what to do?

[daveyboy]

Hi wonder if anyone can give me some advice please,im wanting to put on some muscle but have a bit of fat to loose as well.ive read that you cant do both at the same time is this true?because id like to concentrate on gaining muscle but am worried that increasing my calories will make me fatter

any advice would be great cheers

[JoshLarge]

Increasing your calories will make you gain weight..some of which will be fat!

You have to decide what you would rather do...cut or bulk?

[daveyboy]

i think im gonna cut out all the fat and hopefully see my abs! thatd be a start! :)

[-AC-]

yes if its coming up to summertime having your abs through and looking lean is better than carrying around fat bulk. best to start bulking around winter time when you need the extra warmth :)

[JoshLarge]

Cutting out the "fat" will not help you lose fat necessarily.

Carbs are more often the demons and surplus calories.

Sounds like you want to see your abs...so i would advise going on a cut!

Follow a high protein ,moderate fat, low carb diet.

For example...

Meal 1 - 5Whole Eggs, 2 Slices Wholegrain Toast

Meal 2- Protein Shake with handful almonds or a tablespoon olive oil

Meal 3-Chicken Breast with 50g Brown Rice

Meal 4 -Same as meal 2.

Meal 5- Tuna/Chicken Salad with an olive oil dressing

Meal 6- Cottage Cheese/Quark and a tablespoon peanut butter.

Thats just an example..obviously portion sizes depend on your stats.

Try following a diet like that....

Let your body adjust to the diet for 1-2weeks..then id start to add in Pre Breakfast Cardio for 30-50mins 3times a week for 2weeks..then maybe add in a session every week or so depending on if fat loss is stalling!

Good idea for pre breakfast cardio is to take 15-20g BCAA and 10g Glutamine.

I know doing pre fasted cardio makes your body produce a cortisol response which can break down muscle...so taking the above before hand will help prevent that.

Also straight after your cardio before your first meal..could well be worth taking like 30g Protein...but im not sure if that will be beneficial to helping with the cortisol issue.

Maybe someone can help me out?

[DrPR]

There's a fantastic workout called German Body Composition endorsed by strength coach Charles Poliquin. This workoput allows you to gain muscle and lose fat efficiently, whereas cardio loses fat whilst losing all that muscle you've worked so hard to achieve. If you do this properly 3 times a week, it is said that you can lose 0.5% body fat every week.

Firstly, read the following link I have provided which explains the science behind GBC. Understanding it will aid you when performing the exercises:

http://www.trulyhuge.com/news/tips63j.htm

The basics: Split your body down into upper and lower body. Then split these down. for upper body, you have 3 main groups:
-Chest
-Back
-Shoulders

For lower body, you can split your legs down into 3 groups:
-Quadriceps
-Hamstrings
-Calves

It doesn't matter which combination you use, but one of the lower body must be mixed with one of the upper body, and you must work out all 6 muscle groups per workout.

This workout is done in supersets (always with lower body first) and all exercises must be done time under tension (so the tempo is 1 second up and 4 seconds down). Pick weights which aren't your maximum, but one which you can do 12 good reps time under tension whilst struggling on the last rep and feel the stretch. It's usually 60% of your normal maximum lift.

Rest periods are important. When starting off, keep your rest periods to 75 seconds. Bring a stopwatch to the gym with you. If you aren't strict on your rest periods, then you are wasting your time.

Back to supersets; start off with lower body, then upper body. One example of a superset would be 12 reps of deep squats immediately followed by 12 reps of dumbell shoulder press. Only after completing this can you rest for 75 seconds. After this, repeat. Do that 3-4 times before moving onto the next superset. If you work it out, it comes to 3 supersets since you are doubling up the 6 muscle groups.

Try do this 3 times a week. look up on youtube exercises you don't know the technique for and give me a call if you are confused about something. I've come up with 3 days worth of workouts. Remember, if you're not drenched, in pain, feeling sick and have a headache by the end of the workout, you simply aren't doing it properly!

Day 1:
Superset 1 (x3-4):-
-12 reps deep squats
-12 reps dumbell shoulder press
Superset 2 (x3-4):-
-12 reps straight leg deadlift
-12 reps seated row
Superset 3 (x3-4):-
12 reps calve raises
12 reps chest press

Day 2:
Superset 1 (x3-4):-
-12 reps walking lunges (12 on each direction)
-12 reps bent over row
Superset 2 (x3-4):-
-12 reps deadlift
-12 reps bench press
Superset 3 (x3-4):-
12 reps calve raises
12 reps military press

Day 3:
Superset 1 (x3-4):-
-12 reps leg press
-12 reps pullups/chin ups
Superset 2 (x3-4):-
-12 reps static lunges (12 on each side)
-12 reps dips
Superset 3 (x3-4):-
12 reps calve raises
12 reps machine shoulder press

If your're feeling ambitious, finish your workout with a set of cleans. that'll be sure to finish you off.

It's always good to monitor your body fat percentage.

Diet is also everything. CUT OUT CARBS AFTER 5PM!