I have been officially "dieting" since January 1st, but have only gotten really serious in the last week or so. I have been working out A LOT compared to what I was doing.(which was vitually nothing more than daily housework and rugrat chasing) Queston is: Can I work out too much? I would think not, but I saw a response to a post somewhere on here where someone was working out for three hours a day and they were told to not work out so much. I would think exercising like MAD would only be that much more benificial. Is it ok that I am working out for several hours a day? I am trying to build some muscle mass so I will burn more calories while at rest(some more brilliant info I got from the guru's on this site). Whadda ya think?

Yes, you absolutely can work out too much. If you're dong weight training, you need to give your muscles at least 24 to 36 hours to recover, or all you'll do is break them down more. If you're doing cardio, you generally don't need to do more than an hour of it.

Remember, it's all about energy balance. You want to have a caloric deficit, but not one so large that your body can't repair itself after exercise, and not one so large that your body has to use lean muscle mass just to exist.

Thanks, TomO. I remember from highschool and college to only lift weight every other day. What got me thinking was that we used to work out(running, playing ball, ect.) for at least three hours Mon-Fri and I was in absolutely EXCELLENT shape. I guess if I want to get more exercise by "playing" or doing cardio, then I need to up my caloric intake, right? The it would be OK? (As long as I only weight train every other day)

Hey, how about Yoga and Pilates....does that count as Cardio or what??? I love to do my Yoga/Pilates blend DVD every day....it has kind of become a relaxing; albeit challenging, reward for myself.

Thanks so much. I reaally appreciate the support, answers, and information I am getting on this forum. You guys and gals are awesome. I have found a new cyber home.

I don't know what exactly your yoga/pilates blend entails, but cardio is when your heartrate has been raised. For me, a bad day of pilates is cardio because my heart is going crazy trying to make my body work, but a good day it definitely isn't cardio and I barely even sweat. Google target heart rate and you should get a guide to help you out.

:-)