! It’s been 5 or 6 years since I weighed this. This time, however, I’ve got a proper diet and exercise program working together. Feeling good.

  • Celery Man
    Celery Man

    Well 175 by May certainly seems achievable lol.  I wish I had weighed myself in college. I was chubby in high school, at about 200, slimmed down in college when I walked everywhere and didn

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General rule of thumb is if you need a belt/gloves/wristguard to lift, you’re lifting too much weight. Put the ego aside and lower the amount, your body will thank you for it. That stuff is really just if you’re interested in competitive powerlifting. 

Most of Surly is too old to be lifting super heavy. At least I am.

Just now, DaysOff said:

Most of Surly is too old to be lifting super heavy. At least I am.

I’m in my early 30s, even I don’t push the envelope. Max bench is up to 235, that’s the only exercise I’ll ego lift on because it makes you feel like a badass. I can squat 225 for 10 reps but refuse to up the weight any further, there’s just no point for me to do that. I don’t do deadlifts at all anymore, or cleans. 

I do heavy functional weights. 45lb dumbbells for farmer carries (45 seconds on, 1 min off). Air squats, Bulgarian split squats, lunges - all body weight at tempo. I’ve basically moved to lighter weights with tempo to build muscle. It’s a whole lot easier on the joints. My knees barely grind going up stairs now.

I’m 47 and down to 211 today (5’9”).

1 hour ago, DaysOff said:

Most of Surly is too old to be lifting super heavy. At least I am.

Same here.  I'm 50 and for the past several years I've for the most part lifted every set in the 10-12 rep range, with only a couple compound exercises in the 8 rep range.  Between that and doing enough to engage my core, I've never felt the need for a belt.  

I do bench still but it’s more of a guide to see if I’m losing or gaining strength. After that it’s pushups, pull ups, dips, etc… I turn 45 on Saturday and the last couple of years the more I do with actual weights the more I tend to tweak something (wrist, shoulder, back).

Most of Surly is too old to be lifting super heavy. At least I am.

That’s just something weak people say to make themselves feel better.
10 hours ago, Helobious said:

General rule of thumb is if you need a belt/gloves/wristguard to lift, you’re lifting too much weight. Put the ego aside and lower the amount, your body will thank you for it. That stuff is really just if you’re interested in competitive powerlifting. 

Nah. Straps/gloves help take away the limitations of grip and allow you to work the muscle you're targeting. It is also good to build grip strength at lower weights, but your forearms will naturally be weaker than other muscles you're training. Weight lifting belts are similar. They can all be overused such that you let key muscles not develop, but they also have a place if you're serious about strength training. 

3 minutes ago, Helobious said:

“Limitations of grip”... I think that’s called weakness.

As an example, your grip is going to be a limiting factor on deadlift if you're seriously training. No amount of forearm work is going to allow your grip to keep pace with your posterior chain. And if you're limiting your deadlift to your grip strength, you simply aren't building the muscles you're trying to train. You might as well not do deadlifts at that point. 

5 minutes ago, Dahobbs said:

As an example, your grip is going to be a limiting factor on deadlift if you're seriously training. No amount of forearm work is going to allow your grip to keep pace with your posterior chain. And if you're limiting your deadlift to your grip strength, you simply aren't building the muscles you're trying to train. You might as well not do deadlifts at that point. 

Yeah I don’t do deadlifts at all. I’m probably the wrong guy to talk to about that. I even said imo belts/grips are only if you’re into serious powerlifting. Sounds like we are in agreement 

8 hours ago, Dahobbs said:

but your forearms will naturally be weaker than other muscles you're training.

Fap more.

The last thing on earth anyone should be doing is listening dorkius about anything. A close second to that is quoting him. Stop doing that, please.

3 hours ago, South Austin said:

Fap more.

I'M GIVING IT EVERYTHING I'VE GOT

I wonder why I got swept up in religion as a college student - I think I have a natural evangelist personality on some things … 

holy shit, if you are on the fence and lurking about weight training, START RIGHT NOW!

I was all in at 40-42 and was in the best shape of my life. Tennis elbow (14 months), life, pandemic, post pandemic emotional malaise, actual covid, long Covid, derailed me. But as I’ve posted 3-4 months ago I said fuck it I’m back in the gym. 

I read an article that talked about aging rapidly at 44 or so and think damn I missed that window. The last 5 years I’ve been tired, all the time. I’m sure it’s true about rapid aging at key moments, but the impact is vastly over rated. 

Weight training !!! My energy is BACK! Monday hard weight day, whole body, 3 sets of 10 moderate weight (I leg press 130 / bench 50 on a hard day - you get the context and it goes all around the circuit). I go fast with limited breaks to make sure I get the heart work out too.
 

Yesterday a 90 min tennis work out with extreme cerebral training to go with the intensity of a real tennis practice. The key point is my body didn’t drag my mind down, I was able to focus because I wasn’t tired. HUGE!

today tennis for 60 minutes and HIIT with my trainer for 60. THEN my boys want to go wake surfing at sundown. LET’S GO!!

I’ve got a down day Thursday with merely a 60 minute tennis practice.

son wants to kayak Sunday! 5-6 hour float. Can’t wait!

I’ll be tired Friday and Saturday but for good reason we are going hard this week, both “days off” but damn folks, I feel like I’m 38 again. I’m happy, energetic, my midlife doom mood is gone. I’m cloud 9 all the time. I feel confident (in the face of some shitastic external hardships facing people like me). I love my body, I’ve got those outer quads defining like I’m a fucking tennis player!! A toned body is so fucking sexy, I love it! it’s a freaking miracle.

I’m full circle. If you are lurking and thinking about weight training, I think it (especially fast with disciplined and limited rest between sets and stations) is the single most important exercise you can do for your whole self.

join us! It’s amazing! 

Edited by troph

Truth is, it doesn’t take much diet and exercise effort to see tangible results.  Cut 1-2 things out, do weights-cardio 3 hours a week and all the sudden you’re a ballah.

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9 minutes ago, Parliament said:

Truth is, it doesn’t take much diet and exercise effort to see tangible results.  Cut 1-2 things out, do weights-cardio 3 hours a week and all the sudden you’re a ballah.

IMG_7225.jpeg

dat forehead tho. and the fake teeth, orange skin, I bet he claims to love jesus doesn't he?

On 5/21/2025 at 11:59 AM, troph said:

dat forehead tho. and the fake teeth, orange skin, I bet he claims to love jesus doesn't he?

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Hey guys heads up.  Bodybuilding.com is going to pot. Ordered up a resupply of #brotein and it never showed.  They told me my address was no good, despite the fact it’s the same address they’ve delivered to for years.

Hadta email them, twice, for a refund.  Refund has not showed so I reported the fraud on my cc.  
 

So where should I go for my whey protein?

9 minutes ago, South Austin said:

The grocery store?

Amazon 

7 minutes ago, troph said:

 Brotein? Wha?

Extra creamy. Protein straight from your bro’s source 

1 hour ago, troph said:

 Brotein? Wha?

I think it’s a #brohio thing 

Thoughts in high reps/light weight workouts?  Often times I’ll just grab 30 lb dumbbells and bench to failure. Not trying to be in any contrast.  Just want to be active

Thoughts in high reps/light weight workouts?  Often times I’ll just grab 30 lb dumbbells and bench to failure. Not trying to be in any contrast.  Just want to be active

Try tempo work over very high reps. 12 - 15 reps with a 3 second tempo.
Thoughts in high reps/light weight workouts?  Often times I’ll just grab 30 lb dumbbells and bench to failure. Not trying to be in any contrast.  Just want to be active

But, why? Are you worried about getting too jacked and strong? I promise it doesn’t work like that.
1 hour ago, Herbie Hancock said:


But, why? Are you worried about getting too jacked and strong? I promise it doesn’t work like that.

Because I only have time to work out at home, so I don't have a built in spotter. I'm down to get jacked but I'm just busy as fuck

5 hours ago, Im_smarter_then_you said:

Thoughts in high reps/light weight workouts?  Often times I’ll just grab 30 lb dumbbells and bench to failure. Not trying to be in any contrast.  Just want to be active

If you're actually going to failure, high reps and lighter weights are great for hypertrophy/muscle growth. The problem is that when people go extremely light, it becomes very unlikely that they're actually hitting failure for the muscle. It also just makes your workouts take a lot more time. But anything in the 5-30 rep range can work well for hypertrophy if you're going to failure. For a flat bench press, most men aren't going to be able to adequately challenge themselves with only 30 lb dumbbells. If you're completely untrained, it'll probably be fine for a few months, but you'll plateau and be unable to challenge yourself. 

Edited by Dahobbs

On 5/27/2025 at 10:36 AM, Im_smarter_then_you said:

Because I only have time to work out at home, so I don't have a built in spotter. I'm down to get jacked but I'm just busy as fuck

Don’t clip in the plates when you bench. Worst case if you can’t lift it up tip the bar to one side, those plates will slide off and gravity will make the other side slide after. I rarely had a spotter on my benching journey

On 5/15/2025 at 11:13 AM, DaysOff said:

Most of Surly is too old to be lifting super heavy. At least I am.

Fuck that.  I get stronger doing 4-6 reps of heavy (for me) weights.  But I also do push ups and pull ups every day.

On 5/15/2025 at 10:26 AM, Helobious said:

General rule of thumb is if you need a belt/gloves/wristguard to lift, you’re lifting too much weight. Put the ego aside and lower the amount, your body will thank you for it. That stuff is really just if you’re interested in competitive powerlifting. 

I totally disagree here. Your wrist muscles will give out well before back ones will. 
Wrist straps are great for rows, pullups, deadlifts walking lunges etc, basically anything where your wrists could be weak link. 
Different strokes for different folks but wrist straps IMO are a must have for anyone doing back and/or certain leg exercises 

I totally disagree here. Your wrist muscles will give out well before back ones will. 
Wrist straps are great for rows, pullups, deadlifts walking lunges etc, basically anything where your wrists could be weak link. 
Different strokes for different folks but wrist straps IMO are a must have for anyone doing back and/or certain leg exercises 

Please for the love of god quit quoting that nitwit and put him on ignore. He’s an idiot, not genuine, a troll, or a combination of all three. Either way, he is no one to be taken seriously. I have Versagrips, Schiek straps, Pioneer belt, and Mark Bell’s Gangsta wrist wraps in my bag. Along with a Rubbermaid container of chalk. I promise I lift more than everyone here without all of those items, but they are tools for your toolbox to be used when necessary.
On 5/15/2025 at 10:26 AM, Helobious said:

General rule of thumb is if you need a belt/gloves/wristguard to lift, you’re lifting too much weight. Put the ego aside and lower the amount, your body will thank you for it. That stuff is really just if you’re interested in competitive powerlifting. 

 

On 5/15/2025 at 9:09 PM, Dahobbs said:

Nah. Straps/gloves help take away the limitations of grip and allow you to work the muscle you're targeting. It is also good to build grip strength at lower weights, but your forearms will naturally be weaker than other muscles you're training. Weight lifting belts are similar. They can all be overused such that you let key muscles not develop, but they also have a place if you're serious about strength training. 

If you're going to wear gloves make sure they match your purse. Don't wear a fucking belt either. But hobbs is correct on straps. Very useful for back day. If you use back day to work your grip/ forearms then I promise you really don't know how to work your back or don't know how to train forearms or both. 

I did heavy bench, incline and behind the neck /military press with barbells and dumbbells from about 14 until about 30  (really heavy from about 16 -30) and that was not a great idea it turns out. Wish i knew better then, now it's all Hammer Strength type machines and cables with various pushups for chest. I think your shoulder/ bicep area has an odometer and once it hits a certain level of the combination of weight and sheer volume they'll never be the same. If you started late or never went real heavy you'll probably be ok for awhile. Now that I think about it your liver would be a good analogy actually 😆 

 

Edited by Dennis Taylor

On 5/27/2025 at 10:36 AM, Im_smarter_then_you said:

Because I only have time to work out at home, so I don't have a built in spotter. I'm down to get jacked but I'm just busy as fuck

Tempo is very beneficial.  Focus on the eccentric phase particularly on chest and bicep stuff. Up slow on back and tricep stuff. 

On 5/15/2025 at 11:18 AM, Helobious said:

I’m in my early 30s, even I don’t push the envelope. Max bench is up to 235, that’s the only exercise I’ll ego lift on because it makes you feel like a badass. I can squat 225 for 10 reps but refuse to up the weight any further, there’s just no point for me to do that. I don’t do deadlifts at all anymore, or cleans. 

Peyton Manning What GIF by Gatorade

Again, herbie is too blinded by hatred to understand what I actually said. He’s clearly someone that weightlifts or powerlifts as a hobby and is aiming to push his body to its absolute limits. That’s someone that should be using belts, straps, chalk. Like I said. If you’re just interested in staying in shape, staying strong, as I imagine most on here are, that stuff is unnecessary. 

Again, herbie is too blinded by hatred to understand what I actually said. He’s clearly someone that weightlifts or powerlifts as a hobby and is aiming to push his body to its absolute limits. That’s someone that should be using belts, straps, chalk. Like I said. If you’re just interested in staying in shape, staying strong, as I imagine most on here are, that stuff is unnecessary. 

Exactly. Since I switched to tempo work, gloves, straps, weight belt - have all gone away. My joints all feel better and I’m functionally moving better than I have in a very long time. I’m down from 239 (Jan of this year) to 208 (today). I’m 47 and will never try to squat 2x my body weight again. I have no need to.

Exactly. Since I switched to tempo work, gloves, straps, weight belt - have all gone away. My joints all feel better and I’m functionally moving better than I have in a very long time. I’m down from 239 (Jan of this year) to 208 (today). I’m 47 and will never try to squat 2x my body weight again. I have no need to.

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Thoughts? I’m 59 and can hit all of these but at the low end. Just started lifting 2 years ago and I’m not trying to max on anything but rather retain muscle .

All about flexibility and some decent muscle mass at this point in the game for me. Wonder what percentage of men my age can hit these? 25%?

Balancing on one leg for 30 seconds is probably a more useful health goal at that age than all of those things. I’m not even kidding.


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Thoughts? I’m 59 and can hit all of these but at the low end. Just started lifting 2 years ago and I’m not trying to max on anything but rather retain muscle .

All about flexibility and some decent muscle mass at this point in the game for me. Wonder what percentage of men my age can hit these? 25%?

Seems arbitrary. I can do all of those, but I’m not training for that anymore. Those number used to be bench your weight, squat 1.5, deadlift 2x. I used to have those, but god did it hurt. I finally realized I’m not trying to be a power lifter and looked for functional programming.

I did that for a while and now switched to trying to become an A group cyclist - which is a whole different lifting style.

In reality - your goals should determine what you’re doing in the gym.

Seems arbitrary. I can do all of those, but I’m not training for that anymore. Those number used to be bench your weight, squat 1.5, deadlift 2x. I used to have those, but god did it hurt. I finally realized I’m not trying to be a power lifter and looked for functional programming.

I did that for a while and now switched to trying to become an A group cyclist - which is a whole different lifting style.

In reality - your goals should determine what you’re doing in the gym.

Yeah I get that. Was just wondering how many guys my age could do that.

My goals are maintaining strength, keep Vo2 max as high as possible, and staying as flexible as possible.

My bar is certainly higher than standing on one leg for 40 seconds…good grief.
3 minutes ago, txduck87 said:


Yeah I get that. Was just wondering how many guys my age could do that.

My goals are maintaining strength, keep Vo2 max as high as possible, and staying as flexible as possible.

My bar is certainly higher than standing on one leg for 40 seconds…good grief.

Guys that age that lift? Probably a decent percentage, but less than half. Guys that age generally? I'd guess less than 5%. 

As someone that has been in the gym consistently for almost twenty years now, I would wager that less than 20% of any age group could accomplish that. 15% might be a better guess.

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