Getting Started with Strength Training
T1DCarnivoreRunner
Posts: 11,502 Member
I'm almost at the half-way point with my weight loss, and had planned that to be when I would start working on building muscle (while continuing to lose the remaining fat). It isn't really an option to hire a personal trainer, so I'm looking to try to find a place to create a workout plan that is flexible for growth. I've considered Fiverr, but am open to other suggestions as far as websites or apps. I do have a gym membership (24 hr. gym) with the typical weight machines and have an opportunity to go 2-3 times per week most weeks.
Does anybody have suggestions for websites or apps that can help create a strength training plan? TIA
Does anybody have suggestions for websites or apps that can help create a strength training plan? TIA
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Replies
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You should not build something custom unless you're an advanced lifter. As a beginner, you need to build your overall base strength with a preset newbie program. Something like StrongLifts 5x5 or Starting Strength.0
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^Yup. Start one of those time tested and proven programs. DTP, and benefit.0
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www.bodybuilding.com and www.bodyrecomposition.com are great places to start if you're looking weight lifting programs or just general bodybuilding and diet information.0
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There is an app for the You Are Your Own Gym program.0
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concordancia wrote: »There is an app for the You Are Your Own Gym program.
This is a bodyweight program.0 -
Lyle McDonald has a good four part series called Beginning Weight Training. The fourth post/article has three routines for beginners, including one that is machine-based.
In addition to the programs in that post, there are a ton of other beginner programs. Two others are Stronglifts 5x5 and the AllPro Simple Beginner Routine.0 -
fivethreeone wrote: »concordancia wrote: »There is an app for the You Are Your Own Gym program.
This is a bodyweight program.
Which means, not strength training. It's bodyweight training.0 -
Hmmm.... I guess I'm more concerned about results than the method. If bodyweight or non-machine will provide the same results, I'm open to the idea.0
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midwesterner85 wrote: »Hmmm.... I guess I'm more concerned about results than the method. If bodyweight or non-machine will provide the same results, I'm open to the idea.
bodyweight won't.
Free weights will. Machines will.
Free weights will be more difficult and more efficient.
Machines will be easier and less efficient.0 -
A few more bodyweight programs:
Nerd Fitness Beginner Bodyweight Workout
Start Bodyweight basic routine
Convict Conditioning
A good bodyweight resource: Strength Unbound.
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Despite what the gym rats are saying, you can get a long ways on bodyweight exercises. As you progress, you may decide that it isn't for you, or you want to continue to move onto free weights, but unless you can do solid pushups, pullups and one legged squats right now, you can make a lot of gains with a bodyweight program.0
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Unlikely you're going to build much in the way muscle in a calorie defecit, but nothing wrong with starting a program like this.
Stronglifts is about as easy to learn and follow as it comes. Free app will tell you what to do and when to do it. Start with the lowest recommended weights on the bar and learn to do the lifts properly.0 -
concordancia wrote: »Despite what the gym rats are saying, you can get a long ways on bodyweight exercises. As you progress, you may decide that it isn't for you, or you want to continue to move onto free weights, but unless you can do solid pushups, pullups and one legged squats right now, you can make a lot of gains with a bodyweight program.
I like that, position your way as the right one by deriding the people suggesting a different way.
Free weights are efficient, and will generate strength increases at a higher magnitude and rate than bodyweight. I use bodyweight as a cool down, and to rest between work sets, personally.0 -
concordancia wrote: »Despite what the gym rats are saying, you can get a long ways on bodyweight exercises. As you progress, you may decide that it isn't for you, or you want to continue to move onto free weights, but unless you can do solid pushups, pullups and one legged squats right now, you can make a lot of gains with a bodyweight program.
Nobody questioned how far you can get on body weight exercises. It was merely asserted that they will not provide the same results as training with free weights.
Plenty of lifters use body weight work to round out their programs to good results, but lifting heavy will produce faster strength gains than body weight alone.
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concordancia wrote: »Despite what the gym rats are saying, you can get a long ways on bodyweight exercises. As you progress, you may decide that it isn't for you, or you want to continue to move onto free weights, but unless you can do solid pushups, pullups and one legged squats right now, you can make a lot of gains with a bodyweight program.
I like that, position your way as the right one by deriding the people suggesting a different way.
Free weights are efficient, and will generate strength increases at a higher magnitude and rate than bodyweight. I use bodyweight as a cool down, and to rest between work sets, personally.
Yes, I will deride anyone who says that body weight training isn't strength training (which was said earlier in the thread), because they are wrong.
That is a separate argument from the relative merits of the two.
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Bodyweight training is bodyweight training.
Free weight training is strength training.
Bodyweight training can be helpful to gain some strength.
Free weight training is more efficient and focuses on the development of strength, power, and muscle growth depending on programming.
You aren't wrong, you just aren't precise or accurate in this case. Sorry bub.0 -
I'm on week 6 of stronglifts, I'm enjoying it but I don't know if you have a squat rack and necessary free weights at your gym.0
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Bodyweight training is bodyweight training.
Free weight training is strength training.
Bodyweight training can be helpful to gain some strength.
Free weight training is more efficient and focuses on the development of strength, power, and muscle growth depending on programming.
You aren't wrong, you just aren't precise or accurate in this case. Sorry bub.
What, exactly, is your definition of strength training, then? And where did you get it from?
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Bodyweight training is bodyweight training.
Free weight training is strength training.
Bodyweight training can be helpful to gain some strength.
Free weight training is more efficient and focuses on the development of strength, power, and muscle growth depending on programming.
You aren't wrong, you just aren't precise or accurate in this case. Sorry bub.
Both are strength training. One is merely more efficient.
"Strength training: a method of improving muscular strength by gradually increasing the ability to resist force through the use of free weights, machines, or the person's own body weight. Strength training sessions are designed to impose increasingly greater resistance, which in turn stimulates development of muscle strength to meet the added demand." -Mosby's Medical Dictionary0 -
Bodyweight training is bodyweight training.
Free weight training is strength training.
Bodyweight training can be helpful to gain some strength.
Free weight training is more efficient and focuses on the development of strength, power, and muscle growth depending on programming.
You aren't wrong, you just aren't precise or accurate in this case. Sorry bub.
Bodyweight training IS a different form of strength training. Though you may not gain as much strength (or as fast) compared to barbell training, it's still effective and does focus on the development of strength, power and even muscle growth if you are challenging yourself with different variations.
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Joshuam2107 wrote: »I'm on week 6 of stronglifts, I'm enjoying it but I don't know if you have a squat rack and necessary free weights at your gym.
There are dumbbells and barbells/plates at the gym. But I don't have a spotter. It is a 24 hour gym, and I go pretty late/early when there are not many or any people there. Some exercises are not an option due to safety since I cannot rely on having a spotter.
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Oh I dunno, only that there are hundreds of articles written on strength training, 1RM, specificity of load and volume to generate power, strength or hypertrophy... etc.
http://steadystrength.com/what-is-the-ideal-rep-range/
http://www.mensfitness.com/training/your-ideal-rep-range
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/high-reps-low-reps-which-rep-scheme-is-best.html
That's just the basic stuff there. Then there is that whole reality that when only bodyweight training, you would have to increase your body weight in order to increase strength gains. Unfortunately, that's thanks to gravity.
There's an interesting line in this link:
http://8fit.com/blog/strength-training-bodyweight-vs-lifting/
"Training for strength is pretty simple. All you really need to do is focus on adding load and/or speed to an exercise."
So, since I'm saying bodyweight training is inefficient for strength training. Tell me, which stimulus is greater? A pushup, or a 2 plate benchpress when done in the same tempo? What will generate a greater load across the chest? A handstand pushup, or a 1x bodyweight bench press?
I'm not going to waste my time posting anything that has data, because you won't read it, and that's not what this community really cottons to anyway. The reality is, that HFT with bodyweight movements is great, it's excellent for conditioning, and for a newbie... yeah, you get some strength gain as you'll basically learn to activate what you already have. If you want to get strong, and really, strength is a function of moving heavy stuff, you have to have and train with heavy stuff. Bodyweight isn't efficient for that, and works well when slotted in between strength training sessions.
Finally, since I am speaking to efficiency, and ability to overload a system. We look at the wikipedia definition of strength training, because why not, let's roll with it.
In which way can you most efficiently modulate resistance? In which way can you effectively use a load greater than your own body weight? In which way can you modulate specificity of training safely and efficiently?Strength training is a type of physical exercise specializing in the use of resistance to induce muscular contraction which builds the strength, anaerobic endurance, and size of skeletal muscles.
Consider my questions rhetorical. The answer is tools. Free weights, bands, machines, etc. Bodyweight calisthenics is for conditioning. A pushup, a dip, a pull up. Those are basic, and something any of us should be able to do. That's not strong. A pushup with a load on your back, a pull up with a plate. That's when you can start discussing strong, and that requires outside implements for load increase.0 -
Oh I dunno, only that there are hundreds of articles written on strength training, 1RM, specificity of load and volume to generate power, strength or hypertrophy... etc.
http://steadystrength.com/what-is-the-ideal-rep-range/
http://www.mensfitness.com/training/your-ideal-rep-range
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/high-reps-low-reps-which-rep-scheme-is-best.html
That's just the basic stuff there. Then there is that whole reality that when only bodyweight training, you would have to increase your body weight in order to increase strength gains. Unfortunately, that's thanks to gravity.
There's an interesting line in this link:
http://8fit.com/blog/strength-training-bodyweight-vs-lifting/
"Training for strength is pretty simple. All you really need to do is focus on adding load and/or speed to an exercise."
So, since I'm saying bodyweight training is inefficient for strength training. Tell me, which stimulus is greater? A pushup, or a 2 plate benchpress when done in the same tempo? What will generate a greater load across the chest? A handstand pushup, or a 1x bodyweight bench press?
I'm not going to waste my time posting anything that has data, because you won't read it, and that's not what this community really cottons to anyway. The reality is, that HFT with bodyweight movements is great, it's excellent for conditioning, and for a newbie... yeah, you get some strength gain as you'll basically learn to activate what you already have. If you want to get strong, and really, strength is a function of moving heavy stuff, you have to have and train with heavy stuff. Bodyweight isn't efficient for that, and works well when slotted in between strength training sessions.
Finally, since I am speaking to efficiency, and ability to overload a system. We look at the wikipedia definition of strength training, because why not, let's roll with it.
In which way can you most efficiently modulate resistance? In which way can you effectively use a load greater than your own body weight? In which way can you modulate specificity of training safely and efficiently?Strength training is a type of physical exercise specializing in the use of resistance to induce muscular contraction which builds the strength, anaerobic endurance, and size of skeletal muscles.
Consider my questions rhetorical. The answer is tools. Free weights, bands, machines, etc. Bodyweight calisthenics is for conditioning. A pushup, a dip, a pull up. Those are basic, and something any of us should be able to do. That's not strong. A pushup with a load on your back, a pull up with a plate. That's when you can start discussing strong, and that requires outside implements for load increase.
Special pleading and begging the question are logical fallacies, but I do appreciate the sheer effort you put into typing all those words.0 -
midwesterner85 wrote: »Joshuam2107 wrote: »I'm on week 6 of stronglifts, I'm enjoying it but I don't know if you have a squat rack and necessary free weights at your gym.
There are dumbbells and barbells/plates at the gym. But I don't have a spotter. It is a 24 hour gym, and I go pretty late/early when there are not many or any people there. Some exercises are not an option due to safety since I cannot rely on having a spotter.
Based on your posts, I am going to hazard a guess that you have little or no experience with weights. You should pick a set program which has everything predefined for you. Stronglifts and Starting Strength are the best options for you. The other benefit is that both of these programs only require a 3 times a week commitment, like you prefer. Check out the websites for details and good advice. My personal recommendation would be Stronglifts 5x5 (http://stronglifts.com/), which comes with a website full of explanations, a free app that practically does everything for you and is a proven and tested method to begin with strength training.
Body weight training would work fine, but you don't need a gym membership for that, and you wouldn't gain strength as rapidly (which may not be as important to you of course). If you want to take advantage of your membership and maximize gains, you should use free weights.
Finally, you don't need a spotter for any of the above. This is directly addressed on the Stronglifts website, and I am sure the same is true for the Starting Strength books (haven't read them though). You will have to learn to be safe and exercise with proper technique on your own anyway, if you plan to stick with strength training, so you may as well learn it while the weights are relatively light.0 -
The only effort was to stay polite, and not write what I really wanted to write, which would no doubt earn me a warning.
You can claim logical fallacies all you want, it doesn't change that what I wrote was accurate, and a simple elaboration on the reality that free weights and other tools are far more efficient than handstand pushups until you can bench 1.5x bodyweight.0 -
midwesterner85 wrote: »
Some exercises are not an option due to safety since I cannot rely on having a spotter.
Unless you are at an 24 hr fitness active, you should have everything you need for Stronglifts. All the 24 hr Sport level gyms I've seen have squat racks and or power racks with safeties. There should not be any exercise you can't so because you don't have a spotter. If you are doing something without safeties (you will only need this for squats and bench press on stronglifts) then just don't push yourself to the point of failure.
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You know what, changed my mind.
All you need is to do step and eat 1000 calories a day.0 -
The only effort was to stay polite, and not write what I really wanted to write, which would no doubt earn me a warning.
You can claim logical fallacies all you want, it doesn't change that what I wrote was accurate, and a simple elaboration on the reality that free weights and other tools are far more efficient than handstand pushups until you can bench 1.5x bodyweight.
The truth of a claim doesn't matter if it is irrelevant to the point at issue. Nobody said bodyweight exercises were more efficient. You're arguing a point that isn't being contested.0 -
midwesterner85 wrote: »Joshuam2107 wrote: »I'm on week 6 of stronglifts, I'm enjoying it but I don't know if you have a squat rack and necessary free weights at your gym.
There are dumbbells and barbells/plates at the gym. But I don't have a spotter. It is a 24 hour gym, and I go pretty late/early when there are not many or any people there. Some exercises are not an option due to safety since I cannot rely on having a spotter.
Okay, I'm ignoring most of the posts on this page so if I'm missing something relevant let me know. LOL!
I wouldn't let that stop you from starting something like Starting Strength or StrongLifts5x5. You're probably long ways off from needing a spotter for a lift. Most people don't know how to spot anyway and end-up screwing up the lift for you; I'd rather just use safety bars. To that point, the squat stand should have either fixed or adjustable safety bars that you can move to a height that won't interfere with your lift but will catch the bar should you need to bail. If you have a squat rack with adjustable safety bars, you can likely bench press in that rack as well as long as there is a movable bench.
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There is no harm in a rank newcomer starting out in bodyweight training and assessing the personal results.
It also gives you a chance to assess proper form, which is extremely important to avoid injury. For example, doing 20 deep bodyweight (bw) squats for 3 - 4 sets, watching your form and then finding out just how sore you are two days later can give you very valuable feedback on where you need to be, working with/without weights. That can be your guide.
That goes for any other bw exercise. Once you have a good handle on form, try some of the freeweights for things like dumbbell (DB) incline presses, Romanian DB deadlift, DB squats, etc.
Don't forget kettleball workouts usually don't require a spotter, but proper form is important to avoid injury. Educate yourself in this before trying it (comb through different bodybuilding/workout/YouTube vids) for examples and ideas.
There are also resistance bands of all kinds which are excellent for use nearly anywhere, including home and travel. Do your research (YouTube videos can be - CAN be - good for this).
People often mess up big time on squat form, so using bw and then DBs to get this right will put you further ahead than charging headlong into barbells without a spotter/trainer.
The important thing here is to continue your journey and ramp it up, using your brain before using your muscles. Kudos to you for walking this path. The more you do and the more you learn, the more you'll enjoy the process AND the results.0
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