The Ultimate Starter Guide for the New Years Resolution Army!

Fantastic post, its a post like this almost 3 years ago written by Steedie that helped me change my life around.

The biggest advice i can give (other than to listen to the above) is one simple word. Consistency if you apply the principle to the top 4 points made you are on to a winner.

Oh and two things extra (sorry)

1. Dont curl in the squat rack
2. You can't out train a bad diet
 
Cheers steedie, great read.
I have been atempting to hit the gym for the last 3-4 months but have not had great consistency (my own fault i know).

In the new year i am planning on taking it a lot more seriously, and most importantly I want to sort my diet out. I have got a feeling im really not eating enough! I like the idea of taking photo's to track any improvments so I may be getting my camera out tonight!

thanks.
 
Cheers steedie, great read.
I have been atempting to hit the gym for the last 3-4 months but have not had great consistency (my own fault i know).

In the new year i am planning on taking it a lot more seriously, and most importantly I want to sort my diet out. I have got a feeling im really not eating enough! I like the idea of taking photo's to track any improvments so I may be getting my camera out tonight!

thanks.

Sorting the diet out first is the biggest challange, if you get that right from the start you will see huge changes without the need to train excessively.

I just wish i had done it the correct way around. As i mentioned above you simply can't out train a poor diet.
 
The biggest advice i can give (other than to listen to the above) is one simple word. Consistency if you apply the principle to the top 4 points made you are on to a winner.

Can't agree with this point enough, there's no point in dipping in and out and then wondering why after 6 months you've gotten no where.
 
I'm currently 6'3" weigt about 13 and half st. and a lot of people (family/work etc) tell me I eat loads as it is, and I have always considered my self a "hard gainer" but just reading the great advice on this forum makes it sound so simple, and I have clearly not been doing it right, but that changes this year ;)

had a quick read over a few of the threads, tried some of the counters that suggest how many calories I should be consuming to bulk. I also play football, and cycle about 100 miles a week so the diet is going to have to take this into consideration (I understand this guide say's "if you're looking to gain weight you'll limit it" re cardio. But i enjoy my cycling and football so thats staying as it is.

Have got the my fitness pal app on my phone now to see what i do eat and to make sure I eat enough of the right stuff (only had it a day or two but find myself scanning everything i pick up!)
 
Nice work Steedie!

I was going to do something similar, I still think we need a better gym/exercising sticky.

Link to the exercise guide thread?
 
Only real way to tell is through measuring portions and also yourself. Take a food log for 2 weeks and be strict with it. Weigh yourself at the start middle and at the end. if you stay the same you're eating at maintenance, lose you're eating below gain and you're eating above maintenance. The you just need to either add or subtract food until you get the level of weight change you want.

Online calculators can only give a rough indicator.
 
I understand the online calculator will only be a rough guess based on the average joe (and no one is really average) I was planning to use the Online calculator as a starting point and keep an eye on what happens with my weight, so if i find my self gaining to much weight too quickly I will reduce my diet, but if I am either staying the same or loosing weight i will increase it.

Would this be acceptible to start out? I was planning to weigh my self once a week on the same day at around the same time, is this ok or should it be more often? I should also say I have ordered some of the pinch test calipers to keep an eye on bf% as well.

Sorry for hi-jacking the thread, I suppose I should start my own training log (as this guide suggested) or something simular to ask questions. Anyway just a quick thanks for not only this guide but to all the guides and advice you guys give, I have been trying to read as much as I can over the last few days, and its been an eye opener.
 
This is as good a place as any to ask. Weighing yourself once a week at around the same time wearing similar stuff is a good idea. However do be aware that sometimes you can fluctuate in how much water you're holding. It's a good idea to use a tape measure to measure yourself. Then, as Steedie said also get fairly regular photo's. That way even if the scale doesn't move for a while you'll still see progress.

The online calculators are a decent place to start for your calories I guess.
 
1) I'm currently doing Stronglifts split into 3 parts each day, my work is such that it is easier to take three 30-40min sessions than one 60-90min session (I work from home and have my own rack/weights). I do Squats in the morning, Bench or OHP around lunch and Barbell Row or Deadlifts in the afternoon followed by some bodyweight stuff. Is this okay or should I be doing them all at once?

Erm... my personal take would be to get it all over and done with in one go to get your metabolism cranked up as best it will go, and burn all those calories. The theory being you will burn off the glycogen and readily available sugars in your system and let your body get to work on the 'harder to process' energy source: fat. Gaps in training are a good idea to come to each exercises better rested and replenished (from a food perspective) and so better in principle for strength. :)

There are different schools of thought on this, and as long as the level of work done consistently increases, you will achieve broadly the same results.


2) For the last 6 months I've been following an 16/8 intermittent fasting plan, mostly because I find it helps me eat decent food in the 8 hour window rather than grazing and eating rubbish. Is this a good system to follow?

It's one approach of many used for calorie/intake control. If it works, stick to it, but be open to change if it stops working.

3) Should I add in another cardio session of 15-20 minutes after my last Stronglift workout? (I have a rower and road bike that I can use).

You could, and I'd always advice (hypocritically) doing some cardio to keep your ticker ticking over nicely. However, if this is a hardcore session, you obviously haven't worked hard enough during your resistance training. :)

4) Is there a better program than Stronglifts given that I want to keep running?

Why do you want to keep running? It's bad for your knees, bad for your mobility (tight muscles) and puts more stress on your heart than swimming (due to the way it fills up with blood in the upright position vs. the prone position). I appreciate swimming wasn't mentioned, but just thought I'd get that crack in there. :D

I suppose it depends what you want to focus on: if your end objective is strength or big muscles, then running will have to give way. If you want to run like Mo Farrah, then you're going to have to accept that big muscles and ripped-ness will be somewhat beyond scope.

Practically, Stronglifts is very good for building up a good strength and muscle base. We could spend ages tailoring your workout to suit your specific needs, but at this juncture, it would be pointless.


5) Should I be taking creatine? A few runners have suggested this and I know it's popular amongst lifters too.

*Sigh* Popular myth I'm afraid. Creatine does nothing for cardiovascular/aerobic exercise. You're far better off with citrulline malate or beta alanine which play a more prominent role in aerobic activity. Creatine is popular amongst lifters because it does two things:

- It pulls water into muscles, making them look bigger;
- With correct dosing, over time, it has been shown to improve maximum muscle power output (which is pointless for runners due to the sub-maximal contractions involved).

You can see why this would be a good thing for lifters.


6) Is there anything else I should be doing (or not doing)?

Don't waste your money on glucosamine/chondritin: the evidence supporting is function is scant at best. You're far better off just taking regular fish oils and spending the money saved on something nice for your partner. :)

I'm open to any advice and happy to give pretty much anything a try.

EDIT: FGS - I'm not reposting this! :mad: :D
 
Would you guys say that this is more aimed at people looking to bulk up/lose weight? I'd like to improve my physique but my main goal it fitness as my blood pressure needs reducing and I'd like to be fit for playing squash. Are weights compatible with this or should I be looking at swimming, circuit training etc.?
 
Would you guys say that this is more aimed at people looking to bulk up/lose weight? I'd like to improve my physique but my main goal it fitness as my blood pressure needs reducing and I'd like to be fit for playing squash. Are weights compatible with this or should I be looking at swimming, circuit training etc.?

Strength is always important for all activities - never disregard that. :)

Fitness for squash basically requires more squash playing. However, certain types of cardio training can improve your overall cardiovascular health.

Blood pressure will be reduced by both of the above, but also how your diet is being managed, too.
 
There are lot's of things you can do to increase your performance in squash, lifting weights and diet being high up on the list. There is also lots of potential for enhancement through CV and agility drills (think shuttles, clockwork drills, or anything where you change direction rapidly).

All of the above will be great for your general health too.
 
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