Any Weight Lifters Here?

[A-Jay]

15 minutes ago, soflabasser said:

Pull ups will do a good job as well working out the serratus anterior. How much do you weigh? At one point in my life I was doing pull ups with a 120 pound dumbbell tied to my waist for sets while weighing 225-228 pounds. I do not lift as heavy now but can still do pull ups with 50-70 pounds tied to my waist. I weigh over 200 pounds at this moment in time so doing pull ups at my size is much harder than a guy that weighs 130-170 pounds. I can lift 315 pounds in the bent over barbell row for several reps on heavy days so I still got some decent strength even though I focus more on cardiovascular fitness.

 

I am at 172 right now - how much 'I Lift' is not nearly as important as how I lift it. 

In fact my priority here revolves around how I feel (strong, balanced, capable & confident) and how I look -  and when I speak about appearance it revolves around how much body fat I'm carrying around - the mirror does not lie.

I do ZERO cardio -  my condition is a reflection of my diet & life style.  I believe remaining lean, especially now, to be a high priority for me. 

And I'll have to disagree with you on how hard or easy chins are regardless of a man's body weight.

Body fat has zero bearing on how much strength you have - as it contributes nothing in the way of helping to move you around, except to make it harder.   So a lifter at 170 lbs and a low BMI compared to a 200 lb lifter with the same BMI - the stronger lifter will do more - regardless of weight.

IME, Lifters with higher BMI are often in poor overall condition. 

btw - I'd love to see some of your training exploits - post it up Bud. 

A-Jay

[soflabasser]

29 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

 

I am at 172 right now - how much 'I Lift' is not nearly as important as how I lift it. 

In fact my priority here revolves around how I feel (strong, balanced, capable & confident) and how I look -  and when I speak about appearance it revolves around how much body fat I'm carrying around - the mirror does not lie.

I do ZERO cardio -  my condition is a reflection of my diet & life style.  I believe remaining lean, especially now, to be a high priority for me. 

And I'll have to disagree with you on how hard or easy chins are regardless of a man's body weight.

Body fat has zero bearing on how much strength you have - as it contributes nothing in the way of helping to move you around, except to make it harder.   So a lifter at 170 lbs and a low BMI compared to a 200 lb lifter with the same BMI - the stronger lifter will do more - regardless of weight.

IME, Lifters with higher BMI are often in poor overall condition. 

btw - I'd love to see some of your training exploits - post it up Bud. 

A-Jay

 It is much harder to do pull ups at 200 pounds bodyweight than 150 pounds, that is common knowledge for anyone that works out. Even harder if you have big thighs that weigh you down. Guys with small thighs and big upper bodies tend to be the best at pull ups. Looks does not mean much when it comes to functional fitness that is something I have learned in person not something I learned online. Lots of people that are bodybuilders (amateur or professional) appear to be in great shape but cannot run a simple half marathon or swim for a couple hours in the open sea. I know this since I have invited several bodybuilding buddies of mines on beach dives and they cannot even last for a short 4 hour dive since they get tired in less than 2 hours of swimming. I focus more on cardiovascular fitness since it is much more important for my favorite sports and the fact that heart health is more important than how much I lift in the long run. Also know several guys in my gym that are far more muscular than me yet they struggle with my warm up weights...again appearance means very little when it comes to actual fitness levels. With that said I have been under 6% body fat before and did not like it, I am more comfortable at 9-12% bodyfat. Still lift heavy weights from time to time but cardiovascular health is #1 for me. As for higher BMI, many football players have a very high BMI yet they run a 40 yard dash under 5 seconds and they are impressive athletes with large amounts of strength,speed, and coordination (real fitness not just appearances). Many Judokas have high BMI's yet they are in better functional shape than most people positing fitness videos on Youtube.

[YoTone]

 

[A-Jay]

2 hours ago, soflabasser said:

 It is much harder to do pull ups at 200 pounds bodyweight than 150 pounds, that is common knowledge for anyone that works out. Even harder if you have big thighs that weigh you down. Guys with small thighs and big upper bodies tend to be the best at pull ups. Looks does not mean much when it comes to functional fitness that is something I have learned in person not something I learned online. Lots of people that are bodybuilders (amateur or professional) appear to be in great shape but cannot run a simple half marathon or swim for a couple hours in the open sea. I know this since I have invited several bodybuilding buddies of mines on beach dives and they cannot even last for a short 4 hour dive since they get tired in less than 2 hours of swimming. I focus more on cardiovascular fitness since it is much more important for my favorite sports and the fact that heart health is more important than how much I lift in the long run. Also know several guys in my gym that are far more muscular than me yet they struggle with my warm up weights...again appearance means very little when it comes to actual fitness levels. With that said I have been under 6% body fat before and did not like it, I am more comfortable at 9-12% bodyfat. Still lift heavy weights from time to time but cardiovascular health is #1 for me. As for higher BMI, many football players have a very high BMI yet they run a 40 yard dash under 5 seconds and they are impressive athletes with large amounts of strength,speed, and coordination (real fitness not just appearances). Many Judokas have high BMI's yet they are in better functional shape than most people positing fitness videos on Youtube.

Seems, that just like bass fishing, common knowledge means something different to each of us.  9-12 is an excellent, healthy and reasonably maintainable percentage IMO.  So much changes as we age, the ability, willingness and desire to keep training, gets even more challenging.  The concept of 'What's the point ?' starts to raise it's ugly head.   Been at this for a long time and I don't look much like I did in my 30s and 40s.  Abilities wane, desire fades and self motivation becomes many times harder.  Looking back, seems I was at my best when I was happy.  I use this mantra today to help keep me grounded.

A-Jay 

[soflabasser]

17 hours ago, A-Jay said:

Seems, that just like bass fishing, common knowledge means something different to each of us.  9-12 is an excellent, healthy and reasonably maintainable percentage IMO.  So much changes as we age, the ability, willingness and desire to keep training, gets even more challenging.  The concept of 'What's the point ?' starts to raise it's ugly head.   Been at this for a long time and I don't look much like I did in my 30s and 40s.  Abilities wane, desire fades and self motivation becomes many times harder.  Looking back, seems I was at my best when I was happy.  I use this mantra today to help keep me grounded.

A-Jay 

We all have different fitness goals that is something we both can agree on. My goal is to continue being in functionally good shape for as many decades possible while being a lifetime natural athlete. A nice looking body is plus but I see it as a byproduct of functional training, not something I am specifically training for. I want to be able to dive, fish, run, hike, etc for as long as possible and that means I need to train differently than the basic workout plan that most people do. That is what makes me happy when it comes to fitness. Back to the main subject, hopefully the OP finds what works best for him and he gets the results he is looking for.