# Getting back into it- Just started the gym again



## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

Hi guys,

A bit of background. A couple of years ago I dropped from 21.5 stone to just over 16 stone. I did this by watching what I ate and by using www.myfitnesspal.com. I never looked traditionally fat if that makes sense. Just top heavy. I am fairly broad. 
Exercise wise I started up running. It was bloody hard as I'd never done it before but managed to work my way up to completing a half marathon.

At the time I couldn't afford/justify an extra monthly outgoing so got some running trainingers and some thermals for Christmas and I was set.

Now, fast forward a year and I've put some of it back on. I'm back up to around 18 stone, feel crap again.

A new gym opened for a mega cheap price. It's a no thrills gym but has loads of equipment. Offers free classes etc but its been a while since I was last in the gym. Before I was doing a full body work out twice a week and one or sometimes two HIIT training classes, one usually being a weekly boxercise class which I enjoyed.

I am on here to ask for advice on where to start again with the gym. I know cardio isn't the be all and end all but I felt more of an accomplishment when running. I wasn't really loosing overall size with the weights just reducing body fat which is really what I want to do but I was still big and still found fitting in clothes in the highstreet a chore - arms, neck, legs etc.

So I am thinking based on just 3 times a week. 
Cardio session (mainly running as I enjoy it) although may mix it up and try and fit an out door running in extra in the week as running on a tredmill is no fun. 
Full body work out once a week - compound movements
And one class- probably circuits or boxercise

What do you guys recon. Can you recommend any good full body work outs that give rep and sets info etc (for free). Obviously I will have to experiment with weights etc to find out when I need to be.

There are fitness instructors at the gym but there is a charge (as I said no frills).

I wanna do this as cheaply as possible - sounds tight but everyone has a limit. I would like to go running all the time but I know the importance of weights to loose weight plus going out in the harsh winter months needs a lot of positive energy! I didn't enjoy running over icey streets last year due to worrying about slipping.


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## rob_vrs (Jan 4, 2012)

Which gym you joined jon? Iv joined Xcersize4Less at old b&q, only £9.99 a month.

I cant do any heavy weights any more, so sticking to cardio, going to start at 10mins of each (running, cross trainer & bike) then go do very light weights with high reps. Also needing huge discipline to not eat any more food also, which is very difficult for me as i love food.

When i was doing a lot of fairly heavy lifting i was doing the same, i went from 16st fat - 14st - back to 16st.










And then i damaged my back, i found swimming to be alright however it wasn't doing anything for weight loss was just getting easier. So now I'm at 15st, with huge muscle loss haha  and at square one. We'll start it together jon.


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## benji1205 (Jun 15, 2009)

There are apps out there such as AlphaTrainer, Fitness Pro etc which will give you workouts etc. If you want to do weights and "tone" rather than build a huge amount of muscle hit high reps with lighter weights. A benefit to help keep your heart rate going is to reduce "recovery" time. Why not mix and match, so for example do half of your session doing cardio and half of your session doing weights. So for example, do Push and Pull sessions. Push = Chest, Tri's / Pull = back, bi's. Do 15 reps per set and take a 30 second break per set? Keep it to light weights but gradually increase. You will notice your body starting to shape up after a while and obviously the more fat you burn, the better you will look therefore increasing confidence and how happy you are with yourself


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## Leebo310 (Sep 30, 2013)

In addition to the good advice already given mate, my other suggestions would be to try some interval training for the cardio as it'll generally give better results than just plodding along at the same speed.
Something like 2 mins gentle jog on a treadmill, then 10 seconds of sprinting, back into another 2 mins of gentle jog, then 10 seconds of sprinting etc. Obviously you can change the times to whatever you feel comfortable with but you get the idea. Also you can do the same thing on the bike, cross trainer, rower etc. 
Punch bag is an awesome workout too, and you can apply the same sort of interval training to it as above. 30 seconds of quick light punching followed by 30 seconds of power, then 30 seconds rest and repeat etc. 

Kettle bells are also good for getting a sweat on and building up strength. 

Weights wise stick to compound exercises that hit a lot of muscles rather than isolative ones. Plenty of body weight stuff too - pressups, pull ups, lunges coupled with squats and deadlifts will be far more useful than endless bicep curls and sit ups!

Personally I'd echo what Benji has suggested in doing half cardio and half weights twice a week rather than each one once. You can then vary the weights up and it'll be a bit more interesting too!
Other than that I think the most important bit of advice would be to find things that you like doing so you look forward to going to the gym, rather than going because you have to. 
Motivation, discipline and committment are far more important than the actual workouts if you ask me. 

As mentioned before, diet is also massively important so you need to be reasonably strict with that. The cleaner you eat, the more benefit you'll see. Doesn't have to be anything drastic, just cut down obvious [email protected] to start with such as sugar (outside of fruits) takeaways and alcohol. Again, it'll be a lot harder to keep going if you suddenly cut everything junk out of your diet in one go. Instead, start with cutting it back. A treat every now and again isn't going to make that much difference, but obviously just be sensible. 
Again that goes back to the motivation and discipline bit. You don't want to feel like you're starving yourself otherwise you won't enjoy it and find it harder to stick with. 

Good luck mate and just stick with it! :thumb:


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## Rowe (Jul 4, 2013)

^^^^ +1

compound weights will be your friend. Try squats, and deadlifts. They knacker you hard and quick!


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## smiler1207 (Oct 9, 2013)

I go to pure gym and the classes are brilliant, I sound like a similar build to you. I do two spin classes, a pump class and sometimes boxercise. I mix this up with weights and my body shap is changing all the time and can pretty much eat what I want (yay). Good luck with it all anyway!


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## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

Hey guys, sorry late to reply to this thread. 

Rob, yes it's the exercise4less gym I've joined. Might see you there lol. 

Yes, I will be going for compound stuff. I've done it all before a few times and got great results. The problems I've had is being sucked into life but I have a better job with less commitments outside of the office so to speak so shouldn't be as much of a problem. I was also in between gyms etc at uni and home. The one I joined at uni was pants and put me off going. 

Starting back on the cutting back has been hard. I won't say diet as I don't believe in them. I've started tracking food intake and exercise now again. I've been over a couple of days this week but over the week it's averaged out under and I have started to loose weight again. 

I know they say weightloss is 80% diet and 20% exercise but the overall feel exercise gives is great. Hopefully I will get to how I want to be this time using diet and exercise.


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## rob_vrs (Jan 4, 2012)

Well...we should go together some time buddy, motivational partners haha. Ill drop you a text regarding Motorgeek open day


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## Kriminal (Jan 11, 2007)

Guitarjon : presuming your goal is to lose some/all of the weight that you've put back on, why not try incorporating Circuits in with your Weight Training? Using the above suggestions, regarding compound exercises, you could try the following for that once a week fix :

Clean & Press (Deadlifts to Overhead Presses) - Legs & Shoulders
Dumbell Squats - Legs
Double Dumbell Rows (one in each hand) - Back
Lying Dumbell Presses - Chest
Overhead Dumbell Extensions - Triceps
Dumbell Curls - Biceps

Using the above, all you would require at the gym would be one bench, and possible two sets of dumbells (one set light for arms, and one set slightly heavier for legs, back, chest). This way you won't have to fuss about trying to get on any equipment that somebody could already be using.

Concentrating on the magic number 10, for reps, will keep it easier in your head to remember and focus on - it's a halfway number for hypertrophy (muscle building).

If you do all the above exercises back to back - that's no breaks in between - until you reach the last one, you'll THEN be able to take a break for 1 minute, and restart the circuit from the 1st exercise.

At first, just concentrate on getting the techniques correct - even if it means only being able to fit one circuit in. Aim for 3 circuits in total - that will be your future goal - and once you can do this, THEN increase the weight so that it becomes a challenge again.

You could also slot in on the end Abdominal Crunches if you wish. Just see how you get on with the above first. :thumb:

As for the exercise class you were looking to join - have you considered Spinning Classes?.....be warned - they're a killer, no matter if you're a beginner, or advanced.....but they'll definitely burn the calories mate.


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## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

Sorry guys not kept up to this thread. Got an email from them today saying I can book my induction from the 9th December. It opens properly on the 15th December now which is earlier than first thought.

Bloody hated spin classes matey. I enjoy classes, especially circuit type ones without much break inbetween. I used to do a circuit type workout like the one you mentioned at the gym before.

Quite looking forward to exercising again when I want. I've been playing squash a few times in the last few weeks to help get my fitness back. I'd like to be able to run a half marathon again by spring. I did last year but since then haven't had the motivation to get back out there. I have thermals etc for running but I bloody hate it in the cold.


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## rf860 (Jul 24, 2011)

Join a crossfit gym.


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## nichol4s (Jun 16, 2012)

Rob I'll go to the gym with ya, I need a gym buddy and to join a gym of course :lol:


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## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

Nick, get your self down to xercise4 less. Mega cheap! Paid 109 for the year.


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## rob_vrs (Jan 4, 2012)

Yeah do it nick, see if you can keep up .

You'll easily keep up with state of my back haha


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## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

Rob, won't you strengthen it if you build up slowly again? Don't know much about back injuries to be honest but the physio I saw for my neck a while back said to keep moving and be as active obviously taking it very easy as possible to speed up recovery. 

Rob, you booked the induction yet? Wife's joined as well but can't see her sticking it out.


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## rob_vrs (Jan 4, 2012)

Guitarjon said:


> Rob, won't you strengthen it if you build up slowly again? Don't know much about back injuries to be honest but the physio I saw for my neck a while back said to keep moving and be as active obviously taking it very easy as possible to speed up recovery.
> 
> Rob, you booked the induction yet? Wife's joined as well but can't see her sticking it out.


Not really jon, starting BUPA treatment soon. Its just one of them things ill do light weight but never what I used to do, id say id be just silly to them type of weights again.

Not yet going to do it tomorrow matey. Haha well your welcome to come with me and we can push each other.


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## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

Let me get into the swing of things first matey. Fitness level isn't too bad from all the previous running and squash but I'll not be on form for a couple of weeks yet. Strength- well I don't know where I am wih that lol. I do build pretty quickly but I need to trim down a little first or I'll be too big. I know I need to build muscle for quicker fat loss though.


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## luke88 (Jul 29, 2012)

Kriminal said:


> Clean & Press (Deadlifts to Overhead Presses) - Legs & Shoulders
> Dumbell Squats - Legs
> Double Dumbell Rows (one in each hand) - Back
> Lying Dumbell Presses - Chest
> ...


Krim, I have a good set of dumbbells and a kettle bell at home so can do most of those, what can you recommend doing instead of deadlifts to work the shoulder muscles?

Many thanks


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## Leebo310 (Sep 30, 2013)

luke88 said:


> Krim, I have a good set of dumbbells and a kettle bell at home so can do most of those, what can you recommend doing instead of deadlifts to work the shoulder muscles?
> 
> Many thanks


How heavy are your kb and dumb bells mate?


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## luke88 (Jul 29, 2012)

Leebo310 said:


> How heavy are your kb and dumb bells mate?


Dumbbells start at 1kg then 2.5kg and 5kg.

KB is 7kg


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## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

Got induction Saturday at 10.30am. I'll let you all know what its like.


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## Leebo310 (Sep 30, 2013)

You can still do a clean and press with the kettle bell mate, just obviously one arm at a time. Not sure on what you're capable of lifting and stuff but 7kg should be enough to get you doing the exercise right with good form. You may have to do a few more reps than you would've with a barbell but it'll still work out your legs, lower back and shoulders.
Have a look on you tube for the technique as it's a ball ache to try and type out and explain!


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## luke88 (Jul 29, 2012)

Leebo310 said:


> You can still do a clean and press with the kettle bell mate, just obviously one arm at a time. Not sure on what you're capable of lifting and stuff but 7kg should be enough to get you doing the exercise right with good form. You may have to do a few more reps than you would've with a barbell but it'll still work out your legs, lower back and shoulders.
> Have a look on you tube for the technique as it's a ball ache to try and type out and explain!


Found a great shoulder workout now,

I did this with 5kg dumbbells, with my arms starting at my sides I lifted one arm up to just above 90degrees to a position so it looked as though my arms were nailed to a cross, did 10reps of this before switching to other arm,

Did that twice one each arm so a total of 20 reps per arm.


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## Leebo310 (Sep 30, 2013)

Yep mate that's a good one and really builds up the ache quick! For even more of an all round shoulder workout, do them both arms at the same time and raise to the side (as you're doing already) then back down, then raise to out in front of you, then back down then to the side etc.
Do 5 of each so you do 10 in total and it'll work more shoulder muscles and better movement than just doing them out to the side.
Other variations are changing the position of you hands. At the moment at the top of the crucifix position I guess your thumb is forward and your palm facing down yep? Vary it so your palm is facing forward and your thumb up and also palm backwards and thumb down. Again just works slightly different parts of your shoulder.


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## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

Well went for the induction yesterday. They messed up the timing a bit and to be honest didn't learn much/ anything. I still can't complain for the price. We were booked in for 10.30. Got there about 10.20 as wife never likes been late. One guy asked us if we were booked on the induction with him and we said no someone else to which he replied he's nearly finished. As the guy we were booked on with got round to the beginning he then took some people round again from the beginning because they were late in the first place. He then said he had a personal training session booked in at 11 so to wait for the other guy to go back round. So we waited longer and ended up in a group with about 20 people so could hardly hear him.

Anyway, rant over bloke was nice enough who showed us round. We stayed in and had a bit of a workout. Plenty of equipment there, including a boxing ring and cage for wrestling lol. People were actually using the ring which was good to see and there were quite a few bags too. Its a good mix type gym with lot of stuff. I still think for the price its fantastic. (£109 for the year)

It's not the sort of gym were you'd go and have a shower etc afterwards. Tend to go for a workout, and get cleaned up ready to leave but the lockers are small and there are only 5 showers. Not bad but when you think this gym is geared up to house 400 people at a time. 

Needless to say I'm aching like a pig today but felt and still feel surprisingly better for yesterday's efforts. Its surprising how many aches and pains you build up from not doing much at all.

Yesterday I did a 10 minute warm up on the bike, tredmill interval training for 33 minutes- stuck to walking at 6k per hour as the intervals were on gradients and it got steep! Rower for 10 minutes then bit the weights. Legs, back and shoulders. 

I was only trying out some of the equipment yesterday. I still need to find a good routine. The free weights were very impressive. There were around 4/5 pairs of each weight upto around 75kg I think. Needless to say on the dumbells I didn't need more tha. 12kg lol. Surprising how quick muscles come back though. Just need to loose the layers of fat around them now.


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## rob_vrs (Jan 4, 2012)

Good to hear john keep it up. Got my induction today. If you ever need anyone to go with give us a shout more than happy to. 

12kg is not bad going on dumbbells especially if they are done strictly perfect.


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## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

Been again since. 

Really enjoying getting back into it. Amazing how quickly muscle starts to come back. Although I feel like I don't have much direction at the moment. Also a lot of the classes are during the day which is no good for people who work in the day. They did say they will be adding more classes eventually. 

Still need to sort out a workout. I've been doing interval cardio training to help me get my fitness back. After two sessions my heart rate had started to decrease quicker so must be doing something right.


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## Leebo310 (Sep 30, 2013)

Guitarjon said:


> Been again since.
> 
> Really enjoying getting back into it. Amazing how quickly muscle starts to come back. Although I feel like I don't have much direction at the moment. Also a lot of the classes are during the day which is no good for people who work in the day. They did say they will be adding more classes eventually.
> 
> Still need to sort out a workout. I've been doing interval cardio training to help me get my fitness back. After two sessions my heart rate had started to decrease quicker so must be doing something right.


Good going mate, interval training does get you fit fast! 
I'm happy to write you a programme if you want? Are you still planning to do 3 sessions a week, one weights, one cardio and one class?


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## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

That would be awesome lee.

Well at the moment I'm still aiming for 3 days but I seem to be mixing and matching cardio and weights at the moment as I'm going with my wife who is sticking to the cardio stuff. We do separate stuff too. 
If I was to do it with her it would have to be mainly machine orientated as she doesn't have the same knowledge as me. 

What is the best way to loose the fat without getting too big. At the moment im a hefty 36% body fat which is 16% more than I used to be but I'm still carrying the same/ similar amount of muscle  I don't wanna get too big my clothes won't fit lol


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## Leebo310 (Sep 30, 2013)

To be honest mate mixing and matching is a better way. Only having one workout a week then suddenly becomes a right pain if you miss a session. 
Honestly the biggest factor to loose the fat is diet. You really need to start eating well as you want to make the workouts as effective as possible. Eating rubbish is going to make this even harder! 
Workout wise I would aim to do a lot of high intensity total body workout and keep the rest periods to an absolute minimum. You want lots of quick movements so nstead of just doing regular squats with weight, do jumping squats either no weight or onto a box/step. Something like a total body circuit would be really good too. One that really burns fat is grabbing a barbell then doing back to back exercises with no rest and without putting the bar down. 8 bent over row, straight into 8 military press, 8 squats, 8 good mornings, 8 lunges, 8 straight leg deadlifts then rest. Obviously do less reps if you want but main thing is to not have a rest until the end. Repeat that 4 times and you'll be absolutely knackered! Stick some interval cardio before and after and that is an awesome workout. 
The other key thing is to be patient and not expect results too quickly. Don't worry too much about what you actually weigh, instead go off how you look and feel. The other thing would be to make sure you enjoy the workouts and the exercises so that you actually want to go. Like I said earlier, motivation and commitment are massive. Reading your posts though I'm sure this won't be a problem for you as you seem well keen and focused!


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## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

Cheers buddy, I have done a similar program in the past and your right they are nackering. 

Need to find out what a good morning is though- off to watch YouTube. 

Funny thing is I'm actually pretty fit despite my size. I ran a half marathon last year. Fitness isn't what it was last year but it seems to come back fairly quickly.


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## Leebo310 (Sep 30, 2013)

Fair play mate, half marathon is mighty impressive so that's an awesome achievement! I know for a fact I'd struggle to do that! 
You sound a bit like my mate, he got up to 18 stone ish but in 6 months I managed to get him down to just over 13 using similar workouts (albeit I had to push him hard!) He also managed a couple of half marathons so if the fitness is there already like you both clearly have then it makes weightloss a whole lot more achievable because you can last longer and push yourself harder in the workouts. Someone else trying to loose weight but also massively unfit will take much longer as they won't be able to do as much each workout. 
Cool then mate, let me know how you get on or if you need any further info or suggestions for workouts, I'm more than happy to help!


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## rob_vrs (Jan 4, 2012)

Good to see you hard at it today jon


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## Guitarjon (Jul 13, 2012)

Ha, yes. Going again tomorrow, just did some cardio today.


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## rob_vrs (Jan 4, 2012)

Guitarjon said:


> Ha, yes. Going again tomorrow, just did some cardio today.


Good man, ill prob be going tomorrow after work, iv just been doing cardio then a little bit of weights on the machines


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