Hi all,

I'm thirtyish, somewhat obese, and out of shape. I want to do it all - lose fat, get ripped, add some muscle (I've done weight training in the past and am somewhat muscular, but would like to refine that) and drastically improve my cardio fitness. I started to do a little running with my wife last year (we enrolled in the Running Room's "Learn to Run" program and bought decent shoes), but she got pregnant shortly after we started and was unable to continue. I know, lame excuse, but there it is.

Is there a "starting point"? Is there a point-by-point program? I realise the most important thing is to just get started, but I'd like to do it in a reasonable fashion that doesn't expose me to risk of injury, boredom, etc. In particular, I am recovering (nearly 100%) from a rotator cuff injury and have no desire to re-injure. I don't know how I injured it in the first place, but it wasn't weight training - I haven't done any for years now.

I have a reasonable universal machine, and a cheap elliptical, but no free weights or bench (yet). And I have no interest in keto-based diets. I need someone to tell me "do this, this, and this".

All responses welcome!

Thanks,

Patrick Ryan

Not to sound like a dick, but what you actually need to do is look around for yourself and read about "Doing this, doing this, doing this..." on the boards. Every topic conceivable has been answered, and most beginner questions get answered daily. I would browse the different forums as well as use the very powerful search function to find posts about more specific topics.

That being said, basically you need to get your diet, cardio, and lifting sorted out. All are open to much speculation and endless variation. However, here's a start. Diet should be in a ratio of 40% carbs 40% protein 20% fat if you are generally trying to lose weight (commonly referred to as 40/40/20). Write down EVERYTHING you eat, there are some Excel spreadsheets available around the forum. Avoid saturated fats and sugars. That is an EXTREMELY brief rundown...

Cardio plan on around 4 times per week. Read up on HIIT (hi intensity) or just do it the old fashioned way. Lifting can also be done a million different ways, poke around the weight training forum.

Just take everyones advice with a grain of salt, always stay open to new ideas but dont believe everything you hear, and most importantly just make some choices and stick with them, keep what works and change what doesn't. Good luck, hope to see you around.

Well, im going to tell you what i did, see if it fits your goal

1.- Sit down with pen and pencil and make some desitions
a) DO you want to join a gym?
b) Do you want to purchase equipment and work at home?

If you choose option A, then you should start looking for gyms around your home that are close to your home, and fit to your economical status. I'd choose a gym i can walk or bike to.

If you choose option B, you should talk with your wife about selectin an area of the house specifically for the gym equipment, it should be a well lit, well ventiladed area. I personally owned a lot of elliptical/towel hanger apparatus that just sit collecting dust

2.- Once you decided either gym or home, decide what is your imediate reallistic goal. If you are fat, you are NOT going to get ripped in 3 or 4 months, you should average a 1-2 pound loss per week so be realistic...Also bear in mind if you would like to get thin and slim like most of us here or if you want to be a body bulider, if you choose to be a body builder you should think about the sacrifices (food,time) you are going to make....I think most of us here in the forums are aiming for the " Men's Health model physique"

3.- Using this guide (http://forums.johnstonefitness.com/showthread.php?t=1222) calculate your numbers, decide the average caloric intake you should eat.

4.- Set a proper schedule for your meals and excercise routines, and try to follow them accordingly

5.- I think the best way to start an excercise routine would be 30 min cardio (biking, running, elliptical) 5 times a week for 2 weeks, after that you can start doing weights

6.- Read the forums, and decide wich weight routines are the best for you, i recommend for starters a 5 day week, 2 days cardio, 3 days weights, 1 day chest and shoulders, 2 day arms, 3 day lower body.

But remember, if you want to get fit, then GET fit as someone once said EITHER DO OR DON'T, THERE IS NO TRY.......The one thing worse than a quitter is the person who is afraid to begin. :claphigh:

...The one thing worse than a quitter is the person who is afraid to begin. :claphigh: Do you have a source for that quote, or did you coin that one?

I love it and want to know who I should be giving credit to :)

First off, welcome to the forum! I started five months ago and I've lost a little over 50 lbs. I'll give you a list of the things that I did and also include some things I wish I'd done.
Sit down and make a reasonable and written list of goals. How much weight do you want to lose, what body fat% do you want to reach and what date you expect to achieve the results.
Take pictures of yourself and record body measurements
Establish a clean diet consisting of lean protein, low GI carbohydrates and good fats.
After you get the diet going, start a cardio program. Depending on your current shape, you may want to start out easy and build up.
Establish a weight training program
Weigh and measure yourself weekly and keep records

Yes, these are only very general guidelines but you said it yourself. The best thing to do is to simply get started. You can study for hours on end and never get a step by step program put together. Just get started, learn as you go, and tweak the program as you go along.

If you want a program to start with, just go look at John's records. You can't go wrong by following his plans. Go look at Body for Life, Jeremy Likness' site, bodybuilding.com, or search this website. There's tons of information available.

I'd like to say "Good Luck" but luck has nothing to do with it. Determine that you're going to do it and go for it!

The quote i found it somewhere but i dont know who is it from, sorry

2. Take pictures of yourself and record body measurements


Definitely do this! I was so embarassed with my body when I started that I didn't take pictures. I wish I had now as my first pictures start after I had already lost 15 pds. Would be nice to have a beginning picture for comparisons.

Thanks to all who responded - lots of good info!

Bo, you're probably quite right that every topic has been answered, but that's a bit like drinking from a firehose. I think I need a bit more background before I even know what questions to look for answers to!

Roy, thanks for the link that that nutrition guide. I've used it to generate my own Excel spreadsheet and it's already looking very useful. How critical is the 5-6 small meals per day schedule? It's a bit difficult to prepare meals when I'm at my office. I think I'm already seeing why so many fitness folks use protein supplelements and meal replacements - one, it's hard to get the right protein levels with just "normal" food and two, you can drink your protein shake at your desk, right?

ThatOldGuy - I was planning on taking a photo yesterday but forgot, and was in too much of a rush this AM. Definitely tomorrow morning. I'm hoping to get enough space cleared out in my under-construction basement to set up my equipment and start my cardio and weight program this weekend as well. How critical is measuring body fat at this stage, and how much should I expect to spend on the equipment necessary to measure it?

Thanks again guys - I've officially started and will keep at it! :tu:

Patrick Ryan

"I'd like to say "Good Luck" but luck has nothing to do with it. Determine that you're going to do it and go for it!"

Best. quote. ever!!!

you're probably quite right that every topic has been answered, but that's a bit like drinking from a firehose. I think I need a bit more background before I even know what questions to look for answers to!

I know exactly how you feel. There's a ton of information to try to absorb. To make matters worse, there are lot's of contradictions. Just about the time you think you know what to do, you read something that tells you to do just the opposite!

I like to analyze things as much as anyone but I think you're better off to keep it simple at first. I still don't count calories and track micro nutrients. I've lost 55 lbs of pure fat and it's still coming off. Of course, when you have that much fat to lose, nearly anything will work!

Keep reading and it'll all start making sense pretty soon.