Daedala (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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lifting_heavy_things2011-02-05 03:35 pm
daedala) wrote in lifting_heavy_things2011-02-05 03:35 pm
NROL4W Stage 1
We're on the third week of the first stage of New Rules of Lifting for Women. My sister has dropped out for a bit due to a car accident (she's ok, and she'll start up again when her doctor gives the ok), but my partner and I are still doing it. It's really helpful to have him working out with me -- I haven't put the workout off a day or anything yet.
The first stage of workouts for the book is set up so that the reps decrease: 15 reps in the first week down to 8 reps in the eighth week. This makes it a good way to ease in -- starting with body weight wasn't completely ridiculous, with fifteen reps -- and it's really nice to be able to increase the weight faster because the reps are going down. I've decided that this is very clever psychology on their part. :)
The most important realization I've come to is that I'm not a personal trainer and I don't want to be a personal trainer, even for myself. I like doing the program, getting it done, and knowing it will work. I'd had a fairly regular practice going until I was injured (not lifting) in 2007, and then could never get very far when I tried to restart, and I think it's because it basically wasn't fun to figure it out myself. The whole geek "I can figure it out myself!" is definitely a part of my identity, so it's been weird to let that go. On the other hand, Practical Programming is worth a fair bit used on Amazon, so that's a win!
So far, this workout is fun.
The first stage of workouts for the book is set up so that the reps decrease: 15 reps in the first week down to 8 reps in the eighth week. This makes it a good way to ease in -- starting with body weight wasn't completely ridiculous, with fifteen reps -- and it's really nice to be able to increase the weight faster because the reps are going down. I've decided that this is very clever psychology on their part. :)
The most important realization I've come to is that I'm not a personal trainer and I don't want to be a personal trainer, even for myself. I like doing the program, getting it done, and knowing it will work. I'd had a fairly regular practice going until I was injured (not lifting) in 2007, and then could never get very far when I tried to restart, and I think it's because it basically wasn't fun to figure it out myself. The whole geek "I can figure it out myself!" is definitely a part of my identity, so it's been weird to let that go. On the other hand, Practical Programming is worth a fair bit used on Amazon, so that's a win!
So far, this workout is fun.
no subject
I expressed that badly -- Thu, Sat and Sun will be the days where I *can* go to the gym. So because of the "not two days in a row" (I *couldn't* do two days in a row at the moment!) I'll manage only two times a week, not three. Which is a little annoying because I had been getting into a nice rhythm and I feel that I'm seeing progress.
About dumbbells at shoulder level: I tried that and got back to the barbell. The issue was less grip strength (having the palm of my hand under the dumbbells helped), but I didn't get the balance right and had to pay too much attention to what my arms were doing.