A Fibofallfibs Guide to Working Out

AGuide
~to~
Working Out

Have you ever thought about going to a gym but never known where to start? Ever wanted to be big like the guys who advertise "the shake weight" on TV? If so, this guide is for you! (Note: You must have access to a gym/workout equipment. If you are a beginner at working out, be sure to start with very light weights at the beginning. When you first start, it is all about the technique with which you work out that will define how strong you'll get. When I first started, I never bothered to learn how to Hang Clean properly. It took me two whole months until I could increase the weight I used, and that was only after I relearned how to Hang Clean properly.)



1. All About Muscles​

First things first. Before we get to the actual workout section, I have to cover some basic things about muscles. This section will be broken down into two subsections, what muscles are made of, and what types of muscles there are.

A. What Makes Muscles?
Muscles are primarily made up of two molecules: water and protein. So, just to start off this section, I have to say this. It is extremely important, when planning on building muscle, that you consume/ingest large amounts of both protein and water! Thought it may seem like you are swelling to bursting point (or detoxing for a drug test), you must drink lots of water. Without water, you can become dehydrated and seriously ill. Also, as mentioned before, water builds muscles. Without water, even eating lots of protein will not build your muscles to their true potential.
As for protein, almost every participant in the football/wrestling programs at my school takes one or both of the following: protein shakes and creatine.

Protein shakes, which I use regularly, are a great way to supplement protein that you may not be obtaining in your regular diet. Protein shakes should be taken 2+ times a day, once before you work out, to build up your muscles, and once after, to rebuild your muscles.

Creatine, though I do not use it myself (as I believe in keeping a natural body), I have heard is a supreme way to build muscle mass. According to Wikipedia, "Extensive research over the last decade has shown that oral creatine supplementation at a rate of 5 to 20 grams per day appears to be very safe and largely devoid of adverse side-effects, while at the same time effectively improving the physiological response to resistance exercise, increasing the maximal force production of muscles in both men and women." It appears to be a healthy way to build muscle, since creatine is a natural substance produced in animals, and could be instrumental is building strength and a toned figure.

B. What Types of Muscles are There?

There are two different and very distinct types of muscle fibers that make of the muscles in your body (We'll just call them Type I and Type II). Some people are naturally born with a majority of one type of fiber, though most people are more balanced, say with a 50/50 or 60/40 ratio of muscle fibers.

Type I: Type I muscles are called "slow twitch" muscles. As you can guess by the title, these are muscles that respond slower to stimuli. These muscles are characterized by holding a large amount of Oxygen. People with a higher concentration of "slow twitch" muscles will take much longer to get tired out because their muscles naturally hold a lot more oxygen. People like cross country and long distance runners are more likely to have more "slow twitch" muscle fibers. Unfortunately, the downside to these muscles is that they will never cause a person to get much larger in size (also known as hypertrophy, when a person gets bigger due to an increase of muscles). That is why long distance runners are usually very lean, because their high concentration of "slow twitch" muscles does not allow them to reach hypertrophy.

Type II: Type II muscles are also known as "fast twitch" muscles. These muscles (naturally) respond much quicker to stimuli. Athletes like football players are known to have much more "fast twitch" muscles than "slow twitch," because their sport requires them to perform a high intensity sport in an average time of 7 seconds. In contrast to Type I muscle fibers, Type II muscle fibers hold very little oxygen, resulting in a person getting tired out more quickly. Also unlike Type I, "fast twitch" muscles will cause a person to attain hypertrophy. This is want we want, "fast twitch" muscles, because we want to get bigger!

2. The Workout

These workouts were outlined and put together by my football coaches. For each workout item, I have linked a youtube video which will explain in further depth how to do these workouts.

Through my experience working out with the varsity football team at my school, I have learned that there are four different types of workouts that are instrumental to building all-around muscles strength. These areas are: Arms, Legs, Core, and Explosive workouts*(these are usually incorporated into the first two).


​

A. Arms​

These are workouts that primarily (if not only) focus on building the strength in the upper body areas (Chest, Back, Biceps, Triceps, Shoulders, etc).

~Primary~
Bench Press
Incline Bench Press
Romanian Deadlift (RDL)
Alternating DB (Dumbell) Bench Press

~Super Sets (More on this at the bottom)~
Pull ups
Chin ups
Dips
Bent Over Rows (BOR)
Single-Arm Dumbell BOR
Pushups
Clapping Pushups
Close Grip/Military/Diamond Pushups
​

​

B. Legs​

These are workouts that primarily (if not only) focus on building the strength in the lower body areas (Calves, Hamstrings, Gluteals, Quadriceps, etc).

~Primary~
Squats
Sumo Squats
Front Squats
Ball Hamstrings

~Super Sets~
Leg Press
Goodmornings
Dumbbell RDL
Barbell Calf Raises
Knee Tuck Jumps (JKT)
​

​

C. Core​

These are workouts that primarily (if not only) focus on building the strength in the core area of the body (primarily the Abs, Pecks, and Glutes). I really don't have anything more to say than has already been said about core workouts in the numerous threads about Abs on this forum. I will just link you to my favorite one, mrfreakingpeanut's guide Let's Get A Six Pack.

​

D. Explosive​

These are workouts that focus on building the amount of "fast twitch" muscles in your body. These workouts are meant to be done VERY quickly, hence the name "Explosive workouts."

Hang Clean
Push Jerk
Plyo Pushup
​

3. What Do I Do?

So now you've seen all of the workouts that I do, but where do you go from here? How much do you work out a week? When do you rest? And what the heck is a super set??

My football coach personally knows the coach of the USC football team, and he schedules our workouts to be in line with theirs. They work out on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. The remaining three days they take off! That means NO workout, whatsoever. You have to give your muscles the ability to rejuvinate. There is such a thing as overtraining, and, like undertraining, it is a bad thing.

On the days that you do work out, schedule yourself about an hour to an hour and a half of workout. Be creative! Make sure that, every day you work out, you do only one of the first two sections of workouts (Arms or Legs), and rotate. So, for example, if Monday you work on arms, then do legs Tuesday, arms again Thursday etc.

When you're designing your work out, be sure to pair one workout from the Primary section with one workout from the Super Set section. (Remember, when you do a super set, do it IMMEDIATELY after you do your primary workout, put some stress on your muscles!). Incorporate 1-2 Explosive workouts into your session, with no super sets. After you're done, clean up your weights, and then do 5-10 minutes of core.

Here is an example of a traditional Legs workout day for me (the >> means superset)(4x8 means four sets of 8 reps):

Sumo Squats 4x8
>> Knee Tuck Jumps 4x5
Ball Hamstrings 4x8
>> Barbell Calf Raises 4x8
Goodmornings 4x8
Dumbbell RDL 4x8 (each leg)
>>Leg Press 4x12
Hang Clean 4x3
​

Thanks for reading my guide! I hope you liked it, and I hope you have a little more understanding as to what workouts affect which muscles, and how different muscle fibers can be utilized. Always remember, that (1) though these workouts work very well for me and the enitre football team at my high school, this does not mean that they will absolutely work for you, and (2) safety should be your top priority, never try to lift too much weight over your head or neck without somewhat to spot you and make sure you don't get hurt. Take a good minute rest between sets so you make sure that you don't over-exert yourself.

Alright, so if you guys have any suggestions as for things to add, things I could do to improve my guide, or any comments and opinions, feel free to post! Thanks!

 

Nice guide I had no idea about this creatine, will definitely look into it!

 

Be sure to read into the adverse side effects of this product, as I have never used it before. I have seen its effects on the muscles of other members of my sports teams, and I can guarentee that it works, but I would encourage speaking to a doctor or fitness expert before taking a supplement like creatine.

 

nice read, will try

 

I have a question about dips.

At school we have a gym and we have a proper dips bars set up if you like, there slightly longer than shoulder width apart.

Whenever I do them (I do them properly) It doesn't seem to tire me, I've done 20 in a row, all the way down to when my neck reaches the bar, and all the way back up.

Am I simply doing it wrong, or should I add leg weights?


Also you should add 'Handstand Push ups', those are phenomenal and really work your muscles!
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Was a good read, I learnt some interesting exercises!

 

If you do them properly and they're too easy, then I definitely would suggest weighted dips. After all, if your workout's too easy, you won't get any stronger.

I would have added those, but for the fact that I can't do them myself :embar: And I figured if I'm telling someone to do them, I might as well do them first.

 

Creatine is about as natural as the protein powder in your shakes. It won't make your team-mates explode into unnatural god-bestowed muscle meat-heads, if your statement has any truth in your peers growth they just kept their diet and hard work in check. *Note: They must drink a lot of water and it's essentially kept in the muscles - not sure on the specifics - but that may be the 'bloated' illusion you're seeing.

It's also very unnecessary to drink protein shakes twice a day. You only need enough to fit your macros and shakes should be a 'last resort' type of deal. Solid foods are much more satisfying.
*Drinking protein directly after working out doesn't really help out repairs more so than later as long as it's before you sleep (&Grow).

Other than that, good guide; although some of the things you superset with are silly (Goodmornings wat? reverse stiff-leg deadlift, looks dangerous as f*ck).

This guide's obviously more toward sports rather than general mass-building.

Another tip; a picture showing where the squat bar goes on the padding of your back would MAJORLY help out some newbies, a lot of people I know who work out will rest it on the bone (spine?ish) behind your neck and complain of pain. Its supposed to sit on the back of your shoulders on the 'padding.'

 

Yeah, the protein shakes I'm just quoting from my coaches (mostly), and as for the creatine, I meant the guys who use it are ripped, not really bloated.
The goodmornings were supposed to be a primary lift, but for some reason I didn't put it there. I'm not sure what a reverse stiff leg deadlift is though.

Is the padding the "shelf" of your shoulders? That's where I've been told to put it.

 

Do you have any advice for muscle regeneration other than protein shakes? I've tried jogging and I'm just wondering if theres anything else you find efficent.

 

Nice guide, but make sure you credit the links at the end.

Layout is nice.