advice needed please.

buzz

Sorry if this has been posted before as I couldnt find it.
Im 25, male, 64kgs and 5ft 4", go to gym 4 days per week and am "bulking up". I was told not to do any cardio as cus Im trying to pack on the pounds in the right places etc, I will use up energy and burn cals that I need to put on the weight.

Im now benching 75kgs (free weight) which is not bad considering Im 64kgs (im told).

Anyway, while Im putting on extra weight etc, its also going to my stomach..... and its getting big lol

My arms and chest back etc, Im noticing good gains, but how do I keep the tummy in shape? Im doing alot of abs work, but thats only building / toning muscle behind the extra fat on my stomach..

Is it down to my diet?

Currently My diet is generally quite good, but since I started this new plan from my trainner in the gym Ive hadto cut the cardio out.
Currently Im not using any protein or cretine etc.

Thanks in advance

tribulus

Down to your diet i'd say, post it up. Are eating lots of low quality carbs e.g bread, perhaps you're eating too many carbs later in the evening, too much fat etc. post up your diet and we can give a beter answer;)

justsomebloke

just remember when bulking you are techically eating to gain weight, and to make the most amount of muscle gain people will eat more then exactly need and so the spare calories can often turn to fat. This is why if you see pics of body builders in the off season they are generally a bit tubby. so the excess fat that you are putting on is generally down to diet.

In relation to cadrio, unless you are a real hard gainer I would keep it in. I would jsut make sure that it is only low intensity training so keep you heart rate to around 60-65% of max, as this will help get rid of some of the excess fat. If you are doing cardio that is at a higger rate then this you aren't targeting fat loss so you may compromise your gains from weight lifting

buzz

Good answer.

My diet is, in the morning a bananna and cup of tea and a actimel..

Lunch is usually 2 bread rolls with ham chicken and lettuce and salami.

Dinner can be anything.. Mums cookin

But In fairness I do tend to eat alot of pizza.... I believe the bread is a problem there. and I always eat a decent meal before I go to bed. and alot of water.. My downfall is coke, about 2 cans or more per day.....

Should I sort out the diet and stick a full day of cardio in? Or do a small bit everytime I train?

Thanks in advance

Buzz.

buzz

Bump

r3nu4l

I'm not an expert so caution needed and anyone please feel free to correct me.

The pizza has to go as do any chips! Are you snacking on crisps or anything else yummy?

The actimels contain a lot of sugar but are good in other ways so it's a question of balance.

If the bread rolls are white bread then this could be a problem. Can you replace with wholemeal brown rolls?

If Mum is cooking then steer clear of any sauces and gravies! If you can cook once in a while try to use chopped tomatos or tomato puree instead of Ragu/Tesco/etc. bolognese sauces as these are often loaded with sugar.

Basic rule: If it's processed avoid it. Cut down on cheese if you eat a lot of it (I'm guilty of this)

That's my two cents but there are some people in this forum who are really good at this kind of thing, I suggest you keep a food log and post it up for comment, perhaps one weeks worth. Try to comment on the brand of each product used as the sugar and fat values vary significantly between brands.

EDIT: I hadn't noticed the Coke bit - I used to be addicted to coke but now I never touch the stuff. You can stop drinking it, just think that each can you drink is wiping out any gains you may make in the gym and destroying the effort you put in and then pretty soon you'll stop drinking it.

t-ha

buzz wrote:

Bump

Read this.

In particular, look at this and this.

Transform

|Come on you are joking - coke and pizza and you wonder why you have put on fat on your stomach!!!

you are doing yourself no favours and at your height that added fat weight will make you look like a barrel

Sort it out and a little cardio will not eat into your progress i.e. 15-20mins 3 days per week

buzz

@ R3un4l - good point.. I will cut out the sauces I can avoid... and I will try bran instead of white bread.

@ Transform - ur about as blunt as a needle, but I get the point cheers.:p

rubadub

Try and aim for 6 equal meal (calorie wise) per day. You need bigger breakfast. Change those 2 rolls into 2 different meals. bread has lots of calories.

If the meal you mother makes is huge (and most will insist you eat the lot), just ask her to put aside a portion for you to eat later on, just so your meals are more even.

I love my pizza but rarely have it now, I still find it strange that no company has come out with a wholegrain pizza base, with low fat toppings, i.e. little cheese.

r3nu4l

rubadub wrote:

I love my pizza but rarely have it now, I still find it strange that no company has come out with a wholegrain pizza base, with low fat toppings, i.e. little cheese.

This is strange and I had never thought about it until I was in an Italian restaurant in Cambridge and saw they had one on the menu. As a cheese lover myself I was doubtful but gave it a go and it was delicious. The fact that a restaurant has it on the menu must mean that there is a demand for cheese free pizza.

I know it's more expensive but on occassion you could go to the deli counter and ask for a pizza to be made up from scratch and then pick and choose ingredients making sure to resist the cheese

rubadub

If you look up italian recipies there are plenty with no cheese at all. I find it stranger about the wholegrain thing, there are lots of wholegrain breads about these days, go into a supermarket and there are entire isles of frozen pizzas, but no "healthy option" ones. Yet every other frozen foods seem to have low fat/healthy options.

Might have a go at making my own. I cant be bothered messing with yeast etc, but you could get one of those brown bread mixes and make a base with that.

t-ha

Get a whole-meal wrap, put spaghetti bolognese sauce down, then cheese & toppings (better to have meats pre-cooked) of your choice. You can make pizza with pretty much any nutritional profile you want. Use mini-wraps for mini-pizzas.