>be me>2012>get into lifting>free weight training is the meta, everyone says machines are USELESS>spend 10 years training the hard lifts>make decent gains>notice something about the most aesthetic & muscular guys at my gym>i am much stronger than all of them>none of them do freeweights>they all use machines for everything>they all look like theyre having a fun time lifting (compared to me, where it feels like a fight for my life lifting hundreds of pounds on free weight compound lift)>but these guys all look better than me, are leaner than me, and have more size than me, despite training in a much easier less stressful manner>i decide to copy the machine only routine they do>i lose TONS of strength on my free weight lifts>but i end up looking much better on the machine only routine >I also get leaner, more ripped, and have bigger muscles despite going from advanced lifts back down to novice level lifts on the big 5 compound liftsThis is undeniable proof to me that machines are actually better than free weights
Free weights impact your CNS so much, they increase cortisol levels, which lowers your metabolism and testosterone levels Machines are better because they dont really hurt your CNS, so your cortisol stays normal, so your test levels at least maintain and go upIts also 10X easier to train to failure and pump the muscle up on a machine than it is a free weightThe stability of machines makes everything better, from muscle pump, muscle growth, way easier to recover from, and you can do way more volume on the machines, way more GOOD volume.That whole feeling of>fighting for your lift lifting hundreds of pounds on a free weight compound liftThats your CNS doing tons of work load on the lift, you're more so training your nervous system than you are training your actual muscles.
>>76949025>STARTING strength>does it for 13 years
You clowns are like ketos vs vegans. t. omnivore who uses whatever the fuck
>>76949045I didnt do fhive bye fhive for 13 years, but my main focus for 10+ years (2012 to 2022) was simply free weights and progressive overload on those free weight liftsBut it was basically 10 years of being drained and tired all the time, constantly beat up, constantly feeling like im in a fight or flight situation getting under a barbell, and this stuff only got harder and harder as the weights increasedThe issue I had with this is seeing other guys in the gym who looked better than me, were more ripped than me, and had better muscle development than I did, while being much weaker than me, and having fun pumping lifts out on machines onlyTraining on my machine only routine these days is so much easier and enjoyable, and i look and feel so much better, no longer drained & tired all the time outside of the gym either.
>>76949025It's so simple, just use history as an example: if free weights are so good, then every warrior from the past would have used them and been ripped. Lifting heavy pieces of metal doesn't exactly require a phd degree. Technically warriors from the past DID use them, they lifted swords and shields and armor, and they became beefy and strong, but not ripped and muscular.
Were eating enough? Were eating the right things? Were you sleeping enough? Also, post before and after pics if you have them
>>769490251. Did you eat any protein?2. Did you have goals?3. How often did you reassess your program?
Why wouldn’t you want to be stronger and leaner than your peers?
>>76949070>>76949073I made tons of gains.I started at 5'7 130lbs and at my peak weight at my strongest with a 600lbs deadlift I was 210lbs.So my non-lifting body was 130lbs, my peak bulked/strongest level I was 210lbs. So a 70+ gain of muscle & fat.On my machines only routine I found it so much easier to eat way less food and I cut down and became aesthetic as fuck at 5'7 160lbs now.Ironically I look more jacked @ 160lbs than i did at 210lbs, the illusion of size when shredded I guess.
>>76949084210lbs at 5’6 you must’ve been fat as fk, even at. 160-170lbs at 5’6 I feel so fat and disgusting
>>76949084Sounds like you were pushing your strength limit pretty hard, leaving very little in the tank for aesthetics. I'm glad you're happy with your changes, but I'm willing to bet you could have changed focus on the free weights and had similar results. Though admittedly, machines are easier, which helps fatigue at a high level.You're obviously an experienced lifter and were able to formulate a good machine program for yourself. I'd argue most noob lifters would flail uselessly on the machines and gain nothing, whereas the free weight heavy compounds would force gains on them no matter what.
>>76949094Was builtfat, my peak str was 385 bp, 510 sq, 600 dlCould do weighted chinups with +65 attached to me too, ohp was 200
>>76949099I was pushing str every week for 10 years, and yeah when I was doing that my hunger levels were constantly high, making it very easy to eat a lot of calories, and very hard to stay lean, but I was pushing for maximal str.I think overall I gained more than 30lbs of muscle though.In 2012 I was 130lbs @ 5'7 (22 years old) and my bodyfat was probably 20%In 2025 now at 160lbs @ 5'7 still my bodyfat is around 8%When I was 210lbs in 2022 my bodyfat was probably like 30% or more
>>76949117Yeah, I think it wasn't free weights vs machines. That being said, you've obviously found something that works for you now, so no complaints!
>>76949132Thanks, but the free weights were impacting my CNS and cortisol levels a lot more keeping my tired and hungry constantly outside of the gym. Using machines only I feel like ive gained a new lease on life outside of the gym.Shit man, just doing a 600lbs deadlift, that shit would have me drained for the rest of the week. I never experience stuff like that anymore and I look and feel so much better for it.
Post body.
>>76949141I mean, yeah, a max-effort deadlift is going to wear you out. Who said it had to be max effort every time, though?I'm not there looking over your shoulder in the gym, but I'm guessing you're using the machines differently from how you did the free weights. Seems like you could have just used the free weights differently as well.Again, if you're happy then I'm happy, but you're basically saying a mustang is faster than a camaro but it's just that you're driving them differently.
>>76949057>my main focus for 10+ years...was simply...progressive overload on those free weight liftsyeah that's what I said. You never bothered to switch to an intermediate routine like texas method or whatever? You knew you wanted a bodybuilding routine yet chased a beginner routine 12 years after your noob gains ran out and it was time to move on? You never even read the sticky, did you
>>76949150I mean, i was OHPing 200lbs on barbell standing pressI went straight into doing the full stack on the machine shoulder press (300lbs) and it feels easier and I get an insane pump in my deltoids with it that I never got with a standing free weight bb ohpIm not sure if its because I trained so hard and heavy on free weights that machines for me feel insanely easy, or if machines are in general just easy as fuck lol>>76949173I never really found the "advanced" powershitting strength routines to be effective at all than simply just brute-force overloading
>>76949025>its another glass back dyel thread
>>76949179>200lb standing OHP is harder on eveything than 300lb (likely seated) machine pressYes...? Did you ever try seated OHP with a barbell?
>5”7’ 210lbsyou just sound like a fat powershitter fuck. you could have started cutting once you had an adequate amount of muscle and would have reached where you are now in a fraction of the time without being a retarded faggot doing the same program for 10 years.all i got from your post was you were a dyel manlet who put muscle on finally but never bothered to change your routine, once you changed your routine you were able to achieve your goal physique but your attributing it to the machines when in reality its the heavy compounds you did in the beginning which established your base strength.
>>76949312I dont have that strength anymore. I was deadlifting 600lbs at 210lbs bwId be surprised if i could deadlift 400lbs now.
>>76949227Nah, I dont like seated shoulder pressing for some reason, always only ever done standing bb ohp or 1-arm standing db pressesEven the Machines Shoulder Press I use is a standing one, for some reason pressing overhead while standing just feels right, while doing it seated feels wrong.
>>76949025stfu fat nigga
Do both
>>76949025Sounds like you answered your own question. Different things are better for different things. If you care more about being strong, do compounds, if you care more about physique, do isolation exercises. If you care about being able to fight, do a lot of cardio and learn a martial art and you don’t need to be very strong at all. I’ve had phases of all of the above and enjoyed all of them. This winter I’m bulking up and doing compounds after a few years of running a lot and doing Muay Thai. Having a lot of fun watching my lifts go up.
lifting for aesthetics is gay as fuck, literal woman moment
Honestly dude, it sounds like you spent 10 years retard-strength maxing, hit your limit, then gassed out and found a different avenue to prgoress. This doesn’t make machines better, it makes you worse.
>>76949474>reads anon's story about progress>criticizes effective workoutAverage /fit/ post
>>76949025Happened to me too bro.
>>76949025sure as hell it wasn't your strength or free weight making you fat it was your diet
>>76949567Free weight progressive overload is a killer on the cns and spikes hunger like a bitch and you need tons of calories for energy to actually make progress Spamming machines for a pump is easy on the cns and therefore doesn’t spike hunger so under eating to get ripped is easy as fuck So yeah indirectly obsessing over free weight strength progression as a training style will make you fat by indirect cause and effect
