What workouts should I use?

E

Elaine Keller

Cathlete
Hi Cathe,

I have several of your videos/DVDs and must say that I love them.

I've been doing all three PS once per week and ME twice per week. I do some sort of cardio every day. Lately my workouts have been
Sat - 10 to 12 mile run (I frequently run 1/2 marathons so this is a must),
Sun - Low Max and both PS upper body,
Mon - PS legs and Step Blast (I love Step Blast!),
Tues - IMAX,
Wed - ME and Power Max,
Thurs - 3 to 5 mile run,
Fri - ME and either run or any of your cardio workouts that I feel like doing.

My goal is to gain muscle and reduce body fat. I don't need to lose weight.

I have no idea if my current rotation is sufficient for my purpose.

I'm also wondering where any of your circuit workouts might fit in to my rotation.

Thanks for any input you might have for me. It would be much appreciated!
 
Do you ever think that you might be doing too much? You never take a day off and you do two workouts each day!

I think it will be hard, if not impossible for you to gain muscle doing this much cardio. If you are running this much, you really don't need the Step Blast, Power Max and other cardios you feel like doing. Also, to get better results from your strength training, I would not do it all on the same day. By the time you get to the second of the PS tapes, your muscles are already tired and cannot perform at optimal level for you. You will see greater strength and mass gains if you split the two PS upper body workouts to different days and let your muscles rest. With this rotation your muscles are never resting, so how and when can they repair themselves and grow?

"if [your] current rotation is sufficient" seems to be an understatement!!!

I do not mean to offend you, but quite honestly, this rotation is frightening. It looks like self-inflicted punishment.

The best results I ever got for muscle and strength building came when I lowered the cardio to not more than three sessions per week.

I hope some of this helps,

Clare
 
I agree with Clare. I've had the best muscle gain when I do a three-day split workout like Gym Styles ONCE each per week, as heavy as I can, and don't overdo cardio. I also take a recovery week every 3-4 weeks, when I focus on core work, stretching, and moderate weights and cardio.

Muscle doesn't grow when it's overworked, it grows when it is challenged by work, then has time to repair and recover.

Many muscle-building programs minimize cardio, and work with heavy weights in split routines, sometimes even doing only one body part per day.

ETA: Here's a link to a rotation that shows what a muscle-building routine would be like using the Hardcores (you could also substitute PS, or any three-day split, or do a two-day split and do each 2 days a week).
http://69.0.137.118/dc/dcboard.php?...id=2340&mesg_id=2340&listing_type=searchlooks like:
 
The cardio is not too much for me. I am a long distance runner and have been for years. I recently started using Cathe's cardio in place of 50% of my mileage and have seen my running time improve by 1 minute per mile. Probably due to the intervals and the plyometrics.

The way I should have posed the question is the PS once a week and the ME twice a week a good combination to build muscle? Or should I replace the endurance with just strenth?

Isn't this the board to ask Cathe a question or is it for anyone to answer?
 
Your cardio regimen is similar to what I do (1 step tape per day and some stationary bike, rower or elliptical). I also do a full body muscle endurance video like MM (my current favorite) 3-4 times per week but I lift as heavy as I can during the workouts and I concentrate hard on my form. I have built strength and muscle easily with this rotation and I really enjoy it too. It took me a little while of doing this to notice a change in my body. I also mix things up a little bit when I hit a plateau. Sometimes I add a circuit workout the following day after MM, or I add a week of gym style/s&H.
 
"Isn't this the board to ask Cathe a question or is it for anyone to answer? "

For the answer to this, consult the thread entitled "Ask Cathe forum" at the top of this forum page.

Kathryn and I were trying to help you. Of course, if you don't want any help........

Our comments on how to build muscle mass and strength still stand. But I sense your resistance to them.

Work for strength, not endurance, to gain muscle mass. And do less, not more.

I too used to be a middle distance runner, but I still gave my body rest days, especially after a 12 mile run.

Clare

Clare
 
>Do you ever think that you might be doing too much? You
>never take a day off and you do two workouts each day!
>
>
>I do not mean to offend you, but quite honestly, this rotation
>is frightening. It looks like self-inflicted punishment.
>

The reason it might seem that there is some resistance to your help is because.

1. I do two workouts on SOME days. One in the morning and one in the late afternoon. When I do two workouts one is cardio and one is weight training with the exception of doing the upper body PS all in one day. Again I do one in the am and one in the pm.

2. I'm in tune with my body and rest when I need to. The three mile easy run on Thursday is active resting. It takes little effort for me to run that distance because I am a LONG distance runner. I run marathons and 1/2 marathons. When I'm training for a marathon and run 15 miles or more on my long run then I take the next day off completely.

Point is I'm not complaining about not gaining muscle and wondering what I should change about my workouts. I just wanted to know if I should mix PS and ME to gain muscle or stick with PS only.
 
Just wanted to comment that I can see both viewpoints in this situation...because of my study and personal trainer certifications I've learned that the best way to build muscle is to reduce or minimize cardio and focus on heavy lifting. That is so true. But I can see the other side because I am also a long distance runner and triathlete (do half and full marathons, half ironmans, and have done a full Ironman) so I know what Elaine is saying because when training for those distances you achieve a certain level of conditioning. I think for most of us that are into doing these types of endurance events - our idea of how much muscle we want to achieve is different than someone who is focusing entirely on muscle shaping. It is a fact that we are not going to be able to build as much muscle because of all the cardio that we do training for events. I'm willing to sacrifice that because I enjoy training and competing. Elaine...I have done rotations very similar to what you are doing. I change mine frequently though to focus on strength or cardio in certain rotations (for instance in the off-season when I'm not doing so much running, biking, swimming I cut back on that and focus on strength) and take rest days as needed depending on how I'm feeling. Especially by focusing on strength in the off-season when I can cut back on the cardio I have found that I've increased my lean muscle mass pretty substantially. I focus on the Slow & Heavy series and PS series and now the Gym style series in the off-season. During the season I'll use total body and more time efficient strength workouts. It takes time though because of all the endurance training so you'll have to be patient :) Hope that helps.

Cheryl
 
Mary Beth Burns

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't your goal, as stated in the beginning, to GAIN muscle? Then when you received advice, you said you weren't complaining about it. I agree with the advice given by Clare--with all of that cardio, you're not going to gain muscle. You're burning all of it by overworking. And no, we're not Cathe, but we do work-out.
 
Bumping - hoping that Cathe answers.

My thoughts - My understanding is that cardio only inhibits muscle growth if calorie intake is too low. I would say try a rotation for a month and see what happens. I think PS is a good series for muscle growth. Also, the Gym Styles and the Slow & Heavy series. I don't think ME is designed to increase muscle (except in a deconditioned person) because it is high rep, low weight. It's fun and good for endurance though.

Sharon:)
 
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