trying to get ripped....

[atlast]

alot of people suggest different exercises, workouts, etc in order to get ripped... Im trying to lose some fat, and get more muscle definitions...As of right now, im working out 6x a week....also cardio 6x a week
chest/tris/shoulders on one day....and back/bis/legs on the other..alternating....doing sets ranging from 12-15...and as high as 20...
in this case...i was just wondering if im overtraining....by the way...im intaking a measely 1500-1800 calories a day for calorie deficit and in result, fat loss....and as well as probably a chunk of muscle loss as well....should i up my calorie intake?

so is this workout good for getting ripped or not? btw..im a midget...5'5 @185

cardio...chest/tris/shoulders....
cardio....back/bis/legs....
1500-1800 calories.....

[RipStone]

Your assumptions are correct. You are overtraining and not eating enough. This is gonna result is fat loss, but also a lot of muslce loss as well.

You dont need to hit the weights 6 days a week, do cardio 6 days a week, and eat like a starving runway model in order to lose weight. I would try doing a 4 day training split and 4-5 days of cardio. INcrease your caloires as well. Aim to lose no more then 1.5lbs a week. If you are losing more then that, then the odds are you are just losing a ton of muscle.

[atlast]

Thanks ripstone...i did lose a good amount of weight last week...a good 4lbs...i probably just lost alot of muscle mass...how much calorie should i intake? should i still be lifting for high reps? 12-15x? i want to get back to 145-150 lbs by end of summer...thanks...
So even if im doing light weights for reps...and working each body part 3x a week...im still overtraining...so u suggest working a body part once a week only?

[RipStone]

Dont worry too much about losing 4lbs the first week...it could be water weight. But, for now on aim to lose 1lb a week.

As far as how many calories to eat, slowly decrease calories over a few weeks. It takea a some trial and error but see how many calories you need to eat in order to lose 1 lb a week. For example, start off eating 2500 cals. If you lose too much with that amount, then eat more and vice versa.

For training, using high reps to cut is just a myth. Your workout program should stay the same regardless of cutting or bulking. What changes is diet and amount of cardio done. I would just stick with your normal rep/set scheme and workout, whatever that is....3x10, 5x5 etc

[atlast]

thanks ripstone..by the way...wat kind of cardio and for how long? and when's the best time? is it good to do cardio right after workouts?

[RipStone]

No problem.

This is what has been working well for me. That doesnt mean it is gonna work well for you so try it out and see how you react to it. I do HIIT cardio 2x a week for 15-20 minutes. Another 2x a week I do steady rate cardio for 35-45 minutes. I do the HIIT and one of the steady rate sessions on the days I dont lift. Then on another day that I do lift, I lift in the afternoon and do cardio in the morning.

IMO its best to do cardio on days you dont lift or at least 6 hours before/after lifting.

[atlast]

ripstone..my original routine for when i was trying to build mass....was 2 on...1 off...2 on 1 off.....etc....will this work for cutting weight and losing the fat? And i was lifting heavy starting from doing 12x to as low as 4x for heavy poundage without hardly any cardio....Now im trying to do lighter weights for a minimum of 15x....with alot of cardio....I guess what im trying to say is...
can i pump the way i used to, adding intense cardio, and lose the body fat as well as get stronger?

monday: chest/bis
tuesday: legs
weds: off
thursday: shoulders
friday: back/tris
saturday: off

or

monday: chest/bis
tuesday:legs/shoulders
wednesdayff
thursday: back/tris
fridayff

how many sets should be done for each body part to get ripped? or will it not matter as long as the cardio is there and the dieting is on point. How many repetitions?...i usually do from 12x-6x......how much rest between each set? some people say 30 secs, other say 45...some say 1 min...i dont know how long i should be rested for....thanks ripstone...

[RipStone]

Getting cut is so indivdualized. You have to see what works well for you. I have been getting very good results by just keeping my lifting routine the same and changing my diet and increasing my cardio in order to cut.

My theory is that when you lift heavy you gain strength and muscle. Well since its hard to gain a lot of muscle mass when cutting(since you are not eating a calorie surplus to suport muscle growth) then you should lift pretty heavy to keep your stregth gains and preserve the muscle while cutting.

I am not too strict on rest for most of my lifts. I just go when I feel I am ready. Generally speaking, for compound lifts I wait 2 minutes...for isolation exs 90 seconds or so. But it also depends on what my rep/set scheme is. If I am lifting heavy then I rest more....lifting lighter, rest less.

Again, just find what workds well for you. Try to lift more on instinct....you know what I mean.

[gymaddict01]

thats exactly my workout routine. except i take my wednesdays off and just workout monday tuesday thursday and friday. you are overtraining but with how i set up my days its no overtraining and im seeing good results. try it man youll like it. and over training wont kick your ass.

[atlast]

thanks for the input guys....well i'll guess i'll go with my usual workouts and heavy lifts...i do feel as though i've wasted quite a bit of time doing that overtraining workout...i've felt weaker and the pump isnt there...i'll up the cardio work and give myself a range of about 2400 calories to start with....probably more calories on days that i work out, and less on those rest days...anyhow..thanks alot...i'll keep you guys updated with the progress...