Expert: Lian Shoemake - 6/30/2007

Question
Hey Lian!

I'm 21, 5'10 and weigh 155 lbs. I did weight lifting exercises for 6 months and gained a lot of muscle mass. People around me started saying that i was too bulky and that i need to trim down (since i do modeling work). About a month ago, i decided to do boxing (5 days a week) and totally eliminated weight lifting exercises from my program. People say i look better now and more toned. My question is, do i still need to do weight lifting exercises to keep some of the muscle i gained when i used to lift weight? Or is boxing alone good enough for me? What do you think?

Answer
Hi Joseph,
Thanks for writing.
I'm breaking one of my entrenched rules by answering a training/ fitness question, but that's only because it's an easy one. If you're happy with the results you're getting right now, just keep doing what you're doing. Boxing workouts (depending on what you do and how often) can be excellent for maintaining definition and lean muscle mass. The answer for you might be a combination of boxing workouts and light weight training, depending on how much muscle mass you want to maintain or develop. At age 21, you're still growing and years away from your physical prime, so you'll have to make adjustments along the way no matter what course you select now.  But since you're training for fitness and not competition, I would think the combination boxing/weight-lifting approach -- with regular monitoring for progress -- might be a good option.
I hope this helps, Joseph.
Thanks again for writing!

Regards,
Lian