My Plan So Far (any and all suggestions/advice welcome!)

ToningCh1ck · 08-31-2009, 12:42 PM

So I am starting school back up this week, and I'm looking to get into a great, healthy, CHALLENGING routine. After putting on some weight this Summer, I'm looking to start a new plan that will help me lose fat, while gaining muscle and endurance. I have my basic ideas set up, but I'm really interested in hearing others' opinions on this, because there are so many knowledgeable people on this forum. Anywho, I wrote out the basic description of my plan so far. Please tell me what you think!

Here are the times each day that I will be on campus (whether its classes, studying, in between classes, etc) so I can't work out
Monday: 9:30am-8:15pm
Tuesday: 11:15am-7:45pm
Wednesday: 9:30am-2:15pm
Thursday: 11:15am-7:45pm
Friday: No classes
Saturday: No classes
Sunday: No classes

I'm thinking that I will wake up at 7:30am every morning. Since I'll be on campus pretty much all day Monday, that will be my off day. I'll work out in the mornings on Tuesdays and Thursdays, in the afternoon on Wednesdays. I want to do a morning and afternoon workout on Fridays and Sundays. Then I will have a lighter workout on Saturday. I'm going to incorporate both cardio and strength into each workout.

Main Goals
1) Lose fat
2) Build muscle
3) Get enough sleep (about 8hrs a night) and wake up at the same time every morning
4) Eat very nutritiously
5) Improve endurance

Food: This is what I have been eating lately, and I like how I feel. Everyday will be similar to this, but perhaps with a few substitutions.
Breakfast: A few slices of whole wheat toast and eggs, Orange juice, Multivitamin
Snack: A piece of fruit w/ peanut butter
Lunch: A sandwich with a lot of meat on whole wheat bread, carrots
Snack: Almonds and/or a fiber bar
Dinner: A really big salad with a ton of different vegetables, meat, nuts, and dressing

Suggestions Welcome!
If you have any input on these aspects of my plan, I'd love to hear them...
1) Do the times I have set to work out seem okay?
2) What body parts do you suggest I work on each day?
3) Should I work out my major muscle groups once a week, or more than that?
4) How long should my workouts be?
5) Which muscles are good to work out together?
6) What about consuming alcohol (sometimes on the weekends I like to have a drink or two when I go out with my friends, but I'm perfectly capable of not drinking. I'm not sure if I should let myself have a few, or be really strict and just cut it out all together)

So yeah, and input is appreciated. I feel like I'm mostly lost when it comes to my strength workouts (which muscles to work out and when, which ones to do together, how long they should be, intensity, reps and sets, etc) so I'm interested in hearing advice on that.

Thanks for reading!

adwilk · 08-31-2009, 01:03 PM

First off, thanks for doing some research on your own and posting a sensible plan.

I think you're on the right track for sure, and what you've posted would work very well I'm sure. That said... I personally would attack it a little differently, knowing there are no wrong answers, just what works for you personally.

The hardest part of your schedule isn't necessarily just in the classroom, obviously you'll spend a lot of hours outside of class trying to "make the grade". You don't want to get burnt out on anything you're trying to fit in our life.

Based on your schedule, heres what I would do...

Diet is fine.. no changes that I can see...

Cardio, I would probably make it a point to get up about 30-45 minutes earlier than necessary monday through friday and just run in the morning. It'll give you great natural energy, improve endurance, get your day started right, burn some calories. Keep in mind that if you're eating right, cardio is really only a tiny tiny piece of the weight loss puzzle.

Training, I would shoot for Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. Again, thats just me and I've found that 3 days of hard work is plenty for me to reach my goals. The days that I'm in class all day would be hard for me to train (properly) on. I'd keep those evenings open to unwind and study. Saturday is a complete day off.

Thats only a suggestion and what I would do based on a limited schedule.

EDIT: Keep in mind as well that you really can't build muscle and lose fat all at once. I'd focus on shedding some of that weight you put on in the summer until you're comfortable again (eat at a deficit) and then maybe look to add some tone.

adwilk · 08-31-2009, 01:12 PM

As far as your workouts go,

I'd look at about an hour each day you train. Be sure to warm up and cool down (stretch)

For just three days, I like

Chest Shoulders Tri's on day one
Back bi's day two
Legs and maybe abs on day three.

Have you trained with weights much before?

ToningCh1ck · 08-31-2009, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by adwilk

As far as your workouts go,

I'd look at about an hour each day you train. Be sure to warm up and cool down (stretch)

For just three days, I like

Chest Shoulders Tri's on day one
Back bi's day two
Legs and maybe abs on day three.

Have you trained with weights much before?

thanks! so it seems like when working big muscle groups, its good to work ones that arent related (as opposed to Bi's and Tri's on the same day)...is that right?

I have dumbbells at home, but most are pretty light, and then I've used weight machines at the gym before, but still consider myself pretty inexperienced when it comes to that.

how many Reps/Sets do you do for most your exercises?

ToningCh1ck · 08-31-2009, 02:08 PM

and thanks for the first post you made also, adwilk! Strength 3 days/week sounds good (and a lot more realistic and do-able) so I'll do that. Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday sounds perfect.

and I think I'll do the cardio in the morning like you suggested. I always feel hott all day when I ran in the morning anyways :P

question about that, though. Should I just get out of bed and go run and then eat my breakfast when i get back? or should I have a little something before I leave? (I'm guessing I'll only be doing 30 min runs when I do this so it wont be anything crazy long)

SUPERM4N · 08-31-2009, 02:11 PM

Eat something first, fasted cardio is overrated.

Neiderhiser · 08-31-2009, 02:59 PM

Your diet is on the right track in terms of the foods you choose, but I think your macros are off for optimal fat burning. While you chose good sources of fats, I think you should substitue more protein in your diet. It would be ideal if you could add a protein drink or bar to your snacks. Here would be a revised suggested meal plan.

Breakfast: Two slices of whole wheat toast and 2 eggs, 8oz Milk, Multivitamin
Snack: A piece of fruit w/ Protein Shake, or protein bar
Lunch: Turkey Sandwhich on whole wheat, carrots
Snack: 1oz Almonds and a Protein Shake/Bar
Dinner: Chicken Salad (5oz chicken breast, spinach, veggies, 2 Tbsp oil-based dressing)

1800 total carlories
Approx Macros 40/30/30 (Protein/Carbs/Fats)

adwilk · 08-31-2009, 04:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ToningCh1ck

and thanks for the first post you made also, adwilk! Strength 3 days/week sounds good (and a lot more realistic and do-able) so I'll do that. Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday sounds perfect.

and I think I'll do the cardio in the morning like you suggested. I always feel hott all day when I ran in the morning anyways :P

question about that, though. Should I just get out of bed and go run and then eat my breakfast when i get back? or should I have a little something before I leave? (I'm guessing I'll only be doing 30 min runs when I do this so it wont be anything crazy long)

Honestly, Whichever you prefer. Some mornings I run on an empty stomach, sometimes I'll eat a little something first. I'll take my multivitamin and maybe a glass of milk or juice, maybe some peanut butter, maybe an egg mcmuffin. It really won't matter as far as body composition goes.

While I agree with the post above about macros, I wouldnt kill yourself trying to get to those numbers. I love carbs and based on a year and a half tracking my numbers, I can't tell any difference in progress from periods where I was/was not protein or carb heavy.

As far as your training goes, yeah, there's a lot of people that don't like to work opposing muscles the same day. Chest, and Tri's are "push" muscles while back and bi's are pull muscles. Shoulders (due to more than one specific group) can be push or pull.

If you aren't really experienced with lifting, you might try out some full body stuff to get you started, maybe for the first four weeks or so.

ToningCh1ck · 09-01-2009, 11:00 AM

Is there a certain amt of protein I should be eating if I want to gain muscle??

or since my primary goal is fat loss, should I just concentrate mostly on diet and cardio/full body workouts? ...and then when I reach my ideal weight, start working on building muscle?

thanks again for the responses, guys!

btw, I decided I'm going to do my runs before class, upon waking up, and just make sure that they don't exceed 45 minutes. Then when I get home and start getting ready for school, I can have my protein filled breakfast to refuel my muscles

Neiderhiser · 09-01-2009, 03:00 PM

You generally want to get at least 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight from lean protein sources like eggs, chicken, lean beef, fish, etc. This is recommended for muscle gain and/or muscle preservation. Since your goal is to lose fat, you'll be looking to preserve your lean muscle.

When it comes right down to it you ultimately just need to burn off more than you're consuming, so yes concentrate on your overall food intake and your workouts/cardio.
But a high protein intake will help you preserve as much lean muscle mass as possible while you lose the extra lbs.

bhuynh408 · 09-11-2009, 12:01 AM

sounds about right.