9 ms·

The Zen of Weight Lifting

51 points by mhb 5y ago

syspec 5y ago
https://archive.md/IzFbS https://archive.md/IzFbS
m463 5y ago
I would like to know how to start strength training at home - to counteract sitting at a computer (strengthen the core, etc) and to trade some fat for muscle, becoming lean. any recommendations? EDIT: thank you for the overwhelming response
- ryanjodonnell 5y ago
  Tonal is amazing and great for beginners
- Viliam1234 5y ago
  I roughly follow a book Convict Conditioning - exercising at home using my body weight (and a pull-up bar). To put it simply, there are four types of exercises (push-ups, pull-ups, squats, leg raise), and for each of them there is a very fluent progression of exercises from very simple to very difficult. So you can start at level 1 for each type of exercise, and when you manage to do a certain amount of repetitions, you level up. (Different types of muscles level up independently, for example I have strong legs and weak arms.) That means, the exercise is never too easy or too hard, and leveling up is a great psychological reward. For me the key is consistency and social pressure. I try to exercise every day (because that is more instinctive than any other schedule) at the same time (when my kids go to sleep). That means, when the time to exercise comes, it feels natural to do it. I keep a log which days I exercised and which days I did not, and I report the data to my friends. By the way, I don't exercise all muscles every day; I alternate two types of exercise on one day, the remaining two types on the other day. Another thing that works for me, psychologically, is outcome independence. I treat my exercise as a virtuos thing, whether it brings the desired results or not. If I exercised, I did my duty; if I didn't exercised, I failed to do my duty. Whether the muscles actually increase and the fat actually decreases, that depends on the gods; I am just making sure that I did my part. This is useful, because the progress is real but happens on long time scale, and I need encouragement on short time scale. Of course, after you succeed to exercise regularly for a few months, you will see the progress, and that will motivate you to continue; but the problem is that you need greatest motivation at the very beginning, while you still have zero results. (It is easiest to give up during the first month. After half year, the change will be so obvious that you will want to stay that way.) Don't overdo it. Muscles also need some time to recover; for me it is rougly two days (which is why I alternate the exercises). Take sufficient breaks between the sets; this is easier to do at home, because it doesn't feel like you are wasting your time; between the sets you can browse web, watch TV, or do dishes. Sometimes I just watch a movie, pause it at a random moment, do a set, unpause and watch again... and at the end, it doesn't even feel like I exercised; I was just watching a movie and taking an occassional short break. Generally, if you can somehow make it fun, that helps a lot. (After a few months, you will not need external sources of fun; the exercise itself will become pleasurable. But first you need to get there.) Never punish yourself for failing to exercise; reflect on the fact, then forgive yourself and start again. In addition to strength training you should also do some cardio or take a walk regularly. Once I had a job that was 20 minutes by foot from my home; that was optimal. I try to minimize car use, and during covid also started minimizing mass transit use; now I always check the map first, and if my destination is within 30 minutes walking distance, I go there by foot. I think about it as saving time, because I am going to where I need, and I am exercising at the same time. Now, strength training itself can add you muscle, but will only remove a little fat. People usually overestimate how much energy is burned when exercising. Most energy is spent by simply keeping your body alive (body temperature, breathing, heartbeat, etc.), which is more or less a constant amount each day. An exercise will probably just add 5% or 10% to it. The inevitable conclusion is that to lose fat, you need to eat less. Even worse, you need to eat less every day, otherwise the calories you lost in a week can be regained in a day. On the other hand, starving can hurt you; your body needs enough proteins and vitamins. That means that you need to change the proportion of proteins and vitamins to fats and carbohydrates; on other words, not (just) eat less but eat differently. Raw vegetables with every meal. Proteins from meat, fish, eggs, diary, beans. (That means lots of beans, if you are a vegetarian. Like, literally every day.) Avoid sugar, coke, white bread. You don't need to get religious about this, just remove the greatest sources of sugar/carbs, learn three new recipes containing beans, and always take a raw vegetable as a side dish. (If you ignore this advice, you will get muscles hidden under fat, which is where I am now; but even that is an improvement over all fat and no muscles.) etc. What others already said. Enough sleep (that means 8 hours minimum). By the way, being healthy can take a lot of time. Eight hours of sleep + eight hours at work + commute, that already leaves you like 4-7 free hours on a workday. If you want healthy meals, you probably need to cook them yourself. Then you exercise... and there is little time left. Plus, you probably have other duties, maybe also kids, etc. You need to be smart about this. (It is one of the reasons I exercise at home instead of going to the gym; a few minutes saved every day.) I don't have a perfect solution for this, but two important components are: short commute (even if it means somewhat lower salary) and a big freezer (so I can prepare meals for several days at once).
- netizen-936824 5y ago
  Got something heavy lying around? Good, go pick it up. Now put it back down Nice, repeat 10x All jokes aside, check out athlean-x on youtube
  - dekken_ 5y ago
    > Got something heavy lying around? it can be you, do some pushups, or half pushups even. > check out athlean-x on youtube yes
- AzzieElbab 5y ago
  Push-ups and pull-ups work for me. $30 pull-up bar is the best purchase I have ever made
  - qqqwerty 5y ago
    Yes! Literally get down on the ground right now and do a set of pushups. Congrats, you just did your first workout, it took less than a minute. Do one set of pushups each day for the next week (one set of pushups for me is 30-40 pushups in a row, I basically keep going until I can't anymore). After the first week, add in another exercise, situps are a good one. And the week after that, get a pullup bar or some dumbbells and add in another exercise. Keep adding a different exercise until you have 5 or 6. Do one set of each exercise with little to no rest in between each exercise. This should take less than five minutes each day. At any point if you fall out of habit, go back to square one, i.e. one set of pushups each day. Once you have made this into a regular habit, you can start adding more reps or add a second workout (i.e. one in the morning, one in the afternoon). Continue to add more reps/exercises/workouts until you feel satisfied with the routine. For me, I do one set of 6 strength exercises per day. It takes me less than five minutes each day. Keep in mind this is just my strength routine. I also run, hike/walk, bike or surf 3-4 times a week. If I wasn't already in the habit of doing that, I would add some cardio to my daily workout (jumping jacks, up/downs, etc...) I wouldn't even consider getting a gym membership unless you have a very specific need for a certain routine or set of equipment. For example some folks like to mix in cardio on a machine (rower, elliptical, etc...) with weight machines in a single workout. Keeping all that gear at home would be tough. That is fine, but just remember that getting to and from the gym requires a time and effort, and that can result in losing the habit. So only go this route if you either have a very specific need that you can't replicate at home, or if you know you won't drop the habit.
- datahead 5y ago
  r/homegym will have some good recs for gear to get started. Plenty of bodyweight training you can do too- great for turning on your main muscle groups (youtube). A barbell and some plates w/ rack will cover the main lifts. Squats, deadlifts, presses (chest and shoulder) are the first ones to build. I recommend Starting Strength for an on-ramp to get going. Adjustable dumbbells are great too- plenty of options out there. Some of this equipment is expensive, look for used and consider it an investment in health. Happy Lifting!
- wffurr 5y ago
  The hardest part is habit-building. So whatever works for you for building daily habits. My plan is to put a calendar on the wall with boxes for habits and check them off with a colored pen. Nice visible reminder of what I'm working on and how I'm doing. I was derailed by a severe cold that I'm still recovering from. The exercise routine itself matters less, IMO, than building the habit. Some basic calisthenics (bodyweight exercises) would be fine to start. You could add dumbbells or a kettlebell at some point to add weight for a minimum of space. The exercise I "enjoyed" the most was barbell lifting: deadlift, squat, benchpress, cleans, rows, etc. Starting Strength was a really good read for that, and there are videos to go with them. I also worked with a trainer at the gym for a while to get the form correct. That all requires a fair bit of equipment or gym access, though.
  - datahead 5y ago
    Don't overlook the comment about form. Form is everything, weight is secondary. Get a professional trainer to help you setup your form once you move to barbell work and then you can go from there on your own.
- gadders 5y ago
  Read Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe.
  - martythemaniak 5y ago
    Yes, this is the best book for a beginner. Not only will it explain how to do the lifts in great detail, it'll also make you appreciate why you should be lifting. After reading the book, I would still go to a personal trainer. A few hundred dollars to have someone help you learn an important life-long skill is good value. Book is great, but having someone watch over you and correct you in the beginning is still very important.
    - gadders 5y ago
      Agreed, but I'd get someone familiar with the book or that specialises properly in powerlifting or strength training. Not personal trainer of the day at the nearest Globo Gym.
  - dhuk_2018 5y ago
    This, and definitely watch the Starting Strength YouTube channel...
  - Apocryphon 5y ago
    Never quite understood why r/fitness was so against it and StrongLifts: https://thefitness.wiki/faq/starting-strength-and-stronglifts-not-recommended/ https://thefitness.wiki/faq/starting-strength-and-stronglift...
    - gadders 5y ago
      Starting Strength is really two books. One part teaches you the most effective form for each lift, and the second provides a programme for a novice lifter. Both will be modified as you become more experienced - you might tweak your form to take account for EG short upper body, or you might find you respond better to volume rather than intensity in your programming. But it's like a lot of things - you need to learn the rules before you can break the rules. I'd say it's a good, simple starting point to find those things out about yourself. There are also a lot of Starting Strength adjacent companies that also provide good programmes - Barbell Medicine, Barbell Logic, Andy Baker etc.
- jimbob45 5y ago
  The 4chan /fit/ guide is remarkably helpful for beginners. https://liamrosen.com/fitness.html https://liamrosen.com/fitness.html
- ronyeh 5y ago
  I'm a nerd/coder who used to sit all day too. It depends on your current level of fitness (muscles, tendon/ligament strength, body fat %). Feel free to ask me any questions. The way to trade fat for muscle is to continually stress your muscles (by increasing the weight you can lift), and getting enough sleep (which I am bad at). Also, don't each too much (especially sugars). + Beginners: do air squats (multiple sets and repetitions) and static squats / wall sits (for as long as is comfortable. rest 90 seconds and repeat). Once you are stronger, do the same while holding a gallon of water. + Making Progress?: The above + yoga moves targeted at strength. Try out planks and wall hand stands. Single leg split squats (your back leg on your sofa). + Feeling Strong?: All of the above + adjustable kettlebells (let me know if you need recs) + gymnastic rings (you can attach the straps to a high place at a public park, or drill some hooks into your ceiling, or buy a doorway mount). Check out the bodyweightfitness community on reddit. + Advanced: This takes up space and costs a decent amount of $, but you'll need to build a home weightlifting gym with a barbell, olympic weight plates, and a squat stand / pullup bar / flat bench. Check out the homegym community on reddit.
- lordnacho 5y ago
  My working place is actually the gym room of my house. I simply have a standing desk for my laptop, and then I can lift some weights whenever I want to stop looking at code. Make sure you get the main items: Olympic bar, squat rack, maybe a multi-gym machine thingy with ropes and weights, and hand weights of some sort. Also get one of those modern scales if weight is one of your goals, it will record your weight to 2 decimals on an app for you. For motivation, I pay an online gym some money to do a training + diet + measurements program. I've done weights for a good long while now, so I don't need the detailed instructions so much, but they do also offer videos of every exercise, exact recipes for every meal (with my goals in mind), and instructions about how to measure yourself, all on web/mobile. It even lets you record what weights you're doing and has a convenient clock to measure your resting time. Coach then checks in now and again to see how I'm doing.
- edgyquant 5y ago
  I think it would be better to go to a gym like planet fitness. It’s really hard to do well rounded strength training without dropping a ton of money in weights. You should spend 6-12 months building a habit at the gym and if you decide to stick with it then consider buying equipment for a home gym
- huitzitziltzin 5y ago
  Recs here for benches and racks are great and I second them, but if you want a less costly and space consuming way to see whether you like the activity before committing, kettlebells are a great way to get started. With a couple of pairs at different weights you can do (versions of) all of the main powerlifting movements. You definitely can’t hit your legs as hard as you can with a bar and a rack, but kettlebells are much much more “small apartment friendly”. You can hide them in a closet easily.
  - goatkey 5y ago
    Huge +1 to this and also to resistance bands. They fold up and can fit into a drawer. You can get a lot of value starting off from just bodyweight exercises as well. YMMV, but the app FitBod has done wonders for me.
- sabhiram 5y ago
  Hit the gym and get a trainer to make sure your form and path for the first few months is solid. The most important thing, is wanting to do it.
- DantesKite 5y ago
  Try Fitbod. It’ll work with any equipment you have at home and guide you towards a great strength program.
- aunty_helen 5y ago
  If you want strength without bulk, yoga If you want lean, its diet. Only. If you want fitness, circuit training. Can be done in your living room. If you want swoll, hit the gym.
- mywittyname 5y ago
  You have a few good direct answers to your question, but there's something I feel is important to add: Honestly, a gym membership is worth it, if you live close to one. While you can get decent results from home gyms, I've found the jump from "decent" to "good" results takes a bit of money/equipment. There are muscles groups that basically require heavy weights to really get good results. Leg workouts in particular are really easy to cap out on without equipment. I can personally do body-weight squats indefinitely (probably). If I tried to do weighted squats with dumbbells, I'm sure my arms would tire well before my legs do. A good leg press machine will run you the same price as a decade of cheap gym memberships, and that's not even getting into weights or other useful equipment. I personally find it valuable to travel to the gym. It's only 5 minutes for me, but once I leave, I'm committed to a degree that is harder to maintain when I workout at home. Also, to answer your question: yoga is great. It's a very underrated exercise (particularly for men). It builds core strength and flexibility. The wrestler DDP has a series on it that people rave about.
- farnsworth 5y ago
  During the pandemic, I bought a couple kettlebells and found that you can get a great full-body strength workout with extremely minimal equipment. r/kettlebell has great resources, advice, form checks, and motivation.
- crisdux 5y ago
  I can share what I did because I recently went through this journey. I started with Pavel Tsatsouline's Simple and Sinister program and bought a few kettlebells. I slowly started to incorporate push ups, overhead press, curls, dips, squats, deadlifts all from home - with apartment friendly and novice modifications. I then bought some exercise bands and learned some more exercises from youtube. The best advice I read was to start small, make it a regular thing and go from there. Like seriously, I started only working out 15-20min each session 4-5 days a week for the first 2-3 weeks. I enjoyed it so much and saw great results that now I'm at 45-50min minutes each session a few months in.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- ramses0 5y ago
  I had a great experience taking BodyPump classes for ~1 year: https://www.lesmills.com/us/workouts/fitness-classes/bodypump/ https://www.lesmills.com/us/workouts/fitness-classes/bodypum... Start with basically no weight (1kg x 2 + bar for anything with arms, 2kg x 2 + bar for anything legs). It's cardio + weights, and they cover all the major muscle groups, and you're doing fairly rapid repetitions of a bunch of different lifts. After 3-6 months doing _that_ class, I would then start supplementing that with occasionally (once every few weeks) doing a smattering of the lifts, but "heavy" and only a few reps out on the gym floor. It's a great way to expose you to the lifts in a group setting, the instructors (in my experience) are always up for a quick chit-chat afterwards about form + safety, and once you've mastered the movements, it's pretty low equipment to set up a station at home and follow along with videos. ...but... it's super helpful to have a professional who can monitor your posture + movements and guide you to good habits when you're starting out. I was typical nerd in high school, and now I can rattle of all the different curls, chest presses, flys, squats, deadlifts, clean and press, lunges, planks, crunches, blah blah blah, and I've enough confidence in my form and not hurting myself to pick up a bar + some weights and do it at home. It's a really nice skill to have and it's something I really miss... I'll have to make time and pick it back up!
- brandonmenc 5y ago
  Renaissance Periodization gym free template: https://renaissanceperiodization.com/rp-gym-free https://renaissanceperiodization.com/rp-gym-free The company is staffed nearly entirely by PhD researchers who also compete in sport: https://renaissanceperiodization.com/team https://renaissanceperiodization.com/team It is imo the best source of cutting-edge science-based exercise and nutrition info, and while they work with elite athletes, they also produce a lot of guidance specifically for everyday people who want to casually get in shape with the minimal amount of effort.
  - netizen-936824 5y ago
    +1 for RP. Very solid info, but I feel like their stuff is targeted to people who have been lifting for a bit already
- alteriority 5y ago
  Depending on your situation, a set of locking adjustable dumbbells (such as these: https://powerblock.com/product/sport-series/ https://powerblock.com/product/sport-series/) might be a decent middle ground between the ideal gym and just doing bodyweight exercises. They're small enough that you can store and use them in most rooms, and in my experience, the ease with which you can add and remove weight reduced the friction of deciding whether or not to work out, which helps a lot when trying to start a consistent habit. They're not as versatile as an actual gym, but I got a pair of these when between gyms for a couple of years, and you can do a lot with them if you're creative. (For example--instead of squats and deadlifts, which would have required far more weight than I had available, I switched to lunges and one-legged squats).
- e40 5y ago
  I started using this recently: https://www.hybridcalisthenics.com/routine https://www.hybridcalisthenics.com/routine I've never been able to keep doing a program like this, but I'm a couple of months in and loving it.
- caned 5y ago
  I started strength / resistance training about four months ago, and I've lost at least 15 pounds and have gained considerable strength from working out 4x a week - this is without substantially cutting my calorie intake either. I really cannot describe how good I feel. Additional strength, better posture, less frequent back and shoulder pains (which, the few times they've come up, have resolved within a day - rarely the case before I started working out), better diet, awareness of calorie and macronutrient consumption and sense of accomplishment are all factors that I feel good about. I'll give a plug for Mind Pump [1] and MAPS Fitness Products programs [2]. No affiliation aside from being a customer. I just finished the MAPS Starter program (a three month program). With one of their 60% discounts it set me back less than $40. I bought a pair of adjustable dumbbells and a $30 fitness ball and was able to do everything in the program. I did get a bench, too, but it wasn't strictly necessary (though I preferred the stability of the bench for certain exercises). Tao of Stefan [4] has some pretty thorough reviews of MAPS products. As for their programs, you can get on their mailing list and wait for one of their (usually) monthly 50% discounts. Or you can get Sal DiStefano's book [3] and use some of the programs in there. There's one program that can be done entirely with resistance bands - at home or on the go. Or you can just watch all their free content on YouTube and figure it out from there! 1. https://www.youtube.com/c/MindPumpTV https://www.youtube.com/c/MindPumpTV 2. https://www.mindpumpmedia.com/maps-fitness-products https://www.mindpumpmedia.com/maps-fitness-products 3. https://theresistancetrainingrevolution.com/ https://theresistancetrainingrevolution.com/ 4. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyAV1LG0A66Hd75HSSco76Q/videos https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyAV1LG0A66Hd75HSSco76Q/vid...
- robomartin 5y ago
  I will also cast a vote for Starting Strength. Get the book. Watch videos on YouTube. Then find a local certified trainer (hopefully there's one near you) to learn how to do it correctly. Proper technique is super important. If you don't lift correctly you will not be able to make progress and are likely to hurt yourself. I did all of the above many years ago and even went to a seminar taught by Mark. If you don't know anything about strength training, this is the path. Diet is super important. If you do not eat correctly you will not make progress. More importantly, don't expect strength training to be a weight loss program. It is not. In fact, you could get fatter and stronger at the same time. If becoming lean is your primary objective, go to a knowledgeable nutritionist and get on a keto-type diet. Train yourself to be strict and consistent about your diet. It might take you a year or more to develop the right habits. Diet is EVERYTHING. Go take walks every day as your exercise. I cannot over-stress the idea that diet is the most important thing to focus on if one is interested in becoming lean. For most of us we have to shake really bad eating habits that may have been cemented into our brains over decades. This is tough. And this is the first thing you need to work on body composition is a priority. Having changed eating habits you can then start to look into exercise to optimize muscle and strength to the degree that might interest you. There's a difference between body building and strength training. In a nutshell, someone with big muscles isn't necessarily stronger. I'd rather be stronger. So, diet first, exercise moderately until you learn how to eat better and achieve the kind of balance you are after and then add a higher level of exercise to get stronger. You will need to eat more. That's why it is important to learn to eat well.
- dunefox 5y ago
  Look into Kettlebell training, it does not take much space and it's incredible for general fitness.
pumpkinman 5y ago
This is orientalism. There's nothing "zen" about it.
Brendinooo 5y ago
I've tried a few times to get into weightlifting. I can never stick with it, though. It's not necessarily a self-discipline thing, because I've run thousands of miles over the past decade. When you run, you get outside, you go somewhere, you see and feel different things. There's a race ecosystem that encourages you to get in when you can barely run a mile without stopping and allows you to push yourself as much as you want. It's cheaper to start, it's easy to create routes that are as varied as you want them to be, and if you pick the right spots it's safer. But the gym is the same sights, smells, and sounds over and over again. I wish I enjoyed it more; I love how I feel when I stick with it for a couple months! Any tips on this?
- emerged 5y ago
  I’ve always found lifting to be unbelievably boring. Contrasted with an obsession with cycling which has been maintained daily for many years. I can’t seem to find any mentality which makes lifting enjoyable at all for me. Yet somehow sitting on a bike for hours at a time, even indoors, is great fun.
  - ofrzeta 5y ago
    I find cycling a bit boring and it takes a comparably long time to work out as much as running six miles. I also enjoy that running doesn't have any tech attached which can become a burden, like a gear shift that's not 100% adjusted. To each their own, I guess :) This year, though, I got to enjoy it a bit more when I tried some "triathlon", sprint distance, which encompasses 20km of cycling (a joke for every serious cycler). Maybe next year I'll try to tackle the olympic distance.
- zzbzq 5y ago
  Game-ify it by tracking and focusing on progression, tracking your weight and reps for each move to increase your personal bests. Celebrate your new personal records to encourage better dopamine activation throughout the next training cycle.
- johnNumen 5y ago
  I'm not sure what you were doing in the gym, but for me lifting heavy and pushing the boundaries of what I can do every single time I'm in the gym makes it fun.
strict9 5y ago
An under-reported benefit of weight lifting: near-total elimination of RSI, at least in my experience. At some point a few years ago I decided to join a gym for the first time. While I improved my posture and BMI a good bit, I might be happiest with the elimination of RSI in my wrists and hands. It started out as something annoying in my 20s, and got very painful in my late 30s. Gyroscopes, powerballs, and other recovery devices never seemed to work. What keeps me going 2-3 days per week, most weeks, is the knowledge that RSI will come back without lifting weights. At the onset of the pandemic I tried working out from home, and while better than nothing, it isn't comparable because of equipment selection. If you have repetitive stress issues from being in front of a keyboard all day, try going to the gym and use the machines that work your arms and forearms. Keep going until you feel you feel the burn. I'll be a gym member for life, or at least as long as I type into a keyboard regularly. Maybe that's zen for me--life without pain from regular keyboard usage.
- zwarag 5y ago
  That is interesting to hear. After I started climbing, my RSI was also eliminated within weeks. I found that quite unintuitive and thought that maybe I did not have "real" RSI but just the symptoms of overburdened tendons.
- racl101 5y ago
  Repetitive strain injury?
- pieterhg 5y ago
  Same for me. Any RSI disappeared after starting lifting weights.
- PaywallBuster 5y ago
  doctors would tell you to isolate at home and use ice modern science /s
- m0zg 5y ago
  I can confirm. At least in my case weightlifting (basically low bar squats and deadlifts - bench press is overrated) helped me fix both my RSI and lower back pain. I post this on every RSI thread here in hopes it'd help someone else. Yet NO doctor will suggest that something like this might help. Therein lies the danger of uncritically "listening to the doctors" - most of them are simply not trained to do anything with trained individuals and have never lifted a barbell. It's like asking a Javascript developer for advice on embedded C++. Their client base is mostly sedentary, weak, and thoroughly sick. Ex: my wife is struggling with back pain, and she will continue to struggle as long as she listens to her idiot doctor who's telling her to lie down and rest, which only screws up her back musculature even more.
wyager 5y ago
I started weight lifting because it drastically improves my sleep. Now I feel like absolute crap if I skip even a single day of lifting. It’s pretty remarkable - clearly the body expects and maybe needs some kind of physical stresses that are missing from my day-to-day routine outside of lifting. There are essentially no downsides except a time expenditure and increased risk of lifting related injuries - vastly outweighed by the benefits (health, strength, aesthetics). The tricky part is just doing it regularly enough at first that your body and mind figure out that these stresses are so good for you, and then (at least for me) it’s pretty self-sustaining.
lghh 5y ago
I'd love to buy a squat rack and other lifting tools to keep at home. I don't live close to a gym but have enough space to lift what I'd like to in my garage. Though, I am worried about the potential for injury or getting myself in a lifting situation that I can't get out of where if I was at a gym someone would run over to help. Is that a reasonable concern? Or am I overthinking it?
- serjester 5y ago
  Safety bars exist for a reason and personally I've gone until complete failure many times without any issues. The real risk here is an acute injury caused by incorrect form. But if you go light and consciously make an effort perfect your form you'll be safe. A home gym is actually great for this since you can take videos of yourself without looking weird.
- PaywallBuster 5y ago
  how much do you push yourself? trying to beat PR or casually exercising?
- bowmessage 5y ago
  It's a reasonable concern, but if you buy squat rack spotter arms and use them correctly, you can avoid these dangerous situations.
- staccatomeasure 5y ago
  Many squat racks and benches come with safety features to prevent that kind of failure. Don’t let that fear stop you from getting a home gym. To avoid really bad situations just always have a safe solution to “what if I can’t finish this rep“. Separately, you’ll get regular injured at some point doing something totally safe. But that just comes with the territory.
- cspada 5y ago
  Dumbbells are a great alternative. You can still get injured, but you can also push yourself knowing that you can drop the weight and not risk it crushing you.
- 5y ago
peanut_worm 5y ago
The biggest benefit for me from weightlifting is that it seems to really help with anxiety. Not sure why.
logosmonkey 5y ago
I love lifting, it has had a positive effect on nearly every aspect of my life. It's also allowed me to finally be able to run again after ten years of failed PT on a hip injury. I am confident now that I won't reinjure myself since I am how stronger than I ever have been in my entire life. I was lucky and had a friend who also lifts, so for the first 6 months we lifted together 4 times a week. It's a big help to lift with someone initially so that they can critique your form and keep you accountable. These days though I work out alone and I look forward forward to that hour alone nearly every day. The routine and the goals and the tracking make me feel so good about my day, as the article mentions, even if I get nothing else done I am still happy having pr'd some lift or knowing how good my form was on squats or whatever. I highly suggest Strong for those looking for an app to track their workouts in. It's the best I have found.
canyon289 5y ago
I'm convinced weightlifting is helpful for knowledge workers, and I say this as an Ex SpaceX engineer and current FAANG Data Scientist who despite having great jobs, has realized that health is as important as a career. I wrote a essay on the benefits of weightlifting for knowledge workers https://ravinkumar.com/WhyFitness.html https://ravinkumar.com/WhyFitness.html It's so thrilling to see other folks here post experiences similar to mine. To echo them Weightlifting has * Improved my appearance and subsequently self confidence * Eliminated RSI and ergonomic pains that used to occur on long coding day * Auto regulated my overall health and wellness by adding an objective measure of my capability * I feel as though its improved my sleep and mood * Given me a goal that I truly own and can achieve, unlike promotions or titles or money which others control I personally went from being a typical skinny nerd in college, to an overweight one in my mid 20s (from completely neglecting my health) to losing 35 lbs, of mistake and regret, in my early 30s. I urge anyone reading this, don't go through the same cycle and/or start making changes now if you can. It really is worth it.
aniken 5y ago
Yes, it is counterintuitive but lifting weights can fix lots of issues like RSI, also from my personal experience. This article does a great job at explaining why this happens:(it doesn't specifically mention "RSI" but the concepts are similar) https://startingstrength.com/article/muscle-imbalances-and-injuries https://startingstrength.com/article/muscle-imbalances-and-i...

51 points by mhb 5y ago

https://archive.md/IzFbS https://archive.md/IzFbS

m463 5y ago

I would like to know how to start strength training at home - to counteract sitting at a computer (strengthen the core, etc) and to trade some fat for muscle, becoming lean. any recommendations? EDIT: thank you for the overwhelming response

ryanjodonnell 5y ago
Tonal is amazing and great for beginners
Viliam1234 5y ago
I roughly follow a book Convict Conditioning - exercising at home using my body weight (and a pull-up bar). To put it simply, there are four types of exercises (push-ups, pull-ups, squats, leg raise), and for each of them there is a very fluent progression of exercises from very simple to very difficult. So you can start at level 1 for each type of exercise, and when you manage to do a certain amount of repetitions, you level up. (Different types of muscles level up independently, for example I have strong legs and weak arms.) That means, the exercise is never too easy or too hard, and leveling up is a great psychological reward. For me the key is consistency and social pressure. I try to exercise every day (because that is more instinctive than any other schedule) at the same time (when my kids go to sleep). That means, when the time to exercise comes, it feels natural to do it. I keep a log which days I exercised and which days I did not, and I report the data to my friends. By the way, I don't exercise all muscles every day; I alternate two types of exercise on one day, the remaining two types on the other day. Another thing that works for me, psychologically, is outcome independence. I treat my exercise as a virtuos thing, whether it brings the desired results or not. If I exercised, I did my duty; if I didn't exercised, I failed to do my duty. Whether the muscles actually increase and the fat actually decreases, that depends on the gods; I am just making sure that I did my part. This is useful, because the progress is real but happens on long time scale, and I need encouragement on short time scale. Of course, after you succeed to exercise regularly for a few months, you will see the progress, and that will motivate you to continue; but the problem is that you need greatest motivation at the very beginning, while you still have zero results. (It is easiest to give up during the first month. After half year, the change will be so obvious that you will want to stay that way.) Don't overdo it. Muscles also need some time to recover; for me it is rougly two days (which is why I alternate the exercises). Take sufficient breaks between the sets; this is easier to do at home, because it doesn't feel like you are wasting your time; between the sets you can browse web, watch TV, or do dishes. Sometimes I just watch a movie, pause it at a random moment, do a set, unpause and watch again... and at the end, it doesn't even feel like I exercised; I was just watching a movie and taking an occassional short break. Generally, if you can somehow make it fun, that helps a lot. (After a few months, you will not need external sources of fun; the exercise itself will become pleasurable. But first you need to get there.) Never punish yourself for failing to exercise; reflect on the fact, then forgive yourself and start again. In addition to strength training you should also do some cardio or take a walk regularly. Once I had a job that was 20 minutes by foot from my home; that was optimal. I try to minimize car use, and during covid also started minimizing mass transit use; now I always check the map first, and if my destination is within 30 minutes walking distance, I go there by foot. I think about it as saving time, because I am going to where I need, and I am exercising at the same time. Now, strength training itself can add you muscle, but will only remove a little fat. People usually overestimate how much energy is burned when exercising. Most energy is spent by simply keeping your body alive (body temperature, breathing, heartbeat, etc.), which is more or less a constant amount each day. An exercise will probably just add 5% or 10% to it. The inevitable conclusion is that to lose fat, you need to eat less. Even worse, you need to eat less every day, otherwise the calories you lost in a week can be regained in a day. On the other hand, starving can hurt you; your body needs enough proteins and vitamins. That means that you need to change the proportion of proteins and vitamins to fats and carbohydrates; on other words, not (just) eat less but eat differently. Raw vegetables with every meal. Proteins from meat, fish, eggs, diary, beans. (That means lots of beans, if you are a vegetarian. Like, literally every day.) Avoid sugar, coke, white bread. You don't need to get religious about this, just remove the greatest sources of sugar/carbs, learn three new recipes containing beans, and always take a raw vegetable as a side dish. (If you ignore this advice, you will get muscles hidden under fat, which is where I am now; but even that is an improvement over all fat and no muscles.) etc. What others already said. Enough sleep (that means 8 hours minimum). By the way, being healthy can take a lot of time. Eight hours of sleep + eight hours at work + commute, that already leaves you like 4-7 free hours on a workday. If you want healthy meals, you probably need to cook them yourself. Then you exercise... and there is little time left. Plus, you probably have other duties, maybe also kids, etc. You need to be smart about this. (It is one of the reasons I exercise at home instead of going to the gym; a few minutes saved every day.) I don't have a perfect solution for this, but two important components are: short commute (even if it means somewhat lower salary) and a big freezer (so I can prepare meals for several days at once).
netizen-936824 5y ago
Got something heavy lying around? Good, go pick it up. Now put it back down Nice, repeat 10x All jokes aside, check out athlean-x on youtube
- dekken_ 5y ago
  > Got something heavy lying around? it can be you, do some pushups, or half pushups even. > check out athlean-x on youtube yes
AzzieElbab 5y ago
Push-ups and pull-ups work for me. $30 pull-up bar is the best purchase I have ever made
- qqqwerty 5y ago
  Yes! Literally get down on the ground right now and do a set of pushups. Congrats, you just did your first workout, it took less than a minute. Do one set of pushups each day for the next week (one set of pushups for me is 30-40 pushups in a row, I basically keep going until I can't anymore). After the first week, add in another exercise, situps are a good one. And the week after that, get a pullup bar or some dumbbells and add in another exercise. Keep adding a different exercise until you have 5 or 6. Do one set of each exercise with little to no rest in between each exercise. This should take less than five minutes each day. At any point if you fall out of habit, go back to square one, i.e. one set of pushups each day. Once you have made this into a regular habit, you can start adding more reps or add a second workout (i.e. one in the morning, one in the afternoon). Continue to add more reps/exercises/workouts until you feel satisfied with the routine. For me, I do one set of 6 strength exercises per day. It takes me less than five minutes each day. Keep in mind this is just my strength routine. I also run, hike/walk, bike or surf 3-4 times a week. If I wasn't already in the habit of doing that, I would add some cardio to my daily workout (jumping jacks, up/downs, etc...) I wouldn't even consider getting a gym membership unless you have a very specific need for a certain routine or set of equipment. For example some folks like to mix in cardio on a machine (rower, elliptical, etc...) with weight machines in a single workout. Keeping all that gear at home would be tough. That is fine, but just remember that getting to and from the gym requires a time and effort, and that can result in losing the habit. So only go this route if you either have a very specific need that you can't replicate at home, or if you know you won't drop the habit.
datahead 5y ago
r/homegym will have some good recs for gear to get started. Plenty of bodyweight training you can do too- great for turning on your main muscle groups (youtube). A barbell and some plates w/ rack will cover the main lifts. Squats, deadlifts, presses (chest and shoulder) are the first ones to build. I recommend Starting Strength for an on-ramp to get going. Adjustable dumbbells are great too- plenty of options out there. Some of this equipment is expensive, look for used and consider it an investment in health. Happy Lifting!
wffurr 5y ago
The hardest part is habit-building. So whatever works for you for building daily habits. My plan is to put a calendar on the wall with boxes for habits and check them off with a colored pen. Nice visible reminder of what I'm working on and how I'm doing. I was derailed by a severe cold that I'm still recovering from. The exercise routine itself matters less, IMO, than building the habit. Some basic calisthenics (bodyweight exercises) would be fine to start. You could add dumbbells or a kettlebell at some point to add weight for a minimum of space. The exercise I "enjoyed" the most was barbell lifting: deadlift, squat, benchpress, cleans, rows, etc. Starting Strength was a really good read for that, and there are videos to go with them. I also worked with a trainer at the gym for a while to get the form correct. That all requires a fair bit of equipment or gym access, though.
- datahead 5y ago
  Don't overlook the comment about form. Form is everything, weight is secondary. Get a professional trainer to help you setup your form once you move to barbell work and then you can go from there on your own.
gadders 5y ago
Read Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe.
- martythemaniak 5y ago
  Yes, this is the best book for a beginner. Not only will it explain how to do the lifts in great detail, it'll also make you appreciate why you should be lifting. After reading the book, I would still go to a personal trainer. A few hundred dollars to have someone help you learn an important life-long skill is good value. Book is great, but having someone watch over you and correct you in the beginning is still very important.
  - gadders 5y ago
    Agreed, but I'd get someone familiar with the book or that specialises properly in powerlifting or strength training. Not personal trainer of the day at the nearest Globo Gym.
- dhuk_2018 5y ago
  This, and definitely watch the Starting Strength YouTube channel...
- Apocryphon 5y ago
  Never quite understood why r/fitness was so against it and StrongLifts: https://thefitness.wiki/faq/starting-strength-and-stronglifts-not-recommended/ https://thefitness.wiki/faq/starting-strength-and-stronglift...
  - gadders 5y ago
    Starting Strength is really two books. One part teaches you the most effective form for each lift, and the second provides a programme for a novice lifter. Both will be modified as you become more experienced - you might tweak your form to take account for EG short upper body, or you might find you respond better to volume rather than intensity in your programming. But it's like a lot of things - you need to learn the rules before you can break the rules. I'd say it's a good, simple starting point to find those things out about yourself. There are also a lot of Starting Strength adjacent companies that also provide good programmes - Barbell Medicine, Barbell Logic, Andy Baker etc.
jimbob45 5y ago
The 4chan /fit/ guide is remarkably helpful for beginners. https://liamrosen.com/fitness.html https://liamrosen.com/fitness.html
ronyeh 5y ago
I'm a nerd/coder who used to sit all day too. It depends on your current level of fitness (muscles, tendon/ligament strength, body fat %). Feel free to ask me any questions. The way to trade fat for muscle is to continually stress your muscles (by increasing the weight you can lift), and getting enough sleep (which I am bad at). Also, don't each too much (especially sugars). + Beginners: do air squats (multiple sets and repetitions) and static squats / wall sits (for as long as is comfortable. rest 90 seconds and repeat). Once you are stronger, do the same while holding a gallon of water. + Making Progress?: The above + yoga moves targeted at strength. Try out planks and wall hand stands. Single leg split squats (your back leg on your sofa). + Feeling Strong?: All of the above + adjustable kettlebells (let me know if you need recs) + gymnastic rings (you can attach the straps to a high place at a public park, or drill some hooks into your ceiling, or buy a doorway mount). Check out the bodyweightfitness community on reddit. + Advanced: This takes up space and costs a decent amount of $, but you'll need to build a home weightlifting gym with a barbell, olympic weight plates, and a squat stand / pullup bar / flat bench. Check out the homegym community on reddit.
lordnacho 5y ago
My working place is actually the gym room of my house. I simply have a standing desk for my laptop, and then I can lift some weights whenever I want to stop looking at code. Make sure you get the main items: Olympic bar, squat rack, maybe a multi-gym machine thingy with ropes and weights, and hand weights of some sort. Also get one of those modern scales if weight is one of your goals, it will record your weight to 2 decimals on an app for you. For motivation, I pay an online gym some money to do a training + diet + measurements program. I've done weights for a good long while now, so I don't need the detailed instructions so much, but they do also offer videos of every exercise, exact recipes for every meal (with my goals in mind), and instructions about how to measure yourself, all on web/mobile. It even lets you record what weights you're doing and has a convenient clock to measure your resting time. Coach then checks in now and again to see how I'm doing.
edgyquant 5y ago
I think it would be better to go to a gym like planet fitness. It’s really hard to do well rounded strength training without dropping a ton of money in weights. You should spend 6-12 months building a habit at the gym and if you decide to stick with it then consider buying equipment for a home gym
huitzitziltzin 5y ago
Recs here for benches and racks are great and I second them, but if you want a less costly and space consuming way to see whether you like the activity before committing, kettlebells are a great way to get started. With a couple of pairs at different weights you can do (versions of) all of the main powerlifting movements. You definitely can’t hit your legs as hard as you can with a bar and a rack, but kettlebells are much much more “small apartment friendly”. You can hide them in a closet easily.
- goatkey 5y ago
  Huge +1 to this and also to resistance bands. They fold up and can fit into a drawer. You can get a lot of value starting off from just bodyweight exercises as well. YMMV, but the app FitBod has done wonders for me.
sabhiram 5y ago
Hit the gym and get a trainer to make sure your form and path for the first few months is solid. The most important thing, is wanting to do it.
DantesKite 5y ago
Try Fitbod. It’ll work with any equipment you have at home and guide you towards a great strength program.
aunty_helen 5y ago
If you want strength without bulk, yoga If you want lean, its diet. Only. If you want fitness, circuit training. Can be done in your living room. If you want swoll, hit the gym.
mywittyname 5y ago
You have a few good direct answers to your question, but there's something I feel is important to add: Honestly, a gym membership is worth it, if you live close to one. While you can get decent results from home gyms, I've found the jump from "decent" to "good" results takes a bit of money/equipment. There are muscles groups that basically require heavy weights to really get good results. Leg workouts in particular are really easy to cap out on without equipment. I can personally do body-weight squats indefinitely (probably). If I tried to do weighted squats with dumbbells, I'm sure my arms would tire well before my legs do. A good leg press machine will run you the same price as a decade of cheap gym memberships, and that's not even getting into weights or other useful equipment. I personally find it valuable to travel to the gym. It's only 5 minutes for me, but once I leave, I'm committed to a degree that is harder to maintain when I workout at home. Also, to answer your question: yoga is great. It's a very underrated exercise (particularly for men). It builds core strength and flexibility. The wrestler DDP has a series on it that people rave about.
farnsworth 5y ago
During the pandemic, I bought a couple kettlebells and found that you can get a great full-body strength workout with extremely minimal equipment. r/kettlebell has great resources, advice, form checks, and motivation.
crisdux 5y ago
I can share what I did because I recently went through this journey. I started with Pavel Tsatsouline's Simple and Sinister program and bought a few kettlebells. I slowly started to incorporate push ups, overhead press, curls, dips, squats, deadlifts all from home - with apartment friendly and novice modifications. I then bought some exercise bands and learned some more exercises from youtube. The best advice I read was to start small, make it a regular thing and go from there. Like seriously, I started only working out 15-20min each session 4-5 days a week for the first 2-3 weeks. I enjoyed it so much and saw great results that now I'm at 45-50min minutes each session a few months in.
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ramses0 5y ago
I had a great experience taking BodyPump classes for ~1 year: https://www.lesmills.com/us/workouts/fitness-classes/bodypump/ https://www.lesmills.com/us/workouts/fitness-classes/bodypum... Start with basically no weight (1kg x 2 + bar for anything with arms, 2kg x 2 + bar for anything legs). It's cardio + weights, and they cover all the major muscle groups, and you're doing fairly rapid repetitions of a bunch of different lifts. After 3-6 months doing _that_ class, I would then start supplementing that with occasionally (once every few weeks) doing a smattering of the lifts, but "heavy" and only a few reps out on the gym floor. It's a great way to expose you to the lifts in a group setting, the instructors (in my experience) are always up for a quick chit-chat afterwards about form + safety, and once you've mastered the movements, it's pretty low equipment to set up a station at home and follow along with videos. ...but... it's super helpful to have a professional who can monitor your posture + movements and guide you to good habits when you're starting out. I was typical nerd in high school, and now I can rattle of all the different curls, chest presses, flys, squats, deadlifts, clean and press, lunges, planks, crunches, blah blah blah, and I've enough confidence in my form and not hurting myself to pick up a bar + some weights and do it at home. It's a really nice skill to have and it's something I really miss... I'll have to make time and pick it back up!
brandonmenc 5y ago
Renaissance Periodization gym free template: https://renaissanceperiodization.com/rp-gym-free https://renaissanceperiodization.com/rp-gym-free The company is staffed nearly entirely by PhD researchers who also compete in sport: https://renaissanceperiodization.com/team https://renaissanceperiodization.com/team It is imo the best source of cutting-edge science-based exercise and nutrition info, and while they work with elite athletes, they also produce a lot of guidance specifically for everyday people who want to casually get in shape with the minimal amount of effort.
- netizen-936824 5y ago
  +1 for RP. Very solid info, but I feel like their stuff is targeted to people who have been lifting for a bit already
alteriority 5y ago
Depending on your situation, a set of locking adjustable dumbbells (such as these: https://powerblock.com/product/sport-series/ https://powerblock.com/product/sport-series/) might be a decent middle ground between the ideal gym and just doing bodyweight exercises. They're small enough that you can store and use them in most rooms, and in my experience, the ease with which you can add and remove weight reduced the friction of deciding whether or not to work out, which helps a lot when trying to start a consistent habit. They're not as versatile as an actual gym, but I got a pair of these when between gyms for a couple of years, and you can do a lot with them if you're creative. (For example--instead of squats and deadlifts, which would have required far more weight than I had available, I switched to lunges and one-legged squats).
e40 5y ago
I started using this recently: https://www.hybridcalisthenics.com/routine https://www.hybridcalisthenics.com/routine I've never been able to keep doing a program like this, but I'm a couple of months in and loving it.
caned 5y ago
I started strength / resistance training about four months ago, and I've lost at least 15 pounds and have gained considerable strength from working out 4x a week - this is without substantially cutting my calorie intake either. I really cannot describe how good I feel. Additional strength, better posture, less frequent back and shoulder pains (which, the few times they've come up, have resolved within a day - rarely the case before I started working out), better diet, awareness of calorie and macronutrient consumption and sense of accomplishment are all factors that I feel good about. I'll give a plug for Mind Pump [1] and MAPS Fitness Products programs [2]. No affiliation aside from being a customer. I just finished the MAPS Starter program (a three month program). With one of their 60% discounts it set me back less than $40. I bought a pair of adjustable dumbbells and a $30 fitness ball and was able to do everything in the program. I did get a bench, too, but it wasn't strictly necessary (though I preferred the stability of the bench for certain exercises). Tao of Stefan [4] has some pretty thorough reviews of MAPS products. As for their programs, you can get on their mailing list and wait for one of their (usually) monthly 50% discounts. Or you can get Sal DiStefano's book [3] and use some of the programs in there. There's one program that can be done entirely with resistance bands - at home or on the go. Or you can just watch all their free content on YouTube and figure it out from there! 1. https://www.youtube.com/c/MindPumpTV https://www.youtube.com/c/MindPumpTV 2. https://www.mindpumpmedia.com/maps-fitness-products https://www.mindpumpmedia.com/maps-fitness-products 3. https://theresistancetrainingrevolution.com/ https://theresistancetrainingrevolution.com/ 4. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyAV1LG0A66Hd75HSSco76Q/videos https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyAV1LG0A66Hd75HSSco76Q/vid...
robomartin 5y ago
I will also cast a vote for Starting Strength. Get the book. Watch videos on YouTube. Then find a local certified trainer (hopefully there's one near you) to learn how to do it correctly. Proper technique is super important. If you don't lift correctly you will not be able to make progress and are likely to hurt yourself. I did all of the above many years ago and even went to a seminar taught by Mark. If you don't know anything about strength training, this is the path. Diet is super important. If you do not eat correctly you will not make progress. More importantly, don't expect strength training to be a weight loss program. It is not. In fact, you could get fatter and stronger at the same time. If becoming lean is your primary objective, go to a knowledgeable nutritionist and get on a keto-type diet. Train yourself to be strict and consistent about your diet. It might take you a year or more to develop the right habits. Diet is EVERYTHING. Go take walks every day as your exercise. I cannot over-stress the idea that diet is the most important thing to focus on if one is interested in becoming lean. For most of us we have to shake really bad eating habits that may have been cemented into our brains over decades. This is tough. And this is the first thing you need to work on body composition is a priority. Having changed eating habits you can then start to look into exercise to optimize muscle and strength to the degree that might interest you. There's a difference between body building and strength training. In a nutshell, someone with big muscles isn't necessarily stronger. I'd rather be stronger. So, diet first, exercise moderately until you learn how to eat better and achieve the kind of balance you are after and then add a higher level of exercise to get stronger. You will need to eat more. That's why it is important to learn to eat well.
dunefox 5y ago
Look into Kettlebell training, it does not take much space and it's incredible for general fitness.

pumpkinman 5y ago

This is orientalism. There's nothing "zen" about it.

Brendinooo 5y ago

I've tried a few times to get into weightlifting. I can never stick with it, though. It's not necessarily a self-discipline thing, because I've run thousands of miles over the past decade. When you run, you get outside, you go somewhere, you see and feel different things. There's a race ecosystem that encourages you to get in when you can barely run a mile without stopping and allows you to push yourself as much as you want. It's cheaper to start, it's easy to create routes that are as varied as you want them to be, and if you pick the right spots it's safer. But the gym is the same sights, smells, and sounds over and over again. I wish I enjoyed it more; I love how I feel when I stick with it for a couple months! Any tips on this?

emerged 5y ago
I’ve always found lifting to be unbelievably boring. Contrasted with an obsession with cycling which has been maintained daily for many years. I can’t seem to find any mentality which makes lifting enjoyable at all for me. Yet somehow sitting on a bike for hours at a time, even indoors, is great fun.
- ofrzeta 5y ago
  I find cycling a bit boring and it takes a comparably long time to work out as much as running six miles. I also enjoy that running doesn't have any tech attached which can become a burden, like a gear shift that's not 100% adjusted. To each their own, I guess :) This year, though, I got to enjoy it a bit more when I tried some "triathlon", sprint distance, which encompasses 20km of cycling (a joke for every serious cycler). Maybe next year I'll try to tackle the olympic distance.
zzbzq 5y ago
Game-ify it by tracking and focusing on progression, tracking your weight and reps for each move to increase your personal bests. Celebrate your new personal records to encourage better dopamine activation throughout the next training cycle.
johnNumen 5y ago
I'm not sure what you were doing in the gym, but for me lifting heavy and pushing the boundaries of what I can do every single time I'm in the gym makes it fun.

strict9 5y ago

An under-reported benefit of weight lifting: near-total elimination of RSI, at least in my experience. At some point a few years ago I decided to join a gym for the first time. While I improved my posture and BMI a good bit, I might be happiest with the elimination of RSI in my wrists and hands. It started out as something annoying in my 20s, and got very painful in my late 30s. Gyroscopes, powerballs, and other recovery devices never seemed to work. What keeps me going 2-3 days per week, most weeks, is the knowledge that RSI will come back without lifting weights. At the onset of the pandemic I tried working out from home, and while better than nothing, it isn't comparable because of equipment selection. If you have repetitive stress issues from being in front of a keyboard all day, try going to the gym and use the machines that work your arms and forearms. Keep going until you feel you feel the burn. I'll be a gym member for life, or at least as long as I type into a keyboard regularly. Maybe that's zen for me--life without pain from regular keyboard usage.

zwarag 5y ago
That is interesting to hear. After I started climbing, my RSI was also eliminated within weeks. I found that quite unintuitive and thought that maybe I did not have "real" RSI but just the symptoms of overburdened tendons.
racl101 5y ago
Repetitive strain injury?
pieterhg 5y ago
Same for me. Any RSI disappeared after starting lifting weights.
PaywallBuster 5y ago
doctors would tell you to isolate at home and use ice modern science /s
m0zg 5y ago
I can confirm. At least in my case weightlifting (basically low bar squats and deadlifts - bench press is overrated) helped me fix both my RSI and lower back pain. I post this on every RSI thread here in hopes it'd help someone else. Yet NO doctor will suggest that something like this might help. Therein lies the danger of uncritically "listening to the doctors" - most of them are simply not trained to do anything with trained individuals and have never lifted a barbell. It's like asking a Javascript developer for advice on embedded C++. Their client base is mostly sedentary, weak, and thoroughly sick. Ex: my wife is struggling with back pain, and she will continue to struggle as long as she listens to her idiot doctor who's telling her to lie down and rest, which only screws up her back musculature even more.

wyager 5y ago

I started weight lifting because it drastically improves my sleep. Now I feel like absolute crap if I skip even a single day of lifting. It’s pretty remarkable - clearly the body expects and maybe needs some kind of physical stresses that are missing from my day-to-day routine outside of lifting. There are essentially no downsides except a time expenditure and increased risk of lifting related injuries - vastly outweighed by the benefits (health, strength, aesthetics). The tricky part is just doing it regularly enough at first that your body and mind figure out that these stresses are so good for you, and then (at least for me) it’s pretty self-sustaining.

lghh 5y ago

I'd love to buy a squat rack and other lifting tools to keep at home. I don't live close to a gym but have enough space to lift what I'd like to in my garage. Though, I am worried about the potential for injury or getting myself in a lifting situation that I can't get out of where if I was at a gym someone would run over to help. Is that a reasonable concern? Or am I overthinking it?

serjester 5y ago
Safety bars exist for a reason and personally I've gone until complete failure many times without any issues. The real risk here is an acute injury caused by incorrect form. But if you go light and consciously make an effort perfect your form you'll be safe. A home gym is actually great for this since you can take videos of yourself without looking weird.
PaywallBuster 5y ago
how much do you push yourself? trying to beat PR or casually exercising?
bowmessage 5y ago
It's a reasonable concern, but if you buy squat rack spotter arms and use them correctly, you can avoid these dangerous situations.
staccatomeasure 5y ago
Many squat racks and benches come with safety features to prevent that kind of failure. Don’t let that fear stop you from getting a home gym. To avoid really bad situations just always have a safe solution to “what if I can’t finish this rep“. Separately, you’ll get regular injured at some point doing something totally safe. But that just comes with the territory.
cspada 5y ago
Dumbbells are a great alternative. You can still get injured, but you can also push yourself knowing that you can drop the weight and not risk it crushing you.
5y ago

peanut_worm 5y ago

The biggest benefit for me from weightlifting is that it seems to really help with anxiety. Not sure why.

logosmonkey 5y ago

I love lifting, it has had a positive effect on nearly every aspect of my life. It's also allowed me to finally be able to run again after ten years of failed PT on a hip injury. I am confident now that I won't reinjure myself since I am how stronger than I ever have been in my entire life. I was lucky and had a friend who also lifts, so for the first 6 months we lifted together 4 times a week. It's a big help to lift with someone initially so that they can critique your form and keep you accountable. These days though I work out alone and I look forward forward to that hour alone nearly every day. The routine and the goals and the tracking make me feel so good about my day, as the article mentions, even if I get nothing else done I am still happy having pr'd some lift or knowing how good my form was on squats or whatever. I highly suggest Strong for those looking for an app to track their workouts in. It's the best I have found.

canyon289 5y ago

I'm convinced weightlifting is helpful for knowledge workers, and I say this as an Ex SpaceX engineer and current FAANG Data Scientist who despite having great jobs, has realized that health is as important as a career. I wrote a essay on the benefits of weightlifting for knowledge workers https://ravinkumar.com/WhyFitness.html https://ravinkumar.com/WhyFitness.html It's so thrilling to see other folks here post experiences similar to mine. To echo them Weightlifting has * Improved my appearance and subsequently self confidence * Eliminated RSI and ergonomic pains that used to occur on long coding day * Auto regulated my overall health and wellness by adding an objective measure of my capability * I feel as though its improved my sleep and mood * Given me a goal that I truly own and can achieve, unlike promotions or titles or money which others control I personally went from being a typical skinny nerd in college, to an overweight one in my mid 20s (from completely neglecting my health) to losing 35 lbs, of mistake and regret, in my early 30s. I urge anyone reading this, don't go through the same cycle and/or start making changes now if you can. It really is worth it.

aniken 5y ago

Yes, it is counterintuitive but lifting weights can fix lots of issues like RSI, also from my personal experience. This article does a great job at explaining why this happens:(it doesn't specifically mention "RSI" but the concepts are similar) https://startingstrength.com/article/muscle-imbalances-and-injuries https://startingstrength.com/article/muscle-imbalances-and-i...