Thursday, August 17th, 2006...11:25 am

I’m a member of a gym

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Thanks to Janice’s help, I just signed up for the gym (you can’t beat $370 a year). Starting Sept. 1st I’ll be ‘getting my work out on,’ as the kids say. Plus I’ll be able to look at all the lovely ladies in the gym, which isn’t so bad either (though my will most likley avert their gaze when they see me).

3 Comments

Filed under Exercise, Planning

3 Comments

  • Marisa
    August 18th, 2006 at 10:24 am

    Good job!

  • Julie
    August 19th, 2006 at 4:13 am

    I’ve belonged to many gyms in my life and I always have gym anxiety when I first start going. While you may not be as anxious as I am in general, I’ll still say that the anxiety will pass. Basically everyone at a gym is completely absorbed in themselves, not worrying about how fit you are or not. At least that’s what I tell myself to get over the initial fear.

  • Big-O
    August 23rd, 2006 at 5:49 am

    I don’t know if you’re getting a personal trainer at the gym or not, but I would recommend several things to get the most out of it. I know a lot of it is covered in the 20 mistakes post, but there are several things to bear in mind that I find helpful.

    1. You can’t build muscle on the same day as you do cardio. You’ve got a conflict of interest and you will ultimately starve the muscles of the nutrients they need unless you take in some major calories and that will be counter to what you are trying to accomplish. Hence, don’t lift on the same day as you use the treadmill or bike or stair climber, keep them separate. But DO lift, added muscle mass can go a long way towards burning fat, even while sitting. The only exception to this rule should be abs. Do setups EVERY day. It’s very important to build strength in your body’s core, it’s typically the weakest link. How many you ask? Until it burns so much you can’t do any more, then wait 3 minutes, and do it again.

    2. I’m going to venture a guess that because of your size, you really don’t need to lift very much with your legs, you’ve probably got some leg muscles that would make the gov of california envious. Let your cardio workouts take care of those and help with toning.

    3. Don’t lift more than 3-4 times a week, muscle needs time to rebuild. Also don’t try to do every muscle group in one day, pick a few complimentary groups that you can focus on one day and change it for the next lifting day. By complimentary, I mean groups that work together, like back and biceps, chest and triceps, etc…

    4. Keep your heartrate up when at the gym, I recommend getting something like this:
    http://www.polar-usa.us/polar-f6.html
    And set it so that when your heart rate drops below some set rate, it beeps, signalling you to get moving. It’s the ultimate motivator.

    5. BE CONSISTANT. Set a schedule and STICK TO IT. Eg. Lift Monday, Bike Tuesday, Treadmill Wednesday, Lift Thursday, Sleep Friday, etc… But allow yourself downtime, and with the weather as it is, you can replace some of those gym cardio days with long walks or something outdoors.

    6. Start out light, don’t jump straight to whatever weight you can handle, start at half that and work up to a good weight over the next couple of months. Give every little muscle and ligament the chance to catch up.

    7. WATER IS YOUR FRIEND. When you are your size and losing that much weight, you’re going to be shedding a LOT of water. Your body will tell you that you are hungry, but in reality, you need to replenish fluids. You should be drinking at least a gallon of water a day, I kid you not.

    8. Call me anytime, hey I was your roomate for 4 years, if you don’t think I want to help, your sadly mistaken :)

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