5th month of weight-training, no soreness

(Denise) #1

…so I want to ask if weight-trainers here, free-weights or pulley/cable machines, stopped having soreness, and was that a sign to go heavier with the weights?

I understand that when it gets easy to do my 3 sets of 12 reps, I can move up if I want, or just keep the same weights and stay/or get more toned. My goal is to get more definition, size is also a small goal for me as I look so thin having lost the weight I needed to, except my mid-section which I am still a couple inches of fat, last to go. I’m at 20% fat I believe, but hard to calculate, even with the calipers I bought, just plastic, practically useless, I need 2 more hands :smirk::roll_eyes:

Maybe just more patience as with all things I want “yesterday” already, lol :wink: I think I mentioned this already, but I am seeing a difference in legs since I started the Smith Machine 3 sets 12 reps with only 45 lb bar. It’s pretty hard to do that many so not thinking of moving up weight on that one.

Some folks at the gym say try doing one set of my reps with heavier. Thinking of doing that, and it’s hard to skip a day of workout as I get antsy waiting. I also think I should stay and do more than an hour of workouts. More sets working same muscle groups?? Like for my lower body I do 3 diff. exercises for my lower body, but I know there are separate muscle groups I need to discover, I think?? LOL, anyone?? Feedback welcome :slight_smile: Denise

(Pete A) #2

Nice!

People say a lot. You have to continue how you see fit.

CONGRATS!

PS Im rarely sore.After 5 years! And steady enough progress!

(Denise) #3

Ok, yes, I see progress, and thanks for the info on being “rarely sore” :wink: Congrats on your 5 years of sticking to it :+1:

(Laurie) #4

When it gets easy to do all the reps, “they say” you should add more weight.

However, at your/my age I’d be extremely careful with weight training. Our bodies are bound to have at least one weak spot, that can mess us up if we add more weight. I no longer exercise with weights myself.

As for soreness, as long as I do my stretches afterwards, I’ve never felt sore after exercise. But everyone is different.

#5

I think there is just losing fat and gaining muscles, those girly expressions seem something unreal to me…
I raise my weights when they get too easy (or not but I do my 12-10-8 with the current weight) but I want to get as muscular and strong as I can get (that’s very little) :slight_smile: If you want to stop raising your weights, do that, sure, it’s all up to us :slight_smile: If nothing else, you keep your muscle mass (minus the effect of aging but that goes slow and no idea how it affects a normal, not natural maximum musculature).

I am a lazy one but I still try to do my workouts seriously (I suspect that sometimes it’s not my muscles keeping me back but my actual state of mind but I have way better days), I almost never have any noticeable soreness afterwards. Sometimes it almost bothers me… At least my biceps and triceps feel something but I never ever had chest muscle ache, for example. Or back. Not sure about shoulders. I don’t even do any leg training (beyond walking and stuff) but I know how painful legs can be, that’s too easy to reach :smiley:

My only major, even troublesome soreness happened when I changed my triceps exercise. So I actually do that with smaller weights, 12-12-12 is no problem but I try to get used to it before I raise my weights. (And my left weight is WAY smaller and that troubles me a bit too, I didn’t have that in the past. My exercise before used a barbell but now I use dumbbells. Just like in my distant past but the weight was the same then.)

There are various methods, weight-lifters go for a big weight and one rep, I do a normal bodybuilder thing with more reps but only until 12… As long as one does it safe and right, all is good, there are options and different results :slight_smile: My goal is looks (and strength but whatever comes with it is fine) and enjoying my workouts as much as possible. And not much muscle aching afterwards but some is perfectly fine. When I had some leg exercise without weights for 5 minutes and barely could walk for 3 days, that wasn’t fun. But I don’t ignore leg exercises because of that, I just hate those as they are SUPER hard to me so no way I would do them even if I tried and I don’t want muscular legs at the moment anyway (but I would rather run and I don’t like running, I just want it for reasons).
I do things carefully to avoid big muscle aches. My SO is the type who waits years until I raise my weights, grab them, do the same exercise just a tad more reps and has pains for days afterwards… While I get nothing as I am used to it.

Sorry, I tend to talk a lot about things I neglect, I had some problematic times and had too few workouts in the last weeks, I try to do them right starting tomorrow! I am helpful for the workout threads as they inspire me a bit and I need all the help I can get.

1 hour sounds enough but of course it depends. I get winded super easily (I started to run, I need stamina!) so I have super long breaks compared to normal ones. And I train at home so I do other things and get distracted too… But normally 1-1.5 hour is a very good workout if I remember correctly.

(Bob M) #6

One thing to try is 3 sets, but aim for the first set of 12 reps at whatever weight you did last time. Then go up in weight but do say 10 reps. Then go up in weight but do say 8 reps. Say 10 pounds at 12 reps, then 15 pounds at 10 reps, then 20 pounds at 8 reps.

(Denise) #7

I’m really bad on stretching, although if it counts at home, I do a lot of that just try to get my pup in her gear to go outside, making my bed and my hyper personality doesn’t allow me to sit for long anywhere in the house. But intentional stretching would be best and I will get with it today :wink:

(Denise) #8

I will try it Bob :wink: I’ve really worked hard on my form as I don’t want any injuries, but I think I could do a bit more weight and I’ll just add a little and less reps for a set or 2 :wink:

(Denise) #9

sorry shinita, no time to read all this now, but I’ll get to it when I return from my errands. :wink:

(Allie) #10

Soreness is not related to progression, I never get sore now, but you do need to keep adding weight / resistance in order to keep building muscle (which is all “toning” actually is).

I vary reps and sets but the rule I tend it live by is that when I can compete 3 x 12 with good form, I need to increase the load.

(Denise) #11

What about when you get to where you want to be as far as “enough” muscle? Like a maintenance like have with losing fat for example? I think I’ve read somewhere, and quite some time ago, that a person’s muscle will only get so big, unless they do some sort of steroids. I mean now that I see my bod changing, for the good, I don’t want to go to far which at my age I probably don’t need to worry bout that :wink:

I’m not quite there but the thing that has built muscle/shape the most is that Smith Machine squats? I thought my legs looked pretty good just from walking but big dif already. I was a little surprised to get as much loose skin as I did losing just 27 lbs and I was just walking during most of that loss, really all but 3 lbs. I’ve lost that with working out at the gym, virtually no aerobic, but I did drop off the the calories, kind unintentionally really, but I was only eating about 1000 cals a day which I checked, on my calculator at MFP, because I was curious about the weightloss.

I ate a 6 oz steak lastnight for dinner and couldn’t believe I ate the whole thing, lol :sweat_smile::pig:

#12

Your muscles don’t know the difference between barbells, cables, dumbbells or anything else. All they know is how hard it is for you. If you’ve been doing the same thing over and over you’ve adapted. When you stop progressing, you up the weight.

There’s only one goal for muscle, and that’s to make them grow. The whole “Getting defined” isn’t a thing. There’s only getting stronger, and losing bodyfat. You can’t actually “tone” a muscle, that’s not a thing. Track your lifts with an app, when you stop progressing for a while, up the weight.

Your workouts need to change every couple weeks. You adapt very quickly. Phasing and Periodized workouts are best.

If you’re doing 12 reps, let’s call it 8-12, between 9-12 should be VERY hard to do, not total failure, but if you can keep hitting 12 every time, your weight is too low. The end of your set should always be very difficult and you should need your rest for the next one. So up your weight until the end of your set is hard to do. But if you’ve been in that grove then I’d switch to 4 sets maybe 5-7 reps and same deal, the end should be hard. Do that for a few weeks and go back, you should notice what you can do for 8-12 is heavier at that point, and you continue on.

How many days are you looking to lift per week?

(Robin) #13

Denise, I do not do any weight training. But I have rowed (rowing machine) for almost 2 years now. I have not made it harder or added more tension for over a year. I just hold steady. Keeps joints moving and I feel pretty strong in general.
I could go harder or longer, but I have no desire to do anything beyond this.
But I understand wanting to add more muscle and definition… it’s very satisfying. I think one reason I just maintain my level of workout is because I never want to do more than I think I can stick with forever.
Finding balance is important to me, I’m naturally an all or nothing girl and can get carried away and then not stick with it.

(Allie) #14

It takes less to maintain than it does to grow, so if you just want to stay where you are, keep doing what you’re doing, but if you want to grow and develop your muscles (and it is well established that the more muscular your body is the healthier you are), you need to add resistance in some form or another. This does not have to be by adding weight though, it can be done by simply slowing down the reps which is often a much safer way of adding resistance.

(Bob M) #15

I can still get muscle soreness if I do something “new”. For instance, I do body weight triceps by putting my hands on a second step of a set of steps, with my legs facing away from the set of steps. You then do “dips” by lowering your body down and pushing it back up.

I was doing these with my heels on the floor, but then I started doing them with my heels on a stool (raises the body, meaning more weight on your triceps). Then I added a chair and now do chair for one set, then stool for one set. For the stool and then chair+stool, I initially got muscle soreness, as these must have hit different parts of my triceps than what I was doing before.

I always try to increase “weight” (doing body weight training means this is different from adding physical weights) or repetitions. It takes a while, though. Which is why I write everything down, so I can see progress.

(Denise) #16

This was interesting because somehow I picked up on doing my reps slowly and focusing on the muscles I’m working. I know I get a lot out each workout, and it’s much harder that way to complete the reps. It’s hard to describe but it all makes sense to me to not only feel the work, when I do a pull-down, but when I go slow coming back up or visa versa with a squat for example.

Anyway, thanks for that info because that really does make sense about slowing down. I see some folks doing all the work pulling down, but no work going back to “start”. Hope that makes sense :wink: I don’t want to waste my time or money at the gym that’s for sure :wink:

(Denise) #17

Yes, I’ve seen this in Mark Lauren’s book and if I ever can’t get to a gym, or just want to try to see if I can do them like that, I’m glad I started out with a body-weight type of push-up, which I called a push-off, I think Mark calls them that. I tried a wall pushoff and that was a bit easy, so I dropped down to a counter-top but never did make it lower than that as I started the bands, then the gym. I really think the body-weight exercise is amazing.

(Denise) #18

I’m going every other day, but I want to go days in a row at times. I’m learning more types of exercises I can do and am up to 5 regularly for upper body, and just 3 lower body. When I get more added to my routine, or just change it up, I could go every day more often. Winter is here pretty much, no good for my type of bike-riding, or walks for that matter so the gym is going to be it for me. It’s pretty much my only real social time as well although I’ve learned that some folks just gab and don’t get much of a workout done. My workout comes first :wink:

(Denise) #19

I know I need to do something I really enjoy in order to succeed :wink: I never thought I would love the gym-work, but it finally took hold of me. Hard to believe I’ve going into my 5th, or is it 6th month now, lol :slight_smile: of regular workouts :slight_smile:

(Allie) #20

Many people go to the gym and lift weights year after year without getting any results because they quite simply do it wrong and focus on just moving the weight, which is not the way to build muscle. To build you need to feel the muscle moving and working, it’s not about the weight being moved but about how your body works to move it. You’ve figured it out early so well done :slight_smile: