Thoughts on weightlifting

A place to discuss health and fitness, healthy diets. A fit body makes for a fit mind.
User avatar
marc108
Posts: 463
Joined: Wed Jan 18, 2012 10:10 pm

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by marc108 »

manas wrote:Imho, so long as the body is fit enough to undertake our given occupation properly, and is able to sit for a decent amount of time in meditation posture without harming knees or back, what more is needed?
same reason we do maintenance on our cars beyond its ability to start and drive back and forth to work. the body really needs some sort of resistance exercise to function optimally. disease is reduced, pain and suffering are reduced, the brightness of the mind is increased.

in non western countries people do a lot more physical labor in daily life... most of us do nothing physical outside the gym, so the gym becomes a necessity to function normally.
"It's easy for us to connect with what's wrong with us... and not so easy to feel into, or to allow us, to connect with what's right and what's good in us."
Jhana4
Posts: 1331
Joined: Sat Feb 05, 2011 5:20 pm
Location: U.S.A., Northeast

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by Jhana4 »

Digity wrote:What are your thoughts on weightlifting? Do you think it's bad since it can promote vanity and increase one's ego?
Since you aren't a monastic, you are living a lay life and many, many other things can do that to you as well. I wouldn't worry about it. Enjoy.
In reading the scriptures, there are two kinds of mistakes:
One mistake is to cling to the literal text and miss the inner principles.
The second mistake is to recognize the principles but not apply them to your own mind, so that you waste time and just make them into causes of entanglement.
User avatar
manas
Posts: 2678
Joined: Thu Jul 22, 2010 3:04 am
Location: Melbourne, Australia

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by manas »

marc108 wrote:
manas wrote:Imho, so long as the body is fit enough to undertake our given occupation properly, and is able to sit for a decent amount of time in meditation posture without harming knees or back, what more is needed?
same reason we do maintenance on our cars beyond its ability to start and drive back and forth to work. the body really needs some sort of resistance exercise to function optimally. disease is reduced, pain and suffering are reduced, the brightness of the mind is increased.

in non western countries people do a lot more physical labor in daily life... most of us do nothing physical outside the gym, so the gym becomes a necessity to function normally.

I see your point, marc. Yes, the average person in the richer, industrialised world, is overly sedentary as compared with his or her ancestors.
To the Buddha-refuge i go; to the Dhamma-refuge i go; to the Sangha-refuge i go.
User avatar
convivium
Posts: 577
Joined: Wed May 05, 2010 7:13 am

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by convivium »

for westerners that meditate on the floor and aren't that flexible, doing heavy squats, deadlifts, barbell rows, shoulder presses, etc. is sketchy. there are alternatives to these things that are good enough. you have to take care of your discs and stretch enough the right way, etc. if you have a gaining idea in lifting weights, then it might problematize things as a practitioner. however, for example, if you are intimate and present and mindful while becoming weaker and more vulnerable with every rep and still continuing through it, then it could become a spiritual practice. i just know it's a way to keep me somewhat grounded, get rid of stress, get energy, etc. it's also a huge timesuck to get into it, especially if you're just trying to impress yourself.
Just keep breathing in and out like this. Don't be interested in anything else. It doesn't matter even if someone is standing on their head with their ass in the air. Don't pay it any attention. Just stay with the in-breath and the out-breath. Concentrate your awareness on the breath. Just keep doing it. http://www.ajahnchah.org/book/Just_Do_It_1_2.php
alan
Posts: 3111
Joined: Wed Sep 30, 2009 12:14 am
Location: Miramar beach, Fl.

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by alan »

Everyone past the age of 40 or so is getting weaker every day. You can choose to accept that, and make a joke about it, if you like.
Or you can choose the skillful option, which is to challenge your body to keep growing. Lifting weights is the best way to do that.
User avatar
Kamran
Posts: 471
Joined: Fri Oct 07, 2011 3:14 am

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by Kamran »

If you admire your body in the mirror just note what feeling arises, and the exact moment that it passes away, that it is impermanent and then even attachment to body could become a learning process :)
User avatar
Ben
Posts: 18438
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 12:49 am
Location: kanamaluka

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by Ben »

I'm actually a bit intrigued by the assumption by some that if one engages in weight lifting or attends the gym, then one is necessarily a narcissist.

I have returned to the gym after a long hiatus in a bid to return some level of physical fitness and health. And I think that is the same for many people who attend - its a convenient vehicle for them to maintain the only body they've got in this life.

My observation is that at least some people at the gym look in the mirrror, not to relish the image of their own body (or others), but to ensure correct physical technique.
kind regards,

Ben
“No lists of things to be done. The day providential to itself. The hour. There is no later. This is later. All things of grace and beauty such that one holds them to one's heart have a common provenance in pain. Their birth in grief and ashes.”
- Cormac McCarthy, The Road

Learn this from the waters:
in mountain clefts and chasms,
loud gush the streamlets,
but great rivers flow silently.
- Sutta Nipata 3.725

Compassionate Hands Foundation (Buddhist aid in Myanmar) • Buddhist Global ReliefUNHCR

e: [email protected]..
Clarence
Posts: 57
Joined: Sun Jul 11, 2010 5:49 pm

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by Clarence »

Look into Cross-fit. We do a lot of weight stuff but also a lot of cardio, flexibility, coordination and other work. In about 2 months, 2x a week I have gotten a lot stronger and fitter. I can now do pull-ups, chin-ups and a lot more push-ups than before.
User avatar
Alex123
Posts: 4035
Joined: Wed Mar 10, 2010 11:32 pm

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by Alex123 »

Kamran wrote:If you admire your body in the mirror just note what feeling arises, and the exact moment that it passes away, that it is impermanent and then even attachment to body could become a learning process :)

Good idea. I've got into a bad habit to flex in front of a mirror before going to post workout shower... And when I see myself in a mirror I sometimes flex my chest... :( Attachement...
danieLion
Posts: 1947
Joined: Wed May 25, 2011 4:49 am

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by danieLion »

Ben wrote:I'm actually a bit intrigued by the assumption by some that if one engages in weight lifting or attends the gym, then one is necessarily a narcissist.

I have returned to the gym after a long hiatus in a bid to return some level of physical fitness and health. And I think that is the same for many people who attend - its a convenient vehicle for them to maintain the only body they've got in this life.

My observation is that at least some people at the gym look in the mirrror, not to relish the image of their own body (or others), but to ensure correct physical technique.
kind regards,

Ben
A bigger problem, for me anyway, is when people think I'm looking at them/staring at them/checking them out, etc.... because they're in my posture check zone. One time, the middle-aged black woman on the elliptical next to me said something like, "Why do you keep looking at me?" I joked with her and said, "Oh I'm just really vain. I'm looking at myself." She laughed. I told her about my need to posture check. Since I've scoliosis and spinal arthritis I constantly look in the mirror at the gym to check my posture (I'm currently using Esther Gokhale's method). I rarely look in the mirror (at home or in the gym) and think vain thoughts, even when according to other people I'm "looking good" (my thoughts about myself are usually negative, especially regarding my physique and ablities.). And most of the people that frequent my gym aren't exactly natural beauties: the elderly, the obese, and, yes, "ugly" ones. Furthermore, if you're there to work out, you're probably going to sweat and stink and so are others which can really kill vanity. In fact, I find the gym a great place to contemplate foulness of the body. It might just be the gym I go to, but I rarely see people look in the mirror for vanity purposes. There's mirrors on all the walls, but they didn't put them there for narcissists. If you're working out, getting the right form is crucial. If you're vain about it, you're the exception. Plus, I think you can dinstinguish between vanity and a healthy self-image, the latter of which you can use to your advantage as a motivator. The better you look the more likely you are to stay in shape.
User avatar
Ben
Posts: 18438
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 12:49 am
Location: kanamaluka

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by Ben »

danieLion wrote:
Ben wrote:I'm actually a bit intrigued by the assumption by some that if one engages in weight lifting or attends the gym, then one is necessarily a narcissist.

I have returned to the gym after a long hiatus in a bid to return some level of physical fitness and health. And I think that is the same for many people who attend - its a convenient vehicle for them to maintain the only body they've got in this life.

My observation is that at least some people at the gym look in the mirrror, not to relish the image of their own body (or others), but to ensure correct physical technique.
kind regards,

Ben
A bigger problem, for me anyway, is when people think I'm looking at them/staring at them/checking them out, etc.... because they're in my posture check zone. One time, the middle-aged black woman on the elliptical next to me said something like, "Why do you keep looking at me?" I joked with her and said, "Oh I'm just really vain. I'm looking at myself." She laughed. I told her about my need to posture check. Since I've scoliosis and spinal arthritis I constantly look in the mirror at the gym to check my posture (I'm currently using Esther Gokhale's method). I rarely look in the mirror (at home or in the gym) and think vain thoughts, even when according to other people I'm "looking good" (my thoughts about myself are usually negative, especially regarding my physique and ablities.). And most of the people that frequent my gym aren't exactly natural beauties: the elderly, the obese, and, yes, "ugly" ones. Furthermore, if you're there to work out, you're probably going to sweat and stink and so are others which can really kill vanity. In fact, I find the gym a great place to contemplate foulness of the body. It might just be the gym I go to, but I rarely see people look in the mirror for vanity purposes. There's mirrors on all the walls, but they didn't put them there for narcissists. If you're working out, getting the right form is crucial. If you're vain about it, you're the exception. Plus, I think you can dinstinguish between vanity and a healthy self-image, the latter of which you can use to your advantage as a motivator. The better you look the more likely you are to stay in shape.
I've actually started attending the RPM (spin) classes with my wife. I feel right at home. Most of the time I've been the only male in the room and the majority of the people there are in their middle age and are carrying a few additional kilos.
kind regards,

Ben
“No lists of things to be done. The day providential to itself. The hour. There is no later. This is later. All things of grace and beauty such that one holds them to one's heart have a common provenance in pain. Their birth in grief and ashes.”
- Cormac McCarthy, The Road

Learn this from the waters:
in mountain clefts and chasms,
loud gush the streamlets,
but great rivers flow silently.
- Sutta Nipata 3.725

Compassionate Hands Foundation (Buddhist aid in Myanmar) • Buddhist Global ReliefUNHCR

e: [email protected]..
danieLion
Posts: 1947
Joined: Wed May 25, 2011 4:49 am

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by danieLion »

Ben wrote:I've actually started attending the RPM (spin) classes with my wife. I feel right at home. Most of the time I've been the only male in the room and the majority of the people there are in their middle age and are carrying a few additional kilos.
kind regards,

Ben
:smile: I often tease (half seriously though) the water aerobics crowd (mostly, "big-size" and "very-big-size" middle-age to senior-aged women) that I'll be joining them soon.
User avatar
marc108
Posts: 463
Joined: Wed Jan 18, 2012 10:10 pm

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by marc108 »

danieLion wrote:I'm currently using Esther Gokhale's method
:thumbsup:
"It's easy for us to connect with what's wrong with us... and not so easy to feel into, or to allow us, to connect with what's right and what's good in us."
danieLion
Posts: 1947
Joined: Wed May 25, 2011 4:49 am

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by danieLion »

marc108 wrote:
danieLion wrote:I'm currently using Esther Gokhale's method
:thumbsup:
It makes me walk like George Jefferson.
User avatar
marc108
Posts: 463
Joined: Wed Jan 18, 2012 10:10 pm

Re: Thoughts on weightlifting

Post by marc108 »

danieLion wrote:
marc108 wrote:
danieLion wrote:I'm currently using Esther Gokhale's method
:thumbsup:
It makes me walk like George Jefferson.
ya or a duck. but it works!
"It's easy for us to connect with what's wrong with us... and not so easy to feel into, or to allow us, to connect with what's right and what's good in us."
Post Reply