Is a special weight lifting programme necessary for me?
 

I started weightlifting 14 days ago because I wanted to shape up my body and lose a bit of weight at the same time. But how do i do this? Or is it even neccesary?:

I'm 1,69 m. high and weigh 55 kg so I'm not fat or anything but I'm still a bit chubby around my thighs. If i lose about 3 kg that should be enough... I think?

I don't drink, smoke and I eat junk food very rarely. I ride 5-10 km everyday on my bicycle and work out at least 4 times a week. So I guess I'm pretty healthy as it is but is it enough to lose that bit of weight during my weight lifting programme? Should I just work out regularly as I do now and will the fat slowly be replaced by muscles?? Or is it necessary for me to be on some sort of special diet/work out programme?? :hmm:

The cardio is what will burn the fat, but by doing a lot of repetitions with light weights, you will tone the muscle, rather than building it up. This can make you look firm and slender, without building up the bulk that people gain when doing low reps with more weight.

Using the google calculator:
5'6, 120 lbs, 6 1/2 lbs, and 3-6 miles

Okay.

That's a healthy weight for that height, and 115 is an attainable goal. My only question is that's not a whole lot of distance on the bike, how long does it take you? If it is taking you 30 minutes, that's not very high intensity at all - Work up a sweat, that's what the bike is there for, and burning more calories than you take in is what sheds the pounds (or kilos, for you commonwealthers).

Weight lifting is desirable. I am a big fan of dumb-bells. It's hard to hurt yourself using dumb-bells. I have some friends who are runners, and they are very lean, no body fat to speak of, but no muscle either. I like the idea of muscle strength as a secondary support mechanism for the bones and joints.

just keep it up.

talk with other exercise enthusiasts to ensure your routine is decent...

eat often in small portions, keep the protein intake up, and remember that your body is the only thing that is truly yours.

good luck

Keep up what you are doing. The only way you will lose fat is by taking in less calories per day then your body needs. Therefore if you want to make this defecit happen by nutritional changes or exercise.. its up to you. The best choice is obviously a combination of the two because it will get your metabolism going even quicker. By the way, if you are serious about making your thighs thinner then why are you eating junk food at all? /boggle. If you are serious about getting in shape, you will forgo your junk food until you are at your goal. Remember, not only does junk food go straight to your thighs, but it also slows down your metabolism which makes it THAT much harder to lose weight. Break your addiction to crap. It is hard at first, but after you go a while without it, you wont be able to eat it without feeling nasty afterwards... its quite interesting.

Lot's of cardio and high reps on any weight and contrary to popular belief dumbells can hurt, I almost a 120lber on my head. Don't focus on heavy weight if you only want too lose a few pounds, light weight high reps.

Not true. Disregard this.

might I ask why?

Cardio AND weight training with the emphasis on weights. Also, a side benefit for women lifting is higher bone density when you age, thus avoiding osteoporisis when you get older. That's why my wife started and eventually got me into it!

Cardio is short term calorie burning while lifting provides a longer term metabolism bump (arobic & anerobic). Plus, arobic is better at moderate levels rather than all out for fat burning. Lifting creates larger or firmer muscles, which are more dense and then burn more calories all the time.

The easiest thing is to use a machine circuit every other day that is availabler at most gyms and their trainers will show you how to use them and make the settings. Two trips around these with sets of 12-15 reps will work wonders after three months. Then do 20-30 minutes of cardio after you lift.

Good luck!

We'll I haven't been able to gain a single pound since I was 17 so shouldn't I be able to lose weight since I'm suddenly riding my bike 3-6 miles every day and weight lifting 4 times a week without a special diet programme?

But if you guys insist I will try to eat less calories and keep up my work out programme as it is (and maybe throw ind a couple of spinning classes as well if I can find the time) ... I hope I'll get a result this way a lot quicker! ;)

High reps are initially good for cardio-respiratory fitness and tendon strength but again another myth to kill ...

women respond very well to maintaining muscle mass by using heavy weights as long as it is safely and with good form. Women VERY VERY rarely gain significant muscle size with heavy weight training due to having estrogen as a primary sex hormone and this type of loading regimen does not favour hypertrophy.

Actually, your weight is in the low end of the healthy range. If you do a weight lifting program, you may lose fat, but you will gain muscle, not a lot, but some. I wouldn't concentrate on the scale, but rather on having a healthy looking body.

Also, you probably don't need to eat fewer calories. Just keep a balanced diet.

That's exactly what I'm doing ;)

Cool, good stuff :)

Yeah, tone up. Everything besides the abs and ass, I think it looks great when there's a bit of bulk there. Oh man, if they keep it within reason, a ripped chick is so hot.

ok you need to take in less calories then you burn. so really its all in your diet....because without your diet you will not be able to lift and perform cardio with beneficial results. you need a good balance of protein, carbs, fats and lots of water while leaving out sugars and salts. starving your body will result in weight and muscle loss which you dont want.

for weights i would shoot for 8-12 range. it will help in muscle maintence as you try and shed some pounds. since you will be taking in less calories then you are burning you will not be able to gain significant mass unless you get those beginners gains. also stick to compound movements like presses and squats using those free weights.

as for cardio i would look towards a program called HIIT. do a search on google. basically its a high intensity cardio program where you work at varied levels of effort over 25 (approx) minutes.

so just eat right, do some high intensity cardio a couple times a week and hit the weights 3-4 times a week and you will be well on your way in 8 weeks.

that's exactly what I'm doing and I'm starting to get good results, YAY! :D