weight lifting days a week?

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lindssaurus
lindssaurus Posts: 98 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
so I would like to lose 10-15lbs by feb so i can at least get my wedding dress fitted. im 5'8 163lb and completely fell off the wagon 40lbs ago. last time i lost weight i ran 5-6 days a week and lifted weights after. now with 2 jobs i cant devote that kind of time. but how many days a week should i be working out? i know lifting weights is very important and would like to add cardio like the elliptical, jump rope or zumba. I dont work weeknights so is that a good time to go? does it really matter what time I should work out for? thank you

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  • cafeaulait7
    cafeaulait7 Posts: 2,459 Member
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    I think a minimum of two days a week for a full-body lifting routine is recommended, and 3 is supposed to be marginally better (but definitely better). I do an UB/LB split, so I do 2 days per half of the body = 4 days (or 5 if I throw in my optional one) and my sessions are shorter than full-body would be. Work out whenever suits you best :)

    It is best to do the lifting before the cardio if you can arrange that. Do the cardio, etc. whenever you have time, as often as you like (you can do too much, but if you are pressed for time that doesn't really apply).

    Just make sure to have sufficient rest days between your lifting days, so don't lift 2 days in a row for the same body part. And make sure to eat enough protein to support your lifting. Good luck!
  • ell_v131
    ell_v131 Posts: 349 Member
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    I lift 5 days a week, no cardio. However for you 3x a week should be fine, look into stronglifts 5x5, thats a great program for working out 3x a week.
  • Jkn921
    Jkn921 Posts: 309 Member
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    Planning to do x3 of Strength Training workouts and other days - just cardio
  • sarahrbraun
    sarahrbraun Posts: 2,261 Member
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    so I would like to lose 10-15lbs by feb so i can at least get my wedding dress fitted. im 5'8 163lb and completely fell off the wagon 40lbs ago. last time i lost weight i ran 5-6 days a week and lifted weights after. now with 2 jobs i cant devote that kind of time. but how many days a week should i be working out? i know lifting weights is very important and would like to add cardio like the elliptical, jump rope or zumba. I dont work weeknights so is that a good time to go? does it really matter what time I should work out for? thank you

    I don't know if you can actually LOSE 10-15 pounds by february, but you can LOOK like you have :) 3 days a week of strength should do it.
  • togmo
    togmo Posts: 257
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    I attempt to do 3-4 days a week, upper body on Monday with 20-30 minutes of cardio at the end, lower body on Tuesday and either an all round body on Thursday or Friday or another upper/lower on the Thursday/Friday.

    It all comes down to what you are trying to achieve and aiming for 3-4lbs a week is pretty astronomical weight loss so you will need to drop a few thousand kcal's a week below what you should be eating to achieve that. If you are looking to drop that much weight that quickly you will probably find lots of calorie burning and calorie restriction will work best, weights will help with the burn and improve body composition but if you are looking for a quick fix for a month then weights are probably somewhat redundant other than to help burn some calories.

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