help me understand!!

goody_girl · August 2011

Ok, I have a couple of questions. I'm sure they are no-brainers for most people, but I've truly never really felt the need to worry about them until now! You know, when you're young and your metabolism is high and everything burns right off.....ya, that's where I've been until now!! I'm 27 and 9 weeks post partum (c-section) with my 2nd (and last) child. My oldest is 3 and in the past three years have put on 30 extra lbs of "baby weight". So for the first time in my life I am actually having to work to lose weight! So far I've lost 7 pounds doing very easy simple cardio (20 mins. on the elliptical). Now that I'm feeling pretty much back to normal again after giving birth, I am ready to kick it up and get this done. So here are my questions:

(keep in mind, I don't have a gym membership and can't afford one at this time so all my exercise is at home)

1. I don't want to get bored so I'm ready to vary my work outs a little. This past week I started doing Turbo Jam (kickboxing)! Love it. Since it's a new exercise for my body I started at a lower intensity. This is the 4th day and this morning I woke up pretty sore!! Not like, oh-I-pulled-a-muscle sore, just typical haven't-done-this-in-a-while sore. Is this soreness a good thing? Does it mean I had a good workout and I am ok to continue and push through it, or does it mean I overdid it? Should I rest until I'm not sore anymore or keep at it until my body gets used to it? I don't want to hurt myself and then really be in trouble. Just want to make sure I am doing the right thing.

2. I need to lose 25 pounds to be at my goal weight. Right now I am more interested in burning fat rather than building muscle, but I want to tone up and be lean and slender by the time I am "done". So, what is the best route to go? My plan is to just focus on fat loss until I reach my goal weight, then concentrate on maintenance and toning/muscle building. Does this mean I should stick to cardio until my goal weight is met and then start a weight and resistance routine? Or should I be incorporating weights into my routine now? I just feel an urgency to get the weight off as fast as possible but don't want to overdo it, nor do I want to overwhelm myself with a million different exercises at once!

As you can see, I am pretty clueless when it comes to this stuff. Could really use some helpful advice!!

clrrrr · August 2011

Based on the way you described it, the soreness is a good thing--it means you worked your muscles and they are repairing themselves to be stronger than they were before. Whether or not you work out while sore is a personal choice, but I like to. And if you have the opportunity, you should definitely be incorporating weights into your workouts now. Muscle burns more calories at rest than fat, so the more muscle you build, the higher your metabolism will be, which will help you lose the weight faster. It will also allow you to push yourself harder in your cardio workouts, etc.

hummzz · August 2011

Question 1: I would keep at your workout unless you're in actual pain. Don't over do it and don't forget your body needs a day rest at least once a week.

Question 2: You should always incorporate strength training in your workouts so you can build lean muscle. Muscle raises your metabolism and burns more fat. Cardio and Strength training are equally important.

franzy · August 2011

try Zumba DVD"s it's a great workout you can do an home

bjshields · August 2011

1. Turbo Jam is a fantastic choice! If you are sore when you move something and get a sharp pain, you've hurt yourself. If you are sore like you worked out a few days in a row and you're feeling it, that's a good thing.

2. Muscle burns more calories than fat, and the more muscle you have on your body, the more you can eat and stay the same size or slim down. It also changes your shape, which aerobics alone will not do. You need to combine weights with cardio. It's a huge one-two punch.

Good luck to you, and great job on keeping in shape after babies!

Bebemadison · August 2011

Soreness is a good thing and muscle burns fat faster so adding some strength training will actually help you burn more fat.

janetb21 · August 2011

You are only 9 weeks post c-section? Have you talked to your doctor about appropriate levels of workout? I ask because, honestly, it can take up to 6 months for your body to finish healing after major surgery.
In any case, listen to your body. If it's normal soreness you're probably good. If it's excessive, back off.

akadory · August 2011

All cardio should be done for at least 30min to get the most out of it. And make sure you are at your target heart rate. The following link is a target heart rate calculator. It even tells you how to check your heart rate without a monitor. Hope this helps, and good luck!

http://exercise.about.com/cs/fitnesstools/l/bl_THR.htm

dragonbug300 · August 2011

Whew! Okay, here goes:

1. Muscle soreness is a good thing. You're increasing lean muscle mass, which means increased metabolism and more effective fat burn. Enjoy it. The more you practice the workout, the easier it'll become. The burn will go away pretty quickly. To mitigate the pain, remember to warm up before the workout and stretch out afterwards.

2. Mix cardio with strengthening. High intensity interval training (which you'll see others shorten to HIIT) will really help in both areas.
I recommend going to www.bodyrock.tv
They give you great workouts that are very short and extremely effective. Do one 12-minute workout from here every day in addition to your cardio and you'll see some results.
Look for older workouts on that site that don't use equipment.
Also, cardio is going to burn both muscle and fat. Exercises that work the muscles are more likely to consume fat than cardio alone. That's why it's necessary to do both strength training and cardio... cardio does the calorie burn, strengthening improves body composition.

Rae6503 · August 2011

Yeah, a little bit of soreness is good and you should keep going.

I agree that you should do some strength training all along. Other wise you risk ending up "skinny fat" instead of nice, skinny and toned.

I am doing Turbo Fire which is a bit more advanced than Turbo Jam I think. It includes a few strength workouts. They just have resistance bands instead of weights but so far they seem to have helped me maintain muscle. Does Turbo Jam have anything like that?

jllipson · August 2011

Unless I missed it in someone else's response - the pain is good, unless it's truly pain. In either case, make sure you are drinking water before, during and after workout. Your muscles need to be hydrated as do you.

As for the weights, incorporate them into the workout. I started with water bottles, then eventually went and bought 5 pound weights. The full water bottles helped me get used to adding it in, plus gave a tiny bit of weight (better than nothing). You could also use your baby as a no cost weight. Find something he/she likes and do repetitions, baby thinks it's fun, you get some weight training in. My favorite was lying on my back and lifting my daughter straight up, then down to me... my girls are older (so heavier weights), but it's a start if you aren't able to purchase weights yet. (children are way more fun too...)

goody_girl · August 2011

Awesome!!! Thanks everyone.......your answers were exactly what I expected. I guess I know a little more than I thought!! Ha Ha Ha!

I will definitely push through the soreness!! It's kind of nice actually, makes me fee like I actually did something!!

As far as the strength training is concerned, I guess I should start on that ASAP!!
What would you recommend as far as where to start? Turbo Jam has a Turbo Sculpt workout that incorporates weights along with cardio. Would this be sufficient? I have 5lb weights and a resistance tube that I can use. Is 5lbs a good starting weight? What's the heaviest weight a woman should use build lean muscle?

MinnieInMaine · August 2011

1. As someone else said, it's a personal preference, and it depends on your level of soreness. I know if I'm too sore, my form suffers and I won't get a proper workout so I do something different and lighter like go for a walk. You're still moving and burning calories and it will help loosen up that tightness in your muscles. Eat bananas and drink a little extra water on your work out days - both will help you recover.
Edited to add - please don't try to stretch without at least warming up a little. I know it can make you feel better but it can cause more damage to the muscles. That's why I like going for a walk, it get me moving but also allows me to get another good stretch in afterwards.

2. Ditto That sculpt workout is a good start but your body may stop responding to that after a while so once you get stronger, you'll need to up the weights and maybe try a different routine. If you like working out at home, you can just buy heavier weights at a store and google to find some good basic routines.
As far as how much weight, it depends on your body but as a woman, 99% of us just can't get bulky because we're not made that way - it takes some special training and diet to look like a body builder so don't worry about that so much. Just make sure the weight you use is challenging to you and once it isn't, increase by a pound or two until it gets easy again, rinse, repeat.

help me understand!!

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