My first question.

[Toni]

Hey, guys..This is my first post on this forum.

I am a male, 24years of age, university student, love lots of sports, esp. soccer and tennis. That was just a little intro. abt myself.

This year i decided to do also some weight training...I have been attending a gym 3 times a week for 2 months now, stll doing a full body workout, trying to include as many compound exs as possible.

Problem is that i have eliminated cardio from my system altogether... My aim is obviously to build more muscle, but also reducing my body fat. With exams and all i just cannot go to gym more than 3 times a week, so:

in my case which is the better option, forget abt cardio at the moment or try to do a cardio workout directly before or after my weight training?

[Kaiser]

Weclome to the forum Toni.

For fat loss? You could eliminate cardio altogether if you have a suitable circuit training program....BUT for the quickest results, the short answer is to do HIIT - high intensity interval training. Preferably on different days, but if that is not possible, at different times on your training day (later in day if possible)...if THAT is not possible, then after your weight workout. There's a good article in this month's Men's Fitness on the Tabata protocol. If you can get the mag in Europe, check it out. If you are already in shape from tennis and soccer, then it might be worth trying.

Since you have just started resistance training, it may be possible for you to lose fat and gain muscle at the same time - something referred to as the 'newbie effect' that generally does not do past 6 months of training. Enjoy that.

Way to go on the compound lifts. [img]smile.gif[/img] Learn to do them correctly and get more bang for your buck in the gym - use more muscles, burn more kcals, and gain more lean muscle mass.

Good luck!

PS: I played competitive tennis and soccer in my younger days as well.

[FishrCutB8]

Ditto what Kaiser said. Just wanted to say welcome to the board.

[Toni]

Thanks guys. [img]smile.gif[/img]

I began weight training by mistake almost..i injured my wrist ligaments while playing tennis and my physio suggested (after resting my hand for 6 months) i should do some weights to get my ligaments strong again.

and now i began to love to go the gym. Problem is this year i was not as active as i normally am and gathered some fat around my mid-section and waist.

Am trying to eat lots of protein, and trying to lift as heavy as i can...dunno if i am supposed to say this on this site, but i am following the MAX-OT beginer s guide and am tempted to try the 12week max ot programme for bulking around next october.

Thanks for your advice.

Kaiser, which team do you support in soccer?

I am a great fan of L.F.C. Are playing Fulham tomorrow. We need to win badly! I

[Kaiser]

Being in the US, it is hard to support any particular team, esp. from Europe (we don't get their games here). Our US MLS team, the Chicago Fire does pretty well, and a few of it's members are on the US national squad.

I do go into rabid fan mode though when World Cup time comes around.

Personally, I never played past high school soccer.

[Toni]

Originally posted by Kaiser:
Being in the US, it is hard to support any particular team, esp. from Europe (we don't get their games here). Our US MLS team, the Chicago Fire does pretty well, and a few of it's members are on the US national squad.

I do go into rabid fan mode though when World Cup time comes around.

Personally, I never played past high school soccer.

I think U.S. national team will come big in a few years time now that people in the U.S. are interested in soccer a lot more. Just one last question abt soccer cos we are really going off topic here, but i heard a lot about this new 'Pele' emerging from the U.S....His name is Freddy Adu...Ever seen him play?

Anyways, thanks to you guys i know now that cardio after my weight training will not hinder
my muscle gain process....so if i use this HIIT programme, on a treadmill i am planning to increase a lot the 'incline' and speed of the treadmill and sustain this pressure for 60s, then decrease it to normal pace for 180s and then i have to rest? and do this for 7 sets? this o.k.?

[10iscoach]

If you're using aerobic training to favorably influence your health through central adaptations, there may be no reason to train at levels that will result in more peripheral adaptations.

The ability to perform at higher levels (e.g., run, bike, or swim very fast) does require training at high levels of intensity and specific peripheral adaptations, but such performance levels are not the goal of most people. I know that's not one of my goals.

Aerobic training at very high intensities through its effects on mechanisms associated with peripheral adaptations may be the cause of blunting of strength gains and hypertrophy when aerobic training is done along with resistance training.

[Toni]

Originally posted by 10iscoach:
If you're using aerobic training to favorably influence your health through central adaptations, there may be no reason to train at levels that will result in more peripheral adaptations.

The ability to perform at higher levels (e.g., run, bike, or swim very fast) does require training at high levels of intensity and specific peripheral adaptations, but such performance levels are not the goal of most people. I know that's not one of my goals.

Aerobic training at very high intensities through its effects on mechanisms associated with peripheral adaptations may be the cause of blunting of strength gains and hypertrophy when aerobic training is done along with resistance training.

I am new to weight training and i not understand your post [img]redface.gif[/img]


What do yoou mean by "peripheral adaptations"?

[Kaiser]

Originally posted by 10iscoach:
Aerobic training at very high intensities through its effects on mechanisms associated with peripheral adaptations may be the cause of blunting of strength gains and hypertrophy when aerobic training is done along with resistance training.

To paraphrase Lou Schuler, it is better for most people to lose the fat first, then gain the muscle. In Toni's case, he was not fat before...we can assume that maybe he is most often without that fat and that the fat is a recent phenomenon. His post indicated he seemed to be more concerned about losing the fat. Nothing in the so-called aerobic realm has been shown to drop the fat quicker than HIIT.

Given that he seems more concerned about fat loss, and does want to add muscle, HIIT would probably be indicated. Further, because he does play sports that are both anaerobically and aerobically demanding, and indicated he plays them regularly, if he was in good enough shape, the Tabata protocol would have the added benefit of helping his performance in these sports.

If he stated that his primary aim was hypertrophy, I would agree with you, but that does not seem to be his primary concern. That was my interpretation of his post, anyway, and I stated as much in the beginning of my reply. If could be wrong though.

Just to clarify why I suggested what I did.

[Toni]

Just to clarify a bit more...I stopped training for about 7 months when i got injured...I am not oe of those skinny type of guys...I can accumlate fat quite quickly...

My BFP at the moment is 22.5%, which is not that great...I weigh 160 pounds and my height is around 1.76.

During these 2 months, i have seen some progress...Now if only i could pump up the mucscle a bit more, make them a bit bigger, and lose my belly fat for this last month it would be perfect...

Do you think i should still do HIIT after resistance training?

BTW last time i went to the gym i did HIIT on the treadmill...increasing speed and incline to my maximum limit for 60s then decteasing it again for 180s and i think everyone at my gym thought i gone crazy, si i had too explain 'vaguely' this phenomon i was doing...