Balancing strength training and cardio

[cosmia]

I'm planning on beginning strength training after I get back from Thanksgiving shenanigans. I want to continue yoga and bicycling (which I've been doing all along), so here's a rough draft of what I think my week will look like. In my case, yoga = vinyasa yoga, so it's pretty active as yoga goes.

Monday: bicycling (20 mi)

Tuesday: bicycling (8 mi), yoga

Wednesday: bicycling (8 mi), gym

Thursday: bicycling (8 mi), yoga

Friday: bicycling (8 mi), gym

Saturday: bicycling (8 mi), yoga

Sunday: bicycling (8 mi), gym

The 8 mile cycling is my combined commute to and from the city (where work, the gym, and the yoga studio are), so that's non-negotiable. The 20 mi ride on Monday is negotiable if it seems excessive; it's just that I have Mondays off and I love to take them to ride on my favorite bike path. What about the rest? Is it a good balance to alternate like this? Is it too much cardio? Could I fit swimming in here somewhere, or would that be overdoing it? I miss swimming, but I could live without it in the name of not overworking myself.

Also, note how I very vaguely say "gym." I looked through the StrongLifts stuff today and aside from being hyper-focused on men and manliness, it seems pretty good (not that I know anything about anything), but I've seen a few people voice a preference for Starting Strength. Maybe I'm just blind, but when I looked into SS, I didn't see a handy workout plan laid out, which I really need. Basically, I am asking how a total noob should be spending her time in the gym. Goals: I don't want to lose much weight. I do want to reduce body fat and increase muscle. Which I know involves eating more, which I plan on working on.

[Josh_C]

I can't offer too much advice on lifts and things of that nature. I'm still pretty much a n00b myself. But I do know you need an off day in there somewhere. If the 8 miles aren't negotiable, maybe you could still skip gym/yoga on one day? Your body needs time to just rest up and recover.

[ETFnerd]

agree with jcamson

[aj_rock]

I'd say take that Monday bike ride off. You'll burn out pretty fast going at it 7 days a week. Even six is really pushing it.

I know you say you want to lift, but depending on how good of a workout you get doing yoga, it might not be necessary for your goals.

[ebm1224]

agreed on the rest day. maybe even two since you look like you're working out pretty hard core.

[Lachy]

When you cycle, are you going hard, or is it more leisurly? If I were you, I wouldn't want to cut the 20mi ride, because you say you really enjoy it, and enjoying your exercise is important.

If your rides are just cruisy, then I would simply cut out one of the gym or yoga sessions to start with. If after a couple of weeks you feel you're coping well then add it in. Or conversly, if you're struggling and need more rest cut back on something, maybe take the bus/train in to work instead of ride on your rest day to give your body more time off.

Experiment a little, but make sure you enjoy it! And welcome to the NF!

[cosmia]

Yeah, I should have specified: my bike rides are generally pretty laid back and enjoyable. I don't go super slow and it does feel like I'm exercising, but I also tend not to ride like tigers are chasing me. Since all the advice I'm reading says that 3x a week at the gym is the way you see progress, I'll cut a yoga day for my day off to start and see how that goes.

And to answer aj_rock, I adore yoga but I really haven't seen a huge effect on my body or my strength, and I've been doing it for over a year now. I've certainly gotten much better at yoga itself and a little stronger in some ways, but nowhere near where I'd like to be. Which is why I'm trying something new to supplement it. I'm also hoping improving my strength off the mat will help me with tougher poses like headstands and arm balances, which I cannot do to save my life because my arms are sad and weak.

[Knightwatch]

Yes. Rest day.

As for the SS program:

http://startingstrength.wikia.com/wiki/FAQ:The_Program

It's very, very similar to what StrongLifts prescribes these days, except only 3 sets of 5, rather than 5x5. Many of us have experience with both programs, so we can help you out if you have any questions after looking over the link.

Best of luck!

[HenryFnord]

I like strong lifts as a total n00b program. It's pretty simple and gets you learning the core lifts in the gym every other day or so.

Workout 1 - 5x5 Squat, 5x5 Bench Press, 5x5 Bent Over Rows

Workout 2 - 5x5 Squat, 5x5 Overhead Press, 1x5 Deadlift

Do that for a month or two and along the way you'll ask lots of questions, learn a lot and figure out where to go from there.

[andygates]

SL is hilariously macho, isn't it? Though somewhere in there it does say, and it is true, that female trainers should do exactly the same thing.

As a bikey who did SL over the summer, I think the commute's fine. Eventually the number of squats gets heavy going, but shortish hops between locations and that sort of mileage will mostly serve to spin out the stiffness rather than add a level of fatigue.

[chammy]

Yes, SL is hilariously macho, but I still do it. I just wasn't totally BLOWN AWAY by all the muscled out dudes and thought OH I MUST DO THIS. I went "where is the routine, and how do I do it?"

[cosmia]

Oh, perfect! Thanks for the link, Knightwatch. That's exactly what I was looking for.

And yeah, the SL stuff is so over the top, it's practically a parody of itself. So many exclamation points!!!!! When it got to the part about how his Asian girlfriend just ~LOVES~ his muscles, I was cracking up. But it's pretty easy to ignore all that and extract the workout plan. Still, I'm going to use Starting Strength because it looks more doable for me at the moment. Thank you to all for the advice. I have decreed that Saturday shall be my day of rest, and so it shall be done.