Whether you’ve never worked out before or you’re coming back to fitness from a long hiatus, this guide will help you get started.

Introduction – Start Here:

There’s too much information out there about the best beginner workout or the best ways to get fit or strong. I’m here to simplify the message and to give you a straightforward path towards making the strength and physique gains you want.  In the beginning, it can be a daunting task to even research enough (or correct) information to get started. And, oftentimes, you, me, or anyone else get stuck in a state of too much information or too much of the wrong information. That’s why I wrote this ultimate guide: to streamline the process by offering the best knowledge that I know of about fitness and working out

Also, let me share with you a secret before we get started: there is no best or perfect way to workout. Shocking, I know. Everybody is looking for the one thing, exercise, supplement, or workout that’ll catapult them into accomplishing their goals. And that kind of hack simply just doesn’t exist. And thank God too! I’m glad it doesn’t exist; because, for some reason, when we really work for something, it gives that accomplishment so much more meaning and lasting happiness.  And I’m telling this to my younger self just as much as to you guys.  There are better and more optimal ways of working out, but there’s no such thing as best.  The most optimal workout, however, will mean nothing to you if it doesn’t fit into your life and time constraints.  Every idea looks good on paper until it’s tested in the real world.   Choose to forego what’s optimal and choose what’s functional: what workout will fit into your life.?  Make it a habit. Make it a lifestyle. That’s how you succeed and stay consistent year-after-year.

With that said, let’s get started . . .

1. What are the benefits of working out?

Furthermore, sometimes I think it’s just as important to have a list of cons if you didn’t workout, because it’s just as important to see the rewards of doing something as well as the negative consequences of not doing something. Here is the list of cons that would occur if you chose not to workout:

Now that you understand the pros and cons, let’s move onto the next point . . .

2. How do I get started working out?

How often should I workout? What equipment do I need? Can I make gains with just bodyweight workouts? How should I diet and eat? Can I workout with just 5 minutes a day!? What exercises should I do!? So many questions, but don’t worry. You’ll have the answers to all these questions and more by the end of this article

I hate to ask you this question just because everyone you know, and their moms have asked you this question already. But I need to ask, and you need to answer this question for yourself. What is your goal? Why do you even want to get started working out? It’s a simple question with a not-so-simple answer. Maybe you know the answer or maybe you don’t even have a clue.

If you know, then great, but if you don’t know, think about why you even got the notion or desire to start working out in the first place. And honestly, don’t think too hard: the goal you start out with will most likely change as you gain more experience and make progress. For example you go from overcoming your insecurities of feeling too skinny (*Cough, cough*) to working out because you enjoy the process of working out. And after a certain period of time, that’s where you’ll end up: just enjoying the process, because that’s who you are. But until then come up with a current goal and why you want to accomplish it.

3. How Much Time Can You Dedicate to Working Out?

Once you have your goal figured out, you need to determine how many days a week and how much time every week you can comfortably dedicate to working out (keyword: [Comfortable]). The reason I say that is because in the beginning, especially in the very beginning, the most important thing is consistency. And I’m sorry if I sound like your parents when I say that, but you absolutely should set a pace that you can keep up with, even on your worst days. That’s the key. There are times when you absolutely should go all out on something, but not here and not now. I say this because there will be dark days ahead, where you will question why you even started. And if you go too hard core in the beginning, you will get burned out fast.

So back to the basics: what pace can you keep up with even on you worst days or weeks. This going to look different for everyone. You might choose to workout in the mornings or evenings. On Mondays and Wednesdays. Or maybe, for you, it’s the weekends because you’re a weekend warrior.

Moreover, time-wise, if you feel you could get 30 minutes a day, do 15. I say that because, you should leave the gym feeling like you want to do more. That way you are excited to work out the next time. And keep increasing time spent in the gym gradually. And, all of a sudden, You’re doing one hour to two hours in the gym.

4. What equipment do I need to start working out?

People all over the world are embracing Calisthenics as a preferred way of working out, as the only barrier of entry to starting, is you. Take the steps today to get started today: check out this in-depth article on The Ultimate guide to starting calisthenics, where I go in-depth and cover areas I can’t cover here.

5. What Specific Exercises Should I Do?

There are so many exercises, probably too many exercise, to choose from.  And while there’s nothing wrong with having options, having too many options to choose from, in the beginning, can be paralyzing. But don’t worry; I will supply you with a list of the best exercises for beginners to perform.  In the beginning, the best exercises you can do are called Compound Exercises which basically just means that you’re working out multiple muscle groups at the same time. For example, Your leg is not just one big muscle; it’s several muscle groups working together (the hamstrings, quadriceps, and calves). So if you performed a squat, the exercise (with proper technique) positions your body and legs in a way where your quads and calves have to work together. That’s why it’s called a compound exercise; whereas, an isolation exercise is any exercise that targets one muscle group or just one part of a muscle group, because oftentimes one muscle (such as the shoulders) can have three different heads to it: the front, side, and rear deltoids.

5.1 Best Body Weight Exercises

1. 1.     Pushup
   2.     Pull-up
   3.     Pike Push-ups (for shoulders)
   4.     Body weight squat

(Note: for Calisthenics I’ve noticed that incorporating weighted lower body exercises such as weighted squats and dead lifts increase your gains

5.2 Best Weighted Exercises

1. 1.     Bench Press
   2.     Bent-over Barbell Row
   3.     Shoulder Press (Military Press)
   4.     Squat
   5.     Dead lift

6. Beginner Workout Routine (no equipment & no gym required)

Please note:  The sample workout routine below is just a guideline. Feel free to adjust the days, frequency, and repetitions to your current skill level and lifestyle.

6. How should I Diet and Eat?

This is a complicated one, because there is no one-size-fits-all answer. Diet is something that is highly unique and tailored to the individual. With that said, however, I will give you the basic principles of diet based on whether your goal is to gain, lose, or maintain weight. But before we dive into that I want to share something really special with you. I want to share the Golden Rule of diet success with you. But before I do make sure you are in a secluded area where people can’t “eyes-drop” on the secret.  And with no further delay and no secrets barred, here it is: You must track you calories or food intake.

Now wait. Don’t leave, because honestly I don’t care if you’ve daydreamed through the rest of this article (aside from the goal-setting part), as long as you pay attention to just this part. I know you must’ve heard track your calories a million times, but trust me: it works 100%. It is the not-so-secret secret of building your dream physique.  It’s amazing how the best advice is hidden in plain sight. And most people don’t even do this basic step. Honestly, even if your training was absolutely terrible but your diet was on point, you would still make good gains, because you can’t out-train a bad diet. You just can’t.

Tracking calories is basically like putting a number to your goal (which makes it more real and achieveable). Everything is numbers. Even your most coveted goals- personal and professional, can be broken down into numbers. In a fitness sense, you either want to lose, gain, or maintain a certain weight and body fat percentage, which happens by eating more, less, or the same amount of food. And how are you going to know exactly how much food you are consuming without counting your calories.  The short answer is you can’t.  So make the change today by committing to tracking your calories.

If you’ve decided to track your calories the next step is to find a manual or digital way of tracking them.  I highly recommend you find an app, such as My Fitness Pal (which is what I use), to digitally track your calories.  Tracking them manually onto paper is very tedious; and, honestly, if I kept doing that, I would’ve given up a long time ago.

Thankfully, however, once you overcome the initial learning curve of using the my fitness pal app or any other similar app, tracking calories becomes effortless and part of your everyday routine.

Now, once you’ve decided to track your calories and have a reliable way of doing so (like using an app), you can move onto the next step, which is knowing whether you want to lose, gain, or maintain weight. And that’s not hard; most likely you already know which it is. However, before I continue, I just want to congratulate you on making it this far, because the reality is that most people have already given up or not taken any action on what they read in this article. You are already doing better than most people. So well done.

Finally, now that you know exactly how many calories you are consuming, let’s put those numbers to use. If your goal is to gain weight, you should consume at least 100-500 calories more than what you’re using. If your goal is to lose weight, you should consume 100-500 calories less than your BMR.  If you want to maintain weight, you should keep your calorie intake on par with how many calories you are spending everyday.

Conclusion – Final Tips:

Now, that you understand the basics of diet, training, and most importantly why you want to achieve your goals, you should act on what you know and start working out today, even if it’s only 5 minutes. Why so short, you ask? Because you need to master the art of showing up, before you ever begin to improve how long you train. You must establish a habit before you can improve it.  So master the art of showing up, because I guarantee that: “A year from now, you will wish you had started today.” -Unknown

I leave you with those words and one more thing. If there ever was such a thing as a secret to happiness it would be: Stop comparing yourself to other people. I say this from personal experience, that nothing will make you more miserable than jealousy, envy, and constant comparison (which is unfortunately so common these days). Even if you’re making great progress, constant comparison will wreak havoc on your mental health, because there’s usually always someone who’s stronger, fitter, better (esp. if they’re using steroids and photo shopping they’re Instagram photos). Don’t compare yourself to who someone is today; compare yourself to who you were yesterday or are today.  And don’t worry if something is difficult for you today, because what’s difficult for you today will one day be your warm up.

I want to congratulate you on making it this far. Get started today and change your life because: “A year from now, you’ll wish you had started today.” -Unknown