the gym

[enterprise]

well me and my buds are thinking of joining the gym. were not fat or anything in fact gaining weight there is my goal as i hear muscle weighs more. anyway i figured it would belong in personal development. assuming some people here do also any advice or anything for a 15.5 year old whos just starting out. we've been twice and we exercise but you never know if your doing it right.

[Gribble]

I'd suggest picking up a fitness book or something. I don't have any recommendations, sadly. My dad's a gym-freak, so I had him to train me. Better yet, make friends with someone who goes to the gym or see if the gym provides personal trainers. You could maybe get a starter course or something.

You don't want to just go in and start lifting weights. If you aren't doing it right you'll wear yourself out without actually accomplishing much of anything. Not to mention you could hurt yourself.

If mindlessly lifting weights bores you to tears as it did me, think of getting involved in a program that puts those new muscles to use. I took up boxing and I love it. Despite what you may think, you don't have to stand toe to toe in a ring and get pounded. You can still learn it and hone your body without competing.

And lastly, stick with it for at least a month. I don't care how much you might come to hate it, force yourself. Then, after that first month, dig out an old picture of yourself and compare that picture to the guy standing in the mirror. If you still want to quit, by all means do.

[vashti]

Boxing.... I am thinking of Russell Crowe in that boxing movie... yummy.

[anachronistic]

don't overdo it.

[misombra]

my gym won't let you out of the kiddie area until you're 16.

[enterprise]

my friends are 16 i didn't know that though, December baby

[Tiay]

don't hurt yourself. get someone to show you the right stretches, warm up, etc, and the right techniques. otherwise, all you'll do is get hurt and therefore get discouraged.

[Illusional]

doesn't your high school have a free gym that you can use?? hey, why pay when you can get it for free?? but if you're interested still, probably the most common one is 24 hour fitness. they can be a bit expensive though. i believe their rates average about 35-40 a month and that's without the activation fees and what not.

raverboy

[zro]

lifting weights in my opinion is very good and can be alot of fun, and the strength you gain is phenomenal, check muscletalk for info, very good guidance there

[enterprise]

i got discouraged from the gym. there is one thing i want to and would continue doing, running. i like running and it's healthy and all. And it should help deal with the chicken legs . But ummmm if i do that, would it look weird after running for a long time and my legs being much stronger and bigger than my arms? I'm not exactly weak or anything, i'v just got an absence of fat.

[Junket]

I was thinkin' about starting a running routine after work (around 9pm) because I have no other time during the day. Right now, I just go for 1-2 hour walks on my days off, but those are few and far between considering I work on average 6-8 days consecutively on top of school Mon-Fri.

Man, last year I was as fit as could be without weight lifting.

On top of guttin' houses, swingin' hammers and luggin' out fridges, I was still goin' for runs after work. No other care in the world.

Them was some good days.

[Converse]

At our gym we get an induction where you learn to do everything right. Then you're off!

[enterprise]

ok so Frasbee seems to know what hes doing and i'm sure others of you do also. So how long shoudl one run for, should i start off slow and build up to a certain ammount of time. i walk home and i get home at about 4:50-5 depending on if he leave school from 4:30-4:40. so i have time to run. i just don't really know whats the proper way to do things.

[Converse]

Why don't you ask the gym instructors?

[Gribble]

How in shape are you? It's usually best to start out easy. Set aside between 20 to thirty minutes at least three of four days a week. Alternate between walking and jogging. Don't push yourself too hard to begin with, just ramp it up gradually. Each day do less walking and more jogging. In very little time you'll be running the entire twenty minutes.

I try to run around 40-45 minutes a day, time allowing. I feel awful if I don't.