CommunityBrowse groupsBlogEtiquetteInvite Your friendsSuccess Stories

Lounge
Community 


Weight training

I do a total body weight training class once a week. Am I just wasting my time or is there some benefit to lifting weights once a week. I am going to try to get to the class twice a week but right now one time is all that fits in my schedule. I also do running to keep up my cardio.

Thu. Jul 6, 3:27pm

Add comment  
every little bit helps! You could do it more often on your own for it to be more affective.

Thursday, July 06, 2006, 3:28 PM

Add comment
Here's a link on working out once a week:

Link

Thursday, July 06, 2006, 3:38 PM

Add comment
OP here

Thanks for that link. I like the idea of doing the morning routine just incase you don't make it to the gym, you will have done something. I do workout 3 times a week running. However, I can only make it to the weight training class once a week. I don't feel like I am getting more definition in my arms or legs from doing this once a week. Just wondered if anyone has been successful weight training just once a week.

Thursday, July 06, 2006, 3:53 PM

Add comment
my problem was that it was so hard for me to get in that cardio that when i was in the gym all I was doing was building rock under the mud. Now that I consistantly run (6 times a week) the mud is melting away and the rock is starting to show. So I say increase your cardio and do simple muscle building activities, like push ups and coffee table dips, during comercials at home.

Thursday, July 06, 2006, 7:08 PM

Add comment
IT's IMPERATIVE to do weights.

Weights are more important than you realize. In many studies with women in their 80s with osteoporisis, research has demonstrated that women who weight train lose less bone and less muscle to weight loss than those who don't.

Muscle is protein and many dieters forget that when they do only cardio, that part of their loss can be muscle tone if they are not eating enough protein.

The body gets the protein from any source it can and that means it takes it from muscle. So...while you lose weight, you actually lose muscle and bone.

By weight training, you will not lose muscle, your weight loss might be slower or faster depending on your workouts. People like Oprah have used weight training when nothing else would work and found within two months more progress in weight loss than she'd had in the last year.

YES, weight training is IMPERATIVE. It keeps calcium in the bones and slows muscle degeneration. Without weight training along with other exercise muscles deteriorate at a 3-5% rate. With weight training even with aging, muscles lose only .2% every year. That is a huge difference and a significant difference over a decade, i.e., 30% versus 2%.

This is one reason why so many folks in their 40s look like their in ther 50s or 60s and why those who work out regularly and are in their 50s and 60s look so much younger.

Only 30% is genetics, 70% of aging is LIFESTYLE.

Friday, July 07, 2006, 9:48 AM

Add comment
Cardio BEFORE weights

You should do cardio before weights, its more effective for the muscles.

Friday, July 07, 2006, 9:49 AM

Add comment
Actually, if you're lifting heavy weights, you might want to do them before cardio so that you can maintain proper form when lifting. LIghter weights it doesn't matter so much.

Friday, July 07, 2006, 10:13 AM

Add comment
Also if you do cardio after, you work out the lactic acid that's built up in your muscles.

Friday, July 07, 2006, 10:43 AM

Add comment
IMPERATIVE -- Cardio BEFORE weights

Many studies have demonstrated it is imperative to do cardio BEFORE weights as you tear the muscles during weights and doing cardio afterwards weakens the muscles more than strenghtens them.

Friday, July 07, 2006, 11:05 AM

Add comment
Actually I have read cardio after weights too. I think you are looking at outdated material. If your muscles are tired from cardio you are not going to benefit much from a weight training workout that was not up to your full potential. I think the risk for injury is higher if you are tired.

Friday, July 07, 2006, 11:11 AM

Add comment
Pros & Cons...

From these three articles, I gather that weights first is best for most people. It allows the body to build, rather than lose, lean muscle, it ensures you have not depleted your carb energy resources and it burns more calories (and supposedly more from fat). Mainly endurance athletes should do cardio first.

It also kind of sounds like you should do what works for you.

From Muscle&Fitness HERS:
Cardio Before Weights:
If you're training for an endurance event -- a half-marathon, triathlon, etc. -- you'd do right to put cardio before any other workout. That way, you pour the most energy and effort into the session to produce optimal performance results.

Or you might want to do cardio before your weight workout for the warm-up effect. "If the cardio workout is light, it can serve to warm up the muscles, which in turn encourages you to move right into high-intensity lifting without having to do as many warm-up sets," Olson explains.

Cardio After Weights:
On the flip side, if shaping the body of your dreams is your main objective, you may want to save cardio for after your weight workout. "An intense cardio workout will take away from an effective weight-training workout," Olson says. "Cardio burns both fat and carbs, and those carbs won't be available for weight training if you do cardio first. That's a problem since they're the key source of energy for weight training; you may not be able to lift at a beneficial intensity."

You can also burn more fat by increasing your lean mass, which eats up calories all day long. So for building a little muscle, weight training should take priority in your workout. This way, your energy level will be high and your intensity won't suffer during the part of your program that matters most to you. You may not be able to work at the same intensity if you do cardio after weights -- especially on leg day -- but you might tap into fat stores more quickly.

Bottom Line
Put cardio first if endurance performance is your main focus. Otherwise, "You'll burn more fat and total calories by doing cardio after weight training," Olson remarks. "But following a high-rep, light-weight, circuit-type program with cardio will burn more total calories from both carbs and fat."

From Ventura County reporter:
Weights first:
The main benefit to lifting weights before performing cardiovascular exercise is to maximize your ability to maintain and/or build lean muscle tissue.

Cardio first:
Following the entirety of the cardio workout, (30 to 60 minutes), if you decide to lift weights you are less likely to maximize your ability to maintain and/or build lean muscle tissue. Instead, you are more likely to lose lean muscle tissue and lack the strength necessary to build muscle.

However, one positive to performing cardio prior to weight training is EPOC (Excess Postexercise Oxygen Consumption). What this means is that you burn more total calories following the exercise session. Nonetheless, in my opinion and that of most experts who value metabolism, it’s important to keep building lean body mass for improved health and longevity.

Ezine article:
Almost everyone will have the best results by doing cardio after resistance training. There are several reasons for this:

1. Resistance training uses carbs and only carbs for energy. If you deplete your muscles of stored carbs and then try to perform strength training, you will be weaker during the strength training.
2. Cardio can be performed by tapping into the energy in bodyfat. It takes 20-30 minutes of activity for the body to switch from primarily burning carbohydrate to burning fat. If you weight train first, that means you are already burning fat at the start of your cardio session.
3. Your heart rate will be elevated sooner during your cardio session.

There is one situation where you might answer the question, "cardio or weights first" with "cardio," and it's the case where you're an endurance athlete training for performance in endurance events. If endurance event performance is your priority, go ahead and train cardio first, even though it's not so good for fat loss. If you goals are fat loss or muscle gain primarily, be sure you answer "weights!" when the question, "cardio or weights first" arises.

Friday, July 07, 2006, 11:35 AM

Add comment
Cardio or weights...

My trainer said weights first, however he also suggested doing a workout occasionally where I did 10 minutes of weight training, 10 of cardio, 10 of weight, etc...or to do circuit training while lifting so that my heart rate was up to cardio level, but I was weight training.

Friday, July 07, 2006, 11:53 AM

Add comment
Heck, I just do it whatever way I feel like when I'm at the gym!

Since most of us are not training to become fitness competitors, I think the important thing to keep track of is making the workout fun, do-able, and satisfying. It's more important that the workout get done than that it be "perfect."

Friday, July 07, 2006, 12:22 PM

Add comment
NOT outdated material -- new material

New study one by Mayo Clinic and one by NYU document that the old information and popular lit -- of weights before cardio actually does MORE damage to the muscles than the current thought.

Friday, July 07, 2006, 12:46 PM

Add comment
i agree that if you're doing it to be healthy and build muscle, do it whenever it makes sense during your workout! i personally do "eight minutes in the morning" exercises when i get up, on the theory that it gives my metabolism an early boost. the bottom line is that your muscles will work no matter when you use them -- so just do what makes sense unless you are aiming for high-intensity stuff.

also, to the poster above who mentioned lactic acid, see my link for an article on lactic acid, and that it's what your muscles use to re-build! it's not a toxin and it's not what causes muscle soreness. just wanted to put that out there in case anyone hadn't heard about this. exercise after weights is not going to 'work out' the lactic acid, but it will lessen the effects you might feel if, for example, you did high-intensity weights with zero stretching or cardio afterwards. it's more about keeping the muscle mobile.

Link

Friday, July 07, 2006, 1:08 PM

Add comment
My feeling is, it probably doesn't matter unless you are

A) Training for a major endurance event, like a marathon or
B) Lifting really heavy weights



Friday, July 07, 2006, 4:49 PM

Add comment
Op again

Didn't mean to even get into which to do first. I do them on different days anyway. I run Mon, Wed and Friday. The only weight class I can make it to is on Thursday. I just hope I am not wasting my time by only going to one class a week.

Friday, July 07, 2006, 4:53 PM

Add comment
Have you tried getting a video and some dumbbells to use at home? Crunch makes some good strength training videos, and some people really like videos from The Firm. I don't think you're wasting time by going once a week (lifting weights is really good for you), but you could make even more progress if you found other ways to fit it in.

Saturday, July 08, 2006, 7:37 PM

Add comment
cardio with resistance bands

i do Billy blanks taebo resistance bands workouts. that way i do both weight training and cardio, saving time. it can be as hard or as easy as i want it to be just by the way i hold my core. i sweat and build muscle.

Monday, July 10, 2006, 9:56 PM

Add comment
OP again,

7:37 poster -did you find the resisance bands and video on the internet? This sounds like something I can fit into my schedule. Also have you used dumbells before and prefer resistance bands?

Monday, July 10, 2006, 10:30 PM

Add comment
I'm the 7:37 poster, and I use dumbbells. I buy most of my videos from Collage Video (see link) - you can view clips of the workouts before you buy. My personal favorite ever is Crunch Turbo Sculpt, but unfortunately it's no longer available. Crunch does have a new video called Total Resculpt,which I bought, but haven't tried yet. Just go to Collage and look in the "Muscle Toning" category and have fun reading the descriptions. Be sure to check what equipment they say you need - some require a step or a stability ball in addition to dumbbells or resistance bands.

Link

Tuesday, July 11, 2006, 9:18 AM

Add comment








Related Content:

How To Lose Weight- The Basics
Weight Watchers Points System
The Fat Smash Diet
The Eat To Live Diet
The Beck Diet Solution
How To Get The Motivation To Lose Weight

 

How To Be Successful Using PEERtrainer

How To Burn Fat
Online Weight Loss Support- How It Works
Does Green Tea Help You Lose Weight?
Tips On Using PEERtrainer
Visit The PEERtrainer Community
Diet and Fitness Resources

Fitness

Weight Watchers Meetings
Learning To Inspire Others: You Already Are
Writing Down Your Daily Workouts
Spending Money On A Personal Trainer?
How I Became A Marathon Runner

 

Preventive Health

How To Prevent Injuries During Your Workout
Flu Season: Should You Take The Flu Shot?
Are You Really Ready To Start PEERtrainer?
Super Foods That Can Boost Your Energy
Reversing Disease Through Nutrition

New Diet and Fitness Articles:

Weight Watchers Points Plus
How To Adjust Your Body To Exercise
New: Weight Watchers Momentum Program
New: PEERtrainer Blog Archive
Review Of The New Weight Watchers Momentum Program
 

Weight Loss Motivation by Joshua Wayne:

Why Simple Goal Setting Is Not Enough
How To Delay Short Term Gratification
How To Stay Motivated
How To Exercise With A Busy Schedule

Real World Nutrition and Fitness Questions

Can Weight Lifting Help You Lose Weight?
Are Protein Drinks Safe?
Nutrition As Medicine?
 

Everyday Weight Loss Tips

How To Eat Healthy At A Party
How To Eat Out And Still Lose Weight
The Three Bite Rule
Tips On How To Stop A Binge