Lifting Questions for a Newbie

Achrya
Achrya Posts: 16,913 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I'm gonna give this a shot, even though a lot of lifting threads seem to derail. I'm hoping we can all be friends and get along here.

The Basics: I'm 5'4 (Or 5'3" I've heard it both ways) and a size 8 (or 9/11 in Jrs). MY goal is to have sexy strong arms and get down to a 6 or so. I'm not so much about weight loss, scales are weird anyway, but losing inches. I was eating at 1400 for a few months (January into early March) but then I got hungry and cranky and...it didn't go well. Now I'm back at a more reasonable 1692 (Based on TDEE-20%, though I may need to do it again since I've lost a little weight.) and a good deal less likely to turn into a crazed fire breathing woman dragon thing.

I'm alternating (or planning to alternate) between Nrolfw and 30ds (so more like a 65 day shred) with one rest day a week. But my major worry is that I'll be pushing myself too much. I feel fine right now, no serious aches or strains, but I don't want to halt progress by pushing too hard. I'm planning to stay at my intake level, with an extra 200 calories on lifting day, and not eating back the calories from shred. Does this seem reasonable; I know some women eat more than this and I don't mind eating more (I like food) just unsure of how to go about figuring it out properly. I figure better too much than not enough is a far safer bet.


TL;DR: I'm confused by food and curious if you can do 'too much'.

Edit: Topic should say 'from' not 'for'. Darn typos. :blushing:

Replies

  • JoanB5
    JoanB5 Posts: 610 Member
    Sounds reasonable. I could only do 30DS once a week in the beginning, may be better able to handle it now. The weighted squats and lunges you need to have "conditioned' knees or it can set you back. It's essentially circuit training. Just go with how your body feels. I work out what hurts the least and it goes pretty well most days. I'm 5'3 and my TDEE is around 1748 with about 5 hours exercise scheduled in a week (weighted for lifting). If you are unfamiliar with the "In Place of a Road Map" post, you might search it on here...it's a good guide for helping you find how many calories you need based on your workout goals and weight loss (or not) aspirations. It also helps you know what weight is ideal for the body fat level you desire.
  • jessica182517
    jessica182517 Posts: 390 Member
    bump i just ordered nrolfw and was thinkning about doing something else with it to lose the extra weight
  • JenMc14
    JenMc14 Posts: 2,389 Member
    I might drop 30DS and go for another form of cardio that doesn't rework 9even if it is with lighter weights) muscles you've already worked with weights. If you like Jillian, perhaps her Yoga Meltdown or Kickboxing videos? What are you using to do your TDEE? If you're going above sedentary, I wouldn't eat back anything, personally. Maybe an extra 100 or so if you're feeling extra cranky and had a tough workout that day.
  • zoeysasha37
    zoeysasha37 Posts: 7,088 Member
    I have a lot of same questions , so I'm interested to see what answers you get ! :) good luck!
  • Achrya
    Achrya Posts: 16,913 Member
    To figure out what to eat I used the information in http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/975025-in-place-of-a-road-map-short-n-sweet?hl=short+and+sweet, and put myself in at lightly active, which I figure covers 3 days of 30ds a week fairly well. I don't eat back calories from the Shred, (as those are already factored in) but on my Lift days I was going to increase by 200, because I thought more calories/protein was needed on those days. Is this incorrect?

    Using my measurements in a few different websites I got a range of answers for bodyfat from 27% to 30%, so I figure the truth is in the middle of there somewhere. I don't have a goal for a body fat percentage I'd like to be at, or weight for that matter. I have more of an 'image' in mind.
  • rick_po
    rick_po Posts: 449 Member
    If you're going to lift heavy with NROL4W, you might be over-training if you do a hard workout on your off days. From what I've seen of 30DS (I'm no expert on 30DS, so if anyone contradicts me, listen to them), it might be too much to use in conjunction with a serious weight program and a calorie deficit, unless you're very strong and motivated.

    If you really want to exercise on your off days, a simple cardio workout (bike, walk, elliptical) or a balance and flexibility workout might be a better match. If you find you're feeling good and strong, you can make your off day workouts tougher, but I would start easy and work my way up.
  • jalloggio
    jalloggio Posts: 141
    this is from a previous post i had put on the boards:

    Start off by training your muscles in endurance beginners should use 2 sets with 15-20 reps per muscle group.

    You can either do a full body split or a push pull split

    Example
    (Full body split)
    Monday upper body
    Tuesday cardio
    Wednesday lower body
    Thursday rest
    Friday full body
    Saturday cardio
    Sunday rest

    Example
    (Push pull split)
    Monday push (chest, anterior deltoids, triceps)
    Tuesday cardio
    Wednesday pull (biceps back rear and medial deltoids)
    Thursday rest
    Friday legs
    Saturday cardio
    Sunday rest

    I would suggest the push pull also when I do a push pull I do abs with my legs workout
  • mals422
    mals422 Posts: 41
    I'm starting NROL4W this afternoon, so I don't have much experience with the specific program, but I have done 30 Day Shred a few times. I agree with the others: if you're going to be doing any lifting program, you need to give your muscles time to recover and repair between workouts, and I'm not sure 30 Day Shred would do that, since you spend a decent amount of the program lifting weights. I agree with the poster who recommended doing a more cardio-based workout on your non-lifting days.
  • Achrya
    Achrya Posts: 16,913 Member
    First, thanks to everyone who responded, i appreciate you taking the time to respond to me. I can see what everyone is saying about 30day pushing my body too hard, at least at first, so I think I will look at JM's kickboxing workouts and see if those will suit me for my off days.

    Jalloggio thank for the example schedules. Do you feel like 2 rest days as opposed to 1 is a better idea, or is just a personal preference? I want to go about everything properly and don't mind taking more time to do so.
  • jalloggio
    jalloggio Posts: 141
    First, thanks to everyone who responded, i appreciate you taking the time to respond to me. I can see what everyone is saying about 30day pushing my body too hard, at least at first, so I think I will look at JM's kickboxing workouts and see if those will suit me for my off days.

    Jalloggio thank for the example schedules. Do you feel like 2 rest days as opposed to 1 is a better idea, or is just a personal preference? I want to go about everything properly and don't mind taking more time to do so.

    If your just starting you are more likely to overtrain 2 rest days is good if you want to make it 1 just do really light cardio on one of your rest days this is what I refer to active rest

    I have been training for about 3 yrs now and make it a point to get talent 1 rest day in a week your body repairs and makes its gains on your rest days they are well needed

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