Workout question...

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Spems

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Hello,

I've decided to begin working out (I currently don't have access to a gym or weight room, all I have is one dumbell) mainly doing pushups/situps and the like; whatever I can do with no tools. I am VERY out of shape. However, I do get some physical activity at my job as a pest control technician, mainly walking up hills pulling a hose, climbing etc. Stuff that makes you sweat (especially with long pants, shirt, respirator, gloves, boots. But I am out of shape.

I literally just started, I completed my first workout since high school P.E. just 15 minutes ago. It consisted of 100 JJs, stretching (all the stretches I know which isn't many), pushups, situps, crunches, lifting my body with my calves, curls and then stretching again. What I'm wondering is:

How quickly should I increase the frequency of my workouts? Should I expect to feel sore as all hell at first?

Was the above workout O.K.?

Should I drink water before, during, or after the workout. All of the above?



I would greatly appreciate any tips you can offer. Here's some other things to consider:

I'm 20 years old, 135 or so lbs., 5'9", I smoke a pack a day (yes I know - quit smoking... I'm having amazing difficulty with this and was hoping that becoming fit might assist with this), and I have no major health problems or injuries.


Thanks,
Mark
 
do you have any weights of any kind or are you looking for just body weight?
 
I have just one dumbell. I know this isn't exactly weight training related but this subforum seemed the closest to my post. I'm just trying to build muscle all around and improve my heart and lungs (<-- this will be primarily through quitting smoking obviously) etc.. I felt great after I worked out and hope to feel like that much more often.

I'm also a drummer and am getting my band going... so I'm looking to improve my stamina there as well.
 
There are a ton of exercises you can do without weights and lots you can do with just 1 dumbell. As far as cardio and just trying to get things going, walk. Walk quickly and eventually jog. The smoking is your biggest issue, so take care of that. When you work out, you should drink water during and after. Check out some of the videos in my signature, almost all incorporate bodyweight or free hand movements. Enjoy................
 
You can learn to use the single weight to really target specific areas and make the most out of what you have.

For your shoulders you could do arm flexion, abduction, extension.
Flexion at the elbow with hands pointing upwards/facing eachother which helps work the flexors of the elbow as well as the bigger one on your forearm the brachioradialis which features a lot in drumming.

You could also incorporate scapular exercises and the rotator cuffs such as external and internal rotations not to mention many body weight exercises such as side lifts while laying sideways on the ground.

,....
 
so, uhh. How much does the dumbbell weigh ?
The best thing you can probably do is to start doing some aerobic activities.
A jog is a good idea, so is a bike ride or a swim.
you can start doing some exercises with your DB, here are a few suggestions

lunges
Isometric squat
bicep curls
tricep extensions
push ups
DB bent over rows
shoulder press/lateral raise (depending on the weight of the db)
crunches
 
As hdaniaans stated depending on how much the dumbell weighs can determine how much benefit you can get out of it. I am a firm believer that you can build muscle and get into shape with very little equipment.

With one dumbell you can do overhead tricep extentions, tricep kickbacks, concentration curls (my favorite bicep exercise) bent over rows, and lateral raises just to name a few.

Maybe see if you can find a match to that dumbell and then the amount of exercises at your disposal will increase dramatically. Flat bench press, incline press, shoulder presses, squats, lunges, shoulder shrugs (could be done with only one) and many more...I hope this helps.
 
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