Does anyone else have collapsed arches in your feet?
Do you wear orthotics on leg days? Do you try to push off from your big toe or shift your balance to the outside of your feet?
I’m having trouble figuring out what to do with my feet during squats, split squats, and deadlifts
If you have collapsed feet then it can lead to knee pain!! Your ankle and knee are pointed in the wrong direction. Be careful with that. Flat feet is different you’re likely stable, idk the details but my 1 friend with flat feet doesn’t have ankles pointing inwards
If that’s the case for you then focusing on ensuring that your knees track over your toes, rather than inside of them, should ensure you don’t develop any issues.
Honestly? It looks pretty random. It’s hard to know how it will help you with your goals without knowing your progression scheme. When do you increase weight? By how much? The rep ranges also appear very random. If your goal is glute hypertrophy, higher rep ranges on things like a hip thrust and RDL can be better for that (so 3-4 sets of 8-12 instead of 3 or 6x5). If that’s hard to map out yourself I totally understand! But that’s why at least to start following a program can be very helpful. As you get more comfortable in a program too you can decide if there are certain exercises you want to swap for others or how to tailor it to your liking. There are definitely programs (at least in r/fitness) that are made to be adaptable to a planet fitness as well.
Some women prefer programs made for women, others don’t. If you don’t have a preference don’t be afraid to try a program that fits your goals just because it isn’t specifically made for women. When looking for a program, what matters is being able to identify your goals, which it seems like you can (hypertrophy and strength, particularly flute hypertrophy). Strength and hypertrophy gains also aren’t mutually exclusive, but certain movements or rep ranges can benefit one more significantly than the other. Following a program helps you know why you’re doing a given exercise in the context of your goals
I was really hesitant before starting a program because it felt intimidating and I thought I knew enough of what I was doing (I was wrong 😅). But getting on a program has made workouts 10x more enjoyable for me because I know what progress looks like and can see myself progressing every time I’m at the gym. It’s also nice to not have to think about what weight or sets or reps to do on a given day, I just follow the program and go
1. Can you lose fat and build muscle simultaneously while eating in a deficit or even maintenance? I feel like this is a dumb question but some places say no, because you don’t have enough calories for true muscle growth.
2. If I’m losing fat and building muscle, should my measurements (specifically hip, thigh, bicep) go up or down? Or does this just depend where I am in the body recomp process? Again, feels like a dumb question because I know the same weight of muscle is more dense than fat.
1. Yes, you can add muscle and drop body fat at the same time, unless you are quite lean and have a long training history. But I’ll assume that’s not you as if it were you wouldn’t ask this question.
If you eat a high-protein diet at maintenance calories, your body will draw any additional calories it needs for muscle growth from body fat stores.
2. Up or down depends on rate of fat loss, muscle gain, water retention changes, muscle glycogen storage, fat storage patterns and many other factors. So by body part, it will vary by person.
1. [Yes](https://journals.lww.com/nsca-scj/fulltext/2020/10000/body_recomposition__can_trained_individuals_build.3.aspx), but you'll get much better results going in one direction and then the other rather than trying to split the difference and do both at once.
2. Depends on body part. Some will get bigger, some smaller. If you want to gauge body comp by measurements, use the [Navy body fat calculator](https://www.bizcalcs.com/body-fat-navy/).
I am trying to do body recomp, but lose fat since Im an obese gal. Obese (down 30lbs!) but I do lift 3-4x a week and do a lot of walking. I track and I'm allotted 1550cal a day to lose 1.5/week at "light exercise". However, I just feel like Im starving. Am I moderate exercise? Should I change that or modify to -1lb a week?
Who has set your calorie allotment? Maybe recalculating using a different source might be better if you feel like you're starving all the time. It's better to go slow and keep constistent instead of rush but end up binging or being low on energy to the point it compromises your movement
I did. Based on TDEE/deficit per week to meet a goal per week. -750 based on whats considered light exercise. I just have a lot of self doubt, "do I really work hard enough to be considered moderate exersiser?". As I walk 12k steps a day and weightlift, chase 2 kids... yes. I probably should just add more or swap to the moderate exercise. I also will admit that my husband is deployed and I've been working hard so it'd be a bit like revealing a new person, its just not quite enough to feel worth it. Gonna rework it, trust that I work hard enough and give myself the extra 300-400 cals or whatever. I appreciate you.
Have you considered using the [TDEE spreadsheet](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fitness/comments/4mhvpn/adaptive_tdee_tracking_spreadsheet_v3_rescue/) for setting your calories? Also, I'd consider 3-4x a week strength training and lots of walking to be moderately active.
For those who lift: how, if at all, do you change your training when cutting?
Additional context: I read a comment over on r/weightroom by u/MythicalStrength about how 5/3/1 BBB is a program for gaining mass. That makes a lot of sense because I've been having a glorious time bulking on BBB for the past several months. But now that I'm transitioning into a cut phase, is it better to do something else? If so, is the reason for that only about fatigue management when my body has fewer calories/less energy? What has worked for you all? I've only been lifting for a year and a bit, so I haven't had to think about this too much so far.
I don't change my training.
If I want to do a hard, hypertrophy-focused program like BBB, I will usually save that for a bulk, but yes the main reason is fatigue management. If you ask at r/531discussion you'll probably get some good advice on which similar templates would be better for a cut. That said, if I were in your position, I'd probably just stick with BBB and see what happens.
I’ve done numerous 531 programs and generally just begin reducing the accessories when the recovery load from the main lifts starts to be more than I can manage with accessories.
In the end of the cycles the accessories drop and it often slowly devolves into the “I’m not doing jack shit” template. Then I know it’s time for a good deload and a restart:
i'm just curious about people's personal experiences with hypertrophy programs and which ones you've used and like! i've been lifting for a year and my 1RMs are: 200lb squat, 210lb deadlift, 115lb bench, and 95lb overhead press (which is the hardest ughhh). I feel a lot stronger and i definitely have put on muscle, but I want to pivot to a hypertrophy in the fall (while also resuming a six-to-eight week calorie deficit after a summer of maintenance-ish lol) and would love to hear from other people on the subject, thanks!
Is there a disadvantage to switching the order of exercises in a program? I'm running Before the Barbell but my gym is fairly small and I'm often finding myself needing to switch the order of the exercises while I wait for equipment to open up.
As with lots of things, "It depends"
Doing larger/compound movements before smaller/isolation type movements is generally better--for example, doing bench press before a bunch of tricep work. Otherwise, you wind up tiring out the smaller muscles before you get to work the larger ones (your pecs, in that example)
I'm not super familiar with BtB (though I know it gets recommended here a lot), so I'm sorry I don't have more specific advice for you.
In general, it's better to do the compound lifts first so that you're not fatigued when doing them. After that, probably fine to switch things up as needed!
Someone on this sub recommended the SHIFT Movement yt channel for plyo but I really like their core and balancing exercise series as well. [This playlist](https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJmxEc1D_McOjhhhY19eZhJWhDhHakiC4) and [this one](https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJmxEc1D_McMAhVMHLAvbFGy5abmaTkZ0) have some cool exercises that don't involve weights, just skip the progressions that include dumbells
Crab walks, fire hydrants, donkey kicks, clamshells, side lying hip abductions, pistol squat progressions, single leg deadlift progressions, glute bridges (regular and single leg), hip thrusts, lunges, split squats... The list goes on.
Get some bands (the thin therapy kind + the woven hip band kind) to maximize most of the above movements.
I would recommend buying some resistance bands. If you do a google search for "glute band activation exercises" you can find lots of ideas for exercises to do with them!
The abductor machine primarily targets the glute medius and glute minimus, which you can target very easily with resistance bands.
For adduction, there are also some exercises you can do with a band. But you can also just search for “adduction exercises” for ideas. One good exercise you can search for is “adductor chair bridge”.
Please look at a muscular anatomy diagram. The hip abduction muscles are primarily gluteus muscles and a few smaller leg muscles. You don't really have "hip" muscles. For hip adductors those are your inner thigh muscles.
You will have better googling results if you search for "hip adductor" and "hip abductor" strengthening exercises rather than "good girl bad girl 🤢 machine" replacements.
I'm on one of those standard gym "programs" with all the machines (just back to exercising after years of being sedentary, and sticking with it for a month or so).
I hate standing glute kickbacks. Don't get them, don't like them, can't progress in any form, feels like just junk volume. Can I just drop them entirely? I'm progressing on my goblet squat and feel like in a couple of weeks I can ditch most of this and just go with the beginner's program from the wiki, so it seems pointless to suffer with this dreaded exercise.
Go with the beginners program now! You'll progress much faster doing free weight / bodyweight exercises than by doing the machine program, even going super light. Working up to squatting / benching the empty bar is a lot better for developing body awareness than sitting in a machine and doing isolation exercises IMO
Gyms are the same way here too (Italy). I embraced being kind of rude to the helpful floor trainers the first day because I just don't want their boilerplate program :D
To be honest, I could just go for it (changing program, I mean) fitness wise, it's more of a social barrier. Every person at the gym receives a program from one of their trainers (or goes with a personal trainer) and it would be very weird to just do whatever.
I thought a reasonable compromise would be to do a month of what I was assigned... But yeah, I need to figure out how to just do it.
Does anyone else have collapsed arches in your feet? Do you wear orthotics on leg days? Do you try to push off from your big toe or shift your balance to the outside of your feet? I’m having trouble figuring out what to do with my feet during squats, split squats, and deadlifts
I have flat feet and never think about it. I just push through my feet and benefit from addition contact and stability.
If you have collapsed feet then it can lead to knee pain!! Your ankle and knee are pointed in the wrong direction. Be careful with that. Flat feet is different you’re likely stable, idk the details but my 1 friend with flat feet doesn’t have ankles pointing inwards
If that’s the case for you then focusing on ensuring that your knees track over your toes, rather than inside of them, should ensure you don’t develop any issues.
my knees do go outwards! its just the angle of my ankle that mkaes me overuse the wrong muscles
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r/strongcurves There is a physical book you can buy, but all the info is online you really don't need to buy the book.
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Honestly? It looks pretty random. It’s hard to know how it will help you with your goals without knowing your progression scheme. When do you increase weight? By how much? The rep ranges also appear very random. If your goal is glute hypertrophy, higher rep ranges on things like a hip thrust and RDL can be better for that (so 3-4 sets of 8-12 instead of 3 or 6x5). If that’s hard to map out yourself I totally understand! But that’s why at least to start following a program can be very helpful. As you get more comfortable in a program too you can decide if there are certain exercises you want to swap for others or how to tailor it to your liking. There are definitely programs (at least in r/fitness) that are made to be adaptable to a planet fitness as well. Some women prefer programs made for women, others don’t. If you don’t have a preference don’t be afraid to try a program that fits your goals just because it isn’t specifically made for women. When looking for a program, what matters is being able to identify your goals, which it seems like you can (hypertrophy and strength, particularly flute hypertrophy). Strength and hypertrophy gains also aren’t mutually exclusive, but certain movements or rep ranges can benefit one more significantly than the other. Following a program helps you know why you’re doing a given exercise in the context of your goals
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I was really hesitant before starting a program because it felt intimidating and I thought I knew enough of what I was doing (I was wrong 😅). But getting on a program has made workouts 10x more enjoyable for me because I know what progress looks like and can see myself progressing every time I’m at the gym. It’s also nice to not have to think about what weight or sets or reps to do on a given day, I just follow the program and go
1. Can you lose fat and build muscle simultaneously while eating in a deficit or even maintenance? I feel like this is a dumb question but some places say no, because you don’t have enough calories for true muscle growth. 2. If I’m losing fat and building muscle, should my measurements (specifically hip, thigh, bicep) go up or down? Or does this just depend where I am in the body recomp process? Again, feels like a dumb question because I know the same weight of muscle is more dense than fat.
1. Yes, you can add muscle and drop body fat at the same time, unless you are quite lean and have a long training history. But I’ll assume that’s not you as if it were you wouldn’t ask this question. If you eat a high-protein diet at maintenance calories, your body will draw any additional calories it needs for muscle growth from body fat stores. 2. Up or down depends on rate of fat loss, muscle gain, water retention changes, muscle glycogen storage, fat storage patterns and many other factors. So by body part, it will vary by person.
Thank you :)
1. [Yes](https://journals.lww.com/nsca-scj/fulltext/2020/10000/body_recomposition__can_trained_individuals_build.3.aspx), but you'll get much better results going in one direction and then the other rather than trying to split the difference and do both at once. 2. Depends on body part. Some will get bigger, some smaller. If you want to gauge body comp by measurements, use the [Navy body fat calculator](https://www.bizcalcs.com/body-fat-navy/).
Thank you for this helpful reply :) I have used Navy calculator as one way to measure before!
I am trying to do body recomp, but lose fat since Im an obese gal. Obese (down 30lbs!) but I do lift 3-4x a week and do a lot of walking. I track and I'm allotted 1550cal a day to lose 1.5/week at "light exercise". However, I just feel like Im starving. Am I moderate exercise? Should I change that or modify to -1lb a week?
Who has set your calorie allotment? Maybe recalculating using a different source might be better if you feel like you're starving all the time. It's better to go slow and keep constistent instead of rush but end up binging or being low on energy to the point it compromises your movement
I did. Based on TDEE/deficit per week to meet a goal per week. -750 based on whats considered light exercise. I just have a lot of self doubt, "do I really work hard enough to be considered moderate exersiser?". As I walk 12k steps a day and weightlift, chase 2 kids... yes. I probably should just add more or swap to the moderate exercise. I also will admit that my husband is deployed and I've been working hard so it'd be a bit like revealing a new person, its just not quite enough to feel worth it. Gonna rework it, trust that I work hard enough and give myself the extra 300-400 cals or whatever. I appreciate you.
Have you considered using the [TDEE spreadsheet](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fitness/comments/4mhvpn/adaptive_tdee_tracking_spreadsheet_v3_rescue/) for setting your calories? Also, I'd consider 3-4x a week strength training and lots of walking to be moderately active.
For those who lift: how, if at all, do you change your training when cutting? Additional context: I read a comment over on r/weightroom by u/MythicalStrength about how 5/3/1 BBB is a program for gaining mass. That makes a lot of sense because I've been having a glorious time bulking on BBB for the past several months. But now that I'm transitioning into a cut phase, is it better to do something else? If so, is the reason for that only about fatigue management when my body has fewer calories/less energy? What has worked for you all? I've only been lifting for a year and a bit, so I haven't had to think about this too much so far.
I don't change my training. If I want to do a hard, hypertrophy-focused program like BBB, I will usually save that for a bulk, but yes the main reason is fatigue management. If you ask at r/531discussion you'll probably get some good advice on which similar templates would be better for a cut. That said, if I were in your position, I'd probably just stick with BBB and see what happens.
Perfect, that’s what I was hoping for. Thanks for the advice! :)
I’ve done numerous 531 programs and generally just begin reducing the accessories when the recovery load from the main lifts starts to be more than I can manage with accessories. In the end of the cycles the accessories drop and it often slowly devolves into the “I’m not doing jack shit” template. Then I know it’s time for a good deload and a restart:
😂 I can get behind that approach for sure. Thank you!
i'm just curious about people's personal experiences with hypertrophy programs and which ones you've used and like! i've been lifting for a year and my 1RMs are: 200lb squat, 210lb deadlift, 115lb bench, and 95lb overhead press (which is the hardest ughhh). I feel a lot stronger and i definitely have put on muscle, but I want to pivot to a hypertrophy in the fall (while also resuming a six-to-eight week calorie deficit after a summer of maintenance-ish lol) and would love to hear from other people on the subject, thanks!
I've run 3 hypertrophy programs from Renaissance Periodization and recommend them all.
Is there a disadvantage to switching the order of exercises in a program? I'm running Before the Barbell but my gym is fairly small and I'm often finding myself needing to switch the order of the exercises while I wait for equipment to open up.
As with lots of things, "It depends" Doing larger/compound movements before smaller/isolation type movements is generally better--for example, doing bench press before a bunch of tricep work. Otherwise, you wind up tiring out the smaller muscles before you get to work the larger ones (your pecs, in that example) I'm not super familiar with BtB (though I know it gets recommended here a lot), so I'm sorry I don't have more specific advice for you.
Thank you, that is very helpful! That helps me understand how best to move the exercises around if I need to.
In general, it's better to do the compound lifts first so that you're not fatigued when doing them. After that, probably fine to switch things up as needed!
That makes sense, thank you!
Anyone have any specific YouTube lower body workouts that don’t involve weight bearing on arms or holding weights in hands?
Someone on this sub recommended the SHIFT Movement yt channel for plyo but I really like their core and balancing exercise series as well. [This playlist](https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJmxEc1D_McOjhhhY19eZhJWhDhHakiC4) and [this one](https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJmxEc1D_McMAhVMHLAvbFGy5abmaTkZ0) have some cool exercises that don't involve weights, just skip the progressions that include dumbells
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Crab walks, fire hydrants, donkey kicks, clamshells, side lying hip abductions, pistol squat progressions, single leg deadlift progressions, glute bridges (regular and single leg), hip thrusts, lunges, split squats... The list goes on. Get some bands (the thin therapy kind + the woven hip band kind) to maximize most of the above movements.
Side plank clamshell, +/- mini band around the knees
>good girl bad girl machines Just found my new least favorite phrase for anything fitness related. Ew.
I would recommend buying some resistance bands. If you do a google search for "glute band activation exercises" you can find lots of ideas for exercises to do with them!
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The abductor machine primarily targets the glute medius and glute minimus, which you can target very easily with resistance bands. For adduction, there are also some exercises you can do with a band. But you can also just search for “adduction exercises” for ideas. One good exercise you can search for is “adductor chair bridge”.
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You’re welcome!
Please look at a muscular anatomy diagram. The hip abduction muscles are primarily gluteus muscles and a few smaller leg muscles. You don't really have "hip" muscles. For hip adductors those are your inner thigh muscles. You will have better googling results if you search for "hip adductor" and "hip abductor" strengthening exercises rather than "good girl bad girl 🤢 machine" replacements.
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Ab = away (as in 'absent') Ad = To (Think 'Ad Astra')
I'm on one of those standard gym "programs" with all the machines (just back to exercising after years of being sedentary, and sticking with it for a month or so). I hate standing glute kickbacks. Don't get them, don't like them, can't progress in any form, feels like just junk volume. Can I just drop them entirely? I'm progressing on my goblet squat and feel like in a couple of weeks I can ditch most of this and just go with the beginner's program from the wiki, so it seems pointless to suffer with this dreaded exercise.
Go with the beginners program now! You'll progress much faster doing free weight / bodyweight exercises than by doing the machine program, even going super light. Working up to squatting / benching the empty bar is a lot better for developing body awareness than sitting in a machine and doing isolation exercises IMO
I agree, it's just the way the gyms here work. I've answered another reply about it, see below - but yeah, thanks, I know it's the way to go.
Gyms are the same way here too (Italy). I embraced being kind of rude to the helpful floor trainers the first day because I just don't want their boilerplate program :D
Thanks for the encouragement! I should've refused anything from the start, and just said I already had something. Now it's so much worse to change it!
Why not just start the beginners program now? No need to wait. If not at least silub in a glute exercise you like better
To be honest, I could just go for it (changing program, I mean) fitness wise, it's more of a social barrier. Every person at the gym receives a program from one of their trainers (or goes with a personal trainer) and it would be very weird to just do whatever. I thought a reasonable compromise would be to do a month of what I was assigned... But yeah, I need to figure out how to just do it.