Sports & Fitness Pls suggest 3 day/week - 45 mins - beginner gym workout

But look at all the teens who were amazed by Arnold and copied what everything he did.
Following what Arnold did is about the worst thing a natural trainer could do when starting out.
Less is more.

 

Yes mate but obviously deciding to follow what arnie did is silly if you are going natural.when i say copy what the other person did i mean it more as in a one on one training....ill give you example...im 40 yrs old
Ive been going to the gym since i was 18.when i started i was 6'2 tall and 76 kg.fast forward to now and im 6'2 and 112kg but its taken the best part of 20 years.my point is lets say i had of started of training with someone that had already acheived what i wanted to (muscle mass) i could of acheived that in 5 years.having said that its just a hobby for me so i was in no hurry but i still think if you are starting out and want to save time find the right person to learn off.

 

And also like you said a big part is genetic.there are millions that wanted to be like arnie but very few would even get close for many reason.most importantly GENETICS.

 

Last few weeks, I have been paying more attention to carb intake thanks you guys & @Simon Hampel's post about carb reduction.

I have removed:
1. Half of breakfast bread component. Also made them brown.
Eg: Take out the top part of bread from a bacon & egg roll.

2. Half of rice component from lunch.
Eg: Eat only the sides and little bit of rice in an Asian lunch.

3. 75% of carb component from dinner
Eg: Only have ½ a slice of bread. Rest are egg, fruits, nuts and milk.

Results in about 3 weeks?
1. Weight has gone down from 78kg to 76 kg.
2. Tummy size has gone down from 100 cms to 98 cms.
3. Feels a bit weaker than 3 weeks ago
4. Feels I lost a bit of muscles which I gained after 3 months of gym activity.

 

I've never tried low-carb but it's good to see that switching things around has made some changes for you.
The only way to know for sure if you've lost muscle mass is to measure your arms and legs and compare to your waist measurements.

Feeling weaker is possibly due to the low-carb thing. I've found that eating an apple or banana about 15-30 mins before exercise makes a big difference in how I feel. I can push a lot harder with the fructose boost!

 

Nicely done @devank ,
If your body can't find the fuel it needs from carbs , it will breakdown muscles to fuel itself...
I think Phase2's suggestion is spot on, keep most of your carb intake to pre workout but at the same time replace some of the carb intake you removed with some protein and fat.

 

Another 7 weeks gone.
I'm still controlling the carbs intake but increased other food. Also, not so Hitler-strict. Hence, the weight has gone up by 1 kg. I'm OK with that.
My tailor made pants, from 2 years ago, is a bit loose now. So.. step in the right direction.. slowly.
Progress is...

Just like Sydney prices, the growth rate is decreasing but I guess that is expected.

Is it time for me to switch my workout plan and keep going??

 

How's it going @devank ?

 

Thanks for checking in.
9 Weeks gone since the last update. Got flu this week. About 2 weeks were lost. It seems about a week is lost in every 9 week period one way or the other.
Current weight is 74.9Kg (height = 181 cm). Lost about 3kgs during the flu but gained back only 1 kg. Still following resonalby good diet.

I seem to make good progress in legs area (highlighted in blue).So I have decided to vary upper body (highlighted in green) workout to make progress. Struggling to push forwared though.


I lost two belt sizes but still not happy with the tummy area. I used to take 2 sugars in the morning coffee. After started the gym sugar was reduced to 1. Since last week, ZERO!
If I eat any less, then I feel like I lack energy or losing muscles. It is a tough battle.

I never thought I would do this but this time I'm participating the J.P.Morgan run. Well.. it is going to be jog & walk for me. I can't run 5.4 kms.

All these times, I went to gym 3 times (Mon, Wed & Fri). Changing that to Mon & Friday only. I go to the JP Morgan training sessions on Wednesdays instead. Just to change the routine a little.

Are there any suggestions to my routines?

 

Hi @Ace in the Hole I recently (last 8 weeks) started going to the gym 5 times a week to build muscle. I'm about 69 kg and 170cm. I have a smaller frame and want to expand it and bulk up. I hate cardio so I am leaving it out. What exercises can you recommend? I currently do bench presses, bicep curls, resistance band butterfly press,, push ups, dumbbell press and shoulder fly with dumbbells. Also doing kettlebell swings.

I'm doing about 3 sets with 8-12 reps. Also consuming about 130g of protein a day.

Am I on the right path somewhat?

thanks

 

Hi @devank

Some of the comments to my reply following the post from @Leo2413 may apply to you also.

From what I can see, you are using lots of machines for your exercises.
A change in exercise selection will improve your results provided you perform them with good technique, start off with lighter resistance when doing new exercises.

Chest press can be changed to barbell or dumbbell bench press.
Leg press change to barbell squats.
Most of the other exercises can be changed to bodyweight or barbell versions too.

Get rid of isolation exercises for now like the rope pressdowns, get proficient at full bodyweight dips first.

 

Hi @Leo2413

I recommend as much free weigh (barbell/dumbbell) work as possible instead of machines.
Also bodyweight work as much as possible.
Some cable work is ok for specific exercises.
Working from top down:
Barbell press for shoulders.
Barbell bench press for chest.

I don't see any posterior work at all in your routine, which is probably more than half your postential mass and strength gain potential.
Most people tend to only focus on the anterior as that's the only view they see.

Back - Deadlifts are king, bent over barbell rows or can start with bodyweight inverted rows or seated cable rows, pull/chin ups.
Legs - multiple variations of barbell squat or even weighted lunges, start light at first and the strength and size will come in time.

Every body is different and responds differently to different stimulus and diet.
The rep range of 8-12 for 3 sets will be fine, but you can play around with more or less depending on exercise.
Diet is another massive topic, but keeping it simple is best.

You need to be able to recover from your workouts and keep monitoring your body.
Sleep and rest is very important to grow for most people.
If your training 5 days/week, you'll have to split your exercises.
Sometimes less is best and a 3 day per week full body routine would probably be better at this stage.

 

Thanks for your feedback mate much appreciated and i will adjust my routine now. One more thing, i detest cardio and i am worried i will put on excess fat with the carbs etc if i dont introduce cardio . Can i just use weights and leave out cardio? im more wanting to bulk up than get a super ripped 6 pack.

Thanks

 

High intensity exercise with a "good" diet should be enough to get great results.
I do resistance training and sprinting with an average relatively traditional diet, but don't overeat and am currently 8.5% body fat and don't do any cardio.
However, if you try to gain lots of muscle too fast, you will likely gain fat.
If you do it really slow, you can minimise or even reduce fat accumulation.

 

cheers

 

Will that fat eventually turn to muscle with ongoing training?

 

No, muscle and fat are completely separate to each other.
From my experience now that I'm 42, I would prefer to stay low fat and gain muscle slowly.
Often bodybuilders and other trainees who bulk up end up with little to no gains once they've done a cut to reveal the muscle they built.
That's a lot of work for very little result in both diet and workout effort, then suffering while dieting, quite unhealthy in the end.
If you stay relatively lean, you will look better and bigger than heavier people with higher body fat.
No body really cares about how much you weigh, it's all about the looks and strength if that interests you.
You need a good reason to train.
These days I train for performance which is what keeps me motivated, and the resulting physique I have now is better than I ever achieved when training purely for looks.
My training now is based on strength to weight ratio, so I want to be as strong as possible at my weight, so naturally my fat levels will have to drop automatically without me even trying.

I believe training for function and strength to weight ratio is the best win, win, win situation of all, good health, physical looks and function.

 

Thanks for that post.




I'm currently on 2300g calories, 30% protein, 20% quality fats and 50% complex carbs. is this about right or is that too much carbs ?

Thanks

 

You will only ever find out through trial and error, it's fine as a starting point.
Absolutely nobody can tell you what the best diet for you will be because they are not you.
You have to adapt for extra stresses such as missed sleep, certain current issues in life, as much as extra rest and relaxation time.
It's best to adapt your diet when required which can only come by knowing your own body and how it responds from experience.
No strictly fixed diet is going to work well for everyone if their lives are not the same day in and day out, which would be pretty boring.
On days you work physically harder you can consume less and vice versa.
Just keep the protein up and modify the carbs/fats when required.
After a while, diet will become more instinctive and you won't have to track anything.

 

Thanks for all the great feedback mate.