Lost over 70 pounds and need to tone up - Where do I begin?

Reinventi0n

I have lost over 70 pounds and I think I am now at a point where I need to really start focusing on body composition and toning. However, I am a total beginner when it comes to this and am not sure where to start. I don't have a gym membership but I am debating getting one or investing in an at home workout / machine. Currently I walk/jog sporadically, but don't do a whole lot besides that.

Any suggestions on where to begin? Ideally, I'd like to focus most on my upper body / arms but I am open to all suggestions.

Im a 23 year old guy, 5'10 and currently 150 pounds.

Thank you!!

Branstin

www.bodybuilding.com
www.youtube.com
www.sparkpeople.com (Article and Video section)

uconnwinsnc1

Get a gym membership and learn proper form for deadlifts, bench press, and squats. Learn other accessory lifts that go with that and you'll be all set. Youtube videos on all those things and watch different people do them to learn how they are done correctly.

At 23 years old you're at the perfect age to gain strength very quickly. There is nothing better in life than being young.

Liftng4Lis

Lift weights ASAP.

454mikey990

KETTLEBELLS. You can do these at home and will tone every muscle in your body faster than anything else. They will work muscles that you didn't know you had.

rgrady33

454mikey990 wrote: »

KETTLEBELLS. You can do these at home and will tone every muscle in your body faster than anything else. They will work muscles that you didn't know you had.

Great question OP. I am down a little over 50, 3 lbs from my target, and am looking to do the same thing.

Mikey: is there a workout regime to use with the kettlebells? I do not have a membership either and looking for some home workouts.

Sued0nim

lift heavy

follow a programme like stronglifts - new rules of lifting

Ideally you should've been doing this from the outset to preserve as much LBM as possible as you drop weight - but it doesn't matter - just start now

(oh and don't just focus on one part .. body balance)

RGv2

454mikey990 wrote: »

KETTLEBELLS. You can do these at home and will tone every muscle in your body faster than anything else. They will work muscles that you didn't know you had.

That's not really how it works. You can't "tone" a muscle. What you can do is lift to maintain muscle through progressive overload. I'd like to know how this exercise will "tone" faster than anything else.

OP, what you should have done was lift the entire time you were losing weight. When you eat in a deficit the body loses water, fat, and lean body mass. When you lift in this deficit you maintain LBM while losing mostly water and fat. The scale may not move as fast, but you're reducing your BF% quicker. Maintaining muscle while removing the fat covering said muscle is where definition "tone" comes from.

At 5' 10" 150, it sounds like you may want to recomp, or go through some short bulk/cut cycles. Recomping is eating right around maintenance, and lifting extremely heavy. You will build muscle, but it will be painfully slow. You can do some short bulk/cut cycles where you eat a few hundred calories above maintenance and lift heavy to build the muscle quicker than recomping, then go back to eating at a deficit and lifting to cut the BF% down.

44to32

Reinventi0n wrote: »

I have lost over 70 pounds and I think I am now at a point where I need to really start focusing on body composition and toning. However, I am a total beginner when it comes to this and am not sure where to start. I don't have a gym membership but I am debating getting one or investing in an at home workout / machine. Currently I walk/jog sporadically, but don't do a whole lot besides that.

Any suggestions on where to begin? Ideally, I'd like to focus most on my upper body / arms but I am open to all suggestions.

Im a 23 year old guy, 5'10 and currently 150 pounds.

Thank you!!

What was your diet like? How long did it take you to lose the 70lbs?

wkwebby

44to32 wrote: »

Reinventi0n wrote: »

I have lost over 70 pounds and I think I am now at a point where I need to really start focusing on body composition and toning. However, I am a total beginner when it comes to this and am not sure where to start. I don't have a gym membership but I am debating getting one or investing in an at home workout / machine. Currently I walk/jog sporadically, but don't do a whole lot besides that.

Any suggestions on where to begin? Ideally, I'd like to focus most on my upper body / arms but I am open to all suggestions.

Im a 23 year old guy, 5'10 and currently 150 pounds.

Thank you!!

What was your diet like? How long did it take you to lose the 70lbs?

Concentrate on getting your allotted proteins in for each day. You can start out with body weight movements such as push ups, squats, lunges, hand stands, etc. prior to getting a membership. The kettlebell weights are great, but you do need to research what moves you need to start doing. This will be your intro to start weightlifting. When you've progressed there, you can start with weight lifting in the gym. Progress will be slow, but if you don't have a gym membership, this could start you on your progression sooner rather than later. Memberships can be expensive! Good luck!

mymodernbabylon

Stronglifts 5x5 has been my godsend. Easy beginner workout with weights that comes with an app. As long as you join a gym that has a squat rack and a trainer who can show you how to do the lifts correctly, you will be golden.

mymodernbabylon

If you want to start with bodyweight exercises then I'd check out nerdfitness - http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2009/12/09/beginner-body-weight-workout-burn-fat-build-muscle/

holyfenix

454mikey990 wrote: »

KETTLEBELLS. You can do these at home and will tone every muscle in your body faster than anything else. They will work muscles that you didn't know you had.

Terrible advice for a beginner. Like most said, join a gym and focus on the big 3. Squats, Bench Press, and Dead lift. I started Stronglifts 5x5 after "working" out in the gym for almost a year. I haven't seen progress this fast doing anything else before it. Its simple, its effective, it can help you "tone", preserve muscle, or gain a good amount of practical muscle if you are on a surplus. It also allows for accessory exercises to help you focus on other body parts. For instance I want bigger arms so on Deadlift day I will do pull ups, and on Bench day I will do pushdowns. I also add some ab work on dead lift day. Even if you just start squatting the bar if you stick with it for 12 weeks you will be squatting 225 if you don't stall.

I recommend a program like this, then after you do 12 weeks you can continue or if you want to try something else then go for it, but this will give you a great base to start with.

harmar21

I just joined a gym a couple weeks ago, completely newbie who never used any equipment or stepped into a gym before in my life. I bought some personal trainer lessons for about a dozen sessions just so they can show me proper form. Once the sessions are over Ill do it on my own.
Currently I am not doing 5x5 yet, (doing the same things, just lighter weight and higher reps to learn proper form) but will do it as soon as my sessions are over.