Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with strength

If only I could bike at my desk...

Inspector.Gadget — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 16:52:59 -0800

Where can I pick up strenuous physical labor in DC on an occasional, volunteer, or (extremely) part-time basis? The academic year is about to pick up again and I know by the second week of class I'm going to feel like a slug. The last two weeks or so I've been hobbling around on several broken toes and unable to run or bike seriously, so the cabin fever is starting even earlier than usual. I'm looking for something I can do a few hours a week on an inconsistent schedule, with emphasis on weekends: if it's paid, great, but I'd also be interested in work for a suitable nonprofit. I don't think I can commit enough time to do Habitat for Humanity. Here's the sort of stuff I'm looking for, and it'd be even better if this was stuff I was doing by myself:

Splitting wood
Stacking/moving heavy things
Load truck with heavy stuff, drive 15 mins to place, unload truck
Break down pallets or similar wood frames
Help a bricklayer
Warehouse work
etc.

Thanks in advance. N.B.: I am not interested in anything that has me within 50 feet of stuffing envelopes or any other sort of office work.

Over the top?

bob bisquick — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 18:46:23 -0800

How do I get better at arm wrestling?

Are full squats bad for the knees?

pyrom — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 19:48:25 -0800

Are full squats (below parallel) bad for the knees? I started a workout routine several months ago, and recently changed my squat form so that my thighs would go past parallel when bending down.
A friend of mine told me off, saying that "anyone who knows anything" about lifting knows that such form is "very bad" for the knees. I tried to explain my point to two other (male) friends, who then both affirmed my first friend's sentiments by telling me I was very inexperienced.

MeFites, help me determine whether my research so far is correct! Links to credible sources are much appreciated (for possible gloating to said friends).

Thanks!

How do you motivate yourself to train?

ludwig_van — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 17:59:57 -0800

Strength trainees: how do you keep yourself motivated? I'm looking for thoughts from weightlifters, powerlifters, or anyone else that has squatted more than their own bodyweight with a barbell.

How do you deal with motivation and the mental aspect of lifting heavy? My problem is that lately I tend to get nervous and worried about training, mostly about squatting, which I do 3x/week. I worry that I'll hurt myself, or aggravate one of my niggling pains, despite being confident about form. I worry that I'll fail to complete all of my reps. I worry that it will be very difficult and unpleasant. So I put off leaving for the gym, get there later than I want to, and then have to rush through my workout. Usually a lot of the nervousness bleeds away after my first work set, but it always comes back the next time. It's not rational, but I can't seem to shake it.

The obvious solution would be to find a training partner, but that doesn't look like an option for the moment. So, how do you make yourself sack up and go through with it if you train alone? I've found that the right song can help me clear my mind, so musical recommendations are welcome. I like indie rock, and my current lifting mainstays are Wolf Parade, Handsome Furs, and The Hold Steady. Any mental tricks or other suggestions would be appreciated.

Dumbbells vs Barbells

Vorteks — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:18:05 -0800

Is there any reason that barbells would be indispensable from a serious stength-training program? Or are dumbbells just fine? I've been wanting to get serious about building strength for a while now, and after reading a question about workout routines yesterday, I've pretty much decided to try the StrongLifts 5x5 routine. One question though: it seems a lot of these programs pretty much assume that when you're doing squats/deadlifts/bench press/etc that you'll be using a barbell. I don't have barbells, but I *do* have dumbbells. I've always thought that dumbbells would be better. Especially since I'll be lifting while alone in my apartment, if I run out of strength while doing bench presses or something, it seems like I'd be less likely to kill myself using dumbbells than barbells. But at the same time, if barbells are necessary to get the full effect of the exercises, I don't want to be shooting myself in the foot. Does it make a big difference? Why would one use barbells over dumbbells, or vice versa?

Thanks Mefites.

Strong man in the moon?

Gungho — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 09:44:25 -0800

With the advent of NASA's return to the moon I have a question of whether or not The Apollo astronauts could have recovered from a less than perfect landing. The new Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) can map the moons surface with much greater detail than in the time of the Apollo landings. During the descent of the Apollo 11 Lunar lander Niel Armstrong had to fly over an unexpected boulder field. Assuming he didn't, and landed the LEM, and it tipped over, could the two astronauts tip it back up so that it could launch again?

Trouble starting Starting Strength

ayerarcturus — Sun, 17 May 2009 19:13:39 -0800

Ok, so I've read, highlighted and taken notes on Rippetoe's Starting Strength, after half of Metafilter and my gym going friends recommended it. I've run into some trouble with the program, though, since I can't seem to do deadlifts and I can't follow his dietary advice. Before this, I may have been in a weight room about five times in my life. I've always kept physically active (hiking, running, etc) and eaten a somewhat decent diet, but strength has been an outstandingly huge blind spot for me. I've had good luck with keeping somewhat acceptable form with the squat and the bench press, but when the time came around to do a deadlift I couldn't get the damn bar off the ground. Rippetoe suggests 5-10 lb plastic training weights, but I can't seem to find them in my gym. I've looked around for something to prop up the bar to the standard 8 1/2 inches, but I can't seem to find anything usable that's lighter than the two 45 lb weights that I can't lift. Would I kill my back by using the smaller weights and a lower starting position? It struck me as a bad idea at the time. For that matter, are there any other exercises I could do to strengthen my back until I can do a deadlift?

Second problem I've run into is that I have both a dairy allergy and am lactose intolerant, so I think drinking a gallon of milk would probably be my death. My diet has mostly revolved around meat, beans, peanut butter, fruit, and a bunch of different whole grains. It's getting dull, though. If you have high calorie, high protein meal ideas that don't involve any dairy, could you share them?

What is a normal amount of weight gain to expect in strength training?

cavalier — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 12:23:42 -0800

[ExcerciseFilter] What's a good target for weight gain in strength training? Not to say body building, but general fitness-level training. I can't seem to find a clear resource for equating weight training to muscle mass. After many years of a sedentary life, I took on strength training 8 months ago. It's been a blast, and I'm kicking myself for not doing it sooner. It looks like I've been gaining around 1lb/5 weeks or 15 sessions. Does this seem appropriate? I did not have any significant weight to lose when I started and my fat % measurements appear to be holding steady (16% avg).

I guess I became concerned because I hadn't been paying attention to my scale for a long while and now I've noticed I'm about 4-5 pounds bigger than I was pre-strength. I'd like to attribute this to the excercise if I can, otherwise the only other angle I see is too much protein.

Did I just tell the internet I had weight issues?

Limber me up, Scotty!

losvedir — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 07:55:26 -0800

Yoga, martial arts, gymnastics, parkour, something else?! I'm looking to get more flexible, strong, healthy, and to have fun. What are the long term consequences of any of these activities (studies, anecdotes, etc)? Which should I do? (Bonus points if in Boston, but not necessary) I'm especially interested in any peer-reviewed studies people have. Does, say, gymnastics make you more flexible and therefore less likely to get injured, or does it put stress on your joints and make you more likely to get injured? Sure, intuitively it may seem like being flexible is healthy, but is this born out in study?

Anecdotes work, too. Tell me about your preferred activity, what its benefits are, how it has improved your life, etc.

I live in Boston, so if anyone can point to a bus/T accessible place, that'd be super cool, too.

Moving from Starting Strength to bodybuilding

ludwig_van — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 11:24:33 -0800

I think I'm about ready to move on from Starting Strength and I'm looking for bodybuilding routine. I started on the Stronglifts Beginner program in June. In September I switched to the similar Practical Programming Advanced Novice program. Both are based on Rippetoe's Starting Strength. By my estimation I've just about reached the intermediate level and it's time to change programs again.

My current stats: 23 year old male, 6', 160 lbs., ~12% bodyfat. My best lifts in pounds: Deadlift - 280 1x5, back squat - 245 3x5, front squat - 170 3x5, bench - 160 3x5, OH press - 115 3x5.

I've surpassed 1.5 bodyweight on the squat and I think I'll stall on it soon. My deadlift can probably stand a few more increases. Both my bench and OH press have recently stalled hard. I'm not interested in any kind of competitive lifting -- my goals are mainly aesthetic, so I'd like to start a bodybuilding routine.

I realize that an intermediate program must by definition be more complex than a beginner program, but I'd love to find something as simple, clear, effective, and easy to follow as the starting strength variations I've been doing. Can you recommend a program? I feel lost in a sea of options.

Test My Mettle

kaizen — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 09:16:47 -0800

How can I test and build up my strength, tenacity, and courage. As far as I can see, there are limited opportunities to test my mettle in the corporate world ( besides calling out some a**hole in the boardroom ). I am looking for things to do that will put me to the test and see what I am made of. I am thinking along the lines of CrossFit, 'Man vs. Wild', high stakes negotiation, or skydiving. The only time I can really remember being tested was a fight in 10th grade and the hazing I went through in University. How can I earn a badge of honor when I spend most of my time in a cubicle. I would prefer answers that would not involve the risk of certain death, although I wouldn't mind getting the living sh*t scared out of me. I also wouldn't mind pushing my mind or body to the limit. I am willing to travel, spend money, bleed, and cry.

How do I find the lack of radio waves?

mdbell79 — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 06:06:24 -0800

What town in the United States has the lowest amount of detectable radio waves? Obviously, there are a lot of places (or used to be, anyway) where you can't get anything to come up on the radio dial. Which of those places would have the absolute least radio? As in, even though there are maybe hundreds of remote locations in the US (and let's say the continental US, because Alaska is probably the winner here anyway) where it's impossible to pick up anything listenable, would there be any place where there wasn't any radio that could even be detected?

Is there even a way to find this out?

Even better, is there any way to find out what the answer would have been in 1970? 1980?

I'm thinking mainly commercial AM/FM radio, and I don't even have a clue how to start looking into this. I figured that if anybody could help me figure it out, it'd be the metafilter crowd. If you need more information about what I'm looking for before you can help, I'd be glad to offer what I can. This is research for a project I'm working on, and although it's not vital it's a detail I'd like to be able to incorporate.

Hip hip hooray OR it's hip to be square

ludwig_van — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 10:24:11 -0800

Why is squatting causing pain in my hips? I'm 23 years old, 6', and weigh 150 lbs. I've been following the stronglifts 5x5 strength training program for 6 weeks or so. This entails performing 5 sets of 5 reps of squats 3 times a week, adding 5 lbs. each time. In my last workout I squatted 130 lbs.

When I started squatting my legs and glutes would be really sore afterwards. For the last couple of workouts I haven't felt that soreness so much, but I've developed a lot of pain of a different sort in my hip joints. I feel it most of the time, but especially when I try to rotate my leg by pointing my knee outward. When I squat I feel a sharp pain in my hips right around when I hit parallel, which tends to keep me from squatting as low as I should be.

I've watched lots of videos and read lots of descriptions of proper squat technique and I've been doing my best to follow it. So what am I doing wrong, what should I do now, and how do I prevent this in the future?

Why did my router lose its super powers?

INTPLibrarian — Thu, 29 May 2008 17:25:27 -0800

Why would my wireless router lose its signal strength all of a sudden? I'm pretty much clueless when it comes to networking, routers, etc. but I'm also pretty good at understanding that kind of stuff when it's explained to me, so I'm hoping someone here can do just that.

I have a D-Link DI-524 router in the basement of a split-level house. I usually use my laptop on the top (3rd) floor. This has been just fine for years. Most of the time getting "very good" signal strength.

However, in the last couple of days -- ever since Comcast had a two day outage in the area, btw -- I can't connect wirelessly unless I'm literally right next to the router. And even then the signal strength is very low or low.

I've upgraded to the most recent firmware available for this router. I've rebooted it. I even plugged it into a new surge protector since I found that as a suggestion somewhere on the web. There doesn't seem to be anything at all that has changed -- no new cordless phones, or anything new in the house at all. The usual other wireless connections of my neighbors that have always been showing up are still there; no new ones.

Is it just time to get a new router? Did Comcast's outage have anything to do with it? Help! I'm going through withdrawal not being able to be online and watch my tivo at the same time!

Thanks.

What happened to my knee, and how can I exercise around it?

Who_Am_I — Thu, 22 May 2008 07:01:04 -0800

Should I seek additional physical therapy for my mysteriously injured knee, and how can I continue to work out in spite of it? Last year, around September or October, I injured my knee. I was playing a lot of racquetball at the time, but I don't remember any specific incident causing it (like coming down on it funny or twisting it). It swelled up a little and for a few weeks it was painful to squat down, or go up or down stairs. I went to the school physical trainer and she said something about leg muscles firing out of order because of the injury, gave me some light physical therapy to do and told me to ice it a lot which I did. It has slowly, slowly gotten better since then, but bending the knee past ~20 degrees with any weight on it still hurts a bit. Walking normally is fine, stairs are almost ok but I can still fell it. I asked my doctor about it a few weeks ago and he didn't seem concerned, but we were covering a lot of stuff (initial visit with a new doc). So part (a): what happened to my knee, and should I seek additional physical therapy or just give it more time?

Interestingly, I discovered that running is not hindered by, and does not aggravate, the injury. So I've been running 3-4 miles at a time, with no ill effects, but I feel like I'm getting to the point where I need to be doing some lower-body weights to improve my stamina and speed. I've been going to the gym regularly and just doing upper body stuff, but when I try to do squats or leg extensions my knee hurts a lot and I have to stop. Is there any way to improve my leg strength with my hurt knee?

How can I strengthen my throwing arm in 4 weeks?

neuron — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 19:21:28 -0800

How do I strengthen my throwing arm for softball in 4 weeks? I have a normal 40-something-year-old arm. I played recreational softball last year and am starting up again this year. I've decided that this year I'd like to be able to throw the ball all the way from 3rd base to 1st, and I'd like to be able to make a long throw without tearing something. How can I strengthen my shoulder for this?

What I have readily available is 10 and 15 lb dumbbells, plus of course pushups. How important is throwing practice?

How do humans find the strength to endure?

desjardins — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 06:04:38 -0800

I'm looking for writings about human psychological endurance in the face of extreme hardship, whether that hardship is by choice or circumstance. Examples inside. I watched a show recently about space exploration, and it briefly touched on the psychological strength the astronauts must have in order to survive in such isolated and confined conditions.

Awhile ago, I saw a documentary on a ten year old African boy who had become responsible for his entire family since his mother and brother developed AIDS. He lived in the face of crushing poverty and provided food for his family by walking barefoot for miles each day to sell [something, I don't remember what] at a market.

Certainly there are many examples in the news every day - people in war zones, people coping with natural disasters, etc. There are also those who put themselves in dangerous or high pressure situations, such as mountaineers.

I wonder how the people in these examples process their suffering. How did they find a reason to go on? How do they have the resilience to come back from hardship? What is the difference between those that mentally survive and those that crack under the pressure?

How do I build upper body strength without weights?

rachelpapers — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 07:06:17 -0800

Looking for a simple routine to build upper body strength without weights. I am interested in developing my upper body strength, but I am terrible at going to the gym in order to do so. I can do aerobics there every day, but I can never seem to get around to doing weights.

Anyway, I'm trying to change by starting off at home. I don't have any weights at home, so I am interested in a small set of exercises that I could do on a semi-regular basis to help develop my upper body strength. I would prefer something simple.

Thanks, y'all.

Just a little muscle is all I want!

dondiego87 — Sun, 17 Feb 2008 21:16:12 -0800

Suggested workout programs to put on some upper-body muscle and add general torso definition, while leaving room for running? Background: I'm 20 years old, 5' 11", 155 lbs. I did cross country and track in high school, and I continued running (to a much lesser degree) after entering college. I now run around 15 miles per week. I also play Ultimate once or twice a week.

Over the past few years, as I have begun to consider myself more and more a runner, I have severely neglected my upper body (chest and arms). Back in high school it was okay, but there's hardly anything there anymore. I'd really like to put some muscle on my arms, chest, and back. Also, while I have reasonably hard abs and little body fat (although it's not the lowest it's been in recent history), they can't really be seen. I'd like to get better definition there as well.

What I'm looking for: A workout program that will get me results while maintaining or, better yet, improving the cardiovascular strength I have built up through running. Also, the last time I worked my upper body, using the same machines and weights I had used in high school with no problems, I had trouble lifting my backpack for days afterwards. I don't want my arms dead like that (except maybe for the first few workouts as I adjust). Finally, I'd like to have space in the regimen for the occasional run.

Like I said, I'm a college student. This means a few things for your answers. I'm willing to pay, but not too much. I can dedicate maybe an hour or so every day, but I'd like the regimen to be flexible because my schedule can get crazy at times. We have a great workout room here at school, with machines and dumbbells and exercise balls and whatnot, so that's not a limiting factor. We have a pool, and I'm open to swimming programs, but it's really not my preference because I get bored out of my skull during swim workouts.

Thanks so much for your help.

I searched the site for this question or a variant thereof having been asked previously, but I was surprised to find that it had not been. Correct me (and I apologize) if I'm wrong.

Help me improve my pushups.

bindasj — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 03:35:50 -0800

Help me improve my pushups. I've been doing martial arts 5 nights a week (M-F) for 9 months now. We do anywhere from 30-150 pushups a night, but I'm incapable of keeping up with the rest of the class and have not really improved much since I started. I've been doing martial arts 5 nights a week (M-F) for 9 months now. We do anywhere from 30-150 pushups a night, but I'm incapable of keeping up with the rest of the class and have not really improved much since I started. We do 4 different kinds of pushups regular, hands facing inward, fist, and fingers. On the other hand I've improved greatly with the leg exercises. I've never in my life been able to do a lot of pushups.

I have a few theories as to why I haven't improved. First I'm unable to do all those pushups within the time constraints and rarely do them to exhaustion. I also do them regularly which doesn't give my muscles any rest time except the weekends. Possibly the fact that I'm vegetarian plays into it, but I've gained about 10 lbs since I started and now weigh the most I've weighed in my life so I don't think I'm having a lot of trouble putting muscle on.

I've read a bunch of things online on how to improve, but they don't take into account that I have really no choice about resting and during my martial arts I have to do them.

I'm 25 male and in pretty good shape. Any advice anyone can give me would be great.

Strong real females in movies

sparrows — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 07:20:50 -0800

Pamela Landy, in the 2nd and 3rd Bourne movies, is an uncomplicatedly powerful female character and I'm looking for other fiction movies with similar characters. (Inside I explain a little more what I'm looking for.) I don't have any spoilers inside for the Bourne movies, and please avoid spoilers for any movies you recommend, thanks! I know there are MANY different kinds of strong female characters, but just for this question here's some of what makes Landy such a straightforward character to me:

- She's not a fantasy or bioengineered character (like Trinity or River Tam);
- The central focus of the movie isn't her unusualness as a female (as in GI Jane, etc.);
- We see no indication that she gets her power because of backstabbing or evilness.

Landy happens to be high-ranking on paper but I'm definitely also interested in everyday people who have similar qualities (like Mace in Strange Days).

Please, no spoilers for any movies in this thread!
I know it could be hard to discuss a character without mentioning, for example, whether or not she survives the movie, but that's what I'm asking. Thanks!

Fear of Catabolism

gmodelo — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 15:07:04 -0800

Is running 3+ miles 4 or more times a week hurting my muscle mass gains? I'm alternating jump rope in 1-2x a week with it for 30 minute sessions. The real question is: do any of you have experience with making terrific muscle gains accompanied by good fat loss? I know we gain, as well as lose, muscle and fat in tandem when we're in an anabolic state. What about you guys?

I am estimatedly around 16% bodyfat right now, looking to bring that down without losing (or while building more) muscle. My nutrition is great; only natural foods (occasional sweets, but never regularly, I don't like them much), good protein and carbohydrate sources, as well as moderate saturated fat intake. I shoot for around 60-20-20 macronutrient breakdown, but definately not always on target with that.

I also drink 1-2 cups of coffee a day (with honey), and unfortnately chew around 1/2 can of tobacco a day. Are these greatly affecting my results?

How to feel a stronger sense of self-worth?

Anonymous — Sun, 25 Nov 2007 13:41:35 -0800

How can a person overcome general insecurity, improve their self-esteem, and bolster their sense of self worth? Objectively, I can recognize that other people seem to think I'm both relatively competent and relatively decent, and I generally coast along without consciously noticing any of what I'm about to describe. But lately, I've been noticing that I'm really susceptible to others' opinions of me. What I really want is for other people to reassure me I'm okay. Deep down, I actually feel somewhat desperate for approval and acceptance, but I don't really feel like I deserve it.

My relationship with my more judgmental friends is secretly about trying to do whatever it takes to be "good" in their eyes, and with friends who aren't judgmental, when I see myself through their eyes as an equal, I feel surprised, and relieved (and then occasionally I wonder if I'm just a pity case). Around people I don't know well, I feel like they will soon discover I'm not the kind of person they want to be friends with, that I'm bad -- nasty, petty, sleazy, bitchy, a slob. I keep wondering if they've figured it out already and are just politely tolerating me. When I screw up in little ways, it reinforces all my suspicions.

In general, both personally and professionally, I've started to notice I am constantly striving, constantly moving on to the next interest, and constantly interested in self-improvement in a way that has started to feel like just trying to outrun my own self. And I do feel like I'm constantly screwing things up (my papers at home are in total disarray which I regard as a personal failing, I get struck by guilt when I forget to call my friend who is going through a hard time, I feel constantly guilty about being behind schedule on a project) -- I feel really guilty, almost ashamed, about things like that.

Again, all this is balanced by the fact that I actually am somewhat successful professionally, and I do manage to be pretty good at being friendly with people, so I know I'm not a total failure at life or an immoral psychopath who should be shunned by all humanity. But over time this insecurity does probably undercut my relationships and professional progress, not to mention generally drain me, so I'd like to change.

What things do you do that have helped you come to feel secure in yourself? How have you come to believe that deep down, you are a good person? If you've overcome insecurity like this, what has helped you? I am in therapy and will work on it there, of course. But I've learned a lot from the insights, stories, and strategies people share on Metafilter, so I thought I'd ask.

How can I excercise 'smarter?'

doppleradar — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 09:53:28 -0800

[Exercise Filter]: What's your exercise routine? Should I change mine? Background:
Currently, I do three "area-specific" weight training days, (two of which include 20m cardio afterwards), one 30m cardio day, and one full-body weight training day. I like my current routine, but want to make it more efficient so i can go 3-4 days a week instead of 4-5.

Question:
My main goal is to get stronger/bigger without sacrificing general health exercises like cardio.
1) Does 3 days a week of swimming breaststroke for 30m replace the majority of what I am already doing?
2) What is your exercise routine? What does it focus on (health, strength, etc..), and how effective/time-smart is it?

Pain has a kung fu grip on my shoulders.

hermitosis — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 10:49:36 -0800

Shoulder exercise recommendations to protect my joints from repetitive martial arts drills? I'm a total skinny freak with no upper body strength. I take Ving Tsun kung fu, which is building up the muscles in my arms slowly but surely. However, the drills are very intense on shoulders, and since I have little muscle to support the joints, I get more than my share of soreness-- some of it is good old-fashioned muscle soreness, but really I can tell the joints themselves are not happy with the stress.

I'd like to do more in my spare time to build up the muscles around the shoulder joints, so that they're not quite so pulverized by my three-day-a-week class schedule? Or anything I can do for them right after class, for example, that will help?

I hate push-ups and while I have a pull-up bar, I can't get into doing them because the three or four a day I can do don't feel like they are helping much (so I don't do them).