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Hey guys, I am going to be starting one of those 90 day workout programs soon (it's ChaLean Extreme, which seems to be p90x for women, but I am getting it for free so I am not complaining). To do the workouts, you need either resistance bands or free weights. I only have some resistance bands now, though I'd probably buy another set because the ones I have now are kind of crappy. I am a bit short on cash at the moment (Christmas, tires, and textbooks ate my money  :( ), so I'd rather just buy some cheap resistance bands over spending more money on a weight set. Though, I could afford a weight set if I really needed to get it (I just like to have padding in the bank).

Just wanted your opinion on what's better? I'll probably be doing p90x this summer, which also requires weights or resistance bands. Can I get buff with resistance bands? It seems like a lot of women like the resistance bands, but I also find that a lot of women are worried about getting buff. Are the bands easier and that's why they like the bands?

I used to workout with free weights, and I got results really fast, so I am kind of leaning on spending the money on the weights, either just getting a whole set of dumbbells or just buying a certain weight individually as I need them.

The bands are only as easy as the strength of the resistance they provide, as far as I know you can get them in different strengths. Bands and weights probably both build muscle if you are new to working out.

P90X makes you do a lot with body weight too, and that really helps build muscle. (like push-ups/pull ups, etc) I don't know anything about that other program, though. Once you've been working out awhile, you may need free weights to really keep bulking up, but I would not worry about it. Once you get to that point, you'll be concentrating on certain muscles with lifting and free weights anyways, outside of programs like p90x. I think p90x is intended to get you cut all over at first, and then you can increase the weight/resistance you use if you choose to repeat the program  another time like some people do.

I don't really know all that much though, so hopefully someone who has more experience with bands or weights will chime in.

Personally, I prefer weights. But when I did p90x I only had pairs of 10s, 5s, and 2.5s which by the end weren't nearly adequate for the lifting I was doing. But what I did find with resistance bands is that they're EXTREMELY versatile. You can do a lot more with resiatnce bands than you can with a pair of dumbells. They're cheaper and don't hurt if you drop them on your foot. If your program is anything like p90x, then it's designed to be used with either/or. Like in p90x, there's always a demonstrater using resistance bands to show you how it's done with those rather than weights.

Good luck!

You can get a good resistance band on ebay for a reasonable price. If you want weights I'd check out the local Craigslist. Good deals to be found there. I got my home gym and my weight bench (still can't use them till I heal fully, grrr) for $140 off of there. Funny thing was they ended up being sold by one of my gf's friend's grandparents. Worked out in my favor though. Craigslist will be full of workout equipment in the next few months from everyone's broken New Years resolutions, lol.

My brother lifts weights, but I looked at all of his today and they're going to be WAY too heavy for me. I think the lightest I saw was 35 pounds, that's about 1/3 of my body weight lol.

Hmm... It seems like I should start with the bands and then move onto the weights. I hear the videos show how to do things with the bands; with the ones I have now I can't really figure out how to work all the muscles with them. I've been using them fairly regularly, but I think the difference in my arms is from the yoga I am doing and not the bands. I got stacked pretty quickly back when I was using weights, so I can see there's not much of a good workout with the way I am using the bands now.

Good idea Simon, I forgot about Craigslist. I'll def take a look there. I am gonna pick up some more resistance bands at Job Lot, I hear they have some this week for a great price; I also hear T. J. Maxx sells good ones cheap too. 

Resident meat head checking in.
If you are just starting a health routine, I would suggest the bands. Especially if you are not on testosterone yet. The only real disadvantage of bands is that you are limited in how hard you can push yourself. This works out just fine if you are new to muscle building. Since bands will still provide a level difficulty for you go for it. Then when you feel like you need more challenge, you can look into free weights (or just join the gym)

Also bands are cheaper and portable and you can make them into slingshots when youre done with them.

Can I get buff with resistance bands?
            - this depends on the level of resistance you are using with the bands. If it's lite resistance, than no you will not get buff.

It seems like a lot of women like the resistance bands, but I also find that a lot of women are worried about getting buff.
                   Women can't get "too" buff (although i suppose that term is subjective) unless they have excess testosterone in their 
                    bodies.   

Are the bands easier and that's why they like the bands?
                   Bands can only offer so much resistance so they are easier. Weights can go up to 1000's of pounds.

Good luck.

Hey Chuck, thanks for the suggestions. I used to lift weights, but stopped once I had a falling out with my friend who was letting me use his weights (and then I had to quit my job and couldn't afford my own weights, so I was just doing cardio videos and running). When I first started weights, I went from using 5 pounders to 20 or 25 pound weights within two months (I am not sure if that's impressive, but my friends said it was). I haven't lifted weights in a few years, and have just been doing strength yoga.

I just bought the strongest resistance bands the store had, and I tried it out at home and it still seemed pretty easy (though I am sure they'll get tougher over the course of a 30-40 minute workout), so I am going to buy a weight set once I get my check (then I can go back to the routine I was doing a few years ago once I finish these videos).

Also, another question then, how do I know how much protein I need? (I know I don't get much now, I think the most I get on an average day is from a serving of greek yogurt and a serving or two of nuts/seeds, so I just bought some muscle milk and I am going to make an effort to eat some of the venison I have in the freezer.) I have this nice little calorie app, but it doesn't say how much I should eat of protein.

Quote from: LearnedHand on January 04, 2013, 07:42:40 PM
Hey Chuck, thanks for the suggestions. I used to lift weights, but stopped once I had a falling out with my friend who was letting me use his weights (and then I had to quit my job and couldn't afford my own weights, so I was just doing cardio videos and running). When I first started weights, I went from using 5 pounders to 20 or 25 pound weights within two months (I am not sure if that's impressive, but my friends said it was). I haven't lifted weights in a few years, and have just been doing strength yoga.

I just bought the strongest resistance bands the store had, and I tried it out at home and it still seemed pretty easy (though I am sure they'll get tougher over the course of a 30-40 minute workout), so I am going to buy a weight set once I get my check (then I can go back to the routine I was doing a few years ago once I finish these videos).

Also, another question then, how do I know how much protein I need? (I know I don't get much now, I think the most I get on an average day is from a serving of greek yogurt and a serving or two of nuts/seeds, so I just bought some muscle milk and I am going to make an effort to eat some of the venison I have in the freezer.) I have this nice little calorie app, but it doesn't say how much I should eat of protein.

Depends on your goals. One scoop of MM for recovery and 2 for packing on mass. But remember, it's a supplement so it should NOT be your only source. My main sources are chicken, hard boiled eggs, sometimes tuna and cashews. You can look up suggested servings for your body weight/type and goals.

Quote from: LearnedHand on January 04, 2013, 07:42:40 PM
Hey Chuck, thanks for the suggestions. I used to lift weights, but stopped once I had a falling out with my friend who was letting me use his weights (and then I had to quit my job and couldn't afford my own weights, so I was just doing cardio videos and running). When I first started weights, I went from using 5 pounders to 20 or 25 pound weights within two months (I am not sure if that's impressive, but my friends said it was). I haven't lifted weights in a few years, and have just been doing strength yoga.

I just bought the strongest resistance bands the store had, and I tried it out at home and it still seemed pretty easy (though I am sure they'll get tougher over the course of a 30-40 minute workout), so I am going to buy a weight set once I get my check (then I can go back to the routine I was doing a few years ago once I finish these videos).

Also, another question then, how do I know how much protein I need? (I know I don't get much now, I think the most I get on an average day is from a serving of greek yogurt and a serving or two of nuts/seeds, so I just bought some muscle milk and I am going to make an effort to eat some of the venison I have in the freezer.) I have this nice little calorie app, but it doesn't say how much I should eat of protein.

Good for you. I hope you stick with it!
First of all, use your muscle milk and finsih whatever amount you have, but dont buy it again. There are much better protein powders than Musclemilk. I haven't checked the ingredients for while, so maybe they have changed it, but whey isolate has a far better nutritional profile than most whey protein, and much better than muscle milk. So finish it, then switch to isolate. Isolate is almost always 25 grams of protein per scoop with nothing else in it. No fat, no carbs, no just protein.

How much of any macronutrient (protein, carbohydrates and fat) you eat depend on your goals. If you want to lose weight, you eat less calories than you burn. If you want to gain muscle, you eat more calories than you burn.

The suggested guideline for men who want to build muscle is between 1 and 1.5 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight. Carbohydrates and fat are also important too.

Healthy Proteins in order of superiority
Whey isolate
Egg whites
Chicken Breasts
Tuna Fish
extra lean beef (like 98 percent lean)

Healthy carbs (random order)
oat bran
buck wheat
oatmeal
brown rice
sweet potato

Healthy fats (random order)
Almonds
Olive oil
peanuts (most nuts in general)
salmon (decent protein profile as well)

simple carbohydrates  (sugar) are a physique killer in my opinion.

I want to gain weight (I want to look like Arnold in Predator lol). My calorie thing is telling me to basically double what I currently I eat in calories. I'll try to add more natural protein to my diet, and won't get MM again. My friend at work wants me to buy this thing called "scientology" which she uses, but she's looking to loose weight, not bulk up. The name of that powder stuff just kind of scares me, makes me think of that religion all the celebrities seem to like. I'll look for some of that whey isolate.

Awesome, yes Arnold is forever. Make sure you keep your goals realistic lol. Arnold was on steroids (as is every single IFBB pro and many "natural" bodybuilders)  So if youre not taking testosterone yet, its going to be a bit more tricky. But still its always a good time to start trying an reading up and studying!

Lol yeah, I don't expect to ever look that big, but I can dream. I am not on T yet, but I think I have good genes, both my parents are/were really strong, and I want to start getting stacked now so it'll be easier once I get on T.

Quote from: LearnedHand on January 05, 2013, 02:05:42 PM
Lol yeah, I don't expect to ever look that big, but I can dream. I am not on T yet, but I think I have good genes, both my parents are/were really strong, and I want to start getting stacked now so it'll be easier once I get on T.

Make sure you look into BCAAs and glutamine as well. Both are natural and provide great results.

I did day 1 on ChaLean this morning. Some of the moves were hard with the band, but others weren't, so I think I'll need some weights for those other moves. I had to fold the bands to make a few of the moves challenging. I think the weights would also be better, because they don't always seem to give quite enough time to wrap the band around your shoe and the band didn't seem effective when doing chest flies.

In the videos, they use these weights: http://www.hayneedle.com/sale/bowflexselecttech552dumbbells.cfm?source=pla&adtype=pla&kw=&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=NTS024&gclid=CJL1wI7M1LQCFQ-f4AodazAAYg (http://www.hayneedle.com/sale/bowflexselecttech552dumbbells.cfm?source=pla&adtype=pla&kw=&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=NTS024&gclid=CJL1wI7M1LQCFQ-f4AodazAAYg)

Has anyone used them? It seems expensive, so I probably won't get them, but it seems really convenient to have weights that can be anywhere from 5 to 52.5 pounds all together without taking up all that space that individual dumbbells would.