Push-ups versus dumbbell press

[rga]

So far, the resistance portion of my cutting routine has consisted mainly of upper body compound workouts that made use of my own body weight: push-ups, chin-ups, pull-ups, dips, etc. I know about the 5x5 routine and other various programs, but I've just not been able to afford a gym membership.

My father offered me a bench and some dumbbells last week, so I accepted. The largest pair I received is 50 lbs. I'm pretty sure my form is OK, in that I keep the dumbbells situated over my lower chest to avoid putting pressure on the rotator cuff; I don't come down too far past 90 degress; I don't go up or down too fast; I do a slight pause in the down position before pressing back up.

My problem is that I don't get the same burn in my chest as I do from my push-ups. It seems like I could go on forever doing 50 lbs. dumbbell presses, but I feel the burn from the push-ups after 15-20 reps. I don't think my wrist and forearms could support anything heavier than 50lbs. either, but that weight amount of weight doesn't seem to be working out my chest enough. I've tried doing flies, too, but the result seems to be the same. Nothing seems to give me that stretching/burning feeling in my chest as doing push-ups.

I should add I guess, that I'm 5'10", 188 lbs. With the workouts that I've mentioned and a good diet, I've come down from 250 lbs. since February.

I guess my question is, what should I do? Use the dumbbells for presses and flies even though I don't feel the burn, or continue doing push-ups? I should add that my reason for accepting the dumbbells from my father is that my left pec seems to be bigger than my right, and I thought isolating each side of my chest would allow the right one to catch up.

 

[brad310]

i dont think thats abnormal...keep doing what you're doing and use them both.

if i had to guess why pushups burn more, its probably because
1-you may actually be pushing more than 50lbs per arm on a pushup
2-pushups generally go faster, with no pause, and many more reps
3-pushup hand placement for most is wider than your dumbell press
4-blood flow...pushup uses more of the body so the heart is going to pump faster...higher heart rate.

grats on the loss.

 

[CPA]

Don't worry about the burn, worry about the weight loss. You may need to go up in weight, though, if you are hitting 6-8 reps with ease.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

My parents bought me next to nothing as a kid but when it came to fitness, they bought me almost anything. Basketball hoop, hockey gear, etc. I've carried that on. I do not hesitate with things like buying equipment or my $2000 mountain bike.

Point being, this is a change you should make for the long term. Find a used Olympic weight set on craigslist. You should be able to get a 300 pound set for under $150. If you use it for a few years, it is worth it. You will never get the same gains with dumbbells.

NOTE: And when doing bench press, NEVER USE COLLARS! Dumbing the weights can save your life. Riptoe says 5-6 people die each year because they were bench pressing with no spotter and using collars.

How good is the bench? I got one from Sears that is pretty good for Sears and it is rated at a 500 pound max capacity and no more than 210 pounds on the bar. Be careful. It's your life. I'm almost to the point that I have to upgrade my equipment which is a mixed blessing.

I know you said money is tight, but I still think it is a good thing to atleast consider. Sometimes you can find olympic sets for $100 or less but that requires big time luck and it's probably going to be 240 pounds instead of 300 whcih should be a non issue for now. Plus, with that bar you can do Stronglifts5x5!

 

[ZOOYUKA]

Since you are cutting op post a pic please. More often than not people who think they need to cut don't need to!

 

[HomerX]

Since you are cutting op post a pic please. More often than not people who think they need to cut don't need to!

and with a few pics you will be able to tell him if he should continue to cut or not?

He is surely not underweight and if he prefers a lean appearance -> continue to cut..

Not everybody is an olympic weightlifter or wants to get as big as possible

 

[ZOOYUKA]

and with a few pics you will be able to tell him if he should continue to cut or not?

He is surely not underweight and if he prefers a lean appearance -> continue to cut..

Not everybody is an olympic weightlifter or wants to get as big as possible

Actually, I do feel a picture would help. I know not everyone wants to be an olympic weightlifter or be as big as possible.

Often people think they need to be cutting, when they just need to continue to lose weight. Different approaches are taken cut vs. just merely loosing weight.

 

[HomerX]

Often people think they need to be cutting, when they just need to continue to lose weight. Different approaches are taken cut vs. just merely loosing weight.

idk.. probably there are people who want to lose weight, regardless where the weight comes from...

But if someone posts in a fitness forum and writes about cutting, i suppose he wants to lose weight (fat) while retaining most of its muscle mass.. i see no point in telling them to stop cutting and start to "merely lose weight"...

 

[rga]

Good morning guys. Thanks for all the responses. Even if it's just for shits and giggles, here's a photo I took this morning. I still only have an iphone 3gs, so the photo kind of sucks.

http://i1109.photobucket.com/albums/h437/sae5w30/12-01-2011.jpg

I just woke up. I work afternoon shift. I haven't shaved my face or head all week. The pink toothbrushes and moisterizers belong to my wife.

My abs are starting to show, but there is still some belly fat covering the muscles. The picture doesn't really do my chest justice. It's noticably more defined if you see it live. Maybe it's a combination of the shitty light in my washroom and the little bit of chest hair I'm trying to grow.

I want to continue cutting so that my abs begin to appear more, and so that I lose the love handles (the picture does not show these, but they are terrible, I feel). It's the first place the weight went when I started to pack on the pounds, and I can tell it'll be the last and hardest place to lose it from now.

For reference, here's a picture of my wife and I in June of this year, when I was still about 230 lbs. It's only a face shot, but you can tell by my (lack of) neck, sagging chin, and puffy cheeks, that I am definitely not skinny.

http://i1109.photobucket.com/albums/h437/sae5w30/06-14-2011.jpg

 

[ZOOYUKA]

Good morning guys. Thanks for all the responses. Even if it's just for shits and giggles, here's a photo I took this morning. I still only have an iphone 3gs, so the photo kind of sucks.

http://i1109.photobucket.com/albums/h437/sae5w30/12-01-2011.jpg

I just woke up. I work afternoon shift. I haven't shaved my face or head all week. The pink toothbrushes and moisterizers belong to my wife.

My abs are starting to show, but there is still some belly fat covering the muscles. The picture doesn't really do my chest justice. It's noticably more defined if you see it live. Maybe it's a combination of the shitty light in my washroom and the little bit of chest hair I'm trying to grow.

I want to continue cutting so that my abs begin to appear more, and so that I lose the love handles (the picture does not show these, but they are terrible, I feel). It's the first place the weight went when I started to pack on the pounds, and I can tell it'll be the last and hardest place to lose it from now.

For reference, here's a picture of my wife and I in June of this year, when I was still about 230 lbs. It's only a face shot, but you can tell by my (lack of) neck, sagging chin, and puffy cheeks, that I am definitely not skinny.

http://i1109.photobucket.com/albums/h437/sae5w30/06-14-2011.jpg

Wow! That is a huge difference. Keep it up.

You look fairly lean from the picture. Personally, I would probably just keep doing what you are doing and do keep trying to build muscle. I doubt that you've plateaued already. The more muscle you have the higher your Metablolic Resting Rate is. This means you will burn more calories when you are resting. Maybe some more cardio could help you. Jumping rope is a great exercise. I have vaulted ceilings in my master bath, I jump rope inside during the cold winter months.

The pull ups, chin ups, dips you are doing are great. Have someone get you a belt for Christmas so you can slowly start adding weight when these exercises become to easy. You can add plates or dumbells to these weights.

I wouldn't get to hung up on your abs. I always think it better to worry about looking the best you can with your shirt on before you start worrying about how you look with it off. I would suggest to continue your ab work and focus on looking good in your work shirts or whatever you wear most of the time. The abs will probably take care of themselves in the long run.