burn fat gain muscle advice

1sisrat
1sisrat Posts: 267 Member
edited November 24 in Health and Weight Loss
I have started some basic weight training. I need advice for losing fat and gaining muscle. I am 30 yrs old, female, 140 lbs, 5'5". I have two kids (1 and 3) and want to be lean and not pudgy in the areas that were affected by pregnancy and breast feeding (now that I have weaned the 1 yr old). I have upped protein, lowered calories, and upped fat. I lift 3 days a week and mix in some cardio. but, I just want to know some tips to help the process, as I do not have the means to have a coach or trainer.

Replies

  • IsaackGMOON
    IsaackGMOON Posts: 3,358 Member
    edited September 2015
    You either do one or the other.

    If you want to be lean, eat in a caloric deficit to lose fat. Lift heavy weights to maintain muscle mass.

    If you want to gain weight (muscle and fat), eat in a caloric surplus. Lift heavy weights to gain muscle mass.

    Gainging muscle generally requires a caloric surplus...
  • leooftheyear
    leooftheyear Posts: 429 Member
    you cannot gain muscle while in a deficit. HOWEVER you can lose fat to expose the muscle you have and reshape your body. If you want to gain muscle you're going to have to eat, at least if not more than, at maintenance.

    Are you following a specific strength training program?
  • 1sisrat
    1sisrat Posts: 267 Member
    Day 1: Chest + Biceps + 30 min Cardio (3 sets of 8-12 reps each)
    Chest
    • Bench Press or incline Bench Press
    • Butterfly or dumbbell Flys
    • Dumbbells Pull over
    • Push up
    Biceps
    • Side arm curls
    • Front arm curls

    Day 2: Back + Triceps + 30 min Cardio (4 sets of 12-15 each)
    • Wide grip pull downs or Front lap pull downs
    • Bent over row
    • Seated Cable row or one arm dumbbell row
    • Pull ups

    Day 3: Legs + Butt + ABS (3-4 sets of 10-15 reps)
    • Squats
    • Leg Press
    • Lunges (walking)
    • Leg extensions machine
    • Leg curl machine
    • Dead lifts (bent and straight)
    • Calves

    Day 4: Shoulders + 30 min Cardio (3 sets of 8-12 reps each)
    • Dumbbell Press or Military Press
    • Front raise (arms forward and up)
    • Lateral raise (arms sideways and up)
    • Reverse Fly raise (bent over and fly)

    Day 5: 1 hour Cardio

    Day 6: Rest
    is my routine and im eating at maintenance .
  • TR0berts
    TR0berts Posts: 7,739 Member
    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10177803/recomposition-maintaining-weight-while-losing-fat/p1

    That link is your friend.
  • IsaackGMOON
    IsaackGMOON Posts: 3,358 Member
    1sisrat wrote: »
    Day 1: Chest + Biceps + 30 min Cardio (3 sets of 8-12 reps each)
    Chest
    • Bench Press or incline Bench Press
    • Butterfly or dumbbell Flys
    • Dumbbells Pull over
    • Push up
    Biceps
    • Side arm curls
    • Front arm curls

    Day 2: Back + Triceps + 30 min Cardio (4 sets of 12-15 each)
    • Wide grip pull downs or Front lap pull downs
    • Bent over row
    • Seated Cable row or one arm dumbbell row
    • Pull ups

    Day 3: Legs + Butt + ABS (3-4 sets of 10-15 reps)
    • Squats
    • Leg Press
    • Lunges (walking)
    • Leg extensions machine
    • Leg curl machine
    • Dead lifts (bent and straight)
    • Calves

    Day 4: Shoulders + 30 min Cardio (3 sets of 8-12 reps each)
    • Dumbbell Press or Military Press
    • Front raise (arms forward and up)
    • Lateral raise (arms sideways and up)
    • Reverse Fly raise (bent over and fly)

    Day 5: 1 hour Cardio

    Day 6: Rest
    is my routine and im eating at maintenance .

    If you're a beginner.. you shouldn't be doing a split. It's inefficient for strength gains (as you're in a deficit).

    Look into StrongLifts 5x5 and ICF 5x5... drop the hypertrophy and go for the 5x5's in a deficit.

  • leooftheyear
    leooftheyear Posts: 429 Member
    it doesn't sound like you have enough rest days, when i started New Rules of Lifting for Women they recommend 2-3 days MAX and a little cardio after Stage 1. My routine right now is 2 days cardio and 2 days lifting. Need to make sure you get that rest.

    I'd also recommend looking into New Rules of Lifting for Women, Strong Lifts 5x5 or Strong Curves, to incorporate full body workouts instead of just focusing on single muscle groups.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    If you are a beginner, I would suggest a 3x/wk full body strength program. You'll be hit each body part more often (which is easily done as a beginner) and you'll likely see better results. Here are a few programs to check out:

    Strength training programs
    * http://bretcontreras.com/wp-content/uploads/Strong-Curves-Workout-Templates.pdf
    * http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=4195843
    * http://www.thenewrulesoflifting.com/nrol-for-women
    * http://stronglifts.com/
    * https://blackironbeast.com/5/3/1/calculator
    * http://strengthvillain.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=89
  • lindsey1979
    lindsey1979 Posts: 2,395 Member
    Make sure the weight you're lifting is heavy -- none of those small 3, 5, 10 lbs weights. It's got to be a progressive loading program. As others have mentioned, Starting Strength, StrongLifts (which is really just a rip off of Starting Strength), 5/3/1, etc. are great programs.

    If you're looking to cut fat, consider adding in a weekly HIIT sessions. Doesn't take much time and can really help. Hill sprints are some of the best HIIT out there. Otherwise, I'd just stick with high volume low intensity cardio like hiking/walking.
  • momof3and3
    momof3and3 Posts: 656 Member
    Up your weights and lower your reps

    Incorporate your sets into super sets

    Add in HIIT, not just cardio
  • 1sisrat
    1sisrat Posts: 267 Member
    I am doing HIIT for my 'cardio'. I am also lifting heavy. 15-20 lbs per arm in the free weights section.
  • lindsey1979
    lindsey1979 Posts: 2,395 Member
    edited September 2015
    1sisrat wrote: »
    I am doing HIIT for my 'cardio'. I am also lifting heavy. 15-20 lbs per arm in the free weights section.

    I'm not sure that's what most of mean when we say lifting heavy. For example my squat is 188 and my deadlift is 242. I've been working on it for a while but my deadlift started out about 120 or so and my squat probably 80, both progressed pretty quickly to 175 and 145 (first few months) and then slowly went up from there. Programs like Starting Strength, StongLifts, 5/3/1, etc. will go into greater detail with this for you. But the bar alone is 45 lbs.

    Everyone has their own tolerance level and some of my single arm accessory stuff is pretty light -- like my single handed rows and incline dumbell press are 35 lbs each. But, generally, 15-20 lbs per arm is not considered heavy for most major movements (only the really small accessory movements). If that's where you're starting, great, but you should be progressing upward pretty quickly.


  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
    1sisrat wrote: »
    I am doing HIIT for my 'cardio'. I am also lifting heavy. 15-20 lbs per arm in the free weights section.
    When people say "heavy" they don't mean a certain amount of weight. That is too subjective. As far as the # on the bar, what's heavy to one person may not be heavy at all to another. What most people mean by "Lift heavy" is pick a weight you can only manage to lift for a low number of reps. As others pointed out above, a 5x5 would generally be considered "heavy lifting" for a beginner. Give ICF 5x5 or Stronglifts a look. Your split is inefficient because it only has you hitting most body parts 1 day a week. A good beginners program should have you hitting all body parts 2-3 times a week. Again, check out one of the 5x5 programs.
  • 1sisrat
    1sisrat Posts: 267 Member
    thank you all.
This discussion has been closed.

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