Hello & Plateau

[anna123]

Hi girls,

Whenever I google a gym/nutrition question I always end up on this site - so I finally thought I should join up! Thanks for all the past advice

I work at a boring desk job all day, it's so horrible not being able to move about more - and it's even worse to read about what it's doing to my body! The highlight of my day is getting out of the office and doing some exercise - whether outdoors or in the gym. I also love good food so spend a significant amount of "work" time planning meals!

I was sporty as a child/teen - swimming, rowing, netball etc. Then I was a "part time" member of the uni gym over the five years I spent in the books. Since starting work I have realised the importance of getting up and getting my *glow* on. I work really hard at the gym and try to eat a good diet. However I feel like I've hit a bit of a wall - I'm struggling to see any results. I even started taking Hydroxycut (sp) tablets in an effort to break through the plateau.

Do you ladies do roughly half cardio/half weight training? Or all one or the other? Which do you find most effective? How heavy do you lift? Do you work to a set number of reps - or keep going until you can't go any more?

How many days a week do you train? Do you eat carbs? Ha, seriously??

I realise, I've asked lots of questions, just putting some thoughts out there. I look forward to talk with you more. Thanks x

[Jenna]

hey anna

how long have you been dieting for.. whats an average days worth of meals look like..

depending on what your goal is, doing cardio could go either way. the more muscle you have the higher your metabolic rate and the more fuel you burn through so a lot of cardio isnt always nesssary.

you say you have hit abit of a plateau, have you changed up your work out lately? changes exercises, added more intensity or volume, change the time of day you train.

also if you have been dieting hard, your body will learn to adjust to the lack of calories coming in and lower your metabolic rate. it maybe time for a refeed to spark your metabolism again.

if your just starting to get into weights i think starting with set of 3 and reps of 15 are always good. Have alook on bodybuilding.com they have some great work out plans there or ask around on here as there are many people with loads of great info..

carbs mmmm personal opinion is ya gotta have them lol.. i dont function to well when on a low carb diet... you could try carb cycling.. so on days when you work out you eat more carbs and the days you dont you restrict the carbs.. plus you need carbs to keep the brain going, to help with muscle recovery.. and many other things..

what type of carbs your looking at could be an option to...

complex carbs are good for getting through the day and keeping you full but having something aibt sugar befor and after a workout can have great effects.

hope that helps to anwser some of your questions

Jenna

[VampireChick]

Hey Anna

We all go through a plateau, it just means you have to change things up somewhere. That may be with your current programme or your diet (most probably your diet).

I was doing carb cycling for two months which was very effective for the first few weeks but then I hit a plateau. So I went back to my normal diet (so carbs with brekkie and lunch, increased the protein) and my weight started dropping again.

In regards to training, four times a week I do weights and will follow it with 20-30 minutes of cardio. Then I'll get in two more sessions of cardio that week. At the moment, that includes a weekend of snowboarding if I'm lucky. With weights, it's a mixture of light and heavy (so on legs day I'll do heavy leg press, 5 sets of 6-8 reps but then follow with lunges which usually ends up being about 12 reps per leg).

You have to try different things but try it for a decent period of time to really know what sort of effect it's having on your body. There is no one way for everyone. Also make sure you have a decent cheat at least once a week (for me it's Japanese and a glass of wine, although tonight I'm having pasta!), that usually helps kick my metabolism into gear.

Good luck chick. I'm no expert by any means, but if you need more advice, just ask.

[VampireChick]

depending on what your goal is, doing cardio could go either way. the more muscle you have the higher your metabolic rate and the more fuel you burn through so a lot of cardio isnt always nesssary.

Agree. While cardio works for me and keeping my bodyfat down, I know someone else who is just as lean but doesn't do any cardio (esp if you do lots of high rep stuff in your weights sessions).