full body training

ive decided to start a full body strength training routine. my plan is to cut a little fat ive gained for 3 weeks, and then go back to bulking. ill start my cut this monday, november 26 thru sunday, december 16...that should be enough to take off a bit of fat.
 
my diet will be at around 2750 calories with 45 carbs, 33 protein and 22 fat. thats like 300-400 calories less than my current bulking diet was...with my metabolism and activity levels thats should be enough of a decrease, dont want to have too little calories. im thinking that 3 weeks should lead to quite a bit of fat loss because if i just increase activity or lower calories a little bit i see changes quickly, so we'll see.
 
this works both ways too, i figure if i cut and lose some fat then bulk up again, my body will be slightly more receptive and maybe see some new gains that ive kinda stalled on at this point...thats my larger goal, kinda mixing things up.
 
my routine, as of now, looks like this:
 
monday:
squats
bench
clean and press
pullups
dips
abs
 
wednesday:
deadlift
incline bench
arnold presses
rows
dips
abs
 
friday: repeat of monday
 
my main goal is getting my strength up, so ill be trying out 3X5 for all lifts that arent bw, which ill have to play by ear (probably dips 3X12 and pullups 3X8 to start out)
 
im open to suggestions for approaches for strength training, im only really set on using a full body routine, since ive been meaning to try it out and my schedule allows it now.
 
once i figure out the appropriate starting weights, since i have been using 8-12 rep ranges, im going to set specific strength goals and achieve them. i plan on adding 5 lbs to most exercises per workout and 10 to squats and deadlifts, until that stops...then make weekly progress, etc.
 
i expect to still see strength gains while slightly cutting, since im not lowering my calories by too much or adding cardio....just feel like i need a change from bulking for a bit before getting back at it

bulking/strength training

soon to begin bill starr's 5X5

current maxes: 
squats: 255
deadlifts: 300
bench: 185
oh press: 125
goals for jan 1:
squats: 300
deadlifts: 350
bench: 210
oh pressL 145 

today was day one of full body:
squats: 185 3X5 below parallel
bench press: 135 3X5
clean and press: 95 3X5
pullups: 8,7,6

due to time i skipped abs, and im going to alternate dips with one of the two flat benches every other week, so i wont be doing that as planned for every workout, i feel that will limit my strength increase on flat, which is my goal currently.

felt good, especially on bench. for fridays workouts i will be shooting for:
squats: 195 3X5
bench: 140 3X5
clean and press: 100 3X5
pullups: 3X8

i think ill alternate the order of squats or bench first, did squats first today so bench on friday...ideally that woks better because i have to usually wait to get a bench and the squat racks usually open.

tomorrows off, then wednesday ill be doing the variation workout.

diet is more than i originally planned, today was 2820 with 47% carbs, 32 protein, and 21 fats...im going to probably be lowering protein and upping fats inthe near future, as well as carbs after i trim a tad bit (like 1-2 lbs is all)...im planning on eating around maintenance at the moment, which will probably lead me to lose a bit of fat, tahts usually the case, then ill increase calories for more bulking

weight tuesday morning: 143
 

bulking/strength training

soon to begin bill starr's 5X5

current maxes: 
squats: 255
deadlifts: 300
bench: 185
oh press: 125
goals for jan 1:
squats: 300
deadlifts: 350
bench: 210
oh pressL 145 

workout 2:
deadlifts: 225 3X5
db incline bench: 50's 3X8
arnold presses: 35's 3X5
db rows: 70's 3X5
abs: 150 2X8
obliques: 180 2X8
 
felt best ive ever felt with incline, couldnt touch that last week, so im surprised as hell...expected to hit 5 reps, hit 8 on all 3 sets. i do incline real slow too, so when i kept being able to push it, it felt good haha. daedlifts were kinda dragging, my lower body is still kinda sacked from squats on monday, but wasnt too bad.
 
think ill just work abs/obliques on wednesdays with workout b and then for the others skip abs. il probably weigh tomorrow out of curiousity.
 
i dont want to jump the gun, but i think im finally getting increased chest strength, which has been a bitch. im starting to get some growth there too, so we'll see...goal for friday is 140 3X5, maybe 145 we'll see

bulking/strength training

soon to begin bill starr's 5X5

current maxes: 
squats: 255
deadlifts: 300
bench: 185
oh press: 125
goals for jan 1:
squats: 300
deadlifts: 350
bench: 210
oh pressL 145 

workout 3
 
bench: 140 X3, 135 2X4
squats: 195 2X5, 1X3
pullups: 7,7,6
clean and press: 95 1X5, hang cleans: 105 2X5
dips: 12,11
 
workout sucked today basically. squats were the best of them, i started too heavy on the 5s in order to allow for progressing load irght away i guess. so this week was apparently trial and error, so next week ill have to lower the weight a bit. i dunno, a little disappointed.
 
on a better note, my weight was up to 143.5 since monday which is good. ive lost a bit of fat as well, im more lean now than ive been recently...despite gaining a half pound. next week im going to increase calories a bit too.

bulking/strength training

soon to begin bill starr's 5X5

current maxes: 
squats: 255
deadlifts: 300
bench: 185
oh press: 125
goals for jan 1:
squats: 300
deadlifts: 350
bench: 210
oh pressL 145 

week 2
 
squats:175 3X5
bench: 125 3X5
oh press: 85 3X5
pullups: 3X7
 
so i lowered the weights a bit form where i started last week to allow for increases...like i said, i started at basically my max 3X5's which was amistake, but starting a little lower now shoudl allow me to increase each time for several weeks. felt good today overall. just did oh press instead of clean and press, i think ill be rotating between c+p, oh press, and db press/arnolds.
 
on an interesting note, ive gained a pound in a week, evenly at hald a pound half through the week. which surprised me considering im not eating that much over what i had been...perhaps its the cut down workouts, 3 days with about 12 sets instead of 4 days and 15-18ish. i also added about 2-300 calories, just a peanut butter sandwich split between 2 meals does the trick.
 
ive been eating very clean too and can see visible muscle gain, so if this keeps up i should finally get over 145...

bulking/strength training

soon to begin bill starr's 5X5

current maxes: 
squats: 255
deadlifts: 300
bench: 185
oh press: 125
goals for jan 1:
squats: 300
deadlifts: 350
bench: 210
oh pressL 145 

deadlift: 230 3X5
incline db press: 50's 3X8
arnold press: 37.5's 3X5
db rows: 75's 3X5

deadlift was back to usual, felt good today...working on using my legs more, and i can feel it. incline is good, i could do more, but i cant comfortably get 55's up, once theyre up i know i can rep them probably for 6ish, but since my shoulder has had past things id rather not push it wiht that. rows were about my 5 rep max, was able to do them but barely haha...i also threw in a set of curls and lying tricep ext at the end

illl weigh tomorrow morning and post it up
 
weight: 145.5...seems too much to be true, but thats a 2.5 lb increase in a week and a half...im thinking some is just food weight, but ill weigh again on monday and see whats up with it

bulking/strength training

soon to begin bill starr's 5X5

current maxes: 
squats: 255
deadlifts: 300
bench: 185
oh press: 125
goals for jan 1:
squats: 300
deadlifts: 350
bench: 210
oh pressL 145 

bench:130 1X6, 135 2X5
squats:185 2X5, 1X3
oh press:90 2X5, 1X4
pullups:8,8,7
 
130 was too easy for reps of 5 so i moved it up to 135, which was pretty good. next week ill move up to 140, i think i can hit it. i widened my grip some which seemed to help, i usually feel like my chest can do more but tris give out. squats were really good, then on the last set i failed on the 4th rep, which surprised me because i was feeling good up til that rep?...but im also going lower than parallel now, which could be some of it since i was at parallel before...at least my form is very good now on squats. press was good, might have been able to get the last rep up but im afraid of pushing shoulders, when i screwed my left one up awhile ago it freaked me out so i gotta watch it with direct shoulder work. pullups are getting a hell of a lot better, almost got 3X8 with full range of motion, this is an added rep or two from usual.
 
im starting to see some growth, which is graet:
 
my back seems to be growing a lot recenetly, as does my chest finally. also, my hamstrings have notably grown...i actually feel like they get hit as hard as quads in squats, and a lot more now with my deads than before.
my arms dont really seem to be doing much yet. my rear delts are coming along finally too, same with traps. overall, im happy with my progress these last few months. my weight has only increased somewhere around 4ish pounds, but ive seen pretty good strength increases, and lowered my bf along the way (at least it appears, i havent ever gotten it taken or anything).

bulking/strength training

soon to begin bill starr's 5X5

current maxes: 
squats: 255
deadlifts: 300
bench: 185
oh press: 125
goals for jan 1:
squats: 300
deadlifts: 350
bench: 210
oh pressL 145 

how does the diet look?

my diets been very good recently, i upped calories to 3100ish. im eating at about 47-30-23. i eat veggies in about half of my meals, not less, often more.
 
i can copy and paste up my specific diet when im back at my apartment, but thats the percentages currently.
 
i eat 7 times and taper calories with activity. so more in the morning and afternoon and just after workout meal, then decreasing a tad until before bed.
 
i took like half a week off befor starting the full body routine which probably helped decondition a bit.
 
i increased from 2900-3100 a few days ago, so ill increase more if i havent gained weight when i weigh on monday. since im finally seeing some change, i can actually judge by whether or not i gain weight.
 
part of it is ive tried to basically be lazy outside of the gym as best as i can. i still ahve to do a fair amount of walking with classes, but i limit to to what i absolutely have to do, which also has contributed im sure.
 
carb sources are mainly oatmeal, pasta, rice, wheat bread, sweet potato, etc.
protein is mainly chicken breast or beef jerky occasionally, some turkey lunch meat, and whey post wokrout and in the morning
fats are mainly nuts and peanut butter, basically just those with occasional avocado/guacamole when i can come by it/make it
 
basically, i shoot for about 50-30-20 and 3100ish.
 
anything seem like it needs improvement?

bulking/strength training

soon to begin bill starr's 5X5

current maxes: 
squats: 255
deadlifts: 300
bench: 185
oh press: 125
goals for jan 1:
squats: 300
deadlifts: 350
bench: 210
oh pressL 145 

I have noticed something from two of my friends that I train with.. They are really freaking big.. also Vaughntrue and a few other body builder profiles.. Almost every one of those guys consume 5 - 10 egg whites in the morning.. my friend said it's something about slow releasing protein or something? I don't know the science behind it but when I see the guys who are pushing out the most results are doing it I often tend to add it into my diet.


I am adding this to mine I am suggesting you to add it to your diet. Leafy vegetables are also a good source of EFA. Add that in there with your nuts avacado etc.



Your doing everything correctly. Shoot for a 1lb a week gain 4 lbs a month if the weight is not changing then you can add to the diet yet again. Measure your weight gain per every 4 weeks.


Be sure your drinking at least 80 ounces of water per day.





Okay, that's all I got I am really really trying to perfect my diet also so I thought I would share some of the information that I have been learning along the way. Your lucky your at 3,100 calories.. I am at 4,200 right now It's so freaking rough! I am actually shooting for 4,400!



What supplements are you taking?

egg whites are a good idea, ill look into adding them...pretty easy, dont take long to prepare or anything too. ill look into adding leafy vegetables too, sounds good.
 
i forgot to mention water, i drink a ton...at least 2 20 oz bottles during a workout.
 
ive yet to been able to see constant weight gain, but i think im close now...ive seen like 143, 143.5, 145.5 so finally some constant gains, though just a week and a half of it
 
yeah thanks for the input, im really trying to nail my diet, so any advice is awesome. im still not positive on how my body responds best, more carbs or less, more fat, etc?...i seem to function better with lower carbs like 45% or so and higher protein, but im not positive really.
 
4400 is nuts, i hope i can increase little at a time and dont have to get too high...being a college student tends to take a toll on the budget haha.
 
currently, im just taking a mulitvitamin, whey, and creatine more recently
 
are there any other supplements you think are worth taking?

bulking/strength training

soon to begin bill starr's 5X5

current maxes: 
squats: 255
deadlifts: 300
bench: 185
oh press: 125
goals for jan 1:
squats: 300
deadlifts: 350
bench: 210
oh pressL 145 

ORIGINAL: edrice2

egg whites are a good idea, ill look into adding them...pretty easy, dont take long to prepare or anything too. ill look into adding leafy vegetables too, sounds good.

i forgot to mention water, i drink a ton...at least 2 20 oz bottles during a workout.

ive yet to been able to see constant weight gain, but i think im close now...ive seen like 143, 143.5, 145.5 so finally some constant gains, though just a week and a half of it

yeah thanks for the input, im really trying to nail my diet, so any advice is awesome. im still not positive on how my body responds best, more carbs or less, more fat, etc?...i seem to function better with lower carbs like 45% or so and higher protein, but im not positive really.

4400 is nuts, i hope i can increase little at a time and dont have to get too high...being a college student tends to take a toll on the budget haha.

currently, im just taking a mulitvitamin, whey, and creatine more recently

are there any other supplements you think are worth taking?

You should be taking a BCAA like glutamine for recovery. Go get the powder or the pills.


60 / 20 / 20 is used by some people.. the majority of calories coming from EFA's which seem to have an anabolic effect on the body. EFA = essential fatty acid


40 / 40 / 20 - Thats just a general body building diet.. 40 % carbs 40 % protein 20% fats.

Some people may even react differently consuming more complex carbs then protein.


You really just have to experiment.


I like your current diet to be honest. Like I said just throw in a tad more EFA's Leafy Vegetables / Almonds / Walnuts / Peanut butter etc..



I got to be honest.
I am learning just like you as a matter of fact there are a lot of personal trainers that think I am a complete idiot. "Not that personal trainers opinions mean that much to me"

The information I am sharing with you is everything I have been doing to fix my diet. Obviously I got stuck at 200lbs because of my diet not my training. Your going to notice the bigger you get and the bigger you want to get, the more you have to study and push your self to achieve your goal physique.

ill get some glutamine real soon then.
 
yeah, im thinking about eventually trying a higher fat diet and lower carbs, it seems that i function better on the lower end of carbs...so i might change it up later to that after awhile...maybe similar to 60 fat, 20 pro and 20 carbs.
 
i will throw in some more fats to my diet tho, i think fat is the easiest to add actually, since nuts are really convenient and what not.
 
thanks for giving some advice and passing on your knowledge, im real serious about bodybuilding, im just trying to get everything to click finally.
 
i think its just a matter of time because im doing the right things, both with diet and training. theres things im learning of course every day tho. ive figured out that i need to train less, like 3 days a week and with less set/reps but heavier weights, which has probably been why ive been so slow in gaining weight, just slightly too much volume. im still figuring out how my body responds, but like you said its an experiment.
 
ive pretty much dedicated my life to this right now, every day i carry meals with me and eat on the clock, workout with solid form now (took a bit to get some down like deads and squats), i stopped drinking at all (not that i did much, but here and there and realized form the last time that i got sick that it is primarily hurting me with bodybuilding), haha i even take meals with me if i go to bars with my friends (tho i dont drink as i mentioned). ive been pretty serious since the end of summer and grown more serious since. its something that i really want. im pretty eager to get all the knowledge i can and apply it. so thanks a lot for your input, it means a lot.

bulking/strength training

soon to begin bill starr's 5X5

current maxes: 
squats: 255
deadlifts: 300
bench: 185
oh press: 125
goals for jan 1:
squats: 300
deadlifts: 350
bench: 210
oh pressL 145 

deadlifts: 240 3X5
db incline: 55's 2X5, 52.5's 1X5
arnold press: 40's 3X5
db rows: 75's 3X5
 
deadlifts felt great today, clear improvement since wednesdays 230. inclines are tricy because i have difficulty gettings 55's up, tho i couldnt last week and could this week, but once its up im good for probably 8 reps or so. the last set i couldnt get 55's up but im sure could have hit it 5 times if it got up.  shoulders felt good, so did rows. 75's are being a ****to me tho, just barely getting the 5th rep.
 
im gunna weight tomorrow, been getting some quality sleep this weekend and rest, with plenty of calories, so im guessing im up a bit more.

bulking/strength training

soon to begin bill starr's 5X5

current maxes: 
squats: 255
deadlifts: 300
bench: 185
oh press: 125
goals for jan 1:
squats: 300
deadlifts: 350
bench: 210
oh pressL 145 

bench: 140 X4, 135 X5,4
squats: 190 3X5
oh press: 90 3X5
pullups: 8,8,7
 
eh, squats were good, last time was 185 and i failed on the last set, 4th rep this time i added 5 lbs and hit them all, so thats a clear increase. oh press, kept same weight because i didnt hit 5 on last set last time. bench is so f'n iffy. im guna have to lower and work up slower or something, i get nothing with that but my back stuff explodes easily. pullups were same as last time, that 3X8 is hard for me to get but im closing in finally. also did a set of dips X12, curls 30s X8, and abs cause i had time to spare, and to give some variety, just 3 totals sets tho, 1 each
 
this was my last workout at school, leaving tomorrow, but no more of my crappy weights at my house, i called around and got a few gyms that offer 1 month specials for returning college students, haha so im in luck.
 
ill continue this routine through the next 5 weeks then, back at it thursday or friday depending on how i want my break workouts to fall

bulking/strength training

soon to begin bill starr's 5X5

current maxes: 
squats: 255
deadlifts: 300
bench: 185
oh press: 125
goals for jan 1:
squats: 300
deadlifts: 350
bench: 210
oh pressL 145