Weights with cardio every other day

R

rvannila

0
I used to be in very good shape (weren't we all when we were young). During my time in college and post college I've endured a lot injuries, some that required surgery, getting busy with work, and lack of effort I've gained a lot of weight. 60lbs to be exact. I decided this year to not have anymore excuses and to get myself back to my norm and be more active. So I thought up of a workout plan where I would be working out daily (Monday thru Saturday) in the morning (5 am and of course I would be eating before) and cardio in the evening (I would start between 330-430pm) every other day (MWF). I was thinking of starting off at running/elliptical a mile or biking 2.5 miles and working up to about 3 miles and 7.5 miles. I have read studies where individuals increasing their heart rate twice in a day, rather than for one long period of time, burns way more calories. I have also read that doing cardio daily will result the body to plateau and wont be able to see anymore improvements/results after a certain point. So my weekly workout plan would be as follows:

M- (Morning) Legs & (Evening) Cardio
T- (Morning) Chest
W- (Morning) Back & (Evening) Cardio
R- (Morning) Legs
F- (Morning) Shoulders & (Evening) Cardio
S- (Morning) Arms
SU- REST
I would also be eating 6 times a day consuming about 160 to 180 grams of protein a day since I would be looking to cut. I went from 155-160lbs to 220lbs. I'm looking to get back to 170 lbs. If this matters at all, I would be going to bed between 8-10 pm and waking up around 430am. Giving me about 6.5 to 8.5 hrs of sleep a night. I'm also not expecting anything to happen over night and would like to start a new kind of lifestyle. So anything you guys can add, I would appreciate.

Let me know what you guys think and any suggestions. If you have any questions, ask away.

This is my first post, so excuse anything I didn't writeup correctly. Thanks.
 
Well, your plan is certainly admirable. In terms of health and fitness, the routine itself is good, but in terms of where you're at and where you intend on heading, there are some potential issues:

1) Going from nothing to, by the sounds of it, 1-2 hours of training most days of the week, comes with a relatively high risk of burnout. High frequency is good for creating a habit, but I think the workload is looking excessive at this point.
2) The basic idea with fat loss is to consume as much energy as possible while still being a calorie deficit. By doing 1-2 hours of exercise a day, and in particular 1hr cardio 3 days a week on top of everything else, if you don't burn out you're likely to see drastic changes in the first couple weeks, followed by a greater struggle to continue losing fat after that point.
 
I guess I should have been a little more specific. I usually don't have any problem lifting on a daily basis or even waking up early to lift weights. I am usually motivated enough to do that. Especially when I am seeing the results of lifting. Usually lifting takes me about 45-75 min depending on the body part I'm working on. Cardio will then take me about 10-45 min depending on how much I would be doing. I plan to start out slow and once I stop seeing results I would then slowly increase the number of sets when lifting. Then when that stop showing results increase cardio. Here's an example:

Start off 15 sets of weights and 1 mile of cardio
Then 20 sets of weights and 1 mile of cardio
then 20 sets of weights and 1.5-2 miles of cardio
then 25 sets of weights and 1.5-2 miles of cardio
then 25 sets of weights and 2-2.5 miles of cardio

As the sets increase, I would be adding supersets/dropsets into my lifting routine. This should help me to achieve my goal of 170 lbs (or losing 50 lbs). Maybe from there I would be looking to bulk and go for a more muscular look.

Also, I want to take my time in losing the weight to help keep it off. I'm not looking for an overnight solution. But would rather want to lose the weight over a period of time.

So, considering all of this, is it still too much? If so, what do you suggest?
 
If you are starting sensibly low on intensity while your body gets used to it I see no immediate issues. Those old injuries will come back to say hello as you start branching out, their nice like that, as someone who has largely ignored this and pushed through regardless in youth then actually been less stupid later, I will tell you work within your limits for now and increase this over time.
I don't know your age but you have stated the condition you are in hasn't occurred overnight, so will appreciate the fix won't either. There is good news as long as the injuries don't cause too much grief, the recovery is usually 2 to 3 times faster than the loss of ability as long as you don't try getting it all at once.
I'm a strange fish, most are fit at school and let it go as adults. I was pathetic at school then decided I'd had enough and have been training ever since. So at 40 I make the 16 year old me look like a real lazy waster.

You will here a lot of cardio slamming, it is one of the least appreciated and understood types of exercise. It is also the one that takes care of your heart and lungs which is kind of important. If you go into a hospital there are is unlikely to be a section for people who've had bicep attacks.
The plateau can happen with anything, not just cardio. If you do the same thing for a long duration you become more efficient at it and the effect becomes less. This from a person who has been doing the same run a few times a week for almost a year. If you keep one thing in the program make sure there is something thrown in to mix it up a bit, in my case it's intervals.
As you get lighter you will burn less calories doing the same things. I have gained weight over the last year so my identical run has gone from burning just over 700 calories a time to just over 730. Not rocket science to say if that weight goes away so will the burn. So to get the same burn you will have to increase the distance, which as you get lighter could mean keeping the same time but going faster, meaning the calories per hour is the same, of course it may not we don't know. Failing to understand this is why people see a plateau, it's not difficult to overcome.
Mix of weights and cardio good. I've been doing it for years and it has been great fun. Add in some mobility and flexibility to keep the injuries at bay and aching to a minimum. You will still ache but less than without the stretches. I am one of the exceptionally unrealistic people who wants to be good at everything so am the best at nothing, but the trade off is that even when I damage myself I recover fast.

Priority number one when training, find stuff you enjoy.
 
I like your plan especially this part.
M- (Morning) Legs & (Evening) Cardio
T- (Morning) Chest
W- (Morning) Back & (Evening) Cardio
R- (Morning) Legs
F- (Morning) Shoulders & (Evening) Cardio
S- (Morning) Arms
SU- REST
 
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