From physical therapy to working out ...

[notgumbel]

Hi to all and thanks for reading!

In late 2004 I was involved in a mild auto accident, and was in physical therapy for about a year. That primarily involved time on the treadmill, plus various exercises on Quantum brand equipment (chest press, vertical row, leg press, etc).

Earlier this year, I decided to get serious about having a good exercise program for myself. I'd enjoyed my previous experience, except that I was demotivated due to the reason I was there. So I figured why not give it a try?

My primary goals:
- Weight loss
- Endurance
- Flexibility
- Nice looking biceps for the fiancee

Supplements etc:
- Optimum Nutrition whey protein (2 shakes per day)
- Creatine monohydrate (5g/day)
- Daily multivitamin (currently using One Source but planning to upgrade)

I've been at it for three weeks so far, and I really couldn't be much happier with the results or how I feel physically. I've not lost weight, but I can tell a tremendous difference in arms, thighs, and midsection tone.

The trainer set me up with the same exercises I'd been doing in physical therapy, same weights and reps. I have been able to work up from 15 reps to 30 on all exercises, while the weight has increased; also, I've been able to walk faster for longer (up to 20 min) on the treadmill. At present I go 3 days per week, and the entire session (treadmill and Quantum circuit) lasts about an hour including rest.

The weight isn't the highest as compared to many folks, I'm certain ... I started out in a position of weakness due to the accident, and also from a deskbound job. I'm trying at the moment only to gauge progress compared to where I was, but also ready to look forward to where I could be and should be.

Next week I'm planning to meet with the trainer and ask for some modifications now that I've been at it, some ideas on how to optimize my training regimen.

But prior to that, I wanted to introduce myself here, thank everyone for making this such a cool resource, and get some additional ideas!

My main question, I guess, is an idea of which is better: weight or reps, and I guess also whether it's best to do all of an exercise or break it up into smaller sets. Right now I do all 30 reps of an exercise if I can ... if not, I break it up into sets of 15 or 10 until completed.

If I've overlooked something obvious by not searching properly, I'll gladly read any links that I'm pointed towards. And once I'm back in the gym tomorrow, I'll make a list of specific exercises and weights/reps.

Thanks again!

[SumthinOrNuthin]

Hello

Sounds like you are taking a very sensible route to fitness following your accident

If you're chiefly after endurance then higher reps is good, though 30 may be a bit too high. Sets of 15 would work nicely. It depends though on your current physical limitations - like, if you're going to cut down from sets of 30 to sets of 15, it would be good to lift a little heavier. But as I say, go with what your body can cope with. You can't rush nature when she's doing that healing thing so don't over-extend yourself . I'm sure your trainer will set you on the right track.

Good luck with achieving your goals

[stahlhart]

Should do smaller sets of fewer reps with increased weight. Somehow I think that if you're getting to 30 reps, you aren't challenging your muscles enough to grow.

[notgumbel]

Thanks to both for your support and suggestions!

A bit of follow up ...

I met with a personal trainer at the fitness center I attend, and gave him a short list of goals, those being:

- Weight loss
- Endurance
- Smaller midsection
- Increased bicep size/definition
- Increased leg size/definition

The last two are partly for me and partly for the fiancee My joke is that I have a wrestler's physique, although unfortunately that wrestler is Mick Foley

He reiterated what you both had said for increasing weight to challenge muscle growth. Additionally, he recommended a "one one thousand, two one thousand" approach, which I think is properly called "slow reps." If strength failed, go to a lower weight ... but finish the number of reps. A few new exercises such as assisted dips and pull-ups were addded. So now I'm doing three sets of ten reps on each exercise. This strategy would be to build muscle. Next, he changed my cardio routine. He recommended ending each session with 15 minutes minimum on the treadmill to get the heartrate really up there, varying the speed intermittently.

(I'll post a more complete list of exercises and reps as soon as I bring 'em home)

The first few sessions were kind of painful! But I also found myself encouraged that I could actually do it. On a couple of occasions I said "oh why not" and increased the weight a bit more then just the usual 5-10 pounds ... and was shocked that I had little to no problem doing the reps! Increasing weight has helped me stay mentally focused, as I get bored easily, and the motivation of goals really keeps my mind into it.

Before I forget, here's my short list of supplements:
- ON 100% whey
- CE3
- Flax seed oil capsules
- ZMA
- GNC Mega Men Sport multivitamin

Shortly afterward, I set up a fitday.com account, just to see what my intake of protein/carbs/fat actually was. The first day I was astonished at how much fat I took in :O But that helped me fine tune the areas where I could cut the fat, which was my purpose. Daily averages for the last two weeks:

Calories ingested: 3065
Calories burned: 3855
Protein grams: 277 (37%)
Carb grams: 338 (43%)
Fat grams: 68 (20%)

Body weight is staying fairly steady around 280. But ... I can see differences in the midsection, and in small things like jiggle factor (chesticles no longer get all bouncy on bumpy roads LOL). I make sure to cover the daily minimum calories, but stay 500-1000 in deficit plus keep fat grams down.

Actually, I'm now beginning to have some clothing issues, and for once not due to belly fat. Some shirts and my jeans are starting to fit a bit too snug. This past weekend I burst the button off two separate pair of shorts (thankfully they stayed up, no need for a wardrobe malfunction of that magnitude), and had to get some pairs with larger waistbands. It feels like the main areas of growth are shoulders, chest, thighs, and buttocks. I'm wondering if I need to concentrate on more of a fat-burning mode, or just accept that I'm gonna get bigger.

Most of all, I suppose, is that I'm almost completely PAIN FREE and also able to do some things that were previously difficult due to numbness in my left hand and left foot. We're in the process of consolidating households, and I was able to unload a truck of garbage at the dump without even breaking a sweat. I wouldn't have thought some of these things to be possible a few years ago.

So anyways, thanks for indulging my run-on writing this morning, and I'll post more of the actual fitness routine & weights in the next few days. As always I will appreciate any fine-tuning suggestions, and am thankful for everyone who constantly shares their own experiences in this forum.

Have a wonderful Tuesday!