Hey guys, first post

[GetHenchOrDieTryin]

Hey all, I'm new to the whole gym scene so bear with me!

I'm 20 years old, weigh 168 pounds and have been going to the gym 4 days a week for a month now. My body type belongs under the mesomorph category. My main objective is to gain muscle and not lose it.

Now, this is where you lot come in. I have a serious issue - my diet routine. Basically, to be honest, I have no idea where to begin (such a noob!). I'm aware of eating carbohydrates roughly an hour before the gym with some protein and post gym to consume protein with healthy fats (is this correct?) Also, during the day what types of food should I consume? Bearing in mind that I want to build muscle.

Here's my typical gym routine:
Monday - Shoulders and back
Tuesday - Legs
Thursday - Chest and arms
Friday - Lower body

Is this a good routine to build muscle? If any, what differences would you make?

Finally, my last query is about protein shakes. I've just finished a 908kg USN Whey protein tub and to be honest, I haven't noticed too much of a difference upon my muscle mass. Maybe it's my high expectations and my naivety. Is USN a decent brand for protein shakes?

Thank you for your time and go easy on me ! I understand that most that I'm asking is really not knowledgeable at all !

 

[DaHurt]

Hey all, I'm new to the whole gym scene so bear with me!

I'm 20 years old, weigh 168 pounds and have been going to the gym 4 days a week for a month now. My body type belongs under the mesomorph category. My main objective is to gain muscle and not lose it.

Now, this is where you lot come in. I have a serious issue - my diet routine. Basically, to be honest, I have no idea where to begin (such a noob!). I'm aware of eating carbohydrates roughly an hour before the gym with some protein and post gym to consume protein with healthy fats (is this correct?) Also, during the day what types of food should I consume? Bearing in mind that I want to build muscle.

Here's my typical gym routine:
Monday - Shoulders and back
Tuesday - Legs
Thursday - Chest and arms
Friday - Lower body

Is this a good routine to build muscle? If any, what differences would you make?

Finally, my last query is about protein shakes. I've just finished a 908kg USN Whey protein tub and to be honest, I haven't noticed too much of a difference upon my muscle mass. Maybe it's my high expectations and my naivety. Is USN a decent brand for protein shakes?

Thank you for your time and go easy on me ! I understand that most that I'm asking is really not knowledgeable at all !

Hey bud, firstly welcome. A lot to work through here. First off - why don't you post an example of what you eat in a typical day (being as detailed as possible). You can calculate your total caloric intake, as well as macronutrient intake using fitday.com.

I recommend this highly as we'll have a lot more to work with. You can also look at the first post of the 'Free Diet Advice from 3J' sticky thread as it is full of a wealth of good info.

Just curious, you have a 'leg' day and a 'lower body' day - what is the difference here?

We'll go more into this, but generally post-workout, you want to consume a combination of protein and a high glycemic index carbohydrate (like white bread or a simple sugar such as dextrose, for example) - because this combination results in the greatest insulin spike, and insulin is the grandfather of anabolic hormones - resulting in increased cellular uptake of nutrients.

Let's see that diet.

Cheers and welcome.

 

[3J]

ur eating a crap load of protein from whey and your wondering why your not growing??

1. whey is crap.. the only time its acceptable is post workout.. and that's not necessary either..
2. you didn't eat enough.. calories in vs. calories out.. simple as that..

go to my free diet advice thread, read everything in post 1 and do whats asked of you in there.. ill critique your diet for free...

if you wanna step it up your more then welcome to become a client of mine.. you wouldn't need anything more then a basic package.. e-mail me if interested 3jdiet@gmail.com

 

[GetHenchOrDieTryin]

First off, thanks for your swift responses.

DaHurt - on Friday I do lower body to emphasise on the back of my legs, lower back, hamstrings, gluets and my calves. although, this workout gives me a great deal of flexibility so there's less that's set in stone so what I end up that particular day is as a result of what I've done during the week. I alternate each week between two different types of dead lifts. I use a tradtional trap bar deadlift with heavy weight one week then the next I change the movements slightly using the stiff leg deadlift.

In response to that website you linked me to, thank you very much. It gave me accurate findings of the nutrition that I'm consuming. I have attached my typical food day as specific as possible and straight off the bat I have noticed that I'm not consuming enough protein (well, I don't think I am?)

3J - thank's for the heads up regarding using Whey. Do you use protein shakes? If so, which brand do you use?

Here's my typical working out day:
7am - quakers oats with a table spoon of white sugar and honey
10am - 3 egg omelette with tomato's and ham
1pm - chicken breast multi-grain wrap with hummus and spinach
5:30pm - large handful of pomegranate's, 2 sweet potatoes and 138g tuna
7pm - WORKOUT
POST WORKOUT - WHEY protein with oats and unsalted almonds
10pm - broccoli with tuna

I've also completed your template:
20
168 pounds
6'0
body fat = 12.6%
to build muscle

BMR = 1891.04

My cardio varies each day (dependent on how my body is) so I'll do around 20 - 30 mins on a good day and 10-15 mins on a bad day. Usually set the speed to 8.0 with a 1.5 incline.
I hope you have enough information here and thank you very much for critiquing my diet - I think you'll agree that it's much needed.

 

[3J]

First off, thanks for your swift responses.

DaHurt - on Friday I do lower body to emphasise on the back of my legs, lower back, hamstrings, gluets and my calves. although, this workout gives me a great deal of flexibility so there's less that's set in stone so what I end up that particular day is as a result of what I've done during the week. I alternate each week between two different types of dead lifts. I use a tradtional trap bar deadlift with heavy weight one week then the next I change the movements slightly using the stiff leg deadlift.

In response to that website you linked me to, thank you very much. It gave me accurate findings of the nutrition that I'm consuming. I have attached my typical food day as specific as possible and straight off the bat I have noticed that I'm not consuming enough protein (well, I don't think I am?)

3J - thank's for the heads up regarding using Whey. Do you use protein shakes? If so, which brand do you use?

Here's my typical working out day:
7am - quakers oats with a table spoon of white sugar and honey
add 3 whole eggs and 4 egg whites
10am - 3 egg omelette with tomato's and ham
add turkey bacon.. 2 slices.. and another 4 egg whites
1pm - 6oz or 168gchicken breast multi-grain wrap with hummus and spinach
5:30pm - large handful of pomegranate's, 2 sweet potatoes and 168g tuna
7pm - WORKOUT
POST WORKOUT - WHEY protein with oats and unsalted almonds
replace oats for a whole white bagel or 3 slices oof white bread
10pm - broccoli with tuna
you need a slow digesting protein again.. again either beef at 168g or 400g of cottage cheese or nonfat greek yogurt

also add 2 tablespoons natural peanut butter or one whole avocado
I've also completed your template:
20
168 pounds
6'0
body fat = 12.6%
to build muscle

BMR = 1891.04
you should be eating close to 3000 calories to bulk
My cardio varies each day (dependent on how my body is) so I'll do around 20 - 30 mins on a good day and 10-15 mins on a bad day. Usually set the speed to 8.0 with a 1.5 incline.
I hope you have enough information here and thank you very much for critiquing my diet - I think you'll agree that it's much needed.

i dont want you doing anything more then 20min cardio 3 times a week..

hope this helps!!