On November 08 2012 05:36 BeMannerDuPenner wrote: so story is, i used to be quite the sports guy when young. now im 26, lazy and drink way to much beer and got the resulting beer belly. this needs to change (well the beer part not that much.. ). i dont wanna get super ripped, just look like a man again and regain some fitness.
Since when is a beer belly not manly?
If by weights you mean dumb bells, I find them very limiting for strength training. Not that they are bad, but the barbell is definitely easier to make progress with.
For the price of a full squat rack you can probably pay off years of gym membership though, so why not go that route?
ok i get it, dumb bells = the short 1hand weights, barbell = long 2hand one. in that case i now got 2 new dumbells (thx to buddy i just came home from) and my old 2 barbells with est weight of 25 and 40kg.
no gym for me. busy all around, just stupid contract gyms over here and i know myself, as soon as i "have to" go there i wont do it. while at home im often just really in the mood for some action while watching/listening to a stream or something.
also the good ones id consider cost 50-70€/month and it seems like i can get a decent home equipment for just 3-4 months at that price.
and yeah,beer belly is as manly as it gets and my gf loves it (atleast she says so). still i need to get in shape and american beauty like i wanna look good naked(again). ~~
On November 08 2012 05:57 ieatkids5 wrote: getting rid of that beer belly is mostly about fixing your diet. check out the nutritional recommendations sticky for that.
as for fitness, many people would recommend you invest in a barbell, some plates for it, a squat rack, and a bench; so that you can start doing a good beginner's routine. see the training recommendations sticky.
for cardio, i'm not sure what this towel thing is, but you can do some running, biking, or swimming on your rest days and/or after each workout session. or do whatever sport interests you.
i know nutrion is important. but thats another story and tbh i rather work out more then put any major limits on what i eat.dont get me wrong, i dont put massive amounts of junk food into me all day. if that was the case i would be at 150kg now given how lazy i am/was. the towel thing i meant is this . saw that few months ago somewhere here. running isnt for me since i always was strong and fast,but hated all the endurance running. swimming is a problematic since there is no nice pool near etc. so im looking for something that i can do at home and is effective. if thats possible.
there are some people here recommending bodyweight exercises for you, but i don't think that's what you're looking for. you're mainly looking to burn off that beer belly of yours so you can see that sixpack. bodyweight exercises will build your strength, coordination, balance, and other things, but there are better methods if your goal is to burn off fat (while also putting on some muscle).
given that you dont like endurance running, and you don't want a restrictive diet, i would suggest you mainly do high intensity interval training, and top it off with some strength training using your barbell and dumbbells.
for HIIT, just pick any exercise (sprinting, squats, jumpsquats, lunges, burpees, whatever) that works your entire body and that you can do very quickly. do as many as you can for 30-45 sec, rest for 15-30 seconds, and repeat for like 5 minutes. you can add on weight to your squats by holding dumbbells to make them more difficult (even at bodyweight, it will already make you really tired.)
for strength training, make yourself a routine that includes squats, deadlifts, bench press, overhead press, and either dumbbell/barbell rows or pullups.
do strength training 2 to 3 times a week. HIIT 3 to 4 times a week.
thanks for all the help and recommendations guys. will try a few different things over the next few weeks and see what i like the most.(and hopefully remember to report back here ;P)
Quick question: Im gonna start going back to the gym next monday and Ive decided going in the mornings because its what suits me best. My idea is to go immediately after waking up but considering my goal is to reduce my fat, fat belly should I eat breakfast before or after?
On November 09 2012 14:46 skindzer wrote: Quick question: Im gonna start going back to the gym next monday and Ive decided going in the mornings because its what suits me best. My idea is to go immediately after waking up but considering my goal is to reduce my fat, fat belly should I eat breakfast before or after?
Doesn't really make a difference. By and large, there are no magic food timings. If you need to lose weight, calories in < calories out. Are you planning to do weightlifting or cardio? There are some theories on what is better with weightlifting (for example, having some protein and carbs directly after a workout is good with weighlifting), but even then it's not realy important.
Elliot Hulse recommended drinking black coffee before a workout (no sugar, milk). I tried it and felt really energized for my workout. If I drank soda or something, I'd feel like a bum there. Happened more than once, lol.
Is it acceptable to set a goal of 10% BF by June 1, 2013 if I am currently at ~14% BF? I am trying to plan out my target numbers for next year and I don't want to set myself up for failure if that is too big of a leap.
Current stats: 6'0, 167 lbs ~14% BF (Relevant for my next question)
Assuming that it is possible for me to reach that 10% BF mark, is a goal of 172 lbs @ 10% BF by December 31, 2013 also reasonable? Or what about 175 lbs @ 10%?
This is my first time trying to really dedicate myself to reach certain benchmarks throughout the year and I don't want to set a goal that is too easy, or too hard. I just want something that is definitely obtainable if I stay pretty focused throughout the year.
On November 10 2012 19:20 LovE- wrote: Is it acceptable to set a goal of 10% BF by June 1, 2013 if I am currently at ~14% BF? I am trying to plan out my target numbers for next year and I don't want to set myself up for failure if that is too big of a leap.
Current stats: 6'0, 167 lbs ~14% BF (Relevant for my next question)
Assuming that it is possible for me to reach that 10% BF mark, is a goal of 172 lbs @ 10% BF by December 31, 2013 also reasonable? Or what about 175 lbs @ 10%?
This is my first time trying to really dedicate myself to reach certain benchmarks throughout the year and I don't want to set a goal that is too easy, or too hard. I just want something that is definitely obtainable if I stay pretty focused throughout the year.
Do you have an accurate way of measuring BF%? One of the main requirements of goals is that they have to be measurable (preferably without too much effort). It's very difficult to work towards a long-term goal if you can't see yourself progressing. Personally, I'd much rather set myself weight and weightlifting goals with the assumption that my body will look better by the time I reach the goals. For example, my June 2013 goals are to squat 170kg and deadlift 200kg while maintaining my current bodyweight. Since the only way I could do that would be by adding a significant amount of muscle, and since I wouldn't be picking up any weight, I know that my bf% will be lower if I reach my goals.
With that said, it would definitely be possible to go down to 10% bf in 12 months. I mean, 14% bf of 167 is equal to 23lb of fat. 10% of 167 is 17lb. So you could simply lose 6lb (while exercising to keep the muscle) and be reasonably close to 10% bf. Your other questions are more difficult to answer since the speed at which you to gain muscle mass depends on a lot of factors (most importantly, how trained you are already). This article suggests that you can probably gain about 10-25 pounds per year. Subtract the 6lb you'd need to lose to get down to 10%, and it means you can be anywhere between 171lbs and 186lbs and 10% bf by the end of next year.
On October 30 2012 07:49 iloveroo wrote: Noob questions:
- Which is better free weights or machines? - As a beginner in weight lifting which one of the two should I be using?
- I've been lifting a bit back in September but haven't gone since because of lack of transportation, work and school and when I do have a day off I feel really lazy to even leave the house. But as far as I can remember I would head to the gym and stay there for at least 4 hours. I would go the gym every other day.. So Monday, Wednesday and Friday if I didn't have work.
My routine when I head to the gym consist of (in order): biceps, chest, back, triceps, shoulders. I usually do about 6-8 reps in sets of 3 but I would do this 3 times with 3 different machines per muscle. I got this idea from my friend who also attends the same gym as me but goes at different times, he told me to do this for a couple of weeks and then start concentrating on at least 2 or 3 muscles a day working them out to the max
As a beginner can someone tell me if this is a good idea/plan/workout I should keep doing or change it up. Tips are also appreciated.
- Free weights are much better than machines. As a beginner you should be using free weights. - Your routine is pretty poor, especially for a beginner. What you're doing is isolation exercises with a split program which is a bodybuilder program. You want to do a full body program focusing on compound exercises. - Your workouts should be 60-90 minutes, three times a week. Anything more than that is overkill for a beginner. - Read the sticky section on Starting Strength/Strong Lifts. It's a beginner program which is great optimal for beginners but is still very good for advanced liftetrs.
Really late reply, barely go on this site anymore but, I understand that you said my current workout is poor especially since I am a beginner and you do recommend "SS", but how do you feel about me as a beginner using "All Pro's" I do understand they are different I assume but will All Pro's give me somewhat the same benefits as SS, a complete full body workout? -How do you feel about All Pro's, which one of the two do you prefer and why
On October 30 2012 07:49 iloveroo wrote: Noob questions:
- Which is better free weights or machines? - As a beginner in weight lifting which one of the two should I be using?
- I've been lifting a bit back in September but haven't gone since because of lack of transportation, work and school and when I do have a day off I feel really lazy to even leave the house. But as far as I can remember I would head to the gym and stay there for at least 4 hours. I would go the gym every other day.. So Monday, Wednesday and Friday if I didn't have work.
My routine when I head to the gym consist of (in order): biceps, chest, back, triceps, shoulders. I usually do about 6-8 reps in sets of 3 but I would do this 3 times with 3 different machines per muscle. I got this idea from my friend who also attends the same gym as me but goes at different times, he told me to do this for a couple of weeks and then start concentrating on at least 2 or 3 muscles a day working them out to the max
As a beginner can someone tell me if this is a good idea/plan/workout I should keep doing or change it up. Tips are also appreciated.
- Free weights are much better than machines. As a beginner you should be using free weights. - Your routine is pretty poor, especially for a beginner. What you're doing is isolation exercises with a split program which is a bodybuilder program. You want to do a full body program focusing on compound exercises. - Your workouts should be 60-90 minutes, three times a week. Anything more than that is overkill for a beginner. - Read the sticky section on Starting Strength/Strong Lifts. It's a beginner program which is great optimal for beginners but is still very good for advanced liftetrs.
Really late reply, barely go on this site anymore but, I understand that you said my current workout is poor especially since I am a beginner and you do recommend "SS", but how do you feel about me as a beginner using "All Pro's" I do understand they are different I assume but will All Pro's give me somewhat the same benefits as SS, a complete full body workout? -How do you feel about All Pro's, which one of the two do you prefer and why
To be honest, I'm not a fan. The exercises he includes are largely OK, but the program doesn't make that much sense and I don't really see any benefits over SS.
Regarding the exercises, everything he lists is good except for barbell curls and calf raises. If you want to do biceps you should be doing chin-ups rather than curls since they have the same bicep benefits but also stimulate other muscles. Calf-raises just seem a bit useless in general, I'm not sure why you'd want to include those unless you are a bodybuilder. Also, there's no good reason why you'd want to do stiff-legged deadlifts rather than proper deadlifts. Stiff-legged deadlifts purposefully limit the number of muscles you exercise which is a bad idea for beginners.
Regarding the general program, it doesn't make much sense for the beginner. Firstly, there's no good reason to do every exercise every day. You'll either end up overworking your body which limits muscle growth, or, more likely, you'll have to work with lighter weights on all the exercises which increases endurance rather than strength. Secondly, it progresses way too slowly. When you're a beginner, four weeks is a super long time. In my first four weeks, I went from squatting 40kg to 80kg and from benching 40kg to 60kg. Using his program, you'll spend 5 weeks benching 40kg with only a slight increase in the reps and then, if you progress, you'll spend another five weeks benching 45kg. It progresses way way too slowly. Added to that, the rep counts aren't really optimal. Lower reps (4-6) are ideal for strength gains which, as a beginner, you should be focussing on.
In the end, the program is probably OK, but I don't see why you'd use it over Starting Strength. Starting Strength was designed by a US national-level strength coach and a powerlifter with a PhD who specialises in strength training. An entire 330 page book was written around the program and the five core exercises of Starting Strength, and another 280 page book was written on the programming behind SS. It's a well researched plan that clearly explains why it works and why it's effective.
Simple question... When doing split routines, in days like Chest&Triceps/Back&Biceps, should I do all chest exercises first then all tricep exercises, or should I go back and forth
On November 14 2012 07:21 ffadicted wrote: Simple question... When doing split routines, in days like Chest&Triceps/Back&Biceps, should I do all chest exercises first then all tricep exercises, or should I go back and forth
You can theoretically save time by working one group while the other rests, but I don't have experience with split routines so take that for what it's worth.
Weird question here. Anyone know how lifting affects your testosterone or the relationship between testosterone and facial hair?
Lately my facial hair has been going out of control. I can't determine whether or not it's due to increased testosterone or just the result of shaving regularly for 3 years. I used to only shave like once a week, then I had to shave every 3 days... today I looked in mirror and my facial hair is noticeably visible even though I shaved YESTERDAY. Looking around on the internet the correlation between shaving and facial hair growth has a lot of different opinions so I rather come to you guys for advice...
I'm an Asian guy, facial hair only works for a few of us so this is distressing...
Lifting does boost testosterone iirc. I don't know if it would result in in more facial hair. Also I'm pretty sure shaving more often doesn't increase rate of hair growth, it just seems that way.
On November 15 2012 01:36 Snuggles wrote: Weird question here. Anyone know how lifting affects your testosterone or the relationship between testosterone and facial hair?
Lately my facial hair has been going out of control. I can't determine whether or not it's due to increased testosterone or just the result of shaving regularly for 3 years. I used to only shave like once a week, then I had to shave every 3 days... today I looked in mirror and my facial hair is noticeably visible even though I shaved YESTERDAY. Looking around on the internet the correlation between shaving and facial hair growth has a lot of different opinions so I rather come to you guys for advice...
I'm an Asian guy, facial hair only works for a few of us so this is distressing...
Asian guy too, facial hair also growing at increased rate, but not sure if its cuz im getting older or if its from lifting. I'm breaking out a lot more than I used to before I lifted tho. Skin used to be clear and beautiful as fuck, now I'm quite prone to acne =[
On November 15 2012 01:36 Snuggles wrote: Weird question here. Anyone know how lifting affects your testosterone or the relationship between testosterone and facial hair?
Lately my facial hair has been going out of control. I can't determine whether or not it's due to increased testosterone or just the result of shaving regularly for 3 years. I used to only shave like once a week, then I had to shave every 3 days... today I looked in mirror and my facial hair is noticeably visible even though I shaved YESTERDAY. Looking around on the internet the correlation between shaving and facial hair growth has a lot of different opinions so I rather come to you guys for advice...
I'm an Asian guy, facial hair only works for a few of us so this is distressing...
Asian guy too, facial hair also growing at increased rate, but not sure if its cuz im getting older or if its from lifting. I'm breaking out a lot more than I used to before I lifted tho. Skin used to be clear and beautiful as fuck, now I'm quite prone to acne =[
Eating clean will help your face a lot. Also bulking seems to make my skin all bubbly as well. At least thats just my experiences.
On November 15 2012 01:36 Snuggles wrote: Weird question here. Anyone know how lifting affects your testosterone or the relationship between testosterone and facial hair?
Lately my facial hair has been going out of control. I can't determine whether or not it's due to increased testosterone or just the result of shaving regularly for 3 years. I used to only shave like once a week, then I had to shave every 3 days... today I looked in mirror and my facial hair is noticeably visible even though I shaved YESTERDAY. Looking around on the internet the correlation between shaving and facial hair growth has a lot of different opinions so I rather come to you guys for advice...
I'm an Asian guy, facial hair only works for a few of us so this is distressing...
Just wondering your age? Some guys I know haven't really had much facial hair until early 20's when it suddenly started growing faster and thicker.
On a related note I'm convinced that lifting puts hair on my chest.
On November 15 2012 01:36 Snuggles wrote: Weird question here. Anyone know how lifting affects your testosterone or the relationship between testosterone and facial hair?
Lately my facial hair has been going out of control. I can't determine whether or not it's due to increased testosterone or just the result of shaving regularly for 3 years. I used to only shave like once a week, then I had to shave every 3 days... today I looked in mirror and my facial hair is noticeably visible even though I shaved YESTERDAY. Looking around on the internet the correlation between shaving and facial hair growth has a lot of different opinions so I rather come to you guys for advice...
I'm an Asian guy, facial hair only works for a few of us so this is distressing...
Just wondering your age? Some guys I know haven't really had much facial hair until early 20's when it suddenly started growing faster and thicker.
On a related note I'm convinced that lifting puts hair on my chest.
I am 21 right now. So that might be the case... I just wish that instead of facial hair that I'd would just grow a few inches...
EPT
). i dont wanna get super ripped, just look like a man again and regain some fitness.
