more weight or more reps?

Is it more beneficial to use lower wieghts with more reps or more weight with less reps?  I like the circuit training machines but if I raise the Weights to the next level I can't do nearly as many reps.

I have been going to the gym since Feb. 1st and have tried both methods but would like to know from experienced people which is better

Another question I have is..treadmill or elliptical?  I have used both also, elliptical says it burns more calories than treadmill, but I see more people on the treadmill, why?

Don't worry about what you weigh day to day.  Everyone fluctuates their weight on a daily basis.  You should weigh yourself once a week, at the same time of day, with the same amount of clothes on.

For example, I weigh myself on Friday mornings right before my shower and before breakfast.  This way, I'm consistent with exactly how I'm weighing myself week to week.

Now I have another question.... Someone at the gym told me I should "mix up" my cardio. that I should do elliptical, treadmill and bicycle alternatively.  Is this what everyone else thinks or am I ok to do the elliptical everyday since it burns more calories

Original Post by cindyr63:

Now I have another question.... Someone at the gym told me I should "mix up" my cardio. that I should do elliptical, treadmill and bicycle alternatively. Is this what everyone else thinks or am I ok to do the elliptical everyday since it burns more calories

Mixing it up doesn't mean daily -- but every couple weeks - maybe 4-6 and that is only if you do the same routine/ workout every day. If you do a light workout one day and change it to a HIIT workout another then maybe a little light little moderate and a little hard the next day and "mix that up" you wouldn't necessarily have to do anything but the elliptical. The secret is to always keep your body guessing what its going to be asked to do that day. So even if you "mix it up" daily and did elliptical on mondays bike on tues and treadmill on wed after a couple weeks your body will "learn" what its going to do that day and won't "work" as hard it will just be doing learned behavior.

For example -- several years ago I belonged to Curves and they have their equipment in a circle so one week we would do the circuit clockwise the next week it was counterclockwise then every 3 months they would move the equipment itself into different spots so the body didn't adjust too much to the same "routines"

So for now you are probably fine doing what ever you are comfortable with but as soon as you feel its redundant - stop losing weight or don't feel as "pushed" then its time to start something different. Mix up your level of intensity often - don't keep doing the "fat burn" or cardio programs but do some manual stuff and have fun.

I have a heart rate monitor that has "programs" to do so that helps me decide what kind of workout I'm going to do that day.  So on the "light" days I might just walk 5 miles on the hard days I do my cardio class and on my "normal' days I do weights and recumbent bike.

dbacker,  Like you I quit smoking in Jan. 2006  I still shew nicotine gum though.  Thanks for your post   it makes the "mixing it up" comment alittle more clear.

Definitely for weight training, I agree that you need to mix it up. I usually work a routine for 3 weeks, then change my lifting routine/exercises.  As for cardio, the real piece you need to keep track of is your heart rate.  If you are trying to lose weight, then keeping your heart rate at the 'weight loss' range, then doing the same exercise is okay.  I like to mix up all of my exercises to just keep me interested long-term.

ok this heart rate thing is something I need to learn about too.  How do you know what that is?   I know on the elliptical it keeps track of the heart rate but how do you know what it should be for the most weight loss?  I have never had this explained to me.  Maybe that would help me to know where to be on the treadmill or cycle.

Check out this site to help you figure out your heart rate for training: 

http://primusweb.com/fitnesspartner/library/a ctivity/thr.htm

 

 

 

ok I tried this site.  I still don't understand why my heart rate only shows 104 after 10 or 15 mins on the elliptical now.  It used to go 140 or better when I started going to the gym Feb 1st  going alot slower and on level one.  Now I go level 7 or 8 and do 3 miles in 30 mins and 104 or 105 seems to be the highest heart rate the elliptical shows.  I feel like I am working really hard cause I am soaking wet with sweat when I am done with those 30 mins.  Should I just ignore what the eliptical says?

Just to inform you, it is possible to gain muscle with a calorie deficit.  What you need in your diet to gain muscle is protein.  Protein allows your body to keep its muscle and add more.  To gain that muscle, it should be done with weight training.

I specifically did it this past month.  I lost a net 7 lbs for the month, but lost 13 lbs of fat and gained 6 lbs of muscle.  I keep track of my bodyfat as well, which is how I figured out these numbers.  I also keep a calorie deficit of 400 - 600 calories a day on average and it may go up if I add in extra exercise (weights or cardio).

Try taking your heart rate by hand.  Find a pulse on your neck and count the beats for a minute to see what your real heart rate is.  I don't always trust the machines, especially if I feel like I'm working harder than what it's telling me.

Now, if you do it and find that you are still at the low 100's, then you're not working as hard as you may think.  Sweating doesn't always mean that your heart rate is high.

 

 Gaining muscle in a calorie deficit is only possible for three main categories of people: complete beginners to strength training, the natural athletes like Duke, JasonTarin, or Blondie who have million-to-one genetics, and people returning to strength training who're regaining old muscle.

 Complete beginners are really outrageously lucky in most respects - but the newbie metabolism doesn't last long. 3 months for most people, 6 if you're lucky - 12 if you've got extremely good muscle-building genetics and really belong in the "Natural Athlete" class with Jasontarin and GreenKev.

 If you're really strict with training, nutrition, and periodization of your workouts and regular, sensible changes of your training style, you can extend your 'newbie gains' a few months, but be aware that newbie gains aren't the normal state of affairs for the regular trainee.

(Well, if you include steroid users in the list there's 4 classes of people who can gain muscle in a calorie deficit, but drug use ain't cool.)

 The reason your heart rate is a lot lower now is that you're in better cardiovascular shape - your lungs take up oxygen more efficiently, your heart beats stronger, your muscles use oxygen more efficiently, so your heart doesn't need to beat as much to adequately supply your muscles.  However, the muscular adaptations are very machine-specific, and being in good shape for the elliptical doesn't neccesarily translate to the arc trainer or spinning bike. Try swapping machines every now and again and see what happens to your heart rate :)

Where do you get your information (melkor)?  A combination of weight training, cardio and nutrition will allow you to lower your bodyfat and raise your lean muscle mass, no matter who you are.

This is very common knowledge.  I verified it this morning, just to make sure I wasn't off in left field and missed something in the field, with 2 nutrition and fitness experts.

You can gain lean muscle mass without being a newbie or genetic freak.  It takes the three components above to do so.  The key though to adding the muscle is to make sure you have enough protein in your diet as muscle only grows with protein.

Check out Tom Venuto.  He's got alot to say about getting lean, as another resource outside of my personal resources.

Journal of American College of Nutrition. Reading references provided by Tgpish, check out this post for an example. Personal experience. Reading Tom Venuto, Jeff Anderson, John Berardi, Michael Boyle, Eric Cressey, Lonnie Lowery, Clay Hught, and other nutritionists and exercise physiologists.

 A combination of a calorie surplus and resistance training will allow you to increase muscle mass. However, this does not apply to dieters - who are in a calorie deficit.

 Your body does not go into positive nitrogen balance before a calorie surplus is present in your system, unless you're either a very special case or using drugs.

I'm totally on board with your articles in referring to the balance one needs and the quality of the types of proteins, carbs and fats.  I've also read that you need the calorie surplus, but some of those same experts state that a person can gain muscle while in a calorie deficit, but not in any equality to that of the fat loss.

So, you may not be gaining much muscle in a calorie deficit, which is used to loss fat, it is possible to gain some lean muscle.  If you really want to gain muscle as your main goal, then yes I agree with you 100% on your statements.