Hiya! You can do this fine alone, lots of us do. Having said that I'd spend this week reading up on the stickies here, checking out the YouTube videos and practicing your form at home without weights to build your confidence. When back from the cruise use your son to learn how the equipment works/is set up, and maybe to take some videos so you see what your form looks like. If you need a session with a trainer for confidence no shame either. And welcome!

You don't have to use barbells to lift heavy. Many people use heavier dumbbells and also kettlebells.

You can modify the Stronglifts program and do it with dumbbells at the lower weight ranges. However, there's going to come a point where barbells are going to be a lot more straightforward, especially with the progressive weight increases.

I started out doing the overhead press with 8 pounds dumbbells because that's all I could do at the time. Then I did the 10 pounds, and eventually did the barbell itself. You start where you start. So just start.

Having said that, the lifts are technical, and so I'd definitely recommend that you watch Mehdi's videos on the Stronglifts site, as well as Mark Rippetoe Youtube videos to understand how to do these lifts properly and with good form. The weights are secondary, honestly. That's why you're supposed to start with the empty bar, so that you can learn the form and focus on it before things get actually heavy.

So regardless of what you start with, whether that's dumbbells or an Olympic bar or a standard bar, make sure you get the form down. It took me a good month probably to get a grip on what I was doing and find some sort of actual comfort zone. I was watching the videos while I was lifting, and just emulating what I was seeing. I was doing squats without any weights at all.

You start where you start and progress from there.

Barbell training isn't hard to learn, if you take the time to educate yourself and if you're patient with yourself and the process you're about to undertake. Expect that you're going to continue to make adjustments and that finding your perfect form is going to be a continuous process. You can never forget the basics, so it's important that you get those down and make them a priority. They will always serve you well.

Power 90 and P90X are both geared more towards endurance, really, and not so much pure strength. You will certainly get stronger than you were before, especially with body weight resistance such as push-ups and what not, but at some point you either will have to increase the type of push-up you're doing in order to increase the resistance (such as one-handed, etc) or grab a barbell and progress from there if you want to make true strength gains. I also think all the plyometrics and whatnot can be hard on your joints, but everyone is different, and if you can deal with all that stuff, then more power to you.

It's never too early to take up heavy lifting and get your inner she-beast on, in my opinion. But then again I'm jaded because I absolutely adore barbell training. :bigsmile:

If you think you want to finish up Power 90 and then pursue Stronglifts in earnest after that, there's certainly nothing stopping you from familiarizing yourself with barbells and the basic lifts now, so that when the time comes for you to begin, you'll hit the ground running.

Also, lifting without a spotter is safe as long as you don't overload yourself, pay attention to your body's limits, and don't lift to fatigue. If your local gym has a squat rack/power cage, then use it, but I lift in my garage and am always careful to never go past my limits, and I've managed to steadily add weights and get continuously stronger since I started barbell training 4 months back. There's always a way around everything.

I have lost 50 lbs. and would like to lose at least another 20. I have been doing Power 90 Sculpt but my own cardio on alternating days. I have been reading a lot on this forum about women lifting heavy. Is this something that would be hard to learn on my own? Is it safe to do this without a spotter? (Is that even the right term?) I belong to the Y but I haven't been going, choosing instead to work out at home. I don't have the equipment needed so I would have to go there. My teenage son has recently started lifting at the Y. I asked him if he would do this with me and his reply was, "I will try it once". Would that work? If not, would I need to hire a trainer to show me how to properly do this? I've always had a fear of doing barbells. I am using dumbbells at home and have used machines in the past. How should I proceed?

Also, we are going on a cruise Saturday. Should I wait till we return before starting since we will be gone a week or would it be beneficial to at least go try the exercises (again, is this the proper word?) so once we return I have some idea of what to do? Or should I just stick with Power 90 sculpt and cardio until reaching my goal weight? My thighs are already big...I don't need them getting any bigger, they need to get smaller!

Does the ship have a gym, maybe a personal trainer? Check that out, you may be able to get some hands-on help while you are having fun.