In Need of Expert Advice

Bigger Stronger Leaner Competitive Bodybuilding
1

Greetings T-mag!

My name is Brendan, and I am, for the most part, I am new to your site. You seem like a very knowledgeable group of people, and I need to ask all you experts some advice. As I should let you know, I am extremely addicted to pumping iron, and my ultimate goal is to build as much muscle weight as I can and get as strong as I can, as fast as I can, and as safe as I can. The problem is I do not know if I know how. I have been lifting for roughly 2 years now consistently, and, unfortunately, I have not made much progress.

First off, I will let you know where I am at, and what I do.  Here is the scoop! I have been lifting weights for about 2 years now consistently, and I am 5'10" at 160lbs.  In my two years, I have read two books.  One by Ian King, named, The Book of Muscle, and the other one named, Serious Strength Training.  For the last month, I have been following a circuit workout program from The Book of Muscle that alternates between upper and lower body every other day that looks something like this:

Day one:
abs
All supersets follow 12-15 reps, 1 set, 311 tempo.
Superset 1:

  1. Seated cable rows Weight 130lbs
  2. Barbell Bench press feet up on bench Weight 135lbs
    Rest 60-120 sec
    Superset 2:
  3. Reverse dumbbell fly on stomach Weight 9lbs
  4. Dumbbell flys on back Weight 35lbs
    Superset 3:
  5. Lat Pull downs Weight 150lbs
  6. Seated military shoulder press Weight 80lbs
    Superset 4:
  7. Dumbbell Lying pull over dumbbell Weight 65lbs
  8. Dumbbell Seated lateral raises Weight 14lbs
    Superset 5:
  9. Alternating dumbbell seated bicep curl Weight 25lbs
  10. Barbell Triceps extensions Weight 55lbs
    Superset 6:
    Dumbbell wrist curl Weight 20lbs
    Dumbbell wrist extensions Weight 12lbs

Day two:
Abs
All supersets follow 12-15 reps, 1 set, 311 tempo.
Barbell squat Weight 135lbs
Dead lift Weight 135lbs
Dynamic lunge Weight 65lbs
Supine hip-thigh extensions
Standing calf raise
Barbell shrug Weight 185lbs

Seated cable row max: 190
Bench press max: 215
Military press max: 115
Lat pull down max: 190
Squat max: 185
deadlift max: 185
Shrug max: 225

I have 6 meals a day. My meals consist of an omelet with one egg and three whites in the morning with ham and spinach leafs, two pieces of multi-grain bread and a banana with avocados + salsa. My other four meals usually consist of one skinless chicken breast with one cup vegetables, 1/2 cup brown rice, black beans, BBQ sauce, spinach leafs, and three pieces of multi-gain bread. I try to eat my first meal when I wake up, and then every meal three-hours after. I also try to keep my activity level down so I do not burn too many calories.

I have tried everything from creatine to soy protein, but they upset my stomach. I am lactose intolerant and can not have any dairy products. So I am pretty sure I want to go without any supplements that mess with your body.

The dilemma is I am not progressing as well as I would like. I am not gaining weight, and I do not see my muscles getting bigger. Now that you have seen my workout and how I eat, maybe you may be able to offer me advice. Thanks a lot for your time.

2

Here’s the problem:

You’re not eating enough and you are trying to eat too clean by eating nothing but chicken, brown rice and veggies. EAT MORE!

And you’re too weak in the squat and deadlift. You can’t get bigger and stronger if you bench 215 and only squat and deadlift 185.

Fix those things, and you’ll gain muscle and get stronger.

3

In addition to ND’s advice you should focus on reading the past articles by Chad Waterbury and Joe DeFranco. Joe will help with a very popular powerlifting template called “Westside”. Chad has some very good strength based articles. Just go to “Authors” and find the names. Click the author’s name and enjoy.

We love to help new folks out, but we do expect some leg work on your part by learning what has already been taught so that we don’t keep turning over the same stones. I’m sure you see the logic in this.

Once you get a good handle on the basics, the community is a few clicks away.

Best of luck and welcome,
DH

4

I eat as much as I can. I will be honest, I eat so much that I wake up in the middle of the night having to take a dump. I don?t think I can eat any more than I am eating now. I am willing to work as hard as possible to gain weight, but it helps to be directed. I just recently started working my lower body, and as you said, in more or less words, I have a ways to go. I am almost tempted to go off my workout program I am on right now. I have been extremely busy lately, working 60 hours a week, and haven?t had much time to put into this besides my workouts. I will research what you said disc, and see if I can expand my knowledge. In the mean time, if you can offer me any more advice, on either my eating program or workout program, it would help out tremendously.

5

BB, offhand to start out, I think you would like, and do well with, WSFSB (West Side…Skinny…) by Joe DeFranco. It is a powerlifting template that tweeks itself for a bit higher volume for growth. Click on Joe’s name in the authors section and check it out. Pay attention to the details and let us know your progress and/or problems.

best,
DH

[quote]Brendan B wrote:
I eat as much as I can. I will be honest, I eat so much that I wake up in the middle of the night having to take a dump. I don?t think I can eat any more than I am eating now. I am willing to work as hard as possible to gain weight, but it helps to be directed. I just recently started working my lower body, and as you said, in more or less words, I have a ways to go. I am almost tempted to go off my workout program I am on right now. I have been extremely busy lately, working 60 hours a week, and haven?t had much time to put into this besides my workouts. I will research what you said disc, and see if I can expand my knowledge. In the mean time, if you can offer me any more advice, on either my eating program or workout program, it would help out tremendously.[/quote]

6

Holy protein deficit BB!! I just checked out your diet and it is terrible. WHERE is the lean red meat, and healthy fats?? Check out John Berardi’s “The F-Word” article.

You need to be getting at least 1g of protein per pound of body weight. That’s a minimum. Feel free to go higher. And if you are lactose intolerant, then no problems. Check out Grow!. The lactose is of no significance and you SERIOUSLY need some protein and fat in your diet. Take your grow and add 2tbsp of heavy whipping cream or half & half to ie each time you eat it. Fat is protein’s best friend. Cook your food in olive oil and get some fish oil caps. Get some natural peanut butter and for Atkin’s sake eat the freakin’ egg yolks WITH the whites. Low fat = low T = low muscle, libido, and health. Check out the fat roundtable. Your thinking/assumptions on muscle growth and health will take a new and higher understanding VERY quickly.

Give me your weight and I’ll give you some quick basic numbers to go with on Pro/Carb/fat %'s.

But don’t bother unless you WILL follow it. Deal?

DH

7

[quote]Disc Hoss wrote:
BB, offhand to start out, I think you would like, and do well with, WSFSB (West Side…Skinny…) by Joe DeFranco. It is a powerlifting template that tweeks itself for a bit higher volume for growth. Click on Joe’s name in the authors section and check it out. Pay attention to the details and let us know your progress and/or problems.

best,
DH

[/quote]

And look into John Berardi’s “Massive Eating Reloaded 1&2” articles for your nutrition. You can eat more, you just have to make it happen.

I used to think I couldn’t gain weight. Now, I can easily eat enough to gain. My only thing I have to remember is not to eat too much so I don’t just pack on the fat.

When I’m bulking, I’m eating 6-7 meals a day, and some of those meals are huge in order to take in 3,000-4,000 calories a day. Not to mention one or two cheat meals on the weekend, usually consisting of an all-you-can-eat feast at Sonny’s (a bbq joint in the Southeast) or ONE pound hamburgers, a whole gourmet pizza (not too often), all-you-can-eat sushi, etc. You can do it!

8

Some opinions may differ, but aviod the soy. There is also a bunch of good stuff written about creatine and how to avoid that gastric discomfort, but don’t wory too much about supps until you get a solid foothold on diet.
Welcome and hope you make great progress.

9

I can not have any dairy products, like milk or whipping cream. Also, on top of being lactose intolerant, I can also not consume calcium because it gives me ulcers. I know skinless chicken breast is very high in protein comparative to other foods but is low in fat. I defiantly think you have a point about eating healthy fats.

As I said before, I am relatively limited on time. It has been very convenient for me to just spend an hour and a half cooking food for myself for the whole week. Chicken, eggs, veggies, rice will last a week, steaks and red meats don?t usually last very long in the fridge and turn rubber after a day or so. I could cook my chicken in the oven with olive oil. I do not know what fish oil caps are though. Also, if I am to eat 6 meals a day, I need to eat every three hours, and if I make my meals too big, I will not be hungry three hours later.

I am also thinking about starting to wake up in the middle of the night now and eat a seven meal like at 3am. Give me your thoughts

10

Here’s my professional input:

You’d do better with a much more abbreviated exercise menu. I’d suggest something roughly along these lines:

Day One

A) Squat
B-1) Dips
B-1) Chins
C) Military Press

Day Two

A) Romanian Deadlift
B-1) Bench Press
B-1) Low Rows
C) Barbell Curl

Day Two

A) Heavy Cheat Shrugs
B-1) Incline Dumbbell Press
B-1) Pullups
C) Hammer Curl

Sets and Reps? Take your pick. I’d advise between 4-6 sets of between 5-8 reps per set

Don’t get lost in the minutia…just make these simple changes (i.e., do something reseambling this) and work hard. Best of luck

[quote]Brendan B wrote:
Greetings T-mag!

My name is Brendan, and I am, for the most part, I am new to your site. You seem like a very knowledgeable group of people, and I need to ask all you experts some advice. As I should let you know, I am extremely addicted to pumping iron, and my ultimate goal is to build as much muscle weight as I can and get as strong as I can, as fast as I can, and as safe as I can. The problem is I do not know if I know how. I have been lifting for roughly 2 years now consistently, and, unfortunately, I have not made much progress.

First off, I will let you know where I am at, and what I do.  Here is the scoop! I have been lifting weights for about 2 years now consistently, and I am 5'10" at 160lbs.  In my two years, I have read two books.  One by Ian King, named, The Book of Muscle, and the other one named, Serious Strength Training.  For the last month, I have been following a circuit workout program from The Book of Muscle that alternates between upper and lower body every other day that looks something like this:

Day one:
abs
All supersets follow 12-15 reps, 1 set, 311 tempo.
Superset 1:

  1. Seated cable rows Weight 130lbs
  2. Barbell Bench press feet up on bench Weight 135lbs
    Rest 60-120 sec
    Superset 2:
  3. Reverse dumbbell fly on stomach Weight 9lbs
  4. Dumbbell flys on back Weight 35lbs
    Superset 3:
  5. Lat Pull downs Weight 150lbs
  6. Seated military shoulder press Weight 80lbs
    Superset 4:
  7. Dumbbell Lying pull over dumbbell Weight 65lbs
  8. Dumbbell Seated lateral raises Weight 14lbs
    Superset 5:
  9. Alternating dumbbell seated bicep curl Weight 25lbs
  10. Barbell Triceps extensions Weight 55lbs
    Superset 6:
    Dumbbell wrist curl Weight 20lbs
    Dumbbell wrist extensions Weight 12lbs

Day two:
Abs
All supersets follow 12-15 reps, 1 set, 311 tempo.
Barbell squat Weight 135lbs
Dead lift Weight 135lbs
Dynamic lunge Weight 65lbs
Supine hip-thigh extensions
Standing calf raise
Barbell shrug Weight 185lbs

Seated cable row max: 190
Bench press max: 215
Military press max: 115
Lat pull down max: 190
Squat max: 185
deadlift max: 185
Shrug max: 225

I have 6 meals a day. My meals consist of an omelet with one egg and three whites in the morning with ham and spinach leafs, two pieces of multi-grain bread and a banana with avocados + salsa. My other four meals usually consist of one skinless chicken breast with one cup vegetables, 1/2 cup brown rice, black beans, BBQ sauce, spinach leafs, and three pieces of multi-gain bread. I try to eat my first meal when I wake up, and then every meal three-hours after. I also try to keep my activity level down so I do not burn too many calories.

I have tried everything from creatine to soy protein, but they upset my stomach. I am lactose intolerant and can not have any dairy products. So I am pretty sure I want to go without any supplements that mess with your body.

The dilemma is I am not progressing as well as I would like. I am not gaining weight, and I do not see my muscles getting bigger. Now that you have seen my workout and how I eat, maybe you may be able to offer me advice. Thanks a lot for your time.
[/quote]