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[DeKaFu]

So, I want to try getting in shape, and being at University I have easy access to a fitness centre with a cardio room and strength training room.
Trouble is, I've never been anywhere near a fitness centre before and have no idea how to approach things, and don't really feel comfortable paying $80+ for two hours with a personal fitness trainer to find out.

So, on the off-chance anyone here has any experience with fitness, does anyone have any pointers on things like which machines to use and how long? My main goals are increasing stamina for walking/running and increasing upper body strength before the summer. I should have time to go there for an hour or two, twice a week.

Also I'm female, if that makes any difference.

[Captain Mayday]

Best way to increase stamina for walking and running is to use the treadmill and walk and run.
Improve your core strength by core exercises, you'll find plenty of those on the internet. Most of them you don't need any weights for.
Finally, if you want stronger arms as well, you should utilise the free-weights. Search the internet for upper body exercises for more.

Finally, don't forget to do stretches, these are extremely important.

edit:
My girlfriend also uses this: http://www.c25k.com/
She advises me it's extremely helpful, especially for somebody who hasn't got much practice at running. It can also be done outdoors, so gym is optional there.

[smigenboger]

In creative projects there's a dead thread called operation cardio which may be helpful.

I would recommend swimming to increase stamina and cardio. If that's not available, I'd use an elliptical before a treadmill. Treadmills can be bad for your knees, and the elliptical claims to burn 990 calories an hour when I'm on it, but it seriously can't be right.

Free weights are better for you than machines. You get the full range of your muscles and your movement is natural. It is also slightly tougher since you don't have machinery to guide your movement. Pullups help your biceps and back, dips use your shoulder blades and triceps (the part from your elbow to your shoulder on the outside), bench press will help your chest and secondarily your triceps, free weight curls will focus your biceps, and the lat pull-down machine will help your shoulder blades.

Pushups are similar to bench presses, but you get a little more control of what area you want to work out. The closer you put your hands together, the further down your arm you work on. If your hands are close enough to have your thumbs and index fingers touching, you're working on your forearms and some triceps. A little further out would be biceps and triceps, normal spacing works your chest and biceps, and very far apart works almost exclusively on your chest and a little on your shoulder blades. Pushups will help you with your cardio.

I've been getting core results since I've started doing leg lifts correctly and crunches. Leg lifts work the lower part of our core, from your nethers to about halfway up your abs. Lay down on your back, place your fists behind your head so your shoulders never leave the ground, keep your legs straight and lift them off the ground using your abs. Resist using your back or thighs or it completely ruins the purpose, and will hurt your back.
To crunch, lay on your back, put your legs up with your knees bent 90* and crunch your abs up tight and hard. Instead of doing it like you see most people, so slow, tight, and really make your abs known to you. This prevents you from using your back, and you certainly know you're using your abs. You can also use an exercise ball for crunches, but personally they hurt my back.

Hope this helps, if you need any questions just holler. Fitness centers are not competitions, and no-one will berate you for starting out.

[nenjin]

For upper body, lat pull downs, over the shoulder pull downs and push ups.

Free weights are better for you than machines.

Only if you actually know what you're doing. For someone with zero weight training experience, knowledge of technique, and form, machines are good because they immediately show you how to do the exercise.

I prefer resistance machines for doing biceps, especially. If you're gonna pay to go to a gym, you might as well use the fancy machines. Going to a gym to use free weights seems like a waste of money to me. At what most fitness centers charge (completely BS fees to justify their existence), make the most of your money.

Also, if you're looking to tone muscle and increase stamina, rather than bulking up, go for lower weight and higher reps. If you can do 20 reps with a 25 pound dumbell before your arms go dead, do 40 reps with a 15 pound dumbell instead. (There's math on this that trainers can easily help you figure out.)

[smigenboger]

Ew, yeah I forgot you should ask around for how to use the free weights. People are usually friendly, and they certainly would be to a girl at a gym.

I think she said it's part of Uni, so the rooms are free. Mine was only $220 for 21 months for swim and gym, but I lucked out on an 18 month special that got extended since the track got refurbished. They are usually between $15 and $30 a month.

Oh yeah get a spotter if you bench press.

[nenjin]

Your rec use fees are usually rolled up in your uni fees. So the theory still holds the same. As long as you're paying for it, use the fancy crap.

After getting out of college, there's no way I would pay to go to a fitness center unless I was swimming in money. Unless you're there for the help of professionals, or for a weight room hook up, the machines are the only fitness benefits for being there. So use em.

[GlyphGryph]

Eh, a lot of the fancy machines are either hype, or meant or for experienced athletes as part of a comprehensive workout. The benefit to beginners for many of them is minimal in my experience.
This is not to say all machines are bad. Some are very good! But I wouldn't recommend most of them for a beginner, as they wouldn't know how to get the most out of them.

If you don't want to use the services of a trainer (though I think its generally a good idea to get yourself set up), the very least you can do is make sure to use the cardio machines regularly. Find one you like that works for you. Search online for proper form for a couple basic strength exercises, preferably ones that use as many muscles as possible, and do them regularly as well. Pullups and bench presses are good if you can do them for upper body strength, and assisted pull-up machines can help you if you can't do them on your own to begin with. If you master the pullup, add a weight belt.

Going to a gym to use free weights seems like a waste of money to me.

Where else are most people going to have access to a decent set of free weights?
You ask me whats a waste is the treadmill.

[nenjin]

But I wouldn't recommend most of them for a beginner, as they wouldn't know how to get the most out of them.

Slow, even reps to maximize stress on the muscles. That's.....all you need to do beyond knowing how to sit in it.

You ask me whats a waste is the treadmill.

Depends. If I lived in downtown in a major city, I'd rather not have to run at 5am or dodge foot traffic on the sidewalks.

[GlyphGryph]

Slow, even reps to maximize stress on the muscles. That's.....all you need to do beyond knowing how to sit in it.

If you do that and just that, you're wasting time and effort on most machines. They are almost all meant to be used in conjunction with other exercises, not alone, and thats the part most beginners have difficulty with. Its not the using the machines, its the picking the ones that are right for you that is a problem.

Depends. If I lived in downtown in a major city, I'd rather not have to run at 5am or dodge foot traffic on the sidewalks.

If you live downtown in a major city, you are pretty much guaranteed to have something much better - a decent sized staircase nearby that noone ever uses. Living downtown in a major city was probably the best thing that ever happened to my cardio - I could take half an hour a day and do 60 flights of stairs or more (I went running outside too, mostly at the local park. Not very large, but still more interesting than the treadmill, and walking/jogging to the park was a decent warmup for something a bit more vigorous. Most downtowns have a park within walking distance.)

[nenjin]

I don't think everyone, if they have means, wants to run up and down the stairs of their apartments just to save money.

If you do that and just that, you're wasting time and effort on most machines. They are almost all meant to be used in conjunction with other exercises, not alone, and thats the part most beginners have difficulty with. Its not the using the machines, its the picking the ones that are right for you that is a problem.

I'm not really sure what you're trying to say. Machines are worthless unless you use other machines and/or do pushups and situps on top of it.....? After 4 years of weight training, I think I can safely say that's not true. You want to work many different muscle groups so your development stays balanced. I.e. don't just do the hip press and call it good, you'd want to do some squats as well, probably. If you're going to do leg extensions, you should probably do leg curls as well to work the backsides of your legs.

But saying the time spent on a machine is worthless without doing several other exercises is wrong. I'm talking about technique, which is the #1 thing most people get wrong. It took me a while to realize you have to do your reps slowly, breath A LOT, avoid using counter-momentum to get you through your reps, keep your body straight.....all that jazz.

[GlyphGryph]

I don't think everyone, if they have means, wants to run up and down the stairs of their apartments just to save money.

Aren't you the one who said "Going to a gym to use free weights seems like a waste of money to me." and "there's no way I would pay to go to a fitness center unless I was swimming in money". In light of your previous comments, I just don't know what you're trying to say. The point of my statement that started this was because YOU said going to the gym to use free weights is a waste of money, and I said going there to use treadmills is even moreso since its something nearly everyone can do freely and easily, while buying your own free weights isn't.

I feel like your disagreeing just to disagree at this point.

You want to work many different muscle groups so your development stays balanced. I.e. don't just do the hip press and call it good, you'd want to do some squats as well, probably. If you're going to do leg extensions, you should probably do leg curls as well to work the backsides of your legs.

Sorry if I was unclear, but this is exactly what I meant. A lot of beginners don't know what machines to use to get a valid workout, so they're better of ignoring the vast majority of them and focusing on the exercises that give something closer to a full body workout. I've seen a lot of people come on, use one or two machines that target very specific muscle groups, and thats it, that's their workout. It's not really great for a person to do that.

But saying the time spent on a machine is worthless without doing several other exercises is wrong.

I didn't say it was worthless, I'm just questioning if most of these machines are the best use of a persons limited time. A lot of them work one or two muscle groups at a time, when that same amount of time could be spent working far more muscle groups just as hard.

[nenjin]

Just saying, under some conditions, I could see the use of paying for a treadmill. (I wouldn't because I've got a few thousand square miles of nothingness all around me.)

On the other hand, a lot of the stuff you do at a fitness center, you don't need to pay for. A pool, machines and professional advice, but that's pretty much it to me.

The whole exception for me was when I was at a Uni, and I had access whether or I wanted to pay for it or not. Then I took advantage of everything they offered since, hey, if it's already in my school bill, use it.

[Greatoliver]

What kind of results do you want?

The amount of reps and sets you do determines what happens to your muscles... So, are you looking to get more toned, or to bulk up, or just be able to be able to lift heavier stuff (e.g. training for rockclimbing)?

Also, go for it! Sports and physical stuff is underestimated... It will help you sleep better at night, make you you feel more alert, and just make you feel better about yourself... It is a great way to getting happier, as there's nothing like taking out frustration in the gym.

[kulik]

Go for full body workout, don't split your workout unless you have superior mesomorph physique with awesome body regeneration or taking steroids. Splits are good for time to time as routine breaker thou.
HST training is great http://www.hypertrophy-specific.com/hst_index.html . You need lots of core exercises like squats, deadlifts, bench press,  pull ups and all theirs variations. I know you are a girl but don't worry, without bodybuilding nutrition and supplements you don't end up muscular, just healthy looking.
For cardio try TABATA training, 20 seconds intensive work , 10 seconds rest. 40 rounds together 20 minutes. Do it every day, it literally burns the fat away preserving the muscles.

This is just the tip of the iceberg, do some research on bodybuildings forums.

[DeKaFu]

Wow, that's a lot of in-depth replies...

Several things:

1) Swimming pools are available, but I'm a terrible, terrible swimmer, so I'm not sure it's the best route to take.

2) There's a couple reason I want to use the machines in the athletic centre: First, it means I have a place to go at a set time with the explicit purpose of exercising, which is a big help because I'm terrible at staying commited to things otherwise. Secondly, it feels more straightforward and interesting than wholly self-directed exercises, which helps motivation a lot.

3) My goals are oriented mainly towards increasing my abilities, not making changes to my body (though obviously that's a side effect). My biggest issues as I see them right now are a complete lack of upper-body strength (for stuff like climbing, say), and pretty terrible endurance when it comes to anything, but especially things like running/bicycling. I end up out of breath and in pain after a few seconds (running) or a couple minutes (cycling). I want to change that.

4) I don't really want to go jogging/cycling/whatever outside right now. It's January. Everything is cold and slushy and slippery and awful and I'd probably slip and break my face.


There seem to be a decent variety of cardio and weight machines available, so I guess right now the key is picking which ones to use, and figuring out how much weight/repetitions to do on the weight machines. I'm still at a point where I'm not really sure if, when I end up being sore and out of breath (especially on the cardio stuff) it's because I'm just that out of shape and getting much-needed exercise, or because I'm doing something wrong/pushing myself too hard.

Also, about stretches: I'm not really familiar with them. A quick google for "pre-exercise stretching" just now brought up a bunch of studies and articles indicating they don't really have any effect on preventing injuries or pain. Any thoughts on this?