Hello there
In regards to your question about sore muscles yes it is perfectly normal to be sore when you first begin training.Soreness should not be used as a indicator of a good/bad workout,it merely means that your muscles are not yet conditioned to the type of stimulus you are placing upon them.
Your routine should be based around the large compound lift such as the deadlift,squat,bench press,overhead press and power cleans/rows.The lifts are the ones that will contribute to the majority of your success in weightlifting.Here is a good example of a novice program centered around those lifts.
Workout A
3x5 Squat
3x5 Bench Press
1x5 Deadlift/Power Clean 5x3,alternate every workout ''A''
Workout B
3x5 Squat
3x5 Military Press
3x5 Chinups
3x8 Weighted hyperextensions/ Good mornings
Warm up using several sets before doing the 3 work sets (or 1 for the deadlift). If you're using 175, for example, it would look like this:
Warm up sets
2x5xbar (sets x reps x weight)
1x5x85
1x3x125
1x2x155
Work sets
3x5x175
You alternate workout A and B, 3 non-consecutive days per week. So you might do:
Week 1
M
Workout A
W
Workout B
F
Workout A
Week 2
M
Workout B
W
Workout A
F
Workout B
Add weight to the bar whenever possible. If you're very new to lifting weights, or if most of your lifting has focused on curls and other isolation movements, you'll probably be able to add some weight each workout. Maybe 5-10 lbs each time in the squat and deadlift, and about 5 lbs in the other three lifts. Eventually you won't be able to sustain such progress, and you'll have to get microplates so you can increase by smaller increments. Or you could make them out of chain:
http://davedraper.com/forum/showflat...3/Main/126754/
And eat a lot of food. A whole lot.
It's fine to add some assistance work such as abs, hypers, or maybe some direct biceps and triceps work, but don't overdo it. For direct arm work, 3 sets of 8 of one lift for each muscle at the end of your last workout of the week will be plenty. Your arms are getting hit hard all week on this routine, so you don't want to blast them with iso stuff as well.
Diet will be a deciding factor in how much muscle/fat you gain/lose.If you eat more calories then you burn you will gain muscle/some fat,if you eat less calories then you burn you will lose fat/some muscle(hopefully none).It is possible to lose fat And build muscle as a beginner so you might want to take advantage of your untrained state and eat maintenence calories while you bust your ass in the gym.
Good luck,if you have further questions just ask
