I work out at a gym using the weight equipment and I can not get a straight answer out of the people there. My goal is toning and calorie burning. Which is most effective more reps at lower weights or fewer reps at higher weights?

I have a personal trainer, so I can help answer that for you. Heavy weight with less reps is better. You want to gain lean muscle. THe more lean muscle you have the more calories you burn in a shorter period of time.

I'd combine a lot of cardio with heavy weight low rep stuff. I wouldnt bother with light weight high rep.

Circuit training where you do your cardio and strength all together - even better. Burns mega calories.

I also do cardio on a stationary bike, but because of some knee surgery a couple of years ago, I can not bike for more than 15 minutes at a time. Because of the same knee injury there are certain exercises I can only do with light weights.

This is my practically worthless opinion, but I really don't get the low weight high rep mentality.

I see people at the gym all the time doing rep after rep of low weights and they are not breathing hard or sweating.. Looks like they are on a Sunday afternoon stroll.

When I lift I go full bore. As much as I can for as many as I can. I am sweating, huffing and puffing, cursing, and other unsightly things.

If I am doing weights, elliptical whatever and It doesn't hurt, then I push harder and heavier till it does.

No PAIN = Fat again.

Of course I eat like crap, so I am not really loosing the weight anymore, but I when I get my head right again I am sure it will pay off.

Unfortunately I think the no pain, no gain thing is true.

when you've unfit and very overweight, any exercise will work for you at first. So start out gently with walking and such. But to really shift 100% of your weight, keep weight loss going after an extended period of losing and to get really toned and fit looking, exercise has to be brutal. You really do have to do some very intense stuff.

The good thing is once you're ready for that, you will probably ENJOY it. I love working myself into a quivering mass, lol. It feels great, you get a high from it and the difference between being able to walk 5 miles and being REALLY fit is massive, you'll never want to give it up once you've experienced it.

So the pain is very worth it.

high intensity interval cardio training has worked well for me, along with changing up my routines...im 65 days from my banding..... i was slowed after knee surgery 2 weeks from my banding but the past 3 weeks have been able to ramp my cardio on the eliptical, stationary bike and walking steep inclines on the treadmill.

Hi all!

I love the elliptical for cardio - it really works wonders for me, and it's so much better than the boring treadmill.

For weights, my trainer uses a pyramid, 3 rep system. First rep = medium difficulty , second = harder difficulty, third = back to medium. Using too light of weights is a waste of time, certainly. Oh, and for abs, I use the balance ball - you feel the very first crunch, right up to the last.

Hope this helps!

Melanie :frown:

I'm studying this (fitness) in school, and I agree with the others-- low weight, high reps is pretty much a waste of time. If you can lift a weight more than 15 times, it's too light.

BUT- do work up to using heavier weights, and if you have an injury that precludes heavy lifting, use more moderate ones. Start with 12 reps, and build up to a heavier weight with 8 reps. Try to work up to at least two sets of each.

Jacqui is right- circuit training is a major bang-for-your-buck kind of workout. Basically do a set of lifts on a few different body parts, then jump on a cardio piece for a few minutes, then repeat. Your heart rate flies and the sweat pours. Good stuff.

The key with any exercise, for any reason, is progressive overload. Your heart and your skeletal muscles will get used to and efficient at working at whatever level they regularly work. In order to progress, fitness-wise, you need to challenge, challenge and challenge some more. But know that jumping in too fast, too hard can cause a lot of pain and possibly injury. And if you're not the kind of person who enjoys that "sore after a workout" feeling, you might not go back if you get too sore. So build up to it.

The high-intensity-interval cardio training is also a wonderful thing. BUT again, it's very, very intense and should not be approached lightly. For many people, I would recommend them getting permission from a doctor to work that hard. It is basically a warmup (at whatever exercise), followed by a certain amount of super-high-intensity, followed by an easy period (typically twice as long as the high intensity interval, but can be as long as it takes to get your heart rate somewhat recovered.) These intervals should be so hard that you couldn't talk, and you want them to end. But again, they are something you build up to.

I'm assuming that by "toning" you mean that you want to see more muscle definition? This does indeed equate to building muscle tissue (lifting heavy), and losing the body fat that covers the muscles (eating properly with your lap band.)

sorry I'm so long winded.... fitness is my favorite topic! :frown: