Extreme Noob

T

Taylord

New member
Well i'm new to the whole diet/workout/gym thing. I read a bit of the other threads on here, and have absolutely no idea what they are talking about. I just wan't to say what I have been doing, and see if im on the right track, and what else could help boost my results. I go to the gym Monday-Friday, and stay for roughly 2 hours. I have been doing all of this everyday, and mix them up. I do 10-15 min of steps at 50 steps/min, 5-10 mi on the bike, 1-2 mi. on the treadmill majority speed walk with occasional jog bursts. In between the cardio, I go to a lot of machines mostly chest, and arms, and the sit up machine. My diet I don't count, but I try to eat better foods, most days I eat a apple for breakfast, 2 homemade sandwiches on wheat bread with a mix of a few meats ie ham, turkey, salami, bologna, mustard, and a slice of low fat cheese for lunch, a couple lean pockets for dinner, and maybe 2 more apples along the day as snacks. I drink on average 10-12 bottles of water a day with mio mixed in sometimes. I take absolutely no supplements what so ever, not really sure what to take. Last week was my first week, and from Monday to Friday I lost 3lbs on the scale. Please help me with a easy to understand plan, your input is desperately needed.
 
joshd_1973 said:
2 hours at the gym Monday to Friday seems like a lot. You might risk burnout, injury or just boredom.
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I have a lot of determination, and really don't think I would get tired of it. Kind of like how ya I have to work 40 hours a week, just fingers crossed on injury part. Im just wanting to see result asap, what kind of goal could I still set going to the gym less with a diet like I have, or maybe minimal change to the diet and still eat human food lol. Also should I be looking into any supplements, even like protein or something like that?
 
Hi Taylord,

I agree with joshd_1973, your total of 10 hours per week workout seems a lot.

I have read in cdc website that adults may have "2 hours and 30 minutes (150 minutes) of moderate-intensity aerobic activity...and muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms)."

You may also check from that website.
 
What's your current weight/height? That's important to know.

Other than that, 2 hours of training from Monday to Friday is too much. No matter how motivated you are, it will lead to overtraining.
Some symptoms of overtraining are:

Persistent muscle soreness
Persistent fatigue
Increased susceptibility to infections
Increased incidence of injuries
Irritability
Decreased muscular strength
Depressed immune system
Constipation or diarrhea
Lower Testosterone Levels (no muscle gains for you)
Higher Cortisol Levels (hinders weight loss)
Loss of motivation
Loss of enthusiasm
Loss of competitive drive

I'm not sure you'd like any of that. 1 hour in the gym from Monday to Friday is the maximum I would advise you to do.

Regarding your diet: eat a LOT of vegetables and fruit. Experiment and see which fruits and veggies you like.
Eat lean meat.
Processed white flour is your enemy.
Drink only water, no sodas. And stay away from sweets.
 
The Heretic said:
What's your current weight/height? That's important to know.

Other than that, 2 hours of training from Monday to Friday is too much. No matter how motivated you are, it will lead to overtraining.
Some symptoms of overtraining are:

Persistent muscle soreness
Persistent fatigue
Increased susceptibility to infections
Increased incidence of injuries
Irritability
Decreased muscular strength
Depressed immune system
Constipation or diarrhea
Lower Testosterone Levels (no muscle gains for you)
Higher Cortisol Levels (hinders weight loss)
Loss of motivation
Loss of enthusiasm
Loss of competitive drive

I'm not sure you'd like any of that. 1 hour in the gym from Monday to Friday is the maximum I would advise you to do.

Regarding your diet: eat a LOT of vegetables and fruit. Experiment and see which fruits and veggies you like.
Eat lean meat.
Processed white flour is your enemy.
Drink only water, no sodas. And stay away from sweets.
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Thanks for that, the more info the better lol. I was thinking maybe like just taking a extra day off like Wednesday for mid week rest, and continuing to rest on the weekend. Im 6'0 tall, and 2 Mondays ago weighed 250.1 lbs, this morning I weighed 244.4 lbs. Does my workout seem like a good one? I know my heart is pumping consistently, I usually get to the gym walk/jog a mile for warm up, steps for 10 min, lift on a few different area'd machines, bike a few miles, 5 min on the steps again, sit up machine or something to take my mind off my jello legs, and then finish off the night with a couple more miles on the bike. Only a couple times did I feel sore the next day, and never have I felt like doing less just more. Im only 24, and a few years back at 20 and less I couldn't get to 200lbs no matter what I did. Only change since then is my metabolism I guess is done with all the junk I was eating. I'd like to get back to 200, then just find a routine to just maintain there. Id like to be more muscle built, and i'm already fairly strong, but should I even focus on that right now? I mainly just use machines to lift between the cardio as a break.
 
I always say, do a workout that you have fun with while also trying to make it challenging for you. Personally, and that's just my opinion, I prefer short but very intense workouts. Other people may prefer less intense but lengthier workouts. For pure weight loss, I'd say HIIT training is best. For overall health, I'd say slow but steady cardio is best.

Regarding getting more muscular: I think it's very hard to get the best of both worlds, in the sense that it's fairly hard to put on muscle while also trying to lose weight, since you typically have to be in a caloric surplus to build muscle and in a caloric deficit to lose weight. Weight training sessions are important for weight loss, but you don't do them to build more muscle, but to avoid losing muscle since your body also burns a little muscle mass alongside the fat when you're trying to lose weight.
Now, I'm not saying it's impossible to build muscle and lose fat at the same time, but in order to achieve that, your diet has to be immaculate. It makes eating a chore, and I fear you, as a newcomer to the fitness scene, would have a hard time following such a diet and not get discouraged by it. It's better to ease into it and learn the basics of exercise and nutrition first, then worry about the fine tuning later.
 
The Heretic said:
I always say, do a workout that you have fun with while also trying to make it challenging for you. Personally, and that's just my opinion, I prefer short but very intense workouts. Other people may prefer less intense but lengthier workouts. For pure weight loss, I'd say HIIT training is best. For overall health, I'd say slow but steady cardio is best.

Regarding getting more muscular: I think it's very hard to get the best of both worlds, in the sense that it's fairly hard to put on muscle while also trying to lose weight, since you typically have to be in a caloric surplus to build muscle and in a caloric deficit to lose weight. Weight training sessions are important for weight loss, but you don't do them to build more muscle, but to avoid losing muscle since your body also burns a little muscle mass alongside the fat when you're trying to lose weight.
Now, I'm not saying it's impossible to build muscle and lose fat at the same time, but in order to achieve that, your diet has to be immaculate. It makes eating a chore, and I fear you, as a newcomer to the fitness scene, would have a hard time following such a diet and not get discouraged by it. It's better to ease into it and learn the basics of exercise and nutrition first, then worry about the fine tuning later.
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Awesome info, I really appreciate it. Make total sense, and im just going to stick to burning off the fat now, and later on while just maintaining a healthy lifestyle down the road look more into building muscle.
 
I started at 231 Lbs (6ft 1, age 39) and I do 30-60 mins of exercise every day 7 days a week. In fact I have only missed 1 day in the last 24 when I started. I jog and use a rowing machine at home and have lost 18.5 Lbs.

No fad dieting. The only things I have given up aside from the usual junk of chocolate, biscuits and fried food is milk which I have swapped for soy milk and reduced my intake of bread and alcohol.

Discipline is key and it appears that if you can 2 hours a day at the gym that won't be an issue for you.
 
joshd_1973 said:
I started at 231 Lbs (6ft 1, age 39) and I do 30-60 mins of exercise every day 7 days a week. In fact I have only missed 1 day in the last 24 when I started. I jog and use a rowing machine at home and have lost 18.5 Lbs.

No fad dieting. The only things I have given up aside from the usual junk of chocolate, biscuits and fried food is milk which I have swapped for soy milk and reduced my intake of bread and alcohol.

Discipline is key and it appears that if you can 2 hours a day at the gym that won't be an issue for you.
Click to expand...

This is what I like to see, for me it seems to work too. The 5 days a week for 1-2 hours a day doesn't seem that bad, and my body is taking to it fine. At the end of this week so far since in the gym i've lost 7 lbs in 2 weeks, and I lost an extra 3-4 lbs just eating right a few weeks before joining the gym as well. I feel like i'm doing well, especially for a non strict diet, and having never really worked out before.
 
You're doing far better than I am doing so far.. I haven't even gone to the gym in 3 weeks :/

Keep up the good work!!!!!
 
Update, I'm down 10 lbs total now since I started working out. weight is coming off a little slower now, but feeling great.
 
Welcome to the forum.

Congratulations on your 10 pound loss. That's great.

I reckon - if you are enjoying the cardio - keep it up... If it is onerous - try HIIT. We get a release of endorphins from exercise and it could be really working for you to keep you on track...

If you havent read the stickies in the nutrition section - do so...

Make sure that you are having enough water (1 oz per 1 lbs that you weight)
5 servings of fruit or veg a day
protein of 1 oz per 2 lbs that you weigh (or 1 oz per 2 lbs lean body weight)
keep sodium to no more than 2300mg
have at least 1000mg calcium

if you cannot manage any of the above - do not worry about it - just know that it would be good if you could as it would be a healthy way to eat...

The following link may help you to settle in.
http://weight-loss.fitness.com/threads/57955-My-advice-to-newcomers

Good luck with your project
 
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