Is my training program correct for nutrition?

[Ridaaar1233]

Current program

Upper A

Dumbbell bench press 3/4 x 10-12 reps
Single arm lat pull 3x5
Lat pull down 3x8-10
Dumbbell incline press 3x5-8
Dumbbell bicep 3x8
Lat tricep pulldown 3x8

Lower A

Romanian dead lift 3/4 x 8
Lat machine ankle pulls 4x5
Lat machine ankle Push 4x5
Hip thrust 3x8
Calves 3x20

The lat machine pull and push is simply bands around the ankle area where one exercise means you pull the weight so it works the hamstrings and the other you push so you're essentially working your quads.

Upper B

Barbell incline bench 3x8-10
Lat machine pulls for lower chest 3x10
Sitting lat machine pulls 3x8-10
Lat machine pulls from behind 3x10
Shoulder side pulls 3x8
Biceps 3x10-12
Skull crusher 3x10-12

Lower B
Squat 4x5
Lat machine ankle pulls 3x12-15
Lat machine ankle Push 3x12-15
Hip thrust 3x15

My current training program is above.
Goal is to lose fat

I'm around 5'6, 180lbs maybe around 25/26 body fat or slightly higher.

1700 calories but weekends I can go to 2000.

I try to go for 1gm protein based on body weight i.e. 180gms.
Fat is around 50gms
Rest on carbs

If I want to drop fat percentage does the above seem to be a reasonable training plan and calorie intake? If yes what kind of timeframe would I be expecting to results by?

I can provide more information if required as I don't know if the above is enough or not for my question

[StephenCGreen]

Your goal is to lose fat.

And, while you did not disclose your sex or age, according to your other stats, it seems that you eat a heck of a lot of carbs. Your body must be used to burning sugar as fuel and completely ignoring your fat stores. But you have fat stores that you want to get rid of. Switch to low carb diet by reducing carbs and increasing fat intake. This will get your body to change over and look for fat to burn instead of sugar. It will take a while but get your body on the road to burning fat for fuel. It is a far better fuel to power your workouts and you will eventually feel much better. Time should not be an issue here because you are looking to change your life style forever, not just temporarily.

As for your workout, if you are a beginner, focus on strength training instead of all that exercise that basically amounts to cardio. Strength training through basic compound movements will help you to add the most muscle, if you haven't already, which will help you to burn calories even in your sleep. A good beginner program could help you to achieve entry level muscular development in about 12 to 16 weeks. You'll have your foot in the door. Once you have the muscle you need, go ahead and add some cardio, if you need to.

[paulinkansas]

It's horrible and I'm not trying to be mean, just honest.

Do the Fierce 5 in the stickies.

It's what I do but I'm just a frail little 56 year old guy as you can see.

[TolerantLactose]

Odd exercise choices and descriptions
Odd exercise order
Odd rep range choices
Excessive variation

Keep it simple. Choose a good novice program.

[radrd]

Terrible routine. Do Fierce 5 or All Pro. Don't write your own program.

[Ridaaar1233]

Your goal is to lose fat.

And, while you did not disclose your sex or age, according to your other stats, it seems that you eat a heck of a lot of carbs. Your body must be used to burning sugar as fuel and completely ignoring your fat stores. But you have fat stores that you want to get rid of. Switch to low carb diet by reducing carbs and increasing fat intake. This will get your body to change over and look for fat to burn instead of sugar. It will take a while but get your body on the road to burning fat for fuel. It is a far better fuel to power your workouts and you will eventually feel much better. Time should not be an issue here because you are looking to change your life style forever, not just temporarily.

As for your workout, if you are a beginner, focus on strength training instead of all that exercise that basically amounts to cardio. Strength training through basic compound movements will help you to add the most muscle, if you haven't already, which will help you to burn calories even in your sleep. A good beginner program could help you to achieve entry level muscular development in about 12 to 16 weeks. You'll have your foot in the door. Once you have the muscle you need, go ahead and add some cardio, if you need to.

Great explanation!

Thanks everyone!

So how much carbs should I have as a minimum? I'm a male, 45 years old.

I started training a few years ago I did the Fierce Five guys a couple of years and made great gains and lost a lot of body fat.

All of a sudden the weight became too heavy, I got injured and did other routines as fierce five became boring. I couldn't add any more weight to the bar for months so I decided to change the program (I don't know if I should've done something else here, keeping in mind I did do a reload as well)

I guess I'm still a beginner?? I can't squat double my weight (it's what I've read on the internet to determine if your a beginner or not)

I like/enjoy upper/lower routines so is there one similar to that? Or do I stop everything and just go back to fierce five/all pro?

I have the below equipment:
Squat rack
Bench press with incline
Barbell
Dumbbell
Wall mounted lat machine (cable can be tied to top and bottom)
EZ bar
Pull-up bar

Thanks for the advice everyone

[StephenCGreen]

If you are looking into low carb nutrition, then you need to get less than 30 percent of your calories from carbs. A popular plan is called Keto, where you need to get less than 10 percent of your calories from carbs. To lose fat, you will generally also need to eat a little less than maintenance amount of calories. Since you won't be eating as many carbs, and you'll still be aiming to get your protein requirement, you will increase fats. Changes to your diet should be slow and steady, but definitely progressive in the right direction over time, just like lifting weights when you did Fierce Five.

As for your lifting, you may find it enjoyable to return to a 5 x 5 type program, such as Fierce Five or Stronglifts (has variations including upper/lower), at least for a bit. This may help you to regain the confidence you lost since your injury. Remember, though, that your present goal is to lose fat long term by building and then maintaining muscle, not to keep breaking PR's until you hurt yourself. It is OK to progress to a point and then simply maintain your gains. Once you have the muscle you want, you can do less work if all you want to do is maintain it. That is a good point to then add assistance work or even cardio that you enjoy to make your workout more interesting while maintaining good strength. Also, with progression and age comes a greater need for rest and recovery, which is why building the muscular base is relatively important.

[Ridaaar1233]

If you are looking into low carb nutrition, then you need to get less than 30 percent of your calories from carbs. A popular plan is called Keto, where you need to get less than 10 percent of your calories from carbs. To lose fat, you will generally also need to eat a little less than maintenance amount of calories. Since you won't be eating as many carbs, and you'll still be aiming to get your protein requirement, you will increase fats. Changes to your diet should be slow and steady, but definitely progressive in the right direction over time, just like lifting weights when you did Fierce Five.

As for your lifting, you may find it enjoyable to return to a 5 x 5 type program, such as Fierce Five or Stronglifts (has variations including upper/lower), at least for a bit. This may help you to regain the confidence you lost since your injury. Remember, though, that your present goal is to lose fat long term by building and then maintaining muscle, not to keep breaking PR's until you hurt yourself. It is OK to progress to a point and then simply maintain your gains. Once you have the muscle you want, you can do less work if all you want to do is maintain it. That is a good point to then add assistance work or even cardio that you enjoy to make your workout more interesting while maintaining good strength. Also, with progression and age comes a greater need for rest and recovery, which is why building the muscular base is relatively important.

I found this link for a 5x5

hevyapp.com/5x5-workout/

Is this right? It just seems very short and no arms workout, triceps or back exercises? Or do you mean use this as a base program and on the other days add in some of the exercises from my current workout plan? I currently to 4 days a week

[radrd]

I found this link for a 5x5

hevyapp.com/5x5-workout/

Is this right? It just seems very short and no arms workout, triceps or back exercises? Or do you mean use this as a base program and on the other days add in some of the exercises from my current workout plan? I currently to 4 days a week

Fierce 5 is in the stickies on this forum. Check that one out.

[StephenCGreen]

I found this link for a 5x5

hevyapp.com/5x5-workout/

Is this right? It just seems very short and no arms workout, triceps or back exercises? Or do you mean use this as a base program and on the other days add in some of the exercises from my current workout plan? I currently to 4 days a week

As radrd suggested, Fierce 5 may be more in line with what you prefer, especially since you already have experience with it.

However, the link you found for a 5 x 5 workout, can also be right. It may seem short, but after the first 12 to 16 weeks it will be long with potential to become even longer, if you chose to continue progressing rather than maintaining. That is mostly because of linear progression and the need to rest and recover between sets. The exercises selected are among the most basic compound movements that anyone can learn to do by reading and watching. Since your goal is to lose fat, if you chose to use a program such as this, you could follow it without adding assistance exercises for the 12 weeks or until you have achieved the strength/muscle that you wish to maintain. After that, you could drop to 3 x 5, maintain the weight and add assistance exercises such as chin-up, dip, etc. It is suggested to do the workouts 3 days per week. However, it can be done every other day, if your scheduling permits. That would be 3 or 4 days per week; 7 workouts every 2 weeks.

If you master good form and find that you can lift heavier and heavier weight, it can be very satisfying.

[Ridaaar1233]

As radrd suggested, Fierce 5 may be more in line with what you prefer, especially since you already have experience with it.

However, the link you found for a 5 x 5 workout, can also be right. It may seem short, but after the first 12 to 16 weeks it will be long with potential to become even longer, if you chose to continue progressing rather than maintaining. That is mostly because of linear progression and the need to rest and recover between sets. The exercises selected are among the most basic compound movements that anyone can learn to do by reading and watching. Since your goal is to lose fat, if you chose to use a program such as this, you could follow it without adding assistance exercises for the 12 weeks or until you have achieved the strength/muscle that you wish to maintain. After that, you could drop to 3 x 5, maintain the weight and add assistance exercises such as chin-up, dip, etc. It is suggested to do the workouts 3 days per week. However, it can be done every other day, if your scheduling permits. That would be 3 or 4 days per week; 7 workouts every 2 weeks.

If you master good form and find that you can lift heavier and heavier weight, it can be very satisfying.

Thanks again for that information.

I'm intrigued to try this out but need a little more clarity.

My current program has a lot of variety and I've definitely built more muscle and strengthened weak areas where I couldn't on fierce five when I did that (maybe due to increasing the weight too quickly, injuring myself whereas the current one might be lower in weight but extra reps helped me)

1. I would like to do the workout 4 days a week (reading up on that link to understand it fully) should I also add some accessory/side exercises as I think I should be able to handle it rather than waiting 12 weeks?

The link suggests I could but if so which ones would you recommend or recommend not adding due to under recovering?

I don't mind doing 3 days heavy 5x5 and maybe 1 light day for other parts?

2. When selecting the amount of weight I should lift for the 5x5 program, should I start with any weight or do I need to calculate based on my current volume and ensure the volume remains the same with 5x5?

3. In the past I've always found when lifting too heavy I never feel any pump and don't feel like I'm putting on any muscle as I could be lifting the same amount for a few weeks, does this sound correct or is there a way to measure I'm heading in the right direction?

Thanks

[StephenCGreen]

Thanks again for that information.

I'm intrigued to try this out but need a little more clarity.

My current program has a lot of variety and I've definitely built more muscle and strengthened weak areas where I couldn't on fierce five when I did that (maybe due to increasing the weight too quickly, injuring myself whereas the current one might be lower in weight but extra reps helped me)

1. I would like to do the workout 4 days a week (reading up on that link to understand it fully) should I also add some accessory/side exercises as I think I should be able to handle it rather than waiting 12 weeks?

The link suggests I could but if so which ones would you recommend or recommend not adding due to under recovering?

I don't mind doing 3 days heavy 5x5 and maybe 1 light day for other parts?

2. When selecting the amount of weight I should lift for the 5x5 program, should I start with any weight or do I need to calculate based on my current volume and ensure the volume remains the same with 5x5?

3. In the past I've always found when lifting too heavy I never feel any pump and don't feel like I'm putting on any muscle as I could be lifting the same amount for a few weeks, does this sound correct or is there a way to measure I'm heading in the right direction?

Thanks

Your questions regarding 5 x 5 workouts already have answers freely available on the Internet. You should consider reading Stronglifts 5 x 5 webpages, if you haven't already.

To answer your questions, I would suggest

1. Do the 5 x 5 as programmed for 3 days per week. Add an extra assistance day the day after your 3rd workout in the week. Definitely do chin-up and dip. Add other exercises if you want.

2. Calculate your starting weight as 50 to 65 percent of your 1RM, depending on your experience.

3. There are ways to measure. What you measure and what you are looking for depends on your program. A beginner 5 x 5 program usually looks for gradual increases in weight over time, such as each workout, or weekly, or even monthly, depending how much you have already progressed.


Now, I have some questions for you. You don't have to post answers here, but I want you to think about it. Since you started your current program, as outlined in your original post, what progress have you made? For how long have you been doing your program, including missed days, weeks, etc? So, consider, what weight did you squat and for how many reps did you squat it at the beginning compared to what you do now? And your bench press? And your deadlift? What are your estimated 1RM's?

[air2fakie]

See below in bold.

I'm intrigued to try this out but need a little more clarity.

My current program has a lot of variety and I've definitely built more muscle and strengthened weak areas where I couldn't on fierce five when I did that (maybe due to increasing the weight too quickly, injuring myself whereas the current one might be lower in weight but extra reps helped me)

1. I would like to do the workout 4 days a week (reading up on that link to understand it fully) should I also add some accessory/side exercises as I think I should be able to handle it rather than waiting 12 weeks?
Do something other than 5x5 if you want to work out >3 days/week & add a bunch of extra stuff. You'll just end up spinning your wheels lifting the same weight like you're doing now.

The link suggests I could but if so which ones would you recommend or recommend not adding due to under recovering?

I don't mind doing 3 days heavy 5x5 and maybe 1 light day for other parts?
Do something else instead of f-ing up an established program. Figure out what your goals are before you pick a program.

2. When selecting the amount of weight I should lift for the 5x5 program, should I start with any weight or do I need to calculate based on my current volume and ensure the volume remains the same with 5x5?
Your 5x5 program should have instructions for this, and there may even be an online spreadsheet for making the calculation.

3. In the past I've always found when lifting too heavy I never feel any pump and don't feel like I'm putting on any muscle as I could be lifting the same amount for a few weeks, does this sound correct or is there a way to measure I'm heading in the right direction?
Look in the mirror and the weights you're lifting. Putting on muscle isn't a "feeling".

In the end, do whatever you feel works for you and that you enjoy. But also own your progress or lack thereof.

[paulinkansas]

should I also add some accessory/side exercises

Do you have access to a friendly medium to large sized dog?

[radrd]

Do you have access to a friendly medium to large sized dog?

Now you're confusing me. I thought the dog lift was a compound movement.

[paulinkansas]

Now you're confusing me. I thought the dog lift was a compound movement.

It's an accessory compound lift on non-workout days. That's the best answer I can come up with. My dog would dig holes in the back yard.