I need some advise on my plan

[bnhudgin]

Hi everyone, I have been reading this forum for a while now trying to figure out what I need to do. My stats are:
6 ft. 200 lbs./32 yrs old. I am not sure of my body fat, but it is probably around 15-20%
I want to lose the extra weight that i have and cut up. I have been sticking to my diet for the last few weeks and I am sure it needs to be tweaked a little. Here is my diet:
7:00 - 1 cup oats, 1 slice wholewheat toast with 1 tablespoon of natty pb.
9:00 - 2 egg whites or can of tuna
11:00 - 1 chicken breast with veggies, sweet potato, or 1 cup brown rice.
2:00 - around 4 ounce serving of lean meat(chicken or ground beef).
5:00 - whey protein shake
5:15 - workout (lift or cardio)
7:00 - meal with chicken breast or lean beef w/ brown rice or vegies.
9:00 - One can of tuna and maybe some veggies.

Workout:
M/W/F - I do a complete upperbody workout with some leg exercises.
Tues./Thurs./Sat. I do about a mile running on the treadmill or 10 - 12 miles of mountain biking on off-road trails.

Supplements:
I have been taking X-Pand creatine
I have a cycle of winnie and deca I want to add to the program. I was told to do 1 cc of winnie every other day, and do 1 cc of deca on Monday and Thursday. I did a cycle of winnie about 2 years ago and got really good results, I thought.
I have been reading about the cycles and really cannot figure out if this dosage is right or not. Also, what kind of PCT and during cycle therapy I should get ready before I start( I have always heard (dead dick deca). I would appreciate it if someone can lead me in the right directon on this, is my diet right on? workouts look good? cycle dosages? Are these two good to run together as a cut or at all together. Thanks for any replies

[BBAddict]

Re: I need some advise on my plan

Originally posted by bnhudgin
7:00 - 1 cup oats, 1 slice wholewheat toast with 1 tablespoon of natty pb.
9:00 - 2 egg whites or can of tuna
11:00 - 1 chicken breast with veggies, sweet potato, or 1 cup brown rice.
2:00 - around 4 ounce serving of lean meat(chicken or ground beef).
5:00 - whey protein shake
5:15 - workout (lift or cardio)
7:00 - meal with chicken breast or lean beef w/ brown rice or vegies.
9:00 - One can of tuna and maybe some veggies.

7am. need to get some protein asap cause you're body is probably in a catabolic state and don't need so many carbs. Add some egg whites with one yolk and lose either the oats or the toast.
9am. 2 egg whites is not equivalent to a can of tuna. You need a lot more protein than 2 egg whites-maybe more like 6egg whites and maybe add some veges or 1/2cup of oats.
11am. This sounds OK
2pm. Add some veggies and maybe some other carbs. I would gear the whole diet to weight carbs more around workout time cause thats when you need them for energy and repair.
5pm. Need some carbs with protein for energy during exercise.
PWO need some protein and simple carbs for muscle repair.
9pm. The last meals protein source should be casein protein either from a casein protein powder or from cottage cheese.

I think you need to read up on training splits and the supplementation too. I am a natural bodybuilder, but I do know that without your diet and training nailed, there's no point to supplementing with steroids.

[Puddles]

I would hold off on the cycle until you get your diet better. Keep in mind that using AAS will put muscle on but it will not lean you out. I'm sure one of the guys will be able to answer your dosing and PCT questions. How long have you been lifting?

Like BBA pointed out, you need to add more protein to your diet and cut some of the breakfast carbs. Oats are better than bread so stick with those when you can. I've also posted a good recipe for protein pancakes which is a good combination of protein and carbs. If you're trying to lower your bodyfat you can drop the carbs from your 7pm meal and just do the veggies. I don't see much fat in your diet and that's important too. You can supplement with Flax oil or even olive oil, fish oil caps are good. Salmon is a good choice for protein, it's got the good fats in it naturally.

You were very brief in your description of your training, can you go into more detail please? Like, what exercises are you doing, how many sets and reps and which days are you doing them on.

I haven't heard anyone really get much benefit out of creatine and most tend to retain water on it. It's something I wouldn't waste my money one. Get some multi-vitamins, EFA's, and eat lots of protein. Make sure you're drinking pleanty of water too, it's good for you overall but it also helps facilitate fat loss.

[bnhudgin]

BB - Thanks for the input, that's what I was looking for on the diet instructions.
Puddles - Thank you also, I had already printed out the recipe you posted for the pancakes, but have not made it yet. As far as my workout goes I have been lifing for about 8 months regularly. I lift on M/W/F. During my lifts, for chest I do bench, butterfly, incline bench with dumbells. For shoulders and back I do pull downs front and back, arm raises with dumbells front and side. For arms I do curls with dumbells, forearm curls with dumbells, and tricep pulldowns. Legs I do calf raises, leg extensions, and hamstring pulls-ups? (I lay flat on the bench and curl with my legs). For neck I do barbell shrugs without rotating shoulders.
Reps - For chest, arms, and back I do 3 sets of 12. shoulder raises I do 3 sets to failure. Legs I do 3 sets of 12.
Cardio - Tues/Thurs/Sat, I usually run 2 - 3 miles on the treadmill, somethimes like on Saturdays I mountain bike some pretty tough trails that are typically around 12 miles long.
I have been taking the flaxseed and fish oil by pill with the recommended dosage that is on the bottle.
I ahve been taking multi vitamins and all I drink is water.

[Puddles]

I think you'd benefit by adding in some more exercises and by increasing the weight and lowering reps, hitting failure at about the 6th to 8th rep on each set.

I have to go out for a little while but I'll work on some exercise suggestions when I get back.

Are you opposed to lifting 4 times a week and dropping the cardio to twice a week? BTW, the mountain bike riding sounds fun! Gotta love living in a moderate climate where you can do that all year long!

Also, definitely hold off on the cycle. If you use it at this point you'll likely injur yourself. You'll develop strength gains but your body won't be ready to handle it. Your tendons need to grow along with your muscles for a few years, I learned that the hard way.

Glad to have you on the board! :)

[bnhudgin]

I am not opposed to lifting 4 days a week, the only reason I do cardio three times a week is because I have a gut I am trying to get rid of, and yes the mountain biking is a lot of fun but July and August you better go around daylight because of the heat. What you said about holding off sounds very logical. Thanks for the help!

[bnhudgin]

I checked my bf over the weekend and it is a terrible 26%. Help please on the diet.

[Puddles]

I'm sorry I haven't gotten back to you. I've been much bussier than usual.

Don't let the high bf% freak you out, you can change it but it's gonna take work and it won't happen overnight...just as it didn't get that high overnight. I was well over that at one point so I know how ya feel.

The more muscle you put on, the easier it is to burn fat because your body just needs a greater amount of cal's every day just to keep itself functioning with more LBM as your metabolism is increased. Generally though, you can't build much muscle while cutting, it's one or the other. You will have to alternate your diet and training going back and forth periodically for the best results but you can increase your LBM to a degree while loosing fat.

I promise to get back to you with some more ideas but to start with, keep your carb consumption to the earlier part of the day, none after 5pm except for a post workout shake with some carbs (not a lot). Instead of doing the cardio like you were, do 30 min. every morning (say 5 days a week) on an empty stomach, that will boost your metabolism for the rest of the day. You need to add a few things into your training like maybe some rows, leg extensions, calves, tri's, ab work... Basically I like to hit each body part once a week, doing 3 exercises per body part and to grow I keep the reps in the 6-8 range using heavier weights, when I'm cutting I tend to go with higher reps, less weights, and train a little faster with shorter rests inbetween sets. I like to alternate which exercises I do first from week to week (ie. if I'm doing legs, one week I'll start with squats, another week I'll start with the leg press), this helps prevent boredom and since each exercises hits your muscles a little differently, starting with a different one from time to time when you're fresh and haven't exhausted your muscles will help develop them better.

I will get back to you next week, sorry again for being so scarce.

[bnhudgin]

Puddles...that's cool, I am losing weight pretty fast, but I guess that is normal at first. I lost 4 lbs. this week!!! Just get back with me when you have a chance. Thanks

[trekboy]

Sounds like your well on your way. After a while training and diet become habit and routine. You might even become addicted to it like me. Keep it up and good luck!

[Puddles]

I'm doing a quickie fly by at my friend's house. 4 lbs is a very significant loss. Keep your spirits up and if you see a set back on the scale don't freak, sometimes water retention will play games with ya. Weigh in only once a week, same day/same time every week, that will give you a pretty accurate guideline.

I'm lookin forward to having Monday off from work and getting back here to chat with ya. :) Keep a log of your diet for the weekend and post it up on Monday night. Take a look at some of the training stuff and see if there are some new exercises you'd like to add to your routine.

Enjoy the weekend and keep up the great work! With serious dedication and self dicipline, you will achieve your goals.

[bnhudgin]

Sorry I didn't post the info. on Monday night, my gf told me over the weekend she was moving out so I had to take some time to deal with that, but now I am back on track. I looked at some of the back exercises and I would like to try some of those and I really want to build my shoulders, neck and flatten my stomach withou neglecting the rest of my body. I am going to start doing the cardio 5 times a week in the mornings. Do I need to get some kind of supplement to replenish my body or will the diet and whey protein shakes do it for me? Later

[Puddles]

Sorry to hear about your g/f.

I'd stick to the diet and post training shakes to start with. Taking a good multi vitamin and essential oils should suffice for supplements for a while until you see how your body reacts.

Again, sorry for not replying sooner, I was on vacation for the last week.

How's the last week gone for ya?