Lose Fat, Strengthen Joints, Rapid Fat Loss

The Dumbbell Advantage Story

by Dr. Kareem F. Samhouri, CSCS, HFS
Neuro Metabolic Fat Loss & Fitness Expert

I remember the first time I ever worked out with dumbbells… I really had no idea what I was doing…

There I am standing in the middle of a gym by the dumbbell rack, trying to choose the right weight and having no idea what I’m really supposed to do.  I swear that everyone in the gym is looking at me, staring, and trying to figure out how strong I am before I pick up what’s sure to be a tic-tac next to what they lift on a regular basis.

There’s grunting going on in all directions, Metallica is playing on the radio overhead, and I keep hearing weights slam in all directions as I nervously pick up some dumbbells to do some biceps curls.

I finally grab the weight, lift 35 pound dumbbells off the rack, and I start to curl as fast as I can, secretly hoping that everyone’s impressed by how fast and heavy I’m able to lift.  I knew I was one of the fatter people in the gym, so, inside, I wanted everyone to assume I must be fat and strong.  I mean, if I can throw the weight around like this, it must mean that I’m actually able to lift double the weight if I just slowed down, right?

Wrong.  There I am curling away when all of the sudden I take a glimpse into the mirror and realize that there’s someone else who’s clearly more jacked than me lifting 25 pound dumbbells behind me… and he’s going slow and steady, but he’s barely making the reps.

At first, I start lifting faster to show him how weak he is, but then, all of the sudden it dawns on me that I’m doing it all wrong.  No sooner do I realize this than I feel this sharp, sudden grab in my back and the dumbbells go crashing down to the floor…

At this point, I’m nervous, seeing stars, and collapsed at the ground.  What is everyone thinking now?  How will I ever be able to stand back up and try to work out again?  Is this just useless anyway?

I start wondering whether or not I’m even cut out for lifting weights, whether any girls may have seen me, or whether I’ve actually injured myself in the process.  This guy’s face is burned in my memory as I’m crouched on the ground, holding back the tears, and wishing that the stupid dumbbells didn’t make so much noise as they went crashing down.

I get it… I’m done lifting with weights… there’s no point, anyway.  I’d rather just do cardio.

Then, out of nowhere, I feel something on my back, hitting me at about 75 beats/minute.  I look up and glance back, only to realize that it’s the girl I have the biggest crush on in my school.

“Are you ok?   …hey, Kareem, are you ok?”

Not only did she see me, but she was actually helping pick up the weights and place them back on the dumbbell rack.  I’m such an idiot!  …and a weakling!

The funny thing is, I’m more concerned with how I look than how I feel.  I rise up to my feet and totally lose my balance.  I had hurt my back and didn’t even know it.  It was throbbing, my head was rushing, and my face was beat red with embarrassment.

I knew I’d never be the same… I was morally wounded.

Fast forward 15 years, and here I am today teaching you how to work out and lift weights with the best form in the world.  I’m showing you how to progress an exercise from bodyweight to dumbbells, safely, and make yourself look great in the process.

Little did I know at the time that dumbbells would actually be the key to eliminating all of my joint pain, balancing out my muscles, and building a physique that helped me meet my wife.  If I had only known that at the time, I probably would’ve just taken the time to learn how to do things right, instead of crawling into my turtle shell and refusing to use dumbbells for another year.

Have you ever experienced something embarrassing in the gym or seen someone else do something as stupid as me?

C’mon…. share with us so we can all laugh at ourselves and see how far we’ve come.

have a great day,

Kareem

Be Sociable, Share!

• 

The embarrassing story I can share is my near collapse when I brought 50 pound dumbbells (2 of them) to the counter at a major sports retailer and was told they cost $80!!! I bought them 2 years ago but they are definitely worth the investment. I am glad to see dumbbells making a comeback. I should probably check on-line next time

When I first started working out a long time ago, I decided I would try an advanced spin class. I kept up during the class OK, but the minute I stepped off the bike once class was done I totally fainted. Then I threw up. In front of everyone.

Not quite as embarrassing as your story, but the moral is the same – learn what you are doing before you do it! And make sure you can actually handle an advanced class!

I wish I actually had a story like that to share. Truth is–I’m way too much of a coward to even do that! I work out with my little weights at home where only my fiancee can (presumably) tease me.

How do you even build up the nerve to exercise in front of people!?

Hi Dr K. Loved the story. I have to say right off the back that thakfully nothing like that has ever happened to me in the gym. I have left my fly down a few time and noticed but other than that my ego has gladly been left untouched. Oh except for the time i got stuck under a barbell on the bench and two old ladies had to try and help get the damed thing off me. Thanks for causiing that one to resurface in my train ha ha ha. I do have a quick question for you though. I have noticed that the joint where my clavical connects to my shoulder gets very sore after working my biceps. I’ts an old jujustu injury. Most of the time it’s fine and only hurts after a bicep wour out. Any suggestions for a bicep exercise that might aggrivate the joint less???

Hi Dr. K,

No, I don’t want to be embarrassed in front of others, so I won’t tell u about my initial attempt to showoff by trying to lift 50lbs off the rack in the Gold Gym a few years ago! It didn’t even move!

My Q is how to do progressive resistance using DBs. I workout at home, and I do have DBs of varying weights, but I cannot simply jump from, say, 15lbs to 20lbs (next available wt). There comes a time when 15lbs is too light, but 20lbs is too heavy! What to do? I cannot find any 1 lb plates; the smallest is a 3lbs plate and I end up adding one 3lbs plate on one side only, creating a loop-sided DB, but sometimes, I am afraid using that since it might slip off! Any suggestions on progression?

Another off-topic Q: I can’t increase my pull up numbers! Using wide-grip, I can crank out 10 (at the most 12) pull ups at one time. Then I added a weighted vest (15lbs — I weigh 129) and I could still crank out 8. (of course of a different day). But without the vest, I still cannot go beyond 10 at a time. WT*?
How can I improve my pull up count — and thereby boost my ego
?
Thanks for all your help and inspiration via great articles!

My most embarrasing dumbbell experience is when I was doing the Body for Life workout program 10 years ago. I was well versed at the time for slow, controlled movements, but got over confident. While doing chest presses on my back on a flat bench, I used too much weight and reached fatigue sooner than expected. Consequently, my arms “gave out” and I “dropped” a 65lb dumbbell on my chest. OUCH! With bruised ego and chest, I never repeated the exercise without a spotter after that.

But now I’m intrigued with kettlebells. Any insights on those?

No embarrassing gym stories as I work out at home. But last week, I was doing standing calf raises, one leg at a time, dumbbell in one hand. On a step stool. That’s right, I was watching some stupid thing on TV and didn’t want to leave the room to use my stairs which are STURDY, so I grabbed the plastic step stool, certain I could stabilize myself by holding on to the entertainment center. WRONG! At about rep #5, the stool collapsed under me, the weight went flying in one direction, banging my shin on the way down, I went flying in the other direction and slammed my knee into the upturned stool. Naturally, I was alone. I’m on the floor, screaming in pain so hard that the tears can’t even flow, then realize I had better attend to this before the blood starts gushing. So I CRAB WALK into the kitchen, still screaming, smashing leg in the air, get the ice packs out of the freezer, tuck on into my sock for my shin, and wrap the other, with paper towel to soak up the blood, around my knee. Blood and tears finally start flowing, I’m on my back in the middle of the kitchen floor. Doorbell rings. It’s the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Reminded me of my youth when we used to see them coming down the street and by the time they got to our house, we were lying on the floor so they would think we weren’t home. (No offense, of course, just not my thing.) They left, the body finally calmed, but now I was pissed because I still had more workout. What the hell, don’t need knees to do bicep curls….. A week and a half later, I still can’t kneel. But I can lift!

Dr. K.
I liked that story. The one I have is similar. I was at the gym, in front of the dumb bell rack. I don’t know what I was thinking but I go to the 100lb dumb bells And was going to do rows. I felt like an idiot. I couldn’t even lift the darn thing off the rack. I thought someone welded the thing to the rack. Then I looked around to see who saw me do that. Know I go to the gym at a different time.
M

Allright everybody here is my embarrassing story at Club Fitness, St. Louis, Mo. I waited for this guy to finish with the barbell set. When he was done I laid back on the bench and started to press 90 lbs. I felt a pain in my left shoulder and started to favor that side. That’s when it happened, all of the weights on that side slid off of the barbell, naturally once that side was done the right side took over. There too all came off, making a little noise and gathering MUCH attention. I might say. I had assumed the person before me tightened the weights on the barbell. I WILL NEVER ASSUME AGAIN! Well a few came over to help me but many were looking at an even bigger dumbell that was not on the weight rack! ME !

I can’t say that my embarrassing story is with dumbbells. To be honest, until recently I’ve stayed away from dumbbells for the most part with the exception of a few exercises.
Back in high school, I was working out one evening at the local rec. center. I was up on the stage with the weights and there was one other person there playing basketball. I don’t know why but I decided that night I was going to go for a new max on the bench press – 210 pounds. Everything was going fine, up once, up twice, uh-oh on number three.
No problem I thought, I’ll just drop the weight to one side and slide out, (a plan that looked much better in my head than in practice). Once I started sliding out, the bar fell on my throat, effectively pinning me there. After a few more seconds, (and a little panic) I made it out. Just then, I hear the guy playing basketball say “if you needed help, all you had to do was ask”.
As things in life turn out – that guy later became my college soccer coach. Thankfully he didn’t remember that it was me that night on the stage.

[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by fitnessexperts. fitnessexperts said: Expert Update: Dumbbell Advantage Story: http://snipurl.com/1vrez6 [...]

My fear kept me from using the weights at the gym. The big guys were lifting away staring at their bodies in the mirror. Who was I (a female) that I could invade their boundaries. I was to shy and embarrassed to even try for many years. As I got older and moved to a smaller gym I started using weights but had no idea of what I really should be doing.

We have a class that as firefighters we do at the fire station… The trainer is amazing, and you know what’s really great? Having my trainer kick my butt with 8 lb dumbbells… it is really funny to see the big tough firefighters join her class, think they are super tough and can handle a huge weight, and be nearly in tears by the end of the class… Dumbbells are a great tool, especially when used correctly!

Thankfully, I’ve never really been prone to making ego-driven mistakes, and now I’ve been working out long enough to know when my ego is driving me to folly.

However, I see this all the time. Especially with standing dumbbell curls. There’s always at least one guy pushing the weights with his hips, resting at the top, and virtually swinging them down and back up. It’s like nails on a chalkboard. I just want to run over and fix these people, but I usually don’t say anything to avoid the risk of looking like an asshole. I resolve my guilt by taking less experienced guys to the gym, and helping them to develop good technique. That way, giving corrections is more accepted.

All that said……I’m always eager to learn from the likes of you, Kareem. My priority is constant improvement, so teach your heart out.

Seems to me that it has more to do with the exercise, and how it can be done best, or, at the time. If you’re at a gym, and the trainer knows his stuff, I am sure he/she has the experience to make the judgment call when you may be ready to do something, and it calls for a machine that is “taken” at the moment, or a set of barbells that is not available. Could work the other way, too, when the right dumbbell is in use.

Other than that, you have to roll with punches. You fall in the middle of an exercise, You have a difficulties with end of a set of bench presses, it ain’t no biggy. Nobody in the gym expects you be perfect. You get a smile, and perhaps a conversation with trainer how to “get there”, but it might mean a little work.

The bottom line is in gym situation, at least, where the trainers know their stuff, the routines will be designed to perform the exercises the best possible way. Short of that, they also know how to do them with . . . what also works.

I’m 59 & have been lifting off & on for a long time. My right elbow is sore most of the time from my younger years of pitching baseball, armwrestling, working on oil rigs & other assorted hard labor. I’ve tried using smaller dumbell wts which seem to help, but my gains are not very good. It looks perty wierd when I lift cuz I use a heavy wt on my left arm & about 1/2 the wt on my right. I get some perty crazy looks, plus I’m not getting the same workout on the weak side. Anything I can do to strengthen my rt elbow again?? Thanks.

Hey Dr. K!

This story wasn’t about me, but what I suggested to someone. Years ago when I did go to the gym, I saw a young dude pumping away at bicep curls and cheating the heck out of it by swinging the weight for momentum – he used a bit of poundage!

I suggested that he lie prone on a situp bench and grab the bar under the bench and try the curl. He was totally surprised how little weight was needed when the movement was isolated so he couldn’t cheat. And the burn was intense!

This could easily apply to using dumbbells the same way.

I did an experiment and found you can do the kettlebell-type swing, not only using a dumbbell, but also a medicine ball. I found it a good way to learn technique before investing in the k’bells. Also, in the 4 Hour Body, Tim Finnese gives a good method for creating a makeshift kettlebell for the swing only. I did it and it works!

I use dumbbells at home all the time. And when I’m at the gym, I really don’t give a flip what anyone thinks about what I’m lifting. Their opinion is none of my business!

Years ago I used to go to the gym with my husbands uncle, a gnarly old one legged man (he lost his leg back in the depression from jumping off a train he was freighthopping and the train ran over it.) Which, has nothing to do with the story. He would lift weights and I would do various things like use the stairstepper. One day I decided to up my settings but couldn’t remember what setting I was previously on so set it high. I started climbing and realized I had it too high but then some girl in good shape got on the one next to me. I couldn’t turn it down and look like some whimp so I had to go the full time full bore to save face. It about killed me. OK, that’s not really that embarrassing and had nothing to do with dumbbells but whatever.

Hi Kareem:

A great story. Most of us, well, certainly me, remember the moment in the gym when you are certain that everyone is watching, and, in reality, probably very few are. If anything, I remember the times when much bigger people would compliment me on proper form-how do you communicate the fact that most regulars are supportive rather than critical?

Marc

Yeah, as a matter of fact. I see this alot with new lifters. I see a guy on the bench with a couple of dumbbells, and every time he presses them up to the top, he bangs them together. I try to explain that is the worse thing for the elbow. All that force gets directed to the elbow and will cause damage, (maybe not right away, but over time). Then I will get this look like I have 3 heads on my shoulders.

I do not have the problem of trying to impress anyone. I am 68 years old and have 5 bypasses, so I am there to keep what is left of my body as best I can…guess that age has its advantages.

Hey Dr K

Don’t have any embarrasing stories as I workout at home. Just wanted to contribute and give you a big thanks for DEFL. Have been taking your advise and doing your program for the last 20 weeks.Went from 35.9 BFI to 15.2.
Feeling fantastic and can’t thank you enough for my new body.

I like dumbbells so much as a workout tool that I bought a PowerBlock set with the extra extentions to use with the bar. I use them all the time. Story: Well, several of us at the gym decided to lift heavy using support grips and dumbbells for step ups. We were lifting big weight and noone wanted to be the first to quit. The next several days I felt like a monkey. I could NOT straighten my arms. I had to grab heavy weights and just hold them to get my arms straighten. I doubt I got enough benefit from the heavy lifting to counter the soreness. Thankfully I workout smarter now.

Hi Dr K,

Thanks for sharing your experience. As a senior, I also workout nominally at home. I am concerned about the immediate effect of over exercising, and perhaps any permanent damage this could cause. You have let us in a lot about how to exercise. Can you also tell us when NOT to exercise and perhaps if you can, explain the reasons for some of the temporary symptoms of over-exercising, like nausea, dizziness, blurred vision, seeing stars, soreness/pain etc, etc, barring of course intrinsic health issues, which should be in the field of health practitioners. You were lucky the DB’s didn’t fall on your toes.

I dont have an embarrassing moment myself. But I agree with several other comments. I am driven absolutely NUTS by seeing people trying far too much weight with horrible form. I often see teens, jsut starting out trying to perform squats, dead lifts, and even cleans, with form that makes my back hurt from watching.
I’m a big guy, and can move a good amount of weight, so I hope when I step in and try to help these kids they take something from it. An injury from improper form can really turn someone off to training
My 13 year old son recently began coming with me to learn to weight train. He was so frustrated with me NOT allowing him to add any plates to any bar, or to go heavy with any dumbells until he got the proper form down. He finally appreciated it when we started to add weight.. He was amazed with himself and the amount of weight he could move – The right way.
Anyways – I use dumbbells in every workout, they help with joint pain, and I find it more efficient to work out using them with a partner as you dont have to keep adding or removing plates.

Interesting stories! Most of my workout stories are from working out at home, and generally, it’s not so much failure as being absolutely drained after working out. The first DEFL workout I tried with my kids had them groaning (apparently planks are on the list of things my kids like doing least). We all laughed at each other while we were doing it, so it was actually kind of fun!

I do not have any stories about myself, but see some guy just use wrong form and I feel like telling them somethng,but do not know if I should. Like seeing them do incline bench press and huching their backs off the bench or doing curls and bending their backs back when bringing their weights up.
sincing using your program, I maily use dumbbells myself. Thanks for your kicka## program.

I’ve worked with light dumbells a bit, but recently bought some kettlebells and would like to safely learn to use them. Any hints or ideas? Thanks.

I work out at home too, still do embarrass myself tho..
The last time I tried to go to the gym I pulled my back muscles, when returning to the gym after several weeks at the phizio, the trainer held his sides laughing that I’d had to go to the phizio! Since using your program Kareem, I havnt bean to the fizio once, and always feel safe even when using heavier weights and whatever the reps!
Am never quite sure how much weight to use tho, & have been using 8kg all month, which is good for most exercises, tho too heavy for some. Should using heavier ones be the focus?
Thanks Kareem!

Hi, I quit smoking last year and packed on about 25 lbs. I 60 min of cardio in the morning then do 60 min of cardio at night. I have not lost one lbs. I eat a couple eggs with a slice of toast for breakfast. For lunch I’ll make a chicken vegetable soup with some brown rice. And usually elk meat with a veggie for dinner. Any advice on something else to try?

I had started to workout in a gym when I was still in school. Because I was young and ignorant I started to go through my 1st workout program at the speed of light. 10 minutes later I was lying on the bench in the change room dizzy and nauseous. As the road safety billboards say ” Speed Kills”

Humbling article! When running on the treadmill, I got in the zone and thought I could incorporate sprints. After a couple intervals I started increasing the speed and well I ended up tripping over myself and flew off the treadmill and hit the wall behind me with a thud. Needless to say I made a huge noise and people at least made sure I was okay before they started laughing!

Hey Kareem,

Thanks for your reply yesterday. Yeah, I feel your pain. When I first started back at the gym after years of nothing, the trainer had me do the usual 20 minutes on the bike, a few machines and then a set of decline situps. About halfway through the situps, I was feeling so dizzy I had to go sit on the mat with my head between my knees.

Really embarrassing. But thankfully I found LHPH and a far better way to train than cardio, machines and situps.

A few months back I was working out with DEFL and just cranking through vertical dumbbell spider push ups. I was totally crushing the the reps and just as I was reaching the the last rep, Keeley Monster decides its a good idea to come bounding in and play. Distracted, I lost my balance and came crashing down chest first onto the edge of the dumbbell. I do not think I have ever experienced that much pain in my chest. I just laid there on the gym floor and naturally, Keeley thought it was a good idea to sit next to me expecting pets, which she got because I am a dog lover.

I have a feeling that I have, but I can’t remember exactly what it was. I do remember once years ago been helped out by a meat head with dumb bells. Guess my form was wrong, but I also think the weight was too heavy. Now I’m much stronger and more experienced.

No horror stories from me but I would like to post a comment. I take your workouts to the gym and you would not believe the strange looks that I get. There I am with my 15 to 20 lb weights doing all these strange moves with the sweat dripping off of me. I am breathing hard, concentrating on every move and I am in and out in less than 30 mins. I will be 52 years young in February and I can run circles around guys half my age. Funny even though I am getting great results in half the time as others, no one ever ask’s me what I am doing. Maybe some day. Thanks for the great workouts and information. Dirk

Hi Kareem

Nice story. But I would have thought that most of us, at one time or another, have picked up heavier weights than we ought to, just to impress others.

I normally use Craig Ballantyne’s Turbulence Training workouts. About eighteen months ago I was doing a superset which included inverted rows. The only really convenient place at my gym to do those is the Smith machine. I set the bar at about a metre (4 ft) and started my rows. No problem to begin with, but then a combination of over-enthusiastic rowing, and far too little weight on the bar resulted in the bar being dislodged just as I pulled up to it. Luckily the ratchets slowed the bar’s descent but, as I fell, my shoulder landed on the base of the equipment, causing an injury which took several months to come right. Despite the pain at the time, my first feeling was acute embarrassment, as I looked furtively round to see if anyone had noticed.

Needless to say, when I do inverted rows nowadays, I make sure that there is more than enough weight on the bar to keep it in place. A lot more!

I was following Nick Nilsson’s advice that bench pressing using Swiss ball is better than the actual bench. So I used the ball and 44 lbs dumbells to press. When I finished I put the dumbells down, but when I tried to sit up on the ball, the ball slid off my butt and I hit the solid floor so hard with my butt and elbows it took me 5 minutes to stand up.

I do pretty much all my exercises with dumbbells. Apart from the stability training, it also removes any concern of being trapped under a bar when doing bench/chest presses and similar. Plus, when working out shoulders, you can press with the arms to the side of your head instead of in front of the face, reducing torque on the lower back.

As for embarrassing stories, I usually come to think of all the guys that get a humbling experience when I correct them on “the lower ab rocking chair thingy” and they realize that they just went from doing +20 reps on the exercise with additional weight plates to not being able to do one single rep just because they are not swinging the seat back and forward with their hip flexors anymore.

I wouldn’t call it embarrasing, but I’ve received a lot of comments on when I do your stuff Dr K, “yeah, my son talks about you, he works out here as well, he said there’s a guy doing all these wierd exercises but it sure seems to help!”

Personally, I don’t care all that much about what anyone else thinks about my workouts, I’m focused on the results.

And ladies, don’t be afraid to grab a “non-pink dumbbell” every once in a while when you get the technique down, the results will come a lot faster.

Thanks for sharing your story Dr K and keep the good content flowing!

If you want some workout variation and functional excercises, definitely check out the good Docs Double Edged Fatloss program or similar. Great stuff.

hi everyone,
i am glad that i don’t have such embarising story, but i wanterd to leave a comment anyway to hit the 75 comments.

have a great day,

I am never comfortable at gyms at the best of times but have equipment at home that my husband and i work on as often as we can and with the help of these sites we are able to make such ego blunders in the comfort of our own home, mirrors and all!!!

Hi Dr K,
I don’t have a ‘dumb’ dumbell story but i would like to make a comment to you, if only to get you to your desired number for today. Actually as much as i admire & respect you i really dislike the way you, and others, try to make people comment by threatening not to come back if you don’t get ‘X’ amount. it is like parents do to kids and then they don’t follow through and they end up looking stupid. Hey, i have nothing against encouraging comments by saying something like “I’d love your feedback or comments. just post below” but to say ‘be sure to leave 75 and i will….” What happens when you don’t get that many? I read everything i get from you and from most of the people I subscribe to but I don’t often comment either because I don’t feel i have something relevant or maybe just too stressed or busy to do that side of things. it doesn’t mean i’m not reading & appreciating the great stuff you provide and say. Anyway i hope you take this in the way it is intended to be constructive criticism. I hope we get to see what you have said you will provide on progressing from bodyweight to dumbells as i would be very interested. Anyway thanks & have a great day

just last year I had on of my most embarrissing moments in the gym.. I was going great.you know just in the flow doing my thing with a dumbell workout and at a certain point I needed the bench. And I needed the bench to be adjusted from bended to flat. I’m not gonna lie,seriously like 2 minutes which seemed 2 hours at that time..I didn’t get it how I couldn’t move the thing. And believe me peeps where just watching me struggle with this bench! Finally a sweet dude who probally couldn’t watch it anymore,showed me that I needed to lift the upperbit of the bench a bit to adjust it! OMG I was soooooo freakin’ embarresed that moment,I’m telling you! And the stupid thing is….I know for petesake to adjust the bench ,I just happend to have a very akward moment of inconvenient temporarily memory loss! LOL Sooo embarrissing!

Hi Dr. K, that is funny and goes on to show that even doctors can’t be perfect till they learn. I always left my ego outside the gym and start light and do 15 reps and if it is in good form go the next level try to do 10-12 reps so on and so forth. thankfully that has paid off. look forward to hear other great techiniques from you.

The most embarssing thing that ever happened to me at the gym was during a martial arts based aerobics class. As I was punching the thin air in front of me at maximum velocity, my sports bra strap came loose and flew round and hit me in the face. The resulting comment attracted the attention of the whole class & I had to ask a friend to reconnect it in the break.

As far as weights go I have not quite had an embarssing moment. The biggest problem I face, lifting dumbells and weights alike, is that I simply do not have large enough hands! I can kick back 5kg easily, however when it come to tricep overhead extensions, I cannot grip the 10kg weight successfully enough to complete the exercise (although I have tried & narrowly missed dropping the weight behind me!). I am just grateful that barbells aren’t so fat.

When I was in Iraq in 2008, we did company physical training (PT) six days a week – the sixth, Saturday, was more like a screw off day because we played sports, but it was good for morale. Anyway, Wednesday was what our First Sergeant (1SG) would call “Lunge for Life” PT. It was seriously an entire PT session (60 min.) of lunges. Three others and myself were on a team that went on missions almost every other day into the villages. This was almost like PT in itself, but we would have to do PT at 6am then go on mission by 8 or 9am. We knew to always “not try” on the days we had the “Lunge for Life” and mission on the same day.
The new guy we received halfway through the deployment thought he was hot sh*t when he did every single one to the best that he could do them – this is after we all warned him. He didn’t think he was so hot after he could get in and out of the trucks later that day, or for the week for that matter.
To this day, we still make fun of him.

This one actually happened only about a month ago. Normally, I work out at 5 am and the gym is pretty empty, but on this particular day I was working out during lunch. The bym was packed. I was getting ready to do dead lifts…put my weights on the bar, got into position, lift… My mind was obviously elsewhere because I forgot to put the clips on the bar to hold the weights. I must have tilted the bar when I lifted because the weight on one side fell off, and then of course the other one followed. You know how loud those things are when they fall?! Very, VERY embarrassing.

haha! I’ve been there too, Larry. When I bought all the dumbbells and plates for my gym they came back and quoted me something like $5K – woah!

but they’re still around too, and they’re like brand new.

Hey Holly,

Ooof. Throwing up in a gym isn’t very fun… unless you’re Roman. Then, you have a trash can specially designed for just this.

(He’s what we call a ‘Bulemic Lifter’ – sad, but true)

hey Courtney,

The ‘Catwalk’, as they call it in the gym, really isn’t much of a Catwalk at all. It’s funny, the longer you’re a part of a gym, the more you truly get the feel for the people in there. I’ll start by saying that ‘private membership gyms’, rather than the big company gyms, are generally more of a community feel. This helps.

…also, it’s important to understand, most people who have been members for awhile and see other people just starting out use this for inspiration. Think about it, it’s a lot easier to follow a routine than create a new habit. You’ll be surprised how happy others will be to see you.

have a great day,

Kareem

hey Aaron,

Thanks for sharing! Ha – I like how that just flew out…

Sounds like you’re describing that you might have your AC Joint out of place… a good PT that specializes in manual therapy or a chiropractor should be able to help, at least a bit. After that, I’d take a look at form. Technically, with your elbows against your side, it shouldn’t really bother your AC Joint… .that would be more with overhead movements.

hope this helps!

Hi Kareem,
just to drop a bit to the common pool
I have experienced st.similar ages ago in my teenage – learning a sommersault in the gym. All went quite well, I had been jumping it on the standing position already – when SHE had appeared in the gym ) Of course, I thought – now, now or never, this must be the time to show off! I set off for another s-sault on the floor, but being tired already and not realising it, I fell on the floor crushing my head and shoulder. Ohh, what a shame…. you can imagine. Fortunately, she was a sportswoman – she smiled and noted something about overmotivation and she was right, the next attempt was OK. A good lecture to me – to think first, act later.

hey Anant,

Wow – you’ve come a long way! Awesome.

That’s always a challenge with the dumbbells and weight… You should be able to decrease your # of reps and increase the weight. For example, if you do 10 reps with 15 pounds, you should be able to do at least 6-8 with 20 pounds. Make sense?

For pull ups – I’ll probably do a whole post on this at some point, but I’d suggest that you perform 10 second isometric holds on your pull ups on your last rep. Repeat x 3 reps, then end your set. Always go as high as you can and really hold on. Focus on your lats, not biceps.

hope this helps!

have a great day,

Kareem

Oof! Been there, Scott.

…but just remember not to hit ‘true failure’ when you’re alone. Otherwise, you should be safe. That said, a spotter and lifting partner is a great thing!

Sure, I love kettlebells. In fact, I actually give away a kettlebell circuit as a bonus with Ab Strength Guide if you’re interested.

have a great day,

Kareem

Wow, Kath!

You rocked yourself! Glad you’re ok – keep up the awesome work!

You’re right on point… ‘Exercising Around An Injury – Your Newfound Opportunity To Be In The Best Shape Of Your Life’ – this is exactly what I preach. Biceps curls are fair game – charge on!

hey Mitch,

Ha! Isn’t that funny? …and now you go to the gym at a different time… but I wouldn’t have even thought twice about that… just would’ve gotten a kick out of watching you look around the dumbbell to see if it was welded down. That’s funny!

hey Nick,

The good ‘ole alligator clips, huh?

Man… sounds like I’ve made a fool of myself with each and all of your stories – yep, I always use the clips now

have a great day man,

-k

hey David,

That’s scary! On your throat, huh?

Glad to know you, my friend.

hey Maria,

thanks for sharing! How’s it going now? Are you feeling more confidant with weights now?

have a great day,

Kareem

hey Ronda,

Crazy what an 8lb. dumbbell can do to a man, huh?

Ever try ‘Dumbbell Matrix’ before?

That’s a pretty awesome circuit!

hey Kris,

You’re very kind. Thank you.

I find that better than giving advice is just to go and start doing the exercise smoothly with a smaller weight, somewhere in the background of where they are. This makes them feel strong, but in charge. Then, they pay attention and see it’s not all about the weight, especially if you’re stronger than they are.

I’d love to hear if this works for you too.

great points, Zev!

As I mentioned above, nobody really minds… just looking for a bit of entertainment while working out… be grateful you were it that day!

hey Watch ,

Thanks for sharing.

Actually, I don’t recommend lifting different weights on different sides for extended periods of times. Instead, I’d suggest you start getting rehab on your elbow. You in the Bucks County area?

There’s a lot of things that can go on with the elbow, so it’s hard to say right off the bat… but I’d be happy to set you up with my top Master Therapist, Dr. Aron. He’s awesome.

Awesome Frank. I love that you showed him how to do it properly – this probably made a huge difference for him for a long time!

The makeshift Kettlebell is a great idea! …and, yep, we use Med Balls first at Global Fitness LLC – you’re right on par, my friend.

Most of all, I love that you’re coming up with this stuff yourself – that rocks and it will be the key to your long-term success!

Keep up the great work,

-k

That’s awesome Karl!

You’re very welcome, and a HUGE congratulations!

Keep up the amazing work and spread the word, my friend. I’m so proud of you.

-k

hey Ray,

You’re welcome.

I really appreciate your request up here. Sure, I’d be happy to do a blog post about this exact topic. I’ll add it to the list.

As for the blurry vision, seeing stars, etc. – BE CAREFUL! This might mean that your blood pressure is spiking very high and you could be creating a lot of intracranial pressure. This may be simply related to holding your breath, but you may want to get a stress test to find out.

Really glad you stopped by!

Please keep me posted,

-k

That’s amazing, Ollie!

So glad to hear you’re doing better now!

That’s the medicine in the peanut butter, so to speak, of DEFL.

Now that you’ve been working out awhile, it’s a good idea to bump up your weights… always challenge yourself to lift more, but stay within the general rep range you’re targeting, based upon your goals. Make sense?

Hey Audrey,

I’m really glad that you asked. Yes, I have a bunch of suggestions, but one main one – you have to start lifting weights. Cardio alone is not allowing you to get there b/c you are not changing your muscle:fat ratio. Check out these 7 FREE Fat Loss Videos and I’ll teach you all about it.

have a great day,

Kareem

I’m hysterical right now!

Man… that dog is cute, though, right?

You rock, Dirk!

Awesome, super awesome – keep up the great work!

-k

Hey Per,

I’m going to have you start teaching pretty soon – man, you’re getting good!

This is awesome – thanks for all your positivity, knowledge, and generosity.

speak soon,

Kareem

hey Cindy,

Wow – hate is a strong word, but I’m glad you let me know.

Let me explain, as this is a very important topic:

1. Comments = Page/search rankings with Google and other search engines. Therefore, as this is totally FREE content for you, the trade is helping me attract more attention and provide useful and helpful information for others. It takes a few seconds to comment or ask one thought-provoking question. These blog posts take me one to four hours to do for you.

2. Community – ‘dead’ blogs tend to have people take information less seriously. This is a huge risk to everyone working to get in great shape. It’s my responsibility to keep positivity and enthusiasm up here to help all of you succeed with your goals.

3. Confidence – How will I know if the topic interests you if you don’t comment? Naturally, I want to tailor and customize my teachings to your interests. It’s through your comments that I am able to do so.

…with all of this said, I do really appreciate the comments. But I also have to invest my time wisely. Why list the top 3 fat loss exercises unless 2.5% of people who visit this blog leave a comment? Think about it… that’s not a huge number, but it takes personal responsibility.

Does this make any level of sense to you?

have a great day,

Kareem

Oh man, that’s a tough feeling, isn’t it Martin?

To everyone else who’s commented and shared stories up here – I’ve read them all and answered all of your questions. I really appreciate you taking the time to comment and share. Your stories made my day… sometimes painful, but fun and open-hearted. That’s what this is all about.

Great work!

I’ll be back with the Top 3 Fat Loss Exercises on your next post. Stay tuned!

have a great day,

Kareem

I don’t have a horror story (there are some, I just can’t remember them specifically right now), but I would like to comment about your e-mails and articles. I enjoy receiving the e-mails and articles, I think they do help. As someone who’s gained and lost right at 100 lbs. (I was 330, now I’m down to 230), it’s good to hear from others who have insight on being active and healthy. I do have a question on dropping that last 25-30 lbs. that I’m looking to drop. I’ve been as low as 215, but I had a few injuries and didn’t stay committed to eating right, exercising, staying hydrated, etc., and now I’ve gained.

What recommendations can you make for someone looking to get back on the exercise/workout/healthy horse and drop the 25-30 lbs. that they want to lose and keep off? Your insight/advice (or anyone else for that matter) is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Dr. K
I see we are one short of your goal so here is another comment. I want to thank you for all that you do and yes, I am more confident with weights. I still have a ways to go but I am always learning. On your encouragement, I took a course and have become a certified personal trainer. I’m not employed yet but forever learning new techniques and I am losing weight.
Thank you.

I think we all been through it at one point or another! I remember doing bicep curls with dumbbells and at one point I see my face in the mirror. My face had an expression of extreme pain. I felt a sharp pinch in my lower neck area. It sucks to get that type of pain especially when working towards bigger arms!

I like dumbbells because barbells can be dangerous and make it easy to hurt yourself, if you do not have a spotter to help you. I work out at midnight, by myself, as there is usually no one else there when I come in after work, five nights a week. I once failed to life a barbell the last rep, as it was too heavy, and spent 10 minutes trying to get the darn thing off my chest because I could not lift it high enough to put it back on the rack! At least nobody saw me. THAT was embarrassing! Now I only life barbells that I know I can lift without getting caught underneath. WIth dumbbells, I never have that problem, If they get too heavy, I just drop them, and I am not trapped by stupidity!

Dr. K,
Don’t have any embarrassing gym moments as I tend to avoid working out in public. I do however read all your blogs and love your commitment to and enthusiasm for the results you inspire.

No stupid dumbbell stories here. Just reading a learning all I can. I am sure I will have to read the material several times to understand it. Then I have to translate and motivate my wife to do it also.

The good story I have done with dumbbells is that I bought a set of Bowflex 90 pound (180lb total) selectable dumbells sets off of Craigslist. Note: you can also get them in a 50 pound set. You can select from 10 to 90 lbs in 5 pound increments and right now I go thru a 3 sets of 10 different exercises with the dumbbells.
Bench press (doing 45lb on each) military press (30lb on each) chest fly (20lbs on each) biceps( 20lbs on each), triceps(20 lbs on each), rows (20lbs on each), squats, lunges, calf raises, and situps. I try to change up how I do each exercise to challenge my body. So instead of bench press I do pushups. I do military presses at different body angles, or sometimes combine it with a bicep curl. I do bicep curls with diffent grips and body angles. Sometimes lunge and bicep curls. So at least I am doing something right already in stacking Will have to start doing lunge back with military presses.

It’s never easy when your a beginer or if you’ve just come back after a long break from working out. Once you get past the first 2 weeks, everything starts falling into place. Personally I’ve never really cared about what anyone else thinks or if they will make fun of me or not. I’d rather take it slow , than to hurt myself trying to keep up with or impressing friends or others in the gym.