PAAAAAHMP ME AAAAAHP
July 22, 2010 1:05 PM Subscribe
I'd like to get in shape. I think that a codified training regimen would help motivate me, and would give me clear goals to work toward. Help me figure out what that regimen should look like.
What I want is a chart that I can look at each morning, which will tell me "this is what you need to do today"—gradually ramping up in intensity.
Clear targets provide a clear measure of success of failure. Without that, I easily fall out of the exercise habit. But once you've set a goal in front of me, it's very hard for me to accept failure. So I want to have a pre-planned, quantifiable goal, every day.
Some background about where I'm at, and where I'm trying to get:
I'm 5'10", about 180 pounds (I think; my scale is broken right now). I eat an ovo-lacto vegetarian diet (with very occasional fish and chicken), with lots of fruit, veggies, and whole grains. I eat more junk food than I should, but I'm trying to rein that in. I'm a work-from-home freelancer, so I live a pretty sedentary lifestyle. I've never been very athletic.
My main goal is to lose my gut. Aside from that, developing some general strength, tone, and endurance would be welcome, but those are secondary. I guess I'm looking for a general fitness regimen, with an emphasis on fat loss.
I have a crappy but functional treadmill, and a pair of 15-pound free weights. I can install a pull-up bar, if there's a particular advantage to doing so.
I prefer to exercise first thing in the morning, for a few reasons: it gets it out of the way, it's a great eye-opener, it makes sense logistically since I shower in the morning, and my house is cooler in the morning (I don't have air conditioning).
So, there you go. What should I be doing? The more concrete and specific, the better! Links to offsite resources are more than welcome!
What I want is a chart that I can look at each morning, which will tell me "this is what you need to do today"—gradually ramping up in intensity.
Clear targets provide a clear measure of success of failure. Without that, I easily fall out of the exercise habit. But once you've set a goal in front of me, it's very hard for me to accept failure. So I want to have a pre-planned, quantifiable goal, every day.
Some background about where I'm at, and where I'm trying to get:
I'm 5'10", about 180 pounds (I think; my scale is broken right now). I eat an ovo-lacto vegetarian diet (with very occasional fish and chicken), with lots of fruit, veggies, and whole grains. I eat more junk food than I should, but I'm trying to rein that in. I'm a work-from-home freelancer, so I live a pretty sedentary lifestyle. I've never been very athletic.
My main goal is to lose my gut. Aside from that, developing some general strength, tone, and endurance would be welcome, but those are secondary. I guess I'm looking for a general fitness regimen, with an emphasis on fat loss.
I have a crappy but functional treadmill, and a pair of 15-pound free weights. I can install a pull-up bar, if there's a particular advantage to doing so.
I prefer to exercise first thing in the morning, for a few reasons: it gets it out of the way, it's a great eye-opener, it makes sense logistically since I shower in the morning, and my house is cooler in the morning (I don't have air conditioning).
So, there you go. What should I be doing? The more concrete and specific, the better! Links to offsite resources are more than welcome!
Ride your bike for an hour. If you're worried you're not working hard enough, get a heart rate monitor, and read up on interval training. But really, just moving your legs for an hour is going to burn a significant number of calories, and keep your heart and lungs in shape.
Plus you get to go outside!
posted by jrockway at 1:12 PM on July 22, 2010
Plus you get to go outside!
posted by jrockway at 1:12 PM on July 22, 2010
I really like the structure of couch to 5k. It's a concrete goal, but the increments are small enough that it's easier to stick to.
posted by mercredi at 1:14 PM on July 22, 2010 [2 favorites]
posted by mercredi at 1:14 PM on July 22, 2010 [2 favorites]
Hrmm, two options spring to mind:
Body for Life
and
P90X
Personally, I'd go with Body For Life if you're just starting out - and you can switch over to P90X once you want to go further.
Both have regimented exercise plans (a calendar that says do this on this day) and nutrition guidelines (which will help in the losing weight department).
I lost 30lbs pretty quickly going from little activity to the Body For Life plan (although I just ate better, and more often, I didn't really follow their plan too closely).
posted by backwards guitar at 1:14 PM on July 22, 2010
Body for Life
and
P90X
Personally, I'd go with Body For Life if you're just starting out - and you can switch over to P90X once you want to go further.
Both have regimented exercise plans (a calendar that says do this on this day) and nutrition guidelines (which will help in the losing weight department).
I lost 30lbs pretty quickly going from little activity to the Body For Life plan (although I just ate better, and more often, I didn't really follow their plan too closely).
posted by backwards guitar at 1:14 PM on July 22, 2010
I couldn't see the actual Body for Life exercise plan on their website -- am I missing it, or do you have to buy the book?
posted by mercredi at 1:24 PM on July 22, 2010
posted by mercredi at 1:24 PM on July 22, 2010
Best answer: Seconding Couch to 5k. You might also look at the Fitness Ladder which is part of the Hacker's Diet.
posted by gregr at 1:25 PM on July 22, 2010
posted by gregr at 1:25 PM on July 22, 2010
Response by poster: I'll check all of these out, but I'm not really looking for a DVD. More something like the chart in the couch to 5K. But not that—I want something I can do indoors (sorry; should have mentioned that in the OP).
posted by ixohoxi at 1:27 PM on July 22, 2010
posted by ixohoxi at 1:27 PM on July 22, 2010
Best answer: Riding a bike is great for us sedentary types. It feels wonderful to work your legs before sitting down in a chair all day. The burn lingers after the ride, if you put in some good uphill time.
Plus if you go hiking after a few months on the bike, you feel like you could hike uphill forever.
I would also look into getting a coach of some sort to work with. Or join a website like DailyBurn.
I've never used their service, but I used a now-defunct web service similar to it, and it was fantastic -- very personalized goal setting that did indeed tell me what to do each day, based on the fitness equipment I told it that I owned.
posted by circular at 1:27 PM on July 22, 2010
Plus if you go hiking after a few months on the bike, you feel like you could hike uphill forever.
I would also look into getting a coach of some sort to work with. Or join a website like DailyBurn.
I've never used their service, but I used a now-defunct web service similar to it, and it was fantastic -- very personalized goal setting that did indeed tell me what to do each day, based on the fitness equipment I told it that I owned.
posted by circular at 1:27 PM on July 22, 2010
Ah, if indoors...scratch the bike thing, but do look into web services.
posted by circular at 1:28 PM on July 22, 2010
posted by circular at 1:28 PM on July 22, 2010
I'll give you my old routine & tracking method, which was measured and morning-friendly. Maybe you can draw some hints from this if you don't go for something like P90X (though I like P90X too). Also, I'll give you my general advice: do things you like. I hate running; I gained lots of weight when I equated running with exercise. I like soccer and boxing; I lost 40 lbs when I realized those could be my exercise instead.
I lifted weights in my basement weekday morning for nearly 2 years, and it was awesome to be able to roll out of bed, pull on some shorts, make coffee and immediately lift. It gave me energy for hours. I paid $275 on Craigslist for a bench and more weights than I could possibly use, so if you're interested in weight lifting (which can help with weight loss) it's very affordable. I did a pretty typical split: Monday was chest day, Tuesday back and legs, Wednesday shoulders, Thursday arms. Friday was rest, stretch, whatever. Weekends were rest or do something fun & active (canoeing is my favorite)
In terms of clearly-recorded goals, I did two things. First, I kept clear track of what I lifted and how much in a Google spreadsheet. I put my routines in the first column, weeks in the top row, and each time I lifted I put reps & weight in a cell. So I could see my achievements and there was a blank space if I missed a day. Second, I used http://www.livestrong.com/myplate/ to track calories. I'm not suggesting that you need to count calories perfectly, but if you eat too much you'll build tons of muscle and your gut will remain exactly where it is.
Basically, if you build a routine that you like (whether it's lifting weights, playing a sport 3 times per week, or whatever) you can get creative with Google Docs and a diet tracking site to make a clearly-recorded routine, and I imagine you could extend your documentation mechanism to show you your goals.
posted by Tehhund at 1:30 PM on July 22, 2010
I lifted weights in my basement weekday morning for nearly 2 years, and it was awesome to be able to roll out of bed, pull on some shorts, make coffee and immediately lift. It gave me energy for hours. I paid $275 on Craigslist for a bench and more weights than I could possibly use, so if you're interested in weight lifting (which can help with weight loss) it's very affordable. I did a pretty typical split: Monday was chest day, Tuesday back and legs, Wednesday shoulders, Thursday arms. Friday was rest, stretch, whatever. Weekends were rest or do something fun & active (canoeing is my favorite)
In terms of clearly-recorded goals, I did two things. First, I kept clear track of what I lifted and how much in a Google spreadsheet. I put my routines in the first column, weeks in the top row, and each time I lifted I put reps & weight in a cell. So I could see my achievements and there was a blank space if I missed a day. Second, I used http://www.livestrong.com/myplate/ to track calories. I'm not suggesting that you need to count calories perfectly, but if you eat too much you'll build tons of muscle and your gut will remain exactly where it is.
Basically, if you build a routine that you like (whether it's lifting weights, playing a sport 3 times per week, or whatever) you can get creative with Google Docs and a diet tracking site to make a clearly-recorded routine, and I imagine you could extend your documentation mechanism to show you your goals.
posted by Tehhund at 1:30 PM on July 22, 2010
Joining a soccer team seems to meet most of your criteria. Both playing and winning games can be your goal; you ramp up your intensity as you are comfortable; and being accountable to a team is a great way of 'keeping at it'.
posted by axismundi at 1:30 PM on July 22, 2010
posted by axismundi at 1:30 PM on July 22, 2010
Nthing Power 90, after which I would ramp up to PX 90. It is very, very effective.
Also -- do you like your treadmill? I.e., do you like to run? Because if so, I'd check out the Jeff Galloway website and consider getting in gear to run a race, e.g. a 5K, by using one of his training programs on your treadmill. A great motivator is actually signing up for such a race at the time when the programs says you'll be ready.
posted by bearwife at 1:32 PM on July 22, 2010
Also -- do you like your treadmill? I.e., do you like to run? Because if so, I'd check out the Jeff Galloway website and consider getting in gear to run a race, e.g. a 5K, by using one of his training programs on your treadmill. A great motivator is actually signing up for such a race at the time when the programs says you'll be ready.
posted by bearwife at 1:32 PM on July 22, 2010
Here's a link to Body For Life's Weight Training Plan for an example of how things are organized. There's a cardio guide as well.
posted by backwards guitar at 1:32 PM on July 22, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by backwards guitar at 1:32 PM on July 22, 2010 [1 favorite]
Sorry to all the P90x people, but I like Insanity (same company, different vibe), because every time I see Tony Horton, I want to kill him.
Also, seriously, get a scale, and make a cool spreadsheet graph :) It's much more rewarding seeing the day to day variations, and watching the line go down.
I also (32 years old, started at 5'11", 183, now down to 171 after 9 weeks), had to really cut calories, and *really* pay attention to portions.
As always, YMMV!
posted by gregglind at 1:45 PM on July 22, 2010
Also, seriously, get a scale, and make a cool spreadsheet graph :) It's much more rewarding seeing the day to day variations, and watching the line go down.
I also (32 years old, started at 5'11", 183, now down to 171 after 9 weeks), had to really cut calories, and *really* pay attention to portions.
As always, YMMV!
posted by gregglind at 1:45 PM on July 22, 2010
If you're looking for charts/set goals for the day, I found the hundred pushups workout to be pretty structured - they've also got a two hundred squats schedule, situps, etc.
For fat loss, perhaps skip rope ten minutes? I don't personally do that, but from what I've seen of boxers, it seems like it'd be an awesome, compact and cheap form of fast cardiovascular exercise.
For endurance: I'm fond of Tabata sprints/squats. You sprint/squat as fast as you can for twenty seconds and rest ten seconds. Repeat eight times for a total of four minutes. It's surprisingly taxing on your system.
posted by zennish at 2:06 PM on July 22, 2010
For fat loss, perhaps skip rope ten minutes? I don't personally do that, but from what I've seen of boxers, it seems like it'd be an awesome, compact and cheap form of fast cardiovascular exercise.
For endurance: I'm fond of Tabata sprints/squats. You sprint/squat as fast as you can for twenty seconds and rest ten seconds. Repeat eight times for a total of four minutes. It's surprisingly taxing on your system.
posted by zennish at 2:06 PM on July 22, 2010
I recommend adidas miCoach, it kicks ass. You can buy the little gadget or just time the intervals yourself.
posted by Theloupgarou at 2:11 PM on July 22, 2010
posted by Theloupgarou at 2:11 PM on July 22, 2010
Along with gregglind said - if you're going to get a scale and track your weight, I'd recommend doing some measurements too. Arms, thighs, chest, waist, etc. Sometimes the scale doesn't show a big difference, but you lose (or gain in some cases - eg. arms) a few inches - so you're thinner, but your weight doesn't reflect this.
posted by backwards guitar at 2:15 PM on July 22, 2010
posted by backwards guitar at 2:15 PM on July 22, 2010
You might look into 5BX. It was created by the Canadian government, and was a standard to tell how in shape you are based on age and how many of the exercises you can do.
posted by I am the Walrus at 2:36 PM on July 22, 2010
posted by I am the Walrus at 2:36 PM on July 22, 2010
CrossFit + Primal Blueprint.
posted by mcschmidt00 at 3:41 PM on July 22, 2010
posted by mcschmidt00 at 3:41 PM on July 22, 2010
Response by poster: I love the simplicity (and the long-term focus) of the Fitness Ladder, but I also love the graphing and the nutrition tracking at DailyBurn.
I think I'll go with DailyBurn. Seems like they make it easy to set goals, come up with a plan to reach them, and see your progress.
Thanks for supporting the new, sweatier me!
posted by ixohoxi at 4:09 PM on July 22, 2010
I think I'll go with DailyBurn. Seems like they make it easy to set goals, come up with a plan to reach them, and see your progress.
Thanks for supporting the new, sweatier me!
posted by ixohoxi at 4:09 PM on July 22, 2010
A few things:
1) Install the pull-up bar, and use some ropes or rings tied to your rafters for dips. Bodyweight exercises have made a HUGE difference for me.
2) Take classes at a local gym if you have one (I know you don't want to do this, but it helps keep you honest). You'll meet the regulars there, so there's a built-in support group if you want one.
3) Forget the scale - as you gain muscle you'll gain some weight, even as you lose fat. Watching the scale tends to be counter-productive, especially in the beginning. I highly recommend taking some pics every few months or so with minimal or no clothing - your progress will be much easier to monitor, and you'll notice changes that you'd never see over time.
posted by coolguymichael at 4:45 PM on July 22, 2010
1) Install the pull-up bar, and use some ropes or rings tied to your rafters for dips. Bodyweight exercises have made a HUGE difference for me.
2) Take classes at a local gym if you have one (I know you don't want to do this, but it helps keep you honest). You'll meet the regulars there, so there's a built-in support group if you want one.
3) Forget the scale - as you gain muscle you'll gain some weight, even as you lose fat. Watching the scale tends to be counter-productive, especially in the beginning. I highly recommend taking some pics every few months or so with minimal or no clothing - your progress will be much easier to monitor, and you'll notice changes that you'd never see over time.
posted by coolguymichael at 4:45 PM on July 22, 2010
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i've been looking for something FOREVER and this really works for me.
i come home, change into workout stuff, lay around for 15 or 20 min decompressing from the day and work out.
the videos have actual real people sweating and huffing and puffing. tony gives you alternatives for pretty everything ("don't have weights? use a soup can or your nephew!") and constantly tells you if you can't do all the reps don't force yourself - if you could do it all right away, you wouldn't need p90x.
it has three different ways to do it, and tells you which dvd to do each day. if you skip a day, just do the required dvd next time (it goes by Day 1, Day 2 rather than Mon, Tues so it's easier to stay on track).
there's an entire meal plan but i really haven't gotten into all that since i eat ok most of the time. there a lot of good ideas on where to get protein sources as a vegetarian on the beachbody.com forums.
i am not kidding when i say this is finally got me to exercise. it's tougher and more varied than any other home workout i've found. AND i don't have to worry about a 30 min drive to the nearest gym and then driving home all sweaty or showering there and then having to tote all sorts of stuff around.
it's like $180 or something on amazon. i'm sure it's available, um, other places as well, for, um, less.
good luck to you!
ps - any pull up bar stuff, i just use a resistance band over a rafter in my basement. there is always someone in a video using bands instead of weights to show you how.
posted by inmyhead at 1:12 PM on July 22, 2010 [2 favorites]