do you think stuff like this is a crock of shit?

Maybe log a couple sessions in the gym - doesn't need to be huge amounts of time; 3 sessions of a half hour to 45 minutes a week, focusing on a certain muscle group really helps. I don't really see the point of spending 2 hours in the gym, trying to do a whole body workout - its a waste, you'll exhaust yourself, and your body won't repair itself efficiently. Focusing on one area or a certain muslce will likely yield better, faster gains for strength and muscle growth - your body focuses on repairing that torn-down area.

As far as nutrition - I'm constantly recommended to eat smaller, nutritious snacks throughout the day, rather than 3 big, filling meals. The larger meals tend to overwhelm your system and drains your endergy as your body concentrates on digestion. Having smaller meals during the course of the day keeps your metabolism up, and energy levels constant. You don't need to totally eliminate fats, but keep an eye on high protein foods: fish, lean beef and chicken are great sources of nutrients and contain high quality protiens (fish especially, with those fatty acids and oils). Stay away from sugars altogether (this is where I'm having issues); try not to drink soda at all, stay away from refined sugar, even fruit juices (fruit by itself is ok). Snack on nuts, which have some kind of beneficial oils, are great for energy and protein. Lots of (fresh) vegetables.

For suppliments - find a good protein isolate (not concentrate). It can take a while to find one that doesn't cause indigestion and tastes tolerable. The isolates (more pure) are a higher concentrate per weight of protein, generally digest faster and easier, and mix much better with milk and water. If you want to really gain mass, you'll pretty much have to take a protein powder, unless you can stomache a lot of steaks in a day.

yeah i have big issues with sugar because i have such a sweet tooth. not drinking soda is probably quite easy for me to do though. not sure about supplements, might just leave them. im not doing any gym work....just swimming and dancing

the food advice sounds good. i usually snack on bananas and apples, but i also get those nutrigrain things as well, theyre pretty good. ill keep the fresh veg in mind, i could increase that easily. meat is well catered for we usually cook up beef, chicken, pork, salmon, cod, tuna, for every evening meal and i usually use fresh cooked meats from the deli/butchers counter rather than the plastic shit they sell in the aisle. at least one meal will be more carbs based usually pasta or something

we probably eat chicken the most just because its always a safe bet even if you have to buy the cheaper stuff (students here!) where as cheap beef/pork can be a little nasty.

as for juices well i usually just drink water, though sometimes cordial and i dont really buy fruit juices coz theyre too expensive for what you get. Aldi however sell a couple of juices that are just 100% squeezed for a good price. their apple juice is just cloudy, the only ingredient is apples.

i like cheese as well, guessing i shouldnt eat tooo much of that either. clogs up ur arteries apparently.

might spend some time to write out like a food plan... so i can see what im doing. maybe one of you guys in the know could check it out for me?
 
+1

exactly! what the fuck is this guy on about? cardio/aerobics/wtf you want to call it has been a proven way to lose fat but does bugger all for your muscle mass. Perfect for fat chicks. :lol: And martial arts is also a great way to develop endurance. And it's cooler too, "oohh i do a 3-hr moderate intensity cardio fat burn program blahblahblah" "I know kung fu!"

This might become the bodybuilding thread. :hmm:

could ask viper to change the thread title to something like

general health/fitness/well being/diet thread?
 
^Hey, I wouldn't mind it.

^seems like you know your shit, ever done a combat sport?

My uncle did Judo for a while, participated in some international competitions with his team, so I trained with him a bit when I was a kid.

Also, my parents signed me up for Tae Kwon Do classes due to my showing an interest in Judo. Did that for a bit less than a year. I left because of differences of opinion with my idiotic sensei, who raised the fee every few months just because he felt we could pay more.

Didn't pursue it into my adolescent years though.
 
^Sadly, that happens a lot with martial arts, lots of phonies out for your money.
clicky
 
I think spot dieting refers to exercising a certain group of muscles as a way of losing fat in that area, you could be building muscle in that area but not necessarily burning fat there.

that sounds right, i do wonder though if very very intense exercise can do something similar to the idea of spot dieting. I say this because our top cross country runner had the skinniest legs I'd ever seen.
 
If you want a smokin' exercise routine just using basic weights and a chin-up bar, check out P90X. Download it for free with torrent. I think its about 12 DVD's and like $250 if you want to buy it. If you can follow the routine they show, you will be ripped in 3 months, assuming you can keep up with a high-protien diet.
 
^Dude, I have that. The routine is impossible. Really.
And yeah, i have to agree I followed it for about a couple of weeks and I've put a bit on myself with that program, only one that really works. But seriously, I gave it up because my schedule doesn't always allow for 45 minutes every single day, and if you skip one, you might as well skip everything.
 
Top