I've been lifting heavy for many years but have decided in the past year to trim down. Since April I've dropped 30lb. and I'm actually starting to see my abs! There's a fairly decent physique under there! In order to achieve greater definition I know I have to really hit the cardio. Question is; Cardio before weights, vice-versa, or, cardio on separate days? Oh, yeah, one of the benefits (other than the obvious) shows up in riding. At 180lbs., I feel more agile on the big gix, the 1k feels quicker and more agile, and my lower back doesn't get fatigued (work your abs people). I'm shooting for 170lb. but seem to have hit a plateau. What should I do to break the 180lb. wall?

everyone is different. each persons body reacts slightly different to different methods of training. we do have a fitness forum now, and ill move this to there. but personally, i weight train every other day, and do cardio on the off days. so essentially working out 6-7 days a week.

I prefer cardio in the a.m., running etc. then lifting in the evening..... http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif

I use my "off days" for just that and let my body recoop and rebuild......

But as said EVERYONE has their own method and ideas that work best for them.....

Good Luck! http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif

2ndgixer said:
I've been lifting heavy for many years but have decided in the past year to trim down. Since April I've dropped 30lb. and I'm actually starting to see my abs! There's a fairly decent physique under there! In order to achieve greater definition I know I have to really hit the cardio. Question is; Cardio before weights, vice-versa, or, cardio on separate days? Oh, yeah, one of the benefits (other than the obvious) shows up in riding. At 180lbs., I feel more agile on the big gix, the 1k feels quicker and more agile, and my lower back doesn't get fatigued (work your abs people). I'm shooting for 170lb. but seem to have hit a plateau. What should I do to break the 180lb. wall?



Well... If your lifting and doing cardio during the same workout session, do your cardio last. You'll burn more calories by doing cardio at the end of your workout. Also, If your having problems getting past that "wall" , pay close attention to your diet and try to stay away from shugars if your not already. Sounds like your close to where you want to be, so be patient and it will come.

Oh, one last thing... While doing your cardio, make sure you maintain your target heart rate for at least 30 min. This will burn the fat away FAST!

Good luck! http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif

If you've hit a plateau you need to switch up your routine. If you're doing 4 cardio sessions/week at 35 minutes each, add another session, or add 5 minutes to each session you're currently doing. This may work for another couple weeks getting you down 2 or 3 more lbs.

Try not to change too much at once. If you've noticed after a few weeks that you've plateaued again, make more changes. Maybe that time you could cut down the time between sets and focus on keeping your heartbeat up during your lifting session.

If that doesn't take off a couple lbs in a couple weeks, try altering your diet. I prefer a no frills aproach to my diet since being in a caloric defecit will result in weight loss no matter how you look at it. Don't cut anything out, follow the food guide, simply reduce your overall consumption. This approach will allow you to lose weight and maintain it because as any bodybuilder knows, getting into contest shape is one thing, staying there is something totally different. You want to be able to stay lean eating normal food, not having to choke down three cans of tuna per day in a vegetable salad with no dressing.

If that doesn't work there is something wrong. Losing weight (fat) is a function of being in a caloric defecit. That happens by burning more calories than you need to maintain your current weight, or by eating fewer calories than is required to maintain your current weight.

For the average person who wants to get to around 10% body fat, following the KISS principle will make you happier in the long run than a drastic body building approach. If you're hoping to get to 5% body fat, you need to go to a hardcore bodybuilding forum and ask these questions.

Keeping It Simple Stupid, means not worrying about how much protein, carbs, or fat you eat, just focussing on feeling good and your total caloric intake. It also means not worrying about when you do your cardio, just worrying about whether or not you're doing it at all. It also means not worrying about what your workout routine looks like, but just making sure that you get in there, and are intense about whatever it is you're doing.

Good luck! http://www.gixxer.com/forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif