Day 68: A friendly response

A friend of mine just e-mail me this, in response to yesterdays post.

Weight Lifting Regimen

1) Are you getting enough rest?

Overtraining is possibly the number one reason why most people stall out in their progress to massive strength and size. It’s impossible to tell what constitutes overtraining for any one person without knowing their workout history, their progress in the gym, their nutrition, etc. However there are some basic rules of thumb to train by. If you’re hitting the weights 6-7 days a week, that’s probably too much. If you’re pushing every set in your weight lifting regimen to failure, that’s definitely too much. And if your gains are stalling for weeks at a time, or you’re getting injured or sick often (like, once every couple of months or more frequently) then overtraining is very likely the culprit.

If you feel you’re overtrained, take at least a week completely away from the gym – possibly even two. When you get back to it, peel back the frequency, intensity or duration of your workouts until you’re gaining solidly once more.

2) Are you eating enough?

One of the reasons most people’s weight lifting regimen fails to produce results is they simply aren’t eating right. Adding mass or strength is a tough process for your body, and it’s only going to dedicate resources to the task if there’s more than enough spare. That means being in caloric surplus most days (eating more than you’re burning off) and also, having a positive nitrogen balance throughout the day (e.g. having more protein being converted to muscle fibre than vice versa).

Diet is often the factor that most new trainees don’t get right for up to a year or two in to their training. It pays to eat 5-6 small meals throughout the day with protein in each. How you stack your carbs depends on your goals, but a good rule of thumb is to eat your carbs early (breakfast, brunch and lunch) and taper them off as the day goes on. Also, a pre-bedtime meal of protein and veggies is great for preserving muscle while you sleep.

After every two months of intense, solid training, take an entire week off from weight training and cardio. Two months of constant training likely will take a toll on your muscles' ability to recover. You must allow them to recover by having them take a break. Do not allow the alleged psychological barrier of taking a week off stand in your way. You may be thinking you will lose ground by taking time off, but nothing can be further from the truth.

Starting Weight: 230
Current Weight: 211

Workout: NONE

Meals: All Calculations were taken from MyDailyPlate.com

Meal 1: GNC Pro Performance Wheybolic Extreme 60 310 cal
With Benefiber Powder and Fish Oil Omega 3

Meal 2: Chick-Fil-A Chargrilled Chicken Sandwich 260 cal

Meal 3: Chick-Fil-A Chargrilled Chicken Sandwich 260 cal

Meal 4: Slimfast Optima Milk Chocolate Shake 200 cal

Meal 5: Green Beans with Tofu and Rice: 397 cal

Total: 1427