Bigger/cut arms?

Shinra said:
Also I feel I need to put this out on the table, my eating just doesn't feel right, and I feel like I've been at a stand still the past few weeks.

Breakfast:

Sometimes I miss completely, otherwise its a glass of orange juice and 6 egg whites or a carb-wise protein bar. This is currently at 6:15 in the morning.

Then since I go to school 5 days a week:

Two Peanut butter n jelly sandwhichs on whole wheat (very little jelly, alot of peanut butter, but its skippys peanut butter and has that hydrogenated vegetable oil that i think is bad for you). One at 9:15, and one at 12:15.

Then when I get home I either have a turkey sandwhich with a little mayo on whole wheat, or another protein bar. (anywhere between 2 and 4 depending on whats happening that day)

Dinner sometimes is rough. Either grilled chicken, sauteed chicken, 14oz NY strip steak (very lean). This is anywhere from 7 to 1030.

I do manage to basically drink a ****load of water every day, no problem with that. But with my terrible school schedule I feel like I'm being hindered in some way. What can I do about my eating habits, if theres anything wrong with them?
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You're right about your eating not seeming right - it looks good from a distance, but it could really use some tweaking.

Breakfast: NEVER SKIP IT - No excuses. You need carbs+protein for your first meal - the 6 whites is just fine, but perhaps some oatmeal or another whole-grain cereal (shredded wheat, grape nuts, etc.). And never eat another protein bar again - EVER.

During school: Definitely switch over to natural PB - or don't eat any at all. You could do a lot better than jelly - either nothing, or a banana, or some sliced strawberries. Better yet, put a grilled chicken breast between some bread. And don't overdue the bread - it's not really clean; eat it sparingly.

After school: again with the sandwiches. Have something else - some canned tuna, and definitely NOT another protein bar.

Supper: looks fine. However, top round is the leanest cut of red meat - just as lean as chicken.

Perhaps another meal before bed - some casein protein (dairy) - cottage cheese is optimal.

You need A LOT more fruits & veggies - it looks like you're getting next to nothing.

After changing your diet, you'll probably start seeing results again - and faster, too.

Some other great foods to include in your diet: brown rice, sweet potatoes, fruits (berries, apples, oranges, etc.), veggies (peppers, cukes, spinach, broccoli, asparagus, etc.), whey protein powder, raw nuts (almonds, pecans, walnuts).
 
ok to sum it up...no protein bars at all. natural peanut butter. 6 egg whites or oatmeal in the morning. i thought fruits were bad for toning and abs cuz theres so much sugar in them?

also eat more veggies..ok. cottage cheese ill get some of that for nighttime. canned tuna, and more chicken breast without skin. do i have it all right?
 
Shinra said:
ok to sum it up...no protein bars at all. natural peanut butter. 6 egg whites or oatmeal in the morning. i thought fruits were bad for toning and abs cuz theres so much sugar in them?

also eat more veggies..ok. cottage cheese ill get some of that for nighttime. canned tuna, and more chicken breast without skin. do i have it all right?
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you've got it.

Fruits are okay so long as you time them properly and don't eat them with fats.
 
heres what my schedule looks like now:

morning: 6 egg whites (sometimes a yolk or two fall in) or oatmeal

during school (915 and 1215): still doin the two peanut butter sandwhiches, ill get the natural peanut butter soon, but no jelly.

after school (315 and 615): either canned tuna (in water not oil), bare turkey (no bread), cup of minestrone, vegetable, or chicken rice soup, all with a piece of fruit.

dinner (somewhere between 930 and 1030): grilled chicken, 14oz steak, arugula salad with light balsamic, or organic chicken breast, served with a cup of vegetables.

i never have: fried food, junk food, chocolate, ice cream, etc etc.

i usually drink my water with lemon.

in school i have two bottles throughout the day of vitamin water. im sure u know what that is. it has sugar in it (13g per serving and 2.5 servings a bottle) but i think its pretty healthy for you. let me know what u think of this new schedule. tryin to get my goal as effectively and fast as possible!
 
I personally have no problem against protein bars (except their price!), but it makes for a pretty crappy breakfast. I'll often use them as a meal-replacement when I'm out-and-about - though of course they're not a replacement for good, clean whole foods.

I know exactly what you mean about having a hard time eating with a hectic schedule. Lots of people will say "You can always make time to eat" but sometimes you really can't. If nothing else, bars make for a good back-up plan.
 
i agree, bars arent the devil lol. but they shouldnt be made a habbit of. they're great when your day is just more hectic than expected.. but in the end, fil is right, they're a back up plan.
 
well i have another question to add to the list. if i "cheat" per say, once in a while, is that bad? wednesday i had a piece of cake (didnt eat the frosting) for a bday party, last night i had a scoop of cappucino ice cream, and today i had an ice cream sandwhich. besides these 3 things i havent gone off my schedule yet. if i slip every now and then will it greatly hinder my progress?
 
Cheats should be allowed into one's meal plan. How often depends on how far you are from your goals. Most people seem to have one cheat meal every week or so... others who have not much fat to lose can have an entire cheat day... while some get one cheat meal every 10-14 days.
If you make a habit of "cheating" on something everyday, it will hinder your progress.
 
Remember: You lose weight by building up a caloric deficiency over time. Each day you end up with a net loss of calories (let's say, after adding what you eat, then subtracting what you burn, you end up with a net loss of 500 calories each day).

It takes 3500 calories burned to lose a lb of fat. It's already taking 7 days at this rate to burn 1 lb of fat. See how having a cheat day can screw this up? If you end up with a net gain of 1000 calories, you're setting yourself back 3 days or more just to lose one pound.

Cheat days can be important to maintaining your sanity, but I prefer to make "cheat day" into "cheat meal" and even then, it's good not to go nuts :)
 
Thanks guys. Two more things....

1. For my status as you all know quite well now, how many calories should I be aiming for a day for my desired goal?

2. On the actual topic of getting bigger/cut arms, I find myself barely able to complete 3x10 of bicep curls, leaving no time for hammer curls or any other bicep workouts. I was wondering if incorporating both bicep and hammer curls into the same workout is a good idea? In other words, do 3 sets of 12 reps, and each rep change from bicep curl to hammer curl. Go up with bicep curl, come down, go up with hammer curl, go down, etc. What do you think?
 
If you can barely complete it, then the solution is to use lighter weights :) You get better growth from lighter weights/more reps than with high weight/low reps -- the idea is you want to sap every last ounce of strength from those muscles so your body rebuilds them proportionally bigger.

Sometimes this means looking like a sissy and using the absolute lightest weight on a machine/bar at the gym just so you can squeeze out the last bit of effort from your muscles.
 
Oh really? I thought that lighter weight would just tone the muscle you already have. I have absolutely no problem using lighter weight if I can still grow muscle! Thanks fil!

Now instead of using the (sad, pathetic) 25lb dumbells for curling, I'm gonna use the (even sadder, more pathetic) 20lb dumbells lol. I'm trustin ya that I'll grow more muscle fil!
 
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spockafina said:
you've got it.

Fruits are okay so long as you time them properly and don't eat them with fats.
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why can't you eat fruits with fat? I have heard of diets that highly recommend that a person eats meals like this:

meal type 1: protein, carbs, no fat

meal type 2: protein, fat, no carbs

second, what is good timing for eating fruit? are fruits best for post workout, or pre? or right when you wake up? plz explain more, science officer.
 
Shinra said:
Now instead of using the (sad, pathetic) 25lb dumbells for curling, I'm gonna use the (even sadder, more pathetic) 20lb dumbells lol. I'm trustin ya that I'll grow more muscle fil!
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i feel that sets of lighter to heavier weight works the best. and as for curling dumbells, the heaviest i go is 35 lb dumbells so if 25 is sad & pathetic then 35 is still sad. for biceps it's all about form, it's so easy to cheat that the majority of people do.. switch which exercise you do first, one workout do reg curls first, then the next workout do hammers before db curls.
 
mreik, are you doing 35 lbs concentration curls? if not, what kind of curls? do you ever do stand up eZ bar curls? how much weight do you put on it?

about the pathetic weights as you both put it - i've heard those really impressive bodybuilders are lifting only a fraction of the weight they could be lifting for their size. so trust me, your weights arent pathetic =)
 
heh thanks wolverine...ur always a good encourager lol.

how many calories should i be aiming for a day given my status and my goal?
 
i dont know what to recommend, for the only thing I have ever been good at is bulking.

Unfortunately, I lack the skills to encourage mreik and "science officer" spockafina to answer my questions. Hopefully this will =)
 
WOLVERINE said:
mreik, are you doing 35 lbs concentration curls? if not, what kind of curls? do you ever do stand up eZ bar curls? how much weight do you put on it?
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yeah those are 35lb db concentration curls. as for a ez bar, i usually always do my compound pull exercises before isolating my biceps. but i've gone str8 to biceps before and i think i did the 95lb bar for 8 clean reps and an ugly 9.. lol
 
well my biceps are actually finally sore, as yesterday i was able to complete 3x10 concentration curls with the 20lb dumbells, and was ok to do a set of hammer curls as well. using ur advice ill do hammer curls first next time, and concentration curls second.

and yea mreik what did u do to get that tricep? my bicep isnt *too* far behind urs, but i have nowhere near ur tricep muscle. i feel like my triceps just refuse to grow. :(

oh and does anyone have an answer about how many calories i should be eating a day?

my goal is to have those really defined abs like this:



not those look i was able to just get wickedly skinny so u can see the little packs underneath look



well those arent bad but u get what im tryin to say. :D
 
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