I need YOUR help all you fit people!

JatieKo621

So I have always done workouts where I had a set schedule-in school we had mandatory practice for cross country/track, when I was in soccer we had practice 5 days a week, and then I did INSANITY for a long time where I had a different, set workout every single day.

Well I just joined a gym and realized I have NO clue how to make a schedule for myself. I have always been given one to follow, and now that I am just going on my own I need a little guidance.

It really helps me to have a mapped out week so that I know what workout I will be doing and I am WAY more apt to get that workout done if I have planned it ahead of time instead of just thinking "Oh I need to go to the gym today...."

SO HELP!

I am new to weight training and mostly just mess around with different machines. I don't know whether to lift first then cardio or what. I don't know how many days a week to do workouts, I plan on working out 6 days a week but should I be lifting everyday? I want to lose around 10-15lbs and tone everything up...I do a mix of running, cycling, elliptical, and walking.

My gym also has classes so I want to look into that I just was wondering if anyone had some good advice as far as making a set plan for each week. THANKS GUYS! I know some of you are doing so well and I want to follow how YOU workout!

love you all!

laurelderry

Always lift first then cardio- it increases your calorie burn. I usually do cardio Mon-Fri because I love it- but a good schedule is Mon, Wed, Fri strength training and Tues, Thurs cardio routine. Additionally you should plan to do no less than 30 minutes of cardio- I usually shoot for an hour. There is a great iPhone app called jet fit that you can get that will show you different workouts for different parts of the body and a little cartoon video of how to do them. It will also let you log your routine, weight and reps.

deathstarclock

Always lift first then cardio- it increases your calorie burn. I usually do cardio Mon-Fri because I love it- but a good schedule is Mon, Wed, Fri strength training and Tues, Thurs cardio routine. Additionally you should plan to do no less than 30 minutes of cardio- I usually shoot for an hour. There is a great iPhone app called jet fit that you can get that will show you different workouts for different parts of the body and a little cartoon video of how to do them. It will also let you log your routine, weight and reps.

Just to clarify, you should always lift then cardio because of the order of energy systems used.

taso42

Check out New Rules of Lifting for Women or Starting Strength or Stronglifts 5x5.

sufikitkat

For myself, I follow this schedule:

Monday: Boot Camp class at the gym, sometimes I throw in a mile run if I can
Tuesday: Off day...Work and class from 8 to 11 loooong day
Wednesday: Group run with Fleet Feet 4 miles
Thursday: EZ Run 3-5 miles
Friday: Boot Camp class at the gym, same as MOnday with the run
Saturday: AM long run ranging from 7-13 miles, Yoga in the PM
Sunday: EZ run with friends 3-4 miles, sometimes I throw in another yoga session!

Doing the classes at the gym gets my strength training done. I also do push ups and abs with running. Hope this kind of helps!! Not sure what type of classes you gym has...but if they have one like my boot camp where you do stations, running, etc. I highly recommend that!

RagtimeLady

Okay... you need to decide how much cardio you want to do every day. 30 min? 1 hour? Let's say it's an hour. Start out with maybe 20 minutes running on a treadmill. That should get you good and warmed up! Then do weights - upper and lower body on alternating days. Set the machines so you can do 8-12 reps before reaching exhaustion - and I mean EXHAUSTION. You should not be able to lift any more than that. Do two or three sets (three for optimum muscle building). You can do them all on one machine at a time (one set - rest - one set - rest - one set) or you can do a circuit two or three times. Then go back and do a different form of cardio - spinning, elliptical. Next day, switch everything - a different cardio (maybe a zumba class), then weights using the muscle sets you didn't use the day before, then a different cardio.

ALWAYS rest your muscles for at least one day after doing weights - it's important because that's when your muscles build up - you tear them down when you lift.

How's that for a start?

JatieKo621

Okay... you need to decide how much cardio you want to do every day. 30 min? 1 hour? Let's say it's an hour. Start out with maybe 20 minutes running on a treadmill. That should get you good and warmed up! Then do weights - upper and lower body on alternating days. Set the machines so you can do 8-12 reps before reaching exhaustion - and I mean EXHAUSTION. You should not be able to lift any more than that. Do two or three sets (three for optimum muscle building). You can do them all on one machine at a time (one set - rest - one set - rest - one set) or you can do a circuit two or three times. Then go back and do a different form of cardio - spinning, elliptical. Next day, switch everything - a different cardio (maybe a zumba class), then weights using the muscle sets you didn't use the day before, then a different cardio.

ALWAYS rest your muscles for at least one day after doing weights - it's important because that's when your muscles build up - you tear them down when you lift.

How's that for a start?

You are awesome! Thank you. This is exactly what I had in mind but to see it all laid out really helps. And I've heard the switching the cardio really helps to keep away from plateaus and keeps your body guessing. Thanks a lot.

kr3851

I try to do Cardio one day, Strength the next. Cardio consists of either 1hr of walking on treadmill, or 16km on my bike on the bike trail (usually takes about an hour), or 30 mins of interval running on the treadmill. Strength I do all of the machines at the gym - 3 sets of 10 reps.

When I first started I had a personal trainer show me how to use all of the strength machines and do up a sort of program for me. That was a good investment!

Because I do strength every second day, I work all muscles - but you could break it down and do lower body one day and upper body the next if you want to strength train every day. All programs that I have read recommend giving your muscles a day to recover between strength workouts to allow the fibres to repair and recuperate.

JatieKo621

Always lift first then cardio- it increases your calorie burn. I usually do cardio Mon-Fri because I love it- but a good schedule is Mon, Wed, Fri strength training and Tues, Thurs cardio routine. Additionally you should plan to do no less than 30 minutes of cardio- I usually shoot for an hour. There is a great iPhone app called jet fit that you can get that will show you different workouts for different parts of the body and a little cartoon video of how to do them. It will also let you log your routine, weight and reps.

This is really helpful! I actually wasn't sure which to do first and you really helped. Plus I need an app like that-sometimes I read the name of an exercise like "dead lift" or something and I have absolutely NO clue how to do it...that cartoon sounds awesome! LOL thanks for your input!!

bizco

Always lift weights first. Lift 3x per week. You can then do cardio on the same days (after you lift) or on your non-lifting days. If you go to bodybuilding.com you can go through a 3-step question and it will give you a workout plan for the week.

Another great lifting program is the book "The Rules of Lifting for Women" by Lou Schuler, et. al. Check your local library or Amazon.com. It's a 6-month program and it provides you with an exact plan. On your non-lifting days you can use one of the cardio machines at the gym. Alternate between all of them (treadmill, bike, stair-climber, elliptical, rowing machine, etc.) Interval training is best. Work hard for 1 minute, recover (lowest setting on machine) for 2 minutes, work hard for 1 minute, keep repeating for 15-20 minutes total.

JatieKo621

Always lift weights first. Lift 3x per week. You can then do cardio on the same days (after you lift) or on your non-lifting days. If you go to bodybuilding.com you can go through a 3-step question and it will give you a workout plan for the week.

Another great lifting program is the book "The Rules of Lifting for Women" by Lou Schuler, et. al. Check your local library or Amazon.com. It's a 6-month program and it provides you with an exact plan. On your non-lifting days you can use one of the cardio machines at the gym. Alternate between all of them (treadmill, bike, stair-climber, elliptical, rowing machine, etc.) Interval training is best. Work hard for 1 minute, recover (lowest setting on machine) for 2 minutes, work hard for 1 minute, keep repeating for 15-20 minutes total.

Thank you! This is twice I've heard about this book so I am thinking I need to check it out.