Low Intensity Burn More Fat?? - Exercise & Fitness Message Board

sohogirl · 05-06-2004, 11:08 AM

Hi everyone, I have lost 25 pounds over the last year or so by diet and excercise!

I am 5'3" and about 115. I lift weights 3 times a week - full body, and I do cardio 30-45 mins 3 days a week and 60 mins twice a week (5 days of cardio per week). I generally do interval training on two of the shorter workout days, and then 3 moderate paced steady jogs on the treadmill with a little incline, or the stair climber or ellyptical, on the other days.
Now my body looks great, but I am going for the gold this summer and I want to show off my abs, however there is a little fat left to trim on my body. At this point my muscles are as big as I want them to get, but I need more definition. I've heard that the "fat-burning" zone is a myth, but I need to try something different at this point. Should I keep on going with my more moderate to fast paced workouts and just aim for a calorie deficit, or do you think there may be some benefit in working out at an easier pace for a longer amount of time? I need to focus on this last bit of fat! I'm sure that once it's gone I'll be able to keep it off - but I first need to get it off!!!! Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Oh, and while I'm here, might as well ask a question regarding my weights. I usually lift enough weight so that I fatique by 15 - 20 reps. This is what I've been told is better for defining (as fatiquing between 6-12 reps is for building), --- Well, I am getting big. Is there another method to try so that my muscles stay the same size, but gett more defined? (I don't want to lower the weight, because I've heard it's a waist of time because you won't develop if your not fatiguing by the 15-20 rep - for toning).

Sorry this ended up being so long! Hopefully someone has some advice for me!!!

Evl316 · 05-06-2004, 12:43 PM

Best cardio for burning fat and sparing muscle tissue is either low intensity for long duration or HIIT (High Intensity Interval Traning) which is hard but you can be done with it in as little as 10 minutes versus an hour with the low intensity workout. Do some searching for HIIT as there is a ton of info out there on it and many on this board are fans of HIIT.

As for the weights I think you're fine with what you're doing IMO. Regardless of weight and rep count a person is going to build muscle when first starting out (around the first 3 months) of any weight training routine. It's not as though you'll continue to get bigger and bigger and bigger. Trust me, guys with great muscle genetics can't even do that. You'll see the progress in muscle building stop very soon. You could probably even lower the rep count if you so desired but you're probably fine where you are if you like where you are at this point as the higher rep count will help with fat loss.

Rick7799 · 05-06-2004, 02:24 PM

I like HIIT. I ride a bike or the Lifecycle and after a warmup I will go at a moderate pace for one minute and then go all out for a minute. Then I will drop to a low intensity back to moderate and then all out again. Or maybe I will do it for 2 minutes. Do this for 15 or 20 minutes. The key is when you go all out, do it as hard as you can, to the point of exhaustion. Another reason I like it is because time goes by faster than a regular workout.

sohogirl · 05-06-2004, 02:24 PM

Thankyou so much for your tips! I will do some more research on HIIT!!