Hello everyone. I'm new to 3fc but already love it. i have two questions:

1. what should I be eating before and after a workout. the gym i go to is closer to my work than my home so if i don't go right after work i usually can't motivate myself to go (i have to walk or bike there). i'm on south beach diet so i'm limited in what i can eat (especially cause i'm on phase 1 right now). I'm looking moreofshould i be eating proteins? carbs? what? is it really bad or good for me to eat a full dinner about 1/2 hour after i finish (it takes me about 45 minutes to walk home from the gym)?

2. what is the best method for working out to lose weight? I know techniques but i'm wondering if i should be doing low weights high reps? how many sets? should i do all bicep exercises after each other and then switch to another muscle? or should i do biceps and triceps together (for example) and do one bicep exercise, one tricep exercise and back to bicep exercises?

Any and all help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Does anyone at least have sources they can point me to?

I haven't answered because there are some folks here who are fitness consultants by profession. But, I'll share what I've learned from various sources that I trust:

1. Typically you want some energy food (carbohydrate) before a workout and protein after. So, if you exercise after work, having some yogurt or fruit would be a good move. If you find your energy flags before you're finished, that means you might need a little more fuel next time. Then, if you eat dinner soon after your workout, then you'd have that protein boost that helps your muscles recover and rebuild. If it's going to be more than an hour or so, you might want to have a protein drink or something like cottage cheese right after until you have the chance to get a full meal. Obviously you'd want to count these foods as part of your daily allowance.

2. There are so many different WAYS to strength train for different goals and results that I'm sure there are some advantages to doing all biceps then all triceps vs. alternating. But, since all exercises are going to recruit opposing muscle groups anyway, and some compound exercises recruit both equally, I think it's fine to just not worry about it too much! As long as you work the opposing muscles in the same session, and you rest at least 48 hours before working them again, you should be fine.

As for resources, I recommend two primary ones: www.stumptuous.com/weights.html, and www.exrx.net.

Hi wytch welcome!!

This is what I personally do...

I eat before a workout a portion of carb and protein then afterwards the same ....

Here is my usual workout split...
D1 --Legs, no cardio
D2 --back and biceps, cardio
D3 --cardio
D4 --chest and triceps, cardio
D5 --I may take a day off here...or work shoulders
Sat and Sunday cardio or just weights I go by how well I've the done the rest of the week ...
Some weeks I take one day off workouts sometimes 2 or 3 or 4, I listen to my body...

The 2 resources mentionned above are excellent...