Gym workout recommendations?

J

JamesFatNoMore

New member
Hi! I'm James, and I'm 6'0, at 202 pounds, and I have a 40 inch waist (although my jeans are only a size 36, and baggy).

I've been eating very well (having a plate of veggies now :D), around 1500 calories a day, and working out at the gym 6 times a week for 45 minutes - an hour each time.

I mostly do the elliptical on the weight loss setting at level 10/10 the whole time, and sometimes I'll have a break in between to slow my heart rate down and do maybe 5 or 10 minutes of weights.

But, I seem to be gaining more muscle than burning actual fat. Although I've gone down from 246, I honestly don't see that much of a difference, although I feel a lot stronger, and am able to work out with less "huffing and puffing".

I would like to change that, and burn more fat than muscle gain. Do you have any recommendations on what kinds of workouts I should be doing?

Thanks! :D
 
If you're eating 1500 calories a day you're not building muscle. :) You can't build something out of nothing - and especially not from doing cardio alone.

I'd suggest you read the sticky posts in the exercise area, especially the ones by Steve. He's pretty much our resident expert on exercise and muscle building.
 
JamesFatNoMore said:
Hi! I'm James, and I'm 6'0, at 202 pounds, and I have a 40 inch waist (although my jeans are only a size 36, and baggy).

I've been eating very well (having a plate of veggies now :D), around 1500 calories a day, and working out at the gym 6 times a week for 45 minutes - an hour each time.

I mostly do the elliptical on the weight loss setting at level 10/10 the whole time, and sometimes I'll have a break in between to slow my heart rate down and do maybe 5 or 10 minutes of weights.

But, I seem to be gaining more muscle than burning actual fat. Although I've gone down from 246, I honestly don't see that much of a difference, although I feel a lot stronger, and am able to work out with less "huffing and puffing".

I would like to change that, and burn more fat than muscle gain. Do you have any recommendations on what kinds of workouts I should be doing?

Thanks! :D
Click to expand...


Welcome to the forum! Well done on your loss so far!

Only concern is with your current mode of thought. Basically, when you lose weight, you lose both fat and muscle, and when you gain weight the same principle applies. Essentially, its very VERY difficult to build muscle and lose weight at the same time. You need to choose your goal and pursue that.

If you are looking to keep losing body weight (which I think is your goal), cut calories under maintainence level (you can calculate daily BMR from free websites like fitday.com ) while blending a strength weight training/cardio routine. This will help you retain a little more muscle than pure cardio, and will help even out that "skinny fat" look.


Best of luck James!
 
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Alright. Thanks Kara! :) I suppose I'm just being overly critical as usual.

It makes sense though, to gain muscle, I'd need to eat over my BMR, and do weights not cardio, right?
 
JamesFatNoMore said:
Alright. Thanks Kara! :) I suppose I'm just being overly critical as usual.

It makes sense though, to gain muscle, I'd need to eat over my BMR, and do weights not cardio, right?
Click to expand...

In a nutshell yes

While you are dieting you should still be doing strength training/lifting weights though, because when you lose weight you don't just lose fat you also lose muscle as well, so you need to give those muscles a reason to stick around (because they look nice once the fat is burned off them). So the optimum approach really is to do both cardio and weight training while adjusting to a healthier way of eating.
 
What makes you believe you've gained muscle?

An increase in strength does not = an increase in muscle.

Also, many people get sucked into the illusion they're gaining loads of muscle when in reality they're losing fat, which in turn is exposing the muscle they already have.

I've seen guys that you'd swear are near 200 lbs yet they're only 155-160. It's simply that they're shredded.
 
:D Alright, thanks Steve! That makes sense as well. I suppose that if I'm losing some of this extra fat, my muscles have less to lug around. :)
 
One must consider the disadvantages and advantages when deciding what the best choice is. Having access to weight equipment is of course a great benefit to training at the gym. Although the cost of a monthly membership can be a bit expensive for some. Also, the commute to the gym can be considerably inconvenient and time consuming. Gyms can also be over crowded making it difficult for you to get access to any the equipment you might need.
 
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