16 y/o weight lifting newb with question.

[Ant00]

Hey guys.


I just turned 16 in April, and have been intrested in putting some muscle on myself for the past few months. I'm 6'2, and just lost like 7 inches off my waist and about 30 pounds over the past 6 months that I gained in the previous year. This was lost mostly through eating better, not really from doing cardio.

It seems I lost a decent amount of muscle along with the fat unfortunetly. I'm currently a relatively lanky looking boney 6'2 guy who's got twigs for arms and I seem to be weaker than I used to be . Granted I still feel alot better than I did when I was overweight, but I would like to bulk up abit.

So there's this place near my house that has a pretty new and good quality fitness room that only charges a small fee per session that I would like to go to, but the problem is I've never really lifted weights before. All I know is some basic free weight exercises, (not from experience but just from seeing them being done) what reps and sets are, basic stretchs from school, and muscle names, but thats about it. I don't know anybody intrested in this stuff that could teach me or anything like that either.

So I'm wondering, will I be ok if I go in there to learn by watching others, reading the diagrams posted on the machines and off the internet, and just figuring this stuff out by myself? Or do I really need someone to show me how on a personal level? I really don't think I could afford a personal trainer.

Any advice appreciated. And sorry for the post length.

 

[spatts]

Ant, welcome!

Here's what I might do if I were you: There are two "stickies" up at the top of the forum. Go to the training methods sticky, find one you like, and then ask a lot of questions about it and let us help you get started. Stick with one program and be patient; give it time to work. Once you picked a program and you're ready to learn, go to the other sticky that has all the videos and pictures. This is a GREAT resource for the proper form to use on various movements. Once you get going, start a training journal thread in this forum so we can offer tips and suggestions on your workouts.

READ, READ, READ...and we'll help when you get stuck.

 

[Devastation]

Little bro, check these links out. At your age if you started Westside and stuck with it for a few years, you could really do some great things.

Read and learn as much as you can. and never quit doing that.

http://boards.elitefitness.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=238221

http://boards.elitefitness.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=238682

 

[spatts]

 

[Devastation]

lol. yeah thanks for beating me to it spatts.

 

[spatts]

Great minds....

 

[Advaik]

exrx.net for form

 

[Liftbig]

try and find some people to train with, of someone you can at least learn from.

 

[Debaser]

Westside is awesome but I think he should do something different if he's just starting out. Dave Maurice has an interesting beginner's routine that seems to work pretty well, here is the thread off hardgainer magazine:

This thread is for those of you that are just picking up a barbell for the first time, though it also applies to those who recently (past few months) started but still haven't made much progress. We need a thread dedicated to your situation. To start it off, what follows are some guidelines you can use to get on the right track.

1) Limit your routine to "big" movements only. Do not waste your time with calf exercises, arm exercises, grip exercises, or rotator cuff exercises. There will be plenty of time for these later. For now, just do what we call "big" movements. Here is the entire list of "big" movements: squats, deadlifts, leg presses, chin-ups/pulldowns, rows, dips, bench presses, overhead presses. You won't do all of these, but if it isn't on the list, don't do it! (Special exceptions - abdominal exercises and shrugs.)

2) Do the same routine every time you workout. Until you become very proficient at doing those few movements, you will get stronger faster if you just keep doing the same lifts, over and over and over.

3) Train two or three times per week, or just train every other day or every third day. Again, you will get stronger faster if you practice the lifts more frequently.

4) For each movement, do two or three work sets with the same weight and for the same number of repetitions. Once again, you will get stronger faster if you keep practicing the lifts.

To illustrate, here is a sample program.

Squat. Three sets of 10 - 12 reps.
Overhead press. Barbell or dumbbell. Three sets of 8 - 10 reps.
Deadlift or shrugs. Three sets of 8-10 reps. See note below.*
Chin-ups, pulldown machine, DB rows, or machine rows. Three sets of 8-10 reps.
Dips, barbell bench press, or dumbbell bench press. Two sets of 8 - 10 reps.
Crunches. Two sets of 10-15 reps.

* If you are just starting out, do the deadlift every time. When you get good at this, you can alternate from workout to workout between deadlifts and shrugs.

You should be able to complete this routine in an hour, once you know how to do all the lifts. The first couple of times it may take longer. If you are pressed for time, just do the first four movements. In that case, forget about the bench or dips, but try to do the crunches at home when you get time.

Don't add weight to any lift until you can complete all of your sets while maintaining good form. It is normal while learning to have some wobbling, and it would not be unreasonable to stick at the same weights for a month (when you first start) before adding weight. You want to be in control. After you have that control, you should be able to add weight at least once per week.

Besides lifting, here are some areas you should be working on:

1) Diet. Unless your diet has been very poor, don't worry about adding calories or protein to try to gain weight. Let your appetite dictate how much you eat, and let clean food be your diet. That means eat as much fish, lean meat, low fat dairy, fresh vegetables, fresh fruit, whole grains (and no other grains) and legumes as you feel like eating. Drink lots of water. No soda, no junk food, no packaged food. If you have diet questions, please pose them on the Diet Forum.

2) Conditioning. If you haven't been exercising, start using a rowing machine, a versa-climber, or swimming. You will make faster progress with the weights, including gaining weight if that is your desire, if you are in good condition. If you have questions about conditioning, please pose them on the Health Forum.

3) Flexibility. Learn to stretch, and learn a few stretches specific to your needs. Do them regularly after your workouts. These will help your lifting. If you have questions about stretching, please ask them in the Health Forum.

 

[SofaGeorge]

Ant,

First, welcome aboard - and keeping coming back. As you develop your routine you will be able to ask more questions, tweak your workouts etc... through this forum. There are some very knowledgeable people here.

Second, it may be too early for you to decide... but you need to consider what your training goals are going to be: bodybuilding? powerlifting? training for a sport? These will be important in helping you decide how you want to train.

When I was your age I was 6'2" at 150lbs. I'm now 6'4" at 242 lbs. You can realistically add on about 15 lbs of muscle a year at your age... so you can be weighting in at 180-190lbs of muscle by the time you are 18.

I started bodybuilding inadvertantly. In high school I was a competative martial artist. This was the era when full contact fighting was just starting... and I was desperate to raise my weight so that I could compete in higher divisions. Back then we were "weightlifters" not powerlifters or bodybuilders. We trained for strength and size together. I found that the more I lifted the better I liked the way I looked and I loved seeing my strength and size go up... and pretty soon I was hooked.

Keep coming back, bro. This is the land where dreams come true.