Working Out

I'm going to post some training advice- some for John- and detail some of the programs I've used in the past. First off, it's going to be weight training. As always, check with a doctor before beginning a program and always use proper form when lifting weights- lifting properly is more important than lifting lots! Any good gym will have staff that will be able to instruct you in the proper technique. And don't forget to warm up before exercising.

I used to train Mon/Wed/Fri with the whole weekend off to recover. Three days a week and an hour in the gym is plenty when doing weights. Much more than an hour and you're doing too much. I always ate a high protein diet and cut out booze when training- I found eating four times a day was necessary. If you need to take some protein drinks- Maximuscle make the best supplements I've ever used and they also offer some great training advice- their website is worth a browse. They also make the products used by a lot of guys in the Marines and Paras in the UK. It was the fittest guy in my troop that put me onto their products. For any weight training newbies, try and train for about three months or so with your only supplement being protein drinks (if you need them)- you'll be making enough gains in the early days anyway and shouldn't need creatine, etc.

To begin with train in the 3 sets of 12 repetitions range. If you haven't done weights before I can virtually guarantee you'll be aching after your workouts, but keep with it; soon you'll be longing for the days when you could train so hard your muscles ached! Don't go too heavy too soon, because you'll just end up injured. Remember your form- don't cheat! Once you've settled in a bit you have two choices- keep your reps high (up to 15-20) and light, or go heavy and bring them down to 3 sets of 8. My usual routine was to go with 8 reps and then try to do more. When I could do twelve of a particular exercise I'd up the weight and go back down to 8 reps.
Work out to follow....