For those who train in the gym

[Bilbo]

Next year our club will move into a gym so we will get full access to everything there through our membership so I'll probably start strength training. My trainer likes crossfit/HIIT or whatever so probably that.

[Hero*]

well for starters, i train my whole body, not just the same excersises every day. It's all built into a daily schedule for me. For example monday is chest arms and shoulders with light cardio. Tuesday is Back and Core, with light cardio. Wednesday is heavy cardio (i play hockey on wednesdays too, thats why no weights) thursday is arms and chest, friday is legs, back and shoulders. Saturday is core and medium cardio. Sunday is an off day, or whatever i feel like doing (no chest, shoulders or arms though, since thats monday)

That works my entire body out sorta 1 1/2 times a week. I do some things less (legs) because I just honestly don't need them as much.

I hate to read that because that is probably the complete opposite, especially for a hockey player.

Suff: run stairs. do interval training..so run up and down say 3 times then walk up and down three times. repeat. repeat.

To the thread:
Legs are important as any other muscle in the body, if not more important; especially if you want to burn fat.
I usually change my workout every 2months because I find that they get boring.
Usually I'll do
Monday: Chest/Shoulders/interval running
Tuesday: Legs/cardio/interval running
Wednesday:Back
Thursday:Triceps/Biceps/Forearms/cardio
Friday: Rest or light cardio
REPEAT

Always try to avoid machines if you can do the same exercise with free weights. Its better for your muscles because it not only works out the main muscles but also the stabilizer muscles. Always hit muscles at different angles when possible. i.e. incline,decline,flat dumbell press. Also always try to get in at least 4 workouts for each muscle group.

[Nickname]

Hero, I only play ball hockey, and it's for an hour a week. I work Construction, so my legs get a good workout during the day to begin with (you try climbing stairs all day) and when you throw in the fact that i'm 240 lbs, my legs get a good workout from that too.

[Hero*]

Hero, I only play ball hockey, and it's for an hour a week. I work Construction, so my legs get a good workout during the day to begin with (you try climbing stairs all day) and when you throw in the fact that i'm 240 lbs, my legs get a good workout from that too.

ahh - i thought you were saying working out legs weren't important. I guess I can see how that is possible in your case.

[Barton]

I train for dynamic power and not for mass.

I do this for my sport where u need more dynamic power then body mass power. (body mass makes you slow, I need to be fast )

[R1pp3r]

I train for dynamic power and not for mass.

I do this for my sport where u need more dynamic power then body mass power. (body mass makes you slow, I need to be fast )

Plyometric exercises? They own anyhow. :turned:

[Zeebu]

I hate to read that because that is probably the complete opposite, especially for a hockey player.

Suff: run stairs. do interval training..so run up and down say 3 times then walk up and down three times. repeat. repeat.

To the thread:
Legs are important as any other muscle in the body, if not more important; especially if you want to burn fat.
I usually change my workout every 2months because I find that they get boring.
Usually I'll do
Monday: Chest/Shoulders/interval running
Tuesday: Legs/cardio/interval running
Wednesday:Back
Thursday:Triceps/Biceps/Forearms/cardio
Friday: Rest or light cardio
REPEAT

Always try to avoid machines if you can do the same exercise with free weights. Its better for your muscles because it not only works out the main muscles but also the stabilizer muscles. Always hit muscles at different angles when possible. i.e. incline,decline,flat dumbell press. Also always try to get in at least 4 workouts for each muscle group.

said that up in my post too =P

[Reaver]

The routine I do is a 4 day workout. You can obviously start it any day of the week but I start it on Friday because I'm too busy with college during the week.

Friday: Military Press, Seated Dumbbell Press, Dumbbell front raise, Dumbbell lateral Raise, Dumbbell Reverse Fly

Saturday: Wide Grip Pull up, Bent over barbell row, one arm dumbbell row, dumbbell shrugs

Sunday: Barbell Bench Press, Incline Dumbbell Bench Press, Dumbbell Fly, Chest Dip, Close Grip Bench Press, Tricep Kickback, One arm Dumbbell Extension, Skullcrushers

Monday: Standing Barbell Curl, Preacher Curl, Standing Hammer Curl, Concentration Curl, Reverse Barbell Curl,

I intentionally left out a few exercises that you'd need to be a more well rounded lifter such as dead lifts, squats and standing calf raise. If you're looking for a more rounded work out, do the workouts I mentioned above along with those 3 workouts. Additionally, I throw in ab workouts on some of those days and running is extremely important(or extensive bike riding). You can do a tremendous amount of ab workouts but without a proper amount of cardio, most people can't get their abs to show well.

As for nutrition, every day right after I get back from the gym I make a whey protein shake. I put in 100% natural fruit blend (Dr. Smoothie), 1 cup of banana whey protein(GNC), a little bit of milk, crushed flax seed (GNC, you can put the seed in not crushed), 1 banana, 7-9 ice cubes. It's highly important that after every workout you replenish your body with a protein shake or something equally nutritious. There's a ratio on the internet somewhere in regards to carbohydrates, protein and fats. I don't know it off the top of my head. Make sure you eat plenty of noodles and stay way from fast food!

I've been on this workout for a little bit over a month now, I had a different workout before that was successful, but not as successful as this one, so I highly recommend this one for building body mass.

As far as repetitions and sets are concerned, I'm doing 3 sets of each workout, and I'm doing slightly different repetitions for each one. If you want to tone your muscle go for much higher reps (15+), if you're looking to bulk up then lower reps(8-12), but your technique must be perfect. Don't go up too high in weight that you can't properly perform the full range of motion. One of the biggest mistakes I see new weight lifters make is to jump right in with too much weight. Form and technique are much more important than an extra 10lbs. If you can't find out details on the internet on how to do these exorcises, ask me or ask someone at your local gym.

Edit: Heh, surprised I didn't say this. Avoid machines for most things. Free weights are better because they require certain muscles (I think they're called stabilizer muscles) to control the weight from going in directions you don't want it to.

[Hero*]

Everyone has abs, but you can only see them on certain people. If you really want to show off your abs you need a very good diet. Exercise comes second in this case. Try to avoid cardio as it burns muscle along with fat and do interval running which will burn fat and produce muscle.
In regards to toning your muscles or bulking up, I wouldnt necessarily go with the 8-12 for muscle growth and 15+ for muscle toning. recent studies have shown that these 1940techniques aren't as true as they may seem to be. I'll for the article later, I believe it was on menshealth.com. That brings me to another point, for good exercises, tips, nutrition, etc. go to www.menshealth.com; its an awesome tool to get you the way you want to look.

[a21ozcoldcup]

I don't remember who I read about wanting to build muscle... but give your body time to heal between workouts, make sure you stretch the muscles when you can (say before working out and on your off days). And you DO NOT need to work out 5, 6 times a week. 4 days a week is plenty. Any more (depending on your routine) and you risk actually slowing down muscle growth rather than encouraging it. You can find a lot more on this on the internet. If you're into calasthenics versus lifting weights, I recommend checking out some military workout routines, Army and Marines have some good stuff. Oh, one last tip- write down your progress. How many reps you do or how much you can lift. Track your progress, it helps you learn where you need improvement and how far you've come.

[Bioture]

Ah the gym. Home away from home.

I've said this in other excercise threads, but it's very important that you seperate push and pull days (easiest to remember in terms of types of exercises), this way you can lift weights two days in a row, and then have one day to focus on cardio. Rinse and repeat with a day of rest in between.

It's also important that to eat healthier. And make sure you get at least 1/2 your weight converted to grams in protein. So if you're at 170lbs, make sure you get at least 85 grams of protein per day, to keep your body in an anabolic state. Trainers suggest your weight in grams, but I found that to be way too hard unless you're chugging protein drinks three times a day. If you want the natural approach, the best way is to eat a chicken breast and two eggs every day.

Remember that workouts are more effective when you're tired from the day before. For the most part, always do at least 3 full sets of at least 8 reps of any exercise, even if it means you have to go down in weight. Simply maxing out every time you lift is a good way to balloon up but then losing everything when you stop working out for a couple months.

Oh... and go to those yoga classes at the gym. Besides the sometimes hot yoga instructor, it helps you stretch yourself out to prevent injury. Pulling your neck or lower back usually means a few days of recovery time... not to mention the consistent pain.