A Routine

[fetfet]

Hey. This is me, asking for some helpful advice.

I'm 5'6'', 165lbs, and 14. I'm also tragically out of shape. And I feel really bad about it. So about a week ago, I started a workout routine, which I'm just using to burn off some extra pounds, and try to get myself into shape, which I've never had the motivation to do until now. Right now, it's not very high-impact - doing 2 reps of 25 crunches, and 15 pushups, and then a 30minute jog - but soon I'm looking to change that. This being my first encounter with *gasp* exercising regularly, I'm not really sure where to take it.

So what I'm asking is, any suggestions?

[Liffguard]

Weights weights weights weights weights weights weights weights weights weights.

Compound weightlifting will build muscle. More muscle means a higher metabolism, meaning more fat burning. In addition, compound lifting will make you stronger, faster, more agile and more flexible. Cardio is obviously important too, but don't neglect the act of picking up heavy things and putting them down again.

[snoopy13a]

You could also make small reductions in your diet to help lose weight. Basically, there are three ways to lose weight:

1) Exercise more while keeping your diet the same

2) Diet only

3) Exercise + Diet

Since you only need to lose a few pounds and you are planning on serious exercise, I'd only suggest minor diet changes. For example, if you drink two cans of soda a day and either switch to diet soda or water, you'll cut 300 calories a day which will be 2100 calories a week. One pound of fat is 3500 calories so that will result in roughly a half pound lost. Combined with your exercise, you should end up losing one to two pounds a week. Other easy things to cut are eating a granola bar instead of potato chips for a snack and subbing mustard for mayo in sandwiches.

Additionally, weight training prevents muscle mass loss when you're on a diet. Otherwise, while most weight loss is from fat, you'd lose some muscle mass by losing weight.

[Last_resort_33]

wow.... Motivation... I wish I had that. I'm 6'0" and 270lb. I don't eat too badly but I just can't be arsed to work out after a 10 hour day in an office... I feel too mentally tired to feel up to doing anything...

Consequently I am going on blood pressure meds at the age of 23. I want to try, but motivation is a serious issue for me... any suggestions?

[snoopy13a]

wow.... Motivation... I wish I had that. I'm 6'0" and 270lb. I don't eat too badly but I just can't be arsed to work out after a 10 hour day in an office... I feel too mentally tired to feel up to doing anything...

Consequently I am going on blood pressure meds at the age of 23. I want to try, but motivation is a serious issue for me... any suggestions?

You don't have to go to a gym to get your exercise in. Walking for an hour a day has many health benefits and it burns about 300 calories an hour. Plus, walking can actually be relaxing. In fact, if you live close enough to work, you can walk there instead. Combine walking with reducing your calories by 500 a day and you should lose a pound and a half a week.

[fetfet]

Thanks for the suggestion. I don't have enough money to buy actual weights, but I found some 5lb weights that I can use, and I think I might be able to borrow some 25lb ones from my grandparents. How should I go about the weights?

[Gwyn chan 'r Gwyll]

First of all, I know you thelizard, you are not nearly as out of shape as you think you are.

Secondly, find Crow. Is he still around? He used to make people up routines all the time...

[Haruki-kun]

Thanks for the suggestion. I don't have enough money to buy actual weights, but I found some 5lb weights that I can use, and I think I might be able to borrow some 25lb ones from my grandparents. How should I go about the weights?

5lb weights won't be very useful, try to get the 25lb ones.

[Keld Denar]

First of all, I don't know how much soda you drink, but stop it. Cold turkey, if you can. I quit drinking it in college, switched to water, and I was losing about 5# a month just from that lifestyle change. The stuff is bad for you, all of it. Even diet, because of the way your body metabolises it. Consuming large amounts of water is also really good for you, as it helps your body flush toxins and keeps your liver/kidneys strong and healthy. Just don't drink it all in one sitting.

Second, you are still a bit young to get into heavy weight training. I started doing some light stuff when I was a freshman in college, but I didn't get into heavy weightlifting routines until I was closer to 16. YMMV, but at your age, vigorous cardio will help you a lot more. Interval sprints are the best form of free cardio. Sprint for ~100 yards, then jog for 100 yards, then sprint again. Keep alternating 5-7 times, if you can, take a stretch break, and do it again 5-7 times. This has the advantage of getting your heart rate up and keeps it up as if you were doing straight sprinting, but is gentler on the rest of your muscles. Do that every day, and you'll notice a huge difference.

And remember, STRETCH! Always stretch when you work out. Before, and after and during. You can never really stretch too much, and your muscles will thank you for it.

[fetfet]

Thanks. I'll keep that in mind when I'm doing my jog tomorrow. Usually, I jog to a place, but I'll try and get to the track.

[Erloas]

First of all, I don't know how much soda you drink, but stop it. Cold turkey, if you can. I quit drinking it in college, switched to water, and I was losing about 5# a month just from that lifestyle change. The stuff is bad for you, all of it. Even diet, because of the way your body metabolises it. Consuming large amounts of water is also really good for you, as it helps your body flush toxins and keeps your liver/kidneys strong and healthy. Just don't drink it all in one sitting.
I will second this. I used to drink a lot of soda too but I gave it up in college (mostly because I was too cheap to buy it). It helped with quite a bit of things. In fact now I can't drink much soda at all (like a single can) without it causing short term digestive problems (generally a quick trip to the bathroom).


As for what you do, it doesn't matter so much what you are doing, just that you are doing something. If you don't like to run you will never stay with it and you will just end up quiting. Some activities are a lot better then others, but the activity you want to do is also one you are likely to keep doing and that is what is important. Even if one activity burns twice the calories in the same amount of time, if you don't like doing it and give up after a little while it doesn't matter how efficient it was.



wow.... Motivation... I wish I had that. I'm 6'0" and 270lb. I don't eat too badly but I just can't be arsed to work out after a 10 hour day in an office... I feel too mentally tired to feel up to doing anything...

Consequently I am going on blood pressure meds at the age of 23. I want to try, but motivation is a serious issue for me... any suggestions? Well the first thing I would say is give it a try. Generally speaking you will feel a lot better after you work out even if you didn't feel that great to start with. Also working out is often good if your are mentally tired because it doesn't take a lot of mental energy to do, it is a very good stress reliever for many people. When people like to work out changes a lot by the person. I know some people that get up early to work out before work and it works for them, however that isn't something I could do. I know other people that head to the gym right after they get off work, and that works for them but it doesn't work for me. For me working out 2-3 hours after work is what works best for me. It gives me time to get home and relax a bit, get something to eat, and then take about an hour or so to digest before I go work out.

In terms of motivation to keep going... well that can be harder. Some people the exercise is motivation enough by itself, but that takes a bit to develop and you won't get that the first time you work out, it might take a very long time. For me, I'm doing it simply because I know I should and I know that I don't want to be back where I was a few years ago when I started. Also having more money and free time to do what I want to do makes it easier, because a lot of what I like to do like camping and fishing and SCA, and skiing all require being in decent shape, and at this point I've got the resources to actually do that stuff fairly regularly.

It can help if you find someone else that also wants to get started working out. The catch here is that not wanting to leave your work out partner by themselves can help get both of you there even if neither of you really want to, but it can also be the case that either one can easily talk the other one out of doing it and instead do something else like get food. It really depends on who it is, it can really help some people and it can really be a distraction for others.

Sometimes just having goals is enough. If you decide to start on a bike or on a treadmill you might see what you can do and put a goal of seeing if you can increase your average speed by 1mph for the same period of time over the course of a month, or see if you can go 45 minutes instead of 30. If you are going for a goal set something with an explicitly obtainable end result. Trying to get to where you can benchpress 250lbs is something you can know you hit, "be more impressive looking to the ladies" isn't really something you can quantifiably achieve and one that is much easier to discourage rather then encourage you after a while.

In your specific case, adjusting your diet and getting enough exercise to the point where you can stop taking blood pressure medication is probably a very tangible and obtainable goal.

[Keld Denar]

I dunno if you have access to a treadmill, but a trick my mother uses (she hates exercising) is to put your treadmill in front of a TV with a VCR/DVD player. Put on an episode of your favorite show, and run while you watch it. A typical half hour episode has a run length of ~22 minutes after commercials are cut. Thats a pefect duration to run. The show will keep your mind off the fact that you are actually exercising, and time will fly. Just make sure its not toooo funny, because fits of laughter will interfere with your breathing and may cause uncomfortable cramping.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Hey. This is me, asking for some helpful advice.

I'm 5'6'', 165lbs, and 14. I'm also tragically out of shape. And I feel really bad about it. So about a week ago, I started a workout routine, which I'm just using to burn off some extra pounds, and try to get myself into shape, which I've never had the motivation to do until now. Right now, it's not very high-impact - doing 2 reps of 25 crunches, and 15 pushups, and then a 30minute jog - but soon I'm looking to change that. This being my first encounter with *gasp* exercising regularly, I'm not really sure where to take it.

So what I'm asking is, any suggestions?

This is an awesome start. Keep it simple! Don't overwhelm yourself with a complicated routine - you'll be less likely to keep it up. The only thing I would change for now, as a beginner, is to do 2 sets of 30 seconds each of crunches and pushups, and a 3 mile jog. This way you can measure your improvement by the number of repetitions of crunches and pushups you can do in 30 seconds, and the time in which you can run 3 miles.

I would also have a backup plan... say it's cold and rainy and you get home late and your shins are hurting and you really don't want to do your usual routine, then you do your alternate workout. Perhaps a video?

The other side of the health/fitness/weight loss coin is of course nutrition. But that would be a completely different thread.

Feel free to PM me for more information on either exercise or nutrition, and of course I'm sure there are plenty of others qualified for this such as Crow.

Disclaimer of course being to follow this advice at your own risk. For all we know you have some congenital condition that would cause you to spontaneously combust as soon as you run faster than 7 mph!

@Last_resort_33 : find another person as a coach or workout buddy that you are accountable to every day. Set your watch alarm to go off at the time that you have to do your workout each day. Click on the workout pledge on www.hungerfighters.com each day (unless you think you still won't work out, then it will just make you feel bad). Be careful not to do the valsalva maneuver if you choose to lift weights. And, not as a guilt thing but just as a new perspective, think about how your high blood pressure will cause problems that will hurt not just you but also your loved ones.

[fetfet]

Thanks. I've been drinking watered-down beverages, but noiw I'm switching to water.

And on a poorer note, I can't get at any weights!

[toasty]

You don't need weights.

Do push ups, do crunches and sit-ups. The only piece of equipment I'll use when I work out is a pullup bar I installed in my door-way. It's just an iron rod supported by two... thingies that keep it there. You can probably do that pretty easily.

I'm outa shape now... primarily because I no longer have motivation to work out, but I was pretty well built for my age (like... 15) when I was doing all this stuff.

[Erloas]

As a general fitness sort of thing, as opposed to training for a very specific task, I've heard very good things about using a kettleball. My brother got one and he said he could feel it working right away, though I don't know if he keep up with it or not. It is something to look into because it is a single weight (or possibly 2) that can be used for a large number of things, so even if you don't have much money it shouldn't be hard to $20-30 to get one. I also think that they way a lot of the exercises are done you could probably do some of them with some basic material you might find around the house.

And as far as a lot of things go, you can get a lot of exercise doing normal things that you probably don't do. Just digging a hole can be a lot of work, so if you have parents, grandparents, or relatives of any sort that have unfinished yards I'm sure they can find an area that needs some work done. Even if they don't plan on doing anything, just moving dirt from one area to another can be a good workout even if it isn't productive. Its also the sort of thing you can get people to pay you to do.

[Jack Squat]

As a general fitness sort of thing, as opposed to training for a very specific task, I've heard very good things about using a kettleball. My brother got one and he said he could feel it working right away, though I don't know if he keep up with it or not. It is something to look into because it is a single weight (or possibly 2) that can be used for a large number of things, so even if you don't have much money it shouldn't be hard to $20-30 to get one. I also think that they way a lot of the exercises are done you could probably do some of them with some basic material you might find around the house.

Kettlebells are great. That being said, I don't use mine too much. I should probably vary up my routine some...

Right now, I'm hooked on using Fitdecks (http://fitdeck.com/) they're mostly cardio-type stuff, with some strength training put in. As of now, I've got the Bodyweight, Kettlebell, Pull-up bar, SEAL, and Combat Sports decks. There's a handful of things I can't do (one armed pushup, pull-up using only index fingers...), but most of it isn't challenging in technique.

There's a lot you can do without spending much, if any money. Do sit-ups, jump rope, pull ups off your deck if it's high enough, push ups, bear crawl... This video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X15VRzQHq2U) has some ideas you could do without weights, depending on skill.

The key point though is to vary it up. You don't want a routine so much as to do something. If you're wanting to build muscles or target a certain area, that's when you go for routines, but not so much just general fitness.

[Moff Chumley]

1) Find someone you don't like.
2) Steal whatever they're holding.
3) Run like hell.
4) Don't get caught.
5) If you do: CONDITIONING!
6) If you don't: FREE STUFF!

PM Crow. It's been said before, It needed to be said again. :smallsmile:

Ooh, I also reccomend finding a good Martial Art place nearby, preferably not Taikwondo, ideally, some form of Kenpo, be it Shaolin or Kenpo Karate. If USSD has a Toronto branch, they're the best in their league. Go for maybe two or three hours a week; It's a very good all-around excersize, and has, ahem, other benefits. :smallwink:

[Bonecrusher Doc]

I'm actually not a big fan of full situps - they put a lot of pressure on your lower back. I have a lot of patients who get low back pain from doing Army-type situps. Crunches are fine, though.

I second the idea of getting paid to exercise. It's summer time, so there is seasonal work to be had. I've worked on a farm and in an ice factory, and both were great exercise. And my old highschool teacher always loved to tell us the story of how he followed the wheat harvest.

[Exeson]

I'll say what I keep saying in every thread like this. To lose weight the best thing you can do is find a sport you enjoy and do it. Because if you are doing a sport that involves a lot of exercise but also working as a team or at least intereactign weith other people (example rugby, Judo, American Football) then no matter how bad you may be to begin with as long as you enjoy it you will put as much effort into the training session which will get you into shape fairly quickly. The main upside of this is a team or social sport is a lot less mindless than just having an exercise routine.

[fetfet]

PM Crow. It's been said before, It needed to be said again. :smallsmile:

Ooh, I also reccomend finding a good Martial Art place nearby, preferably not Taikwondo, ideally, some form of Kenpo, be it Shaolin or Kenpo Karate. If USSD has a Toronto branch, they're the best in their league. Go for maybe two or three hours a week; It's a very good all-around excersize, and has, ahem, other benefits. :smallwink:

I've been trying to find him, but member's list is disabled. And the reason I'm doing a workout routine is because I really didn't like the martial arts community. I used to do muay thai and capoeira.

[endoperez]

I've been trying to find him, but member's list is disabled. And the reason I'm doing a workout routine is because I really didn't like the martial arts community. I used to do muay thai and capoeira.

Finding like-minded people would be quite helpful. Whether you just run/jog, go to a gym or start taking part in some other form of sports, having a group that would notice if you slack off helps keep you motivated. It could be gym, acrobatics/wushu, a group of people that go to a park 5AM every morning to exercise... anything, really.

I'd try to find a group, because I know otherwise I'd slack off at some point, but obviously people are different.

[Keld Denar]

Even if the member list is disabled...its just Crow. Click the PM box in the upper right hand corner, click new message, type in Crow for the person, and Workout Advice Request in the subject and then make a short introduction of who you are and what your goals are. He's got it in his sig thats an open invite for people to PM him, so its not imposing yourself on him.

As far as an alternative to situps, you can do leg lifts. They are incredible for your lower abs and obliques. Find any kind of bench or short long....anything. Lie down on it with your butt right on the edge. Reach up over your head and grab the bench behind you. Point your toes straight away from your body, and lift them until they point to the ceiling while keeping them together and touching. Then lower them back down. If you really want to kick your own butt, at the end of the extention, push your toes towards the ceiling and lift your butt off the bench. This has the effect of "crunching" just about every muscle in your abs, and is a lot lower impact than an actual situp. If your bench is anchored, you can also twist at the waist and drop your legs together out to either side. ONLY do that if your bench is anchored though, otherwise you might tip it over and spill yourself onto the floor. Do sets of about 20 or so of these between your other exercises like pushups, since they are pretty low impacts and don't wear you out easily.

[fetfet]

Cool. I've sent her a PM, but I think it might be formatted wrong. I'm sending a revision.

And those leg lifts look cool.

[Decoy Lockbox]

wow.... Motivation... I wish I had that. I'm 6'0" and 270lb. I don't eat too badly but I just can't be arsed to work out after a 10 hour day in an office... I feel too mentally tired to feel up to doing anything...

Consequently I am going on blood pressure meds at the age of 23. I want to try, but motivation is a serious issue for me... any suggestions?

I'm in the same boat, blood pressure meds at 22, slightly taller, slightly heavier. Over the past year I've started going to the gymn more and more often, and now I go for about an hour a day on monday, tuesday, wednesday, thursday and occasionally saturday. I do 10 minutes of cardio, then move onto 50-60 mins of weights, pretty much using every machine in the gymn for 4 sets of 10 reps. I leave sore as hell, but its totally worth it.

In terms of motivation, I had a doctor sit me down and say "you are going to die", and it sorta scared me straight. I've always found lifting weights to be sorta fun/challenging, but my main problem was time. This summer I have about 2 hours after work before I have to hit the hay, and I figured that since I can't really do what I want in that time period (TV, videogames, etc), I might as well excercise.