Whey Protein and Creatine

chops018

Hi all,

If this should be in the other forum then I've no problems with it being moved..

I suppose I'll start out with what I usually eat and what I usually do fitness wise:

Diet:

- Cereal for breakfeast.
- Chicken/Fish/Beef for dinner; with either a few chips, or a scoop or two of potatoes, and some frozen veg, I also usually have an egg too.
- Evening time; Protein Shake, and sometimes another egg.
- Night time; usually snack on some cookies and tea, or a bar of chocolate and pack of crisps.

Weekends: bad foods, little or no workout, and drinking night on Saturday night.

Workout:

- Monday: usually start off with some push ups, sit ups, some body weight as in pull ups, dips etc. Then I usually move onto a full chest workout.
- Tuesday: biceps and triceps, also full ab workout; p90x and Tom Hardy Warrior ab workout.
- Wednesday: Shoulders and back (I never do much work on the back thought, and I always seem to not push myself on it, I will have to improve on that). Also I throw in some push ups and sit ups.
- Thursday: A mixture of it all, with the p90 or other ab workout. I also try to include 15 mins of a leg workout here.
- Friday: usually do arms, and some push ups and sit ups and some core workouts.

Saturday and Sunday off.

Cardio: I do usually get some running in 3 times a week - usually a 5k run. I rarely do sprints.



What I am wondering is:

what should I eat to get leaner? I am seeing very slight results.
should I go for some creatine along with the protein?
or is it that my workout plan needs to change?

I don't want to get huge, maybe a slight bit bigger and then leaner.

I am very skinny when I stand up, but I have a bit of a 'sit-down belly' as I like to call it, when sitting down. I'm about 9 and a half stone and about 5'6 or 5'7.

My main question really is about the creatine..would it be a good idea to give the capsules a go?


Thoughts?

Zombienosh

Forget creatine, focus on diet and get a proper training plan together, creatine won't help you get leaner, its not for that.

chops018

Zombienosh wrote: »

Forget creatine, focus on diet and get a proper training plan together, creatine won't help you get leaner, its not for that.

I always hear my friends saying "oh creatine, take loads of it with water and you will see arms etc getting bigger".

Are they wrong?

Yeah I may try incorporate some different meats and more fruits, nuts and replace chocolate snacks with peanut butter or something nutritious alright.

Other than that I thought it seemed ok. Actually I am planning on starting to vary the workout a little bit more to be honest, it is getting very repetitive.

Zombienosh

Creatine will help with strength and recovery, you can take it if you want, I'm just letting you know it's not magic.

You only have 15 mins legs in your workout? if you want to be big you have to work legs, hard. And don't neglect your back. Legs and back are so important, way more important than bicep curls.

Stench Blossoms

Your diet is a mess.

Who gave you that program?

dahat

Sorry to hijack but where is the best site to construct your own training program?

Zombienosh

have a look there for some ideas. http://www.muscleandstrength.com/workouts/main.html

blatantrereg

- Monday: usually start off with some push ups, sit ups, some body weight as in pull ups, dips etc. Then I usually move onto a full chest workout.
- Tuesday: biceps and triceps, also full ab workout; p90x and Tom Hardy Warrior ab workout.
- Wednesday: Shoulders and back (I never do much work on the back thought, and I always seem to not push myself on it, I will have to improve on that). Also I throw in some push ups and sit ups.
- Thursday: A mixture of it all, with the p90 or other ab workout. I also try to include 15 mins of a leg workout here.
- Friday: usually do arms, and some push ups and sit ups and some core workouts.

Stop bothering with most of that. Squat, deadlift, bench press and press instead.

Taking any sort of supplementation is a waste for you at the moment. Good diet, good rest, good training are all more important and effective than supplements. Supplements like protein shakes and creatine are effective if used correctly in addition to that. But they are supplemental to more important things, and superfluous if you don't get the important things right.

Drinking a protein shake in the evening is particularly pointless. Use up the rest of your whey in shakes you consume right after your workout.

You don't need to do weights as often as you do. 2-3 times a week is plenty to see results if you do them right. You're best off not doing them more than three times a week unless you know what you're doing wrt them really (and possibly not even then.)

Diet:

Weekends: bad foods, little or no workout, and drinking night on Saturday night.

Don't eat "bad foods" if you're trying to lose weight or get fit. It's not rocket science really.

Most people don't advocate trying to lose fat at the same time as building muscle. Some people manage good results at the same time though. Eating lots on days when you use weights, and eating less on days you don't might be effective, especially if your ratio of muscle to fat is not especially high in the first place. Most people who are really into it would probably suggest you focus on building muscle first for a while (eat lots and get slightly fatter), and then cut for a while (eat less, possibly lose some muscle as well as fat).

chops018

Stench Blossoms wrote: »

Your diet is a mess.

Who gave you that program?

I don't actually have a diet. That's just what I normally would eat most of the time.

Zombienosh wrote: »

Creatine will help with strength and recovery, you can take it if you want, I'm just letting you know it's not magic.

You only have 15 mins legs in your workout? if you want to be big you have to work legs, hard. And don't neglect your back. Legs and back are so important, way more important than bicep curls.

Yeah I am planning on doing much more leg and back work alright. I have been working out in the gym for a good while now, and I must say at 9 and a half stone I am not fat. I have a very good shape/body. But I do think I should be a bit better, so I was wondering about the creatine.

I might get it, and try to incorporate some sort of different workout plan and change my diet around.

chops018

blatantrereg wrote: »

Stop bothering with most of that. Squat, deadlift, bench press and press instead.

Yeah some people have told me to get onto doing a lot more deadlifting and bench pressing to see better results alright.

They said strength training once a week is good too: lifting tyres etc.

Thanks for all the feedback guys, some good reading and food for thought. Didn't think I'd get all these replies so quick so thanks again.

chops018

dahat wrote: »

Sorry to hijack but where is the best site to construct your own training program?

If you have a smartphone then Full Fitness is a great app for that sort of thing.

You can get the free one or buy the premium (better one).

Stench Blossoms

chops018 wrote: »

I don't actually have a diet. That's just what I normally would eat most of the time.

By diet I meant what you are currently eating.

1. Ditch the cereal and pasta.
2. Have a good source of protein (Eggs, chicken, fish, steak) with every meal.
3. Workout your calorie needs.
4. Ditch the cookies, crisps etc.

--Kaiser--

chops018 wrote: »

I always hear my friends saying "oh creatine, take loads of it with water and you will see arms etc getting bigger".

Are they wrong?

Creatine makes water go to your muscles, it gives you a slight advantage when lifting as your muscles have mass, but mostly it makes your muscles bigger in a 'soft and swollen' kind of way rather than a 'hard and sinewy' kind of way. That's why a lot of bodybuilders you see look like they're inflatable