Ask a Fitness Model - Page 5

Originally Posted by Noir.

Get a bench from wal-mart or wherever (adjustable is best, but whatever works) or make one. If that isn't an option I guess you could do it from the floor. Troll craigslist or the classifieds for a pull up bar or, again, go to home depot or lowes and build one yourself.

You can do a modified version of the big 6.

With a bench:
DB bench press (can superset with push ups)
Bulgarian split squats/lunges/pile squats
bench dips
seated or standing DB overhead press
straight leg deadlifts with DBs
DB rows

Without a bench:
floor presses superset with push ups
lunges/pile squats
standing overhead press
SLDL
DB rows (find something to grab on to to keep your balance and back straight if you can't put your leg on a bench)
bench dips (you can use chairs if you have to)

substitute the rows for pullups if you have a bar you can use. (yes they work different portions of the back, but I think you get more "bang for your buck" with pullups.) Use a chair if you can't do them all unassisted.

The order doesn't matter too much but I think they're setup alright the way they are listed. Just don't do say a bench press followed by overhead presses followed by dips if you're doing a circuit style routine. 3 circuits of 10-12 reps each, minimal rest between sets, 3-4 days per week. Drink a cup of unsweetened green tea (and a few bcaa's if you have them. if not no big deal) and jump rope/core work and stability ball work on the other days on an empty stomach. Throw in some push ups or core work throughout the day when you're watching t.v. or whatever.

edit: whoops I forgot. Go ahead and eat something if you're doing weights. The only time I really recommend fruit is pre workout. Fructose in high doses rapes your physique, but if you're going to exercise 1-2 pieces will restore liver glycogen and basically "preps" your body to use glycogen as fuel to power your muscles. In this way you'll have more energy and will be stronger during the workout. 1-2 pieces of fruit + a handful of pecans, walnuts, or almonds should work fine as a little preworkout snack.

After each workout have a shake with 20-30g protein (some sort of whey would be ideal {hydrosolate, isolate, concentrate in decreasing order of preference and cost, and increasing order of taste}, 20-40g of carbohydrates, and as little fats as possible (fats slow digestion. great at night, not great post workout)). Chocolate Milk is an alright substitute, but far from ideal. Lactose wreaks havoc on both my skin and how "hard" I look.

Don't eat sweets or starchy carbs after 5 or 6 pm unless you've been active. By this I mean if you have an evening workout, go ahead and have the shake. If you've been watching television, don't eat the f*cking cupcake.

Honestly though, a membership to a real gym with all the equipment you need would be a worthy investment. If you've never worked out before, beginner gains are amazing. Personally I put on 40 pounds in 4 months and went from 12% to 8% bodyfat based on a 7 point body fat test with calipers. Once your body adjusts to the new lifestyle, your body changes much more slowly. Diet, Diet Diet matters. A workout is 20m-1hr a day a few days a week. diet is 24/7/365 and therefore significantly more difficult.

Finally, throw out your scale. The weight really doesn't mean anything. If you're going for an aesthetically pleasing look and don't need to make weight classes, then what does it matter? Take a photo of yourself today and compare it after you've been working out and eating properly for a month, two months, three months, etc.

track your food. fitday.com is an alright source, though I had better luck when I took a journal with me to track my diet and workouts/weights. The first two weeks suck balls, but it gets easier after that.

Originally Posted by Noir.

I've gotten quite a few PMs from people who are at a reasonably high level of bodyfat and want to try the method 2. of carb cycling. I'd advise method 1. for most people who are carrying a significant amount of bodyfat (>25% for example) and if they like the idea of method 2. then start that once they get sub-15%. A good rule of thumb would be if you can see your top 2 or top 4 abdominals when flexed, you're lean enough for method 2. I'm not saying it wouldn't work, but it's definitely slower which may lead to disappointment. It's designed to let you hopefully build a little muscle while losing fat, or build some muscle while minimizing fat gain.

EDIT:

Tip to get rid of a sweet tooth. I just told someone in a PM about making small sacrafices for a better body. Right now I have a craving for soft peanut butter cookies full of butter and hot out of the oven. Here's what I had instead:



A couple tablespoons of natural peanut butter and a dollop or two of cool whip LITE or free or whatever it is. The whip cream does have a gram or so of corn syrup/HFCS which drove me nuts and I almost didn't buy it because of it, but if it saves me from going out and binging on junk food, it's well worth it. The amount of hfcs is almost negligable anyway, but my OCD kicked in when I saw it.

I mention this because nighttime munchies are a huge issue for myself and seem to be for a lot of people. sugar free jell-o is a nice treat, and I was big on instant sugar free pudding, a scoop of protein powder, and HOOD calorie countdown when I could still find the stuff. I think my soul died a little bit when my grocery store stopped carrying it...

Originally Posted by thekunk07

pb is a life saver when i have a hankering for something dessert-like.

Originally Posted by ken

hmmm... You can be a fitness model at that size? Can you get me a job?

What's all this mumbo jumbo? All I needed to get there are squats and eggs.




Eason, when I first started reading your posts, I really didn't like you. But I found out that you're the most pragmatic exercise folk in this forum, and I've come to terms with my deep and longing love for you.

Originally Posted by James Bond

If you're doing the big lifts (deads and squats, especially), you shouldn't need much in the way of direct ab work.