how long after joining a gym should you start seeing results?

sanex

hi all i have recently joined a gym,5 weeks ago,two sessions a week at one hour,i do both cardio and weights,the treadmill i usually do 4 km in 25 minutes and then a weight of 90 on the leg press and then the chest press at a weight of 30 and the lat pull down at a weight of 40 and the butterfly press at a weight of 20, two reps of 10,i have also made improvements to my diet

just want your opinions when should i start to see a physical improvement in my appearance,i am a male late 20s and i have an active and physical job,

Amirani

You need to be improving rather than continually doing the same thing in order to progress, for both cardio and weights.

Cardio: Every session you should probably be trying to increase either distance or time run, without reducing your pace accordingly. So either move from 25>30 mins or move from 4km to 5km etc.

Weights: Same applies. Don't keep just doing 90kg leg press and chest press 30kg etc. Move up weights each session while keeping reps/sets the same. I'd encourage you to consider barbell training and following one of the beginner programs like Strong Lifts 5x5 or Starting Strength. You will see results if you follow them.

sanex

Amirani wrote: »

You need to be improving rather than continually doing the same thing in order to progress, for both cardio and weights.

Cardio: Every session you should probably be trying to increase either distance or time run, without reducing your pace accordingly. So either move from 25>30 mins or move from 4km to 5km etc.

Weights: Same applies. Don't keep just doing 90kg leg press and chest press 30kg etc. Move up weights each session while keeping reps/sets the same. I'd encourage you to consider barbell training and following one of the beginner programs like Strong Lifts 5x5 or Starting Strength. You will see results if you follow them.

thanks for the reply,all my weights started at 20 but i improved them myself as i thought they were not challenging me enough,the leg press i started at 80 and the cradio programe i was giving was 20 to 25 minutes on the tread mill at a pace of 6 to 7 km which i have also upped greatly

Elemonator

For you to physically see changes, I would take pictures as a log. You may think you are getting nowhere but you are. It may take a few months to see an obvious difference. Don't think of it like that though, as there is great benefits that you cannot see always, physically and mentally.

Keep it up, OP!

sanex

Elemonator wrote: »

For you to physically see changes, I would take pictures as a log. You may think you are getting nowhere but you are. It may take a few months to see an obvious difference. Don't think of it like that though, as there is great benefits that you cannot see always, physically and mentally.

Keep it up, OP!

i know what you mean,i feel great the last few weeks,i do look foward going in their,i was thinking of joining for years but i didnt have the confidence to join one,glad i did now and if any one reading this is in the same boat,just go in and enquire thats the hardest bit i felt

Mellor

Diet will dictate changes much more so than 2 hours a week on treadmill and weight machines

GalwayGrrrrrl

sanex wrote: »

hi all i have recently joined a gym,5 weeks ago,two sessions a week at one hour,i do both cardio and weights,the treadmill i usually do 4 km in 25 minutes and then a weight of 90 on the leg press and then the chest press at a weight of 30 and the lat pull down at a weight of 40 and the butterfly press at a weight of 20, two reps of 10,i have also made improvements to my diet

just want your opinions when should i start to see a physical improvement in my appearance,i am a male late 20s and i have an active and physical job,

What changes to your appearance are you aiming for? If it's weight loss you may start to see visible changes after a few weeks, especially if you are being careful with your calorie intake. Muscle building takes longer to show - you may need to progress to heavier weights, more frequent training and a high protein diet to see visible muscle growth.

But keep going- Rome wasn't built in a day and the main thing is you getting into the habit of going to the gym, feeling comfortable and enjoying it.

kumate_champ07

Elemonator wrote: »

For you to physically see changes, I would take pictures as a log. You may think you are getting nowhere but you are. It may take a few months to see an obvious difference. Don't think of it like that though, as there is great benefits that you cannot see always, physically and mentally.

Keep it up, OP!

you should notice changes by how clothes fit and how your body feels, people seem obsessed with fitness selfies these days

Alf Veedersane

kumate_champ07 wrote: »

you should notice changes by how clothes fit and how your body feels, people seem obsessed with fitness selfies these days

Taking a progress photo for your own records to track changes in body composition is very different to taking a 'fitness selfie', with the implication that it's for social media.

guil

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

Taking a progress photo for your own records to track changes in body composition is very different to taking a 'fitness selfie', with the implication that it's for social media.

I'm 5'8, I doubt anyone wants to see my pics when I was over 20 stone.

Caliden

guil wrote: »

I'm 5'8, I doubt anyone wants to see my pics when I was over 20 stone.

The pics are moreso for yourself. Personally I wish I could some starting out as it can be a motivator on those days when you don't feel like going.

bladespin

MFP has a progress page you can upload a pic to and compare them over time, it's brilliant, I'm almost tempted to upload to demonstrate just how motivating they can be (but I'm shy lol).

guil

Caliden wrote: »

The pics are moreso for yourself. Personally I wish I could some starting out as it can be a motivator on those days when you don't feel like going.

Sorry I should have clarified, I was more so back up alf' s point about them for progress rather than what the other poster said.

I have a 4 or 5 sets of pics with no t-shirt on so I can really see the difference.

Dempsey

sanex wrote: »

hi all i have recently joined a gym,5 weeks ago,two sessions a week at one hour,i do both cardio and weights,the treadmill i usually do 4 km in 25 minutes and then a weight of 90 on the leg press and then the chest press at a weight of 30 and the lat pull down at a weight of 40 and the butterfly press at a weight of 20, two reps of 10,i have also made improvements to my diet

just want your opinions when should i start to see a physical improvement in my appearance,i am a male late 20s and i have an active and physical job,

Depends on diet really. For weight loss, are you in calorie deficit every day, if not when and why. With a physical job, it should be easier to achieve than with an office job. If you are drinking every weekend then any gains made during the week will almost certainly be wiped out once you have re-hydrated.

For muscle building, are you lifting weight that is continually challenging your body, i.e. progressive overload, and is your body getting a good source of protein after your workout.

I track my weight/body fat every day, makes it easier to see that over weeks and months that I'm going in the right direction even if the rate of progress is minimal at times.

ludite

sanex wrote: »

just want your opinions when should i start to see a physical improvement in my appearance,i am a male late 20s and i have an active and physical job,

Not sure when you'll see results but I'd recommend taking a before picture, it can be hard to see results when you see yourself every day

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bladespin

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This, also worth noting how you 'felt' after that workout, pumped, wrecked etc, great for refining.

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MuffinTop86

sanex wrote: »

i know what you mean,i feel great the last few weeks,i do look foward going in their,i was thinking of joining for years but i didnt have the confidence to join one,glad i did now and if any one reading this is in the same boat,just go in and enquire thats the hardest bit i felt

Sorry to quote an old post. I'm thinking of joining my local one. The problem is I did a personal training thing a few years ago and they told me what to do and set the weights and all, so i literally won't have a clue what to do when I go in there.