Protein shake / diet advice

DaWG

DaWG

DaWG

Associate
Joined
24 Sep 2008
Posts
92
Hey,

Started going to the gym about three months back now, and have seen some gains, and am really enjoying it. Basically, my aim is to have a decent physique, and put on roughly another stone or so by next christmas (am going travelling Jan 2010, so have until then to get in shape :p ). I'm roughly 5'11, and about 74Kg, and whilst i don't know my BMI (?), I don't have much fat on me.

Now... I've read the sticky / guide, and have tried to sort out my diet, but there are times it just isn't possible. I've definately started to eat more, and more often, but need some help - current diet is like this;

Breakfast; 2/4 slices of brown toast, banana, other random fruit
Mid morning; couple bits of fruit/nuts
Lunch; sandwiches (chicken et al). According to the pack, each lunch is 60g protein, and about 70g carbs (don't know if this helps, and don't know if i should be looking at any of the other values)
When i get in from work; Tin of tuna & pasta / omlette / scrambled eggs on toast (2 eggs in either) something smallish along these lines
Dinner; Stir Fry / one of the 'back from work' options that i haven't already had that day, steak and chips, etc - whatever's available

Now I know lots of things could be improved (chips etc) but i don't think i'm doing too bad. The breakfast i guess is my main issue - i just don't have time to cook eggs or anything like that, and am always starving mid-morning.

Now... like i say, i want to put on at least a stone, say go up to maybe 80 Kg - should i use protein shakes? Would it be worthwhile to have one with breakfast and after workouts (sorry forgot to mention earlier - go to the gym tues/thurs/sun, usually after the 'get back from work' dinner)?

And advice appreciated
 
Sounds like you want to put on fat!

To put on muscel mass you need to go gym about 4 times a week for about an hour.

Before each work out do 10-15 mins low intensity cardio.

Day one

Back and triceps

Day two

Chest and biceps

Day three (shorter workout)

High intensity cardio

Abbs

Day Four

Shoulders and legs

Take protein shake (no more than 30g as thats all body can assorb at one time) 30 mins after workout. Also eat cottage cheese before going to bed (slow releasing protein).
 
Probably didn't make it clear enough in the first post, but i do go to the gym - 3 times a week for about an hour, which seemed to be the recommended amount in the sticky's. Also, everything I read here was against any form of cardio when trying to bulk.

But anyway, it's the protein shakes i need the advice on :)
 
Appreciate the replies, but what I'm asking (should've kept it simple, sorry), is;

a) is it a normal thing for people to have a shake with breakfast?
b) if i use protein shakes throughout the year, and then go traveling (whilst traveling i won't be doing any gym / shakes obviously), will i just lose everything i gain (and I suppose this would happen whether i use shakes or not?)
c) could someone link me correct powder to buy (http://www.myprotein.co.uk/ is the correct site i believe?), with the promotional code / price matcher thing please?

Thanks in advance X
 
Protein WILL NOT build muscle or encorage it to grow! When not working out just eat healthfully and keep active. Cardio IMO is vital. Have a look at a runner... long distance very skinny - sprinter musclely! High intensity cardio (ie 20 mins) will help with muscle growth. If you dont do cardio you will look unhealthy! Better to look a tiny bit skinnier and healthy.

a) You can have a protein shake for breakfast - people will have one then if they did a workout the night before.

b) If you dont do any workout in 3 weeks you go into regression... to maitain a weight workout 3 times a week to progress 4 times a week. If you not working out dont add extra protein as it will just turn into fat.
 
Vegetarian said:
Protein WILL NOT build muscle or encorage it to grow! When not working out just eat healthfully and keep active. Cardio IMO is vital. Have a look at a runner... long distance very skinny - sprinter musclely! High intensity cardio (ie 20 mins) will help with muscle growth. If you dont do cardio you will look unhealthy! Better to look a tiny bit skinnier and healthy.

a) You can have a protein shake for breakfast - people will have one then if they did a workout the night before.

b) If you dont do any workout in 3 weeks you go into regression... to maitain a weight workout 3 times a week to progress 4 times a week. If you not working out dont add extra protein as it will just turn into fat.
Click to expand...

I dont agree with any of this :confused:
 
Thanks for the replies. Again, to reiterate, I am going to the gym three times a week.

Vegetarian said:
Protein WILL NOT build muscle or encorage it to grow! When not working out just eat healthfully and keep active. Cardio IMO is vital. Have a look at a runner... long distance very skinny - sprinter musclely! High intensity cardio (ie 20 mins) will help with muscle growth. If you dont do cardio you will look unhealthy! Better to look a tiny bit skinnier and healthy.

a) You can have a protein shake for breakfast - people will have one then if they did a workout the night before.

b) If you dont do any workout in 3 weeks you go into regression... to maitain a weight workout 3 times a week to progress 4 times a week. If you not working out dont add extra protein as it will just turn into fat.
Click to expand...

Firstly, the gym 3 / 4 times a week comment goes against what I read in the sticky (and that seems to be taken as gospel in here) - 90% of people in there were asking to be specced a 3-day split.

The protein shake comment... again, goes against everything I read here. Like i say, I've got a year to work at it, so I expect to gain some fat if i'm 'bulking' anyway.
 
Vegetarian said:
High intensity cardio (ie 20 mins) will help with muscle growth.
Click to expand...

can you explain this a bit more for me please. I have never heard of cardio building muscle.

to maitain a weight workout 3 times a week to progress 4 times a week.
Click to expand...

again, explain this please. also, can you tell me what 2 workouts a week does? at a guess it actually burns muscle as its one less workout that would maintain weight.

If you not working out dont add extra protein as it will just turn into fat.
Click to expand...


really?
wow, all those people who are getting fatter on the v-diet :/
 
Considering sprinters do insane amounts of leg work in the gym, and upper body to, but less so that is whats responsible for the muscle on sprinters. Sprinters are ripped, they train in the gym, to get muscle to get faster. Yes some aerobic style activity helps, sprinters will try to increase the amount of faster twitch muscles by, not sure of the name or how to best describe it, but essentially running slowly but moving legs/arms ultra fast. It conditions the body to be able to move faster as the key to sprinting is fast leg/arm movement. But the simply fact is, hours/weeks/months/years in the gym getting ripped is how they get fast.

Frankly long distance runners are fairly ripped, the slow mo's in every race of the leg muscles rippling show this, they will do far less upper body work and far less bulking and run a much lower bf% than sprinters as at the end of the day they have to carry every pound of weight over a long distance.

Protein does not turn into fat any way or anyhow.

AS to the OP, eat what you want, if you feel it would be easier to get your protein levels up with shakes, do so and be happy with eat. if you prefer eating meat and can happily get a pack of cooked chicken and nibble on it through the day, do so, do whatever you want. Whey protein is the best there is, you've just got to make sure you have good fats, some bad fats, and vitamins, minerals and calories at some point throughout the day to go along with it.

As for travelling, its hard to eat well when travelling as you really don't know where you'll be. You can get great quality food anywhere in the world, the problem is finding it. You could experiment throughout the year with various protein bars, then buy a load of them and take them with you. Depends what you mean by travelling, backpacking in harsh terraine and the extra weight might be bad, or hell, it might make for a good low weight meal to take. If you'll be in hotels around the place, if they have gyms, drop in for 20-30mins a couple days a week, might not have you bulking up but can help stop the losses. If not eat as much protein rich food as you can while doing a bunch of easy to do exercises every few days. Pressups, pressups with your legs resting on a chair, dips between two chairs, chin ups on a door frame, etc, etc. Theres multiple ways to stress your muscles than just in a gym and losses will be minimised if you're doing something.

But once you've put on muscle, even if you lose some of it, it tends to be easier to put back on the second time.
 
Vegetarian, your advice is seriously flawed so i'd just walk away to be fair...

Drunkenmaster, protein can be turned into fat (although not as readily as carbs and fat itself).

Bad diets with too many excess calories make you put on fat, not just protein, not just fat, not just carbs. Things are a little more complicated than that :)
 
Last edited:
Thanks drunk / wardie.

Would someone be able to link the cheapest way to buy some powder? I know there's a promotional code I can use, and also some price-matcher thing? (myprotein.com)
 
No problem, few quick pointers for you diet wise...

Protein at every meal and I would say a minimum of 20g. You definately need more protein for breakfast, it's a good time for a shake.

You need to eat more frequently too... i'm not talking about huge meals but something. For example, I eat around 7 times a day on a training day, here's a rough idea of a diet...

1) 100g oats, 50g whey, 1g omega-3
2) Wholemeal chicken sandwich
3) Brown rice, chicken, broccoli
4) Wholemeal chicken sandwich
5) 100g waxy maize starch, 30g whey (Post Workout)
6) Potatoes, steak, vegetables
7) 40g milk protein, 5g omega-3 (Could have something like scrambled eggs.

Before bed go for something with protein and a small ammount of fat, i'd avoid carbs.

That's not perfect by any means, it's just to give you a rough idea
 
Last edited:
Great advice folks (apart from vegetarian...wtf?)

To the OP, make sure to get protein in you FIRST THING the body becomes highly catabolic (anti-muscle-gaining) overnight due to the fundemental starvation. Its important to break this as early as possible, no better 'whey' (;)) than a good whey and milk shake with a cup of fine scottish oats. Breakfast of champions....or at least champions with big, woman-moistening biceps :D
 
Seriously you all dont have a clue or you dont understand my post!!!!


Protein is a food - the more food you eat over that you need to is converted to fat. If you eat loads of protein it WILL turn to fat unless you work out like mad. Protein alone will not give you extra muscle.

With a correct gym programme protein suppliments will encourage muscle, but also the diet (fats and carbs are just as important).

I think you lot need to have a look at http://www.johnstonefitness.com/
 
nice a mount of eating wardie... i've recently changed a small section of my diet plan to incorporate a few small extra meals/energy gainers.

3 raw eggs plus cereal on w/o days
banana/snickers
nice meal (usually packing over 900cals)
banana
snack
tea

must admit as i said i'm moving to shakes because its so bloody expensive getting all the food i eat few months ago me and the wife worked out i eat more than 80% of the food in our house every month
 
Vegetarian - You're thinking about it in the wrong way though and doesn't overly make sense. The only put you could make if someone eat WAY too much protein which I don't think you were trying to acknowledge.
Proteins are broken down into amino acids which unlike carbs and triglycerides (which are stored) are not warehoused for future use. They are usually oxidized to produce ATP energy or used to synthesize new proteins for body growth and repair :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom