I get multiple emails and messages per day asking: “Steve, what should I do for a workout?” Well, partner, today is your lucky day. I’m gonna help build you a custom workout program, step-by-step! After all, a workout should be developed around a person’s age, goals, nutritional strategy, free time, etc. Not only that, but it’s easy to overcomplicate this process – there are an infinite number of exercises, sets, reps, and programs to choose from. Now, if you’re somebody that wants to skip all of that, and JUST want to be told what exactly to do: We build customized workouts for our Online Coaching Clients and would love to have you. We get to know your story and struggles, your goals, and your lifestyle, and develop a workout plan that fits your schedule. Now, if you’re more of a “figure this stuff out on my own” kind of person – we’re going to dig into how to build your own workout plan today! We’ve also created a free resource for folks who want to build their own workout but would love some more specific direction and instruction. You can download our free guide, Strength Training 101: Everything You Need to Know, which covers all of this stuff in a single guide:
Download our comprehensive guide STRENGTH TRAINING 101!
OKAY! Are you ready to start building your own routine and want to know how it’s done? Great! Let’s do this:
Step #1: Determine Your “Get in Shape” SituationAs we lay out in our “How to get in Shape” guide, we need to answer a few key questions: QUESTION 1: What are your goals?
Whatever your goals are, it’s good to write them down and be aware of what you’re trying to accomplish. These goals will shape HOW you build your workout. QUESTION 2: How much time can you devote to exercise? If you can do an hour a day, that’s fantastic. If you have a wife or husband, three kids, a dog, two jobs, and no robot butler, then maybe you only have thirty minutes, twice a week. That’s fine too! Whatever your time commitment is, developing the most efficient workout is crucial. Why spend two hours in a gym when you can get just as much accomplished in 30 minutes, right? Here’s the good news: weight training is the fat-burning prize fight victor, and efficiency rules all. So whether you are building muscle or looking to lose weight, a strength training workout will get you the results you’re after (when combined with the right eating strategy!) While we’re talking about time, let me quickly mention something important: Proper expectations! As we cover “how fast can I get the body I want,” make sure you are thinking about your journey with a realistic timeline: QUESTION 3: WHERE do you want to work out?
Where you work out will largely determine if you are going to train with bodyweight, or if you can start doing gym strength training. At this point, we should have:
We can now start to build your workout routine, your daily workout plan, and your monthly workout schedule! Let’s do it. Step #2: What Exercises Should I do to lose weight (or build muscle?)I like to follow the motto of “Keep it simple, stupid.” (Note: I am not calling you stupid. You’re reading Nerd Fitness, which means you’re intelligent, good looking, really funny, and most of all, modest.) The best workout is the one that you actually stick with, and people make things FAR too complicated and try to target a bazillion different individual muscles with six types of exercises for each body part. It’s exhausting, unnecessary, inefficient, and intimidating. So keep it simple! We’re going to pick 5 exercises, and get really strong with those movements. This is the ENTIRE philosophy behind our Strength 101 series. Unless you’ve been strength training for years and know what you’re doing, we recommend that you pick a full-body routine that you can do 2-3 times a week. You want a workout routine that has at least one exercise for your:
By targeting compound movements that recruit multiple muscles at the same time, you can build a full-body routine that uses only four or five exercises. How’s THAT for efficiency! Here is a quick breakdown on which exercises will work for each of those movements:
Not sure how to do any of these movements? Want more examples? Check out: The 42 Best Bodyweight Exercises You Can Do Anywhere! Pick one exercise from each category above for a workout, and you’ll work almost every single muscle in your body. Get stronger with each movement each week, and you have yourself a recipe for a great physique. Here is an example of a great, effective simple gym workout:
You don’t need to make things more complicated than this! (Not that we humans have a tendency to overcomplicate things to the point of paralysis and inaction…) Ahem. If you’re not sure how to do any of the movements above, click on their links for thorough write-ups and video demonstrations. Pick one exercise from EACH category above, specifically ones that scare you the least, and that will be your workout every other day for the next week. The great news: the above workout routine will work whether you’re looking to bulk up and build muscle OR if you’re trying to lose weight. You simply adjust your calories consumed – which is 80% of the equation – and that’s how you’ll start to change your physique. STEVE’S BIG PIECE OF ADVICE: GET STRONG. Get really good at these basic movements and focus on getting stronger each week (I’ll cover how below). If you get really strong at squats, deadlifts, pull-ups, and push-ups, you will build an incredible physique to be proud of. Then, once you get confident in those movements, feel free to add some variety. Why? If you do the same exact routine, three days a week, for months and months, you might get bored, and start slacking, or you might hit a workout plateau. So if you find yourself getting bored, feel free to stick with the above ‘formula,’ but change the ingredients:
If you hit a plateau or find yourself getting bored, pick a different exercise to improve so you’ll stay challenged, and you’ll actually DO the workout! Then, focus on getting stronger! (You are writing down your workouts, right?). I know it’s really easy to overcomplicate this process as there’s an infinite number of exercises, sets, reps, and programs to choose from. And yes, we have a solution for people that JUST want to be told what exactly to do: our uber-popular 1-on-1 coaching program pairs you with your own Nerd Fitness Coach who will get to know you, your goals, and your lifestyle, and develop a workout plan that’s specific to not only your body, but also to your schedule and life: Step #3: How Many Sets And Reps Should I Do?SIMPLE ANSWER: Not including a warm-up set or two, I recommend:
LONGER ANSWER – watch this video: As we cover in our “How Many Sets and Reps?” guide, a “set” is a series of repetitions that you complete without stopping. For example, if you drop down and do 10 push-ups right now, you just did 1 SET of 10 REPETITIONS (or REPS) of push-ups. Got it? Cool. Some general rule on repetitions you can follow as you’re starting to build your workout plan:
There are some other generally accepted ‘rules’ – as pointed out in Starting Strength – about how to determine how many reps you should target per set, based on your goals:
A 2015 study [3] called into question the best rep strategy for building muscle or size: “It appears that high-intensity resistance (sets of 3-5 reps) training stimulates greater improvements in some measures of strength and hypertrophy in resistance-trained men during a short-term training period [compared to sets of 8-10 reps].” What this means: Do not freak yourself out by worrying if you should do 4 sets or 5 sets of 8 reps or 10 reps. Our advice would be to START with lighter weight and more reps as you learn the movement, and then decide if you want to stay at higher reps and lower weight or vice versa. You do you, because either one will get you results! The only thing you need to worry about: get stronger the next time you do that movement: either pick up a heavier weight, or do 1 more repetition than last time.
“JUST GIVE ME THE ANSWER!” Keep your TOTAL (all exercises combined) workout number of sets for all exercises in the 15-25 set range, with 8-10 reps per set: 5 exercises total, each with 4 “work sets” is a good start. Remember, the most important part is to get started – you’ll learn how your body responds and you can adapt as you go. What you DON’T need to do: multiple exercises for each body part with 10 sets. A BIG CAVEAT: How you eat will determine if you get bigger or stronger. Nutrition is 80-90% of the equation. So pick a range that feels good, and then focus on nutrition. And if you don’t want to figure any of this out and just want to be told exactly how what exercises, sets, and reps to do, our online coaches can take care of that for you. Step #4: How Long Should I Wait Between Sets?Keep it simple, you “smart, good looking, funny, modest person” you. Below is a basic formula for you to determine how long you should wait between sets, but this can be adjusted based on your level of health. The goal is to wait the least amount of time you need, but still rest enough that you can perform all reps of the next set safely and properly! Here are some guidelines for how long to rest based on how heavy you’re lifting (not rules set in stone!):
If you need more or less rest than the above recommendations, that’s fine. Do the best you can, record how long it takes you to rest between sets, and try to rest for shorter periods in the future. Your body will adjust as you get stronger and healthier! If you want more information on how much you should lift, how many reps, and when to scale certain movements or adjust your workout, check out our Strength 101: Everything You Need to Know. It’s free when you join the Rebellion with your email in the box below:
Download our comprehensive guide STRENGTH TRAINING 101!
Step #5: How Much Weight Should I Lift?We have a FULL resource on how to determine your starting weight for lifting, but I’ll give you the gist here. The simple to learn but tough to implement answer: “Lift enough so that you can get through the set, but not too much that you have NO fuel left in the tank at the end.” How do you determine how much that is? Trial and error. ALWAYS err on the side of “too light” versus “too heavy” when starting out. It’s better to say “I bet I could have done more!” instead of “that was too much, and now I need to go to the hospital!” If you’re doing exercises with just your body weight, you need to make each exercise more difficult as you get in shape – once you get past 20 reps for a particular exercise and you’re not gassed, it’s time to mix things up. That’s the key to “Progressive Overload,” as Coach Jim explains in this video: Can you do 20 push-ups no problem? It’s time to start mixing them up to be more challenging. Pick a variation from this article and make yourself work for it! 20 bodyweight squats too easy? Hold some weights high above your head as you do the next set. Eventually, you can scale up to do exercises like the pistol squat: Looking for more bodyweight exercises? Check out the list of our favorite 42 bodyweight exercises you can do anywhere. And if you’re not sure how to scale bodyweight movements, or you are interested in mixing things up and want guidance… Step #6: How Long Should I Exercise For? How Long Should My Workout Be?Easy answer: 45 minutes to an hour. Longer answer: If you’re doing 15-25 sets of total exercise (3-5 sets for your 5 exercises), you should be able to get everything done within that 45-minute block. Now, factor in a five or ten-minute warm-up, and then some stretching afterward, and the workout can go a little bit longer. If you can go for over an hour and you’re not completely worn out, try increasing the intensity. Less time, more intensity, better results. What if you don’t have 45 minutes? Do the best you can! Maybe you want to build some cardio into your weight training. That’s where this next section comes in. Step #7: How to Create Supersets and Circuit Training WorkoutsStrength training in a circuit training workout is the most efficient way to burn fat when exercising:
If you’re familiar with CrossFit, many of the workouts are built on circuit principles. This is also the most effective way to make you involuntarily swear at inanimate objects because you’re so tired and beat up. We’re going to cover TWO things here:
SUPERSETS: Do a set of squats, wait one minute, then do a set of dumbbell presses, wait one minute, then do your next set of squats, and so on. Because you’re exercising two completely different muscle groups, you can exercise one while the other is “resting.” You’re now getting the same workout done in half the time. Also, because you’re resting less, your body has to work harder so your heart is getting a workout too. Jackpot. Let’s see how this would play out in a sample workout:
CIRCUIT TRAINING: A circuit requires you to do one set for EVERY exercise, one after the other, without stopping. After you’ve done one set of each exercise in succession, you then repeat the process two, or three, or four more times. I’ve written about multiple bodyweight circuits here on the site: You can download our Beginner Bodyweight Worksheet too to help you get started:
Grab Your Beginner Bodyweight Routine Worksheet. No Gym Required!
We have also 15 FREE circuits you can follow in our big Circuit Training roundup guide! And lastly, we love building circuit training routines for our Coaching Clients – and we’d love to build them for you too: Step #8: How Many Days per Week Should I Train?We get this question quite a bit, usually from overeager beavers who decide they are going to go from “sitting on the couch watching The Office on repeat” to “exercising 7 days per week.” I would advise something different. I mean you can still watch The Office… …but you don’t need to be training 7 days a week! We don’t want you burning out quickly and falling back to square one, a concern we mention in our guide “How Often Should I Work Out?“ Instead, focus on building proper habits and set a goal of 2-3 full-body workouts per week. For starters, your muscles don’t get built in the gym. They actually get broken down in the gym, and then get rebuilt stronger while you’re resting…watching The Office. By giving your muscles 48 hours to recover between workouts, especially when training heavy, you’ll stay injury-free and get stronger. A Monday-Wednesday-Friday workout routine works well to ensure enough time to recover, especially when you are just getting started. If you want to do Tuesday-Thursday-Saturday, or Sunday-Tuesday-Thursday, great. Personally, I stuck with a Monday-Wednesday-Friday full day routine for nearly 10 years and just focused on getting stronger with each movement. These days, I train on Monday-Wednesday-Thursday-Saturday (my workouts on Wednesday and Thursday don’t work the same muscles!) “But Steve, what if I WANT to exercise on my off days?” That’s fine! Pick “exercise” that’s fun for you, that won’t exhaust your muscles. Also, here’s a lifehack: Program your workouts INTO your Google calendar (or Outlook). You’re much more likely to do a workout that has been planned for in your work-week! Alternatively, you can hire a coach to program your workouts for you, so every day you know exactly what you need to do! Step #9: Keep Track Of Everything!Last but not least, keep a workout journal! As they say, that which gets measured gets improved. You should be getting stronger, faster, or more fit with each day of exercise. Around these parts, we say “Level up your life, every single day.” So track and measure your progress! Maybe you can lift more weight, lift the same amount of weight more times than before, or you can finish the same routine faster than before. Personally, I track all of my workouts in Evernote. I note the sets, reps, weight, and date. I have over 1,000 workouts in my folder, which makes it super simple to see what I did last month, or even last year, and to make sure I’m improving! You can use an actual notebook, a bullet journal, an Excel spreadsheet, a workout app, or a Word document. Don’t overcomplicate it:
Do this with a workout you’ve built, and you WILL get results. I promise. Here’s how to properly track your progress and set a new personal best every time you train. Steve, Just Build a Workout For Me!If you’re looking for sample workouts to build off of, take one of the 6 Workouts in our “Gym 101” guide. Or if you want a plan to follow, pick one of our 15 Circuit Training Routines! If you want to build from scratch, great! Let’s break it down into easy chunks with this recap:
More often than not, when I email people back and tell them how to build their own workout, they generally respond with: “Steve, can’t you just TELL me what to do? I’m afraid of building a crappy workout.” Why we built THREE options for people like that: 1) If you are somebody that wants to know they are following a program that is tailor-made for their life and situation and goals, check out our Online Coaching Program. You’ll work with our certified NF instructors who will get to know you better than you know yourself and program your workouts and nutrition for you. 2) Exercising at home and need a plan to follow? Check out Nerd Fitness Journey! Our fun habit-building app helps you exercise more frequently, eat healthier, and level up your life (literally). Plus, NF Journey will build a workout for you! Try your free trial right here: 3) Join the Rebellion (our free community) and I’ll send you free guides, workouts, and worksheets that you can read at your leisure. We need good people like you!
Download our comprehensive guide STRENGTH TRAINING 101!
I certainly encourage you to try and build your own workout routine. It can really help you develop a sense of excitement and pride when you start to get in shape based on your workout! If you have more questions, or have a workout program you’re really proud of, share it in the comments below! -Steve PS: Check out the rest of our beginner content. I promise, it kicks ass ?
### Photo Sources: mdwombat, joshtasman: Question Finger 6, black.zack00: Yeaaaah…. Surprise ladies!!, Sterling College: Sterling Gym, ako_law: Stopwatch, black.zack00: Boxing a gentleman’s sport, Photographing Travis: Kettlebells. ahockley: DDC Stuff Sheath and EEEK Field Notes, Ivan Kruk © 123RF.com
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There’s an argument in the fitness world that you can either choose to lose fat OR gain muscle. They just can’t be done at the same time. To this, I say, “Hogwash!” We have tons of success stories from our online coaching clients who have been able to do both simultaneously: And that’s what we’ll cover in today’s guide! We’ll do so by discussing:
Plus, I have tons of sweet LEGO photos and silly gifs on their way, which is always a good time.
What’s Body Recomposition?As Coach Matt mentions in the video above, gaining muscle and losing fat simultaneously is called “body recomposition.” So yes, the process is indeed possible, as long as you follow the right plan. …but you don’t have to take my word for it. Just ask our friend Aksel here (who achieved an impressive body recomp with the help of a NF Coach): Read more about his incredible story! However, as I mentioned in the intro, you’ll often hear that losing fat while gaining muscle is impossible. The argument goes that you should just focus on one or the other, because doing both at once is destined to fail. Let’s explore this claim. LosING Fat and GainING Muscle at the Same Time (The Controversy)To understand why losing fat while gaining muscle can be problematic, we need to explore both processes. Let’s consider the following points:
Given this, losing fat (caloric deficit) at the same time one is gaining muscle (caloric surplus) seems impossible. However, if we go a few steps deeper into the science, it IS possible! To appreciate the nuance here, let’s get into some specifics on losing fat and gaining muscle separately, and then we’ll combine them. HOW DO YOU LOSE FAT?There is a simple answer and a slightly less simple answer when it comes to losing body fat. The simple answer: “consume fewer calories than you expend or burn.” Eight words, and one or two of those could probably be thrown out. When your body needs more calories than the amount you are eating, you are in a “caloric deficit.” Your body doesn’t have enough calories to go around, so it’ll start breaking down parts of itself for energy requirements. (If you’re curious, you can calculate your daily caloric needs here). The hope is that your body will mostly pull from fat stores, though depending on how you are training it will also break down muscle too.[1] Said again: when you are eating a caloric deficit, your body will pull from both its fat stores AND existing muscle for energy. From a physique and health standpoint, obviously we’d prefer that your body doesn’t break down muscle when in a caloric deficit, and instead really focuses on using fat stores instead.[2] I make this point for a reason: your goal in fitness shouldn’t only be “weight loss,” despite the common vernacular used. Who cares what the scale says, right? The goal instead is to reduce body fat while also keeping the muscle you have (or even building more muscle). That leads to a better physique and a healthier body. This is the reason why there is a large industry around “tracking body fat percentage.” By reducing your total fat on your body, OR increasing muscle mass, you’ll end up with a lower body fat percentage (it’s just a simple ratio of fat to everything else). And lower body fat percentages are where “toned arms” and “6-pack abs” hang out. We’ll talk about tips to keep and grow muscle while in a caloric deficit further down. For now, remember you need fewer calories “in” compared to calories “out” for weight loss to occur, from either fat stores or muscle. You may be asking, “Steve, what’s easier to do? Burn more calories or consume less?” Good question. Numbers will help tell the story: though this is a gross oversimplification – let’s use the ‘widely accepted’ starting point of “3,500 calories equals roughly one pound of fat.”[3] If you want to lose one pound – or half a kilogram – of body fat in a week (a worthy, sustainable goal for some), you would need to create a caloric deficit of 500 calories per day. Your options to create this caloric deficit include:
Which half is easier to affect? Here are both halves of that equation. 500 calories equals:
Yep. When it comes to maintaining a caloric deficit, it really comes down to diet. It’s significantly more effective and time-efficient to consume 500 fewer calories than it is to burn 500 additional calories. As Time magazine controversially pointed out – with tons of cited studies – “exercise alone won’t make you thin.” It’s too easy to add more calories in, and requires too much work to effectively influence “calories out.” We dig into this in our guide to The CICO Diet. This brings us to our slightly less simple answer on getting in shape:
Here at Nerd Fitness, we are firm believers that 80-90% of the fat-loss equation comes down to diet (check out Rule # 4). Here’s another idea we focus on: EAT MOSTLY REAL FOOD. Meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, fruits, nuts are all great examples of REAL food. These foods are very nutrient-dense and often low in calories compared to their processed counterparts. Which means you get filled up without overeating. Win-win-win. Have you ever seen the difference between 200 calories of broccoli and 200 calories of a bagel? WiseGEEK does a great job of displaying this, so we’ll borrow a couple of their photos. 200 calories of broccoli: 200 calories of a bagel: That’s why REAL food is the answer to creating a sustainable caloric deficit. Most people can eat an entire bagel, no problem. Plates of broccoli, with all of the fiber, are much tougher to overeat. We lay it all out in our Beginner’s Guide to Healthy Eating. It’ll provide tips on how to gradually create habits that get you to a “REAL food” way of eating, including proper portion sizes, tips on batch cooking, and a cameo from Winnie the Pooh. With all of this, we advise you to take it slow, so new habits of healthy eating become permanent. Something you can do for the rest of your life. It’s a strategy we work closely with our coaching clients on: small nutritional adjustments they feel comfortable making. It’s how some of them have been able to lose 50-100 pounds! Let me explain again: what you eat will be 80%-90% of the equation to lose body fat. The other 10-20%? Exercise. Of course it’s exercise. That’s a pretty good segue into… HOW DO YOU GAIN MUSCLE?If you want to build muscle, you’re gonna have to lift heavy things and eat in a way that your body has enough calories and protein to build that muscle. This makes logical sense. In our Beginner’s Guide to Building Muscle and Strength, I summarize it as follows:
Let’s chat about each one quickly. 1) Lift heavy things. I will always be on Team Strength Training. If you’re looking to build muscle, you’re gonna need to lift heavy things. When you lift an object (or your own bodyweight) enough times, your muscles reach the point of failure. This causes your muscles to tear and breakdown. When your muscle rebuilds itself following the workout, it’ll be bigger and stronger than before. Then you do it again. And again. And again. As long as you are eating enough to rebuild your muscle, you’ll get stronger! Not sure where to start on a Strength Training practice? No problem! You can download our free guide Strength Training 101: Everything You Need to Know when you join the Rebellion (our free community) below:
Download our comprehensive guide STRENGTH TRAINING 101!
2) Eat a diet based on your goals. Because your muscle needs to be rebuilt after exercise, the calories are gonna need to come from somewhere. I’ll talk a lot about proper diet in the next section (with a Harry Potter analogy), so I won’t spend too much time on it here. Just know that eating the right quantity of foods will be a big part of gaining muscle. 3) Rest. Your body rebuilds itself while you sleep, so make sure you get plenty of rest each night. I’m talking 7-8+ hours. This will help ensure your body has the time it needs to grow stronger. If you’re strength training and only getting 6 hours of sleep a night or less, you’re really doing yourself a disservice. Go to bed! That’s the short gist of how to build strength: challenge your muscles, eat well, and get some rest. Let’s narrow in on our second point, “Eat a diet based on your goals.” It’ll become very important when balancing both losing body fat and gaining muscle. To do that properly, grab your owl, and let’s chat about Hogwarts. How to Lose Fat WHILE Gaining Muscle (The Science)To answer the question of losing body fat and gaining muscle at the same time, I’d like to introduce an analogy from the world of Harry Potter. Recall the “Sorting Hat:” The Sorting Hat’s job was to determine which of the four houses kids will call their home. It’s almost like a traffic director: “Harry, you will go to Gryffindor! Draco, you will go to Slytherin!” Your body operates on a VERY similar operation: every day it receives new calories (when you eat), and it needs to decide what to do with them! For example: You eat a chicken parm sub with fries and a 20-ounce soda. Your body then has to know where to route all those calories. To keep things simple, it has three choices. It’ll sort those calories into one of three houses: A. Burn for Fuel. B. Rebuild Muscle. C. Store as Fat. Right now, when you eat food, your body sorts most of those calories into “Burn for Fuel.” There’s a number of calories your body needs each day just existing: to keep your liver functioning, your heart pumping, your brain operating, to regulate your body temperature, and so on – it burns a good chunk of calories just keeping the lights on. This is your “total daily energy expenditure” which you can calculate for yourself in our TDEE calculator. There’s also “B. Rebuild as Muscle” and “C. Store as Fat,” which I devoted entire sections to above. This is where the problems arise: When you overeat calories and your body doesn’t need anymore to fuel itself, it takes those extra calories and stores them as fat. However, our goal is the OPPOSITE of this. We want to keep the muscle we have (or grow it) while getting rid of the fat! So let’s imagine a scenario where we pull all this together by strength training heavy AND reducing our caloric intake:
Does your body just shut down? NOPE!
This means your body can pull from “Store as Fat” to make sure all the work still gets done, including your daily functions as a human and rebuilding the muscle you tore apart. Said another way:
There is also evidence that muscle can even be grown while in a caloric deficit. Meaning bigger muscles with a lower belt size.[4] However, if you want to skip all the experimentation and trial and error, you can have a Nerd Fitness Coach do all the heavy lifting for you (not really, you’ll still need to work out). TIPS TO LOSE BODY FAT WHILE GAINING MUSCLELet’s bring this all together and create some actionable steps to losing body fat and building muscle at the same time. 1) Sustain a caloric deficit while eating enough protein. You need your body to burn more calories than you consume, and also provide your body with enough protein to rebuild its muscle. The only way to shed body fat is during a caloric deficit. Remember the Sorting Hat analogy:
We want to pull from this house instead. So eat less than you burn consistently. To help here, I have 3 resources for you:
You don’t have to follow some predetermined blueprint like “low-carb.” You can create your own diet (which is what I do). Learn all about it right here. 2) Strength train. If you could sell a pill that could be prescribed to every single person on Earth to make them healthier, it would look something like a strength training routine in a bottle. It is one of the best things you can do for your body.[5] And really, if you’re after building muscle, you’re gonna need to lift something! Either weights or your own bodyweight. You need to challenge your muscles in order for them to get stronger. Now, as we discuss in our article on the correct number of reps and sets, there are multiple ways to do so.
The important thing: pick a strategy and get started. Here are 3 paths forward:
To recap: if you train heavy and eat a caloric deficit, your body will pull from its fat stores to both fuel itself and potentially also build muscle. This is a double whammy of AWESOME. 3) Prioritize protein. Outside of being in a caloric deficit and lifting weights (or yourself), eating enough protein is one of the key components of both losing body fat and building muscle. Protein is the number one nutrient for creating new tissue.[6] So when you cut out calories to create a caloric deficit, don’t cut them from protein sources. Studies have shown that participants can gain muscle, even while in a caloric deficit, as long as they eat enough protein.[7] It’s important enough that I’ll say it again:
How much protein? As we point out in our Guide to Protein, roughly 1 gram for every pound of your weight, with an upper limit of 250 grams.[9] Or two grams for every kilogram if you are on the metric system. This means:
The gist: don’t skip out on protein. It should be on your plate for every meal (we’ll show you exactly how much in the next section). If these generalized recommendations stress you out, and you want to know exactly what to do, we can help! I’ll remind you of Nerd Fitness Coaching, where we help clients lose body fat, gain muscle, and level up their lives. We provide tailored and specific recommendations based on your body and lifestyle, plus accountability and mindset changes to help ensure your new habits stick. WHAT SHOULD I EAT TO LOSE FAT AND GAIN MUSCLE?Remember, your eating strategy needs to include two points to lose fat while gaining muscle:
You may be thinking, “That’s all well and good Steve, but what’s that actually look like?” It looks like this! Taken from our Guide to Start Eating Healthy, which I really want you to read. The plate is composed of the following:
By sticking to our Healthy Plate strategy above, you’ll focus on “REAL food,” which will help you maintain a caloric deficit over time. Let’s hone in on protein for a moment, because it’s the critical piece for “building muscle.” Protein can come from any number of sources, including:
Not a meat-eater? Read our massive plant-based guide! A serving of protein is about the size and thickness of your palm. *The 4 oz serving is for an uncooked piece of meat. Cooking reduces about 25% of the weight, bringing it down to about 3 oz. If you’re curious, here’s how much protein is in a serving of food:
While all of the Healthy Plate above is important, I want you to pay extra attention to your protein intake since we are trying to build muscle. If you’re having trouble making your protein intake goals, check out our Guide on Protein Supplements for some tips and tricks to up your intake, including some awesome smoothie recipes. This is the exact strategy I followed to lose 22 pounds and get to single-digit bodyfat percentage WHILE building muscle:
If you are NOT losing weight, it means you are still eating too many calories. Keep your protein intake high, and reduce your fat and carbohydrate intake. I cover this in greater detail in our “why can’t I lose weight?” guide. Eventually, you’ll reach a status where there just isn’t enough fat on you to help with “Rebuild Muscle.” At this stage, you can no longer stay with a caloric deficit. You’ll need to flip to a slight “caloric surplus” to build more muscle. Which means you’ll have to eat more. It’s debatable when this will actually occur, and we are all different. Reaching 8% body fat for men and 16% body fat for women is a good place to start. I talk about this extensively in our guide “How to Build Muscle.” It covers ways to increase your calories for muscle gain, from eating plentiful amounts of Paleo foods to drinking enough milk to make Santa Clause jealous. I encourage you to read it if you are plateauing in size. I want to stress that if you are lifting heavy, and not gaining muscle, diet is likely the culprit. It was my problem for years, and I’ve seen it amongst countless readers of Nerd Fitness who have trouble gaining muscle. If you want an expert who will tell you exactly when to eat more or less, check out our 1-on-1 Online Coaching Program. HOW TO TELL IF IT’S ALL WORKING (Continuing to Lose Fat While Gaining Muscle)If you’re trying to improve something, it’s important to track it. This also holds true of body composition. Most people do this by jumping on the scale. This can be “Ok,” but it’s only going to tell part of the story. As I explained muscle weighs more than fat, so if you are losing body fat and gaining muscle at the same time, you might actually weigh the same. Or even more! Despite weighing more, you could potentially have a better physique. That’s why in addition to jumping on the scale, I would also encourage you to take progress photos. Take front and side photos in your mirror, wearing underwear or a bathing suit. Each week, take new photos, and record the number on the scale under the same scenario. Two forms of tracking here allow us to get the full picture. The scale sometimes lies! If you eat for a caloric deficit, strength train, and prioritize protein, see what happens. You may find yourself losing some fat and gaining muscle. If not, track each category:
Data can help tell the story. …I was thinking of detailed notes. But an android would be helpful too. Oftentimes if you’re not seeing desired results, notes and record-keeping can help point us in the direction to make adjustments. Test your assumptions if things don’t appear to be on track. Here’s our Guide on Tracking Fitness Progress for you to learn more. The tips outlined above will get you started losing fat while building muscle, but if you’re looking to go a bit further… #1) If you want step-by-step guidance on how to lose weight, eat better, and get stronger, check out our killer 1-on-1 coaching program: #2) If you want an exact blueprint for getting in shape, check out NF Journey. Our fun habit-building app helps you exercise more frequently, eat healthier, and level up your life (literally). Try your free trial right here: #3) Enlist in the Rebellion! We have a free email newsletter that we send out twice per week, full of tips and tricks to help you get healthy, get strong, and have fun doing so. I’ll also send you tons of free guides that you can use to start leveling up your life too:
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Alright, I think that about does it for this guide. Did I miss anything? Do you have any tips and tricks when it comes to shedding body fat and building muscle? Share it with us! -Steve, PS: Make sure you read the rest of the articles in our “How to Lose Weight 101” Series!
### All photo sources are right here: Venting Off, Ekaterina Minaeva © 123RF.com, czgur © 123RF.com, morethanl8ve © 123RF.com, Константин Колосов © 123RF.com, Maxim Maksutov © 123RF.com, Julianna Funk © 123RF.com, jump
Footnotes ( returns to text)
The post Blog first appeared on Nerd Fitness. via https://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/lose-weight-and-build-muscle-or-do-one-then-the-other/ Let’s learn how to jump rope! Even if you’re stuck at home, a jump rope can provide a great cardio workout. You just gotta know what you’re doing so you don’t keep hitting yourself in the shins. Have no fear, even if you’ve never touched a jump rope before, we’ll get you started. We specialize in helping people train from home, with little to no equipment whatsoever. Today, we’ll share with you a beginner jump rope workout routine that you can do anywhere. If you’re in a hurry, sign-up for our free weekly newsletter and we’ll send you PDFs of our “Work Out at Home” guides! Here’s what we’ll cover:
Cue the Rocky theme song… How Do I Jump Rope? (Video for Noobs)Coach Matt, from our Online Coaching program, guides you through learning how to jump rope in the video above. Matt breaks down jumping rope into three parts:
First up… #1) The Jump First, let’s just practice jumping. Stand tall, feet about hip-width apart. Then, practice jumping up and down in one spot. Most of your power will come from your ankle and toes. It’s really more of a “hop” than jump. If you have trouble with this, Coach Matt recommends drawing some type of “X” or mark on the ground so you stay in one place. Another tip from Coach Matt: keep a little tension throughout your body. If you’re too loose, you might flail around a bit and get off your mark. #2) The Arm Swing Your arms will remain mostly stable when powering the rope. We want to keep the movement narrow, mostly coming from your wrists. The name of the game with jumping rope is “in control.” Swinging from the wrists will help you maintain control of the rope. Resist trying to rotate with a lot of elbow movement (try to keep them stable instead). For the position of your arms, you want your hands out roughly at the height of your hips. Your arms will go downward at about a 45-degree angle. To start, you might even just try getting the rhythm down with one hand: Don’t even worry about jumping at first. Once you’re comfortable swinging from both hands, it’s time to think about putting it all together. #3) Timing When you first get going, go slow with the arms, and do two hops per one rope revolution. It looks like this: When starting with this position, you might find your elbows flailing out a bit since they’re moving slow. So you’ll have less wrist control. That’s okay. Once you get comfortable with the rhythm, try one hope per rope revolution to tighten it all up. You may find it easier to keep your arms and elbows stable moving faster. Here’s a great point from Coach Matt: as a beginner, the rope itself will be your coach. If you hit your shins or toes with the rope, something went wrong. Maybe you hopped too high or your elbows went a little off. No problem. Just accept that the rope is providing you with immediate feedback, and try again. Getting the rhythm and timing down with a jump rope can be tricky, so hang in there and be patient. Once you get the feel of it, it’s time to do some workouts. The Nerd Fitness Jump Rope Workout (With Video Tutorial)Coach Matt walks you through 5 different levels of difficulty for your jump rope workout. If you’re familiar with High-Intensity Interval Training, you’ll notice it’s the strategy for our beginner jump rope workouts. Let’s go over each level now. Jump Rope Workout Level 1:
Total time: 5 minutes If this is too much, feel free to increase your rest period. Meaning you can rest for 45 seconds, no problem. For the next level, we’ll do the same moves, but we’ll increase your single under duration Jump Rope Workout Level 2:
Total time: 5 minutes On Level 3, it’s time to mix in double unders. During our jump interval, you can do every other, so one single under followed by one single double under (1 jump, 2 rotations of the rope). If this is too tricky, do a double under for every four normal jumps. Just try to keep it consistent, as this will help your rhythm. The mission with Level 3 is to get comfortable performing double unders. Jump Rope Workout Level 3:
Total time: 5 minutes Now that you’re at Level 4, it’s all double unders, all the time. We’re going to focus on building power, so we’ll do intervals for 15 seconds, then rest for 45. Jump Rope Workout Level 4:
Total time: 5 minutes With our last workout today, we’re bumping up the duration of double unders to 30 seconds, then resting for the same time. This might be challenging. Jump Rope Workout Level 5:
Total time: 5 minutes If single and double jumps get boring, have no fear. We’ll cover additional exercises you can do to level up your jump rope game now. Feel free to mix and match any of the moves below into your workout. After a while, your rest period might be normal hops, while your interval period can be one of these sweet moves. The 13 Best Jump Rope ExercisesNow that you have the basics down on how to jump rope, let’s cover some moves so you can expand your workouts. #1) The Single Under This is the most basic jump rope exercise. One hop per rope revolution, both feet together. Get this down before you move on from here. #2) Double Single Foot Jumps Once you get the single under down, try hopping on one foot. To really test your balance, jump twice from the same foot. An example beat would go left foot, left foot, right foot, right foot, with one rope revolution between. #3) Kick Out Jumps Here, you’ll alternate taking one foot forward every jump. So while your left is down, your right foot will be kicking out. You’ll hop and switch feet between rope revolutions. This is trickier than it looks. #4) Jump Rope Jacks Your feet will act as they would in a normal jumping jack, jumping wide apart every other hop. Your arms will stay as they would during a normal single under, so it’s more of a “half jack.” #5) Twist Jumps This jump rope exercise is all about rotating your torso. Your feet will jump together, but will be rotating about 180 degrees from left to right, twisting from your hip. Your shoulders will stay firm, which will keep the rope in place. #6) Skiers The feet will land together for your skiers, but one leg will be in front and the other will be behind. You’ll alternate leg positions between jumps, in a scissor like motion. #7) High Knees Alternate jumping from one leg to the other with your hops. The trick here is to bring your knees up high as you do so. #8) Butt Kicks These are much like your high knees, but in reverse, as you’re trying to bring your foot back to the point where it meets your glute (butt). A good counter exercise for your high knees. #9) Squat Jumps If you want to really challenge your lower body, hold a squat position while doing your hops. Your entire lower body will be engaged for this exercise. #10) Squat Jacks Just like the name would suggest, here we are combining our squat jumps with jumping jacks. To do it, perform jump rope jacks, but land in a squat position when your legs are kicked out wide. This will get challenging quickly. #11) Criss Cross Jacks These are like jumping jacks, but instead of bringing your feet together, you cross one foot in front of the other. Your feet will go wide, then left in front of right, then wide, then right in front of left, then wide. After some practice you’ll get the coordination down. #12) Jump Rope Figure 8 We’re gonna have fun with this one. This exercise has you doing four normal hops, followed by four twist jumps. Here’s the fun part: when you rotate, bring your arms together and have the rope do a revolution on the side you’re twisting away from. Alternate to the other side, combining your twist, hop, and whip. Don’t feel bad if this takes some practice. This is starting to get into the “jump rope tricks” territory. #13) The Double Under This is one of the more advanced jump rope moves, as you need to swing the rope under you twice per hop. Coach Jim walks you through performing Double Unders in this video: If you get the double under down consistently, you’re no longer a jump rope noob. Want a workout that will have you doing some of these jump rope moves? If so, check out our new app! NF Journey will match a workout for you based on your experience level, and will also show you exactly how to use your jump rope. No guesswork needed, just grab your rope and follow along with the app. You can sign-up for a free trial right here: How Do I Choose a Jump Rope? (Type and Length)There are a couple of things to consider when choosing a jump rope: type and length. Let’s discuss both. There are generally three types of jump ropes you’ll run into. #1) Speed Ropes This is the most common type of jump rope you’ll come across. It’s also what Coach Matt uses in his videos above. Speed ropes are lightweight, which will help when doing certain moves like the double under. Coach Matt’s speed rope has a plastic covering, but occasionally you’ll find these with just the wire. This makes them even lighter. The danger here is that if you hit yourself…it’s with a bare wire… Ouch. WOD Nation has a decent coated speed jump rope that isn’t sold out (unlike a lot of other gym equipment). #2) Beaded Ropes This rope is probably what you used as a kid on the playground. Beaded jump ropes don’t tangle as easily as speed ropes and weigh a bit more. They are also clunkier and will make double unders tougher, but the little bit of extra weight might make them easier for a beginner to handle. Rogue Fitness has some pretty cool ones to check out. #3) Weighted Ropes For more advanced jumpers, we have weighted ropes. These can range from a one-pound rope to a six-pound rope. Why the additional weight? With extra weight added, your upper body gets a more intense workout. If you’re a beginner, it’s probably best to skip these for now (hehe), but something to consider as you level up your jump rope skills. For those interested, this is a decent weighted jump rope that’s still available to buy. The next question we want to answer: how long should my jump rope be? The good news here: most jump ropes you purchase will be adjustable. When properly adjusted, step on your jump rope with one foot, and both handles should reach right around your armpit: If it’s a little higher or lower than that, you may be okay, but you’ll likely need good jump rope technique to skip correctly. How to Jump Rope (Without a Rope)In the video above, Coach Jim walks you through 3 alternatives to jumping rope. Just in case you want to get your heart rate up and you don’t have a rope around, or if you’re just getting started and haven’t quite got your rhythm dialed in. Here are three alternatives for jumping rope: Jump Rope Alternative #1: Marching in Place
Jump Rope Alternative #2: Mountain Climbers
Jump Rope Alternative #3: Hop in Place
Where Should I Jump Rope?The cool thing about a jump rope is that you can pretty much use it anywhere, as long as you have room to maneuver. That doesn’t really mean you SHOULD jump wherever, as not all surfaces are created equal for jumping. In the videos and gifs above, you’ll notice that both Nerd Fitness Coaches use mats for their jump rope practice. This is a good idea. Jumping on a mat will put less stress on your joints, lowering your chance of injury. If you do jump on a harder surface like concrete or asphalt, it’s okay, just focus on less intense moves like single unders. You might want to save the fancy moves and double unders for when you have a more forgiving surface under you. The other thing to consider is your footwear. Something with good shock absorption will help as your feet make contact with the ground. You don’t necessarily need a running shoe, since you’ll be coming up and down from your toes. But you probably don’t want to jump barefoot either, because that rope hitting unprotected toes won’t be fun. Here’s our guide on healthy feet that includes some general shoe recommendations. Will Jumping Rope Help Me Lose Weight?If you’re trying to lose weight, a jump rope and one of the workouts above could be a great part of the plan. The other part of the plan should be your nutrition! As we lay out in our Coaching Program, throughout Nerd Fitness Prime, and our massive guide on “Healthy Eating,” we believe that nutrition is 80-90% of the equation for weight loss. No joke. It’s by far the biggest factor for success. So will you lose weight jumping rope? Definitely maybe! If you fix your diet AND begin to incorporate a jump rope workout a few times per week, you’ll find yourself building muscle, losing fat, and getting stronger! That’s because a jump rope will you train your:
As long as you do it correctly: My point is jumping rope needs to be part of a larger picture for weight loss. So how do you fix your diet? Great question. Whether you choose to follow a Keto Diet, Paleo Diet, Mediterranean Diet, or something like Intermittent Fasting, the best path will be up to your goals, your situation, and your habits. Here are some basic tips though (as we cover in The 5 Rules of Weight Loss):
Those tips should get you started, but if you want more specific instruction and guidance, check out the NF Coaching Program – Your Coach will build a routine tailored to your individual needs and what equipment you have available: How to Build a Jump Rope Workout (Next Steps)The only question left to answer with this guide is “When should you do your jump rope workouts?” You have a bunch of different options for that, with a few considerations. #1) Jumping rope for warm-ups All Nerd Fitness Workouts have a note to warm-up before you start. It can be five minutes of simple exercises like arm circles: Or jumping jacks. Do you know what else it can be? Five minutes of jump rope! A short round of jump rope is a perfect warm-up for any workout you pick. Is your gym closed? No problem, check out our guide The 8 Best at Home Workouts. #2) Jump rope for active recovery Active recovery is any gentle movement designed to help your muscles heal after training. If you hop with low intensity, a jump rope workout can fit this bill perfectly. In between your strength training workouts, you can mix in some jump rope, stretching, or even a little yoga for active recovery. If you don’t want to jump with low intensity, you have another path. #3) Jump rope as a full-body workout With enough intensity, a jump rope can provide a great full-body workout. You can up the intensity by working up to double unders or other advanced jump rope exercises. Or you can look into a weighted rope once you get the swing of things. The other thing to consider would be circuit training, where you mix in jumping rope with some bodyweight exercises. Maybe you alternate burpees with your jump rope intervals. Lots of HIIT workouts include jump rope sessions, so you have tons of ways to bring your jump rope into your training. Once you get your technique nailed down, the world will become your jump rope playground: If you need any help pulling this all together, Nerd Fitness is here for you. We have three great options for continuing your journey with us. Option #1) If you want a professional coach in your pocket, who can do video form checks, provide feedback, and adjust your workouts based on the equipment you have available, check out our 1-on-1 Online Coaching Program! For example, let’s say you find yourself stuck indoors during a pandemic, and you want somebody to custom-build you a workout program based on the furniture and equipment you have (like a jump rope). That’s where an online coach is a game-changer! Personally, I’ve been working with the same online coach since 2015 and it’s changed my life. You can learn more by clicking on the box below: #2) If you need a trigger to “get up and jump” check out NF Journey. Our fun habit-building app helps you exercise more frequently, eat healthier, and level up your life (literally). Plus, we’ll send you on an adventure that teaches you how to jump rope! Try your free trial right here: Option #3) Become part of the Rebellion! We need good people like you in our community, the Nerd Fitness Rebellion. Sign up in the box below to enlist and get our Rebel Starter Kit, which includes all of our “work out from home” guides.
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Alright, I want to hear from you and your experience with jumping rope! Do you train with jump ropes? Any exercises or tricks we’re missing? Are you one of those people who hasn’t touched a jump rope since grade school? Let me know in the comments! -Steve P.S. If you’re looking for ways to do interval training without a gym, check out The 20-Min HIIT Workout for Home. ### Photo Source: Speed Jump Rope, Beaded Jump Rope, Weighted Jump Rope, 166/366, Boxing a gentleman’s sport, Jump Rope, Laughing Buddha, David Pereiras Villagrá © 123RF.com, 167/366 The post Blog first appeared on Nerd Fitness. via https://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/how-to-jump-rope-ultimate-beginners-guide/ Ugh, it’s time for yet another attempt at losing weight. For some, losing weight is as simple as just looking at a vegetable. For the rest of us mere mortals, it feels like running through quicksand. Fortunately, helping people lose weight in a way that doesn’t suck is what we do! And gosh darnit, we’re really good at it: we have thousands of success stories and 1 million+ people tune in each month for advice on this stuff. We help our Online Coaching Clients lose weight without dieting, and these are the exact tactics we use. I’m going to cover EVERYTHING you need to know about losing weight quickly, sustainably, and without hating everything. Click below for more help:
Why Diets Don’t WorkIf you’re reading this guide, you probably:
From popular ideas like the Paleo Diet to Keto, or Plant-Based (no prob) to Intermittent fasting (I do it), to terrible ideas like the Military Diet, juice cleanses, or the Cabbage Soup Diet, we’re all looking for that master key that unlocks effortless weight loss. Some of these diets are certainly more effective/healthy than others, but they all come down to two truths for losing weight: Truth #1: Nearly every diet works in the short term. Truth #2: Nearly every diet fails in the long term. So why does every diet work in the short term? Every diet you have ever tried has a clever way of restricting calories which leads to weight loss[1]:
99% of the reason why these diets result in short term weight loss is that they get us to eat fewer calories. The problems arise when we get to Truth 2: “Nearly every diet fails in the long term.” Put another way: “Temporary changes create temporary results.” If somebody “goes Keto” for 60 days, they’ll probably lose weight, and might even feel healthier. This is cool. HOWEVER. If they spend those 60 days dreaming of carbs, counting down the days until they can “go back to eating like normal,” they will put all of the weight back as soon as they stop their diet. This is why I hate the term “diet” or “going on a diet”: In order for a diet to create permanent results, the diet needs to be adopted PERMANENTLY! You’ll achieve weight loss in the short term with pretty much any diet you pick, as long as it gets you to eat significantly fewer calories. However, today we’re going to focus on weight loss with 2 important conditions:
So, as you read about the 5 rules of weight loss below, I want you to be honest with yourself. You need to make changes you can stick with for at least a year. If a change seems too drastic, or giving up a food seems too scary, make the “win scenario” smaller. Here’s how we help our coaching clients: we work with them to pick ONE change per week that we can implement: one less soda, try one new vegetable, etc. In other words, we STOP thinking about “How many pounds can I lose in a month?” and instead “What can I do today that isn’t scary, but will make me better off a year from now:“ Rule #1: Lose Weight Without DietingThere’s only ONE big-ass rule you need to follow when it comes to weight loss: Eat fewer calories than you burn. (Yes, I realize this article has 5 RULES, but the other 4 all build on this one.) Study[2] after study[3] after study[4] shows that our bodies obey the laws of thermodynamics and that in order to lose weight, we need to burn more calories than we consume regularly. Every day, our body needs a certain number of calories to carry out its daily functions: making your heart beat, your brain function, getting your body to move, and all sorts of other stuff. This is called your total daily energy expenditure, and you can calculate your TDEE here.
So, in order for us to lose weight, we need to find a way to tip the energy balance in favor of “burn fat, sucka!” Simplifying this really complex topic, we need to eat less and/or move more to get our bodies to start using our fat stores for energy. Unfortunately, that’s where the problems start. We humans are REALLY good at:
When we accidentally eat more calories than we realize, and then burn fewer calories from exercise than we assume, we think we “can’t lose weight” because of our metabolism or genetics. Nope. It’s because we are eating too much. And as we lay out in our MASSIVE Healthy Eating Guide, the most important factor in nutrition is eating fewer calories than you burn on a regular basis. The best way to do that is to focus on the right kind of food:
These foods tend to be lower in calories than processed foods that have been designed to be overeaten[6]. They fill us up but aren’t overly calorie-dense. Which means we feel full and yet consume fewer calories than we used to. If we can do this consistently and sustainably, we will lose weight. To drive the point home, here are two foods, both in 200 calorie increments (courtesy of wiseGEEK): 200 calories worth of a bagel: …and 200 calories worth of broccoli: Which one do you think you’ll be more likely to accidentally overeat? The bagel, duh. Who eats only 2/3rds of a bagel? Literally zero people. So here’s how we’re going to lose weight: eat fewer calories without realizing it, and then burn extra calories without being miserable:
Let’s dig into these 3 things next: Rule #2: Prioritize Protein and VegetablesIf our plan is weight loss that doesn’t suck, we’re gonna build better meals full of foods that fill us up and make us feel good. PART A) PRIORITIZE PROTEIN FIRST: Protein is fuel for our bodies to rebuild muscle. It’s also delicious and nutritious and can satiate us with an efficient number of calories. How much protein should you eat? As we cover in our Protein Guide, aim for 1g per lb of bodyweight (2g per kg) every day (with an upper limit of 250g). Protein can come from any number of sources, including:
Not a meat-eater? Read our massive plant-based guide! A serving of protein is about the size and thickness of your palm. *The 4 oz serving is for an uncooked piece of meat. Cooking reduces about 25% of the weight, bringing it down to about 3 oz. When building a plate, aim for the following amount of protein:
PART B) HALF OF YOUR PLATE SHOULD BE VEGETABLES: Veggies can be the difference between weight loss success and failure. Vegetables are nutrient-dense but calorie-light, which means you can eat lots of them, you’ll feel full, but you’re unlikely to over-consume calories (remember that mountain of broccoli was only 200 calories!). A serving of veggies is about the size of your fist, and 2 servings of veggies should take up ½ the plate! Here’s a quick, non-complete list of veggies that can fill your plate:
“But Steve, I don’t like vegetables…yet!” That’s cool, I didn’t eat vegetables until I was 22. Now, they’re a main staple of every meal I eat. If this is you, read our guide on “how to make vegetables taste good.” RECAP: In our quest for weight loss that doesn’t suck, we need to focus on foods that have lower amounts of calories but still make us feel full and satiated and happy. Always start with protein and vegetables, and then the rest of your plate can have fats and carbs. Speaking of which… Rule #3: Know Your Carbs and Fat Portion Sizes.If 3/4ths of our healthy plate is occupied by protein and vegetables, where do fats and carbs fit in? You can still lose weight by consuming fat and carbohydrates, when consumed in the right quantities. Remember how I said earlier “we UNDERestimate how many calories we eat every day?” Fat and/or carbs are almost ALWAYS the culprit. Let’s discuss. PART C) HEALTHY CARBOHYDRATES FOR THE WIN. Everybody loves carbs, but most people overeat this macronutrient without realizing it. Here are some examples of healthy carbohydrates that are less likely to be overconsumed:
This is a list of REAL foods, minimally processed, that also have plenty of fiber[9]. This then puts them in the “healthy carbs” category: when consumed in proper proportion, these are great foods that can help you feel full and give you energy and all that jazz. Just make sure you know your portion sizes! EVERYBODY accidentally overeats carbohydrate-heavy foods, even healthy ones, and then wonders why they aren’t losing weight. To help you get better at eyeballing carb serving sizes: 1 serving of a starchy carbohydrate is 1 cupped hand (uncooked), or two hands forming a cup (cooked). Here are some images to help you learn proper portion sizes (thanks to SafeFood): PART D) DON’T FORGET ABOUT FAT! Fat used to be vilified, but now it’s considered a superfood by many. Here’s the truth: fat is neither a superfood nor evil. It’s just a macronutrient that we can eat that can help us lose weight when consumed in the right quantity, or keep us from our goals if we eat too many calories of it. Healthy fat can be found in foods like:
Saturated fats – consumed in moderate quantities[10] – can come from things like:
To help you gauge: a serving size of fat is roughly the size of your thumb! THIS is a single serving of almonds (162 calories): THIS is a serving of olive oil (119 calories, taken from Runtastic): What about cheese? Cheese is fine, provided you consume a proper sized portion of it! This is a portion of cheddar cheese (116 calories): So bringing them all together, here’s the healthy plate for weight loss (from our Healthy Eating Guide): If you can prioritize protein, fruit, and vegetables, and keep your carb and fat intake under control, you are going to lose weight. “But Steve, what about low-fat diets? Low-carb diets? No-carb diets?” Low carb diets like Keto and Paleo are all the rage right now, but are they healthy and will they help you lose weight? Maybe! It depends on how your body regulates glucose (blood sugar)[11]: Studies show that people who follow EITHER a low-fat OR a low-carb diet will lose weight, as long as they are in caloric restriction and can adhere to the diet for at least a year[12]. So, it comes down to: “which strategy are you more likely to stick with for a year or longer?” If you think you can go Paleo or Keto or follow another low carb/low fat strategy for over a year, go for it. Otherwise, make small changes! MY ADVICE: Stick with changes that aren’t too scary. Work on reducing portion sizes or adding a new vegetable each week, and don’t get dogmatic, all-or-nothing about your diet! If you can find a way to reduce your total calorie intake without being miserable, you WILL lose weight over time, AND keep it off. There’s one other piece of the puzzle I HAVE to address. Rule #4: Exercise for weight loss (Strength training and cardio)Although exercise isn’t necessary for weight loss (nutrition being the most important part), I would HIGHLY recommend you exercise. There are three forms of exercise that I’ll cover when it comes to weight loss, and ALL three of them are important:
#1) Fun cardio is doing any sort of exercise that gets you off your butt and moving. It makes our heart healthier, AND it can serve as a reminder that we’re doing things differently now, and that we need to eat better so we don’t ruin our efforts! (Whatever you do, DON’T say: “Welp, I exercised – and thus I earned this donut and Coca-Cola” – you’d have been better off NOT exercising and skipping the donut and Coca-cola). Here are 40 fun ways to exercise without realizing it. Feel free to do a fun activity as often as you can! #2) High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) burns more calories per hour than steady cardio, so you get more “bang for your buck” when it comes to efficiency. If you’re limited on time and trying to burn more calories, 20 minutes of HIIT burns more calories than 20 minutes of steady jogging. Here are 3 HIIT workouts you can do today, no gym required! Both of these activities can help tip the energy balance in favor of “weight loss” when combined with calorie restriction. When you’re in a “caloric deficit” for weight loss, the hope is that your body will mostly pull from fat stores, though depending on how you are exercising it will also break down muscle too.[13] Said again: when you are eating a caloric deficit, your body will pull from both its fat stores AND existing muscle for energy. From a physique and health standpoint, obviously we’d prefer that we don’t break down muscle when in a caloric deficit, and instead get our body to use ONLY fat stores.[14] Your goal in fitness shouldn’t only be “weight loss,” despite the common vernacular used. The goal instead is to reduce body fat while also keeping the muscle you have (or even building more muscle). Which brings me to the most important form of exercise for weight loss: Rule #5: Strength Training For Weight Loss#3) Strength training is the prizefighting champion when it comes to weight loss. You can find study[15] after study[16] after study[17] that shows you the benefits of strength training for weight management when combined with “calorie restriction.” Let me explain it here quickly, borrowing from Harry Potter: (You know, the wizard.) At the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, when each student arrives they put on the “Sorting Hat,” an actual hat that determines which House (group) that child will join for his/her time at Hogwarts. The hat acts like a traffic director: “Harry, you will go to Gryffindor! Draco, you will go to Slytherin!” Your body operates in a VERY similar fashion: every day, it receives new calories (when you eat), and it needs to decide what to do with them! It’ll sort those calories into one of three Houses: A: Burn for Fuel. B: Rebuild Muscle. C: Store as Fat. There’s a number of calories your body burns each day just existing: to keep your liver functioning, your heart pumping, your brain operating, and so on – it burns a good chunk of calories just keeping the lights on. Here are two quick examples (from our TDEE calculator!):
When you start strength training, actual wizardry starts to happen. When you do push-ups and pull-ups or do a strength training workout, your muscles are “broken down” during the exercise itself, and then they rebuild themselves stronger over the next 24-48 hours. Guess what happens during those 24-48 hours? Your body diverts as many calories as possible to “Rebuild Muscle!” It also diverts additional calories to “Burn as Fuel” to handle this increased “muscle rebuilding” activity. Which means two amazing things:
There are significantly fewer calories available for “Store as Fat.” AND THEN IT GETS BETTER. When you consume fewer calories than your body burns each day, strength training will cause your body to get even more efficient. Your body can pull from “Store as Fat” to make sure all the work still gets done, including your daily functions as a human, and rebuilding the muscle. This is the Tri-wizard cup[18] of physical transformation victory:
This would be a “win-win-win” according to Michael Scott, Regional Manager, Dunder Mifflin Scranton. So NO, you don’t need to lose weight first before you start strength training. You will lose weight BY strength training (and keep the muscle you have). Here’s how to start with Strength Training:
BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER: Doing a strength training workout 3 times per week is the most efficient way to lose the right kind of weight and look better naked. Adding in intervals or fun exercise on your off days is a fantastic supplemental activity to strength training. Want help learning how to strength train? You can absolutely build your own workout, or you can work with one of our coaches who can create a custom program that’s specific to your goals and lifestyle. We’ll even make sure you’re doing the movements correctly via video, because we’re nice like that ? 25 Tips to Supercharge Weight LossThe 5 Rules Above give you the best chance to lose weight in a way that doesn’t suck. Changing your nutrition is like playing a video game: if you attack too many high-level bad guys at once, you’re going to lose. Instead, you’re better off picking 1-2 smaller bad guys (changes) that you know you can win, and level up slowly. THAT’S how you make changes that stick. No more temporary dieting for temporary results! Permanent changes create permanent results. Here are 25 other quick tips that are supplementary to the above important ones! 1) Consider low-carb OR low-fat diets. Studies show BOTH low-carb and low-fat diets will result in weight loss, IF you can stick with it.[19] Many people tend to have more success faster on low carb, but they’re also more likely to abandon the diet. You don’t need to do Keto or Paleo if you don’t want to, and instead, just work on reducing carbs overall. 2) Consider intermittent fasting. Fasting helps you keep your caloric intake under control by eliminating or narrowing your eating window – it simply means skipping a meal or occasionally doing 24-hour fasts. It affects men and women differently, but has tons of benefits and is backed by science. Read our Guide on Intermittent Fasting. I’ve been skipping breakfast since 2014! 3) Minimize liquid calories. Beverages with calories in them are probably sabotaging your weight loss efforts. Cut out the sodas and lattes and high-calorie smoothies (unless you account for them in your calorie goal!). Stick to sparkling water, black coffee or tea, or other zero-calorie beverages. 4) Cut back on alcohol. Yes, you can still drink alcohol and lose weight, but you still need to account for the calories, of which there might be many! And if you make poor food choices while drunk, it’s going to be tough to lose weight. Read our guide on alcohol and stick to low calorie beer, whiskey neat, or vodka with club sodas. 5) Know your condiments and cooking oils. Just because you’re eating grilled chicken and vegetables doesn’t mean you’re guaranteed to lose weight! If those foods are smothered in sauces or covered in 1000 calories of healthy olive oil, the calories still count! Keep an eye on the sauces and oils you use to cook with. 6) Know your next meal. Most of our coaching success stories plan in advance what their next meal is. Because it’s a pre-made decision, it removes emotion and makes them less likely to make a bad choice while hungry, sad, or angry. Think of it this way: you can still eat unhealthy foods with this strategy because you plan ahead and can eat a healthy meal before and after. No harm done! 7) Look at restaurant menus before going. Restaurants give out notoriously large portions of food, often with hundreds of hidden calories. Give yourself the best chance to succeed by looking up the menu online before going and decide BEFORE you get there. Also, consider taking HALF the entree and boxing it up for an additional meal (A tip we mention in our Guide to Portion Control). 8) Eat the same foods over and over. The healthiest, most successful coaching clients we have tend to eat the same handful of meals over and over. Once you learn portion sizes and calorie counts of your favorite meals, you’re much more likely to eat within your goals for the day. 9) Learn to batch cook. Read our guide on batch cooking! If you can prepare all your healthy meals ONCE at the beginning of the week, you are setting yourself up for success. Why? Because now your default, easiest, laziest option is to simply reheat and eat the food you have at home – much less work than ordering takeout or driving to fast food! Win-Win-Win. Here’s how I batch cook chicken for the week: 10) Employ the “Never 2 in a Row” rule. If you ever eat an unhealthy meal, simply make the next one healthy. One bad meal doesn’t ruin a day, so letting an unhealthy breakfast derail you for the rest of the day isn’t smart. Simply eat a healthy lunch and get right back on track. 11) Ask “What would Batman do?” If you’re not sure what you should eat, ask what would Batman do. A study showed that children were more likely to pick an apple instead of candy when instructed to ask this question.[20] And we’re all kids at heart, right? 12) Track your calories. If you can’t lose weight, it’s most likely because you’re accidentally eating more calories than you realize. Use an app or spreadsheet and track your food for a week. I bet your intake is 20-40% higher than you realize! You can calculate how many calories you burn every day too. 13) Weigh your food (advanced): STILL not losing weight? It’s time to get your portion sizes fixed too. Get a cheap food scale and weigh your food for 2-3 days. Doing this, I discovered I was eating an extra 400 calories without realizing it. 14) Eat more slowly! If we’re not careful, we can eat more than we realize because we eat too quickly for our body to understand it’s full! Tactics to help with this include consciously working on chewing your food more frequently before swallowing. Studies show eating slowly led to decreases in energy intake within meals in healthy women.[21] 15) Use smaller plates and forks! If we have big plates and big utensils, we’re more likely to pile more food on our plate AND consume it more quickly. Throw out your big plates and get smaller ones. Get smaller utensils, and you’ll trick yourself into eating smaller portions without realizing it.[22] 16) Don’t “Eat AND [activity].” Just “eat.” We eat more food if we’re eating while doing something else (watching TV, scrolling through our phones, etc.).[23] Why don’t you try JUST eating? Enjoy each bite. Savor the food. Make it an experience. You’ll tend to eat less. 17) Stop snacking. All calories count. Instead of snacking throughout the day, why not eat 3 regular sized meals that you truly enjoy? As we cover in our Guide to Intermittent Fasting, it doesn’t matter WHEN you eat, it only matters HOW MUCH you eat. Not snacking between meals gives you more leeway during your actual meals! 18) Seek professional help! If you have an emotional relationship with food, consider speaking about it with a therapist or doctor. We believe mental health is really important here at Nerd Fitness, and we know food can be an emotional trigger for lots of people that struggle with their weight. You don’t have to do this journey alone! 19) Fidget more! From tapping your toes to getting up frequently, fidgeting (small micromovements) can account for up to 350 additional calories burned per day.[24] It all counts. So get wiggling! 20) Move more. From parking farther away at the grocery store to taking the stairs instead of the elevator, do whatever you can to MOVE MORE! Get a cheap fitness tracker and try to get more steps than you normally do. Important note: don’t rely on the tracker for calories burned (they’re all notoriously inaccurate, some by as much as 90%[25]). We show you just how inaccurate these fitness trackers are for calories burned in this infographic: However, these devices are often a great ‘trend tracker.’ Do more than you did before and you WILL get results. 21) Find ways to exercise in a fun way! ANY sort of movement helps, so check out our 40 ways to exercise without realizing it. Dance, yoga, wrestling with your kids, rock climbing, hiking, it all counts! Just like your parents told you when you were a kid, “Go outside and play!” 22) Get strong as hell. Pick up heavy weights. Our bodies have to burn tons of calories to recover from a heavy strength training session. Plus, you get to keep the muscle you have and burn the fat on top of those muscles. That’s how you lose weight AND gain muscle at the same time! 23) Hack your Batcave: We are creatures of our environment, so use that to your advantage! Stop relying on willpower, and instead get smarter. Increase the steps between you and the activity you’re trying to avoid (eat junk food), and decrease the number of steps between you and the NEW activity you want to do more of (eat healthily):
24) Surround yourself with people who are healthier than you. We’re the average of the 5 people we associate most with. Join a running club. Eat lunch with healthier people than you at the office. We subconsciously adopt the traits of the people around us, so use that to your advantage! 25) Forgive yourself. We are all flawed. If you eat a bad meal or have a rough weekend, who cares?! The month is not ruined. Make the next decision a healthy one and get right back on track. Remember “never two in a row.” I know this is a lot to absorb, so don’t beat yourself up if you’re totally overwhelmed! If you want help implementing these tactics and supercharge your weight loss journey, that’s what we do best. Click below to learn more! How fast can I lose weight?There are MANY factors that are involved in how quickly you can lose weight, but here are the big ones:
First Week Weight Loss Expectations: Depending on how poorly you eat now, if you swap out unhealthy food for protein and veggies – reducing your calorie intake significantly – you might lose upwards of 5-10 pounds (5kg) in your first week. It’s awesome to see the scale drop by that much in the first week, but it’s important to note that this type of weight loss won’t be typical week to week. If you normally eat a lot of carbs and sodium, your body is carrying a lot of extra bloat and water weight. When you switch to mostly protein and veggies, you’ll lose TONS of water weight and some fat initially. We’ve seen many Coaching Clients lose 5-10 pounds in their first week, again mostly due to the reduction of water weight with SOME fat loss. First Month Weight Loss Expectations: Depending on how strict you are with your nutrition – you can lose 1% of your body fat, or 1-3 pounds per week after that (heavily dependent on how much weight you have to lose). We have seen people (who have a lot of weight to lose) lose 20 pounds in their first month, mostly due to large water weight reduction in the first week, with a steady consistent drop after that. (Curious how quickly you can lose weight? Use our Total Daily Energy Expenditure TDEE Calculator.) There’s nothing wrong with losing weight quickly, provided you’re doing it in a healthy, SUSTAINABLE way – like following the rules and strategies laid out in this article. Quick weight loss doesn’t guarantee long-term success. It comes down to making PERMANENT changes! If somebody reduces their calorie intake by 1000+ calories a day, they might be so damn hungry and angry all the time that they abandon their journey after a week or two. This is bad news bears. They would have been better off reducing their calories by 200 calories a day for 6 weeks, and then by another 200 6 weeks later, and so on. We want sustainable changes, and sustainable weight loss, creating permanent progress. So it doesn’t really matter how much weight you lose in your first week or first month, but rather how much weight you have lost after 1 year, and how you feel after that year. As we cover in our “Why can’t I lose weight?” guide, this is a lifelong journey, and one you should be thinking about as a lifestyle adjustment and not a temporary diet change. Put your focus on building the habits and fixing your environment. Focus on the changes you can make on a day to day basis, and with each meal. And over time, your weight WILL drop in a way that’s sustainable and healthy. How to Lose Weight Quickly“STEVE JUST TELL ME EXACTLY WHAT TO DO TO LOSE WEIGHT QUICKLY.” Fine! But you don’t need to yell at me like that! Here’s what I would do if I needed to lose weight quickly but ALSO didn’t want to hate life:
I’ll leave you with some final words of wisdom: this is NOT all or nothing. If you can implement just ONE change and stick with it, that’s a victory. That’s better than doing 10 things and giving up after a month. I realize I threw a LOT of information at you, but I hope you can implement this stuff in your day-to-day decisions, because these rules WILL change the scale, and they WILL change your life. If you are looking for more guidance, support, and instruction, we have 3 options for you to level up: #1) JOIN OUR COACHING PROGRAM: We provide nutritional guidance, constant feedback and support, customized workouts for your goals, and keep you accountable wherever you are. We are really good at this stuff and would love to help you reach your goals. #2) If you want an exact blueprint for how to eat better and get in shape, check out NF Journey. Our fun habit-building app helps you exercise more frequently, eat healthier, and level up your life (literally). Try your free trial right here: #3) Join The Rebellion (it’s free)! Sign up for our biweekly newsletter and join the Nerd Fitness Rebellion! I’ll send you tons of free nutritional guides and bonuses to help you get started on your journey today. Sign up below:
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If you were just trying to start building healthier habits and lose weight sustainably, instead here’s what I would do: Make 1 change per week. Change ONE meal a week, or cut back on ONE soda. Make a change that’s so small that it doesn’t make you sad or scared. And then repeat. What’s the ONE change you’re going to make this week to make your weight loss journey SLIGHTLY easier? -Steve PS: Make sure you check out the rest of our Sustainable Weight Loss Content:
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Footnotes ( returns to text)
The post Blog first appeared on Nerd Fitness. via https://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/how-to-lose-weight-without-dieting-5-rules-of-weight-loss/ So you want to get in shape and start getting fit, but you’re not sure what the perfect workout is? Not only that, but you want a workout program that you’ll ACTUALLY do? Great. This is what we do, and we’re pretty dang good at it. We create personalized workout programs for our Online Coaching Clients, and this guide walks you through the exact 9 steps we follow to create each program: This may seem like a lot, but ALL of the steps are important! In our step-by-step guide to picking the best workout plan and getting fit, we’ll cover:
Let’s jump right into #1!
Step #1: What Are Your Workout Goals?You’re reading this guide, which means you likely have SOME goals around getting fit. Those goals will likely fall into one of three categories:
I like to refer to these three goals as the Triforce of Awesome. Because I’m a dork, and because you’ll remember it. Happy, healthy, look good naked. (There’s nothing wrong with wanting to look good naked, by the way. It’s why I started training all those years ago!) MY goal for you is to have you satisfy all three conditions to become healthy, happy, and look damn good. It starts by identifying why you’re here in the first place. Because let’s be honest: This journey is gonna be tough. You don’t just want to “lose weight” and “get fit.” You want to “lose weight” and “get fit” so that you can “start dating again after a messy breakup.” Or because “your dad passed away from health issues at a young age and you want to be around for many more decades to raise your children.” The more specific and DEEP you can get with your reasoning, the more likely you’ll be to push through when you’re struggling to stay consistent! I also want you to be realistic about how much time you think you can dedicate to this journey:
That’s cool – just be up-front with yourself. Here’s how to put it all together: PART A – IDENTIFY A GOAL THAT YOU’RE FOCUSED ON:
PART B – WRITE DOWN WHAT WILL HAPPEN WHEN YOU ACCOMPLISH THESE GOALS:
PART C – BE REALISTIC WITH HOW OFTEN YOU CAN TRAIN:
Be specific with your answers above. STEP #1 TAKEAWAY: Pick your goals, pick your “Big Why” We’re going to pick goals that work for us, and then build on top of that foundation. Have you written down your goals yet?:
We make EVERY coaching client in our online coaching program pick their Big Why too. It’s what keeps us on target when life gets too busy and we want to quit! Now that we have a foundation, we can start to build on top of that. Like Fornite. #UnnecessaryButTopicalNerdReference Step #2: What Workout Is Best for Weight Loss?You can lose all the weight you need to lose without doing a single minute of “exercise.” I shit you not. (What a funny expression by the way, it makes me happy every time I use it.) If your ONLY goal is weight loss in any way, then exercise is not necessary. No treadmills. No gym memberships. No bootcamps. No feeling bad about yourself training in public. No hating exercise. “Steve, you sorcerer, what madness is this?” You exclaim! When it comes to weight loss, how you eat will be responsible for 90+% of your success or failure. If you are only trying to lose weight, ALL of your effort can go into fixing your nutrition. As we say here in the Nerd Fitness Rebellion, “You can’t outrun your fork.” Yes, this means if you can’t lose weight, you are eating too many calories compared to how many calories you burn every day. I can almost guarantee it’s not your metabolism or genetics. It’s because you eat too much food. I’ve covered nutrition and weight loss EXTENSIVELY here on Nerd Fitness, so read these to help determine the best eating strategies for you:
As we have laid out in our Start Eating Healthy Guide, if you are trying to lose weight it comes down to making slightly better choices, slightly more frequently: Story time! Nerd Fitness Rebel Tim was told he couldn’t exercise due to an injury. He joined our NF Academy (now a part of Nerd Fitness Prime), and focused on the 3 things he could control:
6 months and 50+ pounds of weight loss later, Tim is a changed man! You can read his whole story by clicking on the image below: So yes, exercise burns calories and will help you get fit. (If you’re curious: strength training is the calorie-burning victor when it comes to efficient weight loss.) Exercise of any kind will also make your heart stronger and you will FEEL better. But maybe most importantly, exercise reminds us that we’re trying to be healthier. Which means exercise can also remind us to make better food choices. Just instead of doing this: “Well I exercised today so I can eat 5000 calories!” Instead, do this: “Well I exercised today, so I’m going to stick with my eating strategy so I don’t backslide!” STEP #2 TAKEAWAY: Pick a food strategy you can stick with! Pick a strategy that speaks your language, and that results in you consuming fewer calories. Nutrition is the most important thing, so your time is best spent understanding this stuff! If you are trying to lose more weight or build more muscle FASTER, your nutrition needs to be even MORE dialed in. Here’s how to start eating healthy:
If you are a noob on nutrition, check out our free 10-level Nutritional System that simplifies the entire process! It’s free when you sign up in the box below:
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Step #3: Finding a Workout Routine You EnjoyIf your goal is to look good enough and feel good about yourself, there’s only ONE solution when it comes to the perfect workout program: Any exercise you actually enjoy and will do regularly. Full stop. Exercise is only a 10% piece of the “how to get in shape” formula, which means if your goal is “look pretty good, feel pretty good,” ANY exercise is a bonus. And that means you might as well ENJOY what you are spending your time on! Here are some suggestions for fun exercise you can do: Running, cycling, powerlifting, yoga, parkour, gymnastics, weight training, LARPing, capoeira, jazzercise, swing dancing, Beat Saber, walking, hiking, geocache, Pokémon GO, hashing, ballet, CrossFit, bootcamps, martial arts, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Ninja Warrior, Dance Dance Revolution, aerial silks, acro yoga, and anything else you can think of. This is me giving you permission to attend Jazzercise classes regularly, if you enjoy them. Seriously. This is me also giving you permission to never run on a treadmill ever again, unless you actually enjoy running on a treadmill. Don’t suffer through a particular type of exercise if you hate it. There are plenty of ways to get your heart racing and your body moving. Think of it this way: You’re always a work in progress. You never get to “be done.” So suffering unnecessarily to reach a goal just so you can lose some weight, and then stopping won’t work. Here’s another phrase to internalize: “Temporary changes create temporary results.” Stop trying to get to the finish line as quickly as possible – that’s why you failed in the past. Instead… STEP #3 TAKEAWAY: Do an activity that you enjoy. Do it frequently. Write down a list of “exercise” activities you love. Write down a list of “exercise” you hate. And then do things on the first list frequently, and don’t ever do things on the second list! You don’t need to suffer. Nutrition is 90% of the battle, so if you want to lose weight, get healthier, and be happier, pick a form of exercise that you actually enjoy. Don’t worry about how many calories it burns. Instead, keep the focus on your nutrition and THEN do fun exercise. To answer your next questions: “But Steve I don’t like exercise.” You haven’t tried enough things! I too hate “exercise,” so I ONLY do things I enjoy. Here are 40 fun exercises to try. “I have always wanted to try (activity) but I’m afraid to try it.” Use 20 Seconds of Courage – it works. I promise ? “Steve I have very specific physique goals and I’m willing to suffer a bit to hit those goals.” Sounds good. You’re going to want to focus on calorie restriction, strength training, and moving more. Keep reading. Step #4: What Is the Best Workout Routine? (An Introduction to Strength Training)Okay, now we’re getting down to the good stuff: Yup, eating better can help you lose weight. Yup, any exercise is better than no exercise. HOWEVER, if you want to keep yourself injury-free, build a physique you’re proud of (aka that “fit toned” look that everybody is after), AND get better at whatever fun activities you picked in Step #3,… There’s a component that needs to be incorporated into your life: There are so many benefits to strength training, it’s ridiculous. 100% of people, no matter their age, gender, or size should be doing SOME kind of strength training in some capacity. And please don’t worry – you will NOT get too bulky – unless that’s what you want. Here are 4 reasons why strength training makes every part of life better and will help you get in shape:
So hopefully at this point, you’re all: “Steve you sly devil, I am INTRIGUED. But strength training doesn’t seem fun, and gyms intimidate me.” We cover this extensively in our “Beginner’s guide to strength training,” but I’ll cover it here too: When I say “strength training,” I simply mean “moving your body in a way that your muscles must respond by getting stronger:” Your muscles are introduced to outside stimuli (you pick up your kid, you do push-ups, you carry groceries, you do a squat, etc.), and they get “broken down” through use. Over the next few days, they rebuild themselves stronger to prepare for more stimulus (a greater challenge). By building up strength over time, it allows you to become more functionally strong and avoid situations like Mr. Potato Head here: “Strength training” can take place in a gym or at your home, with your body’s weight or with free weights, in a box or with a fox. The ways to strength train are endless. HATE gyms? You never have to go into one. Ever. Christina lost 50 lbs without a gym. AFRAID of weight training? You can train with just your body weight! WANT to learn how to train in a gym? Check out our 6-level gym workout guide. NOT SURE how to strength train and want guidance? Check out our online coaching program! This does not need to be overcomplicated! Start with two basic movements that you can do literally right now, even in your cubicle:
Boom, look at that! You just did strength training. I promise you: get stronger with push-ups, squats, and learn how to do a pull-up, and you will be in better shape, and look better, than ever before. So how do you get stronger? Simple: “progressive overload.” This might sound complicated, but it just means increasing the challenge by a tiny amount with each workout so your body has to work harder and adapt more each time. And then one day, you’ll look in the mirror and say: “WHOA I HAVE MUSCLES WHEN DID THAT HAPPEN!?” Coach Jim breaks down 8 different strategies for progressive overload in this video: I have one final person I want to address: “But Steve, you nincompoop, I hate strength training.” That’s not a nice name to call me, but fair enough! Consider getting bit by a radioactive spider or finding a super-serum. Otherwise, these five alternatives might pique your interest:
STEP #4 TAKEAWAY: Start strength training today. Pick a workout that doesn’t intimidate you and give it a shot! You can start TODAY.
You don’t HAVE to strength train, you GET to strength train. Every time you work out, do ONE more repetition, one more push-up, or lift ONE pound heavier than last time. What’s the best way to do more than last time? Write down what you do! Keep it simple. Write down your sets, reps, and weights. And then do one better next time. If you’re wondering how many reps and sets you should start with, Coach Jim answers that right here: Step #5: Creating a Strength Training Workout PlanAlright alright, you read the previous section, and you’re thinking:
My thoughts: I don’t care HOW you strength train when you get started, or which beginning strength training program you pick: If you want to follow a bodybuilder routine that uses lots of machines and isolation exercises, great! If you want to train your left bicep and right butt muscle on Tuesdays and right tricep and left shoulder on Wednesdays and so on, go for it! If you want to follow a workout DVD or follow bootcamp style stuff on YouTube, great. Whatever gets you manipulating your body and learning the fundamentals of strength training, I’m for it. As long as you’re enjoying it and getting results, keep doing what you’re doing. And if you want a Beginner Strength Routine to follow, that’s cool too. Here are the foundational philosophies we teach our online coaching clients: #1 You’ll be healthier and see more well-rounded results training with free weights and bodyweight exercises compared to machines. Machines can be used when you’re rehabbing an injury or there’s no other options (you’re at a hotel gym, for example). If you only want to train with machines? You do you. Here’s how to switch from machines to weights. #2 Full compound movements will help you get strong and healthy in the most efficient manner: Your body is a complex machine that uses all of your muscles in unison when you do physical activity. Thus, it’s safer and more efficient to train with compound movements instead of isolated movements. Here are 15 Circuit Training Routines that use these exercises. #3 Keep it simple. If you make progress every week by picking up more weight or doing more reps, your body WILL transform like Optimus Prime. But like, into a better version of you, not a robot: #4 Barbell squats and deadlifts can change your life, like they changed Coach Staci: #5 If you have more fun with a bodybuilder-style workout, or you like boot camp classes instead of weight training, that’s great! If you’re healthy and happy and getting results, stick with it. #6 Muscle confusion is totally not a thing. STEP #5 TAKEAWAY: Pick A Strength Training Program! Here’s how to level up your strength training:
What’s that? You want to BUILD your own workout program? Great! Here’s how to build your own workout routine. If you want us to do the heavy lifting for you (HEYO), we have a killer online coaching program where we build the exact workout for you, including nutritional guidance, support, and accountability. Step #6: Focus Your Workout Plan on Specific GoalsOkay, now we’re getting down to the secret sauce that has transformed thousands upon thousands of lives at Nerd Fitness. Don’t worry our secret sauce is low calorie, low carb, and keto-friendly. Here’s the scenario: you have a goal of losing 50 pounds, and after eating better and moving more…you actually start to lose some weight! I’m so proud of you. In fact, I just called your mom to tell her what a swell person you are. Nice lady. Anyways, things are going well until you start to approach your goal weight (woo!) and encounter a divergent path:
People who pick Path A always backslide and usually put the weight back on over the next few months and years. This is why most people are doomed to fail at losing weight permanently: Temporary action = temporary results. Now let’s talk about Path B? It’s the reason our coaching clients keep the weight off and continue to transform. Consistent effort + progressive challenge = permanent improvement. People on Path B ask themselves, “Now that I’ve lost this weight, what am I capable of? Let’s train for that!” This is a distinct mental shift. Exercise is no longer a means to an end. There is no end. Just like… We encourage our Rebels to shift from weight loss goals to physical challenges (Like Double Dare, but with less Gak):
WHY THIS WORKS: By training to get better at a particular activity, you are triggering the same processes in your brain that makes us hooked on progressing in video games: It’s why we say, “just one more level!” or “I bet I can do one more rep!” or “I can climb this new path that’s tougher than any path I’ve attempted before!” STEP #6 TAKEAWAY: Shift from weight loss goals to physical challenges. As you start to get in shape, updating your mindset can be a HUGE game-changer. You spent all this work building a new body – take it out for a test drive and find out what you’re capable of! Counterintuitively, the less you worry about your weight and the more you worry about your performance, the more likely you’ll be to build a body you’re proud of, that’s functional, and that you can keep, permanently. As they say, “Appearance is a consequence of fitness.” If you want to dig more into skills and advanced physique stuff, read our post here: “The ultimate guide to building any physique.” Pick a skill, pick somebody farther along (more fit) than you to model yourself after, and adjust your training and nutrition to get better at that skill. When you get better and better at these physical skills, your physique will start to improve as a side effect. Step #7: Have Healthy Expectations for Your Workout PlanAs we’re talking about physique and physical goals, I want to address something that is a major challenge for many people: “Steve, I want to lose some weight, build some muscle, and also build up more endurance. I want to get strong and run a marathon but also look like a model. Oh and get a six-pack. But I don’t want to be too bulky. Can I do this in 6 weeks please?” Here’s the truth: your body can only do so many things at once, and the three goals above will pull your body in three completely separate directions. If you’re not sure what are realistic goals, I have answers for you on BOTH questions (click each to learn more):
Are those numbers in line with your expectations? Do you wish you could get in shape faster? Of course you do. So do I! For example, it took me 7 months of focused effort to lose 22 pounds safely and sustainably. Surprisingly, by changing our timeline to be more realistic, we can make better progress than at any point in the past: KEY TAKEAWAY #7: Have realistic expectations! Have the right expectations, and put your focus on the process. You’ll get there when you get there – so just focus on what you can do today. If you’re not sure if you should build muscle first or lose weight first, here’s my humble advice:
Step #8: How Do I Pick a Sustainable Workout Routine? (Exercise with Others)I love sharing stories on Nerd Fitness of REAL people, with real struggles, that found the perfect program that fit THEIR lifestyle, like Christina above. These are not people with superior genetics. They’re not on steroids, nor are they choking down supplements (Most supplements are a waste of money). The success stories in our community work full-time jobs, have kids, friends, and nerdy hobbies. Some are single moms. But they found a workout program that works for their life situation: Some of them are powerlifters. Some of them train at home with no equipment. Some of them run 5ks. As you are starting to get yourself into better shape, who you associate with is almost as important as how you train. Sounds ludicrous (did I just make you yell, “Luda!”?), but it can be the difference between long term success and long term floundering. And not the cute kind. They say you are an average of the 5 people you associate most with. Think about your roommates, significant other, friends, and coworkers: Are they people who have succeeded in the way you want to succeed, support you on your journey, can answer questions you might have, and make you want to continue being better? Or are they people who ask you to skip your workouts, make fun of you for waking up early to train on a Saturday morning, and enable you rather than support you? The more time you can spend with Group A people, the more likely you’ll be to stay on target and make progress. As you are getting better at a skill, do whatever you can to hang out with people who are good at that skill!
If you don’t have people in your life that are making you better, consider hiring a coach or instructor or joining a class to help you push yourself even farther and stay accountable! And I’m not telling you to fire your friends, but you might need to make sacrifices like Katniss until you’re better equipped to stand up for your new healthy lifestyle when they want you to come back to the dark side! Nerd Fitness helps people with workouts and eating better, sure. But I believe we get permanent results for people because we do our best to foster the most supportive community on the internet. Many of our success stories have 1-on-1 instruction from our Online Coaching Program, while some come from our self-paced courses in NF Prime. And others? They read the free articles on Nerd Fitness and helped themselves stay on target! It comes down to learning from and interacting people who are just like you, or who are people that you want to be like when you “grow up” (get in shape)! Click on each image to learn their full story: STACI THE POWERLIFTER: ANTHONY THE IT PROFESSIONAL: LESLIE THE SINGLE MOM: SAINT THE APP DEVELOPER WHO LOST 60 POUNDS AND GAINED 6 PACK ABS: And me? I started with karate as a kid. Then cross country running in high school. Then bodybuilder style training in college. Then it was bodyweight training. And now? Powerlifting and gymnastics! It’s how I went from Steve Rogers to Captain America, and then leaned out. STEP #8 TAKEAWAY: Surround yourself with people that push you to be better. You need people in your life that are pushing you to be better. If you don’t have those people already, consider joining a club or class in your community. You might just make new lifelong friends! And if you want to be at the top of your game in a particular skill or activity, you might need to hire a trainer, coach, or an online personal trainer that knows your situation specifically. In addition to our paid private communities, we ALSO have a free Message Board community that is thriving! We’d love to have you be part of OUR online community! Step 9: Tracking the Results of Your Workout Plan“Thanks Steve, but that was a lot. What do I do now?” Let me recap Steps #1-#8:
Depending on where you’re at in life, and how much weight you need to lose, you might be satisfied with just Steps 1, 2, and 3 for the next few years. That’s awesome! And if you’re ready to do more than that, we’re here for ya too. If you’re looking for me to actually tell you what to do, I would suggest the following: Here’s a strategy optimized for effortless awesomeness, happiness, and look-good nakedness:
I would start there, and then do two things after 30 days: #1) Track your compliance to see if you actually did the workouts! Did you go for walks, strength train twice per week, and do a fun activity? You can track this on your calendar or in a notebook.
#2) Measure if you got closer to your goal weight/skills/physique? Are you healthier, happier, and more confident?
“Steve that’s still not specific enough. I want you to tell me, for my exact situation, what to do every single day to reach my goals. Oh and hold me accountable. K thanks.” I’m not clairvoyant or omniscient (…yet), so in the meantime, you can check out our really fun 1-on-1 Online Coaching Program. Your Coach (a member of Team NF we’ll match you with based on your needs) will get to know you, your goals, and your challenges, and develop a workout plan that’s specific to not only your body type, but also to your schedule and life. Click the image below to schedule a free call to see if we’re a good fit for each other! I don’t care whatever path you pick, be it our coaching, NF Prime, or if you just read the free stuff on Nerd Fitness and never buy anything! I just want to help you get results, feel better about yourself, and stop struggling to make exercise consistent. So let’s hear it. Where are you on your path to finding your perfect workout program!? Tell me what your goals are. I’d love to hear about what you’re working on. Which step are you on? Stuck on Level 3? What are the activities you LOVE/HATE? What program are you following? Do you have a question on what to pick? What have you found works for you, and what DIDN’T work for you? Leave a comment and share your story with your fellow rebels! -Steve PS: If you want a blueprint for your own “perfect workout” – one that customizes to your own experience level – check out NF Journey. Our fun habit-building app helps you exercise more frequently, eat healthier, and level up your life (literally). Try your free trial right here: ### photo sources: Reiterlied Biking on the Lake, Reiterlied To The Lofoten Islands and Back Again 8/16 – Hooray for the blue sea!, clement127 Amazing playground: bicycles and football, clement127 Eurobasket 2015, Legozilla treadmill, themofoit: Stormtrooper Pushups, beach, road split, egg, runner The post Blog first appeared on Nerd Fitness. via https://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/how-to-determine-your-perfect-workout-plan/ If you’ve ever asked yourself “Am I doing too little or too many reps and sets?” then this guide is for you. This article is part of our Strength 101 series, and we’ll show you exactly how to determine the number of repetitions and sets for specific exercises, so you can build your own workout routine. It sounds easy, but depending on your goals, the answer to “How many reps and sets should I do?” can vary greatly. We work hand-in-hand with our Online Coaching Clients to create the correct workout program that suits their goals, needs, and available equipment In today’s guide on workout programing, we’ll cover (click each to get right to that answer):
The Correct Number of Reps and Sets for a WorkoutAs Coach Jim mentions above, “Rep” stands for “repetition” and defines one complete motion of an exercise. And one “set” is a consecutive number of reps without stopping. And one “smorgasbord” is a buffet of food. This has nothing to do with this article, but it’s a fun word to say. As we mentioned throughout our Strength Training 101 series, how many reps and sets you should do is really going to be dependent on your goals. Oh, you’re just starting your strength training journey? Well, make sure you grab our free guide, Strength Training 101: Everything You Need to Know. I’ll send it to you for free when you join the Rebellion (that’s us!).
Download our comprehensive guide STRENGTH TRAINING 101!
Alright, let’s break down reps and sets for you, because I can see you still have questions. How Many Reps Should I Do?Remember, “Rep” stands for “repetition” and is more or less one complete exercise. Like a push-up: So “2 sets of 5 reps of push-ups” means, “5 consecutive push-ups, a rest, then another 5 consecutive push-ups.” Cool? Cool. When deciding on how many sets and reps to do, it begins by asking “What am I trying to get out of this workout?!“ We’ll group different rep ranges into different goals, for:
I’m going to share with you the commonly accepted answers, but they ALL come with a HUGE caveat that I’ll share at the end of this article. I’m going to start with the “widely accepted numbers here.” Let’s chat about the following: 1) MUSCULAR ENDURANCE (long-lasting muscle) – Endurance means encouraging and training your muscles to perform for an extended period of time. This means doing a LOT of repetitions. People targeting muscular endurance will aim for a range from 12 to 20+ reps. Obviously, you won’t be able to lift heavy amounts of weight for 20+ reps, so you’ll be lifting lighter loads. Also, because you’re targeting endurance improvements, you want to decrease the amount of rest between sets: 30 seconds to a minute. If you are a runner or cyclist, strength training with higher repetitions can help your muscles develop more endurance as well! Reps for increased muscular endurance: 12+ 2) MUSCLE SIZE (“sarcoplasmic hypertrophy”) – This is for guys or gals looking to build larger muscles. The scientific term here is “sarcoplasmic hypertrophy,” as it focuses on increasing the amount of sarcoplasm, the non-contractile fluid found in your muscle. Up to 30% of your muscle’s size is attributed to the sarcoplasm, so focusing on this type of hypertrophy helps build overall size. If you’re looking to get bigger:
Reps for increased muscle size: 6-12 3) STRENGTH AND POWER (“myofibril hypertrophy”) – If you’re training for specific sports and just want to get stronger with more power – but not necessarily get bigger, this is the strategy for you. This type of training focuses on strengthening the myofibril, the contractile part of the muscle, hence the name “myofibril hypertrophy.” For this, target reps in the 1-5 range. And yep, that means you’re going to be picking up heavy weights, focusing all that concentrated effort into just one or a few reps. Something to note: not only are you shocking your muscles, but you’re also putting a lot of pressure on your body’s central nervous system. Here’s that caveat I was discussing: A 2015 study [1] called into question the best rep strategy for building muscle or size: “It appears that high-intensity resistance (sets of 3-5 reps) training stimulates greater improvements in some measures of strength and hypertrophy in resistance-trained men during a short-term training period [compared to sets of 8-10 reps].” What this means: Do not freak yourself out by worrying if you should do 4 sets or 5 sets of 8 reps or 10 reps. Our advice would be to START with lighter weight, with more reps as you learn the movement for safety’s sake. Then decide if you want to stay at higher reps and lower weight or vice versa. You do you, because either one will get you results! What this means: Don’t overthink it.
This forces it too to adapt and become stronger, which is critical for strength and power.[2] This is how powerlifters train:
You need to increase your rest period because lifting this heavy fatigues the central nervous system and you’ll need longer to recover. You might be waiting 3-5 minutes between sets when training in this fashion. TO RECAP, these are the rep ranges you should be considering:
I realize this is a lot to figure out, so if you are somebody – like me – who just wants to be told what to do and outsource all the worry of “am I doing the right workout for my goals?” I got you covered! I’d love to learn your story, and then build a custom program that fits your goals. We’ll help you with your nutrition, your workouts, and even check in regularly to keep you accountable! How Many Sets Should I Do?As explained above, a “set” describes a group of repetitions performed for an exercise without stopping. For example, if you do 10 squats right now, you just did 1 SET of 10 reps of squats. So let’s talk about the “correct” number of sets per exercise. Here’s the simple answer “3-5 work sets of a given exercise.”[3] Why 3 to 5, and why not 6 or 10 sets? This answer of “3 to 5” has a story behind it. 3 sets became popular in 1948 when the physician Thomas L. DeLorme suggested 3 sets of 10 reps to be an effective form of weight training. Delorme came to his conclusion after prescribing strength training to his injured patients, as a way for them to rebuild muscle and rehabilitate. He recorded and analyzed their improvements. When Delorme published his findings, it was one of the first academic looks on how to strength train. As one of the pioneers, Delorme’s recommendations stuck and became “permanently etched into the collective subconscious of the fitness community.”[4] And THAT’S the history of 3 sets at 10 repetitions… I do want to point out that more volume (more sets of exercises) per week resulted in more mass compared to less volume (fewer sets of exercises) in this study[5]. Anyways! Don’t stress yourself out by worrying if you should do 5 sets or 4 sets or 3 sets. The correct answer is: however many sets you can do, with your target rep range, without compromising your form. “STEVE, JUST TELL ME WHAT TO DO.” FINE! Pick a weight that feels light to you, and then do 3 sets of 10 reps. (Learn how much weight should I be lifting”). And then next time? Do more than last time:
This is a great place to start as you start to figure out your weight training routine and goals: There is evidence of 3 or 5 sets performed leading to more gains in endurance, size, and strength when compared to just doing 1 set per workout.[6] If you are trying to bulk up quickly, or just build more muscle, volume is the name of the game. This makes sense. You are forcing your muscles to do more work overall. So, if after your third set you feel like you can do a fourth, go for it. And if you have the energy, get that 5th set. Any more than that, and you should be thinking about increasing your weight instead. 6+ sets of an exercise with lots of rest makes for a LONG workout, and we are trying to be efficient here.[7] If you’re not sure if “3 sets of 10” or “5 sets of 5” is right for you, we got you covered. We’ll build a program that fits your goals, and then adjust it each month based on your progress. Never guess or wonder what you should be doing again. How to Build a Workout Routine!Now that you have “edumacated” yourself on how your specific goals influence the number of reps per set, and what sets actually are, you can build your workout program around this info. TO RECAP, aim for 3-5 sets in the following rep rangers per exercise based on your goals:
Oh, remember that “caveat to all of this” I mentioned above?
What this means: studies suggest targeting heavier weight with fewer reps for big lifts like squats and deadlifts to build muscle, while targeting high reps to absolute failure with bodyweight exercises for muscle building. Oh, and Nutrition is still 90% of the equation! Your rep range doesn’t matter nearly as much as you think, so don’t overthink it! Here are some examples:
This brings me to my final point: because nutrition is 90% of the equation, your sets and reps don’t matter nearly as much as you think they do! All that matters? Doing MORE this workout than the last workout. That’s how you build muscle and strength and burn fat: “progressive overload.” One more rep than last time. Doing one more set than last time. Picking up a weight that’s 5 lbs. heavier than last week. Progressive overload is a concept that Coach Jim explains in this video: So get out of your own head, and START TODAY: 1) GET HELP: If you want expert guidance and accountability so you don’t have to figure out all of this stuff on your own, I got you. Click the red button below to get the details about our amazing online coaching program: 2) FIGURING IT OUT OUT ON YOUR OWN! Download our free Strength Training 101 Guide! You get it free when you join our Rebellion (the name of our awesome free online community). Sign up in the box below:
Download our comprehensive guide STRENGTH TRAINING 101!
3) WORKOUTS YOU CAN DO NOW:
Remember: the goal should be to get stronger each workout. Write down what you did last time, and then do MORE this time. By continually challenging your muscles to do more, they’ll have to adapt by getting bigger, stronger, burning more calories, etc. There’s a lot of different truths and fallacies on plateaus and how your muscles can get “used” to working out and stop growing. If that’s something you’re battling, here’s a way to continue making progress: Spend a week in a different rep range with different amounts of weight to throw them off. This will introduce a little chaos into the system, which could be a good thing…unless you’re Batman. After a week of mixing it up, go back to your regularly scheduled routine and you’ll be right back on track. Make sure you know what you want, and then design a plan to get there. -Steve PS: If you want a nice shiny app to tell you EXACTLY how many seps and reps to do, our shiny new app will do just that! You can sign-up for a free 7-day trial to Nerd Fitness Journey, which will build a workout around your experience level! Jump in right here: ### All photo citations: Evel Knievel, Me riding a bicycle, Bicylelifter, Project Story 1/3
Footnotes ( returns to text)
The post Blog first appeared on Nerd Fitness. via https://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/the-correct-number-of-reps-per-set-in-the-gym/ So you’re a woman who wants to start strength training? Well you’ve come to the right place! We help women just like you grow strong, and today we’ll get you started on your strength training journey. Here’s what we’ll cover in our strength training guide for women:
After today’s guide, you’ll know exactly how to transform yourself into a superhero! What makes me so confident? How do I know so much about women growing strong? Allow me to introduce myself: My name is Staci Ardison. This is me deadlifting 455 pounds: I’m currently the Senior Coach here in the Nerd Fitness Coaching Program. And no, I wasn’t born this strong (that would be strangely awesome). It’s only after discovering a love of strength training that I learned how to handle weight like this. Obviously, we won’t start you out lifting that much at first. But we will set you up on a path that if you want to, one day you’ll be able to. Before we get to it, if you’re in a hurry, I want you to know we’ve compiled all our strength training material into a friendly guide so you can read it at your leisure (I’m picturing you reading the guide poolside, sipping a lemonade). Download Strength Training 101: Everything You Need to Know when you enlist in the Rebellion (that’s us!) below:
Download our comprehensive guide STRENGTH TRAINING 101!
Should Women Lift Weights? (Why You Should Start Strength Training)Everyone should start strength training: people of every sex and gender, the young, the old…everyone.[1] We discuss the benefits heavily in our introduction to strength training, but I’ll highlight some examples now.[2] #1) When you’re stronger – life is easier. No need to call for help to get that 50lb bag of dog food off the top shelf, or carrying an air conditioner unit up a flight of stairs. LIFE is easier when you’re stronger. #2) Less injury risk – when you build strong muscles, you’re also building stronger bones, ligaments, and tendons, making you less prone to injury doing things you love (like playing in a quidditch league).[3] #3) Helps combat age-related muscle loss,[4] allowing us to remain independent longer as we age: #4) Muscle is harder to maintain, which means you need to eat more just to hold on to it.[5] #5) Reduce pain – having a strong body makes living easier on your joints, as well as allows you to hold a better posture and reduce back / hip pain.[6] #6) Appearance – this is a personal preference! Some women like to have a lot of muscle, and some don’t. While you can’t spot reduce fat, you can choose to build more muscle in specific areas, changing your body shape. Growing up, I was an extreme pear shape, but due to strength training, I now have more of an hourglass shape. #7) Live longer – want to spend more time on Earth? Strength training and growing muscle will help you do just that.[7] Although strength training is one of the best things you can do for your health, it’s estimated that only about 20% of women do it, far below that of our male counterparts.[8] That sucks. It’s part of my life’s work to reverse this trend and to do so, I’m going to need your help. You in? Perfect! Is Strength Training Different for Women?Here’s something that may shock you: there’s no reason everybody – of any gender or sex – shouldn’t strength train the same way! Yep, you don’t need 3-pound pink dumbbells, unless you like 3-pound pink dumbbells! You can train with free weights and barbells just like everybody else at the gym. Yes, there are biological differences between the sexes. For example when strength training, people with typical male anatomy will produce more type IIa fibers than people with typical female anatomy, who will in turn produce more type I fibers than men.[9] Don’t worry about any of this though. We don’t need to get you lost in the weeds.[10] The American College of Sports Medicine doesn’t differentiate between sexes in their strength training recommendation.[11] So neither shall we. So what exactly is strength training, you may be asking? “Strength training” of any kind can be explained by two things: #1) Movement of any weight (including your body weight) – Doing ANY exercise that pushes your muscles outside of their comfort zone, forcing them to rebuild stronger to prepare for the next challenge. #2) Progressive overload: exerting slightly more effort than last time (lift a heavier weight or do 1 more rep) consistently. Your muscles will constantly have to adapt and will constantly be rebuilding themselves to get stronger. Coach Jim walks you through different strategies for progressive overload in this video: Before we get into the ins and outs of strength training, I need to address a question we get over and over from the women in our coaching clients: Will I get bulky if I lift weights? If you see a woman who is incredibly muscular and at an extremely low body fat percentage, I guarantee she has been working her butt off for a very long time with the very specific goal of building muscle and looking that way. It’s not something that happens overnight, or by mistake. We simply don’t have the same amount of testosterone as people with male anatomy to get there easily.[12] It’s something we cover in great detail in our guide on How to Build Muscle as a Woman. If you’d like to build muscle, but not as much as a professional bodybuilder – don’t worry, it’s not something that happens by accident. So strike “I don’t want to get bulky” from your vernacular. Alright, let’s talk about how to actually get started strength training. Strength Training Level 1: Bodyweight WorkoutsIf you’re just starting your strength training journey, our first stop will be a bodyweight workout. Bodyweight training is simply doing an exercise in which your own body is the “weight” you are “lifting.” Duh. This is the BEST place for anybody – regardless of weight or age – to start their strength training journey. Why is this the best place to start? Here are two big reasons to do bodyweight training: #1) You always have your body with you (unless you are a ghost, in which case, this is awkward). This means you can work out ANYWHERE with bodyweight training:
#2) Using your body for resistance training is the most “human” thing ever! By learning to push and pull and hang and squat and lunge, you are doing what your body is literally designed to do. By getting strong with bodyweight movements, you’re making yourself antifragile and less injury-prone. Bodyweight training isn’t as easy to ‘scale’ the difficulty as some of the other strength training methods (“put more weight on barbell”), but you can get REALLY strong with just bodyweight training. For example, you can start with knee push-ups: Then go to regular push-ups: Then elevated push-ups: Then even up to things like handstands:
And even handstand push-ups: You just have to know HOW and WHEN to scale up (we can help there too). Want a sample bodyweight workout you can try? You got it: This is the Beginner Bodyweight Workout (3 Circuits):
Want some variety? Try 8 other “at-home workouts.” You can also create your own “no equipment workout” by reading the 42 Best Bodyweight Exercises. Strength Training Level 2: Dumbbell WorkoutsThe next stop on our strength training journey includes lifting some actual weights! Woot. Dumbbells are a great first step into the world of weight training and strength training:
Here’s a beginner workout that you can, taken from our Level 4 Gym Workout, “Dumbbell Division”:
Here’s how to perform a goblet squat: This is a push-up done in proper form (in case you skipped the last section[13]): And here is how to do a dumbbell row: If you’re following along at home, you just did your first full-body workout using weights! Want a custom-built dumbbell workout? Something designed for the weights in your apartment’s gym? Our Nerd Fitness Coaches can do just that! Plus they’ll scale your workouts as you grow stronger, turning you into a superhero! Strength Training Level 3: The Wide World of BarbellsYou made it! It’s now time to start training with barbells! This is going to help you become ultra-powerful and strong. It’s how I transformed myself into the person I am today. The reason barbell training is so important is that it allows you to pick up heavy weights and do movements that recruit every muscle in your body. This is great for building powerful, strong muscles in your core, legs, glutes, and so on. We’re talking about exercises like the Back squat: And the Barbell Deadlift: Show me somebody that’s strong at both of these movements, and I’ll show you somebody that’s in better shape than most of the human population. But wait! Even an empty barbell can be heavy (normally 45 pounds or 20Kg), so before we jump into the deep end, let’s make sure you are strong enough to proceed. You’ll need to be able to complete a goblet squat with a 45 pound dumbbell (shown earlier) and the Romanian deadlift with 20 pound dumbbells. Here’s how to perform the Romanian deadlift with dumbbells: Our test to see if you can handle barbell training will be the Level 4 Gym Workout: Dumbbell Division C (taken from our Beginner’s Guide to the Gym). You’ll need to be able to go through the following before you start training with barbells:
Can’t do those movements at that weight? Stick to the Level 4 Gym Workouts until you build up the strength to progress to barbells. Once you CAN do the above, the real fun is going to start! We’re gonna replace the goblet squat with a back squat and the RDL with a barbell deadlift. Here’s a video demonstration on how to perform the barbell back squat: I would also encourage you to read How to Squat Properly for a full tutorial, especially if you’re just learning how to squat. Here’s a step-by-step video on how to do the deadlift: Again, make sure you read How to Deadlift Safely With Proper Form if you’re just starting your deadlifting journey. Once you get the handle of these two moves, it’s time for a full-body workout using barbells! We’ll give you two different days to alternate between. NF BEGINNER BARBELL STRENGTH WORKOUT: DAY A Do 3 rounds of:
NF BEGINNER BARBELL STRENGTH WORKOUT: DAY B Do 3 rounds of:
That’s it! Do each of these once a week and you’ll be rocking an awesome strength training practice. Are you doing the workouts correctly? A good way to tell would be to record yourself doing the movement and then match them against the gifs and videos in this guide. If they look close you’re doing great! We also provide form checks in our 1-on-1 Online Coaching Program. Through our snazzy app, a Nerd Fitness Coach (like me!) will review your movement to make sure you are training correctly and safely! How Much Weight Should Women Lift?We have a FULL resource on how to determine your starting weight for lifting, but I’ll give you the gist here. The simple to learn but tough to implement answer: lift enough so that you can get through the set, but not too much that you have NO fuel left in the tank at the end. And then, try to lift sliiiightly more than last time. How much weight should I start with?
“How fast should I add weight to the bar?” Here’s what we teach all of our coaching clients: add the minimum amount of weight each week you can, even if you THINK you can lift more. It’s better to finish a workout full of momentum and say “I can do more!” than defeated and saying “that was too much, crapola.” Think of it this way, even if you are adding just 5 pounds per week to the bar, within a year you would be lifting 300+ pounds! So go SLOW. Team NF’s Steve even bought little half-pound weights and increases many of his lifts by just 1 pound per week. It’s a big part of how he transformed (jokingly) from Steve Rogers to Captain America. And if you are looking for this content in an easily digestible form, make sure you download our free Strength 101 Guide when you join the Rebellion below:
Download our comprehensive guide STRENGTH TRAINING 101!
Can Strength Training Help with Weight Loss?We get questions relating to weight loss and strength training all the time, and it’s something we cover throughout our Strength Training 101 series. Let me quickly address it here: Fat and muscle are two different things – one can’t transform into the other. We all have plenty of muscle right now (otherwise we wouldn’t be able to move, walk, sit upright, etc.), the muscle is just hiding underneath a layer of body fat. In order for us to lose weight and look better, we want to do two things:
And luckily, both of those things happen simultaneously through strength training! So NO, you don’t need to lose weight first before you start strength training. You will lose weight BY strength training (and keep the muscle you have). You do NOT need to do hours of cardio for weight loss – weight loss is 90% a result of your nutrition. So honestly, you don’t need to ever set foot on a treadmill again (unless you WANT to). Strength training will help you lose weight and look better IF you do two key things for effective weight loss:
As we cover in our “Why can’t I lose weight” article (full of fun Harry Potter references), combining a caloric deficit and strength training is magic:
Just by doing those two things (get strong, reduce calories), all sorts of wizardry and witchcraft takes place in your body:
Yeah, you’re hearing me correctly. Lose the body fat that sits on top of your muscles and you’ll make your muscles tighter and denser = look better without clothes on. So how do you put this into practice?
Oh, what’s that? You just want somebody to tell you exactly how to train for your body, and how to eat for your goals? Fine! Check out our 1-on-1 Coaching Program – it’s helped hundreds of women lose weight through strength training – and proper nutrition. We work with you on habit building and lifestyle design to actually get stuff done! The Best Strength Training Exercises for WomenGreat news: The best strength training exercises are universal. No matter your size, shape, sex, gender, age, or whether you love Star Trek more than Star Wars, these are the best exercises to build a great physique. I’m going to share with you the 9 best strength training exercises that every beginner should master (scroll down for full video and explanations!):
Click on any of these exercises to get a FULL explanation of the movement, step-by-step: 1) The Push-Up: The best exercise you could ever do for yourself when it comes to using your bodyweight for push muscles (your chest, shoulders, and triceps): 2) The Bodyweight Squat: This exercise serves a dual purpose as it’s the foundation for building strength AND helps build proper mobility. If you are going to ever do barbell squats, you need to work on hitting proper depth with a bodyweight squat first! 3) The Inverted Bodyweight Row: Until you can get your first pull-up or chin-up, these exercises are GREAT to start building your pull-muscle strength (back, biceps, and forearms). 4) The Pull-Up and Chin-Up: Once you can support your bodyweight above the bar, the world becomes your playground. No strength training routine should be without pull-up or chin-up work! (Click here if you can’t do a pull-up or chin-up yet?) 5) The Bodyweight Dip: As you start to get stronger with push-ups and need to find a way to increase the challenge, consider doing dips. Warning: these are very advanced, but incredible strength-building exercises. And now we’re into the best weight training exercises: 6) The Barbell Squat: Probably the best exercise when it comes to building strength and muscle throughout your whole body. It also burns crazy calories and makes life better. This is a MUST: 7) The Barbell Deadlift: Maybe the best exercise of all time. Actually no, it IS the best exercise of all time. It’s certainly the most primal: “pick the weight up off the ground. Done.” This is a very technical lift, so make sure you read our article on how to do it with proper form: 8) The Barbell Press: Press a barbell above your head. This recruits all of the muscles in your chest, shoulders, and arms in order for you to lift the weight over your head. As a bonus, you need to really flex and brace your core, which gets those muscles working too. 9) The Barbell Bench Press. Lie on a bench, and lower a barbell until it almost touches your chest. Pause, and then press it back up towards the sky. Repeat! And get strong. Your mission, should you choose to accept it: commit to trying ONE of these movements in the next week. Use 20 seconds of courage, recruit a friend who has lifted or trained before, and try your best. And if you want somebody to help you put these into a workout program, teach you HOW to do these movements properly, and have the confidence to know you’re training correctly for your goals… A Meal Plan for Strength Training (Healthy Eating 101)So far, we’ve been more or less just talking about exercises when it comes to strength training. This is logical, because this is in fact a guide on how to perform certain exercises to grow strong. However, we constantly remind our coaching clients that 90% of their success or failure on their fitness journey will come down to what they eat. “Success” in this context really comes down to your goals.
At this point, you might be thinking “Staci, how many calories do I need?” To answer that question, it’s time for the Nerd Fitness Calorie Calculator! (Click here for our Metric calculator) (Note: we have used The Mifflin-St Jeor Equation to create this calculator! [14]).
The other piece of the equation outside of a caloric surplus/deficit is protein. Since you will be strength training and building muscle, you’ll need to make sure you are eating protein at every meal. It’s the number one macronutrient for creating new muscle tissue.[15] Protein can come from any number of sources, including:
As we cover in our “How much Protein do I need?”, claims for the amount of protein required for muscle growth vary wildly from source to source (and woman to woman).[17] Here is our recommendation:
Let me simplify it for you: “To build muscle, target at least 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight (2.2 grams per kg).” If you’re curious, from our healthy eating article, this is what a portion of protein looks like: Here’s how much protein is in a serving of food:
Want to get more protein? Consider protein shakes. Rebel Leader Steve and I both supplement with shakes daily to meet our protein goals. Whatever you do, make sure you’re getting enough! Whenever we speak with new Online Coaching Clients, protein is the macronutrient we begin every discussion with! It’s THAT important when it comes to either weight loss or building muscle. I’m not kidding when I say it should make up a portion of every meal you eat. The Top Frequently Asked Strength Training Questions for WomenHere are some of the most common questions we receive from women beginning their strength training practice in our 1-on-1 Coaching Program. #1) Will I get bulky lifting weights? I really don’t want to. I have GREAT NEWS! Strength training will not make you bulky, UNLESS you want it to! And if you want to bulk up? That’s AWESOME! Here’s how to build muscle correctly. You get to pick how you want to look, so you do you. Just remember that women who compete as bodybuilders didn’t start looking like overnight:
Here’s the truth: when you pick up heavy things (like barbell training), your muscles get STRONGER (but not necessarily bigger). If you actively eat for the goal of building muscle and getting bigger, you CAN build muscle and size. Again, if you want bigger arms or stronger glutes, AWESOME. You do you. Let’s talk about the reverse: If you pick up heavy things and eat a caloric deficit, your muscles will get stronger and denser; you will burn the fat on top of your muscle, and you will lose weight and get that “toned” look that many women are after. Jump back to our healthy eating section for more on caloric deficits and surpluses. #2) Can I spot reduce fat with certain exercises? Sir Mix-A-Lot was wrong. Don’t do side bends and sit-ups, because you’re wasting your time!
Your body cannot spot reduce fat in specific locations. If you have flabby arms or a big stomach, doing thousands of bicep curls and thousands of crunches won’t help. Your body is genetically predisposed to storing fat in certain locations in a certain order. When you start to lose weight, your body will lose the fat you currently have in a certain order as well – it might come off your arms first, then your legs, then your belly, then your chest, and THEN your butt. Or in a different order, depending on your personal genetic makeup. No amount of targeted exercise will change how that fat disappears. Want to lose weight? Reduce your caloric intake in a way that doesn’t make you miserable:
We cover ALL the popular diets, and why they will ALL work…temporarily in our article on “which diet is right for you?” (Just don’t do the Military Diet!) Here’s the truth: your diet – specifically how MUCH you eat – will be responsible for 80-90% of that fat-loss equation. The other 10%-20% can come from strength training and fun exercises. Big compound movements that recruit lots of muscle (and thus force your body to rebuild lots of muscle, which requires extra calories burned, even after the workout is done). Our section on the best strength training exercises for women would be good examples of compound movements. #3) How many days a week should a woman lift weights? Unless you’ve been strength training for years and know what you’re doing, we recommend that you pick a full-body routine that you can do 2-3 times a week. You build muscles while resting, not working out, so you generally want 48 hours before engaging the same muscle group again. If you made it up to our “The Wide World of Barbells” section, you can do the DAY A workout on Monday and the DAY B workout on Thursday. That’ll give you plenty of time to recover. Want more? Maybe on the weekend, you sneak away for a short hike. Read “Exercise Without Realizing It” for more ideas on how to keep your body moving! Don’t worry if this doesn’t seem like a lot at first. We are interested in building the habit of strength training initially. We can up the frequency once you’re rocking and rolling. Learning to meal prep would also be a good use of your time between training sessions. 4) Can I do strength training at home? You sure can! Many of our coaching clients have gotten in great shape simply by doing bodyweight exercises at home. Here are a few resources to get you strength training in your living room:
We can also build you a custom workout for your exact situation, whether you’re stuck at home or in an office, we can create a solution that fits your busy life! How to Begin Lifting Weights as a Woman (Next Steps)Since 2009, Team Nerd Fitness has learned a tremendous amount about how to best serve the ladies of this community. I want to share with you my favorite success story. Meet Leslie, a very sedentary single mom who works long hours that managed to lose 100+ lbs with the Nerd Fitness Coaching Program: What spurred her epic transformation? In two words: strength training. Leslie learned to train the right way, picked up a barbell, fixed her diet, and now does crazy things like handstands and ring work! So if you’re tired of the same ole same ole and you’re ready to start strength training, you’re in the right place! Not sure what to do or how to get started? 1) Check out our 1-on-1 Coaching Program! Our philosophies help women like Leslie above and they can be the philosophies that help you become strong inside and out. Click on the image below to schedule a call and see if we’re a good fit for each other! 2) If you want a daily prompt for doing workouts at the gym (or at home), check out NF Journey. Our fun habit-building app helps you exercise more frequently, eat healthier, and level up your life (literally). Try your free trial right here: 3) Join the Rebellion! Our free community numbers in the hundreds of thousands scattered throughout the globe, and we need good people like you! You can join by signing up in the awesome yellow box below, and I’ll send you a bunch of free guides and printable workouts, including our Strength 101 guide!
Download our comprehensive guide STRENGTH TRAINING 101!
4) Do a strength training workout this week! The most important step you can do is to actually start.
You got this. You can do it. I know because we’ve seen it countless times here at Nerd Fitness. Enough from me though, now it’s your turn: Are you just starting your strength training journey? Do you strength train at home or the gym? Any weight lifting tips or tricks we missed? Let us know in the comments! -Staci PS: Make sure you read the rest of the articles in our Strength Training 101 series:
### Photo source: Women’s day 2015, Goodbye Batman, Scenes from an empty lot in Brooklyn, DSC_0254, tonobalaguer © 123RF.com, Pirate girl, The Breakfast of Jedi, Cecaelia has come, Lance Cpl. Tayler P. Schwamb. GIF source: Thumbs up, Emma Stone Yes, Bird Delete, Lisa Simpson, Duh, Ninja Turtles, hiking.
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AuthorHi its me Thomas Dahl living in Phoenix, AZ i am 35 years old. I am very concerned about health and for maintaining my good health i use best nutraceuticals. Archives
April 2021
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