workout advice

I am new to working out in the gym and have limited time to be there only about an hour a day due to a 4 month old son so I was wondering am I better off doing lifting one day then cardio the next or weights then a shorter amount of cardio everyday? any workout or diet advice anyone has is very much so appreciated.

Hi Buffs Girl! What are your goals and stats?

5'3 137 I just had a baby and would like to lose fat, tone up and gain muscle. I don't really care what I end up weighing I would just like to like the way I look and to feel good. you look amazing I would love to look even half as toned as you do. any advice you can give me would be great.

I would suggest doing cardio 5-6 times per week. Split it up by weight training/cardio one day and then dedicate a full hour to cardio the following day. Follow this routine for 6-8 weeks, then you may want to switch it up a bit. Good luck and keep us posted on your progress.

I only have about an hour to be at the gym a day so how much should I dedicate to weights and how much to cardio on those days?

I think she meant 1 hour of each, figuring you would alternate days between weight training and cardio. That really wouldnt equal to 5-6 days a week and with a newborn you might not want to be in there all week.
You might want to try spliting it between 5 days. Maybe cardio on 3-4 days and the rest on wieghts?

I don't understand the mentality of endless hours of cardio.
Doesn't anyone believe that body composition is 100% diet? Cardio's use should be to keep the metabolic rate up while following an appropriate nutrition regimen.

Just so you know either males OR females can get ripped to shreds without doing ANY cardio if their diet and weight training is down-pat. Conversely you can run like a marathon runner, but if you feed your face like a powerlifter you'll still be fat.

I'd recommend 45 minutes weight training and 15 minutes HIIT for 5 days of the week. But get your diet in order; it is the ONLY thing which will give you long term results.

Archaic said:

I don't understand the mentality of endless hours of cardio.
Doesn't anyone believe that body composition is 100% diet? Cardio's use should be to keep the metabolic rate up while following an appropriate nutrition regimen.

Just so you know either males OR females can get ripped to shreds without doing ANY cardio if their diet and weight training is down-pat. Conversely you can run like a marathon runner, but if you feed your face like a powerlifter you'll still be fat.

I'd recommend 45 minutes weight training and 15 minutes HIIT for 5 days of the week. But get your diet in order; it is the ONLY thing which will give you long term results.

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Excellent point! Diet is definitely the key! However, because of the recent baby..we must be realistic...most new mothers cannot begin a strict diet due to breast feeding. Because she is carrying more bodyfat than normal....the extra cardio will help jumpstart her transition back to her desired shape. She will have to monitor her diet to adhere to the needs of the baby, then she can go "hardcore"!

hey, I have two toung children- one just 4 and one just 2. I breast fed both, so first of all, some advice with that: Be careful working out b-4 feeding, it makes your milk bitter. Also watch your diet, baby NEEDS that fat! If you are not breast feeding, disreguard.

As for what to do, yes, you can burn fat by doing weights and moderating diet, but getting your heart to a healthy place is a good way to start. Do some cardio and see how high it goes and how long it takes to recover. If you stay in the 120s or so no sweat, jump to weights. If you're up over 150 and take some time comming down, do some cardio every day- 45 mins is good and then do a different muscle group every day for the remaining 15 minuts- keep in mind you can do more weights if you do some at home. Bench your baby too! His weight will increase as you become stronger- it's perfect

Of corse, alternating works too- but be careful of lifting too much, because your muscles are probably still loose from your pregnancy- they stay that way for about 6 months or so, so start slow to avoid injury. If you are already lifting lots, no worries, just be careful!

Hope I don't seem like a know-it-all... this worked for me and is my opinion (based on one avenue of thought).

Thank you guys so much for all your advice...I am doing pretty well I am already back to my pregancy weight (with the excpeption of some loose skin around my tummy...I was wondering if you suggest doing alternating days of cardio (60minutes) with lifting the other days or lifting everyday with 30minutes of cardio?

sorry about the typo I meant pre pregnacy weight haha opps

Buffs Girl said:

Thank you guys so much for all your advice...I am doing pretty well I am already back to my pregancy weight (with the excpeption of some loose skin around my tummy...I was wondering if you suggest doing alternating days of cardio (60minutes) with lifting the other days or lifting everyday with 30minutes of cardio?

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Cardio everyday....incorporate the lifting every other day

Thanks I'll try that

hey buff,

cardio is a great way to burn additional calories and burning the fat faster, however i agree with archaic that diet is the key!!!
it sounds like you are getting good results with what you are doing now so keep up the good work!!!

perhaps try splitting your cardio sessions into two half hour sessions (one in the morning and one in the eve) so you arent away from your baby too long and you wont get bored.