Hi, i'm new

[panache]

Hi everyone,

I'm hoping to find some good motivation and ideas here to get the results I want.

I'm currently getting back into a fitness regime. I've rencently gained excess weight, and want to get back to the shape I was in a few years ago.

I currently weigh about 125 pounds, 5'1, 28 years old.. up 17-20 pounds when I was doing a lot of running training while at university.
During that time I wasn't doing that much weight training. Only a couple times a week and only light isolation exercises.

I'd like to be back down to 108 pounds by next summer, by more importantly change my physique and size.

I know diet is the most important thing and am trying to get back into that.

I've been out of fitness for about 4-5 months, but over the past year before that was running in the morning for about 1 hour, swimming two evenings a week and doing weight training..biceps, triceps, deadlifts, squats, lunges (thats about it) with many repititions, medium intensity 2 times a week.

Now I'm looking at doing cardio every Mon-Fri am.. biking or running) and doing weights 4 evenings a week after work.

I have a base of fitness, so I don't find it too hard to run 40 min-1 hr, I have the endurance, but as I will train my own, I find it hard to get coaching/weights tips

I've tried different weight programs before and haven't found the best results, being given advice from guys only.

Should I be concentrating more on weights or cardio right now? more on compund exercises like squats, deadlifts etc? 4 times a week too much?

Thanks very much everyone, nice to meet you all!

 

[scorpiogirl]

Welcome, panache!!

If it were me, personally, I would concentrate more on the weights right now...but don't leave out cardio (3-4 times a week of about 30 min).

If you're planning on doing weights 4x a week, what would your training days look like? Make sure you don't "over train" muscle groups.

What does your diet look like? How many times a day do you eat? Have you logged anything in fitday yet? If not - start - go here: www.fitday.com Give us a typical sample diet day to go on.

 

[panache]

hi ,

I was going to do

1.legs..
2.arms,
3.chest/abs
4.back/abs

or should I push more into one session?

s

 

[superqt4u2nv]

hi ,

I was going to do

1.legs..
2.arms,
3.chest/abs
4.back/abs

or should I push more into one session?

s

Depends on what your strengths and weaknesses are physicaly. Posting pics would give a better idea of where you need to focus. One quick suggestion is doing abs at the begining of ever lifting day a strong core is very important. Also need to fit shoulders into your split.

 

[panache]

Pics of me in my undies on the internet? too scary right now!

 

[superqt4u2nv]

Pics of me in my undies on the internet? too scary right now!

In a bikini or something crop your head off no one will know Trust me pics are very motivating.

 

[Sassy69]

The best thing about before pictures are the after pictures.

 

[Gymgurl]

Welcome!

 

[BUBBLES]

Welcome Panache

 

[Afgrl]

Hello & welcome!

 

[*Bunny*]

The best thing about before pictures are the after pictures.

Ain't that the truth!


Welcome to EF and best of luck with your goals!

 

[mermaid]

Welcome to EF, panache Good luck with your goals!

 

[buffalogal]

Good luck panache

 

[Extra_Strong]

Weeeeeeeee

 

[panache]

Thanks everyone..

I will post some pics over the next week( if I get the courage up to).

This is my plan,

AM 45 minutes of cardio..Monday - Friday


PM weight training.. I've broken it down to
1.legs
2.arms
3.chest/shoulders
4.back

right now i'm doing basic exercises of each 3 x 10 reps. Should I be doing less reps?
I'm going to be doing an ab set before each weights session.

I used to swim a lot in high school, so I did a a lot of cardio training ( twice a day!) and had a weight program there.

In college I ran a lot and did triathlons, so I WAS used to a lot of cardio sessions.

My most in shape weight was between 105 - 108 pounds ( i'm 5'1) but I don't care so much about weight as I do as about my size. I was small but didn't have the trimmest tummy

I've never done the eat 5-6 times a day, and I often forget the work snacks do add up.

I'm trying to follow the diet programs on here.

what about coffee? tea? I'm sucker for my morning lattes!

BTW, this has program has only started this week, so i don't know if I should change any of it?

thanks everyone!

 

[Daisy_Girl]

A lot of cardio does not = losing fat. Making sure you have the proper intensity is what is more important. I would lower the cardio time a little and increase the intensity.

It is likely you do the "work snacks" becaue you were not eating often enough. If you eat every 3 hours, every meal is like a snack. Take your daily caloric intake goal and divide it by 5-6 - and there is the caloric intake for each meal. It is likely to be about 300 calories per meal (this is only an estimate).

Wha twill differ from each meal is the food content. For example, your earlier meals will be a little more carb heavy than the later ones. I highly suggest you look at the thread at the top of this board called "Links to Top Threads". It will give you several sample diets - can give you food choices, meals and timing ideas.

Coffee and tea are fine. BUT, there is a difference between a COFFEE and a LATTE. The latte is a not-so-smart choice. It is half milk (more than half actually) - and even skim milk contains sugar not to mention a few hundred calories. I would make the latte a ONCE A WEEK INDULGENCE only and have a plain coffee with Splenda and only a *dash* of skim milk (if you need it).

How are you doing your weight days? I understand the split, but are you lifting for 4 days in a row and then taking 3 days off? Or are you lifting every other day?



This is an idea of a basic workout plan *I* might do in your shoes:

Mon:
AM cardio - no more than 30-45 minutes steady state
PM Chest/Shoulders/Triceps

Tues:
PM cardio - 30 min HIIT

Weds:
AM no more than 30-45 min cardio
PM Back/Biceps

Thurs:
PM 30 min HIIT

Fri:
AM cardio no more than 45 min cardio
PM Legs

Sat:
very easy cardio, something different, or yoga, pilates, etc.

Sun:
Rest Day

 

[panache]

Hi!
thanks for yorur advice.

I know i have to skip the lattes!
I do like green tea and robius tea, so I will try to stick to those.

I'm trying to do weights

Monday
Wednesday
Thursday
Saturday

I guess when I was training, I always did a lot of cardio in the past and was thinking of getting back into triathlons as well.. which means I do need to do the cardio training as well..don't know how much this would hinder weight loss?

 

[Daisy_Girl]

Those days for weights look good. Much better than lifting everyday right in a row.

It is not that training for triathalons will HINDER weigh loss, it will likely help you lose WEIGHT - since your activity level will go up. But WEIGHT and FAT are two totally different hings.

The problem is that intense training (cardio) will likely cause you to lose some muscle mass. This is a problem because muscle mass is what drives our metabolism. So lower muscle = lower metabolism. You might get smaller, but your BF will likely still be higher than you might like - you will be smaller, but not TIGHTER (if that makes sense to you). This is the "skinny fat" syndrome you might have heard before.

The diet for triathalons (and other endurance events) is DRAMATICALLY different than a weight training diet. When you eat to build (or maintain) muscle, you are heavier on the protein, moderate fat and carb - with a focus on complex carbs such as veggies. When you eat to fuel an endurance workout - you are higher carb, moderate protein and fat. The carb sources, while still complex, have more fater burning carbs too (more simple carbs) to help consistently fuel body for the endurance event.

This is why you see high carb drinks/gels/bars for marathon runners, but you see high protein drinks/bars for weight training. They are 2 opposite ends of the spectrum.

This is NOT saying you CAN'T weight train AND do triathalons. You certainly can. But know that your performance in BOTH will suffer. You will not be able to maximize your performance in both sports at the same time.

 

[indyswife]

Those days for weights look good. Much better than lifting everyday right in a row.

It is not that training for triathalons will HINDER weigh loss, it will likely help you lose WEIGHT - since your activity level will go up. But WEIGHT and FAT are two totally different hings.

The problem is that intense training (cardio) will likely cause you to lose some muscle mass. This is a problem because muscle mass is what drives our metabolism. So lower muscle = lower metabolism. You might get smaller, but your BF will likely still be higher than you might like - you will be smaller, but not TIGHTER (if that makes sense to you). This is the "skinny fat" syndrome you might have heard before.

The diet for triathalons (and other endurance events) is DRAMATICALLY different than a weight training diet. When you eat to build (or maintain) muscle, you are heavier on the protein, moderate fat and carb - with a focus on complex carbs such as veggies. When you eat to fuel an endurance workout - you are higher carb, moderate protein and fat. The carb sources, while still complex, have more fater burning carbs too (more simple carbs) to help consistently fuel body for the endurance event.

This is why you see high carb drinks/gels/bars for marathon runners, but you see high protein drinks/bars for weight training. They are 2 opposite ends of the spectrum.

This is NOT saying you CAN'T weight train AND do triathalons. You certainly can. But know that your performance in BOTH will suffer. You will not be able to maximize your performance in both sports at the same time.

This isn't my post but I am new on here too and this info is great Daisy. You answered alot of my questions as well. You girls are awsome!

 

[panache]

Thanks for the advice!

If i'm still doing a reasonable amount of weights (4 times a week) but still doign a substatntial amount of cardio with interval training, does this still allow for a higher level of body fat?

The reason I ask is because before, when I was training, we only ever did weights as a supplement to the cardio done the rest of the week.

If i'm doing weights 4 times a week, is that cardio going to take away the work of the weight training.

I guess its just that I was used to doing a lot of cardio, rather than a lot of weights

 

[Daisy_Girl]

DOing excess cario can inhibit muscle gain and retention. How much is too much? There is no answer for that. Everyone is different.

BUT, intensity of the weight workout and diet will dramatically impact muscle gain/retention. If you lift half ass, you will lose muscle. If your diet is half ass, you will lose muscle.

If you are going to focus on endurance events AND weight train - and try to maximize as much as you can - then you are going to have to be VERY diligent about your protein intake and your weight workouts.


I need your definition and examples of "interval training". Proper HIIT will help lose fat while retaining muscle - but it has to be done CORRECTLY.

 

[panache]

Thanks again for yoru reply!
Ok,
For weights, i'm trying to do each exercise with 3 x 10.. but the last rep I can barely move the weight, so its to a max effort.

I'm doing weights four evenings a week.

i've heard the best time to do cardio is in the a.m on an empty stomach so it keeps my metabolism up for the day,

But i've also heard the best time to do cardio is after weights if you want to lose weight.

In the morning, alternate biking and running ( I have an indoor bike, with a wind trainer).

Running days try to do 15 minutes warm up and then the half hour doing hills or fartlek,

biking mornings trying to do 15 minute warm up, then intervals on and offfor the next half hour.

I do weights in the evenings after work, and I feel better if I either have a run/swim or bike cool down, not interval training after that.

For me, I've never really run anything less than 45 minutes because it takes me 20-25 minutes to get warmed up so 30 min of cardio, especially if its at high intensity seems too short a time ( just what i was used to, it takes me so long to get warmed up, that if i were to get right into high intensity right away, i'd be messed up!)

Would a once a week long run kill it (1.5 hours) ?

In regards to eating, i've never done the 5-6 small meals a day, but have started this week.