Im 24, about 5'9 and 182 lbs. Im a corrections officer in my local county jail and im looking to put on some muscle and loose a little fat. I have been working out for a while now, but i found this site and i think i can get alot of good advise here. Basically want im looking to do is build muscle and get rid of my gut. Ive lost some of my gut already but i want to loose the rest of it. When i work out, i usually do like 15-20 reps. Should i add more weight and do like 8-12 reps to build muscle? And to loose the belly should i start running? Thanks in advance
Need advice reaching my goals
- Thread starter Del1650
- Start date
Welcome to the forum.
Congrats on your progress on losing tissue weight.
1. To lose Fat tissue, it begins with learning what one approximately needs in calories.
What did you do to lose your initial fat tissue?
Go here and learn how to approximate your calories:
Nutrition 101
Delaware Consumer Health Information Services (Originally Posted by Wrangell)
Some "breif" ideas on what to eat:
○ Try eating 5 to 6 smaller meals during the day.
This should be the "target". But do not get upset if you cannot eat this frequently. It WILL NOT hurt your fat loss or weight gain goals.
Frequent meals do not improve metabolism (See metabolizer section
)○ Balance your meals out during the day so in one day you have a mix of Protein, Carbohydrate and good Fats
○ Drink lots of water during the day and before, during and after exercise
○ Simple Carb Examples: (Various fruit) Grapefruit, Watermelon, Cantaloupe, Strawberries, Oranges, Apples, Pineapple, etc
○ Complex Carb Examples: Whole Wheat Pita Bread, Oatmeal, Long Grain Brown Rice, Brown Pasta, Malto-Meal (Plain, whole wheat),etc
○ Good Protein Examples: White or Dark Tuna, Fish, Chicken Breast, Lean Turkey, Lean Ham, Very lean Beef, Quality Whey Protein Powder, etc
○ Good Fats Examples: Natural Peanut Butter, Various Nuts, Flax Seed, Fish Oils.
○ Dietary Fiber: Whole Grains (Bran), Some fruits (like Apples), and vegetables, nuts and seeds
Dietary Fiber
○ Vegetable suggestions:
ROOT VEGETABLES: beets, sweat potatoes, yams
GREEN VEGETABLES: asparagus, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cucumber, field greens, mixed salad greens, green beans, romaine lettuce, snap peas, and spinach
OTHER VEGETABLES: bell peppers, carrots, celery, eggplant, mushrooms, soybeans, squash, tomatoes, organic (low sodium) vegetable soup (be careful in the selection).
2. Developing a sound fitness training program with equipment you have available to use.
What equipment do you have available to use?
Go here for weight training information:
Weight Training 101
Weight Training Technical Articles
And our newest addition:
Example Training Programs
Some Info on the ab core:
Abdominal Training
How to get abs guide
And, my overall brief opinion on core training:
One of the main ingredients in getting a visible core:
Most of your time should be devoted to full body lifts like snatches, swings, lunges, deadlifts, squats, clean & presses, high pulls, and other compond lifts to burn the most calories, stimulate the greatest hormonal response, and promote the best "increase-potential" in your metabolic rate.
One of the major reasons why:
Most of these lifts call on the abs and other core muscles for stabilization, so your core are worked indirectly.
A solidly developed full-body routine is the "trick to getting a well developed body" with a developed core (using it "mostly" the way it was designed) instead of wasting so much time doing hundreds of crunches and sit-ups in which you simply don’t get that same stimulation; though I do reccommend training the core directly as well.
For those that do not have "weights" and cannot afford to get any, then one has to be inventive and perform a full body routine that involves body weight exercises, and using items around the house to serve your full-body approach.
Couple this with "mean and nasty" fat burning "based" diet and you will rocken..........and in the end.......have a big pleasant smile on your face.
This statement assumes one needs to lose some fat tissue (this the statement about the diet).
This should get some of the mental juices flowing in the right direction.
Post additional questions, and we will try to assist you.
Best regards,
Chillen
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Chillen has posted good info.
I would say even go lower than 8-12 reps. Nothing wrong with 5 rep sets, lifting very heavy. That will give your body a high level of need to keep muscles around. You should be focusing on compound lifts (deadlifts, squats, lunges, presses, rows, chin/pull ups, dips...) Combine this with healthy eating, in a deficit, and you WILL lose fat. Once you slim down to where you want to be, simply shift your calories up, into a reasonably level of surplus, keep lifting in pretty much the same manner, and you will start to add on mass, in the form of muscle, and some fat which is inevitable, but not a bad thing.
I would say even go lower than 8-12 reps. Nothing wrong with 5 rep sets, lifting very heavy. That will give your body a high level of need to keep muscles around. You should be focusing on compound lifts (deadlifts, squats, lunges, presses, rows, chin/pull ups, dips...) Combine this with healthy eating, in a deficit, and you WILL lose fat. Once you slim down to where you want to be, simply shift your calories up, into a reasonably level of surplus, keep lifting in pretty much the same manner, and you will start to add on mass, in the form of muscle, and some fat which is inevitable, but not a bad thing.
As to those program examples. I'd recommend doing a beginner routine unless your workout has honestly included parallel squat and deadlifts. Rippetoe's would be my choice.
Listen to Chillen
And runnings not a bad idea either of course for losing those initial pounds
In general, do some cardio and stick to your compounds and you should be set to get underway. Good luck! And don't be discouraged if at first you can't do as much as you think you should be able to
And runnings not a bad idea either of course for losing those initial pounds
In general, do some cardio and stick to your compounds and you should be set to get underway. Good luck! And don't be discouraged if at first you can't do as much as you think you should be able to