Get stronger or slim down first?

[bigbadboss101]

Call me crazy for putting a log on Beyond knowing there are some members who are critical, and some who might not know their stuff.
You guys beat Vaga up pretty good :-(

There are also a good number of people who are quite knowledgeable and helpful so I figure I would first ask for your opinions and then in a few days I will begin my program.

Goal: Lose some fat, get stronger and more muscular. Aside from that, better endurance, more explosiveness.

One requires caloric deficit, the other two would work best if one is consuming higher calories. Therefore, what to do first? I was thinking P90X to get lean and build some muscles, or Stronglifts 5x5 to get stronger. Of course there are other programs that might work.

Age: 41

Height: 5'8"

Weight: 184 lbs
I was as high as 208 about 10 years ago while I was working in Florida. Jan of 2010 I was around 198. May 2010 I got down to 183 and in the summer I got back to 190. Feb 2011 I was 190 before my trip to Central America. Three weeks ago I was as low as 179. As you can see my weight can change ~4 lbs within a 24 hour window, and ~ 7-10 lbs in a two week period.

Waist: 34". Would like to get to 32".

Exercise:
- Ball hockey 1+ time per week
- Weight training 3 times a week (goal)
- Ninjutsu 2+ times a week
- Hot Yoga 1+ time per week

As it gets warmer I would be including ultimate frisbee, soccer, tennis, mountain biking, jogging etc to the list.
At that time I shouldn't be worried about not exercising enough.

Sleep:
Between 6-7 hours weekday, and 8 hours on the weekend.

Supplements:
Fish oil, multi V, protein powder.

Food intake:
My guess is between 1800-2200 calories a day. 35/30/35 P/F/C ratio.

Lifts:
- Flat bench 145 (3 x 10) (did quite a bit more years ago)
- Dumbbell bench press 55 (3 x 10)
- Dumbbell shoulder press 40 (3 x 10) Weak point is the core!

- Dumbbell curls 30 (3 x 10)
- Squats 185 (5 x 5)

Balance is the issue, and pain where the bar sits on the shoulders/back.

- Dead lift 145 (5 x 5)

Some lower back pain.

The lifts are weak but with consistency I foresee some good gains.

Motivation:

Beside personal achievements/growth I would like to be a good example to friends. Many of my male friends are fat skinny. Skinny guys with pot bellies. Some of my male/female friends are 20-40 lbs over weight. I want to be able to get to a good level, and empower others to eat healthy, and exercise.

Feel free to join me and start your log. Looking for encouragement and constructive criticisms.

Thanks!

[bigbadboss101]

http://members.shaw.ca/bigbadboss101/images/images/Front%2004112011.jpg.JPG

http://members.shaw.ca/bigbadboss101/images/images/Back%2004112011.jpg.jpg

Ok guys no rude comments. Here are couple before pictures. Looking soft, and hate the "moobs". You notices I have rashes on my skin. I have auto-immune disease and the body is always in an inflammatory state. If I drink alcohol, increase stress level, or eat shell fish it gets worse.

Last April I got strep throat and then my entire body was covered with red dots. They call it guttate psoriasis. Decided to limit sugar, soft drinks, red meat, eggs, gluten and skin got much better, and I went from 195 ish to 183 ish.
Then when I started to eat such food I put some weight back on, and skin got worse. Problem is I don't know which, if any might be the culprit.

Another thing I just noticed is that my left shoulder is a bit higher than the right. Back in the fall my chiropractor mentioned that too. Acromioclavicular joint out of alignment. I do carry backpack on my left side.

This week: ball hockey Tu, Th, Fri. Vball Sat. Will hit the gym on Wed, and probably go to Ninjutsu Saturday, and hot yoga Sunday.

[CMW403]

In no way am I a fitness guru.

You can get cardio and strength training at the same time with an intense program like the P90x or any of those variations. Iv never tried it as Iv never needed to cut fat but it works for my dad (he's 49). But if I were you I'd hit the gym 5 times a week with about 30 min of cardio to start and then hit the weights for another hour specializing on different body parts every day.

I'd say the best way to lose pounds and keep them off would be to cut unnecessary sugars from your diet entirely. Stop eating anything sweet and don't touch pop at all and you'll be surprised where that takes you.

[Stephen81]

i was gonna say for 41 you don't look that bad (no homo). at least you've already got some functional strength so you aren't severely restricted in the activities you can choose from. but like mentioned above and will be mentioned below me a few dozen times, diet is a bigger part of the picture than most people care to realize...

[Uncle Flappy]

Sounds like you are on the right track. Do the 1800-2000 with the 35/30/35 and give it an honest go in the gym. I guarantee you will see results.

Don't overdo it and hurt your back with the deadlifts, take it slow. Stay away from the machines and keep squatting. Learn variations of squat and switch it up, like front squats and 1 and 1/4 squats etc. Cardio is not a must to get in shape, diet is more key. I would cut down before I went on a bulk if I was you. It is going to be summer soon (hopefully) after all.

[E36M3]

If you have the motivation and follow the diet plan, P90X can lead to serious results in 90 days, where you can develop muscle and lose fat. As you build more muscle, you will burn more fat, so it is a virtuous cycle to an extent. Don't be fooled though-- diet is probably 80% of it. I've done P90X and a lot of the traditional gym type stuff, and I think that P90X is a very challenging, very complete program. It isn't easy though, so there is no reason to do it if it is above your fitness level. I usually recommend that people try Power 90 first before doing P90X, because I've seen a lot of people quite P90X within the first couple weeks due to injury (Plyo is hard on your body as is the rest of the program).

If you just want to lean down, continue what you are doing exercise wise and just follow a carb restricted diet. The "slow carb" diet in 4 Hour Body is a great one that a lot of people I know have gotten good results with. I don't see having to get a lot more complicated than that.

After P90X, if you want to drop some fat and get into even better cardiovascular shape, Insanity is also an excellent program. I'm a couple weeks in to my first shot at it, and it is very challenging.. definitely another level above the cardio elements of P90X and it doesn't require any special equipment.

[Darkane]

Best Idea is to lose fat first.

Main reason is this:

At your age (not that you're old dude seriously lots of training life left) Insulin sensitivity, and hormones must be maximized.

The way to do that is to be lean. The more fat you carry, the more Testosterone converts to estrogen. True story.

Also the fatter you are the greater chance you have of storing blood sugar as FAT, and not Glycogen (useable fuel) within the muscle. The more insulin 'sensitive' you are the better.

And good job squating and deadlifting. I highly doubt it's a balance issue, more a mobility issue.

Hips must be loose, hamstrings loose and glutes active.

Basically search online for hip/ham/glute pre-workout Mobility drills.

tips for deadlift: always look forward. pull yourself down using the bar and push the floor down with your heels. Don't lift the bar, push the floor away.

Take your shoulders and put them BACK, and DOWN, at the same time puffing out your chest. Do this in the 'hole' or the bottom position just before pushing the floor away.

Should make sense. If you plan to cut cals this split will work better:

Workout days 2200 cals (40Pro/40fat/20 Carbs) 220g pro, 110 g carbs, 100g fat or so.

Non-workout days 1800 cals (45/45/10). 200g pro, 90g fat, 50g carbs.

Now that math doesn't add up 100%, I just made it like that to be easier.

Go crush it!

Oh and eat half carbs before, half after the workout. On non-workout days eat them first meal.

[cet]

I'm in the same boat as you. I'm 36 and as of last Christmas I was 185lbs at 5'11 and around 25% bf. I was THE definition of skinny-fat.

I started out in February reading Body for Life. I changed my diet but after a few weeks found out I wasn't getting the results I was expecting. This lead me to the web and a lot of reading. I stumbled across
Alan Aragon's blog http://www.alanaragonblog.com/ which lead me to
Lyle McDonald's Body Recomposition site http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/ and forums http://forums.lylemcdonald.com/index.php which lead me to
the Nutrition section (especially the stickies) of Bodybuilding.com http://forum.bodybuilding.com/forumdisplay.php?f=13.

There is a tonne of good information there. I've got a good handle on most of it now and the results are showing it. I'm down to 173lbs with a bf of about 18%. My goal is a bf of 10% before I start building muscle again.

[max_boost]

Well good on you for recognizing the need to change your body/lifestyle/eating habits. :thumbsup:

A lot of good points have already been made but to sum it up, fat loss is 90%+diet. It is that simple, you are what you eat!

To gain strength you need to lift heavier weights. Lots of different strength programs.

Personally I find it hard to do both at the same time. Usually when people decide to cut, they focus on maintaining their strength, not increasing it.

For weights, do some combination of compound lifts. You have that covered, press, bench, kroc rows, squats, deadlifts etc. Just do it.

Looking at your schedule, there's no shortage of exercise. As long as you are doing some sort of running around, getting your heart rate up, you are good IMO. The key is to train "explosively". That's why programs like P90 combined with diet is so effective. It's not about how much you work, it's how "hard" you work.

[max_boost]

For my conditioning needs, I picked up a Prowler.

http://www.elitefts.com/documents/prowler.htm

This thing will kick my ass haha

I'm happy where I am strength wise so for now I'm just focused on my overall conditioning.

[sputnik]

From a purely psychological perspective.

I would lose the weight first and not worry one bit about even retaining your strength levels.

At the end of the day, fitting well in your clothing, looking thinner to your friends and having more energy is a BIG self esteem and motivation booster than being able to squat or press a ton of weight.

Get to the position where you are at your goal weight and then start hitting the gym to regain your strength and add to it.

You will feel much better going to the gym and not worrying about your spare tire.

[scboss]

Like darkane said cut first. In almost all cases I will get my client to gain strength first because it is easier when you have extra fat on you for fuel. Plus you burn fat faster when you have more muscle.

Really tho your strength will still increase when you are cutting because you havnt been regular at the gym in a while.
Lay your foundation then proceed into a strength phase maybe after 1-2 months of this.

EDIT
Also because of your age staying injury free will be essential. If it hurts when you do deadlifts I would stop and strengthen your core/lower back and try to get more flexabilty in your hips and hamstrings.

[stevieo]

hey big bad, good job.

recently I finally decided it's time to change my life.
I used to blaze often and hard, toned down a bit, now I'm gonna quit for a while see how life goes haha.

Didn't do much sports/gym outside of high school. Had a pass at gold's gym and world health club but often found myself out of it after a while. never really 'enjoyed' it I guess.

Been going to the gym for about a month now, but started stronglifts 5x5 on march 28th. bf% i dunno but i am fat haha. got a flabby ass stomach but the rest of my body isn't so bad. Guess thats the outcome of eating too much junk food, never caring about what I ate. loved drinking pop and juice. played hockey, i enjoyed it but I never found myself having the energy or drive to skate hard and fast. Im lazy haha. but as of now I'm working hard everytime I play hockey, have to keep the intensity up. I hit the gym 3 times a week, I actually enjoy and look forward to going. I'm not a big fan of doing cardio though haha. i've also changed my diet up. cut out the juice/pop, drink 2L + of water a day minimum. taking fish oil and multi vitamins daily. eating more veggies & fruit, cut out fried stuff, fast food, processed foods etc. once in a while i'll enjoy it though haha.

anyways good luck on your path man!

I'm hoping to change my lifestyle to better myself and my health. look good, feel good :clap:

[bigbadboss101]

Good stuff man. If you like, come out to ultimate frisbee. I do various sports with the calgary outdoor club. They have biking, walks, hiking, soccer, walleyball, ball hockey, biking, skiing etc etc. A few events everyday!

[bigbadboss101]

Just finished 45 min chest/back workout at the gym here at work. Going for ball hockey tonight for couple hours.

Another incentive to work hard is that at work we have this health and wellness initiative. They divided our group into four teams headed by four managers. We would keep track of our steps using the pedometers they gave us, and also track # of minutes exercised per day.
A colleague of mine runs 10 km on the treadmill every morning and he is on another team. A few other teams have runners and such. We'll do what we can to keep it competitive :-)

[cricks11]

Good for you for setting goals.

I personally think you can definitely gain strength while slimming down. This wasn't the case before, but it's quite common for personal trainers to recommend weight training for women to lose weight.

I've never done P90x or Insanity myself, but I've known people who've gone on it but quit midway in. I'm not a fan of those because there are just certain things you can't do with just pushups and lunges.

From what I can see, you're on the right track. Stay away from the machines and work on your compounds exercises like deadlifts, squats, bench press, pull ups. Keep your volume/reps high, since you're not going for super strength yet. Keep rest low to keep your heart rate high. That's the key to losing weight through weights.

Circuit training. These are great for gaining strength and losing weight, but I wouldn't do ones you'd often find in a fitness magazine. What I like to do is alternate between two types of exercises. First I'll do an exercise which will drive my heart rate up, and push blood into the part of my body which I won't be working next. Stairs, for example. Then immediately after, do a anaerobic high tension exercise, like pullups. They're harder than they sound, because your body was struggling to push blood to the legs and now you're asking it to deliver blood to your upper body.

Anyways, I look forward to seeing your progress!

[scboss]

^ yeah good advice
circuits will be your key to getting both, Ive designed a good program for strengthening your core and building cardio that I use for alot of my clients looking to get into big lifts that need to strengthen there lower back

Good Mornings x 15
Russian Twist x 10 per side
TRX Plank timed for 1 minute
Heel Touches x 15 per side
Medicine Ball Slams x 15
Full Superman’s timed for 1 minute
5 minute break then repeat for 3 rounds

You can do this twice a week and still work your other areas
If you dont have access to a TRX then a regular plank is fine
This is just an example of the types of workouts you can do to get both. Try to super set or giant set things to keep the intensity up and shed pounds.
If you have any questions let me know

[stevieo]

Originally posted by bigbadboss101
Good stuff man. If you like, come out to ultimate frisbee. I do various sports with the calgary outdoor club. They have biking, walks, hiking, soccer, walleyball, ball hockey, biking, skiing etc etc. A few events everyday!

thanks for the invite, but I'll pass right now. I'm pretty much active 5/7 days of the week so far. mon/wed/fri gym and sun/tues/fri I have hockey with my friends. but its reading these threads, seeing my friends show positive outcomes/outlooks on themselves/life by changing foods/activities to do that make me really want to strive to better myself too.

good luck! keep working hard guys!

[bigbadboss101]

Good game of ball hockey Tuesday night. We play on an indoor full size rink so lot of running. Some good male players, and a few of the gals were quite good.

Next week I'm going to be playing three times again. Might have to reduce to twice as I still want to do the gym 3 times, yoga once, and Ninjutsu at least 1-2 times. Plus drop in ultimate frisbee is starting up.

Tonight was at the gym for 45 minutes or so. Unagi roll for dinner.

[cricks11]

What's ninjutsu like? I've always thought it'd be cool to train to be a ninja but it seems kind of impractical

[Darkane]

Originally posted by cricks11
What's ninjutsu like? I've always thought it'd be cool to train to be a ninja but it seems kind of impractical

Dude! Off-topic but man I checked out your blog.

You know what kind of Bodybuilding genetics you have?! OMG.

You naturally have the DENSE look all the BB's strive for. With more mass you'd be one mean looking dude.

Jealous.

If you're serious about putting on those 20 lbs of mass, let me know I'll send you to one of the best Coaches in the states.

Shelby Starnes. He does all his work online and hes awesome.

[bigbadboss101]

Yeah I checked out the blog too. Very nice. You look kinda like my nephew but he doesn't have the built. Need to put on 20lbs though? Muscular with definition looks good IMO.

Darkane, post some pics! I was hesitant but I did it. Curious to see how everyone is doing and look like. Good to encourage each others and so far no bullies yet :-)

Hey cricks, Ninjutsu is not to train to be a ninja. I supposed if you want to you can do that. Check out the link.
They practice martial art, weapons, and fire arms. Not for everyone but it's quite practical to me. I skipped for a long time so next time in class I am sure I will sweating and puffing.

http://www.ittacanada.com/

Your train at BDB?

[bigbadboss101]

Today took the day off as someone is coming to the house to do some work. Went and shovel my driveway and side walk, and also did the sidewalk for neighbour to the left and to the right. Then I drove to the place we have for sale and did the driveway and sidewalk. Heavy dense snow makes it a good workout. Gonna go get me some Pho for lunch and then head off to get some stuff at the Apple Store and Planet Organic.

Two hours of ball hockey tonight! And one hour tomorrow night. Vball is still open for Saturday night 7pm if anyone is interested. Two courts, one intermediate, one for the 'one hit wonders'. PM me if you want info.

[cricks11]

Originally posted by Darkane


Dude! Off-topic but man I checked out your blog.

You know what kind of Bodybuilding genetics you have?! OMG.

You naturally have the DENSE look all the BB's strive for. With more mass you'd be one mean looking dude.

Jealous.

If you're serious about putting on those 20 lbs of mass, let me know I'll send you to one of the best Coaches in the states.

Shelby Starnes. He does all his work online and hes awesome.

Thanks! I think you exaggerated that though haha, I still have a long ways to go. "Bodybuilding genetics". haha should have said that to the skinny asian kid 4 years ago.

I'm pretty serious about putting on the weight, but I'm aware of some of the things holding me back. Almost 100% diet I'm pretty sure, and I'm just learning about that stuff right now and in a couple months I'm going to start my weight gain journey haha. That shelbey guy looks pretty legit though, I'll consider him if I don't get anywhere.

[cricks11]

Originally posted by bigbadboss101
Yeah I checked out the blog too. Very nice. You look kinda like my nephew but he doesn't have the built. Need to put on 20lbs though? Muscular with definition looks good IMO.

Darkane, post some pics! I was hesitant but I did it. Curious to see how everyone is doing and look like. Good to encourage each others and so far no bullies yet :-)

Hey cricks, Ninjutsu is not to train to be a ninja. I supposed if you want to you can do that. Check out the link.
They practice martial art, weapons, and fire arms. Not for everyone but it's quite practical to me. I skipped for a long time so next time in class I am sure I will sweating and puffing.

http://www.ittacanada.com/

Your train at BDB?

Thanks, I'd just like to put on some weight to get my overall strength a bit higher. But yes, I train at BDB, how'd you guess? The site looked cool, last time I checked, about 3 years ago, the only ninjutsu place was in the basement of SAIT. i probably just missed this place though.

I should start up a thread here to log my weight gain, but you guys should "follow" me on my blog. I just started it and nobody reads it but my girlfriend haha.

[Darkane]

Originally posted by cricks11


Thanks! I think you exaggerated that though haha, I still have a long ways to go. "Bodybuilding genetics". haha should have said that to the skinny asian kid 4 years ago.

I'm pretty serious about putting on the weight, but I'm aware of some of the things holding me back. Almost 100% diet I'm pretty sure, and I'm just learning about that stuff right now and in a couple months I'm going to start my weight gain journey haha. That shelbey guy looks pretty legit though, I'll consider him if I don't get anywhere.

Haha! No exaggeration my friend.

You have that density without:

Carb loading
Sodium loading
Water Manipulation
Diuretics.

What I'm saying is you're over half way there and you're learning about the diet. That's the whole thing about bodybuilding genetics.

You have a burning metabolism to keep fat off, but It seems slabs of muscle are willing to be put on.

First change BAR NONE should now 1.5-2g of protein per pound of bodyweight.
Shoot for 250g. Not that hard.

You might get worried, naturally 'some' fat will come on as well.

Join www.Tnation.com and read the articles. Don't post to much in the forums, they like chewing people alive there haha.


:thumbsup:

[cricks11]

Yeah the plan is to sacrifice some "definition", get my weight and strength, then cut. Hopefully when it's all said and done, my body fat % is lower than it is now, and I'm still heavier than before.

BigBadBoss I still stand by what I said earlier though! Our bodies types are different and as such need different programs.

[cricks11]

I don't like T-Nation haha. I can't get past all the propaganda they shove in your face in all the articles. Makes me wonder how much I should believe.

[Darkane]

Originally posted by cricks11
I don't like T-Nation haha. I can't get past all the propaganda they shove in your face in all the articles. Makes me wonder how much I should believe.

Read from these guys:

Shelby Starnes
John Meadows
Dan John
Dave Tate
Jim Wendler
Dr. John Berardi
Brett Contreras
dr. Loney Lowry.

Mobility Articles:

Eric Cressy
Mike Robertson

Those guys are all LEGIT. You won't find bad information there.

[cricks11]

I got the video "magnificent mobility" by cressy and robinson. It's pretty awesome :P

[bigbadboss101]

Found this interesting.

I've seen hockey players dropping 5% body fat in five weeks without changing their diets. I've seen fitness girls losing 20 pounds of fat in six weeks while getting stronger. And I've seen football players completely revamp their body composition in six weeks while adding 20% to some of their lifts!

http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/most_recent/6_weeks_to_superhero_how_i_build_muscle_and_strip_off_fat_fast

Anyways lot of ball hockey and vball of late. Will cut back on that and do more weights!

[cricks11]

Supplement Amount
ANACONDA 3 scoops
MAG-10 2 scoops
SURGE Workout Fuel 1 scoop

* Drink half of this mixture 15-20 minutes pre-workout, half at the mid-point.
* Thirty minutes after your workout have another scoop of MAG-10.
* Eat your regular meal 60 to 90 minutes after the workout.

See what I mean? That's lame, but other than that article's cool :)

[Darkane]

Originally posted by cricks11


See what I mean? That's lame, but other than that article's cool :)

Christian works for Biotest, however he's said many time lots of his Articles get edited the way he doesn't wan them ... Anyway.

I can attest that Anaconda works, that's one protocol that actually delivers.

FYI Christian trains Olympic athelets, Professional Athletes and Pro Level bodybuilders.

He Trained an IFBB PRO (Darryl Gee) and they put on 12 pounds of mass during his prep for the Detroit pro 202 class, then the Mr. Olympia 202 class.

Basically they added 12 pounds to a PRO bodybuilder who is almost at his genetic limit anyway.

And just so it's out there.. It's not just the steroids. The human body can only handle so much before it literally can't intake any more anabolics.

So many pro's can only put on 5-6 pounds of muscle a year, and he put on 12 in 16 weeks? Christian knows his stuff on Training.

[cricks11]

I agree with you, I don't discredit him, I just don't think if you ask him what supplement you should take, he'll say you HAVE to take the ones it says in the article.

[max_boost]

Originally posted by bigbadboss101
Found this interesting.

I've seen hockey players dropping 5% body fat in five weeks without changing their diets. I've seen fitness girls losing 20 pounds of fat in six weeks while getting stronger. And I've seen football players completely revamp their body composition in six weeks while adding 20% to some of their lifts!

http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/most_recent/6_weeks_to_superhero_how_i_build_muscle_and_strip_off_fat_fast

Anyways lot of ball hockey and vball of late. Will cut back on that and do more weights!

Shit that just motivated the hell out of me. I've been lazy. Hitting the dungeon tonight for some serious weight action.

[msommers]

Me too!

[bigbadboss101]

Gym tonight. Knees are sore from all the sports though.

[stevieo]

I can't wait to do that program up!
I wish the gym I went to had that prowler thing, would be nice to use.

[JfuckinC]

Fuck my knee's bunged up and i have to do a 10k run at the end of may! i want to do 6week superhero NOWUHHHHHH

[bigbadboss101]

Everyone, try the program if it's appealing to you. By mid June or start of July if we all give it our best we should see good strength gains and fat loss. Only thing is people might give you the puzzled look as it's not your usual routine for sure.

[Darkane]

Originally posted by bigbadboss101
Everyone, try the program if it's appealing to you. By mid June or start of July if we all give it our best we should see good strength gains and fat loss. Only thing is people might give you the puzzled look as it's not your usual routine for sure.

Totally.

But everything makes perfect sense in progression. And at the end if you're much more explosive and athletic it'll prime your body to grow much greater on a typical bodybuilding split for example.

I might try this program later on too.

one thing for you guys to remember one day a week must be spent on "foundation" muscles which include: Lats (Primary), Abs, Biceps.

That one day of work for those muscles can be a typical bodybuilding day with 8-12 reps, 3-4 sets etc.

[bigbadboss101]

So the program say do the circuits and 4-6 rounds. Would it work differently if we do one exercise, and then another? That way we would not be hogging 2-3 stations at once. Some exercise I would not be able to do at the gym I go to. For example, tossing the medicine or exercise ball up in the air and let it fall to ground, the sled etc.

[bigbadboss101]

You guys think I need to do less sports and more weights?

Next week's projected schedule:

Monday Ninjutsu 1.5 hrs
Tuesday Hills & Drills in Crescent Height with the Calgary
Outdoor Club 1 hr
Wednes Weight training 1 hr
Thursday Ball hockey 2 hrs
Friday Weight training 1 hr and Ball hockey 1 hr
Saturday Ninjutsu 1.5 hr and vball 2 hours
Sunday Hot Yoga 1.5 hr

[max_boost]

I find it's hard to do a lot of both. If you lift too much weights you are going to be sore so that's going to affect your sports.

Anyway, my suggestion is this, follow 5/3/1 Jim Wendler. Do the required sets and no assistance. The assistance work will destroy you. LOL This should still help you gain strength.

Take whatever your # your 5 rep best is. Say you squat 200lbs five times. 200 is the number you use.

Lift weights 4X a week, I usually do it in this order, 1 day squat, 1 day press, 1 day deadlift, 1 day bench. You should be able to finish the workout in 20 mins.

Week 1:

Warm up:
Set 1: 5 reps at 40% your lift.
Set 2: 5 reps at 50% your lift.
Set 3: 3 reps at 60% of your lift.

Primary workout:
Set 4: 5 reps at 65% of your lift.
Set 5: 5 reps at 75% of your lift.
Set 6: 5 reps (or more) at 85% of your lift.

Week2:

Do the warm up

Set 4: 3 reps at 70% of your lift.
Set 5: 3 reps at 80% of your lift.
Set 6: 3 reps (or more) at 90% of your lift.

Week 3:

Do the warm up

Set 4: 5 reps at 75% of your lift.
Set 5: 3 reps at 85% of your lift.
Set 6: 1 rep (or more) at 95% of your lift.

Week 4: deload

Week 5: Start again and follow the same format but this time you add 5lbs to your bench and press, and 10lbs to your squat and deadlift and recalculate the numbers.

This has been working great for me. I'm gaining strength, cheating by not doing assistance, not sore and I can still play badminton and run around. It's awesome.

[bigbadboss101]

anyone want to join me Tuesday for this Hill and drills?

http://www.calgaryoutdoorclub.com/events/details.asp?eventid=15596

[bigbadboss101]

Been doing lot of cardio thru various sports but lacking on the weights. Will kick it up this week.

[Hakkola]

Originally posted by max_boost


This has been working great for me.

+1, I did this last year and made some wicked gains, unreal actually, I'm going to start 5/3/1 again this week.