Help with a workout plan.

[bree]

Hi,

I need to have a fitness/workout plan to build strength and fitness. Is there a fast way of obtaining this within a space of a few months?

I have a few machines to workout on at home, a treadmill, exercise bike and a totalgym 1000, plus I have a basic home gym (well will be delivered in the next couple of days). Also, I have ordered a Billy Blanks Bootcamp collection dvd.

I've never had an exercise routine before and basically this is the first time I have ever owned any exercise machines. I've tried searching the internet for workout plans but it all seems a bit confusing and I am not sure whether they would help get me fit enough for the police force.

I don't need to lose any weight as I am pretty thin as it is I'm just unfit. I am 5'9 and 59kgs or 130lbs, female and 31.

I'd prefer to do the exercises at home as I have a toddler at home and there are no child care vacancies at the moment.

Can anyone experienced with exercises help me with a 6 or 7 day exercise program that will get me results fast? Or can you direct me to a website that has workout plans? Or should I just go to the gym and get a plan from a personal trainer to do at home?

I will add I can't do push ups either, well maybe I'm lucky to do one. So I need to strengthen my arms, they're like sticks :rolleyes:

By the way, I'm not scared of pain to get fast results just as long as I'm doing the exercises right.

Any help appreciated. Thanks

[Signal9]

You can definetely get results in a few months. Here's a few suggestions and I'm sure others can give you some tips also.

1. Nutrition: A lot of people new to fitness overlook the importance of nutrition to there goals. Eating right will go along way to helping you increase your fitness level. Cut out a lot of the fat you eat, increase your protein and eat moderate carbs. If your not really sure how to eat healthly google up some some diets. I really reccomend staying away from fad diets. Just find a good basic diet that meets your caloric intake needs and stick with it.

2. Strength training: I'm not sure what all your test entails so that makes it a little difficult to give you exact advice. As far as pushups go the key to being able to do them is to simply get down and do them. Since you said you could only do 1 then do 1, rest and do 1 again till you can't do any more. The majority of the muscles you use in the push up are the triceps (back of the upper arm) and the chest. The wider your hands are apart the more you use your chest, the closer your hands are the more it uses your tricep. Since your chest is a much larger muscle group than your triceps, try keeping a little distance between your hands (slightly more than shoulder width). Also between sets vary the distance between your hands so you work both muscles groups well. You can also do exercise which focus on those muscle groups to improve your pushups. Examples of exercises would be the bench press (for chest)(you can use dumbells or the bar), incline/decline bench press (again for the chest), cable flyes (chest), tricep pushdowns (for tris), skull crushers (name withstanding this is a great basic exercise for tris), and overhead extensions (again for tris). This is just an example of basic exercises to improve your push ups. Here is a basic workoout for you.

3. Basic Workout:
Mon: Chest and tris.
10 pushups (do in as few sets as possible). Start with ten sets of one push up. Work your way to five sets of 2 pushups and so on and so on until you can do ten (it won't take you long). Then add to the number 10 until you pass your goal.

Bench press: find a weight that you can do twelve times and do it for four sets of: 12, 10, 10, and 8. Once this becomes easy for you increase the repetions to four sets of 12-15, after this becomes easy increase the weight and repeat.

Pick one more chest and two more tricep exercises and use the same method listed above. (It is a good idea to vary your exercises ).

Tue:
Cardio:
Jog (35-50% of max effort) the distance you will have to run for your test. Increase the distance by .1 mile every week.
10 pushups (again in as few sets as possible. Increase this number as you strength goes up. If you are to sore the first couple of weeks it's ok to skip this part but try not to)

Wed: Back, biceps and abs

Do a total of six sets with the same method (12,10,10,8 gradually increasing reps and weight).
2 back exercises, 2 bicep (front muscle of upper arm) exercises and tow ab related exercises. If you need specific examples of exercises to do let me know.

Thur:
Cardio:
Jog/Sprint
Run the distance you will be running for the test (if you have to you can run .5 miles less to start). The difference is that you will jog for 1 minute at 35% (light jog)effort then 30 seconds at 75-85% effort(sprint). Jog another minute and then 20 seconds at a sprint. Do a light jog for another minute and then sprint for 15 seconds. Continue to do this till you have reached your goal distance. Vary the times as needed and gradually increase them.

Fri:
10 push ups (again gradually increase as you improve).
50 situps (tailor this number to fit you fitness level and gradually increase)

Sat: Repeat Tue.

Sun: Rest

This is a very basic fitness program. I really reccomend you see a personal trainer for the reason is that he/she will do a (or should anyway) assesment of where you're at physically and then start you out on a program tailored to your specific level. It is very difficult ot give you a program without know where you are at right now. The program above, by the way, will not add alot of mass if that is a concern. Your workout should be one of lighter weights and more repetitions. You will probably be sore for a little while if you are not used to working out. It is ok to work through the pain just realize there is a difference between soreness and injury and act accordingly. If you have more specific questions feel free to ask. I promise you, you can drastically improve your fitness level in a few months as long as you are willing to put the work in. Good luck and let us know how you're doing.

[bree]

Thanks Signal9 for giving your time to help me. I have printed out your suggestions and workout and will take your advice and go see a personal trainer.

I'm determined to get fitter and will get a cracking on this fitness journey. Can't wait until these exercises become second nature.

Thanks.

[Signal9]

Not a problem, Hope I could help. Again, good luck and keep us informed.

[The13ig13adWolf]

hi bree. new to the forum but definitely not new to fitness so i thought i'd throw myself in here as i have some agreements and disagreements with Signal. everyone does things differently so here's my $0.02 . my apologies if this gets lengthy but i'll try to be relatively thorough.

you can do a lot in a couple months if you stay consistent. with regards to training 6-7 days a week...not necessary. overtraining can be just as counterproductive as undertraining. my stats as a side note = 5'7", 135 (female obviously....or i'd be a light weight male for sure :p). i can do both push-ups and pull-ups...well, only a few pull-ups but i'm working on it.

i'm not such a fan of total gyms, bowflex and the like but i'm wondering what's included in your 'basic home gym'? freeweights? bench? oly bar maybe? ::crossed fingers that there are freeweights in there as that's what you need::

regarding Billy Blanks...cool guy and all but what you need is to get outside and increase your cardiovascular endurance. HIIT (high intensity interval training) or other interval forms coupled with a longer distance run once a week is plenty. HIIT = short, ALL OUT, sprints coupled with active rest periods. for example: 8-10 sets of a 20 second sprint/60 second slow jog or walk. other forms of intervals = 200m or 400m on a track (not as fast a sprint as HIIT but as fast as you can keep them for the distance) with a 2 min. break in between or so. 3 days of cardio is plenty, maybe T/Th/Sa (HIIT/HIIT (or 400m sprints)/longer, moderately paced run).

body part training is outdated a bit and while it worked for Arnold (and many others out there i know swear by it so no disrespect) there are more efficient ways of getting maximal bang for your workout buck. ie. fully body, upper/lower or push/pull splits. in your case (again, my personal opinion) i'd go with full body 3Xs per week. one compound movement for each major muscle group and no more than that (ie.5-6 exercises max). we can chat more about this later if you're in any way interested.

here is an example of a full body training week (M/W/F). i post on a handful of fitness forums and the below is something my coach devised a while back as an example of a beginner's routine (i'll be happy to answer any questions about it you may have):

Day 1
Full Squats
Flat Bench Press
Conventional Deadlifts
Standing Military Press
Pull Ups or Lat Pulldowns

All done for 5x6 w/ 120s rest

Day 2
Romanian Deadlifts
Lunges
Flat Dumbbell Press
Seated Cable Rows
Incline Hammer Curls
Lying Triceps Extensions

All done for 2x15 w/ 30s rest

Day 3
Incline Dumbbell Press
Barbell Rows (underhand)
Dumbbell Split Squats
Reverse Lunges
Standing Dumbbell Press
Lat Pulldowns (underhand)

** All done for 3x10 w/ 60s rest

** the first set of numbers = loading parameters. (3x10 = sets x reps). the second number is the rest interval between sets. (60s = 60 seconds between working sets).

regarding diet: i agree with Signal that nutrition is extremely important and most take it for granted. if you're not fueling your body correctly you can't expect to make progress. however, i disagree with cutting out fat and keeping carbs to a minimum. what are you eating? how often are you eating? how much H2O? macronutrient timing is important (ie. carb timing, essential fat timing, protein with every meal). i subscribe to John Berardi's method of dieting (when i say 'dieting' i mean nutrition as a whole...not a weight loss fad diet or anything) which entails splitting up meals by protein/fat or protein/carb, not all three. obviously not necessary for you to do the same but it's an option. you should first start with making the right food choices and attempting to eat between 4-6 times per day.

i knew i was gonna be long winded...sorry bout that.

[Signal9]

Although I disagree with you, The13ig13adWolf, on bodypart training being out of date (if you don't mind could you explain why you think this). It sounds like you have a good idea of what you are talking about and your fitness goals are closely related to those of bree. So she might want to put a little more weight in what you say than what I say. My goal has been for size (although the workout I typed earlier wasn't set up for size) so I'm not as knowledgeable on other goals. I don't think 6 days a week of training a week is too much. I think alot of times people use "overtraining" as an excuse to skip the hard stuff or be lazy. Again though, it's important to be able to recognize the difference between soreness and injury. I do like your HIIT plan. I've been doing something similar but I think that I'll throw that in my cardio workout.

[The13ig13adWolf]

Although I disagree with you, The13ig13adWolf, on bodypart training being out of date (if you don't mind could you explain why you think this). It sounds like you have a good idea of what you are talking about and your fitness goals are closely related to those of bree. So she might want to put a little more weight in what you say than what I say. My goal has been for size (although the workout I typed earlier wasn't set up for size) so I'm not as knowledgeable on other goals. I don't think 6 days a week of training a week is too much. I think alot of times people use "overtraining" as an excuse to skip the hard stuff or be lazy. Again though, it's important to be able to recognize the difference between soreness and injury. I do like your HIIT plan. I've been doing something similar but I think that I'll throw that in my cardio workout.

don't get me wrong, bodypart training works for many and i'll be the last person telling the biggest guy in the gym that his training methodology is outdated. however, a 1x per week body part split is not superior methodology for results. there are a number of reasons which deem it not optimal for health/functioning and inefficient for long term growth/hypertrophy. i'll try to keep this brief.

first, the human body isn't designed to work in isolation. we move according to multi-planer/multi-joint coordinated movements. our bodies don't isolate specific muscles for specific tasks, rather it uses as many muscles as possible to perform given functions. without getting into the scientific details, muscles are designed to work as systems which includes developing and gaining strength as a total system, not in artificial isolation.

most isolation movements aren't efficient in providing proper loading to provide useable adaptations throughout the ROM. this develops strain at the weakest point, and additional stress on the joint, causing instability and loss of function.

multi-joint exercises (compound movements) are difficult to place in bodypart training because of the complexity of the exercise and inability to classify it under a prime mover. for instance, full squats (an important exercise in any training split) utilize the entire posterior chain (including abs, low back, glutes, quads, hams and calves)....what day does this fit in? quads? hams? how do you decide? you're inevitably working 'unwanted muscles'.

bodypart training also has a serious affect on CNS recovery which can lead to overtraining (i don't agree that folks who use this term are lazy but that's the beauty of varied opinions ;)). certain muscles will be overworked due to the above stated and others will be underworked. not to mention, it does not take 6 days for a muscle group to recover.

the whole process of putting on size sucks (IMO). good luck to you. i've been trying to put on size the past few months and had issues with staying on diet (so much food). now it's back to leaning out a bit (slowly) with a primary focus on strength.

[Signal9]

Thanks for taking the time to respond. I'll look a little bit more into what you have to say. A change of pace wouldn't hurt me. I know how hard it is to put on weight. I have a naturally fast metabolism so it has been difficult. As far as 17-18 cal/lb for bulking, I had heard 20 cal/lb for that (which is what I am currently eating, roughly 4,100 cal/day). For me that is a 410-615 cal/day difference. Do you think I'm eating to much? (Sorry Bree not trying to hijack your thread).

[The13ig13adWolf]

Thanks for taking the time to respond. I'll look a little bit more into what you have to say. A change of pace wouldn't hurt me. I know how hard it is to put on weight. I have a naturally fast metabolism so it has been difficult. As far as 17-18 cal/lb for bulking, I had heard 20 cal/lb for that (which is what I am currently eating, roughly 4,100 cal/day). For me that is a 410-615 cal/day difference. Do you think I'm eating to much? (Sorry Bree not trying to hijack your thread).

any time ;).

not necessarily if you have a quick metabolism. are you making gains? i'd say to start at 17/18 and reassess every two weeks (checking weight and measurements). if no weight has been put on, calories would increase by 10%...and so on 2 weeks later...and so on two weeks later until gains are made. you just have to be careful not to increase too much at any given time in order to let your body adjust and keep fat gains to a minimum.

[CityOfChicago]

And, of course, this is why strength training methods are so varied and so many.

Sometimes, I swear, if I hear one more "functional training" related training method I'm gonna explode. Functional strength training guru's like Juan Carlos Santana have gone off the deep end with supposed "functional training" methods.

While it is true that the body moves and works and plays in multi-joint and multi-plane actions, the wholesale dismissal of isolation exercises is a little much. If we wanted to talk about functional training, then we'd have to agree that the most functional method of training is the exact reproduction of any desired movement, commited ad nauseum, until the desired trainig effect is achieved. This excludes weighted exercise, which will invariably alter the biomechanics of the trained action, as well as alterations in speed as these will alter power production. Now, If we are talking sport, than the most functional training method is pure practice, and seconday to that are movements which closely replicate sport movements but with additional focuses on required enhancements, be they power production, maximal strength development, or increased speed. These adaptaions can be achieved in various ways, and of course the further we get from movements most alike to sport the less carry-over and training benefit we will see. But auxillary and isolation movements do play a vital role. Any activity which serves to strengthen a muscle or joint used in activity has a place and a requirement to be trained. We know that strength training strengthens not only the activated muscles, but the tendenous attachments as well. In a sport environment, where forces may be applied in various positions or amounts, isolation training becomes important to not only performance but injury resistance.

Consider the lowly biceps curl. It may be argued that it has no purpose in the training regimine of an athlete. But consider the plight of the football linebacker who must tackle a sprinting offensive player and is able to only get one hand on him in passing. Biceps strength increases grip strength indirectly, the direct forces exerted on the biceps during weight training allow it to be better suited to accomodate the eccentric forces it encounters during the proposed one-arm tackle, and the biceps will also be better suited to avoid a joint injury to the elbow due to training induced adaptations to the tendons.

If I can jump back to Santana for a minute. Here is a guy who wants to train for the above mentioned sport. Proponents of functional strength training state that activity which stimulates core development are the most functional, as all balance and stability originate within the core. As a result, you often see athletes engaged in activities that "stimulate core strength". A very common one is the wobble board squat. The theory is that if you stand on an unstable surface and squat, the core musculature will be stimulated to balance the bosy and coordinate the activity. Core stablity is thereby increased. But what about specificity of training? The core musculature is stimulated due to the fact that the surface is unstable, and will be activated for stability and strength when the unstable nature of the surface presents itself. When is the last time a football game, or any land-based sport, was played on an unstable surface? With both feet, or one foot, planted on a stable surface, there is no stimulus for the core to fire. But enough with that rant...

The point here is that isolation exercises have a proper and necessary part in all training, just as do the compound exercises. When constructing an exercise routine, first the goal and/or purpose of the training needs to be analysed. Then you determine core exercises (most specific to sport/goal), auxillary exercises (exercises designed to augment the core exercises), and isolation exercises (exercises used to strengthen lagging body parts, strengthen assist muscles singularily, and reduce incidences for injury). In this context, isolation exercise may indeed illuminate weak points, but are designed to address then, correct them, increase joint stability, and increase function.

Finally, I disagree that isolation exercises unduely stress the CNS. That stress is a result of the intensity of training. And the CNS recovers quickly. Fast, explosive movements or movements that require a great deal of speed or coordination are CNS stimulants, and theire increase in performance is a result of increased neural firing, recruitment, and coordination. They fatigue quickly, but recover quickly as well.

Anyway, that's my own .02

[woodyzj]

Keep in mind....isolation programs allow full attention to certain groups of muscle. Instead of trying to get a full body workout in and perhaps slacking on certain muscles, whether in form or # of reps, isolation plans allow full attention to detail, and ensure that proper form is being utilized. I again dont agree or disagree on either method-as long as you are exercising, moving and burning calories, Im game.

Ever read that thing that lifting weights is something like 30% muscle and 70%CNS? or I think it may be even higher-90%CNS and 10%muscle. In the end..it is our CNS system that allows for strength gains.

[CityOfChicago]

Well, increased muscle mass does not necessitate increased strength - only the potential for it.

[bree]

i'm not such a fan of total gyms, bowflex and the like but i'm wondering what's included in your 'basic home gym'? freeweights? bench? oly bar maybe? ::crossed fingers that there are freeweights in there as that's what you need::

The home gym has just got the basic setup. Similar to this one but different brand and has an extra padded piece that connects to the leg extension --> http://www.sportslocker.com.au/produ...ail.asp?ID=495

It was the only one I could afford at the moment. I have just set it up last night.

regarding Billy Blanks...cool guy and all but what you need is to get outside and increase your cardiovascular endurance. HIIT (high intensity interval training) or other interval forms coupled with a longer distance run once a week is plenty.

Yeah I thought the billy blanks would get me fitter with regards to cardio aerobics workout.

Can the HIIT be done on a treadmill? It's a bit hard to take my toddler along we live in a small country town so child care is limited. Though I'll be moving to a bigger state in two months.

regarding diet: i agree with Signal that nutrition is extremely important and most take it for granted.

I will be fixing my diet too as I don't really have a set meal each day, it is usually whatever I throw together but I eat a lot of bread.
Would a protein powder do much good in regards with muscle development? Not the meal replacement one but just the whey protein. I read it helps with muscle recovery time and building of muscle. I'm thinking of this one --> http://www.thexton.com.au/product/Au...Powder__1.75kg

I did about an hours workout on the total 1000 gym which consisted of leg pulls, arm pullover, butterfly, seated row, squat, decline abs crunch, stretcher (for back, hamstring). I did 20-25 reps and 2 sets of each.
I also tried to do some pushups but I just fell flat on my face and wobbled back up. The thing is the NSW Police allow us to choose either the normal push ups or the ones on the knees but I'd prefer to do the normal pushups as I want to be fairly strong and not wimpy (which I am at the moment...lol).

The next day my arms and legs were sore and it didn't help I got hardly any sleep so I just set up my gym which took half a day to figure out and went to bed early.

So what I want to say is do you all still do exercises even when you're tired or have sore muscles? Also, do you do the exercises the exact same time each day and before or after eating, does it matter?

Another thing, I am so weak that I can't even put on one weight on the home gym. I just use the top upper weight because any more it is too hard. I could probably use it but with a bit of struggle. Shall I just try it or just get use to the upper weight thing, which is the same heaviness as each individual weight and then give it a go when I'm stronger?

Here is the actual NSW Police physical testing I will have to do --> http://www.police.nsw.gov.au/recruit...teracy_testing

Thank you all for your inputs it has broaden my knowledge as I am an extreme beginner. I have taken on board all of your suggestions and advice.

Sorry I know I have rambled on a bit...

p.s. Signal9 no problems.

[woodyzj]

yep!

"feelings, sensations that you thought was dead
No squealing, remember that it's all in your head"-it all comes down to it.

[Signal9]

As far as isolation training versus "functional training" I'd say "everything in moderation".

Bree,
As far as being sore/tired and still working out, yes I do. However being so new to all of this it might not hurt you to give a little extra time for your body to adjust. After awhile you won't get sore or as sore. Tired is another subject. The three most important things in a fitness program are exercise, diet and rest. Do the best you can to get eight hours of sleep a night. This is when your muscle actually gets stronger so if you don't get the proper rest it's possible your preventing yourself from making gains. As far as using a whey protein to gain strength (I'd be interested to hear what 13ig13adwolf has to say),personally I'd say yes. First however I'd figure out what your current protein intake is. With your change in diet you might not need it. For you I'd reccommend 1 gram of protein per pound you weigh to start. Some might say more but that is a good start. Creatine is something else a lot of people use as far as supplements (again I'd be interested to hear what 13ig13adwolf has to say on this). This might be something you want to look into. If you do here's a couple of things. 1. Skip the "loading phase" they put in the directions. Purely hype. 2. You don't need to go with some expensive gimmick, just get good high quality plain creatine. Drink it with something like grape juice. Good luck