Heavy Lifting - Teach me please!

Dandman1990

Okay to sum this up, I've lost around 55lbs and I've lost absolutely no inches from around my stomach. From a thread I made asking about it (and other threads) heavy lifting seems to be the way to go to really start making a difference. However, I'm 23 years old and have absolutely no gym experience (unless you count using an exercise bike and treadmill which isn't exactly rocket science).

I'm hoping somebody can make suggestions about good ways to burn stomach fat effectively. If it helps, I wouldn't say I'm strong (at least not for my size, I only have a little strength purely because I'm quite large at 6'3 and about 275lbs) but I imagine people half my size that train could probably lift twice as much as me. To add a little bit of perspective I tried using 30lb dumbells and while they're easy to lift I find myself unable to do more than a couple of reps on any exercise and I'm pretty sure even the couple I do I'm doing wrongly as I kind of tilt my body to move them instead of actually using my arms as much as I suspect I should be.

Any help - or simply laughing at my miserable strength level - would be appreciated!

Dandman1990

Also just realised I should've posted this in the fitness and exercise forum. D'oh!

randomtai

Stronglifts 5X5 and Starting Strength is a good way to begin.

nurse_pauline

Any new rules of lifting books from Lou Schuler/Alwyn Cosgrove is great. You can you tube exercises to get a basic idea, and most trainers at your gym will show you moves. Love lifting heavy.

p4ulmiller

Posting here is fine.

I'm also an advocate of Stronglifts 5x5.

The expression is "If you want to look good, do cardio. If you want to look good naked, lift".

You need to be thinking about body recomposition, basically this means lowering overall body weight and lowering BF% at the same time. You do this by eating a moderate deficit supoprted by cardio exercise, and a form of compound lifting 3x per week.

Dandman1990

Yeah. I've had a look at some of the basic exercises but I'm unsure which ones to do. For example sit ups (or crunches if you prefer) are great for stomach fat according to 50% of people and the other 50% claim that it's a myth that they burn fat though they do seem to aid in muscle building. Then you get the crowd that say they're really bad for your back etc etc. It's all a little overwhelming for a newbie! (and yes I know they aren't lifts but ah well) lol.

Dandman1990

My cardio is a little limited for now because I had surgery for something unrelated to my weight a couple of weeks ago. Good to see stronglifts is popular I'll need to check it out. I guess the name should've been a bit of a giveaway!

p4ulmiller

Yeah. I've had a look at some of the basic exercises but I'm unsure which ones to do. For example sit ups (or crunches if you prefer) are great for stomach fat according to 50% of people and the other 50% claim that it's a myth that they burn fat though they do seem to aid in muscle building. Then you get the crowd that say they're really bad for your back etc etc. It's all a little overwhelming for a newbie! (and yes I know they aren't lifts but ah well) lol.

You can't spot-reduce fat. It simply isn't possible - you would be wasting your time with crunches, sit-ups or planks at this point.

Here's how it works. From the outside -> in, your body consists of a layer of skin, then some fat, then some muscle. When you lose weight, you lose both fat and muscle. The trick is to keep hold of the muscle and lose the fat.

If you can keep the muscle, you suddenly think about "definition" and "muscle growth". This isn't possible when you eat in a deficit so what you are seeing are the existing muscles peeping through as the fat disappears.

Your body takes stored energy from muscle AND fat when you take in fewer calories than you burn. So how do you keep the muscle and lose the fat? Lifting! A programme of progressive loading, compound lifts. Squats, benches, deadlifts and the hated overhead press.

This is the magic programme:
1. Set your calories to TDEE - 15%
2. Track everything EVERYTHING you eat accurately and stick to this limit
3. Lift 3x per week - SL5x5 or something like that
4. Cardio 2-3 per week till it burns.
5. Rest days 1-2 days per week
6. Sleep as much as you can.

That's it. No carb retrictions, no "clean" eating, no "diets". Eat what you want, when you want, provided you keep to your calorie limit every day.

Dandman1990

Yeah. I've had a look at some of the basic exercises but I'm unsure which ones to do. For example sit ups (or crunches if you prefer) are great for stomach fat according to 50% of people and the other 50% claim that it's a myth that they burn fat though they do seem to aid in muscle building. Then you get the crowd that say they're really bad for your back etc etc. It's all a little overwhelming for a newbie! (and yes I know they aren't lifts but ah well) lol.

You can't spot-reduce fat. It simply isn't possible - you would be wasting your time with crunches, sit-ups or planks at this point.

Here's how it works. From the outside -> in, your body consists of a layer of skin, then some fat, then some muscle. When you lose weight, you lose both fat and muscle. The trick is to keep hold of the muscle and lose the fat.

If you can keep the muscle, you suddenly think about "definition" and "muscle growth". This isn't possible when you eat in a deficit so what you are seeing are the existing muscles peeping through as the fat disappears.

Your body takes stored energy from muscle AND fat when you take in fewer calories than you burn. So how do you keep the muscle and lose the fat? Lifting! A programme of progressive loading, compound lifts. Squats, benches, deadlifts and the hated overhead press.

This is the magic programme:
1. Set your calories to TDEE - 15%
2. Track everything EVERYTHING you eat accurately and stick to this limit
3. Lift 3x per week - SL5x5 or something like that
4. Cardio 2-3 per week till it burns.
5. Rest days 1-2 days per week
6. Sleep as much as you can.

That's it. No carb retrictions, no "clean" eating, no "diets". Eat what you want, when you want, provided you keep to your calorie limit every day.

Fair enough. I'm already totally on board with the 'eat what you like as long as you stay within your macros' mentality. I don't understand reducing certain elements as I'm trying to educate myself in fitness and not lose weight to simply balloon back up when I can't take some crazy diet anymore.