Jared is me, I am Jared
July 7, 2014
2:56 am
So I recently started a free-weights class at the gym and am amazed at how easily little baby plates kick my ass around. Rows aren’t what do me in but they were easier to draw in fewer panels so hey, rows it is.
But hey, like they say, sucking at something is the first step to being kinda good at something.
Discussion (167) ¬
That is actually great advice. As a scrawny dude learning the gym, it’s likely the best info.
Exactly. First timers need to build up resistance first, before starting to force their limits. I know, I can’t keep up for too long. I need more exercise :(
That depends entirely on what you’re trying to do, but for any kind of weight lifting, whether it’s for strength or for size, you should always be pushing your limits. “Resistance” isn’t something that exists in lifting, that’s runner terminology. You should lift as heavy as you can, as that’s how you develop strength and muscle, lifting a small weight 100 times will do literally zero for you.
If you’re talking about gymnastics or running though, endurance is indeed what you should be training, as that’s your key strength in the sport.
If you want a lean look you do more reps with less weight. I’d say it’s better to start off small (or even no weights) and make sure your technique is right then move up. Lifting anything too heavy and pushing yourself too far can seriously hurt your body. Rhabdomyolysis is not your friend.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eric-robertson/crossfit-rhabdomyolysis_b_3977598.html
Rhabdomyolsis, which I talked about in this comment section, is caused by excess stress caused by training muscles groups in an illogical sequence, amongst others. Like what crossfit does.
Heavy weights done right, like compound lifts, have never been related to rhabdomyolsis. And crossfit is not an example, if you think it is. Its a heavily criticized program, that no powerlifter or olympic lifter uses or thrusts. And the way you train has absolutely nothing to do with how lean you look. That’s purely bodyfat, the muscle will be there if you have it, all that covers it is fat. And to lose that, nutrition is more important than lifting.
This man speaks the truth.
http://i.imgur.com/hlxjgwy.gif
with your current arc, its making me want to seriously try and get in shape again,so i can go around and be as awesome as commander badass
Me too. And OMG THE COMMANDER IS SO HOT. The glutes in panel 4. WOOF.
4th panel makes me fart bricks O_O;;
That sounds unpleasant ._. you might wanna see a doctor about that.
I was a body builder in high school. Had it as a class, because I’m too antisocial to play football. Got pretty impressed with my self. 6 years later, haven’t been in a gym since the last day of my senior year. went to my sister’s body building gym, and tried what I used to work out with. Made me feel like a complete, nooby idiot. I started scaling it back, and was thoroughly disappointed and disgusted with how much I’ve slipped.
Story of my life. Weight lifter in high school, wanted to keep up with it but real life and collage hit and now, 10 years later still not over the disgust of how much I slipped.
Y’all need to go back to the last page. ;)
Add some Time Travel while you’re at it: imagine your old self telling your current self exactly that.
(“Don’t worry about what I’m doing, worry about what YOU’RE doing…”)
^
That needs to be on another damn T-shirt! :D
I see a lot of potential in this. Beginner’s guide to being fit branded with MGDMT might bring you more readers and possibly some income from gym-partner. It’s also easier to virally spread through places where skinny people tend to gather, like imageboards.
I would appreciate this, personally. I’m not skinny, by any stretch of the imagination, but I am a tad on the feeble side.
Although I’m not exactly one to go to the gym, I would read that guide. Also, it would be funny if they showed up conspicuously at various CrossFit locations. (I have heard things of CrossFit, none of them good.)
Pretty sure this is not going to turn into a weight training comic/guide guys.
Doesn’t make it any less amusing to imagine. :)
I would absolutely follow a guide illustrated to be Commander Badass instructing me.
I sincerely approve of this – a comic about real stuff, without the frills that others are so likely to add.
Correct form first, strength second, ego somewhere way after those.
Also, it helps to be a bit masochistic.
Unless you help other people lift, in which case you’re a sadist.
So are you just putting together a self help book in comic form at this point?
… Cause I would totally buy that.
If you want a self-help book for basic weightlifting guidance, you can probably do no better than to find a copy of Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe. Ignore the dieting advice, it’s not his area of expertise, but he goes through the physics and correct form for basic exercises (squats, deadlifts, bench press, etc) in great detail.
Commander’s spot on about attitude in the gym though.
Yeah, that book is hilarious. I mean, it is great! I use it! Changed my life when it comes to exercise. Rippetoe is… philosophically super balls into barbells. If anybody can make it through the preface without laughing their butt off, they’re stronger than I am. And you’re right, the dieting advice is also funny, boils down to, “Drink a gallon of milk every day on top of whatever else you’re eating. Do it, wiener.”
But yeah, great great book on lifting.
Drinking a lot of milk is important; strong muscles can have detrimental effects when attached to weak bones. I’ve seen arm wrestling contests that end with broken bones…
If you don’t much like milk, you could supplement (not replace!) with calcium & D12 tablets. Remember that the main reason milk is fortified with D12 is because it helps your body metabolize the calcium better.
I just might look into that.
I whole-heartedly second this. My wife and I both began using Starting Strength. She’s doing her first olympic meet this month, and I have had several very flattering compliments about the results, in addition to being able to move much heavier things around.
Oh yeah, and the milk thing. It is not directed towards most people GOMAD (Gallon of Milk a day) is meant for the underweight. For instance, a student I taught martial arts too was 5′ 1′ and 115lbs. GOMAD was for him, not for my 200+ lb. self.
In general, I’ve read that Starting Strength is really geared toward skinny teenagers who have never lifted before. Which is not to say that other people don’t get benefit from proper form, but teenagers could process a gallon of milk a day much better than the middle-aged.
Any exercise or workout program has to be something you can do for the rest of your life (like the commander). Going to the gym for a few months or a few years is pointless. as soon as you stop you will be back to square one. Find something you want to do a couple of times a week forever. Walking, cycling, swimming, surfing, that sort of thing.
Okay, just to clarify, the Commander is actually presenting the RIGHT way to do weights, isn’t he?
Oh god yes! The commander is being the perfect teacher here, start out small, learn the form (or you WILL get injured later, or in the best case demotivated) and work up from there and never, ever compare youself to others, only to your own improvement.
The attitude is straight out perfect.
Yes, the commander is a being a great weightlifting instructor here. Start small, concentrate on what you can do and do it well, and to quote the old Stoics “I shall never be a Milo yet I do not neglect my body.”
If you’re interested in weight training the articles at NerdFitness.com (shameless plug for one of my favorite sites) are pretty good. Plus, Lego illustrations.
I wouldn’t really recommend starting a noob out working to failure, but this noob is getting one-on-one instruction from a world-class athlete. When I was learning, it was no more than five reps at a time till I could consistently crank out perfect ones. And lifting just an empty barbell until I could do that perfectly. Jared may need to use a broomstick if the Commander has him do any barbell lifts.
Too many reps for establishing a base (since it took him a whole minute). The high rep stuff causes more stress, has a higher injury rate, and won’t encourage the neurological adaptations, and you’ll be stuck only using half your muscle power. He’s dead on on focusing on form and starting with light weights (for the number of reps done) though.
It didn’t necessarily say that he did rows for the full minute. He could have done two sets with a short break.
Or it could have taken him a minute to do 4 lifts. He’s kind of a scrawny dude.
In principle, yes. But… I can honestly say I’ve never seen someone do *double* standing barbell rows. I honestly don’t know if it would be proper form or not. I would suggest doing deadlifts instead for this, frankly.
Core has a point too, high rep is only good for hyperthropy, which you don’t want for a beginner, you want to build strength, which is better built with higher wait and lower weight. If you’re serious about beginning lifting, pick up Starting Strength by Mark rippletoe, it’s a good starter program.
Core is wrong in saying high reps are related to injury though. Higher waits are more prone to injury, if only because they are simply heavy. There’s about a dozen bench press related deaths in the US alone per year, for instance.
And he’s also wrong about starting with “low” weight. You should start with whatever weight makes you start buckling at 5 reps.
Source: lifting for 9 years and being a certified gym coach.
Borislav… wait, what? There’s two types of hypertrophy. One is endurance but also strength related and comes from more reps, but not more than, say, 12 or so. The other is explosive strength related and comes from higher weight lower rep — not more than maybe 5 or 6 reps. Both are hypertrophy, both lead to muscle mass gains and greater overall strength.
I also think it’s inaccurate to say that there’s a greater risk of injury lifting at higher weights. Traditional free weight powerlifting is done with total focus on form, where a rep doesn’t count unless it’s essentially “perfect.” This bench press death thing? Saying something like that scares people away from lifting. Those deaths happen because of massive weight and usually a suicide grip. No one should go for a 1RM unspotted. But if you can do five reps with a weight with a normal grip in a normal gym setting, you’re not going to have it crush you.
I lift with the bar uncollared so if I really can’t get it up and have to bail, I can dump the plates. It’s loud, but it beats injury. There’s also the roll of shame.
The majority of gym injuries are the usual sports injuries and come from things like poor form, hyperextension at the wrong time, repetitive motion or people trying to do things too fast/too soon/the wrong way.
And frankly, injury is a constant risk of all sports activity and we do what we can to mitigate it but it happens, and then we rest and heal. It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do stuff. I’ve had five whiplashes playing hockey. Five. I still get on the ice.
I think you should read all of my replies in this comment section, because I addressed pretty much every point you’re making there. Just spread out.
Huh, so you did. Sorry about that.
Dagnabbit, I hate gyms.
(fitness gyms dat is, not gymnastics gymnasiums, they’re cool)
I just feel that when I’m burning/strengthening I HAVE to be chopping, building, producing, rearranging or “working” at something outside myself … otherwise it’s like smooching a mannequin.
Of course gyms are practical for modern city living, so each to their own …
(the idea of a buff Jared is rather scary)
… or simply playing.
Also dynamic tension is great, y’know – flexes while you’re answering the phone, cleaning a coffee mug and all that.
Yeah I hear you there. Something outside myself. Like martial arts, or dancing, or later on, circus arts. I never could work out gym style unless I had a specific target activity I was trying to work up for.
when i actually ended up needing to work out and manage reps (rehabilition, motorbike accident, and workplace RSI, and falling from stilts. Not all on the same day…) I found it hard to ‘get to’ doing sets.
So I would make like the Karate Kid, and find exercises in the activities I do anyway. Stacking shelves? squeezing the shoulderblades with every lift. Pushing a broom? Keeping the elbows in position to match the rehab exercise. Cooking dinner? holding a halfsquat in front of the stove.
worked really well for me.
I recently started doing a program (DDP Yoga) that’s based entirely around dynamic tension, and I gotta say, that technique is a lot more effective than I thought it would be. Combining it and the more strength building techniques (slow-burn pushups, for instance) with the balance and flexibility focused parts has felt really good and been reducing a lot of the back and ankle problems I’d been starting to get. That and changing my diet, of course!
Dynamic tension has never been proven to work under test. Charles Atlas himself eventually admitted he simply lifted weights to get into the shape he was.
It’s not useful for building muscle, unfortunately. I could explain the basic principle of muscle contraction why… but we’d be here all day. It has a place in physiotherapy though, as Truk2 mentions, because of reactivation of nerve bundles and activating muscles.
However, I really don’t see how it would work in Yoga…
Well my goal isn’t really to build muscle so much as it is to just burn fat. And yes, I do know there is a relation between practical muscle, metabolism, how the body processes fats, etc. But I really just needed something that I could reliably stick with (which I think is the most important factor of ANY workout, since if you quit, you get nothing), can do in my apartment, and didn’t have to buy any equipment for beyond a mat and a heart monitor.
As for how it would work in Yoga…well, it’s not really traditional yoga. It discards are spiritual aspects to turn it into more of a proper workout. The guy who started it (pro wrestler Diamond Dallas Page) came up with it after combining some of his physical therapy for a blown-out back with yoga techniques, then added in calisthenics (LOTS of different kinds of squats, crunches, and push-ups that target different body parts, some of which are a real mother to do reliably, but are quite satisfying when I get them down) and came up with some dynamic tension-focused techniques of his own. I can say I’ve certainly felt better since starting it (the diet change helped a LOT, naturally) and my roommate, who has been doing it with me, has found that it’s a HUGE assisting contribution to some physical therapy he’s been doing for his hip and lower back since recovering from a bike accident. There are some sample videos of how his routines work on his website.
But you’re 100% right. There’s no better way to build muscle than weights, and I would be lying if I told someone otherwise. But I think good dynamic tension techniques have a place as well, depending on what you’re trying to do.
“can do in my apartment, and didn’t have to buy any equipment for beyond a mat and a heart monitor.”
Calisthenics are indeed your best friend then.
The thing with dynamic tension is just that it doesn’t do anything for a healthy person. It’s useful for reactivating muscles and nerves, but if they’re used regularly and undamaged, you don’t really need to do that. So it would help your friend a lot, but it most likely won’t do much for you.
But if space and money are a problem, but you still want to build muscle, you can do a hell of a lot with a set of dumbbells.
Well, part of the reason I decided on a program like the one in question was because I was concerned about how well my body was going to react to a new routine after having 12-hour-a-day desk jobs, and needed something that I could start fairly small with and then ramp up as my body becomes more used to it, which is definitely something I’ve found is true. And it helps that all I need is about half-an-hour to an hour of time set aside to work out, which I know is a major contributing factor to why a lot of people don’t stick with their exercise of choice. Of course, I’m still a looong way from some of the most extreme workouts, which use things like superman pushups, forearm stands, and weird lunges I couldn’t even begin to describe in text. As for its use of dynamic tension, all I really know for sure is that my muscles do definitely feel it by the end of a routine, so something must be working. And in regards to the damaged muscles and nerves, I have seen it work wonders for people with badly damaged spines.
Anyway, back to dumbbells. I’ve certainly been considering getting a set once I’ve a) gotten my weight down first and b) gotten some more money, but I’d also have to find out what some decent dumbbell techniques are. I did lift a good bit in high school, but it’s been about 9 years since then, so my body’s forgotten a lot of it. Maybe the best approach would be to do what Coelasquid is talking about in the news post here and either attend a free weights class or see if there are any good online tutorials, preferably with videos and/or diagrams.
You can learn a lot by just googling dumbbell excercises.
You need not get your weight down, as building muscle already helps with that in and off itself. Muscle mass essentially burns more energy to keep itself up, constantly. And you’d be doing more physical exercise. Do you get DOMS? As a beginner, you should, and that’s the easiest way to tell whether something works or not.
As for online tutorials, there’s a channel on youtube by a guy called Scooby who is legitimately good at explaining excercises and even nutrition. A set of dumbbells shouldn’t run you more than 50 bucks by the by, and get ones with disks, not fixed weight ones. That way it’s cheaper to add on weight as you advance.
Hope that helps.
Oh thanks, I’ll look him up. And yeah, I figured I wouldn’t want fixed weight. Once they’d get too light, then they’re just worthless hunks of metal taking up space! I’d have to figure out what weight discs I’ll need to get to begin with, though. Unless I can find a set with a good packed-in variety, of course.
And no, I don’t know what DOMS is. Pray tell?
Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness. Basically, the pain you feel in your muscles the days after weight lifting. Don’t worry, you only suffer from that as a beginner, because you’re muscles aren’t developed yet.
Here, the wikipedia article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delayed_onset_muscle_soreness
Aaaah, that. Yeah, I was aware of that (I was taught a lot about that sort of thing when I was doing weights class in high school. The teacher always made sure to burn in the idea of finding proper alternating scheduled days for muscle groups.) I just never knew the proper term for it.
A set of stackable dumbbells was the best investment I ever made.
Takes up a lot less space, gives you a lot more, and I’ve got almost a decade of consistent lifting out of these guys, no problem. (mine was the Weider Powerblock, but there are others out there, you can shop around, find a good deal)
I also recomend finding a site with some good diagrams and just printing them, leaving them right there on the wall where you use the weights. So you don’t have to think or remember, you can just do.
I just looked those up. Still kind of WAAAY out of my current price range, but I’ll keep an eye around. Certainly once I get a new job I’ll keep a set like that on my radar. I know there are way cheaper ones, but I don’t think it’d be a smart move to get something cheap that will probably break or rust or something like that, or even just be really uncomfortable to hold, just to have to get new ones 6 months later.
That’s why I don’t go to the gym. It just seems like energy wasted. Fortunately, we do have a wood stove that we use, so I do get to chop wood.
Lots and lots of wood.
ok was jarde asking about with the commander was lifting or about the weight that he had been given
Considering Commander’s reply, I imagine Jared wanted to know the value of Commander’s weights.
It’s the little details that make me love this comic. Other comics wouldn’t consider the fact that the Commander being proper strong means he can’t use off the rack dumbbells for rows, but you did. And consistently do so. Awesome work dude.
Also, as someone who, like many other commentors, is getting back into lifting after slacking off through college and professional life, I can totally empathise with Jared. On the upside, nothing makes you feel manlier then hitting a 1000lbs of tractor tire with a huge sledgehammer for cardio. Didn’t do that shit when I was in high school.
By “consistently do so” I mean think of those little details to include in your comic. Just because I realise that might not have been so clear.
Once again, the last panel gives us a very good piece of advice courtesy of The Commander :)
I do weights too, but it always weirded me out because there seems to be no real consensus on how to do it “properly”. Some guys are in there twice a day, 6 days a week, others swear by only going every other day, some guys do the same worout routine everytime, others say you have to vary it, it drives me nuts. And dont even get me started on the nutrition aspect
I would guess that the guys that swear by going every other day are doing mostly compound exercises (DLs and squats) and are the also the ones doing the same exercises every time: squats, a press, a lift off the ground, maybe some ancillary stuff after those three. That’s what I like to do and it is totes legit I think.
The twice a day, 6 days a week guys are probably focusing on/rotating through isolation exercises for specific body parts and have a lot of stuff to do. They probably are breaking up their workouts because you tend to get some diminishing returns when you go too long at a time (because of T going down and cortisol going up at around the 60 minute mark). I think people get a lot of mileage out of this but you probably have to be pretty organized. This style obviously takes more time, but if you go that often you probably really enjoy it as a fun-time activity; nobody hassles you if you read 12 hours a week.
The only ‘proper’ way is the way that works for you
Back in high school, when we did weight lifting (very occasionally) would always pick the heaviest could lift comfortably, then use the one below it (but that was just me), 20 something years later finally got around to buying a set of free weights (the kind that come in a convenient carry case-thing), haven’t actually gotten around to taken them out and putting them together yet, but will occasionally lift the case a few times (not sure, but believe the weights are 20kgs, not sure if that is the total or the heaviest weight, plus the bars and the case it self, so minimum of around 25kgs)
In high school when I was on the wrestling team I used the school’s gym three days a week for two hours lifting weights, then two days a week doing an hour of cardio. But that was the schedule I picked so my muscles would have time to rest between workouts. I knew other team members that would do it five days a week just lifting weights and on the weekends rest.
Just like most things not required to live, working out is up to each person and must be customized for that person.
And before anyone laughs at Jared, try isometrics. First lesson, grab a small thing, around seven pounds. Not a big deal. Now, hold it out in front of you, and keep holding it out there with a straight arm. You’ll know when it starts working.
I focus almost entirerly on freeweights, not sure what routine the others are doing. I used to do leg presses too, but it was messing up my knees, so I stopped. I cant really do more than 60 minutes of working out at a time though, after that everything just shuts down.
Early in my wrestling career I got the wind knocked out of me and I never recovered during the practice session I just got so winded. So I made an issue of it to keep working on my conditioning because if that happened during a practice session no problem. Out there at a meet? Big Problem. That and I was one of the better and few heavyweights so I needed to make sure I didn’t get gassed. But we all have our individual needs to deal with.
Can’t stand these gym rats that just work out and pose in the mirror to make other people feel bad.
Oh, no. There is a consensus, but it all very much depends on what you’re aiming for. And there’s a lot of culrbro misinformation out there.
Basically, you need rest. You will always need rest. However, you have several options. You can train one day, then rest the next and so on. Or you can do a “split” that is, train by muscle groups, so you have chest day, leg day, and so on. Or you can deload. Which is where you list heavy one day, lighter the next to aid in recovery, then rest the third.
All are equally valuable, and a mere matter of preference. The only wrong thing to do is to lift everyday, and target the same muscle groups. That will cause less growth in mass and strength, and increases the chance of developing Rhabdomyolysis.
The nutrition is also easy. Just get 1g of protein per pound of lean muscle. This sounds easier than it is, as depending on your weight, you’d need to eat a lot. A boiled egg only has 5g of protein for instance, a 100g of oats, 17g of protein. Whey powder is the best option then, which is completely safe, as it is a cheese derivative. If you also want to lose weight however… then you need to really learn nutrition.
Also, never use machines. Isolation excercises will overdevelop muscles without counterbalance, creating posture issues and, in essence, leaving you0r overtrained muscle weaker than it actually is.
Aaand… I think that’s as condensed as I can make it. Ask me anything if you need more, I’ve been doing this for about a decade.
I dont give a crap about losing weight, I only care about muscle buildup. I only use machines for the chest because I cant stand lifting weights over my throad like you do in a benchpress, it freaks me out. Basically, what is the optimal strategy for building muscle on your arms and chest?
To build arms and chest…. Unfortunately for you, bench press is the most efficient way. If you don’t want to have the weight over your throat (which it shouldn’t be, the weight should touch your lower chest on the descent) then dumbbell flies, military press and wide grip push ups are the best for chest. For arms, you can do Bicep curls, but that’s pure aesthetics. Do hammer curls if you want to, they develop your forearms better as well. But the most important muscle in your arms is triceps, as you’ll use them in almost all your heavy lifts. You needn’t target them specifically if you do thing like overhead press, military press, pull ups or close grip push ups.
But if you want to target them, skull crushers and cable rows are good.
But really, never use machines. It’s a waste of time.
And if you train your chest, you HAVE to train your back as well, or you’ll develop posture problems and threaten tearing your rotator cuff. Do pull ups, deadlifts and either standing barbell rows or inclined dumbbell rows.
On the whole, the easiest thing is to just lift heavy in 5×3 sets with those excercises, eat oats for breakfast (slow release carbs and better protein content than bread) and keep up your protein intake, get rest between training days, and stay hydrated. You should be drinking about 3l/a gallon of water a day (and don’t drink Soda and shit like that, it’s absolutely terrible for you, not to mention it dehydrates you).
Thanks for the tips man, I tried out the hammer curls, and they definetly feel more than regular bicep curls. I’ll try these things out, should up my game a bit. Right now my regular excersize routine consists of bicep curls, lateral raises, sitting bicep curls, and a few others I dont know the English names of, as well as chest every other session.
General gym advice here, ask for help, you’ll need a spotter for some exercises anyway right? Don’t go to the biggest brawniest “I pick things up and put them down” type. Go for the guys that seem very much in shape but not uber-obsessed with it. Their advice won’t be insanely ridiculous and you’ll get better results from it anyway.
The over-fit have natural talent going their way and they can’t teach that to you, even if you have the same natural talent. Their workout programs are tailored to their natural advantages and will do nothing for you. That’s actually good advice period to ignore the outliers and stick to the best in the normal skill levels.
You need some more delt work I think. Military press should do it though. Arnold dumbbell press is one of the best though.
If that was your routine, I’m not surprised you lagged a bit. It’s very upper body focused and comprised of what I’d call “auxiliary” lifts.
The easiest program for a beginner is Starting Strength, I’d recommend it. And you should really do some squats, otherwise you’re gonna end up like those dudes with huge upper bodies and tiny legs. And it helps having a strong base for all your lifts.
There are like 4 lifts people use to measure strength, and which do the most for your body: Deadlifts, Overheadpress, Squats and Bench press. They’re compound lifts, and most strength training revolves around these 4 with other lifts like bicep curls and calf raises for aesthetics, as compounds don’t really develop them.
I actually used to do a lot of squats and leg presses, but it was starting to mess with my knees a bit, they werent in such great shape to start with, so I havent done any in about a year. I’ve seen people do deadlifts before, but I never realized they were htat useful, they just seemed like another eclectic excersize to me.
Deadlifts target your lower back, shoulders and forearms, with primary focus on on the lower back. They’re very important because lower back excercises are too often ignored, and there are few effective excercises for them. “The big 4” as they’re called, are the excercises that hit pretty much every muscle in your body, and best for developing strength, and are what lifters will use as a comparison between one another.
If your joints were getting messed up, you should have looked into your form more. Compound lifts can really fuck you up if you aren’t very careful about form. Film it, use a mirror, but definitely be careful about it.
For the bench press, can’t you just use dumbbells instead of a barbell? That’s what I do (granted I am certainly about as far from an expert as it gets). Does two things for me:
1, it evens out my arms (I stop if I hit failure in one arm before the other).
2, it eliminates the risk of trapping yourself under the barbell, since you can just drop the dumbbells to the sides.
You can do a dumbbell press, but it’s not as good as barbell, because you can develop an unequal chest due to your dominant hand being (normally) stronger. Not that it’s bad, it just generally preferable to do bench press, not the least because it allows you to lift heavier and thus develop more strength, and it allows for better use of leg drive.
Also, there is to factor in form. The vast majority of people do any kind of bench wrong, with the weight touching at shoulder height, and this is particularly the case with dumbbells, which threatens the rotator cuff. So it’s fine to do, but know you’ll progress slower and need to be careful about form.
Weightlifting isn’t complicated. Lift a heavy thing. Put it down. Lift it again.
Every kind of weightlifting works. Some work better for certain people or certain goals.
Now that is just not true, that’s asking for injuries. Look at the crap crossfit promotes for an example of how not to train.
It also depends what kind of results you’re looking to get for yourself. It’s not only the specific exercises you do & how you might want to vary them, but also how frequently you do them that makes the difference. What works for one person doesn’t mean it works for everybody; everybody is a unique individual & there’s no such thing as a “one size fits all” solution to any problem or question. Find what works for YOU & stick with it is the best you can do.
I’ve been told by people that, if you want to build muscle, focus on heavier weight with less number of reps. If you can do more than 12 reps with a specific weight, it’s not heavy enough. Jared shouldn’t be repeating for a whole minute minute if he wants to get bulky.
That said, if you just want to get toned, Jared’s way is right.
No, that’s the wrong way around. Higher rep ranges increase hyperthrophy. You want to develop muscle mass, you do sets of 12-16 reps. You want strength, you do sets of 5-8 reps. Either one is going to build up your muscle mass of course, but the difference is simply the density. High rep excercises simply create more massive, less dense muscle. I.e. slightly weaker muscle.
But the 12 rep thing is more or less true. You should always be struggling to do the last two reps in a set, regardless of rep range. If you’re not, up the weight.
“Toned” by the way, is a very despised term in lifting circles, as it’s very vague. To get toned by the definition of the general population, lifting actually doesn’t help. You want to eat on a cut, which means under maintenance by about 300 calories. That way you’d lose fat and become “toned”. The other way is to dehydrate yourself. It’s either that or lose weight, because gaining muscle mass has little to do with how it looks.
I feel like Jared in any exercise setting, but the moment you need me to help move something it’s like I say “SHAZAM!” and now have the strength of 5 roadies. If I could channel that into a routine, I might be okay. I was fortunate enough at one point to have a job in landscaping where we were lifting or pushing or pulling something every day. I miss those days.
Hey, absolutely that.
Except my “SHAZAM!” is “By the Power of Grayskull!”.
Very good advice. Also, this reminds me of good times…
*Flashback to two months ago, as I decided to try out FitStar and its “Seven-Minute workout” routine*
Seven minutes? Oh hey, this must be an easy nice place to start!
*Two minutes in*
Maybe I should just make peace with giving up some decades of my life away.
I agree. Impart upon us this wisdom in a manner that nerds can accept.
This is actually a solid advice comic. Not that I’m surprised at its accuracy, but it is nice to see someone who knows what they’re talking about drawing a character who realistically got to where he is, physically.
Me, I’m forty pounds overweight, but honestly, if I could find an hour or two to slip to the gym a week, I could probably stack on a little muscle somewhere.
Realistically got there? What are you talking about? They made him out of dirt and steaks I’m pretty sure he came out of the box looking like that XP
You can do it Jared, I believe in you!
HAH
That feeling when your comments were most likely noticed.
Less than 3.
The thing I have to remind myself every time I exercise is that doing something once/for ten seconds is very different from doing it ten times/for ten minutes. It’s true for weights, sit-ups, aerobics, etc.
And as others have said, I’m glad to see the Commander still giving practical and encouraging advice for Jared to start a healthy routine instead of letting him try to grandstand and give up.
Want to see how buff Jared can be? Take this and do a face swap hehe.
With how short the bars look, I’d say those alone are 25 pounds. And judging the size of the plate compared to the Commander’s hand, I’d say they are also 25 pounds each. There are 8 plates on each bar, simple math says he’s doing 225 pounds for each arm. Though if he was really going for strength, he could’ve used 45 pound plates, and assuming he’s doing something “light” so not to scare off Jared, I’d say he’s just working out to not lose his muscles and keep balance.
If the plates are supposed to be 45 pounds, then he’s doing 390 pounds each arm.
I have intentionally left the weight they’re both using ambiguous as per the entire message of the comic.
And the internet audience ignored your message and focused on pointless minutiae, as is our custom!
Now, assuming each of Jared’s barbells weigh 1.5 pounds each, he’s between 75 and 130 times more feeble than Commander…
You never count the bar unless you’re lifting with olympic barbells, which weight 45lbs/20kg for that exact reason.
45 plate, aka, the standard “plate” someone is referring to in the gym if they use the term, isn’t used on dumbbells. They’re too big. The standard “big weight” for barbells is 5kg/10lbs. So Commander would be lifting… 40kg in each hand. Not bad at all, seeing as that’s what Ronnie Coleman would press.
In my high school gym, we actually had the 45lbs bars. For a while, the bar itself was all I could even lift.
Damn, looks like the commander has 200 lbs on each arm there.
He is a genetically engineered super-soldier, so that my just be the case.
250. I think.
8 weights on each barbell. Are they 20 lbs weights or 25 lbs. I think they are 25 lbs each, based on their size relative to the Commander. I can’t verify this obviously.
So instead of 250, i think 240 is more appropriate?
If we assume that each barbell is 15.
Caps advice is real gold, especially that last panel. <3 MY DREAM MAN
You know, the whole part where he refuses to answer and instead tells him to just worry about his own weights, not what the genetically engineered super-soldier is lifting, really speaks to me. He’s not letting him put himself down indirectly, or making him inclined to push himself too hard right off the bat. I can really see where the whole “Engineered to be a role model” thing comes into play because damn if the Commander Rock Lobster doesn’t consistently deliver.
True enough. You always have to start somewhere, even if it is small. As the saying goes “Rome Wasn’t Burnt in a Day” or any of those satirical versions of cliches.
It doesn’t work for just weight lifting but school and life in general. And Commander once again proves he is a great guy.
From the whole “Start small” advice to Commander telling Jared not to compare himself and his fitness to where Commander is, this whole comic is gold.
You are trying to get huge muscles and to become a manly men to impress the commander and to be huge in general. you start off with small weights so you don’t hurt yourself and you build up on that. As you continue lifting heavier weights your muscles got bigger and tighter. Soon after a couple of months, you are a quarter of commanders size and are now able to life 70 pounds. The commander is impressed and warms up to you as one of his manly friends. But guess who comes lifting two 100 pound dumbbells on top of each other with one finger, smoking a Davidoff Classic Cigarette, impressing commander so much that he takes him as his son?
that’s right, Gary MOTHERFUCKING Oak.
Gary Oak outmatch Jared anyday
“As you continue lifting heavier weights your muscles got bigger and tighter. Soon after a couple of months, you are a quarter of commanders size and are now able to life 70 pounds”
That’s rather vague. Also, unless you’re a very hungry skeleton, 70lbs should be a starting weight in compound lifts, though I assume you’re talking about isolation excercises like commander’s dumbbel rows. And “a few months, if you’re serious and dedicated, is enough time to get any lift at all up to 70lbs, even bicep curls.
Read starting strength.
lol I just made that joke just to force out the Gary oak meme. I didn’t really look into the facts about what I was saying. But then really who does when they are making a joke?
(a lot. I’m bad at jokes)
If it’s any consolation it made me laugh.
oh did it? <3
LOL I push to please ( unless you are just saying that and you didn't really laugh o.o)
actually now that I think about it, the Gary Oak meme is kind of old isn't it. Actually I never really experienced Gary Oak in any Pokémon show/game so I'm just using the internet as my reference.
But with that aside, I'm actually wondering how Jared and Badass would react to seeing Gary. I'm kind of leaning towards that it would be like that syndrome comic about him calling everyone hipsters. But then here is my idea on how it would go…
Jared: Commander I think that I should take a break. My little gaming arms can't take the stress.
Commander: do you see me taking a break? I'm lifting 100 pound dumbbells at the same time and do you see me taking a break?
Jared: well commander I think you should take a break too. I mean I can see your veins practically trying to escap- waaaait.
Commander: what?
Jared: no it can not be. IT CAN NOT BE!
Commander: what!?
Jared: I freaking bashed your Alakazams head in! why are you here? I destroyed you!!
Commander: oh wait…is it that….that guy?
Jared: yes. its….Gary…Motherfucking….oak.
Commander: isn't that a meme? are you referencing a real life person as a meme?
Gary: hey fish baits. oh look it Jarblue….
Jared: Its JARED!
Gary: whatever! looks like your trying to build up some muscle to impress that misty girl.
Jared: um no I'm actually doing this to improve on my overall health….
Gary: Whatever! I got that.
Jared: you got what?
Gary: when I mean I got that I mean I got that p from m you know what I mean?
Jared: Um no. no I don't.
Commander: ( whispers) I think he meant that he banged her good.
Jared: Wait what!?
Gary: Yeah she's mine now Jargreen. Hey those look like heavy weights commander Badass. Let's see you lift something heavier.
( Gary adds more weights to the dumbbells)
Commander: oof
Jared: Stop it Gary your going to hurt him!
Gary: WHATEVER! he can't even handle that. You call that strength?
( Gary throws poke ball at commanders head , making commander fall)
Gary: oh by the way there was a mewtwo in there. OK let me show you what it's really about.
( Gary lifts up the two weights without struggle. he then balances two 20 pound dumbbells on his feet)
Gary: see!? I'm not even breaking a sweat!
Jared: You better put those down before you hurt yourself. Also, I don't understand why you keep trying to one up me. I mean I'm not affected by it anymore. See commander right there? He one ups me in muscle, strength, and leadership. Do you see me raging over that like I did to you when we were young? no. Gary I moved on. I don't have to act like a total Dick just because I see someone's flaws . I instead focus on my flaws and-
Gary: whatever! whatever! WHATEVER! WHATEVER! WHATEEEVEEER!
( Gary keep saying whatever, forcing Jared over the cliff of insanity)
Gary: Now since I'm done asserting myself as number one over all like you, I'm going to drive away in my Honda with all the naked babies with my babies. See ya later JALOOOSEEEER!!
( Gary drives off into the city, crashing into everything and everyone as he didn't get proper driving education as he is to young to get one)
Jared: ……
Commander: Now I see why you really need to get some muscle . Its to Falcon punch the shit out of that cocky Gary guy. And I'm gonna help you. As NO ONE throws a freaking jawbreaker at me and gets to see the light of day.
……
did I just use your nice comment as a forceful story output for your future comic?
I'm sorry. I don't usually do that ( still gonna post it though since I just spent an hour of my life writing that story) ):
i’m i the only one who noticed the adventure time reference in the write-up for this comic? or at least the only one who commented on it?
I was searching for a comment like this, and only found yours, but I’d like to think that it’s just because people are too shy.
What? Adventure time is nothing to be ashamed of ^_^
I wonder how Jared is gonna do on his first Leg Day.
Unsupported double dumbell rows? Well uh… why not do deadlifts then, commander? Seems like that’s kinda wasting time.
Also, did you write this comic based on the squable about lifting we had in the comments last time?
Also, I know this may be a bit weird and all, but Commander has become kind of the ideal I’d want to become. I’ve been lifting for years, but it never came with the sort of calm, reasonable and accepting demeanor the commander has. So he’s my ideal to strive for, mentally and physically.
So I guess I’d just like to say thanks for making the comic, and appreciating us big guys. Heh.
I referenced the form and pose for Commander’s double rows here in an article in Men’s Health or something about the routine the guys in Spartacus do. It was the least contested single free weight action I could find that I could easily draw two characters doing beside each other in a limited number of panels. I spent a good three hours researching something that could both fit the art and space requirements of the comic and wouldn’t cause too much fighting to draw here because frankly, when you show any character doing any kind of gym-related activity you can count on being buried under a cascade of people telling you it’s wrong. Fitness is like this divided, argumentative church full of people looking to crush the nonbelievers of their personal sect. It is so incredibly difficult and intimidating for people to find good free weights advice online because you can pretty much unilaterally expect every article to include a comments section full of people saying it’s wrong, all I could do is hedge my bets and find something with the least fighting happening on it. As someone who is trying to get back into the gym myself, I’ve found no matter what I tell people I’m doing comes with a chorus of others telling me “well actually you know that’s not as effective as it could be…” and at this point it’s like “okay, leave me alone, the something I’m doing now is better than the nothing I was doing before”
And for the last question, believe it or not I planned this comic and the ones lined up for the next couple weeks based on my own experiences as a gym noob, I guess the comments section basically just proved how appropriate this mini-arc is.
Yeah, sounds like you’ve got weightlifting culture down to a pinch there. Even among actual experts who know precisely what works and what doesn’t, arguments are basically endless. Because of personal preference, because of “form”… really, all people can seem to agree on is that lifting weights is good for your health. BUT NEVER HOW MUCH OR HOW! You bloody heretics!
I wasn’t saying the exercise is wrong though. I’ve just… never seen that one. It seemed off to me, as one would usually us a barbell instead, and standing rows are usually done as isolation exercises. Still… I… honestly haven’t a clue about the art, so I absolutely believe you when you say it’s what works.
I’m just really frigging happy you drew some stuff about the commander in the gym, I love the guy, and I love lifting weights.
I figured it was worth doing a strip like this to reinforce that Commander works out within relatively attainable human limits because in the spread of all these guys he’s sort of like… more of a peacekeeper than a peacemaker. He was originally designed because I was planning to troll this “Manly Mens” Character tournament where the whole point of every character was that they could bench press a million Jupiters and stuff (before I realized it would be a huge waste of my time and energy), and I was just gonna draw him as a regular big-strong-human beating all the competitors he was up against with diplomatic reasoning. Which is basically what I carried with him to this comic. You put him between a guy who bareknuckle boxes mountain sized Greek deities and dudes with a googol of power levels, saying he’s stronger than both of them and they do what he says because he could take them down with brute force is ridiculous wanky god-modding. I think of him more like an unarmed hostage negotiator standing in front of the guy with a gun and convincing him there’s still hope for him if he puts the weapon down and doesn’t shoot anyone, or the lion tamer sticking his head in the maw of a big unpredictable animal that could easily bite it off, confident his skill as a trainer is enough to get him through another day.
Long time reader, first time commenter.
This might be the deepest insight we’ve had so far into the Commander’s approach to leadership and his real-world origins.
Thanks for the awesome comic, and all the work you put into it!
Fitness is like this divided, argumentative church full of people looking to crush the nonbelievers of their personal sect.
QFT. I mean, I literally want to quote this.
If you magnify the page you can see each every arm and leg hair on the commander also lifting weights.
Don’t tell Jared that, though.
Some might make arguments about how men being all hair-less is better. They’ll never be able to claim hair-less is manlier, though.
As someone who just started getting into fitness with a personal trainer, “light and right” has become my motto, and this resonates so very much with me. <3
This is acutely great advise.
Nope, no more comments on this page for me. It’s already peer pressuring me into exercising more. Skinny was fine but now you have me worried about muscle mass. Darn you all, I need to go buy some weights or find the really heavy books.
Calisthenics. All you need to begin with.
Nice adventure time quote, might be why this is my favorite webcomic.
An Adventure Time quote? Where?
And this is why I like Commander. He’s a badass, a good dad, and genuinely trying to help someone who annoys him nonstop. Looks rough around the edges, but consarnit Squid, you know how to write some good characters.
I did not know that a comic about someone teaching some guy how to weightlift properly could be so great. I stand in awe, and wholly approve of this mini-arc.
I would like to take up weightlifting at even the basic level Jared is starting here, but I can count the amount of joints in my body that still work on the fingers of one mutilated hand. Left ankle, right wrist and right shoulder. The rest are kaput.
Hitting cars head on when you are on a push bike isn’t a good idea.
I just read your archive (my son showed me your comic) and I absolutely love this comic! My favorite so far is the picture of Cthulu presiding over a wasted landscape. Mwa’hahahaha!!!
Oh, and as a Vet I really love how the Commander handles the MFWIC’s.
“But hey, like they say, sucking at something is the first step to being kinda good at something.”
You betcha! If you don’t first suck it in, you can’t really be a proper blowhard about it!
I don’t see why the Commander simply doesn’t remind Jared of the circumstances of his employment. This isn’t a superhero agency where these macho types congregate to help solve crimes or save the city from supervillains. It’s a temp agency that enables them to find jobs suited to their temperaments (and supposedly keep them out of trouble). Jared is merely another employee, working for the money to return home to his parents (although that no longer seems to be an overriding priority for him) not a superhero in training. Also the Commander is from the future where he was “grown” to have large muscles and impressive strength. So he’s got an advantage that someone like Jared simply can’t match. If Jared knew this, he might not worry about matters that he can’t control.
Look at it from Jareds point of view, he currently works in an extremely masculine environment, where being muscular and powerful is the norm by far, he probably feels somewhat inadequate even if his own duties dont actually require a powerful physique. While Jared may be a bit quirky and slackerish personalitywise, its natural to feel like he has to show himself equel to the other guys, especially since Commander is the closest thing he’s ever had to a reliable father figure.
Wow! Commander is turning into a wonderful father. It shouldn’t really be surprising since it’s pretty much been his entire character from the beginning, but being able to handle the guys, his daughter, AND Jared in exactly the way that they need is just plain amazing.
I have a body similar to Jared’s. For years I have envied big guys like Commander, and never really knew my place in life. I knew that, being small and lithe, I was more suited to activities that had me moving my body: running, parkour, etc.
But I still felt like something was missing in my life.
Last year I discovered the circus arts, in particular I discovered aerial silks. I know now that, although I only discovered it recently, I’ve been an aerialist my whole life.
I’m now in the best shape I’ve ever been, and it’s all thanks to climbing the silks.
If I could I would tell Jared to give it a try. I’m sure it would do wonders for him!
SS+GOMAD man.
(that is, do Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe)
I don’t understand what any of that means :-(
Yerp… Definitely more cardio. But the most important thing to anyone wanting to get fit: DO IT. Take that step. And never give up. It’ll change you for the better, you mark me on that.
For those in the wonder: CDR Badass looks like he’s loaded those bars with 30 lb weights.
8 per bar, that’s 240 lbs. Each arm.
Work till your heroes are your rivals.
As I said, the weight he’s using is intentionally ambiguous, that’s the whole point of the comic.
OH CRAP I’M RUINING THE COMIC!
Alternatively, 240 lbs per arm is ridiculously impressive.
Commander could bench press The Mountain, it’s that impressive.
http://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Gregor_Clegane
You didn’t counting the bar either. Each of those -probably- weighs ten pounds.
You never count the bar unless you’re doing lifts with an olympic barbell.
Also, generally 10lb (5kg) plates are the biggest you’ll find on adjustable barbells.
I push carts at my Walmart. (That’s as much exercise I ever get in a week)
Literally roaring with laughter at that last line because I have thought that so many times over the years as I change the setting down to what is comfortable for me. Also, I see so many freinds being given the kind of macho weightlifting advice that is more or less designed to cause them permanent damage if they followed it, so this is refreshing to see GOOD exercise advice.
Question of the Morning: How many Jared can you stuff into one of ‘Mander’s Meaty Muscled Arms?
Hmmm…When was the last time you counted the number of dancing angels on the head of a pin?
;)
I really hope she never quits writing/drawing this comic xD I love reading these every week, and even the ones that are more filler than progression I love because the art is just fantastic! <333
I hope we get to see Canadian Guy come into the gym. Now there is a trigger for some serious testosterone fuelled machismo-offs.
“Don’t worry about what I’m doing, worry about what YER doing”.
That line actually reminded me a lot from a comment my father had made about timbersport/lumberjack contests and the mindset of a lot of the participants there. Namely regarding some of the more competitive one. He argued however that “In contest like these, you’re not competing against the guy right next to you. You’re actually competing against the log in front of you. Forget about what the other guy is doing because when you’re focusing on him you’re not focusing on cutting that log the fastest YOU can do.”
For refference sake, that’s what my father looks like.
http://pages.videotron.com/saws/images/jp.jpg
Despite being 5’8″ and 200 pound, the guy knows the technique to basically be with 10th to hundredth fractions of seconds of differences with guys above 6 feet tall and 300 pounds(of muscle) heavy who are almost half his age.
I feel you Jared. The same thing happens when I lift my little yellow five pound weights. Ten seconds in and I’m like, pff, why don’t I get some heavier weights? Then two minutes later I’m panting and shaking. Also it doesn’t help that I am shorter and probably even lighter than Jared.
The Commander is such a good dude. ;_;
Not sure if anyone noticed this on Fanboys, but take a look at the background in the second panel.
http://www.fanboys-online.com/index.php?id=551
3 cheers for artistic synergy.
:O
I knew that blond dude looked familiar
Sweet catch!
I want a trainer like this
I know this is like, years later, but I’ve recently started exercising, and this comic at least in part is why. And this specific page rings so much truer now than it did when I first read it.