How To Start A Gym Workout For Beginners
WHs best practice for beginners at the gym is:
- Keep workouts simple
- Start lighter than you think
- Follow an expert plan not a bunch of random Instagram posts
Theres always scope to add on weight if the weight isn’t enough, but starting too heavy runs the risk of injury, especially in the early days as your body adjusts to a new routine.
Which Version Of The Split Should You Use
Heres what I recommend
- 3-Day VersionI consider the 3-day version to be the best choice for the majority of people doing full body workouts. It allows for an optimal frequency for the goals most people have, it will fit perfectly into most peoples schedules, and when designed correctly, its unlikely to be problematic for most people in terms of issues with recovery or overuse injuries.
- 2-Day VersionIf you are only able to work out twice per week, this is the best choice for you. Simple as that.
- 4-Day VersionI rarely ever recommend this version. Why? Well, for starters, its the version with the most potential to be problematic from the perspective of recovery and overuse injuries. But, mostly, its just because this version tends to be the best option only for those who actually need to train each body part, exercise, or movement pattern this often, and thats just not someone I encounter much. But if you happen to have a goal that does warrant this type of frequency, this version would be an option to consider.
Eat The Right Number Of Calories
For the most part, if you want to lose fat you need to consume fewer calories than you burn , and if you want to build muscle you need to eat slightly more calories than you burn .
However, when you have little to no weightlifting experience, your body is so responsive to the muscle-building effects of resistance training that you can power through a calorie deficit and build muscle anyway.
This is why people are able to transform their body rapidly when they first start training consistently.
Research shows that if you want to maximize fat loss while still gaining during this newbie gains phase, you need to use an aggressive calorie deficit.
This is why I recommend that you set your calorie deficit at 20-to-25% .
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Best Beginner Workout Routine
There are tons of workout routines for women, but very few of them focus on what to do if youre just starting out.
If youre right at the beginning of your fitness journey, congratulations! You should count yourself lucky because the start of a fitness journey is where the results come the fastest. Youll be able to transform much quicker than those who have been working out for years. Lucky you!
Remember, though, don’t push yourself too hard!
It’s important to start slow and light. You can always increase your intensity, add more weights, or bump up your frequency, but get a good baseline routine established first.
Trainers top tip:Eat right. You can work out every day and still miss your goals if youre not eating right. A healthy diet full of fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and healthy fats is one of the keys to a true fitness transformation. Be sure to avoid processed foods and try to cook for yourself as much as possible.
Sample Beginner Workout Routine for Women
This 3-day beginner routine works every muscle group in each training session. The week begins with a focused day in the gym while youre fresh. Its followed by a heart-racing kickboxing class where the instructor keeps you motivated and moving. Then you wrap the week up with a yoga practice that gives you a good core workout, stretches tight muscles, and relaxes away the stress of the week.
Monday – Gym Day
Tuesday – Rest Day
Wednesday- Kickboxing Day
Thursday – Rest Day
Friday – Yoga Day
How Much Weight Should I Lift
We have a FULL resource on how to determine your starting weight for lifting, but Ill 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.
Its 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!
Plus, when you start working out, youre actually programming your neuromuscular systems to do the movement correctly. You cant rush this, so its best not to start off too heavy.
When is it time to move up in resistance?
The NSCA has a 2-for-2 rule that recommends:
If a person can do two reps over their set goal, then they should increase the load.
How much should you increase weight by?
- For less trained people , it is recommended that for upper body exercises you increase the load by 2 â 5 pounds and by 5 â 10 pounds for lower body exercises.
- For more trained people , it is recommended that for upper body exercises you increase the load by 5 â 10 pounds or more and by 10 â 15 pounds or more for lower body exercises
Thats the key to Progressive Overload, as Coach Jim explains in this video:
Looking for more bodyweight exercises? Check out the list of our favorite 42 bodyweight exercises you can do anywhere.
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Week Full Body Workout Routine For Women Overview
Below you will find a weekly breakdown of the exercises you will perform for the next 8 weeks.
Each day is a complete full body workout. Perform the exercises on the day they are prescribed and dont worry about adding more exercises to this workout. It will be plenty to challenge you.
Rest periods should be limited while performing this full body routine. Try to keep rest periods between 30-60 seconds after each set and in between exercises.
Weight progression will be highly individualized. Your goal, however, should be to move up in weight on at least one set of each exercise you perform each week. This weight increase doesnt have to be much, even 1lb increases over time will add up.
Monday
| 3 | 20 Secs |
*If you cannot perform bodyweight dips or pull ups start off by performing eccentric only dips and eccentric only pull ups, as well as band assisted dips and band assisted pull ups, until you build the strength necessary to perform them with your bodyweight.
Friday
Q. Im a beginner, can I perform this 8 week full body workout routine?
This workout was written with the beginner in mind. The answer is absolutely.
Some beginners may find some of these movements difficult to perform. However, there is always an alternate variation that a beginner can perform. If you need a recommendation, please dont hesitate to ask in the comments section below.
Q. How should I eat while performing this workout program?
Q. What should I do after the 8 weeks is up?
Sure!
Ppl Sample Workouts For Females
This PPL split is ideal for females who already have 6-12 months of strength training experience and need more specialized training because theyve stalled out on another program. This is also a good routine for women who dont have a lot of time to spend in the gym since you dont have to spend a lot of time warming up before each new movement.
Push Day
- Inclince dumbbell bench press 4 x 10
- Overhead press 4 x 8
- Arnold press 4 x 10
- Skull crushers 3 x 12
- Tricep pushdowns 3 x 12
Pull Day
- Single-arm dumbbell row 4 x 8 per arm
- Weighted pull-ups 4 x 8-10
- Lat pulldown 4 x 10
- EZ bar curls 3 x 12
- Hammer curls 3 x 12
Leg/Core Day
- Leg extensions 4 x 10
- Hamstring curls 4 x 10
- Calf raises 2 x 12
- Weighted planks 3 x 60 esconds
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Exercise : Barbell Back Squat
Next, were going to move onto a lower body exercise before proceeding onto the next upper body movement. This just helps to optimize our recovery and performance with each exercise throughout your total body workout.
The barbell back squat is the exercise of choice here since its been repeatedly shown in multiple papers to elicit very high quadriceps activation. However, it will also heavily involve the glutes and various other lower body muscles.
You should mainly feel the tension in the muscles highlighted below as you perform the exercise:
And again with this compound movement you want to utilize a full range of motion to maximize growth.
In fact, illustrating the importance of this…
A 2014 paper by McMahon and colleagues found that there was a two-fold increase in muscle size after only 8 weeks for subjects using full ROM squats compared to partial range of motion squats:
And although what constitutes full range of motion will vary based on your anthropometry, Id stick with what the research recommends as optimal. Simply aim to come down to at least slightly below parallel or deeper if your mobility enables you to do so safely.
Romanian Deadlift To Row
Reps: 1012
Step 1. Hold a dumbbell in each hand and stand with feet hip-width apart. Drawyour shoulders back and downward , and tuck your tailboneslightly so that your pelvis is parallel to the floor. Brace your core.
Step 2. Bend your hips back while keeping a long spine from your head to yourpelvis. Allow your knees to bend as needed, and stop when you feel a stretch inyour hamstrings.
Step 3. From there, row the weights to your sides. Lower them back down, andthen extend your hips to stand up tall again.
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Total Body Workout: Key Points
1. No matter how your training week is set up, its important to train hard and focus on improving your workout performance over time.
Do the same exercises, for the same number of sets and reps, while lifting the same amount of weight, for the next five years. Nothing much is going to happen.
Thats because the training youre doing is a challenge your body has already adapted to. As a result, no new muscle will be gained.
Im not saying youll make progress in every single workout. To do so indefinitely would be impossible, and therell be times when you end up lifting the same amount of weight, for the same number of sets and reps you did before.
However, your focus should always be on pushing yourself to increase the amount of work your muscles are doing, whether thats lifting heavier weights, doing more reps with the same weight, or doing more sets.
You need to give your muscles a reason to get bigger, or youll remain stuck at the same size you are right now.
So make sure to keep a training diary, write down your numbers, and always try to beat your previous workout in some way.
2. How long should the rests be in a full body workout? Take 2-3 minutes rest between sets. If in doubt, err on the side of giving yourself too much rest rather than not enough.
A better way to save time is to use paired sets, which involve exercises that target opposing muscle groups performed back-to-back.
Example:
Rest for 45-60 secondsLat Pulldown
Beast To Alternating Knee Tap
Reps: 10
Step 1. Get into a childsposeknees on the floor, arms stretched in front of you, and your weight backon your heels.
Step 2. Push yourself upinto a pushup position as you bring your left knee forward to touch your leftelbow.
Step 3. Return to thechilds pose, and then repeat on the opposite side.
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Exercise : Chest Supported Row
Next, well move onto the main back movement of this workout which will be a chest supported row. Most of the upper back musculature will be worked. But more emphasis is placed on the mid-back muscles like the traps and rhomboids as shown below:Its essential that we include a rowing movement to target these mid-back muscles since they arent as effectively targeted in vertical pulling movements like the pull-ups in workout A.Why exactly do I recommend performing your rows either chest-supported on a bench or machine OR inverted from a bar?Well, simply to help minimize the lower back involvement which is already adequately worked in the deadlifts performed earlier.Thus, any form of chest support when pulling will accomplish this.But the inverted row is also a great alternative as well. Advocating its effectiveness, this 2009 paper by Fenwick and colleagues have found that:
The inverted row elicits significantly less spinal loading on the lower back when compared to other common pulling exercises while still providing sufficient activation of the upper back muscles.
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 âLevel up your life, every single day.â
Things to record for your workout:
- Can lift more weight?
- Can you lift the same amount of weight more times than before?
- Can finish the same routine faster than before?
If you see your numbers improving , then youâre getting stronger and gaining more lean muscle mass!
Woot.
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 Im improving!
You can use an actual notebook, a bullet journal, an Excel spreadsheet, a workout app, or a Word document.
Dont overcomplicate it:
Do this with a workout youve built, and you WILL get results. I promise.
Heres how to properly track your progress and set a new personal best every time you train.
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Exercise : High To Low Cable Flies
The last exercise of this workout will be high to low cable crossovers. This movement will put more emphasis on the sternal head of the pecs, or lower chest, since the line of pull of the cables runs inline with the way the lower chest fibres run.Its important to include this exercise since none of our previous exercise selection prioritizes the development of this region of the chest.A couple key points with this exercise are to:
- Keep the elbow position locked throughout each rep
- Cross your hands over at the bottom position to allow greater horizontal adduction in order to maximally activate the chest fibres
What Is A Full Body Workout Routine
A full body workout routine is a strength training program built around training most or all of the entire body during each workout rather than splitting it up into different parts.
With other types of workouts, you might have an upper body day, or chest day, or arm day, or leg day, or back and biceps day, or push day, or something similar. But with a full body routine, every day is a full body day.
This means youll potentially be training the following muscle groups in each workout:
This doesnt mean you need to do multiple exercises for each individual body part in each session like you would with one of the other types of workouts I just mentioned.
In this context, youd end up being in the gym for 3+ hours, which is excessive/crazy.
Instead, full body workouts take advantage of a higher training frequency and the fact that certain exercises target multiple body parts.
For example, the bench press is thought of as a chest exercise. But, it targets the shoulders and triceps as well. Similarly, most back exercises also target the biceps, shoulder pressing exercises also target the triceps, and many leg exercises target the quads, hamstrings, and/or glutes to some extent.
Full Body Flexibility Exercises Instructions
1. Childs pose: 30 seconds. Extend your arms as far as you can, keep your knees wide and your toes together.
2. Ab stretch: 30 seconds. Keeping your pelvis on the mat, straighten your arms and slowly lift your torso.
3. Cat cow stretch: 30 seconds + 30 seconds. Keep your spine relaxed and dont bounce between positions.
4. Hip flexor stretch: 30 seconds + 30 seconds. Kneel on your left leg and bend your right leg in front of you at a 90-degree angle. Shift your weight forward and feel the stretch in your hips.
5. Hamstring stretch: 30 seconds + 30 seconds. Lie on your back and lift your left leg up. Hold your thigh and pull the leg toward your chest.
6. Glute stretch: 30 seconds + 30 seconds. Cross the left leg over the right and bring both knees toward your chest. Pull the right leg toward you, hold the stretch and repeat with the opposite leg.
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7. Standing forward bend: 30 seconds. Keep your knees straight and bend forward, by rotating your hip joints. Grab the back of your ankles and hold for 30 seconds.
8. Quad stretch: 30 seconds + 30 seconds. Maintain your back straight and keep your thighs together. If you need extra support you can hold onto a wall.
9. Calf stretch: 30 seconds + 30 seconds. As you drop your hips down and forward, push your back heel down into the floor and keep your back knee straight.
10. Neck stretch: 30 seconds + 30 seconds. Dont force the stretch beyond the necks normal range of motion and avoid any aggressive movements.
