Gym Rats mk2

Former Member

Last thread's a few pages back, so I thought I'd start a new one.

I, me of "home exercise is Queen" mantra, joined the gym. It was only £30 from Sept til mid-Jan so... I thought "Fuck it!" and have definitely been making sure I get my money's worth. I skipped the free induction as the one I was given there a few years ago was pants, didn't make any difference to my body or fitness and bored me stiff but now- I need some advice. I will try to get one of the trainers to guide me when I can get hold of one but there's never anyone there but the new girl on reception who doesn't even know where the bloody water fountain is!

So, I started off on what I could remember of my routine devised by the gym instructor a couple of years ago, and just started gradually increasing the weight. It was a few minutes on cardio machines, then a few exercise machines, then back onto the cardio machines, then stretch, which I admit I have left off because I can't be fucked. I was only shown a couple of machines (I don't actually know what they're called tbh.) I asked a group of Sports Science students to show me a new exercise with the free weights and I got the... incline bench press with dumbells, which I love.

I'm not sure what I should be doing though really, split routines, whole body workouts, increasing weights/reps, isolation exercises, or what? And, today... I have lost strength. :crying: The exercises I did two days ago were too hard!!! I def didn't increase the weights very quickly, and I haven't even been feeling sore so I'm a bit perplexed- help! Also, I am getting skrawny, I wouldn't complain if it weren't for the fact that I'd just got a chuff on for filling out some size 6 trousers, now they're baggy again and I keep getting IDd. (I'm 25 in a few days so, tis a piss take really) I don't know what my aims are fitness wise, just that I like being/getting fit and that I would like to be a steady size 6-8.

I have been keeping a diary, so if more details would help with the advice then ask away, bit embarassed though in case you all think I'm a puny weed! But, I've always worked on own body weight resistance and outdoor fun type exercise before so, there's my excuse!

Bought Men's Fitness magazine the other day so I'll give that a squizz but personalised advice always seems more, well, personalised. Also, I don't really have any confidence in deciding what I should be doing because I don't have a clue.

Former Member

Hello - thank you very much for the nudge

Well, nothing wrong at all with doing bodyweight exercise

Ok, those Men's Health/Fitness magazines are great (I prefer and have a subscription to Men's Fitness) and have some superb tips. I'd seriously take note!

Christ... I just wrote a fair bit, then thought, "but yeah, that works for ME, maybe not her". Hmmmmmmmmmm... Whatever though, try sticking with cables and freeweights for your resistance training, as opposed to the fixed range machine things. The cables and the free weights engage your core and more supporting muscles as your body has to work through the full range of motion, whilst keeping the motion steady etc.

Will add more as I go on...

Thinking about it - I'd just ask to see an instructor (I know they're rarely around, probably hiding haha) and discuss stuff with them. Regarding the scrawny thing - what's yer diet like?

Can you tell I'm not really feeling it tonight? I've settled down with a load of bbqd meat (from Bodeans... Mmmmmmmmmmm) and a bottle of wine. Not feeling healthy right now but no doubt will tomorrow hahahah

Former Member

I don't feel like I know enough exercises on the cables/freeweights to make a whole routine, though I get where you're coming from with the theory of core stability etc. Where can I find out which free weight/cable exercises corrolate to which machine ones?

I haven't been doing any exerise at home since the second week after I joined the gym because I didn't want to 'overdo it', although, I am sorely tempted sometimes - so should I just do it? Like, add the gym into what I would have been doing at home anyway instead of as a replacement of or what. grrrrrr

My diet is... random, a mix between really healthy with plenty of fruit and veg, not much meat though, with a whole load of junk food thrown in on top. Bodeans sounds rank - I'd rather have fish and chips tbh! hmmn, today I started off really healthily with a couple of packs of parma violets, some lollies and chewy sweets, an apple, an avocado and brie, followed by cereal (cinnamon grahams) an' blue milk, then icing covered b'day cake. Lunch was... er, oh, ho hum, missed lunch today- whoops. Dinner was veg curry, corn on the cob, new potatoes, steamed carrots, brussel sprouts and white bread roll and butter, followed by b'day cake and CUSTARD (food of the godesses). Supper was wine, which will be followed by... whatever I can be fucked to make when I am hungry in about an hour.

Former Member

I don't want to swear, but I shall because I'm so fucking pleased there's another conversion to the free weights

When I started out, I was doing the workout from Body For Life (3 days HIIT, then 3 days of split upper and lower body routines). This worked for me until about March/April I think, but then I wanted to do more compound exercises i.e. deadlifts, chin ups, press ups etc as I wanted to work the muscle groups rather than individual muscles, and I found my gains in strength were much more significant.

Deadlifting especially helped me with my strength because I think it's the one exercise which releases a hell of a lot of growth hormone, which is great to help you pack on the muscle.

The Mistress has some good advice on putting a routine together - she recommends having a squatting type movement, a pushing movement, a pulling one, and something for the midsection. She goes into more detail in the article.

I'd track down a fitness instructor and get them to help you to put together a routine with some compound movements - get them to show you how to squat and deadlift.

Regarding your diet - it looks quite heavy on the carbs. Fruit, veg etc, great, but you need protein, especially if you want to gain mass. Are you a vegetarian? There's a good page here on gaining muscle mass. If you can, I'd try and change things like white bread, white pasta etc to brown so you're getting slower release starchy carbs. The sweets too - I'd try and cut them down a bit and replace them with something that will fill you up i.e. some protein, maybe nuts, or a nut butter on toast.

I'll go away and have a think and see if there's anything I can add.

Former Member

Forgot to add what I've been doing at the gym

Got a bit fed up of doing presses with the dumbbells, so I've started pressing the 20kg bar. I feel more secure using it, even though it weighs a lot more than the 9kg dumbbells did, and the instructor said I'll make better gains this way.

Still doing my deadlifting, hoping to make it to 40kgs (excluding the bar) by the new year.

The gym is still quite newbie-centric, I think once it gets to Feb/March it will quieten down again. Not that the free weights area is packed, people mainly go for the treadmills and cross trainers.

My abs are beginning to take shape, so I want to work that area more.

Was looking over my stats and I have lost 9lbs of fat since May

Former Member

Newbie centric? Dick head centric you mean! Loads of Sports Science wankers in there today just standing around by the weights talking to their two friends who were working out, talking really loudly about basketball crap and personal gossip. I waited half an hour doing other thing till they fucked off to have a go with the weights, after one set I get up and a few of them come back in after having been standing at the door peeking through the door. One of them picks up the weights I was using and puts them in the rack, and the other one turns to me and says "Were you still using them? He did that on purpose to see if you'd say anything?" GRRRRRRRRRRRRR fuck off and be little twats in your own time, I had to swap babysitting duties to work out tonight, if I'd wanted to gossip I'd have been in the student BAR not the gym! - I didn't say anything, but that's what I should have said.

Anyway, back to same weights and reps as before my blip with ease, must have been a bad day and perhaps I just needed more recovery time.

How are you measuring things like fat loss?

Former Member

Just a quick one, my friend did his Fat Measuring course. I'm meeting up with him soon so he can kick me into shape for my snowboarding trips coming up I'll have a good chat with him about it and report right back.

Former Member

My body fat's pretty low anyway, how else do 'gym rats' measure their progress- weights, reps, speed, a combo of all three? I'm sure it's true that as a newbie my weight progression will slow down, so what next?