My Plan - Input Requested

Bigger Stronger Leaner Competitive Bodybuilding
1

well…I have not even gone to the gym or seriously worked out since freshman year of high school and now I am a senior and I am beginning to wake up to the fact that I am out of shape and would like to build a better me.

My stats:
17 years old, high school senior

165 lbs

6’0" tall

(I wish I had a digital camera so I could take pictures of myself, but my budget wont allow for it.)
I have a good amount of fat on my stomach and chest, as these are the most underworked areas of my body.
My back is fairly developed from hiking and carrying drums for the past four fall seasons.

My legs are strong as compared to the rest of my body. I could max the leg press machine (I know this is not a true measure of leg strength, but for what its worth it was 400) at my school when I was a freshman and my legs have only gotten stronger from playing ice hockey and tennis the past four years.
My forearms are also “developed”. They are very lean, however I feel that they are very strong for their size (been drumming since I was 9).

I have been reading a lot of the other posts on this forum and have learned some things about being a newbie, however I would feel more comfortable if people personally made suggestions as to what my workouts should be.

My ultimate goal for the next few years is to weigh around 170-190, with hardly any body fat (have a good physique with sizeable strength and without bulk aka. have “cut” muscles and be able to see a defined stomach)…I know that in some peoples eyes on this site, as it is a bodybuilding site, it is a cardinal sin to want to lean and have a shapely body, however I am bracing for the worst of criticisms.

I have no baseline stats on what are my maxes or anything like that, so lets just assume that I’m starting from scratch.

I would like to lean out at first to about 155-150 to lose body fat before I start to build muscle, as I have read the lifting and then leaning out will degenerate the muscle you worked for.

I really need a workout program that can be undertaken about 3-4 times per week that will allow me to burn fat for the first few weeks. Im open to any suggestions as to how I should go about doing this.

After I reach what I feel should be my base weight (again 155-150), I would like a program that will allow me to build muscle, however I do not want to get into the business of powerlifting (no offense to anyone who does, I respect and admire what you can do with your bodies, however I feel that it is just not for me). I have looked at Bill Starr’s 5x5 and GVT and they seem to be programs which I would be interested in undertaking, and possibly alternating between. Again I am open to an suggestions on routines.

Thanks for your help.

2

That leg press is not quite really that much, but I wont drag on that. I wouldn’t worry about leaning out. When you gain muscle, it uses up more energy then fat, so it will break some of that fat down. And if you start to try and lose fat now, you will probably end up losing muscle, and that is not one thing you want to do.

You may want to check out some of Chad Waterbury’s workouts. They are generally total-body and work better for beginners than split training. That is just my opinion though.

3

yeah i looked at a few of his programs and they seem to be something i can see myself undertaking and possibly incorporating into other routines

thanks for the help

4

What do you mean no powerlifting? I bet you will want to do some after you start weight training again. It is fun to watch your progress grow and beat other people.

5

After reading your post I was shaking my head at several of the things you had said, but don’t worry, we’ll get you lined out sooner or later. :slight_smile:

I was about to tell you to go read Vroom’s beginner’s thread at the top of the beginner’s forum, and then I decided to go read it again myself. Seriously, there’s some good shit in there, so GO READ IT!!!

http://www.T-Nation.com/readTopic.do?id=640350 (Maybe one of the mods could turn this into a hyperlink since I don’t know how)

6

You’re on a hockey team and they don’t have a lifting program?

Anyway, forget about cutting weight - start lifting heavy and getting lots of protein, veggies and healthy fats and you’ll hit your target in no time at all. You’re 17 and still growing - the bulking and cutting thing won’t really be applicable for a few more years.

7

yeah unfortunately we dont and preseason all we did was calisthenics and running, so basically all cardio

8

i picked up some CLA and green tea extract pills to help my metabolism the other day…just wondering if these are cool to use without any chance of negative side effects.

after reading everyone elses posts about cutting, being as green as i am, i realized that i should have to drop weight from the get go…in the future once my body changes a bit, then I can make that decision when the time comes.

i have selected two workout programs which i feel will give me the most benefits as a newbie (they are outlined elsewhere on T-Nation)…both programs were written by Chad Waterbury and they are as follows:

Total-Body Training
SOB Training

input on which i should choose or other options would be cool

9

I wouldn’t say you need to raise your metabolism, it should be fast as enough. If you have a higher metabolism, that means your going to have to eat even more to gain weight. You might want to start with something basic such as ABBH, many people have reported great results.

Maybe squats and milk will work for you, thats another good program that is supposed to jump start noobies. Just make sure you have good form.

10

You’re a beginner and a teenager, right now if you get your shit together, you can enjoy a period of a couple months where you can eat a caloric surplus and gain muscle, but you will still lose some of that “out of shape” fat.

Don’t hamper your own progress by under-eating because you are worried about being cut. You’ll lose fat just by starting to train.

11

You are in almost the exact same spot I was in as a senior in high school. Same height, same weight. Heck, I was a couple pounds lighter than you are now. I also was skinny fat. But I didn’t play many sports (except baseball, and basketball, my two favs.), mostly just video games. And Let me tell you, this site made all the difference in the world. I found it after a few weeks on bodybuilding.com forums, through a google search for something. I never looked back. It’s made a world of difference.

Total body trainiing is a great program for you. So is ABBH. Take your pick. From my personal experience, you need to eat a lot more, and eat every 2-3 hours. But make it healthy food. The more muscle you have on you the better you will look, and the less skinny-fat. I have a hunch as long as you eat healthy food, lots of protein, fiber, veggies, natural stuff and fewer grains, you will drop a bit of fat along the way in the first 4-8 weeks. Newbie gains are wonderful. You can’t flex bone man.

Also, you should know that in order to carry 190 lb of lean muscle mass on you at 10% bf, you’re going to have to shoot for 210 lb. Considering that you are probably carrying less than 145 lb of muscle now, that is not a small task, so don’t train like it’s a small goal and easily obtainable. I take it you want more the sprinter’s physique, as I did when I started. 200-210 and extremely lean will be about right for that at your height. Btw, there are plenty of athletic looking powerlifters, just so you know. They’re not all heavyweights.

The best thing I did for my long term progress was to read everything, all the time. I have read every single article in the T-Nation archives, almost all of the articles on elitefts.com, many of the westside-barbell.com articles, and a bunch of others as well as books, manuals, templates, and the Weightlifting Encyclopedia by Arthur Dreschler. The wider a perspective you have, the less likely you are to get stuck for long periods of time. My advice to you is to read.

12

[quote]Aragorn wrote:
You are in almost the exact same spot I was in as a senior in high school. Same height, same weight. Heck, I was a couple pounds lighter than you are now. I also was skinny fat. But I didn’t play many sports (except baseball, and basketball, my two favs.), mostly just video games. And Let me tell you, this site made all the difference in the world. I found it after a few weeks on bodybuilding.com forums, through a google search for something. I never looked back. It’s made a world of difference.

Total body trainiing is a great program for you. So is ABBH. Take your pick. From my personal experience, you need to eat a lot more, and eat every 2-3 hours. But make it healthy food. The more muscle you have on you the better you will look, and the less skinny-fat. I have a hunch as long as you eat healthy food, lots of protein, fiber, veggies, natural stuff and fewer grains, you will drop a bit of fat along the way in the first 4-8 weeks. Newbie gains are wonderful. You can’t flex bone man.

Also, you should know that in order to carry 190 lb of lean muscle mass on you at 10% bf, you’re going to have to shoot for 210 lb. Considering that you are probably carrying less than 145 lb of muscle now, that is not a small task, so don’t train like it’s a small goal and easily obtainable. I take it you want more the sprinter’s physique, as I did when I started. 200-210 and extremely lean will be about right for that at your height. Btw, there are plenty of athletic looking powerlifters, just so you know. They’re not all heavyweights.

The best thing I did for my long term progress was to read everything, all the time. I have read every single article in the T-Nation archives, almost all of the articles on elitefts.com, many of the westside-barbell.com articles, and a bunch of others as well as books, manuals, templates, and the Weightlifting Encyclopedia by Arthur Dreschler. The wider a perspective you have, the less likely you are to get stuck for long periods of time. My advice to you is to read.[/quote]

I like this guys post, especially the last paragraph.

13

Ok…so

Tennis season began two weeks ago and I have practice every day after school until about 6:00. I work really hard, as I need to make varsity this year as a senior. On days that we cannot make it out on the courts we are conditioning inside through running and various ab workouts and push ups, etc.

Once I find out if I made the team or not, it will be the first week in April, our spring break. Then matches begin and practice is more laid back and we focus more on our game than conditioning. It is during this week that I plan on finally getting around to actually joining a gym and the one that I will be going to is decent, but the price is right (firefighter discount).

Also during this week I think that I will begin the 7 healthy eating habits outlined elsewhere on this site. I know that I should have done so already, but I think that this week off from school to refocus my attentions will be the perfect time.

Any suggestions on specific diets that I can hold down as a student without breaking the bank and going to the extreme would be nice and I will also look on the site here.

I will keep updating this post or create a new one to post my results and training log active.

14

any diet suggestions?