KamiDaHobo

@Sploder said:

Hey guys can you recommend me some abdomen/lower abdomen exercises? I started getting into fitness about 9 months back and have made a lot of progress ( lost 39 kilos) but I need to tone up my stomach and stuff.

Honestly, there's a ton of exercises for your abdomen/core area, but the one area that will REALLY aid with a good core is diet. I know, it's not a sexy answer! But it's absolute truth.

You can do situps/crunches, if you have a local gym, you can do all sorts of things (http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/finder/lookup/filter/muscle/id/13/muscle/abdominals), but in my opinion, and my experience, doing focused abdominal work is more about burning calories than 'getting a six pack' or 'huge abs'. Someone with huge abs would look a bit silly, especially if their chest wasn't very big!

@falserelic said:

Just a question to any guy that weight lifts. How long has it took you to gain muscle?

For serious muscle mass, and a 'big' appearance, you're looking at years of work. The 'healthy' rate of gaining muscle is about a pound a month, any more than that and you're building bodyfat. So you're looking at 12-15 lbs of muscle a year, on average. That may not seem like a lot, but go to a grocery store and pick up 12 pounds of raw meat, and imagine that sitting on your frame!

I've been 'bulking' for about six months now, and I'm going to continue bulking until January of next year. Then, I'm going to 'cut' my bodyfat down to about 10%, which could take about 4-5 months. It's relatively easy to lose weight compared to actually gaining muscle. My goal is to be 210 lbs at 10% bodyfat by 2016. It takes time!

@theANCIENTgray: @theANCIENTgray said:

@falserelic said:

@theANCIENTgray said:

A novice question that I'm sure you're not having a problem with but are you adequately stretching before your workout?

What do you currently weigh and what's the goal of your exercise? Increasing reps is good for definition but if you're going for something else we need to know.

I'm a fat guy I've lost a few pounds, now I'm 295. I use to be skinny gained weight over the years, and now I'm trying to get back in shape. This time I want to be muscular.

Well good news! You got the fat to make the muscle! Half of your battle is already won.

Like people are saying, up your weight, lower the reps, stretch adequately. Do planks, jogging, side crunches, weights, and swimming. Try and mix up your routine. One day on arms with cardio, the next day with legs on cardio, the next day with stomach and cardio.

That fat should transfer to muscle in no time. Now muscle is heavier than fat. So you may gain weight. Don't be discouraged. Soon you'll look shredded like a julienne salad.

Well, fat can't 'transform' into muscle, as a fat cell and muscle cell are two completely different compounds in the body. You can EMPTY a fat cell, but once you gain a fat cell, it's there for life. However, with a muscle cell, you can actually lose those (muscle atrophy is the best example). The secret to looking 'big' is to minimize your fat cells while showcasing your muscle cells, which is about 90% diet. Eating right, staying active, and lifting moderate weight with compound movements works MIRACLES for body composition.

This also explains what a lot of people in the thread have said, with their weight lifting buddies looking 'round' and 'husky': They're building pure strength, and eating enough calories to gain weight/repair the fast-twitch and power muscle fibers, but not necessarily 'shaping' the muscles to look like a bodybuilder or movie star. The secret truly is in diet! Hell, Jay Cutler's a six-time Mr. Olympia, and he focused primarily on the kitchen aspect of bodybuilding.

I mean, of course, he was on steroids as well, but still! Even the world champion on steroids knew that true muscle mass was built by properly resting and great diet!

Hahah oh man Carrot-Top, that's what happens when you take Prohormones and only do like, three exercises!

If your goal is to lose weight while packing on muscle, drop your carbs (but don't eliminate them! You need them for energy! Brown rice and oatmeal are your best friends here), do a 'cooldown' of light cardio immediately after doing your lifts (20 minutes of well-paced walking on a treadmill for instance), and continue resting well. Stick with the compound lifts, be SURE to get enough protein in your diet, and burn more calories than you take in per day.

While doing 'high weight for less reps' will build some muscle, that's more for muscle STRENGTH, not muscle SIZE. If you're in it for purely aesthetics (hypertrophy training), then stick with medium weight, medium reps.

High reps and low weight - toning, conditioning, and shaping muscles (Soccer player, swimmer)

Low reps and high weight - power, explosive force (Defenisive Lineman in football)

Medium reps with medium weight - muscle appearance and size (hollywood actors 'bulking up' for roles, etc)

But key is: BURN MORE CALORIES THAN YOU TAKE IN PER DAY, AND GIVE YOUR BODY ENOUGH REST AND PROTEIN!

Started bodybuilding about six months ago, and have gained about 30 pounds so far. Went from 5'11'' 140lbs to 5' 11'' 175lbs, with my goal being 190lbs before doing my first cut.

LIFTS: Compound movements (movements using more than one muscle group) in a "split". Each is done for either 3 or 4 sets, 12-15 reps per set. My current weekly split is

Day 1: Chest (flat and incline bench press, chest flies, hammer raises) and Tricep (tricep extensions, skullcrushers)

Day 2: Back (pullups, chinups, bent over row, rear delt flies) and Bicep (pullups, chinups, bicep curls)

Day 3: Rest

Day 4: Legs (squats, deadlifts, leg extensions, calf raises, really anything lower body!)

Day 5: Rest

Day 6: Shoulders (shoulder/military press, standing dumbbell flies, Arnold press)

Day 7: Rest

DIET: Eat a lot. A WHOLE LOT. I take in about 3000 calories a day, and on workout/heavy days, I take in about 3200 calories. I have 1g of protein per pound of bodyweight, anywhere from 250-350g of carbs, and about 40g of healthy fats (peanut butter, olive oil, etc). Tons of peanut butter, oatmeal, weight gainer shakes (Optimum Nutrition's Serious Mass, Dymatize's Mega Gainer, MHP's Up Your Mass are the top three for me).

REST: Get TONS of rest. 8 hours of sleep a night on average, and be sure that a bodypart is fully healed before lifting again, or you'll just be spinning your wheels, never actually making progress.

The ONE THING to keep in mind: You don't have to lift heavy, just moderate. 'Stimulate, don't Annihilate'. Rest is key, as is diet. You tear down muscle in the gym, you build it in the kitchen.

Hope this helps!

Oh man, $15? My Yun shall blot out the sun

....gross

I'm glad to see this finally released, man! Congratulations! Can't wait to give it a spin :D
 
(HURRR PUNS)

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