Hey there! This is my first thread so sorry if I posted in wrong category or anything, was just wondering what you think of my new workout plan. Im about 163 lbs, 5'8 and 21. My goal is to lose 20 lbs and to tone up, mainly in the stomach area ( my biggest problem )
I'm a full time student so decided to enroll in some recreation classes..
Mondays is basic step class, tuesdays yoga, wednesdays kickbox cardio, and thursdays core strength (mainly cardio and light weightlifting). Is this enough to help reach my goal within 3-4 months? Each class is an hour long.
I am also eating well, about 1400 calories a day, low carb, high protein, and gotta have that saturday cheat day
Just looking for some advice .. thanks!!

I would suggest weight training! I see lots of cardio, but no weight training. You could either add it on top of all that cardio, or replace some of the cardio with the weight training.

20 pounds in 3-4 months is definitely doable. You may even find that, with the weight training, you are very happy with the way your body looks before you have lost 20 pounds!

The calorie level may be a little low with all the exercise, BUT you will just have to see how you feel -- you may feel just fine!

I'm not sure what a cheat day means but one can easily erase the deficit they created the other six days with a big surplus on a cheat day. Trust me - I know...

To your question - I'm a big proponent of lifting heavy weights and then doing cardio but since all of your exercise is group class I assume that is what you prefer.

Weight lifting will have the biggest impact on "firming" or "toning" which really just means you lose fat and keep the muscle you have. If you don't life weights you'll lose muscle and fat while dieting.

If you're looking to lose a little fat and build muscle, I honestly believe yoga and cardio are a waste. Do them because you enjoy them, but they don't do beans for sculpting. HIIT and lifting heavy weights to failure is a much better bet, as are body resistance exercises like burpees/lunges/pushups/etc. The old fashioned stuff, essentially, is going to net you more results for the time and money invested. And it doesn't necessarily have to be a gym - even a home program like my fave (TTap) or P90X is excellent if you enjoy it and are consistent with it.

And that is the key - regular exercise that is effective and that you do CONSISTENTLY. But if getting a tighter, sculpted body is your focus, heavy weights or similar strenuous full body workouts (yay squats!) are your best friends. And if you want to do some yoga or light kickboxing on your non-weight training days, go for it! But I wouldn't make those the core of your routine (though if I had to choose I'd sugges kickboxing over yoga or cycling/spinning any day!).

And that's my inexpert opinion. There are many great blogs out there to provide more information as well, so dig in, but focus on strength training to get the look you want.

And as for the calories, they are low for a training day unless you're eating really cleanly. You may find your hunger is increased by hard workouts and if that is the case 1600-1800 on training days might be wiser.

For a 'cheat' day, don't go hog wild. A better idea is to cycle your calories upward in a controlled manner - ie Saturday you allow 2000 calories when your normal is 14-1500. If you don't count, you could easily erase all your progress for the week with a blowout on your cheat day. It is much easier to overeat than restrict and regulars cheat meals/days cause a lot of us more grief than they're worth.

thanks for the replies everyone! In my core strength class there is quite a bit of resistanxe excersises like squates, lunges etc. And about 15 minutes of ab excersises but from the advice i heard here i think i will add in some weight lifting a couple days a week what i meant by cheat day is a day where i can eat one thing "nonhealthy" but will not exceed over 2000 calories that one day. I eat pretty clean these days and enjoy it really appreciate the tips, anymore advice would be awesome!

It sounds like you're on the right track. But for the most dramatic results, several days a week of heavy lifting will still do more for your shape than anything else

Most "ab exercises" are actually working your hip flexors. There is no need to do 15 minutes of ab exercises. You can't spot reduce fat around your mid-section.

Now if she did fifteen minutes a day of planks, I'd be highly impressed and her abs would show it, too

haha think i would actually die if i did 15 minutes of planks, can only do planks for about a minute and 30 seconds on a good day! Yesterday I decided to do some weight lifting before yoga which was good, def. taking some advice from the forum, seems like a great support group site!