Beginner interested in working out from home

Hi guys,

What are some important equipments i should get to get started on my workouts at home? And what type of exercises do you guys recommend?

I've always been pretty athletic (5'11, 155lb), however, i've been smoking cigarettes for a few years now and my strength and endurance level have plummeted beyond believe... i'm quitting cigarettes now, and have just recently discovered gymnastics training, so if anyone could help me get started, i would really appreciate it

I actually have a pullup bar i purchased a while ago... but i'm not really satisfied with this one... for example, i can't hang rings on it. and i can't do a lot of variations of pull-up because it's not very stable.

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/4 ... AA280_.jpg

If anyone could point me to the right direction.. maybe help me construct a good workout regiment and a list of equipments i will need to get started i would really appreciate it.

Hmm, I gave my bros a pullup bar like that and it's pretty stable in their door. I haven't tried hanging rings from it, but I probably could and I weigh more than you though I'm not nearly as tall.

Make yourself a set of parallettes from PVC and you are ready. You can also use chairs as long as they are stable.

A simple workout is to do 1-2 push, pull, core, and leg exercises; 3 sets of 5 reps. You can add in static work or HS if you like or the prehab/rehab stuff. ( Example would be pushups and dips, pullups and horizontal rows, skin the cats and v-ups or body levers or leg lifts or reverse leglift [reverse hyper] or back extension or roman chair situps besides Single leg Squats, Deck Squats, Standing High/Long jumps, floor glute ham raises ) Throw in some toe and heel raises if you like as well.

Pullup bar, set of parallettes. Rings would be handy but are moot if you don't have a place to hang them.

Well, just check out the video posted on this thread by slizzardman: http://gymnasticbodies.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=3076

That guy is quite proficient with what seems to me purely home made equipment. He even fashioned a crude ring setup.

Hell yea he is! Beast! Mode! TRANSFORM THIS DECAYING FORM INTO MUMMRRRRRAAAAH, THE EVERLIVING!

Those pullup bars are fine for rings until you find something better. Work with what you've got If you go to a gym you can hang rings off of the cable machine. If you go to a park you can hang them off of the monkey bars or the swing set.

slizzardman said:

...TRANSFORM THIS DECAYING FORM INTO MUMMRRRRRAAAAH, THE EVERLIVING! ...

LOL, you're too much.

Anyway, what struck me most about the videos of that guy is that he doesn't appear to be massively muscled but can perform some very significant feats. My guess is that too many people associate strength/ability with visible muscle size which is clearly not the case. It should be fairly inspirational to the ectomorphs (like me) out there.

Very true. If you look at a lot of the old-time strongmen, while they WERE decently muscled, they aren't anywhere near as big as you'd expect them to be. Just look at the Mighty Atom or Slim "The Hammer Man". Tendon and ligament strength seemed to be the priority to them, and was purported by them to be the source of their abilities.

I can only say that I think this is very true, and that this kid definitely has that

TRANSFORM THIS DECAYING FORM INTO MUMMRRRRRAAAAH, THE EVERLIVING!

You've been eating cookie dough lately, huh?

Steve Low and a few retired gymnasts sometimes aren't very beast looking but deceptively strong. I'm sure Coach Sommer reflects to some degree and I'm sure Coach Sakamoto exemplified it. One of my old mentors was able to get up on rings with a back roll to support followed by an Iron Cross (he hadn't done in 10 years). He is quite a bit smaller than he was during his competition days and just does a standard gym routine but more than likely it's the tendon and ligament strength that is still there.

Lol, no cookie dough recently, but it's holiday time! So there is "A New Hope"!!!

he doesn't look that muscular though lol. although i do have to agree, he is insanely strong

is there a way to gain thicker muscles through gymnastic training? not bodybuilding thick... but enough thickness to the chest and other areas so that they show the definitions better.

Yes, eat and work upper body strength.

isn't parallettes the same as parallel bars? except a shorter version? should i just make my parallettes taller so i can also do dips and other exercises that are done with a parallel bars?

syrianrue said:

isn't parallettes the same as parallel bars? except a shorter version? should i just make my parallettes taller so i can also do dips and other exercises that are done with a parallel bars?

You could put them on chairs or something if you really want to, but you can't do swinging dips and yewkis and things like that without the parallel bars or rings.

What's your living situation? Apartment, house, dorm?

Depending on that, you could maybe make your own place to hang rings. Spanning a 2x4 or something similar accross ceiling joists in a basement, garage, or dedicated exercise room only leaves a few tiny holes in the ceiling. Easily repaired with toothpaste.

That might give you more height to work with instead of a chinup bar on a door frame.

In my unfinished basement I attached a piece of 1" electrical conduit (plan on using that to make some stall bars, since it's much cheaper than dowels) accrous 4 of the joists. I can use it for chinups/pullups, levers, etc. Plus I can hang my rings on it. In the garage I put a 2x4 up on the ceiling after finding the joists with a stud finder (that took a lot of work because it kept going off when I was holding it) and putting some lag bolts up into them. Spaced some tubular webbing on the 2x4 and put two loops on the end joined by a carbiner. Easy in, easy out for warmer weather when the garage isn't freezing.

i'm living in a house right now... although i might be moving to an apartment in the future.

the house i'm living in.. i can't really hang the rings in the basement or garage, 'cuz the ceilings are way too low there... and the ceiling i have in my rooms, i'm not sure they are solid enough to hang (how do i know if my ceiling are ok to hang? they seem kind of hollow to me)

really need some advice on this one

You'll have to buy a stud finder if you aren't confident in your ability to find a stud with your fingertips. When you tap you'll hear a hollow sound, and when you get to a stud you'll hear a more solid thud. That's a stud. You can double check by drilling in with a drill bit. Do not be at a right angle with any lighting fixture, just to be save. As long as you're offset you'll be fine. If wood chips come out after the first inch, you found a stud! You can use a drill bit and lag bolts to put a 2x4 in the ceiling and hang hooks or whatever off of that to hang your rings. Or you can use the stud finder to do the same thing! They come with instructions.

Hope that helps a little! You can always go to a football stadium or a playground and hang your rings off of a field goal or the monkey bars

syrianrue said:

i'm living in a house right now... although i might be moving to an apartment in the future.

the house i'm living in.. i can't really hang the rings in the basement or garage, 'cuz the ceilings are way too low there... and the ceiling i have in my rooms, i'm not sure they are solid enough to hang (how do i know if my ceiling are ok to hang? they seem kind of hollow to me)

really need some advice on this one

Do you have an attic opening so you can see what the structure of the ceiling is like? Where do you live? How old is the house?