I am still going to the gym and this week one of the instructors told me that doing weights after cardio was not doing me any good and that they should be done on alternate days. I haven't heard this before so I thought i would ask the experts (that's you guys)
He also told me to stop eating pasta, rice & potatoes if i wanted to lose weight. I told him no way I my pasta,tatties & rice.Personally, I think he is talking about the food but i just thought i'd check with the people in the know (that's you guys again )
Actually, I eat only complex carbs and avoid anything white. Alternating the exercise is correct. Brown Rice, Sweet Potatoes, Whole Wheat Pasta, Whole Grains, fruit is what you should be eating for complex carbs for maximum nutrition and plenty of fiber. The white stuff has the nutrition stripped away with the bran layer.
Everything I have read or heard on this subject is yes, you want to do cardio one day, strength training the next, and rotate like that. You are supposed to give your muscles a rest from the strength training by doing those every other day.
I am also of the school of thought that those food items contribute to weight gain and food cravings. The only way I have been able to lose anything is by cutting those food items out of my diet. I did Atkins one time before I joined this forum and lost 30 lbs with no trouble. I am doing South Beach right now because it's not as restrictive as Atkins. If you get the book it explains why it works and what effect those bad carbs have on your blood chemistry. But good luck to you.
It's great you're still at the gym I dunno about all this carbs stuff though. I do know you that it is possible to eat all that stuff and lose weight as I have done so myself.
I've heard that you should do your cardio before your weights. It's ok to do them on the same day - check out the Ladies Who Lift forum, everyone does them together! Personally I do them on separate days, but that's only cos I don't go to the gym!!
As for the carbs, try cutting down on the carbs, eating complex ie brown rice, bread and yes you can still eat potatoes! My staple meal is a baked potato with cottage cheese! When you lift, you also need to start eating more protein so that you don't lose muscle!
I would think at the moment, you just need to concentrate on calories in vs calories out. Then when you get nearer to goal, you might want to start tweaking your carb intake and things. Check out LWL forum for more complex replies to your question!
I do cardio and weights on alternate days usually, some weeks I do weights first then cardio and do cardio every day and the weights two-three times in the week, but never on adjacent days. It just depends on my mood/time etc. I like to muck things about a bit to keep my body guessing.
One of the things I find about carbs, especially the simple white stuff, is that it's incredibly easy to go over on your calories and not feel full. A cup of white rice versus brown rice is a good example. The calorie count is roughly the same, but the saiety effect (how long your appetite is supressed for) is quite different.
You can eat carbs and in fact should eat carbs, and still lose weight. The added bonus with protein rich foods, is not only do they prevent your muscles from wasting away, but they also have a good saiety effect, and make you feel nice and full!
Thanks for all the advice guys .
I've already switched to wholewheat pasta and brown rice (and occasionally sweet potatoes). There is no way i could or would want to cut them out .They play a large part in my diet along with veg,legumes,lentils and Quorn. I don't eat meat and i don't eat processed meals either and since i cut down (way down) on the junk food snacks I feel great. I'm really happy with what i'm eating right now and i find it easy to stick to this eating plan,so i'd be pretty miserable if i had to lose the carbs
There is a lot of conflicting ideas out there about the exercise question
I do cardio and weights on the same day -- and my trainer approves 100%. She also says it doesn't matter which you do first (I do cardio, then weights). Mel (or Meg?) was the trainer-Mod on another thread who said doing weights FIRST is best because by the time you get to cardio you've burned off a lot of your blood glucose (and therefore will burn more actual body fat during cardio). I just get a total "block" and can never make myself do cardio after weights...weights are my REWARD for surviving cardio!
What you need to do, however, is be sure you have at least one day off between weight training sessions. It's really important to rest your muscles for at least a day between weight sessions -- with cardio, it doesn't matter so much because you're exercising your heart, etc., and not heavily working your muscles by lifting (which is why it's okay to do cardio 5 -6 days a week). Maybe skipping days between WEIGHT sessions is what the guy at your gym meant (?). If you DO decide to weight train on back-to-back days, you should focus on separate areas. Meaning, Monday do only upper body, and Tuesday do only lower body, etc. That way your muscles still get a day off even though you're training two days in a row.
As for carbs, I limit them as much as possible -- it's been part of my homemade "plan" all along. It was REALLY hard to do because I'm a pasta addict .
In my opinion, he's right on target about the food and talking garbage about the exercise! Like I said, I've always done cardio and weights on the same day (3 days a week) and I've lost 47 lbs, so either the guy at your gym is a little "off" or I'm some kind of metabolic mutant .
BTW, where in Scotland are you?
Last edited by LovesBassets; 10-28-2005 at 06:24 PM.
Thanks LovesBassets for throwing some light on that for me.
I live in Perth. It's about 40 mins drive from Edinburgh and just up the road from Gleneagles (where they held the G8 in the summer). Sometimes referred to as the gateway to the highland.
I've been to Scotland several times, but never Perth. I've been to Edinburgh a few times, plus Glasgow, Fort William, Oban, Inverness, Isle of Skye...I even went skiing in Scotland once (near Aviemore -- I forget the name of the actual place). My great-grandfather came from a small town north of Glasgow (forget the name). We're clan Cowan -- part of the McDougalls. Scotland's my favorite place. LOVE the Highlands .
okay i have had 4 different intructors at the gym personally they have all said different things about cardio before or after weighttraining..
but they all seem to say do them on different days..i however cant do that because i feel i aint getting a workout...
so all in all..just do what you feel is right to do i personally havent listen to any of there advice now if it was a personal trainer thats a different story in a way lol..
dont give up what you like to eat..just eat the healthy carbs..
loves bassets, you are totally right! I forgot about the order! That's good, since DF is taking me out "jogging" tonight, so that means that I can do my weights first, before he gets home, then go out for a "run"
Exercise and carbs. Advice please
and this week one of the instructors told me that doing weights after cardio was not doing me any good and that they should be done on alternate days. I haven't heard this before so I thought i would ask the experts (that's you guys) 
if i wanted to lose weight. I told him no way I 
my pasta,tatties & rice.Personally, I think he is talking 
about the food but i just thought i'd check with the people in the know (that's you guys again 
)
I dunno about all this carbs stuff though. 
.
That's good, since DF is taking me out "jogging" tonight, so that means that I can do my weights first, before he gets home, then go out for a "run" 
