Need your thoughts...

T

TheNextBanhart

New member
Hello!

I'm 23 and just started my own weight loss program. I've never really done much resistance training. I started a few times over the last couple of years but never really stuck to it. I recently did a good deal of research first and put together a workout that I like. I'm still trying to get myself in the habit of doing cardio, but here is my workout...

Mondays - Back and Biceps
Tuesdays - Chest, Triceps, Forearms
Wednesdays - Shoulders and Legs
Thursdays - Biceps, Triceps, Forearms
Fridays - Back and Chest
Saturdays - Shoulders and Legs
Sundays - Rest


I also have been loosely incorporating the program. I want to start following it more strictly (i.e. three times a weeks). Is it okay to do it on the days I DON'T do my triceps workouts? If I did it MWF, for example, his would technically mean I'm working my triceps Monday through Friday, which doesn't sound healthy. So is it better to do it on the days I do the triceps workout? Like Tuesday, Thursday, and then Saturday or Sunday?

For the exercises, I do at least 2 but usually 3 set of 10-15 reps. I use a Xertube Heavy resistance band.

Any other opinions or thoughts about my workout? Is it too intense?
 
What you'd laid out as a plan is not really good. First of all, you're far better off focusing on full body and compound exercises than trying to break your body down into bits and pieces like that. SEcondly you're not giving yourself ANY recovery time, which means it won't take long for you to injure yourself. Recovery time is the MOST important thing in lifting weights - it's the recovery that grows the muscles. Otherwise you're just building damage upon damage upon damage.

Read the sticky post in this area called The Conceptual Side of Weight Lifting. Follow the advice in that sticky. It'll give you a much more balanced, safe, and effective way of working out.
 
Hey,

It sounds like you have mapped out an extensive program. From the fact that you have not done extensive strength or resistance training, let me share my experience. I have been strength training for about the last 32 years. I am very good shape and have incorporated two programs that I do 4 times per week. I am not sure of your time constraint and perhaps that's why you have chosen to break down your program into small daily segments. But I do not want to go to the gym more than necessary. I do the following two work-outs for great success:

1. Workout #1 (3 sets of everything in rotation):

30 Crunches on fitness ball
Lat Pulldown
Tricep pulldown (use same lat pulldown machine - cable with bar suspended)
Seated row
Forearm curls
Side Crunches - on back hyperextension apparatus
Torso Rotation

2. Workout #2

Chest Press -
Bicep Curl
Shoulder Press
Incline Press
Shoulder Shrugs
Chest Flies
Roman Chair

As I mentioned I do 3 sets doing each exercise once and moving on in a circuit. I do 15 reps of each one at whatever weight I can do. I do not want to tell you how much weight because it depends on you. Each of these workouts takes about 35 to 40 minutes for me.

Don't be over concerned about getting everything right at this point. Just get in there and do your best.

Best of luck

frank
 
Alright so I read through many of the stickies but still have more to do. Man is that a lot of reading!

It looks like there's just a ton of information out there, some of it being true, some not. One of the biggest things I'm confused about now is the idea that you can't gain muscle and lose weight at the same time. The concept itself (i.e. in terms of energy) make sense... I just never really thought about it before. What I'm confused about is how weight loss programs incorporate resistance training... it just seems counter-intuitive now. Is it because this initial muscle gain is only short term until there is a greater caloric intake? (I think I read this in a sticky somewhere??)

What I'm thinking now is to put together a full body workout (maybe one of the ones on exrx.net) or something like dobner has laid out (thank you, sir!). I figure I could do that 3-4 times a week, HIIT 2-3 times a week, and one day of rest or light walking. Any thoughts?
 
One of the biggest things I'm confused about now is the idea that you can't gain muscle and lose weight at the same time. The concept itself (i.e. in terms of energy) make sense... I just never really thought about it before. What I'm confused about is how weight loss programs incorporate resistance training... it just seems counter-intuitive now.
Click to expand...
Even though you can't BUILD muscle while on a caloric deficit, you can help to minimize muscle loss by lifting weights. Stimulating the muscle still encourages the growth mechanism - the damage/repair cycle that builds strength and mass. If you don't have any excess calories to build muscle with, your body will prioritize the calories you do consume to muscle maintenance, which helps skew your weight loss towards fat loss.

Read the sticky called "The Conceptual Side of Weight Lifting" in the exercise area. Actually, once you read that, read anything by Steve. He's one of the people on the site who you can count on for REAL and researched information about exercise.

Keep in mind that you want to give yourself a full 48 hours of rest time between weight lifting sessions in order to allow for recovery. IF you want to fill in around those sessions with cardio of any kind, go for it.
 
Update: After I posted I did some more reading and stumbled upon one of Steve's forums () and eventually Lyle McDonald's page. I'm pretty overwhelmed and want to read through a lot of the things they have to say. Whatever I do, I want to do it right and I want it be long-term (i.e. forever).

I'm finished with grad school in about 6 weeks and I will finally have time to sit down, read through everything, start developing a program, and put that program in to action! Until then, should I just do cardio? Begin working my way up to HIIT? Should I still do some (even if only a little) weight training?

Any other suggestions to get myself ready for a more regular program in 6ish weeks?

FYI: I don't think I mentioned this in my first post, but I'm 23, 5'11", about 185. I'm trying to get to about 165-170. I think my body fat percentage might be a little on the high end for my weight. I've never really been athletic or very active. Much of my weight is in my stomach and my arms and shoulders are all the smaller side. Once I've had weight loss I'm happy with, I want to start building muscle.

Thanks in advance for any advice!!!
 
Its not really that you cant lose weight while gaining muscle. Yes it is true that the more mucle you build the higher your lean body weight will go, but this is the exact reason why you shouldnt be too reliant on your weight in order to get an idea of your progress. Your weight, same as your BMI will often not reflect your physical outcomes. I've found that the best way to track your progess is through monitoring you body fat percentage in combination with your weight.

But still keep in mind that you will have to be doing something extream not lose weight due to simply building muscle. Depending on you personally and where you're your goals are at, you might find that at some points your weight will go up in small levels, but it will never be anything drastic.

Still, dont stress too much about it. Just remember that by building muscle you will be increasing your body's potentional to burn more calories which will contribute to losing the fat.

And as the others have said, just doing weight lifting will not help you get your ultimate body. Cardio, cardio, cardio my friend! You should be trying to do more cardio than you do resistance training. Unless you tailor your resistance training to keep your pulse rate at a high and constant level, you will be cuting yourself short. And as KaraCooks said, your recovery time is the MOST important part. I dont do any more than two serious sessions of weights a week, simply so that i can have two full days of recovery. And in those days of recovery on the first i do light cardio, then the next i will step up the intensity in the cardio. Sundays like you i rest completely.

The best test is sweat!
 
Ah, thanks Kara! We were posting the same time and you answered my questions before I asked it! This whole weigh loss/muscle mass thing is making more sense. What you said about "skewing" weight loss also makes sense.


Any other tips are greatly appreciated!
 
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