[photo]9496[/photo]
Hey guys and gals,
That was me above, sometime about 6 or 7 months ago. I am 6’3" and was about ~175lb. Current photos are at the bottom.
This is my first post on T-Nation and I am very impress by the community here. I’ve visited other bodybuilding forums on the net but this is by far the most active I’ve been on. I’m hoping to get some feedback on my progress and also any recommendations from the numerous experienced community members here.
If you are a newbie as well, please do not hesitate to dish out some knowledge if you have some.
I got into weight training while recovering from an ankle injury 6 months ago, which completely immobilized me from completing my early morning runs. I ran about 5 miles each morning 6 days a week to keep my fitness level in peak shape. After about a month diddling in my partial apartment gym (nothing but a stationary bike and broken multi-system weight machine), i joined my office’s small fitness center. It was great at first, as I was only conditioning my muscle for weight training.
I started with low weight dumbbells for most workouts and increased the weights by 5 lbs each week. I followed a similar patterns on machines as well. After a 1 1/2 months, i reached the max weight levels there and I was beginning to get frustrated with the variety of the workouts I was capable of performing in the fitness center.
So, I joined another gym. A real gym with a real weight rack, multiple benches, squat, bikes, cables and more. This is when I really starting to weight train and not simply conditioning. That was about 4 months ago.
I started with full body 5 days week, but as my intensity increased, so did the post workout soreness. It’s one thing to feel the effects of a great workout session the next day, but it’s quite awful to walk around all week long with muscle pain. Getting up after sitting for an hour was a chore. I didn’t give my body a chance to recover, so about 2 months ago, I decided to split up my workouts.
I implemented a new program which alternates between upper and lower body workouts each day, for 5 days a week. I completely recover by the time I hit each respected muscle group again. I reserved Monday, Wednesday and Fridays for upper body (arms, chest, upper back, shoulder etc) and Tuesdays and Thursdays for lower body (legs, lower back). I do about 15 minutes of cardio each day prior to my weight lifting session (if I don’t do this, I don’t feel energized during my workout). I also try to do the abs each day, but realistically, I maybe complete a full ab workout maybe 3 times a week.
Recently however, I’ve added Saturday as a leg day. I felt guilty about not working the legs as often as do the upper body.
As far as nutrition is concerned, for the last 2 years I had a partial vegetarian diet. I ate fish once in a while, but since I started my weight training program, I ate more and more and then my primal desire for steak and chicken came back. I think i came back to the light during thanksgiving when my mom prepared mutton. I just couldn’t resist, plus I thought about it quite a lot while brainstorming workout plans. I know fundamentally, if I want to see great gains, I shouldn’t restrict beneficial foods from my diet.
A cow for example and most other animals that are vegetarians must eat constantly during their waking hours because the low nutrient density of most plants. Meat on the other hand, is concentrated goodness.
While i was vegging out though, I ate tuna and salmon and took protein supplements. I tried soybean based supplements at first, but as it was more expensive than whey, eventually my jewish side reasoned it in favor of whey. Now I’m taking GNC brand whey protein. I still only intake about 100g of it a day though. I’ve been gaining fat while bulking and I really think I might gain a lot more fat if I take too much of that stuff. Since I only workout for about 1 hour each day, I doubt I really need 1.5 to 2g per body weight in protein. What do you think?
Although I am in a bulking phase, i am really concerned about fat gain and have been using the stationary bike in the fitness center at work. I do about 35-40 minutes of low intensity stuff( the fat burning range), 5 days a week. Do you think it will impact my muscle gains?
Just to recap, I work out for 1 hour each morning Mondays through Saturday.
3 days upper
3 days lower
15 minute pre workout cardio, 6 days a week
35-40 minute low intensity stationary bike, 5 days a week (before lunch)
Here are some photos of me from tonight. My last weigh in was at 217.
[photo]9497[/photo]
[photo]9498[/photo]
[photo]9499[/photo]
[photo]9500[/photo]
