How often should you exercise? Will massages help you shape up? How instense should your workout be?

Fitness consultant Samreedhi Sharma Goel, who chatted with Get Ahead readers on February 1, has the answers: From my experience three days a week is better than six. However each person's body is different and responds differently to exercise. So try both.
Take your measurements and keep a recall of your dietary habits to see what is really helping.

Intensity will definitely help build mass but do a routine that you can keep at all the time otherwise a small blip and your muscle mass will fizzle out. The massage is not going to help in bulking up. You can do two massages a month as a feel good factor. 

For those of you who missed the chat, here is the transcript:

Part I: Why cardio is NOT enough

hemant_sharma: hi, i am 29 yrs old 6'74 kg. i have a lot of confusion as to how many times should u workout in a week. Some Experts say it is best to work out thrice a week for maximum muscle gain& some some say u should train 6 days a week. please clarify.

samreedhi sharma: Hi! People who train six days a week usually do only one body part a day while those who work out three times, target one large and one small muscle.

So, frankly, you end up doing the same amount of workout per muscle per week. I prefer two or three body parts a day, three times a week as it keeps your metabolism up.

As for the other three days, if you really feel like you are missing something, you can always do cardio as well. Make sure you do not work the same muscle on two consecutive days as muscles grow while resting AFTER the workout.

apollo: I am 24, 6'1", 126 kgs, I used to work out regularly till about two years ago was at a healthy 85kgs and was quite athletic, after which while working in night shifts I put on about 40kgs with most of it around the torso, slowed metabolism and dont feel energetic anymore, whats the best way out?

samreedhi sharma: Hi! Start working out again slowly but surely.

shrinath: im a 29 year old male, weighing 73 kgs and 6 feet tall. i want to do gym just to stay fit and look toned and smart. i do 3 or 4 workouts a week, including 45 minutes of weight training and 15 minutes of walking fast on treadmill. my workouts include 3 sets of 12 to 15 repetions. is it enough ? whats the ideal number of workouts per week, and whats the number of repetitions and sets to do ?

samreedhi sharma: Hi! Congratulations on your discipline. You can increase your cardio workout to 30 minutes. Three sets of 12-15 repetitions is good but keep changing the weight you lift from time to time.

Vary your routine and challenge your body ie if you are pyramiding for a long time (three sets of consecutively higher weights and less repetitions) change that and confuse your muscle (do three different exercises with three different weights for the same body part).

abibaby: Samreedhi one more question then :) genrellay its adviced that you should do weight training first as it uses the carbs and then after a while Fat start burning , so dont you think exercise for abs should be done after weight training. Pleaseee advice

samreedhi sharma: Hi! It is not true. Your body starts burning significant amounts of fat only when in the fat burning zone ie when your heart rate goes up into target heart rate zone (THR)(220-your age =X , THR is 65-85 per cent of X).

You can do abs before or after the workout. Do it both ways and see what makes you comfy. If you train abs before, does it drain you so you cannot lift weights to your best capacity? Try out both your body will give you the signal.

ORACLE: Can ECTO MORPHS build more mass by working out 6 days a week. I have observed that 3 day/week doesn't give me results.The More high intensity workout I do, the more mass I build. How often a month should I go for a massage?

samreedhi sharma: Hi! From my experience three days a week is better than six. However, each person's body is different and responds differently to exercise. So try both, take your measurements and keep a recall of your dietary habits to see what is really helping.

Intensity will definitely help build mass but do a routine that you can keep at all the time otherwise a small blip and your muscle mass will fizzle out.

The massage is not going to help in bulking up. You can do a massage twice a month as a feel good factor.

abibaby: great will do that , thanks alottttt.

samreedhi sharma: Hi! Keep it up!

Sahil: sorry, I forgot to specify my particulars. 24/m/5.8/62Kg.R u running any gym, if yes where. I wanna join that only.

samreedhi sharma: Hi, yes, mail me at sizewise@rediffmail.com for ctc details.

nas_fitness: i am graduate in physical edu tell me which course is best for me in coming in fitness feild

samreedhi sharma: e-mail me your resume and I can get back to you. sizewise@rediffmail.com.

hbk: Hi, I was overweight and joined a gym about six months back...I did well and reduced about 15 kgs, and worked up good shape. Now because the exams are nearing, i might have to miss gymming for a month or so. Will it cause any problems? I am 20/M height 181 cm, wt. 75 kgs

samreedhi sharma: Hi! Not if you continue low fat high carb diet. You must do some activity. I am sure you can spare 20 minutes daily. Remember, little exercise better than no exercise.

amannn: hii i am Aman,20yrs, ht 5.6, wt. 54kgs..i started off with gym 2yrs ago(was around 47kg then). i find dat my body mass has stopped increasing.also my chest area has shown very little development? do u advise i shud start supplement intake for a few months? or any other advise?

samreedhi sharma: Hi! Change your routine and diet. You have hit a plateau.

Suraj: does working in gym for 2 hrs leads to hair loss becaz of sweating

samreedhi sharma: Hi! No!

aaryan: i smoke a lot but takes walk of 2km every day.i can't quit smoking .is there any way to nutrilise the impact of smoking.

samreedhi sharma: Hi! No. By smoking you definitely are neutralising the effects of walking though!

SuyashMots: Hi Samreedhi, does it makes any difference in protein contents if we eat raw eggs or boiled eggs.

samreedhi sharma: Hi! Boiled eggs are better. Raw eggs may cause salmonella poisoning.

samreedhi sharma: Okay everyone time up! It was great chatting with you all. I apologise for not being able to answer some of you . You can mail me at sizewise@rediffmail.com. Make sure to write REDIFF CHAT in the SUBJECT LINE and mention your height, weight, age, sex and city with your question in the mail. THINK FIT!

Part I: Why cardio is NOT enough

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