Okay, so i haven't talked to my trainer yet, because i didn't know i should but here is the question. Should i be using lower weights and doing more sets of reps to tone and burn fat, or should i be doing heavier weights and less reps to burn fat and tone?? i was talking to my boss today and she said she used to work in a gym and that i want to burn off the fat first before trying to put on muscle so i should be doing lighter weights and doing them fast to burn off the fat. Has anyone else heard this??? And then when i've burned off the fat, i can work on building the muscle up more if i want bigger muscles. Now, i'm not looking to get big muscles, i just want some definition to my arms when all the fat is gone.

I'll ask my trainer tomorrow night if that is right. He was noticing i had put extra weights on my machine last night and said that he only put 5 on there and i was putting 20. i asked if that was wrong because i couldn't even tell i had worked out when i was at home. he said i should be doing 2 sets of 15 not one set.

i have always been told (and did) the more reps, lower weight...and it works too. especially when doing my legs because i didnt want to bulk up.

I am a believer in heavy weights and a moderate amount of reps. I would recommend do 12-15 reps per 3-4 sets with the purpose of reaching failure. At one point I was doing over 600 lbs on the leg press, but I'm also crazy I never gained inches, just lost them and lost them pretty fast with proper eating of course.

The more muscle you gain, the more fat you burn while you aren't exercising and also the muscle will help shape your body. As a woman, you can't really bulk up unless you have the hormones for it, which 99% of women don't. So by creating muscle, you will increase your metabolism. Your muscles have the capability to grow muscle within themselves without adding any bulk.

I'm barely getting back to my weight and exercise routine and I'm slowly working on the eating. I will get back there one day though Also, during my first phase of exercise, I couldn't do any cardio at all, I only relied on weights and I lost 30 lbs within 2 months doing that.

Weight lifting doesn't burn body fat the same way cardio does. It revs up your metabolism so you burn calories at a faster rate for the rest of the day. There are three kinds of lifting-
endurance- (low weights, higher reps) 12+ reps at 60-70% of your 1 rep max
hypertrophy- (size) 8-12 reps at 70-75% of your 1 rep max
strength- 1-8 reps at 75-90% of your 1 rep max

All three are important to shape your muscles- whether you are genetically inclined to build muscle or not. Your workouts should be designed to work at all three levels at one point or another. It is not necessary to reach failure all the time.

The other important point is the speed of the reps. If you are simply moving weights up and down, you are using momentum and wearing out your muscle, rather than building. A good rate is 2 seconds up, hold a split second and 2 seconds down. The eccentric (downward) movement is just as important as the concentric (upward).

As Nelie said, you won't bulk up. However, muscle uses up more energy during the day than fat does, so contributes to fat loss. Also, by shaping your body, you create a more balanced workout.

At one point, I really put the push on my legs. Although I built muscle in the quads, I did not enlarge them. Instead, I lost fat inbetween the muscles so my legs really looked sleek and shapely. Lots of nice definition.

Anyways, that's my 2 cents worth

In Jillian Michaels book and Kathy Smith's book they both talk about using high rep low weight reps in the beginning. You still want to go heavy enough that you can't do it all day! Jillian talks a lot about lifting different for weight loss, the rules most of us follow were created by body builders! I really trust her after seeing the huge losses in the biggest loser.

There was a post about "are you lifting heavy enough". If I remember in my wanderings today ... I"ll link it here.

Here it is ....
http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/showthread.php?t=52021

the ideea that low weight and high reps burns more fat is wrong. Also the ideea that you might put on any muscle (besides 2-5 pounds as a beginner which i would say is maximum for a woman) is wrong.

Ask any serious bodybuilder (and weight training is bulilding your body obviously) male or female, doing high weight with low reps gets you further than those puny *** 5 pound pink barbells that you swing around so easily. The only major difference between cutting (losing) weight and bulking (putting on muscle) is the excess calories and protein that you take in when you bulk.

Therefore, lift hard and heavy, do your cardio, and remember about 70-80 percent of bodybuilding (everyone who posts here bodybuilds even if only through dieting, its still related to bodybuilding) comes from what you eat.

great article. i have actually read that one before. I am adding more weight to my program and more sets of reps. Hopefully, I'll start to see some changes soon. I can definately feel a nice bicep....underneath that fat layer. Now to build on the tricep!!