I've tried both working out chest and triceps together and triceps/biceps together. From my experience I prefer doing chest and triceps on different days (preferably a day in between) because you don't overwork the muscle. Like you said chest exercises involve a lot of tri work. I find my form is much better when I have the two split up. The only way for you to really know is to try it out for a week or two. My schedule is M,W,F since I don't have time and it is: Chest/Bi's Shoulders/Tri's Back/Legs
I picked up some Vibram Five Fingers, gave 'em a test run today, ran 2.33 miles at a decent clip. They really did replicate the feel of barefoot running. I had a much faster turnover rate when I was on a dirt path than the street, and even faster when on grass. Both my friend and I developed hot spots on our feet when running. I only got one, on the bottom left ball of my foot. Otherwise, I'd probably have put a few more miles in. I don't see what everyone meant when they said that they felt a lot of joint/ligament/calf pain when breaking them in, although maybe that's because I had good form to begin with. Anyone else have any thoughts on / experiences with VFF's?
Alright - question for your guys out there because I know there are some runners out there. I ran a half marathon last weekend in pretty shitty weather and since then, I suppose that i have shin splints (if an incredible pain in the lower inside of your shin is a shin splint). I think the problem has kind of been brewing for awhile since during my training runs I was having similar pain, but it wasn't quite as intense and would let up around 10 minutes in after I warmed up. So I have done everything right since then. Ibuprofen, ice, week off from running, deep tissue massage. So today I noticed that it is even more swollen (just got the deep tissue massage yesterday), but it doesn't really hurt with things like walking. So, would I be hurting the healing process if I did something like walking or the elliptical if it doesn't hurt it while I am doing it? Or should I just lay low and try again next week? I don't want to set myself back, but I kind of want to get off my ass. Oh, and on note with the post under mine, when I was just having the "minor" pain, I did some barefoot running on a track just for a couple of laps to humor a friend who swears by it, and it didn't hurt my shins at all. As soon as I put my shoes back on, pain was back. I may have to give those a try. They are just so funny looking.
Reposting from the drnk threaad cause thats what I do, yo. Homey. Word. Yo. That not withstanding, I'mma use this thread to glow just because I'm drunk and I need that. I hit a milestone in my workouts. Let me be frank- I got fat when I stopped playing ball. I ballooned up to somewhere around 280 at 6'6. I was around 230 when I was playing. I finally got tired of being a fat disgusting piece of shit, so I started getting after it on New Years. I didn't weigh before or after, but I now look and feel healthier than I did when I was playing ball. don't have any current pics, but I am now skinnier than this: That being said, the reason I am so excited is this: I just fit into my little brother's jeans. Here is my little brother, who is around 205: Yeah, he is a wide receiver- I was a tightend. I out weighed him anyway by 30-40 pounds when I was in good shape. But yeah, I just went from a 40+ waist to a 34-36 or so and I' just had to put that somehwhere. My bad yall. so yay but forgive me fro digressing!
Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor. That being said: Cross training is a great alternative to running for you right now, whether it be on the eliptical, swimming, rowing, biking, or whatever. Basically, if you have shin splints you want to be doing low impact activity primarily, and listening to your body. If it still hurts, you may need some time off. Bare foot running takes some time to get used to, but if it improves your form and takes away some pain, great. Just make sure to ease into it to avoid other injuries.
You should be perfectly fine doing elliptical or bike work, being that you're not really dealing with much impact. I would just stay away from any sort of running until your shin splints go away.
I went to the gym with a friend yesterday and we did chest/triceps. I upped the weight on my bench to a new high, I lifted 10 lbs more than I ever have before. I did a few sets, then did triceps afterwards. I'm sore today due to lifting the added weight. I was thinking of going to the gym later this afternoon because I'm going away for a couple of days and want to get another workout in (was thinking of doing biceps, maybe shoulders too) but should I not go if I'm sore? I usually lift every other day.
Being injured is one thing. Being sore is NEVER an excuse to not go to the gym. If your upper body is sore, what's wrong with squatting or deadlifting? Also, you should never have a workout dedicated to "biceps and shoulders". Every workout should be based on working a primary lift (press, squat, or deadlift) or a major muscle group. Biceps, deltoids, calves, etc are NOT major muscle groups. All of those get worked after your main workout. You have to have your meat and potatoes before you can have your gravy.
Let me preface this post by stating that I am a skinny fuck. I am 6' 3'' and 155 pounds on a good day. I am hoping to hit 165 and stay around there. This isn't to say that I am not athletic. I played varsity soccer since freshman year at my high school and now as a sophomore in college, not playing playing a sport has gotten me terribly out of shape. I have never worked out in my life until recently. I was wondering how I can couple a workout routine with good eating to attempt to gain weight. My usual diet during the week isn't too great since I am in college and have a huge meal plan with little to no extra cash on the side. I usually eat a bagel with cream cheese for breakfast, two plates of food during lunch (never burgers or fries, usually consists of a meat, two veggies and a roll or something and a wrap), and the same for dinner. I have found it is tough to get enough protein in, and I hate forcing myself to eat more food to try to gain weight, which is what I have been doing. I started the p90x system 4 weeks ago, and while it is pretty demanding, I can finish everything but the yoga (an hour and half of complete boredom. I usually check out around 45 mins in) without throwing up or having to stop midway. I am planning on continuing it because I feel like I am getting stronger, but I am not gaining and weight at all. If anyone has any experience with a good workout/eating program to gain weight, let me know. I figure I might try that skinny bastard program after I am done with p90x if I don't gain the weight I want from p90. Thanks.
If you want to bulk up, P90X is not the way to go. From the sounds of it, you're not taking in very many calories to begin with. Sticking with a program like p90x or cultfit is only going to burn calories. In order to gain weight, you need to eat more calories than you burn. It's a simple premise, but it's often overlooked. If you're only looking to bulk up, you have to cut out most of the cardio and high-calorie burning exercises. Stick to a basic weightlifting program like 5 x 5 with an emphasis on bench, squat, and deadlift. You also need to eat more. Eat a bigger breakfast and start loading on the carbs. Eat more than you ever have. Eat until you're tired. Bulking isn't pretty. If you're serious about it, go to <a class="postlink" href="http://www.nutritiondata.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">www.nutritiondata.com</a> and keep a journal of every calorie you put in your mouth for a week. Then, increase it by 50% daily.
Just an FYI to the uninformed (like me 6 months ago) 5 x 5 means 5 sets of 5 reps for each workout. Question for lhprop1, is 5 x 5 really ideal for gaining weight, I would think that the MBP rep range would be better for pure muscle gain since the high rep sets break down the muscle more... maybe I'm just underestimating how much more hypertrophy occurs when you do 5 sets of 5 rather than 3 sets of 5. And I can personally testify to the comment on focusing on squat, deadlift and press. I was an isolation type of guy back in college and did my chest/tris back/bis workouts and gained probably 15 pounds of muscle in two years. I started Mike Gill's program last October, put on 20 pounds in 12 weeks and lost a noticeable amount of fat from doing just 9 or less sets per day 4 to 5 times a week (granted I was so fat that I would have lost some doing ANYTHING). And not to be a broken record, but yeah, eat... a lot. If you're not putting on serious muscle from squats and deadlifts, you're not a "hard gainer," you're just not eating enough.
I'm finding it hard to gain weight. I've gotten a lot stronger in the past four months but have only put on about 8 lbs. I find I get really tired or feel like shit when I eat a lot, so I'm trying to find foods dense with calories. Thinking of making banana bread and eating that every morning along with cereal to get 1000 calories in breakfast. Apparently you're supposed to soak almonds in water before eating? I just read about this; I think they're easier to digest or something. Do people do that here? I know it has to be raw almonds and you can soak them overnight, so I may try that too. I can't eat too many almonds a day, but they do have a ton of calories.
MBP is an excellent program and probably exactly what the poster should follow. With 5 x 5, I was just giving an example of one of the many strength based routines available. For those of you not familiar with it, here is the original MBP. <a class="postlink" href="http://www.instrength.com/forum/showthread.php?t=116" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.instrength.com/forum/showthread.php?t=116</a>
Have you ever had problems digesting almonds in the past? I didn't think so. Soaking them in water is just some stupid new-age hippie bullshit.
Use an online calorie counter, they're essential if you really want to put on weight. When you're eating all day you'll be full, and you'll think you're eating enough, when you'll actually be 500-1000 calories short. The counter will prevent this. Every morning I eat something along the lines of: 4 Poached eggs 1/2 cup of oatmeal (from the tub, not those shitty instant packets with dinosaur facts on the side) w/milk instead of water 16 oz glass of OJ 16 oz glass of 2% milk It ends up being a little high on the fat side and shortish on protein, but the protein can easily be made up throughout the day and the fat keeps you fuller for a longer period of time. Before I changed my eating habits I used to feel like shit after eating breakfast, now the first thing I do when I wake up is eat breakfast and I feel great all day. All in all it's around 975 good calories in one meal, and if you really need to get over the 1k mark just sub whole milk in for the 2%.
That's an awesome, cheap breakfast, and if you don't have time for making poached eggs in the morning you can always do hard boiled eggs a day or two before and eat them later. I'd also add some fruit and nuts to the oatmeal to make it taste better and add extra calories and fiber. If your primary goal is muscle gain and you don't have any problems digesting milk you should make it a point to drink whole milk instead of 2,1 or skim every chance you get for the extra calories. The fact that it delivers the vitamins better than 2% and less milk is a nice little bonus.
Three of my friends are about to start "cycles" of the following supplements (each one is taking a different one): Cellucor P6, Sus 500, and "Supremacy". Does anyone know anything about the merits/dangers/effects of these?
100% complete and total waste of money. You'll get more benefit by spending your cash on eggs, tuna, or steak. For that matter, you'll get more benefit to your body by spending that money on beer. If they really want to give their money away, I can mix a bunch of shit together, make ridiculous claims, and collect their money.
Thanks for the replies. I was wondering more about this 5x5 program you were talking about. I guess 5 near my max 5 times? For squats, bench, dead lift, ??? what else? I guess I can go look up some stuff online...but I was hoping you could explain a bit more.