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A dictionary.

 

You eat mussels, lol. Well I don't they taste terrible. You want to have muscles.

 

OK here's a question - if you're hitting the weights what's the best all around number of reps per set? I've heard things all over the board, like:

Go heavy with fewer reps (like 5-7 per set) if you want to bulk up and gain mass
Go lighter with more reps (10-12 per set) if you want to "tone up" or "get definition" (whatever that means)

Or maybe do both??

Personally, I've done it both ways with no noticeable difference, which makes me think that either I'm doing it wrong OR that at the end of the day my genetic code is such that it doesn't matter what I do, I'm going to look like I look and as long as I'm getting exercise that's all that matters.

Anyway, would like to hear your opinion, and thanks for taking the time to do this.

 

Oh, and by the way, my question on this thread is not to be taken as an admission, either expressed, implied, by operation of law, or otherwise, that I am, to use the good Dr.'s words, a "fat guy." To the contrary, I'm 47, 6'0", 195#, my last body fat percentage was in the middle teens.

 

Mixing it up is never a bad idea. What does your current workout regimine look like?

I would do 3 or 4 sets of 5-7 reps of heavy weight to gain mass. Or even do drop sets (i.e. 50lbs 8x, 45lbs 12x, 40lbs 20x) for 6-8 weeks, then switch to lower weight, higher reps for 4 weeks, then back.
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/dropsets.htm

I would recommend focusing on using free weights. Also do mostly incline (lowest setting) and flat bench as opposed to decline. I rarely do decline and most people on bb.com rarely recommend it. That's not to say not to throw in barbell bench press in there too, but free weights usually give people better results.

What is your diet like? The biggest part of working out is your diet. And make sure you're getting a good amount of sleep every night.

You really have to experiment and see what works best for you. What gains mass for one won't necessarily work for another.

Edit: I just noticed your workout routine in the weight thread. But could you list some of the excercises you do for each?

 

Very interesting, and thanks for taking the time to help out.

This is my basic regime:

15 mins on the elliptical machine, fast pace, enough to get heart rate up to mid 140's

Then straight to the first weight set/reps. For instance, on a Monday (which is back and chest), I would do one set, 12 reps on the assisted pull-up machine. Then straight to the bench press machine, no rest, another set of 12 reps. Repeat twice, with no rest period between sets. The theory is to keep your heart rate up so you're getting weight work and cardio at the same time.

Back to the elliptical machine, 10 mins, fast pace

Second set of weights would be back extensions and the pec deck. Same as before, 3 sets of 12 reps each, no rest periods in between.

Go back to elliptical machine, 15 mins, faster pace, try to keep heart rate in the 150's

The to last set of weights which would be Roman Chair with a 25 pd weight, and incline bench press on the Smith machine. 3 sets of 12, no rest periods.

Cool down.

The rest of the week would be the same, just different body parts each day.

On the diet/sleep thing, I do pretty good on my diet - I'm not an absolute fanatic about what I eat but I definitely pay attention as I have documented high cholesterol. In all candor though I need to cut back on carbs - we eat a LOT of pasta and bread at our house. Great if you're counting fat grams, bad for triglyceride levels, for certain. Sleep? Not very good. Between work and the family I'm lucky to get 6 hrs a night during the week. I try to catch up on weekends though.

Anyway, there it is. Thanks again very much for your time on this, it is much appreciated.

 

This is kind of a trick question. I already know what my pro race driver friends do, but I'm curious what the F-Chat experts have to say.

What is the best training program for a racing driver?

 

You have a great routine going there. Supersetting is great. I can see why you've hit a pleteau though. Time to switch it up.

You can essentially keep the exact same routine, just switch to dumbells. I would start out with say 30lbs or so (a weight that isn't too heavy to handle) and focus on form first and foremost. I would do this the first day or two just to get acustom to the change, and then move up the weight as you feel able. And to see how it feels on your joints (shoulders, elbows, wrists). I find not moving the weight up until arms are straight keeps the chest muscles tight or tense and works them more.

Don't be afraid to throw in flies on both the flat and incline bench. You can still do pec dec on top of it all (I do). I would also recommend just simply attempting to do non-assisted pull-ups. Just to see. If you're able to do just one, that's great. Do one 3 times, then try to move up to two, three, etc. But if you feel any pain at all do not continue and go back to the assisted.

The same goes for free weights, if you feel it's bothering you cease and continue using the machines. I obviously do not know you or your aches and pains, so I don't want to give you bad advice. Which is also why I'm recommending you start off with the light weights as well. You will find with the free weights that you'll work your muscles differently due to more resistance keeping them straight. So you may wake up more sore than usual.

As for sleep 6 hours isn't bad that bad. And everyones needed sleep is different. I think my dad gets about the same if not only 5 hours. So as long as you're not feeling run down I'd say 6 hours is great.

Eating a lot of carbs isn't the end of the world, it's more of the calories you need to watch. And as much cardio as you do you're probably using most of the carbs as it is. If you are wanting to "bulk up" you may want to do a bit less cardio than you are. Maybe do 20-25 minutes when you get to the gym, and skip the additional 15 min. you do between sets. Just to see where it takes you.

Make sure you get a lot of protein though, and I think you'll notice a big difference as well.

I'm still new at all of this excercising gig. Only been really serious for the past 1.5 years. Just listen to my roommate and read up on stuff.

Read up here in the Excercise forum on bodybuilding.com. May give you some new ideas and techniques. If you are unsure of what an excercise they talk about is, just google image it. I still have a hard time remembering all the names for the excercises I do. LOL.

Continued success!
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/forumdisplay.php?f=9

 

This is very helpful, and I'll give it a try. Thanks again!!!

 

I wanna look like Brad Pitt in fight club how can I do that?

 

Alright I'll post in the before and after thread in February.

 

5'11" 172lbs

Plus a pic from March this year.
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newgentry, I don't think I'm the only one who thought you preferred to do push ups next to your car........

 

I've been doing cardio and weights for most of the summer more focused on cardio. When I ramp up the weight training what should be the ratio of in the gym vs running/biking/swimming?

(Moving in a week hence the mess of getting stuff into boxes)

 

Doc, you are on to something with your advice but I would like to introduce another school of thought...

Circuit training will allow him to burn more fat while putting on muscle. Right now, he has hardly any muscle mass. If he increases the muscle mass on his body while doing high intensity cardio type circuit training he will melt fat off while producing muscle that will burn fat at a much higher rate than his body is currently able. Match this with a decent diet and he will get results in half the time.

 

+1

High protein diet. If you really want to achieve the Brad Pitt look in 6 months you're going to have to live at the gym. One body part per day. And give up any drinking if you really want to get there fast.

 

Is this on the web? I found this site: http://www.oo-rah.com/Store/gen/pt.asp

What do you think?

 

I'm not looking to build tons and tons of muscle mass all the workout regimens that I've read for his training said he ended up around 155lbs and about 6% so he wasn't packing on the pounds with muscle building. Ideally I'd like to be around 165lbs and under 10% which genetically I know is going to be pretty difficult and I will probably end up maintaining around 12%. I really don't care about bragging how much I can bench or lift I'm more focused on becoming lean and fit for triathlons.

Right now the diet is low carb but not completely carb free with lots of vegetables, fish, chicken, eggs and oatmeal with fruit in the mornings and trying to stay away from eating out. Haven't been counting calories but I'm thinking I should start doing that in the near future to try and make the fat burning a bit more efficient.

The only supplements I'm on are a multivitamin and then whey protein after workouts.

Right now the goals are to lower the %bf, do a half marathon in February, a sprint (or olympic depending on how training goes) distance triathlon in May, and then a half iron man in September of 09'.

 

Kyle, you don't want to go carb free either. Start watching your caloric intake. Especially doing as much cardio as you're going to do, you'll need it for fuel. Not going overboard of course. But have a side of spaghetti with your dinner or something like that. You'll need to replinish afterwards, and have a litte something 45-hour before hand as well.