Looking for advices

Hi!

Quick Background: Girl, 5'0.5", around 115lbs. I lost 70 pounds in 3 years. I am now maintaining.
I stop doing cardio and weight lifting for about 4 months for various reasons but I'm back.
There's just one thing that is different; I don't need to focus on my weight but on my fat loss and my muscle gain.

I wanted to have some input in a routine that would help me having the result I want; definition, toning and less fat.

I have an elliptical at home and a free access to the gym where my boyfriend works. It's a basic gym that trains the general muscles, no free weights. It's like a big machine in one where there's around 12 type of exercises.
There is also a bicycle, a treadmill a rowing machine and a badminton court.

I plan on doing weights 3 times a week on Saturday, Tuesday and Thursday.
For the cardio part I plan on Monday, Wednesday, Saturday and maybe some on Tuesday and Thursday but nothing over 15 minutes. Sunday off. I usually exercise after work and eat dinner after the workout.

When I do cardio, I am usually around 75% and 95% of maximum heart rate. I have an Polar F4. Is it considered moderate or intense?

How much time of cardio do I need to have a good fat loss and how much time do I train on the machine for a good workout of my muscles? Is 3 sets of 8-12 rep of the 12 exercise (around 45 minutes) enough or do I need to do my first 3 sets and then do another one?

Thanks for any help you guys can provide :)

It sounds like you have a good plan. To lose fat through cardio, the best use of your time is with HIIT, or interval training.  This involves working as hard as you can for a specified amount of time (30 sec., 1 min., etc.) Then recover for the same amount of time. Repeat this cycle for 20-30 minutes. It burns far more calories than steady state cardio. Make sure you use all the cardio equipment available to you - elliptical one day, treadmill the next... 75% of your max heart rate is moderate, and 95% is intense.

The weight machine will be good for starters, but after awhile your body will get used to the exercises, and you'll need to do something else. 3 sets of 8-12 reps is great - as long as the last few reps are extremely difficult. If not, add more weight. Maybe you could purchase a barbell set, or a few sets of dumbbells. Free weights are excellent, and there are so many ways to train with them.

Thanks for your input!

I tried HIIT and it kicked my butt but I don't really like it. WHen I do my cardio, I'm not always going at the same apce, I go faster and slower depending on resistance. My HR is between 75% and 95%. It's interval training but not like 30s/1 minute. I do more intense when I feel I am able and stop when I cannot anymore.

As for weight training, I usually do 8 to 12 reps and rarely pass 12 or I put more weight and I always do my 2nd and 3rd rep until failure or very near. I rest for 15 seconds between each set. When I'm done, I move to the other exercise and begin straight away. It's fast and hard. and usually when I'M at my maximum effort, my HR show 75% or 80% of maximum HR.

I think it's a good workout.

So my plan after thinking about all this:

Monday Cardio 30-45 minutes
Tuesday Weight lifting (usually last 45 minutes). If I want cardio it will be 15 minutes
Wednesday Cardio 30-45 minutes
Thursday Weight lifting (usually last 45 minutes). . If I want cardio it will be 15 minutes
Friday Cardio 30-45 minutes
Saturday Weight lifting (usually last 45 minutes).  and cardio for 30-45 minutes
Sunday Off

Is this a good plan for fat loss and muscle definition? I eat very good also, it's healthy and I have enough calories.