All kinds of apps out there you can get to help you build workouts. I'm currently using one called SmartGym. It will let you create a variety of workouts with both weights and body weight exercises. I do mostly the latter these days so I like it for that.

But there are a ton of apps out there that do this. You almost have to sample some of them before you find one you might like. I used Shred for a while as well but SmartGym met my needs at half the price of Shred and it's more flexible.

SmartGym comes with a variety of routines as well based on what you are trying to accomplish.

Thanks for the tip. I'm already spending tons of money on supplements, protein and gym membership. Do you know of any good free options?

Check out the weightlifting thread - it should be on the first page.

Look up Stronglifts 5x5, should be a free PDF online somewhere. It's barbell based lifting, but that is where you get the most bang for your Buck (IMO).

Then there are a ton of free apps for Stronglifts that will automatically calculate the weights for you.

Good job so far and good luck!

Sounds like you need to work in some cardio.

Thanks for the tips. I'll check out the 5x5 and the weightlifting thread

If you are Class of '09, kudos to you on jumping on this before you got too old. I didn't get serious about my health until I was 55.

No matter what you do workout wise, remember that you can't out run a bad diet. The older you get, the more your diet matters. I struggle with this 'cause I live the f outta food.

This website laid the foundation of my lifting career. The exercise directory - you can look at what equipment you have and build just about anything with a little imagination.

ExRx.net : Exercise Directory

If you can fit it in, I would start watching some of the fitness YouTubers on instagram. You can probably just search exactly what you want to find out and guaranteed someone has made a video of it.

Supplements and protein are great but don't be stepping over dollars to pick up pennies as your general diet, sleep, workout volume, warm up and recovery are what will make the biggest difference

My favorites:

Jeff Nippard
Dr Mike Israetel (Renaissance Periodization)
John Meadows (Mountain Dog)

Add Sebastian Oreb to that list. He's helped my form immensely - he's great at explaining things and breaking them down.

want my best advice?

join a class.

F45...Orange Theory, etc.

it will be the best thing for weight loss. You can never match that class environment on your own. I suggest this to everyone who is "starting out" and main goal is to lose weight.

agspirit_09 said:

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Hey, I'm new to this board (usually post on Aggie major men's sports boards) but I am trying to turn over a new leaf and thought I'd come here to get some feedback and or tips.

I started back on April 22 of this year when I went to get my annual physical and the numbers were not good. I'm 5'11" male and I didn't have a scale at home. 2024 was my most stressful year and I stopped working out and ate WAY TOO MUCH fast food. I weighed 265 at the doc which was my highest weight ever. My BP was 165/115, my A1C was 6.2, high liver enzymes, high cholesterol etc.

Needless to say it was a wake up call for me. I bought a scale and hired chatGPT as my nutrition coach. I got a gym membership and started going 4-5x per week I'm trying to keep my calories under 1800 per day while getting between 200 and 230 g of protein per day (very difficult for me to do). I'm tracking every meal and snack.

I've lost about 15lbs since then, but now that I've been going to the gym more, I'm wanting to expand my weight lifting routine but I'm kind of stuck. The gym has basically every cable, free weight and machine available. Does anyone have any tips for me? I don't want to hire a personal trainer at this point, but I would like some basic guidance.

TIA

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So as far as training goes (weights), what are your overall goals? Aesthetics (the way you look with your shirt off) or strength? Or a combo of both?

FOr aesthetics, here the goal is best attained through hypertrophy focused training, ie bodybuilding (non-competitive). Great guys to follow on youtube are Mike Israetel with RP Strength, Jeff Nippard, Menno Henselmans, Brad Schoenfeld though he may not have as much content. But these guys can really get you knowledge and stated.

If strength is you goal, Starting Strength, Strong Lifts or something similar are great places to start.

You can also power-build, which is a combo of both. The downside is you can't maximize one or the other unless you focus on one of the other. But for now, that isn't as important for you yet.

You're a beginner. So any combo of these are fine. And honestly, this is the best time of your training experience as you'll gain a lot of strength in the next few months, more than you will likely gain the rest of your life to a certain degree as long as you're consistent. And that is the biggest thing for you right now. Just be consistent. Show up. Try not to miss. And when you do, don't worry and just pick up where you left off. As you go along in your training journey, you will start to find what you love (strength vs body building vs Cross Fit vs whatever) and even then, your tastes and interest will change. Enjoy the process and be in it for the long haul.

For nutrition, all of these guys mentioned are pretty good. Layne Norton is another to follow. He debunks a lot of BS out there.

If you have any friends that lift too or go to the gym, workout with them. Community accountability and friendly competition where iron sharpens iron help build the consistency habit.

I agree with consistency. I believe the key to consistency is finding something you enjoy. Even if it's just long walks in the evening.

Also agree about finding a class. Classes provide accountability, structure and a social aspect. CrossFit/Hyrox, F45, Orange theory. Don't be intimidated to step foot into a group class. Everyone starts somewhere and the main goal is showing up.

Thank you again for all the encouragement, I've already seen a transformation in the month I've been consistently eating at a calorie deficit (outside of my birthday which I purposefully didn't track and ate super clean breakfast and lunch and did whatever the hell I wanted for dinner/desert) and hitting between 200-250 g of protein a day.

As for my goals, I would say it's a combo of 3 things: general health, strength and aesthetics in that order. I can definitely feel myself getting stronger and the body composition machine at my gym is showing the results (9lbs fat loss and 3.5 lbs skeletal muscle gained since I started using it May 7th).

I'll start watching those YouTube channels and get as much out of them as I can.

I'm looking forward to seeing how my bloodwork improves next time I go to the doctor.

Great work! Keep it up!

Month 3-6 you may see some kind of plateau, but don't get frustrated. Whether it's your programming, nutrition, rest, etc. there is always a solution to the problem.

The more experience you gain the more you learn the ways to attack the plateaus. Everyone is different and as you get more advanced you'll realize not everything that works for everyone else will work for you - it's a lot of trial and error.

There's a wealth of knowledge on this board with all different styles and variations to training, so never be afraid to ask questions.

bmac_aggie18 said:

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. Supplements and protein are great but don't be stepping over dollars to pick up pennies as your general diet, sleep, workout volume, warm up and recovery are what will make the biggest difference

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Excellent wisdom here. You are already doing the most effective things: changing your diet and exercising/training consistency. Most supps are snake oil and completely unnecessary for the average joe.


I also agree with some of the others on here suggesting you join a class. I know you said you don't want to hire a "personal trainer", but finding a coach who CARES about YOU will help you get started on the right foot. Those guys on YouTube are educated and proven, but you can't replace or replicate working consistently with someone face-to-face. Maybe you won't need a coach forever, but having someone to lead you in the beginning of your journey will help lay the foundation for a lifetime of health & fitness.

Just my two cents! Good for you for owning your health and making some awesome gains so far!

MisterJones said:

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bmac_aggie18 said:

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. Supplements and protein are great but don't be stepping over dollars to pick up pennies as your general diet, sleep, workout volume, warm up and recovery are what will make the biggest difference

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Excellent wisdom here. You are already doing the most effective things: changing your diet and exercising/training consistency. Most supps are snake oil and completely unnecessary for the average joe.


I also agree with some of the others on here suggesting you join a class. I know you said you don't want to hire a "personal trainer", but finding a coach who CARES about YOU will help you get started on the right foot. Those guys on YouTube are educated and proven, but you can't replace or replicate working consistently with someone face-to-face. Maybe you won't need a coach forever, but having someone to lead you in the beginning of your journey will help lay the foundation for a lifetime of health & fitness.

Just my two cents! Good for you for owning your health and making some awesome gains so far!

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You forgot the most important part of having a coach/trainer/whatever...

Accountability is worth it's weight in gold, and that's what you get from hiring a coach. I currently have a running coach, but I've been running longer than this guy has been alive. I've coached many athletes. I know what I'm doing. But it's easy to skip or change a workout when you are on your own. Knowing someone is keeping an eye on your workouts makes a massive difference.

You have done some great work already! You are already way more than half way there if you are getting your nutrition on point.

As per CC09 said, I would suggest stopping by the Weightlifting thread to start getting some ideas on what you want to do.

Hoosegow said:

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This website laid the foundation of my lifting career. The exercise directory - you can look at what equipment you have and build just about anything with a little imagination.

ExRx.net : Exercise Directory

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Good basic resource. Thanks for posting.

Awesome, great job!

Always great to hear about success with fitness. Keep it up!