Working Out- VERY slow results?

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kholling20
kholling20 Posts: 2
in Fitness and Exercise
I am not really concerned about my weight, more over my body fat. I weigh 122lbs (I'm 5' 5"), but a lot of that is just pudge. In January I started to work out, and I have worked hard to make sure my workouts are intense (at a comfortable level) and varied.

Mondays- Step Aerobics, medium impact
Tuesday- Spin, high intensity; Kick boxing: full body cardio, medium intensity
Wednesdays- Strength Training Class + Barre Class, low impact
Thursday- Spin, high intensity
Fridays- Weight training/ Cardio Class (in one) Medium Intensity
Saturday and Sunday are rest days, or if anything a dog walk

So I keep things interesting, and workout more than one muscle group at a time and try to switch it up between cardio and strength training. I have seen some small results, but nothing major. My diet is vegetarian including lots of veggies, tofu, quinoa, greek yogurt, protein shakes (of course I will occasionally eat Thai food ;-) so I am not like eating pizza or fast food or anything. I drink 2L+ water a day and typically green tea ( I will go out on some weekends with friends though).

Just curious if anyone has any advice, or if I just need to be more patient. I plan to continue to work hard since I have seen SOME changes, but just want to make the most of my work.

Thanks! I appreciate your advice! :-D

Replies

  • aswearingen22
    aswearingen22 Posts: 271 Member
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    Others will have better advice than me, but seems like your routine is cardio heavy, which is more for fat blasting and cardiovascular endurance/health and not creating the toned look it sounds like you're going for. Also, sounds like you could be a little protein light in your diet, since that is needed for building muscle. I'd drop some of that cardio and pick up more weights (and coming from a marathoner, that's hard for me to say!lol)
  • lalamoose64
    lalamoose64 Posts: 23 Member
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    Sound like you have a healthy diet and excellent workout commitment. May I suggest portion control. Since October I have leaned up from 138 to 131 lb. with the help of a dietitian. Writing down everything that entered my mouth then having a professional review helped me see a few areas to improve in.
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
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    What kind of results are you looking for? How many calories are you eating?

    I'd suggest looking into something like Stronglifts 5x5, a heavy lifting routine with progression built in. Make sure you are getting about 100g of protein a day, and have a calorie deficit between 250 and 500 calories per day.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
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    Cardio is for building stamina (heart health) and burning calories.

    Strength training is more about shaping your body. If you're not trying to lose weight look up body recompostition. Not an expert by any means, but I think you want much more strength training than cardio.

    Re: diet. It's mostly about protein.
  • kholling20
    kholling20 Posts: 2
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    Currently I intake around 1400-1600 Calories a day (looking @ MFP) and my goal is just to really shape up, lose the fat I have (mainly legs), and get a leaner overall body. My protein is not great though, so that is a good point. I am probably around 50GMS a day.

    I also think lifting more weights is a good idea. The muscle training classes I take are definitely not heavy lifting (around 8-10lbs) so perhaps knocking out a cardio class for machine work would do me some good :)
  • jocelynu
    jocelynu Posts: 2 Member
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    Based on your goals, I would highly recommend you prioritize WEIGHT TRAINING! You are absolutely right that the 8-10 lb weights you use in fitness classes will not cut it for seeing body-shaping results (and this is coming from a person who teaches those classes!). :) There is no reason why you can't fit in the odd cardio or body sculpt class, especially if you enjoy them, but do your weights first (on cardio class days) as that's when you have the most energy!

    Perhaps you only start with 2x/week, you can always build from there. And, lift heavy: 6-12 reps per set, 1-3 sets per exercise (depending on your time commitment). Make sure those last few reps of each set are TOUGH (but stop when you cannot execute with perfect form!).

    Especially if you're only lifting 2-3x per week, definitely lift several body parts in one workout. You could do an upper/lower split if you're lifting on back-to-back days, or if you know you'll have days in between workouts (e.g., MWF), then mix up the lower and upper exercises together. To get the most bang for your buck, focus on compound exercises that target multiple muscle groups. Some examples (many of which you'll be familiar with from your sculpt classes) include: squats, lunges, and deadlifts for lower body; vertical and horizontal presses like bench, incline, overhead for chest/shoulders/tris; and lat pulldown with various grips and different kinds of rows like seated, barbell, and single-arm DB for back/bis). Oh, and you can never go wrong with a few push-ups and planks in there too!

    If you are unfamiliar with the weight room floor, hire a certified/experienced trainer. It will be the best money you've ever spent on your fitness/health!

    Best of luck,

    jocelyn

    Certified Personal Trainer/Group Fitness Instructor
    Doctoral student, Kinesiology
  • MuddledFox
    MuddledFox Posts: 1
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    Putting on muscle, even if you don't loose weight, will make your natural body fat seem less like pudge.
  • jstout365
    jstout365 Posts: 1,686 Member
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    Sounds like you are talking about body recomposition. Not really interested in losing weight, but wanting to change how your body looks through fat loss.

    Here is a popular example of a body recomposition. I think she is a good example of what you can do, but a bit of an outlier from the norm as to what people are willing to commit to.

    http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/

    This is a site that I like to follow on body recomp and you may find some good information to help you achieve what you want:
    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com
  • lizziebeth1028
    lizziebeth1028 Posts: 3,602 Member
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    Too much cardio! If you're focus is body composition you need to lift weights, heavy weights that challenge you. Compound moves!

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