question about starting the gym

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buffjess
buffjess Posts: 382
in Fitness and Exercise
Ok me and a friend of mine are gonna sign up for the gym today..My question is what should i work on and for how long?? Not familiar at ALL with gym workouts! Thanks!:flowerforyou:

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  • buffjess
    buffjess Posts: 382
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    BUMP:blushing: I really need some advice..lol...:flowerforyou:
  • buffjess
    buffjess Posts: 382
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    bump
  • AwMyLoLo
    AwMyLoLo Posts: 1,571 Member
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    Just check it out, try everything. Typically, an employee of the gym will show you around and show you how to use the machines. If not, the machines usually have illustrations on them. If you are still unsure, hop on the treadmill or elliptical and watch what others are doing.

    The hardest part is getting started, I promise. Once you start feeling comfortable in the gym, you will be unstoppable! :wink:

    Good Luck!
  • Bunnies_Revenge
    Bunnies_Revenge Posts: 123
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    Depends on what you want to tone.

    During work days I bike 8 miles to work and then after work I bike 8 miles home and consider that my work out.

    During off days I do 2 hours on stair climber and 2 hours on bike. Except for Saturdays, on Saturdays, I do 1 on stair climber, 1 lifting weights and 2 hours in pool.

    Mostly you want to focus on cardio, and do the type of cardio that you feel comfortable doing. If the tread mill isn't you're thing do the bike, if that's not your thing either, then try something else til you find what you like.
  • toots99
    toots99 Posts: 3,794 Member
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    You should go there and meet with a trainer. Most gyms offer a free training session or two, that way they can show you how to work the machines and help you figure out what would work best for you.
  • buffjess
    buffjess Posts: 382
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    I would like to tone up my stomach, arms, legs, butt. oh and what tones the back?? How many calories do you burn in strength training?? can you loose weight doing strength training more than cardio??
  • toots99
    toots99 Posts: 3,794 Member
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    During off days I do 2 hours on stair climber and 2 hours on bike. Except for Saturdays, on Saturdays, I do 1 on stair climber, 1 lifting weights and 2 hours in pool.

    Wow, that's a lot of working out!
  • buffjess
    buffjess Posts: 382
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    During off days I do 2 hours on stair climber and 2 hours on bike. Except for Saturdays, on Saturdays, I do 1 on stair climber, 1 lifting weights and 2 hours in pool.

    Wow, that's a lot of working out!


    I agree!! I would get bored fast!! not to mention DIE before i was through!! lol..You are definately an inspiration!
  • Channing
    Channing Posts: 617 Member
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    Well, I think it depends on what you are focusing on. If you are focusing mainly on weight loss that of course cardio like jogging, elliptical, and the bike is always good! Also, the great thing about the gym is that you can jump into a class! They are usually free with your membership and are a great way to get comfortable with a gym!

    Also, most gyms have someone there for when you first start to go over the equipment and start you on some sort of routine. A lot of places actually require it! Hope this helps at all! Good luck!:flowerforyou:
  • Bunnies_Revenge
    Bunnies_Revenge Posts: 123
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    During off days I do 2 hours on stair climber and 2 hours on bike. Except for Saturdays, on Saturdays, I do 1 on stair climber, 1 lifting weights and 2 hours in pool.

    Wow, that's a lot of working out!


    I agree!! I would get bored fast!! not to mention DIE before i was through!! lol..You are definately an inspiration!

    I do homework, play the DS, and/or listen to music when on the machines.

    As far as toning muscles go, the more you use the muscle the more tone it will become. Cardio is the best to go with for losing calories though, only because you don't want to strength train the same muscle every single day.

    I usually only strength train once a week, only to build endurance.

    Stair climber is great on lower body, everything from the waist down gets a work out, and if you hold on to the handles that swing back in forth, then you're arms will get tone as well.

    As far as toning the back goes, I do yoga for that. About a half hour each day...relieves a lot of phyiscal and mental stress.

    Since you're new to the gym, I'd stick to cardio until you're body is a bit stronger before going to strength training. Trust me the next day you'll feel you're work out, and you don't want to over do yourself because getting out of bed is going to be hard the next day.

    About a month of going to the gym at least three times a week is about when you should add strength training. Then add once a week until you feel you're ready to do more. I wouldn't do strength training more then 3 times a week. Though, I'm not a pro, so you might want to seek out a cerified gym trainer, or a dietrian.
  • Bunnies_Revenge
    Bunnies_Revenge Posts: 123
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    I also don't do all that at once. I go to the gym twice a day on my off days and break it up. That way I don't crash and burn ^__^
  • molsongirl
    molsongirl Posts: 1,373 Member
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    As for cardio and fat loss, losing fat is about losing calories. And when it comes to steady state cardio at least, ( all other things being equal ) the higher intensity at which you train, the more calories you burn. So, running hard for 50 minutes at a steady state burns more calories than running at a easy / moderate pace at a steady state for 50 minutes. Similarly, running 50 minutes 4-5 times a week burns more calories than running 50 minutes 3 times a week. And , as you might expect, running 50 minutes 4-5 times a week burns more calories than running 30 minutes 4-5 times a week etc.

    So, how " hard " you train at cardio and how much you " keep pushing " yourself during cardio is really up to you and a function of how fit you are, your dietary habits, and your time commitment to other exercise and adequate recovery time, etc. etc.

    As for weight training and fat loss, there are probably 3 relevant issues. First there is the the fact that over the long term ( i.e months ) you'll add some muscle mass as a result of training and therefore your overall lean muscle mass will go up. And, more muscle at rest ( i.e RMR ) burns more calories - in other words, weight training contributes to bumping your resting metabolism. However that is more of a long terms tactic and may only yield 5-10+ extra calories being burned per per pound of muscle at rest per day.

    Secondly, in the short term,there are the calories you expend while actually completing your 45 - 1 hour training session itself. And as I said before, in terms of long term fat loss, the more calories you burn the better...regardless of how you burn them. So, just doing 60 minutes of weight training is simply another opportunity to burn calories.

    Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, is the fact you get a post workout burn of calories as a result of weight training. It's pertaining to the whole issue of EPOC ( excess post-exercise oxygen consumption ) and that fact that your metabolism is elevated after you do weight training - i.e you're burning more calories ( than you would otherwise ) possibly for as long as 20+ hours after a weight training session.

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