General Workout Routines and Questions

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Pako
That is an amazing amount of protein. I am struggling to hit 220g. I would like to be at 250-300g per day to put on some growth. Keeping in mind I am at 245-250 lbs. What are you guys doing for your protein?

Currently my diet is:
Breakfast:
1/4 cup of dry grits
6 egg whites

Lunch:
Sandwich with 10-12oz of chicken or turkey meat, wholewheat breat.
Protein Shake 1.5-2 scoops

Dinner:
Two large chicken breasts and brown rice or Quinou.
If cardio that night, another protein shake.

That puts me at about 220g I think of protein....

I am interested to see what you guys are doing.

Lol I hate that I eat more than you but weigh substantially less. My breakfast is similar only I do a full cup oats, with 3egg whites and 3 full eggs.
 
Haters gonna hate! :D

Are you guys all eating mid lunch and mid dinner meals also?
 
That is an amazing amount of protein. I am struggling to hit 220g. I would like to be at 250-300g per day to put on some growth. Keeping in mind I am at 245-250 lbs. What are you guys doing for your protein?

Currently my diet is:
Breakfast:
1/4 cup of dry grits
6 egg whites

Lunch:
Sandwich with 10-12oz of chicken or turkey meat, wholewheat breat.
Protein Shake 1.5-2 scoops

Dinner:
Two large chicken breasts and brown rice or Quinou.
If cardio that night, another protein shake.

That puts me at about 220g I think of protein....

I am interested to see what you guys are doing.
Keep in mind I am an ectomorph (hardgainer) so I need to eat a LOT to gain anything at all. Everyone is different. I HIGHLY recommend Casein before you go to bed. I have had some amazing results doing that. Its slow release protein while you sleep and the taste is incredible. I have posted several times aobut it. Highly recommend Casein before bed. Especially if you are not getting enough calories or protein. Tastes delicious too. Another way you can cheat is with powdered milk. You can make that with just about anything and its very easy calories and protein. Another helpful hint is to buy frozen egg whites in bulk. I buy mine from GFS and its much cheaper than anywhere else. Takes a few days to thaw out but can easily be added to anything you eat. Also buy frozen fruit like strawberries, blueberries, or blackberries. Much cheaper and very convenient.

So here is my current food intake EVERY day. Ranging between 6-7 meals a day. Some food varies between fish, steak, pork, and chicken. But this gives you a basic idea.

This is around 3,500 calories and 240 g of protein per day. About 7 meals. I tweak this a little each week.

7:00 am
1/2 cup Oatmeal
3-4 Egg whites or about 1/2 cup (sometimes more)
1/4 cup Raisins
Milk 1 cup
1/2 cup orange juice with multi-vitamin and Vitamin C

10:00 am
Protein 1-2 scoops
Milk 2 cups or about 8oz
Sometimes cottage cheese or yogurt

12:00 pm
Microwave pasta meal
Fruit Cup
1 or 2 hard boiled eggs

3:00 pm pre workout
1 can Tuna
White Rice white 1/2-1 cup
1/2 - 1 cup Cottage Cheese or Yogurt
Frozen Strawberries 4 - 5

5:30 workout for about an hour supersetting almost everything

6:30 pm post workout
1/2 glass grape juice with 1 tsp mono creatine
Protein 1 - 2 scoops
Milk 1-2 cups or 4-8 oz
Banana

7:30 pm
Rice brown 1 cup
About 1 Chicken breast
Vegetables

10:30 pm before bed
Casein 1-2 scoops
Milk 1-2 cups or 4-8 oz
 
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I eat like you, Pako.

Breakfast: 2-3 eggs, toast, turkey sausage.

Post-workout: Banana, 2 scoops protein mixed with 12oz 2% milk

Snack: 2 servings oatmeal mixed with 1tbsp peanut butter

Dinner: lots of meat and veggies. (usually chicken, sometimes salmon or whatever is around)



But then I'm cutting weight. I get 190-210g protein/day. Trying to stay at about 1900 calories.
 
So any advice for someone that's 5'6" & 127lbs and dropping, on bulking up a bit and doing it without a gym membership? Tight budget and $150/mo on chiropractor appointments for the next 5 months prevents me from going to the gym. I have access to one of those pull-up bars you hook onto a door frame, and can get weights fairly cheap for use at home if needed.

Food is fairly hard as I can barely cook, been living off things I believe to be fairly healthy but are easy to prepare like pre-packaged stir-fry, etc. Not looking to be a body builder, just add 5-10lbs or so of muscle after I drop a few pounds of the mid-section fat...
 
If you're not looking to join a gym the best thing you could do at home would be simple body weight excercises. Things such as Press Ups, Sit Ups, Squats, Jumping Jacks, Burpess and Planks - and many more. A pull up bar is always useful too if you can get your hands on one of them.

They're all pretty effective and there's tonnes of varietys of each, so you shouldn't get bored doing them, or atleast I don't.

I'm not that knowledgeable when it comes to muscle gain, as I'm more used to lengthy cardio and short, fast paced fat burning sessions. I'm sure there's a good few people here that would be able to tell you a lot more than I.
 
That might go a little more towards my goal. Honestly just looking at being 'fit' with some extra attention to upper body strength. So far this month I've cut down on sweets and eliminated soda from my diet and with no other changes have dropped 3 pounds.
 
YES!! I am making gains again!!! Based on my 3,500 calories and 240 grams of protein per day from post #1,023, I finally started gaining weight again. Put on over 2 lbs this week!! So now I am 182 lbs heading back up to my goal of 190 lbs. :)

It looks like 3,500 calories and 240 grams of protein is almost perfect for my bulking routine. Took a few weeks to dial in but those seem to be the magic numbers for my bulk routine. As long as I keep the 6 pack abs and keep gaining weight then this is working perfect again. :)
 
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Interesting stuff about your diets... Here's mine:

Breakfast: ~300 gramms of cereals with a litre of milk. I know cereals aren't great, but I detest most other stuff for breakfast.

Lunch: 400 gramms of salmon and 350 gramms of spinach.

Pre-Workout: Protein shake, two scoops.

Post-Workout: Creatin, 3 gramms (roughly).

Dinner: Same as lunch.

That's about 3,100 kalories and about 200 gramms of protein, which has been working well for me, so far. I might start to substitute the cereals for something else (even though I don't like it... Probably joghurt or something). Also, the fish comes with some nice cheese sauce, which, while tasty, is also pretty fatty. I might go back to plain salmon if I need to cut some calories from my died.

I feel pretty good about myself at the moment, though! I fully recommend spinach, by the way. Super low amount of calories and, in relation to how little calories it has, even an okay-ish amount of preotein. Plus loads of nitrates that are, seemingly, good for building muscle.

In other news, I've finally started to do some proper leg work, despite all the darn issues with my legs. I'm currently doing three to four sets of ten to twelf reps at 450 lbs on the leg press. Better than I expected.
 
So I also participate regularly in a more sports-centered forum and in their version of GTP's Rumble Strip (The Locker Room), we have a Fitness & Nutrition section.

This site is very loosely moderated (basically, they only ban spambots... so if reading foul language is a problem for you, stay away), with the exception that the F&N area is pretty much free of trolling. A few of us have our own threads and we track our progress. The moderator of this section is just getting into competitive powerlifting.

Anyways, if any of you are interested, the site is www.virtualsportsnetwork.com/forum and you will have to get a minimum of like 5 or 10 posts before access is allowed to the Locker Room. You will all be welcomed and newcomers aren't really trolled until they've been around awhile (try not to scare you off and make you realize it's all just jokes.)

I track my lifting there, so if you join, check out my tracking thread. 👍
 
Ok, well... I managed to hit 280g of Protein today. I will finish off the night with a casien shake that will put me over 300g which is where I want to be. I bought some non-sweetened frozen fruit and berries to blend with my noon and evening shakes with a double scoop of protein. My system seems to be digesting it ok. If I had the runs, or really bad gas, I would take it as too much wasted protein, but all seems to be holding together good.

In other news, had a killer leg day today.

Hip sled was awesome, slow, deep, controlled:
65 x20
265 x20
465 x20
665 x20
865 x20
1045 x20
1225 x20
1405 x10
1585 x10

Then over to the smith rack for barbell lunges.
95x10 per leg
135x10 per leg
185x10 per leg

finished off with a super set of leg extensions and partial leg press back to back pegged the rack for each.

Lets got destroyed today.

I tried to run my 2 miles tonight but that was a no go. Quads were too crampy. I did my 2 miles at a 3.8mph up hill at a slight grade though. It was a good, intense day today! 👍
 
Cardio on leg day?

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:P


With regards to protein, i'd say what's more important is that you are getting enough carbs and calories along with. Many of the worlds heaviest lifters eat enough protein but loads of calories. Look at the paleo guys, few carbs, pretty much all their energy is from protein - and they are tiny because of it.
 
Cardio on leg day?

:P


With regards to protein, i'd say what's more important is that you are getting enough carbs and calories along with. Many of the worlds heaviest lifters eat enough protein but loads of calories. Look at the paleo guys, few carbs, pretty much all their energy is from protein - and they are tiny because of it.

LOL, I know, I know.... For what it's worth my heart rate never got above 120 so it wasn't cardio, but just a good fat burning session. ;)

I'm trying to make sure I have plenty of carbs to help. Grits in the morning, wholewheat breads at lunch, brown rice and quinoa at dinner time. Just trying to find a good balance that works. I have been at 250-ish for some time and am trying to put on more muscle mass while I'm trying to lean out a bit.
 
How are you finding running, in general? People think i'm crazy for running, but you have 30-40lbs on me!

Do you know how many calories you're taking in a day? I'm currently eating around 4000-4500kcal and a little over 200g of protein per day, across 6 sittings.

My body will not let me build muscle and drop fat at the same time. I have to bulk and then cut, which isn't a huge deal as I think I prefer it that way.
 
It's been three weeks since I've been to the gym. It was closed for spring break, and the weeks before and after I've just been getting hammered with exams.

Anyway, I'm going tomorrow because I totally feel like crap. I can't believe what a night and day difference it makes just to move some weight two, three days a week.
 
In general, running hurts me. It has been a great process and I'm only in my 5th week and can just now run a 2 mile stretch in 22 minutes without stopping. That is HUGE for me. My wind sucks but it's getting better and it's helping me on the more intense lifting days. I really don't want to run too much until I can get a few more pounds off of me. It's just hard on the shins and knees. As much as it sucks, I am enjoy it though. It's a bit like pushing a cinder block down the street but it's getting better as my steps are getting lighter. :)

Well, before I changed things up, I was starving myself at around 1600-2000 calories when I wasn't eating right. I just recently added breakfast and lunch. TERRIBLE eating habits but I'm trying to change that. I have no idea on my cal intake now. I would think around 2500-3000 on a good day.

It's been three weeks since I've been to the gym. It was closed for spring break, and the weeks before and after I've just been getting hammered with exams.

Anyway, I'm going tomorrow because I totally feel like crap. I can't believe what a night and day difference it makes just to move some weight two, three days a week.

Oh man, everyone in my house hold knows if I haven't been to the gym. It does make a difference. I took 2011 completely off from lifting, etc, just to see if I would have less aches and pains. Turns out I hurt worse and only got fat. :lol:

Stick with it man, the high is free! :D
 
I can't believe what a night and day difference it makes just to move some weight two, three days a week.

As Pako said, get on it and stay on it!

I can't describe how totally different I feel to when I very first started lifting. It sounds ridiculous but now that i'm running too, I feel superhuman!

Missing a workout ruins my day. When I had to take a few weeks off because I ripped my palm open I was grumpy dawn 'til dusk.

It has been a great process and I'm only in my 5th week and can just now run a 2 mile stretch in 22 minutes without stopping. That is HUGE for me.

That's awesome. Once you get that base level of fitness down, you'll progress fast. Pretty sure you're doing better than I was at a similar point, and you weigh more. I guess i'm not trying hard enough :P

I was starving myself at around 1600-2000 calories

:eek:
 
Did chest and shoulders today because I forgot my pants (heh heh). Had to bench in jeans and just did raises, etc, afterwards. Feels great.

Only problem I have is that I love to drink IPA after hard workouts.
 
Ok, well... I managed to hit 280g of Protein today. I will finish off the night with a casien shake that will put me over 300g which is where I want to be. I bought some non-sweetened frozen fruit and berries to blend with my noon and evening shakes with a double scoop of protein. My system seems to be digesting it ok. If I had the runs, or really bad gas, I would take it as too much wasted protein, but all seems to be holding together good.

In other news, had a killer leg day today.

Hip sled was awesome, slow, deep, controlled:
65 x20
265 x20
465 x20
665 x20
865 x20
1045 x20
1225 x20
1405 x10
1585 x10

Then over to the smith rack for barbell lunges.
95x10 per leg
135x10 per leg
185x10 per leg

finished off with a super set of leg extensions and partial leg press back to back pegged the rack for each.

Lets got destroyed today.

I tried to run my 2 miles tonight but that was a no go. Quads were too crampy. I did my 2 miles at a 3.8mph up hill at a slight grade though. It was a good, intense day today! 👍
Thats awesome Pako! Glad you tried some of the suggestions and ideas I put in post #1023. And even happier they are working for you. 👍 Hopefully you purchased the ON chocolate Casein and have it with milk. That stuff is like a thick milkshake before bed. I love it!

I feel a little weird posting this but since Pako listed his bm I know some of you have to be wondering about mine. In my previous post #1023 I listed my current intake of about 3,500 calories and 240g of protein per day for my bulk intake. I am sure some of you might be wondering how many bms I have per day. The answer is about 1 bm per day. If I was having more or less than that then I would have to adjust my diet. More fiber, less fiber, more protein, less protein. But so far its working perfect right now.

I cant wait to weigh myself tomorrow and post my results on Monday. Hopefully gained at least 1 more lb this week. I also ordered more Casein and protein. This time I went with the 5lb container instead of just buying 2 lb over and over again.

My body will not let me build muscle and drop fat at the same time. I have to bulk and then cut, which isn't a huge deal as I think I prefer it that way.
Thats how it is with almost everyone in the world. You usually either have to bulk OR cut. Its really dang near impossible to gain muscle without gaining at least a little bit of fat too. Cutting while bulking is even more difficult.
 
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Thats awesome Pako! Glad you tried some of the suggestions and ideas I put in post #1023. And even happier they are working for you. 👍 Hopefully you purchased the ON chocolate Casein and have it with milk. That stuff is like a thick milkshake before bed. I love it!

I feel a little weird posting this but since Pako listed his bm I know some of you have to be wondering about mine. In my previous post #1023 I listed my current intake of about 3,500 calories and 240g of protein per day for my bulk intake. I am sure some of you might be wondering how many bms I have per day. The answer is about 1 bm per day. If I was having more or less than that then I would have to adjust my diet. More fiber, less fiber, more protein, less protein. But so far its working perfect right now.

I cant wait to weigh myself tomorrow and post my results on Monday. Hopefully gained at least 1 more lb this week. I also ordered more Casein and protein. This time I went with the 5lb container instead of just buying 2 lb over and over again.


Thats how it is with almost everyone in the world. You usually either have to bulk OR cut. Its really dang near impossible to gain muscle without gaining at least a little bit of fat too. Cutting while bulking is even more difficult.

I do have the ON Chocolate Cake Batter Casein, have had it since last winter, but never regularly used it. I am trying to stay on a steady regiment every night. I will need to order more soon. I have been mixing it with water and I am cutting my dairy consumption down, not dumping it completely, but just cutting back.

As far as BM's, what? :lol: I don't remember sharing my experience, but I have no doubt I did, I guess.... I will say I am pretty healthy in that regard. :D

Not sure if cutting fat and gaining muscle at the same time is possible or not, but my main concern is loosing lean body fat in the process. I've heard too many peeps taking a acceptable loss of muscle mass to drop to the weight they are going for. I want to at least maintain where I am at, but certainly don't want to go backwards on muscle. I've worked too dang hard for where I'm at, though I think at 225lbs I would look pretty damn ripped I think, so that is my goal. I'm down 10 with just another 20 to go. Who knows, maybe 185 is in my future, but I don't want to give up gains for that sub-200lb mark.

Just gotta keep at it and see what works best. :)

:cheers:
 
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Gonna buy some new supplements soon... I think I'm gonna try Casein. Head good things about it.

/edit: Oh, yeah. Friend of mine in a nutshell:

Friday: "This is so frsutrating, working out isn't getting us nowhere and the diet isn't working either!"
Saturday: "Nah, I'll rather play Battlefield than go work out. Gonna have KFC too, wanna come over?"

Note the "us" in the first sentence.
 
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Well, working out should take 45 minutes. Battle field takes 6+hours sooooo. Workout first then game the night away. Of course, of its an intense workout, going to bed early is completely acceptable and beneficial. ;)
 
That's my order of priorities as well 👍

I just can't stand the mentality to complain about something not working when it's entirely up to one's own actions. And blaming others for it.
 
It's the same for the guys who go to the gym and workout for 2-3 hours, but eat nothing, the only dietary change they make is two servings of protein powder per day, and then they say to me that I must have been working out for a decade to be this big.

I guess that's broscience for you!
 
Today was leg/back day, ewwwww. I always feel totally wasted after doing some squats...:scared:

250 lbs hack-squats 10 reps 3 stints
280 lbs tip-toe squats 12 reps 4 stints
280 lbs shrugs 10 reps 4 stints

I wish I could do deadlifts but since I had problems with my lower back I'm scared of doing them again. I think I'm still not doing them correctly and I'd rather want to avoid permanent back damage. Hack squats will have to do for now.

Does any illnesses stop you guys from doing your regular routine?
Last time I was ill was 4.5 years ago, had the flu. I remember I started to exercise again right after I was free from fever and after only two sets of preacher biceps curls I was sweating like a rain cloud.
The next day I felt fabulous.
 
Legs AND back on the same day? Dang man, that is some endurance! My old gym had a hack squat machine. I really miss it the quad isolation it had. I get similar results on smith squats, but still, miss the hack!

As far as deads, try partial deads where you aren't going all the way through the floor. If you think of a dead lift, it really is two different lifts. the first half is legs, mainly ham string (really good for hams actually), and the second half is back. If you want to just isolate the back, try partials using spot rails for example. Have and experienced lifter in the gym show you proper technique. Main thing is to keep from rounding out your back. If anything, reverse arch your back, keeping your shoulders back, lats tight, and pivot at the waist, never breaking form. Also make sure your core strength good, practice lots of situps and other ab workouts to help strengthen your back.

Speaking of back day, my pull ups are improving. Up to 3 sets of 15 now. This is huge for me, by the way. It was a great preload to narrow grip pull downs and seated narrow grip rows.

I pulled 7 plate shrugs for a 20 rep set again this week, but this time I can still move my neck a day later. I call that a miraculous improvement. :D
 
@ Pako:
Hack squats are great, they feel more effective than regular squats and especially deadlifts when it comes to quads; the downside is that exercise is not that great when you want to pump your back muscles.

I'm trying everything I can not to make a round back when doing deadlifts, I really push out my behind as far as I can and focus on a picture on the wall which keeps me from looking down when lifting. Still, when lowering the weight my lower back hurts a little bit, -the base of my spine right between my hips-, the rest of my back is feeling fine. I'm not sure if its just my back muscles pulling, but I'm really scared of ruining my back.
I tried Romanian and sumo-deadlifts but the pain is still there.

Unfortunately I don't have a buddy to watch & correct me, I'm lifting @ home. :(

Legs AND back on the same day? Dang man, that is some endurance!
Thanks! Like I said, I HATE leg day, I know its essential but I still hate it like hell - so I combine it with back day-. Otherwise I wouldn't have the motivation to do a single damn squat, but shrugs is my favorite exercise and it makes me go through the soul-crushing leg-hell every time. :lol:
 
Dang. Have you had some back issues in the past? Herniated disc's or anything?
 
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