Is it pointless doing weights in between cardio

ManBurger

Hi, I'v been going to the gym last 2 weeks mostly daily, usually my session would be:

20 mins cardio
10 mins weights
15 mins cardio.

I was told that doing weights in between was pointless as I'm just burning muscle. I don't do weights daily only every second day.

Cheers

Nate--IRL--

State the goals you wish to achive with your gym time, it will make it much easier to offer advice.

Nate

ManBurger

just lose the beergut and gain some upper body muscle(not massive amounts just slightly more, chest and arms).

Not overweight really, 12st 6lbs at 6 foot - I suppose want to get down to 12st

I generally start working out at half empty stomach, and eat high enough protien meal after, (rare steak etc)

Nate--IRL--

Cardio will help shift that beer gut, but it will be your diet that will have the biggest impact on the belly. Think of it as 80-20% split, 80% Diet and 20% exercise. Good advice up there in the stickies about diet.

If you are going to be training with weights, it is generally a good idea to leave cardio until afterwards (except for maybe a light warmup). The reason for this is that muscles need to be fuelled to perform work. The more intensity you can put into lifting the better.

Also in relation to weights and gaining mass, Diet is key (reoccurring theme huh?)

The Idea that you are burning muscle depends on the intensity of your cardio. If you are going flat out, 90% effort, for 30-40mins you may enter this catabolic (Muscle-burning) state. Google HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training). It is an effective method of cardio for minimising Catabolism.

I will link to the standard link I always give about Bodybuilding etc. While it might not relate to exactly what you want to achieve, it will give you a very concise description of how your body works in relation to Diet, Muscle gain and weight loss. Read it, print it out and keep re-reading it until you can recite it blindfolded

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=17401146

Good luck.

Nate

irishultra

pointless. i mean what are you doing for that 10 minutes? a couple of bicep curls? please!!!

you need to dedicate a certain ammount of time to weight training and cardio, preferably on different days but i've heard doing cardio after weight training has advantages but really you will prob be too tired after your weights session to do cardio so will just turn off the threadmill or whatever after 10-15 minutes.

neilmct.com

ManBurger wrote: »

Not overweight really, 12st 6lbs at 6 foot - I suppose want to get down to 12st

Jezz im 14 + stone at 5'9 and would feel like captan catabolic and 12 stone!

Forget about how much you weigh - you could look better at 13 plus stone if you trained right and binned all that cardio.

As for weights I couldn't even get warmed up before my big sets in 10 minutes so you need to address what you are doing there.

Your workout should be built on compounds ie squats deadlifts chins etc then the odd bit of sport or sprint work added in. A workout should never be cardio dominant in my opinon.

celestial

neilmct.com wrote: »

Jezz im 14 + stone at 5'9 and would feel like captan catabolic and 12 stone!

Forget about how much you weigh - you could look better at 13 plus stone if you trained right and binned all that cardio.

As for weights I couldn't even get warmed up before my big sets in 10 minutes so you need to address what you are doing there.

Your workout should be built on compounds ie squats deadlifts chins etc then the odd bit of sport or sprint work added in. A workout should never be cardio dominant in my opinon.

+1, I thought the same when I read the first post. OP, I'm nearly 14 stone at 5'9" and don't have a beer gut... 12 stone at your height is light and you shouldn't have a beer gut at that weight - it means that you should be looking to actually increase or at least maintain your weight while losing fat and adding some muscle. Ideally you should look to maintain your weight or increase to around 13 stone while DECREASING your waist line.

Short cardio sessions with an emphasis on lifting weights and bodyweight exercises is the way forward.

ManBurger

That website had some good info - cheers, I'm not just doing it for vanity reasons all the same, I'd to be able to play a full hour of football comfortably.

Although its seems cant lose fat and gain muscle simultaneously - but I'm more doing it to break up the workout , just pull some weights till it hurts and back on the threadmill, It cant hurt and my muscle's do feel tighter and weight has gone down slightly.