Length of training time?

[crazyness]

I want to lose weight I'm 5'7" and weigh 194lbs. My goal is to get to the 150ish mark. My question is how long would it take to get down to my target goal, and how long would it take before I would start to see results?


I plan to use a combination of this weight lifting routine: with a HIIT bike session on the alternating days.

Thanks for any help you guys can give me. I've been at this for about a week now and I don't know if I'm not doing this right or if I should just keep going at it before I notice a difference.

 

[Steve]

I want to lose weight I'm 5'7" and weigh 194lbs. My goal is to get to the 150ish mark.

Hopefully you realize diet is going to be the primary driver that gets you to that goal, right? That said, what's your calories and food selection look like on a typical day.

My question is how long would it take to get down to my target goal, and how long would it take before I would start to see results?

1. I wouldn't worry about how long it will take to start seeing results. This is a slow process and the sooner you align your expectations with that, the better off you'll be.

2. If you want a plan for monitoring progress, assessing things once every 2-4 weeks is a good idea. By that, I mean take anthropometric measurements, weigh yourself, take pictures, etc. Based on the trends of your assessments, you can adjust your diet and training accordingly.

3. A decent rate of weight loss, on average (some weeks will be more, some less) is 1% of total bodyweight lost per week. It's not a law, but it's a good thing to adhere to.

I plan to use a combination of this weight lifting routine: with a HIIT bike session on the alternating days.

Have you exercised with weights before? Specifically, have you done the exercises listed in that program? The reason I ask is I've been working in this industry professionally for near a decade and I can count on my fingers how many people I've seen do proper deadlifts and squats without a quality trainer instructing them.

Also, why are you jumping right into HIIT? Do you have an aerobic base of fitness established already?

And if so, I wouldn't be alternating HIIT with strength training. When dieting, recovery ability is diminished. Knowing this, it makes a whole lot of sense to insert as much recovery into your programming as possible. This is accomplished, assuming we're talking equivalent work loads/volumes, by consolidating high intensity sessions.

HIIT and strength training are both considered high intensity as they demand a lot of output in terms of the central nervous system.

So instead of something like:

Day 1: Strength
Day 2: HIIT
Day 3: Strength
Day 4: HIIT
Day 5: Strength
Day 6: HIIT
Day 7: Off

I'd much sooner see something like:

Day 1: Strength + HIIT
Day 2: LISS or off
Day 3: Strength + HIIT
Day 4: LISS or off
Day 5: Strength + HIIT
Day 6: LISS or off
Day 7: off

That would insert a lot more recovery days into the week. And that's assuming you *should be* doing all that high intensity work to begin with. More often than not, I'll work in two sessions of HIIT per week and 2-3 sessions of strength training per week with someone with similar goals as your own. The leaner they get and the longer they've been at it, the more likely I am to drop high intensity cardio all together due to the recovery ability mentioned above.

 

[crazyness]

Hopefully you realize diet is going to be the primary driver that gets you to that goal, right? That said, what's your calories and food selection look like on a typical day.

I do realize that. I have no idea what my calorie intake is like on a typical day but I've signed up for to start tracking that stuff. According to fitday I need to cut 944 calories out of my diet. But as far as what I should be eating I have no idea. there are so many conflicting reports of what to eat between cut out all carbs, cut out all fat, cut out all meat, eat lots of carbs. My current diet isn't really bad per se I think I just eat too much of it. So I'm going to cut all of my portions in half or so and see.

1. I wouldn't worry about how long it will take to start seeing results. This is a slow process and the sooner you align your expectations with that, the better off you'll be.

2. If you want a plan for monitoring progress, assessing things once every 2-4 weeks is a good idea. By that, I mean take anthropometric measurements, weigh yourself, take pictures, etc. Based on the trends of your assessments, you can adjust your diet and training accordingly.

3. A decent rate of weight loss, on average (some weeks will be more, some less) is 1% of total bodyweight lost per week. It's not a law, but it's a good thing to adhere to.

This is good advice. Thanks.

Have you exercised with weights before? Specifically, have you done the exercises listed in that program? The reason I ask is I've been working in this industry professionally for near a decade and I can count on my fingers how many people I've seen do proper deadlifts and squats without a quality trainer instructing them.

I have exercised with weights before and I know how to do it properly. Plus a friend of mine is a huge weight lifting buff and he's agreed to watch my form and show me how to do things right (unfortunately we rarely get to work out together because of conflicting schedules)

Also, why are you jumping right into HIIT? Do you have an aerobic base of fitness established already?

No, not really. Is it more important to have an aerobic base established? I was just going to jump straight into HIIT because it's effective and the way I see it, if I'm not dead tired or aching then I didn't push myself hard enough. What does it take to get an aerobic base established?

And if so, I wouldn't be alternating HIIT with strength training. When dieting, recovery ability is diminished. Knowing this, it makes a whole lot of sense to insert as much recovery into your programming as possible. This is accomplished, assuming we're talking equivalent work loads/volumes, by consolidating high intensity sessions.

HIIT and strength training are both considered high intensity as they demand a lot of output in terms of the central nervous system.

So instead of something like:

Day 1: Strength
Day 2: HIIT
Day 3: Strength
Day 4: HIIT
Day 5: Strength
Day 6: HIIT
Day 7: Off

I'd much sooner see something like:

Day 1: Strength + HIIT
Day 2: LISS or off
Day 3: Strength + HIIT
Day 4: LISS or off
Day 5: Strength + HIIT
Day 6: LISS or off
Day 7: off

That would insert a lot more recovery days into the week. And that's assuming you *should be* doing all that high intensity work to begin with. More often than not, I'll work in two sessions of HIIT per week and 2-3 sessions of strength training per week with someone with similar goals as your own. The leaner they get and the longer they've been at it, the more likely I am to drop high intensity cardio all together due to the recovery ability mentioned above.

The way I have it planned now, I have the weekend to rest. And doing HIIT sessions combined with weight training seems dangerous to me as I'll likely be so dead from the HIIT that I won't be able to lift weights. But maybe I'm thinking about it wrong. What's LISS?

 

[Steve]

I do realize that. I have no idea what my calorie intake is like on a typical day but I've signed up for to start tracking that stuff. According to fitday I need to cut 944 calories out of my diet.

Nah, you don't need to cut that amount of calories. The general rule (which is stupid, mind you) is each pound of fat has 3500 calories so to lose a pound per week, you need a 500 calorie deficit per day. But that's poppycock.

But as far as what I should be eating I have no idea. there are so many conflicting reports of what to eat between cut out all carbs, cut out all fat, cut out all meat, eat lots of carbs. My current diet isn't really bad per se I think I just eat too much of it. So I'm going to cut all of my portions in half or so and see.

Yea, don't get washed up in all the nonsense and hype.

Eating less food than your body needs. Get adequate protein in. Eat healthy fats. Load up on nutrient dense, energy sparse foods as much as you can which typically entails veggies and fruits, and avoid processed crap as much as possible.

Don't be too rigid.

I have exercised with weights before and I know how to do it properly. Plus a friend of mine is a huge weight lifting buff and he's agreed to watch my form and show me how to do things right (unfortunately we rarely get to work out together because of conflicting schedules)

Okay. Because eagerness gets most people screwed up. They're so anxious to add weight to a movement that they'll pile it on long before learning proper mechanics. The added weight only stands to muff up the mechanics even more. And while they feel like they're "working hard" because the weight is heavy, it isn't terribly long before they've got nagging aches and pains that are keeping them out of the gym.

Form is everything.

And weight shouldn't be added to movements, especially big structural ones like deads and squats, until you understand the movement and are free of any inhibitions such as muscle imbalances/weaknesses, etc.

No, not really. Is it more important to have an aerobic base established? I was just going to jump straight into HIIT because it's effective and the way I see it, if I'm not dead tired or aching then I didn't push myself hard enough. What does it take to get an aerobic base established?

Pro Tip: Beating your body into submission is NOT the answer.

Having not done cardio before, this is the equivalent of saying, "I've never lifted a weight before but I'm going to enter a powerlifting meet."

crawl -> stand -> walk -> run

There's a reason that sort of progression is naturally ingrained in humans.

The way I have it planned now, I have the weekend to rest. And doing HIIT sessions combined with weight training seems dangerous to me as I'll likely be so dead from the HIIT that I won't be able to lift weights. But maybe I'm thinking about it wrong. What's LISS?

My point was 2 vs. 4-5 days of rest from high intensity stuff.

Big difference.

 

[crazyness]

Pro Tip: Beating your body into submission is NOT the answer.
Having not done cardio before, this is the equivalent of saying, "I've never lifted a weight before but I'm going to enter a powerlifting meet."
crawl -> stand -> walk -> run
There's a reason that sort of progression is naturally ingrained in humans.

My point was 2 vs. 4-5 days of rest from high intensity stuff.
Big difference.

ok so given that, would this be a better routine:

Day 1: 45 mins strength, 20 mins cardio
Day 2: Rest
Day 3: 45 min strength, 20 mins cardio
Day 4: Rest
Day 5: 45 mins strength, 20 mins cardio
Day 6 & 7: Rest

I have day 6 & 7 as rest because those will likely be the weekends and I probably won't be able to get into the gym (the gym is in my office which is a long way from where I live). In addition to that I'll cut 500 calories out of my diet (judging by fitday and my own estimations, it's probably between 1300-1600 a day) so if I can get it down to 1000 or 970 I think it'd be pretty good.

 

[Steve]

ok so given that, would this be a better routine:

Day 1: 45 mins strength, 20 mins cardio
Day 2: Rest
Day 3: 45 min strength, 20 mins cardio
Day 4: Rest
Day 5: 45 mins strength, 20 mins cardio
Day 6 & 7: Rest

Given what I know about you, I'd say so. If you were more conditioned I'd say you could get away with 1 or 2 sessions of HIIT per week but there's no point in jumping to high intensity cardio just yet.

Moderate intensity, long duration cardio (in the 20-60 minute range) isn't very taxing on your body. Theoretically, you could get away with inserting more of it on days 2 and 4.

It's important to note, however, that all these cardio sessions are doing in terms of fat loss are acting as a "caloric sink." They allow you to maintain a deficit more easily. So instead of eating 2000 calories per day, you might be able to eat 22-2500 per day, depending on your session.

In reality, you could lose fat with no cardio. I've done it time and time again. But like I said, it just makes things easier. Knowing this though, it should be obvious that there isn't a right/wrong way of structuring this.

I'd stick with your 2-5 sessions of steady state cardio each week. At first focus on ramping up duration to, say, 40 minutes. Once your conditioning is at that level, you can start toying around with intensity where you start working in intervals with higher thresholds of work

In addition to that I'll cut 500 calories out of my diet (judging by fitday and my own estimations, it's probably between 1300-1600 a day) so if I can get it down to 1000 or 970 I think it'd be pretty good.

No.

Take your bodyweight and multiply it by 12.

That's how many calories you should start with.

Now read this:

http://weight-loss.fitness.com/topic/39078-importance-lack-pin-pointing-exact-caloric-intake.html