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2008/02/13, 06:56 PM
I'm john and I started working out about 6 months ago. I have been doing weightlifting with cardio twice a week. I started out being 6'5 and weighing 263 lbs, now I'm still 6'5 but down to a dainty 237 lbs. I lost a lot of fat and I'm happy with that, about 10 more lbs to go.
I have gotten much stronger, for my size I was very weak when I started lifting. I can now Bench 250 a few times, when I started I was doing about 165. However I have not gained much mass to speak of. I definitely have more definition although not enough to look impressive. I feel a large part of this is overtraining. I am often fatigued from my workouts and they run far too long, but I sometimes can only get to the gym three times a week between working full time, going to school full time, taking care of my home, and other drama.
So I read places like this for tips. If anyone knows of any good mass training programs for back/chest/arms I would appreciate any advice.
Also, the supplements I am taking are NO Xplode before workouts, after workout or nightly shake with about 100 grams of carbs and 50 grams whey protein, 7 grams of Micronized creatine (I already went through the loading phase), morning shake with 50 grams of protein, and a Mens Mega multi-vitamin daily. I try to cook more salmon and with olive oil to get essential fats. Any advice here for a person that wants to slim down but gain muscle from heavy lift workouts would be appreciated as well.
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The funny thing about my back is that its located on my ####.
-Super Bad
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2008/02/13, 06:59 PM
That is the most well written post I have ever seen. Great Sinature, I love that movie!!
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2008/02/14, 07:01 AM
What you are trying to achieve is hard to do without the implications of possibly overtraining yourself, however 3 times a week isn't enough to do that either.
You should pick which goal you want first, either the 10 lbs, or some mass gains. I would suggest the 10 lbs. I say this because the things you can do to loose the 10 lbs are great for your body, and help form the foundations for stronger joints, and ensure proper form (which is THE most important thing to have to prevent injuries now or in the future). Once you're satisfied with this you can then start eating a lower carb diet to help maintain and start putting on the lean mass.
I'll copy/paste another post I just typed here below...
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train smart, then hard
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form over weight
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2008/02/14, 07:11 AM
1 - Do you split what you're eating into 5-6 meals a day at 2.5 - 3 hour intervals? Are these meals balanced in regards to protein (30 grams is the average amount absorbed and used per sitting, anything more isn't needed), carbs and fats? Doing this will keep your metabolism going strong all day. Also look into multi-vitamins and other natural suplements that help reduce/burn fat, and stay away from the supplements that 'trap' fat and carbs.
2 - When you are working out the 2 days a week what types of exercises are you doing? You should be focusing on muscle mass since muscle burns more calories than fat. The numbers, on average, are roughly - 1 lb of muscle burns 50 cals a day, and fat burns 2-5, or 5-10. Your legs are the best thing to do your strength training on, and just focus on toning other muscles with light weight and sets x reps of 4 x 10-12. Keep in mind spending much more time than 45 minutes your body will start to become catabolic, which you don't want when trying to gain some muscle mass. Also, after yur workout is THE best time for protein uptake and use. You have a 30ish minute window where you can ingest and use approximately 1 gram of protein per 1 Kg of muscle (talk to your doctor about determining this number).
One more thing to keep in mind if it is possible for you to do what I've mentioned above is to try to schedule your workout so that you can use some protein powder (whey isolate is best) with some good quality, in your case low cal., yogurt and a small granola bar (nature valley is my preference, but there some sugars which might be undesirable to you in them) or something made with whole oats and other grains, OR, instead of granola bars, you can get great loose granola or plain oats for oatmeal to mix right into your yogurt!
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train smart, then hard
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form over weight
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2008/02/14, 07:55 AM
The abpve post was not directed at you, it was one I wrote for someone else, however there are some basic principles there there that would help you if not already in play.
As for working out 3 times a week for long sessions, there is a new supplement out recently called Leutor, by Allmax (www.leutor.com). This product is new so try to do some research, unbiased is better, nd see what you think. What it basically does is triggers the cells in your muscles to remain anabolic for extended periods of time, allowing your workouts to go longer without going catabolic. Also, you should be doing full body workouts on these 3 days. Exercises like squats, deadlifts, shoulder press, benchpress, some sort of row, and your abs and lower back. you can look online for TONS of different compound exercises (great for strength and mass building) to do.
I'm wondering... you said that you are taking N.O. Xplode, what about it's couterpart, CellMass? As for creatine, take a look at Purple-K, supposedly the best out there.
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train smart, then hard
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form over weight
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warmup, cooldown & stretch so seldom seen
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2008/02/15, 02:50 PM
Hey thanks for the advice. On my three days I tend to do a Push (chest, Shoulders, triceps) Pull (Back, Biceps) Legs. I try to make it a time or two as well to hit about 45 minutes of cardio/abs as well. I try to do a lot of compound exercizes like you mentioned, bench press, rows, squats. I'm taking Micronized Creatine Monohydrate which I believe is working great so far, my gains are going up quickly.
Thanks again, your post was very informative.
I read somewhere that putting creatine in your shake with dextrose/maltrose is like using CellMass for 1/10th the price. I'll have to look into that. I'll have to look into the Leutor, but at the same time I don't want to get too dependent on supplements. I have been eating reasonably healthy and eating roughly every 2-3 hours. It's hard though being a student as well but I should try to have a Nature Valley bar or something while in class.
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The funny thing about my back is that its located on my ####.
-Super Bad
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