The Beginning
Congratulations. You have taken your first step on the road
to getting in shape. Obviously, the first step is locating a gym of your
choosing. I am not going to comment tremendously on this one because everyone
is going to have different situations. I am very lucky in that I work out at a
Wellness Center that is less than a mile from my office and is free to use
thanks to the Cherokee Nation.
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| The Cherokee Nation Clinic in Vinita |
I think most people find a large gym intimidating so they
make this plan of buying a few dumbbells and they start following one of these
“18-minute Dumbbell Workouts You Can Do At Home” plans. They do it for a few
weeks but then that equipment eventually starts gathering dust and treadmills
just become an expensive rack to hang your clothes on.
Much the same way that people leave the house to go to the
office, there is a different mentality between working out at home and working
out in a gym. By all means, strap on your gear and go there. They are going to
have infinitely better equipment unless you are lottery winner or hedge fund
millionaire. (If you are, please contact me.) Mentally, you just attack your
program differently and it is a whole different atmosphere.
Finding a gym these days is not like it was back in the 50s
where people worked out in dank dungeons.
Gyms are more popular than ever and I doubt you have to search hard to
find one close to you. Most gyms do have professional trainers that can help
you provide instruction on the equipment. That is what they are paid to do,
after all. So by all means, ask for their help! Ask for their opinions! Show
them the program you are developing and ask for advice. The only dumb question
is the question unasked.
But most of the time there is so much equipment and devices
and clanging and banging that it can easily be overwhelming. Do not let this
intimidate you. And don’t even get me started on all these “Epic Gym Fail”
videos that circulate on YouTube and how I despise them. Remember, everyone at
some point started at zero. The only dumb question is the question unasked. So
by all means, ask a trainer.
I will say this. There is a certain energy that you can feed
off of when you are in a gym with multiple people. For some strange biological
reason, there are shorter rest periods and an extra rep achieved when pretty
girls are in the gym. I cannot explain it. That is just how it is. There is a
line in the film Pain & Gain where
Mark Wahlberg’s character gave free memberships to strippers. If my gym had
strippers working out, I would never leave! So, I do recommend feeding off that
energy.
But if you really want to be great, you have to bust your
butt harder when you are alone and no one is watching. In this Furyan endeavor,
no one else can do the work for you. You have to be willing to self-motivate
and grind it out, especially if no one is watching.
Where can a person even begin? Take heart, brother. This is
what I am going to take you through.
Learning the Basics
In this era of the Internet, we have a wonderful advantage
over those from yesteryear when it comes to weight training. Today, it is all
too easy to find websites, searchable Google images, videos, and message boards
on how to perform the exercises that I am going to be referencing. And these
videos are often put on by reputable websites and trained experts. So I will
not be spending too much time explaining what a Bench Press is.
I don’t want to copy and paste a bunch of different people’s
images on my blog (I prefer original content) so this is where you will want to
put in a little bit of research. I recommend the exercise database at Bodybuilding.com to study the actual
exercises.
I am going to assume you have some rudimentary knowledge on
these exercises. And even if you don’t have that rudimentary knowledge, there
are tons of videos and guides online to assist you in this quest. Embrace the
technological age that we live in. But two pieces of advice. 1) Be careful not
to go spiraling down rabbit holes. 2) Do research before you go to the gym, not
while you are there.
If you are uncertain as to how to perform a certain exercise
or what a piece of machinery is for, this is where you can ask a trainer. Most
people are reluctant to ask for help because it makes us feel like we don’t
know what we are doing. It is a lot like standup comedians commenting on why
men don’t ask for directions. If you are one of these people with rampant egos
that you cannot check, sit back and watch. There is a certain confidence and
familiarity that is readily apparent amongst long time lifters. You can easily
differentiate between the guy doing his 10,000th bench press versus
the guy still in Month 1 of his training.
And I am not just talking about muscle size. There is a
fluidity that comes from muscle memory. So, if you don’t want to ask, sit back
and just observe for a little while and then mimic what the regulars are doing.
But just remember, if someone is doing something WRONG and you are learning
from them, guess what you are learning? Yep. The wrong thing. So be mindful.
Keeping It Simple
The first thing I want to caution you on is to approach this
with a “KISS” mentality. Keep It Simple,
Stupid. It is easy to be bombarded with so much information that you can
become overwhelmed.
When you log into these websites and start doing your research,
you are going to see a bunch of variations of the exercises that I am talking
about. Just look at the bench press. Flat bench, incline bench, decline bench,
machines, barbells, dumbbells. It is very easy to get overwhelmed when you are
just starting out.
Walk into the Nutrition Section at Walmart and you will not
know where to begin. Whey powder, casein protein, protein isolate, pre-workouts
formulas, mass gainers, protein bars… It is enough to make your head spin.
Heck, even Gatorade has formulas to drink before, during, and after your
workouts.
Before you go and spend too much money on stuff you don’t
need, get through your first month of training. Things like pre-workout
formulas are nice but you don’t need it. Protein shakes are fantastic but you
don’t need it just starting out.
You need a good pair of shoes, some comfortable shorts, and I
do recommend a good pair of workout gloves. (Your girlfriend will thank you.)
“Wait, Ryan. Don’t I need one of those weight belts?” Not to start. We are
going to be lifting low levels of weight while we develop your form. WILL you
need one? Yes. Do you need it on Week 1? Probably not.
Since we are starting out, let’s just keep it simple for now
and things are going to develop. You will get there but for now, let’s just
worry about the basics.
The Washout Rate
I have noticed a bit of a trend. I walked in to the gym on
the first week of January and every cardio machine had a white girl on it who
couldn’t even. I went about my daily routine and after about three weeks,
everything was back to normal.
I talked to one of the receptionists at the Wellness Center.
She said that most people who sign up for a Wellness Center membership will do
it for a little while but she estimates 80% of applicants wash out. 80% they
never see again. Think about that for a little bit.
I am a nightmarish creature of habit so I am in the gym at
pretty much the same time every day. I wear headphones most of the time so I am
not tremendously social. I have nicknames for those regulars that I see. There
is Paul the Postal Dude. Hot Emo Girl. Hot Emo Girl’s Boyfriend. The Granny Marathoner. The Stairmaster Trio.
Ginger Sonic. Mini-Me. The Neon Recruiter. (I never said I was original when it
comes to nicknames.)
But you can look around and you can say, “This is the last
time I will see this person in the gym again.” And 60% of the time, you might
be right. So know that as you move forward, you have to develop Furyan Strength
if you want to keep this train rolling.
The Most Minimum of Weight
If you are just getting started or even if you have been away
for a while, then the single best thing you can do is check your ego at the
door. The natural inclination is to grab these heavy dumbbells and to show
everyone what’s what. Don’t be that guy.
More than likely, you are going to be in a position where you
are teaching your muscles to do these exercises for the first time. It is only
after they have been trained and muscle memory starts kicking in that you will
start to see significant increases.
You: Alright, I saw
this video of this exercise. I am going to attempt an overhead shoulder press.
Your Shoulders: What
the hell is he doing to us?
Your Back: I don’t know
but I don’t like this one bit!
Your Abs: Sweet Jeebus,
stabilize his spine.
Your Brain: No pain, no
gain.
Your Shoulders: He
isn’t stopping. This hurts! What do we do?
All Your Other Muscles:
Get bigger and stronger so we can do this without pain! All together now!
As you are just starting out, it is essential that you develop proper form. Proper form is infinitely more important than how much weight you are lifting. What is more, if you are just starting out lifting weights, you have to get your tendons and your muscles accustomed to these strange movements. (This also helps keep you from getting hurt.) So if you are uncertain about how to perform an exercise, start with a minimal amount of weight.
Trust me, man. No one is paying attention to how much you are
lifting. Most people are so focused on their own program that they aren’t paying
attention to you. And if you think lifting heavy weight is going to impress
that girl on the exercise bike, imagine how impressive it will be when they
wheel you out of the gym with a prolapsed rectum. So keep it light to start.
Now, down the road, heavy lifting is going to be essential if
you want gains. However, when I am lifting heavy, my whole body is screaming to
just get the weight lifted. I’ve felt it countless times. Your butthole
puckers. You stand on your tiptoes. You cheat to get a little momentum to help
you lift. And all you are thinking is to get that 5th rep.
If you want to be a bodybuilder, you have to execute
precision lifts. You are not a powerlifter and you certainly shouldn’t be
slinging the weight around. You want to be slowly lifting the weight at a
measured pace, while making sure you are squeezing every ounce of contraction
out of your muscles. I have found this is very difficult to do with heavy
weight.
When a sprinter is out there on the track, watch the greats.
They don’t have clenched fists because that is taking energy away from their
legs. In bodybuilding, we are trying to achieve the opposite effect. You want to be able to clench and flex every
available muscle fiber to get the most work possible from every rep.
Your ultimate goal with the majority of your exercises should
be between 8 and 10 reps. (This is hypertrophy
which I will explain in greater detail later but I don’t want to get you bogged
down in technical jargon.) But for now, grab a lighter weight so you can focus
on your form. If that means only working out with 10-pound dumbbells, that is
absolutely fine.
As far as I am concerned, the guy slowly lifting 25 pounds
ten times with surgical form and max contraction is working a lot harder than
the guy lifting 40 pounds 5 times and cheating by using momentum to get his
full set of reps.
Initially, you want to lift light to begin to develop your
form when you are just getting started. Don’t
get me wrong. The hard work is coming. It is possible to lift too light where
you are just going through the motions and lifting 20 pounds when you could be
lifting 35. But the only people who do that are people that are not serious.
And if you are reading this blog, I hope that you are serious.
The Furyan Sets are going to push you to your physical limit
but we have to lay the foundation first. Proper form lessens your chance of
injury. And as you are learning these proper forms, you are also developing
muscle memory.
Then, next week, when you grab those dumbbells and begin your
shoulder presses, you muscles will be like, Right,
we did this last week. All together now! And as your muscles and tendons
adapt and you grow stronger, you will find yourself stacking more weight for
exercises. Once that happens, you will start improving through leaps and
bounds.
You will be able to listen to your body and know what you are
capable of and when a certain weight is either too heavy or too light. So you
will get there. I promise you. But let’s start out building proper technique so
we can build your Great Wall.
"You don't set out to build a wall. You don't say 'I'm going to build the biggest, baddest, greatest wall that's ever been built.' You don't start there. You say, 'I'm going to lay this brick as perfectly as a brick can be laid. You do that every single day. And soon you have a wall." -- Will Smith
Breaking Your
Cherry
There is going to be that first week where you might be
stepping into the gym for the first time. You have done some research. You have
talked to a trainer. But you need that time to learn how to use that lateral
pull down cable station. Or you want to experiment with that bench press as you
are trying to decide if you want to use machines or free weights. By all means
take a few sessions where you are just working all around and figuring out how
things work. It is okay to have a few sessions like that for your first week.
But then after that, it is time to get serious with a game plan.
In one fitness article, professional cycling coach Ainslie
MacEachran of Fort Collins, Colorado said, “Most people don't have a plan, [but] every
workout should have a plan. Your workouts will be more effective and time
efficient if you have a purpose when you come in.”
You need to have a
mission and you need to have set goals for every workout. You don’t want to
just meander from station to station with no real plan. That approach does not
generate results. (Remember what I told you about my college workouts? Yep,
that was me. No Plan Stan just wandering about.) So start out getting a sample
of what each station is for. You can do that for a week. But then it is time to
get to work.
The Circuit Theory
Before we get you unleashed into your workouts, I want to
explain the theory of Circuit Training
and Antagonistic Sets as I have developed
my workouts around these concepts. A Circuit
is when you take two exercises that are similar (or sometimes counter) to one
another and perform them together.
My goal when lifting is to not allow my heart rate to drop
too low so I am burning calories at almost an aerobic rate. I build my exercise
routines in circuits and I try to allow as little downtime as possible. I
perform an Exercise A (for example, a Bench
Press) and then move as quickly as possible to the counter exercise, Exercise
B (another example, a Seated Cable Row).
When paired together, these two exercises give the body a full range of motion
because you are pushing with your chest and then pulling with your middle back.
You get a nice back and forth movement.
As you begin to develop your routine, you will find that
certain exercises naturally complement each other and give you that full range
of motion. So, for instance, you perform your Bench Press. Then move as quickly
as you can to the Seated Cable Row. This
way, rather than standing around waiting for your chest muscles to recover (and
letting your heart rate drop), you are working your back. During this time,
your chest is recovering but you are still working out to keep that heart rate
elevated.
After I have completed the circuit, I then rest for as little
time as possible before I repeat the pair of exercises. As a beginner, try to
make your rest times between circuits less than one minute. Once you start
analyzing the workouts, you will see how I have broken down the exercises in
the circuits and you will understand what I am talking about.
Tracking Your
Reps
Included in this blog will be a series of workout track
sheets that you can print out and take with you to the gym. I highly recommend
keeping track of your workout reps so you can monitor your progression. This is
also a nice keepsake to look back and see how far you have come. I remember
deadlifting with 45-pound plates on the bar and thinking there is no way I
could do more than that. That is only 135 pounds. So you can imagine my
excitement the first time I deadlifted 300 pounds as exercise reps. Not One Rep
Max, I mean working out with 300 pounds. Track it. You will be happy you did.
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