Beginning exercise plan

[Domenic]

Hi all,

I was thinking I should probably start some kind of regular exercise program, just for general health purposes. I will explain more about my situation later, but basically this is just because I know exercising is healthy and should be done on a more regular basis than I am doing it---not for any weight-loss or training reasons. (Although, being more attractive is always a plus.) I thought it would be important to get some kind of guidance from people who actually know something, rather than just starting on my own and perhaps getting frustrated.

I am 185 cm (6'1"), 68 kg (150 lbs), and feel reasonably fit as-is; while running can be tiring (more so than for active athletes, I'm pretty sure), extended fast-walking and generally walking for a mile or two to go off-campus are not strenuous at all. For strength, I feel pretty weak; I have no idea how much I can bench press, but we're talking in the vicinity of 15 push-ups and 2 or 3 weights on those standard exercise machines (y'know, with the stacks of weights and you slide a pin in, then you sit down and pull on bars or whatnot). I have generally been doing aerobic exercise, say 0.5-1 hour sessions, anywhere between 0 and 3 times per week for the past month or so, leaning toward the 0 and 1 side. I am a vegan.

So! I'd like someone to help me construct, or find resources for constructing, a good daily exercise plan. I would prefer both aerobic and strength training, plus some stretching (although I'm not sure I'd go far enough to call it "flexibility training"). My school has a well-equipped gym available, so I can use treadmills, stairmasters, stationary bikes, all different kinds of weight machines, etc. And I personally have an exercise ball in my room, which I mainly use as a chair and for some basic stretches. Of course, push-ups and curl-ups and such are nice, since I don't have to walk to the gym (which is 10 minutes away from my dorm) in order to do anything. I don't really want to be running outside; I'd rather use a treadmill for that, since I can then read my textbooks while running. I'd like to not consume too much time per day---somewhere in the range (0, 60] minutes would be nice.

I'm basically just looking for something, probably easy to start out, that will raise my level of fitness, energy, healthiness, etc. Specific suggestions for exercises, timings, and things to eat/drink (or not to eat/drink) along with such a program are appreciated.

Thanks!

[twa2w]

Well if you don't mind doing something different you could try panaerobics ie Heavyhands. It will build strength and endurance at the same time and depending on your approach also felxibility.
Sources. A book called heavyhands: the ultimate exercise - out of print but widely available used.
Look up the website. http://www.heavyhandsfitness.com/content.aspx?idx=4
or for some comments on the excercise go to cbass.com.

Lots of people claim this does not work but I assure you it does unless you want to look like Arnold. For alaround toning and fitness it is one of the most efficient.

I use a medley fo between 10 and 20 excercies at about 1-2minutes per excercise depending on the weight used and if you go hard it can be brutal. its a short workout - no rests, and you have three variables you can control depending on your goals.
If yu do it in public be prepared for plenty of stares.
There is also a Yahoo group that supports this but it is not heavily used as heavyhands kinda died out inthe 80's ecause people didn't use them properly.

Cheers
J

[rbhambha]

Hey,

Congratulations on starting a new exercise plan!

I won't write much in this reply because I've recently written an article that covers this subject rather well.

Check it out here: 7 Tips to Get More out of Your Workout

Good luck!

Rahul

[silicon toad2000]

what exactly do you want to achieve?

one thing I want to stress is that nutrition is equally important as the exercise you do.
If you want to build muscle mass you will need to ensure you have sufficient protein intake and ensure that you consume more calories than you expend. I would normally say fish, chicken and steamed veggies but since you're a vegan you might want to go with a protein supplement and nuts.
to start off with in building muscle I would suggest maybe some basic movements such as squats, bench press, crunches, shoulder presses and some curls. pick a weight you can do 15 reps with, rest 30 seconds and do as many as you can, rest and then as many as you can again. Each time you work out make sure you add a rep to the second set until you reach 15 and then add a rep to the last set until you reach 15, once you get 3 sets of 15 reps increase the weight and start again.
I'd suggest alternate days weights-aerobics-weights-..... and 1 day off a week.
this is just a general guide, should provide a good start until you decide you want to hone in on an aspect of your fitness, tone or size.

[rocksupreme]

To get started, anything you do consistently will be an improvement - just so long as you don't push yourself to the point of injury. Trying to find the perfect program will often cause more problems than just beginning a modest regimen of some light calisthenics or weight training.

One thing I can recommend is FlowFit, which was referenced in another thread. It's a free DVD (you pay shipping), but there are thousands of us who paid $40 for it in the past and continue to use it. It uses bodyweight strength and conditioning exercises in an intuitive progression that will get you in shape without risking injury or overtraining. It's also simple to do in a small space and requires no equipment.

Good luck.