Beginner body building
pbond39
Posts: 21 Member
Would love to get some advice on beginner body building. In gym 5 days a week cardio centric...ready to start lifting just need tips and motivation to start.
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Replies
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First you definitely want to follow a lifting program, see this link for a list
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you/p1
Next, what are your goals? Do you still have weight to lose, are you trying to stay the same weight but change your body composition, are you wanting to gain weight?6 -
My goal is to come down at least 10-15 pounds, while building muscle and toning. Like my current composition just need some toning mainly in the upper legs and arms.0
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Thanks for the link...a lot of good info in there!0
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My goal is to come down at least 10-15 pounds, while building muscle and toning. Like my current composition just need some toning mainly in the upper legs and arms.
If you are wanting to lose weight, you might be able to build a bit but you will mostly be retaining what you have. Keep protein around 0.8-1g per lb goalweight, don't lose too aggressively and lift.. you got this!3 -
Sweet. I will definitely use your advice. Daily protein intake, right? I will keep you posted on my journey. Thanks soooo much!1
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one thing no one ever seems to mention is "preventing energy leaks" when exercising. the idea is really just to turn yourself into an immovable object in order to properly control the weights, so you don't end up like some guys at my gym that just rocks their torso back and forth, and swinging around their body/limbs uncontrollably. basically you just tense up the muscles all over your body to activate them, but not to the point where you are trying to flex your muscles really hard. when in doubt, always start by activating your glutes, down to your quads, then slightly tucking your tailbone inwards and contract your core muscles slowly exhale the air out, when you push your arms down and forward you'll feel your lats. basically these are the kind of feels you want when exercising, the more muscles you can activate, the stronger you can become, within half a year i can guarantee you, that people will be staring at you and wondering how you're so stable, how you're not rocking back and forth or bouncing all over the place with each rep.
another thing no one ever seems to mention is the knee pads on the machines like lat pull downs, and smith machine high rows. most people thinks that it's just there to anchor them down, so they just sit all the way in until their pelvis is touching the pads. while anchoring you down part is partially true, its' real and main purpose is for you to push your heels up and driving your knees into the pads. you should still see about an inch or so of your knees in front of the pads though. while that is happening, it should also feel like you're squeezing your glutes and like you're trying to turn your femur joints on your hips to point up to the ceiling so that you push your butt back down into the seat. then you just arch your thoracic spine when holding the bar, using mainly the last 3 fingers on your hands around the area where the knuckles are to hold the bar. when you pull the bar down imagine you're trying to bend the bar. when starting, your palms are facing in front of you, as you pull down try to turn your palms to face behind you, the bar won't bend when you do the exercise at gym, so don't worry about that. some of these techniques can also be used for other exercises so feel free to play around with it. with some practice, i promise you will become amazing and people at your gym will be like "wtf, how is she doing that without rocking back and forth and yanking the weights down!???".8 -
ImSoSquishy wrote: »one thing no one ever seems to mention is "preventing energy leaks" when exercising. the idea is really just to turn yourself into an immovable object in order to properly control the weights, so you don't end up like some guys at my gym that just rocks their torso back and forth, and swinging around their body/limbs uncontrollably. basically you just tense up the muscles all over your body to activate them, but not to the point where you are trying to flex your muscles really hard. when in doubt, always start by activating your glutes, down to your quads, then slightly tucking your tailbone inwards and contract your core muscles slowly exhale the air out, when you push your arms down and forward you'll feel your lats. basically these are the kind of feels you want when exercising, the more muscles you can activate, the stronger you can become, within half a year i can guarantee you, that people will be staring at you and wondering how you're so stable, how you're not rocking back and forth or bouncing all over the place with each rep.
another thing no one ever seems to mention is the knee pads on the machines like lat pull downs, and smith machine high rows. most people thinks that it's just there to anchor them down, so they just sit all the way in until their pelvis is touching the pads. while anchoring you down part is partially true, its' real and main purpose is for you to push your heels up and driving your knees into the pads. you should still see about an inch or so of your knees in front of the pads though. while that is happening, it should also feel like you're squeezing your glutes and like you're trying to turn your femur joints on your hips to point up to the ceiling so that you push your butt back down into the seat. then you just arch your thoracic spine when holding the bar, using mainly the last 3 fingers on your hands around the area where the knuckles are to hold the bar. when you pull the bar down imagine you're trying to bend the bar. when starting, your palms are facing in front of you, as you pull down try to turn your palms to face behind you, the bar won't bend when you do the exercise at gym, so don't worry about that. some of these techniques can also be used for other exercises so feel free to play around with it. with some practice, i promise you will become amazing and people at your gym will be like "wtf, how is she doing that without rocking back and forth and yanking the weights down!???".
free weights are better for you than machines you work more muscles controlling the free weights than you will with machines,better range of motion too4 -
get someone to show you how to lift properly. once you have the basics down you can go solo. Advice up above re not rocking all over the place etc was good, but a lot of the times you have no idea if your form is good or not.
Anyway, enjoy, lifting is fun
and the results are satisfying! 3 -
And Sardelsa was right re the structured program too.3
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I got a trainer for 24 sessions to learn the ropes of weight lifting. It was invaluable!2
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Cahgetsfit wrote: »get someone to show you how to lift properly. once you have the basics down you can go solo. Advice up above re not rocking all over the place etc was good, but a lot of the times you have no idea if your form is good or not.
Anyway, enjoy, lifting is fun and the results are satisfying!
This. Just began the process of showing a friend how to lift. Form coaching is absolutely necessary when starting out.
Form is EVERYTHING. especially once you start pulling big weights - being wrong can hurt.4 -
Best advice I can give you is to invest in a trainer and a nutritionist. If your goal is to one day compete then investing in a posing coach is essential. I wish you the best.1
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Looking for ideas as well
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I perused the weightlifting program thread, but I am not clear on whether any of those programs will work for weight loss while lifting. From the OP: "Since it's a very common question when it comes to bulking, I wanted to create a running list of programs that can provide a solid foundation for members, whether they are in the beginning stages of bulking, going back to a cut or looking to maintain their gains."
This seems to imply that one is already "fit," but maybe I'm just not understanding the terminology. Is there a relevant thread that someone can point me to that addresses beginning weightlifting while overweight?1 -
callmecarina wrote: »I perused the weightlifting program thread, but I am not clear on whether any of those programs will work for weight loss while lifting. From the OP: "Since it's a very common question when it comes to bulking, I wanted to create a running list of programs that can provide a solid foundation for members, whether they are in the beginning stages of bulking, going back to a cut or looking to maintain their gains."
This seems to imply that one is already "fit," but maybe I'm just not understanding the terminology. Is there a relevant thread that someone can point me to that addresses beginning weightlifting while overweight?
Hiya - I began weightlifting while overweight. Normal really. Lots of people do it. I had a coach. She wrote me structured lifting programs I would follow. She also gave me a nutrition plan which I followed. All that happened was that I was learning to lift properly with good form while eating balanced meals at a deficit.
As soon as I got too hungry, she'd up my calories.
She was also very good in that she explained stuff, she was open to questions, if I wanted to know why she gave me something she explained why - basically, she taught the HOW not just the what. Coaches who basically just tell you to "trust the process" and don't let you question them - steer clear.
Anyway, within one year I had gone from 30% BF to 20% (took ages, yes, but I've managed to keep it down all this time so hey, something good came out of it). Body composition changed soooooooooooooo much too. Like my arms went from big round thing to what you can see in the profile pic - and when not flexed you can still see the bumpy bits, not a big round log anymore. My legs too, everything. all changed.2 -
Cahgetsfit wrote: »callmecarina wrote: »I perused the weightlifting program thread, but I am not clear on whether any of those programs will work for weight loss while lifting. From the OP: "Since it's a very common question when it comes to bulking, I wanted to create a running list of programs that can provide a solid foundation for members, whether they are in the beginning stages of bulking, going back to a cut or looking to maintain their gains."
This seems to imply that one is already "fit," but maybe I'm just not understanding the terminology. Is there a relevant thread that someone can point me to that addresses beginning weightlifting while overweight?
Hiya - I began weightlifting while overweight. Normal really. Lots of people do it. I had a coach. She wrote me structured lifting programs I would follow. She also gave me a nutrition plan which I followed. All that happened was that I was learning to lift properly with good form while eating balanced meals at a deficit.
As soon as I got too hungry, she'd up my calories.
She was also very good in that she explained stuff, she was open to questions, if I wanted to know why she gave me something she explained why - basically, she taught the HOW not just the what. Coaches who basically just tell you to "trust the process" and don't let you question them - steer clear.
Anyway, within one year I had gone from 30% BF to 20% (took ages, yes, but I've managed to keep it down all this time so hey, something good came out of it). Body composition changed soooooooooooooo much too. Like my arms went from big round thing to what you can see in the profile pic - and when not flexed you can still see the bumpy bits, not a big round log anymore. My legs too, everything. all changed.
Thanks for answering! Unfortunately at the moment a coach is not in the cards for me (too much debt, but I'm paying it down!) so I have to stick with being able to use online free or low-cost resources. I figure I can find good information to get me started and then hopefully early in the new year I can pay for a couple of sessions to make sure I'm getting where I need to go. I'm looking at the Stronglift 5x5 program, it seems straightforward enough. Sounds kinda fun, actually.1 -
callmecarina wrote: »I perused the weightlifting program thread, but I am not clear on whether any of those programs will work for weight loss while lifting. From the OP: "Since it's a very common question when it comes to bulking, I wanted to create a running list of programs that can provide a solid foundation for members, whether they are in the beginning stages of bulking, going back to a cut or looking to maintain their gains."
This seems to imply that one is already "fit," but maybe I'm just not understanding the terminology. Is there a relevant thread that someone can point me to that addresses beginning weightlifting while overweight?
Without going on too deep a dive into the topic, the main difference between bulking and cutting (losing weight) is your calorie intake. There really aren't workouts specific to bulking or cutting, except that volume is sometimes decreased during a cut because you don't have the calorie intake to support a higher volume like you would if you were bulking.
Any good beginner program (such as those listed in the thread you're talking about) will work fine in a cut. Weight loss is going to come from your calorie deficit rather than your exercise regimen - especially strength training, as it doesn't burn near as many calories as people often think it does.3 -
Without going on too deep a dive into the topic, the main difference between bulking and cutting (losing weight) is your calorie intake. There really aren't workouts specific to bulking or cutting, except that volume is sometimes decreased during a cut because you don't have the calorie intake to support a higher volume like you would if you were bulking.
Any good beginner program (such as those listed in the thread you're talking about) will work fine in a cut. Weight loss is going to come from your calorie deficit rather than your exercise regimen - especially strength training, as it doesn't burn near as many calories as people often think it does.
This is the most helpful information I’ve seen about weightlifting while losing weight. I think I understand now why it seems like a lot of folks like to lose weight before they start weightlifting.
I’m actually very inspired by the Halp I’m Bulking Up thread about women weightlifting, and I’ve always had a bit of a competitive streak, but I suck at running (childhood asthma). I have always been naturally strong and feel like lifting is right up my alley. From what it sounds like, weight machines aren’t the best indictator of strength, but I have to say that it feels good when I have 300 on the seated leg press machine, then see pretty fit people go in after me and adjust the weight down. 😜0 -
The problem with putting off weight training until after losing weight is that you unnecessarily lose some muscle in the process which could have been (at least partially) preserved by strength training and adequate protein intake as you lost the weight.callmecarina wrote: »This is the most helpful information I’ve seen about weightlifting while losing weight. I think I understand now why it seems like a lot of folks like to lose weight before they start weightlifting.
It's a LOT easier to retain what muscle you have than it is to put it back on after you've lost it. Gaining muscle is a painstakingly slow, laborious process. It's not anywhere near as easy as people think when they say they want to start lifting weights but they're afraid of getting "bulky". It just doesn't happen that way in real life.7 -
I wish getting bulky was a thing. I'd welcome it with open arms LOL!!!!2
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Cahgetsfit wrote: »I wish getting bulky was a thing. I'd welcome it with open arms LOL!!!!
I've been lifting consistently for over three years, still waiting for it to happen!
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Cahgetsfit wrote: »I wish getting bulky was a thing. I'd welcome it with open arms LOL!!!!
I've been lifting consistently for over three years, still waiting for it to happen!
I’d welcome a bit of bulk, lol. I love the look of strong arms. 💪🏼0
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