Gym and Fitness Advice thread!

[hadi123]

This is my third week of my first clean bulk and I'm making gains. I'm 16 years old only. Set PB for Squats and Bench this week

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[PetroDollars]

Thanks

Can u help me with this please??

Not sure, doesnt seem like its connected with your lifting.

 

[PetroDollars]

Has anyone had experience with Branched-chain amino acid's or commonly known BCAA? More so specifically the one by Scivation? The supervisor of my Gym has literally forced me to buy one stating that it's great for muscle recovery as well as losing fats. Has anyone tried those? Any reviews?

TBH I am doing well with my Cardio-Weight training without any supplements.

If you take Whey protein, you dont need it as whey already contains it. Plus have a good balanced diet and you will have more than enough BCAA's

The only preworkout supplement that is proven to work is good ol' caffeine.

 

[The Last Of The Stars]

Run for at least 15 minutes per day. Follow it up by push ups. And you have the best and simple fitness regime. Avoid weight lifting or you will have to maintain it then, which can be tough.

 

[shaz619]

Guideline would depend on you.
- How much bodyfat you have?
- What is your weight? fatmass? lean body mass?
- What is your RMR?
- Then you would need to calculate how many calories you need to keep a deficit of 875 calories/day, which would make you loose 1.5lbs/fat per week.

Workout plan would be simple, 3/4 days a week, full body workout, rep range 8-12, 2/3 sets and hit them to complete failure, once you are able to achieve 12 reps in all sets of a movement, increase weight in next session and continue. In the beginning you will need to find the right weight to start, if you struggle to get to 8 reps, lower the weight, if you get to 12 to easily, make it heavier.

Other than that, you will need to follow diet strictly, have one fat flush day per week, meaning no carbs or fat, only protein, then you can have a cheat day once per week to refuel glycogen levels but dont take carbs above 400g.

Then you track, cardio is not needed, but HIIT will help however its only useful if your not achieving your goal of 1.5lbs fatloss per week. Its just another weapon in your arsenal, that is why tracking is very important.

Cheers will give this a good look

 

[Ashraful_Rox]

Eat Chicken Tikka and Seekh Kebabs after a workout, no parathas or naan. Fill your body up with meat, become a meathead The harder food you eat, the harder your body will become, these cottage cheese and brown rice nonsense I don't buy, they are soft, veggies are for goats.

 

[shabbu1]

I agree with most of the tips given in this thread but from a personal standpoint, for a BEGINNER, I wouldn't recommend 8-12 rep reanges on big compound movements such as the bench press, squat or deadlift. I found working in the 5-6 rep range made my strength go through the roof and hence increased muscle gains (granted, i was on a small caloric surplus). A bigger muscle is a stronger muscle (or at least has the potential to be) and vice versa.

Ofcourse working in the rep range for your compound lifts you will eventually hit a plateau & this is when i'd recommend increasing volume i.e. add sets, reps etc..)

Just my 2 cents.

 

[PetroDollars]

I agree with most of the tips given in this thread but from a personal standpoint, for a BEGINNER, I wouldn't recommend 8-12 rep reanges on big compound movements such as the bench press, squat or deadlift. I found working in the 5-6 rep range made my strength go through the roof and hence increased muscle gains (granted, i was on a small caloric surplus). A bigger muscle is a stronger muscle (or at least has the potential to be) and vice versa.

Ofcourse working in the rep range for your compound lifts you will eventually hit a plateau & this is when i'd recommend increasing volume i.e. add sets, reps etc..)

Just my 2 cents.

It depends what your goal is?

But i wont recommend 5 reps for BEGINNERS, WHY? because the weight would be to heavy for them and they will mess up their FORM and injure themselves. Having 8-12 reps would be a perfect weight to correct form and increase muscle mass.

..and If it is hypertrophy your after, an increase in muscle size and mass, then 8-12 rep range is proven to work best with scientific evidence behind it. It is the most perfect anabolic rep range.

Heres what The National Strength and Conditioning Association has to say about rep ranges.

shorter bouts of anaerobic training (2 to 4 repetitions) are best for improving muscle power, moderate bouts of anaerobic training (5 to 6 repetitions) are best for building muscle strength, and longer bouts of anaerobic training, 8 to 12 reps per set, are best for increasing muscle hypertrophy.

The main reasoning behind this is that you need to hit all muscles fibres to grow them (Type 1, Type 2a and Type 2b) and this rep range is the perfect range to hit them all. 5 reps just wont hit your Type 2b fibre which is in the center

Here are some studies on it

A meta-analysis (study of studies) conducted in 2007 [1] found that lifting 60%-85% of your 1 Rep Max was the most effective way to stimulate growth. This percentage of 1 rep max translates to about 6-12 reps per set.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17326698

Charles Poliquin says

In practical terms, mechanical tension, muscle damage, and metabolic stress are best produced with the following “hypertrophy-style” protocol: A moderate rep range (8 to 12 reps) with moderate loads (65 to 85 percent of the 1RM)…Training to failure is also indicated because lifting to the point where you can’t go anymore produces muscle damage and a large protein synthesis response, which will lead to greater muscle development.

 

[shabbu1]

It depends what your goal is?


..and If it is hypertrophy your after, an increase in muscle size and mass, then 8-12 rep range is proven to work best with scientific evidence behind it. It is the most perfect anabolic rep range.

Heres what The National Strength and Conditioning Association has to say about rep ranges.



The main reasoning behind this is that you need to hit all muscles fibres to grow them (Type 1, Type 2a and Type 2b) and this rep range is the perfect range to hit them all. 5 reps just wont hit your Type 2b fibre which is in the center

Here are some studies on it

A meta-analysis (study of studies) conducted in 2007 [1] found that lifting 60%-85% of your 1 Rep Max was the most effective way to stimulate growth. This percentage of 1 rep max translates to about 6-12 reps per set.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17326698

Charles Poliquin says

I'll agree that it can be beneficial to correct form...as a warm up. one would expect a beginner to be perfecting form before beginning a program no?

I also mentioned 5-6 reps specifically for COMPOUND movements as these are what everyone, beginners to advanced, should be looking to progress in to increase strength and muscle mass in the fastest possible way (hitting your type 2 muscles which have the biggest potential for power and growth) & by this I mean heavy duty barbell exercises: squats, deadlift, bench press, shoulder press etc.. It will take a lot less time and struggle to move up in weight (and thus build more muscle) in the lower rep ranges, not going to failure, than it will to move up in weight doing 12-rep sets to failure & frying your central nervous system every other day. Of course, this wouldn't apply to someone on Vitamin S for example

That's not to say doing higher reps is a bad thing for a natural, as you correctly say it's beneficial to maximise growth by hitting both types of muscle fibre. I absolutely advocate going higher reps on dumbell exercises and accessory movements like curls, extensions, leg press, dumbell chest press etc..heck even going to failure because muscles such as the biceps or traps are smaller and easier to recover sooner from. This way you are eliciting both mechanical and metabolic tension.

I think you will find studies that support both sides of the fence in regards to hypertrophy tbh. Take the following study from last year which took to groups of men who trained in the moderate-intensity, high rep style and the high-intensity low rep style:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4562558/

"In conclusion, the results of this study indicate that high-intensity (3–5 RM), low-volume resistance training program utilizing a long rest interval (3 min) is more advantageous than a moderate intensity, high-volume (10–12 RM) program utilizing a short rest interval (1 min) for stimulating upper body strength gains and muscle hypertrophy in resistance-trained men during an 8-week study..."

 

[PetroDollars]

I'll agree that it can be beneficial to correct form...as a warm up. one would expect a beginner to be perfecting form before beginning a program no?

I also mentioned 5-6 reps specifically for COMPOUND movements as these are what everyone, beginners to advanced, should be looking to progress in to increase strength and muscle mass in the fastest possible way (hitting your type 2 muscles which have the biggest potential for power and growth) & by this I mean heavy duty barbell exercises: squats, deadlift, bench press, shoulder press etc.. It will take a lot less time and struggle to move up in weight (and thus build more muscle) in the lower rep ranges, not going to failure, than it will to move up in weight doing 12-rep sets to failure & frying your central nervous system every other day. Of course, this wouldn't apply to someone on Vitamin S for example

That's not to say doing higher reps is a bad thing for a natural, as you correctly say it's beneficial to maximise growth by hitting both types of muscle fibre. I absolutely advocate going higher reps on dumbell exercises and accessory movements like curls, extensions, leg press, dumbell chest press etc..heck even going to failure because muscles such as the biceps or traps are smaller and easier to recover sooner from. This way you are eliciting both mechanical and metabolic tension.

I think you will find studies that support both sides of the fence in regards to hypertrophy tbh. Take the following study from last year which took to groups of men who trained in the moderate-intensity, high rep style and the high-intensity low rep style:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4562558/

"In conclusion, the results of this study indicate that high-intensity (3–5 RM), low-volume resistance training program utilizing a long rest interval (3 min) is more advantageous than a moderate intensity, high-volume (10–12 RM) program utilizing a short rest interval (1 min) for stimulating upper body strength gains and muscle hypertrophy in resistance-trained men during an 8-week study..."

Well if you have an extremly weak body with severe deficiencies then yea, you would be frying your CNS, however for a normal person, 8-12 reps isnt going to harm your CNS.

I built my body in the 8-12 rep range and know many others who have and i have trained, the only vitamins i or they took where multi vitamins and D.

You are right that form should be corrected before, but it just doesn't happen, i have been to plenty of gyms and seen people training with terrible form, people who have been training for years but still terrible form. I can make an assumption and say 95% of beginners starting will go all in with bad form and be sure that i will be correct. What your saying is right, but it just doesn't happen. I know so many people who started 5x5 and end up with injuries.

Programmes like 5x5 do give a big boost in muscle gains but you hit a plateau very very quickly. So if your goal is to booz about how you hit xxkg in squats or broke records by lifting xxkg deadlift then its a great programme for you however if you want real gains, build mass and strength at the same time you need a better programme designed for it.

Here is a perfect illustration from Tom Venuto on which rep ranges achieve what

1-5 reps 85-100% Neural Strength & Power, Little Hypertrophy
6-8 reps 75-85% Neural & Metabolic Strength & Hypertrophy
9-12 reps 70-75% Metabolic & Neural Hypertrophy & some strength
13-20+ reps 60-70% Metabolic local endurance, some hypertrophy, little strength

As he says

when you train in the 6-8 rep range, the adaptations are still somewhat neural, but also metabolic/structural…In the 8-12 rep range, there is still some neural adaptation, but less than the 6-8 range and much less than the 1-5 range. The advantage of the 8-12 rep range is that you get maximal hypertrophy

Personally, it has worked for me perfectly, after warm up using 50% of my strongest rep, i will start my sets with the heaviest load and then decrease, and even though i decrease i am still using the max strength i have, this is ideal for training to failure, as lifting to the point you cant go any further produces maximum muscle damage which will later put you in an anabolic state for much greater muscle development.

 

[The intelligent Supporter]

Lemon Water when you wake up and then again sometime in the evening goes long way. It reduces bloating. I wonder why I stopped.

I thought the key was a A LOT of pillows?

and OF COURSE water

 

[style_guru]

If you take Whey protein, you dont need it as whey already contains it. Plus have a good balanced diet and you will have more than enough BCAA's

The only preworkout supplement that is proven to work is good ol' caffeine.

I am not into supplements anyway. But what this BCAA has done is that it looks like muscle soreness arising out of intense workout has gone since I started taking it. I can now lift weights for an hour but still wake up fresh the next morning, which earlier was not happening.

Other benefits I am not sure about yet.

 

[PetroDollars]

I am not into supplements anyway. But what this BCAA has done is that it looks like muscle soreness arising out of intense workout has gone since I started taking it. I can now lift weights for an hour but still wake up fresh the next morning, which earlier was not happening.

Other benefits I am not sure about yet.

Do you take whey?

If its working then great continue it. But if your new to training you may have just had some fatigue as your body was getting use to your new training regime.

 

[Diffusion]

I don't take them, but the theory is that if you're on a cut or working out on a fast BCAA are instead used as a fuel instead of your body breaking down muscle.

Of course, the alternative is you can just eat a banana or something and have a pre-workout meal.

 

[PetroDollars]

I always work out fasted when cutting, never taken BCAA and lost 1.5-2lbs fat/week and gained muscle at the same time.

The only thing i did take pre-workout was good ol' caffine, some argine and beta alanine.

 

[Ashraful_Rox]

I always work out fasted when cutting, never taken BCAA and lost 1.5-2lbs fat/week and gained muscle at the same time.

The only thing i did take pre-workout was good ol' caffine, some argine and beta alanine.

Do you take pills? I just drink a cup of black coffee and a cup of green tea and hit the gym, keeps me energized. After workout whey protein shake and a banana.

Been trying to cut down and lose 5 kgs.

 

[PetroDollars]

Ye i take pills or powder of caffine before workout.

 

[shaz619]

Trying to lose weight and possibly gain strength/muscle at the same time.

I read that it's still important you eat something before a work out. Anyway this is the sought of diet am going for:

Eat two brown breads with 1-2 eggs or 1-2 banana before a work out and then after workout have a 500ml smothie with the following contents (banana, strawberry, blueberry and milk. If I still feel hungry after my workout I'll eat a chicken wrap or tuna sandwich/baguette and then for dinner I'll have 2 small naan breads with whatever meat dish I have made or chicken with boiled rice. If I get hungry at night I'll make another smoothie maybe 300-400ml with the same fruits maybe substitute the strawberry with rasberry.

On top of that I'll try and work out 3-4 times a week. On each day will work on two muscle groups, I won't work to failure but get my reps in e.g find a weight am compatible with and perform 8 reps for 3-5 sets with 60-120 second rest in between (each muscle group I work on usually will be with three different exercises). After each work out I'll jump on the treadmill for HTI cardio, e.g one minute walk one minute sprint for 10 minutes (my heart rate was about 170 while I was doing the HTI cardio the other day ) )

I weigh around 95kg and about 5ft 10, all of my fat is on the belly, none on the arms at all they are quite skinny for my physique which is weird. I guess it would be nice to have huge arms but if am unable to then getting ripped will make my body a lot more even.
[MENTION=130076]PetroDollars[/MENTION] [MENTION=137578]Diffusion[/MENTION] [MENTION=136193]Adil_94[/MENTION] [MENTION=137535]anuk[/MENTION] and the rest of the guys, What do you guys think

 

[Diffusion]

Trying to lose weight and possibly gain strength/muscle at the same time.

I read that it's still important you eat something before a work out. Anyway this is the sought of diet am going for:

Eat two brown breads with 1-2 eggs or 1-2 banana before a work out and then after workout have a 500ml smothie with the following contents (banana, strawberry, blueberry and milk. If I still feel hungry after my workout I'll eat a chicken wrap or tuna sandwich/baguette and then for dinner I'll have 2 small naan breads with whatever meat dish I have made or chicken with boiled rice. If I get hungry at night I'll make another smoothie maybe 300-400ml with the same fruits maybe substitute the strawberry with rasberry.

On top of that I'll try and work out 3-4 times a week. On each day will work on two muscle groups, I won't work to failure but get my reps in e.g find a weight am compatible with and perform 8 reps for 3-5 sets with 60-120 second rest in between (each muscle group I work on usually will be with three different exercises). After each work out I'll jump on the treadmill for HTI cardio, e.g one minute walk one minute sprint for 10 minutes (my heart rate was about 170 while I was doing the HTI cardio the other day ) )

I weigh around 95kg and about 5ft 10, all of my fat is on the belly, none on the arms at all they are quite skinny for my physique which is weird. I guess it would be nice to have huge arms but if am unable to then getting ripped will make my body a lot more even.
[MENTION=130076]PetroDollars[/MENTION] [MENTION=137578]Diffusion[/MENTION] [MENTION=136193]Adil_94[/MENTION] [MENTION=137535]anuk[/MENTION] and the rest of the guys, What do you guys think

Make a myfitnesspal account, and also download the app onto your phone. Losing fat, if you do it properly should be a good chance to learn more about your body first hand.

You'll realise how easy it is to lose fat, once you realize food is just energy which you must either expend or store as fat. Just eat food that satisfies you enough, but you're still in a calorie deficit. For me, high fat high protein low/no carbs is what I feel most full with. Might be different for other people, but as long as you're in a significant deficit (-500kcal) you will lose fat no matter what you eat.

Check out Stronglifts, Starting Strength, Ice cream fitness 5x5 if you're looking for good beginner programs. They all follow the same principles and you'll make some excellent progress on them. And definitely do the cardio! Good luck!

 

[Suleiman]

Have you guys heard of IIFYM?

Basically it's a theory you can eat junk food like ice cream, fried chicken, burgers, greasy kebabs and parathas, etc etc

But as long as you are getting the required number of calories you need in a day along with the right amount of protein, then it's good.

Is this how you guys do it? Or just eat healthy with the occasional cheat day?

 

[Diffusion]

Have you guys heard of IIFYM?

Basically it's a theory you can eat junk food like ice cream, fried chicken, burgers, greasy kebabs and parathas, etc etc

But as long as you are getting the required number of calories you need in a day along with the right amount of protein, then it's good.

Is this how you guys do it? Or just eat healthy with the occasional cheat day?

Basically yes. Some of those foods wouldn't fit into my macros while I'm cutting though, as I almost completely cut out carbs. So no ice cream, fries etc.

 

[anuk]

Trying to lose weight and possibly gain strength/muscle at the same time.

I read that it's still important you eat something before a work out. Anyway this is the sought of diet am going for:

Eat two brown breads with 1-2 eggs or 1-2 banana before a work out and then after workout have a 500ml smothie with the following contents (banana, strawberry, blueberry and milk. If I still feel hungry after my workout I'll eat a chicken wrap or tuna sandwich/baguette and then for dinner I'll have 2 small naan breads with whatever meat dish I have made or chicken with boiled rice. If I get hungry at night I'll make another smoothie maybe 300-400ml with the same fruits maybe substitute the strawberry with rasberry.

On top of that I'll try and work out 3-4 times a week. On each day will work on two muscle groups, I won't work to failure but get my reps in e.g find a weight am compatible with and perform 8 reps for 3-5 sets with 60-120 second rest in between (each muscle group I work on usually will be with three different exercises). After each work out I'll jump on the treadmill for HTI cardio, e.g one minute walk one minute sprint for 10 minutes (my heart rate was about 170 while I was doing the HTI cardio the other day ) )

I weigh around 95kg and about 5ft 10, all of my fat is on the belly, none on the arms at all they are quite skinny for my physique which is weird. I guess it would be nice to have huge arms but if am unable to then getting ripped will make my body a lot more even.
[MENTION=130076]PetroDollars[/MENTION] [MENTION=137578]Diffusion[/MENTION] [MENTION=136193]Adil_94[/MENTION] [MENTION=137535]anuk[/MENTION] and the rest of the guys, What do you guys think

Make a myfitnesspal account, and also download the app onto your phone. Losing fat, if you do it properly should be a good chance to learn more about your body first hand.

You'll realise how easy it is to lose fat, once you realize food is just energy which you must either expend or store as fat. Just eat food that satisfies you enough, but you're still in a calorie deficit. For me, high fat high protein low/no carbs is what I feel most full with. Might be different for other people, but as long as you're in a significant deficit (-500kcal) you will lose fat no matter what you eat.

Check out Stronglifts, Starting Strength, Ice cream fitness 5x5 if you're looking for good beginner programs. They all follow the same principles and you'll make some excellent progress on them. And definitely do the cardio! Good luck!

agreed but i personally try to avoid carbs at night. i know the theory has been somewhat debunked but i still feel like it makes a difference, at least to me.

 

[Ashraful_Rox]

Have you guys heard of IIFYM?

Basically it's a theory you can eat junk food like ice cream, fried chicken, burgers, greasy kebabs and parathas, etc etc

But as long as you are getting the required number of calories you need in a day along with the right amount of protein, then it's good.

Is this how you guys do it? Or just eat healthy with the occasional cheat day?

Don't include cheat days if you want to cut it down, let's say six days you maintained your diet, your metabolism is rocking, it's going in circles at quite a rapid pace and then you include a cheat day, it slows down, it will take two days again to get back going, cheat days are a thing created by fitness gurus to slow down your progress. Without cheat days I have seen better results.

 

[Suleiman]

Don't include cheat days if you want to cut it down, let's say six days you maintained your diet, your metabolism is rocking, it's going in circles at quite a rapid pace and then you include a cheat day, it slows down, it will take two days again to get back going, cheat days are a thing created by fitness gurus to slow down your progress. Without cheat days I have seen better results.

Yeah true, as a beginner I'm only trying to maintain my current weight though .

 

[PetroDollars]

Cheat days are important, very important when cutting.

 

[PetroDollars]

Trying to lose weight and possibly gain strength/muscle at the same time.

I read that it's still important you eat something before a work out. Anyway this is the sought of diet am going for:

Eat two brown breads with 1-2 eggs or 1-2 banana before a work out and then after workout have a 500ml smothie with the following contents (banana, strawberry, blueberry and milk. If I still feel hungry after my workout I'll eat a chicken wrap or tuna sandwich/baguette and then for dinner I'll have 2 small naan breads with whatever meat dish I have made or chicken with boiled rice. If I get hungry at night I'll make another smoothie maybe 300-400ml with the same fruits maybe substitute the strawberry with rasberry.

On top of that I'll try and work out 3-4 times a week. On each day will work on two muscle groups, I won't work to failure but get my reps in e.g find a weight am compatible with and perform 8 reps for 3-5 sets with 60-120 second rest in between (each muscle group I work on usually will be with three different exercises). After each work out I'll jump on the treadmill for HTI cardio, e.g one minute walk one minute sprint for 10 minutes (my heart rate was about 170 while I was doing the HTI cardio the other day ) )

I weigh around 95kg and about 5ft 10, all of my fat is on the belly, none on the arms at all they are quite skinny for my physique which is weird. I guess it would be nice to have huge arms but if am unable to then getting ripped will make my body a lot more even.
[MENTION=130076]PetroDollars[/MENTION] [MENTION=137578]Diffusion[/MENTION] [MENTION=136193]Adil_94[/MENTION] [MENTION=137535]anuk[/MENTION] and the rest of the guys, What do you guys think

You have too much carbs and sugar in your diet, need to cut them out.

Also keep your workout consistent, dont train 3 days one week then 4 days the other. Same with sets, its either 3 sets or 5 sets.

 

[hadi123]

Cheat days are important, very important when cutting.

It should be cheat meals, especially for cutting.

For example, you have some cake after dinner is a cheat meal, or perhaps a few pizza slices is fine. However a cheat day, where you eat lots of unhealthy food, such as pizza, cake, brownies, sweets, milkshake, nutella, muffins, cookies will really hinder progress on a cut. Also, try and do a cheat meal every 2 weeks, not 1 week, if possible. I cut so much more successfully when I cheat fortnightly as opposed to weekly, especially as for me, cheat meal can often lead to cheat day, so most of my cheat meals are in evening anyway otherwise a cheat meal could turn into a cheat day.
A cheat day for bulking might be okay though, as long as you still get sufficient protein. I'm currently on a bulk, I am 16, turning 17 in June

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk

 

[Madplayer]

Did a killer chest workout today. Really felt the pump.

 

[in_cutter]

Is there a work around to make protein shakes taste better? They literally make me sick.

 

[shaz619]

Make a myfitnesspal account, and also download the app onto your phone. Losing fat, if you do it properly should be a good chance to learn more about your body first hand.

You'll realise how easy it is to lose fat, once you realize food is just energy which you must either expend or store as fat. Just eat food that satisfies you enough, but you're still in a calorie deficit. For me, high fat high protein low/no carbs is what I feel most full with. Might be different for other people, but as long as you're in a significant deficit (-500kcal) you will lose fat no matter what you eat.

Check out Stronglifts, Starting Strength, Ice cream fitness 5x5 if you're looking for good beginner programs. They all follow the same principles and you'll make some excellent progress on them. And definitely do the cardio! Good luck!

agreed but i personally try to avoid carbs at night. i know the theory has been somewhat debunked but i still feel like it makes a difference, at least to me.

You have too much carbs and sugar in your diet, need to cut them out.

Also keep your workout consistent, dont train 3 days one week then 4 days the other. Same with sets, its either 3 sets or 5 sets.

Cheers guys. Also Petro, I can easily limit sugar and perhaps not take any at all but find it difficult to cut down on carbs. I guess in the mornings I can stop eating brown bread but for lunch I tend to have a sandwich or bagettue (maybe have chicken pasta as that's available in the uni shop) and for dinner always have two naans with whatever is made; the naans are about this size:

Perhaps I need to workout at least 4 times a week instead of 3 to account for the carbs I take but I've already cut down on the amounts I consume, beyond that will be difficult

 

[Diffusion]

It should be cheat meals, especially for cutting.

For example, you have some cake after dinner is a cheat meal, or perhaps a few pizza slices is fine. However a cheat day, where you eat lots of unhealthy food, such as pizza, cake, brownies, sweets, milkshake, nutella, muffins, cookies will really hinder progress on a cut. Also, try and do a cheat meal every 2 weeks, not 1 week, if possible. I cut so much more successfully when I cheat fortnightly as opposed to weekly, especially as for me, cheat meal can often lead to cheat day, so most of my cheat meals are in evening anyway otherwise a cheat meal could turn into a cheat day.
A cheat day for bulking might be okay though, as long as you still get sufficient protein. I'm currently on a bulk, I am 16, turning 17 in June

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk

I wouldn't even bother cutting yet if I was your age. At 15/16/17/18 nature's gifting you a natural supply of anabolic steroids (puberty). Make the most of it, slow long bulk. You'll be jacked by the time you're 20.

 

[Diffusion]

Cheers guys. Also Petro, I can easily limit sugar and perhaps not take any at all but find it difficult to cut down on carbs. I guess in the mornings I can stop eating brown bread but for lunch I tend to have a sandwich or bagettue (maybe have chicken pasta as that's available in the uni shop) and for dinner always have two naans with whatever is made; the naans are about this size:

Perhaps I need to workout at least 4 times a week instead of 3 to account for the carbs I take but I've already cut down on the amounts I consume, beyond that will be difficult

270 calories is a lot for one of those naans. If you're eating 2, that's 540. That would be like a quarter of your calories on a cut. Can you replace them with rice or something?

 

[hadi123]

I wouldn't even bother cutting yet if I was your age. At 15/16/17/18 nature's gifting you a natural supply of anabolic steroids (puberty). Make the most of it, slow long bulk. You'll be jacked by the time you're 20.

Yeah bro I realised so I am bulking now. Eating like 2800-2900 Calories per Day, following a meal plan which I created myself, with an appropriate amount of Carbs, Proteins and Fats. I just downed a protein shake like 30 mins ago after my back Workout (Chocolate orange flavour, MyProtein, nearly finished this one, ordered chocolate peanut butter flavour yesterday)

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk

 

[shaz619]

270 calories is a lot for one of those naans. If you're eating 2, that's 540. That would be like a quarter of your calories on a cut. Can you replace them with rice or something?

Those are not the ones which I bought but the ones I get are plain and similar in terms of the size. Yeah rice I can, what do you think of uncle bens microwave boiled basmati rice

 

[Diffusion]

Is there a work around to make protein shakes taste better? They literally make me sick.

Change brand? The cheaper ones don't taste very good.

 

[Diffusion]

Those are not the ones which I bought but the ones I get are plain and similar in terms of the size. Yeah rice I can, what do you think of uncle bens microwave boiled basmati rice

Never had them! Look okay in terms of calories though, I usually just make my own. It's literally just boiling them in water

 

[shaz619]

Never had them! Look okay in terms of calories though, I usually just make my own. It's literally just boiling them in water

the microwave ones i was referring to have about 150 calories in them, how much does the ones you make yourself have

 

[hadi123]

Did a killer chest workout today. Really felt the pump.

What was the routine?

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[hadi123]

Is there a work around to make protein shakes taste better? They literally make me sick.

What do you mix it with? Water?

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[hadi123]

OK guys, quick question. Since I got into fitness, all body parts have got more defined/stronger apart from one muscle group. This muscle group is my... Abs. Does anyone have any tips on how to correctly work your abs, I do different ab exercises but I think that maybe I don't do them correctly, please help?

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[Diffusion]

the microwave ones i was referring to have about 150 calories in them, how much does the ones you make yourself have

I think around 160ish. It's literally just the rice & water.

 

[Diffusion]

OK guys, quick question. Since I got into fitness, all body parts have got more defined/stronger apart from one muscle group. This muscle group is my... Abs. Does anyone have any tips on how to correctly work your abs, I do different ab exercises but I think that maybe I don't do them correctly, please help?

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Abs are too small a muscle to notice much of a visual difference over a short period of time tbh. They're a stabilising muscle, so if your squat and deadlift is getting stronger so is your core (including your abdominal muscles).

 

[hadi123]

Abs are too small a muscle to notice much of a visual difference over a short period of time tbh. They're a stabilising muscle, so if your squat and deadlift is getting stronger so is your core (including your abdominal muscles).

I know but I have been into exercise now since the end of 2014 and my abs are still soft as a teddy bear

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[ExplicitAI]

Going to start my gym journey tomorrow, hopefully I'll be able to get the body I want.

 

[Haroon786]

Have you guys heard of IIFYM?

Basically it's a theory you can eat junk food like ice cream, fried chicken, burgers, greasy kebabs and parathas, etc etc

But as long as you are getting the required number of calories you need in a day along with the right amount of protein, then it's good.

Is this how you guys do it? Or just eat healthy with the occasional cheat day?

Yes it can be done but you would have to workout harder, more and higher intensity cardio in order to offset the unhealthy effect of manufactured food.

Ideally, limit junk food to a minimum because it gives you a sense of control and it also builds discipline, which helps in ensuring that you also workout consistently too ( because if you're dieting so hard, why miss a workout ?).

 

[Haroon786]

I know but I have been into exercise now since the end of 2014 and my abs are still soft as a teddy bear

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Have you lost all the stomach fat in front of your abs ?

 

[hadi123]

Have you lost all the stomach fat in front of your abs ?

No, but wouldn't they still be hard?

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[shaz619]

Trying to lose weight and possibly gain strength/muscle at the same time.

I read that it's still important you eat something before a work out. Anyway this is the sought of diet am going for:

Eat two brown breads with 1-2 eggs or 1-2 banana before a work out and then after workout have a 500ml smothie with the following contents (banana, strawberry, blueberry and milk. If I still feel hungry after my workout I'll eat a chicken wrap or tuna sandwich/baguette and then for dinner I'll have 2 small naan breads with whatever meat dish I have made or chicken with boiled rice. If I get hungry at night I'll make another smoothie maybe 300-400ml with the same fruits maybe substitute the strawberry with rasberry.

On top of that I'll try and work out 3-4 times a week. On each day will work on two muscle groups, I won't work to failure but get my reps in e.g find a weight am compatible with and perform 8 reps for 3-5 sets with 60-120 second rest in between (each muscle group I work on usually will be with three different exercises). After each work out I'll jump on the treadmill for HTI cardio, e.g one minute walk one minute sprint for 10 minutes (my heart rate was about 170 while I was doing the HTI cardio the other day ) )

I weigh around 95kg and about 5ft 10, all of my fat is on the belly, none on the arms at all they are quite skinny for my physique which is weird. I guess it would be nice to have huge arms but if am unable to then getting ripped will make my body a lot more even.
[MENTION=130076]PetroDollars[/MENTION] [MENTION=137578]Diffusion[/MENTION] [MENTION=136193]Adil_94[/MENTION] [MENTION=137535]anuk[/MENTION] and the rest of the guys, What do you guys think

[MENTION=134473]Haroon786[/MENTION] I forgot to tag you, what do you think of what I've said in my post, am I on the right track? that's the plan I'll be starting this week

 

[Haroon786]

No, but wouldn't they still be hard?

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You won't be able to feel your abs if you have 4 inches of stomach fat in front of them - abs are like all other muscles, you have to lose fat to see and make them 'tight'.

 

[hadi123]

You won't be able to feel your abs if you have 4 inches of stomach fat in front of them - abs are like all other muscles, you have to lose fat to see and make them 'tight'.

Ah, I am bulking at the moment so training them every other day so the ab muscles can grow and then eventually I will cut in the summer, will I be able to see abs then?

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[Haroon786]

[MENTION=134473]Haroon786[/MENTION] I forgot to tag you, what do you think of what I've said in my post, am I on the right track? that's the plan I'll be starting this week

If you don't have a restraint on time, for example getting fit in 3-4 months, then my advice would be to first lose fat and then build muscle because it's easier to focus on one goal and carries less burden for someone who isn't used to a disciplined lifestyle.

As for the post, yes you need to have some energy to work out, thus it is imperative to eat 1-2 hours before you exercise.

Diet wise, what helped me to lose fat really quickly was a high protein diet, I only ate twice a day (before I resumed weight training) which was weetabix and tea and then in the evening, I would have 1 roti with meat or daal. Your diet looks fine, but if you're looking to lose fat then it's on the heavy side and you would have to do more cardio to compensate for higher calorie intake, the greater cardio could also impact the gains made in weight training through fatiguing your body.

Workout wise - I absolutely advise doing the Stronglifts 5x5 program for weight training for beginners (I'm also a beginner yolo), screw the separate body part per workout BS, I guarantee you will gain a lot of muscle as well being able to increase your lifting numbers quickly. As for cardio, the best exercise in my experience has been the treadmill, every workout look to make progressive incremental increases in speed. I run on the treadmill for 20 minutes each workout and attempt to increase the speed by 0.1 mph each workout, if I can't then I stay use the same speed until I'm comfortable to take it up a notch.

Those are my thoughts and I hope that helps you in achieving the body that you want.

 

[Haroon786]

Ah, I am bulking at the moment so training them every other day so the ab muscles can grow and then eventually I will cut in the summer, will I be able to see abs then?

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You're a couple of years younger than me supposedly.

If your already trim (fit, low body fat but lack muscle) than yes, work on the abs through reverse crunches and squats and other compound exercises.

 

[hadi123]

You're a couple of years younger than me supposedly.

If your already trim (fit, low body fat but lack muscle) than yes, work on the abs through reverse crunches and squats and other compound exercises.

Yeah I do compound exercises . it's harder for me cos before I started getting into fitness I was really obese. Late October 2014 is when I decided to lose weight - I was 15 back then, about 5 foot 10 and weighed like 13 and a half stone, was really fat, unfit, couldn't do a single push up so I lost a lot of weight. I tried to get really slim so that my body fat was 10% but I decided to just bulk then cut to avoid looking like a skeleton. I aim to bulk for 2-3 more months

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[shaz619]

If you don't have a restraint on time, for example getting fit in 3-4 months, then my advice would be to first lose fat and then build muscle because it's easier to focus on one goal and carries less burden for someone who isn't used to a disciplined lifestyle.

As for the post, yes you need to have some energy to work out, thus it is imperative to eat 1-2 hours before you exercise.

Diet wise, what helped me to lose fat really quickly was a high protein diet, I only ate twice a day (before I resumed weight training) which was weetabix and tea and then in the evening, I would have 1 roti with meat or daal. Your diet looks fine, but if you're looking to lose fat then it's on the heavy side and you would have to do more cardio to compensate for higher calorie intake, the greater cardio could also impact the gains made in weight training through fatiguing your body.

Workout wise - I absolutely advise doing the Stronglifts 5x5 program for weight training for beginners (I'm also a beginner yolo), screw the separate body part per workout BS, I guarantee you will gain a lot of muscle as well being able to increase your lifting numbers quickly. As for cardio, the best exercise in my experience has been the treadmill, every workout look to make progressive incremental increases in speed. I run on the treadmill for 20 minutes each workout and attempt to increase the speed by 0.1 mph each workout, if I can't then I stay use the same speed until I'm comfortable to take it up a notch.

Those are my thoughts and I hope that helps you in achieving the body that you want.

Thanks for the advice and I agree with you when it comes to strong-lifts, a friend of mine recommended power-lifting which is very similar to 5x5 program I think. Don't you think I can gain strength and lose weight at the same time? perform the 5x5 workout and at the end of each workout hit the treadmil? that's what I normally do and then I have a smooth right after when am done. I'd maintain the same diet described in the OP but I'd limit the carbs and possibly skip lunch to unless am working out on that day

 

[PetroDollars]

It should be cheat meals, especially for cutting.

For example, you have some cake after dinner is a cheat meal, or perhaps a few pizza slices is fine. However a cheat day, where you eat lots of unhealthy food, such as pizza, cake, brownies, sweets, milkshake, nutella, muffins, cookies will really hinder progress on a cut. Also, try and do a cheat meal every 2 weeks, not 1 week, if possible. I cut so much more successfully when I cheat fortnightly as opposed to weekly, especially as for me, cheat meal can often lead to cheat day, so most of my cheat meals are in evening anyway otherwise a cheat meal could turn into a cheat day.
A cheat day for bulking might be okay though, as long as you still get sufficient protein. I'm currently on a bulk, I am 16, turning 17 in June

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It doesn't matter whether its a cheat day or a cheat meal, the industry has it wrong. The only thing that matters is how many carbs and calories you consume on the day.

...again it depends on your bodyfat, lean body mass and age, but it should be between 300-400g of carbs.

Cheat days are more important when cutting than bulking, infact thats what they were made for. On a bulk you can consume a good amount of carbs anyway.

Most people have it wrong, all a cheat day means, is that you can consume more carbs, but junk food is still junk and you should always stay away from trans fats, HFCS and other refined sugars.

On a cut, a cheat day like this will refill your glycogen levels and boost your metabolism, ofcourse thats if your other days were clean i.e 60g carbs/80g fat/150g protein.

 

[PetroDollars]

Cheers guys. Also Petro, I can easily limit sugar and perhaps not take any at all but find it difficult to cut down on carbs. I guess in the mornings I can stop eating brown bread but for lunch I tend to have a sandwich or bagettue (maybe have chicken pasta as that's available in the uni shop) and for dinner always have two naans with whatever is made; the naans are about this size:

Perhaps I need to workout at least 4 times a week instead of 3 to account for the carbs I take but I've already cut down on the amounts I consume, beyond that will be difficult

....it doesnt seem like it, those smoothies your taking are loaded with fructose, no good on a cut.

carbs should be no more than 80g/day, you can easily change that naam bread for a low carb tortilla bread, even a corn tortilla would be fine.

 

[shaz619]

....it doesnt seem like it, those smoothies your taking are loaded with fructose, no good on a cut.

carbs should be no more than 80g/day, you can easily change that naam bread for a low carb tortilla bread, even a corn tortilla would be fine.

I only put bannana and berries of one kind or another in the blender, i think those fruits have the lowest amount of fructose; also if I were to only have them in the mornings and post work out would that be fine? for lunch I'd just have 200g of chicken nibbles or some a low calorie chicken pasta. then in the evening boiled rice with whatever meat dish instead of the 2 naan breads

 

[Madplayer]

Gym partner said he couldn't come today. I skipped the gym too because didnt want to go alone feeling bad now.

 

[CricketCartoons]

Have joined MS Dhoni's gym. Target is to be able to post my pic after 6 months.

 

[shaz619]

Can't seem to find the sweetspot to position the bar on my lower back during squatting, I was trying to find the correct position with no weights on the bar and I think the position to go for is low bar but I was unable to get the bar low (also to do with undeveloped muscle) and wrists can get sprained as you try and get lower so I stopped. The issue is that the high bar postion causes my neck/upper-vertebrae pain.

The way around it would be to buy squat padding....is that reconmmended? There seemss to be a differencd of opion reading on the net. Safety is important though and don't want to get injured. Squats are important in StrongLift 5x5 and I don't think they can be replaced

 

[Diffusion]

Can't seem to find the sweetspot to position the bar on my lower back during squatting, I was trying to find the correct position with no weights on the bar and I think the position to go for is low bar but I was unable to get the bar low (also to do with undeveloped muscle) and wrists can get sprained as you try and get lower so I stopped. The issue is that the high bar postion causes my neck/upper-vertebrae pain.

The way around it would be to buy squat padding....is that reconmmended? There seemss to be a differencd of opion reading on the net. Safety is important though and don't want to get injured. Squats are important in StrongLift 5x5 and I don't think they can be replaced

Hmm it's tough to actually help you with this without seeing your form.

There isn't a huge difference where you place the bar in a high or low bar squat - about an inch or 2 at most.

If your wrists hurt you're probably too low unless you've got wrist mobility issues (quite common). You can try loosening up your wrists before you workout to try and help. But your hands are only really there to lock the weight in position, your shoulders should be supporting the weight on a low bar squat. The trick is to pinch your shoulders together to create a bit of a shelf just below your traps to rest the weight against. It'll take a bit of time figuring it out, and it gets a bit easier once you're lifting heavier.

Your neck definitely shouldn't hurt on a high bar squat though. The bar should be resting on your traps, if the bar is rolling onto your neck it means you're not upright enough. The cue is to keep your chest up throughout the entire lift.

The other thing is to keep your chin tucked in. Don't look into your face in the mirror through the lift, you should actually be looking down at a slight angle. As if your watching someone's feet about 2m away from you.

 

[CricketCartoons]

What should be some healthy food that can be carried to office, after having a workout in the morning? I have joined a gym, but get very tired at the workplace and becomes difficult to put in work. I drink lots of water, but I am always hungry. I carry nuts but should I also carry bananas/oranges or maybe protein bars. Something healthy to munch on at the workplace to keep me energized.

 

[Sidilicious]

Can't seem to find the sweetspot to position the bar on my lower back during squatting, I was trying to find the correct position with no weights on the bar and I think the position to go for is low bar but I was unable to get the bar low (also to do with undeveloped muscle) and wrists can get sprained as you try and get lower so I stopped. The issue is that the high bar postion causes my neck/upper-vertebrae pain.

The way around it would be to buy squat padding....is that reconmmended? There seemss to be a differencd of opion reading on the net. Safety is important though and don't want to get injured. Squats are important in StrongLift 5x5 and I don't think they can be replaced

I think padding is like the gym gloves question. Some swear by them, others claim that it only harms you. Honestly, if the padding works for you, for for it. I find padding allows me to lift in a much safer fashion with a much better technique.

You could also try front squatting with the barbell in the front, though that is much harder.

 

[Suleiman]

Can't seem to find the sweetspot to position the bar on my lower back during squatting, I was trying to find the correct position with no weights on the bar and I think the position to go for is low bar but I was unable to get the bar low (also to do with undeveloped muscle) and wrists can get sprained as you try and get lower so I stopped. The issue is that the high bar postion causes my neck/upper-vertebrae pain.

The way around it would be to buy squat padding....is that reconmmended? There seemss to be a differencd of opion reading on the net. Safety is important though and don't want to get injured. Squats are important in StrongLift 5x5 and I don't think they can be replaced

Idk what it's called, but in the gym here there is a plastic shoulder support that you latch on to the middle of the bar when squatting. Makes the squat comfortable, nobody else uses it but me lol, but hey to each his own.

Also make sure you are pushing with your hips, that will reduce the stress on your knees. Also, idk if you are using a squat rack, but I was facing a similar problem when the bar was at chin height, as that forced me to lift the bar with my upper body before doing the actual exercise. So I put it around chest height, so with one smooth movement I got it off the rack took a step back and started doing the lift.

 

[Sidilicious]

What should be some healthy food that can be carried to office, after having a workout in the morning? I have joined a gym, but get very tired at the workplace and becomes difficult to put in work. I drink lots of water, but I am always hungry. I carry nuts but should I also carry bananas/oranges or maybe protein bars. Something healthy to munch on at the workplace to keep me energized.

You need protein with fast/simple carbs right after a workout. During your meals you should avoid eating simple carbs, and try only complex carbs.

Have a protein shake which has simple carbs right after workout (Around 3 grams of carbs for 2 grams of protein). If you have a protein shake which doesn't have much carbs then consume a banana with the shake right after the workout.

 

[Sidilicious]

Idk what it's called, but in the gym here there is a plastic shoulder support that you latch on to the middle of the bar when squatting. Makes the squat comfortable, nobody else uses it but me lol, but hey to each his own.

Also make sure you are pushing with your hips, that will reduce the stress on your knees. Also, idk if you are using a squat rack, but I was facing a similar problem when the bar was at chin height, as that forced me to lift the bar with my upper body before doing the actual exercise. So I put it around chest height, so with one smooth movement I got it off the rack took a step back and started doing the lift.

Good call that. I've used it before and was impressed by it

 

[Sidilicious]

I have had some injury in my hands so will be giving up on upper body training for a month or so and will only be training on my lower body. I normally train my legs once a week, and do calves twice a week. Now I plan to work on my legs thrice a week.

I have 2 concerns
1. I have never done so much of legs in a week before. Normally what I do on day 1 is all I do in a week
2. Recovery period

Following is my plan. Any advice will be much appreciated lads. Has anyone trained their legs a lot before?

Day 1
- Squats 3 sets (12,10,8 reps) + 1 drop set
- Lunges 3 sets (12 reps each)
- Leg Press (12,10,8 reps) + 1 drop set
- Hip Adductor
- Standing Calf raise

Day 2
- Front Squats 3 sets (12,10,8 reps) + 1 drop set
- Deadlifts 3 sets (12 reps each)
- Leg Press (12,10,8 reps) + 1 drop set
- Hip Abduction
- Seated Calf raise

Day 3
- Squats 3 sets (12,10,8 reps) + 1 drop set
- Romanian Dead lifts 3 sets (12 reps each)
- Leg Extension
- Leg Curl
- Standing Calf Raise

 

[Diffusion]

I have had some injury in my hands so will be giving up on upper body training for a month or so and will only be training on my lower body. I normally train my legs once a week, and do calves twice a week. Now I plan to work on my legs thrice a week.

I have 2 concerns
1. I have never done so much of legs in a week before. Normally what I do on day 1 is all I do in a week
2. Recovery period

Following is my plan. Any advice will be much appreciated lads. Has anyone trained their legs a lot before?

Day 1
- Squats 3 sets (12,10,8 reps) + 1 drop set
- Lunges 3 sets (12 reps each)
- Leg Press (12,10,8 reps) + 1 drop set
- Hip Adductor
- Standing Calf raise

Day 2
- Front Squats 3 sets (12,10,8 reps) + 1 drop set
- Deadlifts 3 sets (12 reps each)
- Leg Press (12,10,8 reps) + 1 drop set
- Hip Abduction
- Seated Calf raise

Day 3
- Squats 3 sets (12,10,8 reps) + 1 drop set
- Romanian Dead lifts 3 sets (12 reps each)
- Leg Extension
- Leg Curl
- Standing Calf Raise

How are you deadlifting with a hand injury?

Seems fine, your body will adapt to it. There's a lot of volume in there, so you might want to cut out leg presses eventually if you feel its getting too much. Give it a go though first.

Maybe make day 3 a heavy squat workout? 3-5 reps at a higher intensity.

 

[Suleiman]

Ok so have found that the most difficult thing in this business is the sleep. You can eat right, lift right, but no sleep = no gains, and that's where I'm struggling. Only a few months in, but have been averaging about 5-6 hours with occasional 7 on weekends, sometimes even 4 hours, that too with interruptions. Need to up my game and get 7-8 hours consecutively.

Getting the protein was another issue, but have found this drink in the cafeteria called core power, has about 20-26 g of protein depending on flavor lol.

Contemplating on restarting stronglifts 5x5 or starting strength as this full body workout isn't really challenging me enough I feel, have been doing it for about 3-4 months just to get my form down on the major lifts instead of starting heavy with no idea of form and injuring myself.

Also, anyone know a good way to get to the level of being able to do 5-10 solid pull-ups without any support?

 

[Sidilicious]

How are you deadlifting with a hand injury?

Seems fine, your body will adapt to it. There's a lot of volume in there, so you might want to cut out leg presses eventually if you feel its getting too much. Give it a go though first.

Maybe make day 3 a heavy squat workout? 3-5 reps at a higher intensity.

Thats a really good call mate. Will alter the schedule for that and see how it goes. It would definitely add variety to my training. I will also see if I can play around a bit with the reps on Day 2. As in, do normal 10-12 reps on day1, 15-20 reps on day 2, and 3-5 reps on day 3.

As for the deadlifts, because my wrist and arm are straight with my palm facing towards me, I do not get any pain while doing deadlifts. But, since my injury, I have only done deadlifts at light weights. I will get to know how my wrist reacts when I try it with heavy weights. Even if it hurts a bit, I will remove it from my schedule.

Today is my first day with this schedule, so lets see if I can last even a week with this training.

 

[hadi123]

I'm hitting legs today. Why does everyone say the Smith Machine is so bad. I probably won't use the Smith Machine anymore, I'll use the power rack or a barbell

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[Sidilicious]

Ok so have found that the most difficult thing in this business is the sleep. You can eat right, lift right, but no sleep = no gains, and that's where I'm struggling. Only a few months in, but have been averaging about 5-6 hours with occasional 7 on weekends, sometimes even 4 hours, that too with interruptions. Need to up my game and get 7-8 hours consecutively.

Getting the protein was another issue, but have found this drink in the cafeteria called core power, has about 20-26 g of protein depending on flavor lol.

Are you not getting enough time to sleep or you cant fall asleep and wake up in the middle of the night?

Contemplating on restarting stronglifts 5x5 or starting strength as this full body workout isn't really challenging me enough I feel, have been doing it for about 3-4 months just to get my form down on the major lifts instead of starting heavy with no idea of form and injuring myself.

Also, anyone know a good way to get to the level of being able to do 5-10 solid pull-ups without any support?

There are a couple of theories.
1. Use support to get to 12 reps, and then keep reducing the support until you get to the point when you dont need support to perform those 12 reps.
2. Just do as many as you can without support. Over time, the number of reps will start increasing.

I used the 1st one when I was a fatso 18 year old. Helped me then since I could not even do 1 rep without support.

But once I lost the fat and started to do a couple of pull-ups without support, I stuck to not using any support. It took a while to get to a point where I could do 6-7 pull ups without support, but I got there eventually. You will too.

 

[Sidilicious]

I'm hitting legs today. Why does everyone say the Smith Machine is so bad. I probably won't use the Smith Machine anymore, I'll use the power rack or a barbell

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You will be required to work on your form when using your barbell. Can get into bad habits with the Smith machine. Smith machine is fine when you are starting out, or even for use once in a while, but barbells is the best to attain stability and form.

 

[Theo_14]

People tend to underestimate leg day, back day and even triceps day!

Leg are literally the core of your work out; whilst triceps are the base for your biceps to stand out. Back work out is slowly becoming a trend and taking over abs as the most desired thing.

I've been going gym for around 2 years; I was 55kg last year; this year I'm 67-68kg. Credit goes to consistent work out and healthy eating; as well as "occasional" protein. Haven't taken protein in 2016 though.

I'll try and share my before and after pic of my bicep when I'm on the laptop; my arm 2 years ago was shocking lol.

 

[shaz619]

Hmm it's tough to actually help you with this without seeing your form.

There isn't a huge difference where you place the bar in a high or low bar squat - about an inch or 2 at most.

If your wrists hurt you're probably too low unless you've got wrist mobility issues (quite common). You can try loosening up your wrists before you workout to try and help. But your hands are only really there to lock the weight in position, your shoulders should be supporting the weight on a low bar squat. The trick is to pinch your shoulders together to create a bit of a shelf just below your traps to rest the weight against. It'll take a bit of time figuring it out, and it gets a bit easier once you're lifting heavier.

Your neck definitely shouldn't hurt on a high bar squat though. The bar should be resting on your traps, if the bar is rolling onto your neck it means you're not upright enough. The cue is to keep your chest up throughout the entire lift.

The other thing is to keep your chin tucked in. Don't look into your face in the mirror through the lift, you should actually be looking down at a slight angle. As if your watching someone's feet about 2m away from you.

I think padding is like the gym gloves question. Some swear by them, others claim that it only harms you. Honestly, if the padding works for you, for for it. I find padding allows me to lift in a much safer fashion with a much better technique.

You could also try front squatting with the barbell in the front, though that is much harder.

Idk what it's called, but in the gym here there is a plastic shoulder support that you latch on to the middle of the bar when squatting. Makes the squat comfortable, nobody else uses it but me lol, but hey to each his own.

Also make sure you are pushing with your hips, that will reduce the stress on your knees. Also, idk if you are using a squat rack, but I was facing a similar problem when the bar was at chin height, as that forced me to lift the bar with my upper body before doing the actual exercise. So I put it around chest height, so with one smooth movement I got it off the rack took a step back and started doing the lift.

Diffusion tt's the region just below my neck where you can literally feel your bone, its almost like a ball that's the position which I could place the bar and it just hurts quite bruised; I tried to go lower so I didn't have to place the bar there but I was unable to go lower; my chest was up throughout but still it remained in the same position and was painful that too with no weights on the olympic bar.

I had a look at front squatting Sidlicious but it seems to be an exercise which puts a bit too much strain on the wrists and I can't afford that at the moment.

I think I know what you're talking about Suleiman; is it this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Chinatera-S...TF8&qid=1455799407&sr=8-10&keywords=squat+pad

I wonder if your one is better or these:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/..._rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=577047927&pf_rd_i=desktop

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/..._rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=577047927&pf_rd_i=desktop

 

[shaz619]

Ok so have found that the most difficult thing in this business is the sleep. You can eat right, lift right, but no sleep = no gains, and that's where I'm struggling. Only a few months in, but have been averaging about 5-6 hours with occasional 7 on weekends, sometimes even 4 hours, that too with interruptions. Need to up my game and get 7-8 hours consecutively.

Getting the protein was another issue, but have found this drink in the cafeteria called core power, has about 20-26 g of protein depending on flavor lol.

Contemplating on restarting stronglifts 5x5 or starting strength as this full body workout isn't really challenging me enough I feel, have been doing it for about 3-4 months just to get my form down on the major lifts instead of starting heavy with no idea of form and injuring myself.

Also, anyone know a good way to get to the level of being able to do 5-10 solid pull-ups without any support?

dahell bro, why no sleep? what you be doing up all night Supplements are great but you can also make smoothies with greek yogurt and eat loads of kukar; depends on you really. If you prefer solid food then you can certainly get adequate protein without those expensive supplements. Am just starting out after a long time, have performed exercises on my back, tries, chest and legs thus far this week but from next week I'll begin the 5x5 program, I quite like that it doesn't involve curling! my wrists are too messed up for that and until my upper vertebrae or whatever that thing/bone just below my neck is called heals up I won't squat so will have to look for alternative exercises for now.

 

[PetroDollars]

What should be some healthy food that can be carried to office, after having a workout in the morning? I have joined a gym, but get very tired at the workplace and becomes difficult to put in work. I drink lots of water, but I am always hungry. I carry nuts but should I also carry bananas/oranges or maybe protein bars. Something healthy to munch on at the workplace to keep me energized.

Buy Quest bars, they also taste amazingly good, if there to expensive you can even make them yourself so easily, just google the receipe.

 

[msb314]

Any advice for me if I am looking to improve cardio endurance?

 

[Sidilicious]

Any advice for me if I am looking to improve cardio endurance?

do you have particular goals - 5k, 10k, marathon etc? What is your training/fitness like now?

 

[msb314]

do you have particular goals - 5k, 10k, marathon etc? What is your training/fitness like now?

For now, 10K

I am currently capable of 5K but puts a lot of stress on me.