Hi all,
After many, many years of feeling miserable, I've finally decided to take control of my life and try to get healthy.
Here are my rough stats and what I'm trying to achieve:
Currently: 5'9, 155lbs. Very skinny overall.
Goals:
1. More energy! I've had enough of feeling tired/hazy/depressed. I have a typical office job and sit around all day.
2. Increase size/strength. I care less about strength, but it seems to be important for training all around. To put a number to this goal, I'll say 165-170lbs at a reasonable body fat %.
3. Reduce/remove health issues. The current main thing I'd like to resolve is a high fasting blood glucose level (105). Apparently, this just barely puts me in the "pre-diabetic" range, and I want to care care of this immediately.
I've been doing a ton of reading, and have come up with a basic strategy, but still have some questions:
(1) For diet, the general plan is to cut carbs/sweets nearly entirely, and majorly increase intake of calories from proteins, healthy fats, and vegetables. Would use this page as a rough guideline: http://www.bulletproofexec.com/the-complete-illustrated-one-page-bulletproof-diet/ . My one main concern here is: How can I eat enough calories per day (probably 3000+) to gain weight, while still managing to keep my blood glucose levels down?
(2) I've joined a gym, and from reading Starting Strength, it seems that squats, bench press, deadlift, and clean&jerk are the best bets for building core strength. Anything else that would significantly help me build mass in my chest and shoulders? I'd particularly like to avoid exercises that are more likely to result in injury.
(3) Supplements - haven't quite decided on these yet, but would like to keep them limited. Right now the only thing I regularly take are fish oil tablets to help increase omega 3 levels. Considering:
- Vitamin D (seems like a common deficiency)
- Something for loading on calories - perhaps cold processed whey protein, coconut oil, mct oils
- Bulk cinnamon - to add to meals and between meals to keep blood glucose levels down
Any other advice? As you can probably tell I am very much aiming to go for "bang-for-the-buck" type changes in both time and cost.
After many, many years of feeling miserable, I've finally decided to take control of my life and try to get healthy.
Here are my rough stats and what I'm trying to achieve:
Currently: 5'9, 155lbs. Very skinny overall.
Goals:
1. More energy! I've had enough of feeling tired/hazy/depressed. I have a typical office job and sit around all day.
2. Increase size/strength. I care less about strength, but it seems to be important for training all around. To put a number to this goal, I'll say 165-170lbs at a reasonable body fat %.
3. Reduce/remove health issues. The current main thing I'd like to resolve is a high fasting blood glucose level (105). Apparently, this just barely puts me in the "pre-diabetic" range, and I want to care care of this immediately.
I've been doing a ton of reading, and have come up with a basic strategy, but still have some questions:
(1) For diet, the general plan is to cut carbs/sweets nearly entirely, and majorly increase intake of calories from proteins, healthy fats, and vegetables. Would use this page as a rough guideline: http://www.bulletproofexec.com/the-complete-illustrated-one-page-bulletproof-diet/ . My one main concern here is: How can I eat enough calories per day (probably 3000+) to gain weight, while still managing to keep my blood glucose levels down?
(2) I've joined a gym, and from reading Starting Strength, it seems that squats, bench press, deadlift, and clean&jerk are the best bets for building core strength. Anything else that would significantly help me build mass in my chest and shoulders? I'd particularly like to avoid exercises that are more likely to result in injury.
(3) Supplements - haven't quite decided on these yet, but would like to keep them limited. Right now the only thing I regularly take are fish oil tablets to help increase omega 3 levels. Considering:
- Vitamin D (seems like a common deficiency)
- Something for loading on calories - perhaps cold processed whey protein, coconut oil, mct oils
- Bulk cinnamon - to add to meals and between meals to keep blood glucose levels down
Any other advice? As you can probably tell I am very much aiming to go for "bang-for-the-buck" type changes in both time and cost.
