SL 2 days/week

ohiotubagal

I'm sure there are threads about this but I've searched the forums unsuccessfully, so I'll ask here. Do any of you do a 2x/week routine? I'm not talking about skipping a day here and there...I mean planning 2x/week.

I'm finding that 3x/week feels like a lot and I am trying to get 3 runs per week in too, as I'm doing 5k races once a month and hope to do a 10k this summer. Plus I still want to lose weight. I realize I might not be able to do all these goals at once. Right now my priority is weight loss and maintaining my running fitness. I want to keep doing SL though, but maybe at a slower pace.

Thoughts? Thanks in advance.

psych101

Nia Shanks wrote a great article on this: http://www.niashanks.com/two-day-strength-program/

canadianlbs

i sometimes feel like i'd probably make more progress if i went to two days a week. relevant factors though: i'm 49, have an immune/systemic disorder (on paper anyway), and i bike commute which currently means about an hour/day in some kind of cardio state, 5 days a week.

i think i did it for a while last year either when i was brand new and being cautious, and/or when i got more interested in the biking than i was in the lifts. and iirc my experience was: i've got a finite amount of progress i can make overall, any week. 'overall' meaning strength and cardio combined. it's just a matter of nudging the slider around between the two things, for me.

MissHolidayGolightly

I think 2x a week is fine, especially considering you're training for races which would take priority. I prefer 3x per week because lifting is my priority and I find that my progress is slower when I lift 2x a week (due to life getting in the way). So you may need to expect your progress to be a little slower but otherwise, should be fine.

coltsgirl311

I do 2x per week because I am focusing more on running also. I like doing it that way, but I do sometimes throw in a 3rd day in a week just so that I'm not always doing Workout A on Tuesday and Workout B on Thursday. I think that's just personal preference though, not a necessity.

ar9179

I lift 2x a week and feel my progress hasn't suffered too much. I started on 2/10 and am at or nearing the point of stall on all the lifts after 2.5 months. I'm still on a deficit to lose fat and I will be for several more months. I'm not training for anything. Just started slow because of unfamiliarity and it worked out well to keep with it. I've seen a lot of good changes with my 2x/week schedule and don't regret it.

I don't think you'll be unhappy with reducing your frequency, given your goals.

ohiotubagal

Great feedback...thanks everyone! I am pretty happy with my progress so far and it's seems to be helping my running too. I'm not too worried about being able to lift crazy heavy...just make slow progress. I am planning to repeat workouts so I don't hurt myself.