Can someone help me with a decent workout program for the gym?

daisyduke87

I know these threads are probably ten-a-penny on here but I'm at my wits end with the gym I'm in.

I joined the gym in December and I was just sort of floating along, doing cardio, not much weights and no stretching etc. At the beginning of January I booked in with one of the trainers to get a workout program made up for me. I have an old ankle injury which means I cannot use the treadmill or cross trainer but everything else is fair game.

So the gym instructor made up a program consisting of 12 minutes interval training on the bike (good but I feel like I'm only getting into a good rhythm and I'm finished), 2000m interval training on the rower (takes me approximately 15 minutes) and a short segment of the program is made up of 2 sets of 5kg dumbbell presses and some body weight exercises, such as squats, as well as a stretching routine for before and after. This is all fine and well but takes me about 45 minutes to complete and I feel like I am not spending enough time in the gym to achieve the results I want to achieve. I know this won't happen over night but I feel that I'm not worn out leaving the gym, as I would like to be.

When the gym instructor gave me the program he was all talk about meeting with me once a week to see how I'm getting on and change things up etc., this has not happened once and it's nearly February. I have attempted 3 times now to meet with him but each time he has been busy each time and I have been stuck doing the above program. I am getting increasingly frustrated because I feel I am not doing enough, in particular I would really like to do more weights based exercise (after reading threads on here) but I don't know where to start.

My stats are:
25yo female
15.5 stone (I would like to lose 4 stone the right way and then assess whether I need to lose more or not)
5ft 7"
Office job that involves a lot of running around (up and down 3 flights of stairs at least 25 times a day)

As regards my diet, I'll just post today's eating as an example:
Breakfast: beans on wholegrain and oat bread
Mid morning: one quarter honeydew melon, activia cereals strawberry and fibre yoghurt
Lunch: tuna salad, lettuce, cucumber, scallions, red and yellow peppers, 2 tins of john west tuna with two teaspoons of mayonnaise
Before gym: banana
Dinner: breast of chicken, greens beans, asparagus, carrots and cauliflower with 1 small scoop of mashed potato

I am allergic to eggs.

For so long I put off exercising and trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle and I just feel that now I have finally put it to the top of my priority list, I'm getting nowhere.

I would really appreciate anyone's advice, or just to point me in the right direction for a decent workout program, as I feel I will be left waiting a long time for that instructor to take an interest.

Thanks.

ladypip

Fair play to you im in the same boat, joined a gym last march and its going well. My advise would be to speak to the manager of the gym and make yourself heard you are paying them for a service your not getting. In the meantime If you can go more on the bike do, if you can row more do same with all the other exercises. Your body wont let you down listen to it. Does the gym offer classes?

daisyduke87

Thanks for the reply ladypip.

The gym does offer classes but not at times that would suit me. Unfortunately all their evening classes start at 6:15 and I don't finish work until 5:30 and it takes me an hour to get to the gym.

The only time I have been able to speak to the manager is over the phone, he doesn't seem to work in the evenings or at weekends. He told me that if I wanted one-on-one time with the instructor I would have to book a personal training session which I would have to pay for on top of my membership and I don't really have the money for that. When I explained to the manager what the instructor told me, he said that this was not part of my membership and all personal training has to be paid for separately. The instructor told me that he would meet with me for 10-15 minutes each week, see how I was getting on and change things up if needs be, he didn't mention anything about personal training sessions.

I'm really looking for any advice in relation to a weights program. I'm strong enough, i.e. I find lifting 2 dumbbells of 5kg each easy.

xgtdec

Hi There

Would you be in a position to go to a personal trainer say.....once a month..or once every six weeks?? They could do you a proper program with weights increasing as you go if your adjusting to it. They could also check your posture etc and advise for and against certain exercises.

You now learning what most people learn at some stage in their fitness journey, a lot of gym staff either dont care or just dont know....a qualified experienced PT for some advice and a program would be money well spent!!!

Slydice

daisyduke87 wrote: »

I would like to lose 4 stone the right way

ok

daisyduke87 wrote: »

As regards my diet, I'll just post today's eating as an example:
Breakfast: beans on wholegrain and oat bread
Mid morning: one quarter honeydew melon, activia cereals strawberry and fibre yoghurt
Lunch: tuna salad, lettuce, cucumber, scallions, red and yellow peppers, 2 tins of john west tuna with two teaspoons of mayonnaise
Before gym: banana
Dinner: breast of chicken, greens beans, asparagus, carrots and cauliflower with 1 small scoop of mashed potato

I am allergic to eggs.

Alright, I'd say:
- drink 2 litres of water during the day (especially around gym time)
- I'm not sure about the breakfast but I'd say switch to a breakfast product like milk with porridge (max 1/2 cup [regular size cup]) or wheatabix (max 2)
- drop the mid morning altogether. maybe 1 apple or 1 pear in case you belly complains.
- no mayo for lunch. drop the tuna salad. keep the lettuce, cucumber, scallions, red and yellow peppers, 2 tins of john west tuna.
- for dinner, get rid of green beans and potatoe and replace with mixed salad to replace the bulk

It won't happen fast, it won't feel good adjusting to less food (especially the mid morning sugar rush from the melon). Keep an eye on yourself to make sure you are getting enough nutrition to keep you healthy.

Think about adding more leafey greens like cabbage and kale instead of the veg you are on.

daisyduke87

xgtdec wrote: »

Hi There

Would you be in a position to go to a personal trainer say.....once a month..or once every six weeks?? They could do you a proper program with weights increasing as you go if your adjusting to it. They could also check your posture etc and advise for and against certain exercises.

You now learning what most people learn at some stage in their fitness journey, a lot of gym staff either dont care or just dont know....a qualified experienced PT for some advice and a program would be money well spent!!!

No, I really don't have the money for personal training sessions. The gym is stretching my budget as it is, as I have the membership costs and additional petrol costs so I really couldn't afford another €100 on top of that.

Slydice wrote: »

ok
Alright, I'd say:
- drink 2 litres of water during the day (especially around gym time)
- I'm not sure about the breakfast but I'd say switch to a breakfast product like milk with porridge (max 1/2 cup [regular size cup]) or wheatabix (max 2)
- drop the mid morning altogether. maybe 1 apple or 1 pear in case you belly complains.
- no mayo for lunch. drop the tuna salad. keep the lettuce, cucumber, scallions, red and yellow peppers, 2 tins of john west tuna.
- for dinner, get rid of green beans and potatoe and replace with mixed salad to replace the bulk

It won't happen fast, it won't feel good adjusting to less food (especially the mid morning sugar rush from the melon). Keep an eye on yourself to make sure you are getting enough nutrition to keep you healthy.

Think about adding more leafey greens like cabbage and kale instead of the veg you are on.

Sorry, I didn't include any liquids I drink about 2 litres of water during the day (our office gets very warm) and tend to drink at least 1 pint of water before I leave for the gym and while I'm there I have my bottle of water too.

Also, when I said "tuna salad" I meant my tuna salad consists of lettuce, cucumber, scallions, red and yellow peppers, 2 tins of john west tuna with two teaspoons of mayonnaise.

Thanks for the rest.

daisyduke87

daisyduke87 wrote: »

I'm really looking for any advice in relation to a weights program. I'm strong enough, i.e. I find lifting 2 dumbbells of 5kg each easy.

Are there heavier dumbbells available? If you're nailing the exercise it's time to step up a grade (move slowly).

As a female you will not become muscular and 'manly' by using heavier weights to train. A lack of testosterone creation means it's difficult for girls to actively 'grow' muscle.

If you feel very comfortable with a weight, then it is too light. Make certain you are doing the exercise with the full range of motion, and the form spot on, and try lifting the next set up.

I'm a barbell advocate, but if you're only doing 5kg (x2) then you're not ready for moving to the bar.

Can I ask what exercises you have been doing with the dumbbells? I'm hoping full body exercises like squats and lunges, some chest pressing, overhead pressing etc.

Your body will actually 'get used' to a training system quite soon (5/6 weeks) so you constantly need to increase the difficulty to continue to feel a benefit. This doesn't mean adding time to your training, but increasing the intensity by upping the weights. On cardio, try to do things faster, if you're getting 2000m done in the time now, try to push it to 2250 and beyond. Increase intensity and make your workouts 'harder' each time.

daisyduke87

Deleted User wrote: »

Are there heavier dumbbells available? If you're nailing the exercise it's time to step up a grade (move slowly).

As a female you will not become muscular and 'manly' by using heavier weights to train. A lack of testosterone creation means it's difficult for girls to actively 'grow' muscle.

If you feel very comfortable with a weight, then it is too light. Make certain you are doing the exercise with the full range of motion, and the form spot on, and try lifting the next set up.

I'm a barbell advocate, but if you're only doing 5kg (x2) then you're not ready for moving to the bar.

Can I ask what exercises you have been doing with the dumbbells? I'm hoping full body exercises like squats and lunges, some chest pressing, overhead pressing etc.

Your body will actually 'get used' to a training system quite soon (5/6 weeks) so you constantly need to increase the difficulty to continue to feel a benefit. This doesn't mean adding time to your training, but increasing the intensity by upping the weights. On cardio, try to do things faster, if you're getting 2000m done in the time now, try to push it to 2250 and beyond. Increase intensity and make your workouts 'harder' each time.

There are heavier dumbbells. I am not concerned at all about turning into the hulk, I know that that is a myth. The reason why I have stuck with the program the instructor gave me is because I was under the, obviously mistaken, impression that he was going to meet with me each week and help with gradual increases. All I have been doing with the dumbbells is chest presses (as stated in my first post) because that is the only exercise the instructor gave me to do with them. As I said I was under the impression that I would be meeting with him weekly and he would add in more exercises and increase the weights gradually.

I have never been a member of a gym before so aside from what the instructor gave me to do with the weights exercises and body weight exercises (obviously cardio is fairly self-explanatory) I was relying on the instructor helping me out and adding to my routine. This hasn't happened.

Stench Blossoms

I'm doing the New Rules of Lifting for Women program and I find it good.

Check it out.

daisyduke87

Thanks stench blossoms. I have just downloaded that to my kindle and started reading it.

Colonialboy

Considering you have an old injury thats an ok program to start with.
Its building aerobic fitness which will help you. You could increase the resistance on your bike session, up the 5kg to 7.5 kg.
And try doing some of the body weight exercises with weights in your hands, if they suit it.
How often are you going to the gym ?
Dont worry better to start slow and build up a good 'base' lots of top athletes will start very slow, very small weights . Patience patience.

I think Matt Roberts has some great programs . Check him out online.
If you stick to his exercise plan you will lose weight in 2 weeks . Dont worry about the diet, yours is fine, and be sure and take one day complete rest a week.

Id recommend buying a small exercise mat and some barbells yourself and doing some of the programs at home. Only takes 30-45 mins, can do them watching TV or listening to radio , and save you the long journey to the gym. Do not eat after them and get good sleep .

And do some outdoor exercise too, at the weekend , long walks should not stress your ankle too much.

BlueIsland

daisyduke87 wrote: »

I know these threads are probably ten-a-penny on here but I'm at my wits end with the gym I'm in.

I joined the gym in December and I was just sort of floating along, doing cardio, not much weights and no stretching etc. At the beginning of January I booked in with one of the trainers to get a workout program made up for me. I have an old ankle injury which means I cannot use the treadmill or cross trainer but everything else is fair game.

So the gym instructor made up a program consisting of 12 minutes interval training on the bike (good but I feel like I'm only getting into a good rhythm and I'm finished), 2000m interval training on the rower (takes me approximately 15 minutes) and a short segment of the program is made up of 2 sets of 5kg dumbbell presses and some body weight exercises, such as squats, as well as a stretching routine for before and after. This is all fine and well but takes me about 45 minutes to complete and I feel like I am not spending enough time in the gym to achieve the results I want to achieve. I know this won't happen over night but I feel that I'm not worn out leaving the gym, as I would like to be.

When the gym instructor gave me the program he was all talk about meeting with me once a week to see how I'm getting on and change things up etc., this has not happened once and it's nearly February. I have attempted 3 times now to meet with him but each time he has been busy each time and I have been stuck doing the above program. I am getting increasingly frustrated because I feel I am not doing enough, in particular I would really like to do more weights based exercise (after reading threads on here) but I don't know where to start.

My stats are:
25yo female
15.5 stone (I would like to lose 4 stone the right way and then assess whether I need to lose more or not)
5ft 7"
Office job that involves a lot of running around (up and down 3 flights of stairs at least 25 times a day)

As regards my diet, I'll just post today's eating as an example:
Breakfast: beans on wholegrain and oat bread
Mid morning: one quarter honeydew melon, activia cereals strawberry and fibre yoghurt
Lunch: tuna salad, lettuce, cucumber, scallions, red and yellow peppers, 2 tins of john west tuna with two teaspoons of mayonnaise
Before gym: banana
Dinner: breast of chicken, greens beans, asparagus, carrots and cauliflower with 1 small scoop of mashed potato

I am allergic to eggs.

For so long I put off exercising and trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle and I just feel that now I have finally put it to the top of my priority list, I'm getting nowhere.

I would really appreciate anyone's advice, or just to point me in the right direction for a decent workout program, as I feel I will be left waiting a long time for that instructor to take an interest.

Thanks.

I can see you are doing your best with your diet in regards to what you consider healthy but there are a few glaring things.

1. Your breakfast is basically a recipe for your blood sugars to spike like crazy.Forget the idea of healthy being "wholegrain" this and that. Bread spikes your sugar levels more than everyday table sugar. Would you eat table sugar for breakfast and consider it healthy? If your allergic to eggs what about three or four slices of bacon? Grab some nuts too because your fat intake is very low throughout the day.

2. Your midmorning snack is continuing the cycle of your blood sugar levels being kept high. DROP it.Again id try maybe a handful of cahew nuts? or buy almond butter and dip apple pieces into it?

3. Your lunch is grand. Tuna- good. salad- good. Dont worry about the mayonaise for now in small quantities. You have bigger fish to fry.

4. generally its decent. If i were you id drop the potato for brocolli or even seet potato mash.

In fairness the mistakes in what you are consuming are understandable in that its what conventional wisdom on healthy eating jams down our throats all the time.
Try a few of the changes above, follow good advice SOME people will give you on training on here, do it for 6 weeks and I can promise you will start seeing differences.

daisyduke87

Colonialboy wrote: »

Considering you have an old injury thats an ok program to start with.
Its building aerobic fitness which will help you. You could increase the resistance on your bike session, up the 5kg to 7.5 kg.
And try doing some of the body weight exercises with weights in your hands, if they suit it.
How often are you going to the gym ?
Dont worry better to start slow and build up a good 'base' lots of top athletes will start very slow, very small weights . Patience patience.

I think Matt Roberts has some great programs . Check him out online.
If you stick to his exercise plan you will lose weight in 2 weeks . Dont worry about the diet, yours is fine, and be sure and take one day complete rest a week.

Id recommend buying a small exercise mat and some barbells yourself and doing some of the programs at home. Only takes 30-45 mins, can do them watching TV or listening to radio , and save you the long journey to the gym. Do not eat after them and get good sleep .

And do some outdoor exercise too, at the weekend , long walks should not stress your ankle too much.

The interval training I do on the bike is level 8 for 90 seconds and level 14 for 30 seconds while maintaining the speed at 11+, it's usually around the 12.5 mark but to be honest I do not know what the speed on the bike is measured with, I presume it's mph but I may be wrong.

I go to the gym 4 days a week, sometimes 5, depends on how busy my weekend is but I always go 4 days a week without fail (so far).

I have tried walking, even short walks, and it causes too much pain in my ankle. I have been warned off walking or running by my physio. I also live on a main road with a speed limit of 100kmph and a very narrow hard shoulder so it's a fairly dangerous place to be walking.