Trying to get that perfect body is tough. It takes work, dedication, and discipline with your diet. Although discipline with your diet is hard--not buying that candy bar when you stop for gas, refraining from those extra bites when you head back to the kitchen to put your leftovers in the refrigerator, or that late night snack--the hardest part when trying to achieve that desired figure or constantly improving your figure is consistently working out.
Just like with almost anything in life, having a great body takes commitment. Those huge muscles and lean body figures take work. It will be very rare to see someone with massive muscles that doesn't work out, although, there can be people with awesome genetics that naturally have a great body because of their metabolism.
But for the rest of us, we have an arduous task on our hands. Trying to workout regularly is hard, especially when things keep popping up: birthdays, vacations, work, extra work, family members and friends visiting, and more. The excuses can be there, and if they are, heart disease, obesity, shopping in the big and tall sections will soon be too. And for some, that great metabolism that kept you looking great for years while you devoured anything you wanted usually disappears in your mid-thirties, and then you'll be with the rest of the world.
Everyone needs to exercise and take care of their bodies, no mater what they look like...
So, once you're fully committed, choosing your work out is big. Beside cardiovascular exercise, which I believe should be very little (get that heart rate up at least once), the way you target your body is important.
The reason your cardo should be limited is because whatever calories you burn doing those exercises is all the calories you burn. With weight exercises on the muscles, the body burns calories doing them, and then burns even more when the muscles repair over the coming days; that sore feeling people get after they workout takes a lot of calories to repair, unfortunately, not that sore feeling because you're getting old, the muscles soreness. So you want to do more exercise to get that sensations.
So how should you workout? Calisthenics or weights? Both.
For years I had been going to the gym, getting more powerful, but I wasn't showing it. After checking out a few Youtube videos and reading articles I found out more about calisthenics and saw what those guys looked like and I wanted to be HALF their size.
Over the next couple of weeks, I decided on a workout routine that had different variations and did it for a month at home (no weights); major results. My body looked the best it ever had and I was happy. After a month I went back to the gym, figuring I was going to "tear it up". I got on the bench press figuring I was going to be able to do way more than I did the last time I was there, which was 225x14. I got on the bench press and major fail. My tendons hurt right away and the weight felt unusually heavy. I was only able to get up a wimpy 12 reps. I was upset with myself, and for a second thought about giving calisthenics up. After working out for a week with weights I got on the bench press and put on 235 and was able to do it for 13 (my tendons stopped hurting); I could have struggled for 14, but decided not to ruin my other sets. I continued to improve on the bench for the next month and in other areas, which was great.
I thought about calisthenics versus weights and came to a conclusion. When I first started lifting weights, most people told me that it wasn't all about not being powerful enough to do it, it's about getting used to the weight, and your tendons being able to support the weight. If you go to the gym and check out the people on the bench press you'll see sometimes they have weight on the bar that they can't do, and as soon as it goes down, their spotter picks it back up. That is an advantage of using weights.
When it comes to calisthenics you're stuck with you body weight. However, with calisthenics you're able to go deeper into the muscles tissue and get into those cells. Yes, you have to do more reps, but in reality, it take just about the same amount of time to do 35 push-up as it does to do 12 or 13 reps of heavy weight on the bench press, if that is the amount of reps you like to do for a set. The burn I get after 35 push-ups (remember different variations of push-up) is more than I get when I'm doing sets of 225. Calisthenics in general also offers more flexibility when working out. Your able to move you hands and body into different positions reaching different muscles, which is very tough to do with machines and straight bars. And most importantly, you're able to do it in the comfort of your own home easily; not having to wait for your turn and the other aggravations that beleaguer you at the gym.
Furthermore, the reason I say not to just go with calisthenics is, if you are trying to have more power and move heavy objects you need weight; that stretch and force with heavy weight is important. Calisthenics doesn't strengthen the tendons as much as weights do. Therefore, if you are just concerned with looking great and SEEING improvement, then I would say calisthenics are the way to go, but that isn't for me, so I do both and it has been working. I would say switch between calisthenics and weights every month; a four month dedication will produce wonders.
Don't forget about that diet though; working out vigorously doesn't give you a free pass to gobble down doughnuts and ice cream; one moment on the lips, forever on the hips, so choose wisely.
Mr. Felder
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