Working out alone?
 

Hi all, I've posted here earlier and got some great advice on beginning strength training. Now I'm hoping for a little more advice. I've been working out for a while and would like to expand from machines to using more free weights since they are suppose to be more efficient from what I have read. Now, I know free weights can be a lot more dangerous than using machines and I know having a spotter standing by in case you fail can help prevent serious injury. But, I workout alone and was wondering what I should be doing to expand into free weights if I am not using a spotter. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Use dumb bells. That's what I did ever since I started working out alone. Yes, you can still hurt yourself, but at least you can drop them on to the ground if bad gets to bad.

With the bar, if you drop it, say hello to broken ribs.

Bump to that.
I workout alone most of the time, the only times you need a spotter is with squats (which you can do in a cage) and bench presses (which can be done with dumbells).
Just use common sense when working out alone, don't try to go for personal best lifts, and make sure that the weights your moving around your capable of controlling. Nothing makes you look more of an idiot than having a dumbell fly backwards and nearly tear your arm off when doing incline presses (speaking from experience there...).

And make sure you are using good form. A few pointers:

Move slow.
Think about the motion the machine had you do.
Add only one or two movements per week.
Watch the guys or gals that seems to know what they are doing and ask questions.
Work out at the same times so you run into these same people.
Ask them why they do something a certain way.
Read a few magazines and study what is going on.
Find a personal trainer and take a few lessons.

Amen to that. If possible, also use a mirror to keep an eye on your form. And if you wanna go for that last rep that you think you can get out, go extra slow on the downward movement. It should let you know whether you'll be able to get it back up again :thumbsup:

I agree with the dumb bells suggestion. I do the same. I also recommend keeping within your known limits. Don't go for a max lift on your own - save that for a machine or for when you do have a spotter.

I work out alone all of the time. I just like using the headphones & going into my own world.

Just use common sense. If you are going to hit heavy weights, ask someone for a spot. Most times, people are more than happy to help out.

I also agree with the dumbell approach. I also like it b/c it gives more range of motion for the exercises. The down side of that is that you really ave to watch your form. Whenever possible, use a mirror to watch your form.

Personally, i've noticed that when I do bench presses with dumb bells, they are much more effective at working my chest than those with the bar. When I raise the weights up, I can really feel it in my chest with dumb bells, not so much with bar.

Yeah, form is important. Oh, I forgot to mention. You mentioned moving from machines to free weights. Whatever you did on the machine, keep in mind you will do A LOT less with free weights for the first few times. This is because your muscles aren't used to having to stabilize the weight.

Hi again all. Thanks for the helpful advice. Yes, I'm aware machines exaggerate your strength and I plan on using a lot lighter weights to start out with. I also plan on going slow and steady to make sure I'm using the correct form. I'm pretty much a newbie so I've been reading up at bodybuilding.com and watching some of the videos they have to see how to perform certain exercises. I'm heading to the gym tomorrow so I will let you know how it goes. Thanks for all the help!

Aside from a few isolated session I've never worked out with a partner and I refuse to use machines. They're less efficient and they don't build stabilizers which results in a lot of power but no form or control. Here's what I do.

Stretch. You need to make sure your body's up to the task and getting the muscles warm and limber before you start is essential. Stretch before and after your workout and also do some light cardio on a treadmill or elliptical prior to your strength training to get your blood pumping to all the muscles in your body. This will ensure that you're up to the rigors you'll be putting yourself through during the workout and will prevent painful and dangerous tears or muscle strains.

Every gym I've ever worked out in has a huge mirror near the weight benches. Use it.

Go slowly. When I do my reps I count lowly in my head '1-2-3 up' and then '1-2-3 down' to pace myself, breathing out on the lift and in on the lower.

Use the full range of motion afforded you by freeweights, this is one of their biggest advantages. For this benefit (as well as the added safety) use dumbells on every exercise, including presses and curls.

Skip a workout if you're sore or tired and stop immediately at any sharp pains. You're more susceptible to tears and strains if you havn't gotten a full night's rest or if the muscles are already sore (indicating they've already been overworked). Dull ache is a good thing but a sharp pain is a warning sign and bad things happen when you ignore it. Better to lose one day of working out than be stuck in several long and painful months rehabilitating.

Be sensible about how much you lift. Nobody expects you to be the strongest guy in the gym and you shouldn't either. I started out pressing 20 lbs, but you may even need to go less. I knew a guy who started by just using the bars and didn't add weight to them until about two months in. The whole point of being there is to improve your health and fitness, not to show off.

And finally, never neglect good cardio. As you build more muscle mass your body requires more oxygen. That puts an extra strain on the heart and you need to make sure yours is strong enough to handle it. Killer pecs do you no good at all after a fatal heart attack.

I'm not trying to discourage you here, you'll likely find that free weights are what you've been looking for. It's a more intense workout and provides a much higher benefit, but there are risks and you need to know them and control them is all.

I use dumbbells for every free weight exercise except bench and shoulder press. I do like to "go for it" with heavy bars on both exercises. Fortunately, the bench press benches at the gym have racks that include safety arms you can set at various heights to "catch" the bar for you should you not be to loft it again. I do my shoulder presses standing in a squat cag with a similar type of safety apparatus, for the same reason. In a well-equipped gym, you should be able to safety accomplish most heavy free-weight exercises without a partner. The key word is "well-equipped:" many gyms tout themselves as well-equipped because they have many machines, but do not have the better sort of bars, racks, and safety equipment needed to make solo free weight workouts both practical and safe for the person who wants to go heavy.

Some other thoughts: although I'm no master, I've been lifting for over 20 years -- I'm almost 50 now, and I'm lifting heavy. The only reason I can still do it is because I protected my joints. As you get older, 35+, joint injuries become harder to avoid and most people drop out of weight training. What helped me was an early injury from overtraining that helped me train my ways. After fooling around for years and listening to different people, this is what I came up with:

1. On pressing exercises of any kind -- bench, shoulder, leg -- don't go to full contraction with heavy weights. Stop the bar three inches above of your chest, a couple of inches above your shoulder; on squats, don't bend your legs the full 45 degrees. Going "all the way down" and then pressing up explosively to get the damn thing back up in the air puts a great deal of mechanical strain on the joints. Eventually, it'll catch up with you.

2. Do a slow negative movement. I do a six-second negative. It reduces the amount of weight I can use, but it seems to build strength pretty well -- better than heavier weights with a fast negative.

I'm not exactly lean anymore, but I can still bench 245 with a six-second negative movement, for seven reps. Yes, I'm stopping three inches short of my chest, but the long, slow negative more than makes up for it, and my joints continue injury-free. There are only 4-5 guys my age or older at the gym who do that kind of weight, and they're doing slow negs, partial reps, or both; or they're big guys who were born with super-heavy-duty frames.

Ah well something came up and I wasn't able to make it to the gym today :( I guess that's not such a bad thing though since I ended up working on a new split. I was hoping for a little input into this routine...too little? too much?...etc and I'll end up aiming for Monday to head back into the gym.

Monday: chest, triceps, abs

Dumbbell Bench Press
Dumbbell Flyes
Decline Dumbbell Bench Press
Triceps Pushdown - Rope Attachment
Kneeling Cable Crunch
Knee Raises

--------------------------------------------

Wednesday: biceps, forearms, back

Hammer Curls
Reverse Cable Curl
Wide-Grip Lat Pulldown
One-Arm Dumbbell Row
Lower Back Extensions

--------------------------------------------

Friday: legs, shoulders, traps

Dumbbell Lunges
Leg Press
Standing Palms-In Dumbbell Press
Upright Cable Row

Thanks for all the great advice!

bump to the dumbells with good form suggestions. and if you cannot "borrow" a fellow lifter for an occasional spot or if the rest of the people in the weight room are aloof and unhelpful--change gyms.

One thing you can do if you really want to work up some perspiration is to combine pusk/push excercises. For example. mix back and triceps or chest and biceps. A set of pull up and then a set of closed grip presses. Alternate with minimal rest in between and you'll really get thing smoking and also build endurance at the same time.

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Amen to that!!

One move I find interesting is DB flyes while lying on the floor.

(Using almost straight arms)

This is probably not a good standard 'builder' exercise... there's little force at the max contraction part of the movement. However, I find that I can practice control at the approximate point that I start to get worried on a bench. eg some of my reps are done as partial reps with arms wide out.

I've injured my RH shoulder before, so I like this one.

Also - if you do declines, dumbells are much safer.

You don't want to get caught by yourself on a decline bench, with a barbell. As somebody implied though, it helps to be strict and know your limits.

I find that if I aim to do all my reps with good form and slow speed (and relatively high reps 8-15), then I can get out of trouble on the last one by cheating a little... if it becomes necessary.

A momentum/jerking lifter wouldn't have that option. You can still do more power oriented sets on other days..

I just thought of another tip. If you do use a bar, don't put on the clips/collars that hold the plates. You can always dump the plates if you run into trouble. One drawback is that all eyes will be on you with the noise. The benefit is that you won't crush yourself!!