Working out at the gym?

NotGoingDown90
NotGoingDown90 Posts: 22 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I joined planet fitness in January and have been going there 3 times a week since but I don't feel like I'm working out good. I'm a girl 5'1 143 pounds and I hate the treadmill I honestly can't push myself to doing it more than 10 min it's just really boring to me, so after struggling with trying to go mostly on the treadmill the first month I decided to start doing other machines but I feel like I'm doing things wrong and awkward sometimes. how many reps do you guys do and when you lift do you lift a lot harder than you can? For example this one machine I can 40 pounds and a lot of reps with some resistance but if I do 50 pounds it becomes really heavy and I have to work really hard to do the rest of the reps. Which weight should I be doing the 40 or 50? I'm sorry if my questions are silly but in still new and I've been researching a lot

Replies

  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    When you do resistance exercise you want to program in progressive resistance. That means adding reps and/or weight bit by bit in order to get stronger. I'm not sure what machines or equipment your PF has since my understanding is that each location differs. However, my guess is that it has the right stuff for you to do one of these dumbbell or machine-based programs:

    * Fierce 5 (note that there are several variations from beginner to advanced, 3-5 day, plus a dumbbell program) - http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?p=1267226191#post1267226191

    * Full body dumbbell routine (note: women and men can use the same rep range, if you want to go low do it, if you want to go high do it. I promise that neither will make you gain or lose a Y chromosome.) - https://www.muscleandstrength.com/workouts/dumbbell-only-home-or-gym-fullbody-workout.html

    * Lyle McDonald's barbell and machine routines - http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/muscle-gain/beginning-weight-training-part-4.html/
  • liftzilla16
    liftzilla16 Posts: 59 Member
    Your questions aren't silly at all, we all go through this when we're just starting out!

    As far which weight to choose, go with the one that allows you to do around 12 reps. In my opinion, 12 is a great starting point for beginners and those that don't have experience varying their reps towards certain goals. You want to be able to crank out around 3-4 sets of 12 reps each. Often times, by the 3rd or 4th set, you won't be able to reach 12 reps, and that's perfectly fine. That's the fun of getting stronger. Once you do gain strength to the point where you can do 12 reps on all 4 sets, then increase your weight. Rinse and repeat.

    This rule can be used on any machine you do, any muscle group. As you gain more experience, you can look into more advanced routines that have you changing the amount of reps or sets you do.
  • Wikked1323
    Wikked1323 Posts: 7 Member
    Try Zumba. It's amazing
  • lisarocks1320
    lisarocks1320 Posts: 9 Member
    Are you allowed to ask or a consultation with a trainer? They can set you up and build a workout for you?.

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