New here - Q's about cardio and gaining muscle

[trex74]

Sorry about the slow response, I was out of town.

Yeah, I can't sleep in because I'm too hungry in the morning, lol... I hear ya there. It's just when I'm busy doing homework for hours or working that it doesn't hit me until I'm bored. Also, I love the idea of a bean salad! I can do that. I have a crockpot, can I cook chicken in there somehow? I'll have to look through the recipes more, and try to find some that I can do. ,

On a different subject, when I do calves (just toe-raises right now) they seem to be crazy sore for like 5 days. My chicken legs are a problem area for me. I used to try different exercises with low reps and high weight and never saw any improvement in this area. I read an article that suggested doing toe raises on a step and concentrating on pushing all the way to the tip of your toes. I'm giving it a shot - I do a set of 70, then 50, then 40 with 30 sec between. It burns, and I see the results, so that's not the problem. Why does it take so long to recover? Is that normal? Will using the muscles during regular cardio cause a slower recovery time? Is it bad to use the muscles in cardio before they are recovered?

Thanks again guys, Merry Christmas!

You can definitely do chicken in the crock-pot, either cut-up or not, I like to add various flavours like diced tomatoes/veggies, curry paste, chili powder/beans, whatever you like...
If you cook it whole, you will have to pick out all those little bones, so I like to cut it up before hand. I don't really add liquid.
I've been told that calves respond to high reps...I've been doing 3 sets of twenty weighted reps of calf raises on a machine...and it's all I can do to finish them, but I'm not crazy sore afterwards.

 

[greentree]

You can definitely do chicken in the crock-pot, either cut-up or not, I like to add various flavours like diced tomatoes/veggies, curry paste, chili powder/beans, whatever you like...
If you cook it whole, you will have to pick out all those little bones, so I like to cut it up before hand. I don't really add liquid.
I've been told that calves respond to high reps...I've been doing 3 sets of twenty weighted reps of calf raises on a machine...and it's all I can do to finish them, but I'm not crazy sore afterwards.

Great! I found a recipe that has good veggies in it, as well as chicken breasts, for the crockpot.

Also, I'm up to 123 lbs! I gained 3 lbs last month, and 4 so far this month. Is that ok? I can really tell a difference in my glutes, hammies, and arms. It really seems like I've put on more than 7 lbs with how much different my muscles are. I can tell that a bit of it is fat though, because my stomach is not as flat (which you guys said would have to happen). When do I stop gaining and lose the fluff?

Forgive me if there is a thread explaining this as well, but I couldn't find one that answered this specific question for beginners. I understand that you have to put on fat when you gain muscle, then you lose the fat and try to keep the muscle - how do you do this?

How do you maintain the muscle without getting "pudgy" again?

 

[greentree]

I haven't done well since the 30th. I didn't have time to head to the gym with all the fun things going on, so I took a couple of days off. I mostly just dressed fabulous and went out with friends - but at least it was a blast! I didn't eat well, and lost 5 lbs. Crap. Oh well - I'm back on course, had a great breakfast and snack today and I'm heading to the gym in a bit.

 

[greentree]

Ok, it's two months later and I've improved. It's nothing to brag about, but I've gained a total of 12 lbs since I started and I can see improvement (except for my soft belly - gross!). Now I'd like to lose the fat and keep what muscle I can, what is the best way to do this? How fast can I lose it? Is it better to lose fat fast or slow, as far as keeping muscle is concerned?

I'm posting a pic - my biggest improvement was my arms, because I had scrawny distance-runner toothpick arms before. I know it's not much, but it's a start! Tell me if this pic works...

Shoot! It says I cant post it because I only have 17 posts total

 

[greentree]

http://i626.photobucket.com/albums/tt341/ambertatreau/am/DSC039131.jpg

 

[superqt4u2nv]

Ok, it's two months later and I've improved. It's nothing to brag about, but I've gained a total of 12 lbs since I started and I can see improvement (except for my soft belly - gross!). Now I'd like to lose the fat and keep what muscle I can, what is the best way to do this? How fast can I lose it? Is it better to lose fat fast or slow, as far as keeping muscle is concerned?

I'm posting a pic - my biggest improvement was my arms, because I had scrawny distance-runner toothpick arms before. I know it's not much, but it's a start! Tell me if this pic works...

Shoot! It says I cant post it because I only have 17 posts total

Dam girl that is good and you are looking really good. If you lose at a rate of 1-2 lbs per week then the chances that you will burn muscle is much lower so it is better to be losing at slow steady rate then fasr. Great work so far keep it up!

 

[greentree]

Thank you! Lol, I'm glad I asked because I would have done the opposite. My instincts about this stuff are not so good it appears...

 

[nefertiti]

Greentree....Thanks for the update! I think you look great.

 

[greentree]

Thanks Nefertiti!

 

[trex74]

Yup you look fantastic! Nice arms. I can't see any belly, btw.