Workout: What did you do today?

[Lexi Darling]

I won the hypertrophy for being the coolest ADHD girlie.

[DJChameleon]

Side note does anyone else hate the word 'hypertrophy'? It irritates me for some reason. Just say what you mean. You mean muscle size. Say that.

(I know that isn't you saying it BTW Deej just a quote from the Internet but it reminded me of my dislike of that word.)

It's just like the scientific term for what's happening is all but yeah I agree just stick to the layman's term and say muscle growth. So maybe that's what my PT is pushing me more towards focusing on muscle growth with a bit of endurance.

[grindy]

I think it's Fetcher's that changes a lot. Mines doesn't change that much. There are just minor alterations here and there but for the most part they are always the same when I decide which muscle group I'm working on chest, arms, back, shoulders. It's usually the same set of exercises. Nothing too wild and constantly changing.

I will have to figure out what the names of the different exercises are for the different machines that I use and the exercises I do with the dumbbells then I will type them out.


This is what I got from a quick google search about rest time between sets.

A good example why the first google search result isn't the best source.
I couldn't access the actual "Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning" to check whether it really says what it says but the rest of the article, talking about energy sources, sounds very smart but has very little to do with the topic, especially when talking about muscle growth.

[grindy]

Here's an in depth explanation about rest times from an actual exercise scientist if anyone wants to deep dive a bit:

[grindy]

As someone with a slightly scientific background, I'm definitely trying to check out what science says about various things also related to training rather than just trust various sources (myths spread so easily).

A slightly more dubious but potential shortcut is asking chatgpt because it seems to collect much of its knowledge from scientific publications, at least if you specify (according to science, what is blah blah?).

But I've also seen ChatGPT give two different answers to the same question asked twice, so it's not always dependable.

I think it's important to listen to the science but as usual with studies we should also be mindful of their limitations.
Especially for exercise studies they are: EMG activation not necessarily being a good indicator of muscle growth, biomechanical models often being too simplified, studies having too few participants, studies using untrained individuals who don't know how to move and to go hard, studies being performed with only one or few exercises, thereby limiting the applicability to other muscle groups and exercises, studies being performed over short periods, while muscle growth is very slow and sustainability is sometimes more important than speed.
There's also the aspect of studies giving us an idea of averages but while some variables are basically universal, many others are highly individual and while you can assume to be average in most aspects, you are probably an outlier in some, therefore personal experimentation can make sense.
None of this means that there isn't value in the science, you just have to be careful when interpreting and applying the results.

[Guybrush]

^I think one of the maybe less obvious benefits of trying to follow science is it might help keep you from wasting time and energy on things that empirically doesn't work. So that's already quite useful, even if reading science won't inform you about all the specifics relevant to your own body.

[jimmy jazz]

Here's an in depth explanation about rest times from an actual exercise scientist if anyone wants to deep dive a bit:

I've seen this beefy slaphead before. Seems OK.

Which fitness channels do you like?

[grindy]

I've seen this beefy slaphead before. Seems OK.

Which fitness channels do you like?

Quite a lot actually, although I also have some issues with basically all of them.
Maybe an idea for a separate thread?
As for Mike Israetel, I have issues with some of his personality, but his advice is solid af and he is a basically universally acclaimed and respected scientist and trainer.

[jimmy jazz]

Yeah go for it. I'll say in advance, I don't like Athlean. He needs to cut to the chase.

[grindy]

Yeah go for it. I'll say in advance, I don't like Athlean. He needs to cut to the chase.

Athlean sucks big time. I used to watch him for years and looking back he kinda fucked up my training with the fearmongering and stupid special exercises and silly focus on abs and leanness.

[Guybrush]

I've come to realize that I have limited shoulder mobility. It's hard for me to pull them back.

This means it's currently hard or near impossible to connect bar with chest in exercises like pendlay row and pullups. My shoulders just don't go back far enough.

I'm not sure if this is a permanent feature of my anatomy or something I might be able to fix 🤔

Possible focus for mobility days.

[grindy]

I've come to realize that I have limited shoulder mobility. It's hard for me to pull them back.

This means it's currently hard or near impossible to connect bar with chest in exercises like pendlay row and pullups. My shoulders just don't go back far enough.

I'm not sure if this is a permanent feature of my anatomy or something I might be able to fix 🤔

Possible focus for mobility days.

Can you do it with just the bar? Maybe the weight is too high. Plus there is no rule that you have to touch to your chest, anywhere on your upper body is fine. Higher is more upper back, lower is more lats, but the whole back gets worked with most positions. Touching really high on the chest would only make sense to ensure rear delt focus. And pull ups to the chest are extremely hard, pretty sure it's an issue of strength, not mobility.

[Guybrush]

Can you do it with just the bar? Maybe the weight is too high. Plus there is no rule that you have to touch to your chest, anywhere on your upper body is fine. Higher is more upper back, lower is more lats, but the whole back gets worked with most positions. Touching really high on the chest would only make sense to ensure rear delt focus. And pull ups to the chest are extremely hard, pretty sure it's an issue of strength, not mobility.

Yes, I am able to with, say, a broom, so strength is also part of it. I wasn't sure if I could tbh, but it seems to loosen up a bit after stretching (which gives me some comfort). A reason I'm thinking about it is my father has a very crooked sort of upper back. I'm not sure he can actually rest his head on the floor if he lies flat on his back. He also can't tie his shoes and has poor mobility overall and I'm wondering if I take after him.

Anyways, gonna make sure I get my shoulders back as far as I can using pushup bars or doing bench / dumbbell presses etc.

[grindy]

Yes, I am able to with, say, a broom, so strength is also part of it. I wasn't sure if I could tbh, but it seems to loosen up a bit after stretching (which gives me some comfort). A reason I'm thinking about it is my father has a very crooked sort of upper back. I'm not sure he can actually rest his head on the floor if he lies flat on his back. He also can't tie his shoes and has poor mobility overall and I'm wondering if I take after him.

Anyways, gonna make sure I get my shoulders back as far as I can using pushup bars or doing bench / dumbbell presses etc.

I wouldn't worry about mobility and most likely weight training with full range of motion will be enough for you to have good mobility.
If you can reach your chest without weight then it's not a mobility issue at all. I'd still consider touching a bit lower unless you really want to target the rear delts.
When pressing it is certainly a good idea to go down as far as possible to stretch your pecs, because it grows them more, mobility or not.

[Guybrush]

Thanks for great information as always, @grindy 🙂

Re our discussion on rest times, YouTube suggested me this vid (from a channel I don't know from before) and I thought it was pretty good.