starting off - weights

southofnowhere

Hey there.

Just back in gym for six weeks, have mainly been concentrating on trying to build up my (almost non existent!) fitness through running/cycling, going ok so far apart from pains in feet/lower leg from treadmill.

Main aim is to shift the big belly (not moving at all yet, but it's early days) and tone up.

Anyway, wanted to work in some weights into my limited time in the gym, ran through a load of different ones with staff member in gym today.

Due to time constraints I'll have to do them in the morning (if I can get up) and will only really be able to one set of a few main ones. Say five or six sets three times a week.

With one set should I aim to do reps 'til failure or maybe just close to?

Also what are the main exercises people would recommend?

I'm starting from a very low base, so the likes of chin ups are a distant dream at this stage

ScissorPaperRock

southofnowhere wrote: »

Hey there.

Just back in gym for six weeks, have mainly been concentrating on trying to build up my (almost non existent!) fitness through running/cycling, going ok so far apart from pains in feet/lower leg from treadmill.

Main aim is to shift the big belly (not moving at all yet, but it's early days) and tone up.

Anyway, wanted to work in some weights into my limited time in the gym, ran through a load of different ones with staff member in gym today.

Due to time constraints I'll have to do them in the morning (if I can get up) and will only really be able to one set of a few main ones. Say five or six sets three times a week.

With one set should I aim to do reps 'til failure or maybe just close to?

Also what are the main exercises people would recommend?

I'm starting from a very low base, so the likes of chin ups are a distant dream at this stage

8 reps is a nice middle of the road number of reps to aim for

For exercises the best for overall muscle growth would be squats, deadlifts, military press, bench press. Dips and chinups are good too.

Keep in mind though, (with the squats and deadlifts especially) you want to be doing them with correct form, otherwise you run the risk of a potentially painful injury, so it might be a good idea to get some to go through them with you.

maxxie

If chin ups are a distant dream then so are deadlifts and squats etc
If you havent done weights before then jump on the machines mate.
Pick an exercise for each bodypart ie lat pulldown for back! Shoulder press chest press etc do 2 sets of 8-12!!
In the gym let the staff know what ur goals are! They are the professionals not anyone posting on boards! But the advice I have given you is spot on so it will give you an idea of where you want to start from!

PS.. Always pre/post stretch + warm up/cool down

ScissorPaperRock

maxxie wrote: »

If chin ups are a distant dream then so are deadlifts and squats etc
If you havent done weights before then jump on the machines mate.
Pick an exercise for each bodypart ie lat pulldown for back! Shoulder press chest press etc do 2 sets of 8-12!!
In the gym let the staff know what ur goals are! They are the professionals not anyone posting on boards! But the advice I have given you is spot on so it will give you an idea of where you want to start from!

PS.. Always pre/post stretch + warm up/cool down

With little or no weight I don't see why anyone couldn't start off with squats at least. Maybe the deadlift might be better left until the core is strengthened more, but the other exercises can be done with lower weights.

kevpants

maxxie wrote: »

If chin ups are a distant dream then so are deadlifts and squats etc
If you havent done weights before then jump on the machines mate.
Pick an exercise for each bodypart ie lat pulldown for back! Shoulder press chest press etc do 2 sets of 8-12!!
In the gym let the staff know what ur goals are! They are the professionals not anyone posting on boards! But the advice I have given you is spot on so it will give you an idea of where you want to start from!

PS.. Always pre/post stretch + warm up/cool down

WOW! That's exactly what 90% of the gym-going public are doing and they're... getting nowhere.

Don't have time to advise at the mo but I just had to respond to monsieur smartypants here.

GazeeboBrown

Well he's lucky that he posted here. The publics knowledge of a subject is only as good as the best they've been exposed to. If all one has seen is people in the gym honking away at machines, then that is what they expect themselves to do.

But thankfully southofnowhere, you've come to the right place. Take a look at some of the fitness logs, youtube/google the exercises and lifts you've never heard of, and get some advice.

maxxie

kevpants wrote: »

WOW! That's exactly what 90% of the gym-going public are doing and they're... getting nowhere.

Don't have time to advise at the mo but I just had to respond to monsieur smartypants here.

Thats because they dont progress onto free weights when they have developed proper form and have started developing, monsieur gimp.

Looking forward to hearing your advise!

I wasnt being smart! Are you going to pay his wages if he pulls his back doing squats..
The poster is obviously a beginner, no beginner starts with squats because they generally dont have the flexibiltiy!
The comments from people on boards are normally helpful but for his safety I advised him to talk to the gym staff!

Gaz

Anybody can deadlift or squat, even starting with an empty bar and working on form would be great, also, working with free weights is much more beneficial.

I think you will find the regular posters here more than know there stuff , so quite being a tard.

cowzerp

kevpants wrote: »

WOW! That's exactly what 90% of the gym-going public are doing and they're... getting nowhere.

Don't have time to advise at the mo but I just had to respond to monsieur smartypants here.

His advise was not bad for someone just starting on weights, the 1st phase is just getting your muscles used to lifting weight, then you can advance on to the more complex lifts and exercises..

maxxie

Gaz wrote: »

Anybody can deadlift or squat, even starting with an empty bar and working on form would be great, also, working with free weights is much more beneficial.

I think you will find the regular posters here more than know there stuff , so quite being a tard.

shut your mouth! are you going to bring him down the gym and show him how to do it properly!
No instructor would give advanced techniques to a beginner! They have to be built up to it!!!!

maxxie

cowzerp wrote: »

His advise was not bad for someone just starting on weights, the 1st phase is just getting your muscles used to lifting weight, then you can advance on to the more complex lifts and exercises..

Thank you!!! This fella is looking for constructive advise! His safety is paramount!

southofnowhere

Thanks for all the advice so far.

Had a good read through the forum too, which has been very helpful and interesting - believe it or not!

I will be concentrating on using the proper form until I get used to everything, actually started earlier on today, cos I got off work early.

After talking with instructor in gym, im doing different things on different days.

Today focused on chest/back. Did bench press (dumbbells), lat pulldown, deadlift (dumbells) and chest press (machine).

All (shamefully) light, so was ok - know I did it though! I will be doing squats with light weights Maxxie, I've been doing a fair bit of cycling and rowing so my legs are probably the best equipped for all this!

Not looking to overdo it, more concerned with losing the belly so cardio is chief for now.. Hopefully someone can reassure me that it's the last thing to go or is mine just particulalrly stubborn

davyjose

maxxie wrote: »

Thank you!!! This fella is looking for constructive advise! His safety is paramount!

What's so safe about a shoulder press machine versus freeweights?

cardio,shoot me

i personally find squats are quite an easy thing to pick up as long as u dont horse on weight, i cant see anyone throwing their back out doing bodyweight squats or just with the bar

sunnyjim

doing a fair bit of cycling and rowing so my legs are probably the best equipped for all this!

You'd be suprised!

kevpants

maxxie wrote: »

Thats because they dont progress onto free weights when they have developed proper form and have started developing, monsieur gimp.

Snappy comeback.

Explain to me the reasons why he can't start with free weights at poundages he can handle?

maxxie wrote: »

I wasnt being smart!

Don't worry I don't think I'll be accusing of that anytime soon.

maxxie wrote: »

Are you going to pay his wages if he pulls his back doing squats..

Why would he pull his back? Sure he could blow out his rotator cuff on the press machine easier than any kind of "back pull" from a goblet squat with light enough weight.

maxxie wrote: »

The poster is obviously a beginner, no beginner starts with squats because they generally dont have the flexibiltiy!

How do they go about learning to squat then?

maxxie wrote: »

The comments from people on boards are normally helpful but for his safety I advised him to talk to the gym staff!

Oh yeah that Total Fitness badge doesn't come for nothing. It takes at least 3 solid weekends on a training course to get that baby.

maxxie wrote: »

shut your mouth!

Another snappy comeback! Quite the debater!

maxxie wrote: »

No instructor would give advanced techniques to a beginner! They have to be built up to it!!!!

What are we talking about again? Advanced techniques? Is the OP going to juggle the weights? Will they be on fire at the time?

cowzerp wrote: »

His advise was not bad for someone just starting on weights, the 1st phase is just getting your muscles used to lifting weight, then you can advance on to the more complex lifts and exercises..

Once again I don't get the advanced complex thing. Obviously he has to learn it by why treat him like an idiot? Just learn to do it.

maxxie wrote: »

His safety is paramount!

Aaahhhh, we are talking about juggling flaming dumbells... aren't we?

OP to actually answer the question. Squatting, benching and deadlifting are staple exercises that are worth while learning. What is your height, weight and give us an example of the weights (how many kg's) you are shifting at the moment in a few different exercises.

There's a program called Starting Strength that is just about the most accesible program for novice lifters in that it gives good instruction on technique so you won't hurt yourself and is designed with beginners in mind. You can start of with literally no weight and progress from there. Have a read here: Starting Strength Wiki

Feel free to post vids here of your technique if you're not sure. The above Webpage will answer questions a thousand posts on boards wouldn't cover so it's a good start.

Mikel

LOL
That Shaft is a bad motherf....

maxxie wrote: »

shut your mouth!

No instructor would give advanced techniques to a beginner! They have to be built up to it!!!!

Squats aren't an advanced technique.
What's the point of using machines and then starting squats and having to go back to square one?
I'd say you're more likely to get injured using pressing and smith machines

Sangre

I'm useless at chin ups, better stop squatting and deadlifting so.

Magic Eight Ball

southofnowhere wrote: »

Not looking to overdo it, more concerned with losing the belly so cardio is chief for now..

Diet should be chief right now mate, No amount of cardio will get you out of the effects of a ****ty diet, Believe me I know.

Change the diet and you'll lose that belly.

+ With all this talk of squtting, you should give body weight squats a go.

Best of luck.

Roper

maxxie wrote: »

Thats because they dont progress onto free weights when they have developed proper form and have started developing, monsieur gimp.
How is working on a machine going to give him proper form for non-machine based exercises?

I wasnt being smart! Are you going to pay his wages if he pulls his back doing squats..

On one hand, this seems like a reasonable statement, yet I can't force myself to get beyond how basically idiotic it is...

The poster is obviously a beginner, no beginner starts with squats because they generally dont have the flexibiltiy!

And generally how many general people have you trained to squat to make this general statement? Generally? Who here has recommended putting 100kgs on his back in the morning? You would be hard pressed to find someone who has done their back in squatting down on to the toilet. But maybe when they repeat that motion int he gym they're in the zone or something and that's where the harm is.

The comments from people on boards are normally helpful but for his safety I advised him to talk to the gym staff!

Or he could play the lottery. I think your chnaces of winning are only marginally worse than finding a gym staff member who can teach compound lifts.

cowzerp

As a rule i would prefer to get people used to just using there muscles in a resistance manner before they take on exercises that require balance and co ordination, now in saying that-moving onto light or even body weight squats can be added in soon once you know more about the client, 2-3 sessions even.

and before people ask me why? its simple, lots of clients will lose confidence if they start badly on squats and apart from that if they learn it wrong from day 1 because of weak muscles, balance coordintion etc,, then they might keep there poor learned technique for good.

now everyone attacking maxxie because his opinion is a bit ott, its hardly a way off mad thing he's suggesting!

If your new to weight training keep it simple, get used to using muscles and keep moving onto more challenging exercises as the original ones get easier, some people could get straight into squats, others should not for various reasons..

Not starting them straight away will not be a problem so dont be making such a fuss about it lads..

bigeasyeah

The only advice I can give is to start with a moderate weight and while on that concentrate on perfecting your form.It ll stand to you as you increase the amount of weight you lift.

southofnowhere

Trevor Coulahan wrote: »

Diet should be chief right now mate, No amount of cardio will get you out of the effects of a ****ty diet, Believe me I know.

Change the diet and you'll lose that belly.

+ With all this talk of squtting, you should give body weight squats a go.

Best of luck.

Ya, the diet is proving very tricky right now. Old habits and all that, plus still trying to work exactly what is best for me and what suits me.

Have given up junk food (sweets and chipper feeds etc) since I started six weeks ago, but still eating stuff I shouldn't be, like white bread, and prone to the few beers now and again too.

Step by step I'm hoping to get there, actually getting six weeks of consecutive exercise (no matter how little) is a big deal for me.

Thanks to everyone for the advice, has been helpful.

davyjose

cowzerp wrote: »

now everyone attacking maxxie because his opinion is a bit ott, its hardly a way off mad thing he's suggesting!

In fairness now, Maxxie was asking for it.

Listen, I'm one who has personally b0ll0xed up a body part using machines, so when someone says to use machines, in the name of safety (with added attitude) then I would be questioning that advice.
If you want to take a Newbie, who has limited flexibility, poor rotator cuff strength and stick them on a one-size-fits-all shoulder-press machine, and tell people that's safer than free weights, then expect to be lambasted TBH.