Fitness and nutrition help needed

[Deleted]

So a few days ago I decided to join a gym. When I stood on the scale and saw a number so high that I didn't want to continue upwards anymore... it was a breaking point for me. I found a gym that was open till 11 pm and I went there the same evening and joined it.

So here I am, all the good intentions in the world, but I'm a beginner and don't really know much. I've done the usual research on the internet and found some beginner workouts (http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/begi...ss_program.htm is what I'm going with for now). But some of them seem to say different stuff and confused me a couple of times. Some sites say that for fat loss you want low weights, high reps (up to 20), while others say you want weights which allow 10-12 reps max. There is also the debate of machines vs free weights.

There's also the balance of cardio and weights. What I plan on doing at the moment is 3x strength (with a short 10-15 min extra cardio afterwards, excl. warm up and cooldown), 2x cardio every week and 2 days rest (weekends). Is this a good point to start out with?

When it comes to nutrition, the first and obvious change I decided to make is cut out all the junkfood from my diet. I used to eat very unhealthy, pizza 2-3 times a week, lots of deep fried stuff (4 times a week or so), lots of soda, etc. For breakfast and lunch I'm going with sandwiches with different stuff on it, usually with chicken (homemade sandwiches ofc), or cereal (no sugar) and soup. Still working out what kind of dinner would be best, since I'm not that great at cooking (actually a complete noob at cooking really). So I'd appreciate some advice on that if possible.

Last but not least, pre- and post-workout meals: what to take and what not to take? For post workout I thought it would be good to take a piece of fruit (thinking of a grapefruit personally, since I like those) and some yoghurt or cottage cheese (called 'kwark' in Dutch, not sure if it's exactly the same as this, and ofc the lean or low fat versions).

I know this looks like a lot, but I'd appreciate any help I can get.

[Halyon]

You find what's right for you.

You could take a look at Nupo, although I doubt that's good if you're going to go hardcore gym, in which case, find a forum dedicated to nutrition while undertaking a gym regime, not here.

[Deleted]

Hey there!

I'm not really a pro, can't even say I know a thing about fitness and all, but I was in a similar situation starting last year (weigthed 150 kilos) when I decided to start losing. I'm now down at 95 and not really on a strict diet anymore, just keeping junk food in check is enough for me at this point (still need to cut 3-5 more).

When I started I was in terrible shape, couldnt really handle doing a lot of sport so I got off with a full diet (a low fat one) based off of cereals and fresh products only, mainly veggies, chicken and fish. Tuna, salmon and quite a few other fish are very healthy dinner options, just throw them in a pan at high temp, 2-3 minutes each side, and serve with a side of salad. This is where you can add some flavor: fresh salads, with lettuce and other leafy greens and bits of other stuff (carrots, sweetcorn, olives, nuts, cherry tomatoes.. ) or wok-style veggies, which you can buy frozen in any store and microwave/cook without effort or skill required haha. Skip on baked carb/fat products and miracle diet products, they're useless. Avoid huge carbs intake (pasta, rice, bread, cereals) after 6 p.m. or so (this depends on your daily routine and the time of day you do your workouts, but serves as a gerenal guideline) but still try to get some dietary fiber (trust me, you don't wan't to be low on that one)

If it's your first time at the gym, I'd go the more reps/less weight route, machines preferably because it guides your movement, preventing injuries. Add a bit of core workout (abs and such) everyday you hit the gym, those muscle groups don't require as much rest as the others. Cardio is fine, might be good to add it in your usual workout (say if you do two muscle groups a day, you throw in half an hour of cardio in between, and then another half after the second group) as you progress, and get back to 2 times cardio/week and strength based workouts when you get closer to your goal weight.

Just my 2 cents from personal experience and a complete noob perspective. Hope it helps!

[Deleted]

Some tips and advice:

Amounts of sets/reps:
This can basically be divided into three groups:
5x5 - Focus lies on strength
3x8 - Focus lies on hypertrophy (muscle growth)
3x12/more - Focus lies on muscle endurance

I don't think there's a general consensus on what amount is best for fat loss. Various sources claim that high rep is better, while others claim that low rep heavy weight is just as good. Personally, I'd vouch for low reps high weight (5x5), since it's more beneficial in the long run.
Always take free weights over machines. They're so much better when it comes to range of motion, working on your flexibility, working on your stabilizers/synergists, and nervous system stimulation. Keep in mind that form is the most important factor of all when you're just starting out. Use low weights until you can properly execute the movement, then gradually move up.

Cardio:
Doing cardio is also fine. It's always better to do cardio and weightlifting on separate days, but if your schedule doesn't allow it you can do it on the same day too. One of the best forms of cardio is HIIT, but I'm not sure if it's a smart thing to do when you're quite overweight.

Nutrition:
Good thing you cut out all the junkfood and soda. I'm a complete retard too when it comes to cooking, so when I started living on my own I had some trouble making dinner too. Eventually I bought a ricecooker (this one), and you can always find some stir-fry veggies in the supermarket. Combined with a contact grill it's really easy to make a good dinner for yourself. If you're getting sick of rice you can always buy potatoes (aardappelschijfjes of -bolletjes ) you can throw in the microwave/oven, and mix it with a salad or something. There are also some videos of making pasta using just your microwave, might be something worth looking into too.
Another option would be microwave meals, but I would advise against eating those multiple times a week.

Pre-/post-workout:
First off: Your overall nutrition is way more important than this. The significance of pre-/post-meals is highly exaggerated in articles.
Secondly: It's a bit of a personal thing. Some people feel like throwing up when working out after eating, while others can't find the energy on an empty stomach. Find out for yourself what makes your gym sessions more enjoyable.
If you do plan on taking something before and after, get something that has carbs and proteins, like a protein shake + oats/bread/banana/etc.

'Kwark' is always good to take, especially the one with mainly proteins in it. Also damn cheap too

Good luck on your weight loss

[Deleted]

Okay let us start with what is important, and put aside whats not for a start.

The single most important thing that will affect your weight loss is your diet. You know what not to eat, so do not eat that, plain and simple most of the time that will be enough to start a weight loss for a lot of people. I realise it's probrably not the greatest advice, but I could say eat lots of X and not Y, but in reality a doing a strict change of habit to only include a few certain foods is the downfall of many. Limit yourself, keep away from the obviously bad stuff while not neccesarily entirely removing things you enjoy, just limit it. That will take you a long way.

Bad at cooking, don't want to spend lots of time in the kitchen? Chicken and (white) fish can be prepared in the oven in 20 minutes and requires zero attention other than heating the oven. Get yourself a proper barbequeue sauce and you can have some really delicious meat in no time. Cut some pepperfruits, steam some broccoli in the microwave, carrots or add any vegetable as a side dish really and your good to go. The good thing about preparing stuff like chicken in the oven, is you can make a bunch at once and prepare for several meals / days.

With that out of the way you can focus your mind on the training, however first i would like to address something and make a few points. Cardio is a great tool to burn calories, however you need to be able to go for a good while for it take make any effect really, if your not up to spending 30 minutes or more on cardio, i would suggest that you focus your time on weight lifting at start. The caloric expenditure from weight lifting is severely underestimated by alot of people. Not only does it help to maintain muscle mass during weight loss, increase lean body mass and increase your daily caloric expenditure much more significantly than cardio.

The program you linked is average at most by any standards, if even that. However, its appropiate for your goals. For a newbie, and someone wanting to lose weight, the program doesn't matter all too much, of course to a certain extent, what matters is that you make progress and make sure to push yourself.

For your question about pre and post workout meal. Dont. Do. It. It's something you can think about if you reach a stage where you want to gain weight. But consider this; It is up to two extra meals you otherwise wouldn't have in your diet. Assuming you eat just a decent amount thats 300 calories per meal, a total of 600 calories. Since i have no idea what your basal metabolic rate is, lets just use the standard 2000 calories. Thats almost 1/3 of your daily intake just focused around getting something to train on. That doesn't leave much for your other meals. Besides, dont eat too many meals either, 3-4 is the max you should aim for. Just train in between 2 meals and ignore the notion of pre- and postworkout meals (Instead train between lunch and dinner).

[Gilian]

I don't think there's a general consensus on what amount is best for fat loss. Various sources claim that high rep is better, while others claim that low rep heavy weight is just as good. Personally, I'd vouch for low reps high weight (5x5), since it's more beneficial in the long run.
Always take free weights over machines. They're so much better when it comes to range of motion, working on your flexibility, working on your stabilizers/synergists, and nervous system stimulation. Keep in mind that form is the most important factor of all when you're just starting out. Use low weights until you can properly execute the movement, then gradually move up.

I also vouch for heavy weights and free weights. I would recommend doing heavy squats, deadlifts, benchpresses and shoulderpresses plus some accessory work. And indeed form/technique is really important. It's best if you get someone to help you out, an employee at your gym or a buddy who know what they are doing.

These are some youtubers who have really good videos on technique. It's maybe a little too technical/detailed for a beginner but they might help you.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWZ...v277d7hBa1nRfg
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...LoEJyew78_jIY_