Workout Wednesday: 9 Tips to Start Lifting for People Who Never Lifted Before

            I know when I’m at the gym, deep in a set at the squat bar and pushing my last set out the best I can, I see them. A group of people (generally girls) who want to work out. They always seem to come in at least pairs, and they hop on machines, do about 9 reps, then leave. They don’t remove weights (if any), don’t wipe down the machine, and they don’t come back. Usually, it’s mostly core machines, with bad form and phones out, with a squat bar thrown in if they heard squats make cute butts. I find it insane the lack of know-how before memberships are paid for at gyms.

But...

            I also know what it’s like to walk into a gym and have no idea how to do anything. I was lucky that my friends lifted and showed me how, and that my school also had a body building club, and I soon got workout buddies. They taught me the basics, showed me the ropes, and know I go in there with a devil may care face and blasting music by myself almost every day. I’m eternally grateful for my lifting habit, and I don’t want the initial intimidation of the church of iron to stop anyone from conquering the idea to better themselves.

1      1. Focus on a group a day

Hopping around on machines, from core to arm to back, isn’t building enough to have any results. If you are group hopping, you might see results in a year rather than a handful of weeks. Say its leg day: then you only really want to do legs. Squats, leg press, leg extension, lunges, kick-backs, leg curls, etc. 

.      2. Do Reps

Picking up a weight and lifting it to 7 before putting it down and abandoning it isn’t going to do anything. A muscle group has to be worked (hence the term “working out”) before it starts to rebuild stronger. Doing reps (usually in 3s but I do 4s, I’ve heard people do 5s, but 3s is the easiest to start with) where let’s say it’s a bicep curl. Going straight to failure, you stop at say 26. If you do it in reps of 15, you do 15 once, take a minute break, do 15 again, take a break, and then finish with 15 more. You just did 45 rather than 26, almost doubling the output and doubling the outtake of growth.

Great article to check out to explain it more in-depth: http://www.examiner.com/article/why-do-reps-matter

3    3. Hydrate

Hydration is a key to health period, and I am avid on water drinking (but sadly a coffee addict so I even struggle with this). It also makes working out so much easier, and sweating doesn’t hurt (I know it sounds strange, but post a paper pushed evening of a grande coffee and no water, sweating feels like someone sprinkled poison powder on me and I was dying). It is much easier to work out already hydrated, with your muscles well supplied and lubricated to do the movements, plus it is just fundamental to one’s health.

4      4. Have a set goal in mind

Do you want to lose weight? Then do high rep with low weight (ex: do 15s with a 5lb dumbbell). If you want to get big, do low rep with high weight (ex: do 5s with a 15lb dumbbell). My numbers aren’t a rule here, I just wanted to make it easy to understand.

.      5. Diet

Getting in shape is 70% diet, 30% exercise (as one of my friends told me). Your muscles literally tear themselves apart when you lift, so they need protein to build themselves up stronger afterwards. It’s like building a house, if you want to knock your house down to build a bigger house, you are going to need more supplies than what the previous house was made of. Protein gives you those supplies. Also, there needs to be a balance of what you eat for what you want. Since I can’t go over every piece, here is a good link for specific goals: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/meal-plan-for-every-guy.html

And another explaining further: http://www.muscleandfitness.com/nutrition/meal-plans/build-muscle-stay-lean-meal-plan

.      6. Don’t be afraid to ask for help

The awesome thing about working out is it is hard work you can immediately see. If someone is pretty jacked, you bet they know what they are doing, and I have never had an issue if I was stuck with asking someone for help. People love to talk about their passion and interests, and if they are body building being asked body building questions, generally they hop right on it. I’ve even been asked for help a couple times, and it is a great feeling.

.     7. Take proper rest cycles

Even if you want a flat tummy and cute butt, don’t forget to balance out. Do upper body every other day, same with lower body (I usually wait two solid days before I repeat even something I am adamantly wanting to get better at).

      8. Consistency is what builds muscles

Going once a week isn’t going to give much in term of results, especially with core. There needs to be a minimum of three strength days a week to start getting any noticeable improvement. Consistency is the difference between success and failure, rippling abs and muffin top. You get what you put in in the gym, you cheat the reps and “I’ll go tomorrow” and you won’t get anything out of it. 

      9. Working out is work.

It’s going to hurt. You are going to be tired. You are going to want to stop, but you have to keep going until muscle failure if need be. It’s not all steamy bikinis and beautiful hair, its gross and sweaty. There will be grunting (I have a friend who straight yells in the gym), everyone is hurting and pushing past the hurt. You have to want it. There are limits, and they are easy to figure out once you start going, but the amazing thing is, is that you see those limits expanding. Added weights become proof of the hard work that is being put in, and that feeling is amazing.

Fun Facts to help motivate you:

-Muscle burns fat. Just having muscle means your body is consuming more calories – which means just having muscle makes you leaner. It’s like a sponge, the muscle absorbs the fat around it, the bigger the muscle, the more is absorbs.

-Cute butts aren’t always born, but they most definitely can be made.

-Working out keeps you looking young and feeling young.

-Stronger bones, Weight lifting is heavy work, and it’s not just your muscles that get stronger, but your bones, too. In order to support that extra weight, not only of the weights but of the muscles as well so they don’t break, the bone becomes more reinforced. Since women in general have bone issues that start around their 40s, this is plus for everyone.

Remember: It takes a month for you to see results, three months for others to notice

Staying Single: And Why This Is an Indispensable Skill

I have a theory that our society teaches us that in order to be full we have to be in a relationship. In order to be happy we have to have someone. Whenever I get upset or overly passionate about say, books, I tell some of my coworkers and I get the response, “you need to find yourself a man.” When my father was falling ill in health and I was emotionally collapsing, I kept being told, “it will be better when you find yourself a boyfriend.” Is my boyfriend going to magically make my father not die? Is he going to make all the pain go away? No. A boyfriend couldn’t do that, and to be honest, looking for a boyfriend for the sake of having one could probably cause more problems than not.

Wanting to be in a relationship, even if you don’t say it out loud, is selling yourself short. Someone can show interest, and for the idea of a relationship you might accept it regardless if you even like that person or if that person bothers you. If you want to stay single, however, it cuts a great deal of stress and drama from your life as you don’t deal with not having what you want.

But why? Why the emphasis on being in a relationship (especially for women)? Society puts that label on us that we should want to be in a relationship, that we don’t feel complete without someone to do it for us. The prince saving the princess, and her not really doing anything. But that is not how it works – humans are too complex for a start. At the end of high school and the end of college, I see a great deal of rings being waved all over my newsfeed of engagement announcements. As there is the ideal of love, there could also be a stronger feeling driving some the vows: fear. The fear of the unknown, the fear of being alone, the fear of facing the big, cold world alone. I know because that fear slapped me hard in the face, and of all my friends, too.

Being able to be independent and alone is a valuable life trait no one seems to teach anymore. At the end of a relationship, separated from grievances, relocation, a falling apart, or even death, you are going to have to face things alone in life. From the moment of our birth to the breath of death, we are an individual. When someone dies, that grief is a heavy, solitary feeling.  Might as well give yourself that power now, younger, when you need it, especially to get yourself through life and to get that dream you are so after as no one will chase that dream but you (because no one can but you). Being single and learning these skills makes life so much easier later, as you don’t care if you are getting groceries by yourself. Death will come, and being able to be alone will make the transition through grief much stronger and easier as there won’t be any dependency.

Being able to be single successfully also keeps off abuse. A common factor of abuse is dependency, lack of self-worth, and fear. Learning to be single makes one independent, worthwhile, and capable of handling life. Life is easier to face when you can take care of yourself, and the fear of being alone starts to vanish rather than drown. But learning to be single is a choice, the choice to stay single. Being single doesn’t mean that there isn’t hunting for a significant other, but you can’t hunt for one as that’s when you settle for less than what you deserve. Don’t settle, do what’s best for you. And if that is being single for the time being, then so be it.

Putting “staying single” is also not sent in stone, it’s more of a promise to yourself to do what’s best for you. But, if someone comes along that is so amazing that that resolution just snaps in half without you even realizing it: then that is a relationship you should be in. That is healthy and real. It was only when I determinedly decided “I’m going to be single and focus on myself” did those amazing people fall into my life like opening a window to rain after a drought. One of those people changed me for the better, and I wouldn’t be the person I am today without that person, and I met him from that goal of staying single. So I’m setting the goal again, right out of college, so I can focus on my dream and my career. And I know for a fact that if I was in a relationship, I would settle now, when it is not a time to settle. It is a time to grow, and I want to grow as big as I possibly can. 

 Being single means you focus on yourself and what makes you happy

Dreams vs. Goals: What's the Difference?

Almost everyone has dreams, aspirations for the future; a dot on the map to go running after. However, if you don’t have a plan, how do you expect to move closer to it? What direction do you start running?

A goal without a deadline is just a dream.

Let me write that one out again.

A goal without a deadline is just a dream.

Let’s compare this to a road trip. They are long, and the world is wide. You need experience, discipline, skill, and time. Let’s say you have never driven a road trip, and then this is a bit more difficult for you to comprehend what’s ahead.

Who is going to be driving the car?  You. There is only one person who can take you to your dreams, and that is you. People can give you good directions, or bad ones. Some can help you rest, some can encourage you on. But no one can drive for you. You have to want it, and you can’t stop.

So where is your destination? A blurred dot on a blotched map, and you have to figure out a way to get to that location. The way to clear the map so you know what paths need to be taken to reach your dream? Research. Let’s say you want to be a teacher. What is required of a teacher? A license, a Bachelor’s, experience. How do you get these things? The internet is a beautiful thing, and so are your coworkers, friends, family, teachers and professors. Not everyone knows everything, but everyone knows some of something. It’s a good start to lighting your way.

Exhaustion, traffic, possible car failure, accidents, varying terrain, weather: the list goes on of things you will experience. But that experience will only make you better, just keep going.

There are also going to be obstacles in the way: but they are there for a reason. They are there to prove how badly you want something. Other people that get to that wall will let them stop, but if you really want something, you will find your way around.

If there weren’t obstacles, then everyone would be a doctor. Everyone would be a professional model, or photographer, and for that the work quality would diminish. Obstacles are there for a reason, so only the people who truly want those jobs will get those jobs.

Let’s use me as an example here.

I have been drawing since kindergarten. I remember teachers going around with my art and showing the other classes what I did for years. Sounds like the beginning a great artist, right?

Not really.

I have a lot of talent as an artist: I notice too many things for it not to be true. But for me, it’s not my calling. I have trouble create what’s in my head onto paper with paint – a lot of trouble. I know what it takes to be an artist, to practice. Constantly. I even have connections through art professors and opportunities, but I know it’s not what I want to do.

That obstacle to become a professional artist did its job with me – it made me turn away. To my own brick wall – writing.

I’ve had a dream since I was a little girl, 13 to be exact, that I wanted to be a writer. A novelist exactly, my escapism of reading books atop a labyrinth of fallen trees in the woods. Although, I don’t just say that I want to be a writer. I write. And I read more than I write. I research. I watch interviews, I go to readings, I do everything I possibly can to get better.

My dream to be a professor: how I am making it a goal.

I found a graduate program with a teaching fellowship where I will be able to teach college classes and in exchange they waive the tuition – I am poor and on my own. This program alone is a dream for people like me. Although, this program is competitive; highly competitive. How am I going to get ready for this? Its one thing to like something – now I have to prove to them why I would be a great applicant for this program.

What I am going to do:

- I am applying to tutoring.

- I’m talking to my professors.

- I’m trying to job shadow not only my professors but high school teachers, as well.

- I’m keeping all of my school work for class planning examples.

- I’m touring the school and asking as many questions as I can about the program.

- I went to the faculty page and am reading the books that my MFA professors wrote (this is actually how I picked the school I want, if their writing style was what I wanted mine to mold into).

- I plan to meet the professors and getting them to put a face to my name, and hopefully show them how badly I want the fellowship.

This video is actually a great example of making your dreams come true, and it is funny. So pour yourself some tea and get a notepad, I watch this video frequently and highly recommend everything he says.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji5_MqicxSo