Dumivid

Gym - Want Advice for a Healthier Lifestyle

26 posts in this topic

@AlldayLoop@Michael569 Haha, now my post has transformed into an Athelan X fan pagexD.

@WavesI have this feeling that, if I don't get tired af/"killed"/full of pain out of the gym I did something wrong and my muscles/resistance got nothing. I need so much practice before I truly get what my body is telling me-_-.
Also, I am not a "really" tiny person, but I can swear that my usual norm was around 1500-2000 and I didn't lost/gain weight for a year or so.


"stay ?sitive" - Gautama Buddha (maybe)

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Achievement unlocked - Going to the gym consistently for 1 month, hurray!

@Knock Now, are you ready to notice me senpai and give some life advicexD?

What I have for now:

  • I go to the gym 4 times a week
  • I usually do 20 minutes of cardio (and idk if this kills or enhance my gains)  + 10/20 minutes of stretching + 60 minutes lifting/exercises = 90m
  • I am hungry as hell. I think I doubled down the amount of food I consume, I can eat every 2-3h with no problems.
  • My muscles have grown significantly, but ffs, I still can't do a proper pull up (at least I can pull myself higher by 20-30%, I think I can count that as success)
  • Usually, I do hands on day 1, abs/back on day 2, legs on day 3 and chest/shoulders and some hands on day 4.

Now that I have established a routine the question is, what's next?  Nutrition/sleep/habit wise it's alright, but how to exercise in the most mindful and efficient way? Also, how much cardio can "kill" my grow?

@Michael569 Would you still recommend those exercises to a novice like me or shall I use the gym machines for 1 more month before I "try harder" to improve my gains (I ask this because I still am somewhat afraid of injuries cause of low awareness/experience/muscle strength)?

On 12.08.2019 at 1:24 PM, Michael569 said:

Don't neglect the big lifts: squads, dead lifts, bench press, bend over rows and shoulder press will be your greatest contributors, these exercises work majority of body muscles so absolutely make sure they are implemented once you get a bit accustomed to lifting.

3

"stay ?sitive" - Gautama Buddha (maybe)

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If you want to fill in the loose belly skin with abs you're going to have to gain lean mass, that's gonna mean lifting heavy and getting a lot of protein... gaining weight but no more than 1lb every 10 days, so only shooting for 500kcal or so above your TDEE.  I'd recommend a lot of different variations of squats, deadlifts, overhead presses, dips, chin ups, and other pulling motions like bent over rows... it's honestly going to be a years long journey if you don't lift at all to gaining a noticable amount of muscle, especially so much to fill in loose skin. Depending on how much loose skin you have it may never quite fill in, you can only realistically add so much muscle to your frame, especially drug-free.

Edited by CMacD

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@Dumivid Well done, sounds like you are doing great and know the fundamentals well :)

In terms of doing a pull-up, these are actually very hard to do for beginners and those that are on the larger side. To work up to it, I recommend doing lat pulldowns until your back muscles get really developed and strong.

It sounds like you mostly working on the machines, correct? Ideally, you will want to move towards lifts with olympic bar such as deadlifts, squats and bench press, however I know that those exercises can be a bit intimidating. What I recommend is to hire a personal trainer for about 3 or 4 lessons, and get them to show you how to do the big lifts. This may cost you quite some money, but it will give you the confidence to really skyrocket your gains through heavy lifting, knowing that you will be injury free though being shown the right posture and technique. 

In saying that, I know not everyone has the money, and lifting on the machines can still contribute to amazing muscle growth, especially as a newbie. 

To exercise mindfully, I recommend to play some light music, make sure not to play any podcasts or intellectually stimulating media, as it detracts from being 'in the zone'. Even in between sets, try not to get distracted and be on your phone. Lastly, really focus on getting a good contraction in the focus muscle when you lift. For example when doing a seated row, really try and retract your scapula (shoulder blades), so that you are working your back more and less on your biceps. 

For cardio killing your growth, doing 20min on the treadmill won't affect it. Once you start running 6kms+ a day, then you will typically notice a reduction in your lifts due to fatigue. Until then, I wouldn't worry about it and would say that 20 minutes is great as it will compliment your stretching. :) 

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Thx for replies.

@CMacD After I will do successfully at least 4-5 pull-ups in a row, I can consider gym work "complete" for this part of my life. I don't aim for an athletic result, I aim to be more than pathetic with my body. Also, I know that I might not ever fill my "abs skin", however with my current life situation I cannot invest more money/time than I already do.

@Knock Thx for the compliment.:x Ill try to reconsider my whole "gym schedule" to add more pressure to my back muscles and maybe do less variety/more reps for the most problematic areas (chest/arms/shoulders/back). Also, isn't stimulating music like this more beneficial for the workout? I have tried to do work out with binaural beats/classic music/ video games ost/rock and what I found out is that heavy/stimulating music, that I enjoy (aka Hades OST/Dark Souls OST), give me this extra spicy push to move a little further when I feel like failing. Do I miss something, like a mindfulness gap?


"stay ?sitive" - Gautama Buddha (maybe)

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On 13/09/2019 at 4:56 PM, Dumivid said:

Would you still recommend those exercises to a novice like me or shall I use the gym machines for 1 more month before I "try harder" to improve my gains (I ask this because I still am somewhat afraid of injuries cause of low awareness/experience/muscle strength)?

I'd say it is best to start with bodyweight. Learn the proper technique of pushup, squad, pullup. Have your joints and muscles adapt to the initial stressor. Practice things like handstands against the wall to get a bit of balance training and get those shoulders accustomed to pressure. 

After couple week of this start with weights and some machines. But like I said, good to start with a trainer and have them create a system for each bodypart. I think dumbells should come before you start lifting barbels that require interconnection of big muscles and some lifting experience.  Before you start deadlifting, get comfortable with feeling through your lateral muscles and being able to pull and squeeze them with the hanging bar on the machine. Same as before benchpress, learn to do proper pushups and dumbell presses on a horizontal and inclined bench. 


“If you find yourself acting to impress others, or avoiding action out of fear of what they might think, you have left the path.” ― Epictetus

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