I really need help with my workout & diet!

[Sk1nny_Jeff]

Hi all. I am skinny Jeff. I am tired of being skinny Jeff and, with your help, hope to become toned Jeff. Like Brad Pitt in Fight Club. That’s a decent look. Here are my stats:

Age – 23.
Height – 6ft.
Weight – 80Kg
I’ve been training for 3 months.

My Routine is as follows. Please bear in mind while reading it that the intention for this workout is to lower my body fat percentage to 10% or less while simultaneously toning and defining my lean muscle mass. I neither expect nor desire big muscle growth. I just want to look as toned the aforementioned Mr Pitt.

MONDAY – ARMS:

Biceps:

• 3x10 Bicep curls with a 25kg barbell
• 3x10 Super 21’s with two 8kg dumbbells.
• 2x30…Umm, I don’t know what this one is called. Basically, you hold a light (say, 6kg) dumbbell in each hand and do 30 full bicep curls with one while holding the other parallel to the floor. It’s easy at first but my GOD does it burn by the end of the second set! As far as I know I invented this one so in lieu of the proper term let’s call this one the ‘Jeff Pumps’

Triceps:

• 3x10 Skull Press with a 20kg barbell.
• 3x10 Overhead tricep extensions with a 10kg dumbbell.
• 1x10 Tricep extensions on cable curl machine @ 35Kg
• 1x8 Tricep extensions on cable curl machine @ 45Kg
• 2x6 Tricep extensions on cable curl machine @ 55Kg

Shoulders:

• 3x10…umm, dunno the right name for this either. What you do is hold two light (say, 6kg) dumbbells in each hand and raise them up to the side like you’re spreading your wings.
• 3x10 Frontal deltoid raises with two 6kg dumbbells.
• 3x10 Shoulder Press on shoulder press machine @25Kg
• 3x10 Military Presses with a 25Kg Dumbbell.

I know the last two are basically the same exercise but splitting the six sets up into two groups of three sets for two nominally different but essentially identical exercises makes it more fun.

Forearms:

• I have absolutely no idea about this. I really want to build bigger forearms but I don’t know any specific exercises for them Most people say your forearms get a good workout just by lugging the weights around, but I’ve been training for several months and my forearms are still embarrassingly puny. Any suggestions would be really gratefully appreciated.

Abs:

• 3x30 stomach crunches.
• 3x15 leg lifts.

TUESDAY: SIMPLY CARDIO

Nice and straightforward here. On Tuesday I simply do a 10 Kilometre run on a treadmill at a gentle-ish speed of 10 kilometres per hour punctuated by the occasional one minute sprint. I know I’d probably get better results with HIIT but I just don’t enjoy it anywhere near as much as a long run when I can just let my mind wander and have fun.


WEDNESDAY: CHEST & LEGS & ABS & CARDIO

Chest:

• 3x10 Bench Press @ 50Kg
• 3x10 Incline Bench Press @ 17.5 Kg
• 3x10 Pec Fly @ 49Kg
• 3x10 Decline Bench Press @ 20Kg

Legs:

• 3x10 Squats @ 20kg on a Smith Machine.
• 3x10 Deadlifts with a 30kg barbell.
• 3x10 Glute Press on the Glute Press machine @ 100kg
• 3x10 Leg Press @ 120kg
• 3x10 Leg Curl @ 42kg.
• 3x10 Leg Extensions @ 56 Kg.

Abs:

• 3x30 Stomach Crunches.
• 3x15 Leg Lifts
• 2x20 Decline crunches while holding a 5kg weight.

Cardio:

A five kilometre run at ten kilometres per hour followed by 20 minutes on the cross trainer (or elliptical trainer, whatever it’s called in your neck of the woods).


THURSDAY: ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. REST UP


FRIDAY: BICEPS & SHOULDERS & BACK & ABS & CARDIO

Biceps:

• 3x10 Bicep curls with a 25kg barbell alternated with 3x6 Bicep curls with a 40kg barbell so I do one set light, one set heavy, one set light, and so on ‘til I’ve done 3 of each.
• 3x10 Preacher Curls
• 5x10 Standing Dumbbell Bicep Curls with two 12.5 kg dumbbells.

Shoulders:

Same as on Monday.

• 3x10 of that one I don’t know the name of where you hold a light (eg. 6kg) dumbbell in each hand and raise your arms to the side like you’re spreading your wings.
• 3x10 Frontal deltoid raises with two 6kg dumbbells.
• 3x10 Shoulder Press on shoulder press machine @25Kg
• 3x10 Military Presses with a 25Kg Dumbbell.

Back:

• 3x10 Lat Pull-downs with 42kg of weight alternated with 3x6 Lat Pull-downs with 60kg of weight so I do one set light, one set heavy, one set light, and so on ‘til I’ve done 3 of each
• 3x10 Seated Rows @ 42 kg
• 3 sets of Pull ups to failure.

Abs:

• 3x30 Stomach Crunches.
• 3x15 Leg Lifts

Cardio:

Exactly the same as Wednesday’s Cardio. A five kilometre run at ten kilometres per hour followed by 20 minutes on the cross trainer



SATURDAY: CHEST & TRICEPS & CARDIO

Chest:

• 4x10 Bench Press @ 50Kg (Note the extra set here. I don’t know if it’ll make any difference)
• 3x10 Incline Bench Press @ 17.5 Kg
• 3x10 Pec Fly @ 49Kg
• 3x10 Decline Bench Press @ 20Kg

Triceps:

Same as Monday:

• 3x10 Skull Press with a 20kg barbell.
• 3x10 Overhead tricep extensions with a 10kg dumbbell.
• 1x10 Tricep extensions on cable curl machine @ 35Kg
• 1x8 Tricep extensions on cable curl machine @ 45Kg
• 2x6 Tricep extensions on cable curl machine @ 55Kg

Cardio:

A ten kilometre run, at 10 kilometres per hour, with a few sprints thrown in for fun.


SUNDAY: ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. REST DAY.


That’s the workout part out of the way. Now on to the diet part. I must say I find diet advice hard to follow because it seems so strict and regimented. Basically, I’m going to adhere to five basic rules.

1) Never eat less than 2000 calories a day. Never eat more than 2500.
2) Eat at least 150g protein a day. I have a kidney condition and my doctor recommends I don’t eat more than that.
3) Keep the fat to a minimum.
4) Drink one gallon of water per day.
5) Eat a carbohydrate heavy meal (like spaghetti or something) before each workout.


You may notice I’m not timetabling my meals or splitting them into 6-8 smaller meals. I’ve tried doing this before and it just made me hungry and irritable. I’m just going to eat when I feel like it and make sure my calories stay within the limits of rule 1. Caloric intake, after all, is the most important thing.


So that’s the plan. The only question I have here is WILL IT WORK? If not, what would you change to ensure I get myself toned up (other than the 6 meals thing. I really, really hated that

[DrewZ]

Sorry bud, no such thing as toning a muscle. "Tone" is a condition that exists when a person has developed an appreciable amount of muscle mass and reduced their body fat to a very low level. Workout like a bodybuilder until you've attained the desired amount of muscle mass, then try and cut down. Since you're not willing to budge on your diet, and you seem intent on overtraining, good luck doing both. See if Brad Pitt's trainer is available. That should set you back a few bucks, err...I mean pounds.

[Sk1nny_Jeff]

Workout like a bodybuilder...

What does this mean, precisely? Work out like which bodybuilder?

...until you've attained the desired amount of muscle mass, then try and cut down.

So you're saying bulk first, then cut?

Since you're not willing to budge on your diet,

Well, to be fair, I'm willing to budge on absolutely everything to do with my diet except the whole six meals thing. Tried it. Hated it. Couldn't stick to it. Almost stopped me from working out altogether. Everything else, I'll budge. On a scale of 1 to 10 (1 being trivial and 10 being essential) how important do you feel that whole six meals instead of four a day thing is in the grand scheme of things?

You seem intent on overtraining

How am I overtraining? Too much Cardio? Too many Reps? Too many weight days? Too much weight? Not enough rest days? All of the above? I always thought a 2 on/1 off/3 on/1 off split was within normal limits.

Thanks for your comments, anyway. One additional question, however.

How exactly does one go about "Bulking?" I have the impression that a typical bulking program looks like this:

Mon - Chest & Triceps

Wed - Legs & Back

Fri - Biceps & Shoulders.

Very heavy weights. Not too many reps. Meanwhile eating every damn thing in sight. Is that a fair summation?

[R-bean]

DrewZ is right. First you have to bulk up. Then lose the fat later. Eat clean and eat big. Tuna, eggs, oatmeal, steak, chicken, pasta, wheat bread. Start with 3000 calories a day.

As far as your workout, you are really over training. I would suggest a split like this:

Day 1: Chest / Triceps

Day 2: Rest

Day 3: Legs / Calfs

Day 4: Rest

Day 5: Shoulders / Traps

Day 6: Cardio / Abs

Day 7: Back / Biceps

Day 8: Rest

repeat

Dont spend more than 1 hour in the gym. Try this program for a month and a half and eat good.

[Sk1nny_Jeff]

Okay, that sounds like a decent split. I just have a few quick questions.


1) Is one month and a half the average length of a bulking cycle? Should I always bulk for six weeks?

2) After I've done my bulking, how do I cut without losing muscle mass?

3) If it all goes to plan, how do I maintain my new muscle? I don't want to go through all the hassle of bulking and cutting if I can't maintain the new muscle mass I've acquired.

4) How do you keep the fat off while eating 3000 calories a day?

5) Is it right to train each muscle group only once per week? Wouldn't it be faster to train them twice per week?

6) I can't eat oats or eggs. Can you suggest a substitute?

[Sk1nny_Jeff]

Just out of interest, how's this for a beginners diet?

Breakfast 1 - Bran cereal and 200ml skimmed milk (250 calories approx)

Breakfast 2 - One ham sandwich (250 calories approx)

Breakfast 3 - One protein shake (500 calories approx)

Lunch 1 - One box of sushi. One chicken salad sandwich. One fruit salad. (600 calories approx)

Lunch 2 - One ham sandwich (250 calories approx)

Dinner 1 - 3 chicken breasts & 200g peas (700 calories approx).

Dinner 2 - One 200g tin of tuna (200 calories, approx).

Dinner 3 - Bran cereal and 200ml skimmed milk (250 calories approx)

Total = 2950 calories (approx)

I've not put the times next to the meals because I work uneven shifts at work. One day my firet breakfast meal might be at 8:00am, the next it might be at 2:00pm, depending on how late I work the night before. Do you think the above diet will help me build muscle while keeping fat to a minimum? If so, I'll maintain it for about six weeks and then start cutting.

[DrewZ]

Okay, that sounds like a decent split. I just have a few quick questions.


1) Is one month and a half the average length of a bulking cycle? Should I always bulk for six weeks?

2) After I've done my bulking, how do I cut without losing muscle mass?

3) If it all goes to plan, how do I maintain my new muscle? I don't want to go through all the hassle of bulking and cutting if I can't maintain the new muscle mass I've acquired.

4) How do you keep the fat off while eating 3000 calories a day?

5) Is it right to train each muscle group only once per week? Wouldn't it be faster to train them twice per week?

6) I can't eat oats or eggs. Can you suggest a substitute?

You're looking for too many absolute answers. Weight training is very frustrating. You can minimize guesswork, but you can't eliminate it. As for your questions. No, a month and a half is shorter than the average bulking cycle. Most guys will bulk for up to four months. BUT, that's only guys who have several years of training under their belts and are not solely focused on buiding mass. As a beginner, and a hardgainer, you should concentrate on trying to build size with heavy weights and a high calorie diet for your first year. Minimum. Don't worry about fat gain. You'll need at least that much time to build the kind of muscle for the physique you desire. Once you start cutting, you will lose some of your muscle mass. In order to lose weight you must create a caloric deficit. In order to gain you create a surplus. To maintain weight you eat at your maintenance level. That's the Catch 22. Your muscles require calories to grow, or at least to stay the same. No matter how careful your are, once the deficit is created, you'll lose some muscle mass. You can minimize this by reducing your calories gradually. Start by dropping about 250 cals a day. If there's no change in your weight after the first week, cut out another 250 for a total reduction of 500. Don't stress over keeping track of every last cal. Just try to be as accurate as possible. Keep in mind that once you begin cutting you'll have to add cardio, which will negate the need to drastically reduce cals. Your weight training should not differ from when you where gaining. Your muscles need the same type of stimulation, otherwise the process of atrophy will be accelerated. If you're really worried about fat gain during the bulking process, then do some moderate cardio 3x per week on non-weight training days. High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) cardio is popular, but I don't think it's the best fit for someone who needs to focus 100% on building mass. Too intense. You need that energy to attack the iron. You should be training each muscle group 2 to 3 times per week, using either a full-body, an upper body/lower body, or a push/pull split. I'd recommend the full-body, three times a week for a total beginner. Use the search function to peruse this forum and find one that appeals to you. Try the Madcow 5x5 or Chad Watebury's Total Body Training. Those are awesome routines for a raw beginner. If you can't eat oats than opt for high-fiber cereals like Kashi, or Rasin Bran and whole grain bread. Check the ingredients. In place of eggs, you could get the egg substitute like Egg Beaters. Or, just have something else. There's no law saying you can't have a chicken breast or a protien drink with your breakfast. Hope that answers some of your questions.