I have been working out seriously the last month or two, working on different muscles 3 days a week, trying to bulk up. Well, I have seen some results with gaining muscles, but my badminton game suffers tremendously. My muscles feel really stiff and I cant be as mobile as I want to be. Anyway, I stopped working out for a week and I am back to playing well again. Does that happen to anyone else? Can I bulk up without sacrificing my badminton game?
Yes and no... bulking up will always affect your range of motion and speed. More muscle means you just don't have the flexibility that you're used to so you need to work just as hard on remaining flexible while you work out. More muscle also means more mass to move around. That's why you see many doubles players with huge legs but a smaller upper body.
Well, considering the fact that most asians go for the reverse look of big upper body and legs like a spider.... Not saying you can't be both well built and flexible (look at men gymnists) but you really need to work hard a balancing the two.
There's the added consequence of having to move more weight around the court - at least that's my excuse. Mind you, down to 217 from 226 and counting.
finding a balance between muscle and flexibility is the key. also your drop in your game might just be you're not used to playing with the extra weight and the heavier/stronger muscles. you can be muscular, lean, and flexible if you work on it
I find it hard to believe that you gained much mass in 'a month or two'. I doubt your extra bulk was the problem
Keep in mind too that you're putting your muscles under a lot of stress when you bulk up. You're tearing the muscles in order for them to rebuild larger so that makes them stiff and tired. I suppose there's a difference between getting bigger and just getting stronger. I'm a pretty thin guy at 5'11" and 165 lbs and when I was working out it was purely a strength issue. I was comfortable with my size, just wanted to get stronger. For strength you should be doing mid weight and more reps. Pure bulking is high weight low reps and conditioning is low weight high reps. For strength you want to be in the mid range of both.
well you are right, I didn't gain that much really, probably just 2 or 3kg. maybe it wasnt the extra muscles, but the fact that i play during my workout off days where my muscles are recovering and stiffen up. also note that i cut down on cardio exercises to increase mass, which is gonna change now. i will also try with more reps instead of heavier weights.
You've got it wrong mate. For strength training, you would do low reps (3-5) and heavy weights. For hypertrophy, you would be aiming for moderate weights and doing 8 - 12 reps.
reps for enigma take it from a guy who went from badminton to body building back to badminton the extra bulk was horrible for my speed and maneuverability I had to cut 8 pounds of muscle just to be match fit most people who are focused on bulking usually neglect cardio work so you can suffer from that as well i'm 5'5" i used to be 165 of lean body mass now i'm down to 155 ish still trying to maintain my lifts, but not going heavy any more but yea, generally, being quick, agile and flexible and muscular and powerful are usually mutually exclusive you will definitely lose size and strength when training for agility and quickness totally different types of muscle groups at play
Glyder, you're just sore. Still, unless you have some very specific weight training you're doing, low rep gym work isn't going to help you on the court one bit.
im not working out for badminton, its for basketball actually. badminton is my no 1 sport, but i love playing basketball too. for those who play basketball, u should know a skinny frame is not gonna cut it. im still gonna continue working out, but with higher reps and lighter weights.
