What Will Happen Next?

This is prob. a dumb question, but...

I don't work during the summer, so I've been working out hardcore and really watching what I eat. I am almost where I want to be, as far as fitness goals, but I'm worried about what will happen when I start working again and can't spend the 1 1/2 hours a day working out.

If I keep the intensity, knock down the workouts to an hour, keep changing my workouts to keep them "fresh", and keep eating clean, will I keep my fitness gains? I will be in the maintenance phase, so to speak. I just fear waking up one day with the thigh fat back, and all my summer hard work gone.
 
Working HARD and working LONG do not always go hand in hand. You can have an EXTREMELY intense work out in far less time then 90 mins and you can also work out for 90 mins but not push and have it really not be worth the time invested.


Don't worry about it...Eat clean, drink your water and hit your shorter work outs HARD and you should be fine!:)
 
Yeah, I'm prob. overtraining right now...

Yesterday I did GS Back, Shoulders, and Biceps followed by the kick/punch combos and high intensity drills from Kick Max.
Today I did GS Chest and Triceps followed by KPC (no abs)

I am just working so hard to get to where I want to be before the summer ends.
 
You know how you're working out great for a while, feeling pretty good about yourself, and then you miss a day and suddenly feel like fatty mcfatterson, start noticing all these awful things in the mirror that weren't there the day before? At least that's happened to me. That's what I thought of when I read your post. Seems like, if you can get your brain to acknowledge that 60 min of working out is PLENTY, then you'll be golden.

Take comfort in the numbers:

Everyone says it's 80/10/10 eating/fitness/genetics. So even if you totally cut out exercise, you're looking at 10% of your thigh fat back. Now let's say you're only cutting out 33% of your exercise. So you're looking at 33% of 10% which is a whopping 3% of your thigh fat returning.

Not that your thighs are going to whip out their calculator and adjust accordingly. Personally, I think if eating super clean and working out 60 min a day gets you to 99% of your goal, increasing it to 90 min a day would get you to maybe 99.5 % of your goal. I'm trying to express this in terms of asymptotes, I don't think I'm doing a very good job of it though. Anyway, I'm sure you'll be fine and look great!!
 
clothesminded:

Do some research on high volume high density weight training. OnFitness magazine has a great article about this concept in their latest issue. The article outlines how to create a 30-minute workout that is still as effective, if not moreso, than 60-90 minute workouts.
 
You guys just crack me up. Love the thigh comment.

I am certainly my own worst enemy. My husband tells me that all the time. Says that I need to stop comparing myself to 18 year-old!

I will def. check out the OnFitness article.
 
Clothesminded,

You can get a LOT done in 30 minutes! I've switched to pretty much 30 minute/40 minute workouts MAX and just to give you background--I'm 38 and had a baby 18 months ago. I gained 45 POUNDS during my pregnancy. And I work full-time so I have a very small window to workout.

So I use Cathe pre-mixes, Core Max, and keep the cardio to under 40 minutes, use Stretch Max segments...and I'm in the best shape I have EVER been in now!!! Maybe you can squeeze an extra workout in at night, or on weekends. For example, I still get up at 5:30AM on Saturday/Sunday but get in a combo, like 40 minutes cardio/a Core Max segment or Stretch Max segment.

I really feel my week is balanced but I'm not killing myself trying to get it all in, either. But the 30 minute program--which I was skeptical of at first--along with clean eating--has really worked for me.
 
5:30 on a weekend day? Dang, Wendy, you are good! That's when I get up during the week when I work, but I sure like my extra shut-eye during the weekend.

I'm pretty sure this is just another example of my OCD personality. The all-or-nothing kinda thinking. I'm also thinking that I can make up for three months lost of not working out! Now, I know this isn't true! It's about being consistent. Why does staying fit have to feel so darn hard sometimes?! x(
 

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