Poll: ***The all new gymrats thread***

Do we archive this thread and start a new one for 2010?

  • Yeah good idea.

    Votes: 11 78.6%

  • Nah I'm happy with this one.

    Votes: 3 21.4%
  • Total voters
    14
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I come down to just below parallel on DB shoulder press.

I think it's been me that's plugging no backrest shoulder presses, and take full responsibility for it! :o

It is humbling as you do have to drop the weights somewhat.
 
Strength is more the concentric movement of a lift, whilst the negative aspect will help build up tension and resistance it isn't without it's benefits. However most lifts where strength is required is very much the concentric movement that counts.
 
NitrogenY3K said:
Had a good chest session yesterday. Managed to hit 140k x 6 on the bench, which im pretty pleased with. Think I may be able to push a 155 1rm.
Loving the gym at the moment, making some good gains both in size and strength, also really liking the lean bulking rather than the uusual eat what i want diet. :)
Going to carry on lean bulking for the next 1.5-2 years and hopefully make some good gains:)
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Awesome! It's so good to hear positive and motivating stories like that! :cool: Keep it up dude!

^TANK^ said:
I'm getting close to jacking weights in at the moment due to boredom, my heart just isn't in it anymore. Shrinking down with lots of cardio seems the best thing to do:(.
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:( What's up dude?

Maybe a break and doing something different would help no?
 
Captain Planet said:
Gentlemen,

I have been farting around just keeping fit this past year but now I'm due to get building again. I'd like some advice on the matter and Im sure its already in here but this thread has grown exponentially since I last visited :D

Just about my supplements;

Post workout I have a Myprotein Impact Protein,
For bed times I have Cytosport - MuscleMilk (Whey and Casein blend).
For cutting I picked up some Prolab Therm Pro, Im sceptical about those kind of things though :confused:


Previously I havent concentrated on the supps too much and just thrown any old stuff down my neck and eaten as much as I can (I was 6'3 and 10.5st). Now Im 14st I want to be careful just what kind of weight I add so the the diet is going to be crucial. This time Im aiming to gain more lean muscle. I'll post my diet up should it be of any help but I was wondering if the supps look right?

NOOOOOB! :D
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Forget about the therm pro - it's really not worth it at all.

What's your diet like?

Are you aiming to stay at 14st but lose some BF? Or are you hoping to bulk up more? Would you say you're fairly lean or carrying too much fat?

Supps mean nothing without diet - as they should supplement a diet, I know it's the same old record being spouted, but that's just the fact of the matter.

Let's see your diet and we can then see how to best help you. Also it would be helpful to post your training regimen too. However in spite of that at least you've chosen the correct supps for the right time of the day - if you need them at all that is. I will tell you right away ignore the therm pro.

How long did it take you to get to 14st? Give us more info!! :)
 
Mate, you've got priorities right, looking after your family is clearly much more important. Have some time off, enjoy Christmas and get back into it in the new year. :)
 
Go and spend time with your fam. Enjoy yourself. Don't worry about training. Smile, spend time with your gf, and just take a new approach next year. Have fun, smile. If training isn't enjoyable don't force yourself, you'll end up resenting it and not wanting to train.

Don't be a stranger though! However, feel free to drop me a line if you need to chat. :)
 
Captain Planet said:
FF I knew I should have added all this in my original post there.

I did post my progress in the gym thread some time ago but looking through I think that might have been the old archived thread and I cant even find it in there.

EDIT: Found my old post here.... 2 years ago :eek: didn't realise it was that long! 21lb in 10months. ~50lb in about 2years total IIRC. Today I'm not much different to how I look there to be honest, just a little softer around the waist and ass :p

What I ate today, a typical day:

Brekkie: Oats + Water, 3xBananas, Wholegrain cereal + SS Milk (if Im still hungry)
Brunch: 74g Tuna + Wholegrain Cob
Lunch: 74g Tuna + Chilli Con Carne + LG Rice
Afternoon: Bag of mixed nuts + Banana
Evening Meal: Chicken Breast, LG Rice, Sweetcorn, Broccolli, boiled Potatoes
Late night Snack: 74g Tuna

Workout (admittedly probably basic by some standards)

Mon: 20min bike Max effort. (3x10) BB bench, Fly, Dips, Mil Press, Lat Raises. 100 situps
Wed: 20min bike max effort. (3x10) Squats, Ham Curls, Leg Press, Calf Raise. 100 situps
Thur: 30min Jog
Fri: 20min bike max effort. (3x10) Deadlifts, Wide Pullups, BOR, Shrugs, Curls. 100 Sit ups

The bike and runs are to hit the soft bits really.

Admittedly my workout is a bit everywhere at the moment. Hectic life style means it can be hard to stick to a regime (for instance, I'm in Helmand at this very moment :p ). Do I need to factor in cutting periods? I could do with measuring my BFor take some photos to give a better clue of body shape.
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A LOT of tuna. Not that it's that bad but I'd try and vary it more. I presume you eat lots more veggies (particularly green ones and leafy ones, but all are good and necessary) and some decent fruits (berries, tomatoes etc...). The quantities look good though, and the variation is ok bar the fact that it's all tuna :p

Good variation of exercises, but I'm split on whether you should do the cardio after/before your workout. Ideally on a separate day, but if time is short.... I'd probably edge with after, but I need to cogitate over it a little further. I'd put aside the 100 situps, but do introduce core work, but do things like DB pull ins, leg raises to add variety. If you are keen on sit ups though, try alternating them or doing slightly different movements.

Being a little softer in the soft areas isn't too bad, as with a decent regimen and some good lifting it's easy enough to harden up - but I may suggest doing 4x8 to add a bit more volume perhaps.

Don't worry about cutting/bulking, train hard, eat well and just monitor your progress that way. It might be best to wait till you have a bit more stability in your life, and I guess out there you're probably not really able to train or live a "normal" life.

Take care out there and look after yourself - stay safe. :)
 
As with any supplement, and forgive the vernacular "if you're a **** before, you'll be even more of a **** when on it". Adimttedly this is more often used for special sauce, however if you have any sort of anger or temper issues, any supplementation that will accentuate hormones/testosterone and other forms of increased synthesis in your body will only help accentuate who you are.

I must admit though that mood swings with things like creatine is an odd one and the evidence is marginal I must say. However, as I said, if you have issues before it no doubt will not help. Futhermore if you eat fresh meat (and drink milk to a certain extent) or for some example salmon, tuna, beef and pork all contain around 2 grams of creatine per pound - so although one doesn't eat several lbs of such meats throughout the day clocking up 5+g per day is very easy without supplementing it at all. So I'm surprised that creatine had such a negative effect on you. I'd suggest seeing a professional about that as I don't think it can categorically be linked to it.
 
The technique just "works" once you've got it. You'll find it a lot easy to lift decent amounts once you've clicked with the technique. Makes it easier to hit the big numbers. Doing anything over 2x bodyweight is what I'd consider "strong". I'd love to hit 2.5x bodyweight but that's 250kg (ish)... just 30kg to go! Argh!
 
I always have a banana pre work out. From what I've read it's good. If you want a full in depth explanation it'll have to wait till later as I'm going to eat! :D
 
This is my sketchy understanding of it, it's not 100% but I *think* I've got this right...

Having some carbs (the right ones) does give an insulin response which blunts cortisol. So there will be no cortisol before your workout but then again there are no catecholamines to stop the insulin being released, so basically you have to time the insulin release to come just before your first heavy set so that it'll be floating around and therefore stops the catabolic hormones (cortisol, glucagon, and adrenaline (and other catecholamines.)) Incidentally pro bodybuilders do this with quite a lot of success by the use of exogenous insulin though as has been alluded to it's bloody dangerous!). What normal people do is try to mirror there methods but use the body's own production, which is just as effective, just less anabolic!

So it's all about getting the right nutrients in before a work out, you need insulin to build significant muscle, end of, FACT etc... Catecholamines (catabolic hormones) both block and blunt insulin, this effectively robs us of the most productive time for building muscle (which seems a shame considering we put so much effort into it!) as a result of the increased androgen absorption after you've completed your work out. It is the perfect time to have insulin and the right aminos floating around your body, however to acheive this you either have to be dealing with naughty products (slin) or take high GI carbs pre workout.

From what I've learnt/understood, getting the carbs in there first suppresses cortisol as mentioned above, as such it spares muscle oxidation and allows for a higher percentage of any protein taken at the same time to be used for anabolic processes rather than for the creation of glycogen and/or conversion to energy. That's the theory I believe, a bit like Ben90 suggested. There are many studies that back it up (easy to find but can link if you want?). The rise in insulin caused by the drink/food/etc... around the workout is a potent stimulator of many hypertrophy pathways at a cellular level which encourages the development of new cell nuclei - the first stage of myofibrillar growth. Even if you are a bit of a carb hater or try and keep them to a minimum, I think these are good enough reasons to still consider using carbs pre workout.

As such i have complex carbs/protein meal a good hour before my workout, and a banana 15 mins or so before (ideally you should ensure you have decent aminos floating around too - but this is optional, and only really necessary if you're an elite trainer). In fact most of this really applies if you really are at an optimum state of training - however, what harm can it do?! :)

Sorry for the slightly garbled explanation, it's stuff I sort of know, but not really 100%. I've probably got a bit of it wrong.
 
I'm the same I feel less "productive" if I haven't had a decent meal or nutrition before a workout. I couldn't eat 2hrs before a workout for example - I need something to fuel me. Then again I push myself pretty hard.

If you think about it's all quite basic in terms of principles. However it's fascinating how your body works - I kinda wish I had taken up medicine or something along that line as I just find it incredible.
 
The problem is there is so much conflicting evidence, or tests, clinical studies or even just anecdotal evidence that it's sometimes hard to sift through the real stuff and the fake stuff. This is why knowing a bit of biology and basic physiological function is critical- a lot of people use the gym purely for vanity and functional efficiency, but really there's so much more to that in my opinion. Though you can get too bogged down in the minutae of detail rather than actually training. I try and maintain a good balance, and sometimes wish I had more time and money to experiment - but alas one must do as best one can!
 
Well I'm just under 6'1" and touching 16st so there :p

I've been reading about Marius' fight for a while and been reading it on numerous forums. He's got a history of Karate and some other marshal art (can't remember now, I obviously was paying attention :o) However, he is one of the strongest men in the world, amazingly fit for his size, 6'1" over 22st - I would not want to be at the receiving end of one of his blows. If he gets up close you're done - you'd need to get him from distance to try and unbalance him or something along those lines. Amazing guy - functional strength, and pure raw power. For those of you that have Bravo WSM will be on over Christmas. :)


Today's training was amazing, I'm still doing my full body routine - but by god it felt good! :D

Warm up (hill climbers, prisoner squats, rotating fire hydrants, jumping jacks)

DLs:

WU:
6x100
5x140
5x160
Working Set:
6x170
6x170
6x170

Dips:
WU:
8xBW
8x15kg
5x20kg
Working set:
8x25kg
8x25kg
10x25kg

Supersetted with T-Bar rows:
WU:
8x50kg
8x100kg
Working set:
8x120kg
8x120kg
8x120kg

Flat bench:
WU:
6x60
6x100
Working set:
6x110
6x110
(I didn;'t have a spotter so couldn't go heavier really - 120 I'm ok on but meh better safe than sorry, I was there by myself anyway :D).

Supersetted
Standing DB Curls:
WU:
10x10
8x15
Working set:
10x20
10x20


Warm Down / core:

DB Pull ins (immensely difficult after a big workout! :D)

3sets x 10x 12kg

Raaaar - feel goooood! :cool:
 
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