which is easier? building muscle or losing weight?
by Craig on Wednesday, July 21st, 2010 | 2 Comments
Now i know that while losing weight you can build muscle, and same thing applies when building muscle sort of. Just curious cause i am about to start trying to lose weight, i am 208 and i should be atleast 190 (I’m 6’2 by the way) At the same time i want to tone up, but i don’t want that big bulky look where you have no definition. So, i thought i would lose the weight first and to tone after. Bah, i am sure i will hear do both at the same time which is probably what will happen, but i am still curious which is easier, building muscle or losing weight?
I think you mean lose fat or gain muscle, because you usually gain weight working our even though your body fat is going down. Here’s what I do and it has been working for me. Obviously a workout needs to be tailored to the individual, but these exercises may help.
Arms
Lying dumbbell triceps extensions
standing barbell curl
behind head reverse hammers
one-arm preacher curl
Close-grip pushdowns
incline dumbbell curl
Parallel bar dips
hammer curl
Single-arm reverse-grip pushdowns
reverse grip EZ bar
rope push downs
super light dumbbell curls
Chest
Dumbbell Incline Presses,
Pullovers and Presses,
Dumbbell Bench Presses,
Narrow-Grip Bench Presses,
Incline Dumbbell Flyes,
Barbell Incline Presses,
Push-Ups Between Benches,
Cable standing incline flyes
Cable standing decline flyes
Back
Barbell row
Dumbbell Row
Lat Pull Downs
Cable Row
Lower Back Machine
Forearms
lite wide lat pulldowns
Supermans
Shoulders
Lateral Raises
Bent-Over Lateral Raises
No rest front raises
Shrugs
Military Presses
Front Raises
Rotator Cuffs
Superlight lateral raises
On incline bench, with 2 10lbs dumbbells:
1st: Facing forward bring dumbbells up from sides to parallel to ground palms inward, slow repeat for ten reps.
2nd: Facing bench bring dumbbells up from sides backwards as far as you can palms inward, slow repeat for ten reps.
3rd: Stand up with dumbbells and do 10 lateral raises.
4th: Back in position 2, raise arms so they are forward, palms inward, arms bent in a semi bear hug position and parallel to ground. Bring to sides and back to center for 10 reps. I usually do 5 lbs here because this exercise is hard.
Do this set three times with out rest. The third set I change to all 5 lb movements. All of this is slow pace, like 1 second up and one second down.
Legs
Squats
Leg Extentions
Leg Curls
Adductors
Abductors
Calf Lifts
Glute Machine
Leg lifts
I also do 100 crunches per night.
My idea is to hit a variety of ranges and movements in order to work the muscle to the maximum. I tend to use a weight I can do for 10 reps and for 25 reps on the last two movements. Apart from this I do 20 minutes or Cardio every day and stretch before and after the workout, as well as frequently during. Stretching is very important to muscular growth because not only does it help prevent injury and alleviate recovery pain, but it also stretches out the fascia tissue that surrounds the muscle and inhibits its growth. When you are pumped and you stretch is when you get the best stretch of the fascia. Lastly rest and nutrition are every bit as important as the workout itself. Eating enough protein for the muscle to recover and grow as well as enough carbohydrates to replenish diminished glycogen stores in the muscles and liver is vital for repair and being ready for the next time you tax those muscles.
This won’t get you huge unless you go heavy.
You should use low weight and lots of cardio. Building muscle is easier.