11 replies to this topic

[Hex Pallett]

So I finally decided to hit the gym on a regular basis (two 3-day cycles, chest/back/shoulder+arm, rest on Saturday), mostly for building up muscles but also for losing weight. I'm 6 feet tall and weight a tad over 250 lb, and most of my fat concentrate between my belly and thighs, and I've never been hitting gym regularly so my muscle mass is pretty meh, especially my upper torso.

Any workout tips you guys have that particularly works for you? Routine, diet, cardio, anything? I'm not trying to achieve anything over night, but I'm shooting for around 220 lbs by the end of this year and hopefully gain some muscle at the same time. Any help would be appreciated <3

Edited by Helmstif, 21 February 2015 - 12:58 PM.

[Alienized]

you should check out freeletics rather than hitting the gym.
depending on where you live there could be a few people that meet regular to do that in group.
its about workouts with nothing but your own bodywheight.

google it up and lots of success to you =)

[HARDKOR]

I do a cardio lifting workout and it's super effective(will make ya puke if you hit it hard enough)

Step 1 - break all your excercises into push and pull.
Step 2 - make a chart
Step 3 - alternate push and push, skip a day

Actual workout...

Start each excercise with a weight you can do 15 of. Every week, do more repsa till you can do 30, then the next time, add a plate to it and go back to 15 reps. Go around the circuit once or twice, depending on how many exercises you have in there.

You'll get tons of cardio and you move up in weight fast as once you can do 15 of something, 30 is largely mental.

I also find it's best to do arms, leg, arm, abs, arm, leg, arms, abs, as you go through your excercises, so you can keep working continuously.

Creatine and protein are your friends, too.

[990Dreams]

Just remember to rest and stretch before working out. I personally find biceps easier to work than triceps, so try to pay special attention to triceps. Make sure to do some cardio and legs every now and then if not weekly. On days you aren't feeling well do light weights and/or light to moderate cardio, just to keep yourself up.

[Hervedgerse]

I have some experience in the gym. I like hardkor's suggestion to a degree. You'll get better results in the muscle department with lower reps however. Like less than 12 for big exercises like the deadlift and bench.

Programs: I'm partial to starting strength coming from a powerlifting background. When I'm running a three day a week I prefer to do a Upper-Lower-Cardio/arms split.

So things like barbell rows, overhead press, bench, pull ups for the upper. Squat, deadlift, carry heavy stuff for the lower. And things like pushing sleds for the third day with the arm work.

Diet: Don't be crazy with it. A caloric deficit of 500 calories is enough for a pound a week. It's the long term adherance that matters. Try to get 90% of your calories with foods you like and are nutritious, 10% with foods you're crazy about. For me that 10% is made of ice cream and dark chocolate. Track your food if you have the inclination with something like myfitnesspal. It's easy and will help you in your adherance.

Last thing: Have fun. If you don't like something find a substitute. No point in doing something you don't like when there's an alternative.

[Hex Pallett]

HARDKOR, on 25 February 2015 - 04:48 PM, said:

Start each excercise with a weight you can do 15 of. Every week, do more repsa till you can do 30, then the next time, add a plate to it and go back to 15 reps. Go around the circuit once or twice, depending on how many exercises you have in there.

By 15 reps do you mean "do 15 of a single move and move on to another move" or do you mean "do 15, rest a bit, then do another 15 and repeat the cycle like 5 times"?

[SolCrusher]

Give this 12 weeks. As you would be a beginner I think it might work well for you. I started doing this to get back into shape. 5x5 Stronglifts. It has a free app for IOS or Android.

http://stronglifts.com/about/

[EinDinHander]

Obviously eat better. But also eat LESS. Drink more water to fill the end gap. Eat slower so you get fuller faster. Don't cut anything out. Keep eating a bit of everything. It is good to have variation, but the constants as well. Non-gmo milk and dairy, though even so all dairy is bad for you in this monolithic food age.

Dont try to build mass right off the bat. You could potentially just add weight. Fat is long term mass for energy. You need to do long term items to burn it. You've got to make your body demand and burn the fat which is a slow process. SWIM. JOG (not run.) Swimming is great because it works the upper body better than just jogging.

When you do start to lose some, start making breakfast on 1 foot. Not way up in the air. Just off the ground slightly. This will improve your balance. Don't worry if you touch the floor allot to start, it's not a competition. Oh ya disclaimer: no sharp knives.

Likely you will still gain some weight starting off, because of the new muscle. It builds faster than the long term fat will burn. Muscle is heavier than fat.

So basically do long term and trim down. THEN you can work on lifting and toning yourself. You'll see results within 6mo. Dramitic in a year. My gf lost over 40lbs just jogging in 6mo. She's completely different than when I first met her almost. Myself, have been an Italian twig all my life, at 130ish+- ever since I kept track of that kind of thing. Funny I can cram cake, fast food, mixed with lard down my neck and it does nothing. So get to know your metabalism and work to it.

Don't try any suppliments or nutrition crap. 90% of it is designed to steal your money or get you addicted to it. Anything 3rd party like that is just going to interefere with your endrocrine system. Look up items that interfere with endrocrine, and avoid them. (air scent products, todays dairy, detergents, toothpaste ((use JUST baking soda on teeth,)) alcohol) you'd be surprised what is on the list. All of it will make you FAT and sick.)

As for DIRECT gym advise, quit. Also designed to steal your money. Swim. Jog. Then free lift. Take control of your food.

Best of luck! You can do it! Accept we are, literally, under attack, and take control of your body again.

Edited by EinDinHander, 04 March 2015 - 06:59 PM.

[Hex Pallett]

SolCrusher, on 04 March 2015 - 06:08 PM, said:

Give this 12 weeks. As you would be a beginner I think it might work well for you. I started doing this to get back into shape. 5x5 Stronglifts. It has a free app for IOS or Android.

http://stronglifts.com/about/

Tried to do a full-set today and immediately realized while my "major" muscles can get the job done, my other "small" muscles are struggling to coordinate with each other. Also while it didn't feel like a lot of work, my heart was pounding and I sweat like a horse.

This makes sense. Imma keep doing this.

EinDinHander, on 04 March 2015 - 06:53 PM, said:

....

Don't feel like swimming mostly because can't be bothered with the shower afterward (and my brain feels like shower is only supposed to be before bed and right after waking up lol) so I'll have to stick to free weights . Definitely gonna be jogging as well as controlling food intake though. And absolutely no supplement here, that's not how we evolved. I'm in for long game.

[Kalimaster]

It has been so long since I've been in a gym that I can't tell you when I was there. Work out in Kali however to stay fit.

[AWOL 01]

If you're looking to bulk up then use heavier weights with fewer reps. If you're looking for lean muscle with more endurance then do more reps. The tipping point is about 12 reps. For example, if you can do more than 12 reps with a weight then it will build more endurance, but if you're struggling to get to 12 then you're going to be working on getting bigger.

Some other ideas are to try ladders and 100s (at least that's what we called them in football/wrestling). For ladders, you start with a weight lighter than what you'd usually do. Once you finish a set, you move to a heavier weight. If you're using a machine then just move the pin to the next slot. If you're using free weights then just add about 10 pounds. Then do another set. Repeat this until you can't finish every repetition. So if you're doing sets of 10 and only get to 8 then stop. Once that happens go in reverse and start lowering the weight until you get back to where you started.
For 100s you use very light weights and do 100 reps of an exercise. If you're benching/squatting just use the bar with 5-10 pounds. I know a lot of guys who have gained a lot of muscle doing this, but ultimately it'll be determined by your body type and metabolism. Don't forget cardio cause lifting weights before your body's ready can put a strain on your heart, and heart health is more important than big muscles in the long run.

Also, because I wanted to join the Air Force, I would do a lot of calisthenics, and for me personally it's done a lot more to keep me in shape than lifting weights ever did. There are tons of variations in pushups, situps, and pullups to keep you from getting bored and it's way easier and cheaper than going to the gym. Whenever you think of it just drop down and punch out as many pushups or situps as you can do (like when you're waiting for everyone to ready up before a game). It won't happen overnight but if you stick with it you'll achieve your goal. Good luck!

[Mike Forst]

To the OP: you should try lifting a heavy thing up and then putting it back down again. Do this several times in a safe way. Then the next time you go try lifting something slightly heavier.

In all seriousness, do squats.

e: I followed Stronglifts to help me get into weightlifting and it was a fantastic way to get started. Very simple routines, easily attainable goals to start.