Why do people go to the gym but then only do cardio?

[KrazyHorse]

Originally posted by Jon Miller
How long should you stay sore? I have been doing Body Pump at my gym recently, and I am generally sore for 2ish days after that. Why do you stay sore? (what can I do to stop being sore)

Jon Miller
(I do the lowest recommended weight, and not even that for shoulders)

DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) is extremely common when starting a lifting routine.

If it doesn't reduce in intensity and duration within a few weeks then something is wrong. I know you're a vegetarian. Do you get enough protein?

[Jon Miller]

I don't really keep track of it, but I know that I have it often. Most the time I just do resistance training once a week though. Sometimes I build up to twice a week, occasionally I miss a couple weeks. After I miss a couple weeks I always have it, I think that sometimes I don't have it though.

I think I have always had it after Body Pump though, but I haven't gotten (and stayed) at twice a week resistance training since I tried that program.

I try to get at least 20g of Protien per day, I know that isn't much... but it should be enough?

Jon Miller

[EyesOfNight]

You should be getting 1 g of protein per pound of body weight. It's really almost impossible to build muscle as a vegetarian. Also, you'll get DOMS every time if you stop and then start again all the time. Resistance training once or twice a week is almost pointless really.

[Jon Miller]

180 g of protien per day? That is like 720 protien calories... so on a 2000 calory diet, it is 36+% protien.

I could probably do it with protien shakes and all that. I don't think I can do resistance training more than twice a week... even twice a week is hard to do. Maximum amount of resistance training is three times a week, so I would think that twice a week would be good?

Jon Miller

[EyesOfNight]

Why can't you do more a week? What are your goals? Are you trying to build muscle or lose weight? What's your bf%? If you're not really trying to build muscle and are just doing it for the health benefits (whatever you can get from only a couple days a week), then you can probably do 90g of protein a day and be ok. 20g though is way too little.

[EyesOfNight]

btw, why are you on a 2000 calorie diet?

[Jon Miller]

Oh ****, meat can be above 50% calories from protien. I wondered how people got above 30%. An egg (boiled) is only 33% calories from protien. Tofu can be over 40%, maybe I should eat a lot more of that.

Jon Miller

[Jon Miller]

Originally posted by EyesOfNight
btw, why are you on a 2000 calorie diet?

I'm not.

But I want to lose weight, and gain muscle. Lose like 10-20 pounds, gain a lot more muscle. I have been sort of staying where I am a lot, maybe gaining muscle slowly (maintaining weight).

I use to have less muscle and way 210 lbs, but that was a year ago when I started exercising again.

Jon Miller

[EyesOfNight]

Ok, first of all, you can't lose weight and gain muscle at the same time. If you want to build muscle mass, you're going to put on some fat. What is your current body fat percentage? Also, if you're trying to lose weight, it's ok to have a mainly fat and protein diet. When I cut I'm on 20% carbs, and the rest is fat and protein. For example, right now I"m at 15% body fat because I'm bulking. However, I can easily get myself back down around 10% when I'm cutting. It's a simple rule, you're going to put on fat when you bulk, and you're going to lose some muscle when you cut, the net gain is what is important. Since you're basically just starting off, it's possible to put on muscle and lose weight at the same time, but it's very short lived. You need to hammer out a better program and do some serious reading if you're serious about putting on that much muscle and losing weight. 10-20lb of muscle is A LOT. Go here:

bodybuilding.com
bodybuilding.com/forum

[Jon Miller]

My BF%, as measured by my scale over 3 months ago was ~20%. Last August it was measured at the gym to be about 23% (also using electrical techniques).

I admit I am a bit hesitant to do heavy lifting due to BP issues.

Jon Miller

[EyesOfNight]

If I were you, I would focus right now on getting your body fat percentage down. Get down to around 15% or lower and then think about really working on building mass. Also, make sure you're proficient at losing weight before you start bulking. How old are you btw? personally, I like doing my cardio in the morning on an empty stomach. The real key is your total caloric intake during the day. Cut your carbs, increase your protein, keep up the weight lifting you're doing, and try to do cardio every day if you can. When I cut I usually lose about 1lb per week.

[Lonestar]

Originally posted by Doddler


pic?

[Jon Miller]

KH, I don't know very many people who can do better than 10 miles/hour (sustained). I am at 6 miles/hour (sustained) myself (if I push hard).

Jon Miller

[Jon Miller]

I am currently at 3-4 hours exercise per week (2-3 cardio, 1 resistance). My goal is to increase to 5, should that be resistance or cardio?

Jon Miller
(I have been saying resistance, but I mean weight training)

[EyesOfNight]

If I were you, I would shoot for cardio 5 days a week if you can get to that. Is there some sort of health issue preventing you from doing weight lifting and cardio more?