I want to start lifting and I have read TNROLFW but I don't like the idea of being in the free weight section at the gym. My question is have any of you had good results with lifting heavy but doing it with use of the machines at the gym?
A lot of people are going to come in here and tell you that free weights are superior and more functional and whatever else they will tell you.
I will tell you that if your goal is to preserve muscle and look better naked than machines are perfectly fine. Proper form is just as important with machines as it is with free weights but proper form is much easier to learn with machines.
You can always get into free weights later.
I'd suggest a full body 3x a week routine for anyone new to lifting.
Machines are fine just long as you keep form and do everything from a deadlift position. For instance, it's easy to do pull down weights if you put the power in pulling it down and letting the momentum take it back up. The key is to pull down, pause for a second to stop the momentum and CONTROL the release. You will see better results with the machine if you can CONTROL the movement, have the right posture, and to stop the momentum, pause and continue. Plus you should be doing the reps to muscle fatigue. I see people doing it where it looks super easy. It should somewhat give you some sort of muscle fatigue and to make you work a little harder for it!
keeping my eye on this thread, because the only area where i will do free weights (right now) is the small gym area where they do classes. i'm more interested in machines, atleast to start off..
I am so happy that someone else brought this up. There are so many members here who are against weight machines that I am afraid to speak up. However, I use a weight machine 5 days and week and I have built muscle in my arms and legs. I am afraid of using to many free weights because I am scared of hurting my back. However, I LOVE lifting on my weight machine.
I do three reps of 10 for each position and have doubled the amount I can lift over the past 8 months or so.
There is nothing wrong with starting out of them if you find them less intimidating - I can't manage a gym membership (SAHM with homeschool responsibilities, there's no timeslot during the day I leave the house and it was too much of a burden on my husband for me to go at night) so I used resistance bands to begin with and loved it! I am a progress-not-perfection kind of gal and that was all I could afford for the time, at home. It was a heck of a lot better than no lifting/strength training at all.
The same is true with machines. It isn't a bad thing, but perhaps not the most effective use of your time in the gym, minute for minute and rep for rep. As was mentioned before the machines tend to neglect a lot of smaller muscle groups because they don't require the balance, stabilization, and control that free weights do. But if it appeals to you and you are comfortable with it, go for it!
I'm as big a proponent of free weights as anyone, but they aren't always feasible or desirable, depending on your goals. For example, my most effective method tried for strength training and trimming my figure has been TTap DVDs, which use NO weights but have muscles resist against one another and bodyweight, with high intensity and very low reps. It is doable for anyone of any size or fitness level, but is as challenging for someone well trained as a newbie because of how the exercises are designed and how form constantly improves. It's been THE magic bullet for me at this stage of my journey. And yet I still support and will use the science of lifting progressively heavier things, too. Using an alternate method that fits my life better at this point isn't some sin against fitness, and neither is your use of machines a sin against free weights. They're just different. Maybe not even equal, but a heck of a lot better than nothing!
My problem with machines is that they neglect a LOT of small muscle groups while only working specific large ones.
When you do the overhead press on a machine you are only working your deltoids.
When you lift a barbell above your head you're engaging nearly all the muscles in your body, just to keep your balance. It's FAR more effective.
I noticed HUGE differences when I switched from machine to free weights.
Considering my abs only started getting any stronger when I started lifting more free weights, I'm going to have to +1 the fact that lifting those works your entire body.
I stopped doing crunches which I had done for YEARS AND YEARS with no results. The only dedicated ab exercise I do is planks now and I lift very heavy.
That's the only thing that has made my core stronger. All the crunches in the world didn't help me (on the ab machine and off it).
Considering my abs only started getting any stronger when I started lifting more free weights, I'm going to have to +1 the fact that lifting those works your entire body.
I stopped doing crunches which I had done for YEARS AND YEARS with no results. The only dedicated ab exercise I do is planks now and I lift very heavy.
That's the only thing that has made my core stronger. All the crunches in the world didn't help me (on the ab machine and off it).
Same here! I hate HATE crunches. My rib cage pops when I do them, it feels horrible. So I don't really do them anymore. I did hundreds and hundreds of them, previously... and now that I've stopped and NOW for the first time in my life, I can see my ab muscles. Go figure!
Planks, squats, and lunges... All awesome and awful, at the same time. Results, awesome. The agonizing burn? Awful.
All in all? Totally worth it!
This is also true!! I don't mind squats so much, surprisingly... but I'd rather run 20 miles than do planks. I do them anyway, and it hurts EVERYTHING... but I guess that's kind of the point, isn't it? If I had the choice between machines and boy weight exercises... I'd wager that the body weight ones are probably more effective at reaching the goals most women have.
*I'm not fixing my typo, because it's hilarious. I also prefer "boy weight exercises".
Do what works for you. That means your life, as well as your body.
There's a lot of evangelizing here--"I was lost, now I'm found, this worked for me and therefore it will work for you"--and orthorexia here. Take what works for you. Leave the rest. Your journey is your own.
If you prefer machines there is really no reason that TNROLFW plan cant functionally be converted to machines. You will still get the basics of the plan and get used to lifting heavier weights.
You will work slightly different muscles and yes, less of the tiny muscles, but lets face it, the big muscles are the ones that burn the calories. As you get more confident you can move into free weights for some or all of the exercises.
If you do have a choice at your gym between fixed position machines and cable machines you might want to try cable. OR not
anyway for example on the intro workout in new rules-
Squats - you can do holding dumbbells rather than a bar, or smith machine (semi-free) or you can substitute leg press
Pushups....well, those kind of are - but you can do incline or knee or even use the chest press or bench press machine if you want a machine
Seated row...there is a machine version....
Step ups...ok that is just stepping up on a bench
Prone jacknife - just do reverse crunches - except maybe do more since jacknifes are harder
Deadlift - if you are using machines and did leg press for squats I'd probably do hamstring curl for deadlifts to fill in the gaps
Shoulder press - usually there is a machine for that - soemtimes called overhead press
Wide grip lat pulldown - thats a machine move or if you have a weight assist pull up machine you can do that
Lunge- ok lunges are lunges
Swiss ball crunch, do regular crunch
Never be afraid to take a program and convert it to meet your needs. Learn the muscles worked and you will be able to swap in near eqivalent whenever you want
Do what works for you. That means your life, as well as your body.
There's a lot of evangelizing here--"I was lost, now I'm found, this worked for me and therefore it will work for you"--and orthorexia here. Take what works for you. Leave the rest. Your journey is your own.
I agree with this. I feel like, especially in the beginning, using the machines can be a good start. It's a great way to begin resistance training, and you get a feel for how much weight, overall, you can handle.
However, eventually, you might consider going to free weights because, as mentioned, they do help the small muscle groups that are neglected by the machines.
In the long run, do what you feel most comfortable with. I like the machines because I'm not really sue what to do with the free weights, but once I need to focus more on the smaller, less focused muscle groups, I will probably switch to free weights.
lifting heavy with machines at the gym?
