Yes, I would, Pat! Altho, there is some funky stuff going on with my outer thighs these days........it seems like right above the quad muscle I'm trying to grow, there's a battle of good vs evil with the upper portion of that thigh sticking out 1/4" inch further than the section right below it. It's slow motion liposuction I think. Reaaal sloooow motion.......
So I was wondering how the 30 day shred fits in with this. I had done the BFL for women about 2 1/2 years ago and did pretty good. You know just cardio and weight training on different days. But the shred has you do cardio, weights, and abs all in the same session. I've been doing it for almost a month now and have had good results. But I'm wondering if this type of workout is going to be good long term? I do like weight training and feeling stronger. Any suggestions?
I started weights yesterday, and man am i sore! I even bought the BFL book last nite, so I have a little more direction when it comes to lifting, and what kind of routine I should be doing.
I just read an interesting blog on this today: Losing Weight and Losing Muscle. According to the blog, if you don't strength train while losing weight, then part of the weight you lose is muscle. Since we all know that muscle burns more calories than fat, that's not the kind of weight you want to be losing.
But the shred has you do cardio, weights, and abs all in the same session. I've been doing it for almost a month now and have had good results. But I'm wondering if this type of workout is going to be good long term? I do like weight training and feeling stronger. Any suggestions?
I don't think there's any problem with doing both on the same day as long as you don't train the same set of muscles on consecutive days. You need to give muscles a day or two to rest between sessions - its' the RECOVERY that builds the muscle, not the exercise itself.
But I do weights and cardio on the same days. I just do less cardio on weight lifting days than I do on non-weight lifting days.
Reading this thread has reinforced for me that I need to get the weight training back into my routine at least two days per week... I need someone to just design a program for me, though! I know I wasn't using my weights efficiently, so it was taking more time than I have now and only working one or two body parts per day, so I got frustrated and gave up... Would the BFL or NROWLFW books give me a plan? I don't do so well making my own obviously... (For example, I found myself spending almost an hour on arms and shoulders one day right before I dropped off doing weights... )
Last edited by Shannon in ATL; 12-05-2008 at 11:16 AM.
Yes! Both of them have plans laid out. I believe the BFL one is a 12 week plan and the NROL one is a 16 week plan (if you do 3 workouts a week).
I think. Something like that anyway.
I keep making it about halfway through the NROL one and then having to take a break (work travel usually), so I have yet to complete it. But just getting that far along has helped me to be able to build routines for myself. Now that I have a better idea of what exercises work well together, what works each part of hte body, etc., I can be fairly confident about throwing together 5 or 6 items in a workout and know that I'm being efficient.
You may use your time most efficiently by incorporating compound exercises, exercises that use more than one joint, as opposed to isolation exercises. An example of an upper body compound exercise is pushups. This movement will provide primary development of the pectoral and triceps muscles with secondary development of the deltoids, serratus anterior, and the abdominal section. Since this is a push movement, I would follow it with a pull like movement such as chinups, horizontal chinups, lat rows, low row etc. This will allow you to immediately move into the next set using different muscles while allowing your first set of muscles to rest just a bit before you hit them again with the third set of exercises, back to the pushing motion of the pushup or bench press.
I have found the books mentioned to be very helpful. In addition to this I also use refer to this site as well. http://www.exrx.net/. In the very beginning of my interest in lifting I was a little overwhelmed by all the information available through the site. But hang in there. The more you begin to learn about strength training the more valuable this site becomes for reference. I think there is even a tool available for creating your own workout program. Another site I like for finding new exercises is www.trainwithmeonline.
Please do not become discouraged with the amount of time lifting takes in your fitness program. You are correct that it is really important. I'm struggling this year myself with the amount of time I have available and my need to lift, do cardio, incorporate flexibility etc. Some days it is possible get it all done and some days it isn't. I have found that I will rotate weeks in which my focus is more upon cardio or more upon lifting. When lifting becomes the focus I then try to rely a little more upon doing sets with shorter or fewer breaks between them to sneak in a little bit more cardio effort into it as well. If an hour is more time than you have available then half an hour is good. It is much better than none at all. Hang in there!
You may use your time most efficiently by incorporating compound exercises, exercises that use more than one joint, as opposed to isolation exercises
NROLFW uses mostly compound exercises, and starts usually with body weight. Like Photochick I start and then have to travel, or life gets in the way, and then I go back. I do like their program though. Because it uses compound exercises, there are fewer to do each session and consequently you get more (or as much anyway) done in less time. I really liked the way they approached push-ups for instance, starting with doing them on something higher moving down to the floor. I was amazed how fast I progressed (and how sore I was - but that's another story )
Then alternate sets:
stepups 2 sets 15
prone jacknife (with a swiss ball) 2 sets of 8
Each set gets a 60 second rest between.
You can do the whole workout in 30 mins or less.
Then the next workout is something different. Then you go back to the first workout again, but with increased weights, reps. Then back to the 2nd one. And so on. Then after you do that so many times, you change it up for a different workout. And they have it listed out for you so that by the time you complete the entire cycle, it's been 16 or 18 weeks, something like that.
But every workout involves your whole body and compound exercises.
Thanks guys! I have been a little overwhelmed by all of the info out there, got a little crazy overboard for a while and then just quit. Which is a shame, because I saw a lot of reshaping and inches lost while I was using weights regularly, even inefficiently. I haven't seen any in the four weeks since I stopped, even with kickboxing & yoga & cardio-palooza.
I have continued to do pushups every day, so there is that I guess... I can do 17 non-modified at a time, can usually do three sets scattered out through the workout. Never tried them back to back... That makes me a little nervous, but in that excited "I can do this" kind of way. That has been missing for me that last month, being sick took a lot out of me, mentally and physically.
Last edited by Shannon in ATL; 12-06-2008 at 09:19 AM.
Altho, there is some funky stuff going on with my outer thighs these days........it seems like right above the quad muscle I'm trying to grow, there's a battle of good vs evil with the upper portion of that thigh sticking out 1/4" inch further than the section right below it. It's slow motion liposuction I think. Reaaal sloooow motion.......
(For example, I found myself spending almost an hour on arms and shoulders one day right before I dropped off doing weights... )
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