When have you reached the point that you are strong?

Celticfire

I was wondering at what point are you considered to be lifting decent weight?

I know that everyone is different, I can't compare myself to the 6'3" Bulgarian weightlifter or the other chap doing 5kg curls.

Is it based on being able to lift your bodyweight equivalent or are there some magic numbers that you have to reach on certain exercises?

What would be the bodyweight/magic numbers for the main compound exercises?

hunnymonster

This is the guide the helpful peeps here gave me when I first started

http://www.exrx.net/Testing/WeightLifting/StrengthStandards.htm

justsomebloke

Wc Jfl Ftw

LegacyUser

jsb wrote:

Wc Jfl Ftw

What the hell does that even mean?

hunnymonster

no diea what wc is

jfi is usually just for information

ftw - f*** the world

Malteaser!

JFL: Just F*ucking Lift

FTW: For The Win

LegacyUser

Man i absolutely hate nerd talk.

Malteaser!

haha, I hate to admit knowing what it is!!

wasabi

hunnymonster wrote:

no diea what wc is

wc = who cares, I think

BrianD3

Here you go
http://www.ironsports.tv/hwgdami.htm

IMO if you can reach "fit guy" level you are pretty strong and stronger than the vast majority of the population. "Animal" level should be a realistic goal for recreational weight trainers although powerlifters will be aiming higher. "Holy s**t" level is for very dedicated and/or gifted individuals. A powerlifter would be very happy if he reached that level of strength.

Bear in mind that the lighter you are the easier it is to lift a certain percentage of bodyweight. An extreme example of this is ants can lift many times their bodyweight while elephants can't, obviously there isn't that big a difference among humans but you get the idea.

Hanley

When do you know you're strong?

You know you're strong when you get past the stage of needing outside validation and stop comparing yourself to others.

Laslo

A general rule of thumb is that if you can bench, squat and dead lift 100k, then you have your 'chisel'. You've reached a fairly solid strength and you can start to define how you want your physique to look, concentrating on the specific body parts that you want to improve with concentrated exercises. Just make sure that you keep up your core power exercises to maintain your strength - bench presses, deadlifts, squats, clean and press.

ali.c

This just occured to me while reading this thread, but as a girl starting weight training every time i lifted a bit more it felt good (hehe it still does), it didnt really matter about the numbers as it was obvious progression and it was stronger.

In comparision most guys i chat to about it when just starting out are all about how much should i be able to lift (sure you see that on here sometimes too).

Back OT, imo strong is really relative to what you want to do with. Competing (hell completing) an ironman is strong, Lifting 200kg is strong but they arent exactly comparable.

Hanley

Here's what I would define as the beginnings of strength (as in a very basic level for someone who's been training for a a year or 2)

Squat: 1.5x bodyweight
Bench: 1x bodyweight
Deadlift: 2x bodyweight

Degsy

My gym has no damned squat rack:mad:

Laslo

Degsy wrote:

My gym has no damned squat rack:mad:

Neither does mine. What about a Smith Machine?

tribulus

It can't compare to a free standing squat.

Hail 2 Da Chimp

Some of us have no choice... I only have a smith machine, it was fine when I was starting out squatting but I'd prefer a squat rack now to get the full benifit.

Have any of you guys tried deadlifting on a smith machine? I axe because the biggest d/bells we have are 30Kg, I feel I could move up a bit but the smith machine only drops the bar to just below my knees.

amazingemmet

BrianD3 wrote:

Here you go
http://www.ironsports.tv/hwgdami.htm

I

Woo hoo I'm animal on most the lifts there

Degsy

Hail 2 Da Chimp wrote:

Some of us have no choice... I only have a smith machine, it was fine when I was starting out squatting but I'd prefer a squat rack now to get the full benifit.

Have any of you guys tried deadlifting on a smith machine? I axe because the biggest d/bells we have are 30Kg, I feel I could move up a bit but the smith machine only drops the bar to just below my knees.

i wouldnt deadlift on a smith machine,it severly restricts your range of motion and would probably damage you badly.Is there no bar in your gym you can put plates on??

Aedh Baclamh

Any of you guys that squat/deadlift play any team sports like GAA/soccer? A good few people advised me against doing these lifts during the season so I'm curious as to what exercises I should replace them with.

maxi-twist

Hail 2 Da Chimp wrote:

Some of us have no choice... I only have a smith machine, it was fine when I was starting out squatting but I'd prefer a squat rack now to get the full benifit.

Have any of you guys tried deadlifting on a smith machine? I axe because the biggest d/bells we have are 30Kg, I feel I could move up a bit but the smith machine only drops the bar to just below my knees.

Is there a bench in your gym? Just nick the bar off that. Thats what i do.

Hail 2 Da Chimp

No bench its a small gym they only have dumbells and a smiths machine. They have a few barbells but the weights they have for them are a few Kg...

Leon11

That's bull. Nothing wrong with doing them.

In season i'd say just do weights twice a week, an upper body session and a lower body session. Or alternatively just do two Total Body workout.

ruprect

Aedh Baclamh wrote:

Any of you guys that squat/deadlift play any team sports like GAA/soccer? A good few people advised me against doing these lifts during the season so I'm curious as to what exercises I should replace them with.

Why did they say against it? A mate of mine doing GAA said he cant do squats since his knees and back are ****ed from injuries in hurling & GAA football. Actually any guys I know who play have had pretty bad injuries, perhaps that is why.

Some have oddball "auld lad coaches", I often see them doing bizarre exercises on my local pitch, maybe they advise them against it, probably think whey is worse than heroin too.

slemons

for me being strong is being able to manhandle almost everyone i know.
i can lift lot of people overhead. upto about 14stone.
that does me...

powerlifting numbers are so... technical. Ive seen guys claim a massive deadlift and then when they post vids on utube its a sumo dl and they've monkey arms with like 6" rom. thats not strong

slemons

Aedh Baclamh wrote:

Any of you guys that squat/deadlift play any team sports like GAA/soccer? A good few people advised me against doing these lifts during the season so I'm curious as to what exercises I should replace them with.

i play hurling.

i do an awful lot of weights in winter, squats, bench, clean etc
in season then i continue with weights but move to more unilateral stuff and higher reps like pistols, bulgarian squats to maintain the strenght, improve flexibility without burning me out.

BrianD3

slemons wrote:

powerlifting numbers are so... technical. Ive seen guys claim a massive deadlift and then when they post vids on utube its a sumo dl and they've monkey arms with like 6" rom. thats not strong

A massive sumo deadlift isn't strong?

I often hear comments like this about the sumo deadlift, if it were that easy then every powerlifter would use it in competition, every deadlift record would be achieved sumo style etc. This is far from being the case.

The sumo deadlift has its downsides, the strain it puts on the adductors being one of them. It's not all about the ROM. I would encourage anyone who scoffs at the sumo deadlift to train both it and the conventional deadlift seriously and see how the numbers compare.

Hanley

BrianD3 wrote:

A massive sumo deadlift isn't strong?

I often hear comments like this about the sumo deadlift, if it were that easy then every powerlifter would use it in competition, every deadlift record would be achieved sumo style etc. This is far from being the case.

The sumo deadlift has its downsides, the strain it puts on the adductors being one of them. It's not all about the ROM. I would encourage anyone who scoffs at the sumo deadlift to train both it and the conventional deadlift seriously and see how the numbers compare.

True story. Most ignorant post of the thread so far!!

Holding on to an incrdible amount of weight isn't strong now either I suppose?

Do you think they just walked into the gym one day and pulled a ton sumo? That they didn't have to build up their entire body to do it? It doesn't require and strength it seems you're saying... What about core strength? Grip strength? And what about having enough balls to actually put your ass on the line in the hopes of hitting a PR??

You know, now I know why it's easier to sit online and moan, it's easy. Training's too hard.

hunnymonster

celticfire, THis is just a random thought I've just had. You're part of the fire service aren't you? Don't you have strength tests as part of your job?

Celticfire

hunnymonster wrote:

celticfire, THis is just a random thought I've just had. You're part of the fire service aren't you? Don't you have strength tests as part of your job?

Only before starting the job, as part of the medical. After that it's up to the individual to try to keep themselves in some sort of decent shape.

The link you posted was quite helpful, I need to work on my squats and deadlifts tho..

slemons

Hanley wrote:

True story. Most ignorant post of the thread so far!!

Holding on to an incrdible amount of weight isn't strong now either I suppose?

Do you think they just walked into the gym one day and pulled a ton sumo? That they didn't have to build up their entire body to do it? It doesn't require and strength it seems you're saying... What about core strength? Grip strength? And what about having enough balls to actually put your ass on the line in the hopes of hitting a PR??

You know, now I know why it's easier to sit online and moan, it's easy. Training's too hard.

lol - are you the judge of ignorant posts now? You would be well able for that anyway.

slemons

BrianD3 wrote:

A massive sumo deadlift isn't strong?

I often hear comments like this about the sumo deadlift, if it were that easy then every powerlifter would use it in competition, every deadlift record would be achieved sumo style etc. This is far from being the case.

The sumo deadlift has its downsides, the strain it puts on the adductors being one of them. It's not all about the ROM. I would encourage anyone who scoffs at the sumo deadlift to train both it and the conventional deadlift seriously and see how the numbers compare.

apologies - what i was getting at was partial rom's and should probably have used squats as a better example. Some guys claim big squats but only go quarter depth etc etc

i just think its hard to convert gym numbers in any lift into real world figures.

thirtyfoot

slemons wrote:

i play hurling.

i do an awful lot of weights in winter, squats, bench, clean etc
in season then i continue with weights but move to more unilateral stuff and higher reps like pistols, bulgarian squats to maintain the strenght, improve flexibility without burning me out.

Although based on sprinting, the logic here can be applied to most sports.

http://www.elitetrack.com/articles/inseasonsprintcissik.pdf

Hanley

slemons wrote:

lol - are you the judge of ignorant posts now? You would be well able for that anyway.

Please elaborate as to how a sumo deadlift is not strong. You've still to clarify that.

Hanley

slemons wrote:

i just think its hard to convert gym numbers in any lift into real world figures.

Also, what is a "real world figure"?

I assume you mean it's something that happens in "real life" such as on a rugby or gaelic pitch. Your ability to manhandle your opponent perhaps?

nesf

Hanley wrote:

Also, what is a "real world figure"?

I assume you mean it's something that happens in "real life" such as on a rugby or gaelic pitch. Your ability to manhandle your opponent perhaps?

Sometimes you'll find guys who are fine at gripping bars in gyms for lifting but don't have sufficient grip strength to effectively use their muscles when having to grip something more awkward in "the real world". Especially if guys use lifting straps etc. You can only lift what you can hold onto and all that.


It's a bit of a meaningless point though. When talking about strength you need to define your terms of reference first in order to say anything sensible about it. Talking about strength in terms of grapplers versus strength in terms of powerlifters are two very different things when you get down to it.

Celticfire

nesf wrote:

Sometimes you'll find guys who are fine at gripping bars in gyms for lifting but don't have sufficient grip strength to effectively use their muscles when having to grip something more awkward in "the real world". Especially if guys use lifting straps etc. You can only lift what you can hold onto and all that.


It's a bit of a meaningless point though. When talking about strength you need to define your terms of reference first in order to say anything sensible about it. Talking about strength in terms of grapplers versus strength in terms of powerlifters are two very different things when you get down to it.

I wasn't really asking about "real world" strength. I was asking about lifting weights in the gym. I was looking for that point that you can say to yourself "yeah, that's a decent respectable weight I'm using".

I gave my point of reference , I said in the gym. I asked about the main compound exercises.

The link Hunnymonster posted was exactly the kind of answer I was looking for. Just some basic points of reference to use.

As regards grapplers, is technique not more important than strength?

nesf

Celticfire wrote:

I wasn't really asking about "real world" strength. I was asking about lifting weights in the gym. I was looking for that point that you can say to yourself "yeah, that's a decent respectable weight I'm using".

I gave my point of reference , I said in the gym. I asked about the main compound exercises.

The link Hunnymonster posted was exactly the kind of answer I was looking for. Just some basic points of reference to use.

I meant it as a response to slemons' posts about real world strength and how it's not really that relevant to this discussion not as a criticism of your question or anything. What you were asking made perfect sense, in any activity it's nice to have benchmarks to measure your progress against. I should have been more clear in my post, apologies.

Celticfire wrote:

As regards grapplers, is technique not more important than strength?

I meant it more that the kind of strength a grappler needs (you need both strength and technique for grappling from my basic understanding of it?) would be different to the kind of strength a powerlifter needs. Different muscle groups etc. This would make it hard to compare them within the contexts of their respective sports because their aims are quite different. A bit like asking whether the sprinter or marathon runner is fitter. If that makes sense.

Boston

Degsy wrote:

My gym has no damned squat rack:mad:

If you're talking about trinity, theres two. I'm pretty certain they are squat racks, at least in so far as they appear to be what Mick has at his gym.

Celticfire

nesf wrote:

I meant it as a response to slemons' posts about real world strength and how it's not really that relevant to this discussion not as a criticism of your question or anything. What you were asking made perfect sense, in any activity it's nice to have benchmarks to measure your progress against. I should have been more clear in my post, apologies.

No problem.

nesf wrote:

I meant it more that the kind of strength a grappler needs (you need both strength and technique for grappling from my basic understanding of it?) would be different to the kind of strength a powerlifter needs. Different muscle groups etc. This would make it hard to compare them within the contexts of their respective sports because their aims are quite different. A bit like asking whether the sprinter or marathon runner is fitter. If that makes sense.

I wouldn't even begin to try to compare which type of athlete is fitter . Very difficult to do so.