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I always did a bodybuilding routine and for the past 5 months have been working with a top notch powerlifting guy. Its getting really hard. Mentally and physically. I am a 45 year old women who never expected to get this far with this type of exercise. However I am doing it. I honestly am starting to wonder is this right for me. I never wanted to get so into this but it just kind of happened.
The bottom line is each week I have to top the week before with more weight or 1 more rep. The pressure is tough for me. I never had any love for this and always came at things from a bodybuilding side of weight lifting. This trainer says if your not BUILDING STRENGTH YOUR NOT BUILDING MUSCLE and thus all compound moves, no machines, no isolation moves and basically its squats, pullups, deadlifts, dips, bench,sled pull, you get the point. It's basically back breaking!!! Its also the same exercises each week and boring to me.
My question is what would you do. I miss the bodybuilding routine but in one sense I have made some progress in strenght but I hate it. I miss the more volume. I miss the mind muscle connection. Because everything is so damn heavy I lose all that burn and mind /muscle connection. There are no drop sets, no forced reps , just heavy heavy heavy and only 2 sets that all on each. A lot of rest too!!! However I am also dieting and doing cardio so I do look good ( I dont want to look like a powerlifter) on this routine. Its like I look good because I am doing the cardio and dieting hard but hating the workouts. I wonder am I on the right track. I would like someone's opinion. I am so confused. I never planned on getting into this but somehow this just happened. I wonder am I copping out? I mean its tough , but I am hating it!! ANd the thing is how far can it go, I mean to keep topping lifts each week its a recipie for disaster. Im too old. But in the other sense I am putting on alot of muscle and look better! So I wonder could I take some point of this routine and do it on my own or with a different trainer and mix the two and have fun!! I am sorry if this is written crappy I rushed. Marilyn
im too old for that kind of stuff and im 31. im not involved in any competitions, i have little need for tremendous strength; i just want to look good. i go to the gym 5 times a week and i dont particularly enjoy it. if its making you miserable, then stop doing it. its not worth a little more gains. by maintaining a strict diet and a good workout routine, you will be fine. no sense being miserable.
Why not try to find a hybrid of both powerlifting and body building. I focus more on a body building type routine, but I do have the basic powerlifting movements in my routine. My workouts are based around: Squat, dead lift, bent row and bench press. But, I also add some isolation movements as well, such as, cable cross overs, bb curls, skull crushers, etc... You need to find out what is effective and will keep you motivated.
thanks both of you!! I needed someone to listen. Your right, I like the hard core stuff but the pressure of topping the lifts each week and this only 2 chances each week suck. Its like I have become a powerlifter with a bodybuilder's diet and on low carb too no less so its brutal. Im just flat out exhausted and my joints are killing me. I just see this whole thing making me so mad but there is a part of me that finds it challenging and I dont want to cop out, I am one of these people who am compulsive so I will injure myself before I stop and speak up. Plus this trainer only sees powerlifting!! He wont listen to me at all!! Its his way or no way. I got to get out of this! Thanks for the response it really means alot to me! Marilyn
That is tough. Dieting is probably killing your workout because you don't have the juice for them.
It's hard to lift really, really heavy without the calories behind it.
Why is it that you are doing this new type of workout? Is there a point to it? I am all about changing things up to break plateaus, but if you don't enjoy it...wow...it's hard to make an argument for it.
Are you seeing changes? Are you benefitting? Or are you just shredding your joints?
I LOVE my heavy lifting workouts. So that is why I do them. If I hated them, you'd be hard-pressed to convince me to continue.
I always did a bodybuilding routine and for the past 5 months have been working with a top notch powerlifting guy. Its getting really hard. Mentally and physically. I am a 45 year old women who never expected to get this far with this type of exercise. However I am doing it. I honestly am starting to wonder is this right for me. I never wanted to get so into this but it just kind of happened.
The bottom line is each week I have to top the week before with more weight or 1 more rep. The pressure is tough for me. I never had any love for this and always came at things from a bodybuilding side of weight lifting. This trainer says if your not BUILDING STRENGTH YOUR NOT BUILDING MUSCLE and thus all compound moves, no machines, no isolation moves and basically its squats, pullups, deadlifts, dips, bench,sled pull, you get the point. It's basically back breaking!!! Its also the same exercises each week and boring to me.
My question is what would you do. I miss the bodybuilding routine but in one sense I have made some progress in strenght but I hate it. I miss the more volume. I miss the mind muscle connection. Because everything is so damn heavy I lose all that burn and mind /muscle connection. There are no drop sets, no forced reps , just heavy heavy heavy and only 2 sets that all on each. A lot of rest too!!! However I am also dieting and doing cardio so I do look good ( I dont want to look like a powerlifter) on this routine. Its like I look good because I am doing the cardio and dieting hard but hating the workouts. I wonder am I on the right track. I would like someone's opinion. I am so confused. I never planned on getting into this but somehow this just happened. I wonder am I copping out? I mean its tough , but I am hating it!! ANd the thing is how far can it go, I mean to keep topping lifts each week its a recipie for disaster. Im too old. But in the other sense I am putting on alot of muscle and look better! So I wonder could I take some point of this routine and do it on my own or with a different trainer and mix the two and have fun!! I am sorry if this is written crappy I rushed. Marilyn
You have to ask yourself if this is something that you really want. I see in your post that you have a lot of mixed feelings about pursuing powerlifting. You have made progress but you miss the bodybuilding routines. You want to gain strength, but you're also cutting so that you can look good. While I am sure there are some powerlifters out there that look cut and have a bodybuilder's physique, they are far and few in between. As a bodybuilder you probably already know this; but during contest prep when you're dieting down you tend to lose strength. You can cut and diet down if you want, but don't expect to make as many strength gains as you would if you solely focused on lifting heavy. I am currently bodybuilding, but I like playing soccer. If I continue with bodybuilding, there is no way I can play, at least competitively, soccer. I won't have the endurance and speed needed to go down the pitch.
If I may ask, why did you decide to pursue powerlifting? It seems like you still have a love for bodybuilding. Did you want something different?
You say that your low to no/carb diet is killing you. You need carbs for your energy. As long as you stick with complex carbs and not simple refined sugars, you will keep your energy levels up.
Finally, as to the trainer issue: A good trainer will push you but never make you do something that you feel uncomfortable with or that you feel will hurt you. While there are, admittingly, some things that you need to change in order to make yourself a better powerlifter, it seems like this guy is pushing you way too much. You may be better off finding a different trainer; a trainer that would actually listen to your needs and goals. Everything that you told us should be something that you can share with your trainer.
I never even thought of powerlifting. What happened was I was looking for a new trainer. I found this guy who was NJ's strongest man for 3 years basically broke all records and called and we chatted. I told him what Im doing and what I wanted to do was add more muscle and of course like everyone else lose bodyfat. It didnt matter if we worked on one goal at a time I was never fat, and did have nice muscle so I was happy with doing one or the other. I just wanted someone to help me get out of a rut and add new blood. I told this guy basically Im not a powerlifter and dont care about the numbers/poundage of weight on my bench/squat/deadlift. This is where the whole damn mess started. He proceed to tell me, well if your not getting stronger your not building muscle. And you are overtraining and need to do basically a modified Mike Mentzer style HIT program and each week add more poundage or one more rep. This sounded logical!!! All powerlifters have bodybuilder muscle but dont diet, so just diet he tells me. Now how I got so into this game of numbers and it is killing me. At first this was great, fun, new, and stimuating. I did make good gains!! But 5 months later I am squatting a person on my back , bench pressing 145 lbs, and deadlifting too damn much weight!!!!! I feel alot of pressure!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I feel fear also!! Its not fun anymore. I ask myself why did I let it go so far. ANd to be honest Im good at it!!! I am 127 lbs and strong as hell but hate it!!! I just want differents means to get to my goal.
The other thing is my bodyfat is going way down on this program despite now the scale basically moves slow!! The bodyfat is going down which is nice but at the cost of this back breaking crap. And here is the kicker of all, this guy has me scared to leave because now If I dont continue with progressive poundage, IM GOING TO GO LOSE MUSCLE he tells me!!!! So I feel trapped!
What I want is to mix both. I see that I needed to push myself more in the compound moves and he got me doing that but this is getting a bit too much. SO I want to do both and bag this guy because he is not going to change. He is all powerlifting and wont work with me on bodybuilding at all. So thats how this whole mess started.
That is tough. Dieting is probably killing your workout because you don't have the juice for them.
It's hard to lift really, really heavy without the calories behind it.
Why is it that you are doing this new type of workout? Is there a point to it? I am all about changing things up to break plateaus, but if you don't enjoy it...wow...it's hard to make an argument for it.
Are you seeing changes? Are you benefitting? Or are you just shredding your joints?
I LOVE my heavy lifting workouts. So that is why I do them. If I hated them, you'd be hard-pressed to convince me to continue.
I like lifting heavy, I just dont like the pressure that I have to top every lift in weight every week. I like to lift heavy when I feel I can take it, with this guy I get 2 chances only and its got to beat last week!!! Its too much pressure this style!
what do you need that extra strength for? i like being strong and all, but i dont need to be magnus ver magnusson. im not planning on getting in any fights so being strong just means being asked to carry stuff more.
what do you need that extra strength for? i like being strong and all, but i dont need to be magnus ver magnusson. im not planning on getting in any fights so being strong just means being asked to carry stuff more.
I don't, this guy has me believing that if I dont top each lift I am not going to build muscle. He follows and only believes in HIT!! Mike Mentzer style training which is progressive poundage and thats how you happen to gain strenght. I did ask him well what the hell happens when I cant to it, he brought out these little magnets called platemate and they are like grams and oz. he adds to the bars and weights!! So its always up in strength. THere is got to be another way right????I mean he says if your going to be drug free this is the only way to build muscle. I am drug free right now! I dont want to go back to the anavar. I like the natural results I am getting, unfortunately I do believe in a sense he is right on a certain level. Its just I dont like that I cant cruise or do other exercises or isolation . Its just that pressure > I mean why cant I do 5 sets of lets say 100 lbs instead of adding weight and only doing 2 sets!! He seems to think ONLY 2 SETS for EACH EXERCISE TOO!!!!! THIS IS just too boring and the same ones over and over and over!!!
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