Ack! Quick, help! (Gym advice)

Ok sorry for new thread but I'm going to the gym quite soon and I need immediate attention. You can lock it later. ;]

I know I need to try and find my max weight on certain machines so that I can begin my workout career at 70% of max weight.

Ok, so exactly what machines should I find my max on? I'm primarily interested in getting bigger muscles rather than stronger muscles, if that matters.

What about my girlfriend? I've convinced her to come with me to the gym, it'll keep us both motivated and we'll be doing something positive together. Her primary goal is weight loss through strength training, what machines should she find her max on?

Thanks doods.

First of all you should find your max on free weights and not machines. But you want to find your max on the pushing type excersises likes bench press, shoulder press, squats, etc. Whatever the main excersise tends to be for the selected muscle group. Then with secondary excersises like say lateral raises for shoulders I find a weight I can do reps of around 15 with.

A pro like Trainer_jyms might say otherwise but I found this worked awesome for me. And remember the rule before anything a trainer can tell you is do what works for you. It's a little different for eveyone.

Also, I believe strength training is heavy weight low reps and size building is lower weight high reps. But you'll want to check with someone else on that one. I did the heavy weight low reps and got a lot of strength, and a bit of size of course too.

Ok maybe I should just run over to the gym today and write down every machine there is (its kinda small), formulate a plan, and then "get to work" tomorrow.

Bodybuilding.com has a nifty "find a routine" searchy thing.

holy sht, if you're just getting started don't worry about your max.

For the first couple times, just pick some small weight. When you start to feel the burn you should probably just stop (i.e. you're trying to do 10 reps, if the 8th rep is hard just stop that set). You have to condition your muscles to working out before you can actually start working them out.

I didn't work out for 4 weeks one time, jumped right back in where I left off. Pulled a bicep and couldn't do anything for another 2 months.

Start slow, you will still start to build strength after 3 weeks and physically notice a difference within 6 weeks. The last thing you want to do is hurt yourself.

{EDIT: and start at 10, maybe even 15 reps. Don't consider less than 10 rep sets until you've gone ~3 times a week for 6 weeks, at the earliest. Think of it like playing 10NL, you can't even consider moving to 25NL until you increase your roll (building some strength) and proven to beat 10NL over +5k hands (going to the gym consistently).

IMO, that should be your first goal. Go to the gym x times a week for x weeks (e.g. 3-4 times a week for 4 weeks). It doesn't even matter so much what you're doing, as long as you get used to going and make it a habit.}

if you know "next to nothing" about being in a gym get a personal trainer, that's still the advice I'll give

you said in your other thread that they "don't know shit" but you definitely don't know shit so just get personal trainer, they'll show you around, then you'll go off on your own and get huge and buff and all sorts of stuff

for real, get a personal trainer so you don't have to use machines and can go straight to free weights with the right technique. And don't worry about doing maxes this early

The thing is for the school trainers they make us take what they call the CHAMP test, which includes things like testing how many pushups we can do, a pullup test, running 1.5 miles, something else, and a blood test.

And I don't want to do all that, because I want to start tomorrow while I'm motivated, not in three weeks.

Biggest advice I can give you is ask fellow lifters. Occasionally you'll run into the jacked, cocky asshole who thinks he's gods gift to women and will laugh at you, but most people in the gym are helpful, also learning, and glad to see others working out, its been sort of a fraternity in many ways. Ask your neighbor if he can tell you if you're doing anything wrong with form, esp on big lifts like squats, bench, etc. I've had two guys go out of their way to correct my lifting. One was a piano mover guy who was huge and helped me with bench, the other was a fitness addict and writer for some magazine who told me i was putting my shoulders into bicep curls and thus not isolating my biceps. I've also asked countless people about new exercises they're doing that I've never seen before, for them to spot me, or just made random conversation. All have been more than glad to help and I've made a few friends.

Just go have fun at the gym but make sure not to over-exert yourself. Ask people for help, advice, anything. They will help you. Just stop stressing so much about being afraid of not being perfect. As long as you don't try to overkill yourself, say benching 200 pounds on first try, have a spotter to save you when you do try to exert yourself a little you should be fine. Enjoy it man, you will feel good about yourself.

ok. I am gonna do my best to write something short that you can follow. might be too late for this trip, but this is probably a better place for you to read it than that other thread.

-do 3 sets of 10 reps per exercise.
-do 3 exercises per muscle.
-you don't need to find 70% of your max. Just pick a light weight that you can do 3 sets of 10 reps, and is moderately difficult. I gave some weights that i'd guess are good ballparks in that other thread.

trust me, these three things are correct.

This is a good order also. Go one day and do shoulders, next day do biceps, next day do chest, next day do back, next day do triceps, then two days off. Find 3 exercises per day, i can suggest some if you like. If you want to go less days, i'd recommend doing shoulders one day, back and biceps the next day, the chest and triceps the third day, then take 4 days off (or d legs). done and done.

I like your 3 day a week plan -- is it better to do 3 days in a row, or do MWF?

Also, please suggest me some excersizes! :]

The typical split you'll find anywhere is the old MWF workout.
It is this
Monday-Chest/Triceps
Wed-Back/Biceps
Fri-Legs/Shoulders

Making sure to not do shoulders w/in 2-3 days of triceps as the triceps are used in both.