I am 39 (40 in dec), 6’3in, waist 36in, body fat 19%, total cholesterol of 5.4, 212lbs and an 8 litre lung capacity and want to really get in shape so that I can enter my 40’s looking not too shabby.
I think I’d rather go down the physique route than the bulking route and injury wise I am not doing too badly although have had a ruptured achilles a partial cartiledge removal from one of my knees as a result of playing rugby. Neither give me any problems although I do try and keep running and any activities that involve rapid stop/starting and pivoting to a minimum (ie badminton) but I do do some (probably not enough) swimming and mountain biking.
As an aim, I’d like to get to 10% ish body fat and shrink my waist to about 33in and to tone up noticably. I don’t mind if my weight doesn’t move too much as I’m not chasing a weight figure specifically, but I do want to be able to present myself well.
I am no stranger to a gym but historically have worked inconsistently towards goals and hence have never properly achieved them. Work wise I am deskbound and with 2 kids under 3 the best time to train is going to be at the local gym before work so 6.30am to 8am sort of time.
I have done some reading around and am becoming more confused, so I’d like some help with a plan for the sorts of exercise or a suggested routine, frequency, no. sets/ reps, amount of cardio (if any at all) and what sort of stuff I should and should not be eating as well as whether I need to start watching calorie or aim for a specific number of calories and be watching fat intake.
All in all, any advice or pointers to get me started would be greatly appreciated.
Good day sir. while we all had a point in time that we were beginners, there is the universal golden thing any collection of message board people put forward to new lifters. It is asked that the board be first scoured for existing threads that preanswer much of what you ask, the search function with different combinations of key words is great for digging up threads from farther back. Your questions have been likely asked and answered a number of times.
Try to aim for your diet being 5% fewer calories every day than you need to maintain current body weight (lean tissue).
Also, if you have what you think is a bit of a gut, abdominal work can be helpful. what i do is situps twice a week. Once aiming for twist situps with a weight plate behind my head that challenges me for 4 sets of up to 5 reps EACH side each set. The other day I aim for regular situps with a heavier plate 4 sets of up to 5 reps. I don’t have a decline board at home here like you might at your gym, so that is a bonus if you have that.
When you get closer to an idea of a program, the selection of exercises with instructions and a video how to execute each can be found here:
I’m a bit confused. You say you’re 6’3", which is tall, and chubby at 212 lbs, yet only have a 36 in waist? Man, I haven’t had a 36 waist for years, and I’m not as big as you.
Cavalier I said shabby (ie looking old and in bad condition), not chubby. Ie I want to head into my forties looking good ie relatively athletic and toned.
As for my diet, I try to eat reasonably well, ie foods will less than 5% per 100g fat, vegetarian 2x per week, 5 pieces of fruit per day, curries are minimal, only go out once per week but will consume 5 or 6 pints in that evening, probably it is the free biscuits at work and the lack of will power / boredom and portion size that is my weakness.
I was thinking volume training 2-3 times per week for a month or so to get me started and work on good form before revisiting the exercise more closely.
I think just getting in the gym three days a week and getting the weights moving for a month is a great idea, and in the meantime you can look around here for some programming ideas while you settle in and really focus on your goals.
A lot on here like 5-3-1 because it provides an easy-to-follow template, is built around the main lifts, and is flexible on the assistance work and can be modified to suit you individual needs. But there lots of ways to skin a cat, and the important thing is to carve out some time and make sure you get in the good habit of getting to the gym and getting some work done.