Find My Errors

Bigger Stronger Leaner Beginners
1


I have been weight lifting for the last 3 - 4 years with moderate results. I went from 28% body fat to 22% relatively easy by making good food choices and walking.

I started learning more and got interested in bodybuilding. I got down to 18% bf and got stuck. I went to see a well known fitness guru in New Orleans and he was pleased with my weight lifting and felt my trouble was nutrition. Under the guidance of his nutritionist, I went to 21% bf and am now stuck again.

My goal is 14% bf and 190 pounds. I am now at 20% bf and 186 pounds.

I’ve tried Nutra System at 1700 calories and up to 3500 calories with small changes over a period of time. I weight lift 3 times a week. I tried adding jogging/walking (jog 8 street light poles and walk 2 poles) for 3 miles, 3 times a week. Currently, I do no cardio.

Starting tomorrow, I will post my workout routine and nutrition for each date. I’ll try to keep the posting small.

Basically, I am following a low carb diet. My high carb days are during the weekend.

I used to have no problem drinking hard liquor or a bottle of red wine a night. Since beginning of December, I have quit drinking at home and only lightly at restaurants. Currently, I gave up alcohol for Lent. I felt that I wanted the physique more than the effects of alcohol.

I was tested and my resting metabolic rate is at 1895, not bad for a 54 yers old man. I had an underactive thyroid and am now on medication with good TSH levels.

The picture is of me in Costa Rica April 2007 at 18% bf.

My standard supplements are flax seed oil or fish oil (I alternate between the two), 81mg aspirin, HOT-ROX extreme, chromium picolate (unsure of spelling), creatine before workout, BCAA after workout and whey protein mixed in water unless before or after weight lifting - then I use milk instead of water.

Please, I am determined and ready to take all suggestions.

I am happy with the results so far, blessed with good health and good living. If this is something that can’t be overcome, I will still be happy with my life, but I want the grand prize of 14% bf and 190 pounds.

Thanks,

Terry Villani

2

eat 2300 calories, 200 grams of protein at least, and IMHO 250-300 at least even better.

stop everything unhealthy. alcohol is useless, junk food too.

post what/when/how-much-of-it you eat in a day and then maybe we’ll see what the problem is

3

post a typical day’s diet and training.

4

whey protein I use is 20 grams protein, 4 grams carbs and 2 grams fat.

5am, cup low fat milk w/2 scoops whey and creatine
5am weight lift - all compound moves
6am, cup low fat milk w/2 scoops whey and BCAA powder.
9am, 2 scoops whey in water and handful almonds
noon, turkey sandwich on whole wheat and cup watrer w/ 1 scoop whey
3pm, protein bar - 300 calories
6pm, tilapia fish in broth w/ artichoke hearts and sun dried tomatoes.

Nutrition for 2/19, next morning I weighed in at 187 pounds and 20.6% bf.

5

weight lifting on 2/19/08

I do three sets, 12, 10 and 6 reps with additional weights.
Biceps, seated dumbbell curls 25, 30, 35
Biceps, reverse barbell curls 55, 60, 65
Triceps, cable push downs 90, 100, 110
Triceps, reverse cable push downs 70, 80, 90
Shoulders, bent over lateral raise 20, 25, 30
Shoulders, High pulley lateral extensions 20, 25, 30
Shoulders, barbell upright rows 70, 75, 80
Chest, incline barbell press 120, 130, 140 plus weight of bar in smith machine
Chest, barbell pullovers 80, 85, 95
Neck, shrugs 115, 135, 160 each side
Abs, raised feet crunch
Abs, incline bench situps.

6

you shoudl generalyl eat more chicken/tuna/other fish instead of so much whey. i think you used like 10-15 scoops.

when i wanted to lose weight most of the time i just ate chicken/tuna+veggies. 1-2 fruits and only got whey afer workout. mine is 20protein 6 carbs 0 fat.

also forget the turkey sandwiches. eat some normal meat and whole wheat rice. whole wheat bread even if its whole wheat isnt the best solution. you can cook tons of rice, ive cooked like 2 lbs once (without the water they absorb) and keep it in the fridge. even if it dries up a bit, it still tastes pretty fine unlike spaghetti

7

as for your training, you know better than anyone how far you are (whether you should be doing full body, or upper/lower split, or even bigger splits) but you shoul probably do more compound movements. and forget the smith machine unless theres noone to spot you.

8

Not enough whole foods.

Meat, eggs, VEGETABLES, fruit, nuts, olive oil.

You are doing too many shakes.

Also, 10 of the 12 exercises you posted are isolation movements, not compound.

If you are trying to lean out a little bit look up T-Dawg 2.0

Also give one of these a shot.

http://www.T-Nation.com/readArticle.do?id=508031
TESTOSTERONE NATION - Total-Body Training

Guide to Novice Barbell Training, aka the Official RIPPETOE-STARTING STRENGTH FAQ - Bodybuilding.com Forums

Edit: fixed link to Rippetoe’s

9

Pozzska

You keep using the wrong version of the Ripptoe program. That was an early one that has incorrect advice. You should use this one:

or this one:

Stu

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[quote]terryvi wrote:
weight lifting on 2/19/08

I do three sets, 12, 10 and 6 reps with additional weights.
Biceps, seated dumbbell curls 25, 30, 35
Biceps, reverse barbell curls 55, 60, 65
Triceps, cable push downs 90, 100, 110
Triceps, reverse cable push downs 70, 80, 90
Shoulders, bent over lateral raise 20, 25, 30
Shoulders, High pulley lateral extensions 20, 25, 30
Shoulders, barbell upright rows 70, 75, 80
Chest, incline barbell press 120, 130, 140 plus weight of bar in smith machine
Chest, barbell pullovers 80, 85, 95
Neck, shrugs 115, 135, 160 each side
Abs, raised feet crunch
Abs, incline bench situps.[/quote]

These are not compound movements. More importantly, heavy leg work is critical at your age (I’m 46 BTW) in order to generate the release of growth hormones. I would completely drop the direct arm work and substitute chin-ups, and dips instead. Shoulder raises have their place but should come after you’re exhausted with heavy presses, deadlift variations, pulls and cleans.

I agree with the other posters that something along the lines of “Starting Strength”, Waterbury’s Total Body Training, or simply focusing on Olympic and Powerlifting routines would be a good choice for you.

Also agree on the diet recommendations. Too many shakes. Eat a REAL breakfast at least. Meats, eggs, oatmeal, fruit. Charge yourself up for that early morning workout. Then, taper off (esp. carbs) as the day progresses.

BTW, HOW are you testing your body fat? It’s hard to tell from the one pic but you don’t look like you’re up near 20%.

11

2/20/08
5am, 1 mile walk - will have to get up earlier to go further
6am, bowl oatmeal w/raisins and 2 scoops whey in water
9am, 2 scoops whey in water, banana and almonds
noon, grilled chicken salad w/italian olive salad
3pm, 2 scoops whey and almonds
6pm, 2 scoops whey and peanut butter

2/21 weigh in 186 pounds and 20.8 % bf using an impediance bf analyser.

Picture shows me about 16% bf, but I have learned to hold in gut. Professional tested w/ calipers - 26% bf at gut.

Thanks for all advice, I will research all topics that people so provided. I thank all input.

12

[quote]stuward wrote:
Pozzska

You keep using the wrong version of the Ripptoe program. That was an early one that has incorrect advice. You should use this one:

or this one:

Stu[/quote]

Oops, sorry OP (and others)

Thanks Stu.

13

I rely on whey shakes a lot for convenience and I have a sore in my mouth and some foods hurt to eat such as something acidic like V8 juice. It seems that while sleeping, I chew the inside of my mouth.

Mouth is healing, but slow.

14

you are currently 148.8 lbs of muscles, organs, etc and about 37.2 lb fat.

your goal is 163.4 lbs of lean muscle, organs, etc and 26.6 lbs fat.

your specific goal includes gaining about 14.6 lbs of muscle…losing 10.6 lbs fat, water.

14% is the end range of ‘very lean’.

first, alot of your food is preprocessed, dehydrated. think of shakes and bars as supplements. eat whole foods. keep it lean-fowl,lean beef occassionally, brown rice, veg. you cant build the muscle if you dont feed it.

second. your workouts need to be geared more and i mean more to build. the cornerstone of every great body is a big back and big legs. chin ups. there is no replacement for this. add it to your routine. squats. do them safely. learn to do them correctly. shoulder press and chest press. use your safety bar. that is, if youre not eeking out your last rep with great difficulty, youre sculpting, not building. you cant build muscle unless you tear it.

third. your routine. design it so that you rip the hell out of only one or two muscle groups and do not revisit that group until the soreness is gone–should be 3 or 4 days at first then maybe just 2.5 to 3 days. if you feel you can hit biceps monday and then again on tuesday or wednesday, you are not hitting them hard enough.

if you feel that way about your entire wo, maybe you need to change the whole thing. muscles are smart and they constantly adapt (grow to accomodate the stress or workout) so you have to always outsmart them by changing the routine occassionally.
but a bigger issue is rest. get enough rest. the muscle wont grow if you constanly bombard them with stress or rip them. you repair with rest. you grow with rest.

  1. instead of jogging the lightpoles–whatever that is–run. sprint and jog, sprint and walk. the key is sprint. that means all out running for short stints. if thats boring or if your shins cant handle it, swim laps, long fast laps. if you cant swim, learn. go dancing, have more sex.

this is what you need to do to add 14.5 lbs of muscle (mostly on your back and legs) and lose 10 lbs of fat.

at 54, you look 30 something. i hope i look as good as you at 54.

peace brother.

15

Once again, all comments are appreciated and I am looking into changing my routine. I rely too much on whey protein shakes, but I am sort of using the velocity lite diet, with a shake in the morning and a shake at night. In between depends on the soreness inside my mouth. I started chewing my mouth while sleeping and now sleep with a mouthguard. Some foods hurt with the sore. Also, the cool liquid feels like a pain reliever.

2/21/08 nutrition and exercise plan.
5am, cup milk w/ creatine
5am weight training - see next posting
6am, cup milk with 2 scoops whey and BCAA
9am, 3 whole eggs, 3 egg whites scrambled. 1 scopp whey in water
noon, chinese lunch w/ broth based sauce, vegetables, chicken and crawfish from the rice. I did not eat the fried rice or the egg roll. I did eat the fortune cookie.
3pm, 1 scoop whey in water with almost a cup of tuna salad
6am, 2 scoops whey in water

2/22/08 weigh in 185 pounds and 20.1% bf.

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2/21/08 weight training, 5am

I do 3 sets, 12, 10 and 6 - 8 reps on last one. If I can do 8, I’ll add more weight the next time.

back, seated row 150, 160, 170
back, one arm dumbbell row 60, 65, 70
legs, deadlifts 90, 100, 110 plus weight of bar
legs, front squat w/barbell 80, 85, 90
legs, standing calf raise 460, 480 and 500
but, machine leg extensions 30, 35, 40
but, bridging 3 sets of 12
abs, hanging leg raises w/ twists 3 sets of 12.

I always get between 7 and 8 hours sleep and I have been doing my job for 20 years, so there is very little stress. Great marriage.

17

2/22/08

5am, 3 mile walk - 16 minute mile
6am, cup milk w/ 2 scoops whey
9am, 3 whole egg w/3 egg whites w/ ketchup and 1 scoop whey in water
noon, salmon steak, green beans and 1 scoop whey in water
3pm, 270 calorie protein bar
7pm, 2 scoops whey w/ water

2/23/08 weigh in 184 pounds and 20.4% bf

2/23/08
630am, 3 mile walk
730 am, oatmeal w/ raisins and 2 scopps whey in water
1030 am, couchon - cajun pig roast and 1 chocolate chip cookie (average size)
1pm, left over sirloin and pork chop w/ 1/2 sweet potato
5pm, thai food, salad and shrimp w/ vegetables in lime garlic sauce

2/24/08 weigh in 184 pounds and 20.5% bf

2/24/08
830am, 3 mile walk
930am 4 whole eggs w/ salsa and 1 scoop whey in water
130pm turkey sandwich
7pm, 1/2 papa john’s large pizza w/ everything and 3 glasses red wine (my cheat meal for the week).

2/25/08 weigh in 185 pounds and 18.9% bf

the only reason I can think of my drastic drop in bf is at midnight I got up and drank 20 oz water. I was hydrated for weight in and bf analyzer.

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2/25/08

5am, cup milk w/ creatine
5am, weight lifting, see below
6am, cup milk w/ 2 scoops whey and BCAA
930am, 3 whole eggs w/ 3 egg whites, ketchup and 1 scopp whey in water
1pm, salmon steak w/ herbs and green beans
4pm, 2 scoops whey in water, handful almonds
630pm, flank steak and green beans

weight lifting
incline barbell press 110, 120, 130, 140 plus weight of bar on smith machine - no spotter
flat dumbbell press 45, 50, 55, 60
upright rows 70, 75, 80, 85
pullups 9, 7, 6
barbell curls 45, 55, 65, 75, 80
hammer curls 20, 25, 30, 35

2/26/08 weigh in 185 pounds 19.7% bf

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2/26/08

5am, 3 mile 15 minute mile walk
630am, 3 scoops whey in water
9am, 3 whole eggs w/ 3 egg white scrambled w/ ketchup and piece of flank steak
noon, flank steak and garlic noodles (small portion)
3pm, 270 calorie protein bar
630pm, caesar salad w/ grilled shrimp - no croutons.

2/27/08 weigh in 184 pounds and 19.6% bf

whatever I’m doing seems to be working, I lost 1% bf in a week.

I’m going to Vegas at end of March and a cruise in July. I want to be at 14% goal by July 1st. After that, I’ll have to figure out how to add bulk wiothout increasing bodyfat.

20

nutrition is looking good. add a little red pepper to those eggs to give youre morning metabolism a jump and try to burn more calories at rest. also, if you drink coffee or tea–leave the sugar and cream out.

a picture of your back and legs–for you to look at–not necessarily to post. my guess is that you lack muscle girth in these areas.
kep up the the big muscle movements -ie squats, lunges, chins, bar presses-for back and legs o add bulk there. try a day with high rep–15-20–at a moderate-to light weight for biceps, triceps, shoulders --ya know, smaller muscle groups-to burn calories and rip. its really very hard to add only muscle and lose as much fat as you want w/o focusing on exactly where you want the added bulk. i say back and legs.
Cobalt