Weights or Cardio?
 

So I've been sorting out my diet for the last month or two.. and I do still give in to the odd cravings for pizza or whatever but generally I've been eating more regular, and trying to get more healthier options in the diet. I still have a long way to go, but I feel its now time to start hitting the gym as well.

My previous gym routines have been quite sloppy and all over the place, I would dabble in cardio then weights then mix them up but I never stuck at anything, so I figure I need a brand new fresh start.

My primary goal is to lose fat and just have a fairly slim toned body, so that when I breath out at work, well, so I will breath out rather than try and tense all the time as to hide it!

I'm not MEGA fat or anything, but it is noticable and you can get a good handful which is BAD for me.

So, aside from my diet improving, what can I do in the gym that will best burn away this fat?

I am going to be going to the gym 4 - 6 times a week, so I don't lose interest I will set myself goals and always prepare my clothes and bags the night before work so I can go straight after, and I will always go BEFORE I see friends/girlfriend/do anything else!

Do I go with weights, free or machine, or do I go with cardio, treadmill or elliptical, or mix it up, or what? I can work out my own weights to start with or distance to run or whatever, I just want, to start with, the fastest way to see results, and then I will focus on a much more long term solution.

look up interval training, good way to burn fat without losing muscle, try to keep carbs to a min (for weight loss) , id try to fit in weights as well, as building muscle increases metabolism which in turn burns fat, what i do is something like this:

Monday: Chest x 5 exercises and triceps x 3 exercises, 20 min interval training
Tuesday: Cardio
Wednesday: back x 5 exercises and abs x 3 exercises
Thursday: Shoulders x 3-4 exercises and bicep x 3-4 exercises, 20 min interval
Friday off
Sat: abs and cardio
Sunday: off

is paleo that caveman diet of steak and lettuce? can you get carbs from meat? I'v seen a tribe of mongol horsemen that only eat horse meat on tv but I feel like people need carbs to fuel muscle movement.

in teerms of weights or cardio = BOTH. Strong muscle is built over time with cardio, big muscle is built quicker on anaerobic exercis.

On your rest day, do at least an hour cardio.
On your training day (Free weight please), warm up with a 10-minute run and stretch and finish off with abs exercise and 10-minute run. Easy!

So if I start my plan today, as follows:

Monday:
Warm up 10 min run
Chest
Triceps
20 min interval training
abs
10 min run

Tuesday:
Cardio for an hour

Wednesday:
Warm up 10 min run
Back
abs
warm down 10 min run

Thursday:
cardio for 1 hour

Friday:
10 min warm up run
Shoulders
bicep
20 min interval
abs
10 min warm down run

Sat:
1 hour cardio

Sunday:
abs and cardio

Any suggestions or changes?

plan looks good but factor in your carbs and protein intake should be increasing as well which will add to your weight if not dealt with.

Not quite sure what you mean here?

I should watch my carbs,
and increase my protein intake?

carbohydrate is a requirement for anaerobic exercise.

Protein is essential for muscle development

Your going to burn yourself out training 7 days a week, give yourself at least 2 days rest, and id cut warm ups, warm downs to 5 mins, and dont forget to stetch after warm up and after warm down, also you might wanna add some leg exercises in, i dont do legs atm because mine are massive, and least priority for me.

i also highly recomend this book for gym noobs
Amazon.com: The Men's Health Big Book of Exercises: Four Weeks to a Leaner, Stronger, More Muscular YOU! (9781605295503): Adam Campbell MS CSCS: Books

sounds like it could work really well I might give it a go.

Thanks Zed.

My "weight" isn't bothering me. The fat on my belly is. I don't mind if I bulked up, I just don't want to be able to pinch an inch. Eventually I wana be ripped.

I admit - I used to always want a quick fast result, but I've come to realise it doesn't work like that.

I do love bananas apples and oranges. And I found the section in Tesco where they sell pre-cooked chicken, some of it flavoured with bbq or whatever, but they have beef turkey etc, but its expensive. But I'd probably spend the same on a pizza one night !!

My diets improved some, need to cut out the energy drinks though.

I am not a PT so you may not wish to listen to me! But I do this stuff, it works for me.

I find that substantial fat loss on stomach isn't really through weight training.

(A) I find it is through cardio, especially high-impact cardio (such as running - not light jogging - I really mean running). Go running twice a week, outdoors in park in this great weather. Wear digital watch to time the park circuits.

(B) I find it is through sensible diet (tons of posts allover on diet); in particular: take protein shake suppliments twice a day especially just after training.

(C) To add muscle defintiion to your now reduced stomach, that is where gym exercises come in handy. A PT can teach you some. A PT is £40 to £50 per hour. You could buy Men's Health magazine for £3 but it is not remotely as effective as a PT; PT teaches you, shows if u are doing the exercise the wrong way, et al.

If you read this and disagree, then each to their own --- this works for me.

Perhaps I would be more inclined to run on the park, as its grass as well, so less impact on my back and knees where it really hurts on concrete after a mile or two...

If you must run, increase you turnover rate bit by bit, more strikes per 10 metres ground covered, it should feel like doggy paddling at the ground landing on your mid foot or even toward the front slightly.

Feels light and effortless, it's weird at first but is how the ankle joint is designed to work in my view. Otherwise, languidly taking long strides and slamming your heel into the deck, which is many people's natural gait (mine included), may facilitate the discomfort you indicate here and previously.

PS

So, I know that I should start slow and build myself up to doing regular exercise for burning fat..

But I'm still quite unsure on my original question. What is the best/fastest/easiest way to lose FAT?

Cardio, weights, or a combination.

If it is a combination, what routine is suggested? I don't care if I get bulky, or if I get skinnier, I'd like to do ABIT of weights anyway just to feel abit bulkier

Yes to starting slow, but get your mind out of this fat only mindset, and into building your health. One is constructive, the other is destructive, both literally and figuratively. The fat is an effect of the entire organism's condition.

This is your mind throwing up a narrow demand for perfection to stop you challenging your identity. Crack on, see above.

It would be effective and sustainable to do the following. I would do stability and strength training Mon and Fri, and some sprint work with good rest periods on a Wednesday, then just go for a half hour walk on all the other days. I'd be stretching every day too, before bed is good. Get a decent PT to give you a programme to do on your own having analysed your individual strengths and weaknesses, but don't let him run you into the ground with lots of cardio which will just drain you and makes people quit and ultimately get fatter.

In general you've got to get on with it now mate, start developing your own understanding of what works and does not work for you. Otherwise you'll get so much conflicting advice that it just gives your mind the procrastination it wants to keep you where you are. You're doing better with the nutrition it sounds, time to put intelligent exercise alongside it now.

PS

Well no doubt that cardio exercises are best for fitness and weight lose. In my opinion running is best exercise and we can lose weight easily. A 30 minute running is enough for fitness.

physical therapy business

Healthy diet is very much important but side by side you should not ignore the importance of cardio exercises. cardio exercises are very useful to make the body fit and fit.

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Why not join a sports team?