need a workout routine

[retired_justsomeguy]

Hi all,
I'm new to the forums and completely new to working out. I debated doing a search, but honestly I didn't even know where to start, so I figured I would just post, and hope someone could point me in the right direction.

Anyways, brief backround about myself, I'm 21 years of age, about 6'2'' and about 165 lbs. Not sure if that is a healthy weight for my height. Please let me know if I am overweight. I played soccer year round as a kid and ran track and played tennis in high school, so I was pretty athletic. When I got to be a sophomore in High School I got a bit of tendinitis in my knee and quit all sports, never really did anything active. Jogging is not a problem though, only sprints are.

In short I want to build my upper body, I don't need a six pack or anything, I would just like to get decently defined abs, arms, basically add a bit of definition. So I am not sure, if I need to be running, doing exercises, or lifting, or what to lift. We have a gymn at college, that I have never taken advantage of, but I am planning on it this year and would like to know where to start or what workout to do. (I have never worked out at a gymn before so I don't even know what weights there are other than the basic bench press).

I would greatly appreciate it if someone could recommend some basic routine or refer me to another thread which is explained to a dummy I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks!

 

[Greenetuckian]

First if your posted height & weight are correct then you sound too slim. Second building one's upperbody without building your lower body and lower back at the same time is just begging for trouble, especially with the mechanical lifting disadvantage taller persons suffer from that places extra stress on joints and especailly the spine. (i.e. a male 5'6" 165lbs can typically lift much more weight than a male 6' tall of the same weight class.)

I am not expert but IMO a beginner is better off starting with a full body workout 3 times a week and should attempt to gain as much strength as possible in the beginning using reps in the 3 - 8 range. It won't add much mass but I believe you first need the strength to work with as a building block.

I also believe you need to get your diet in line with what you hope to accomplish. If it is mass building then find your caloric intake now by tracking your daily kcal intake over the week and increase it by about 500 kcal a day. If you start to add too much body fat cut it back some.

Get some aerobic exercise - Jog, run, basketball, soccer, tennis, skate, etc. This will bring your endurance up and make you feel much better in general.