Re: New (old) member introducing himself

[Guest guest]

I have been down a similar path. As a teen I was 5' 9 " and weighed

no more than 140 lbs. at any given time. In college I discovered

Nautilus and worked my weight up to 160, weighing 165 when I was 24.

In my early 30's I discovered powerlifting. I worked my weight up to

205, but felt terrible, and looked bloated.

I have returned to using the Steel Bow 28 exclusively as well as

jogging 3-4 days a week. My bodyweight is holding steady at 180 lbs,

and I still have some " trouble spots " I need to work on through diet.

As far as the Steel Bow 28 is concerned it gives me an excellent

workout 3-4 days a week, and my upper body looks as muscular as it

ever has at 44. I do do the lower body exercises as well.

HZ

>

> New member introducing himself to the group:

>

> Two or three months ago there was a series of posts on the relative

> merits of BW versus training with weights at the gym. Since I have

> experience of both over a long period I thought I'd weigh in.

>

> I'm now 59 but I began with the BW round about age 25, so a good

long

> while ago. I worked very hard (trained twice a day 5 days a week)

> over a period of 2 or 3 years, and got very good all round

results.

> I started off with some advantages, naturally broad shoulders and a

> barrel chest among them, but the combination of the BW and a good

> diet put muscle on me in every area. I can't remember the details

but

> I do know that I went from a chest that was barely 38 inches to 43

or

> 44 inches in a couple of years, and I added a couple of inches to

> both arms and thighs.

>

> It was in my 30s that I got into weight training (free weights and

> machines), and after a while I was training three days a week with

> split routines and dealing with fairly heavy weights. Gains in

bulk

> followed pretty steadily. The trouble with the gym is that it is

> expensive in terms of time as well as money, and I was never able

to

> keep it up. So in the last 20 years I have had 3 separate periods

> of intensive training with long periods in between where I just

> haven't managed to do it at all. I ended up carrying a lot of

bulk,

> a lot of it muscle (by my mid to late 40s I had a 50 " + chest, and

> legs and arms, shoulders, neck, traps and lats etc to match), but

not

> always in good tone, and tending recently to run to flab.

>

> I have given up on gyms and returned to where I started, the

> Bullworker.

>

> Advantages:

>

> 1. I don't have to travel to the gym and take hours out of my

> day.

> 2. I can build the routine in every day, even if I am away from

> home.

> 3. Even for a guy carrying a lot of heavy muscle like me, the BW

> can tone the muscles up; I feel the burn, and know that I have

> connected with a given muscle group in a way that promotes tone and

> growth.

>

> Disadvantages:

>

> 1. I'm not sure the BW is ever as good with the legs as it is

> with the upper body. Since I have restarted I know that I am

> connecting with the shoulders, pecs, biceps, triceps, lats, traps,

> forearms. Legs I'm less certain about.

> 2. If you want to gain a lot of muscle (as I once did), there is

> probably no substitute for free weights. But if you're content

with

> being well built and toned (as I think I wish I had been), the BW

is

> fine.

>

>

> More than enough from me. But I'd be interested to hear from any

> other older guys whose BW experience goes back a long way.

>

> Max

> London

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks Max.

Your sharing of experinece has been very useful for people like me who are new to the world of Bullworker and are still a little skeptical!

To: bullworkerclub Sent: Wednesday, November 26, 2008 3:12:02 AMSubject: New (old) member introducing himself

New member introducing himself to the group: Two or three months ago there was a series of posts on the relative merits of BW versus training with weights at the gym. Since I have experience of both over a long period I thought I'd weigh in.I'm now 59 but I began with the BW round about age 25, so a good long while ago. I worked very hard (trained twice a day 5 days a week) over a period of 2 or 3 years, and got very good all round results. I started off with some advantages, naturally broad shoulders and a barrel chest among them, but the combination of the BW and a good diet put muscle on me in every area. I can't remember the details but I do know that I went from a chest that was barely 38 inches to 43 or 44 inches in a couple of years, and I added a couple of inches to both arms and thighs. It was in my 30s that I got into weight training (free weights and machines), and after a

while I was training three days a week with split routines and dealing with fairly heavy weights. Gains in bulk followed pretty steadily. The trouble with the gym is that it is expensive in terms of time as well as money, and I was never able to keep it up. So in the last 20 years I have had 3 separate periods of intensive training with long periods in between where I just haven't managed to do it at all. I ended up carrying a lot of bulk, a lot of it muscle (by my mid to late 40s I had a 50"+ chest, and legs and arms, shoulders, neck, traps and lats etc to match), but not always in good tone, and tending recently to run to flab.I have given up on gyms and returned to where I started, the Bullworker. Advantages:1. I don't have to travel to the gym and take hours out of my day.2. I can build the routine in every day, even if I am away from home.3. Even for a guy carrying a

lot of heavy muscle like me, the BW can tone the muscles up; I feel the burn, and know that I have connected with a given muscle group in a way that promotes tone and growth.Disadvantages:1. I'm not sure the BW is ever as good with the legs as it is with the upper body. Since I have restarted I know that I am connecting with the shoulders, pecs, biceps, triceps, lats, traps, forearms. Legs I'm less certain about.2. If you want to gain a lot of muscle (as I once did), there is probably no substitute for free weights. But if you're content with being well built and toned (as I think I wish I had been), the BW is fine.More than enough from me. But I'd be interested to hear from any other older guys whose BW experience goes back a long way.MaxLondon

[Guest guest]

Hi Max, I have just returned to the Bullworker at age 53. I was into

Yoga and weight training in my teens; running, martial arts and

boxing in my late teens early 20s supported by running, weights and

Bullworker; then windurfing and general training after that into my

30s. For the past few years I have done limited floor exercises -

press-ups, situps. I am still in good shape, but have just started

the Bullworker regime again and find it very good and convenient. I

have not interest in building huge muscle bulk, just good tone. I

agree about the legs issue, though.

Incidentally, I use an X5 that I bought on eBay for £25. Great buy.

Regards

Andy

> >

> > New member introducing himself to the group:

> >

> > Two or three months ago there was a series of posts on the

relative

> > merits of BW versus training with weights at the gym. Since I

have

> > experience of both over a long period I thought I'd weigh in.

> >

> > I'm now 59 but I began with the BW round about age 25, so a good

> long

> > while ago. I worked very hard (trained twice a day 5 days a

week)

> > over a period of 2 or 3 years, and got very good all round

> results.

> > I started off with some advantages, naturally broad shoulders and

a

> > barrel chest among them, but the combination of the BW and a good

> > diet put muscle on me in every area. I can't remember the details

> but

> > I do know that I went from a chest that was barely 38 inches to

43

> or

> > 44 inches in a couple of years, and I added a couple of inches to

> > both arms and thighs.

> >

> > It was in my 30s that I got into weight training (free weights

and

> > machines), and after a while I was training three days a week

with

> > split routines and dealing with fairly heavy weights. Gains in

> bulk

> > followed pretty steadily. The trouble with the gym is that it is

> > expensive in terms of time as well as money, and I was never able

> to

> > keep it up. So in the last 20 years I have had 3 separate

periods

> > of intensive training with long periods in between where I just

> > haven't managed to do it at all. I ended up carrying a lot of

> bulk,

> > a lot of it muscle (by my mid to late 40s I had a 50 " + chest, and

> > legs and arms, shoulders, neck, traps and lats etc to match), but

> not

> > always in good tone, and tending recently to run to flab.

> >

> > I have given up on gyms and returned to where I started, the

> > Bullworker.

> >

> > Advantages:

> >

> > 1. I don't have to travel to the gym and take hours out of my

> > day.

> > 2. I can build the routine in every day, even if I am away from

> > home.

> > 3. Even for a guy carrying a lot of heavy muscle like me, the BW

> > can tone the muscles up; I feel the burn, and know that I have

> > connected with a given muscle group in a way that promotes tone

and

> > growth.

> >

> > Disadvantages:

> >

> > 1. I'm not sure the BW is ever as good with the legs as it is

> > with the upper body. Since I have restarted I know that I am

> > connecting with the shoulders, pecs, biceps, triceps, lats,

traps,

> > forearms. Legs I'm less certain about.

> > 2. If you want to gain a lot of muscle (as I once did), there is

> > probably no substitute for free weights. But if you're content

> with

> > being well built and toned (as I think I wish I had been), the BW

> is

> > fine.

> >

> >

> > More than enough from me. But I'd be interested to hear from any

> > other older guys whose BW experience goes back a long way.

> >

> > Max

> > London

> >

>