File :-(, x, )
Anonymous
I know ZC and his faq on 7chan and 99chan said not to use machines, but I don't have access to a gym and am interested in getting in shape. What does /fit/ think of the bowflex?
>> Anonymous
bump for interest!
>> Anonymous
I'm also interested.

I've seen plenty of bashing against it, but I'm not sure why.
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
>>461299
Not to use machines?

...and you believed him?
>> Anonymous
>>461306
>>461304
>>461299
DONT GET A BOWFLEX, YOU WILL GIVE YOUR FAT CLOTHES TO YOUR FAT FRIENDS
>> Anonymous
OP here.

>>461307
Not a troll, but did you mean its ok to use machines, or it isn't ok. ZC was very well respected, apparently, so I'm willing to trust him.

>>461306
What kind of bashing and for what?

>>461308
What?
>> Anonymous
Don't listen to them. They don't know the power of a BOWFLEX BOD.
>> Anonymous
looks like crap, I bet I could break it in a week.
>> Anonymous
Machines are good if you just want to build basic muscle mass and tone up. The problem with machines is that, well, they're machines. They are designed to assist with lifting weights, and they take a lot of stress off the body part being used.

The problem with that is, the less stress, the less muscle damage, and the less muscle damage, the less muscle growth.

Free weights, on the other hand, are just you and gravity. This is why they're superior, as far as gaining muscle and strength.

That being said, I have been lifting with machines exclusively for the last two months (since I started working out), and I have made huge improvements in muscle size, strength, and tone. It's very noticeable.

Machines won't make you look like the hulk, but they absolutely help to a huge degree. If you can't get into a gym for free weights, consider buying a machine.

Oh, and the type doesn't really matter. Any stress to your muscles will cause them to grow, whether it's resistance like the bowflex, or a bench press, or whatever.
>> Anonymous
or you could just buy a power rack and bench
>> Anonymous
anybody else with a bowflex like to do pull ups on the 'lat tower'? i know theres a warning that says not to do it, but i like to live on the EDGE
>> Anonymous
>>461299

The fastest rates of growth and increased strength for beginner lifters are attained through compound lifting.
The fastest rates of growth and increased strength for beginner lifters are attained through compound lifting.
The fastest rates of growth and increased strength for beginner lifters are attained through compound lifting.


I'll explain. Isolated lifts are exercises that recruit few, usually one, major muscle group to perform the exercise. One good example is leg press. The motion specifically targets the quadriceps (the frontal half of your ourter thigh). It involves, to a lesser extent, other muscles in the area, including the glutes and hamstrings. Cmpound lifts are exercises that recruit a great amount of muscle groups, both major and minor. The body has many smaller muscles that are involved in compound lifts but neglected in most isolated lifts. One example of a compound lift is the squat. The squat directly recruits several major groups including the buttocks, quads, and hamstrings. The nature of the squat also creates a vast demand for stabilization from the adductors, calves, back, and abdomen.

When you exercise, the body releases hormones and other chemicals, basically signaling the demand for repair, for nutrients, and for growth. Consider the leg press. The muscles targeted are mainly the quads, and then somewhat the hamstrings and glutes. Now consider the massive muscle participation required by the squat. Which exercise do you think creates a greater need for growth, for more power, for more nutrients? The compound lift, of course. At this point you're probably starting to grasp the difference. Let me tell you, it is a major and invaluable difference.
>> Anonymous
continuation from>>461341

[...] I use machines [...]

ANSWER: Stop right there.

MACHINES:
- Prevent the body from performing movements naturally. The human body did not evolve to interact with machines: the musculature of the body is designed to accomodate a range of motions that it can perform on its own. Depending on which machine you are using as a substitute, you may be working with a gimped range of motion, lifting at an incorrect angle, isolating one muscle group while ignoring another.
- Do not activate stabilizing muscle groups. In order to develop whole-body strength, you need to have strong stabilizers. Continue using only machines, and abandon any hopes of ever seeing true strength.
- Are easy. Strength isn't gained through dicking around and being a little bitch. Somewhere down the line, you have to make it hurt, you have to embarass yourself, you have to disappoint yourself. If you desire to move ahead, you will be leaving your weakness behind you in time, but first comes hard work.