Need your guy's help with getting fit!

[noodle]

Alright well first off let me give a little background info about myself:

I'm 15 years old, male. 5'4 in hieght and i'm a scronny guy weighing in at 115 lbs.

My goals:
-Get more fit & active
-Gain muscle mass


How I will achieve these goals:
First off let me tell you that doing heavy wieght lifting is a "no no" right now as I am short and my bones are still growing.

I just got a job so I got some money to spend on light equipment to use at home.

The Plan:
Fitness & Activity
I plan on buying a annual pass to my recreation centre to swim every two days at least. I've heard that swimming uses almost every muscle in your body so its a good start. To get to the place I plan on either biking or running there.

I also plan on purchasing some light dumbells (10-20 lbs) to get my biceps back in shape.
I'm looking around for an eliptical trainer, treadmill, or excersise bike so i can work my legs. (which one is most efficient? other suggestions?)

My legs are taken care of and I'll do push-ups and lift some bells to get my arms in shape. Swimming will help alot too! But any other suggestions would be great!

Now for the middle of my body (abs, pexes etc.) I really have no idea how to get these in shape either than to do sit ups. Any suggestions?

Any suggestions? Tips on training? Diet? Any help would be greatly appreciated. I will post progress pics of my body when I start training.

Thanks alot guys, I look forward to this training with your help and guidance. Thanks!

[Kerpal]

Edit: Just saw the part about not wanting to use weights.

I'd suggest Ross Enamait's book "Never Gymless". Has lots of info for people who don't have access to equipment or want to stick with bodyweight exercises. Also has some good nutrition info. I wish I had known about this guy when I was 15. www.RossTraining.com

[Alkali]

If you don't want to use free weights try machines. Less tension on your precious bones.

That's a myth by the way, I remember being freaked out about stunting my growth when I was fifteen.

My friend's convinced me to work out as well as drink and I'm fine.

I'm 6'1 and a hair away from 6'2. I'm pretty sure I'll be the tallest in my family (Papa's is 6'3.)

That is until my little brother catches up, he's a monster (5'9 at 14)

[Espi]

Originally Posted by noodle

goals:
-Get more fit & active
-Gain muscle mass


heavy wieght lifting is a "no no" right now as I am short and my bones are still growing.

Why do you think heavy weights stunt growth?

If you want muscle mass, you're going to have to lift somewhat heavy....heavy enough for 8-12 reps in each set, in my opinion. Occasionally, you'll want to concentrate on strength, but ultimately you have to change up reps and exercises: do a few extra reps per set (i.e. 15) and a few less reps per set (i.e. 6-8).

[Espi]

Responses in bold.

Originally Posted by noodle

The Plan:
Fitness & Activity
I plan on buying a annual pass to my recreation centre to swim every two days at least. I've heard that swimming uses almost every muscle in your body so its a good start. To get to the place I plan on either biking or running there.

Great idea. Swimming is excellent cardio, but, keep in mind that swimming two days per week may slow your progress in building muscle mass. Work with it and see what happens.
I also plan on purchasing some light dumbells (10-20 lbs) to get my biceps back in shape.
I'm looking around for an eliptical trainer, treadmill, or excersise bike so i can work my legs. (which one is most efficient? other suggestions?)

I recommend chins for building biceps.

pullupbar.com

I recommend running outdoors. If heat is an issue, run in the early morning or at night.

My legs are taken care of and I'll do push-ups and lift some bells to get my arms in shape. Swimming will help alot too! But any other suggestions would be great!

I wouldn't be so concerned about arms. Focus on the big three: squats, deadlifts, and bench. If you're going to work biceps, do chins: you'll build your back and arms doing chins.

Now for the middle of my body (abs, pexes etc.) I really have no idea how to get these in shape either than to do sit ups. Any suggestions?

Diet for abs. (search this site for proper diet)
Press for chest (incline, decline, flat)

Any suggestions? Tips on training? Diet? Any help would be greatly appreciated. I will post progress pics of my body when I start training.

Looking forward to the pics; I would suggest joining a gym and focusing on the big three compound movements for added muscle mass. Good luck, bro.

Thanks alot guys, I look forward to this training with your help and guidance. Thanks!

[noodle]

Originally Posted by Alkali

If you don't want to use free weights try machines. Less tension on your precious bones.

That's a myth by the way, I remember being freaked out about stunting my growth when I was fifteen.

My friend's convinced me to work out as well as drink and I'm fine.

I'm 6'1 and a hair away from 6'2. I'm pretty sure I'll be the tallest in my family (Papa's is 6'3.)

That is until my little brother catches up, he's a monster (5'9 at 14)

How tall were you when you were 15? How old and how tall are you now?

I basically thought wiegthlifting would stunt my growth because thats what my parents have told me. My unlce and cousins who are bodybuilders also say it will stunt my growth. But i will do more research...and ask some of the people at the gym about this topic.

Swimming is excellent cardio, but, keep in mind that swimming two days per week may slow your progress in building muscle mass. Work with it and see what happens.

How will is slow my progress? Wouldn't it build my muscles?

Also, I'm very new to all this wieghtlifting stuff so i don't know any of the terms. What are reps? sets? and deadlifting?

[Espi]

Responses in bold.

Originally Posted by noodle

I basically thought wiegthlifting would stunt my growth because thats what my parents have told me. My unlce and cousins who are bodybuilders also say it will stunt my growth. But i will do more research...and ask some of the people at the gym about this topic.

Well, I'm no bodybuilder or scientist; I've just never heard that weightlifting stunts growth.

How will is slow my progress? Wouldn't it build my muscles?

Swimming will not build muscle; it will condition muscle. There's a difference, of course: have you ever seen a massively-built swimmer? A massive and muscular Marathon runner? you haven't because swimmers and runners burn calories by the bucketload, and burning calories is not something I recommend if your primary goal is to pack muscle. But a few days of moderate swimming would benefit your conditioning.

Also, I'm very new to all this wieghtlifting stuff so i don't know any of the terms. What are reps? sets? and deadlifting?

Rep=Repetition; repetition=one up and down movement.

So, say you're bench pressing, right? You press the weight up and down 12 times; thus, 12 reps.

Set=one completed unit of reps. So, say you bench 12 reps then stop; that's one set. You rest a minute then lie down and bench press 10 reps; that's now two sets. Etc.

Make sense?

Others here could well explain the Deadlift, and you could also search the site for addtional info on Deadlift.

[Bling]

Originally Posted by Alkali

If you don't want to use free weights try machines. Less tension on your precious bones.

That's a myth by the way, I remember being freaked out about stunting my growth when I was fifteen.

My friend's convinced me to work out as well as drink and I'm fine.

I'm 6'1 and a hair away from 6'2. I'm pretty sure I'll be the tallest in my family (Papa's is 6'3.)

That is until my little brother catches up, he's a monster (5'9 at 14)

Maybe you mean your brotehr is wide, because I remember being about 5'9 at 14. I'm 6' now. I don't consider myself a monster. I consider myself beyond lanky.

[noodle]

Alright thanks Epsi for clearing that up. My short-term goal right now is to basically get my body in shape and fit. Then I will start to pack on my muscles and become bulk.

I'm basically a couch patatoe right now. The only sport I do right now is dowhill mountain biking but I only do that once in a while.


This weekend I'm going to go out and buy the annual pass for the recreation centre. It has a gym there too so i'll check it out. I'm going to Sportchek and buying some comfortable excercise clothing (under armour perhaps?), some good running shoes and some new swimming goggles.
I'm also thinking of taking up Hapki-do (martial arts).

I'm actually pretty excited about all this. But we'll see if I will be able to commit to it all. You guys are my primary motivation right now. Thanks alot for all the help so far.

[mrRuckus]

Originally Posted by noodle

I basically thought wiegthlifting would stunt my growth because thats what my parents have told me. My unlce and cousins who are bodybuilders also say it will stunt my growth. But i will do more research...and ask some of the people at the gym about this topic.

Just google it. Don't ask jerks in the gym who probably really don't have any idea outside of "i heard somewhere." I've seen this come up a number of times and looked it up myself. It's a myth.

Originally Posted by noodle

Alright thanks Epsi for clearing that up. My short-term goal right now is to basically get my body in shape and fit. Then I will start to pack on my muscles and become bulk.

Okay, hit the gym... learn technique for the lifts and lift light at first. You'll start to kick your metabolism into gear, get your joints ready for heavier loads, and teach your body/nervous system to obey your commands.

Lifting just the bar isn't even a bad idea until you get the techniques down.

[Omen]

Originally Posted by Alkali

My friend's convinced me to work out as well as drink and I'm fine.

My friends tried to convince me to smoke, do drugs, drink, jump off a bridge, I chose not to listen to them, and i'm fine. lol.

Just your quote is funny.

[Espi]

Responses in bold.

Originally Posted by noodle

Alright thanks Epsi for clearing that up. My short-term goal right now is to basically get my body in shape and fit. Then I will start to pack on my muscles and become bulk.

Good plan. Like Ruckus wrote, start slowly and LIGHTly; after a week or two, start challening yourself by increasing the weight, aiming for 8-12 reps per set, predicated on the big three: squat, deads, and bench press.

This weekend I'm going to go out and buy the annual pass for the recreation centre. It has a gym there too so i'll check it out. I'm going to Sportchek and buying some comfortable excercise clothing (under armour perhaps?), some good running shoes and some new swimming goggles.
I'm also thinking of taking up Hapki-do (martial arts).

I would go cheap on the gym clothes. Buy off-brand, non-logoed cotton tees and shorts. No reason to buy Nike, etc. Designer athletic clothing is not going to build your body or increase your strength. However, do not skimp on shoes. Buy a pair of quality cross-trainer shoes; you can usually purchase a pair of high-quality Nike or Adidas for $60-$80.

Your biggest expense should be food and supplements. Start reading this site for proper diet and supplementation, for without the right food and supplements, your gains are going to come at a painstakingly slow pace.

I'm actually pretty excited about all this. But we'll see if I will be able to commit to it all. You guys are my primary motivation right now. Thanks alot for all the help so far.

Well, it's great that you're committed to fitness at such a young age. Just give it time; nothing happens overnight. Most people quit because they expect TV-commerical-like results in weeks. Know that building muscle takes longer than weeks.

[noodle]

Alright thanks Epsi. I'm reading about diet and supplements now. Can anyone explain what deads are?

[cuzza]

A deadlift. Google it. Excellent exercise.
(Which I'm not performing)

[mrRuckus]

chuck taylors are awesome for squatting and deadlifting. and they're cheap

[MrS]

Heavy lifts don't stunt growth.