your routine at the gym

when fresh, I've slowly inched from 10 pullups to 12 over the last two weeks. shooting for 15 by the end of the month. this seems doable.

I feel like I'm about strong enough to go back to judo, and the doctor said my ankle should be okay for it.

I do something really similar to the "5x5" plan at stronglifts.com:

Squat every time (and sure enough, my legs are en route to oakenness)
bench press / overhead press on alternating days
deadlift / bentover barbell rows on alternating days
alternating pullups/chinups/dips

I do this just to be strong enough to safely participate in the sport that I enjoy, but I've definitely found that weightlifting is a lot of fun in itself. It's an easy thing to make fun of, but I guess I'm not so obsessed with being cool that I care.

oh yeah, I do all those 5 sets of 5 repetitions each, except for the bodyweight exercises which I do 3 sets to failure.

<i>but I guess I'm not so obsessed with being cool that I care.</i>

didn't mean for this to sound as incredibly douchey as it does!

when fresh, I've slowly inched from 10 pullups to 12 over the last two weeks. shooting for 15 by the end of the month. this seems doable.

-- gbx, Wednesday, 2 April 2008 04:25 (9 hours ago) Link

yeah, i've gone 7 to 10.

since i injured my toe i stopped doing the elliptical dingus and started stationary bike instead. doesn't feel like as much of a workout but it's way easier to read a book while doing it.

damn right the bike is way easier than the crosstrainer for reading but i *have* to read at the gym (and listen to music) - it's vital for me to be bombarded with stuff to take my mind off what i'm doing.

AA, after much soul-searching i took your advice and i'm currently doing about 20 mins per trip on the cross trainer, a damn sight less than the 35 mins i was doing on the stationary bike but not a huge difference in calories. will stick with this for a cpl of weeks then back to bike for a month or before returning to cross-trainer. will this pattern be ok for avoiding the dreaded 'body becomes used to same exercise' problem?

i've lost about 20 pounds in total since i sorted out my whole eating and exercise situation in january, so i'm delighted about that. even went shopping yesterday and bought awesome new clothes.

only thing is i was at 11st 5lbs yesterday morning but woke up today and i was 11st 8.5kbs. big shock as i don't usually fluctuate quite so much from day-to-day. my offical weight-day is monday am so i'll wait til then but it doesnt look like i'll be losing my regular one or two pounds this week, which is annoying.

still working on losing the roll of tubbiness from my middle. it's shrunk but it's still there - the aim is for it to be gone by june by hook or by crook or by sensible eating and regular exercise. my bmi is 23 now but i want to lose another stone at least, perhaps 20 pounds if i can push it that far.

my current routine is:
20 mins on cross trainer.
2 sets of 15 reps on various weight machines, all set at a relatively high resistance level (around 50kg i think, except the bicep curl which is just a bastard).
home.

total gym time: 50 mins. i think i should be doing a bit longer. might aim to be going back on the cross-trainer for another 10 mins at the end. is this advised for weight loss or shall i aim to do more with the weights?

AA, after much soul-searching i took your advice and i'm currently doing about 20 mins per trip on the cross trainer, a damn sight less than the 35 mins i was doing on the stationary bike but not a huge difference in calories. will stick with this for a cpl of weeks then back to bike for a month or before returning to cross-trainer. will this pattern be ok for avoiding the dreaded 'body becomes used to same exercise' problem?

Probably. Any cardio is better than no cardio, but shaking it up means you get better results for your time, basically.

i've lost about 20 pounds in total since i sorted out my whole eating and exercise situation in january, so i'm delighted about that. even went shopping yesterday and bought awesome new clothes.

How brilliant is that?

only thing is i was at 11st 5lbs yesterday morning but woke up today and i was 11st 8.5kbs. big shock as i don't usually fluctuate quite so much from day-to-day.

I think you fluctuate more as your weight drops, simply because overall you've less to lose, and what's left is more difficult to shake. Don't be disheartened by it; in 2-3 weeks you'll probably lose more than you expect.

still working on losing the roll of tubbiness from my middle. it's shrunk but it's still there - the aim is for it to be gone by june by hook or by crook or by sensible eating and regular exercise.

If your body type is like mine, it'll be the last thing to go, but it will go.

Because I'm trying to bulk now (it's not working but we can come to that later), my gut has grown a bit. Everything else is normal. Weird, that.

Some women have a shape that means they'll always have a small pot, even if they're megafit and carrying well-below-average fat.

total gym time: 50 mins. i think i should be doing a bit longer. might aim to be going back on the cross-trainer for another 10 mins at the end. is this advised for weight loss or shall i aim to do more with the weights?

50 mins is good. If you want more of a challenge, switch to free weights. On the whole, machines guide you too much and don't give you enough stabilising strength.

This is my current thingo, all 10->15 reps (I'm at home sick and cbf lying down anymore):

DAY 1
Flat bench press 75-65lb
Incline bench press 70-55lb
Dumbbell flies 30-20lb
Lying curlbar tricep extension 40-30lb
Close grip curlbar bench press 60-50lb
Weighted dips 25-15lb

DAY 2
Bent over row 70-55lb
Wide grip seated row 120-80lb
Close grip (V) lat pulldown 120-80lb
Hammer curl 30-20lb
Bicep curlbar curl 80-60lb

DAY 3
Squat 150-130lb
Leg extension 80-70lb
Leg press 350-300lb
Deadlift 80-65lb
Arnold press 30-20lb
Lateral raise 10-8lb
Front raise 12-10lb

Abs every day, to fatigue (when I have time):
- Decline bench sit-ups
- Lying straight leg raises
- Medicine ball obliques
- That woodchopper thing

I've been told to eat even more. So by my reckoning I have to get through one (1) fucking horse every day.

New programme but cbf typing it up now. Four-day split; 6-6-8-10-12 reps; on Sunday I was in utter, utter agony.

I've been told to eat even more. So by my reckoning I have to get through one (1) fucking horse every day.

OH MY OMG THIS IS WORKING

You are crazy strong. I doubt I could most of what you list at half those weights.

Wow, I thought it was all a bit soft so thanks.

My strength seems to have increased around 10 percent from eating six whales every day.

HI DERE (okay, you too Adam), I want an exercise to work my triceps, which are still puny. I hate all the machines that work them and I am FAR too self-consciously unco to do free weights in front of anyone at the gym.

I have a small dumbbell at home. WHAT DO I DO!

push-ups?

Yep have been doing those, until recently I couldn't do more than about 2-3 in a row, so getting slightly better. Want to do a few things for variety, though. This is inspired by my bloody arms feeling like death during squash yesterday - I could barely serve two sets in :(

sit on the edge of a chair, put your hands behind you, right next to your butt, gripping the edge of the chair. lift yourself off the edge and lower your butt down below the seat of the chair to the point that your upper arms are parallel with the floor, then push yourself back up. repeat this like however long it takes til you can't do it any more, rest, then do it all again. you can also do this with another chair in front on you, with your legs straight out and resting your heels on the seat of that chair. does that make sense?

sorry should have mentioned that in the first exercise your legs are also straight, angled down towards the floor, with just your heels toucing the floor. if that makes sense. it's super easy just dumb to try to explain in words.

will give it a go later, I'm dressed up a bit much to try it right this instant!

I think what Tracer Hand described is dips.

Do a gis for weighted dips and you should get some decent pictures.

Today I supersetted bench and incline, 3 sets. one set=bench 225 x 12, incline 185 x 10. As of two weeks ago I couldn't get 8 on the last set of incline, but today I got the 10. So that's progress. Then I tried the stairmaster which was a disaster, so I switched to the bike.

hey guys,

do you know any good websites that give you a good beginning weight lifting routine (with handheld dumbell free weights)?

i've not had luck googling....basically i want to build some muscle, lose some fat....AA has posted some good stuff but that seems like some Arnold level shit, way over my head right now.

i am naturally skinny, so i'd like to build some muscle.

i am currently running about 20 minutes in the AM about 3-4 times a week....

I bought a flexi-bar, they have them on the shopping channel. It's actually quite good, coz I think my posture has improved. Plus, I put on weight, but that's probably coz I started eating much more. Crumpets for tea!

M@tt: Gran any old hypertrophy programme and drop the weights to a level that you can manage. Then change programmes monthly.

What I'm doing now isn't very different from what I did when I started. Weights change but the body's requirements stay much the same.

m@tt: i've said it before and i'll say it again, but you can't whack having a session -- just the one -- with a personal trainer, if only so someone can give you a couple of pointers on technique. i'm hardly he-man but fuck me, i watch dudes in the gym all the time fucking shit up so hard ... there was a guy in the gym today who was making such an arse of himself with a barbell that i feared for his back.

i feel i've been slacking a bit recently: been so busy that i've been lucky to get to the gym once a week. still: had a mighty session today. really do need to sort myself out with a new programme, though. which means either another futile attempt to track down john the invisible trainer before i give up and just ask one of the gym staff.

you can't whack having a session -- just the one -- with a personal trainer, if only so someone can give you a couple of pointers on technique.

otm. If your technique's fucked, you're wasting your time AND at serious risk of doing damage.

A girl at work just asked me if I've gained weight, because my face looks fatter. WHO THE FUCK SAYS THINGS LIKE THIS

(I've gained 3 percent body fat in four weeks because it's part of my bulking plan but she didn't know this, I may have had a serious weight problem)

WHY THE FUCK CAN I NOT DO A SINGLE CHIN-UP

AARGH I AM SO ANGRY

Nor I :(

Triceps still not getting better, though i'm finding push-ups easier and I have a great chair for that exercise metioned above.

Do you have one trainer?

I have two people who visit me and advise, who are trainers. They're outrageously happy with how i'm doing!

Excellent.

I don't work with mine in actual training, but they do my programmes and give me advice. Not good enough, really.

my trainer is great, but…

holding steady @ 168, can't drop the last 10 lbs, the belly fat will not disperse, but i am beginning to see a rad six-pack behind it.

How long have you been on 168?

3 weeks, before holding steady at 172 for 3 weeks

Do you know what your body fat % is?

I'm completely steady at 158lb/72kg for the last two weeks. I am now going to eat SO MUCH it's going to be both ridiculous but highly pleasurable.

my main problem right now is that my upper body is getting a bit too bulky - my shoulders are becoming quite broad and my chest is more defined, plus my upper arms are bulking out a bit musclewise. nothing major but i don't want this to get any worse than it is now, i want to just tone up all over rather than get that 'triangle torso' shape (this combined with the clothes i wear can make me look kinda big but in a fat guy way, not a good thing!).

i guess it's because of the routine i follow, which is:
gym 3 times a week
30 mins cardio (cross trainer or bike)
30 mins on weights (3 x 15 reps at v high settings, really straining while doing them)

the weights i do are, in my most technical parlance:
pushy outy thing (chest)
pully down from above thing (chest & arms)
push up thing (shoulders)
leg pully up thing (legs)
leg pushy down thing (legs)
arm curls (upper arms)
stomach crunch (stomach)
arm pully down things (upper arms)

this is because these are all the machines in the room i like to use, there are a bunch more machines in the other room - this other room is mostly used by the huge roaring knucklehead guys so i've never been keen to go in there, but if im likely to find machines that tone up rather than bulk up then i'll do them.

can anyone point me toward the basic rules about bulking up vs toning? shall i be doing more reps of lighter weights? (i think i recall people on a similar thread saying that this method was useless?) or more sets of shorters reps? would it help to cut down on the weights and aim to do more cardio? i was thinking i might try for 25 mins crosstrainer then 10-15 mins of non-torso weights, then 25 mins on the bike. i do still have some belly podge to shift so would focusing on cardio be best all round for what i want? im wary of cutting out the weights so completely because of the whole weight-loss-continues-for-days-after-using-weights thing.

gonna speak to some level 2 trainer guy at the gym this week about the above, will relay the £20 worth of knowledge on this here thread!

just don't do the weights so often!

i am at 6x weekly:

25 minutes on rowing machine,
free weights for 10 minutes (mostly triceps/biceps)
captain's chair until i can't do any more (usually 20x3)
whole slew of pullups/dips @ 110 lbs
10 minutes random machines
5 minutes cooldown

and i like my routine. i am actually beginning to eat more and more protein, and feeling a lot better for it and beginning to see results. i weigh in 1x weekly, but it is at the scale at the gym, which i think is very inaccurate.

pretty sure you're not supposed to do weights on consecutive days?

my routine is to open the door connecting the garage and the house, open the actual garage rollerdoor thingy, walk down the steps and around the minivan, plug in the treadmill, put the key in, put the chip, turn the treadmill fan on, start walking slow then faster and steeper etc on the treadmill while being bossed around by a condescending personal trainer robot bitch named rhonda for the next 30 minutes, turn off the treadmill fan, pull out the chip, take out the key, unplug the treadmill, walk around the minivan and up the steps, close the actual garage rollerdoor thingy, open the door connecting the garage and the house. complicated.

i vary the weights / never exercise the same body parts 2x days consecutively

except for the captain's chair

remy, out of all the people on this thread it really sounds like you've thrown yourself into it the most. have you been taking pics of your progress along the way? would be interesting to see

tracer you're prob right, i guess i just need to up the cardio and reduce the weights a bit. thing is though, i *like* doing the weights!

has an ilxor done a triathlon? i'd like to start training for one.

ha thanks to adrenaline I swam 3 miles in the pool the other day.

also started back on the bike 10 miles to work, now just to combine the two and start running ;)