Monday workouts did seem a bit easier but think it is all mental. Added time in cardio and small gains in the strength area.
Tuesday was cardio only and was able to increase time. Tuesday and Thursday are easier days. I may consider the group exercise classes for these days.
Charting the smokes shows me my patterns and triggers. Look forward to Thursday's class and progress to the next step.
Still keeping the 5 days a week schedule. Plan on going hard today.
The workouts are probably easier. Right now you body is learning to do the exercise more efficiently (building neural pathways. You may not be gaining any real muscle mass right now but you are getting stronger.
ReplyDeleteFrom - http://skinnybulkup.com/neural-adaptations-during-strength-training/
However, even with a perfect diet and weight lifting program, it can take up to six weeks before a new lifter notices any real increase in the size of his muscles. The short-term “pump” that fades away an hour or two after exercise is a tantalizing, but fleeting, glimpse of things to come, but it isn’t true hypertrophy; the pump is caused by fluid retention and it goes away quickly.
This can be confusing, because despite the fact that hypertrophy is mostly absent, strength increases rapidly in the first few weeks of a lifting program.
This initial strength gain comes from various neuromuscular adaptations rather than from hypertrophy.
This can be confusing, because...
ReplyDeleteThanks for the information but yes it is a bit confusing. I am not looking for big muscle gains as much as just strength gains.
The workouts are giving me this.
A good workout yesterday with an added treadmill session after I had completed my scheduled plan.
Looking at yoga or body pump as options for 1 hour group sessions.
Smoking class tonight, ready for the next step.