I read all the thread (all 105 pages of it, without the OP) and I am motivated to become a whole lot stronger and stronger
I am around 1.74 (around 5' 9") and my weight has drifted from 74 kg (163 lb) last year to up to 81 kg (178 lbs) when I used to go to the gym like 4 years ago down to 74kg again and up to 81 kg of fat last may.
I went to America for an exchange program and the last month was hell for me, I grew stomach and my pants almost didn't fit by the end of the program! Talk about junk food.
I am back in Mexico and I decided I wanted no more of that fat, my family has a long story of diabetes and I want none of that, plus I've worked out before so how hard could it be?
I went jogging, distance first, from 2km then to 3km and then doing speed, 5 track laps (2.25 km) in 9 minutes.
I have lost about 5 kg (right now I am 77'ish) but already went down to 31 waist pants, feels awesome!
The thing is, I want to become stronger but I've yet to find a Gym that caters to the training that you guys propose
I was thinking of doing this routine:
Monday
3x5 Squat
3x5 Bench press / Press (Alternating)
Chin-ups: 3 sets to failure or add weight if completing more than 15 reps
Tuesday
HiIT that I currently do at the local track
-Track sprint
-Stairs up and down
-10 pushups
-20 declined abs
4 reps, no rest, to the max (last Tuesday I really couldn't really do the last sprint so much as jog it so that's my goal)
Wednesday
3x5 Squat
3x5 Press / Bench Press (Alternating)
1x5 Deadlift
Thursday
Same HiIT as Tuesday
Friday
3x5 Squat
3x5 Bench Press / Press (Alternating)
Pull-ups: 3 sets to failure or add weight if completing more than 15 reps
My diet is very very diverse, basically it is:
Breakfasts: Eggs, tortillas, beans, cheese or beef, with tomato sauce and chile. I don't usually eat ALL of this together, but most Mexican breakfasts are a mix of the previous ingredients. Milk most of the time.
Snacks: Some seeds or sandwich and fruits. Lots of fruits >_<
Meals: I eat a variety of Fish, Beef and chicken with lots of veggies and fruits with corn tortillas sometimes. I must remark that I eat fish about 3 or 4 times a week. I eat hamburgers about once a month, pizza about once a once or twice a month and pasta once a week or less.
Snack: Bananas or a yogurt
Dinner: Quesadillas (corn tortilla with melted cheese) or cereal or 3 tacos (flour tortilla with carne asada, onion and coriander with lemon, and sauce made of tomato, onion, chile and avocado), these are smaller than American STUFF IT ALL INSIDE TACOS.
Drinks: We always prepare fruit drinks at home, banana juice, apple juice, orange juice, watermelon juice, cucumber juice. Almost no sugar, we get tons of fruits so we make the most out of them. I drink lots of water. I consume soda about 5 or 6 times a week, not much not everyday and I don't specially care for them.
I concede that I drink on weekends, about a six pack per night two nights a week (fri's and sat's usually). I don't go out most weekends and sometimes I don't drink at all so itf luctuates. I drink mostly beer.
Things I've learned from these thread
1- Most gym instructors know jack and shit. I've learned this the hard way!
2- You can lose fat and gain muscle at the same time, which is what I am trying to achieve
3- Machines are for pussies. I don't want to be a pussy
4- It doesn't take that much of an effort! 3 days a week? I used to go daily to the gym, what a chore and with worse results
5- I want to get started as soon as I can afford the down payment, say Monday
So to end this, my goals are:
-Lose fat, I still have some belly
-Gain muscle
Somebody illustrated this as a pendulum kind of analogy. I am perfectly fine by being in the middle of it.
Any suggestions? Thoughts?