Push ups and rest

S

sleemie

0
Don't really feel this post should be in weight lifting, but didn't see anything else more appropriate. I'm a 40 year old dude and I take the body pump classes at the local gym, where they use lighter weight and you do a ton of reps to the ryhthm of music...yeah, it's a chick class, but I get bored just lifting on my own and I'm just trying to tone up, not bulk up. Anyways, I want to start doing push ups at home and I know the rule about skipping days between weight training, but not sure how push ups fit in to that. so the question is can I do push ups on the days that I'm supposed to be resting between body pump class or would that be harmful to my recovery period. If I go to body pump monday and wednesday can I do the push ups on tuesday? I usually do 4 sets, the first one a warm up, the second one like 3-4 reps short of failure, and the last two to the point of failure.

I asked one body pump instructor and she told me that it's okay to do it on that rest day, but to keep an eye on how I feel and make sure I don't over train. Another instructor recommended doing them in the evening the same day of class (I do the class at lunch) so that I don't interfere with the rest day. The class does include a few push ups and bench presses, so there's already some chest and shoulder work in class. It's hard enough at this age to really make any visible progress as far as developing you physique so I don't want to screw with it by working when I should be resting if that's the case.
 
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It's not hard to improve your physique at any age if you exercise properly and eat properly! It may take a little longer the older you are, but everyone can make continuous, noticable progress. And body pump classes and pushups are almost certainly not the most effective exercise for your goals. Compound free weight exercises with heavy weights are much more effective for building muscle and reducing body fat.

But, if you must do body pump and pushups, how many repetitions can you do before failure? If it is 25+ then you are exercising to develop endurance, not building muscle anyways, so the rules about resting for 48 hours don't necessarily apply. The 48 hour rest rule applies to muscle building exercise which needs to be a movement and resistance in which you reach failure in the 1-12 repetition range.
 
That depends on your experience. More advanced people can do push-ups everyday. For you I would lean towards saying no, rest, but here's why:

Your "body pump class" is built on a stereotype that you've bought. Lifting heavy will not make you bulky. Lifting light with high reps will not "tone" you down. To "tone" you need to loose body fat. This is achieved through diet, mostly. Many exercises will help you burn more cals than curling a 3 lb db 100x. Exercises that come to mind are squats and power cleans. You're also wrong about your age. Yes, it's harder to build a physique, but it is definately not out of the question. You don't have to lift like a typical uneducated woman to build a physique.

In addition, your class I would assume takes you to or past failure. It would be unwise to do pushups on your rest day. Just as it is unwise to go to failure every other day.
 
my warm up set I do about 10, and then my second set a couple of reps short of failure about 10 and then the 3rd set to failure between 10 and 12 and then the last set between 8 and 10. And once I get to the point of being able to do more I would make them more difficult such as propping my feet up on a chair so I would keep my max reps on the lower end.

I don't want to be any bigger, i'm content with the size I am, I just want to get some of the fat out of the way and be tighter and more defined. When I flex my muscles and feel them I like what I feel underneath, my biceps, triceps, chest, etc, but my chest has too much fat covering the muscles and you don't see any definition in my arms when relaxed. That's my goal, to look well built. Body pump and push ups won't do that for me? What will they do?

The body pump class must have some type of affect on the appearance of my muscles and not simply just adding endurance to them. Especially considering that when I take the class consistently I'm able to lift more and more weight.

You say I shouldn't go to failure every other day, how often would you recommend I take the class. I take it twice a week with one day inbetween.

Oh, and as far as getting rid of the fat, I realize that's a separate issue as far as getting more defined, but as you know, strength training helps to burn fat off just as much as aerobic exercise the experts are learning. And I know you can't really do much in terms of getting rid of the fat if you don't eat properly and i'm doing low cal right now (switched from south beach) so I can lose some weight.
 
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You might be content with the size you are now, but you've got fat over most of your body. If you cut all that fat, you'd be a great deal smaller.

You consistantly make gains because you're a beginner. A beginner can do just about anything with some iron and make gains.

I personally wouldn't go to failure, ever. The closest I would go is about one or two reps behind it.

Your body pump class and your push ups burn calories, but don't be fooled into thinking they are equivalent to a clean diet and cardio. They aren't close.
 
Why do you say never go to failure? That seems to run contrary to what I've always heard.

I agree with you on the dieting, that's why I'm doing low cal with a focus on low fat foods and trying to only eat the the good carbs, not the crap white processed stuff. And of course fruits and veggies and protien. As far as the cardio and strength training, i've been reading alot lately that strength training does more for long term burning of calories and fat then cardio training. They say the more muscle you have the more your body burns fat because it takes more energy for your body to maintain the muscle, whereas with cardio the affects aren't as long term. I do some cardio, but not a lot.
 
Dont take any notice of your 'body pump' instructor. Its a 2 week course and there really isnt much to learn.

You can train every day, but its best to build up to it over several years of training.

Do not look at it as weight training, but as resistance training, Weight lifting and body weight exercises are both resistance training.
You shouldnt just be doing pushups, you should be working your whole body. Body pump will do nothing for toning as it is a made up word.

To get a better body have a good diet, weight training and cardio.
Body pump is good for fun, but in terms of improving your body its a very slow an ineffective way of doing it.
 
I believe that failure damages neural connections in the CNS. It also damages the muscle more than is necessary. I could be wrong about that. Get some clarifcation.
 
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