Good beginner routine ?

PB said:

What would be a best routine of weight lifting exercises for strength
toning, raising metabolism, fat-burning, fat-loss, etc...

Use mostly compound lifts with free weights and remember that
the lower body has about 60% of the body's muscle, important
when these metabolic issues are considered.

There are 6 main components of an effective weight training
programme (5 and 6 can be dropped if you wish when you are
handling big weights in 1 and 2):

1) Lower body push: nothing beats the Squat, but the Leg Press
is a barely acceptable alternative.
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/Quadriceps/BBFullSquat.html

2) Lower body pull: nothing beats the Deadlift, but the Romanian
deadlift is an acceptable alternative.
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/ErectorSpinae/BBDeadlift.html

3) Upper body push: Bench Press, Overhead Press or Dip for example:
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/PectoralSternal/BBBenchPress.html
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/DeltoidAnterior/BBMilitaryPress.html
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/Triceps/ASTriDip.html

4) Upper body pull: Pullup, Chinup, Pulldown or Cable Row for example:
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/LatissimusDorsi/WtChinup.html
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/LatissimusDorsi/WtUnderhandChinup.html
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/LatissimusDorsi/CBFrontPulldown.html
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/BackGeneral/CBSeatedRow.html

5) I would add a decent ab exercise, Hip Raise for example:
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/RectusAbdominis/WtVerticalLegHipRaise.html
but there are many other good ones,

6) and a lower back exercise, Back Extension for example:
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/ErectorSpinae/BBBackExtension.html

Quoted message said:

Am not interested in building massive muscle mass or esthetics, just to
help loss of fat through raising muscle mass and metabolism ?

What parts of body, how frequent, how many reps , how often ?

All parts of the body, lift 2-3 days per week, about 3-6 exercises
per workout, 2-5 sets per exercise, 5-12 reps per set.

Don't go to failure regularly, keep a rep or two in the tank.

Start very light, but in a couple of months you should be using
challenging weights.

For further information, read:
http://stumptuous.com/weights.html (ignore the "women" bit)
http://www.trygve.com/mfw_faq.html
http://www.exrx.net/

I hope this helps. Good luck.

--
Helgi Briem hbriem AT simnet DOT is

"PB" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

What would be a best routine of weight lifting exercises for strength
toning, raising metabolism, fat-burning, fat-loss, etc...

Am not interested in building massive muscle mass or esthetics, just
to help loss of fat through raising muscle mass and metabolism ?

What parts of body, how frequent, how many reps , how often ?

Thanks.

In addition to Helgi's very good response, let me add that the "best
routine" is the one you actually do - keeping up any sort of regular
exercise is far more important than the particulars. Be sure to find
things you enjoy and find challenging, and don't be afraid to change
your program periodically in some small or large way if your progress
seems to slow.

-S-
http://www.kbnj.com

Steve Freides said:

let me add that the "best
routine" is the one you actually do - keeping up any sort of regular
exercise is far more important than the particulars.

Very good point. In particular, I find the common recommendation
to exercise 5-6 times a week for an hour or more to be
counterproductive and probably responsible for a lot of couch
potatoes. Such a schedule is fine for the experienced trainer
and on the low side of many competitive athletes, but will burn
out the most dedicated beginner in a short time. For weight
training, 2-3 short sessions a week will do the job and leave
you fresh and full of energy.

If you find yourself dreading, rather than looking forward to,
the next workout, you are probably overdoing it.

Quoted message said:

Be sure to find
things you enjoy and find challenging, and don't be afraid to change
your program periodically in some small or large way if your progress
seems to slow.

Yes.

--
Helgi Briem hbriem AT simnet DOT is

"For weight training, 2-3 short sessions a week will do the job and
leave you fresh and full of energy."
I second this. I have been working out around three times a week and
conciously try to limit myself to one hour workouts. I like the
intensity of this length of workout and I also like that I can't look
myself in the eye and say that I don't have the time to go to the gym
three hours a week. I have seen good results doing this routine in
around just two months (I am making a comeback after a long layoff). I
follow a compound lifting routine with my body split up into a chest
and tricep (pushing) routine and a back and bicep (pulling) and legs
routine. I do cleans which is why it makes sense to do back and legs
together.

James

Helgi Briem said:

PB said:

What would be a best routine of weight lifting exercises for strength
toning, raising metabolism, fat-burning, fat-loss, etc...

Use mostly compound lifts with free weights and remember that
the lower body has about 60% of the body's muscle, important
when these metabolic issues are considered.

There are 6 main components of an effective weight training
programme (5 and 6 can be dropped if you wish when you are
handling big weights in 1 and 2):

1) Lower body push: nothing beats the Squat, but the Leg Press
is a barely acceptable alternative.
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/Quadriceps/BBFullSquat.html

2) Lower body pull: nothing beats the Deadlift, but the Romanian
deadlift is an acceptable alternative.
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/ErectorSpinae/BBDeadlift.html

3) Upper body push: Bench Press, Overhead Press or Dip for example:
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/PectoralSternal/BBBenchPress.html
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/DeltoidAnterior/BBMilitaryPress.html
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/Triceps/ASTriDip.html

4) Upper body pull: Pullup, Chinup, Pulldown or Cable Row for example:
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/LatissimusDorsi/WtChinup.html
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/LatissimusDorsi/WtUnderhandChinup.html
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/LatissimusDorsi/CBFrontPulldown.html
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/BackGeneral/CBSeatedRow.html

5) I would add a decent ab exercise, Hip Raise for example:
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/RectusAbdominis/WtVerticalLegHipRaise.html
but there are many other good ones,

6) and a lower back exercise, Back Extension for example:
http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/ErectorSpinae/BBBackExtension.html

Quoted message said:

Am not interested in building massive muscle mass or esthetics, just to
help loss of fat through raising muscle mass and metabolism ?

What parts of body, how frequent, how many reps , how often ?

All parts of the body, lift 2-3 days per week, about 3-6 exercises
per workout, 2-5 sets per exercise, 5-12 reps per set.

Don't go to failure regularly, keep a rep or two in the tank.

Start very light, but in a couple of months you should be using
challenging weights.

This was very good. I'll remember to explain it this way:
Using Free weights with compound exercise, do
lower body push
lower body pull
upper body push
upper body pull

Nice and simple.

- bc

Quoted message said:

What would be a best routine of weight lifting exercises for strength
toning, raising metabolism, fat-burning, fat-loss, etc...

Arnold Schwarzeneger recommends that you do no more than 25-30 work sets per
workout and no more than 5-6 workouts a week. Remember: you should take it
easy at first to make sure that you don't burn out. As you gain experience,
you should increase your total work sets beyond the 30 work sets and you
should be able to work out 6 days a week (take a well-earned day off on
Sunday!)

Quoted message said:

Am not interested in building massive muscle mass or esthetics, just to
help loss of fat through raising muscle mass and metabolism ?

That's a very good attitude to have in regards to bodybuilding. Remember:
the key to being a successful bodybuilder is to have long and lean muscles,
rather than those ghastly bulging ones. You should always be wary of
gaining too much muscle too fast, that is one of the major symptoms of being
a bad bodybuilder. The best way to avoid getting too bulky is by following
a high-volume program that Arnold Schwarzeneger and Joe Weider advocate.

Quoted message said:

What parts of body, how frequent, how many reps , how often ?

Remember: more is better.

Here's a good beginner full-body workout that I recommend (please follow
this order)

Bench press 4 sets (make sure that your arms do not fall below parallel)
Flyes 4 sets
Good mornings 4 sets
Leg presses 4 sets (far more effective than squat or deadlift because you
can lift more!)
Dumbbell rows 4 sets (each hand)
Dumbbell reverse curls 4 sets
Dumbbell curls 4 sets

Rep range is 10-15 reps for upper body exercises and 15-20 reps for lower
body and back exercises.

This is 28 sets and does not go over the 30 sets which can cause
overtraining in beginners (as you gain more experience, you will find that
you can do more sets as your body will not fall in the danger of
overtraining). Don't bother with the squat or deadlift as these exercises
are overrated--the leg press is a much better exercise.

TTFN,
Tavington

Tavington said:

Quoted message said:

What would be a best routine of weight lifting exercises for strength
toning, raising metabolism, fat-burning, fat-loss, etc...

Arnold Schwarzeneger recommends that you do no more than 25-30 work sets per
workout and no more than 5-6 workouts a week. Remember: you should take it
easy at first to make sure that you don't burn out. As you gain experience,
you should increase your total work sets beyond the 30 work sets and you
should be able to work out 6 days a week (take a well-earned day off on
Sunday!)

Quoted message said:

Am not interested in building massive muscle mass or esthetics, just to
help loss of fat through raising muscle mass and metabolism ?

That's a very good attitude to have in regards to bodybuilding. Remember:
the key to being a successful bodybuilder is to have long and lean muscles,
rather than those ghastly bulging ones. You should always be wary of
gaining too much muscle too fast, that is one of the major symptoms of being
a bad bodybuilder. The best way to avoid getting too bulky is by following
a high-volume program that Arnold Schwarzeneger and Joe Weider advocate.

Quoted message said:

What parts of body, how frequent, how many reps , how often ?

Remember: more is better.

Here's a good beginner full-body workout that I recommend (please follow
this order)

Bench press 4 sets (make sure that your arms do not fall below parallel)
Flyes 4 sets
Good mornings 4 sets
Leg presses 4 sets (far more effective than squat or deadlift because you
can lift more!)
Dumbbell rows 4 sets (each hand)
Dumbbell reverse curls 4 sets
Dumbbell curls 4 sets

Rep range is 10-15 reps for upper body exercises and 15-20 reps for lower
body and back exercises.

This is 28 sets and does not go over the 30 sets which can cause
overtraining in beginners (as you gain more experience, you will find that
you can do more sets as your body will not fall in the danger of
overtraining). Don't bother with the squat or deadlift as these exercises
are overrated--the leg press is a much better exercise.

TTFN,
Tavington

In "Pumping Iron" didn't Arnold and is Training partner do squats?

--Falooley

In article <[email hidden]>,

PB said:

What would be a best routine of weight lifting exercises for strength
toning, raising metabolism, fat-burning, fat-loss, etc...

I do a routine that is similar in effect to what Helgi recommended,
except on machines--15 machines in total. (There's some overlap and
some of them are compound machines.) Then 1/2 hour, sometimes 45
minutes, on 3-or-more of 5 different cardio machines, 10-15 minutes
each. (Treadmill, upright stationary bicycle, elliptical trainer,
rowing machine, stair machine.)

I was doing this three times a week. One day a week I did
high-intensity interval training on cardio. For the remainder of the
summer, I'll probably cut back to twice a week, most weeks. (Lawn-
mowing, bicycle-riding, frisbee, and other outdoor activities will
pick up some of the slack 😉.)

Quoted message said:

Am not interested in building massive muscle mass or esthetics, just to
help loss of fat through raising muscle mass and metabolism ?

I've gained muscle definition. I definitely look more trim. I'm now
buying new pants and shorts in a 34" waist, after buying 36" waist
pants and shorts for better than 15 years. My shirts mainly all fit
me like tents now--except through the chest, shoulders and arms.
I've lost over 11 pounds or better. All in about 4 months.

I recently took a two-week rest & re-feed break. Went back to my
work-out schedule yesterday (Thursday) after two weeks and one day
off. I was able to complete all my reps and sets in good form w/o
lowering weights. My cardio is a just bit >< off from where I was
two weeks ago. I actually *lost* another pound during my break.
(Tho I have to wonder how much of that was muscle?)

Quoted message said:

What parts of body, how frequent, how many reps , how often ?

I like whole-body work-outs, followed by cardio, three times a week.

I mix my strength-training up a bit. Sometimes I do single sets to
failure. Most times I do two sets of 8-12 reps. Sometimes I do
pyramids. (Start at 20 lbs. off my current weight settings, do 12
reps, go up 10 lbs., do 10 reps, go up 10 lbs., do 8 reps. If I have
anything left, go up another 10 lbs. and do another 6 reps--at
which point that additional 10 lbs. becomes the new weight setting
for that machine.)

If I find myself "stuck" on a machine, not able to raise the weight
for "too long" (subjective), I'll move that machine up to earlier in
my session and/or do extra sets--that usually breaks things loose.

For cardio, I usually keep the level to my anaerobic threshold. (As
per my heart-rate monitor.) There's much disagreement about that,
here, but doing that twice a week, with HIIT once a week, appears to
be working well for me.

An interesting and encouraging side-effect: It used to be summer heat
and humidity never bothered me much. I actually rather enjoyed it.
But the last 10 years or better, I've found it oppressive (like most
other people seem to). Now it doesn't bother me anymore 🙂.

Btw: Diet. I don't think my total caloric intake changed that much,
but the *composition* of it did. Less simple carbs and saturated
fats. More protein, complex carbs, unsaturated fats and fiber.

--
Jim Seymour | "It is wrong always, everywhere and
WARNING: The "From:" address is a | for everyone to believe anything upon
spam trap. DON'T USE IT! Use: | insufficient evidence."
[email hidden] | - W. K. Clifford, ca. 1876