heyy newbie here

[jenny27]

hey everyone...i'm new here to the board and decided to post and get some feedback on my routine, diet, etc. first off i guess i should tell you all my stats: 20 year old college student, 143 lbs, 5'8, bodyfat? i was tested a while ago and i think it was low to mid 20's...i could def be wrong with that though. and besides it has to def be lower than when i got it measured.
GOAL: LOSE BODY FAT, GAIN/MAINTAIN MUSCLE (LEAN OUT/GAIN A LOT MORE
DEFINITION)
currently this is my routine:
Monday-chest
shoulders
triceps
Cardio
Tuesday-legs
back
biceps
(sometimes moderate cardio-bball, jump rope, etc)
Wed- cardio on empty stomach usually
Thursday- chest
shoulders
triceps
Friday- legs
back
biceps
Cardio
Saturday- cardio usually on empty stomach
Sunday- OFF

(cardio i usually alternate spinning classes, kickboxing, running, eliptical...but generally 3-4 times a week for at least 30 minutes...does this seem like enough to lose body fat while still maintaining/gaining muscle?)
Diet: well this is definately the hardest part of trying to
get a lean body. for the past couple of months i have been
pretty good with my diet...bought some whey protein (since
it's so hard for me to get at least 1g my body weight in
actual food. here at school i basically have no variety to
what i eat (mostly salads w/ chicken, natty peanut butter
(most of the time), tuna (if it's possible when noone is
around =) wheat bread
(although i'm thinking of cutting most of this out since
i'm trying to drop my body fat), oatmeal (just switched to
regular-def not as tasty as maple and brown sugar but def
the better choice), lots of water, fruit every so often
(cut down on it though after reading about it being high in
sugar), umm thats pretty much it i cant eat egg whites
(sometimes if they have them at the food court, i'll get
them in my salad but other than that, no, and protein bars
every so often. thats why i love going home so i can EAT
(mmm waffles, pancakes, chocolate, etc...that's also why i
gain like 10 lbs when i'm home...jk) i usually
try to eat between 1500 and 1700 cals a day. (i went extremely low to
like 1100, 1200 calories a day, lost a lot of weight, but
it was mostly muscle i assume...we' definately don't want
that. i don't ever want to look like one of those models
(nothing but bone). i def would like to be muscular and defined where my hard work shows. a typical day of eating at the moment looks like this :

breakfast: oatmeal
whey protein shake (20 g)(100 cals)

lunch: 2 tbspn natty peanut butter on wheat bread
whey protein shake
snack: 1 or 2 tbspn peanut butter or whey protein shake

dinner: salad w/ chicken

snack: 2 tbspn peanut butter
protein shake


i know this diet doesnt look very good; once i am home for the summer i plan on eating a lot more variety and real foods. can someone critique this diet or even better come up with a daily menu for me (allowing my number of cals) that would be so helpful to me...should i cut the wheat bread out and eat something else that has less carbs? or do you think it's alright even though i am trying to lose body fat? i just want to make sure that i am really doing everything i should be. i just recently really focused on my workouts and diet since lets say dec., jan? i worked out before but jsut recently really tried to make improvements and change the way my body looks. i jsut think that being that many of you have been training for years that you'll inspire me to keep working hard on my goals and get that lean muscular bod =) thank you girls/guys/whoever is reading this so much!!!

 

[jenny27]

sorry guys also forgot to add that i work abs 2-3 times a week as well

 

[The_Monster]

Yeah, thats waaaay too much training. You need to straighten that out first

If you really need to go so often, at least switch it to one bodypart a day...

 

[c3bodybuilding]

Yikes! You need to slow down with the training. Hit each body part only once a week. I am starting to think only Arnold himself was able to pull off that 2 or 3x a week per body part stuff! ;p I would do a simple 3 or 4 days split. Nothing too fancy. Stick to the basics. They make you grow the most. Stay away from foo foo stuff. 100 reps with a machine curl isn't going to get you anywhere.

For food, you need some more! Plain yogurt, tuna salads, shakes, nuts, etc are all great choices when you are limited in what you can eat. Hard boiled eggs are great too. You can even buy them preboilded at some supermarkets, if you don't have access to a stove at school. And I think it's great that you realized you probably did lose a lot of muscle dieting the way you did. A diet is never the way to go. In fact I hate that word. It makes me think of a short term quick fix goal. I like to think people are in this for the long haul!

Oh, and you don't need to train your abs all that much. Crunches don't really make them come out, that comes in time from proper nutrition, heavy, but brief weight lifting sessions, and cardio. And high reps isn't needed either. Just a do a couple of sets here and there. Once or twice a week, at home, or at the end of a workout, etc.

All, in all, I think it's great that you realize the mistakes you've made with training and eating in the past, and are now looking to fix that, and learn. That takes a lot, and it shows you are ready to make good changes for yourself. It's always good to see someone doing that! So, stick around, don't be afraid to ask questions, use the search if you are stuck, and keep at it. You will meet your goals in no time. Good luck, and I hope you are here to stay....

 

[Rocket]

Welcome! The Ladies Here Will Be Able To Point You In The Right Direction!

Rocket

 

[jenny27]

so what you all are saying is that i will see faster and better results working a body part only once a week?
how does this look?
mon: back/rear delt/cardio
tues: legs/abs
wed: cardio
thurs: chest/tri's
fri: shoulders/bi's/cardio
sat: cardio/abs
sun: off
also, how many exercises for each body part would u recommend? sets?reps? alternate heavy/lighter? anyone have any examples of the best exercises for each body part that they could give me? thanks girls =)

 

[Audacious1]

Welcome to the board...these ladies know what they are talking about. I have a 4 day split training one body part per week, with the exception of my biceps which need a lot of work...biceps are small muscles and repair quicker, so i train them on monday's and thursdays...but some may dispute that. But anyway, welcome and enjoy.

 

[jenny27]

just wanted to say thanks for recommending working a body part once a week...my routine was started to get old on me anyways and i think this way i'm going to feel better and get better results.

 

[new@gettinbig]

Hi No need to work each body part more than once a week....if your training hard enough...im usually sore at least 3-4 days!