Fitness dudes, help me with a workout.

[J.DavisNJ]

Gents,

I'll be joining and gym soon and need help with getting started. I'm slightly overweight - I can stand to lose 15lbs or so. I'm getting the eating sorted out as we speak and have some good ideas. Wouldn't mind some tips on what I should/should not be eating also.

I would like tips on how to formulate a workout routine as I have never joined a gym in my life really. Which machines, which group to work out at specific times, maybe even a sample workout to get started would be awesome.

I'm basically looking to shed the extra pounds, gain some mass, but most of all to get cut.

thanks

Joe

 

[JayB]

You can google for some workouts. For gaining mass I recommend N-Xplod , it has creatine and caffeine to help you power through your workout. I use the orange flavor. ONLY use it on days you are working out though. Don't go overboard with protein , your body can only process 30 grams of protein at a time. That's not much , 2 chicken or fish filets would throw you over the top there. Every small meal you eat should be no larger than the size of your fist , for that is how large your stomach is (when not expanded from overeating) So eat like 6- 8 small , protein based meals a day to keep the fire of your metabolism burning fat. Just because something says low fat or non fat , or no sugar added , does not mean it is good for you. ALWAYS READ THE LABEL. A lot of times manufacturers will throw extra fat in place of sugar , sugar in place of fat , or high fructose corn syrup , etc. CUT OUT ALL SODA . That shit will keep fat on you forever. If you have to have it make sure it is diet , soda is nothing but a shitload of empty calories and sugar. SUGAR TURNS TO FAT. I think this is a pretty good starting point. Oh yeah , and get a bunch of WHEY protein - but like I said read the label and only use the recommended serving every time. As far as workouts, give yourself a rest day every other day, and don't work the same body parts all week long. If you want your arms to get bigger , you have to work your lower body out too. A lot of people don't realize this. Your body will not grow your upper body if your lower body would be too weak to support the extra mass. Alternate upper and lower body and cardio / plyometrics or calisthetics

Also to help burn fat try taking apple cider vinegar 3 times a day or get a pill form with acai berry , that shit will really help melt fat off. Plus acai berry is great for your heart , preventing cancer etc - same goes for apple cider vinegar

 

[Metaltastic]

Yo dude, I remember you asking me ages ago for help coming up with a routine, and I feel bad for never getting around to replying, so here's my redemption First of all, I think it's important to realize that there are many, many roads to success, so anyone who flat out condemns one method while supporting another is almost certainly fallacious (unless of course the method they're condemning is the "do nothing but eat cake and masturbate" workout routine or something )

So what I do is a 3-day split, which is all I can handle (patience-wise ) - back/biceps (pulling muscles) on Tuesday, chest/shoulders/triceps (pushing muscles) on Thursday, and legs/abs on Sunday (resting all other days, though for your goals you'd probably want to get some aerobic exercise in on at least one of those free days). Tony (Chryst Krispies) was kind enough to give me advice on the rep/weight arrangement, which I've found has worked great for me (or did, before I slacked off from my routine a couple of months ago, for the first time in 4 years - I'll come back though eventually, just wanna get some stability in my life first)

So here we go (include around 30-60 seconds rest between each set, a bit more between muscle groups, I use that time to go get some water/use the can/whatever - also, when I say 12 reps, it's for a warmup, so the weights should be light enough that you shouldn't have to kill yourself to get to 12 - whenever I say 10 though, you should up the weight really have to push to get to 10, ideally reaching failure of rep around that point, no problem if you can't quite get to 10 every time)

Chest:
- 1x set of 12 reps of dumbbell presses (warmup)
- 2x sets of 10 reps of the same exercise
- 2x sets of 10 reps of dumbbell flyes
- 2x sets of 10 reps of bench presses

Shoulders:
- 2x sets (first 12, then 10) of seated dumbbell presses
- 2x sets of 10 reps of either front raises, side raises, or upright cable/barbell rows (I alternate between each of these each week)

Triceps:
- 2x sets (first 12, then 10) of overhead triceps presses
- 2x sets of 10 reps of either skullcrushers (lying triceps presses), triceps kickbacks, or triceps cable pushdowns (again, alternating each week)

EDIT: And now that I've eaten dinner, time to resume

Back:
- 1x set of 12 reps of lat-pulldowns (warmup) - or, if they have an assisted pull-up machine, definitely use that I'd say, pull-ups are fucking incredible exercises, but I can only do 3-4 unassisted before I'm shot The higher you set the weight on them, the easier the exercise, btw
- 2x sets of 10 reps of the same exercise
- 2x sets of 10 reps of dumbbell rows
- 2x sets of 10 reps of overhead dumbbell pulls

Biceps:
- 2x sets (first 12, then 10) of standing dumbbell curls
- 2x sets of 10 reps of either barbell preacher curls or hammer curls (again, alternating each week)

Then for legs (shorter because I fucking DESPISE working them )

- 2x sets (first 12, then 10) of barbell squats
- 2x sets of 10 reps of deadlifts
- 4x sets of crunches/oblique crunches (alternating), for each set just do as many as you can (but if you do 'em right, they're fucking hard - don't go too fast and use momentum to get a shitload, that accomplishes nothing - instead, do each rep in a deliberate and controlled manner)

And then overall I'd say that the most important thing is to make sure your form for each exercise is good, and don't intentionally hold yourself back or lift the weight overly slowly or any of that crap (though the lowering of the weight should always be smooth and controlled, it's a key step in working out that shouldn't be underestimated). Good luck man! And with this routine, you should never be in the gym for more than 40 minutes or so, and personally, I think most supplements are just money pits, just down a protein shake (these in "Dutch Chocolate" (right ) are my favorites nutritionally and price-wise, though the taste is tolerable but not great) after each workout and that should do it!

Also, I have a brochure type thing that has detailed pictures and instructions for the forms of all the exercises I listed above, PM me your mailing address and I'll send it to you! (I have them all committed to memory)

 

[JayB]

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bbinfo.php?page=WorkoutPrograms

great site for workouts and such

 

[Morgan C]

Not much else to add really, apart from good luck. I joined a gym about a month and a half ago now, solely to gain muscle (I was 61kg), and have put on almost 4kg so far. I do everything 3 days a week though, not like Marcus. Although on Saturdays I do a crosstraining with cardio and strength; during the week I'll do 2 days of basically 12reps/3sets of everything.

The one thing I can say that really helps is having someone to go with, otherwise its far too easy to just go 'fuck it'. I go with my Dad, and do classes once a week.. the latter is really fucking motivating when you see 50+ year old women keeping going when you're struggling.

edit: I think Chryst Krispies posted this link. I haven't used it personally, but there are a couple of good long-term workouts (changing every week, with videos to show you how to do everything), that could be useful if you're not sure what to do.

 

[Everybody]

bodybuilding is the perfect website for these types of questions.

dont lose sight of your goal...think about it everyday, multiple times a day.

a big part of a workout routine is actually getting in the routine. a good way to start is when you wake up, before your shower...do like 7-7-7 pushups (close grip, wide grip, normal) then do 25 crunches, 25 leg lifts. **and if your trying to lose weight I reccomend going on a 30 min jog/walk after this**

and also do it at night. this just gets your body used to doing activitys at the start and stop of your day, and itll make you want to do more.

this is just something to do ALONG with the workout routine you decide to stick to!

good luck and keep in touch, maybe you should start a little workout journal (pics and logs) its a great way to track your progress!!

! Do not focus or worry about supplements ! Not at least until your a week to a month into your routine and you see that you are going to stay on track. (with the exception of 1 thing...multivitamin..no matter what you can benefit from this. I reccomend Opti-Men) Then get some Lipo6, creatine, whey protein shake, but really nothing else!

 

[Dalinkwent48@aim.com]

I do 1 muscle a day...i try and do a minimum of 5 lifts for each muscle....pushes one day, pulls the next, (IE- chest monday,back tues,tries wed,etc etc) If your trying to lose weight and can go in the morning...dont eat before you go..your body will start looking for whatever resources it has and it will burn the fat alot faster...the rest of the day though make sure you eat lean (chicken,fish etc)...during the workout....low weight high reps (ex- if your doing bench go for like 175 max and go for 3 sets of 12-15 reps) Drop sets is also great for cutting (ex- tricep cable pushdowns-start with the weight at 100 and do sets of 10 until you get to the lightest weight on the stack taking no breaks in between except for adjusting the weight) also, start and end your workout with 20 minutes of cardio. i got my weight up to 195 at one point and dropped it to 180 by doing this type of stuff...then got lazy so im like 170 right now (im naturally a little guy) and trying to put the weight back on...do some research on the 3 body types (ectomorph,endomorph,mesomorph) see which type you fit and then try and build a workout accordingly.

 

[J.DavisNJ]

Thanks for all the tips so far dudes! Processing it all as we speak...

Marcus, question. When you say "2x" of each workout, do you mean two sets of the same machine in a row, or moving from one set of dumbbell press, one set of flys, then repeat?

-Joe

 

[Chris_P_Critter]

Watching this thread.

I am become fatso.

 

[Metaltastic]

Thanks for all the tips so far dudes! Processing it all as we speak...

Marcus, question. When you say "2x" of each workout, do you mean two sets of the same machine in a row, or moving from one set of dumbbell press, one set of flys, then repeat?

-Joe

Yeah, two consecutive sets per exercise: to give an example, I'll break down exactly my chest routine:

- 1x set of 12 reps of dumbbell presses (warmup)
(rest)
- 2x sets of 10 reps of the dumbbell presses (back-to-back, resting in between)
(rest)
- 2x sets of 10 reps of dumbbell flyes (back-to-back, resting in between)
(rest)
- 2x sets of 10 reps of bench presses (back-to-back, resting in between)

And again, whenever I say 12 reps, I mean 12 relatively easy reps cuz it's a warmup, but whenever I say 10, it should be seriously difficult to get that high, and don't worry about it if you can't make it to 10 (but if you can't do more than 5 or so, you're using too much weight)

 

[updog]

I'm interested too, I just don't know what those things mean.

I've started doing pushups, sit-ups and 30minutes of something to lose a bit of weight in the process. I'm thinking of going to the gym though, I want to start a routine that I will hold on to.

 

[AdamWathan]

Keep it simple man, I would not bother doing a 3 day split. Make up two full body routines (routine A and routine B) and just alternate A, B, A, B, A, etc. going 3 times a week. So week one would be like:

Sun: Rest
Mon: routine A
Tue: Rest
Wed: routine B
Thu: Rest
Fri: routine A
Sat: Rest

then the following week would be B, A, B.

Go to www.stronglifts.com and read up on that routine and all of the articles in the archive. The sitemap has them organized better.

There is no point in doing splits and isolation work unless you are a serious body builder who intends on competing in competitions. You can get in phenomenal shape with a panty dropping physique by doing simple full body routines that are only 4 or 5 different exercises per workout.

Here's my current routines...

Routine A:
Barbell Box Squats: 3 sets of 6-8
Chest Supported Barbell Rows: 3 sets of 8
Bench Press: 3 sets of 8
Chinups: 3 sets of as many as I can do

Routine B:
Deadlifts: 3 sets of 8
Standing Overhead Press: 3 sets of 8
Pullups: 3 sets of as many as I can do
Chest Dips: 3 sets of as many as I can do

Focus on BIG COMPOUND exercises like the one I listed. Never use machines, always use free weights, and NEVER use a Smith machine. You will never need to do a bicep curl or a tricep extension in your life. You don't even need to work your abs. Squats, overhead press, deadlifts, pullups, dips and chinups all utilize your core heavily to stabilize the weight. If you get to under 10% bodyfat and can squat 1.5 x your bodyweight, bench 1xBW and deadlift 2xBW, you will have sickening abs.

I really recommend you stick with something like the routine I listed. It is really simple and all the exercises can be found on YouTube with no problem. Make sure you keep a log after every workout where you track how many reps you did for each exercise and how much weight you used and try to increase the volume every time you repeat that workout, either by adding a few pounds to the bar (5lb at a time is a good number to aim for) or by doing an extra rep or 2 at the same weight as before. ALWAYS track your progress or you will never improve, you need to see that number to beat it.

Check out this guy, Ivan Stoitsov...

Bulgarian Olympic Weightlifter. He doesn't do curls, tricep extension, any ab work or use machines. He does big compound movements (clean and jerk, snatch) that work his entire body as a unit, which is the way your body is meant to work.

People do curls because they are easy. That's why there's never a line up at the squat rack because squats suck. To get results, do hard things.

 

[Metaltastic]

+1 on machines being teh gay (except for cable machines), hence why almost every excercise I do is using dumbbells, but I think there's value in isolation exercises, again falling under the "many ways to skin a cat" philosophy

 

[AdamWathan]

Another thing, you can get a great workout at home without any weights as long as you have something to hang from to do pullups and chinups. Pushups and Pullups will give you a complete upper body workout and there's lots of ways to make them harder. Training legs at home is a bit harder because most bodyweight leg exercises are fairly easy. Practice single leg squats sitting on a stair on a staircase though and you'll start to hate them as much as squatting 300lbs at the gym.

 

[Dalinkwent48@aim.com]

if you switch it up every week its great....machines one week. cables the next, dumbells the next

 

[AdamWathan]

+1 on machines being teh gay (except for cable machines), hence why almost every excercise I do is using dumbbells, but I think there's value in isolation exercises, again falling under the "many ways to skin a cat" philosophy

They are good if you are trying to get a "sick pump" and blow your muscles into weird unnatural proportions like Jay Cutler or something, but show me a guy who can bench 500lb that has small triceps, or something who can do a 400lb barbell row that has small biceps... Compound exercises are just a far better value for your time and energy than isolation work, and they recruit far more muscle fibers and stimulate more growth.

I'm sure you saw my Facebook status from the other day Marcus but I'll add it here just for fun...

"How many times a day do you bend down and pick something up? That's a deadlift. How many times do you sit down and stand up? That's a squat. How many times do you sit in a chair and extend your feet and lift something? Never? Well that's a leg extension."

Compound exercises just make far more sense from a functional point of view. You are training your body to be stronger in ways that are actually useful in real life. If a friend gets trapped under a rock I am far more likely to bend over and try and lift it off than I am to go get a chair, sit down, put my feet under the rock and flex my quads to pry it off, so I'm gonna be pretty happy I was deadlifting when everyone else was doing their leg extensions. Similarly, if I'm the one under the rock, having a 400lb bench press is going to help me a lot more than a 70lb tricep extension. When do you ever have to isolate your tricep in an real life movement? I dunno, I just believe the body was designed to work as a whole and should be trained evenly as a whole to build a strong and functional physique.

 

[Metaltastic]

You make good points, but I'd like to think what I suggest is something of a happy medium; I too only do squats and deadlifts, and lunges too, but considering the vast quantity of people the spot treatment stuff has worked for (including Tony, who as I said recommended to me the basics of the routine I listed above - I assume you've seen the pic he's posted of himself on here, it's terrifying ), I'll stick with it for the sake of despising change

 

[J.DavisNJ]

A lot to take in right now...thanks guys!

-Joe

 

[mick thompson]

go to metacafe and search for Spartan training - the guy there, arnie has a free site with fitness programs to get totally ripped - and its free last time i checked

 

[Morgan C]

I keep hearing that machines aren't good.. but I've never had it explained why. Anyone care to?

Also, most of the strength exercises I do are on 'freeweight machines', which are designed to imitate freeweights without the risks. Are they just as good? Or still have the drawback of machines (which I don't know of yet)?