Ok I'm on workout 3,4 and I have to tell you guys, I have to do both A and B the same morning. A only lasts about 20 minutes and its not much of a struggle. I've been in the gym my whole life and I'm already at 110pd on the pulldowns, 22.3 on the shoulders, and seated row 110pds. I did both A & B and felt like I had a workout. My concern is getting too broad in the chest. I already have trouble getting in my most of the time, ex-large shirts and I really don't want to get any bigger. Same with my legs. I ran track in school and do kickboxing weekly now and my thighs (as a african american-we carry alot of weight in our thighs) are large. Don't get me wrong, they are toned but I just don't want to get too much mass. I like my size 12 pants and want to go down not up? Any help or suggestions would be appreciated. The 60 sec recovery time, sometimes its 60 sometimes 45 because my heart rate usually comes down great. I'm not sore after my workouts but I feel the muscles.
Were you using heavy enough weights? I could be wrong, but it kind of sounds like the weights were lower than what you could move because you didn't want to get any bigger. I'd suggest though that if you're losing fat and gaining muscle you'd be smaller since muscle is denser than fat. But that's from my totally untrained viewpoint. Also, since you've been in the gym your whole life, muscle soreness would most likely be the exception, not the rule (if not, it kind of begs the question just what you were doing in the gym ).
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Tom
No "happy hours" makes for a lot of miserable days. - Mahler
Are you doing NROL4W or the original? I'm not sure what workouts you're referring to, but if it's the Break-in (or Phase I of NROL4W) I can see how it might be too easy if you've been a regular gym-goer. Like, Stingo said, it sounds like the weights you're using are too light.
Regarding getting bigger, that's more a function of your nutrition. If you're eating at a surplus you'll gain some mass, but if your eating at maintenance, I don't think you'll have anything to worry about. If you're using the original NROL, stick with the Fat Loss workouts that are high-rep, short rest period workouts. And if you are doing the Break-in workouts now and they're too easy, jump top FLI.
I'm doing the workout in the NROL for Women and I'm at phase I. I didn't start with a lot of weight because I didn't know what to expect. My eating is much better than a few months ago, although the whey concerns me. I'm assuming I only need it after the weight workouts or before, not on the cardio days? The only day I was sore was the first day because I misread the book and did workouts 1-8 in one day!! LOL. Now, if I bed down to pick something up, I'm totally aware of my hamstrings or reach up high my lats etc.
Then I'd suggest picking a weight where you can do 16 reps in a 15 rep set, but not 17. That way you won't train to failure, but you can sure see it from there.
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Tom
No "happy hours" makes for a lot of miserable days. - Mahler
Obviously everyone's body is different, but here is the experience I had. I started doing New Rules about a year ago. I did BreakIn, Fat Loss II, III, Hypertrophy I, and then Strength I, II, and III. I did these as written to the best of my abilities. During most of the time, I focused on increasing my protein intake, eating around 2300 calories per day. I didn't really gain any weight, just fluctuated around the same area. I would say that my shoulders and thighs got slightly bigger, enough that my clothes got tight. The last two months or so, I have been focusing on reducing calories to around 1850 average per day. I've lost about 5 pounds and my thigh measurement is smaller than when I started and my clothes are getting loose. I'm not sure if my shoulders are actually any bigger, but they are much more defined. The biggest overall effect on my body is a much more cut look to my shoulders, back and arms.
So as far as getting big, I think your diet will determine that more than anything else.
Well next week I'll be on the 10's and I think with the rate I'm going I might not be able to get to ten because of the weight increase. I struggled today with the pulldowns at 110 and the seated row at 110. Everything else felt tough but I made it through. We shall see!!!!
Well you should be sufficiently fatigued from your workout that doing another workout (A and B in the same day) should not be possible. Regardless, I have to marvel at your resolution in getting the work done.
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Tom
No "happy hours" makes for a lot of miserable days. - Mahler
I'm very excited about the whole thing. I had a physical right before Xmas and was told I have high blood pressure and that I was 10 pounds fatter than 2006 and that was a shocker to me so instead of being depressed I took it as a personal challenge and so far I'm down 7 pounds since the week before Xmas. It's not a hugh loss but it's a steady loss and with this new workout routine hopefully I can shed another 10 by the end of February. I have a hard time on Fridays, and Saturday with my eating, hanging out with friends etc.
LWilson you refer to Breakin, Fatloss and Hypertrophy. Maybe I'm reading an different edition because no where in my book do I see that listed on the stages.
LWilson you refer to Breakin, Fatloss and Hypertrophy. Maybe I'm reading an different edition because no where in my book do I see that listed on the stages.
She's talking about the original NROL.
__________________
Tom
No "happy hours" makes for a lot of miserable days. - Mahler
I'm very excited about the whole thing. I had a physical right before Xmas and was told I have high blood pressure and that I was 10 pounds fatter than 2006 and that was a shocker to me so instead of being depressed I took it as a personal challenge and so far I'm down 7 pounds since the week before Xmas. It's not a hugh loss but it's a steady loss and with this new workout routine hopefully I can shed another 10 by the end of February. I have a hard time on Fridays, and Saturday with my eating, hanging out with friends etc.
Well there has to be a balance struck - I used to be the guy that would eat anything/everything and do nothing. I've distanced myself from that but also don't want to be the guy that eats nothing and spends all day in the gym. I know that visiting the new local brewpub and hanging out with friends might not have been the best thing progress-wise, but it sure was beneficial to the spirit.
__________________
Tom
No "happy hours" makes for a lot of miserable days. - Mahler
Yes I agree!!!!!!! I don't drink so that's not a problem but on Friday's I have french fries at TGIF's (no salt) and this past Saturday I had 4 wings and some Mac and cheese. Now, I was out all day at a convention and so that's why I ate like that. Ordinarily, I don't do that bad at all on Saturdays but Fridays if I hit Happy Hour w/the girls, I call that my cheat day. I'm hooked on Cottage cheese and pineapple and to me that's like a treat so at night for my last snack ( I work part time so I don't get home until 10:30 and I'm usally hungry) I'll have a small 1/2 cup serving of CC and P and I'm good till morning!!!!!!!
If you're doing The New Rules of Lifting for Women, come on over to the NROL4W forum at http://forums.jpfitness.com/new-rules-lifting-women/. Right now you're in the forum for the other book, which is The New Rules of Lifting.
I honestly don't think you'll get bigger doing the exercises at the proper weight needed to make it a real workout. I've found personally that lifting heavy and eating maintenance or a bit under (a bit as in no more than 300 calories under my maintenance) was perfect to maintain weight, decrease size (even in my rather ginormous legs which have always been really big and muscly), and increase strength.
Unless you're just somehow a huge freak, which I doubt, or getting butt injections of vitamin S, I don't think you'll gain size if you aren't eating above maintenance. You're a woman. You're not a man. You don't have enough T to make you bulky.
However, sometimes you may feel more bulky... here's my theories as to why based on my own experience...
*You get all nice and muscley but you've not lost much fat yet, so you push out a bit more. Once you lose some fat you get smaller again.
*You get big in the midsection and no longer have as small a waist. Prolly the result of working your oblique abz and that makes the midsection wider. There's an article on Tnation that talks about that with Britany Spears (pre-babiez & craziness). Prolly doesn't often happen without the extra ab work.
Also bloatedness, water retention, muscle pump, etc can make you feel bigger. Realize all these things are cyclical and will go away.
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