Training FAQ 01

I mentioned in my previous post the number of people asking me how they can lose weight by training with weights. Many want to be 'leanrippedandnotbulky' but its not as easy as it seems. Here are excerpts to some of the frequently asked questions to me lately. They answer doubts the best.

What if I don't want to get 'bulky' or look like a bodybuilder?

(excerpt from Tom Venuto's BFFM)

Judging by how often I hear concerns about getting “too big,” it’s obvious that many people think building muscle mass is easy. Believe me, gaining muscle is far from easy. It’s a long, difficult process for everyone except the most genetically gifted. It’s even more difficult for women, who have less of the muscle-building hormone, testosterone. Despite my reassurance, almost 100% of the women I’ve coached (and some of the men) have still been worried about getting big “bulky” muscles. If this is a concern for you, let me put you at ease…

This fear of “getting too big” usually comes from seeing pictures of professional bodybuilders in the magazines. Almost 100% of professional bodybuilders take steroids and other anabolic drugs to get abnormally large muscle mass. If you’ve ever seen pictures of female bodybuilders with massive, masculine-looking muscles (and faces), the odds are good that they were using steroids, male hormones, or other muscle enhancing drugs.

Unless you’re a “genetic freak” with a high mesomorph component, you’re not going to get too big from weight training. You’re also not going to wake up one morning and notice that you’ve sprouted massive bulk overnight. The process takes place slowly, and you’re totally in control of how you want your body to look. If you ever reach the point where you have all the muscle you want, it’s very easy to change your training and nutrition to maintenance.

Higher reps burn more fat?
(excerpt from Tom Venuto's BFFM)

It’s a myth that high reps burn more fat. In fact, quite the opposite it true. Remember what I said earlier about high lean body mass burning more fat at rest because of a higher BMR? Well, if that’s true, then wouldn’t you want to use the repetition rangethat builds the most muscle?

The actual performance of a repetition is not what burns the fat. Calories are burned with every rep, of course, but the fat burning effect from weight training comes into play after the exercise from the increase in post workout calorie expenditure (EPOC) and the increase in BMR from having more lean body mass.

Weight training burns the most body fat after the workout. Cardio training burns the most fat during the workout. The real fat burning value in weight training is the increased metabolic rate after the workout, which has nothing to do with the number of repetitions you perform. Building more lean mass increases your metabolic rate and keeping your reps in the six to twelve range is the most efficient way to build lean mass.

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Meal Log
Protein shake (200 cal)
Centrum multivit

Fish oil
Mee jawa (600 cal)
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6 egg whites (100 cal)
Snacks (300 cal)
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McD's Double Cheeseburger (432 cal)
McNuggets (300 cal)
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1932 Calories