Building Muscle
Babs2Baby
Posts: 87 Member
Hi there gang. I just joined a gym and got a personal trainer but I could only afford him for once a week. I was wondering if you guys had any tips on how to build muscle and lose fat at the same time.
My trainer has me eating 1500 calories a day, 160g minimum of protein and cutting out rice, potatoes, white bread, and pasta. He also wants me to drink a gallon of water a day.
I want to build muscle and be toned but I need help getting started. I'm intimidated by all the muscular women and men who are in the weight section at the gym
What are some beginner work outs for weight lifting? And any help with food choices will be great.
My trainer has me eating 1500 calories a day, 160g minimum of protein and cutting out rice, potatoes, white bread, and pasta. He also wants me to drink a gallon of water a day.
I want to build muscle and be toned but I need help getting started. I'm intimidated by all the muscular women and men who are in the weight section at the gym
What are some beginner work outs for weight lifting? And any help with food choices will be great. 0
Replies
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Eat at maintenance. Your trainer should have given you a routine to follow.
What are your stats? Why 160 grams of protein?0 -
How much weight do you also have to lose? Answers will be different if you're trying to lose 5 pounds and appear more muscular vs. if you're trying to lose 50 pounds.1
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As for what lifts you want to do, this is just me personally, but I focus on the big three: bench press, deadlifts, squats. However, as a beginner you might want to start on some of the machines. Nine out of ten times there's a nice diagram on them that shows the muscle groups targeted and how to correctly use the equipment. For each gym session I like to focus on a different area of my body. One day it might be leg day (leg press machine, extensions, curls, hammies, calf raises--just for example, which can all be done on a machine), chest day, arms, or back. Also, I try to do my core everyday as well as 10-15 mins of cardio depending on how intense the lifting was.
However, "broscience" is what I'm giving you. That's simply advice from somebody who's maybe done it awhile and had results, but have no real credentials to be giving advice! Ha ha!3 -
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jakemcdaneld wrote: »As for what lifts you want to do, this is just me personally, but I focus on the big three: bench press, deadlifts, squats. However, as a beginner you might want to start on some of the machines. Nine out of ten times there's a nice diagram on them that shows the muscle groups targeted and how to correctly use the equipment. For each gym session I like to focus on a different area of my body. One day it might be leg day (leg press machine, extensions, curls, hammies, calf raises--just for example, which can all be done on a machine), chest day, arms, or back. Also, I try to do my core everyday as well as 10-15 mins of cardio depending on how intense the lifting was.
However, "broscience" is what I'm giving you. That's simply advice from somebody who's maybe done it awhile and had results, but have no real credentials to be giving advice! Ha ha!
Yeah I might just start on the machines just to get my confidence up. I would have to wait for my trainer to teach me proper form.1 -
I would ditch the trainer before I ditched eating rice.
Did he tell you why you shouldn't eat rice and potatoes? Do you have a medical condition?
Did you check this trainers credentials?4 -
Is the trainer planning on getting a program together for you?
Why not Google beginners lifting programs , stronglifts 5×5 is where I started.
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So you're not going to gain much muscle, if any, if you're wanting to lose weight.
I take back my comment about maintenance. Do the 1500 calories and find a program from here that will work best for your goals. http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you. The protein may be a little much...usually the recommendation is .8-1 gram per pound of lean mass.1 -
100_PROOF_ wrote: »I would ditch the trainer before I ditched eating rice.
Did he tell you why you shouldn't eat rice and potatoes? Do you have a medical condition?
Did you check this trainers credentials?
He told me that white rice had no nutritional value and that it would slow down my weight loss. He wants me eating more vegetables since I like never eat any. I think that's why he's steering me away from rice and potatoes, etc.
I didn't check his credentials. He was assigned to me at LA Fitness when I signed up for the trainer program. He says he focuses on weight lifting, toning and weight loss.
I hope he makes a program for me, but I'm not sure. It was just the first session and he seemed kind of in a rush.
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100_PROOF_ wrote: »I would ditch the trainer before I ditched eating rice.
Did he tell you why you shouldn't eat rice and potatoes? Do you have a medical condition?
Did you check this trainers credentials?
He told me that white rice had no nutritional value and that it would slow down my weight loss. He wants me eating more vegetables since I like never eat any. I think that's why he's steering me away from rice and potatoes, etc.
I didn't check his credentials. He was assigned to me at LA Fitness when I signed up for the trainer program. He says he focuses on weight lifting, toning and weight loss.
I hope he makes a program for me, but I'm not sure. It was just the first session and he seemed kind of in a rush.
It looks more like he focuses on derp, woo and broscience. The first thing you should do is ditch that trainer and stay as far away from him as possible, because absolutely nothing he's told you so far is worth anything.1 -
weird i overheard a trainer talking to a little old lady today telling her the same stuff and she called carbs "poison" i just wanted to yell at her. She was saying avoid potatoes and rice like the devil and eat unlimited vegetables and meats for protein. I guess my point is trainers at gyms complicate things and dont seem to know much about nutrition. Honestly in my head as i worked out i was making a conspiracy theory that the trainers at big gyms just want repeat business and want people to fail. I felt so sad for the little old lady she was saying she loves potatoes yet being told their basically poison.....meanwhile i was sat there with a 110 lb loss with a high potato base >.>
side note if your trainer didnt do anything but stick you on a cardio mchine and seem to want to rush you out why are you paying them..... You have us and youtube and the googles you dont need to pay to be told to walk. And broscience crap.2 -
Lol, this is such a typical PT answer. Basic cookie cutter advice.Hi there gang. I just joined a gym and got a personal trainer but I could only afford him for once a week. I was wondering if you guys had any tips on how to build muscle and lose fat at the same time.
My trainer has me eating 1500 calories a day, 160g minimum of protein and cutting out rice, potatoes, white bread, and pasta. He also wants me to drink a gallon of water a day.
I want to build muscle and be toned but I need help getting started. I'm intimidated by all the muscular women and men who are in the weight section at the gym What are some beginner work outs for weight lifting? And any help with food choices will be great.
Building muscle and losing fat is possible, but it's a LONG PROCESS. If you have a lot of fat to lose, you're better off just shooting for that first. If you lack muscle overall, then that's what you focus on, but realize that gaining muscle will also include gaining some fat. It's inevetable. So first figure out what you desire more and work towards that first.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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100_PROOF_ wrote: »I would ditch the trainer before I ditched eating rice.
Did he tell you why you shouldn't eat rice and potatoes? Do you have a medical condition?
Did you check this trainers credentials?
He told me that white rice had no nutritional value and that it would slow down my weight loss. He wants me eating more vegetables since I like never eat any. I think that's why he's steering me away from rice and potatoes, etc.
I didn't check his credentials. He was assigned to me at LA Fitness when I signed up for the trainer program. He says he focuses on weight lifting, toning and weight loss.
I hope he makes a program for me, but I'm not sure. It was just the first session and he seemed kind of in a rush.
I wouldn't pay him another dollar. In fact, I'd go ask for a refund and demand him to show you how he is qualified to give you nutritional advice. His advice is not anything I would follow.1 -
If you're a newbie then it's possible you could lose fat and gain some muscle at the same time. I focus on compound lifts and do PPL (push, pull legs) routine -- google it for more info. As for food, I keep it real simple. some oats in the morning with egg whites mixed in and a little vanilla protein powder for flavor, hit the gym hard focusing on my weight first, then i do 15 minutes of hiit and head home for some egg whites and turkey bacon. How to set up your plates is simple too.. 4-5 oz protein of choice, 3-6 oz of starch (POTATOES for life), and a cup of green vegetable. That's a balanced plate imo. I just dont have the oats on a rest day, instead just protein. Your trainer seriously sucks though, don't waste your time or money with him.1
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So you're not going to gain much muscle, if any, if you're wanting to lose weight.
I take back my comment about maintenance. Do the 1500 calories and find a program from here that will work best for your goals. http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you. The protein may be a little much...usually the recommendation is .8-1 gram per pound of lean mass.
Good advice, but if you don't know your BF%, then you can set your protein to 0.8 grams per lb of goal weight, so in your case, set your protein to 104 grams, and use that as a minimum. 160 is overkill.1 -
Okay, so your first goal is going to be to lose weight at a rate of about 0.5 or 1 pound per week. (The rate of loss is driven by how much you have to lose. 30-40 pounds really isn't that much, so you can go for 1 pound per week first, then you'll likely have to drop down to 0.5 as you go). Plug your stats into MFP and see how many total calories you get.
You can use the standard macro split that MFP gives you, but if you want to make some changes, you can start here:
- 160g of protein is overkill. 0.8g per pound of body weight is a good target range, so you're probably safe anywhere from 104g to 124g.
- Set your fat at about 0.45g per pound of body weight.
- Fill the rest with carbs.
See how you feel, and tweak your macros as you go. Everyone is a little different, so just see how you personally respond. Macro splits are ballpark anyway; total calories are the most important.
While you're losing the weight, your secondary goal is going to be to keep the muscle you have, and also maybe add a little bit more. You can definitely get stronger, and it's very much in your best interest to start doing resistance training as early as possible while you're losing. As the fat comes off, you'll start to see your muscles for sure.
For exercise, there are a ton of beginner lifting programs that you can follow, like Stronglifts 5x5, Strong Curves, or Starting Strength. (This thread lists a lot of different programs: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you/p1). It doesn't really matter which beginner program you start with; just pick something that sounds like fun and try it!
Regarding feeling intimidated at the gym, don't. Every single person there had a first day at the gym; that's a universal experience for all of us. Bring a plan for what you're going to do, and some headphones if you want. Good luck!
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