# how heavy is to heavy?



## harrison180 (Aug 6, 2013)

Just wondered when u its time to lower the weight but get results? I raise the weight per set and try to add 5kg each session so my last set im beating my best.

I was doing bench press and i was lifting 40kg and the lad by me was lifting something silly (he is much bigger than me so its expected) i was keeping my form but finding it heavy he was nearly rolling off the bench.

If your really struggling with a weight is it best to drop it abit or stick with it?


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## gearchange (Mar 19, 2010)

If you can lift it with reasonable form then go for it,you have to push to get strong.


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## DC1 (May 5, 2014)

A little body english is fine but trying to handle a weight far too heavy just makes you look silly.


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## nWo (Mar 25, 2014)

If you're using shít form to cheat the weight up then it's too heavy for you, simple as that really.


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## harrison180 (Aug 6, 2013)

Atm I use weights I'm struggling to lift while still keeping good form on each lift. I lift quite slow as to make sure I keep the muscle tense.


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## Shawrie (Aug 6, 2014)

Branch Warrens is the acception to this rule,he takes the book about form and wipes his a**e with it, he just throws the weight about but it works for him.

I try to isolate the muscle as much as possible but also like to push the poundages up as much as poss so occasionally i suppose i am guilty of using momentum to lift the weight.


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## gaz90 (Jun 19, 2014)

when strength training you NEED to lift heavy weights to get stronger. but, you will only be as strong as your technique. now go back and read that again.

each rep must look like the first. doesnt matter if its your first warm up set or your top set. flapping your legs around when wrestling with a heavy bench press wont help you. planting your feet tightly and creating leg drive WILL help.

I'll use my bench press as an example. here is me benching 140kg recently, and my warm ups of 100, 110, 120 and 130.

the only thing drastically different is the bar speed.






so if your technique is good, its only too heavy if you miss the lift.


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## Smitch (Dec 29, 2008)

gaz90 said:


> when strength training you NEED to lift heavy weights to get stronger. but, you will only be as strong as your technique. now go back and read that again.
> 
> each rep must look like the first. doesnt matter if its your first warm up set or your top set. flapping your legs around when wrestling with a heavy bench press wont help you. planting your feet tightly and creating leg drive WILL help.
> 
> ...


Just out of interest, why do you take a completely different stance when benching the Db's compared to the barbell?


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## saxondale (Nov 11, 2012)

Half the weight of the other guys in train with mate, but twice the form!

Knock 2 back from your 1rm and see how that feels after a few weeks, you're a bodybuilder not a power lifter.


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## gaz90 (Jun 19, 2014)

Smitch said:


> Just out of interest, why do you take a completely different stance when benching the Db's compared to the barbell?


i lie flat with the dumbbells for more ROM/more starting strength. i still roll my chest up a little to get some arch. but its nearly impossible to set up with a good arch while holding dumbbells at lockout.


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## Guest (Sep 1, 2014)

Form mate. Train for yourself. If you hurt yourself the other guy will be in the gym two days later while your in hospital.


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## 12 gauge (Jul 16, 2011)

As per the 5x5 strong lifts rule if you miss your 5x5 3 consecutive workouts is a row drop the weight by 10%, then add 2.5 kg each workout until you reach the weight you missed which should take you 2 weeks and then go for it again.


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## monkeybiker (Jul 21, 2010)

dallas said:


> Form mate. Train for yourself. If you hurt yourself the other guy will be in the gym two days later while your in hospital.


Like this guy said, your not going to make much progress with an injury.


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## funkdocta (May 29, 2013)

Good to mix it up. Using some heavy weight and using a bit of body English (not taking the **** obviously) and also strict form with a challenging weight will all help you grow.


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## Dagman72 (Apr 2, 2009)

Its not just about moving the weight from A to B, its making the muscle work - numbers on a bar mean jack ****, cannot stand these threads when they say 'how much can you squat'. Yes lift as heavy as you can with good form and if you need to cheat on the last few reps then that is fine but make the muscle work not your ego.


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## Tinytom (Sep 16, 2005)

Using momentum at the start of the lift is fine as long as you stop moving once you actually engage the muscles properly otherwise energy is transferred away from the target muscle. I teach controlled movement to my clients under certain circumstances.

Not advisable to be doing it on every set though IMO.


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## Guest (Sep 2, 2014)

The question "how much can you bench ?" Is all well and good, but for your own motivation and goals.

If a guy benches 150kg for 1rep. Great. I cant. But when I get to my target of 120kg I will be well chuffed.

Then its time for my next target of 140kg and so on.

Heavy is whats heavy for YOU!. And dont be put off by others.

If people take the pi$$ for not lifting as heavy as them ???. I dont know actually ?? Not hapened to me.

what advice would you give folks ??? To stop people feeling like they should lift more than they can.


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## saxondale (Nov 11, 2012)

dallas said:


> The question "how much can you bench ?" Is all well and good, but for your own motivation and goals.
> 
> If a guy benches 150kg for 1rep. Great. I cant. But when I get to my target of 120kg I will be well chuffed.
> 
> ...


I dont lift heavy. That should encourage him to try harder lol


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## MF88 (Jul 1, 2012)

Tinytom said:


> Using momentum at the start of the lift is fine as long as you stop moving once you actually engage the muscles properly otherwise energy is transferred away from the target muscle. I teach controlled movement to my clients under certain circumstances.
> 
> Not advisable to be doing it on every set though IMO.


What's your view on going to failure?


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## Betts020577 (Jul 13, 2014)

Ive only been going to the gym for just over 6 weeks now and after many threads and articles here and there, The 1 thing ive learnt is to lift what i am comfortable with.

I will say the only thing i do take notice of is the form of the more advanced people in the gym, From what i can gather, The form is the most fundamental aspect of lifting, Get it wrong and its pointless even trying really.


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## Guest (Sep 2, 2014)

saxondale said:


> I dont lift heavy. That should encourage him to try harder lol


 :lol:


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## saxondale (Nov 11, 2012)

Betts020577 said:


> Ive only been going to the gym for just over 6 weeks now and after many threads and articles here and there, The 1 thing ive learnt is to lift what i am comfortable with.
> 
> I will say the only thing i do take notice of is the form of the more advanced people in the gym, From what i can gather, The form is the most fundamental aspect of lifting, Get it wrong and its pointless even trying really.


Bingo, spot on


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## dtlv (Jul 24, 2009)

I look at it this way. The point of any exercise is to work certain muscles, so the entire performance of that exercise should be to maximise engagement and activation of that muscle on all reps, and any reps that lessen the engagement of the target muscle are wasteful in comparison.

Some exercises do deliberately employ momentum in a way that positions the load on the target muscles - cleans and power cleans for example, but mostly momentum is used by people in a way that lessens the loading on the target muscle for part of the rep so as either to allow more loading or more reps, but this is an unnecessary thing to do because while it may allow extra reps or load, each rep is always effective through less of the ROM and comes with an increased injury risk.

There is also a consistency issue with cheat form that cheat form is often variable between reps - usually getting shorter and shorter or momentum from other muscles increases as the reps get harder. This sabotages strength progression because it's through consistent repetition of exactly the same form and strength curve, especially through the difficult reps, that the CNS most strongly adapts to allow improved muscle activation - don't do this and you are both robbing the target muscle of stimulus and not helping the CNS get stronger.


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## Tinytom (Sep 16, 2005)

MF88 said:


> What's your view on going to failure?


I think that failure should be the target on the working sets. I normally do 4 sets and 1-2 of those will be proper working sets.

Going to failure on every set I think is not wise as that would require a weight heavy enough to facilitate failure within 10-20 reps on the first set. In my experience that's a recipe for injury eventually.


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## FlashUK (Aug 8, 2014)

IMO form is equally as important as weight, More weight does not equal more size if you cant control the weight. You need to give your muscles good form and ROM. Of course push yourself your max comfortable limit but dont push to the point where you have no control. Rom, Variation in training methods, nice smooth technique and most important push to failure no matter what the weight. This is what works for me. These guys obsessed with numbers IMO is just childish my dick is bigger than your dick bull ****. Just my humble opinion.


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## MF88 (Jul 1, 2012)

Tinytom said:


> I think that failure should be the target on the working sets. I normally do 4 sets and 1-2 of those will be proper working sets.
> 
> Going to failure on every set I think is not wise as that would require a weight heavy enough to facilitate failure within 10-20 reps on the first set. In my experience that's a recipe for injury eventually.


Thanks for your opinion mate.


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## 31205 (Jan 16, 2013)

If I can do more than 10 reps, it's too light. If I can struggle to do 10, it's fine. If I go heavy as possible and do say, 5 reps, I never feel like the muscle has been worked.


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