Please don't do this. If you're going to work out (and you should!), you want to use a real routine. Here's a quick check: if your routine doesn't involve doing all of weighted squating, deadlifting, and benching every week, it's a bad routine (for beginners). Every day that you work out (and you shouldn't more than every other day) should be a full body workout. Skip all that crappy machine work, there's really no substitute for a barbell. I suggest either doing the Starting Strength or Stronglifts routines (google them). Also, don't forget to do research into what to eat. If you're trying to gain weight, eat 500 calories above your maintainence level every day, if you want to lose it eat 500 under.
Don't just make up your own routine. It'll certainly be ineffective and could lead to muscle imbalances and injuries.
I'm not sure what you've written here is entirely in opposition to the Crossfit philosophy, although they don't emphasize bench. I agree that beginners should be cautious about learning the movements properly and scaling.
Crossfit hits all the major groups, but not every day. You might hit squats one day, then the next be doing running and pullups--one group recovers while you work others.
I'm not claiming that Crossfit is perfect for everyone. If you're training for specific sports or for general bulk or for a model's physique with a lot of non-functional muscle, then maybe Crossfit isn't ideal for you. I just haven't seen any better all-around program for a sound athletic base.
I believe splitting things up that much is counter productive. You're better off getting contiguous three and four day periods of rest. The typical human body just isn't made for sustained stress like that.
Also, any approach that turns exercise into some near daily chore is a bad idea. You will burn out on it. Ideally, exercise should be somewhat spontaneous.
I agree that Crossfit is not a beginners routine, so the title of this post is possibly misleading. That being said, Crossfit is a great routine for someone who is already in decent shape (looking to get in better shape) and doesn't have hours to spend in the gym. I've been doing Crossfit (not religiously, but as much as I can) for about a year now, and not only does it get you in great shape, but it's fun.
I guess if you're completely unfamiliar with running, lifting, and movements like pullups and pushups, then you should probably start by going to an affiliate where a trainer can start you out on proper progressions, as opposed to learning the movements yourself. But I don't think going from couch-potato to Crossfit is any worse/harder than going from couch-potato to the sorts of low-effectiveness workouts I see out-of-shape people doing at the gym all the time. The key is knowing or getting to know your own body.
if your routine doesn't involve doing all of weighted squating, deadlifting, and benching every week, it's a bad routine (for beginners).
Do you have any references for that?
I'd have thought barbells aren't necessary for beginners. Barbell deadlifting seems a bit dangerous for someone untrained.
I have been using dumbbells myself. I gained quite a bit of muscle in 3 months, and perhaps I could lift a barbell now, but certainly not 3 months ago.
Barbells are only 45 pounds. I can't imagine that anyone would start off deadlifting or squatting less than that. The only exercise that you might need to start with dumbbells with is the press, maybe also bench if you're really out of shape or female. Doing the dumbbell variations of the major exercises is ok, but the reason I didn't mention them is because most people can do 45 pound lifts.
But you're right, you need to be careful to do the lifts right. The SS book is several hundred pages only devoted to the exercises in the program (squats, bench, power clean, press, and deadlift) and is an excellent guide to make sure you're doing every exercise correctly.
Glad you added this link for discussion. I've been curious about crossfit for sometime and I'd love to see HN comments about it. I like that it kind of challenges conventional wisdom.
I liked that as well. Although I am no expert on exercise science, I believe the science behind Crossfit is relatively solid. I've been doing it for about 2 months and it really is the most effective all-around workout I've done. The focus is on functional movements and a mix of strength and metabolic conditioning. And you really only need 30-45 minutes to do a warmup and workout.
That said, there is a somewhat off-putting Crossfitter ethos of overdoing it and injuring yourself, and some of the folks give off a cultish vibe. But if you're smart about learning the movements and knowing your body, I really think it's worth trying. I was skeptical and now I'm hooked.
The exercises look OK, but they seem to prescribe near daily workouts? That's pretty stupid unless you're a competitive athlete. It's often stupid even in that case. One or two intense twenty minute strength workouts a week is plenty if you're doing it right.
Sustainably working out hard three or more times a week and benefiting from it requires somewhat rare genetics or growth hormone and steroid injections.
They mix up the movements and there is a rest day every fourth day. If I do deadlifts one day, box jumps and pullups the next, and running/situps/back extensions on day 3, my body can handle it just fine. It beats running or biking every day, and I know plenty of people who do that, putting the same stresses on the same muscles day in and day out.
You have to listen to your body of course. When I first started, sometimes I would take extra days off when I knew I needed recovery time. As with any activity, you have to be smart about what you're doing.
I've been going to a local affiliate gym twice a week for the past two weeks and am already seeing pretty good results. They had a 75-minute introductory class that taught all of the movements, and they review form and answer any questions before each workout.
It's basically a super intense 15-30 minute workout, preceded by a standard 10-15 minute warmup. For example yesterday was 12 "sumo style" deadlifts, 6 burpees (squat thrusts), 12 pullups, and 6 more burpees, repeated as many times as possible in 15 minutes.
My only complaint is that it's a bit pricey given the level of facilities, but since all of the sessions are small groups with a coach, it's not unreasonable.
Of course if you have a reasonable level of self-discipline (I don't) and room and money for the equipment (I don't) there's no reason you can't do the workouts at home by yourself or with a group of friends.
Yep, expense is one reason I haven't joined an affiliate. Luckily, I'm able to get through most stuff at my Bally's if I go when it isn't crowded, but I've thought about finding an affiliate.
The reason I thought this might be interesting for hackers is because it is high-intensity but fairly low time-commitment, it is effective (results/time), and it isn't boring (lots of different movements to learn).
Also, desk-bound people like programmers tend to suffer from weak posterior-chain muscles, which are emphasized in Crossfit.
I do not use crossfit (yet) but a friend of mine with serious fitness requirements for his day job (firefighter) does use it. He takes fitness very seriously, and is quite a fan of crossfit.
If you do want to consider doing it, take your time ramping up -- it is very intense.
I am a huge fan of Crossfit. I began several weeks ago, and cannot remember being in as good shape since my peak in college (I was on a top-3 Division 1 crew team).
Be sure to follow the site's advice (and brianm's), however, about starting slowly. It helps to scale back some of the workouts to even a fraction of the time/intensity, and only working 1 or 2 of the workout sets (it is normally 3 days on, 1 day off).
Personally, I like p90x. It's regimented an realistic. There's not that much equipment needed and having it in your apartment kills any excuses related to going to the gym.
Ivan is right. You should try it before you buy (not necessarily using torrents though); most of my friends didn't make it past the 1st week. Some didn't even make it past the 1st hour before completely giving up on it.
If you think an hour a day is too much time to spend on working out, P90x may not be for you.
It's a pretty good all-round fitness 'program' of sorts, or perhaps more of a collection of exercises, and much less prescriptive than the above. Emphasis is on bodyweight exercises, but not at the expenses of weights training.
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[ 3.9 ms ] story [ 45.4 ms ] threadDon't just make up your own routine. It'll certainly be ineffective and could lead to muscle imbalances and injuries.
Crossfit hits all the major groups, but not every day. You might hit squats one day, then the next be doing running and pullups--one group recovers while you work others.
I'm not claiming that Crossfit is perfect for everyone. If you're training for specific sports or for general bulk or for a model's physique with a lot of non-functional muscle, then maybe Crossfit isn't ideal for you. I just haven't seen any better all-around program for a sound athletic base.
Also, any approach that turns exercise into some near daily chore is a bad idea. You will burn out on it. Ideally, exercise should be somewhat spontaneous.
Do you have any references for that?
I'd have thought barbells aren't necessary for beginners. Barbell deadlifting seems a bit dangerous for someone untrained.
I have been using dumbbells myself. I gained quite a bit of muscle in 3 months, and perhaps I could lift a barbell now, but certainly not 3 months ago.
Barbells are only 45 pounds. I can't imagine that anyone would start off deadlifting or squatting less than that. The only exercise that you might need to start with dumbbells with is the press, maybe also bench if you're really out of shape or female. Doing the dumbbell variations of the major exercises is ok, but the reason I didn't mention them is because most people can do 45 pound lifts.
But you're right, you need to be careful to do the lifts right. The SS book is several hundred pages only devoted to the exercises in the program (squats, bench, power clean, press, and deadlift) and is an excellent guide to make sure you're doing every exercise correctly.
Actually the main reason I'm doing dumbbells-only is because I can do it at home and for "free" (apart from the $100 initial investment).
That said, there is a somewhat off-putting Crossfitter ethos of overdoing it and injuring yourself, and some of the folks give off a cultish vibe. But if you're smart about learning the movements and knowing your body, I really think it's worth trying. I was skeptical and now I'm hooked.
Sustainably working out hard three or more times a week and benefiting from it requires somewhat rare genetics or growth hormone and steroid injections.
You have to listen to your body of course. When I first started, sometimes I would take extra days off when I knew I needed recovery time. As with any activity, you have to be smart about what you're doing.
It's basically a super intense 15-30 minute workout, preceded by a standard 10-15 minute warmup. For example yesterday was 12 "sumo style" deadlifts, 6 burpees (squat thrusts), 12 pullups, and 6 more burpees, repeated as many times as possible in 15 minutes.
My only complaint is that it's a bit pricey given the level of facilities, but since all of the sessions are small groups with a coach, it's not unreasonable.
Of course if you have a reasonable level of self-discipline (I don't) and room and money for the equipment (I don't) there's no reason you can't do the workouts at home by yourself or with a group of friends.
The reason I thought this might be interesting for hackers is because it is high-intensity but fairly low time-commitment, it is effective (results/time), and it isn't boring (lots of different movements to learn).
Also, desk-bound people like programmers tend to suffer from weak posterior-chain muscles, which are emphasized in Crossfit.
If you do want to consider doing it, take your time ramping up -- it is very intense.
Be sure to follow the site's advice (and brianm's), however, about starting slowly. It helps to scale back some of the workouts to even a fraction of the time/intensity, and only working 1 or 2 of the workout sets (it is normally 3 days on, 1 day off).
My advice: start small, build up, don't give up!
The only downside is the price of the DVDs.
If you think an hour a day is too much time to spend on working out, P90x may not be for you.
It's a pretty good all-round fitness 'program' of sorts, or perhaps more of a collection of exercises, and much less prescriptive than the above. Emphasis is on bodyweight exercises, but not at the expenses of weights training.
Makes a lot more sense than the somewhat randomness of crossfit to me.
there's no such thing as targeted weight loss
crunches (alone) will not give you abs
resting on the equipment makes you a jerk
you do not need weight lifting gloves (ever)
you don't need a weight lifting belt for upper body or most lower body exercises
leave the sleeveless t-shirt at home
also the short shorts
establish a routine and stick to it; don't skip workouts and don't skip breaks (you'll use it to justify slacking later)
Grunting isn't OK unless you're dealing with more than your body weight
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/24/can-you-get-fit-in-...