How to Properly Workout

I'm tired  going to the gym and seeing that person that is bent over walking out the gym all messed up. Like there is nothing more hurtful to the eyes then seeing someone that looks like they can barely walk out the gym when finished  working out. On the other hand sometimes it looks really good because then you know that they "got that chunk in". (meaning that they worked very hard)

Step 1: Step 1

To me step one should be for you eat a well balanced meal or at least eat a snack. I say that because you can't lift properly or your muscles aren't properly working without enough nutrition. 

Step 2: Step 2

Then you should know if your gym is open that is very important. There is nothing worse then getting pumped to go to your gym and you can't go due to the the fact that your gym is closed. When you get ready to go to the gym you should know what the policies and procedures of your gym are so you can enter in with no problem.

Step 3: Step 3

Once you get into the gym the next important part is to figure which half of your body do you want to work on. I suggest that you work on either the upper or lower body,rather then trying to do both in one day. Unless you just isolate one body part that day that you want to do a little bit of work on that day. So after you figure out what half you want to work on you do the most important part of your workout,  which is the pre- stretch.

Step 4: Step 4

After you have stretched thoroughly, and i mean thoroughly, like so good that you start to sweat a little bit. So after you figure which half of the body you want to work on, start to warm it up with some working out. For the sake of this instructable i have decided to work upper body. What is very important and something that you should understand that ever body part you work out you should do the opposite, example chest then back. 
So in this instructable I will take you through some machines and show you the proper way to lift and use these machines. 
So we will start with chin ups the best way to explain those is to go till your chin is above a certain point and under controllable come back down till your arms are fully extended.
Very important reminder BREATHING IS VERY IMPORTANT and it can make or break your reps. Breathe out on the way up on your chin ups and breathe in on the way down on your chin ups.
Do 3 sets of 10 3x10

Step 5: Step 5

The next workout that i will take you through is the bench press. With this machine you have to the the bar down under control to your chest then back up and that is one. Breath in while you are taking the bar down and breath out when you are pushing the bar up. It is very IMPORTANT FIND A WEIGHT THAT FITS YOU AND ALWAYS HAVE A SPOT.

Step 6: Step 6

Since the bench works nothing but chest and biceps, I suggest that you should work on your triceps. Triceps are the opposite of biceps, so I will show you some dips that work on nothing but triceps. I Suggest you do 3 sets of 10-15. The perfect dip is done when you go all the way down and as far as you can and extend all the way back up. Breathe in as you are going down and breathe out as you are coming up.

Step 7: Step 7

Another workout that works your chest that you can do anywhere is push ups.  There are a lot of different types of push ups that you can do to work a certain parts in your chest or shoulders. I do 200 push ups every night before I go to sleep, but I suggest 4 sets of 25 4x25. One specific type of push up that you can do diamond push ups. With push ups you breathe out when you push yourself up and breathe in when you are going down. your chest should hit the ground when going down. Then when elevating back up your arms should be fully extended. 

Step 8: Step 8

After doing 3 sets of push ups you should go workout your back. The lat pull down machine is perfect for this ,it works your upper back muscles. I say you should find a suitable weight and go for about 3 sets of 15-20 reps 3x15. You are using the machine and doing the workout perfectly if you are pulling the bar down and having the bar come back up under control. You should breathe out as you pull the bar down and breathe in as you let the bar rise back up.

Step 9: Step 9

So that is the workout that me and my roommate did yesterday and we are coming back tomorrow to do the lower body. I also suggest that you workout every other day. I do not suggest that you workout the same muscle back to back. Simple because you have to give your muscles time to rest and rebuild. So now that you are finished working out for the day you should stretch again to prevents cramping. The Post-stretch is just as important as the pre-stretch. Also something that is very important to do is to take about a 15-30 sec break in between sets as well as drink water in between.

Step 10: Step 10

If you are feeling any soreness it is natural just take a shower or bath which ever you prefer. Then take some ibuprofen and drink plenty of water. I drink a gallon of water a day. Also some Gatorade wouldn't be bad to have as well. Gatorade as electrolytes that can replace the ones that you lost during your workout.  Now sit back and feel great because you are getting FIT. Enjoy the rest of your day.

Comments

[mpikas]

It's been a while since you posted this, and i'm hoping that you know more at this point but for those looking in at this, there are a lot of little problems in here, to start with:
- bench press does not work biceps, it works primarily chest, triceps and your anterior deltoids (front of your shoulders), but when you get to working with heavier weights and refine your technique you'll find that they also work traps, lats, back, even hamstrings and to a lesser extent quads

- rep and set schemes vary greatly with what you're trying to accomplish, but for someone just starting out or even approaching intermediate is better off with just sticking to the basics, even something as simple as squats, deadlifts, benchpress and a pullup/pulldown/row for the heaviest they can get 5 reps with for 5 sets (after a warmup) 3 days a week. That kind of thing will give you the most muscle growth for the least work until you move on to more specialized workouts.

- Ibuprofen for DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) is not a great idea. If you hurt yourself during your workout taking an NSAID (ibuprofen, naproxin, aspirin...) immediately could help control the swelling and prevent some damage, but if it's just normal muscle soreness typically it won't help much and worse, some studies have shown that it negatively affects muscle growth. Honestly the best thing is rest, active recovery (if your legs are sore going for an easy walk... basically moving what is sore) and food and water.

- Honestly I wouldn't suggest Gatorade for anyone (not that I don't like gatorade). 99% of people aren't working out hard enough to need that much simple sugar and salt after their workout (and you could essentially get the same by mixing up some coolaid with a pinch of salt in it). A better recovery drink after a workout if you want something specific is just some milk (assuming you're dairy tolerant), and if you work out particularly hard/want to add mass maybe chocolate milk (really, I'm not kidding). You can also get into dedicated protein shakes if you get more serious about it, but they aren't 100% necessary, I would actually suggest mixing them with at least some milk and/or an egg, and if you want to add mass a little simple sugar (I'd suggest dextrose which can be bought bulk or as corn syrup), and then in the end with almost all the commercial ones you will get a big dose of artificial sweeteners which will mess with your digestion.

I can keep going but this is a start...

[blue_phoenix]

Great job! I completely agree with pretty much the whole thing - 3 sets of 10, alternate upper and lower, keep hydrated, stretch and breathe properly. I might have missed it, but most gyms expect people to wipe down any equipment they've been using, as a courtesy to the next person. Bonus: you'll impress that hot guy/girl two rows over.