Diet for getting bigger & prehab work

JerichoCane

I've been reading over this forum for a long time now and finally decided that I had to ask a few questions about my own life, which i've recently decided to do something about! Currently i'm 22, 11st and 5'7". My bodyfat is around 16-18%, can see my abs when I tense but to be honest couldn't really give a flyin f**k about them. My main goal is to get much bigger, stronger and flexible for taekwondo, which I plan on starting in the near future, and to get bigger and stronger for better kicks and jostles for soccer.

Currently my full diet consists of:

Breakfast ~7.15am:

2 boiled eggs, boiled night before, from own chickens and bowl of porridge or 4 egg omelette with onions, ham and whatever bit of additional meat that was left over from dinner day before.

Tea 10.00am:

2 apples and tuna sandwich on wholegrain bread or tuna, sweetcorn, lettuce and tomatos out of a lunch box.

Lunch 1:00pm

Homemade burgers with salad/ Soup with sandwich/ Full Irish (This last one is from peer pressure :rolleyes: )

Dinner 6:00pm: ( I feel this is my biggest downfall, to long of a gap due to meetings that are on most days, boring and have to sit on my ass for ages!)

Large High Quality Steak/ 2 Chicken Breasts/ Steak Mince/ 2 Turkey Breasts with, usually, spuds, carrots, peas, parsnips. (After writing this down I just realised that it could be a bit better, more healthy fats for one).

If its a Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday

Gym: Currently doing starting strength, documented after diet

Evening Tea:
If after gym: Tuna melt grilled with cheese and onions, boiled egg
If wasn't in gym: 3 boiled eggs

What do you think of my diet overall? I need to eat more for a start but what should I eat more of? and at what times would be best?

I have only recently started at the gym, before this I didn't have the most active lifestyle. I used to be a labourer for plasterers so built up a lot of strength with that, lifting buckets of ~30kg buckets of skim up stairs was useful for something! That was a good while ago though and now i'm back to an office job Up until around 3 weeks ago the only movement I got was playing soccer the odd weekend and pucked a sliotar around for a bit of craic, only real movement I got was leapin about on a dancefloor!! My starting stats for starting strength were, this was 3 weeks ago:

Squat: 50kg
Deadlift: 40kg, more of a mental block I think from worrying about my back
Dips: 5x5 bodyweight, I don't have a spotter for benchpress, will have to ask some randomers to help me in the future.
Chinups: 10, 4, 3
Press: 20kg

As of this moment I am

Squat: 70kg, should be higher but took it to easy after horrer stories about knees, now I know they are complete crap if squat is done right
Deadlift: 60kg, this WILL be higher when I start my log!!
Dips: 2x5, 1x4 10kg
Chinups: 12, 6, 3, not really progressing
Press: 25kg, haven't concentrated on this one at all

I would also like to know if there is any prehab work like stretches for a) my shoulder which can get awful tight the next day! and b) my lower back, I always used to lift with my back when I was a plasterer, never got injured but still worried about it even though I lift with proper form now!

EileenG

Overall, your diet looks pretty good.

One place you could put in a useful addition is directly after a workout, have a whey and dextrose shake. That will increase your calories and protein intake, and shouldn't fill you up so much you can't eat your regular meals.

JerichoCane

Thanks EileenG. I was wondering about taking a whey supplement but just thought that since i'm relatively new to weightlifting in a gym that whole foods would be better for me, especially since i'm trying to put on extra weight. I'll give it a try anyway, can't hurt in the long run anyway!! Where would be the best place to purchase dextrose for the whey powder if ya don't mind me asking?

Apip99

I can not recommend highly enough the Strong lifts 5x5 for bulking up http://stronglifts.com/

There's a few of us here using the program, and few who have done it in the past. I am yet to hear a negative about it.

emon

JerichoCane wrote: »

Thanks EileenG. I was wondering about taking a whey supplement but just thought that since i'm relatively new to weightlifting in a gym that whole foods would be better for me, especially since i'm trying to put on extra weight. I'll give it a try anyway, can't hurt in the long run anyway!! Where would be the best place to purchase dextrose for the whey powder if ya don't mind me asking?

Try this:
http://www.myprotein.co.uk/products/dextrose

BigBraveBear

Apip99 wrote: »

I can not recommend highly enough the Strong lifts 5x5 for bulking up http://stronglifts.com/

There's a few of us here using the program, and few who have done it in the past. I am yet to hear a negative about it.

Hi, just have a quick qustion on the 5*5 stronglifts, for each set of 5 reps should the weight be heavy enough that I'm almost at failure for each set?

Apip99

BigBraveBear wrote: »

Hi, just have a quick qustion on the 5*5 stronglifts, for each set of 5 reps should the weight be heavy enough that I'm almost at failure for each set?

start at a comfortable weight is what I did. I didn't want to go blazing straight into injury. That weing saif though I have been doing a 5kg increase each session rather than 2.5 due to lack of plates at my gym.

Even moving up at 2.5, you'll soon be lifting more that you would have done with other programs and in a quicker time too. imo. Plus you have the added benefot of increasing in size fairly rapidly.

You'll need to be relgious on your three days a week (never two days back to back) and also have some funds for a new wardrobe. You'll quickly out grow what you have now.:D

Oh and have a read here: http://stronglifts.com/gomad-milk-squats-gallon-gain-weight/ I didn't do the gallon, but 3 liters of milk a day was enough for me.

d'Oracle

JerichoCane wrote: »

My starting stats for starting strength were, this was 3 weeks ago:

Squat: 50kg
Deadlift: 40kg, more of a mental block I think from worrying about my back
Dips: 5x5 bodyweight, I don't have a spotter for benchpress, will have to ask some randomers to help me in the future.
Chinups: 10, 4, 3
Press: 20kg

As of this moment I am

Squat: 70kg, should be higher but took it to easy after horrer stories about knees, now I know they are complete crap if squat is done right
Deadlift: 60kg, this WILL be higher when I start my log!!
Dips: 2x5, 1x4 10kg
Chinups: 12, 6, 3, not really progressing
Press: 25kg, haven't concentrated on this one at all

I would also like to know if there is any prehab work like stretches for a) my shoulder which can get awful tight the next day! and b) my lower back, I always used to lift with my back when I was a plasterer, never got injured but still worried about it even though I lift with proper form now!

How many times have you deadlifted in 3 weeks?
Your squat is at body weight yet your deadlift is less, you will get nowhere by wussing out. I can tell you this from experience.

Have you put on any weight? If so then your chins are progressing.

EileenG

JerichoCane wrote: »

Thanks EileenG. I was wondering about taking a whey supplement but just thought that since i'm relatively new to weightlifting in a gym that whole foods would be better for me, especially since i'm trying to put on extra weight. I'll give it a try anyway, can't hurt in the long run anyway!! Where would be the best place to purchase dextrose for the whey powder if ya don't mind me asking?

I'm a huge believer in fresh whole food, but after lifting is one time that whey is really worth it. Dextrose is also known as glucose or glucose monohyrdrate. You can buy it in any supermarket or chemist or health food shop. And it's cheap. Typically about a euro for 500g, so definitely not worth buying on-line unless postage is free. Check out the baking and baby sections of your local supermarket.

Sangre

Does dextrose have a very sweet taste? I want to add it to my PWO whey but I hate very sweet things.

EileenG

Yes it does. It's another form of sugar, one with a very high gi which can be absorbed directly by the muscles without having to be broken down.

Throw some ice into your shake, it will help to kill the sweetness. If you have vitamin C powder, this is a good time to take it, the sourness will counteract the sweetness of the dex.