joing a gym and want to tone up

sanex

hi all i have been interested in joining a gym for while,i have an event comming up in 5 weeks,i am not in too bad of shape and am a fairly physical fit but would like to tone up a bit if i joined a gym and done say two good sessions a week would i see much of an improvement? my diet is reasonable good, i was checking out a gym online and they have a good package for a few weeks and you also get a personal trainer, so i would like to hear your opinions please

also i have never been in a gym,what would a guy wear going in? i would also bit a little self conscious of meeting people i know in there and what way would the showers work has everybody separate cubicles or do most gyms have community showers? i would appreciate your advice please thanks

dbagman

......pokemon??.....

callaway92

sanex wrote: »

hi all i have been interested in joining a gym for while,i have an event comming up in 5 weeks,i am not in too bad of shape and am a fairly physical fit but would like to tone up a bit if i joined a gym and done say two good sessions a week would i see much of an improvement? my diet is reasonable good, i was checking out a gym online and they have a good package for a few weeks and you also get a personal trainer, so i would like to hear your opinions please

also i have never been in a gym,what would a guy wear going in? i would also bit a little self conscious of meeting people i know in there and what way would the showers work has everybody separate cubicles or do most gyms have community showers? i would appreciate your advice please thanks

Jersey/t-shirt/Shorts/Ankle Socks is what I usually see. Of course you do get the tank top crowd but that's ok I suppose.

Showers are communal, with people happily walking around with their willies hanging out.

sanex

callaway92 wrote: »

Jersey/t-shirt/Shorts/Ankle Socks is what I usually see. Of course you do get the tank top crowd but that's ok I suppose.

Showers are communal, with people happily walking around with their willies hanging out.

thanks for the reply so a pair of runners and a t shirt and a tracksuit would do fine do most gyms operate communal showers would you know? would i see much of a difference in 5 weeks?

bonyn

sanex wrote: »

thanks for the reply so a pair of runners and a t shirt and a tracksuit would do fine do most gyms operate communal showers would you know? would i see much of a difference in 5 weeks?

5 weeks can make a nice difference.. tell your PT your goals. Definitely do deadlifts, they're awesome. And stomach cruches, plank and pressups.
Runners, shorts and a t-shirt. Goes without saying but aim for a fresh t-shirt for each workout and don't douse yourself with lynx before the workout.
Any gym I've been to have shower cubicles but communal changing areas. I know a few guys who are either self conscious or scared of getting a verruca so wait til they get home to shower

sanex

bonyn wrote: »

5 weeks can make a nice difference.. tell your PT your goals. Definitely do deadlifts, they're awesome. And stomach cruches, plank and pressups.
Runners, shorts and a t-shirt. Goes without saying but aim for a fresh t-shirt for each workout and don't douse yourself with lynx before the workout.
Any gym I've been to have shower cubicles but communal changing areas. I know a few guys who are either self conscious or scared of getting a verruca so wait til they get home to shower

if i was to go twice a week how long should i do in a session do you think? and would a gym do up a fitness plan for you,my legs and arms are well toned with is really just my upper body that i would like to improve

bonyn

As long as you're fit to ☺
Just stay focused.. by that i mean adhere to rest times and don't take 5 minutes between sets

By personal trainer, you may be disappointed. Often the person included in your membership does up a plan for you, shows you how to use a couple of machines on the first day, then you never see them again.

A real personal trainer in a gym could charge eur30 for 30mins of handholding and motivation... and I'll be honest, it's worth it if you can afford it twice a week for a month!

Zillah

Are you fat or skinny? What is the event in question? I'm not sure if you're worried about physical performance or your appearance.

Twice a week for five weeks isn't going to do anything dramatic, regardless. If you're a bit fat and want to be less fat then you should improve your diet. If you're extremely diligent you could look a lot better in five weeks.

sanex

Zillah wrote: »

Are you fat or skinny? What is the event in question? I'm not sure if you're worried about physical performance or your appearance.

Twice a week for five weeks isn't going to do anything dramatic, regardless. If you're a bit fat and want to be less fat then you should improve your diet. If you're extremely diligent you could look a lot better in five weeks.

thanks for the reply,its my general apperance that i want to improve,i am slighty overweight but i have am tall and a very big build,chest shoulders and arms so what do you reckon

bonyn

If your build is good, concentrate on toning.. the big part will be diet. A healthy, no alcohol, low fat, low sugar, low carb, cal controlled diet will do more for your appearance than 2 gym sessions a week.

Dtp1979

bonyn wrote: »

If your build is good, concentrate on toning.. the big part will be diet. A healthy, no alcohol, low fat, low sugar, low carb, cal controlled diet will do more for your appearance than 2 gym sessions a week.

There's nothing wrong with a high fat diet

sanex

bonyn wrote: »

If your build is good, concentrate on toning.. the big part will be diet. A healthy, no alcohol, low fat, low sugar, low carb, cal controlled diet will do more for your appearance than 2 gym sessions a week.

thanks for the reply,what type of toning would be the best do you think?

bonyn

Dtp1979 wrote: »

There's nothing wrong with a high fat diet

There is if you're trying to lose weight in 5 weeks.

Yea i know there's different types of fat, and they're not all bad. In the absense of a nutritionist, im just advising the op to keep fat intake low. Fat is high in calories so im more referring to veg oil, cream, dressings, processed fried food, excess cheese or cheap minced meat, etc. as opposed to avocado or fish

Zillah

sanex wrote: »

thanks for the reply,its my general apperance that i want to improve,i am slighty overweight but i have am tall and a very big build,chest shoulders and arms so what do you reckon

What is your height and weight?

Five weeks of very strict diet, where you cut out sugary treats and make sure your meals are significantly smaller than usual and you could drop a good bit of body fat. Aim to keep protein and fibre high. Ideally you should track everything you eat on an app like MyFitnessPal so you don't fall into the trap of accidentally eating more than you think you are.

Do the weights, and ideally keep doing them forever, not just these fives weeks - but the biggest difference for such a short term goal is going to be diet.

Don't listen to bonyn, fat is perfectly fine in a diet, but you need to keep your overall calories low.

bonyn

Zillah wrote: »

Don't listen to bonyn, fat is perfectly fine in a diet, but you need to keep your overall calories low.

I didn't say it wasn't. I meant don't eat much fat on a 5 week long calorie controlled diet. Fat is not only dense but contains twice the calories of carbs and protein. So a small meal that's high in fat could contain the same calories as a low fat meal.
Classic example being a salad roll (iceberg lettuce, tomato, cheese, onion and dressing). Small meal but high in carbs and fat and low in nutrition... the same cal content as a roast dinner with 2 veg and a scoop of potato

Mellor

bonyn wrote: »

If your build is good, concentrate on toning.. the big part will be diet. A healthy, no alcohol, low fat, low sugar, low carb, cal controlled diet will do more for your appearance than 2 gym sessions a week.

Low carb/sugar and low fat is a not good advice.
All that leaves is protein. And a protein only diet is not a good approach.

OP should focus on his food/energy intake directly and not try to eliminate two whole macros.

bonyn wrote: »

I didn't say it wasn't. I meant don't eat much fat on a 5 week long calorie controlled diet. Fat is not only dense but contains twice the calories of carbs and protein.

Fat's aren't that dense tbh. And their density isn't really a significant property.

Yes they have over twice the cals of carbs and protein, nobody denies that, but nobody suggests to eat them in equal quantities.

So a small meal that's high in fat could contain the same calories as a low fat meal.
Classic example being a salad roll (iceberg lettuce, tomato, cheese, onion and dressing). Small meal but high in carbs and fat and low in nutrition... the same cal content as a roast dinner with 2 veg and a scoop of potato

That roll is very unlikely to have the same calories as the roast dinner due to portion sizes. A salad roll isn't that high in fat either.

Regardless, small meal with some fat that has equal calories as a low fat meal will make no difference to weight loss.

Irishcrx

Cut through all the red tape here.

You want to lose weight and tone , lift weight 2-3 times a week to maintain what muscle you have and eat -500 calories per day, eat what you want but make sure you get enough protein 1 gram per pound of bodyweight , make the rest up in carbs and fat. The ONLY important thing is to stay -500 or you won't lose weight and lift or you'll lose muscle.

It's actually doing it and sticking with it that's hard.

To gain weight and muscle so the reverse eat +500 and lift.

Alf Veedersane

Get an estimate of your calorie intake here:

http://scoobysworkshop.com/accurate-calorie-calculator/

The reference is the TDEE (total daily energy expenditure). If you eat that many calories, you stay the same weight. Less to lose weight, more to gain.

MyFitnessPal to get an idea of what's in what you eat so you know if you're eating to lose weight.

Hanley

Most gyms tend to be shower cubicles w/ communal changing rooms. You can get naked, showered, and back to jocks again without your ass ever seeing the light of day