Help me figure out how to get L&G and B&G into my rotation!!

[librarydiva]

Hi, Everyone---

I want to thank you all for being so encouraging and let you know that everything is going really well, I have been amazed at the progress I've made in the past month! KPC is a piece of cake now, and I'm up to 25 lbs on the bar, after starting with nothing (just the 5 lb. bar), and I think I'm ready for 30 on barbell squats/deadrows deadlifts.

OK, here's my sitch: I am trying to lose weight (about 25 lbs.) and also get that nice lean definition like Cathe and Jai and the rest of the crew have. I work out 5-6 times a week, doing total-body strength every other day. Right now I am working through Body Blast, supplemented by some other advanced cardio wos I have. I do cardio every day I work out (I'm scared not to, I'm so afraid of gaining/not losing wt!). I like to do at least 30 min. of cardio, more of course on the days I don't do weights.

Here's my question: I feel my weakest areas are definitely legs, glutes, and core. Not that the rest of me doesn't need some serious help too! How do I fit wos that target these areas into my overall rotation? I just got Butts and Guts, haven't tried it yet. The other day I did KPC, skipping the abs, then Legs and Glutes (which I barely survived), and then upper body premix from SuperSets. I was toast afterwards, and it was a really long workout. As in, it was light out when I started and dark when I finished, LOL!

But I do feel wos like L&G and B&G that target my problem areas are good to do-- I'm just not sure the best way to fit them in given time constraints and need to work the rest of me too! I don't want to have to do strength every day, because I feel like I need my long cardio days not only to burn calories and increase fitness, but also for stress relief. (I'm still working up to 4DS, which I also just go!)

But I am open to suggestions.

I bow to the collective wisdom.

Thanks, everyone!

Cheers!

-Karen

 

[kariev]

well, if your going to stick with a full body routine but want emphasis on your legs i would do it like this
monday: full body weights
tuesday: cardio
wednesday: legs (B&G or L&G)
thursday: cardio
friday: full body weights
saturday: cardio
sunday: off
that way you are working upper body at least twice per week and lower 3 times since its your weaker area. you could also split your full body workout into upper and lower workouts
monday: upper body and 20 min cardio intervals
tuesday: lower body
wednesday: 45 min cardio
thrusday: upper body and 20 min cardio intervals
friday: lower body
saturday: 45 min cardio
sunday: off
does this help? what videos do you have that you workout with?

 

[maddiesmum]

Karen:

I think the solution for you will lie first in taking a leap of faith. I want to ask you to stop doing cardio every day and consider doing L&G and B&G each once a week on separate days instead of a cardio workout on those days.

Please set your fears aside: you are not going to start gaining weight if you do cardio 4 or 5 times per week instead of 6 or 7. Actually, I think your body will benefit from this change in several ways. Firstly, you must be totally exhausting yourself, it definitely sounds like it from the description of your cardio+legs+supersets day. Are you trying to kill yourself? Your workouts would benefit from doing less so that when you do workout you are really revved up, ready to sweat and can give it your all. You would undoubtedly enjoy the cardio sessions more this way. Secondly, continuing to do this much cardio will sooner or later lead to an injury through repetitive stress and overuse. Thirdly, mental fatigue and workout dread will then set in from working out so much and your workouts may grind to a halt as you find it increasingly difficult to motivate yourself.

There have been many threads on these forums recently about the importance of weights over cardio for weight loss. Have you read some of them? You are in fact better off reducing some of these cardio days so that you can instead get down to some solid lifting with the heaviest weights you can handle, and progressively overloading the muscles so you can lift heavier and gain strength and lean muscle tissue. many exercise physiologists talk about the calorie expenditure of exercise. Weight training, heavy lifting and circuit type lifting, have the biggest calorie burn after the exercise session and during the exercise session respectively. So, you could do 60 mins cardio and you could lift heavy for an hour. 36 hoirs later only the weight training will still reveal an elevated calorie burn in your body.

What are you waiting for?

So, instead of your current, punishing routine, change it up, change the emphasis of your efforts onto less cardio, more weights and you should lose more weight this way, not to mention avoid injury and boredom.

Mon: 30 mins cardio + upper body weights
Tues: B&G
Weds: 30 mins cardio + upper body weights
Thurs: Off or yoga
Fri: L&G
Sat: 45 mins cardio + upper body weights
Sun: long cardio session

This is the maximum I would suggest doing in order to stimulate muscle growth, avoid mental fatigue and injury and still get your cardio induced endorphins in. Tweak as necessary as your muscles grow and your motivation to lift more changes!

Clare

 

[librarydiva]

Clare--

Thanks for the good advice! I had seen the threads on more lifting, less cardio but figured that would only work for all of you here who are already in great shape!

I do enjoy both strength and cardio, so changing things around will be fun. I MAY even venture into 4DS sooner rather than later! (I've been worried the cardio sections in there might actually kill me, LOL!)

Thanks so much for taking the time to respond.

-Karen

 

[librarydiva]

Yes, that is helpful! From looking at your response and Clare's, the split might actually work better for me. I am willing to give it a try with more weight, less cardio!

Here are the videos that I have:

Strength: Supersets, Push and Pull, Legs and Glutes, Butts and Guts, and the Pump section of Step Jump and Pump (which is intended to be used as a circuit workout); 4DS

Cardio: Step Blast, Low Max, Step Jump and Pump, Kick Punch and Crunch,

Still Jumpin' (60 min. hi-low, Christie Taylor), Sweat Express (60 min. hi-low, Kari Anderson), Two the Max (25 min. step and 35 min. hi-low, Kari Anderson)

 

[maddiesmum]

You are welcome Karen and good luck!

Clare

 

[marymac]

I did Butts and Gutts this week and let me tell you it is a great workout. This is how I did it.

Monday-Muscle Max Upper Body plus 35 minutes of cardio fusion
Tuesday-MIC (Hi'lo part only) 35 minutes plus the standing part of Butts and gutts and core
Wednesday-Power Hour Upper body plus 30 minutes of Kick Max
Thursday-25 minute run plus the floorwork section of Butts and gutts plus core.
Friday-Cathe's First Bootcamp Circuit DVD. My legs are fried.

Today, I plan to do a little seimming and running and Sunday a run.

I also love gym style legs and legs and glutes and also break this up into standing exercises one day and floor work 2 days later. Plus 2 upper body workouts, Monday, wedenesday and a circuit workout on Fridays and the weekend just good fun cardio at the gym. Good luck. Hope this helps.

Mary