Phumfeinz Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 (edited) 3 days till I start uni, 3 days till I start swimming and gymming every day. Can't wait. Edited September 16, 2014 by Phumfeinz 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morley_crosses_to_Withe Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 Discovered my breakfast is about 400 calories more than I thought it was. Probably explains why I was struggling to lose fat recently. How come you were that far off? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo985 Posted September 16, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted September 16, 2014 Discovered my breakfast is about 400 calories more than I thought it was. Probably explains why I was struggling to lose fat recently. How come you were that far off? Basically I make porridge wrong. I just add hot milk to the oats which means I use loads of oats (as opposed to adding cold water to oats and microwaving it) So I'd guessed originally that I use 100g of oats, and never realised that I'd not actually measured that. Measured it yesterday and I was using just under 200g, which amounted to more or less 400 calories. So needless to say I'm making it properly from now on (which incidentally means I get away with using about 90g) My entire breakfast was over 900 calories! I've started using MyFitnessPal to verify my diet. It's really helped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villaglint Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 If you remember Stevo you gave some good advice a few months back when I was trying to get chiselled for my honeymoon. Worked a treat, I used MyFitnessPal and got to around 10% body fat in 3 weeks. Never realised how big a part diet plays which sounds stupid when you write it down. Anyway I found it a piece of piss to knock the weight off no idea what all the fuss is about. As predicted I put it all back on in 7 days of all inclusive bliss while I was away but using the small and easy changes I made to diet I lost it all again quickly on return. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo985 Posted September 16, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted September 16, 2014 Glad to know it helped! I'd love to be 10%! I always stall once I dip under 15. Hoping this tweaking of my diet will help me burst through that roadblock. Decided I'm not bulking again until I get under that 10% body fat. Ii'm sick of being stuck in a cycle of getting fat and getting thin again. I'm achieving the muscle building part in that, but I go crazy when I bulk and just eat too dirty and my cutting just ends up being me getting back to the same bodyfat I was before. So this is my punishment. No huge gains until I shed the fat! But yeah, back to your post, it all comes down to diet when you're cutting. Any gym buff will tell you it doesn't matter what you do in the gym, if you haven't got your diet right you won't get that definition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villaglint Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 Yep 100% true when I started using MyFitnessPal I realised what I thought was a normal meal was actually a serving for two, sometimes even three. When I stuck to recommended servings it looked really small on the plate but when you eat it its fine, not left hungry or anything. I'm at the point now where I don't want to lose any more weight and I enjoy all the different types of exercise I do so I can start to build up the calories to find a balance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo985 Posted September 16, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted September 16, 2014 My problem with food is I eat it like somebody who's scared they'll never eat again. I absolutely pile it in until I'm finished what's on my plate. I always find if you still feel hungry when you finish a portion, if you wait 10 minutes you're suddenly full. The psychology of weight loss and gym stuff in general (like lifting and how your brain tells you you can't do it) fascinates me. I think in another life I'd like to be a sports psychologist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MCU Posted September 17, 2014 Share Posted September 17, 2014 Been slacking with the gym lately. I don't have a set routine as such and I feel bad if I miss 2-3 days without going. This week for example I'm on night shift so I find it hard enough to find the motivation. Same with my eating. I really think going on my own since I started is starting to take its toll. I think one of my mates is joining come the end of the month though so hopefully that'll refresh me and I'll be able to push on. As I stated a few pages back I've hit a brick wall. Can't seem to lift anymore weight! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo985 Posted September 17, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted September 17, 2014 Having a gym mate definitely helps. I'm in the same situation, got a mate returning to the gym after a long absence so hoping that spurs me on a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MCU Posted September 17, 2014 Share Posted September 17, 2014 Ah Stevo, any ideas why I'm struggling to lift more weight? Is it my protein intake before/after lifting, protein intake in general, not eating enough food? I've been going for about 5 months now and for example I can only bench 15KG each side for a good 7-10 reps then a 2.5kg added I can only manage about 4 reps. Been stuck like that for ages now! What gives... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo985 Posted September 17, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted September 17, 2014 Probably not eating enough, but hard to say. What's your bodyweight doing in general? Timing of protein shouldn't really be that important. If your calories and/or protein intake is low then that could be the problem. Other thing to try would be to change up your routine a bit. Drop the weight down one week and ramp your way back up over the next couple of weeks and you may well burst right through your sticking point. Or try the routine I'm using at the moment which is giving me some success (I'd stalled too given I'm still cutting). That weight that you're doing 4 reps on. Rack it up and do 3 reps. Rest 2 minutes. Do another 3 rep set. Repeat until you've done 8 sets. Next week add 2.5kg or 5kg and do it again. Every time you complete the 8 sets of 3 reps, add weight. If you don't manage to do 3 reps on all 8 sets, stay the same the week after. Hard to say what it is, but try some of those. If I had to put money on it I@d say more food would be your solution, but like I said it's hard to say. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThunderPower_14 Posted September 17, 2014 Share Posted September 17, 2014 I've just signed up the a gym for the first time in a while, and i've been trying to get a few friends who are gym regulars to come along with me, which has been really helpful just in learning new exercises etc. I've gotten into a pretty good routine now, and i'm going every 2nd day on average for 3 weeks, which i'm really happy with. Eating is absolutely killing me at the moment, i've probably put on 5kg in the past few months just from eating way too much in a serving every time I eat. Exercising more regularly has just made me hungrier, which has made my bad eating habits even worse. I've started to consciously put less on my plate (one sandwich for lunch instead of two etc) but i'm a terrible snacker as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villaglint Posted September 17, 2014 Share Posted September 17, 2014 Warnock - My approach is to keep my body guessing so it never gets used to doing the same type of thing. So each week I have a different theme for the weight and reps I'm doing. One week it may do a 5 or 3 rep max similar to what Stevo suggested, next week I might do a bodyweight week so high rep but much lower weight, next week superslow reps at 70%, next week Tabata sets. etc No pattern to it just decide at start of week what your going to do, so many variations out there. It keeps going to the gym interesting as well because your not getting bored doing the same stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpaywasawesome Posted September 17, 2014 Share Posted September 17, 2014 3 days till I start uni, 3 days till I start swimming and gymming every day. Can't wait. Really wish you the best of luck mate. Best to get a gym buddy. Preferably a female you fancy just for accountability purposes. Every day is a bit much though. Just maintaining thrice a week is a pretty big challenge already. Went in last year with the same ambitious plans for myself but nope, it's not sustainable. But since I've gotten a leggy gym buddy in my cohort we've been working out consistently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phumfeinz Posted September 18, 2014 Share Posted September 18, 2014 3 days till I start uni, 3 days till I start swimming and gymming every day. Can't wait. Really wish you the best of luck mate. Best to get a gym buddy. Preferably a female you fancy just for accountability purposes. Every day is a bit much though. Just maintaining thrice a week is a pretty big challenge already. Went in last year with the same ambitious plans for myself but nope, it's not sustainable. But since I've gotten a leggy gym buddy in my cohort we've been working out consistently. Oh yeah I don't plan to be in the gym every day, but I'll definitely be going for a swim every morning. I'll probably start off with three days a week to get back into the swing of things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dante_Lockhart Posted September 19, 2014 Share Posted September 19, 2014 Smashed it this morning. Getting back into my groove now, and dare I say, my muscles are remembering their potential 5x5 82.5kg squat 5x5 35kg OHP 1x5 112.5kg DL Then for fun at the end 3x 80kg bench I'm quite enjoying these early morning fasted workouts. Hungry now though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dante_Lockhart Posted September 19, 2014 Share Posted September 19, 2014 Warnock - My approach is to keep my body guessing so it never gets used to doing the same type of thing. So each week I have a different theme for the weight and reps I'm doing. One week it may do a 5 or 3 rep max similar to what Stevo suggested, next week I might do a bodyweight week so high rep but much lower weight, next week superslow reps at 70%, next week Tabata sets. etc No pattern to it just decide at start of week what your going to do, so many variations out there. It keeps going to the gym interesting as well because your not getting bored doing the same stuff. Nothing wrong with a routine as long as you aren't stagnant with it. Always look to increase your weights each time, even by as little as 2.5kg. It's the StrongLifts way. You'll be hitting PBs fairly regularly which in turn gives you a confidence boost. It's when you're doing the same weight, same exercise, same order every week without progressing where people lose focus and end up quitting the gym. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevo985 Posted September 19, 2014 VT Supporter Share Posted September 19, 2014 Agree with Dante. In fact I'd say a set routine is better than mixing it up all the time. Easier to track progression. But the trick is that when you're not progressing, THAT'S when you may need to mix it up, even if it's just dropping down some weight and ramping back up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villaglint Posted September 19, 2014 Share Posted September 19, 2014 I think its different strokes for different folks. I use the gym to make me better at the other sports I do outside of the gym so I like to have a balance between building strength and building endurance. Mixing it up keeps it interesting (for me) and gives me the all round workout I'm looking for. I am not worried about getting massive by constantly pushing max's more want to be in good all round shape. Though saying that I do reset my max's about every 4 weeks which then feeds into the % I do for everything else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dante_Lockhart Posted September 19, 2014 Share Posted September 19, 2014 I think its different strokes for different folks. I use the gym to make me better at the other sports I do outside of the gym so I like to have a balance between building strength and building endurance. Mixing it up keeps it interesting (for me) and gives me the all round workout I'm looking for. I am not worried about getting massive by constantly pushing max's more want to be in good all round shape. Though saying that I do reset my max's about every 4 weeks which then feeds into the % I do for everything else. Let me just say, strength training isn't about getting massive either. It's building core strength and getting you in good shape. I'm not looking to get massive, but gaining strength and improving my fitness and body shape is where it's at. Yes, I will probably put a fair bit of muscle on doing what I'm doing, but not body building size. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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