Free Weights or Machines?

[Mey]

Is it true that machines are really pointless if you want to build muscle?

How hard is it to learn to use Free-weights?

What free weight techniques are "best"?

cheers..

 

[Imgormiel]

Some machines are ok for toning muscles. It's free weights that are the win tho. Techniques? Go to your local gym and an instructor usually helps you, it's a health and safety issue, they have to do it for nothing

 

[Mey]

I am a member of the university Gym they are a bunch of tards, will make sure I ask on monday though.

What i'm looking to improve really is upper body strength, normally I'd just go the climbing wall and do a few pull-ups/hangs during a session but figure i might aswell focus on it whilst i go the gym too!

 

[Imgormiel]

Umm, they still have to do it, else they aint insured and it will have to close until they got someone on hand to show you what to do or at least have diagrams on the walls of the gym to read to show you what you need to do to avoid an accident. Other tip, when pushing it a bit, always have a friend to 'spot' you which means to grab hold of the weights etc so you avoid a nasty accident. And don't push yourself too hard. Muscle tears really are the suck and hurt like hell for 2 weeks +

 

[Mey]

Umm, they still have to do it, else they aint insured and it will have to close until they got someone on hand to show you what to do or at least have diagrams on the walls of the gym to read to show you what you need to do to avoid an accident. Other tip, when pushing it a bit, always have a friend to 'spot' you which means to grab hold of the weights etc so you avoid a nasty accident. And don't push yourself too hard. Muscle tears really are the suck and hurt like hell for 2 weeks +

Awesome

I'll be squating like a dog with the shits in no time!

 

[Imgormiel]

Awesome

I'll be squating like a dog with the shits in no time!

Oh yea, building muscle. There's some creatine drinks out there too that help. No they aint steriods, but with the right diet and a few months of training you will get the results faster.

Btw, incase you didn't know. Building muscle actually does require muscle tear so that the muscle repairs itself to a new build. But like I said, there are muscle tears and there are muscle tears, the last post refered to overdoing it and being over-zealous and generally wanting to cause yourself real harm.

 

[Mikah75]

I didn't think it necessary to use creatine when starting, you gain to much on noobie gains. and yes free weights are much better, you need to get the balance, core training or something some people call it. Don't use those shitty chest presses where you sit on a chair like thing and push in front. Same, you'll find many gym's have the bench press barbell set up on the smith rack or thats how people use it, which because you dont have the freeness uses muscles that you shouldnt be using (shoulders) so not doing the exercise properly you dont get the gains. Others will jump in when they wake up like vlad who are much better at this than me..

But do things like curls, bench press, and chin up bar is pretty good for what you're looking for. You have to eat the right stuff to get all the gains also, plenty of protein for repair as Imgoriel said.

 

[Lamp]

Free weights & using your own body weight (eg push ups, chin ups) are far better than those machines

Get some proper instruction and get into it gently.

 

[Vladamir]

Umm, they still have to do it, else they aint insured and it will have to close until they got someone on hand to show you what to do or at least have diagrams on the walls of the gym to read to show you what you need to do to avoid an accident. Other tip, when pushing it a bit, always have a friend to 'spot' you which means to grab hold of the weights etc so you avoid a nasty accident. And don't push yourself too hard. Muscle tears really are the suck and hurt like hell for 2 weeks +

Pushing yourself hard is what you need to do to make the muscle tear and grow

Machines are secondary to free weights but have their place, some machines are great, some are pants.

 

[Raven]

depends if you want strength or muscle then

 

[Vladamir]

Still need to push yourself hard Raven

 

[Raven]

ofc you do, but tearing muscle is utterly pointless, unless you are doing it purely to look strong rather than to actually be strong.

 

[Vladamir]

Tearing the muscle is what provides the stimulus to grow, but on a very small level (i.e at fibre/cellular level)

Strength/Size training is only really dictated by the rep range and intensity you use - use of exercises will be predominantly the same.

 

[Imgormiel]

I didn't think it necessary to use creatine when starting, you gain to much on noobie gains. and yes free weights are much better, you need to get the balance, core training or something some people call it. Don't use those shitty chest presses where you sit on a chair like thing and push in front. Same, you'll find many gym's have the bench press barbell set up on the smith rack or thats how people use it, which because you dont have the freeness uses muscles that you shouldnt be using (shoulders) so not doing the exercise properly you dont get the gains. Others will jump in when they wake up like vlad who are much better at this than me..

But do things like curls, bench press, and chin up bar is pretty good for what you're looking for. You have to eat the right stuff to get all the gains also, plenty of protein for repair as Imgoriel said.

I agree, first few weeks is really just breaking yourself in

 

[Imgormiel]

Pushing yourself hard is what you need to do to make the muscle tear and grow

Machines are secondary to free weights but have their place, some machines are great, some are pants.

I didn't say anything about not working hard. I assumed Mey had some common sense and that was what I was erring on rather than just being gung ho and saying go for it and break a leg while you are it

 

[tris-]

raven, you can look strong as well as be strong.

equally you can look small and be strong as fuck.

its not the way you look that dictates how strong you are.

 

[Raven]

Yes i know but how many of the people who do worlds strongest man etc actually look strong (as in the toned/torn muscle stereotype)

 

[tris-]

most of em just look like fat ***** to me. but something else to keep in mind is most muscled up people you see who are like he-man are probably on steroids too.

 

[Imgormiel]

most of em just look like fat ***** to me. but something else to keep in mind is most muscled up people you see who are like he-man are probably on steroids too.

and small/no testicles PorKnuTz nemesis

 

[Gorbachioo]

I've always prefered machines. Lesser risk of injury and its generally just less of a hassle.