help overwhelmed newbie!!

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alwaystaken
alwaystaken Posts: 8
in Fitness and Exercise
I found out the other day i need to do some strength training rather than all cardio. Now i'm trying to decide between the gym or doing it at home. Is one better than the other? I'd much rather do it at home but the only piece of gym equipment i have is a treadmill.

Joining a gym has the benefits of all the equipment and the trainers. although last time i went to a gym as support for my friend they took our money and left us to it hardly helpful for two clueless chickies. so gyms are by far my last choice beside if im to spend that much money on a membership i'd much prefer to spend it on my own equipment instead.

If i do it at home like i said i have no equipment and absolutely no idea on how to make a strength training routine. what machines should i buy or can i get by with just hand held weights.

I'm 1 week new here. between trying to work out how to change my eating habits to working out my exercise routine i'm feeling overwhelmed and lost. Please can anyone help me out with this strength training. feel free to friend me i could use all the help i can get until some of this stuff starts to make sense to me.

Replies

  • robin52077
    robin52077 Posts: 4,383 Member
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    The best strength training is bodyweight exercises. That's where your body acts as your weights. Squats, lunges, pushups, crunches, planks....also, pick up dumbells (8s, 10s, 12s, 15s...whatever's the heaviest you can handle...tiny ones like 3s and 5s are absolutely useless and you'll waste your time) and with those you can do overhead presses, arnold presses, rows, curls, etc. Google and youtube are your friends. Watch videos of people doing the exercises so you get proper form, especially squats. You could hurt your knees if you do it wrong.
  • jaded_rose
    jaded_rose Posts: 298 Member
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    I do mine at home and have toned down. I agree with getting weights but there are some arm exercise that you may need the the 3 or 5. I also like resistance bands. There are plenty of websites and you-tube videos to show you different.
  • alwaystaken
    alwaystaken Posts: 8
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    thanks for the reply. I have been using google and youtube. just seems the more i read the more questions i have.
  • robin52077
    robin52077 Posts: 4,383 Member
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    you will always have questions.
    I've been doing this over a year and I still don't have it ALL down.
    That's why people go to school for this stuff, so they can get paid to teach us!
    But if you don't want to get a personal trainer, we have to work with what we've got!

    You'll get it!:happy:
  • Jaime123456
    Jaime123456 Posts: 3
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    For me I need to find an external motivator. Just simply going to the gym helps me expend calories. I know gym memberships are expensive from 50-75 bucks a month. However, just getting to the gym at a certain time forces me to workout, you know?

    As for a home gym, I heard great things about the TRX System, it's simply bodyweight, lots of exercises and they are portable. You can also go for a set of kettlebells which will be useful in different workouts. I recommend checking out a Crossfit class perhaps.

    I think the TRX and Kettlebells are the best bet for a small home gym. A full blown Universal or Bowflex is just simply too much money and too bulky and heavy to more around.

    So in essence this is what I recommend.

    A 6 x 6 area made of rubber puzzle mats. This is a nice surface to work out on. Do push ups. Sit ups. Crunches. Leg Lifts. Yoga stretches. The puzzle mats can be expanded or shrunk depending on need by simply adding more pieces. This should be the basis of your gym. This area can be broken down rather easily. This is a nice place to do stretching, warm ups and cool downs, to prevent your muscles from being to sore and beat up.

    A Swiss Ball. You can do stretches. Ab Workouts and Core exercises coupled with your nice rubber mat surface.

    Kettlebells. 1/2 Pud. 1Pud. Just start out with one or two kettlebells, add as needed. You can do a lot of exercises with these.

    TRX Suspension System. You will need an anchor. You can do a full set of exercises. Tie it up on a tree or on the playground. Lots of flexibility for different . The cool thing about this is it's small and packable. So you can take it with you when you go on a road trip.

    Again these items don't consume space and you can do a lot of resistance workouts with this simple equipment. These are the items that I'd save up for a home gym.

    ....

    I do recommend doing a Crossfit Class. Or a TRX class. I think proper instruction from a certified personal trainer will give you the basic foundation to proper technique. At least take it a few months, then strike out on your own.
  • jgfarned
    jgfarned Posts: 5 Member
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    I personally can't work out at home unless I have a video to follow. I don't know how "advanced" you are, but Jillian Michaels always incorporates strength moves into her routines. If you want to go hardcore and get into more serious lifting, try P90X. As for equipment, all you truly need are a good set of dumbbells at various weights (say 5 - 20 pounds).
  • anubis609
    anubis609 Posts: 3,966 Member
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    The best strength training is bodyweight exercises. That's where your body acts as your weights. Squats, lunges, pushups, crunches, planks....also, pick up dumbells (8s, 10s, 12s, 15s...whatever's the heaviest you can handle...tiny ones like 3s and 5s are absolutely useless and you'll waste your time) and with those you can do overhead presses, arnold presses, rows, curls, etc. Google and youtube are your friends. Watch videos of people doing the exercises so you get proper form, especially squats. You could hurt your knees if you do it wrong.

    This.

    Especially performing exercises with proper form. Even being at the gym won't guarantee that if no one is there to show you how to do them correctly.
  • alwaystaken
    alwaystaken Posts: 8
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    cool thanks jaime a class might b just what i need rather than a full gym membership. and thanks so much for the ideas n how to set up an area :)

    jg i've just ordered the 30 day shred so i'll see how that goes as well :)

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