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View Full Version : fixed plate dumbells feel heavier than



mr.bump
02-16-10, 9:53 am
the big moulded type ones
I dont know if its the bar or not but there deffently allot heavier in my gym.

moulded type
http://d3f8w3yx9w99q2.cloudfront.net/1268/hampton-fitness-55-100-lbs-dura-bell-dumbbells-set-dumbbells/hampton-fitness-55-100-lbs-dura-bell-dumbbells-set-dumbbells_0_0.jpg

plate type th one in my gym hae metal handles
http://pacificoceanfitness.com/images/Image/Grey%20Dumbbells%20JPEG.jpg

So I was benchin with 25 kg or so it says by reading the plates bu it seems allot heavier and bigger than the fixed ones.I would say it feels more like 40kg :S

Aggression
02-16-10, 9:59 am
This brings back memories...

They definitely feel different. When I was in college, my campus facility had the solid weights on the ends while my hometown gym had the fixed plates. They always felt different. I would get annoyed when I'd come home for winter break and grab the same weight, yet do less reps (or was it vice versa? I can't remember).

In the end, they weigh the same. It just takes a workout or two to adjust to the different shapes of the dumbbells.

ghost
02-16-10, 10:09 am
200 lbs is always 200 lbs... your mind may let you believe that it is lighter or heavier than before, but it is always 200 lbs.

GJN5002
02-16-10, 10:23 am
I know the feeling, sometimes the weights just feels different, more than likely just mind games. Take a db or plate to the scale and see how much it really weighs. At my old gym, they had an assortment of plates (typical old school gym) and one day we drug the scale over and weighed all the plates because there were like 4 different brands. They ranged from 45lbs to 50lbs.

RK
02-16-10, 12:30 pm
SOME of the companies fudge how much weight is actually on a DB on both cases. For example at my school gym i put the 100 pound DB on the scale and it actually came out to around 94-95 pounds.

In the end it doesnt really matter, just gotta pick up waht you got and do your thing

theharjmann
02-17-10, 5:56 am
This brings back memories...

They definitely feel different. When I was in college, my campus facility had the solid weights on the ends while my hometown gym had the fixed plates. They always felt different. I would get annoyed when I'd come home for winter break and grab the same weight, yet do less reps (or was it vice versa? I can't remember).

In the end, they weigh the same. It just takes a workout or two to adjust to the different shapes of the dumbbells.

Dont get driven by numbers. You need to use weight to stimulate muscle growth, not to show off about how much you can lift (unless you are a powerlifter).

All machines at my gym that are plate loaded with a pin to adjust weight do not have the weight of each plate on them. They are simply numbered 1,2,3,4,5,6,...etc. This way i dont focus on HOW MUCH weight im lifting but rather HOW I AM LIFTING IT.

mr.bump
02-17-10, 10:49 am
well am not wanting to be a bodybuilder,I do want a better body but I still useuley try to lift higher than the week befor.

FITGYM
02-17-10, 11:37 am
I will only buy the older style weights for my gym because of this.

When something is mass produced there is a margin of error that is considered OK.

Steel 45 Plates can weigh between 43 to 48 pounds and will be labeled as a 45.

The newer style ones weigh less to compensate for the rubber coating that gets put on them and they rarely weigh over 45 pounds.

I ordered 12.5 pound plates for dumbbells that I put together and I took a scale with me and weighed them all before I left the dock. They thought i was nuts and I told them I am paying for 12.5 plates and I'm making sure they are all 12.5. A few plates had to be exchanged for not weighing in.

Always check under the hood before you buy!

ironshaolin
02-17-10, 2:19 pm
I read on another forum some guy with that problem. he said he ended up developing muscle imbalances at his home gym, and one day took his plates to be calibrated. The worst was I think 39lbs instead of 45, the heaviest went up to 49. Think about that, you put one on one end, the other at the other end, and its like you're missing a 10lb on one side. Now, he wrote in the Actual weight, and balances them accordingly.

jeff00z28
02-17-10, 7:22 pm
i agreed. its probably some self-esteem raising thing made up by owners of commercial gyms. But ya at the golds gym i can press 140s on incline (only been there once). i can do 120s for about the same amount of reps with metal ones that my other gyms have. it coulda been like a minor difference in the bench angle but i def know there is a slight difference

NaturalTrainee
02-18-10, 6:23 am
It must create some sort of leverage-positive or negative- in order to engage different muscle in different percentages.

mr.bump
02-18-10, 12:03 pm
went the gym today and these ones are deffo about 5kg out.god job they only have 10,15,20 and 30kg in the solid ones.
oh and I do also think that the weight diffrence has to do with the handle

FITGYM
02-18-10, 3:57 pm
When it comes to the DB handles??? some people will assume they weigh 5lbs or 10lbs.

RedCard03
02-20-10, 9:33 pm
Same thing happened to me the other day. I worked out on leg extensions at one gym and worked out with 130. At my home gym I do 200 on leg extension. there is something wrong there.

Razor
02-26-10, 6:11 pm
The grip or the size always makes the mind think different. My gym has molded ones and when i hit up a gym with the rest of the crew here in chicago, we always hit up a gym with plates. They always feel heavier but they're not. Your body just gets used to them as you cruise through your sets.