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Spanxxx · 07-15-2005, 08:53 PM

I had to cut off earlier when I answered you, so I thought I'd drop a few more things in here.

Remember that your body is rebuilding muscle every day, not just the one day you are working out. It is just as important to eat well the days following your workouts as it is on the days you actually do workout.

In case you don't like Tuna, go for Turkey, Eggs, etc.. etc.. You can figure out what to eat. Just look around and read.

As you get stronger though, and start to build muscle, your body will require more fuel to maintain itself. If you have always been a skinny guy and never really had a problem with weight, you will probably have a hard time gaining much mass without having some insanely high intake numbers. Like, 300 - 350 grams of protein a day, 250-300 grams of carbs kind of numbers. You'll be looking at a 3000+ calorie diet composed of primarily protein and carbs more than likely to push yourself toward the build you are talking about.

The reality is... unless you want to be eating all day every day and working out the rest of the time, these kinds of goals are very hard to attain. I've tried. I used to do the math, hit the gym 5 days a week, etc.. It worked, I lost the weight, put on the muscle, then lost more weight. yup... LOST weight. Muscle burns much more energy than fat does, so as you put on more muscle, your body will require more energy. If you don't give it enough, it will take it. And, where it takes it from is often by breaking down muscle. Unfortunately. Tough cycle =/

Anyway, stick with it. The first 4-5 weeks are always the worst. Over the years, every time I get out of my workouts for several months (or a year), I usually find myself feeling like shit and I have to get back into it. The hard part is just DOING it.

You mentioned strength issues with your chest. I feel you there. I was always the guy putting 25 pound weights on the bar and that was it. Last year, I finally broke my first personal goal for chest - bench my body weight. Then, later that year, I broke my second goal - bench over 200 lbs. It's not much for most guys, but for me, it was the freaking gold medal. So....from one underdeveloped chested guy to another, I'll give you some pointers.

pointer 1: push-ups. Do multiple sets to failure and vary your arm width. Do sets with your hands at shoulder width apart, then 4 inches outside that, then out as far as you can go then do them with your hands as close together as you can do them. This will vary your range of motion and target areas and help produce greater overall upper body strength. Not to mention, push-ups are a great definer. However, don't do but myabe 1 or 2 sets of push-ups at the gym. Do them on a day off some night when you are at home. It is quick, easy to do, and it always helps me feel like, "hey, I did do SOME exercise today".

pointer 2: bench press. flat. with barbell. IF, you can get spotter. Don't risk anything. Else, bench press, flat, with dumbbells.

pointer 3: alternate between barbell and dumbbells. One chest workout use barbells, the next use dumbbells. This helps to keep both sides of your body working equally and it forces you to use those stabilizer muscles that don't always get hit on the barbells. Also, dumbbells give you greater range of motion, take advantage of that.

These aren't obviously the only exercises to do for chest, but for now, for solid strength building, this is enough. Later on, you can add Incline and Decline both on barbell and dumbbells and also add in Dips (with added weight if you need it).

Okay, I'm out of stuff to say again. You are right to give yourself a break by the way. You CAN get burned out, without a doubt. If you feel exhausted, or weak, or are HURTING, especially - take a break. Several days off won't kill you, or hurt your progress. Those muscles need time to heal and repair anyway.

Good luck with the workouts!

07-15-2005, 08:53 PM	#6 (permalink)
Spanxxx Psycho Location: Under my roof	I had to cut off earlier when I answered you, so I thought I'd drop a few more things in here. Remember that your body is rebuilding muscle every day, not just the one day you are working out. It is just as important to eat well the days following your workouts as it is on the days you actually do workout. In case you don't like Tuna, go for Turkey, Eggs, etc.. etc.. You can figure out what to eat. Just look around and read. As you get stronger though, and start to build muscle, your body will require more fuel to maintain itself. If you have always been a skinny guy and never really had a problem with weight, you will probably have a hard time gaining much mass without having some insanely high intake numbers. Like, 300 - 350 grams of protein a day, 250-300 grams of carbs kind of numbers. You'll be looking at a 3000+ calorie diet composed of primarily protein and carbs more than likely to push yourself toward the build you are talking about. The reality is... unless you want to be eating all day every day and working out the rest of the time, these kinds of goals are very hard to attain. I've tried. I used to do the math, hit the gym 5 days a week, etc.. It worked, I lost the weight, put on the muscle, then lost more weight. yup... LOST weight. Muscle burns much more energy than fat does, so as you put on more muscle, your body will require more energy. If you don't give it enough, it will take it. And, where it takes it from is often by breaking down muscle. Unfortunately. Tough cycle =/ Anyway, stick with it. The first 4-5 weeks are always the worst. Over the years, every time I get out of my workouts for several months (or a year), I usually find myself feeling like shit and I have to get back into it. The hard part is just DOING it. You mentioned strength issues with your chest. I feel you there. I was always the guy putting 25 pound weights on the bar and that was it. Last year, I finally broke my first personal goal for chest - bench my body weight. Then, later that year, I broke my second goal - bench over 200 lbs. It's not much for most guys, but for me, it was the freaking gold medal. So....from one underdeveloped chested guy to another, I'll give you some pointers. pointer 1: push-ups. Do multiple sets to failure and vary your arm width. Do sets with your hands at shoulder width apart, then 4 inches outside that, then out as far as you can go then do them with your hands as close together as you can do them. This will vary your range of motion and target areas and help produce greater overall upper body strength. Not to mention, push-ups are a great definer. However, don't do but myabe 1 or 2 sets of push-ups at the gym. Do them on a day off some night when you are at home. It is quick, easy to do, and it always helps me feel like, "hey, I did do SOME exercise today". pointer 2: bench press. flat. with barbell. IF, you can get spotter. Don't risk anything. Else, bench press, flat, with dumbbells. pointer 3: alternate between barbell and dumbbells. One chest workout use barbells, the next use dumbbells. This helps to keep both sides of your body working equally and it forces you to use those stabilizer muscles that don't always get hit on the barbells. Also, dumbbells give you greater range of motion, take advantage of that. These aren't obviously the only exercises to do for chest, but for now, for solid strength building, this is enough. Later on, you can add Incline and Decline both on barbell and dumbbells and also add in Dips (with added weight if you need it). Okay, I'm out of stuff to say again. You are right to give yourself a break by the way. You CAN get burned out, without a doubt. If you feel exhausted, or weak, or are HURTING, especially - take a break. Several days off won't kill you, or hurt your progress. Those muscles need time to heal and repair anyway. Good luck with the workouts! __________________ I think that's what they mean by "nickels a day can feed a child." I thought, "How could food be so cheap over there?" It's not, they just eat nickels. - (supposedly) Peter Nguyen, internet hero Last edited by Spanxxx; 07-15-2005 at 09:00 PM..