Major Newbie, Need Help

Training Beginners
21

[quote]Armenix wrote:
/snip

to Zero:
Thanks for the websites with the bodyweight training, i appreciate it and the thought, although, i dont think i’ll be likely to do that sort of workout due to the fact i used things like that before, and didn’t have much, if at all, of a gain (it was like the Total Gym). Although i keep seeing that pullups seem to be VERY beneficial, would this count?

When it comes to endurance training, is that during my strength session (IOW, am i doing it quickly before or after i lift, or some other time during the day)?

I’ll have to look up those stretches, i don’t know what they are =(, but they sound quite important =P

Lastly, you said earlier Zero that “Resistance training will not make you get bigger”, but i thought it did? Did you mean endurance? Just clarifying.

/snip
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Pull-ups are a beneficial exercise, and can be a mass builder since most people can’t do a lot of them and end up in the hypertrophy range of set/reps. I on the other hand can do a lot of them so it’s not very beneficial when I’m trying to add mass.

Endurance training like run/bike/row/swim should be done on a day where you aren’t lifting heavy weights. You CAN endurance train and gain muscle, no matter what people say, but you will have to consume a LOT of calories, EVERY DAY. If you want to hit a target weight of 175 or 180, I would say to make lifting your main priority for a year, and then worry about endurance training once you’ve hit your goal. If you just want to gain 10lbs or so, then by all means you could do endurance and strength train at the same time and hit your goals relatively easily.

On the topic of resistance training and getting bigger, your food intake is what determines your size. You can gain strength with little size, and same with the other way around, depending on your diet. If you cut calories when resistance training though, you won’t see the same strength gains as you would with a caloric surplus. Same with size. In case you haven’t realized yet, they’re closely related!

22

You should eat to gain weight if you want to get bigger, how much and for how long will decide how big you get. Start eating 500-700 more calories a day then you normally do get 1 or more grams per pound of bodyweight. When you’ve reached the size you want, start slowly lower your calory intake and maintain the cardio/lifting you do. for examply a day in my world looks like:

breakfast:
4 whole eggs and a bowl of oatmeal with milk
~750 calories

snack 2 scoops of weight gain powder in milk, and veggies
~600 calories

lunch: two peanut butter and jely sandwiches, heavilly peanut buttered
about 700 calories

pwo a scoop and a half of protein
~150 calories

Dinner: meatballs and rice w/ milk
~500 calories

before bed
2 large glasses of milk
~450 calories

this is about 3150 calories and I currently weigh 157 pounds, and I’m gaining weight after cutting twenty pounds for a powerlifting meet.

ALSO
uper/lower splits are fine a great one is westside for skinny bastards, the most recent edition is my favorite. If you’d like I’m sure someone can dig up the link.

I personally have a kind of crazy training layout due to my goals.

Honestly after you gain twenty pounds you’ll barely notice a difference and want more.

23

Yea example diets are good. Here’s mine (I don’t count calories because I find it very hard to gain a lot of fat)

My diet changes every day but here’s yesterday (off day)
Pre-breakfast
1.5 scoops Grow! whey w/ 1/2 water 1/2 milk
5 BCAA 2 Flameout
Breakfast
Bowl of cranberry nut crunch cereal
Metabolic Drive complete w/ multivitamin
Lunch:
10oz. chicken, lo-mein (i can’t spell chinese things) with veggies, bowl of broccoli cheese soup, bowl of fruit, glass of milk, glass of w ater
Pre-dinner:
bowl of cereal again (ran out of other carb sources if you haven’t figured that out)
lowfat cottage cheese w/ pineapple
5 BCAA
Dinner:
10oz chicken, spinach salad w/ cheese croutons and italian dressing, apple, bowl of yogurt with granola, ice cream cone
After dinner:
2 servings of tuna helper creamy pasta stuff
Pre-bed:
Metabolic Drive Complete w/ Superfood
5 BCAA & 2 Flameout

Bedtime:
2 ZMA

By no means is this an ideal diet, but I have a retarded metabolism and it’s what I need to maintain weight. On lifting days I up my carbs by eating an extra bowl of pasta with dinner and maybe some crackers or bread with lunch, then Surge during and post workout with whey before. I dunno how many calories that is but it works for me; take what you will. I ate that big carb meal before bed because I had PT this morning at 5 and eating carbs before bed helps me with my running in the AM.

24

I will give you my thoughts, but as to practical applications other people would be more suited. Diets and eating correctly have always been the weak link in my chain.

Eat healthy in general. Add more healthy food when your lifts and/or bodyweight is not moving up. Add less food when your gaining too much weight. Greasy food now turns my stomach.