Gym Advice...

carlhunt3r
carlhunt3r Posts: 9 Member
edited September 22 in Health and Weight Loss
I am aiming to stick to one hour of cardio twice a week at the gym, but should I be doing some weight training as well?
I'm waiting to loose fat/weight primarily as I'm not really bothered about building muscle...

Hints or tips anyone?

Replies

  • Alysgrma
    Alysgrma Posts: 365 Member
    Bump..as I am in the same boat :smile:
  • murf19
    murf19 Posts: 453 Member
    Its not just about building muscle. You can do some lifting to tone your muscles and burn calories. Do 1 - 2 workouts a week - 30 -40 minutes. Use a light weight and up your reps. This will tone your muscles but not bulk you up.
  • erikrichter
    erikrichter Posts: 19 Member
    Cardio is great and will help you drop pounds, but weights will keep your body burning more calories longer after the workout. It's nice to see muscles form too.

    Personally, I do a little of each when I go to the gym... Lift a set or two - run a mile or two - lift another set. You feel great afterward.
  • beastlye
    beastlye Posts: 37
    You should absolutely weight train along with your cardio routine. Aside from weight training's metabolism-boosting advantages for a long span of time, it will make you less prone to injury. Just running (like I did for a while) will set you up for a whole host of injuries (runner's knee, shin splints, etc) that take many weeks to heal. Best wishes!
  • GorillaNJ
    GorillaNJ Posts: 4,024 Member
    I would say, hit the weights! Building muscle is the best way to get your body to burn fat.
  • akbethea
    akbethea Posts: 2 Member
    I'm no expert, but I would do some weights as well. I really didn' t care about building muscle, just losing weight. I did start some weight training and I really love the results. I've really toned everything and it is so nice not to have jiggly arms and legs and even my stomach is toner although I have a little more room for improvement there. They say that muscle burns more calories than fat. Anyway, I'm really glad I did and it feels great!
  • coqui10982
    coqui10982 Posts: 2
    Actually it's really important to gain a little muscle mass. The more muscle you body has the more calories you burn at rest! That alone should be enough. But aslo having a good muscle structure helps keep things like osteoporosis and arthritis at bay! Cardio is great! But strength training needs to be a part of any weight loss program. Try mixing up your cardio with some weight training or join a gym like Curves where the circuit training allows you to do both at the same time!
  • polo571
    polo571 Posts: 708 Member
    Good job for making a change. I personally am suggesting something just from my experience. I would do 4 30 minue cardios instead of 2 1 hour ones. I think you can work your way up to increase how hard you work and would get better benefit. It is all trial and error but more days with less minutes gives me more of a boost. Good luck to you.
  • fuhrmeister
    fuhrmeister Posts: 1,796 Member
    I'm with th group here. weight training is important. I take a 45 minute sculpt calss at my gym that I love. Also I find yoga good for strength training. and teh stretching is benificial as well. And don't worry about your size in a yoga class, just do the pose to teh best of your ability everyoen else is to busy worring about their bpose to look at yours,. Good luck!
  • Bigpelly8
    Bigpelly8 Posts: 504 Member
    I do 2 days of weights with half hour of cardio, and 5 days of one hour cardio

    I wanted to be sure to not lose any muscle while I am burning fat.

    Also, lifting days are a nice change from my regula rroutine so it doesn;t get stagnant. Honestly, id rather lift 5 and do cardio 2 but thats a long ways down the road!
  • bounce0033
    bounce0033 Posts: 31
    I agree with everyone's comments. I try more full body motion workouts when I am working out that combine exercises. I use lighter weight but more reps in these workouts to get more bang for my buck.

    There are many good apps for your phone or you can research to develop your workout plan.

    I like
    - Mens Health - http://www.menshealth.com/celebrity-fitness/workouts/
    - LiveStrong - http://www.livestrong.com/fitness/

    Good Luck - I hope this helps :-)
  • Nasty77
    Nasty77 Posts: 9
    Happy New Year All......

    I was told to do more cardio than weights......So I would do 1 1/2 hr of cardio and 30 minutes of weights. Now I use 25% of my weights but do a lot of reps to burn my muscle compare to build muscle. I guess you can say I have fat on top of muscles:grumble: But I do see results:wink:
  • carlhunt3r
    carlhunt3r Posts: 9 Member
    Thanks for the advice everybody! I'll defo include some weight training in future. This is my first post and I cannit believe how many people have replied!

    I go to a local council run gym with the usual array of carido and multi-function weights machines, what sort of weight would you recommend I did though? Chest/arms/abs/legs?
  • GorillaNJ
    GorillaNJ Posts: 4,024 Member
    Thanks for the advice everybody! I'll defo include some weight training in future. This is my first post and I cannit believe how many people have replied!

    I go to a local council run gym with the usual array of carido and multi-function weights machines, what sort of weight would you recommend I did though? Chest/arms/abs/legs?

    I think you should do some searching on line for workout programs... that way you get the most out of your trips to the gym. I would suggest looking up TNT from Menshealth.
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