How to ACTUALLY get fit
(Enlarge)
First things first
Diet and Sleep!
Just get moving
Horizontal pushing: push ups, bench press
Horizontal pushing: push ups, bench press
Horizontal pulling: barbell (or dumbell) row, bodyweight row
Horizontal pulling: barbell (or dumbbell) row, bodyweight row
Vertical pushing: Overhead press (barbell or dumbbell)
Vertical pulling: Pull ups
Hip hinge: Deadlift
Squat: barbell or bodyweight
Squat: barbell or bodyweight
So without further ado, here's a bunch of stuff to get you started.
First things first
I see a lot of these "how to get fit" infographs on the front page. I mean no disrespect to those who post them, I just think they are a bit misleading. These posts are only an assortment of exercises (some of which are good, and some aren't so good), not a path to getting fit. Aside from weird exercise selection, these posts fail to address a lot of really key issues (e.g. diet and programming) that anyone who wants to get in shape needs to take care of first. If you want to skip most of this post, I have included links at the end to a bunch of different exercise programs, diet related things, and instructional videos on the exercises presented here. So let's get to it.
Diet and Sleep!
These two things are so vitally important, it drives me nuts when they don't get mentioned. You can't out-exercise a really bad diet. A lot of people give up on exercise early, because they aren't see the results they want. In reality, their diet is mismatched with their goals. Need to lose weight? Most of the time, exercise alone is insufficient. You need to pay attention to what and how much you are eating if you want results. Sleep is the other big factor. This is when your body recovers. If you aren't getting enough quality sleep, you're not going to properly recover from your work outs.
Just get moving
Once you've nailed down your diet, then you can get moving. It's important for everyone to have a cardio component to any workout routine. If you are out of shape to the extent that walking is a challenge, I highly recommend starting here before moving on to strength training. Commit to walking every day. If you can only walk it to the end of the block and back, set aside time in your day, every day for a week, to walk that distance. Next week, try adding another block. Just make sure you are progressing. If walking is no problem, try biking, jogging, swimming, whatever. Yoga is also AWESOME. The important thing is to establish a ROUTINE and get yourself used to exercising regularly, before you move on to strength related goals.
Assuming you have no pre-existing injuries that prevent you from strength training pick a strength training program that incorporates most or all of the following movement patterns (bodyweight, freeweight, or a combo!):
Horizontal pushing: push ups, bench press
How to: www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYKScL2sgCs
Horizontal pushing: push ups, bench press
How to: www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dF1DOWzf20
Horizontal pulling: barbell (or dumbell) row, bodyweight row
How to: www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8l_8chR5BE
Horizontal pulling: barbell (or dumbbell) row, bodyweight row
How to: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qi4ABUgskUI
Vertical pushing: Overhead press (barbell or dumbbell)
Note: a bodyweight equivalent of this exercise is a little more tricky. Progressing towards a handstand, and then progressing towards handstand push ups is one route.
How to: www.youtube.com/watch?v=wol7Hko8RhY
Vertical pulling: Pull ups
Note: This is an awesome exercise. Many people (including those in shape) have trouble with it. If you need to lose quite a bit of weight, I suggest waiting until that happens before incorporating pull ups. After that, you can progress towards full pull ups (link at the end).
How to: www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAEua0zu_74
Hip hinge: Deadlift
How to: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1IGeJEXpF4
Squat: barbell or bodyweight
Weighted squats are an amazing exercise when performed with proper form. I suggest learning good form with just bodyweight first, then progressing to an empty bar, and then adding weight.
Sigh... Sauce: www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEN-BjfdU_Y
How to: www.youtube.com/watch?v=bs_Ej32IYgo
Squat: barbell or bodyweight
So to summarize, getting fit involves proper diet, plenty of sleep, conditioning (cardio), and proper exercise selection. None of this works without CONSISTENCY and COMMITMENT. One key to being consistent with your workouts is injury-prevention. You're not going to want to work out if you are hurt all the time. Learn how to do the movements, learn how to warm up, learn how to stretch. Learn about your own specific weaknesses and how to address them before they become problems. As far as commitment goes, I think having an actual plan goes a long way. Choose an exercise routine that meets your fitness goals, and stick to it. When choosing a routine, it's critical that it is structured to keep you PROGRESSING. Not only will this keep you interested, but it's how you see results! Don't flip flop or worry about which program might be slightly better. As long as it's well-programmed, the best routine is always the one that you can stick to, so find something you enjoy and DO IT. Also try to find a workout buddy. It's a lot harder to back out when someone else is counting on you. You might even consider signing up for something like a 5K to get you motivated. I also highly recommend getting over gym-phobia. You do not need a gym membership to get fit, but it's nice having access to free weights, or a treadmill or something if the weather is bad. Honestly, no one at the gym is paying attention to you. Just do your workout and leave. That's what everyone else is there to do, not laugh at the newbie.
So without further ado, here's a bunch of stuff to get you started.
Warm-ups: try the "warm-up" component of this workout routine: www.reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness/wiki/kb/recommended_routine#wiki_warmup_.28.7E10_minutes.29
Stretching: phraktured.net/starting-stretching.html
Yoga: 30 Days of Yoga: www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXU591OYOHA&list=PLui6Eyny-UzwxbWCWDbTzEwsZnnROBTIL
Instructional videos:
Bench Press: www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYKScL2sgCs
Push ups: www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dF1DOWzf20
Rows: www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8l_8chR5BE
Bodyweight Row: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qi4ABUgskUI
Overhead press: www.youtube.com/watch?v=wol7Hko8RhY
Pull up: www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAEua0zu_74
Deadlift: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1IGeJEXpF4
Barbell Squat: www.youtube.com/watch?v=bs_Ej32IYgo
Bodyweight Squat: www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3g4wAsu0R4
Routines to try (all of these are only 3 days a week!):
Couch to 5K - A great way to start building good exercise habits: www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml
Stronglifts "5x5": stronglifts.com/5x5/ - One of the most popular. Simple and effective. Probably the easiest thing to start with. It's where I started.
Phrak's Greyskull Workout: i.stack.imgur.com/OUcEY.png - This was put together by /r/fitness mod Phrakture as a modified version of a different workout.
Starting Strength "3x5": forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=998224 - considered one of the classic beginner programs. The only difficulty with this one is that one of the exercises (power clean) can be difficult to learn on your own. Some people substitute a rowing exercise for it.
/r bodyweightfitness's recommended routine: www.reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness/wiki/kb/recommended_routine
All pro beginner routine - more "body-builder" style but totally focused on the core movements outlined here: forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=4195843
Diet: First step is to calculate how many calories your body needs simply to run, so you can lower or raise that amount based on your goals. This is your "Basal Metabolic Rate" (BMR). Calculator: www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
Check out this article for some good general dietary advice: www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/11/10/healthy-eating/
Now while I think that a lot about the Paleo diet is totally stupid and unfounded, paleo recipes are free of bread and pasta. Reducing those two things and replacing them with fruits and veggies is a seriously easy way to reduce your calorie intake, so it's nice to have some bread/pasta-free recipes around
paleogrubs.com/paleo-diet-recipes
nomnompaleo.com/recipeindex
ultimatepaleoguide.com/recipes/
You'll probably have tons of questions. Here's some resources to help you answer them:
www.youtube.com/user/athrall7 - Check out this guy's channel. He has great tutorials and is pretty hilarious.
www.reddit.com/r/fitness (excellent place to start)
www.nerdfitness.com/ (lots of other good stuff there, too)
www.bodybuilding.com/ (I know I know, meatheads yada yada. the site is actually packed with useful stuff)
startingstrength.com/ (get the book, it's seriously helpful for learning the basic lifts)
www.reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness/ (for those of you who don't want to lift or join a gym)
www.youtube.com/user/strengthcamp (run by Elliott Hulse, a total lunatic with some insightful things to say)
www.youtube.com/user/scooby1961 (Scooby has tons of great instructional videos, even if he has terrifying nipples)
www.youtube.com/user/ScottHermanFitness (another channel with tons of helpful videos)
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