Was planning on just doing cardio....

[JJcalgary]

Ok, so i'm new on here as of today. Spent about 3-4 hours reading through forums and guides and stuff. If I wasn't confused before, then I definitely am now. Maybe it's just too much information to absorb or maybe too many different opinions on too many things. Anyways, I have some questions. Most of them have arisen from just reading all these topics but I will give a quick inside into myself:
Stats:
Age - 28
-
Weight - 183 lbs
Height - 6 foot 1

I have done the on and off again work outs over the past few years (who hasn't?) and am going to try again. The last 6 months I have spent mostly targeting diet and eliminating all fast food, junk food, unhealthy food, as possible. Granted, most of meals are still from restaurants: subway, booster juice, soups, sandwiches etc. I have 2 cups of coffee for breakfast between 11am and 2pm then dinner at 5pm. Oh and a regular bowl of Vector mixed with miniwheats in the evening (main reason for the cereal is it insures I go #2 in the morning before work because I can't stand using public washrooms as they gross me out). Since I started just eating better (i know it still isn't that good) I have dropped from 195 down to 183. work schedule is from 12:30pm to 9pm. So, as of yesterday I decided to hit the gym after work. main goal is to lose fat which is mainly in stomach/chest area. arms are fairly skinny and even more so into forarms ( I can touch thumb and pointer finger around wrists).

Anyways, plan was to just hit the cardio for the next however long and target weight loss. But after reading on these forums today, I'm just confused now. So, some questions:

1) what the heck is HIIT? I saw this come up so many times but no clue what it is. (just curious to be honest).
2) I was going to alternate nightly between Bike, treadmill, and eliptical. But I have concluded that no one seems to recommend anything more than 20-30 minutes of cardio, twice a week....
3) Do I have to mix in weights with the cardio to successfully lose midsection fat?
4) Is it bad to do cardio on back to back days? That's the impression I get from most of the regular posters on here.

That's it for now but I'm sure I will think of more questions while I'm hammering the bike tonight pretending to know what I'm doing hahah. Please don't hammer on me too much for diet as I know it needs major overhaul and I am planning on making some changes after reading the "grocery list" and diet plans on this site.

Thanks in advance and I am most curious to see responses from Lesplease and Bossman but anyone is welcome to offer help/suggestions/input.

[JJcalgary]

Thank you Lesplease, that is a very informative response and I plan on trying this out tonight. I'm also meeting with a gym trainer. Any thoughts on that?

[JJcalgary]

Ok, I met with trainer. He seems like a great guy and seems to know what he's talking about. Unlike the majority of the snobby staff that works at gym, I got a good feeling about this guy. He took into the little room and did some tests on me which resulted in the following:

Blood pressure = normal ( I forget the numbers)
Body fat = 11% I found this unusually low but he said not really because the majority of fat is in midsection (stomach, chest).
5 minute bike fitness test resulted in "above average" rating
He did up a chart for goals, which I told him I want a beach body for christmas, and he says it is totally doable. First 4 weeks are working on form and conditioning.
Briefly touched on nutrition and diet but I think we will get into that more next time I meet with him. But basically he told me to eat 6 or 7 times per day, eat carbs first thing in the morning, light snacks during the day, protein rich dinner and if I am going to overeat on anything make sure it is protein. And to not go without eating for more than 3 hours. I told him how I like to have a bowl of vector & miniwheats before bed because it keeps me regular and he said that is fine.

I meet with him again tomorrow night and I believe the plan is to start showing me some weight exercises.

[Boss Man]

Carbs before bed could help with sleep anyway, as they help create things like Seratonin, Hypocretin and Dopamine, mood and sleep enhancing hormones.

Having said that things like Phenylalanine and Tryptophan, can exert effects on such things too.

[JJcalgary]

Hey guys, here's next question. I had first workout with trainer on Tuesday and he pushed me pretty hard. Did 5 mins on the treadmill to warm up, did 3 sets of (i forget what it was called) holding weights and stepping forward and bending one knee down, 3 sets of free weights from ear height and pushing them up over head, 3 sets of sitting down with your feet pressed against a metal plate and pulling weights towards your stomach while keeping your elbows in tight, and some situps with a ball (sit ups and sideways turns). Then followed up with some stretching. Anyways, this was 2 days ago. Yesterday I was extremely sore. Everywhere hurt, legs, abs, arms, .... sitting down and standing up was brutal. Today I am still equally as sore. So question is whether this is normal to be so sore after your first workout? Do you think he went too hard with me? I downed some milk and protein that night when I got home and diet has been great. Yogurt, vector, egg whites, fruits, chicken, rice, steamed veggies, fruit source bars, vector bars etc. He told me I could do some cardio this week but I didn't go to the gym yesterday because I honestly couldn't see myself doing anything in this condition. I am meeting him again tomorrow night and I know he's going to work me hard again but I don't want to get there and then not be able to do anything, thus wasting a paid session.

[Boss Man]

DOMS, (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness), can be common in people who start lifting. Even experienced bodybuilders can get it, with frequent changes to training.

It occurs in around 24 hours after a workout and may last a further 24-48 hours. It is usually never a problem, so I wouldn't worry about it.

Over time, you should find it begins to lessen and may even go away entirely.

The exercise you couldn't remember was either Lunges, or forward Lunges. The former tends to work the Quads quite a bit, the latter is mostly Hamstrings.

[JJcalgary]

Ah I see, thanks bossman. I called trainer today and talked to him and he told me to do the stretches that he showed me a few times daily to help ease the pain or take a tylanol but I don't take pills so I will just do the stretches. And to eat lots and get a solid 8 hours of sleep and to call him in the morning to see how I feel and whether we should do a session or not. It kinda makes me mad though to have to take down time already.