I’ve been going to the gym for a few months, still feel like a noob tho.
I track what exercises I do, weight & reps, etc, and try to rotate between the different exercises I enjoy.
However I don’t do leg-centric days or anything like that, I just try and do a variety each week and not go too long without exercising specific areas. Is that bad?
It really depends on what type of program / split you go with. Are you following a program or just winging it? Generally speaking You are much better off with an established program that sorts this all out for you.
Not a dedicated program, but not quite ‘winging’ it cause I am tracking the exercises to ensure each area gets targeted
I’ve looked at specific programs online but, find it confusing when there are exercises they recommend that I either don’t feel comfortable/confident doing, or my gym just doesn’t have the right equipment
Following a premade program is not only about having the right exercises, but also the progression scheme, how to handle stalls, and programming in the recovery. If you have all of those down as well, then you’ll likely be fine doing your own thing, but if you’re new, chances are that you don’t.
Maybe it would help if you shared a program that you like but that has exercises you can’t do, and we can tell you how to modify it to your needs.
If you don’t have any ideas, then some good beginner programs I can recommend off the top of my head are:
- GZCLP
- Ivysaur 448
- Stronglifts 5x5
- Starting Strength
Here are a list of exercises I cycle through at my local gym, any recommendations based on it?:
Goblet Squats
Leg Press
Leg Curl Machine
Leg Extension Machine Leg adduction
Leg abduction
Barbell Bicep Curl
EzBar Reverse Curl
Lateral Raise
Tricep Extension Machine
Weighted Row
Seated chest fly machine
Seated rear Delt machine
Seated abdominal crunch machine
Seated Shoulder Press machine
Barbell shoulder press
Chest press
Barbell Hammer Curl
Lat pulldown
Seated back Extension machine
Assisted pull-ups
Bodyweight dip
It’s fairly complete as far as exercises go, but as you say, it’s just a list of exercises. You can build a good program with these exercises, but you can also build an awful one. What are the rep ranges, exercise frequencies, and what’s your progression scheme, both short term and long term?
I see that you have access to a barbell. Are you able to do the main compound movements like barbell squats, bench, and deadlift?
I typically target a 12-rep to failure for my first set, then go close-to failure for 4 total sets (usually means declining to 5-8 reps by set 4). Usually hit the gym every 2-3 days.
I don’t have any specific progression scheme aside from trying to progressively overload, increasing total volume over time.
What’s the advantage of a barbell squat over a Goblet squat?
Deadlifts I’ve been too scared to try haha, kinda hoping I’ll eventually meet someone irl who can show me so I don’t injure/embarrass myself.
With that big list of exercises it seems like you are majoring in the minors. Honestly most of your efforts should be going to the big four compound movements.
The advantage of the barbell over goblets squats is that it can be loaded essentially infinitely to continue progression. I started from scratch this year and already squat well over 3 plates, they don’t make kettle bells that big.
I would suggest you download boostcamp on your phone, start GZCLP, Phraks Greyskull or 531 for beginners, and stick with it for 3 months. You’ll make far more progress, guaranteed. It has links to videos for each exercise including deadlifts.
I’m not an expert or anything but IMO the best thing I ever did was get into barbell training and just sticking with the same program and being extremely consistent. Avoiding fuck-around-itis is key.
For me 5/3/1 Boring but big is ideal. Four lifting days per week, one main compound lift (8 sets total) and one accessory exercise (5 sets) per workout. Takes about an hour, and I can do it at home with a rack and a barbell. I eat hard and sleep hard and the results have been insane, and most importantly no injuries. You can get to an intermediate level with just compound lifts and a simple program like this
A little light reading if you’re interested:
https://thefitness.wiki/routines/strength-training-muscle-building/
It’s good to have a routine that targets a rounded balance of muscles, particularly stabilising ones to avoid injury.
It’s actually counterproductive to do leg day vs arm day in theory, as the more tired you get the less effective other exercises are going to be and the higher the risk of injury.
In general though because we have lives to plan around, and often cardio or like a job which heavily relies on legs it kinda sucks to be doing that on tired legs all the time.
So while biologically less productive than splitting up different muscle groups through the whole body in practical terms it’s often easier to practice.
