Weight Training

Many protein bars are an, ahem, acquired taste. Some (usually the ones with lesser amounts of protein) are actually pretty decent. Can protein bars assist in your weight loss training? Sure.

But (and this is a biggie) the average protein bar on the store shelf contains ingredients that aren’t very health-friendly. Too much sugar, along with loads of saturated and trans fats, should not be on a dieter’s (or anyone else’s) menu plan. What good is 20-40 grams of protein if the other ingredients negate this benefit?

Some manufacturers are getting dieter-savvy. They’ve replaced the real sugar and fats for artificial ones, like Aspartame and Salatrim. If you go this route, keep the intake of these types of protein bars to a minimum, for safety’s sake. Better yet, pass on these bars and let someone else play guinea pig for the FDA.

Still interested in using protein bars to supplement your weight loss training, but wary of the loaded saturated fats they contain? You can always try making your own at home. A Google search will give you a ton of recipe ideas at your fingertips. Look a few over to get the gist of what ingredients are typically used. Then experiment to find the perfect concoction to suit your taste buds and protein needs.

Not enough time in your day (or desire) to spend it slaving over a hot stove? You can always try organic protein bars. They may not have as much protein in them compared to bars like Worldwide Pure Protein and Met-Rx, but health counts and you can always pick up a few grams of extra protein in other foods.

Bon Appétit! (And if you make a mean protein bar, don’t be shy; share that recipe with us!)

Massaging Away Your Weight Training Injury

As a bodybuilder, you may have already been clued in that massaging an injured area eases swelling and damage to the muscle. Now, it’s been scientifically proven.

A study conducted at the Ohio State University showed that therapeutic massage helps injuries heal faster. Test participants (specifically, rabbits) were each given a 30-minute Swedish massage on their shin muscles directly after performing physical activity.

After four days of this, researchers evaluated the muscle strength of this area in the rabbits. Comparing the results to an examination completed at the start of the study, researchers found that the massaged muscles regained about 60 percent of their strength versus only 14 percent in other muscles that were exercised but not massaged.

A higher percentage of muscle recovery is always a good thing when it comes to weight training. A lack of sufficient recovery could lead to overtraining, which in turn could lead to an injury.

Another discovery in the study is that massaged muscles weigh less than muscles that aren’t massaged. What this means for us bodybuilders is that a post-workout massage reduces swelling. And swelling can lead to that annoying muscle soreness later on.

There is still more research to be done on this subject, but one thing’s for sure: Those sure were some lucky rabbits in that study!

I was surfing the Web and came across a website touting the Strength Shoe. Instead of chuckling and clicking away, I kept on reading. And I find that the shoes aren’t as gimmicky as they might seem to be at first glance. This shoe is designed so that the calf muscles support all of a person’s bodyweight, which in turn will pave the way for greater anaerobic force for athletes.

Intrigued, I go on to research shoes designed for weight lifters. Is there a market for strength training shoes? You betcha!

Maybe you’re thinking it’s all a bunch of hype. What’s next, shoes geared for yodeling comedians? Well, it turns out that the right shoe can actually benefit a weight lifter in two ways: added safety and power. The strength training shoe’s secret weapon lies in its thinner, sturdier sole.

Some athletes need a peppy spring to their step during training. Take runners, for instance; wearing a shoe that has a cushy sole gives is advantageous. Lessening impact shock each time their foot hits the ground means a decreased risk of injury.

Weight lifters aren’t doing a continuous two-step dance on hard pavement. We need to feel the ground beneath our feet as we lift. Extra fluff on the soles of our shoes would only take away foot strength as we do our reps.

The other benefit of a strength training shoe is the safety factor. A soft, fluffy sole is not good for keeping a weight lifter balanced. I don’t know about you, but the thought of wobbling from side to side while performing squats and deadlifts is not on my Top Ten list of things to do.

Strength training shoes could make a difference in your status quo at the gym … Who knew?

Wanting to achieve the near-impossible is a common pitfall among beginning bodybuilders. Are your strength training aspirations unrealistic? I’ve got three goals you should avoid making.

Goal #1: “My [insert bodypart here] will measure this much by this point in time.”

This type of goal is often not a realistic one. Vowing to have 24-inch biceps by Halloween if it’s Labor Day and your “big guns” are only 18 inches around is asking for a miracle. Instead of setting yourself up for disappointment, make it a doable goal. Small challenges are motivating; unachievable ones are likely to send you flying to Dunkin Donuts instead of the gym when you fail miserably.

Goal #2: “I will train harder at the gym.”

A goal like this is too vague to be of any real use. Being able to track your goal and compare your progress along the way is motivating. Declaring some catch-all statement is not going to give that measurability needed for staying driven and focused.

Goal #3: “I will train at the gym each night after work for two hours.”

A practical goal will fit your schedule. Exhausting yourself with a goal is a surefire way to break it. Be reasonable; factor in your normal energy levels and time availability when planning a strength training goal.

So, what’s the bottom line? Strength training goals should start out small, but mildly challenging. Check your progress often and make changes to your original goals, if necessary.

Choosing the best exercises is not always an easy task for a beginning bodybuilder. There are countless weight lifting routines posted on the Web, with each one claiming to be the latest and greatest. If the multitude of possibilities is leaving you dumbfounded, perhaps I can give some suggestions that will help you choose which exercises to do.

A good starting point to those new to weight lifting is to focus on exercises that build up the core muscles. Your core consists of abdominals, lower back, and pelvic area. Strengthening these muscles is important for spine support. You can also count on increased stability and balance when your core muscles are developed properly. Ab work, deadlifts, and Pilate moves are examples of exercises that work to strengthen your core.

When it comes to types of exercises that best suit beginners, you can’t go wrong with zoning in on primary and multi-joint exercises. These types of exercises work the major muscle groups and tend to build mass fast. Examples include bench presses, squats, and deadlifts.

Another suggestion I have for beginners is to work on forearm and grip strength. Wrist straps shouldn’t be used as a replacement for forearm and grip strength because you’ll eventually hit a sticking point and your training will suffer. Do wrist curls, reverse wrist curls, and reverse grip barbell curls to build up forearms. Using hand grippers or a squash ball (almost any small squeezable ball will do) will improve your gripping power. Finger pushups are also good to perform for increasing your gripping strength.

Follow these suggestions and you’ll build muscle. And don’t skimp on good routine habits; adequate rest, nutritious foods, and exercise safety all play an important role in building a muscular body.

A personal trainer could be just the push you need to train harder. Or it could be a total waste of your hard-earned money. If you’re wondering whether or not a personal trainer is right for you, read on for reasons to hire one.

Check out the personal trainer’s certification. There are a lot of different certification “schools” and some of them are practically meaningless. If the personal trainer you have in mind is certified from the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), The National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), or The American Council on Exercise (ACE), then it’s a safe bet that he or she is well qualified.

In addition to having valid certification credentials, you will want to make sure that your personal trainer is insured. I hope you never get injured while working out under the guidance of a personal trainer. If something does happen, though, your personal trainer’s liability insurance will be absolutely necessary.

A third thing to look for when hiring a personal training is how well you connect with him or her. Do your personalities mesh well together? Would you be better off with a personal trainer who has a cheerleader-type personality, all smiles and positivity? Or do you thrive on someone barking orders at you, like a drill sergeant would? Maybe a personal trainer with a mixture of those two styles is what you crave. Ask questions and observe how a personal trainer’s demeanor is before committing your time and money to a training session.

Another thing that may matter to you is the gender of the personal trainer. If you are usually shy around the opposite sex or think you might be “hot for teacher,” then it’d be wise to pass on that personal trainer. The more focus you have during the training session, the better off your figure will be.

Do you have any experiences with a personal trainer to share? Was the trainer worth the cost?

A recent article in New Scientist magazine gives the nod to weight lifting as a weight loss booster. For years, it has been generally accepted by researchers that increasing type I muscle is the key to losing weight. Type I muscle is commonly referred to as “slow twitch” muscle. This characteristic of the muscle makes it useful for endurance activities like marathon running and mountain biking. More importantly, at least for dieters, type I muscle assists with weight loss.

Weight training, for the most part, doesn’t use type I muscle. Instead, weight lifters are activating mostly type II muscle as they train. Type II muscle is what’s known on the street as “fast twitch” muscle. Up until recently, this kind of muscle wasn’t thought to positively affect metabolism like type I muscle does. Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine conducted a study, using mice as the test subjects, to determine how well weight training works to burn calories.

The basic gist of the study amounted to this: Activating type II muscle (the kind we use during weight lifting) does help to burn calories, similar to type I muscles. The best part is that utilizing type II muscle not only assists in fat loss, but does this while still building muscle. And, get this; the mice in the study who achieved this feat did it while eating a diet containing mostly fat and sugar.

I’m not about to run off and load up on donuts and salami because a bunch of mice were able to achieve those wicked results, but it is a pretty cool thought. For those of you who have lost fat through weight training, what are your thoughts on this study?

Have you ever wondered, what’s the difference between using a straight bar and an E-Z bar? Well, pertaining to muscle growth, a straight bar works the biceps a little better than an E-Z bar. But, if you’ve tried both types of bars, you might have taken a liking to the E-Z bar. And the reason for this preference has to do with your anatomy.

The structure of the elbow varies from person to person. This is why using a straight bar can be outright painful for some lifters. Maybe this applies to you as well. This pain has to do with the natural positioning of your elbows. The structure of your elbows determines the likelihood of you feeling discomfort when using a straight bar.

Here’s a way to test if your elbows rotate more than the norm: Stand with your arms hanging down at the sides of your body. Rotate your arms so that your palms are facing forward. Now, do your forearms stay close to your sides? Or do they angle outward, away from your body? If your forearms stay close, then you’re in the green to use a straight bar.

However, if your forearms angled away from your body, this means that you have what’s termed as ‘valgus of the elbow’. This is when there is a wide angle at the elbow between the upper arm and the forearm. A valgus angle is more common in women than in men.

Why does a valgus angle of the elbow make using a straight bar painful? It has to do with how the extreme angle turns the forearm outward, away from the body. When someone with this type of elbow anatomy tries to do a bicep curl with a straight bar, the positioning of the wrist is compromised. And the more weight on the bar, the greater the risk of pain and injury because of the additional stress to the wrist.

So, which is right for you: Straight bar or E-Z bar?

Bring up weight lifting gloves in the gym and you’re bound to bring on the muscle-equivalent of the East Coast versus West Coast hip hop rivalry. Instead of getting yourself caught up in a losing battle, read my guide to the pros and cons of wearing weight lifting gloves.

Some gym-goers swear by gloves, and there’s some merit to what they say. If you’d rather not get calluses on your hands, gloves will provide protection. Also, wearing gloves increases the poundage I use when doing lat pull-downs and seated cable rows because the bar’s knurled grip areas don’t dig into my hands.

For most exercises, though, my preference is to ditch the weight lifting gloves. Sometimes wearing gloves put a damper on my workout, like I’m not getting a true grip on the bar. I’ve talked to other bodybuilders about this and it’s pretty much a common sentiment. Some even go as far to say that donning gloves decreased their forearm strength. And, considering that gloves reduce pressure on the wrists, there may be some truth to that. (Of course, the counter-argument is that wearing gloves increases grip, thereby allowing for maximum poundage, which in turn paves the way for bigger forearms.)

Additionally, if you don’t like weight lifting gloves but don’t want to train barehanded, you can also wear hand pads. It has a Velcro strap for around your wrist and a hand-shaped cover for your palm. The cover is held in place by a strap around your fingers. It reminds me of a pot-holder with straps.

Some weight lifters prefer hand pads because they offer more ventilation than gloves. While that’s true, I still like using gloves. Personally, I found the hand pads to be awkward. My problem was that the pad would bend away from my palm and the barbell would end up between my hand and the pad. I’ll take sweaty palms over pads that interfere with my training any day.

What’s your preference?

While I use a mixture of free weights and machines at the gym, my preference is free weights. The use of barbells and dumbbells gives my workout a boost. If you’ve been wondering what all the fuss is about, read on. I’ll bring you up to speed on the advantages of free weight training.

Cost-Efficient

Purchasing free weights is a lot less burdensome on your wallet than buying a home gym or other pieces of machine-oriented equipment. Get adjustable dumbbells to help your dollar go further, so that you only have to buy extra plates when you’re looking to increase poundage. These dumbbells not only save you money, they also save space.

Versatility

While a machine may be only good for strengthening one muscle group, free weights allow you to train multiple body parts. Squats, pullovers, chest press, chest flyes, deadlifts, tricep kickbacks, bicep curls, calf raises, shrugs … The list is seemingly endless when it comes to free weight exercises.

Balance

Machines are often touted as safer than free weights because they are designed to provide the user with a controlled movement. This does have some merit. Someone who is just starting out as a weight lifter can practice better form on a machine. Likewise, an injured bodybuilder can benefit from a machine’s restricted motion.

Now here’s the good news: Using free weights engages the muscles around your midsection (commonly known as your ‘core’). Strengthening the core muscles improves your posture, stability, and balance.

Portability

Lugging around your home-gym while on a vacation or a business trip isn’t practical, but free weights are. Don’t expect to set any personal lifting records since you’ll probably want to take the least amount of poundage in order to travel lighter. Still, at least free weights are an option (unlike monster-sized machines).

These are my top reasons for choosing free weights. Care to add on to this?