Gym - getting into it.

[Canute]

Hi,

I'm really fortunate that the local gym has just relocated 200 metres from my home and work, it's a big one too and when I wander over there at 11.00am in my lunch break it's more or less empty apart from a few pensioners kicking around in there.

I'm 40 years old and have not really been near a gym properly for 7 years and I'm really looking to get healthy again, I have several people I know recently get cancer and one terminally, having become a father recently this sort of thing scares the st out of me, so I want to become as healthy as I can.

At present I'm just alternating between 7 or 8 different machines on each visit, but with no real goal or plan other than getting hot and sweaty.

I think this new facility will lose it's novelty to me unless I have some sort of structure to follow that will get me going where I want.

Do any of you guys have any advice, I can basically get in there 4-6 times a week for about an hour each time.

Cheers

[Burrow01]

Lots of people will ask you what your "goals" are etc.

Most people are pretty similar, lose some weight, feel fitter, get stronger

The one that I have found, after years of doing various routines / regimes is Stronglifts 5x5

This is a barbell based strength programme, that has doubled my strength over 4 months, and given me a focus to get to the gym - its a 3x a week programme, with clear progression so that you can see where you can be in a month or so if you keep it up.

there is a great app that you can use to record your progress, and a web site www.stronglifts.com that explains it all

I avoided free weights for years, thinking they were the preserve of body builders, but wish I'd started using them years ago

[Frenchda]

Burrow01 said:

Lots of people will ask you what your "goals" are etc.

Most people are pretty similar, lose some weight, feel fitter, get stronger

The one that I have found, after years of doing various routines / regimes is Stronglifts 5x5

This is a barbell based strength programme, that has doubled my strength over 4 months, and given me a focus to get to the gym - its a 3x a week programme, with clear progression so that you can see where you can be in a month or so if you keep it up.

there is a great app that you can use to record your progress, and a web site www.stronglifts.com that explains it all

I avoided free weights for years, thinking they were the preserve of body builders, but wish I'd started using them years ago

100% this IMHO. It really importantly gives you structure, you get results and you quite quickly get to lift heavy st. The progression means you can really work on form along the way. It starts very easy, don't be fooled
The App is great, it also has a well supported and supportive group on Facebook.

Lift 3 times a week and add cardio on a few days - if you are new to this as well try a couch to 5k program.

[Tiggsy]

Canute said:

I'm 40 years old and have not really been near a gym properly for 7 years and I'm really looking to get healthy again, I have several people I know recently get cancer and one terminally, having become a father recently this sort of thing scares the st out of me, so I want to become as healthy as I can.

sort your diet as well then - health is far more diet than anything.

[popeyewhite]

Tiggsy said:

health is far more diet exercise than anything.

[Glade]

Find a class that you like - circuits, spin. Try a few.

Having to book helps commit/organise. I always found being told what to do, and being part of the group experience makes it easier to keep the enthusiasm!

For example lifting freeweights with a the gym bunnies was always a bit daunting, and I didnt know what to do.... where in a circuits class, all the stuff is laid out and you follow the crowd.

Go at your own pace, don't injure yourself and have fun!

Good luck!!

[272BHP]

Go with the strong lifts programme as detailed above.

I have never done it. But just by looking at it I can see it has all the essential ingredients to be successful if you commit. That is coming from someone who has gym trained for 35 years.

Add in some progressive cardio, be mindful of your diet and you will be a new man in 6 months.

[Belle427]

If it had staff/ personal trainers get them to set you a programme, its what they are there for!

[grumbledoak]

Tiggsy said:

sort your diet as well then - health is far more diet than anything.

^ this is correct. Exercise is very good for you, but it cannot compensate for a poor diet.

[Canute]

Belle427 said:

If it had staff/ personal trainers get them to set you a programme, its what they are there for!

I was thinking that but they charge £75PH!!!

[Canute]

Frenchda said:

Burrow01 said:

Lots of people will ask you what your "goals" are etc.

Most people are pretty similar, lose some weight, feel fitter, get stronger

The one that I have found, after years of doing various routines / regimes is Stronglifts 5x5

This is a barbell based strength programme, that has doubled my strength over 4 months, and given me a focus to get to the gym - its a 3x a week programme, with clear progression so that you can see where you can be in a month or so if you keep it up.

there is a great app that you can use to record your progress, and a web site www.stronglifts.com that explains it all

I avoided free weights for years, thinking they were the preserve of body builders, but wish I'd started using them years ago

100% this IMHO. It really importantly gives you structure, you get results and you quite quickly get to lift heavy st. The progression means you can really work on form along the way. It starts very easy, don't be fooled
The App is great, it also has a well supported and supportive group on Facebook.

Lift 3 times a week and add cardio on a few days - if you are new to this as well try a couch to 5k program.

Thanks, going to try and go down this route I think!

[Stuart70]

Canute said:

Belle427 said:

If it had staff/ personal trainers get them to set you a programme, its what they are there for!

I was thinking that but they charge £75PH!!!

Most gym memberships include setting up an exercise programme. They just will not hold your hand / beast you through it.*

• unless you give them £££ per hour.

[V8covin]

Stick to the compound lifts,squats,deadlifts,bench presses etc.
Don't waste your time doing bicep curls.

Watch plenty of YouTube videos to get your form correct, don't rely on watching other lifters in the gym,too many don't have a clue.
Keep a note of what you do so you can try and beat it the next time.I use an app called Progression.
Take it slow and steady and do warm up sets for each lift

[Canute]

Stuart70 said:

Most gym memberships include setting up an exercise programme. They just will not hold your hand / beast you through it.*

• unless you give them £££ per hour.

This gym is a bit different, it's totally unmanned during the day apart from a cleaner who loiters around the place. You have to book a PT and that's the only option.

That said, a 1500Sqm gym in a small village for £19 per month membership can't be sniffed at.

[popeyewhite]

grumbledoak said:

Tiggsy said:

sort your diet as well then - health is far more diet than anything.

^ this is correct. Exercise is very good for you, but it cannot compensate for a poor diet.

Same old same old in internet-land.
Well let's put it this way - if you exercise as an adult and avoid a sedentary lifestyle you'll maintain muscle mass and bone density, ward off cancer and all sorts of other diseases, and live a (generally) longer life and enjoy it more. You shouldn't eat rubbish obviously but you don't need to eat like a mediterranean villager. On the other hand you can have a good diet, do no exercise be incredibly unfit, enjoy osteoporosis, muscle atrophy, Alzheimer's etc etc in later life.

[didelydoo]

popeyewhite said:

Same old same old in internet-land.
Well let's put it this way - if you exercise as an adult and avoid a sedentary lifestyle you'll maintain muscle mass and bone density, ward off cancer and all sorts of other diseases, and live a (generally) longer life and enjoy it more. You shouldn't eat rubbish obviously but you don't need to eat like a mediterranean villager. On the other hand you can have a good diet, do no exercise be incredibly unfit, enjoy osteoporosis, muscle atrophy, Alzheimer's etc etc in later life.

Bit of both needed as Popeyewhite says- don't eat st, obviously unhealthy foods, but no need to be overly restrictive diet wise. Exercise is the thing that gives you more benefits as you age though, and it's also the thing that keeps the weight off best as you age.

edit to add a recent study:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30801984
Full article - https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/o...
Summation - maintaining weight loss via energy expenditure (exercise) is more effective than diet.

Edited by didelydoo on Friday 22 March 11:27

Edited by didelydoo on Friday 22 March 11:28

[Tiggsy]

popeyewhite said:

Tiggsy said:

health is far more diet exercise than anything.

Simply not back'd up by reality.

If we take exercise in this sense to mean "specifically engaging in physical activity for the purpose of health" then a good diet will have greater long term health benefits. If the poster is doing NOTHING all day then there is more merit in exercise but if we are assuming a degree of natural activity then from that start point - what he fuels his body with will have a greater impact on the things he specifically cites as being scary concerns for him.

There are plenty of 90 year olds who have never done a days exercise (in this contexts) in their life - yet are fit and healthy as they eat well. Conversely, eat a bad diet and you cant exercise it away. My gym is full of blokes lifting weights while still maintaining high levels of visceral fat. If they are also lacking vital nutrients, flooding themselves with insulin daily, etc, etc their PB on the bench won't help them.

Clearly, it's a slightly pointless point as BOTH need to be dealt with - but it's easy (for a bloke especially) to be sidetracked into thinking they are all good because they have downloaded strong lifts on their mobile while still eating stty carbs, insufficient veg, excess calories etc

And for clarity - I lift 4 times a week, try and get 20 miles in most weeks, HIIT, etc, etc - but I've always done that and only since I nailed my diet have I (at 45) cured my asthma, got rid of inflammation based knee pain, solved minor IBS issues, gained energy levels way beyond any other point in my life, etc. In simple terms - my HEALTH is better having fixed diet and I could drop all the exercise and still keep the majority of those benifits. It's doesnt work the other way around.

[Tiggsy]

didelydoo said:

Bit of both needed as Popeyewhite says- don't eat st, obviously unhealthy foods, but no need to be overly restrictive diet wise. Exercise is the thing that gives you more benefits as you age though, and it's also the thing that keeps the weight off best as you age.

edit to add a recent study:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30801984
Full article - https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/o...
Summation - maintaining weight loss via energy expenditure (exercise) is more effective than diet.

Edited by didelydoo on Friday 22 March 11:27

Edited by didelydoo on Friday 22 March 11:28

Interesting study as it states (from the intro I had time to read) that caloric reduction is a poor long term solution (when done with traditional macro nutrient balance) as it results in lower caloric expenditure. It's why people like Jason Fung suggest low carb and fasting which doesnt have the same reduction in general caloric expenditure.

The study goes on to show that, having lowered you caloric expenditure by use of that diet (that everyone agrees fails for most people) if you exercise then your caloric requirements don't fall so far so you can keep the weight off better as your intake matches your burn better than the poor buggers whol lost weight with the dumb diet and now will put on fat as soon as they bust over 1500 cal a day because their metabolism slowed so much.

Result - exercise for sure, but lose weight in a better way to start with!

[didelydoo]

Tiggsy said:

Interesting study as it states (from the intro I had time to read) that caloric reduction is a poor long term solution (when done with traditional macro nutrient balance) as it results in lower caloric expenditure. It's why people like Jason Fung suggest low carb and fasting which doesnt have the same reduction in general caloric expenditure.

The study goes on to show that, having lowered you caloric expenditure by use of that diet (that everyone agrees fails for most people) if you exercise then your caloric requirements don't fall so far so you can keep the weight off better as your intake matches your burn better than the poor buggers whol lost weight with the dumb diet and now will put on fat as soon as they bust over 1500 cal a day because their metabolism slowed so much.

Result - exercise for sure, but lose weight in a better way to start with!

Relying on diet alone for health deprives you of the myriad of benefits of being fit- Bone density, muscle tone, cardiovascular health, mental health, improved quality of life etc etc. These things become particularly important as you age.

Sure a diet can get you healthy, but it can not get you fit and healthy. So many on here pick diet as the be all and end all (not you, I should add). Diets lose you weight, or gain you weight. They can fix problems brought on (generally) by poor diet previously. But they won't keep you fit, which is a massive benefit when you're older.

The study basically shows that exercise is a good protocol for keeping weight off once a target size is achieved. And it's a message that all should follow for a fit and healthy future.

[gregs656]

Canute said:

Thanks, going to try and go down this route I think!

it's a good program. I think if it you stick with it for 12 weeks and keep reading you will have a much better idea of where you want to go next, if you want to change at all.

The app is really good. Hardly anyone in my gym seems to record anything or have timed rest but I got used to having it from stronglifts and wouldn't go back now.