Hey i'm 17, 5'8 at 205lbs. I am a little on beefy side, but i've been lifting weights on and off for 3 years, so i've gained some pretty good mass. But in the last 3 or 4 weeks, i've started getting serious, doing upperbody workouts 3 days a week. I've started eating a lot healthier and i take whey protein and a multivitamin.So here's my problem- i want to get more definition and cut in my arms,shoulders and chest. Can i do this while still building mass? I was thinking maybe i could do mass for 2 days,then tone the other day.Or should i just do toning all 3 days? I've also read doing legs exercises burns a lot of calories. i haven't done legs before, but if this is true than i will start doing them to lose more weight. Any suggestions would be helpful, thanks
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building mass and getting definition
- Thread starter zeppelin2007
- Start date
OK i've decided to cut fat. Is this best done by doing lighter weight at higher reps....like 15 reps? I've read in other posts that there is no such thing as toning, that you just get definition from having a low body fat%. But doesn't doing high rep/low weight burn more calories, therefor leading to lower body fat?
don't lift higher reps when you cut, keep it in your normal low rep range. The key to reduce fat is cardio. If your cardio conditioning isn't that great than build it up over time. So for example do 20 minutes of cardio 3 times a week and than build it up to say 30 minutes 4 times a week. And make sure you eat enough protein and diet properly otherwise you could lose muscle.
Yes, you should do lower reps, and there are two good reasons why.
For one, your body can only take so much heavy weight work at once, so you should save lifting low reps for when you want to bulk. Second of all, lifting low weights for high reps allows you to exercise your muscles for a longer period of time, resulting in more calories burned. Lifting is also an equally important partner with cardio work when cutting because it will raise your metabolism and cause you to use up more of the calories that you are consuming, even on days in between lifting.
For one, your body can only take so much heavy weight work at once, so you should save lifting low reps for when you want to bulk. Second of all, lifting low weights for high reps allows you to exercise your muscles for a longer period of time, resulting in more calories burned. Lifting is also an equally important partner with cardio work when cutting because it will raise your metabolism and cause you to use up more of the calories that you are consuming, even on days in between lifting.
gbpackerfan said:Yes, you should do lower reps, and there are two good reasons why.
For one, your body can only take so much heavy weight work at once, so you should save lifting low reps for when you want to bulk. Second of all, lifting low weights for high reps allows you to exercise your muscles for a longer period of time, resulting in more calories burned. Lifting is also an equally important partner with cardio work when cutting because it will raise your metabolism and cause you to use up more of the calories that you are consuming, even on days in between lifting.
what is lifting low weights for higher reps? that doesnt make sense
Anyway, to the legs part of the question, you should most definitely do legs.
Squat.
Deadlifts are great for your back and hammies too
I have to agree. The key to cutting fat is cardio. The best cardio to do for fat burn is at a THR between 65 and 70% of your HR MAX
Streamline said:don't lift higher reps when you cut, keep it in your normal low rep range. The key to reduce fat is cardio. If your cardio conditioning isn't that great than build it up over time. So for example do 20 minutes of cardio 3 times a week and than build it up to say 30 minutes 4 times a week. And make sure you eat enough protein and diet properly otherwise you could lose muscle.
cardio is great, but i have to agree with AJP, work those legs. squats and deads rule. more muscle=better metabolism so keep lifting regularly and eat, but eat clean. but yeah cardio is a must.