Regarding weight training, I think a big misconception is that lifting heavy makes you big. It doesn't. Lifting
lots makes you big. "Lots" means either high frequency or high volume.
Regarding weight loss, the biggest troubleshoots, in order are: 1) sleep, 2) nutrition, 3) weight loss. But 1) is far ahead of the other two. It's absolutely insane how well-established the link between weight control and sleep is in the science.
linky
Get a full 8 hours of sleep, in a pitch black, slightly cool room. (I know this last part isn't a problem for you, Adam.) Tape up the windows if you have to, to make it darker. No tablets, computers, or bright lights in the house the hour before bed if you have any trouble falling asleep.
Nutrition: wheat, soy, and vegetable/seed oils are the biggest killers imo. Getting rid of just those is like 90% of the battle. They are the limping preflop of nutrition. They are very highly inflammatory and cause all kind of problems in the gut, which lead to systemic problems everywhere. From there we get into the basics like upping protein content to something like 0.5g per pound of bodyweight. Try to limit your carbs to only after you've exercised, or with dinner if you have trouble sleeping.
Emotional eating: for most people, the answer is pretty simple here; don't keep the bad stuff in the house. This is a little harder when you have kids who demand junk food, I suppose. I am not a parenting expert and I don't want to go above my pay grade here but it seems to me that you can transition them to healthy snacks like nuts and fruits over time, but maybe I'm wrong. If it's really not possible to keep unhealthy stuff out of the house, just create barriers; put the bad stuff where it's really inconvenient to get to it. Meditation almost certainly helps with any self-control stuff too.
Training: Do not fall into the "chronic cardio" trap. I would say if your goal is to run a solid 5k, once per week of long/slow training is enough. 30-45 minutes of running, cycling, rowing or whatever random gym machine is fine. I actually cycle through all the machines in 10-minute rounds because I get bored. I don't like watching TV while you run on the treadmill, btw, it's bad for the posture. Podcasts ftw
Most of what your training should be centred around for weight loss is intervals. For an out of shape guy, something like 15 repetitions a 10-second sprint (85-90% max effort) followed by a 50-second rest period is good. Don't be swayed by the fancy literature that says 1:2 or even 1:1 work/rest ratios are better. Those are not for people just getting into training. Be liberal with your rest periods.
As hinted at above, I would do some heavy weight lifting. You can basically stick to the "big 3" of squats, deadlifts, and bench press. Make sure to practice good technique (maybe hire a trainer) before you start getting too heavy, and obviously make sure to warm up with lighter weights. Once you get technique down, we'll want to advance to 1-2x/week of low-volume, high-weight training. This will take the fat off like crazy.
When training the main goal is always injury prevention and living to fight another day. Everyone -- especially guys -- getting into a new routine always tries to do too much in the gym too quickly. Less is more. You can't train if you injure yourself. "No pain, no gain" is bull**** if you're not a professional athlete. In fact if you did this:
1 sessions/week of 30-50 minutes slow cardio
1-2 sessions/week of high-intensity sprint training
1-2 sessions/week of low-volume, high-weight weight lifting
Lots of walking
Lots of sleep
Lose the grains/omega 6 fats
You would be in awesome shape in about 8-12 weeks and basically should never get to more than a 4/10 on the soreness scale. (Provided you sleep and eat right.)
Mobility/flexibility: I've become a really big fan of the Functional Movement System stuff. Many of the exercises are
here. Get a screening if you like (I did, to find my weakest points), and do as many exercises off that list as you can. And remember the rule that you do dynamic stretches (stretches where you move) before your training and static stretches (stretches that you hold) after the muscles are warm. See
here. But in truth, whatever movement practice you like (yoga, tai chi etc) is great. Just get up and move around a lot.
Last edited by TChan; 03-30-2016 at 03:11 AM.