What do you think of my workout? What should i do next?

In My Humble Opinion
1

I have been slowly getting better at a cardiovascular workout. I’m not all that great yet. My idea is to look and feel better, not much beyond that.

I’ve now got myself to the point where I can manage twenty minutes on a cross-trainer. I am using the “pulse” setting, which means I intermittently grab hold of the pulse handles and it estimates my pulse and adjusts the work level accordingly. So when my pulse is above 162 (cos I’m 29 and 175 pounds), it reduces it. I seldom get above level 3, maybe level 4, before it decides to reduce the work level. I keep going till the time runs out. My pulse is usually around 170-175, until the very end, when I’m usually too tired to keep working that hard.

After that I have begun using the rowing machines. I am unclear of what muscle groups it benefits, except I’m pretty sure it must be good for the arms because those are what hurts the most. I can’t yet manage ten minutes in one go, but today I did six, then a brief gap of about a minute or two, then another four. I had the resistance set to minimal. They’re fan-resistance machines.

That’s all I do at the moment. I have free weights at home but find them veyr hard to work with, no space, time etc, although I enjoy using them when I make the effort. If I had a decent idea of what and how to use it I might do it at the gym but am wary of using free weights while tired after a cardio workout. The other weights machines are frankly far too complicated and busy.

So basically I wondered how you thought I should proceed. Is the rowing machine actually going to help me build upper body strength? What parts of me won’t it beneift? Is the cross-trainer actually any good? I am on medication that makes me sweat a LOT, so the idea of using a treadmill is pretty much ridiculous I’d think. I need something where I’m not able to slip.

Is there any other stuff you’d recommend? I feel fitter now, I’ve been slowly getting to this modest level for about six months.
Also, I understand that when I finally get round to using weights I should only do it every other day. Is this true for the rowing machine too? What would you say is the level of rowing I should be aiming for in the end? Like, fifteen minutes sustained, or what?

thanks for any advice you can provide.

2

You do have a gym membership, right? Does it come with a free personal training session? If not, you might just want to shell out a little cash to have a trainer show you around the weights.

3

OK, all of this is my lay-person knowledge from my own experience and self-education and not to be taken as the end-all be-all :slight_smile:

I think your general goals of using exercise to just look and feel better are fine goals. I hope that you see it as a low-pressure situation in which you can select activities that you enjoy. I second ultrafilter’s suggestion on asking gym staff or a personal trainer to help you use the weights/weight machines. You may not even have to sign up for a personal training session if you take it piece by piece. I would be careful that a personal trainer doesn’t push you beyond what you are comfortable doing. The only reason I say that is because it looks like you don’t have the aggressive goals that a lot of personal trainers might assume.

Not that I have anything against personal trainers, because I have enjoyed personal training session when my goals were more aggressive.

MHO is that if an activity, even if it is primarily cardio, is causing muscle soreness, it wouldn’t hurt to skip a day of that particular activity to give your muscles time to recover. Maybe you can switch to something emphasizing the lower body after you do a rowing workout. My understanding is that your body does get acclimated to working certain muscles so you may reach a point where you have no soreness and can do the similar activity daily. However, again MHO, I think it’s a good idea for general fitness goals to rotate your favorite activities to avoid overuse and keep your routine fresh.

I imagine the rowing machine might build a modest amount of upper body strength, based on the fact that you have muscle soreness. But probably not anything significant. I think, if you’re looking to increase your muscle functionality (that is, being able to use your strength gains to make everyday living, lifting, stablization, etc. easier), you’ll probably have to go with some weight-bearing exercises, such as lifting weight. For the last 3 years while weight-training, I have felt stronger and better balanced. I attribute a few times where I could have fallen down, but didn’t because I was able to regain my balance, to the weight-training and core strengthening I’ve done.

I’m not really clear on what a cross-trainer is, maybe the machine with the elliptical bottom and the handles that swing back and forth? If you enjoy it, and it gets your heart rate up, then it should help you accomplish your goals. I personally don’t like the automatic setting just because I’m a control freak. I can’t really tell you what heart rate is good for you…I like to go based on how I feel. My understanding is that you can get a similar workout going at a lower heart rate for a longer period of time or faster heart rate for a shorter period of time. I imagine the difference is not very significant for what you’re seeking to do.

The only other thing I’d recommend is that you try different activities and make sure that you enjoy them. Congratulations on sticking with it for 6 months. I’ve been exercising very regularly for over 3 years (before that, I was more or less off and on), and I’ve found the key for me is variety and not pushing myself further that I think I need to (that’s not to say I haven’t had some near-puke-inducing workouts :wink: ) .

I personally love walking (I usually go for 2-3 hours or with a pack strapped to my back), but even moderate amounts of walking are good for you.

Sorry for the long reply, one of my favorite topics! Keep it up!

4

Thanks Heart on my sleeve, that’s just what I was looking for. I was quite encouraged by the fact that I enjoyed the rowing machine so much although it’s probably largely because of the nice satisfying effect of the fan. Nonetheless I will proceed. I’m still unclear on precise technique so I’ll ask at the gym as Ultrafilter suggests. I am a lot better at that “asking for help” sort of thing now.

Not sure how to go with free weights. I feel deep down that I ought to start the way I did about a year ago, very low weight and just concentrating on getting it done regularly. But I don’t know if I’ll stick with it. I must just try to find some way of sticking, maybe if I listen to the news during training in the morning or something like that.

Thanks. And any more replies are very welcome!