Hi. I am in need of your expert help please guys. i am a very young almost 50 year old. I run a martial arts school 2 evenings per week but can train in the gym on the the other nights.
I know my way round the gym very well but am finding it hard to find a program which suits me. At present I am training instinctively. If I want to train chest I train chest etc. I would love to ask for your advice as to how I should be training to get some mass back on my old bones. Also what diet would you advise.
My current diary looks like this
Monday - Martial arts
Tuesday - gym
Wednesday - martial arts
Thursday - gym
Friday. - off
Saturday - gym
Sunday - off
Hi, thank you for your reply. I am looking to build muscle and shape what I already have. At my age I will never be a heavyweight bodybuilder but I would like a ripped athletic look.
I have attached a pic of my back so you can see how I am at present
the ripped athletic look can be done in the kitchen as well as your GPP/cardio in the arts.
you may want to look into simple programming like Wendler’s 5/3/1, starting strength, or bill starr’s 5x5. whatever you choose, run it for 6 months, as written. re-evaluate what works - and why, and what hasn’t worked - and why.
we’re not splitting the atom, we’re training:
gain weight - caloric surplus
lose weight - caloric deficit
my personal opinion, eat like a SOB and lift heavy.
“I am looking to build muscle and shape what I already have. At my age I will never be a heavyweight bodybuilder but I would like a ripped athletic look.”
Aren’t we all.
However, absent steroid use, the opposing nutritional requirements (succinctly summarized by hawkcapt above) of ‘building muscle’ vs ‘getting ripped’ make it difficult (if not impossible) to do both simultaneously. As the saying goes, if you chase two rabbits, you’re not likely to catch either one. So:
–Train hard + eat at a surplus–>gain muscle, but likely some fat as well
–Train hard + eat at a deficit–>lose fat, but gain little (if any; could even lose) muscle
The other option is a ‘recomp’:
–Train hard + eat at maintenance–>lose fat, gain muscle, but do both v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y
As for which approach is best in your case, I’d say that would be determined by your short and long-term goals.
[quote]EyeDentist wrote:
“I am looking to build muscle and shape what I already have. At my age I will never be a heavyweight bodybuilder but I would like a ripped athletic look.”
Aren’t we all.
However, absent steroid use, the opposing nutritional requirements (succinctly summarized by hawkcapt above) of ‘building muscle’ vs ‘getting ripped’ make it difficult (if not impossible) to do both simultaneously. As the saying goes, if you chase two rabbits, you’re not likely to catch either one. So:
1–Train hard + eat at a surplus–>gain muscle, but likely some fat as well
2–Train hard + eat at a deficit–>lose fat, but gain little (if any; could even lose) muscle
The other option is a ‘recomp’:
3–Train hard + eat at maintenance–>lose fat, gain muscle, but do both v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y
As for which approach is best in your case, I’d say that would be determined by your short and long-term goals.[/quote]
Great advice.
I have done all three of these, mentally I am now doing #3 and will just stay at this. To hard with work to do 1 then go to 2 and then stay on 3 for a while and then back to repeat the cycle. Gets way to hard the older I get to LOSE the fat you gain with #1.
Could be just me, but I see it in other friends who lift etc.
[quote]EyeDentist wrote:
“I am looking to build muscle and shape what I already have. At my age I will never be a heavyweight bodybuilder but I would like a ripped athletic look.”
Aren’t we all.
However, absent steroid use, the opposing nutritional requirements (succinctly summarized by hawkcapt above) of ‘building muscle’ vs ‘getting ripped’ make it difficult (if not impossible) to do both simultaneously. As the saying goes, if you chase two rabbits, you’re not likely to catch either one. So:
1–Train hard + eat at a surplus–>gain muscle, but likely some fat as well
2–Train hard + eat at a deficit–>lose fat, but gain little (if any; could even lose) muscle
The other option is a ‘recomp’:
3–Train hard + eat at maintenance–>lose fat, gain muscle, but do both v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y
As for which approach is best in your case, I’d say that would be determined by your short and long-term goals.[/quote]
Great advice.
I have done all three of these, mentally I am now doing #3 and will just stay at this. To hard with work to do 1 then go to 2 and then stay on 3 for a while and then back to repeat the cycle. Gets way to hard the older I get to LOSE the fat you gain with #1.
Could be just me, but I see it in other friends who lift etc. [/quote]
I agree 100%–the older I get, the harder it is to lose fat. For this reason, I will never again follow strategy #1–only 3 (and 2 when necessary).
That said, one’s goals are their own, so maybe it’d be worth it to the OP to pack on a few extra pounds in order to more efficiently/quickly get stronger.
[quote]EyeDentist wrote:
“I am looking to build muscle and shape what I already have. At my age I will never be a heavyweight bodybuilder but I would like a ripped athletic look.”
Aren’t we all.
However, absent steroid use, the opposing nutritional requirements (succinctly summarized by hawkcapt above) of ‘building muscle’ vs ‘getting ripped’ make it difficult (if not impossible) to do both simultaneously. As the saying goes, if you chase two rabbits, you’re not likely to catch either one. So:
1–Train hard + eat at a surplus–>gain muscle, but likely some fat as well
2–Train hard + eat at a deficit–>lose fat, but gain little (if any; could even lose) muscle
The other option is a ‘recomp’:
3–Train hard + eat at maintenance–>lose fat, gain muscle, but do both v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y
As for which approach is best in your case, I’d say that would be determined by your short and long-term goals.[/quote]
Great advice.
I have done all three of these, mentally I am now doing #3 and will just stay at this. To hard with work to do 1 then go to 2 and then stay on 3 for a while and then back to repeat the cycle. Gets way to hard the older I get to LOSE the fat you gain with #1.
Could be just me, but I see it in other friends who lift etc. [/quote]
I agree 100%–the older I get, the harder it is to lose fat. For this reason, I will never again follow strategy #1–only 3 (and 2 when necessary).
That said, one’s goals are their own, so maybe it’d be worth it to the OP to pack on a few extra pounds in order to more efficiently/quickly get stronger.
[/quote]
Agreed and Agreed
