Strength Workouts:) FB and SS

eisterunicorn

Helloooo!
If you don't know Fitness Blender, they're a fit married couple and they offer nutrition advice and TONS of freeeee workout videos on their website and on youtube.

I'm 5"8" 145.4 lbs and I want to lose some weight (mostly fat) and keep my muscles, and strengthen them in the process. So I've been doing a fitnessblender strength workout for different major muscle groups on a few different days of the week, and about 2 sessions of HIIT sprints on the treadmill for 20 min. I eat about 1700-1800 cals most days (including what I eat back from my workouts) and am not planning on losing weight fast because I want to keep my muscle.
I just got Starting Strength in the mail and have just started studying it. I'm planning on starting barbell training in a month once I'm better informed on it. (And once I build up my confidence to go into the bro-zone...)

The reason I won't be able to continue with my at home strength workouts is I'm in the USAF and am about to be stationed away from home for 5 months, and will have two roommates in a small dorm. I can't bring weights so it would be logical to start learning how to train with the free weights at the gym.

I have 5 lb dumbbells, 8 lbs, 10 lbs, 15 lbs, and 20 lbs. I try use the 20's for deadlifts and squats but when it gets to be too much I go to 15s. Am I ready to get into barbell training? What do you think about the FB workouts? Judge me and criticize me! I want to get better. Thanks

Eister

galgenstrick

For strength, Barbell training > dumbbell training in pretty much every aspect. Definitely start using the bar.

keithcw_the_first

I would say if you're going to start Starting Strength for real then you'd want to ditch the HIIT. That depends on your ability to recover from the workouts.

When you say the 20# are too much - is that after three sets of five? An Olympic bar is 45# so you're right on the cusp of being able to do the exercises with an empty bar, which is a great place to start.

If you can't manage the bar you could start out with dumbbells, or if your gym has smaller pre-loaded barbells you could try those.

Many people will say that only Starting Strength, as written, is Starting Strength. That means eating in a surplus and using the barbell exclusively. if you want to use Starting Strength as a framework for your own program, that's fine.

The key is progressive overload. If you can press two 10# dumbbells one week, try two 15's the next. Once you get three sets of five on those, move up again.

Also the gym will (maybe) have dumbbells so you wouldn't have to worry about packing weights.

eisterunicorn

Gotcha gotcha. Wow that's heavy!! Just the bar?!

Starting with the dumbbells is a good suggestion. But only if I can't handle the bar. I assume I would just do my squats somewhere other than the squat rack then so as to not be a jerk lol.

Can I take some lifts that I like from SS and leave out others/substitute them? I mostly just want to learn the basics of good form for some good compound lifts, but I'm kind of scared of the power clean... Is that an absolute necessity? What would you substitute there?
Thanks

galgenstrick

eisterunicorn wrote: »

Gotcha gotcha. Wow that's heavy!! Just the bar?!

Starting with the dumbbells is a good suggestion. But only if I can't handle the bar. I assume I would just do my squats somewhere other than the squat rack then so as to not be a jerk lol.

Can I take some lifts that I like from SS and leave out others/substitute them? I mostly just want to learn the basics of good form for some good compound lifts, but I'm kind of scared of the power clean... Is that an absolute necessity? What would you substitute there?
Thanks

Stronglifts 5x5 is basically a ripoff of starting strength. The power clean is replaced by the barbell row, and you do 5 sets instead of 3. I honestly think 5 sets is too much volume and you end up stalling a lot. So you can do stronglifts 3x5 instead if you're nervous about the power clean.

eisterunicorn

galgenstrick wrote: »

eisterunicorn wrote: »

Gotcha gotcha. Wow that's heavy!! Just the bar?!

Starting with the dumbbells is a good suggestion. But only if I can't handle the bar. I assume I would just do my squats somewhere other than the squat rack then so as to not be a jerk lol.

Can I take some lifts that I like from SS and leave out others/substitute them? I mostly just want to learn the basics of good form for some good compound lifts, but I'm kind of scared of the power clean... Is that an absolute necessity? What would you substitute there?
Thanks

Stronglifts 5x5 is basically a ripoff of starting strength. The power clean is replaced by the barbell row, and you do 5 sets instead of 3. I honestly think 5 sets is too much volume and you end up stalling a lot. So you can do stronglifts 3x5 instead if you're nervous about the power clean.

Awesome, I will probably come up with a mix of the two, lol! Thanks for your help.

SezxyStef

galgenstrick wrote: »

eisterunicorn wrote: »

Gotcha gotcha. Wow that's heavy!! Just the bar?!

Starting with the dumbbells is a good suggestion. But only if I can't handle the bar. I assume I would just do my squats somewhere other than the squat rack then so as to not be a jerk lol.

Can I take some lifts that I like from SS and leave out others/substitute them? I mostly just want to learn the basics of good form for some good compound lifts, but I'm kind of scared of the power clean... Is that an absolute necessity? What would you substitute there?
Thanks

Stronglifts 5x5 is basically a ripoff of starting strength. The power clean is replaced by the barbell row, and you do 5 sets instead of 3. I honestly think 5 sets is too much volume and you end up stalling a lot. So you can do stronglifts 3x5 instead if you're nervous about the power clean.

Rows are easier to learn than power cleans

5x5 is not too much until you get heavy heavy I didn't stall for months doing SL 5x5 the only reason I switched to 3x5 was the time it was taking...I was up to 90,mins on workout A

It's a great program for beginners with the videos to help you along with form.