going to start bulking, want to do it right.

R

realworksuks

2
i've read on this site quite a bit of things, but I want to make sure I have everything right.

So I need a high protein diet right? I am 5 feet and 8 1/2 inches tall, I weigh 144 pounds so I need at least 144g of protein per day correct? Then does it really matter what else I eat as long as it's healthy food or what?

With the training I am planning to do a full body workout three times a week.

I usually do for upper body:
bicep curls
tricep pressdowns
lat pulldowns
bench press
pull ups
shoulder machine (where you sit and press up)
a machine where I sit down with chest against a pad and pull the bar towards myself (a row machine or something)

for lower body
squats
sitting hamstring pressdown machine
sitting quad lift up machine
leg press
a machine where I lay on my stomach, and then I tuck my legs under a padded bar and lift my legs toward my ass.
abdominal crunches
and bicycle ab exercise

I do two sets of everything with about 10 reps. It takes me about an hour or so.

So i'll be quiet for now and get some criticism first on this, and then talk about my diet later.
 
realworksuks said:
i've read on this site quite a bit of things, but I want to make sure I have everything right.

So I need a high protein diet right? I am 5 feet and 8 1/2 inches tall, I weigh 144 pounds so I need at least 144g of protein per day correct? Then does it really matter what else I eat as long as it's healthy food or what?

With the training I am planning to do a full body workout three times a week.

I usually do for upper body:
bicep curls
tricep pressdowns
lat pulldowns
bench press
pull ups
shoulder machine (where you sit and press up)
a machine where I sit down with chest against a pad and pull the bar towards myself (a row machine or something)

for lower body
squats
sitting hamstring pressdown machine
sitting quad lift up machine
leg press
a machine where I lay on my stomach, and then I tuck my legs under a padded bar and lift my legs toward my ass.
abdominal crunches
and bicycle ab exercise

I do two sets of everything with about 10 reps. It takes me about an hour or so.

So i'll be quiet for now and get some criticism first on this, and then talk about my diet later.
Click to expand...

ok lets start with the upper body day. Where are the back excercises besides the rows? You need some deadlifts or pull ups, maybe even good mornings in there too your back is a very important element in an upper body routine. Do you do this all on one day? If you do you need to break this up more and work harder at what you are doing that day. 2 sets of 10 reps just isn't enough for bulking. You need 3,4,even 5 sets with 6-10 reps. I would reccomend an upper/lower split not a full body workout. Also please post your diet because a good diet is critical in bulking. Hope this helped. Any questions?
 
it's going to be hard for me to do an upper/lower body split. I'm starting an 8-5 job in a couple weeks, with another job on saturdays, and I don't know if after working all that time I will want to go to the gym every day after work. That's why i'd rather just do a full body 3 times a week. Maybe I should just forget it? Is it not even worth trying to bulk with my current training plan? I would REALLY rather avoid going to the gym 6 times a week. Can you explain what those lifts for the back are that you were talking about? I haven't heard of them (besides pull ups)

My diet I need some help on. I have completely redone it. I use to eat tons of processed foods, like mac and cheese, ramen, pasta roni, rice a roni. I thought all that food was fine for you but i learned otherwise.

I am planning on eating fruit and grape nuts cereal for breakfast, perhaps oatmeal some days, perhaps toast some days (even though it's a bad choice right?), I would also like to have cereal like honey bunches of oats sometimes too. Is the regular cereal you buy in stores like cheerios, apple jacks, honey bunches of oats etc. just something you should cut out of your diet completely?

For lunch I am open to suggestions. I will have a lunch break around 12 i'd imagine. I am planning to go home and make a sandwich or something, turkey sandwich or something? with fruits and vegetables with it. I don't really know because it's gotta be pretty quick and all, so I don't know... For supper well I DO plan on eating whatever my family cooks, (yes i'm going to be living at home for the summer, currently enrolled in college and am coming home for the summer for an internship) my family cooks a variety of meals, usually meat is a main course though. Things like chicken on the grill with vegetables, to other things that aren't as good for you like ordering pizza (which I could choose to not have) and some things that i'm not sure about like sloppy joes, or spaghetti, can I eat things like that?

I dunno, how precise would I have to be? Couldn't I just eat the amount of protein that my body needs and basically have it down with just that?
 
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realworksuks said:
hmph, conflicting views. Can someone that truly know what they are talking about clear this up?
Click to expand...

For a beginner, fullbody 3x a week is perfect. If your not a beginner you could try an upperbody/lowerbody split

*do core work before each workout like planks, side planks, crunches, side crunches, back extensions

Week 1:
Monday- Upperbody (cardio if needed)
Wednesday-Lowerbody
Friday- Upperbody (cardio if needed)

Week 2:
Monday- Lowerbody
Wednesday- Upperbody (cardio if needed)
Friday- Lowerbody

For Upperbody: Bench Press, Inverted Rows, Flys, Reverse Flys, Shrugs, Arm-circles, Bicep Curls, Tricep Extensions

For Lowerbody: Squats, Romanian Deadlifts, Leg Extensions, Leg Curls, Hack Squat, Lunges, Calve Raises, Seated Calve Raises

Each week make sure you progress each exercise by adding more sets, reps, or weight. If weight try 2.5% per week. Make sure to eat a surplus of calories, work in the hypertrophy rep range (6-12) and you should build a good deal of muscle over a period of time. Good Luck with your goals.
 
realworksuks said:
hmph, conflicting views. Can someone that truly know what they are talking about clear this up?
Click to expand...

So you think i dont know what im talking about:D

Look at Jmans routine for example.

The lower body only gets worked once a week, and week2 the upper body only once. incorporating fullbody workout will work the same muscles more, hence more strength/hypertophy.

The muscles after a workout grow for a period of 48hours, Having a rest day in this period allows the nutrients you consume to fix and repair these muscles, so working out the day after would limit the nutrients that would normally have gone to these muscles and instead go towards the workout itself.

Hope this helps a bit.
 
no offense, but Jman has this in his signature.. "Clean Bulk, Bench Body Weight (10 pounds to go)" why would I listen to a guy that can't bench his own body weight? I do appreciate your reply, I just don't know how valid it is.

I know that sounds really mean, but i'd like some advice by a qualified person. I know there are some personal trainers and nutritionists on this site, can't you guys help me? Or just recommend some readings that will answer my questions or something if nothing else?
 
Why would you listen to a guy who cant bench his own body weight? the question i ask myself now is "why would i help you?"

Discussiones are fine, but what you did there is a personal attack, and it doesnt help to say "no offence". And if you know it sounds mean, then why say it? Just keep it to yourself and wait for someone else to reply.

Jman works hard, and he will get there. You cant judge peoples knowledge by how much they lift. Actually, my observation is this. Some people walk into the gym, and get pretty big on less than average routines, they get gains, so they stick with it. Then you got the guys who try the same, but dont get gains, they then start reading around, researching, and they start training and eating smart. Now, the first guy might be stronger, but the weak guy knows more.
Moral of the story is, dont listen to someone just because they they are strong.
 
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realworksuks said:
no offense, but Jman has this in his signature.. "Clean Bulk, Bench Body Weight (10 pounds to go)" why would I listen to a guy that can't bench his own body weight? I do appreciate your reply, I just don't know how valid it is.
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First of all, how much you " bench " isn't a relevant gauge on how much or little anyone knows about proper training IMO. Frankly, anytime I hear some gym rat repeatedly asking others ( who will listen ) " How much can you bench ? " I have to question if they know a lot about proper training principles. It's been my experience a lot of guys can bench or squat a lot more weight with bad technique than with bad technique.

When your primary goal is to gain muscle , it is more important HOW you lift ( i.e planes of motion, range of motion, sets, reps, etc. etc. ) than how MUCH you lift - the latter being more important for power-lifters than anyone else.

realworksuks said:
I know that sounds really mean, but i'd like some advice by a qualified person.
Click to expand...

Again, that's no guarantee of anything - ask 10 " qualified " people the same question and you could easily get 10 different answers. For example, I've met a lot of so-called " qualified " trainers who have no clue how to do a proper squat or bench press.

Mind you, some folks on the forum like Steve, Tom O, Leigh P. and few others certainly seem to know what they're talking about to and appear have a wealth of knowledge ( found in a number of their previous threads / posts ) that you can draw upon.
 
I am sorry for having to say that but it's true, I just wouldn't feel right taking bulking advice from a guy that can't bench his own weight.. how experienced could he be?? And like you guys were saying, you don't have to be strong to have the knowledge, if that's the case with you Jman I apologize. I know in these forums it's hard to tell which advice is good and which advice is bad. Plus i've already gotten two different recommendations.

So what would you guys change about my training and diet plan then? I'll take everyone's advice and then form something from it. OK?
 
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Learning to bulk comes with experience

However.

There is also a substantial amount of theory behind knowing about how to bulk.

I bet there are some qualified nutritionists in the world that are overweight / underweight but that does not mean they can't give out good advice.

I bet there are some people who cannot lift heavy weights but they can lift them with excellent form.


Don't judge a book by it's cover.
 
jesus christ, enough of that! Seriously I said I was sorry.

So what would you guys change about my training and diet plan then? I'll take everyone's advice and then form something from it. OK?
 
I can bench my own bodyweight 8 times and I don't claim to know more than anyone else on this board. You have to learn to read everything on your post and judge the posts carefully. Not everyone on here is a professional or a body builder, but they definately have some great advice to give.
 
realworksuks said:
Great! Let's hear it!
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The best advice I can give you is to stay open minded. My routine I posted was a little bit different because I do sprints and such on my Upperbody days which allows me to work my legs 3x a week for Football Season.

Just get on a full-body routine 3x a week, Eat a surplus of calories (+500 mainteance) Use this site to find out your calorie mainteance: , .

90% of your progress comes from eating right. Wheather its bulking or cutting.

Even though I can't bench my body weight just yet; that has nothing to do with the progress I have made. December 1st I weighed 153 Pounds, Ran a 5.6 40 yard dash, and could only bench 100 Pounds 1 time. Now I weigh 172 Pounds, Run a 5.25 40 yard dash, and I can bench 160 Pounds once; the last time I checked. So even though I am not the strongest or fastest guy on my football team I definetely have made more progress then anybody else; and I used the information I learned from the advice from people on this forum.
 
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jmanjman47 said:
The best advice I can give you is to stay open minded. My routine I posted was a little bit different because I do sprints and such on my Upperbody days which allows me to work my legs 3x a week for Football Season.

Just get on a full-body routine 3x a week, Eat a surplus of calories (+500 mainteance) Use this site to find out your calorie mainteance: , .

90% of your progress comes from eating right. Wheather its bulking or cutting.

Even though I can't bench my body weight just yet; that has nothing to do with the progress I have made. December 1st I weighed 153 Pounds, Ran a 5.6 40 yard dash, and could only bench 100 Pounds 1 time. Now I weigh 172 Pounds, Run a 5.25 40 yard dash, and I can bench 160 Pounds once; the last time I checked. So even though I am not the strongest or fastest guy on my football team I definetely have made more progress then anybody else; and I used the information I learned from the advice from people on this forum.
Click to expand...

Yeah man that's some good progress. Your still young too so in a few years you'll probably be a beast.

What'd everyone think of the diet part that I posted? I think I need some help with that.
 
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