cardio or toning???

Need opinions...

I have been at the same weight for about 1.5 months and have accepted that maybe my body is done losing weight. I have been doing cardio 5 times a week I have switched it up , added more, ect, and still no weight loss. So I have decided to focus more on toning, because if I am at my "bodies" ideal weight, then I need to get toned! Should I keep focusing on toning or go back to major cardio?

thanks

Tanya

You need to mix it up and keep your body from adjusting to what you are doing to it. Do days of cardio and days of weightlifting, cardio can be your leg (lower body) days and weightlifting your upper body days or just get a go 45-60 min cardio but mix up  the aerobic with jogging or dancing or elliptical with HIIT or tempo run days. Then throwew a day or twewo in there of low weight/high rep toning weight training.  The mixture can get you some good gains. I've also recently learned we should be doing likewise with our intake.  Low calorie days with some higher calorie days; i.e. low-cal/protein rich days (3 in a row) followed by 1-3 higher calorie/carb days (500-800 calories more).  The low days put you in calorie deficit to burn fat and the higher calories days keep your body from shifting into starvation/fat storage mode.  I'd recommend a 3-1 ratio to start. Then see what works for you without getting into an energy deficit. Another tidbit I have started includes eating smaller meals so I have like 6 planned eating periods a day which encourages the body to not need to store, keep the digestive system churning (which burns calories).  I do like: morning vitamins, brkfst: oatmeal with protein powder and honey (tsp), mid morning snack: 2 protein bars or 1 and a honey & oats (nature Valley) granola bars (2 per pack), two 16.9 oz bottle waters, lunch, baked potato (or a half as I can't always eat the whole thing; also peeled as the skin clogs me up) with ****tail sauce, afternoon snack: protein bar/granola bar thing again with 2 more waters, dinner: shrimp or a peanutbutter & banana sandwich on whole grain wheat, evening snack (optional) protein bar or granola bar and another 1 or 2 waters. Take what you like, ditch the rest. I've having success with it.  Your mileage may vary. Good luck and keep working the program. Joe

thanks!!

i guess I have just been obessed with burning a certin # of calories, so when I do a day or two of toning/weights, I worry i'm not doing enough!

Some of the other gals on this board have had basal metabolic rates checked and plan their calories per day to get a 500 cal deficit.  Honestly, when you workout more, you need to eat more or your body will go into storage mode.  I haven't done it myself, but I'm not trying to lose any more weight.  Linn

yeah, I'm looking for someone in my area that will do the testing for me, thanks!

Sorry, one other thing.  I wouldn't give up cardio to do toning.  Both are necessary.  Cardio for overall health and fitness, and strength for toning and functioning at a higher level.  Linn

Speaking generally, a good workout routine includes a combination of cardio, strength training and flexibility work.  They all do slightly different things for your body, which is why they are all important.  I focused on cardio for the first 12 months after my surgery, to maximize my weight loss.   When my weight loss started to slow down a bit, I added strength training 2x per week.  I've been doing regular strength training for about 15 months now and have seen amazing results; not necessarily in terms of my weight, but in terms of my shape, size, and muscle tone.  One of my reasons for doing regular strength training is that I want to have good shape, tone, and definition of my muscles when I have plastic surgery.  My thought is that by giving my plastic surgeon something good to work with underneath, I should maximize my chances of being happy with my post-plastics results!   Final thought -- based on your comment about not burning as many calories through strength training -- do you use a heart rate monitor?  I bought one to use when I do cardio, but I've also started wearing it when I do strength training.  I use a Polar F11, which calculates the calories I burn based on my height, weight, sex, and overall fitness level.  I usually burn 175-250 calories per hour when I strength train.  While it's not nearly as many calories as I burn doing cardio (usually 475-500 calories/hour), it's still a decent number.   Anyway, good luck making the right decision about what combination of cardio/strength training/flexibility work is right for you!!! Kellie