1. Start slow for your first six weeks or so, 2-3 workouts per week to start any new routine.
2. Set many small goals that lead to one giant goal and write them down.
3. Best results take time, one or two years from now, you'll see the best of them.
4. Be consistent, average 3-5 workouts per week after initial start up routine and strength train no more than 75 minutes daily.
5. Vary your set/reps and order of routine very often to prevent stagnation, between 3-30 reps depending on goals.
6. 3-7 reps for power and strength, 8-12 reps for mass/bulk and 13-30 + reps to separate, pump and stimulate growth, blood flow and metabolism.
7. Muscle burns fat and your body needs proper nutrition and calories to maintain muscle in order to burn off fat more efficiently.
8. Two solid diet plans: low carbs daily, with preset carb load days to prevent muscle breakdown and the zigzag diet with 5-6 days of restricted calorie intake, 1-2 cheat days with unlimited intake to keep metabolism high. Eliminate all carbohydrates after 4 or 5 pm or at least 6 hours before your bedtime....any amount of carbs before the cutoff and on the weekends. This allows you to get in all the carbs you'll need early in the day, which assist in preventing fat storage at night. It is important to have two ( at least) meals of zero carbs in the eve, because this will stoke your metabolism, prevent catabolism and help you burn off any excess carbs already stored.
9. Lose no more than 2-3 lbs. per week and always have your body fat checked to make sure you are not losing muscle.
10. Around 15+ sets weekly for major muscle groups and around 10 for smaller, calves-bi-tri, etc...
11. Work each muscle group no more than 2x per week and one body part per week is plenty to lose weight on and gain muscle.
12. Prevent over training by proper nutrition, rest and vary workouts week 2. The order, amount, rest periods between sets and periodically taking 1-2 weeks off every 3-4 months.
13. Eat within 1 hour of waking and within 25 minutes after your initial workout.
14. Exercise breaks muscle tissue down and rest/nutrition builds it up.
15. Spot reduction doesn't burn fat in the areas you only work ( like abs and fat doesn't turn into muscle, but muscle does burn fat off.
16. Seek training tips from books, mags, personal trainers and professionals as myths abound in the health and fitness field.
17. Cardio is best done first thing in the morning upon wake up before eating 4-5 days a week.
18. Always eat a balanced meal 90 or so minutes prior to heavy lifting and 20-30 minutes after your workout to replenish and restore.
19. Try to eat 5-6 smaller meals a day to help speed metabolism, prevent muscle protein break down and stabilize blood sugar levels, by eating roughly every 3 hours.
20. Have a professional check up, body fat analysis and your heart checked by a doctor before starting any new program and periodically as you get older/more fit.
21. Don't focus on scale weight, focus on body fat measurement. A scale measures weight which varies via water retention, waste and last meal.
22. Strength training builds muscle, increases metabolism and helps decrease body fat.
23. Quality of the exercise movements are much more important than the quantity of the weight.
24. Limit junk foods and sodas....until cheat days and drink 2-4 quarts of water daily on average.
25. Keep track of your workout routines and results, what works well for another person may not work well for you. Everything works, nothing works forever.