Program recommendation . . .

[goddesseve]

Hi everyone, this is my first post here. Been lurking for a while & am really impressed by all the info here...

I've become severely addicted to the gym. Despite being there 6 days a week I've had minimal results I've also noticed that only about half the junkies there are actually really buff! I'm sure you pro's see it all the time - newbies wasting their effort & time with improper form & little knowledge. So- in fear of fading into one of them I'd really appreciate any comments on my program

Im doing 3x full body Les Mills PUMP classes a week - an hour of working each muscle group to different songs i.e. high reps, low freeweights (I use 7.5kg barbell/arm for legs) - (fun & motivational ) I've got lower back probs so I cant use high enuf weights @pump to work my legs e.g. squats with weights on back etc. I want to add my own extra workouts in the gym using machines & dumbbells, working my muscles hard to exhaustion for faster results e.g. 12, 10, 8, 6 (increasing weights each time), lowering weight, final set 12 aka. Body 4 Life style.

My question is - would these extra sets of Lower Body (40mins+) be counterproductive after my PUMP class or would it be best to do them fresh, on alternate days to PUMP? I read (??) that doing consecutive days of weightlifting is ok (!) if the intensity differs e.g. high rep/low weight PUMP Monday; training with high weights, lower reps to exhaustion on Tuesday. Altho I dont get DOMS after PUMP the muscles are still 'warm' a day later - would they still requisite a 48hr recovery time?

Additionally, I do combat muaythai style kickboxing 3 days/week. Would it be best to do HIIT on alternate days to kickboxing &/or after weights if 20min HIIT utilizes similar energy mechanisms as anaerobic workouts?

Sorry its SUCH a long post - im as confused as I sound. I've read much (conflicting) info & havent been able to piece together the most effective program

- ta in advance! .... - goddess (also posted @c-k-d.com)

 

[RottenWillow]

Goddess, please tell us your
specific fitness goals. You're doing a lot of exercise but I cannot tell what your goals are.

No one would be able to make a program recommendation until we know where you want to be. The more specific you can be in defining your goals the more specific the recommendation.

And welcome to the board.

 

[Daisy_Girl]

I second Anya - give us more info about YOU.

ANd addicted can be good, but one reason you aren't seeing results is the 6x a week thing. Results come when you are RESTING not in the gym. Your body won't change if you don't give it a chance to repair itself.

Also, change is primarily done with diet. You won't lose fat or gain muscle unless your diet is good. Clean foods, high in protein, moderate carb and mod hewalthy fats. Minimal processed foods.

Posting up more info about you: age, weight, BF% (if you know it), goals (long term and short term), training history, workout program, how long you've been training, etc. Also, a sample daily diet is helpful. Seems like a lot of info, but since we don't know you and can't see you, it is al;l neceassry to help you reach your goals!

WELCOME!

 

[goddesseve]

Thanks for replying

My goal is to rid my body of the 25lbs of fat I gained over a long vacation (a typical story). According to my Tanita scale Im around 26% fat - yuk. This is the 'fattest' Ive been in my life (im usually a scrangly bones & skin model) & its a battle atm to get thru the days not fitting into any of my clothes. But, as they say: the body cant achieve what the mind wont conceive

So here's my goals:

Weight: 135lbs @5'4 (really fineboned)
Nutrition: low carb high protein CKD
Training history: been doing PUMP since school on & off
Short Term Goal: lose the 25lbs fat
Long Term Goal: gain muscle -transform body shape into more muscular than old body (aiming towards fitness model raher than kate moss type model body)

Its been about 3mths since i've started up at the gym again. I've gained muscle but atm im just looking really huge (like ive been bulking rather than cutting) cos all the muscle is under a thick layer of fat.

Thanks to everyone for helping me out - im thinking I need the knowledge of pro's to help transform my energy & effort into results

 

[smoknjilly]

just a thought- 110 and 5'4 is quite skinny, I can't imagine being that weight and having a good amout of lean muscle too.

toss the scale, seriously, LBS mean nothing- look at bodyfat and your clothes.

and good luck

 

[RottenWillow]

Goddess, please completely disregard the Tanita, they are wildly inaccurate. Their "fat" readings vary tremendously based on a number of factors, none of which are your actual bodyfat percentage. You might have a trained professional at your gym do a skin caliper test or maybe go to a local university and have a hydrostatic calculation (they compare your underwater weight vs your dry land weight, the fatter you are the more bouyant you'll be). Hydrostatic is very accurate but pricier and obviously a much bigger pain in the butt to do.

I would suggest decreasing your cardio and doing short, intense weight training workouts. Train like a guy and by that I mean train to gain muscle. Dont use girlie light weights for endless repititions. Cycle carbs, dont cut them to the bone everyday. Eat more on exercise days when you need the fuel and less on sedentary days. Eat low gylcemic index carbs such as long grain brown rice, oatmeal, and rye bread (my fav!). Low GI carbs are the absolute best fuel for pumping iron. And eat least 100grams of high quality protein froms eggs and meat everyday. Do not count protein from bread and pasta.

When you add muscle it will make you look leaner, even if you dont lose a single pound of fat.

 

[goddesseve]

smoknjilly, anya: good point - i think i'll have to reassess my goal weight I have a pair of pre-vacation jeans that I've hung up - that'll be my aim rather than the scales.

Anya: thanks for the advice Ive been getting really chunky from the weight-training - i know that women cant 'bulk' so im assuming its just muscle under fat atm. I'll save the low weight/high reps classes for 'fun' and do high intensity instead - is a 2-way Body4Life style split recommended or would the traditional 3-4way splits be best for my purpose?

Thanks.... im a bit confused after lurking in the bb.com etc. forums where their predominant training goals & programs is to Gain MASS rather than cut.

 

[RottenWillow]

Anya: thanks for the advice Ive been getting really chunky from the weight-training - i know that women cant 'bulk' so im assuming its just muscle under fat atm. I'll save the low weight/high reps classes for 'fun' and do high intensity instead - is a 2-way Body4Life style split recommended or would the traditional 3-4way splits be best for my purpose?

Thanks.... im a bit confused after lurking in the bb.com etc. forums where their predominant training goals & programs is to Gain MASS rather than cut.

Goddess, please dont assume anything, find out for sure. Carefully take all your measurements (and not just chest, waist, hips) and have an accurate bf analysis done, either skinfold or hydrostatic. Then you'll know exactly where you stand initially.

What do you mean by "really chunky from the weight training"? Since your lean body mass is so low now I'm guessing you'll gain some initial muscle relatively easily, maybe 5-10 pounds worth. Gaining additional muscle after that will require a diet and exercise program focused on mass building which isnt your goal anyway. So accidentially getting too beefy isnt something you have to worry about, aint gonna' happen.

If you do succeed in adding 10 pounds of muscle then that will mean you have to eat something like 600 additional calories everyday just to maintain your bodyweight. Ever see those skinny guys that seem to eat whatever they please and they're still super lean? Its because even those skinny guys have a lot more muscle than you. Add muscle and not only will you look leaner just because of the additional beef but you wont have to watch your calories as much.

I dont know anything about the BFL training programs so I cant comment. But you need low volume, high intensity. Low volume means one set per excercise and no more than two excercises per bodypart. Your sets dont need to go to momentary muscular failure but it needs to burn pretty good. If you know you could do 20 or more reps with a particular weight then its too light.

Goddess, there are a lot of women who do tons of intensive cardio work and still arent able to get particularly lean. The answer is in your diet not mad amounts of cardio. I never do cardio and I'm up to my all time high bf level now of 18%. I cycle my carbs and I hammer the weights hard. Since I dont have testicles my muscle gains are very modest. I gained a total of 12 pounds of muscle in the last 12 months and that was with consistent, intense training. Dont worry about getting bulky....you wont! What you will get is shapely and lean. Curvy arms, firm shapely thighs...all that good stuff.

As for BB.com I was just referring you to that one page for further info on protein.

 

[Daisy_Girl]

Anya has some good advice there.

Bulking is going to come from a bulking DIET - one with extra calories. Both bulking and cutting are diet-dependent. There isn't THAT much difference between the training program for cutting or bulking - diet is going to be the main difference. Yes, cardio typically isn't done when bulking (it's catabolic).

Make sure your diet is clean, heavy on the lean proteins, carbs are veggies, potatoes, oatmeal, brown rice, fats are heathy such as almonds, flax oil or olive oil, natty peanut butter.

I don't know very much'about BFL either. I do know that to help build the metabolism boosting muscle, you will need to focus on lifting heavy (~10 reps or so). Initially, I think hitting each body part 2x a week will be good. After you start gaining mome strength and know your body better, you can increase the wenghts and intensity - which may mean you go to lifting each body part 1x a week.

 

[RottenWillow]

Damn I typed a book! LOL. 1100 posts and that was my longest by far.

 

[Sassy69]

LOL @ anya Author! Author!

GE -

If your experience w/ resistance training is primarily from the PUMP class, BFL is probably a good way for you to introduce yourself to weight training. The upper body / lower body is a good way to start & get used to the different training routines. You can run this for about 6 weeks to get started. At that point you can modify the routine by splitting it up into different muscle groups as you choose (e.g. back/bis, chest/tris, legs, etc.)

As far as "getting chunky from the weight training" - you may be adding some muscle, hower, as DG said, "getting chunky" is from diet. If you are eating lots of carbs or highly processed foods, you may find th at your body is retaining water. Or perhaps you aren't eating enough to support the training that you've added over the last 3 months? If that's the case, your body may be holding on to all the fat it currently has.

And finally, it is misleading to set loss goals by "weight". As mentioned, 25 lbs of weight loss would set you at 110 lbs, which does seem awfully small for your height. Especially if you are planning to add some muscle. Its better to look at bodyfat %. Muscle weighs more than fat, so, for example, by the mirror you may feel like you are leaning out, but the scale says you actually gained weight. Not necessarily a bad thing. If you are building muscle by heavy resistance training, your metabolism will increase, thus burning the fat more efficiently.