getting in shape

[de-trick]

lately i have been falling into a slump of laziness and tiredness. I fell fat and unhappy. I need a way to keep in shape thats fun to do and able to do at home with no special equipment. In spring i was in shape for I had gym and track(running about a 6 min mile) i felt great and in shape winters coming and I need a way to keep in shape help me please. I mainly want my abs back and some biceps and triceps too

[Soups]

Cut off your legs, then don't use a wheel chair, use your arms. I saw it on Ripley's Believe it or Not.

Sorry, can't help ya, I used to play football. But if you want to lose weight while having fun, play DDR. My friend literally lost 40 lbs doing it, after 4 months. I was losing weight until I gave up due to laziness.

[Brickwall]

Pretty much any exercise is fun if you do it in the correct amounts. I personally make sure to do the following every day if at all possible:
Push-ups (regular, but I'm thinking of switching to slightly harder ones)
Crunches (varying between central and rotating)
Pull-ups
Running far enough to make my throat burn

And I add in others sometimes. And I usually feel pretty good afterwards.

Dance Dance Revolution won't hurt either. Neither will actually going to a gym, but both of those cost money and time.

At least start with running. Run every day. That will keep you from getting too fat. If you actually want to do resistance training to get your muscles larger, the exercises I listed will give you some at-home upper body strength. However, if you have access to proper weights, there are a lot more exercises you can do. That will allow you to vary them, which is much better.

Oh, and eat healthfully. Believe me when I say I uderstand the difficulty of getting 5 fruits and vegetables a day. I barely even eat 5 servings of food a day myself, but if I was a black hole, I'd still have enough trouble getting proper nutrition. Fruits will, though, give you the energy to exercise. Vegetables are always good. Avoid spending your ingested calories/day on junk food. A pizza every once in a while won't make you gain 200 lbs, but chips and soda every day will give you a horrible gut. Avoid alcohol, it damages everything you've got. Meats of all kinds are your friends, though less fatty ones like poultry and fish are even more friendly (to your health). And don't avoid carbs. Carbs also keep your energy high. And, especially if you exercise, hydrate. Water a few times a day outside meals is ideal. Another good drink is milk. It won't especially hydrate you, but calcium keeps your bones healthy, good for someone exercising (it's hard to exercise with a bruised bone...). Plus...less trips to the dentist.

Getting in shape is a multiple-front thing. If you neglect one, the other won't help nearly as much.

[TheLoveInterest]

I just joined a Karate class and I feel better than ever:smalltongue:
Maybe you could try that

[bugsysservant]

Don't bother with crunches or sit ups. Virtually all professional trainers agree that they are specialized enough to be worthless. For abs, there are numerous exercises which would be ten times better, and can be easily found online.

Also: remember, don't try to build muscle and lose weight simultaneously. Losing weight requires the reduction of food intake, whereas muscle requires that you consume more proteins and calories to rebuild after a workout. Also, every pound lost is roughly 75% fat, 25% lean tissue- mostly muscle. Thus, it is better to reduce your calories initially, suplementing your diet with cardio type excersises, than try for muscle building, with a ramped up consumption of high protein foods.

Drink water. Lots. Your body won't meatbolize foods optimally if it is dehydrated, and drinking water makes you feel fuller, reducing the amount you eat.

Don't starve yourself. If you attempt to just go the quasi-anorexia route your metabolism will begin storing fat much more efficiently, and you will frequently gain weight. Cut back on food, but don't go overboard.

Some interesting links:
diet (http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2007/04/06/how-to-lose-20-lbs-of-fat-in-30-days-without-doing-any-exercise/)
workout (http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2007/04/29/from-geek-to-freak-how-i-gained-34-lbs-of-muscle-in-4-weeks/)

[Don Julio Anejo]

I've been doing lots and lots of yoga in acting... Surprisingly, I find it's doing more for my physique (as in makes me look better) than working out, running, doing kickboxing or playing hockey ever did. It doesn't really make me any more fit, but I do feel and look better. And I've only started it in September...

You may want to give that a try. All it takes is a mat or even a nice, thick carpet.

Otherwise, I say go for cardio. Running, stairmasters, biking, etc. Weights and weight loss don't mix though. They tend to keep a person the same weight while building their muscles. For someone fairly lean it could mean they can start looking muscular in a matter of a few months, for someone like the Comic Book Guy, they'll get very, very strong but it'll be a very long time until they look at least a bit thinner.

[VeisuItaTyhjyys]

Do you mean "with muscle" in shape or "thin" in shape. I can help with the latter; go to concerts with fast music and give so much money to friends who ask/the homeless/whoever else is around and wants some that you always end up eating one meal a day. It's the Punk diet, and has kept me under a percent of bodyfat since I was about 13. It's easy, fun, and helps people around you.
If you want muscle, though, um, don't do it. That goes too.

[WhatIsGravity]

The best way to lose weight and stay that way is by gaining muscle. Muscle increases your metabolism, meaning you burn fat just by sitting there. Losing weight through starvation is the worst thing to do, since you will just gain all the weight back once your "diet" is over.

Yes, drink plenty of water. I haven't been drinking a lot of water these few weeks and I'm feeling incredibly unnatural.

If possible, you might want to get lots of empty containers and fill them up with sand. I'm using that method for weight-lifting, although I can see that would be a problem once you need to lift higher weights.

Eat plenty: healthy fats, protein (~1g per lb of your bodyweight), carbs. Rest well.

You don't necessarily need to run for cardio. Anything that gets your heart beating fast will work (heheheh). HIIT (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-intensity_interval_training) works better than jogging and is less detrimental to your joints. This is especially true for females, as they have the Q-angle thingamajig from their wider hips. Ever wonder why all female triathletes have a more masculine body?

Final note:
Male - don't be afraid to look around bodybuilding forums, even at your stage. As long as you want your body to look better, it's bodybuilding. There's no such thing as "oh but I'm not actually aiming for the whole ripped look". The principle is the same, and you will get far better advice from people who have experience than the "miracle diets" that are thrown around these days.
Female - you won't have freakish gains of muscle overnight. If you find that you are gaining more muscle than you want, you can just stop. If anything, females who lift weight have a nicer body. I would post some examples, but there are married men here and I don't want to cause any troubles. :smallbiggrin:

Some helpful links.
http://www.trickstutorials.com/forum/showthread.php?t=17614
http://www.trickstutorials.com/forum/showthread.php?t=17928

[Simius]

The street is your playground. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4xmTQ-eUKE)

[Miklus]

Personally, I prefer mountain biking. It's good for the heart, burns calories and you get to see some nature. Fresh air too.

I just rode for 1½ hour. It's so nice with the yellow and red leaves, but I only saw one deer.

[Rare Pink Leech]

A great cardio workout at home is to use a skipping rope. It's cheap, takes up next to no room, and you can easily bring it with you if you go on a trip. The only thing is you need a bit of room to do it so you don't hit the ceiling ... when I had a skipping rope, I'd do it in the hall, where the ceiling it higher. And the best part is, you don't have to do it for long to get a good workout. 10-15 minutes is a great workout with a skipping rope.

[Azrael]

and has kept me under a percent of bodyfat since I was about 13.

So ... you're dead? Seriously, 1%? Just ... No.

[VeisuItaTyhjyys]

That has nothing to do with me being dead. You don't need excess fat on your body to survive. Unless there is a famine. Then I will be the first to go.

[Crow]

Like one of the posters before said, you want intensity. Short-duration, high-intensity workouts. Try running sprints or fartleks, preferably both. Long distance running and jogging will not net you the results you sound like you are shooting for.

It's about 75% nutrition, dude. Stay away from sugars. Fruits are good because of the fiber that comes with it, but avoid sodas and fruit juice like the plague, as well as anything else that has huge amounts of sugar. Make sure you are getting a good amount of protein before and after working out.

Gaining muscle and leaning out are possible if you follow the right workout (http://www.crossfit.com). If you stick to traditional bodybuilding, you will not fare so well and it will be one or the other. Bodybuilding routines are built for a specific purpose, and are are designed to be a part of a specific training cycle. Deviation from this purpose and cycle will result in you not getting the results you want. Crunches are worthless. Stick with functional exercises that work the entire trunk, and if you must do crunches, do so with weight or resistance.

If you have no weights and want to work your arms, do pushups while wearing a backpack full of books (or my favorite, a bag of gravel), chair dips with that pack on your lap, and pull-ups with that pack on your front (worn backwards) or back. Do handstand pushups in conjunction with pull-ups for extra joy.

Do different combinations of workouts each day, doing 1 or 2 exercise "couplets" for multiple rounds. Time yourself, and don't come back to that couplet for 2 weeks or more while you do other things. When it comes up again, find your time from last time and try to beat it. Your motivation will be what you make of it. You will find the least trouble staying motivated if you are honestly wanting to change your lifestyle. If you are wanting to workout as a "quick fix", or "temporary' fix, you will be back in the same boat next year.

I could write more, but nobody reads all this stuff anyways...Remember, if you train every day and you still don't get the results you want, you are not training effectively and need to change.

[LordVader]

I'd say biking or running.

Both are great for you, although biking tends to be more fun. Running is really great for getting in shape, but is a pain in the arse.

[Crow]

That has nothing to do with me being dead. You don't need excess fat on your body to survive. Unless there is a famine. Then I will be the first to go.

I seriously doubt you're at 1%, and assume you were joking.

[Quirinus_Obsidian]

With all due respect, I personally do not believe that <1% of body fat is safely possible. The best athletes in the world (that are not taking performance enhancers) are still over 1% body fat. You would have no skin if you were at less than 1%.

[Quirinus_Obsidian]

lately i have been falling into a slump of laziness and tiredness. I fell fat and unhappy. I need a way to keep in shape thats fun to do and able to do at home with no special equipment. In spring i was in shape for I had gym and track(running about a 6 min mile) i felt great and in shape winters coming and I need a way to keep in shape help me please. I mainly want my abs back and some biceps and triceps too

But the actual reason for the thread...

I am getting out of the laziness thing myself. I have been doing cardio workouts at the local gym, stretching, and what not. It is getting too cold to bike or run here, so that is kinda out the door for me.

[de-trick]

i mainly need to build muscle, proteins a no big to get don't think i never have a day without meat,my key locations of building are my arms, abs, and pecks



The street is your playground. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4xmTQ-eUKE)

after i get in shape and build my upper body i would love to get into free running, it be fun to be able to do half the things they did in this video

only thing i will be limited to the house soon since winter is coming,


my plan of attack

clean by basement up so i have a workout place in winter
start doing some HITT ( did them in track)
invest in some weights
use weights


just some of my stats from spring
bench 150pd
biecep 25pd
triep 20
mile 6:25

edit:better put my age, weight and hieght
age 14 then 15 now
wieght 138 150 now
hieght 5'9 now 5'11

[Edanor]

Climb and Swim! The two most taxing things I can think of! Straight up clambering up a rope or pole especially. Problem is, short of a flag pole, I don't know any thing large enough to go straight up for extended peroids.

[VeisuItaTyhjyys]

While Crow is correct, and I was hyperbolically exaggerating, 1% body fat would simply mean less organ protection than one is supposed to have, due to a lower amount of adipose tissue surrounding organs, or storage fat. In a male, such as myself, it would be a minute difference; 1-3% from the standard amount of such fat within one's body. It would not mean, as whoever-it-was proposed, a total lack of skin. Adipose tissue, which is what is considered for body fat percentages, is entirely beneath the skin.
Anyway, the actual figure was more around 3-4% the last time it was checked.

Anyway, as my semi-facetious example was trying to say, eating smaller portions and incorporating excercise into your lifestyle will lead to weight loss.

[Raistlin1040]

Well, it's a simple equation. If you want to lose weight, work out more or eat less (Cut down on empty calories, not essentials). If you burn more calories a day than you eat, you'll lose weight. Also, DO NOT TRY FAD DIETS! They are incredibly dangerous. Any diet that involves eating only 1 type of food, or cutting back on a vitamin, or claims to make you lose weight without exercise will not help you. Best policy is just follow the food pyramid and try to seriously exercise 30 minutes a day. Run, swim, play basketball or something else. As long as you do that, you'll be fine. You might not lose 20 pounds a month, but you'll be healthier on the inside and will mostly likely lose weight unless you have a slow metabolism.

[SurlySeraph]

de-trick, you sound like you're in reasonably good shape given your weight. One thing I noticed is that you can benchpress WAY more than you can lift with curls or tricep extensions (I'm assuming in your post biecep 25pd meant lifting 25 pounds with curls, and triep 20 pd meant lifting 20 pounds with tricep extensions; tell me if I'm wrong). Basically, your shoulders are much stronger than your arm muscles. That's normal, but not to that degree. Basically, start doing a lot more curls and tricep extensions; if you don't have weights, do more pushups. Also, work on negatives when weight-lifting; that is, bring the weight back down slowly after lifting it. That works more muscles, makes it less likely that you'll injure yourself (because you won't be jerking your muscles too quickly), and helps you maintain good technique. Remember that with lifting weights, technique is more important than weight. Doing a curl with 20 pounds with your arms in the right position up and down at a constant speed is going to benefit you more than curling 40 pounds by jerking your arms out and throwing your shoulders back to help lift.

For losing weight, eat less and exercise more really is the way to do it. I usually have a big breakfast, skip lunch, and have a reasonably sized dinner; however, that doesn't work for a lot of people. Most people find it most effective to have 3 meals a day so they don't get hungry and eat too much at the next meal. Small portions is the most important thing; don't get seconds, don't get a side dish, etc. Just eat enough to stop feeling hungry, don't eat until you're completely full.


That has nothing to do with me being dead. You don't need excess fat on your body to survive. Unless there is a famine. Then I will be the first to go.

Uh, no. Less than 3% body fat is approaching starvation. In wrestling, they don't let you compete with less than 3% body fat, because you're badly hurting yourself. You're either exaggerating or an anorexic supermodel.

[de-trick]

i know that I'm not over weight i just don't feel fit, i will post a picture of my physic when i find one of me, or get digital camera back

SurlySeraph yes your right

the bench was a powerlift not a rep i never really did a good rep benchpress since we had like 40 min in my class to get done 12 exercise with 3 sets
the bicep and triep is a rep

[ForzaFiori]

Uh, no. Less than 3% body fat is approaching starvation. In wrestling, they don't let you compete with less than 3% body fat, because you're badly hurting yourself. You're either exaggerating or an anorexic supermodel.

wierd, there's a dude at a HS around here thats at like 1.5% or 1% body fat that wrestles. the bitch is like all ****ing muscle. He's actually pretty good.

[Crow]

i know that I'm not over weight i just don't feel fit, i will post a picture of my physic when i find one of me, or get digital camera back

SurlySeraph yes your right

the bench was a powerlift not a rep i never really did a good rep benchpress since we had like 40 min in my class to get done 12 exercise with 3 sets
the bicep and triep is a rep

Dude, you are way underweight for your height. Is the bicep and tri done with a curl bar, one arm with a dumbell? what?

In any case your 1 rep max on bench should be much higher. I am 5'9, with a weight of 165, doing a 7min average mile (over 6 miles, 6:43 on the first), one rep max for bench in 285-300 depending on the day, and I don't really do "arm days", but when I do my bicep curl is 6-10 reps of 90, with a max quite a bit higher. Triceps are usually skull crushers w/ a little more weight.

In short, your "pretty muscles" (that is all you're really working) will not get the way you want them unless you start putting on weight. I always have guys tell me how they "don't want to get huge"...you won't. Getting huge is something that you need to focus on.

But your abs and arms will look more cut when you build them, and then try and lean out. Also, if you want your abs to look good, you can't neglect your squats and deadlift. They fill out all the muscles iin your trunk that you don't hit with traditional ab exercises. Plus, you build functional strenght, which is much more important that the pretty muscles.

[Spiryt]

Dude, you are way underweight for your height. Is the bicep and tri done with a curl bar, one arm with a dumbell? what?


Heh, just reminded me that I have a buddy who is 6' 3'' and 152-4 pounds. Now that is probably underweight indeed. (Although according to those BMI calculators it's still okay).

Anyway don't scare de-trick too much, is he has Bf not higher than 11% or so he is quite okay with that height and weight.

[Crow]

Ok, so he is not way underweight, but still underweight.

[de-trick]

the weight could be off the scale at my house is out of wack so it could be wrong, I really cant wait till my next school term for gym and spring for track

being underweight:smalleek: wierd i always thought i was a bigger person

i really have to go to a gym get where I'm at i get paid soon ill buy a month of membership to get where i am. Hard to use stuff from 5 months ago with little physical activity since then

[Rykaj]

People who are growing often appear underweight, the BMI scales don't really apply there, I wouldn't base a program on your weight when you're young.


Oh and VeisuItaTyhjyys, you might wanna read up some on Body fat percentage (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_fat_percentage) and get your index calculated by a certified source, because you don't really sound very real, or otherwise healthy to me. Let me quote the relevant passage for you:


Certified personal trainers will suggest to male bodybuilders that they should aim for a body fat percentage between 2-4% by contest time. Getting to this level usually requires a carefully planned and implemented exercise program, specific and carefully monitored variations in fluid consumption, energy intake and macronutrient ratios, sodium and and potassium, and sometimes also use of ointments and alcohol. Because joints and organs have an inadequate amount of protective fat at the low ends of this range, it can be dangerous to maintain this state for more than a few days or a few hours.

[Vampire包子]

People who are growing often appear underweight, the BMI scales don't really apply there, I wouldn't base a program on your weight when you're young.


Oh and VeisuItaTyhjyys, you might wanna read up some on Body fat percentage (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_fat_percentage) and get your index calculated by a certified source, because you don't really sound very real, or otherwise healthy to me. Let me quote the relevant passage for you:

It is right. I have been in that range for years, and have a number of problems- my cartilage is bring ground down by regular usage, due to lack of protective fat. I also lose body heat incredibly fast, especially in the pool, and freeze easily, so my core temperature can drop pretty quick. I'm not super-fit, it is mainly because I don't eat enough for my metabolism. I'm 6'1" and about 130 lbs, giving me a BMI of 17. I do enough physical activity to burn fat, but do not try to build muscles. I did get to 1%, after a fever/other illnesses in which I could not eat or drink, but then I was also around 110 lbs, and losing 20 lbs in that span of time when you are already underweight isn't healthy either, so the doctor did yell at me. But, already having problems from maintaining 2-3%, 1%... go get some cheap Cantonese, and finish all your food!

---------------

For others, advice given is pretty good- work out, eat well, sleep well. The workout depends on your goal- I just workout by myself in the mornings, so pushups, situps, pullups, etc, as I don't have my own set of weights. For cardio, jog or run, either outside, at a track, or on the treadmill. If you want to build muscle, hit the gym. Talk to the guys with the muscles you want, and then attack them, cut out their muscles, and graft them to your body. Or just ask them about machines/routines to build the physique you want. Good luck!

[VeisuItaTyhjyys]

I'm basically on the upper end of essential fat. I haven't had any adverse reactions to it, even with martial arts involved, although my joints are less inclined to stay in socket, they're also less inclined to stay out of it. I don't know if that has anything to do with my BFP, or it's just natural discolation ability.

[Argent]

I'm far from a personal trainer, but I'll share the little bit that I've learned about fitness and healthy eating.

1) Find things you like to do.

There are a lot of suggestions in this thread about what exercises to try. My first suggestion would be to figure out what you like to do that's athletic. Do you like to run, do you enjoy lifting weights, is yoga more your style? The key is to find an exercise that you actively like, as opposed to one you force yourself to do a few times a week. You're a lot more likely to stay with something you enjoy instead of an exercise routine you just kinda endure. Whether it's DDR or fencing or more traditional types of exercise, do what you like.

2) Find things you like to eat.

And while it's important to eat healthily, don't go overboard on it. Again, find things you like to eat that are relatively healthy, and that you'll have to make a minimum of changes to (if any). F'rinstance, if you like salad topped with boatloads of creamy dressing, maybe that salad would be okay with less dressing, or with a lower-fat dressing (or both).

3) Start small.

Don't make too many changes too fast - the idea is incremental progress. Pick one area and focus on small steps for progress. Don't go full-bore from zero activity to working out six times a week for two hours a session. That's a recipe for quitting in two weeks. Start working out for a small number of short sessions, and work your way up incrementally. (Same idea goes for any diet changes you feel necessary; don't go from eating a ton of junk food to eating ONE HUNDRED PERCENT HEALTHY. One thing to change at a time until it becomes a habit, then pick something else to change.)

Just my two cents. Best of luck!