Chic Routine > "Some Advice Needed"

[Flathead]

My wifey has recently asked me to put together a 4d split workout routine for her that can be done in roughly 25-30mins. Shes goes to the local YMCA over her lunch break and the first 30mins is spent doing spin, yoga, & pilates classes. Her goal overall is to tone/firm up. As most of you know I'm 100% geared towards PLing, with that being said I'm struggling a bit with the time limitations & the type of equipment used at a cardio driven gym (machine exercise equipment). So any input on this would be greatly appriciated!!!!

Some stats;
5'3"
130lbs
25%BF (my baby's all ass & I would like to keep some of that)
1,200 Clean Calories e/d



Flathead

 

[Gazhole]

Do they have any freeweights at all? Kettlebells?

 

[Flathead]

Do they have any freeweights at all? Kettlebells?

I'm sure they would have to, to some degree.

 

[Gazhole]

Assuming they probably won't be very heavy, i usually think circuits are the way to go in this situation. Or Escalating Density Training. EDT is good because she'll have something tangible to beat every workout.

10 Minutes on a lower body exercise (E.G. Squats with BW)
5 Minute rest
10 Minutes on an upper body exercise (E.G. DB Rows)
5 Minutes stretching.

Voila. Quick, tough, you don't have to teach tonnes of exercises so she can focus on doing a few of them perfectly, and like i said - theres a target to beat your reps every session, but the time element always stays the same.

Could make 4 sessions of this easily if you delineate between horizontal/vertical unilateral/bilateral movements. Or some other type of split. Can apply this concept to any equipment, too. Two sessions freeweights and two sessions on machines could be a good idea.

 

[gtbmed]

You can get her a good workout with light weights.

Kettlebell or DB swings; goblet squats, step ups, or lunges; and one leg RDLs are all good for the lower body. For the upper body just get her doing overhead presses and chinups.

Honestly "toning up" is going to be all about diet, so you just need some small amount of training to convince your body to keep the muscle around.

 

[Flathead]

Assuming they probably won't be very heavy, i usually think circuits are the way to go in this situation. Or Escalating Density Training. EDT is good because she'll have something tangible to beat every workout.

10 Minutes on a lower body exercise (E.G. Squats with BW)
5 Minute rest
10 Minutes on an upper body exercise (E.G. DB Rows)
5 Minutes stretching.

Voila. Quick, tough, you don't have to teach tonnes of exercises so she can focus on doing a few of them perfectly, and like i said - theres a target to beat your reps every session, but the time element always stays the same.

Could make 4 sessions of this easily if you delineate between horizontal/vertical unilateral/bilateral movements. Or some other type of split. Can apply this concept to any equipment, too. Two sessions freeweights and two sessions on machines could be a good idea.

When you say 10mins to upper & 10mins to lower body, is the idea to do the same exercise all the way through? Would it be a good idea for me to reccomend no more than a 30sec rest between each set during this 10min duration? THX Gaz!

You can get her a good workout with light weights.

Kettlebell or DB swings; goblet squats, step ups, or lunges; and one leg RDLs are all good for the lower body. For the upper body just get her doing overhead presses and chinups.

Honestly "toning up" is going to be all about diet, so you just need some small amount of training to convince your body to keep the muscle around.

Good feed back, I'll definitely put some of these exercises in play.

 

[Gazhole]

Basically the idea of EDT is to get as many reps of that exercise as you can in 10 minutes. Take as little or as much rest as you need, and beat your total by at least 1 rep every session. Excellent program for fitness, endurance, and size actually if you eat for it, lol.

It's best to pace yourself rather than smash out 30 reps then collapse for 2:00, so i usually do blocks of 3, 5, or 10 reps with a 10-30sec rest interval depending on how i feel and what the exercise is. When the time runs out, thats it.

After that, rest for 5:00 then do another 10 min on the second exercise.

The other way to do this is supersetting 2 exercises for 15:00, and alternating them throughout the time limit. The problem with doing this on your own is that its tough to count both of them, lol

 

[Flathead]

Basically the idea of EDT is to get as many reps of that exercise as you can in 10 minutes. Take as little or as much rest as you need, and beat your total by at least 1 rep every session. Excellent program for fitness, endurance, and size actually if you eat for it, lol.

It's best to pace yourself rather than smash out 30 reps then collapse for 2:00, so i usually do blocks of 3, 5, or 10 reps with a 10-30sec rest interval depending on how i feel and what the exercise is. When the time runs out, thats it.

That's top notch!

 

[Gazhole]

Damn you reply fast. Pre-empted my edit

But yeah, its a good program when you're strapped for time and you want to do a lot of work.

Trying this with heavy weights seems like it would be a great way to build up strength endurance too, but i've never tried it.

 

[Phineas]

Basically the idea of EDT is to get as many reps of that exercise as you can in 10 minutes. Take as little or as much rest as you need, and beat your total by at least 1 rep every session. Excellent program for fitness, endurance, and size actually if you eat for it, lol.

It's best to pace yourself rather than smash out 30 reps then collapse for 2:00, so i usually do blocks of 3, 5, or 10 reps with a 10-30sec rest interval depending on how i feel and what the exercise is. When the time runs out, thats it.

After that, rest for 5:00 then do another 10 min on the second exercise.

The other way to do this is supersetting 2 exercises for 15:00, and alternating them throughout the time limit. The problem with doing this on your own is that its tough to count both of them, lol

I like the idea of using this with heavier weights, too. Sounds like a cool way to train total tonneage.

If I were to use your example of 3 or 5-rep blocks w/ 10-30 second RIs, at what intensity would I want to lift? Obviously, I would be banging out those reps fairly quickly, but how "light" would I go?

For instance, my deadlift 5RM is 275 lbs. If I wanted to successfully make it through 10 mins if this what weight would you suggest I aim for so that I don't burn out 2 minutes in?

 

[Built]

Describe "clean" calories. 1200's pretty damned low, especially with all that activity. Her maintenance has to be around 1900 - dropping to 1500 would be a 20% deficit, which is PLENTY.

She'll hit 20% bodyfat at 122 lbs. With 400 cals a day off her diet, she could get there in about three months without hating her life.

My wifey has recently asked me to put together a 4d split workout routine for her that can be done in roughly 25-30mins. Shes goes to the local YMCA over her lunch break and the first 30mins is spent doing spin, yoga, & pilates classes. Her goal overall is to tone/firm up. As most of you know I'm 100% geared towards PLing, with that being said I'm struggling a bit with the time limitations & the type of equipment used at a cardio driven gym (machine exercise equipment). So any input on this would be greatly appriciated!!!!

Some stats;
5'3"
130lbs
25%BF (my baby's all ass & I would like to keep some of that)
1,200 Clean Calories e/d



Flathead

 

[Gazhole]

I like the idea of using this with heavier weights, too. Sounds like a cool way to train total tonneage.

If I were to use your example of 3 or 5-rep blocks w/ 10-30 second RIs, at what intensity would I want to lift? Obviously, I would be banging out those reps fairly quickly, but how "light" would I go?

For instance, my deadlift 5RM is 275 lbs. If I wanted to successfully make it through 10 mins if this what weight would you suggest I aim for so that I don't burn out 2 minutes in?

I would suggest something around 10-12RM. Chances are thats still going to be fairly heavy for the amount of reps you'll be doing. Maybe even 15RM?

If you wanted to go heavier i would do singles only. 10 Minutes of singles at a heavy weight would be doable but absolutely brutal. Even then i wouldnt go heavier than 10RM.

10-15 rep max weight seems about right. The weight is less important than constantly increasing the reps.

 

[Flathead]

Describe "clean" calories. 1200's pretty damned low, especially with all that activity. Her maintenance has to be around 1900 - dropping to 1500 would be a 20% deficit, which is PLENTY.

She'll hit 20% bodyfat at 122 lbs. With 400 cals a day off her diet, she could get there in about three months without hating her life.

When I refer to clean calories, her diet consists of things like fish, chicken breasts, steamed vegetables, whole wheat breads, etc.

I'll let her know that she can up her intake to 1,500 as reccomended. I know she's miserable at 1,200. I feel bad eating in front of her half the time. Thanks for the feedback!

 

[Built]

She will probably feel better without the bread. She'll definitely need more fat. Women often do better with fats higher and carbs lower than men - it makes us feel more full.

Tell me how many grams of protein, carb and fat she's been running and I'll suggest something.

Also, is she doing the usual "six meals a day" thing? If she is, tell her to stop that. 200 calories isn't a meal, it's just an appetizer. Eating that way means she'll be ravenous all day.

 

[Flathead]

She will probably feel better without the bread. She'll definitely need more fat. Women often do better with fats higher and carbs lower than men - it makes us feel more full.

Tell me how many grams of protein, carb and fat she's been running and I'll suggest something.

I'll find out what her daily breakdown is.

Also, is she doing the usual "six meals a day" thing? If she is, tell her to stop that. 200 calories isn't a meal, it's just an appetizer. Eating that way means she'll be ravenous all day.

Yes, she's doing the 6 meals a day thing. It does seem to make her a bit edgy. I don't say anything though, just happy she cares.

 

[gtbmed]

6 meals a day is uncomfortable to me. I've done best with about 4 solid meals, but I'll lower it to as few as 2 depending on how many calories I'm in deficit.

 

[Built]

Get her off that six meal crap. It's miserable.
She trains at lunch, right?

Here's what I'd suggest for training days:

1. Postpone breakfast until about 10:30 or so. That meal should be strictly protein and fat. This could be a half a scoop of protein-shake with an ounce of walnuts and a couple of eggs. A few fish oil caps. Plenty of coffee or tea, or caffeine pills.
2. When she comes back from her workout, she can do protein and fat again, or if it doesn't make her feel too hungry, a mixed meal such as chicken with a small portion of sweet potato, a big heap of green beans, and a pat of butter. A half cup of sugar-free yogurt or a half a protein shake with this would be very helpful for appetite control. She should have a teaspoon of creatine in this shake or with water for this meal.
3. Late in the afternoon, another smaller meal of protein and fat with veggies - something like an ounce of tuna with half a cup of cottage cheese and a quarter of an avocado again will turn hunger OFF. Tell her to eat a few dill pickles after this if she's fighting hunger. Then brush her teeth.
4. Dinner: more protein and fat with veggies. <- this should be the largest meal of the day, and eaten as late in the evening as possible. She can choose to have carb with this meal, or no - personally, if I eat carbs I prefer to eat them at bedtime so I can go to sleep before they make me hungry again.

On days where she doesn't train:

1. Have her skip breakfast entirely and eat her first meal at lunch. Again, a small shake first with fish oil caps, then protein and fat with veggies. No carbs other than what's in the veggies.
2. Next meal later in the afternoon, more protein and fat. Fish oil caps; a large salad with romaine, half an avocado, olive oil, chicken or steak
3. Possible early dinner, small protein and fat here, could be something as simple as tuna with cottage cheese and a few walnuts or avocado slices. Half an apple, cottage cheese, half an ounce of walnuts. Fish oil caps. If she can skip this one, so much the better - eat those calories at the later meal.
4. Late dinner, large meal, yogurt or a small shake with it will help settle down hunger. Again, the choice is hers - carbs or no carbs. Brush teeth, go to bed.
5. Fish oil should be 10 capsules a day. I recommend yogurt or whey protein with a few fish oil caps as an accompaniment to meals because they help settle down hunger and make your meal feel larger.

 

[unclem]

hey flathead my wife does train with me now to. shes wanting to use var so thats good, hope she does. anyway if theres free weights tell her to do kickbacks , pushdowns ect, at low weight higher reps. 10- 12 reps per bp and i dont no about diet but wat works for my wife might not for yours. i , my trainer has us on gtg diets . hers trim , mine bulk. but i would try high reps light weight its wiorking for my wife. not much but i tried for ya.

 

[Flathead]

Get her off that six meal crap. It's miserable.
She trains at lunch, right?


Here's what I'd suggest for training days:

1. Postpone breakfast until about 10:30 or so. That meal should be strictly protein and fat. This could be a half a scoop of protein-shake with an ounce of walnuts and a couple of eggs. A few fish oil caps. Plenty of coffee or tea, or caffeine pills.
2. When she comes back from her workout, she can do protein and fat again, or if it doesn't make her feel too hungry, a mixed meal such as chicken with a small portion of sweet potato, a big heap of green beans, and a pat of butter. A half cup of sugar-free yogurt or a half a protein shake with this would be very helpful for appetite control. She should have a teaspoon of creatine in this shake or with water for this meal.
3. Late in the afternoon, another smaller meal of protein and fat with veggies - something like an ounce of tuna with half a cup of cottage cheese and a quarter of an avocado again will turn hunger OFF. Tell her to eat a few dill pickles after this if she's fighting hunger. Then brush her teeth.
4. Dinner: more protein and fat with veggies. <- this should be the largest meal of the day, and eaten as late in the evening as possible. She can choose to have carb with this meal, or no - personally, if I eat carbs I prefer to eat them at bedtime so I can go to sleep before they make me hungry again.

On days where she doesn't train:

1. Have her skip breakfast entirely and eat her first meal at lunch. Again, a small shake first with fish oil caps, then protein and fat with veggies. No carbs other than what's in the veggies.
2. Next meal later in the afternoon, more protein and fat. Fish oil caps; a large salad with romaine, half an avocado, olive oil, chicken or steak
3. Possible early dinner, small protein and fat here, could be something as simple as tuna with cottage cheese and a few walnuts or avocado slices. Half an apple, cottage cheese, half an ounce of walnuts. Fish oil caps. If she can skip this one, so much the better - eat those calories at the later meal.
4. Late dinner, large meal, yogurt or a small shake with it will help settle down hunger. Again, the choice is hers - carbs or no carbs. Brush teeth, go to bed.
5. Fish oil should be 10 capsules a day. I recommend yogurt or whey protein with a few fish oil caps as an accompaniment to meals because they help settle down hunger and make your meal feel larger.

Thanks again Built, I will print this off & review with her this evening. I will also get you what her current daily fat, protein, & carb count is.

hey flathead my wife does train with me now to. shes wanting to use var so thats good, hope she does. anyway if theres free weights tell her to do kickbacks , pushdowns ect, at low weight higher reps. 10- 12 reps per bp and i dont no about diet but wat works for my wife might not for yours. i , my trainer has us on gtg diets . hers trim , mine bulk. but i would try high reps light weight its wiorking for my wife. not much but i tried for ya.

Thanks Bro, everything helps!

 

[Flathead]

Built, here is her daily average;

Carbs = 110 g
Protein = 50 g
Fats = 36 g
Saturated Fat = 7.4 g
Cholesterol = 60 mg
Sodium = 2,019 mg
Fiber = 15.4 g
Vitamin A = 3,435 iu
Vitamin C = 40 mg
Calicum = 302 mg
Iron = 10.6 mg
Potassium = 1,128 mg

 

[gtbmed]

What about Vitamin D?

Also, she seems to be eating way too little protein and fat. She'd probably feel much fuller with more fats and proteins and fewer carbs.

 

[Flathead]

What about Vitamin D?

Also, she seems to be eating way too little protein and fat. She'd probably feel much fuller with more fats and proteins and fewer carbs.

Interestingly enough the the calorie count "Nutrition Report" she uses dosen't track Vitamin D?

 

[Built]

hey flathead my wife does train with me now to. shes wanting to use var so thats good, hope she does. anyway if theres free weights tell her to do kickbacks , pushdowns ect, at low weight higher reps. 10- 12 reps per bp and i dont no about diet but wat works for my wife might not for yours. i , my trainer has us on gtg diets . hers trim , mine bulk. but i would try high reps light weight its wiorking for my wife. not much but i tried for ya.

I wouldn't recommend higher rep work for a cut, unless she's on gear.

Built, here is her daily average;

Carbs = 110 g
Protein = 50 g
Fats = 36 g
Saturated Fat = 7.4 g
Cholesterol = 60 mg
Sodium = 2,019 mg
Fiber = 15.4 g
Vitamin A = 3,435 iu
Vitamin C = 40 mg
Calicum = 302 mg
Iron = 10.6 mg
Potassium = 1,128 mg

This is very helpful. Her diet sucks!

Tell her to try this:

• Fat Free Cottage Cheese 5 oz
• Avocado, flesh only 4 oz (just over half a large avocado, or one whole small one)
• Beans, string, green, raw 1 cup (steam them, eat with a pat of butter)
• Lettuce, cos or romaine, raw 2 cup shredded (drizzle with olive oil and vinegar, salt)
• Tuna, canned, water pack 2 oz (roughly half a regular can)
• poached chicken breast 8 oz
• Fish oil, salmon 10 grams (ten capsules)
• Butter, 0.33 tablespoon (one pat of butter NOT MARGARINE)
• baked sweet potato, peeled 4 oz
• Kaizen protein, chocolate isolate 40 grams (this provides 35g protein, adjust your brand accordingly)
• Liberté Greek 0% fat 5 oz
• Walnuts 1 oz (14 halves)
• Broccoli, raw 1 cup (eat it raw or steam it, her call)
• Raspberries, raw 4 oz (I buy frozen, and thaw them)
• Olive oil 1 tablespoon

Grams Calories %-Cals
Calories 1,591
Fat 69.5 611 40 %
Saturated 11.1 99 7 %
Polyunsaturated 22.0 189 12 %
Monounsaturated 27.7 246 16 %
Carbohydrate 79.6 243 16 %
Dietary Fiber 28.5
Protein 167.4 662 44 %

She can divide it all up as she sees fit. See the above guidelines for suggestions.

I highly recommend eating the Greek yogurt with the raspberries and some splenda. I also highly recommend breaking the scoop of protein powder into two or three "servings" to have as a pre-load, with the fish oil, before a couple of her meals, and tell her to eat at most four times a day, so she gets to feel FULL.

She can trade off food items as she sees fit. She may prefer more fat or less protein, or more carb and less protein but try to keep the fat at least close to where it is.

Minimums for her are as follow:

• Protein: At least 120g
• Fat: At least 60g
• Carb: whatever, but keep it lower than protein grams
• Fibre: aim for 20-25g.

She can also carb-cycle if she likes, with more carb on training days and virtually none on rest days.

Let me know if she would like me to set that up for her - if she does, I need to know how many calories different she wants the high and low days, and how high and how low she's willing to go on the carbs, as well as how many days she lifts.

 

[Flathead]

I wouldn't recommend higher rep work for a cut, unless she's on gear.



This is very helpful. Her diet sucks!

Tell her to try this:

• Fat Free Cottage Cheese 5 oz
• Avocado, flesh only 4 oz (just over half a large avocado, or one whole small one)
• Beans, string, green, raw 1 cup (steam them, eat with a pat of butter)
• Lettuce, cos or romaine, raw 2 cup shredded (drizzle with olive oil and vinegar, salt)
• Tuna, canned, water pack 2 oz (roughly half a regular can)
• poached chicken breast 8 oz
• Fish oil, salmon 10 grams (ten capsules)
• Butter, 0.33 tablespoon (one pat of butter NOT MARGARINE)
• baked sweet potato, peeled 4 oz
• Kaizen protein, chocolate isolate 40 grams (this provides 35g protein, adjust your brand accordingly)
• Liberté Greek 0% fat 5 oz
• Walnuts 1 oz (14 halves)
• Broccoli, raw 1 cup (eat it raw or steam it, her call)
• Raspberries, raw 4 oz (I buy frozen, and thaw them)
• Olive oil 1 tablespoon

Grams Calories %-Cals
Calories 1,591
Fat 69.5 611 40 %
Saturated 11.1 99 7 %
Polyunsaturated 22.0 189 12 %
Monounsaturated 27.7 246 16 %
Carbohydrate 79.6 243 16 %
Dietary Fiber 28.5
Protein 167.4 662 44 %

She can divide it all up as she sees fit. See the above guidelines for suggestions.

I highly recommend eating the Greek yogurt with the raspberries and some splenda. I also highly recommend breaking the scoop of protein powder into two or three "servings" to have as a pre-load, with the fish oil, before a couple of her meals, and tell her to eat at most four times a day, so she gets to feel FULL.

She can trade off food items as she sees fit. She may prefer more fat or less protein, or more carb and less protein but try to keep the fat at least close to where it is.


Minimums for her are as follow:

• Protein: At least 120g
• Fat: At least 60g
• Carb: whatever, but keep it lower than protein grams
• Fibre: aim for 20-25g.

She can also carb-cycle if she likes, with more carb on training days and virtually none on rest days.

Let me know if she would like me to set that up for her - if she does, I need to know how many calories different she wants the high and low days, and how high and how low she's willing to go on the carbs, as well as how many days she lifts.

Damn Built, I can't tell you how much I/we appriciate this! Looks like we're going to need to do a little grocery shopping this evening to pick up a few of these items. I can't wait to review all of this with her this evening. I'll report back. She's completely open to this as what's been done in the past, hasen't really worked.

Flathead

 

[Built]

Good - I'll be interested to hear what calories she ends up having to run to drop what she wants to.

What I suggest SHOULD be below maintenance, and the food suggestions and macros are just that - suggestions. As long as she hits her minimums, she'll be fine.

Because she's Got Booty™, my feeling is that she may have the same appetite issues that I do - that is to say, small meals and carbs make me hungry, infrequent and larger meals is a more tolerable paradigm, and as an added perq, getting away from all that insulin will help turn off the alpha twos that are hanging around her lower body fat.

Don't worry. She won't lose the booty. Near as I can tell, if you have booty, you have it for life.

 

[unclem]

I wouldn't recommend higher rep work for a cut, unless she's on gear.



This is very helpful. Her diet sucks!

Tell her to try this:

• Fat Free Cottage Cheese 5 oz
• Avocado, flesh only 4 oz (just over half a large avocado, or one whole small one)
• Beans, string, green, raw 1 cup (steam them, eat with a pat of butter)
• Lettuce, cos or romaine, raw 2 cup shredded (drizzle with olive oil and vinegar, salt)
• Tuna, canned, water pack 2 oz (roughly half a regular can)
• poached chicken breast 8 oz
• Fish oil, salmon 10 grams (ten capsules)
• Butter, 0.33 tablespoon (one pat of butter NOT MARGARINE)
• baked sweet potato, peeled 4 oz
• Kaizen protein, chocolate isolate 40 grams (this provides 35g protein, adjust your brand accordingly)
• Liberté Greek 0% fat 5 oz
• Walnuts 1 oz (14 halves)
• Broccoli, raw 1 cup (eat it raw or steam it, her call)
• Raspberries, raw 4 oz (I buy frozen, and thaw them)
• Olive oil 1 tablespoon

Grams Calories %-Cals
Calories 1,591
Fat 69.5 611 40 %
Saturated 11.1 99 7 %
Polyunsaturated 22.0 189 12 %
Monounsaturated 27.7 246 16 %
Carbohydrate 79.6 243 16 %
Dietary Fiber 28.5
Protein 167.4 662 44 %

She can divide it all up as she sees fit. See the above guidelines for suggestions.

I highly recommend eating the Greek yogurt with the raspberries and some splenda. I also highly recommend breaking the scoop of protein powder into two or three "servings" to have as a pre-load, with the fish oil, before a couple of her meals, and tell her to eat at most four times a day, so she gets to feel FULL.

She can trade off food items as she sees fit. She may prefer more fat or less protein, or more carb and less protein but try to keep the fat at least close to where it is.


Minimums for her are as follow:

• Protein: At least 120g
• Fat: At least 60g
• Carb: whatever, but keep it lower than protein grams
• Fibre: aim for 20-25g.

She can also carb-cycle if she likes, with more carb on training days and virtually none on rest days.

Let me know if she would like me to set that up for her - if she does, I need to know how many calories different she wants the high and low days, and how high and how low she's willing to go on the carbs, as well as how many days she lifts.

you wouldnt but i would it works.

 

[gtbmed]

Interestingly enough the the calorie count "Nutrition Report" she uses dosen't track Vitamin D?

Make sure she's getting enough. I have been reading a lot of studies lately about the negative effects of vitamin D deficiency and many are related to strength and body composition.

 

[Built]

you wouldnt but i would it works.

And by "it works" you mean "it burns calories". Sure, okay. But it doesn't help much with muscle-retention. You tend to burn muscle too much when you cut on mostly high reps. And in women, it can often overstimulate appetite.

If you're a man, and or if you're on gear, and or you're not particularly lean, sure, why not.

Female, not on gear... cutting on high reps is gonna give results, but they may not be all that optimal.

My .02 (having done that many times, in my misspent and unsuccessful youth)