lifting_heavy_things | (no subject)

Hi! I'm new both to this community and to weightlifting, but I plan to keep at it, especially after reading some back entries here.

I'm in good shape generally (I do yoga twice a week, cardio four or five times, and commute by bike when it's warmer than it currently is in Canada) but I've never had great upper body strength. As a former dancer, most of the exercises I know involve strengthening the lower body and to a less extent the abdominals and lower back.

I've been reading The New Rules of Lifting for Women, which seems good so far, and have read, like, ALL THE THINGS at Stumptuous and I've gone to the gym several times (with the help of my more experienced-at-lifting sister) and worked out at the weight room. But as an overweight person, and a woman, I'm sometimes not the most confidant about being there. I don't really know what I'm doing.

Basically- any advice about starting out would be welcome... stuff to read, watch, or think about; specific routines you recommend; anything, really.

I am in awe of your collective strength and perseverance!

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The thing that's so great about weightlifting is that while it can be difficult to get to [big ultimate goal], you can see noticeable improvements in strength fairly quickly, which should encourage you to persevere. Also, it makes you feel really good.

I don't have specific routines to recommend, because I keep getting busy with life stuff and not going to the gym for ages. Other people here could be more helpful with that. But I would buy a couple weights to keep at home, so you can do stuff like bicep curls in front of the TV when you can't go to the gym. (Not the teeny useless pink weights. Actual heavy weights.)

Also, remember that probably about half the people in the gym also feel self-conscious. If you're in good shape in general, you're good to go.

Thanks, that helps a lot!

I'll see about getting some weights for home when my next paycheque comes in!

Starting Strength is my routine of choice - only 5 basic barbell exercises to learn and the improvements come rather quickly.

Seconding this. Your arms and upper body will get quite strong without having to do curls or triceps presses (nigh useless anyway.) Compound movements are where it's at.

Thanks, I'll check it out!

I went through the NRoLfW program and liked it a lot and then switched to StrongLifts 5x5 (very similar to Starting Strength, except that you start out doing five sets of five reps instead of three sets of of five reps.)

I also looked through New Rules of Lifting for Abs and liked the look of the workouts better than what was in NRoLfW -- I think they made improvements over how they did things there, but again, if you want to learn to lift heavy, try Starting Strength or StrongLifts.

SS and SL are both pretty simple programs -- they each have five different exercises; you do squats every work out and two of the other four on alternating workouts, so if you like more variety, the New Rules books also do compound type lifts; they just have different kinds and have more dumbbell work instead of just basic barbell lifts.

Hi, and welcome!

My tips would be:
- Find two days a week where you go to the gym. Plan it as a fixed appointment.
- Do everything exercise with minimum weight or bodyweight first time, really pay attention to the movement and the muscles involve.
- Then, every time (not just from workout to workout but from set to set) use more weight until it becomes a challenge.
- Pay attention to the position of your spine.
- When in doubt, keep to the plan.
- When it hurts in a bad way, don't keep to the plan. There are always other ways to do it.
- You can be more stubborn than iron and win, but only as long as you pay attention to it. Never go at it in a state of mind where your focus is somewhere else. (You are doing yoga, so you probaly do not need that tip... I did.)
- Everyone in the gym whose opinion might be relevant to you has other things to do than judge people who are dedicated and working hard.
- Everyone was a newbie once.

I am doing NRoLfW, which I'm fine with execpt for some of the abs exercises -- my back does not like spine-bending stuff. I had consiered Stumptous "Less thinking more doing", but a more detailed program works better for me.

Despite having been at that gym for years, when I started the program I was terrified that the gym's trainers would yell at me for touching the free weights and doing stuff without being told to. (I had gym teachers yell at me a lot in school.) None ever did. Nor did they when I started schlepping stuff around which I needed for the less common exercises. Neither did any of the guys. Or the gals.

Then I was scared that people would laugh about me attempting the balance exercises (which start in stage 2) and look very silly doing them. I had a small speech prepared. I never needed it.

And finally, having good upper body strength is fun. I feel like Pippi Longstocking when I haul cat litter up the stairs to my flat ;-)