New Home Gym! Cool beans! Pumpin' iron!

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
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Fact is, surprisingly enough since I am a fundamentally lazy person, I really dig pumping iron. There’s something extremely satisfying about working with weights that no other kind of exercise can match. I’m especially fond of lat pulldowns…love to feel the muscles in my back bunching.

We discussed and debated the gym membership thing. I didn’t wanna do it. It’s annoying and anti-motivating to have to get dressed and GO somewhere else, deal with other people and their sweat, the gym’s decision about acceptable temperature (which is always way too warm for me), and have to dress from head to foot to hide my bod, which makes me even warmer and makes working out uncomfortable. Plus I have a pool right here at home that I can jump into afterwards (nekkid, natch), my own shower and toiletries, my music…

So we bought the all-in-one weight machine. It’s being delivered next week, and I am totally jazzed. It’s a very nice machine, with real physical weights, not hydraulics, and it allows 25 different exercises covering virtually every muscle group. Rows, pulldowns, curls, presses…the whole shebang.

My goal is to of course become stronger and fitter through weight training and swimming combined, but it is also to lay down some real muscle to try and nudge my metabolism. As I’ve stated in other threads, I am no longer a compulsive overeater, but I am heavier than I’ve ever been in my life because my metabolism is pretty much at a dead stop. And the only sure way I know of to to give it a little kick in the butt is to increase muscle mass.

So…this was a real example of MPSIMS. Thank you for listening…and wish me luck!

Oh yeah, a question for any real ironheads out there: I’ve worked with weights before, many times, and I know how to do it properly, I know alot about it. I know the low-reps, high-weight for bulk and power vs. low-weight high-reps for toning and shaping and possibly an aerobic benefit. I know that you shouldn’t really work the same muscle group two days in a row because you gotta give the muscle fibers a chance to heal from the trashing they’ve gotten.

But here’s my question: anyone ever tried working out daily, alternating the weights/reps scenario from day to day to achieve BOTH goals simultaneously? Is it possible? Does it just defeat both and turn your body into a lactic acid bath?

Anyone?

This is a non-smoking area. If we see you smoking, we will assume you are on fire and act accordingly.

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yes, it is possible. I lift 5 times a week. It works, but if you aren’t a weight-lifter and aren’t in good shape, as you imply, I don’t suggest working out every day. Even if you don’t pull something, it’s very easy to go overboard the first few days, and then give it up.

Don’t go nuts. Lift 2 or 3 times a week, the first week or so. Then go 3 or 4. After a while, if you feel good, you can go for 5 or 6. 7 is too much. 6 is often too much.

Try to do opposing muscle groups on the SAME day. That is, if you work the biceps, also work the triceps. If you work the quads, work the hamstrings, too.

And always remember aerobic exercise.

Good luck!

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Stoid:

Pete’s advice is sound. I would add that you CAN work out almost every day IF you do only select body parts each day (in the opposing muscle method that Pete suggests). So, for example, try:

Light arms (bis & tris) on Monday,
Legs (calfs, hams, & quads) on Tuesday,
Light chest on Wednesday,
Back on Thursday.
Heavy arms on Friday,
Heavy Chest on Saturday
No weights on Sunday.

Never do a heavy day if you still feel sore from a light day. Light and Heavy are relative here – especially at first, light should be ridiculously light (8 reps easy with a smile on your face) and heavy should be only slightly heavier (8 reps easy, slight frown at the last two). Concentrate on form rather than power.

You can double up on legs rather than chest or arms, but I’d avoid doubling up on back. “The back thrives on rest” I’ve been told, and I’ve never doubted it.

PLEASE watch out for the “too much at first problem”. I see lots of newbies at my gym come in once, work everything hard on the first day, grimace at their soreness at the second day, and never return.

Luck to you.

Eissclam.

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I must agree, doing weights is a lot more fun than the other exercises. I remember in middle school part of the year we did some weight training. Even though we had to do it in front of the entire class, it was fun trying to up the amount you could bench press (one guy in 7th grade lifted 225 lbs and he didn’t look big either). We mostly did legs, bench presses and curls but I liked it a lot.

Time was I stood where thou dost now
And view’d the dead as thou dost me
Ere long you’ll lie as low as I
And others stand and gaze at thee