Bulk up and lose fat

gazzer

Folks.

I have been training on and off over the years but for the last 3 months I have been training in Pinnacle gym(great place by the way) and the sheer size of some of the guys has really inspired me to start bulking up(something I have been trying to do for ages but was never dedicated enough to do it properly).

Anyways I suppose the best thing would be to ask somebody that is training there but I dont know any of the lads well enough yet so I thought I would post here what exercises I have been doing and what my diet is like and see if any kind people here would point me in the right direction. My goal is to put on up to a stone of muscle by years end (if it is possible).

Right I have been doing a split workout and have been going to the gym on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

Workout 1
Chest Press 4 Sets (10, 8, 6, 4)
Flyes 3 Sets (8, 8, 8)
Lateral Raise 4 Sets (10, 8, 6, 4)
Shoulder Press 3 Sets (8, 8, 8)
Lat Pull Down 4 Sets (10, 8, 6, 4)
Bent over Row 3 Sets (8, 8, 8)

Workout 2
Squats 5 Sets (10, 8, 6, 4, 2)
Leg Press 3 Sets (8, 8, 8)
Standing Calf Raise 3 Sets (8, 8, 8)
Barbell Curls 4 Sets (10, 8, 6, 4)
Concentration Curls 3 Sets (8, 8, 8)
Press behind neck 3 Sets (8, 8, 8)
Tricep Press 4 Sets (10, 8, 6, 4)

Diet wise a typical training day would be

8.30 2 eggs and wholemeal bread with butter

10.30 1 banana and a half scoop of Ultimate Mass weight gainer with milk

1.30 Breast of Chicken/Fish with mashed potatoes and veg

4.00 Half scoop of Ultimate Mass weight gainer with milk

5.00 (pre workout) 3 creatine capsules, 1 banana

6.45 (post workout) 3 creatine capsules, 1 banana, half scoop of Ultimate
Mass weight gainer with milk

8.00 Spaghetti Bolagnese or Steak with mashed potatoe with veg or Lasagne


Now I know my diet needs to be changed.. Its not practical for me to bring in a lot of food to work as the fridge is very small and is used by a lot of staff and i would be able to fit much into it so it is handy for me to have the weight gainer during the day.

I havnt been doing any cardio work in the gym or any abs work. I figured I shoudl get rid of some of the weight around my stomach by a proper diet first and then do ab work to tone it.. maybe that is the wrong approach??

Anyways i work only 10 minutes from the gym so I was thinking of going to the gym every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and maybe hitting 1 or 2 bodyparts as hard as I can each time I go.. Also maybe I should be incorporating more all over body exercises e.g. Deadlifts into my workout.

Id really appreciate any advice anybody here could give.. I want to do this properly cos I know in the past I have gone into the gym full of enthusiasm to work out and bulk up but after a few months I have given up cos I dont see the gains I want.. I know though that that is down to a diet that isnt right and not doing the correct exercises.

So this time around I want to start as I mean to go on and bulk up as best as I can.

Thanks for reading this and I look forward to your advice

Gaz

t-ha

Gaz,

Number one part of a good bulk-up is nutrition. Have a read of the stickies, you'll understand why you eat a certain way better then. For example, although you're getting some protein in at each meal, you're not really getting the full whack until lunch-time that I can see. Change your brekkie to 2 eggs & 4 egg whites for example?
Also, lasagne is basically a fat man's food - lots of fairly simple carbs, usually gluten loaded & a tonne of saturated fat to boot. You won't use fat for energy if you're loading up on carbs at the same time so it's better to keep them a little seperate.

Low intensity cardio is a good idea to keep the flab to a minimum, and more importantly to keep your fitness levels at a respectable level and to do it without affecting your overall training volume too much.

As far as working out goes, no single programme will work for you right until the end of the year, however keep the following in mind;
1] If you're not that hungry & thirsty when you miss a meal, then maybe your workout needs an overhaul.
2] Increases in mass, without any increases in strength or workout volume are to be regarded with suspicion.
3] Working out hard means giving what you've got to each rep of each set - not going to failure and working out too many times a week.
4] 10lbs lean mass gained in a year is decent gains for a year for an intermediate trainee. Getting big takes patience.

davyjose

t-ha, how long would you recommend between eating fats and carbs - just at different meals, or at complete opposite ends of the day?
Also would vegetables be included? In other words would olive oil as a dressing with salad be a big no-no?

gazzer

@ t-ha.

Thanks for the advice.. Last week I did a different type of workout

Monday I did Chest exercises
Tuesday I did Legs
Wednesday I did Shoulder/Back
Friday I did Biceps/Triceps

I felt great at the end of the week and some friends even commented that I looked a 'bit bigger' so that was great to hear.

Unfortunately I have only been able to go to the gym one day this week so far because of work but hopefully I will be back to normal tomorrow.

Thanks again.

t-ha

@gazzer - good stuff

@davey - I wouldn't stress it too much as long as your overall calories are ok, certaintly oil on salad is fine & with vegetables generally as they contain so little carbs and it takes quite a while to digest most of them. It's basically only large amounts of simple or processed carbs with large amounts of fat that I would try to avoid. A typical white-bread based pizza with high-fat salami and running in oily grease is a good example of a food I would avoid most of the time (obviously not ALL of the time as they are delicious).

Seraphina

t-ha wrote:

A typical white-bread based pizza with high-fat salami and running in oily grease

when you say it that way, it sounds so gross

... is it weird that i still want a pizza?