Workout Routine and Fitness Goals Help Request

[Diresu]

Hi Guys,

I know you most likely see these threads all the time but I promise situation is a bit different. I will try to provide as much information as possible here so that you know exactly what situation is.

About Me

I am 28, 6 Foot 1, 176 pounds. I recently joined the gym and have been going for about 2 months now. job requires me to sit for long periods of time, so needless to say I wasn't very active, so I decided that I needed to do something, so I joined the gym.

goals are:

1. Lose fat - (Most of fat is in the area) I am not overweight for size, but I do have more weight on stomach than I am happy with. I am not in terrible shape, but I definitely want to do better then that. In fitness assessment I think BMI was something like 23 and the optimal was 18 or so.
2. Build a bit of muscle - I am not looking to get huge. I have no interesting in gaining a lot of size, but I would like to build some muscle and a bit of size. ideal shape is something along the lines of soccer player/athletic fit. Where they are very much in shape, and have muscle definition, but aren't massive in size.
3. Generally just be in shape and healthy.

What I am Doing Now

work schedule is a bit non-standard. I work 12 hour shifts and days off are Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. Thursday. So those 4 days I am able to go to the gym and work out. I know consecutive days are not recommended, but I don't really have much of a choice so I need something that works with it.

routine at the moment is:

Sunday: Chest and Triceps + 60 minutes of cardio ( on stationary bike or treadmill. Doing about 15 miles on bike OR 4-5 on treadmill trying to keep heart rate at about 140-160 - max HR is 192 though that's using the generic formula and I don't think it's quite accurate )
Monday: Legs and Abs + 60 minutes of cardio
Tuesday: Back and Biceps + 60 minutes of cardio
Wednesday: Shoulders and Abs + 60 minutes of cardio

I try to do 3 sets of 12. I use machines for most of it, except for abs. I know that machines are not encouraged but honestly half the reason I am here is because I don't know enough to be effective with free weights and I am worried about completely having the wrong form. other issue is that you are suppose to change your workout every 3-4 weeks but I simply don't know enough about what to do and how to change it outside of adding weight/changing number of reps.

I had 2 free personal training sessions and he showed me one routine but didn't really answer all the questions I had or tell me how to change it up. I do have a smartphone and I got the JEFIT app which lets you pick a muscle group and then shows you different exercises to do, so I was going to give that a go but I am still worried about form as the app just uses a little 2 frame graphic to show you how to do the exercises. I do try to find videos and study those in an attempt to improve form but without feedback it's tough to know how well I am doing.

Diet

I know how important a proper diet is but because of work schedule I don't really have much time to cook but I have tried to change diet as much as I can. I have cut out the obvious bad carbs that I could (fast food, sweets, junk food, soda, etc). For a long time I was only eating 2 meals a day so since I started going to the gym I have tried to get back into at least 3 meals. I had a really hard time eating in the morning so for that I just do a protein shake and add peanut butter + frozen fruit twice a day + 2 actual meals.

So that's that. I did a lot of research and have tried to adjust where I could but these are still the questions I don't have an answer to and would appreciate any help you can offer.

[Boss Man]

You don't necessarily need ot cook, there are plenty of easy options that require little to no cooking time.

Peanuts, Nuts, Yoghurt, Low Fat Cheese, Scrambled Eggs, Fruit, Celery Sticks, Microwavable Soups, Beans and Rice Dishes, Carrot sticks, Cereals, Tofu, Baked Beans, Peas, Avocado, Powdered Flax, Seeds, Herbs, Spices, Whole-grain Bread, Ham, Turkey, sliced packet Chicken, Beef, Lettuce, Fried Mushrooms in healthy oils.

No excuses for not eating properly and in a good regimented way now .

[urfitness]

Great list Boss Man