[dorf]

Hi all

This kind of sounds like a beginning of a growth story, but it's not. 🙂
For as long as I can remember, I have been a huge admirer of muscular females, but I've always kept it to my self.
Finally I told my wife that I like muscles on women, and at first she was surprised and begun to worry that I don't find her attractive.
After she had a few days to digest the revelation, she said she would start lifting weights on one condition.
If she is going to buff up for me, then I have to buff up for her, which I think is quite a reasonable demand.
So I was wondering if anybody had any good resources for starting weightlifting for muscle gain (and some fat loss)?
I have been researching a little bit, but the wealth of information is overwhelming, and most of it seems to be geared for someone with some experience.
We are quite beginners so we'd like some info to take us from beginners to intermediate.

Thanks in advance

dorf

[TC2]

Dorf, you picked a good place to post!  There's a lot of knowledgable folks here so I'm going to start you off with some beginner tips.

1.) Not all excercises fit all, some people like to train a little bit more intense than others.  If a normal average joe were to say go onto the training regimen of the guys of 300, they'd probably have a heart attack!

2.) Diet is EXTREMELY important in getting cut.  Without the right diet you'll develop off season bulk, which is not a bad thing but it will explain why you're not seeing muscles that are POPPING out.

3.) Lifting heavy over lifting several times will build muscle.  Lifting several times over lifting heavy will build endurance.

4.) Do not go beyond what you can lift, you must make sure you have checked at least on the internet or with an instructor the appropriate way to do certain exercises, some exercises can damage your body if not done appropriately.  Lifting too much can also damage your body and cause muscles to tear, make sure you have learned all you can before performing certain exercises.

5.) Since you both are going to build, go into the gym as a team so you can both motivate and support each other.  It's easier to get a good work out done if you have a buddy with you, otherwise you have to go into "solo" mode and just pop in some headphones and lift, lift, lift.

I have no workout programs myself so I can't help you in this area but I hope these beginner tips will help you get started in the right direction.

[fm07]

Lucky man.

Having said that, I'll add to the list of points Collector posted above.

6) Make sure you get the right amount of sleep. Its where all the good stuff happens.

7) Consistency. You're not going to see any results for months, the majority of people get discourage and give up early. Have that in mind going in.

8) Work out a routine but mix it up every now and then, its breaks the monotony and gives muscles something else to do.

I worked out for a few months and did intense amounts of… research, since I'm a research orientated kind of guy. Stopped working out sadly  because my work schedule continues to rule my life.

[cpbell0033944]

I would recommend the following site – it may seem at first as though it is more directed towards your wife, but much of the advice is relevant for men also.

http://www.stumptuous.com/cms/index.php

[Reason]

You've been given some great advice so far, so I have very little to add

Just keep your new training schedule as simple as possible and make it part of your daily routine. That way you will have the best chance of keeping it up for the years it will take to make significant gains.

Start by doing a different body part each day of the week and aim for 3-5 sets of 8-12 reps for each exercise. You should always make sure you fail on the last rep and try to increase the weight between sets and sessions.

Collector is right in that weight training alone won't get rid of fat. You'll have to add some aerobic exercise to your training and may need to change to a low fat diet. I would also like to add that it's a common misconception that you have to eat loads and loads of protein to build muscle. You do need some protein with each meal, but carbs are the basic building block the body needs to make muscle. Some people advocate 5-6 smaller meals a day when trying to build muscle.

You might even want to book a personal trainer for you both, to set up a schedule for you and take you through some basic exercises. Once you've got the basics down, you can then go on and train yourselves.

Lastly, I would stay clear of sites and magazines with huge, drug-induced physiques plastered all over them. I found the wikipedia entry on this topic to be quite informative:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weight_training

[whitemott2004]

You can obtain some tailored weightlifting programs on http://www.fitrex.com.  You have to register but you can input your current "lifts" in relation to a program for such things as bodybuilding, general fitness, military training, and have it spit out a "customized" weight training program.  You won't get spam emails; at least I never did.

[cpbell0033944]

To echo Reason's comment about the magazines showing roided bodybuilders:  I would advise that both you and your wife stay well clear of steroids.  From the medical point of view there seems reasonable evidence for a link to some cancers and other problems, but for your wife the consequences are more certain; these include deepened voice, facial changes (square jaw, largened nose), coarse skin, acne, mood swings and the infamous changes "downstairs".

[Uncle Arctic]

Yeah Dorf, to re-iterate: steroids bad.  In fact I'll go one better and say to avoid most any suppliment (other than your average multi-vitamin and plain-jane protein shakes) for your first year of training.  The reason I say this is because you don't yet have a barometer for your well being. 
By which I mean, you are going to be (hopefully) changing your eating lifestyle, working out regularly (and let me say from one husband to another, you are going to love to watch her get fit.  That first time she bends over get a weight and you see hamstrings?  Heh, just remember, gyms take a dim view on PDA on the floor :D)  Anyways, my point is you are going to be stressing your body pretty hard already and it is going to retaliate in the predictable manner, you don't need say the bloat of creatine loading to add insult to injury right away.
A couple of books that were great sources of information for me and my wife when we first started were The Complete Idiot's Guide to Weightlifting which breaks down workouts, diet, and rest into the easiest to understand form.  And for a little later down the road (and please no one flame me for this one) but I found Arnold's Encyclopedia of Bodybuilding to be indespensable.  Once you get around him talking about himself, he's got quite a few gems of training knowledge that deserves to be brought back to date.

[cpbell0033944]

Negrita Jayde's book "Supervixen" might be useful for Mrs. Dorf.

[AlexG]

Negrita Jayde's book "Supervixen" might be useful for Mrs. Dorf.

And here Chris, I thought you'd be suggesting Body Flex–Body Magic by Anja Langer  😉  ;D  8)

“I like a good story well told. That is the reason I am sometimes forced to tell them myself.”
~ Mark Twain / Samuel Clemens (1907)

[Author]

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