Any fitness gurus here?

[PamAndJim]

I've lost 74 pounds since May by changing nothing but my diet. But, I've kind of leveled off and think it's time for me to start working out too. Like everyone these days my schedule is pretty full. So, I'm looking for a weight program that I can do in 30-45 minutes 2-3 days week. I'm not looking to get huge. I really just want to get rid of the rest of the fat and get a little tone. My work has a pretty nice gym with just about any machine you'd probably need. Any advice?

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[GotNotch]

I just got done reading this. It was a good read.

http://www.amazon.com/Lean-Muscle-Diet-Customized-Nutrition-ebook/dp/B00K8DSURY

 

[kz]

I would say that after years of working out - any reasonable workout plan is good. Key is intensity which is what most beginners struggle with. I personally - being 40 - focus on amount of reps and do not more than 60 second breaks between sets.

Unfortunately the most basic and the hardest to do exercises are the most effective - except for bench press which everybody likes - pull ups and dead lift for the back, squats for the legs, sit ups for abs (abs are probably most essential and most overlooked and hated - most of back pain problems come from weak ab muscles not from weak back muscles).

I know this isn't a very clear recipe but - pick up any reasonable program that hits all muscle groups, have somebody (or watch youtube) show you proper technique for each of them (I cringe watching some of the people at the gym) and once you pick it up, keep the intensity up. Get a watch and make sure you don't rest too long between sets. Effects will come. Adjust your protein intake accordingly.

 

[daltron]

I've lost 74 pounds since May by changing nothing but my diet. But, I've kind of leveled off and think it's time for me to start working out too. Like everyone these days my schedule is pretty full. So, I'm looking for a weight program that I can do in 30-45 minutes 2-3 days week. I'm not looking to get huge. I really just want to get rid of the rest of the fat and get a little tone. My work has a pretty nice gym with just about any machine you'd probably need. Any advice?

A Chad Waterbury total body workout would fit your time constraints and goals.

 

[tcman54]

I have pretty much been fit my entire life, now that I am retired at 54 I do the pool almost everyday for cardio and the home gym about twice a week to maintain and build a little muscle mass.

Terry

 

[pinero61]

I hit the gym 5 days a week when offshore, and do a mixture of crossfit and normal gym when home. I'm still a fatass, but I'm improving technique and diet as I go. It's almost as addictive as horsepower.

 

[Strokerswild]

I am 47, and kettlebells are the ticket. Amazing results for reasonably little effort.

 

[PamAndJim]

A Chad Waterbury total body workout would fit your time constraints and goals.

After reading a little about it, it seems like exactly what I'm ?looking for. Thanks for the recommendation.

 

[tcman54]

I am 47, and kettlebells are the ticket. Amazing results for reasonably little effort.

More cowbell? :lol::lol::lol:

Terry

 

[Shouldhavegotthegt]

Been lifting since high school. Compound movements are your best bet, they are always the most effective. Squats, bench press, deadlifts, pull-ups, etc. skip your abs workouts. Completely worthless until you can actually see them. So spend that time doing more cardio instead of slaving away on crutches.

I'd do a split workout. Day 1 legs, day 2 pull, day 3 push.

Legs: squats, lunges, leg press, leg curl, leg extensions.
Pull: bent over rows, pull down, barbell curls, hammer curls, rows
Push: bench press, incline bench press, triceps push down, skull crushers, should press, lay raises

For all workout warm up on the first exercise with a light set of 15. Do the 3 sets of 10. Also do a weight that makes it difficult to complete 10 reps.

This is a simple yet effective workout. Should take about 45-50 minutes to complete.

 

[PamAndJim]

Been lifting since high school. Compound movements are your best bet, they are always the most effective. Squats, bench press, deadlifts, pull-ups, etc. skip your abs workouts. Completely worthless until you can actually see them. So spend that time doing more cardio instead of slaving away on crutches.

I'd do a split workout. Day 1 legs, day 2 pull, day 3 push.

Legs: squats, lunges, leg press, leg curl, leg extensions.
Pull: bent over rows, pull down, barbell curls, hammer curls, rows
Push: bench press, incline bench press, triceps push down, skull crushers, should press, lay raises

For all workout warm up on the first exercise with a light set of 15. Do the 3 sets of 10. Also do a weight that makes it difficult to complete 10 reps.

This is a simple yet effective workout. Should take about 45-50 minutes to complete.

This is very helpful. It seems idiot proof, which I need. I also meant to mention that I am getting a new bike too and plan on doing some riding on the weekends and maybe a couple days during the week.

 

[kz]

. skip your abs workouts. Completely worthless until you can actually see them.

Agree with everything except this. You'll end up with undeveloped abs compared to developed back muscles, ending up with increased spine lordosis and back pain in a result. It's like you would told him to work out on his biceps but not triceps. Bad advice IMO (and yes - I've been lifting since high school, competed in Martial Arts and MMA and took anatomy classes in College getting degree in Biomechanics).

 

[NvrFinished]

It's not uncommon to hit a weight loss plateau from diet alone. Workouts are important because you will start to build more muscle. This muscle burns more calories from rest and muscle recovery from weight lifting will burn more calories as well. The more muscle your body has, the more calories it requires to maintain weight.

One thing I have not seen discussed yet is core training. Your core are all the muscles that surround the spine. This includes your ab muscles. I've seen more than one muscle head in the gym suffer back injuries from having weak cores. And to top it off, these injuries tend to happen away from the gym doing some sort of simple lift that required twisting. These guys believe core training is for women and rookies. It's their ignorance and pride that lead to that type of thinking.

There are many great workouts to follow. Youtube has some good channels that show proper technique as well. The key to reaching your goal is to change up your workouts. If you keep doing the same thing over and over again, the body adapts to it and it is not as challenging. When it's not as challenging, less muscle is built and less calories are burned. Think of a distance runner. They get better because the body adapts to the running and becomes more efficient.

You don't want your body to become more efficient with burning calories. By changing up your workouts every few weeks your body is always trying to adapt to something different. As a result your workouts are much more effective and you will reach your goals sooner.

Good luck!

 

[Shouldhavegotthegt]

Agree with everything except this. You'll end up with undeveloped abs compared to developed back muscles, ending up with increased spine lordosis and back pain in a result. It's like you would told him to work out on his biceps but not triceps. Bad advice IMO (and yes - I've been lifting since high school, competed in Martial Arts and MMA and took anatomy classes in College getting degree in Biomechanics).

This is a beginners workout. He doesn't need to do isolation ab exercises. He's getting plenty of core work from squats, lunges, bent over rows, curls, beach, etc. his goal to look and feel better not compete in fitness competitions.

Also I would say to beginners to skip curls, push downs, and other isolation exercises to focus on building a foundation with compound movements.

As one progresses they add more isolation stuff. Go to 5 day splits. But he needs a base plus he said he has a limited amount of time to do his workouts.

 

[kz]

This is a beginners workout. He doesn't need to do isolation ab exercises. He's getting plenty of core work from squats, lunges, bent over rows, curls, beach, etc. his goal to look and feel better not compete in fitness competitions.

Disagree again - every single one you listed works back to certain extent (especially squats, rows - either isometrically or - like most people do using the body in initial movement - just plain working the back muscles) with very little load on abs. This is the whole point - most people have stronger back than abs because back is much more frequently used. That is also what drive increased lordosis and optically increases the size of a belly if somebody has fat there. They don't have to isolation exercises like crunches, but some sort of sit ups which also include lots of lower abdomen and quadriceps is - IMO - quite essential.

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