Are heavy weights generally recommended?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those that say “lift heavy,” what would a heavy bicep workout weight be.

For me 20s

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Middle-aged woman here – I work out typically six days a week, Including varying forms of vigorous aerobics, HIIT, and weight lifting…but always lighter weights with reps up to fatigue. Should I add a heavy weightlifting class?

Yes. You should be able to do unassisted pull-ups and chin-ups.

A good goal squat is your body weight (in addition to the weight of your body).

A good goal deadlift is 150% of your bodyweight.

You will be fatigued when done; fear not!

Good form is critical. A class may or may not give you that.

I would call all those “upper-limit goals” not “good” (which implies they’re easily within reach for everyone). A pull-up/chin-up is a very lofty goal for most women. I have been lifting heavy for 5 months and am still not even close to getting an unassisted chin-up/pull-up, and I am not overweight. I’m almost able to deadlift my body weight and can squat 70% of my body weight.

I love lifting, but it takes a long time to build that kind of muscle, especially at my age (late 40s), where I have to progress slowly as to not injure myself.

These goals are within reach for everyone. 5 months is not a lot of time at all, that's why you're not close. Have you ever seen someone play any sport for only 5 months and thought "wow that person is good?"

I agree 5 months isn’t long enough, but the quoted weightlifting goals are arbitrary. The important thing is to lift heavy and to keep progressing from wherever you are currently. Not to hit some target.

I don't think the quoted goals are arbitrary. I think they're a good indicator if your work out is effective. If you're lifting for a year and you're not able to do those things (provided that you are practicing), then you should probably pick a different workout routine.

[Anonymous]

Heavy weights are ones you can only do 5/6 reps of.
Ideally, you lift to failure if you want to build muscle.

It is not rocket science. If you fail on your 5th, and in a few weeks you can rep 6 you are stronger.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those that say “lift heavy,” what would a heavy bicep workout weight be.

A bicep-specific exercise is not really part of “lifting heavy.” “Lifting heavy” means compound, multi-muscle movements.

I do chins and pulls; once in a while I throw in biceps curls for variety. I can curl 25 lbs and that’s about it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those that say “lift heavy,” what would a heavy bicep workout weight be.

A bicep-specific exercise is not really part of “lifting heavy.” “Lifting heavy” means compound, multi-muscle movements.

I do chins and pulls; once in a while I throw in biceps curls for variety. I can curl 25 lbs and that’s about it.

Says who? You? That's a dumb take and totally untrue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those that say “lift heavy,” what would a heavy bicep workout weight be.

A bicep-specific exercise is not really part of “lifting heavy.” “Lifting heavy” means compound, multi-muscle movements.

I do chins and pulls; once in a while I throw in biceps curls for variety. I can curl 25 lbs and that’s about it.

Says who? You? That's a dumb take and totally untrue.

Me and Olympic and powerlifters, but you do you. That's what makes the world go around.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those that say “lift heavy,” what would a heavy bicep workout weight be.

There is no one size all “heavy weight.” When I first started working out, 8 lb curls were heavy. I could do 6-7 max before my form would compromise and I’d have to stop. Now I can do 20 lbs easily, 25 lbs with some effort, and maybe 1-3 total reps of 30. Lift heavy means push yourself to constantly be lifting heavier weight for more reps. That’s how you know you’ve built strength.

[Anonymous]

I started lifting heavy in late Jan. I'm 58 and it's changed my body composition and posture for the better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those that say “lift heavy,” what would a heavy bicep workout weight be.

There is no one size all “heavy weight.” When I first started working out, 8 lb curls were heavy. I could do 6-7 max before my form would compromise and I’d have to stop. Now I can do 20 lbs easily, 25 lbs with some effort, and maybe 1-3 total reps of 30. Lift heavy means push yourself to constantly be lifting heavier weight for more reps. That’s how you know you’ve built strength.

How long did it take to get from 8lbs to 25lbs?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I started lifting heavy in late Jan. I'm 58 and it's changed my body composition and posture for the better.

In 6 weeks you've changed your body composition?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those that say “lift heavy,” what would a heavy bicep workout weight be.

A bicep-specific exercise is not really part of “lifting heavy.” “Lifting heavy” means compound, multi-muscle movements.

I do chins and pulls; once in a while I throw in biceps curls for variety. I can curl 25 lbs and that’s about it.

Says who? You? That's a dumb take and totally untrue.

Me and Olympic and powerlifters, but you do you. That's what makes the world go around.

I train in a powerlifting style, though I do not compete, and I still consider heavy isolation movements “lifting heavy”. How many muscles are involved is irrelevant. The point is that you are doing something challenging for that specific muscle or movement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those that say “lift heavy,” what would a heavy bicep workout weight be.

A bicep-specific exercise is not really part of “lifting heavy.” “Lifting heavy” means compound, multi-muscle movements.

I do chins and pulls; once in a while I throw in biceps curls for variety. I can curl 25 lbs and that’s about it.

Says who? You? That's a dumb take and totally untrue.

Me and Olympic and powerlifters, but you do you. That's what makes the world go around.

I train in a powerlifting style, though I do not compete, and I still consider heavy isolation movements “lifting heavy”. How many muscles are involved is irrelevant. The point is that you are doing something challenging for that specific muscle or movement.

Other than biceps curls, what are they and how much weight do you use when doing them?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those that say “lift heavy,” what would a heavy bicep workout weight be.

A bicep-specific exercise is not really part of “lifting heavy.” “Lifting heavy” means compound, multi-muscle movements.

I do chins and pulls; once in a while I throw in biceps curls for variety. I can curl 25 lbs and that’s about it.

Says who? You? That's a dumb take and totally untrue.

Me and Olympic and powerlifters, but you do you. That's what makes the world go around.

I train in a powerlifting style, though I do not compete, and I still consider heavy isolation movements “lifting heavy”. How many muscles are involved is irrelevant. The point is that you are doing something challenging for that specific muscle or movement.

Other than biceps curls, what are they and how much weight do you use when doing them?

Isolations are any movements that only work one muscle, so for example tricep extensions, leg extensions (for quads), leg curls (hamstrings); chest flies, rear delt flies etc. The weight really depends on the muscle and how many reps I am targeting. My reps are usually between 8 and 12 on isolation movements and I tend to go to failure. On free weight compounds (squats, bench, deadlifts) I rarely do more than 5 reps and usually leave 1-3 reps in the tank. If I can exceed the number of reps I target at a specific weight, I add weight. Heavy is relative to your strength and you should not compare yourself to others, just make sure you are pushing yourself and improving over time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those that say “lift heavy,” what would a heavy bicep workout weight be.

There is no one size all “heavy weight.” When I first started working out, 8 lb curls were heavy. I could do 6-7 max before my form would compromise and I’d have to stop. Now I can do 20 lbs easily, 25 lbs with some effort, and maybe 1-3 total reps of 30. Lift heavy means push yourself to constantly be lifting heavier weight for more reps. That’s how you know you’ve built strength.

How long did it take to get from 8lbs to 25lbs?

Years. Muscle growth is a slow process.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No. You need full range of motion with lighter weights.

This will do absolutely nothing for you. Literally nothing.