I am really interested in getting back onto a workout/diet program, but I am confused on where to start. I had played basketball my entire life, as well as running track for 3 years, but now I am not affiliated with any kind of sport. The problem is, in the past I had always had a reason to go out and train with a specific goal in mind…but now that I don’t play a sport, it is hard to know what to train. I don’t want to train as a sprinter, but I don’t want to train as a bodybuilder either. I just want to be in the best overall health I can, while improving the overall physique of my body.
Has anyone ever had this problem before? I want to workout 4-5 times a week for about an hour a day, I just don’t know what to do. Should I follow a weightlifting program with tempo and general fitness several times a week, or what? Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.
Training is sorta hard when you don’t any specific goal in mind, however there are some general guidelines you can follow if your focus is on health and general physical development. If you are interested in physique development you must include some form of strength training. You can adjust your weight training format depending on whether or not you want to be big, like a bodybuilder, be more of an “athletic” physique while gaining strength, etc.
If your goal is to develop your musculature without blowing up like a huge bodybuilder, then I would recommend a weight training format that involves heavy weights with few reps. E.g. squats–4 sets of 3-5 reps with 80% of max. with plenty of rest between sets. If you want to get strong without getting huge then you must avoid the “pump” that folks often get. Plenty of rest between sets will help this and you’ll recover enough to tackle those 80% of max. sets. I did this exact format four days per week for about 6 months and saw my deadlift quickly rise up to a 425 lb. max with little fatigue. I kept my DIET in check and did not gain one ounce of bodyweight, even though my strength greatly increased. Lifting heavy made my muscles appear to be “hard” and wiry.
Any overall, general health plan should also include some conditioning. I think that some sort of tempo workout would be great for this. If you’re interested, I would recommend you contact Coffee’s gym, which is near you, in Marietta. When I was competing in olympic lifting, I ran into John Coffee at some of our meets and he is a gold mine of training info. You can find him on the web. Well, anyway, that’s my two cents worth based on my experiences, so take it for what it’s worth to ya.
Thanks for the reply heatwave. I made a post days ago but I guess it didnt go through.
Is it bad for a person like me to go out and do 2-3 miles of jogging several days a week? I am not training for speed or explosion, and I enjoy going out for a run at night…
I don’t see why it would be bad, there are no specific goals.
I think that without ANY goals, you will be disappointed with what happens. Why not set some minor goals, whether it be getting your mile (or 2 or 3 or whatever) time down a bit or improving your body comp or increasing your flexibility?
I realize goals are important and I will definitley have them, just not specific goals for improving a sport. I will have to transfer the motivation to succeed in a sport to improving overall physique and health I guess. We’ll see how it goes…
I don’t think there is anything with going out for a 2 mile run at night if that’s what you enjoy doing. Just remember that, if you want a change in your physique, you need to set aside a few days for some weight training.
If you don’t have any specific athletic goals at this time, just continue to run, lift, and stay in shape until you DO decide on some specific goals. That way, you won’t have to start over when you decide what you want to do.
"…don’t call my name out your window when I’m a leavin’, I won’t even turn my head. Don’t send your kinfolk to give me no talkin’, I’ll be gone like I said…
I trained for years with no specific goals and was always frustrated. Deciding to do masters sprinting and following CFTS has put me in the best condition of my life. I had forgotten how much I enjoyed competing even if I get my ass kicked by kids the age of my children :rolleyes: I’m not saying you have to do the same just sharing my experience.
I had forgotten how much I enjoyed competing even if I get my ass kicked by kids the age of my children :rolleyes: I’m not saying you have to do the same just sharing my experience.