41 year old with new gym membership

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Rfickes21
Rfickes21 Posts: 9 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I have been eating well and sporadically exercising at home and outside since January. My goal is to lose weight and tone up. I just got a gym membership. The gym is close enough to my house that I walk there so I feel like I will be able to go a lot. I've been reading different things about how often you should work out lift weights etc. This is the plan I came up with just wanted to see what more experience people thought and if it is reasonable. I plan to go 6 days a week. Day one 20 minutes on the treadmill and use the machines to work arms. Day two 20 minutes on the treadmill and legs on the machine. Day 3 60 minutes treadmill. Day four 20 minutes treadmill and arms. Day 5 20 minutes treadmill and legs. Day six 60 minutes on a treadmill. Day 7 rest. I am using the machines at the gym currently. But when I get more comfortable I would like to branch out to free weights and the bars. Any input is appreciated. Also should I be adding protein supplements or just eat well with protein in my diet. Thank you all.

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  • Rfickes21
    Rfickes21 Posts: 9 Member
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    I should add on the machines that I do three sets of 10 to 12 reps on each machine.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,503 Member
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    Get a Personal Trainer. How do you know if you're doing the exercises correctly with good form? Also a PT will teach you how to workout with free weights correctly (granted if they are a good PT).

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 7,425 Member
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    If you’re going from zero to a hundred, maybe not a great idea on many levels.

    Start slower and lower and build up.

    Don’t forget, muscle soreness will cause water retention which reads as weight gain on the scale. You’ll expel it when the soreness goes away, but that often catches enthusiastic new exercisers by surprise.

    Ask me how I know.
  • springlering62
    springlering62 Posts: 7,425 Member
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    And, as @ninerbuff says, if you can afford a trainer, and are lucky enough to find one you gel with, it can rock your world.

    My current one does to the nth degree. The first two most definitely did not.
  • hist_doc
    hist_doc Posts: 206 Member
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    Rfickes21 wrote: »
    I have been eating well and sporadically exercising at home and outside since January. My goal is to lose weight and tone up. I just got a gym membership. The gym is close enough to my house that I walk there so I feel like I will be able to go a lot. I've been reading different things about how often you should work out lift weights etc. This is the plan I came up with just wanted to see what more experience people thought and if it is reasonable. I plan to go 6 days a week. Day one 20 minutes on the treadmill and use the machines to work arms. Day two 20 minutes on the treadmill and legs on the machine. Day 3 60 minutes treadmill. Day four 20 minutes treadmill and arms. Day 5 20 minutes treadmill and legs. Day six 60 minutes on a treadmill. Day 7 rest. I am using the machines at the gym currently. But when I get more comfortable I would like to branch out to free weights and the bars. Any input is appreciated. Also should I be adding protein supplements or just eat well with protein in my diet. Thank you all.
    You didn’t specify if you plan to run or walk on the treadmill but if you’re planning on running, I recommend building up a base first to avoid injury. Sixty minutes is a pretty long time if you haven’t been doing that length of exercise on your feet already. So basically, I second the good advice given.
    Personally, I workout six or seven days a week but I’ve been doing it for years and my body is adapted to it. Going from 0 to 100 is putting you at risk for injury and quick burnout.
  • Chieflrg
    Chieflrg Posts: 9,097 Member
    edited May 2021
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    I might point towards your tredmill activity in relation to your load management.

    Current guidelines is to get at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity a week, or a combination of moderate and vigorous activity.

    What is moderate or vigerous to you as a individual Will be defined by what your body is adapted to currently.

    I would strongly suggest paying attention to your load management as a whole for all activities involved being that exercise or life activity in general.
  • MikePfirrman
    MikePfirrman Posts: 3,307 Member
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    Many experts are now saying you should get one hour of cardio in for every 8 hours sitting, so the conventional wisdom is slowly evolving. I just think, IMHO, that the health experts don't want to tell a very inactive society that's not even getting the minimum done that the old minimums are outdated.

    With that said, if you can handle that much cardio, I don't think there's anything wrong with it, but listen to your body closely. If you find you are dreading working out, that's a red flag that you're doing too much too soon.

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