I started going to the gym regularly 'bout half a year ago, and while I've felt some progress, I'm not sure I'm going about accomplishing my goals the right way - reading through a bunch of articles online, watching videos, etc. I feel I'm getting conflicting information.
Long story short, I've been fighting depression for a long time, and am now fighting to "get in shape," and get to a point where I feel good about the way my body looks. And as the most cliché goal of all, I'd like somewhat visible abs (I know... I know...).
On the one hand, to lower body fat % and lose weight, you would want to be at a caloric deficit. On the other hand, articles like this one comparing muscle gain in two subject groups, claimed that people at a caloric deficit failed to get any increase in muscle mass.
By my idea, being shape means leanness, but also muscle mass behind that? So what's the strategy here? Is there a sort of "null point" where you're at a caloric deficit, losing body fat, but where you excercise enough and get enough protein that your muscle mass just stays the same?
My current excercise routine, after trying a bunch of different ones, is this set of six ab excercices, followed by 30 mins or uphill treadmill (15% incline, 5-6 km/h as recommended here). Then I'll usually do 3-4 excercises of some other muscle groups, e.g. benchpress, squats, and something for my back.
In latter cases, usually do 3 sets of 10-12 reps. Sometimes only 8 reps if I'm pushing weight higher than usual.
I am, of course, also open to advice/tips in this department.
Thanks for reading!
Ah, and I'm new to the sub, and (due to a variety of funky issues) find it oddly hard to talk about this stuff. Thank you for your understanding.
Long story short, I've been fighting depression for a long time, and am now fighting to "get in shape," and get to a point where I feel good about the way my body looks. And as the most cliché goal of all, I'd like somewhat visible abs (I know... I know...).
On the one hand, to lower body fat % and lose weight, you would want to be at a caloric deficit. On the other hand, articles like this one comparing muscle gain in two subject groups, claimed that people at a caloric deficit failed to get any increase in muscle mass.
By my idea, being shape means leanness, but also muscle mass behind that? So what's the strategy here? Is there a sort of "null point" where you're at a caloric deficit, losing body fat, but where you excercise enough and get enough protein that your muscle mass just stays the same?
My current excercise routine, after trying a bunch of different ones, is this set of six ab excercices, followed by 30 mins or uphill treadmill (15% incline, 5-6 km/h as recommended here). Then I'll usually do 3-4 excercises of some other muscle groups, e.g. benchpress, squats, and something for my back.
In latter cases, usually do 3 sets of 10-12 reps. Sometimes only 8 reps if I'm pushing weight higher than usual.
I am, of course, also open to advice/tips in this department.
Thanks for reading!
Ah, and I'm new to the sub, and (due to a variety of funky issues) find it oddly hard to talk about this stuff. Thank you for your understanding.
