Realistically, I'd say 4 times a week. Maybe have time for a little over an hour each session. Thanks!
Do tell. I'm working out 4 days a week (just over an hour each time) and resting 3. Every couple of months, I take a week off to recover. I'm eating lots of grilled chicken, brown rice, egg whites, whole grain breads and oatmeal. I'm drinking GNC Mega MRP's twice a day. Any other diet suggestions would be nice.
is there nobody less than 6' in this thread... everyones like i'm 6'4" and 190 man i'm 6' 1/2" 165 pounds...okay 160 ......that's pathetic. just a question for all you work out freaks..... is there a such thing as body types?.....where for instant all my friends tell me that i can become cut but not big?.....is that true.....???
You know Vince I've kinda come to the conclusion that although working out, etc. can help you look better there is only so much you can do with what you've got. Call it genetics or whatever. Some people, like a friend of mine, are skinny and seemingly no matter what they eat or do/don't do they're going to be skinny. I eat low fat stuff whenever possible, don't drink beer or any alcohol, and do 200 crunches a night (8 sets of 25) and I still can't get rid of a paunch I've got. It just seems like you can do only so much before your natural body type takes over. Just IMO of course.
Vince. I'm the same. Unlike Roks_fan i can get my six pack in a month but that's cause i can't get a belly but for some reson i can't get any bigger. i've tried all the pills and proteins. They don't work on me. i have to take of my shirt to show my cutness otherwise it's unnoticeable.
SCREW you Vince. Im 6' ft tall and im not 160. Im almost to the point now that i would be really happy when i hit that weight after working out for a few more months. Seeing you gripe about being that weight and being my height makes me . Oh well i just have to keep trying.
Ok, a few more questions to make sure I don't send you in the wrong direction. -4 times just weight, or including fitness/cardio/sports/etc? -Prior experience lifting? -Goals-i.e. build muscle, get stronger, for sports, combination of those mentioned, other? drummer-- It sounds like you're going in the right direction already. Are you trying to lose weight? If you are, you probably need to add one or two interval training days and one or two cardio/basketball/football/whatever activity days. Others-- Yes there are different body types, but that doesn't mean you can't get bigger and are limited to "getting cut" The three general types are ectomorphs, endomorphs, and mesomorphs. The really skinny guys are usually ectomorphs. They have trouble gaining weight, but that doesn't mean they can't with the proper plan.
Im gonna throw in this question since we are getting them answered (thanks tozai) My priority right now is tryin to lose weight ...and start working on rebuilding the muscle I lost over the years(upper body,legs) I do cardio for 45-50 minutes 6 times a week. I do strength training 5 times a week for around 30 minutes a day. The muscle stuff is not a priority right now since Im just trying to keep the heartrate up for the entire session(both cardio and weight lifting) to help burn that fat. am I going about this wrong? what tips would any of you recommmend to get the best results?
I'd suggest you do cardio only once or twice, and do interval training 2x a week. Much better option. Probably more fun too. You don't need to be lifting 5 times a week either. What's your split?
The cardio doesnt bother me at all, I find it enjoyable to get on the tread or the skiing machine and put my headphones on and jam while im doing it...the time passes just like that *snaps* any particular reason why doing it more often would be bad? I've been doing it this way for a couple of weeks and dont dread doing it at all. One would assume that having some strenous effort almost every day would be a good thing to keep the metabolism working..I get very little physical activity other than that since both my job and my new career training involves sitting in front of a computer for most of the day. as for the split...Im unsure what you mean.. thats why I was looking for some tips...I guess I dont really know what Im doing out there...I cant afford a trainer to tell me, and unless you pay em, the trainers at the gym wont give you any answers on what you should do.
By split I meant how you organize your lifts. Like each day what lifts you do... If you enjoy doing cardio, then I don't see any problems with that. Interval training is usually considered a better option though, so maybe you could split up the 6 sessions so only 3 or 4 are cardio. I'll post up some links that describe interval training. It's also called HIIT (High intensity interval training).
Tozai - By 4 times a week I meant total. In the past I've always done cardio and weights on the same day. Should I try to split this up? My prior lifting experience would be minimal at best. I did get on a kick last year where I worked out regularly for about 4 months, but I didn't really know what I was doing. As for goals, I really just want to look better. I'd like to build some strength, and also uncover what muscle I already have.
Ok, I'll have some links and more information later, but this is the basic outline: 2 days lifting, 2 days non-lifting One non-lifting day is either cardio of your choice, basketball or something similar. The other day is interval training which I'll have some links for info later. Two lifting days with at least two days in between. (i.e. Mondays and Thursdays) Monday Deadlifts Romanian Deadlifts Military Press Lat Pulldown/Chin-ups Incline Curls/Preacher Curls Weighted Incline Sit-ups Thursday Squats Leg Curls Low Incline Dumbbell Bench Bent-over Barbell Row Dips/Tricep extensions Twisting Ab Pulldown If this interests you, I'll go over sets, reps, descriptions, etc.
Sounds good. I really appreciate your help with this. Sad to say, I don't know what some of those exercises are exactly, but I can do a little research and figure that out. I'd love to hear you reccomendations regarding sets and anything else you have to offer. Thanks again!
Okay, if you have any more questions feel free to... Monday Deadlifts Romanian Deadlifts Military Press Lat Pulldown/Chin-ups Incline Curls/Preacher Curls Weighted Incline Sit-ups Thursday Squats Leg Curls Low Incline Dumbbell Bench Bent-over Barbell Row Dips/Tricep extensions Twisting Ab Pulldown --Deadlifts and Squats are the two most demanding and important lifts you'll be doing. They also require the most attention to proper form or you'll get hurt. You can look up proper exercise form at: http://www.exrx.net/Lists/Directory.html http://www.bsu.edu/webapps/strengthlab/home.htm --Deadlifts should be kept under 5 reps. I'd recommend something like 5x3. Start light with something like 135. You want to keep the bar close to your shins and pull back and up. There are lots of intricacies with the form, but the main point is DO NOT round your back. --Squats should be full squats. This is one of the hardest exercises there are. You want to sit back and down. Like you're sitting on a toilet. Again, you don't want to round your back. By full squats, I mean go all the way down, but still sit back. Start with something like 3x8 at 95 or 135. --On both those exercises, focus on form, and when you're comfortable try to add 5 lbs. a week to your top set. --Romanian deadlifts should hit your hamstrings harder than just about anything. You start the movement by sticking your butt out. The BSU site has a good video. On this lift and other hamstring exercises do 3 sets of 5-8 (3x5-8). Focus on a slow descent (4 seconds) and pause for 2 seconds at the end and then come back up --Do chins and dips instead of pulldowns and extensions if you have access. Even if you can't do many, do negatives (have someone help you up and then go down slowly for 10 seconds, gradually increase to 30 seconds). If you're doing negatives, you probably need about 10 total of each. Otherwise just do 3 sets to one rep short of failure. --One rep short of failure is important. Try to hold one rep in the tank. The reason is that it's really hard on the central nervous system and makes you take longer to recover. --For rows, pause at the top for 2 seconds, lower in 4 seconds. --For ab pulldowns, stand up and twist from your right shoulder to your left knee and vice versa. Similar to: --Presses should be done with dumbbells with a 2 second pause at bottom of rep. --Do 3 weeks at 4x8, then 3 weeks at 3x6, then 3 weeks at 5x5 for everything other than squats and deadlifts. That's a 9 week cycle (for all the listed exercises). Then take a week off. If you like the cycle and want more help later, I'll be happy to help.
I can almost do it! I'm almost there! More flexibility needed in order to achieve man's ultimate accomplishment! I must redouble my efforts!
thanks for all the tips and links...It should be enough to get started with. If ya happen to run across any other info you think would be beneficial...by all means share..we wont mind...
Great stuff, thanks for all of the info. I will be getting started with this routine on Monday. A few more questions I have: The routine says to lift on Mondays and Thursdays....should the cardio be done on Tuesday and Thursday, then have 3 full days off...or should some of the cardio be done on the weekend? Are there any specific interval training exercises you would reccomend, or is anything fine as long as it is intense?
I don't really know much about cardio, but don't do it after your workout. Do it whenever else. Just not M & Th. For interval training, here's some links: http://www.youronlinefitness.com/Fi...articles/hiit_and_other_interval_training.htm http://www.wsu.edu/~strength/hiit.htm One of each (2 total) in a week should be fine. If you don't want to do cardio, just play full-court basketball or whatever. I never really liked cardio, though...
