Help Me Become A Healthier Person Please - Part 3

[DawnToDusk]

It has been a month since my last post and I would just like to say I have made great strides since I started reading this forum. My eating habits have changed tremendously. I now know how to eat properly and it is no problem at all for me to prepare my own meals that I know will help me cut and put on lean mass. I have also learned a great deal about lifting and have made strides there as well. In all fairness I have only been lifting for two weeks (just got back to school and the gym is free) but can start to see a difference in my body as well as in my strength when at the gym. I have found a workout/diet partner who has become a great friend and we hold each other accountable for our bodies and health. I would just like to take the time and thank everyone on these forums who has helped me thus far. I couldn't of done it without your knowledge.

For those of you who would like to follow along, as you may be looking to start a healthier lifestyle or just have some general questions in general, please do so! My last post: Help Me Become A Healthier Person Please - Part 2, touched a little more on foods and supplements/vitamins. The post really just cleans up some loose ends. If you would like to get the big picture on food read post 1 or visit the FAQ. After working out for two weeks, where my goals are to cut and put on lean mass, I would like to take the time to talk about cardio activities.

Alright. The time I spend at the gym gets broken down into five consecutive days. Mon, Weds, Fri I am lifting. I go with my partner, get in and out. Try to keep socializing to a minimum (but if there is a cutie I will indulge from time to time [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] ). Tues and Thursday I do cardio and all of my cardio comes from biking.

Now back in my first post I gave a little history about myself. I said I played some sports but was more of a lanky/skinny guy. Cardio and running stamina (if that is a real thing?) was my deal back in HS. I could run several miles no problem without having to pant or anything. I am starting to return to my old ways when I hop on the bike.

On Tues and Thurs I usually bike for an hour. I set the tension on the bike to 10 (I don't know if there is a universal tension for bikes but the ones at my school go from 1-20.) and keep my RPM's 65+. At the end of my hour I bike 15+ mi and burn 900-1000+ calories. My concern is that this may be preventing my body from actually "growing" and putting on lean mass.

Again my overall goal is to lead a healthier lifestyle. Within that goal I would like cut down on my fat and put on lean muscle mass. Is doing to much cardio going to cancel out the positive effects of lifting weights? By burning so much cals am I taking away to much nutrients from muscles who need it to repair?

This is a very big concern for me. I have an excess bit of fat on my stomach (its not like a gut or anything but pretty much it is preventing me from having a flat stomach) and I know that the workouts for my core are definitely going to improving my stomach muscles and everything else in my body. But I feel like that the cardio will help me burn this fat off a little bit faster. Do I just have a misconception about cardio workouts?

So here are the real big and important questions about cardio workouts that I would like to discuss:

What is the main purpose of a cardio workout?

How often and how long are you doing cardio workouts a week?

Aside from the main purpose what other goals are you trying to accomplish during a cardio workout? (ie Burn x amount of calories or something else)

Is to much cardio for you bad? If so why? How much is to much?

Are there any optimal cardio exercises or ones that have had good results for you?

What PWO meals do you suggest after doing cardio? Do you suggest any at all?

Any other tid bits of knowledge you would like to add. =)



These questions may seem really trivial but after doing so much cardio (maybe it isn't actually a lot) I wanted to make sure I didn't have misconceptions about it. Helping me answer these questions and further understand the subject should clear up any foggy ideas I have. Maybe it will help others too! =)



Once again thank you so much for your help.