Workout Routine - Still a bit confused and need help please!!!

First of all I just want to say I appreciate everybody on these forums help always and the time you guys take to help people like me with our questions.

I'm not looking to be a "bodybuilder" by any means and I'm working out completely natural (only supplement is protien shakes). Just looking to look good and have that "beach body" persay. I'm 6'2, 202lbs, roughly 12% BF now (pictures in the "Members Pictures" section).

My goal is to drop bodyfat down to under 10% while maintaining my weight as best as possible. My diet is great and very strict. Clean carbs and lots of protien. I'd say 200-250g of protien per day and 100-120g of carbs per day clean.

Here is my workout routine and my questions. I wasn't doing legs before but I have thrown them in the mix after hearing how important that is. I'm not going to list each individual excercise as I'm pretty good with changing up the routine and knowing which excercises target the muscles I'm working most effectively from reading on the boards.

Monday - Shoulders/Abs

Tues - Biceps/Quads

Wednesday - Triceps/Calves

Thursday - Back/Abs

Friday - Chest

Saturday - Off (sometimes throw in cardio)

Sunday - Off (sometimes throw in cardio)

I'm also doing 30 minutes of cardio 5x/week first thing in the morning on an empty stomach (usually walking on incline, bike riding outside, etc).

Is that routine good? I'm a bit concerned because I've read where people are saying training each muscle only once per week is not enough??? Should I be changing up the routine and hitting each muscle twice a week? I feel that could be overtaining.

Again I greatly appreciate the advice and opinions of the members here.

Thank you!

If you are going to separate body parts like that, then I would do it somewhat like you had. IMO, you want to separate your muscle groups in a "push" day and "pull" day. So like..

Day 1
Chest, Shoulders, Triceps

Day 2
Back, Biceps

Day 3
Legs, Abs

Day 4
Rest

Then repeat. This gives each body part 3 days of rest. Again, this is just my
opinion.



For the morning cardio, you will only need 20 minutes. As long as you do a HIIT type set up for it. So something like this on a treadmill:

Warm-up for 3-4 minutes at a fast walk or light jog

Interval 1 - run at 8.0 mi/hr for 1 minute

Interval 2 - walk at 4.0 mi/hr for 1.5 minutes

Interval 3 - run at 10.0 mi/hr for 1 minute

Interval 4 - walk at 4.0 mi/hr for 1.5 minutes

Repeat those 4 intervals 4 times

The speeds may be too fast. So adjust appropriately. I would cut back on the cardio. 5x times a week or more seems like eventually over training to me.


It'll cost money but check out http://thousandsofworkouts.com/ for routines.


I would try and set up a compound workout program if I were you though. Itll burn way more calories and get you that look you are wanting.

Why would I want to do HIIT cardio training? I'm not looking to lose weight fast. I'm not looking to lose any weight actually. I was always told and from all my research that 30 min of cardio 5x/week on empty stomach is most optimal for burning FAT and maintaining weight.

I appreciate your response and thoughts so don't think I'm coming at you, just curious as to why you recommend the HIIT cardio training.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by HereWeGoAgain

Why would I want to do HIIT cardio training? I'm not looking to lose weight fast. I'm not looking to lose any weight actually. I was always told and from all my research that 30 min of cardio 5x/week on empty stomach is most optimal for burning FAT and maintaining weight.

I appreciate your response and thoughts so don't think I'm coming at you, just curious as to why you recommend the HIIT cardio training.

---

You did say "My goal is to drop bodyfat down to under 10% while maintaining my weight as best as possible" didn't you? With proper weight training and diet you wont lose muscle. If anything, you will lose body fat. Which is what you asked for information on.

First my OPINION on not doing empty stomach morning cardio. The reasoning is that when you wake up in the morning, you are in a catabolic state where your body is breaking down muscle tissue to provide amino acids for many different processes and to help supply energy along with fat stores. You are probably going to burn a higher percentage of fat if you do cardio training first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. However, you may also lose some muscle if you do this on a regular basis, which will ultimately lower your metabolic rate, making it easier to store fat in the long run.

If you love working out in the morning, go right ahead, but I’d recommend at least taking in a little bit of protein and carbs beforehand (such as a half scoop of whey protein and a small serving of fruit) to reverse the catabolic state that you are in first thing in the morning. That way, you’ll have more energy for the workout, plus you won’t burn away your hard earned muscle.

2nd, my Opinion on to much cardio. Weight training builds lean muscle mass and therefore increases your RMR(resting metabolic rate). Excessive cardio training actually can cause a loss of lean muscle mass, therefore decreasing your RMR. Hence, the lower your RMR, the harder it’s going to be to lose any more body fat and easier to store body fat if you happen to overeat. The result is that people who use primarily cardio-based workouts and also have a poor diet frequently acquire that “skinny-fat” appearance where they have very little muscle definition coupled with excess body fat.

3rd, why I recommend HIIT. First, realize that our bodies are designed to perform physical activity in bursts of exertion followed by recovery, or stop-and-go movement instead of steady state movement. Recent research is suggesting that physical variability is one of the most important aspects to consider in your training. This tendency can be seen throughout nature as all animals demonstrate stop-and-go motion instead of steady state motion. In fact, humans are the only creatures in nature that attempt to do “endurance” type physical activities.

Most competitive sports (with the exception of endurance running or cycling) are also based on stop-and-go movement or short bursts of exertion followed by recovery. To examine an example of the different effects of endurance or steady state training versus stop-and-go training, consider the physiques of marathoners versus sprinters. Most sprinters carry a physique that is very lean, muscular, and powerful looking, while the typical dedicated marathoner is more often emaciated and sickly looking. Now which would you rather resemble?

Now don't go thinking I am smart. I got these answers from the internet :) Hope it helps!

I'm a bit discouraged that 30 people have read the post and only one person has chimed in their thoughts! Can I get some opinions from others on my post please?

Adam, thanks for the read and information!

Bump!

I will continue to bump this until I get the help I've requested.

Bro...you have all the help you need. Just read through the 1000 other post from others asking the same question.

Nobody has asked the same question and I have posted for a reason. Not for your sarcasm. The same amount of time it took you to type your bullshit response you could have typed something beneficial and useful.

Again, I will continue to post this and bump this until I get the help I'm looking for.

I was not giving you a hard time as you believe. There is a reason you are not getting help.

First you have provided no info other than a very vague workout schedule.

Second this question is asked in many different forms throught this forum. Look through the posts and read. Gather the info you are requesting and educate yourself. Then when it comes time to change up your workout down the road you won't even have to ask.

People here can give you the info but it ultimately your responsibility to determine the answer.

As an example here are two such routine options. Read the threads and adapt either workout to your liking or comfort level. You will find many on this board debate the effectiveness of both these routines. Only you can make that decision for yourself though.

http://forums.steroid.com/showthread...&highlight=STS

http://forums.steroid.com/showthread...ight=doggcrapp

If you will take a suggestion...it seems like you have a freestyle workout plan going on right now. I would suggest putting a workout in writing and starting a journal for yourself. This way you can track your progress and look back and adapt future workouts to your benefit.