Is this a good workout plan?

Question

I am 145, 5'4" female 26 years old. Trying to lose some body fat and gain muscle.

I do legs twice a week, arms once a week, and cardio twice a week. So may it will go like this:

Monday: arm
Tuesday: legs
Wednesday: rest/cardio
Thursday: legs
Friday: Cardio

Sometimes I workout on saturday or sunday, depending if I am busy or not.

I usually lift weights with machines at the gym, like leg presses, hamstring curls and squats (I think its about 100-120 pounds) and I use the elliptical with resistance at 9 for 40 minutes. I am also taking protein shake and eating protein rich foods like quinoa and couscous and i make a lot of juice smoothies.

Does it look like I am on the right track? Opinions?

Answer 1

You are on the right track with the nutrition portion but I have a suggestion on your workout schedule. The elliptical is a whole body workout because it has the arm bars and leg pedals. I'd add cardio to the day you do legs and arms. It doesn't have to be the full 40 minutes, but it's something. You don't need to do legs twice in one week, maybe focus on chest and back in place of that. Push-ups, pull-ups(done with a chair) lat pull-downs are all very effective at building arms, chest and shoulders. Yes, it's old school but it really gets the job done. Good Luck and keep after it!

Answer 2

1. Turn-up the Heat on Warm-Ups:



Ease into your cardio warm-up as usual, but after seven minutes, inject short-burst intervals of 30 seconds duration. Then return to your warm-up pace for 30 seconds of recovery, then repeat for a total of three cycles. These bursts will burn more calories, rev your heart and charge you up for a more intense workout!



2. Rest with Precision:



Limit rest between strength exercise sets to 30-60 seconds. Bring a stop watch and actually time it! Or for a more intense workout, instead of resting, pick up a jump rope, do jumping jacks, agility drills or other low-impact cardio for one minute in between each set.



3. Set the Bar High:



Use measures of your own performance to drive you to a more intense workout. On the first set of a strength routine, for example, see what the maximum number of reps you can achieve is at a given weight (aim for a weight that puts you in a 12-20 rep range). On subsequent sets, challenge yourself to match your performance. The same can be done with timed rounds. Time your first set for one minute and count your reps completed within the time limit. Remaining sets need to match this score.



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Answer 3

It looks good. But I would ditch the machines and move to free weights. Stick with big movements and learn how to do them. Squat, dead lift, row, military press, pull up. Be sure to increase the intensity over time.

Answer 4

it sounds like a good plan but protein shakes aren't all that good, for instance a popular brand called "for goodness shakes" has over 50g of sugar in a 500ml bottle. I would just drink normal milk instead still lots of protein but without the sugar.