Where do the other people in the gym get their routines ?

[Big Good Wolf]

I still think of myself as a beginner and I'm still picking up tips from wherever I can, but there are certain principles that seem to be common amongst the all "proper" weightlifters I see giving advice on the internet.

Full depth squats
Heavy singles
Periodisation.
Proper technique.
Etc.

So where do all the people I see doing quarter squats, bicep curls with a hip thrust, shrugs with 50% bodyweight in the squat rack, etc. get their routines from ?
Is there a website or magazine somewhere that recommends that sort of stuff ?
Periodisation and keeping a log are common themes in almost everything I read, but I have only seen about three other people reading from, or writing in, a notebook.

I know I'm doing it right, or at least trying to, but it does make me wonder when everyone else in the gym is doing it differently.

[JP]

i dont believe in periodisation, but thats a side issue

Also, you would never see me consult a notebook in the gym! I see that quite rarely to be honest, mostly powerlifters.

I think most gym users get their routines from the gym mythology, word of mouth which is like a chinese whisper and gets mangled in the process.

And sometimes someone walks in who has read the latest routine from Flex, or online and tries to do some of it.

Some ideas are good, like squatting, but then with the lack of proper examples and advice it turns into quarter squat or something.

Very rarely you see an individual just walking to the strongest fucker in the gym and ask for advice. I have had that happen to me in sugden gym (shit gym) few times, respect to those guys.

[Talyn]

So where do all the people I see doing quarter squats, bicep curls with a hip thrust, shrugs with 50% bodyweight in the squat rack, etc. get their routines from ?

Men's health and other commercial 'fitness' magazines.

Is there a website or magazine somewhere that recommends that sort of stuff ?

Keeping a notebook requires willpower. TBH the best advice I can give you is to have a look at some of the routines some of the others here on VF use, and ask them questions about it. That's what I do.

I know I'm doing it right, or at least trying to, but it does make me wonder when everyone else in the gym is doing it differently.

Because most people who train at the gym are doing the wrong thing Clueless personal trainers make this worse.

[FAQ]

routines, routines and more routines

[sosso]

Also, you would never see me consult a notebook in the gym! I see that quite rarely to be honest, mostly powerlifters.

I've kept a notebook from when I started up until now..onto my second one now. It works for me since I have been doing routines that have weekly progression. It just helps me remember where I'm at and I can easily see my progress.

I think most gym users get their routines from the gym mythology, word of mouth which is like a chinese whisper and gets mangled in the process.

A lot of guys I see in the gym seem to just do the same exercises, one after the other. They'll work out in pairs or groups of 3-4 and take turns. I often overhear them saying things like "so what are we doing today?" It's like they turn up with no plan and just do whatever. Some of them are big guys though, so I guess it works for them, but it's not something I'd do. I just like being organised and knowing exactly what I'm going to do on a particular day.

Very rarely you see an individual just walking to the strongest fucker in the gym and ask for advice. I have had that happen to me in sugden gym (shit gym) few times, respect to those guys.

I'm not the strongest guy in the gym (yet) but I've had a few people talk to me about squatting and deadlifting, asking how long it took me to lift the weights I lift and stuff like that. I got one guy into Starting Strength & he's actually one of the only guys I've seen squatting properly

[JP]

I often overhear them saying things like "so what are we doing today?" It's like they turn up with no plan and just do whatever. Some of them are big guys though, so I guess it works for them, but it's not something I'd do. I just like being organised and knowing exactly what I'm going to do on a particular day.

thats me sometimes

i only have the main lift decided on the day and rest is pretty easy and go by the feel.

if shoulder is sore, dont press, if legs are done, dont squat, or at least all that heavy.

feel good, go heavy, feel shit, dont.

fuck my routine is complex!

[Andrewc]

if shoulder is sore, dont press, if legs are done, dont squat, or at least all that heavy.

feel good, go heavy, feel shit, dont.

Completely off topic...

I can picture you saying this with complete seriousness just like when asking you how you like your felafels; "It's just like asking how you like your water, they're (felafels) both essential to life".



... Back on topic.

I get my routine from my coach. I'm starting to add little things here and there where I want to pick up on my weaknesses, but I get this information from other lifters.

[Fruitbat]

when i used to powerlift seriously in the good old days I used to get my routine from my own making which I aired on various forums for feedback, then from JP who took over as my coach, and then from the Welsh women's coach

before my powerlifting days I just did the routine that my training partner did and that was mostly developed from the chinese whisper kind of thing I think!

nowadays I try to hit all the major muscle groups, mix up pressing and pulling exercises and keep training regular as in one free weights session a week Really enjoy it though

[Big Good Wolf]

I think a couple of people have misunderstood the question. I wasn't asking where people on here get their routines, I meant where do the people I see doing it wrong get their routines ?
Everything I have ever read on squats says go full depth, yet almost everyone else I see in the shiny gym goes half depth. Why do they think that is the right way to do it ?

Routines and notebooks. If I'm following a routine I need to have it written down with me. If I'm keeping a log, I need to write it down at the time to type up later.

Talking to other people. I guess this depends on the gym. At Whey Consortium there was a good atmosphere and a feeling of shared experience, at the shiny gym it's more like being in the gents where nobody would ever strike up a conversation with the guy at the next urinal.

[JP]

mate, you read about better routines than 99% of the gym users You read better web sites, forums, and articles.

fact!

[ultra_whippet]

Everything I have ever read on squats says go full depth, yet almost everyone else I see in the shiny gym goes half depth. Why do they think that is the right way to do it ?

Ignorance and ego (they'd need to use lighter weights to do it properly) Or perhaps they got told to do it that way by their mate, and he knows everything, 'cos he's been training for like, 5 years.....

Interesting point about asking the big/strong guys for advice - I'm not sure this always works though - I've seen plenty of guys who are just genetic freaks and get big even with a shit training routine.... but in any case guys are far less likely to ask for advice than women are.

[JP]

Interesting point about asking the big/strong guys for advice - I'm not sure this always works though - I've seen plenty of guys who are just genetic freaks and get big even with a shit training routine.... but in any case guys are far less likely to ask for advice than women are.

true - i would for instance much rather get advice and pointers from you than many of the meatheads at the average gym

[draco880]

A lot of the fitness industry is devoted to lying to people, so it's not surprising that people get crap routines. Further, a lot of people make up their own stuff. Arms are too little? Do bicep curls, I guess. That other guy looked good doing the bench, maybe I'll do the bench machine for a while. I heard squats are bad for your knees so I'll just go halfway.

I'll admit to some schadenfreude looking at people who seemed strong when I started lifting again, and are still using the same weights. I used to try to nudge people in the right direction, but most people would rather be stagnant than admit they were wrong, and now I only intervene if someone is going to hurt themselves.

[vegan hal]

i'm still pretty new to this stuff. i work out at home. was making it up until last August when I found the stronglift 5x5 program. so i bought some better used barbell equipment and a rack and got going. then found THIS place and am ever refining and learning from YOU. i love this place.

as for a notebook. I have a simple worksheet that i fill out my #s because if I didn;t i'd NEVER remember what I did. Heck when I'm doing a 5x5, i check off each set because i've been known to forget which set I'm on. haha. then usually at the week end, I enter it into my log. it really helps me keep track.

[E-P]

Yes the "big strong guys" don't always know the things best. I have noticed this as when I first started and listened to them, well yes, I got injured.

I got my routines by just going to the gym and using machines first and seeing what other people do. Then I picked things from the other people and found more info from the Internet for muscels/parts of body I didn't really know how to train.

The gym I go at the moment is very interesting. It is kind of a freak show of people who have trained with very odd programs for several years, eg. only upper body and NEVER EVER legs and only chest and NEVER EVER upper back.