personal trainer?

anhancock10
anhancock10 Posts: 148 Member
edited October 5 in Fitness and Exercise
Hi. I just started working out with a personal trainer after working out for about 3 months on my own. He wants me to work out for 6 hrs a week cardio then do 20 mins of strength training after each workout every other day. Does this sound like to much to start out with? should i split it up or do the whole hour? P.S. i worked out with him for the first time on tue and my legs & stomach are killing me! Everything feels bruised, should i do a day of rest? Im so confused! Help please & thank you:)

Replies

  • jfloyd7
    jfloyd7 Posts: 15 Member
    I've always heard and read that you should always do strength training before cardio ... But, I'm a carpenter, not a trainer, so what do I know?
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    I'm no expert, but I think almost an hour and a half a day, six days a week is more than the average person needs. If you're an athlete in training, that's another story, but just for optimal health and/or weight loss, it seems excessive.
  • jakejacobsen
    jakejacobsen Posts: 584 Member
    Go for it push your self
  • kalexander2005
    kalexander2005 Posts: 223 Member
    It sounds about right by what I've been reading on bodybuilding.com. A day of rest in between strength training sounds good. And, the guy at my supplement store (has lost over 200 pounds himself) recommended I do cardio after strength, but I do it the opposite just to warm up first. I guess if the trainer is fit and get results with other clients, I would take his advice.
  • Kyliechristie
    Kyliechristie Posts: 85
    I think it depends on what you told your trainer your goals are?
  • dia705
    dia705 Posts: 43
    It does vary with your goal. My trainer had me doing 10 minute warm up on the treadmill and then off to a full workout (hour) of strength training. Cardio when you start out burns up all the extra energy and leaves when you hit cardio to burn up all the fat. I was about 140 pounds larger than I am now... I was told cardio 30 min 6 days a week to START and by the time we were a few months in I was up to 1.5 hours of cardio 6 days a week and strength training 4 days a week(one on one off). I was in the best shape of my life and dropped 140 pounds in a little over 7 months. Depends on your level of expertise, weight, and how long you've been training. Are you training for a race, just to be healthy, some competition?

    I'd say go for it, if you feel you can. Kick it back a little if you are over training but talk with your trainer as you go if you feel you are not getting what you want out of it. You always have to kick it up a notch every now and again to a. Not get bored and B. keep up the weight loss/tone.

    Good luck!
  • Cathleenr
    Cathleenr Posts: 332
    Hi. I just started working out with a personal trainer after working out for about 3 months on my own. He wants me to work out for 6 hrs a week cardio then do 20 mins of strength training after each workout every other day. Does this sound like to much to start out with? should i split it up or do the whole hour? P.S. i worked out with him for the first time on tue and my legs & stomach are killing me! Everything feels bruised, should i do a day of rest? Im so confused! Help please & thank you:)


    well, is he going to HELP you or just toss out that reccommendation and leave you to figure it out? i hope you didn't pay him for that advice :)
    and did he give you specific strength exercises on the days he wants you to do them?

    if you are just starting out, i'd reccommend getting the New Rules of Lifting for Women and follow that strength program for the 20 or so weeks it takes to move through the stages. Keep a log, so you know what you did when, how much you lifted and track your progress. there is excellent nutritional information in the book, too.
    if he is going to be there at your strength sessions, ask him why he is having you do what you do...not to challenge him, but so you understand what is going on with your body.
  • maura5880
    maura5880 Posts: 346 Member
    That's almost exactly what I do in terms of training. However, if you're sore by all means take a day off. You definitely don't want to have an injury that forces you to take a lot of time off!
  • anhancock10
    anhancock10 Posts: 148 Member
    my only goal was to lose weight & tone up. I am not training for anything nor do i want the "bodybuilder" look, i figured i would ask because i thought it was a bit excessive not to mention my legs and stomach feel like i was thrown out of a building they hurt so bad :( But i guess thats good right ha!
  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
    I don't like his advice, but if you manage to do what he is asking and keep a diet thats at least in the ballpark of reasonable, you'll make decent progress.
  • Cathleenr
    Cathleenr Posts: 332
    my only goal was to lose weight & tone up. I am not training for anything nor do i want the "bodybuilder" look, i figured i would ask because i thought it was a bit excessive not to mention my legs and stomach feel like i was thrown out of a building they hurt so bad :( But i guess thats good right ha!

    by the "bodybuilder" look, so you mean this:
    nina-loebardt-01.jpg


    or this:

    jodiemarsh.jpg

    steroid use makes the difference.
    and hurting muscles isn't necessarily a good thing. you don't have to hurt when you build.
  • kayleeblue
    kayleeblue Posts: 273
    I heard the same thing..Strength before Cardio. Something about burning the bad before the good stuff..google it. if someone hasn't answered that yet.

    I've always heard and read that you should always do strength training before cardio ... But, I'm a carpenter, not a trainer, so what do I know?
  • AZackery
    AZackery Posts: 2,035 Member
    Hi. I just started working out with a personal trainer after working out for about 3 months on my own. He wants me to work out for 6 hrs a week cardio then do 20 mins of strength training after each workout every other day. Does this sound like to much to start out with? should i split it up or do the whole hour? P.S. i worked out with him for the first time on tue and my legs & stomach are killing me! Everything feels bruised, should i do a day of rest? Im so confused! Help please & thank you:)

    Hi Anhancock10. does your trainer wants you to do this in addition to working out with him or is this the program he written up for you to do with him a week?

    I'll wait for your answer, before I suggest something.
  • dreambodin2011
    dreambodin2011 Posts: 166 Member
    gosh I hate those fake boobs/melons/basketballs. How ridiculous.

    sorry if i offend anyone. But that just looks 'wrong'!

    and that first pic is wrong also. wouldn't be surprised if it was photoshopped. i don't understand any woman wanting to look like that.

    different strokes fokes....!

    Good luck with your trainer - it will hurt in the beginning but I agree that if it continues to hurt you should take a rest. Recovery is important.
  • anhancock10
    anhancock10 Posts: 148 Member
    Hi. I just started working out with a personal trainer after working out for about 3 months on my own. He wants me to work out for 6 hrs a week cardio then do 20 mins of strength training after each workout every other day. Does this sound like to much to start out with? should i split it up or do the whole hour? P.S. i worked out with him for the first time on tue and my legs & stomach are killing me! Everything feels bruised, should i do a day of rest? Im so confused! Help please & thank you:)

    Hi Anhancock10. does your trainer wants you to do this in addition to working out with him or is this the program he written up for you to do with him a week?

    I'll wait for your answer, before I suggest something.

    He want me to do this during the week by myself and then meet with him once a week to work out with him.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Hi. I just started working out with a personal trainer after working out for about 3 months on my own. He wants me to work out for 6 hrs a week cardio then do 20 mins of strength training after each workout every other day. Does this sound like to much to start out with? should i split it up or do the whole hour? P.S. i worked out with him for the first time on tue and my legs & stomach are killing me! Everything feels bruised, should i do a day of rest? Im so confused! Help please & thank you:)

    Given that you are paying this man, i would ask him all the questions not us!
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
    Hi. I just started working out with a personal trainer after working out for about 3 months on my own. He wants me to work out for 6 hrs a week cardio then do 20 mins of strength training after each workout every other day. Does this sound like to much to start out with? should i split it up or do the whole hour? P.S. i worked out with him for the first time on tue and my legs & stomach are killing me! Everything feels bruised, should i do a day of rest? Im so confused! Help please & thank you:)

    Given that you are paying this man, i would ask him all the questions not us!

    Uh, personal trainers don't know everything one.. and two there are different degrees of personal trainers.. some are awesome, and some suck! So she's smart to ask for other opinions.

    Personally OP, I'd ditch this trainer and see if you can find someone else. Unless you have a lot of weight to lose.. that sounds quite excessive... You also should not be so sore that you feel bruised. Believe me, I went through the exact same feeling of pain with my first trainer and now he's fired from the gym.

    My personal trainer that I have now , gave me 3 cardio programs to do.. one is 56 minutes, one is 35 and one is 29 minutes.. all accomplish different things. He also wants me to lift on my own using compound movements instead of isolated ones.. and I try to lift for at least a half an hour twice, before I see him at my usual slot on thursdays.

    Did he tell you what kind of exercises to do for weight lifting? If he didn't and you've never done it before, I'd ask him to suggest some routines so that you have a set idea of what to focus on.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    my only goal was to lose weight & tone up. I am not training for anything nor do i want the "bodybuilder" look, i figured i would ask because i thought it was a bit excessive not to mention my legs and stomach feel like i was thrown out of a building they hurt so bad :( But i guess thats good right ha!

    by the "bodybuilder" look, so you mean this:
    nina-loebardt-01.jpg


    or this:

    jodiemarsh.jpg

    steroid use makes the difference.
    and hurting muscles isn't necessarily a good thing. you don't have to hurt when you build.

    That, and two buckets full of silicone.
  • Tujitsu56
    Tujitsu56 Posts: 392 Member
    I think it's a bit much for a beginner. If you cannot handle it, let him know and take it down a little. He should be tailoring the workout to your needs. Some trainer have been said to overwork a client. Maybe after assessing what you can do, he felt like you can handle it. Not sure. You need to also determine your level of soreness; is it muscle soreness or joing soreness.

    The workout he has you on sounds like INSANITY haha... Thats an extreme home workout offered by beachbody.
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    Hi. I just started working out with a personal trainer after working out for about 3 months on my own. He wants me to work out for 6 hrs a week cardio then do 20 mins of strength training after each workout every other day. Does this sound like to much to start out with? should i split it up or do the whole hour? P.S. i worked out with him for the first time on tue and my legs & stomach are killing me! Everything feels bruised, should i do a day of rest? Im so confused! Help please & thank you:)

    The total time is not excessive, but it's also not necessary. It seems unbalanced with too much cardio and too little strength.

    The other thing is that you don't have to full tilt from day 1. This is another frequent mistake that trainers make. If you are starting a program or a new routine, it is not necessary to work yourself to the level of soreness you are describing. The body needs time to adapt to the new movements. You don't get into shape any faster by beating yourself up like that--it just hurts more (unnecessarily). If a program like you are describing represents a drastic change from what you were doing, then you should take anywhere from 4-10 sessions --whatever it takes--to ramp up to the full routine. But a lot of trainers are either too self-absorbed or too insecure to work you in gradually. They think they have to "prove themselves" by working you as hard as possible from day 1.
  • UponThisRock
    UponThisRock Posts: 4,519 Member
    sounds like a program that will run you into the ground
  • Tujitsu56
    Tujitsu56 Posts: 392 Member
    I like this advice
    Hi. I just started working out with a personal trainer after working out for about 3 months on my own. He wants me to work out for 6 hrs a week cardio then do 20 mins of strength training after each workout every other day. Does this sound like to much to start out with? should i split it up or do the whole hour? P.S. i worked out with him for the first time on tue and my legs & stomach are killing me! Everything feels bruised, should i do a day of rest? Im so confused! Help please & thank you:)

    The total time is not excessive, but it's also not necessary. It seems unbalanced with too much cardio and too little strength.

    The other thing is that you don't have to full tilt from day 1. This is another frequent mistake that trainers make. If you are starting a program or a new routine, it is not necessary to work yourself to the level of soreness you are describing. The body needs time to adapt to the new movements. You don't get into shape any faster by beating yourself up like that--it just hurts more (unnecessarily). If a program like you are describing represents a drastic change from what you were doing, then you should take anywhere from 4-10 sessions --whatever it takes--to ramp up to the full routine. But a lot of trainers are either too self-absorbed or too insecure to work you in gradually. They think they have to "prove themselves" by working you as hard as possible from day 1.
  • bry_all01
    bry_all01 Posts: 3,100 Member
    Days of rest are just as important as days of working out. You need at least one day a week off completely. Best advice I was EVER given during training.
  • Dauntlessness
    Dauntlessness Posts: 1,489 Member
    It depends on how hard you want to work honestly. I just started using a trainer too and I have lost 2.6 pounds this week after being on a plateau for a long time.
    I have been sore the whole time...but the results are worth it!

    I work out 6 days a week, strength train alternating muscle groups, then do around 60 minutes of cardio a little less or more. I used to be in the gym 3 hours a day but he told me no more then 2.
    It doesn't sound unreasonable to me, but its what you are comfortable with.

    Here is what he has me doing :
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/Lect

    Good luck!
  • AZackery
    AZackery Posts: 2,035 Member
    He want me to do this during the week by myself and then meet with him once a week to work out with him.

    I'm not telling you what to do, but I wouldn't waste my money on a one day training session with a trainer.

    An hour isn't long. Well, it goes by fast, when you are doing an exciting fast hour workout. I workout an hour or maybe a little longer, it depends on the workout that I'm doing. Some of my workouts runs from 65 minutes to 80 minutes.

    Strength training is good, but I'm not a big fan of solo strength training. I do them, but I prefer cardio and cardio/strength.

    I can't tell you what to do, but I wouldn't workout 6 days in a row. I would give my body 2 rest days. I would workout 5 days a week with every day being a cardio day and 2 days being cardio/strength days. If you want to work out 6 days a week, make every day a cardio day and 3 days cardio/strength.

    In my opinion, cardio/strength workouts will get you tone. I know it tones my body. Cardio/Strength workouts can be up to an hour long. I would do my workouts at one time and not break them up.
  • firedragon064
    firedragon064 Posts: 1,082 Member
    Just do it!
    Try it for 2 weeks to see if you get any result.
    If you have doubt or any questions , you should get him to explain it to you.
  • anhancock10
    anhancock10 Posts: 148 Member
    thank you everyone for the advice! you guys are awesome:)
This discussion has been closed.

Categories