Posts: 347
Threads: 0
Joined: Sep 2012
Reputation:
2
New to Weights
12-21-2016, 03:52 PM
I'll second StrongLifts for a beginner. If you're really out of shape, you might want to check out Convict Conditioning and try some bodyweight calisthenics first.
"I'm not worried about fucking terrorism, man. I was married for two fucking years. What are they going to do, scare me?"
Posts: 1,869
Threads: 0
Joined: Sep 2014
Reputation:
243
New to Weights
12-21-2016, 04:22 PM
Let me tell you the truth. I've been in the gym for almost 20 years.
I never make fun of weak or fat people, and neither does anyone else who has been lifting for some time. That shit is all in your head. If anything, we are happy you are trying to build a better physique, and most of the time we will go out of our way to help you if you just ask.
Saying that, I do not recommend you train at home.
Your ability to progress is going to take time. It doesn't happen overnight. 99% of guys who train at home, do not have it takes to make it in this game, and those who do train and home and can progress , know how to properly stimulate a muscle, eat, recover, and progress from years of doing it at the gym before they started training at home.
Hit the gym, find you a trainer who knows what he's doing from years of doing it, not just some young kid with a physiology degree. Find you a routine that you ENJOY and stick to it for a long time. It's all about progression, stimulation, and recovery.
You need a process and you need repetition. Training at home before you know what you're doing is like going to war with an AK-47 and standing in the middle of a field and spinning in circles with it on blast. You'll never win a war that way. You need a process and a method.
Posts: 56
Threads: 0
Joined: Nov 2016
Reputation:
1
New to Weights
12-21-2016, 04:44 PM
Thanks for all the input.
POE.
Posts: 1,812
Threads: 0
Joined: Dec 2013
Reputation:
15
New to Weights
12-21-2016, 08:18 PM
Some of the strongest men before drugs trained in their basements or garages, so don't worry about that. Prior to about 1960, most guys trained at home, simply because there wasn't anywhere else!
I'd recommend the York Courses for an absolute beginner. Starting Strength neglects the upper back. Power cleans are a great exercise, but if you're going to bench, you should pull horizontally as well as vertically.
York Course #1:
Curl: 1x6-12
Press: 1x6-12
Squat: 1x6-12
Pullover (use a LIGHT dumbbell!): 1x15-20, but don't worry too much about progressing on this one.
Stiff-Legged Deadlift: 1x6-12
Side Bend: 1x6-12 (use a dumbbell)
Bent-over rowing: 1x6-12 (the original course suggests the Jefferson lift, which I would avoid)
Calf Raise: 1x6-12
Shrug: 1x6-12
That shouldn't take you all that long. Once you get to a certain level, you'll need a more advanced program. For the time being, this one is fine.
Start with 6 and work your way up to 12. Then add five pounds for upper body and ten for lower body.
If you're not fucking her, someone else is.
Posts: 101
Threads: 0
Joined: Jun 2016
New to Weights
12-22-2016, 04:39 AM
I'm no beginner but I do workout at home. A year ago I blew out my back after years of taking my chances. I have not worked my legs since but expect to recover to the extent where it will once again be possible. However, in the light of this knowledge, I'd recommend against squats, deadlifts and possibly all sorts of olympic lifting movements because doing them will put your spine in a world of risk that you simply do not need unless you plan to compete in these exact lifts.
Always maintain a neutral spine when you can and when you cannot do it, try to minimize the load and concentrate on the muscle instead of using body english for maximum weight. Example; when doing the bent over row, don't hunch over with a huge barbell and jerk it to your waist but grab a dumbbell that you can do 10 pure repetitions with.
The most important thing you can do for yourself is to keep a log, whether it's on your PC, mobile device or on paper. It's how you measure your progress and lifting weights without measuring your progress in minute detail is a joke.
When you add weight between workouts, do always aim to add the miminum amount of weight you can possibly get away with it adding; your progress will stall faster the more weight you add. As a beginner, you can get away with adding a lot of weight for a time but I still would not recommend it because it makes it all the more difficult to adjust to relative stagnation in the near future and adding more weight than necessary is simply a waste of time and a security risk.
When I used to go to the gym, I would often bring my own microplates going down to 0,5kg (think it's one pound in american) and I would tie the microplate to the barbell with a piece of string. This kept me from having to add as much as 2,5kg between workouts, which would be simply unnecessary and demoralizing.
Sure you can get away with adding large weights if you subconsciously or consiously allow your form to deteriorate but that, once again, puts your health at risk because you'll be swinging back and forth and putting needless tension on the discs of your spine.
Other than this you'll want to figure out some basic muscle anatomy and function so you'll know how many and what exercises you'll need to build a balanced and strong body. Don't fall into the trap of 'lifting for function' if you want to have an aesthetic body. If you limit yourself to powerlifting moves, you can get a blocky unbalanced body with some muscle jutting out from here and there but unless you compete in that stuff you can just as well start taking care of everything from the start.
Posts: 2,099
Threads: 0
Joined: Jun 2014
Reputation:
116
New to Weights
12-22-2016, 05:08 AM
Personally I think squats, and to a lesser extent deads, have a vital place in every serious training program. Nothing will give you the health and physical benefits, done properly, quite like squats, deads, chins, and heavy overhead work. You don't have to be in the gym long, or even all that often, to reap the benefits and build some muscle. Hard training 2-3 times per week will build strength and muscle, as well as making you feel great and sleep better.
There's no reason to think you would injure yourself doing these movements, particularly if you keep the reps slightly higher - 5 reps + for your top set. You can learn enough from the internet on correct form to safely perform these movements - they are fundamental human movements and don't require advanced degrees to get to grips with. Of course, if you get sloppy, or distracted, then you can have an accident and hurt yourself - I suspect that's what happened for SS1994.
Posts: 185
Threads: 0
Joined: Jun 2016
Reputation:
2
New to Weights
12-23-2016, 07:18 PM
To any nonlifting manlets who use "I'm too weak and fat to go to the gym, I'll embarrass myself", I will say that, from the perspective of a guy who started off as a 12 year old lardass and has now for years maintained a Brad Pitt Fight Club physique on 30 minutes in the gym five times a week, the only people I have to shake my head at in the gym are the ones who go there to talk, jerk each other off, and fuck around on their phones, regardless of the shape they're in. Much respect on the other hand for the 300 pound high school kid who I see consistently getting some on the stair master, sweating like an Alabama hog, and the skinny fat college kid benching 95 like his life depends on it (which it sort of does), and can't help but smile on the inside when I see their progress over the course of three or four months.
![[Image: huh.gif]](https://rooshvforum.network/images/smilies/huh.gif)
