Who here works out?

[Assassin]

now that exams are over i've decided to join a gym and get rid of the extra 15 pounds i gained. i was wondering what the best way is to lose this gut and get some abs....also, what types of excersices are good for gaining and which ones are good for definition?

any help is appreciated

ps: if u suggest a certain excersice, try to post some kind of visiual aid so i know how to do it.....i hate written instructions.

[Xollence]

Well are you planning on weight lifting? If yes, then follow this guy's program(http://www.xenogenesis.com/GainingMuscle.pdf), I tried it out, it's pretty good, you can make some mods. If not, then try doing V sit ups. By lying down straight, lifting your legs while you do a sit up. ____ \/ like that. lol. Do like 5 sets, first with 10 reps, 15, 25,15,10.

[Rek]

I used to do sit ups kinda like that, but more like ____/----'

the _ is my back the /is my thigh, the --- is my shin, and the ' is my foot...

my legs are resting on nothing, and it works nicely...

[MemnochTheCaT]

Ok, I'll try to give good answers to your questions i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif

(1)- How to get rid of 15 lbs - The easiest way is through low-carbing, but that doesn't mix all that well with working out/gaining muscle. First of all, you must increase your metabolism and the best way to do this is by introducing a sustained cardiovascular activity into your routine.

Depending on what you enjoy, there are many possibilites. I recommend 45+ minutes at least 3 times a week of the cardio activity. Something that works your legs pretty hard will be most effective, for the reason that your quadriceps are your body's most powerful/heaviest muscles. If you get your quads in great shape, you will have gained a significant amount of muscle weight (a shocking amount, really!), and at the same time, the increased muscle mass will burn more calories and fat.

(2)- If you are looking to enlarge and gain strength in places like your arms, then weightlifting is about the only choice. What seems to be most effective is lifting to burnout, where you do relatively low reps (maybe 2 sets of 8), but where you increase the weight resistance until you literally are almost unable to complete the last reps. Make sure you are consuming enough potassium, aminos, and protein! Creatine is also a very good supplement for this. One last thing to remember about the mass you gain from lifting is this .. maintainance is CRITICAL. If you stop the lifting, your body won't take long to go back to your natural size. When I was last serious about heavy lifting, I reached around 255-260lbs, but it made me feel a bit bulky and sluggish for my other activities, so I went back to mostly cardio/speed activity, and within 6 months, I had dropped back to around 225, which is my healthy size without weight training.

(3)- To get cut, strong abs, you need to combine a responsible diet (avoid cheap carbs like sugar!!) with ab-specific exercice, along with your ongoing cardio workout (which lowers body fat body-wide). It is best to combine a couple of different ab exercices. I recommend starting with these 2.

First, do 3 way crunches or situps, depending on how many you can do, I recommend not a set number, but rather as many as you can do in two sets of five minutes each. That way you really concentrate on the burn and increased heartrate. 3 way situps are pretty simple : lay with your hands behind your head and your knees slightly raised, then sit straight forward, then lay back down, sit up while twisting to the right, lay back down, sit up while twisting to the left, repeat. You can increase resistance by holding weights across your upper chest as well. You can also try putting some leg weights on your forearms and that will also have beneficial effect. Regardless, try to keep the sets at least 5 minutes long.

Second, leg lifts for the deep lower abs. This works best with a partner. Lay down flat and straight with your arms at your sides. Then raise your legs together without bending your knees at all, try to raise them until they get past hip level, then have your partner (standing above you), hit your legs with his palms with a strong toss .. throwing your legs back towards the ground. Before your legs hit the ground, your abs have to perform the resistance necessary to stop them. You can alternate this exercise by lifting your legs to the side angles, this works the deep oblique abdominal musculature.

That's a pretty good start, just try to keep your routine going strong, the biggest pitfall of people trying to get in shape is not necessarily what type of workout they are doing, but that distractions get them off-track. Stick on this, or pretty much ANY competent workout plan, and you will see results i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif Good luck!

[JusDaMan]

atkins diet works wonders if u want a fast way...

Slow way is excersizing alot alot alot... my daily rutine...

Sprint for a mile. (ususally i do it 4 times around my block)
rest 20 second/get water
Sprint to closest gym (for me thats like 1.5 miles away) =P
get changed to gym clothes
pump weights for 30 minutes
every set get a drink of water
go to swimming for 30 minutes. (around 100 laps)
get out of water and change
sprint home.
drop dead on floor and sleep =D

(all that usually takes 2 hrs to complete

[SK]

i eat low carb not like totally atkins and no carbs at all, but i limit myself. mostly i box at my cousins gym for 2 hours. that means hitting a bag, jumping rope, shadow boxing, and sparring for a few rounds. i also play basketball at my high school's open gym mondays and wednesdays.

[MemnochTheCaT]

Boxing and basketball are both FANTASTIC cardio/endurance workouts i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif They are both very effective in getting that 'cut' look to finish some weight training with!

[hiddenpookie]

very important go to bed hungry! <<< i did thta and it worked and then excersis and w/e umm om this is what i do...to kepp me in shape in da morning i just dr ink sumthing to give me energy! and then i walk a half a mile to school then i have 6th period p.e. then i walk back anotha 1/2 mile walk then i eat my dinner when i come back. and play basketball for an hour and then chill for the rest of ur day...

[Himura_san]

I used to work out until school started 3 months ago, then I had no time.
When I did work out I went on a high protein diet and hit the weights and
amazingly I gained 18 pounds of muscle but since I have'nt worked I feel
very out of shape. When schools out I'll be back in the gym.

[SpankyDaM]

Working out is good if you're on the smaller size, but to be honest I'd rather recommend starting a martial arts class. I studied Tai Chi for 2 years (got to equivalent of first instructor level) and have seen many more benefits from that than I ever got from going to the gym.

[Stoopider]

First, dance in the rain and dry off in front of a fan or the aircon. Then, eat lots of junk food and drink lots of beer.

Then when you get hit by the 104 fahrenheit fever. Make sure you lick the toilet bowl so that you will easily get gingivitis as well. Poke the sides of your mouth with a fork to get some ulcers. That way, you'll be sick and feeling like shit for the next 2 weeks. Oh yeah, avoid going to the doctor for like 1 week first, so that you can shed the extra's before you recover.

Drink lotsa water and take very minimal solids. (The Gingivitis would help, so would the ulcers).

By the end of 2 weeks, you would have lots somewhere to 5-10 kilo's. (Dont know how to convert).

My Doctor said I was very lucky I didn't get brain damage from the high fever. + High fever kills zits and pimples. Muahahahah!!! Better than a facial.

[Terracosmo]

Threads like these are hard, because everybody have their own ways of working out. I recommend a professional bodybuilder homepage instead. Or just a random one with that kind of information. WORK HARD BOY!

[Mut]

if you want to lose weight, just run. and don't do anything that would degress your exercise (eating too damn much).

[Knives122]

yeah, you should run a long distance, start with 1/2 mile then 1 mile, 1 1/2, and work your way up, also try swiming, trust me it does wonders for the body,

Aslo try eating healthy also helps

[Jman]

http://www.littlecooldude.com/~animemaster/fitness.JPG
See Steps 1-2
1-Get some ankle weights and train like Lee.
Seriously though, using ankle weights while jogging will make you stron....no need for further explanation.
2- Just run like your life depended on it. (Watch out for people)

*If this method does not suit your taste and you have some time&money at your disposal, contact a certified personal trainer to aid you in you workout and go at your own pace.

(quoting pic eats bandwidth)

[Cal_kashi]

i say go ride a bike, start w/ 45 min a day and build up to 3-4 hr a day, 7 days a wk. now that builds a damn fine body

[PSJ]

riding bikes only helps your stamina and legs, the best way to get in shape is probably to run and weight lifting. first run like 1 mile for warm up then run 3 miles a little faster after that work out at the gym for an hour or so go through the whole body... do that like 3-4 maybe 5 times a week and you will get in shape.

[Xollence]

I agree, riding your biking won't get you into shape, I've been biking since I was little and I'm still out of shape. i/expressions/face-icon-small-tongue.gif Weights + running + diet is the best way.

[Cal_kashi]

thats true, but as u get into several hours a day, A) you WILL slim down alot, and B) your upper body, specifically ur chest abs and back, will be forced into shape cuz w/ those muscle groups developed the upper body can't support its own weight for those sort of repeated daily efforts. K thats all i'll say bout biking.. I promise