Need advice on exercise program - want to do free weights

mrpink6789

Hey,

Posted here a couple of times and got some good advice.

Bit of a background on me, I’m about 17 stone now and 6 foot 2, about 6 months ago I was over 21 stone. Shed it all by doing the weight watchers routine while doing quite a bit of exercise and eating healthily.

I still have quite a few stone to lose but I want to start doing some free weights, since January I have used the machines in the gym which are not bad but not great at the same time, free weights I know are the way to go.

I started this one yesterday as I read it on a separate thread

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/matt88.htm

found it much better then free weights. Is this a good program for a guy like me looking to lose weight and build muscle?

Cardio wise I am doing about 5k of high intensity on the Cross trainer (30 mins) as well as 2,200 metres in 10 minutes on the rower (trying to increase that every month by about 100 metres). I also have started playing squash.

I was doing the couch to 5k running program but found it tough because of my size, I will go back to it when I lose another couple of stone. I feel guilty that I should be doing more cardio because I am not doing the running anymore however hopefully he squash will counter that.

Diet wise it’s not bad.

Morning – Porridge
Mid morning – fruit
Lunch – brown bread ham, low fat cheese, salad sandwich + homemade soup
Dinner – Usually a stir fry with rice and plenty of Veg
Evening – more fruit

I will put my hand up and say I do have a few pints at the weekend. Most people will probably say the carbs and cheese are not good in my diet but I’m trying to follow a healthy points system in weight watchers rather then a body builders diet.

Also Im sure I dont get enough protein in my diet, I was thinking of looking in to those Maximuscle shakes as a short time solution, a friend used the promax diet one and found it useful.

So after this long rant I suppose can anyone tell me if this is a terrible exercise and diet program and should I be doing something else?

Cheers in advance

Scuba Ste

Wouldnt be fan of bodybuilding style workouts myself, especially if weight loss is your primary goal. Id go for a full body workout going for 3 sets of 5-8 reps on the compound lifts.

Personally I like legs/push/pull doing horizontal push/pull one day vertical the next. eg:

squat/bench/row; deadlift/OH press/chin up

Its easy to plan and you can change it around to using dumbells and different variations on pressing, rowing etc. and throw in one or two exercises like curls or tri work if you want.

Basically you dont need to do so many exercises to get the results you want, so why do it.

Diet wise you dont look too bad, if your still losing weight id keep things the same.

Brian?

mrpink6789 wrote: »

Hey,

Posted here a couple of times and got some good advice.

Bit of a background on me, I’m about 17 stone now and 6 foot 2, about 6 months ago I was over 21 stone. Shed it all by doing the weight watchers routine while doing quite a bit of exercise and eating healthily.

I still have quite a few stone to lose but I want to start doing some free weights, since January I have used the machines in the gym which are not bad but not great at the same time, free weights I know are the way to go.

I started this one yesterday as I read it on a separate thread

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/matt88.htm

That's some serious weight loss man, fair play.

I'd forget that program if I were you, there are too many isolation excercises and no squats or deadlifts.

I wouldn't even bother with a split if yet, try and do 3 full body work outs a week. Learn how to squat and deadlift as a priority though, it'll be the best thing you ever do. This site is handy:

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/Quadriceps/BBSquat.html

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/ErectorSpinae/BBDeadlift.html

Get a trainer to show you properly. Start light and be patient, work on technique first and then concentrate on getting stronger.

A simple routine to follow would be:

Squat or deadlift
DB shoulder press
Lat pulldown/chin ups if you cand do them
DB bench press
Stiff leg deadlift
DB row
Lunges

Edit: I just googled this up, the stuff in Italics would be optional to me:

Alternate workouts A + B e.g.

Monday A
Wednesday B
Friday A
Monday B etc.........


Example:
Workout A:
Front Squats (Lower push)
Bench Press (Horizontal push)
Glute Ham Raises (Lower pull)
DB Rows (Horizontal pull)
Farmer's Walks (Accessory work - Full body exercise - Grip)
YTWLs (Shoulder prehabilitation)
Incline DB Curls (Accessory work - Arm isolation - Pull)

Workout B:
Deadlifts (Lower pull)
Seated DB OH Press (Vertical push)
Split Squats (Lower push)
Neutral Grip Chinups (Vertical pull)
Turkish Getups (Accessory work - Full body exercise - Core Stability)
Birddog Planks (Accessory work - Core Stability)
OH DB Extensions (Accessory work - Arm isolation - Push)

mrpink6789

Cheers for the advice, I have been told before that full body workouts would be best for me. I'll have a look at those sites and try a few different exercises to see what works. I was thinking of getting a personal trainer to go through a few things with as well.