How fast did you/dp you progress

TerrorFirmer

I'm just wondering what weight everyone starting lifting at. Sometimes, and I speak from my own experience as a beginner, it's easy to forget that everybody started somewhere when you see posts about huge weights being thrown about.

I've been going to the gym on and off for about a year now, not all of it for weights but alot of it. To be honest I've been lazy alot, lifting heavy (relatively speaking for me) somedays and then not going for a period of two weeks other times, diet could be better, and all that.

But anyway. I think I started at an embarrassing 20kg. I'm no pro now either, my maximum is 2 reps of 65kg. I've sorted out my diet/workouts a bit lately, so hopefully I'll see some good gains in the next few months.

Dragan

The people I see around making the best gains are the people who are consistent and keep things simple by and large. Tribulus, Babypink and of course G'em who all post here have made some truly astounding leaps in strenght in the time that I have known them and been lucky enough to train with them.

This is because they bust their ass everyday to do what they need to do to get stronger. There diets are well controlled but with enough room to move so that they can enjoy things as well, and this allows them to keep the effort up day in and day out.

The simple fact of the matter is that when you have people like that who are adding weight each and every week to what they lift and are getting bigger and stronger practically on a daily basis then you need to look at what is common to all of them, and that’s dedication.

Everyone progresses at a different rate over different lifts, but if your dedicated then you can be sure your progressing as much as you can and there can be no doubts.

tribulus

Thanks man!

I think as Dragan said, consistency really is the most important thing.

Yeah eating enough and mainly good choices is important, as is recovering enough and training smart and hard enough.

But none of that matters if it's not on a regular basis, like putting in a great session in the gym and not going at at all for next two weeks, or eating great one day, 6 meals blah blah and then missing breakfast and having a couple of takeaways the next.

It wasn't until I got consistent with all of those things that I made good progress. My only regret is that for so long I was fooling my self thinking I'd still be ok by not eating enough or missing sessions, it just doesn't work that way!

TerrorFirmer

Well, I think I managed to turn this thread into a sort of posed question - it wasn't like that at all, I was just wondering why weights people started off at lifting, and how fast they progressed! Just purely out of curiousity. My own morsels of useless info were just filler.

but while you mention it, yes in the past six months, partly due to being a poor student but also partly, in fairness, due to laziness, I've been missing sessions, skimping on diet, that sort of stuff. But I really want to get it in gear now, especially with summer coming up not so far away....

tribulus

I can see this turning into a "how much can you bench" thread!

I remember using 60kg for bench and struggling to get more than 6 reps.
I used to watch a guy squat with 100kg and think f*ckin hell that's huge! When I could only use 60kg.
I remember using 20kg DB's for rows and thought they were heavy.

Nowadays a 60kg bench set is barely a warm up, a 100kg squat isn't taxing and getting the use the heaviest DB's in my gym (41kg) is fun for rows!

That what you're getting at?

TerrorFirmer

Just what you started at with and how fastly you progressed in terms of weight lifted would have been fine but....it's nice to know you were once human

frobisher

As someone starting it's great to read the above. I lifted weights last night for the first time in years and they were just 25kg. I felt it! I guess we all start somewhere. It's great to read that dedication is what works because that way you know if it isn't working you've only got yourself to blame. I like that it is so black and white.

I have a thread with questions on how to get started. I'm not looking to be Arnie but I do want to make each step I take part of a program that I know will bring results if I stick to it. But I'm quite simply looking at my bench thinking, right I'm ready to start but what the hell do I do and what shall I do with my diet etc. If any of you can tell me where to get info on getting started I'd appreciate it. I don't want to completely derail this thread so replies here would be great: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055061353

Cravez

Truely the hardest working people iv seen/trained with who have in the past few months have made tremendous gains are indeed g'em, Dragan, t-ha, jsb, babypink and tribulus (and others ) all who im lucky to train with. I myself, since the start of the year have made good gains in terms of strength and although i have put on probably about an 1 kilo more in weight my physique and bodyshape have changed alot!

Start of January 2007 - weight 90kg
147.5kg Stiff Leg Deadlift
80kg Bench
18kg Dumbells for Flyes
35kg Dumbells for Presses
Non Existant Squat!
60kg Barbell Bent over Row
Could barely even get 1 pull up!
8-10 Good Chin ups
50kg Tri-cep Presses(aka close grip bench)
57.5kg Good Mornings


Currently - weight 91kg
170kg Stiff Leg Deadlift + 22.5kg increase
100kg Bench + 20kg increase
25kg Dumbells for Flyes + 7kg increase
40kg Dumbell Presses + 5kg increase
100kg Squat(just started them) +100kg increase
100kg Barbell Bent over Row + 40kg increase
5 pull ups
10-12 Good Chin ups
85kg Tri-cep presses(aka close grip bench) + 35kg increase
132.5kg Good Mornings + 75kg increase
25kg Dumbell one arm Snatches (just started them) +25kg increase

Total Weight Increase: 329.5kg

In just two months i made that amount of increase in weight in total with some of my major or personally better lifts. Especially on the Good Mornings,Stiff Legs and Bench. Hopefully will be able to get squat up a good number now since iv started them. I intend to keep this good progress going as much as i can but i know pretty well soon all these lifts will probably slow down with weight increases. All this was done because i got my arse in gear and worked hard and putting in the effort in the gym. (p.s iv been lifting for 2 years now i didn't just start lifting at the start of 2007! , its just my progress since the start of the year)

BrianD3

In December 05 I was deadlifting 160 kg and a year later it was 205 kg. When I started in mid 2003 I started off deadlifting with about 20 kg (incl bar!) And worked up to about 50 kg in a few months. It took me ages to get comfortable enough and "strong" enough to deadlift 100 kg. If I could search this forum properly I'd be able to give a more detailed breakdown - I know there are a few threads where I have stated my progress.

I believe there is an awful lot of BS on the internet about progress. You get people saying that they deadlifted 200 kg first time they ever weight trained. These cases are few and far between. In any case, it's not a race.

brianthebard

HavoK wrote:

Well, I think I managed to turn this thread into a sort of posed question - it wasn't like that at all, I was just wondering why weights people started off at lifting, and how fast they progressed! Just purely out of curiousity. My own morsels of useless info were just filler.

but while you mention it, yes in the past six months, partly due to being a poor student but also partly, in fairness, due to laziness, I've been missing sessions, skimping on diet, that sort of stuff. But I really want to get it in gear now, especially with summer coming up not so far away....

I'm kind of in the same boat as you. For a while I didn't make big changes in weight, because I wasn't training properly. Got myself a training partner and it really gave me a kick up the ass. I've added ten kg onto my bench in the last three weeks (still only 50kg, including bar-have to boost the ego somehow!) but I think if you constantly keep in mind what you want to achieve, and try to add weight each week, even just a kilo or two, it adds up. I see guys in the weights room shoving around huge weights but it doesn't bother me cause I know it took them years to get there. I just keep plugging away at it, content to see even small changes from week to week or month to month. Interestingly, for all the big guys in our gym, none of them seem to deadlift. Dunno why, but its one of my fave lifts, so I just do it and feck the rest!

TerrorFirmer

I'm now on about 60kg which I suppose is about 65? inc bar but to be honest I was stuck at 40-50kg for ages, simply as a result of, again, being lazy. Also I'm only 80kg right now so I need to gain a little too I think. Being a former tub even after a whole year, I still can't shake the fear of 'getting fat' again...:D

I roped someone else into going with me later on tonight actually, it's the best motivation for me I find...:)

And now that you mention it, I've only ever seen one single guy do a deadlift in my gym (kingfisher Galway) - ever. In an entire year. Very strange. Even the bigger guys in there (mostly poles) stick to the simple bench and bicep exercises...

tribulus

HavoK wrote:

And now that you mention it, I've only ever seen one single guy do a deadlift in my gym (kingfisher Galway) - ever. In an entire year. Very strange. Even the bigger guys in there (mostly poles) stick to the simple bench and bicep exercises...

Tbh that seems to be indicative of most gyms!

Also if it's a standard olympic bar, it weighs 20kg, so if you had 60kg of plates on the bar you would actually be lifting 80kg.

brianthebard

HavoK wrote:

I'm now on about 60kg which I suppose is about 65? inc bar but to be honest I was stuck at 40-50kg for ages, simply as a result of, again, being lazy. Also I'm only 80kg right now so I need to gain a little too I think. Being a former tub even after a whole year, I still can't shake the fear of 'getting fat' again...:D

I roped someone else into going with me later on tonight actually, it's the best motivation for me I find...:)

And now that you mention it, I've only ever seen one single guy do a deadlift in my gym (kingfisher Galway) - ever. In an entire year. Very strange. Even the bigger guys in there (mostly poles) stick to the simple bench and bicep exercises...

Its odd isn't it? Its such a great lift too, only started doing it three weeks ago-My friend got me to do it, tried three sets, 40kg, 50kg, failed half way through the third, but my god it was amazing! My whole lower back felt pumped, I could feel every individual muscle popping out! Once you feel something like that you just know you want to go back again and again-**** drugs, lets deadlift!!!:D

g'em

brianthebard wrote:

Its odd isn't it? Its such a great lift too, only started doing it three weeks ago-My friend got me to do it, tried three sets, 40kg, 50kg, failed half way through the third, but my god it was amazing! My whole lower back felt pumped, I could feel every individual muscle popping out! Once you feel something like that you just know you want to go back again and again-**** drugs, lets deadlift!!!:D

ah yes, the deadlift is indeed, the lift in my honest humble opinion. Stick to it and you'll see amazing changes in your back strength and appearance. Just make absolutely sure you have your form spot on - done right it's one of the safest and most effective lifts out there, but make a balls of it and you're asking for major back trouble.

And on the theme of the thread, I started out DLing 40kg about two years ago, I'm at 140kg x 3 now, and hoping to get 160kg in competition at the end of the month. I luv my deadlifting I does

brianthebard

Just when you mention form, how can I make sure I'm doing it exactly right? we've been lifting while standing on a step, bad idea? I'm almost certain its right, I haven't experienced any pain whatsoever, but I would definitely like to double check, if the weight is to keep going up I don't want to hurt myself.

Edit:good luck in the competition!!!!

TerrorFirmer

the bar is heavy enough but I wouldn't have thought 20kg. Is there a universal set of standards or olympic aside, can you get bars of all sorts of weight?

I've never done a deadlift. I have a brutal back. Sometimes I could be literally reaching for a paper cup and I'm rendered immobile. So deadlifts scare me ****less - I know if done right, they're not a problem - but one mistake in my condition and I'm likely to put myself in a wheelchair!

edit: @frobisher - try reading the stickies at the top of the forum. I know that's a fairly bland response but they are rather good! Also, don't be a stranger to teamtest forums. Great place.

g'em

brianthebard wrote:

Just when you mention form, how can I make sure I'm doing it exactly right? we've been lifting while standing on a step, bad idea? I'm almost certain its right, I haven't experienced any pain whatsoever, but I would definitely like to double check, if the weight is to keep going up I don't want to hurt myself.

Edit:good luck in the competition!!!!

Thanks! there's a great description of the big three here. DLing off a step is a trick people use when they want to improve their pull right off the bottom (generally you find people with have a certain sticking point in the lift, or a sepcific point that they find it hard to get past, it could be the pull off the ground, the lockout etc.). If you've only just started DLing there's no need to pull from a deficit.

the most important safety feature of DLing is do not round out your back. That is, don't allow your spine to cuve over into a C-shape - your back should stay nice and straight at all times - looking straight ahead or slightly upwards will help you do that.

If you can, try to get someone who knows how to DL well to demonstrate for you and have them check your form.

Thing is, just because your back doesn't feel sore, doesn't mean it isn't being damaged. I can think of one person I know offhand who rounds their back hugely when they DL and using monstrous weight - it's a miracle they haven't hurt themselves but it's only a matter of time.:(

brianthebard

Ok thanks for that. I'm certain I'm not rounding my back, I've made a point about that to my friend several times. I might take the step away then if there's no need for it at present, I thought the extra range of motion would be a good thing but if I don't need it yet then i don't need it.

Tbh, since I haven't been training with barbells til recently I was very wary of putting too much weight on or losing form so I've tried my best to do all lifts as perfect as possible. Thanks for the advice (and sorry to havok for stealing his thread!)

mloc

I started off training consistently about two years ago... my bench was only about 50kg, that rose to about 90kg in just 6 months.

I had a nasty knee injury about a year back, and have only started squatting again in the last 6 months. In that time I've gone from 40kg up to 90kg, and will be hitting 100kg very soon. I started deadlifts in november and I'm up to 105kg with them already.

Like some of the other guys have said, it takes time and consistency. Keeping things simple, consistent and most importantly eating and treating your body well will always pay off.

tribulus

HavoK wrote:

the bar is heavy enough but I wouldn't have thought 20kg. Is there a universal set of standards or olympic aside, can you get bars of all sorts of weight?

Most bars are 7feet and weigh 20kg - it's pretty standard. Some bars from America that I think might be in my gym are 20.4kg because they're still imperial 20.4kg = 45lbs.

If in doubt ask the trainers at your gym, sure it'll be a nice ego boost to add 20kg from nowhere!

pbsuxok1znja4r

I only joined & started going to the gym regularly about a month ago, so this thread holds a lot of interest for a beginner like me...

I'm pretty sure I'm using an olympic standard 20kg on everything, so with that included...
(None of these are 1RM, I'll do roughly 3 sets of 8 reps for everything, upping the weight a little each time, can anyone tell me if that's even a good idea??)
Benching 60kg
Deadlift 60kg (reading others peoples stats I get the impression this should be higher than my bench...maybe it's because I always do DL last and that's also after about 8km of running/jogging )
I haven't even started squatting yet, I really wanna get someone to physically show me how to do it properly before I try...)
Doing standing bicep curls w/ dumbells (where I rotate my wrist as I lift, should I even be doing that??) I'll always max out af the end of my 3rd set on 25kg Having done set of 15kg and then 20kg for my first 2 sets...

Do you guys squat and DL on the same days? Wouldn't your quads be wrecked from whichever you did first?

Degsy

I started deadlifting about four months ago aftre reading on here that its a good all-round excercise.I started with 60 kilos and now can do 140.I've been bench-pressing(on the smith machine i hasten to add!) for just over a year and have gone from 40 kilos to 100 kilos(including the bar),seated rows at 120 kilos for five reps and shrugs from 20 kilos to 90 in just over a year.For me these are personal goals,i'm not competing with anybody else and i'm just happy to see improvements and steady progress.In relation to deadlifts,theres me and some polish guy who do them and thats the lot!

pwd

I think comparitively few people do deadlifts because they are so exhausting. There is also probably a fear of injury.
I've read that they are the single best exercise for gaining mass.
I haven't trained properly in over a year. But I found deadlifts very effective. I started off using 40kg and increased that to 80-100kg surprisingly fast.
I found that my upper back didn't develop too well at the time though - just because I did all back exercises in one session, and started with deadlifts. I would be too tired to do as much work with my upper back as I would have liked as a result.

Degsy

I think a lot of people neglect back training generally,this is a pity as it can give very satisfing results very rapidly.

g'em

pwd wrote:

I found that my upper back didn't develop too well at the time though - just because I did all back exercises in one session, and started with deadlifts. I would be too tired to do as much work with my upper back as I would have liked as a result.

Deadlifts, t-bar row, chins and face pulls. Killer combo but incredibly effective.

brianthebard

Whats a t-bar? And a face pull??

g'em

t-bar row (can also be done with an olympic bar against the wall and an A-bar from the pull-down machine)

Face-pull (and other great upper back lifts)

brianthebard

Ah. We don't have a t-bar in our gym, but I've seen a one arm barbell variant and will try to add in some more of those back exercises tomorrow,thanks g'em.

HammerHeadGym

g'em wrote:

...the deadlift is indeed, the lift in my honest humble opinion...

Sorry G'em but are you implying that there are lifts other than the Deadlift?

Started DL's at 50 kg, Personal best is now 195 x 2

daveirl

This post has been deleted.

brianthebard

Deadly I'll definitely add that in tomorrow. Thanks muchly.

Dragan

Just to add to what Dave said, i suggest you tuck the stable end of the bar under the heaviest dumbell you can move.

This advice is brought to your by Dragan, JayRoc, and the missing mirror in Westwood.

daveirl

This post has been deleted.

rocky

HavoK wrote:

And now that you mention it, I've only ever seen one single guy do a deadlift in my gym (kingfisher Galway) - ever. In an entire year. Very strange. Even the bigger guys in there (mostly poles) stick to the simple bench and bicep exercises...

I'm doing deadlifts in the Kingfisher....

JayRoc

daveirl wrote:

This post has been deleted.

Yes I was lucky to escape nads-intact.
The mirror took one for the team, god bless it

g'em

JayRoc wrote:

Yes I was lucky to escape nads-intact.

until I came along.

Ha!! In two threads in two minutes I get to relive the 'nad kicking!! woohoo!!

g'em

HammerHeadGym wrote:

Sorry G'em but are you implying that there are lifts other than the Deadlift?

yeah people waffle about other back lifts, rowing something-or-others All sounds like modern mumbo jumbo to me

daveirl

This post has been deleted.

g'em

in fairness it really is - get a nice squeeze at the top of the pull and your back will feel it for days. DOMilicious.

brianthebard

Dragan wrote:

Just to add to what Dave said, i suggest you tuck the stable end of the bar under the heaviest dumbell you can move.

This advice is brought to your by Dragan, JayRoc, and the missing mirror in Westwood.

Damn sounds like a perfect youtube moment. (can't believe I said that.) anyways sounds a little awkward but I'm always up for trying new lifts so I'll give it a go.

JayRoc

brianthebard wrote:

anyways sounds a little awkward but I'm always up for trying new lifts so I'll give it a go.

Ah it's actually not that awkward, really just be careful not to let whatever handle you're using slide down the bar, away from the end with the plates, and you'll be sound as a dollar pound.
I'd agree with Dave that the V-handle from a cable row or close-grip pulldown would be the best.

Oh yeah, and you'll get a better range of motion if you use 10kilo plates instead of 20's.

Degsy

Probably a stupid question,but when doing T-bar,do you bend your knees or keep them straight?

tribulus

Bend your knees to brace your back - keep that straight too.

TerrorFirmer

Alot of seriously good info on this thread.

hardtrainer

Hmmm started 7 years ago, with bench, barbell and two dumb bells at home. Benching 40kg for decent sets of 8 was about as much as I could do, from what I remember. Did get that up to about 70kg after 3 or 4 months, maybe longer and remember thinking then that I would really like to be able to bench my body weight, which was just under 80kg then.
Almost 5 years ago, started in gym properly. Bench max was about 70kg, never did DLs, could squat about 80kg, I think. Things went up fast enough to start, but then everything levelled off. I think my bench was at about 90 or 95kg and couldn't hit the 100 mark for love nor money. Abandonned squats at 130kg coz that kind of weight scared me.

Almost 5 years later and a lot of trials and errors with different approaches, splits, diets, intensity etc etc etc and figuring out what my body responds to. Max bench has been 140kg, though thats lower now since have focused on lower body for a while (about 120kg), squat 180kg for 6, DL 180kg for 2 x2 in quick succession (my grip needed readjusting!). Body weight is now about 105kg.

As has been said already, when you focus on a particular muscle group and are dedicated to training and almost more importantly eating, you can make fast gains.

Dragan

hardtrainer wrote:

squat 180kg for 6

That and the ridiculous reps with 150 made me want to smack you in the pub that night!!!

Dragan

hardtrainer wrote:

As has been said already, when you focus on a particular muscle group and are dedicated to training and almost more importantly eating, you can make fast gains.

I wanted to highlight this actually, as it's just that important.

It can be hard to make consistent gains all over, and if you look at any program by any trainer worth listening to when they do a big plan ( like a big 52 week plan or something al CT from T-Nation ) you will notice that they spend certain mini cycles focusing on a certain bodypart but they normally have you BACK OFF the other body parts ever so slightly. If you have a specific area that you want to make gains in, then train that intensely and train other bodyparts to just keep there strenght and size they have.

Now this is only my opinion of things but you really cannot underestimate the effect that a major effort on legs day will have on your recovery. Hurting my knee sucked, but it was only when I couldn’t train my legs that I realised how much it took from my overall recovery, and how much more I could do on upper and bounce back from quicker without training them! Now I'm not saying don't train legs, but FOCUS on your immediate goals and achieve them.

Hanley

I remember the day I dreamed of a 50kg bench press. That was about 3 years ago when I'd bench about 40kg x2. I hit 110kgx6 today.

I remember deadlifting 100kg on my first ever attempt about 2 years ago. I'm expecting to pull 220+ in 2 weeks.

Consistency is definately the key.

daveirl

This post has been deleted.

hardtrainer

Dragan wrote:

I wanted to highlight this actually, as it's just that important.

It can be hard to make consistent gains all over........................................... If you have a specific area that you want to make gains in, then train that intensely and train other bodyparts to just keep there strenght and size they have.

.......... Now I'm not saying don't train legs, but FOCUS on your immediate goals and achieve them.

Couldn't agree more. I shifted my focus from increasing the weights consistently on chest and back days, to really concentrate on increasing my squats and DLs, as a result my bench weights have gone way down. There is always give and take I think. I probably could have maintained my bench weights better, but I guess I got lazy or something. Anyway the point is that regardless of the weights, my chest has improved. I think I also switched from doing heavy bench for ego to really just trying to develop the chest more and that can be done without going super heavy on bench.

I think it's perfectly reasonable for people to focus on a particular body part each month and really push to get that part of their training to advance, while maintaining or just slightly increasing in other areas.

Cravez

hardtrainer wrote:

Couldn't agree more. I shifted my focus from increasing the weights consistently on chest and back days, to really concentrate on increasing my squats and DLs, as a result my bench weights have gone way down. There is always give and take I think. I probably could have maintained my bench weights better, but I guess I got lazy or something. Anyway the point is that regardless of the weights, my chest has improved. I think I also switched from doing heavy bench for ego to really just trying to develop the chest more and that can be done without going super heavy on bench.

I think it's perfectly reasonable for people to focus on a particular body part each month and really push to get that part of their training to advance, while maintaining or just slightly increasing in other areas.

I agree also, the past two months i focused on Deadlifts and back work more so and as i posted ealier my Deadlift has gone up 22.5kg(two weeks of which it went up 12.5kg!) and my back has a more V shape now. My chest work suffered but after two chest sessions im back to where i was. Ill be focusing on chest/leg work now while maintaining back work. So id also find it good for someone to focus on a particular area for a while and see how they progress with it.

edit: However i would recommend this only to someone who has had weight trained for a while with some experience and knows what he/she is doing.