Hey all, yes I am a beginner. My wife and I started our transformation on 4/29/08. At first we got some dvd’s (which sucked!) and did not really pay too much attention to our diet. Although for the first month the cardio from the dvd’s made us realize how out of shape we were. You can say we were on a very long bulking diet! I decided to join a commercial gym, that also included a day care for our 4 kids (a big part of her weight problem!) The foo-foo’s at the gym set us up with a circuit program on machines and this worked for about a month and a half before I got bored. My buddy who used to be really into body building said he would train with me, and told me to check out this site. I have read a ton of the information on here and still come across something new everyday.
Starting stats 4/29/08
Age: 30
Height: 5’6"
Weight: 221
Chest: 44
Waist: 42.5
Hips: 41
Last measure 12/08/08
Weight: 203
Chest: 43
Waist: 39
Hips: 37
But it wasn’t until August that I got serious. I broke away from the machines, and have currently, with some variation every six weeks, been on a 3 day split.
Monday: Chest, shoulders, triceps
Wednesday: Legs
Friday: Back, Biceps
We start with compound moves each day, 2 warm up sets, and then 5 working sets, Bench, Squats, and either deadlifts or rows. After compound we’ll do 1 more variation for that body part, and then move on to the second or third body part, doing 2-3 sets each, workin from largest to smallest. I have been doing 4-5 reps on each set, with as heavy a weight as I can do, without sacrificing form.
Cardio sometimes follows if time allows if not I’ll do SS cardio Tues, Sat & Sunday for 30-40 min. My legs are shot on Thurs! So that’s kinda my off day. I’m taking next week off, as I’ll be out of town and won’t have any way to do any weight training. But I’ll keep the cardio up. Come the following week and I’ll be looking to switch up the routine. I was thinking, total body 3x’s a week. Any suggestions?
Diet
For the past 2 months my diets have pretty much stayed the same. I’m not a breakfast person but I’ve been trying, if I can’t eat I’ll have a pro. shake.
7am 2 scoops Grow! Whey (or oatmeal)
9am 2 scoops Grow! Whey (preworkout)
11am 1 serv SURGE Recovery (pwo)
1pm 6-8 oz. chicken breast
1 can green beans or 2 cups broccoli
3pm 8oz. fruit yogurt
6pm 9oz salmon
2 cups brown rice
2 cups green salad
1 tbsp. fat free italian
9pm 2 scoops Grow! Whey (or oatmeal if still hungry)
On lifting days I try to get in about 2500 cals. On nonlift days around 2000-2100 cals. I am also taking approx 4,000mg of fish oil (store bought, can’t wait to try Flameout) and have been taking HOT-ROX for about 2 1/2 weeks now.
My goal is to get leaner and loose the part of the stomach that still hangs over my belt. I know that my diet will play more of a role in this that’s why I typed it here. Am I eating enough cals? I know I’m getting 1g per pound on the pro, and I’ve limited my carbs a lot.
Sorry for the long post but I think I’ve supplied enough info for people to make some suggestions, give advice or criticize. Thanks