women trying to lean out with strength...how much cardio?

Amy_B

How much cardio do you do if you are lifting, particularly heavy, to lean out? Which is more important...more strength or more cardio?

dr_tina

my understanding is that they are both equally important.

Goal_Seeker_1988

Bump! My guess would be strength.

zafferFL

strength = muscle > cardio

Amy_B

Thanks for the replies!

If anyone out there does more strength than cardio and wants to share their schedule, I would really appreciate it.

healthbunny

Hiya i'm following a Jennifer Nicole Lee plan atm >>>> http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/4_week_fat_loss_guide.htm

If you can't be bothered to read it she recommends 2 workout days which include cardio and perform anywhere from 25 to no more than 45 minutes of cardio. She also says try and stay away from the running machine.

Have a search in the womens bit on www.bodybuilding.com, there are lots of plans on there

zafferFL

Thanks for the replies!

If anyone out there does more strength than cardio and wants to share their schedule, I would really appreciate it.

strength, every second day. sports twice a week worked around strength (soccer, volleyball takes care of my cardio)

Your strength training must be real strength training though, not 20 rep low weight, so called "toning". Lift heavy, lift correctly.

kitkat4141

My trainer has me lifting heavy three days a week. I also do two power sculpting classes twice a week that use light weights, high repetitions. She also has me doing cardio with a goal of 30 minutes per day. I take spinning classes 3-4 times a week and 2 cardio fusion classes as well. My body fat percentage decreased and muscle definition became more noticeable once I increased heavy lifting to 3 days/week.

Jennical

Bump..

deninevi

I do heavy lifting M,W,F and on the T and T I do kettlebells, tabatas and whatever else I want to try. I don't do any cardio machines.The heavy lifting is the only way to go if you want to see body fat drop and get the body all ladies want.

mylog4fun

For leaning out. Do both.

General concensous is 1-5 reps is for building strengh
6-8 reps for bulking(building muscle)
8-12 for cutting

If your doing heavy weights and still doing 12 reps then that's good.
But doing heavy weights(to failure- or close to it) an your only doing 6-8 or less reps then your being counter productive to your goal.

Ever tried plyometric ? If you want to lean out that stuff will help a lot.

Just be carefull not to overtrain yourself- it will hurt you in the long run.

thecrossfitter

I do both! I keep my entire workout, warmup included, to one hour. The first portion I spend on strength work, one rep max, or a heavy 3 or heavy 5 with several sets building up. (Sometimes replaced with skill work with light weight, especially to break down those olympic lifts.) The second half I do a metcon workout. Circuits are anywhere from 8-25 minutes, and are very intense. When I have lifts in this portion, I typically am working at 50%-60% of my max doing many reps. I combine the lifts with things like sprints, box jumps, burpees, push ups, pull ups, jump rope, etc. I go for speed, but I make sure I have a light enough weight that my form doesn't break down. (If I feel it breaking, I SLOW DOWN! If I didn't pick a good weight, I will actually stop and drop some weight off the bar).

This combination has given me great results in strength, speed, and aesthetics.

With marathon season starting up, I do plan to do some specific running work, and "specialize" a bit more in my workouts

Rae6503

I just finished a bulk cycle where I was trying to gain muscle weight. I only do cardio 2 or so times a week. Low -moderate steady state.

TrophyWifeSass

I lift heavy 3 days a week and run 4-5 miles on 2 maybe 3 days if I feel like it. If I have to miss something because life gets in the way it would be running. I have been lifting for one month and I can already see results and it is so much fun to make my teenage son flinch when I walk by:laugh:

cgrout78

i do lifting 3 days a week, and zumba 2 days a week. I also throw in about 20 minutes of cardio after I lift.

needlework

bump

maryloo2011

I lift 4x week, alternating legs/biceps/shoulders and chest/tri/abs. After lifting I run or do intervals for anywhere for
10-30 minutes. Wednesdays are either rest days or endurance cardio.

I stopped cardio the past month and have definitely noticed a difference in my body (not what I want). So, apparently that schedule works for me... Starting back up next week with running.

littlemili

I am trying to gain muscle with minimal fat gains and this is my plan, if it's of any help...

Monday
10k training (60 mins)

Tuesday
Abs circuit (30 mins)
Upper body heavy lifting (15 mins)

Wednesday
Rest

Thursday
Legs circuits (20 mins)
Upper body heavy lifting (10 mins)

Friday
Abs circuit (30 mins)
Sprints (15 mins)

Saturday
Yoga (90 mins)

Sunday
Back and bum circuit (30 mins)
Upper body heavy lifting (15 mins)

BrandyontheRun

**Bump for future reference/to check out future responses**

EatClenTrenHard

Thanks for the replies!

If anyone out there does more strength than cardio and wants to share their schedule, I would really appreciate it.

strength, every second day. sports twice a week worked around strength (soccer, volleyball takes care of my cardio)

Your strength training must be real strength training though, not 20 rep low weight, so called "toning". Lift heavy, lift correctly.

Strong this.

Lift heavy, eat good nutrition value/calorie ratio foods.

jrditt

I lift heavy using "New Rules of lifting for women" 3 days a week. The days inbetween I might bike ride or walk or do a dance class or do nothing at all. My main priority is to make sure i am well rested for the lifting at this point. This is a pretty big shift from even a month ago when I was doing cardio everyday.