Needing advice helping a family member.

[Wrathic]

Hey everyone, in the past I have always been able to navigate this site and find the information I need. However, the time has come where I am in need of some advice, hence, my very first post.

Alright, so recently I was approached by my aunt (mothers sister) and she knows that I go to the gym consistently to weightlift and do cardio. She is under the impression that I am rather experienced when it comes to maintaining a healthy lifestyle, so she asked me if she could join the gym that I go to, and help her get into shape. Now I myself am only 21 years old, and have been weightlifting since I was a junior in highschool. I am no where near being a professional at this, nor claim to be. My journey has been filled with mistakes, and I have learned a great deal since I first began through experience, and educating myself on sites such as this.

Now, my aunt is 48 years old, roughly 5'8" and 175 pounds. She is overweight, and smokes (trying to stop at the moment) and is completely clueless when it comes to weightlifting. A daisy fresh rookie. In terms of physical problems she is fine. No knee, shoulder, back problems etc. She has decided that she wants to build a little muscle while losing fat, and overall live a healthier lifestyle before she starts coming down with health problems. Now this I can admire, and I have agreed to help her out.

The nutrition side of things I can handle. It is the routine side of things where I need help with. Where should I start in terms of a routine for her? I know that cardio is going to be a big mainstay for her, but the weightlifting is where I am clueless. Should I start with the basic compound lifts? Or should I start with machines til she gets the hang of things before starting with free weights?

Anyone with personal training advice would be greatly appreciated. I feel like I am over my head here, and really don't want to risk an injury on her part.

[Overload]

Does she have an interest in free weights or is she intimidated by them? If she prefers she can use machines. Don't let others tell you that it has to be free weights or nothing because each situation a person is in and each of their goals is different from another person.

She can always move to free weights once she feels more confident with weight training. For the smaller muscle groups she can use free weights like dumbbells.

Of course if she likes the idea of free weights than by all means jump right into it... carefully of course.

As for a routine, if she's never touched a weight before I'd start with simple compound exercises in a full body type routine. Work from bigger muscle down to smaller with things like leg presses, chest press, lat pulldown, rows, shoulder presses, etc. Just 1-2 sets at first to get her used to how it feels to lift weights. That's where machines can come in handy because she can move from exercise to exercise rather quickly.

Make sure she uses good form with controlled reps. There's no need to try to get the set done as quickly as possible. This way she can practice breathing technique as well. Injury prevention should always be the focus. The fact that's she not a teenage male will probably mean you don't have to worry about ego getting in the way of amount of weight used

She doesn't need to focus on every muscle group at first so I wouldn't bother too much with curls, kickbacks, pushdowns, etc. for the first few weeks/months. The whole point is to get her used to weight lifting and then introduce a couple of more exercises and/or more volume over time. Then in several months from now she can change to some kind of split or just continue doing full body if she likes how it feels and she's really getting into weight training.

From your post it looks like she just wants to be healthier and feel better more so than be a bodybuilder per say. Resistance training is great for everyone but you have to match it to their goals. Get more info from her and we might be able to give more details.

Good luck.

[joed]

If she knows her way around a keyboard, have her come here & start reading & asking questions. Additionally, some gyms, especially rec center ones, often have group & individual classes for people who want to learn to lift. That way she'd be with people at her level & she might get some friendly support.

[Eileen]

48 is not old, and she just needs to be shown the basics, not wrapped in cotton wool.

As has been mentioned, most gyms have a system where a trainer instructs newcomers in basic lifts and makes out a core programme for them.

Women generally need more cardio than men. You might introduce her to the concept of HIIT as a great way to burn fat. I see too many women in my gym strolling along on the treadmill for hours, and not getting results.

[Wrathic]

#2 Yeah, she has no aspirations of being a bodybuilder. Now I know 48 is not old by any means, but I think she is beginning to feel the consequences of living an unhealthy lifestyle, and is now deciding to do something about it. She told me that she wants to lose fat for the most part, but was curious at the idea of weightlifting. She has never touched a weight in her life, nor has had a consistent workout regimen.

#3 Yeah, that is exactly what I told her. I told her that educating herself online is one of the best things she could do. I really stressed that. Also, I workout at the local YMCA, so I will look into classes that she might be able to take.


And thanks for the responses guys, I really appreciate it.

[Geek_God]

Your aunt has multiple risk factors for undiagnosed cardiopulmonary disease (age, weight, smoking, sedentary lifestyle). If she does not see a doctor regularly then she should see one before she starts exercising at anything above a mild effort. If she does see a doctor regularly then you need to find out why before committing to any type of program.

If she is clear to exercise, i'd start with some simple cardio. Start with low volume (10-15 minutes) and work up until she has some capacity. Then work on tweaking the exertion factor.

As she works up the time on the cardio you can introduce flexibility and resistance training. There really isn't a magic bullet for resistance work other than go slowly and aim for higher reps (12-15) until she can handle the weights. After weight training a mix of dynamic and static stretching will keep her loose. Before weights a complete warm up is a must.