Quoted post said:Originally Posted by jsirabella [IMG]/img/forum/go_quote.gif[/IMG]
Bingo!! You need mass to lift heavy, plain and simple and if you look at bodybuilders during off season they are pretty much chunky and always bundled up with sweats and hoody. This allows them to lift heavy and than as they approach the competition they go into the loosing weight phase, Lots of carbs and actually most of your diet for strength training is a good thing!
I personally hate and dislike the P90X and Insanity training as they make them as original but cops and firefighters have been doing that [censored] for years and is not strength training but instead more CNS training where you are just teaching the body to perform a certain task the best way. But the thing I hate the most is cause it is all about doing it fast, there is so much a chance for real injuries when handling the weight.
Just my opinion...but why am I writing you this...lol.
-john
Totally agree with you based on observations
I stick with old school fitness type lifting. It is involves improving strength, but the sets, the pace, the structure and especially proper technique provide a less risky path and like you that is just my personal preference. My wife wanted the Insanity videos and she loves it so far, but it not for me. My chiro and his partners are all big into the franchise Crossfit. They not only train it, but they promote competitions, are qualified judges and are certified in coaching for Crossfit. But what I have noticed when I visit their office each week is that one them among the staff are usually injured, like with their arm in a sling from a shoulder injury or something significant. They train it is fast, train heavy and form is sloppy (not intended to be perfect).
But to each their own I suppose and I am glad my wife trains. I can only speak from the results side of things that if one doesn't mind taking the additional risk that each of the ones that I listed do get positive results.
With what I call fitness lifting it is more in line with old school bodybuilding Muscle & Fitness type of gym lifting involving a number of sets at a certain pace and it is progressive in nature. In fact there are some similarities to how cyclists improve FTP. It is kind of like training 90% of FTP or SST when one trains in the 8 to 10 rep range. I also have no problem using machines and in fact will only use machines for clients first entering rehab after a significant injury because the range of motion is set and it is consistent. It takes some of the risk out and when in therapy I want to minimize risk. As the person or myself progresses in post injury therapy I will then move toward free weight. That is just me being careful and machines are a little safer approach. In my own training I am not shy or ashamed at all using both free weight and machines daily. Free weights often incorporate other muscles to stabilize and machines are nice when you want to focus in and try to isolate a muscle group.
It is neat to be involved in the fitness world for all these years and see many trends come and go. I am like a dinosaur in this day in time when I still train old school bodybuilding style and so many are now on the Crossfit craze, but strength wise I can still sling some steel and on the endurance side I welcome those guys out to do a 100 mile bike ride with me and see if they can hang on my wheel. This has just become my own personal form of cross fit (at the age of 50) and not the franchise Crossfit.
edit: that is not to say that how I lift is completely safe either. What I do may be a less risky than being a sloppy technique crossfitter, but it still has some risk both with free weights and machines.
