Gym Members

jambojambo
Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
I've just joined a new gym/fitness centre which has been built halfway between my home and my office and I'm interested to know how many AI members are also member of a gym/fitness centre?



I plan to go every morning at 6.30am and then every evening at 5.30pm to justify the expensive monthly membership fee and, of course, to try and get fit!



Are there many people who are members and pay a monthly fee but never go?



J :cool:

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 20
    alcimedesalcimedes Posts: 5,486member
    i was for a long time, then had to stop when i was job hunting and unemployed. i plan on starting again in a few weeks.



    i found more often than not if i went to lift or do cardio stuff, i stopped going after a few months.



    however, if i went there and played raquetball i'd go all the time. i don't think i have a very good mindset for working out. i need to do something that i think is entertaining, and kind of trick myself into working out as a side effect of doing something fun.



    -alcimedes
  • Reply 2 of 20
    brussellbrussell Posts: 9,812member
    [quote]Originally posted by Jamie:

    <strong>I plan to go every morning at 6.30am and then every evening at 5.30pm to justify the expensive monthly membership fee and, of course, to try and get fit!</strong><hr></blockquote>That seems like a lot. You may get burned out too fast. Every day is OK, but twice a day seems excessive unless you're an athlete.



    My principle is that you should always feel not completely done when you leave - so you'll be wanting some more. For me it's about an hour when I get sick of it.



    This message has been brought to you by "Unsolicited Advice from BRussell"?.
  • Reply 3 of 20
    ghost_user_nameghost_user_name Posts: 22,667member
    I pay a mandatory $200/year for the use of the college gym...





    have used it once or twice... frankly, the place sucks...





    Jonathan 'nowondermostofoursportsteamssuck'
  • Reply 4 of 20
    ghost_user_nameghost_user_name Posts: 22,667member
    Yeah, ever day and evening is going to be too much, especially if you've never lifted before, or you've lifted in the past and haven't recently.



    For my cycling training, I joined the local YMCA. The downside is having to walk near the Northeastern campus to get to the closest one, but the plus side is I can go to any of the Y's in the area. I pay $35/mo.



    My schedule is as follows...



    Monday: Upper Body and Cardio

    Tuesday: Lower Body and Cardio

    Wednesday: Recovery Day

    Thursday: Upper Body and Cardio

    Friday: Lower Body and Cardio

    Saturday: Recovery day, but I'll usually go for a ride depending on how I feel.

    Sunday: 35 - 50 mile road ride, depending on the time of the year. During the winter I hop on my trainer for a couple of hours.



    You have to give yourself recovery days. When you lift, you're tearing muscles, and they need time to heal. When I first started lifting, I followed a Monday/Wednesday/Friday schedule for about 6 - 8 weeks just to get my body used to lifting. My cycling coach had me do chest presses, shoulder presses, work my triceps, leg press and then some cardio. For cardio, I just hop on a treadmill or the stair climbing thing for about a half an hour.



    To end every workout I do an ab circuit, which consists of about four different ab exercises, and one for my lower back, which really helps for cycling.
  • Reply 4 of 20
    jambojambo Posts: 3,036member
    [quote]Originally posted by BRussell:

    <strong>That seems like a lot. You may get burned out too fast. Every day is OK, but twice a day seems excessive unless you're an athlete.



    My principle is that you should always feel not completely done when you leave - so you'll be wanting some more. For me it's about an hour when I get sick of it.



    This message has been brought to you by "Unsolicited Advice from BRussell"?.</strong><hr></blockquote>



    Thanks for the advice BRussell. I'll probably spend most of my time on a sun bed or in the sauna anyway!!
  • Reply 6 of 20
    groveratgroverat Posts: 10,872member
    I don't know about you, Jamie, but I just go to check out the hot men.



    40 minutes cardiovascular stuff and 40 minutes weights, that's my style. Three times a week, screw every day.
  • Reply 7 of 20
    sc_marktsc_markt Posts: 1,402member
    I've belonged to 24hr Fitness since 1992. Before that I belonged to several Gold's Gyms. I've been working out since 1983 and I go 4 to 5 times per week.



    Working out is great. Just make sure you warm up first and stretch a little. Also, if you experience any joint pain, back off for a while until it gets better.
  • Reply 8 of 20
    jambojambo Posts: 3,036member
    [quote]Originally posted by groverat:

    <strong>I don't know about you, Jamie, but I just go to check out the hot men.



    </strong><hr></blockquote>



    But of course.



    J :cool:
  • Reply 9 of 20
    little cusslittle cuss Posts: 150member
    blech,



    meat markets.... full of pretty stepford hubbys and wives looking to cheat.. that or single, vain top 40 music lovers with bad taste in workout togs ... dave matthews fans. brrrrr! those places scare me.



    buy a skateboard... do pushups and situps in yer hoose lassie. so ye should.



    take up smoking cigs...

    spend that money on good music...or books.



    anything.... but whate'er ye do, don't become one of them.



    yer cuss,



    cuss
  • Reply 10 of 20
    macaddictmacaddict Posts: 1,055member
    I have free use of the (very nice) weight room at my school. I work out after school each day, but sometimes I don't have time. I spend about half an hour or so.
  • Reply 11 of 20
    ijerryijerry Posts: 615member
    I guess I am the lucky one here. My wife is in the military so I get the free use of two gyms on the base here. I would side with everyone else in saying that going too often is usually a bad idea...unless you are going in the morning and evening at first to see who works out when, and then choose when you go, then maybe I could see where you were coming from. But, I hate staying at the gym longer than an hour myself, I don't feel productive if its longer than that. My ipod only contains 1.5 hrs. of music for my workout mix, and thats so when its on shuffle I dont always hear the same songs. I workout for four days and then take a day off. after four weeks I take a week off. My body really needs the recovery sometimes. but I make great gains after the week off;the muscles arent ripped anymore. :cool:
  • Reply 12 of 20
    krazyfoolkrazyfool Posts: 129member
    I love going to the gym and working out and playing racket ball, my god, racket ball has to be the best sport ever invented. Going three times a week is perfect because you don't want to over do it and also let your self have time to rest. If you think you can stick with twice a day more power to yea. I was working out in high school lifting ungodly amounts of weight but than I went to college and my working out has suffered from it. *sigh*



    [quote] When you lift, you're tearing muscles, and they need time to heal. <hr></blockquote>



    Sorry but your not "tearing" anything. Your doing anaerobic activity, that in turn because of lack of oxygen releases lactic acid, and that is the "burning" that you feel. The muscle is only getting stronger because it is trying compensate for this new load that you are putting on it.



    [ 04-06-2002: Message edited by: KrazyFool ]</p>
  • Reply 13 of 20
    brussellbrussell Posts: 9,812member
    [quote]Originally posted by sc_markt:

    <strong>Working out is great. Just make sure you warm up first and stretch a little.</strong><hr></blockquote>Yes, and make sure to warm up BEFORE you stretch. Stretching should come after working out, not before. Don't stretch when you're cold.



    I got hurt once because I thought you were supposed to stretch before working out - killed my hamstring.
  • Reply 14 of 20
    ghost_user_nameghost_user_name Posts: 22,667member
    [quote]Originally posted by KrazyFool:

    <strong>Sorry but your not "tearing" anything. Your doing anaerobic activity, that in turn because of lack of oxygen releases lactic acid, and that is the "burning" that you feel. The muscle is only getting stronger because it is trying compensate for this new load that you are putting on it.



    [ 04-06-2002: Message edited by: KrazyFool ]</strong><hr></blockquote>



    Whenever you lift weights, you are tearing down the muscle fibers in the targeted area. As those muscle fibers heal, they become thicker and stronger. so if you lift heavier weights, they grow back thicker and stronger, and in turn, you build more muscle mass. So if you lift less weight, and focus on more repititions, your muscles will become more tone, and it will increase endurance in the targeted areas.



    I'm not sure where you get the idea that this isn't how it works, but I challenge you to introduce me to a doctor that can tell me I'm wrong.
  • Reply 15 of 20
    brussellbrussell Posts: 9,812member
    I think there's some debate about the exact cause of soreness, but generally there are two types:



    1) the immediate kind, probably caused by lactic acid, that occurs during and right after exercise, and



    2) the delayed kind, that you feel the day after you lift weights, maybe caused by tearing of muscles.
  • Reply 16 of 20
    ghost_user_nameghost_user_name Posts: 22,667member
    I think you have it right. I don't disagree with the fact that the lactic acid causes a burning during a workout and can cause one to still feel sore the next day, but it isn't the reason you build muscle.



    When you lift weights, you're causing a microtear in the muscle fibers, and this is what causes you to hurt a day or two after. Your muscles then need time to rebuild, and they do they repair themselves to a larger volume to help prevent the "injury" from happening again.



    In terms of soreness, there are really just two types: acute and Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS). Acute soreness is the one felt during and immediately after a workout. This is caused by the build-up of lactic acid, and this actually decreases muscle strength and co-ordination. A fatigued and overstrained muscle is much more likely to tear, and this is why overtraining leads to serious injuries. This is why you start to hurt more later on in your workout, and why it becomes increasingly more difficult to lift the same amount of weight by the time you are on your third set.



    DOMS is usually felt a day or two after the workout, and what you feel then are those microtears in the muscle fibers. It's especially prevelant in beginners, and it shouldn't be feared. In time, it doesn't happen as much.



    A bad tear, like a real injury, is only going to happen from overtraining and bad form. Things to remember are to breathe and not hold your breath while lifting, because this causes your blood pressure to rise.



    And keep a positive attitude when lifting. Don't think you have to be lifting as much weight as everyone else, and nobody there is going to think you're a pansy if you can only benchpress the bar and no weights. It's not so much about the amount of weight as it is proper form. It's all relative
  • Reply 17 of 20
    eskimoeskimo Posts: 474member
    I try to go every day, but my schedule has been getting busier and busier so its harder and harder to do. When I do go I usually follow this plan:



    Mondays: Chest/abs, run

    Tuesdays: Legs

    Wednesdays: Shoulders

    Thursdays: Back/abs, run

    Fridays: Arms



    Your workout should obviously match your goals. What is it you want to do, just get in shape? Tone muscle? Build muscle? Build endurance? If your gym has a professional trainer available for consultation like most gyms do I would go talk to him/her. They can probally design a good program to fit your needs. And I concur going twice a day is overdoing it unless you are a very intense regimine or taking some supplement that requires it.
  • Reply 18 of 20
    jambojambo Posts: 3,036member
    [quote]Originally posted by Eskimo:

    <strong>



    Your workout should obviously match your goals. What is it you want to do, just get in shape? Tone muscle? Build muscle? Build endurance? If your gym has a professional trainer available for consultation like most gyms do I would go talk to him/her. They can probally design a good program to fit your needs.</strong><hr></blockquote>



    I had my induction today and have booked an appointment to get a personal program done by one of the staff. I really just want to tone up.



    And I've decided once every day will be enough. I'm going to go early every morning and I'll get a nice view of the sun rising while I work out.



    J :cool:
  • Reply 19 of 20
    ghost_user_nameghost_user_name Posts: 22,667member
    If you're going every day, it would probably be best to make sure you don't work the same muscle group two days in a row, because they do need at least one day's worth of recovery time. And you're going to hurt for the first week or two, and don't let it discourage you, it isn't so much after a while. And again, it's not a competition in the gym, so lift what you know you can. one of my team mates really injured himself by trying to lift a lot more than he could, because he was trying to keep up with someone a little bigger than him.
  • Reply 20 of 20
    wrong robotwrong robot Posts: 3,907member
    [quote]Originally posted by M3D Jack:

    <strong>Yeah, ever day and evening is going to be too much, especially if you've never lifted before, or you've lifted in the past and haven't recently.



    For my cycling training, I joined the local YMCA. The downside is having to walk near the Northeastern campus to get to the closest one, but the plus side is I can go to any of the Y's in the area. I pay $35/mo.



    My schedule is as follows...



    Monday: Upper Body and Cardio

    Tuesday: Lower Body and Cardio

    Wednesday: Recovery Day

    Thursday: Upper Body and Cardio

    Friday: Lower Body and Cardio

    Saturday: Recovery day, but I'll usually go for a ride depending on how I feel.

    Sunday: 35 - 50 mile road ride, depending on the time of the year. During the winter I hop on my trainer for a couple of hours.



    You have to give yourself recovery days. When you lift, you're tearing muscles, and they need time to heal. When I first started lifting, I followed a Monday/Wednesday/Friday schedule for about 6 - 8 weeks just to get my body used to lifting. My cycling coach had me do chest presses, shoulder presses, work my triceps, leg press and then some cardio. For cardio, I just hop on a treadmill or the stair climbing thing for about a half an hour.



    To end every workout I do an ab circuit, which consists of about four different ab exercises, and one for my lower back, which really helps for cycling.</strong><hr></blockquote>





    yup and if your trying to totally buff out....then you have to make sure to have alot of protein in your diet...protein helps to repair torn muscles faster and makes them stronger once they do repair(that is even stronger than if you were working out with very little protein in your diet)

    most work-out nuts I know take protein suplements before they workout and after....depending on the amounts of protein in each drink or bar.

    one of my friends used to always have about 60 PURE PROTEIN bars in his closet and a GIANT tub of protein powder next to them...he usually had at least a drink a day of the powder and would take a bar with him when he went running or biking. I watched this guy go from being stout but kind of weak to being stout and very ****ing strong....he was benching in the 200s and he weighed like 170 or something. plus he was doing handstands and shit and handstand pushups...that shit is tough...all this talk of protein makes me want to go make a protein shake and then workout for a couple hours but I'll probably just sit on my ass typing all day
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