

Beginner's Health and Fitness Guide - luckystrike
http://www.liamrosen.com/fitness.html

======
gyardley
I can swear by this - I've lost almost forty pounds since New Year's by
cutting out the danishes, making my own lunches, and going to the gym
regularly for weight lifting and cardio.

The only thing I'd add - working out is time-consuming, and getting started at
a gym is both hard and intimidating. Gyms themselves are counting on you to
stop going - that's how they make their money. If you're having trouble
getting started, consider saving up your money and getting a personal trainer
for a few months. The personal trainer will teach you how to use the equipment
properly, get you more comfortable around the gym, and, most importantly, will
be so godawful expensive you won't shrug it off and not bother to go to the
sessions - the pain of wasting all that money will be too much.

Yes, I know this is silly - but I was getting chunkier and chunkier over the
past couple of years and for me that was the only thing that worked. Personal
willpower just wasn't getting it done.

~~~
matwood
First off, great job!

Working out really doesn't take that long. Most studies have shown that a
typical non-steroid using weight training session only needs to last 45
minutes to an hour. After that time period, unless you consuming calories
during the session the results you can get drop off dramatically from
diminishing returns.

I agree that the biggest hurdle with people going to a gym is the intimidation
factor. I'm in the gym 4 times/week and love seeing people who start and keep
going. I want to tell them how awesome it is that they are doing it, but am
never sure if that's the right thing to do some stranger lol.

If you can afford it the personal trainer is a great idea. The only problem is
that many PTs plain out suck. I would try to do a session with one before
committing to anything long term with a particular person. There are
personality and knowledge factors that as a client you want to find out early.

Your story is also very common and is why a friend of mine is opening a gym
that will cater to people who need a PT and are generally intimidated about
the process. Obviously it will be a smaller niche gym, but I think it will
work out pretty well.

~~~
aci
"I want to tell them how awesome it is that they are doing it, but am never
sure if that's the right thing to do some stranger lol."

General heuristic: If you are not sure, if it is right to approach a stranger,
just do it. Really. Talk to them next time.

And don't end your sentences with "lol", please.

~~~
matwood
I go back and forth on things like lol. It's hard to convey in writing when
something should be take lightly or as a joke. Without the standard facial
cues of smiling it's easy to take something the wrong way.

And in general your heuristic is correct, but the gym is an odd place. I'm
pretty social, but would prefer no one talk to me while working out. I'm
usually so busy watching the clock and focusing on the task at hand that I
don't want to seem rude to someone by having to eventually ignore them to
finish my workout.

~~~
henrikschroder
This is why we have these punctuation marks called "smilies". :-)

(I fear that all the image-substitution of smilies will create a generation of
internet users that can't read the original ascii ones...)

------
tyweir
Looks pretty good.

Two points that I'd _not_ follow.

Diet: Eating grains. Gluten is pretty much evil for everyone, including non-
Celiacs. Google for "paleo diet" or "gluten autoimmune" to get a sense of
gluten's impact. Also check out the "Save my Life" HN thread for more info
about gluten-free/paleo. <http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1399450>

Exercise: Cardio, long slow distance is pretty much useless. High intensity
intervals, 200m, 400m repeats will have a much bigger impact. If you really
love endurance, check out <http://crossfitendurance.com/> and google for
"tabata intervals"

~~~
hugh3
Those two points seem to me like fringe advice. I'm sure if I googled "gluten
autoimmune" and "tabata intervals" I'd find a bunch of people agreeing with
you, but no more than I'd find with any number of other fad diets or exercise
regimes.

It'd take a helluva lot of evidence to persuade me that eating grains is bad,
because... heck, grains are tasty, and the vast majority of humans who have
lived over the last five thousand years have had grain-based diets with no
obvious ill effects. Likewise, if you think long slow-distance cardio is
pretty much useless, go watch long-distance runners for a while.

My advice to anyone who is unfit and wants to be fit is to ignore everybody
who's trying to sell you some very specific idea of what you have to do, and
just concentrate on doing the lowest-common-denominator stuff: eat less junk,
do more exercise.

~~~
lpolovets
The research on Tabata intervals is actually pretty interesting:
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-
intensity_interval_trainin...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-
intensity_interval_training)

If you Google for "tabata research", you'll find a number of studies --
including the original paper by Dr Tabata
[<http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8897392>] -- showing that bursts of very
high intensity exercise can have a greater effect on endurance than long,
steady workouts.

On the one hand, I find it counterintuitive (how can sprinting on-and-off for
5 minutes help my endurance more than running for an hour??). On the other
hand, it kind of makes sense, since your body improves most when you really
challenge it, and sprints are generally more challenging than a steady pace.

~~~
tassl
For your last sentence, I think that you have never trained track and field.
While 30-40 minutes of jogging is usually done by athletes, the core training
is done by series of shorter distances that you have to compete with.

As an example, I have been training for 400m the last years. Being a short
distance (although when you reach 300m you feel that is way too long) it is
basically trained by repetitions of shorter distances (150/300). And by
basically I mean that sometimes there will be longer distances (specially off-
season) and tempo.

In general, people that train for 5000, 10000m don't run 1h to train their
endurance. They will do, for example, 25x400m r:30", or shorter distances like
3000, 2000 or 1000.

There is no secret on that, you are using your body to run a higher pace that
is used to, while running 1h will make your body be used to this slower pace
and thus you will not improve your endurance.

If you ask me, I would say that endurance training is not worth it, and that
training high intensity is better for your body.

------
thompo
some extra programs if you're looking for more templated options:

<http://www.rosstraining.com/nevergymless.html>

Ross Enamait's "Never Gymless" - this guy will turn you into a freak of nature
... without a gym. Also be sure to check out "Infinite Intensity" and his
other programs as well.

[http://www.defrancostraining.com/articles/38-articles/65-wes...](http://www.defrancostraining.com/articles/38-articles/65-westside-
for-skinny-bastards-part3.html)

West Side for Skinny Bastards 3 by Joe DeFranco - a four day split involving
max effort, dynamic effort, and repetition days.

[http://www.aasgaardco.com/store/store.php?crn=199&rn=312...](http://www.aasgaardco.com/store/store.php?crn=199&rn=312&action=show_detail)

Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe - one of the best books as far as learning
the basics of barbell movements and how to apply them successfully. Also check
out "Practical Programming" which will help you scale your workouts to
beginner, intermediate, and advanced programs as you progress.

And finally, if you're looking for a way to get a quick and brutal (did i
mention brutal??) cardio workout, I highly suggest high intensity interval
training (HIIT) in the form of barbell complexes.

[http://www.tmuscle.com/free_online_article/sports_body_train...](http://www.tmuscle.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance/screw_cardio_four_complexes_for_a_shredded_physique)

I highly suggest Cosgrove's Evil 8 complex, you'll be entirely gassed in about
ten minutes. Complexes are GREAT for people looking to build mass and continue
doing high intensity cardio without the catabolism (muscle breakdown)
associated with slower, long duration cardio.

------
amh
Good read, although the comments about saturated fat may be questionable in
light of the recent research (e.g.
<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1332954>).

------
lelele
This guy has built an home fitness plan with inexpensive tools:

<http://fitness.scoobysworkshop.com/>

He has posted videos too.

Good for those who haven't got an (inexpensive) gym nearby (like me).

EDIT: His push-ups tutorial is highly recommended:
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S990kHLMVFg>

------
listic
I really hate it how many people when talking about health talk about losing
weight. It somehow undermines credibility of other things theys say.

What if I don't need to lose weight? What if I actually need to eat more?
Haven't you thought about it, mister?

------
spking
I agree with the author's recommendation to focus mainly on compound movements
(squats, deadlifts, military presses, etc.) I stopped training arms directly
and still packed on substantial muscle mass just by training back, chest and
shoulders. I'd also point out that in my experience, training legs accounts
for 50% of upper body growth due to the specific hormones released.

~~~
chollida1
> I'd also point out that in my experience, training legs accounts for 50% of
> upper body growth due to the specific hormones released.

I couldn't agree more with this statement. It always pains me to see guys at
the gym who spend 2 days a week on chest and another 2 days on back with a day
for arms and never train their legs.

It's our legs that often break down first when we're older. You've got to take
care of them:)

~~~
matwood
I point and laugh at those guys :)

------
KirinDave
This article gets huge "Hell yeas" from me just for linking to published
medical papers when making medical claims.

I saw the jama link and almost clapped right then and there.

------
gfunk911
Great article, agree with pretty much everything.

The one advantage of machines over free weights is that the machine will
enforce your form. If you are able to maintain form with free weights, the
effort exerted to do so is an added bonus, but if you aren't, it's not good. I
started with machines, and every couple workouts replaced a machine exercise
with a free weight exercise. This helped me get started, and let me
concentrate on the form on one new exercise at a time.

~~~
matwood
The problem with machines and that most enforce 'bad' form. Every person has
their own natural motion that a machine simply cannot match.

The best way to learn a free weight exercise is to simply start doing it
without any weight. Start squatting and dead lifting with just your body
weight (use a broom handle to simulate the bar). Once you get that down start
adding weight. There is a very little that a machine will do to help you with
exercises like that and in fact it could end up enforcing bad habits.

~~~
thompo
Another thing I'd like to add to this:

TAKE VIDEOS. If you're hesitant to bring a point and shoot to the gym, go
later at night or before noon when the gym is relatively empty. Share your
videos on any of the big lifting forums and ask for opinions. Sure, you can
ask a trainer, but if you're lifting at any of the major chain gyms I wouldn't
trust a lot of those guys to critique a squat as far as I can throw them.

If you're doing a lift with improper form, you might as well not do it at all.
The point of maintaining proper form is to not only remain injury free, but to
also point out any strength imbalances you might have (weak quads in a
deadlift, weak lower lumbar in a squat, etc etc).

(example vid, i switched to sumo-stance for deadlifts and wanted to make sure
i was doing it right before moving back up in weight --
<http://www.imperial.org/~jd/deads275.wmv> )

I can respect -anybody- that posts videos and asks for help on form. The
amount of weight you're moving is trivial - the fact that you want to focus on
your form and perform the lift correctly speaks volumes. I respect the guy
squatting 95lbs correctly infinitely more than the guy squatting 405lbs to 25%
depth any day of the week.

~~~
matwood
Great advice! The 2 angles you generally want for a video are the front or
back and the direct side angle.

Luckily I haven't had to post and vids because I have a trainer friend who is
very good at form and correction. He just adjusted a few things in my DLs and
I'm closing in on 500lb DL again.

I've tried sumos off and on, but I don't they are right for my body type. I
have long arms and legs and I just get so much more leverage with the
traditional DL. I do sumo holds though as accessory work to keep my glutes
firing properly.

And yea, the guy quarter squatting is generally a dumb ass. There are times to
quarter squat, but for most people they should never need to.

------
billpaetzke
_Eating healthy has to just become how you eat most of the time. Exercise has
to become a habitual thing you do every day or two, like mowing the lawn or
taking out the trash._

Yes! Yes! Yes! This is the key, "the secret," to fitness.

~~~
tome
Absolutely. Becoming more fit is making a change to your lifestyle that you
can sustain in the long term.

------
vital101
For those of us who have enjoyed running the past or would like to start up, I
highly recommend getting Nike+ (<http://nikeplus.com>). It connects to your
ipod, and via a sensor in your shoe gives you feedback about your run. You can
join challenges and make friends on their site. Having graphical feedback of
your run is pretty cool too. Being able to visualize your progress is very
motivating.

~~~
j_b_f
If you have an iPhone or Android device with GPS, I'd suggest Runkeeper
(<http://www.runkeeper.com>). The app and site is top-notch.

~~~
abalashov
I would second that recommendation.

------
liedra
This is a great article, makes me want to get off my bum and do some exercise
:) One thing I'd like to know is, for women, yoga and pilates and all that
seems to be quite fashionable these days, but they don't tend to be either
cardio or weightlifting -- what sort of effect do they have on the body?

~~~
warpwoof
Things like yoga will stimulate the body and build strength to a degree, but
that is a much less efficient way to get in shape, in my opinion.

One of the reasons compound lifts moving heavy weight are so important is the
effect they have on your entire body. Doing heavy squats recruits nearly every
muscle in your body. But it doesn't just stimulate those muscles, it also
stimulates your central nervous system.

Doing something hard enough to get the attention of the CNS is important to
making progress, since, for example, the CNS will respond by releasing more
hormones such as growth hormone.

Doing full squats with your bodyweight on the barbell 15 times (3 sets of 5)
is like screaming at your body to get in shape and it will respond. Doing yoga
might be like gently asking.

This isn't to say yoga isn't beneficial, it's just not the most efficient way
to get in shape.

~~~
rue
Yoga is perfectly good for "getting into shape" and there are several
varieties with emphasis on strength, especially static strength.

(Of course, "in shape" means different things to different people. I prefer
endurance/cardio, many others think more in terms of strength/musculature.)

As a gross oversimplification of the body types attained, yoga == Bruce Lee,
weights == Arnold Schwarzenegger.

~~~
isleyaardvark
That's an ironic comparison considering Bruce Lee was a serious weight-lifting
fiend. (He just went for strength rather than bulk.) That said, I'm a big fan
of yoga, more for the fitness than for appearances. It's hard to overstate the
functional change yoga makes.

Edit: IIRC, Lee described running as the best exercise.

------
tome
If you're interested in protein supplements in the UK I recommend MyProtein.
I'm not affiliated with them, but I am a very happy customer.

~~~
tome
I posted the above comment because the article contains the text:

"TrueProtein sells among the cheapest and also highest quality protein
powders."

I thought it would be helpful for UK readers to have an alternative to the USA
based TrueProtein.

I've been downmodded for the comment (at the time of writing) so if company
endorsement is inappropriate here could someone please let me know?

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mbv
How much does smoking pot affect your health and fitness? Is it in same
category as bad food (i.e. you can smoke a joint a couple times a week and get
away with it) or is it worse?

~~~
mbv
I'm being downvoted, but it's an honest question.

Weed's good friend alcohol gets a brief mention in the article, but it doesn't
say how much the drug itself affects your fitness. It only says that many
alcoholic drinks are bad for you because they have high calories from the
sugar and alcohol.

For some people, especially college students like me, weed and alcohol are
part of their lifestyle. Yes, they're bad for you, but my question is _how
bad_?

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zackattack
Shin splints can also be caused by shoes with poor ankle support.

