Should i be just doing weights or add cardio too

Question

I am 25 now. I kind of felt like I was too slim and weak; so joined the nearest gym in Feb 2014. I really feel good. The gym trainer gave me diet schedules and as a part of it, I take 4 eggs a day. I go to gym 6 days in a week and my trainer gives anyone of the following workouts; chest,shoulders,back,triceps,biceps or legs. The following are the changes after gyming.

       Before       Now
Biceps 9 inches     12 inches
Waist  30           33

Though I feel better in biceps and chest areas, my belly and waist is too big now. My gym trainer told to just take egg whites and skip egg yolks. I asked my trainer to give me cardio too, as I read in some blogs that we should combine cardio and weights. But my trainer says that since I am currently building muscles, doing cardio may lead to muscle loss and he doesn't want me to do cardio. He just wants me to do weights. He says it will be alright soon. I am really bothered about this and thought of getting suggestions from the experts here. Please suggest whether I should be just doing weights or add cardio too?

Answer 1

While it is true that doing cardio may lead to muscle loss, there needs to be a distinction between steady state cardio and HIIT. Steady state carddio such as running on the treadmill for a longer period of time at one steady pace may in fact lead to muscle loss. HIIT on the other hand, is the sort of cardio that blends muscle stimulation with cardio work together.

Another thing that needs to be pointed out here is the fact that you need to really be sure what your exact goal is. If your primary goal is to build muscle, then for now your trainer may be right in his approach. Although there is some talk about being able to build muscle and lose or maintain your body fat at the same time, this seems to be the opinion of the minority. Building muscle ultimately comes down to being in a caloric surplus and losing fat boils down to being a in a caloric deficit, so combining the 2 goals seems highly unlikely.

Ultimately if you want to build muscle then you should continue with your approach till you reach your goal at which point you may want to start a cutting phase. During this time you may want to add some HIIT training along with your weight training all while being in a caloric deficit. This will allow you to MAINTAIN your hard earned muscle while losing the fat you gained while bulking up.

This is the approach I take with my clients.

Answer 2

From your comments, I'd say that I am a more experienced gym bunny than you, having been in and around the weights for about 12 years.

Over the last couple of years, I found my waist increasing and my general muscle definition declining. This was due to slightly overeating regularly and losing the regularity of my training.

About two months ago, I decided to change the decline and seek to regain my formerly fit physique. To lose a little weight, sure. But most importantly to reduce my bodyfat level.

Check out the website I have been updating to track my progress: www.simple-steps.co.uk

I'm on Day 40 of 90 at the moment - though I lag the site by about 5 days to allow me to arrange the photos and collate my data.

That said... let me try to answer the question more directly.

I think you've made great physical gains in size, based on the limited info you gave us. You are training at a high regularity. But you're not happy with the shape of your physique - and that's the most important thing as it's YOUR body.

So I would say that you should introduce some cardio - HIIT is most efficient for fat loss. More importantly though, I'd be militant with your nutrition tracking for a month and see how much you really are eating, and of what. This is my motivation. I don't eat 100% clean, not even 80% clean, but at least everything that goes in my mouth is a conscious decision. That's why you have a 33-inch waist, not just from eggs and weight lifting.

Nutrition. Add some cardio. Keep lifting heavy.

It's worth losing a little muscle mass to lose a lot of fat. And the new V shape might actually make you look MORE muscular.

Best of luck.