Training/diet advice required please

[Distant]

I've been going to the gym a couple of times a week for the last 6 months, mainly just free weights and doing 3 sets of 8 reps on the heaviest weight I can manage. I'm quite happy with the way my arms and shoulders are coming on but I've still got a bit of a gut and moobs(although these are slowly turning into pecs).

I have tried alternating between cardio, stomach and legs one day and upper body the next but I find cardio work at the gym so boring I often miss those days out. Because of this I purchased a bicycle at the weekend and have started cycling wherever possible. I try to ride quickly so I'm burning the calories. Would it make a huge difference if I did some crunches after the bike ride too? How often should I do these, every other day?

My diet normally consists of a banana and glass of juice for breakfast, then cycle to gym(or just out for a ride on alternate days). A maximuscle promax diet bar afterwards (protein for muscle growth), then lunch of sandwhich or soup or beans on toast. I'll probably have a yogurt and/or piece of fruit. Then dinner which would normally be something like chicken and rice, then a yogurt or another fruit.

Is this quite a lot to be eating if I'm trying to loose fat?

I'm trying to lay off the deserts and alcohol, although I probably have a couple of pints a week, and I do like a babybell most days too!

Does this sound like I'm on the right track for acheiving a noticable difference in 6 weeks? Anything I should be doing more of or differently?

Sorry for the long post but I wanted to try and give as much detail as possible.

So, over to the PH fitness experts... Opinions please

[Distant]

Not really a six pack, just less of the flab! Cheers for the idea, I'll have a google...

[Distant]

What the blooming heck is a elliptical?! Or is it just a fancy name for x-trainer?

I'm trying to drink plenty of water, and I will have veggies or salad with the evening meal.

So do I go for HIIT or slower, longer bike rides? Remembering, fastest possible fat loss is what I'm after at the moment...

[Distant]

SellerOfSin said:

Distant said:

What the blooming heck is a elliptical?! Or is it just a fancy name for x-trainer?

I'm trying to drink plenty of water, and I will have veggies or salad with the evening meal.

So do I go for HIIT or slower, longer bike rides? Remembering, fastest possible fat loss is what I'm after at the moment...

I'm not sure what to suggest for the fastest way... usually the faster it goes, the faster if comes back.. I lost 20lbs last year.. still have another 20 to go. I'm not having an easy time with it. Sitting behind a counter for 12 hours a day 6 days a week doesn't help.

Hmmm, don't know if they've got one of those at my gym, will have to check. I don't think I'll have a problem with the weight coming back as I've completely changed my lifestyle since putting it on... Hopefully!

[Distant]

V12Les said:

Cut out bread altogether and cut right down on carbs, aim for about 20g a day and you'll see results in a week. Drink plenty of water and get a taste for chicken.

Thanks, I've got pasta in the fridge for tomorrow night then I'll try cutting the carbs for a while.

[Distant]

TomTom123 said:

Okay, diet is about 80% of losing weight/gaining muscle.

Don't wanna lose muscle whilst cutting down fat? Protein - about 1g-1.5g per bodyweight lb (180lb bloke woould aim for roughly 200g's a day)

You want to train very heavy too, to try and convince your body to keep the muscle and lose fat.

HIIT training is fantastic and when i'm on a cutting cycle it's all i do. Been proven to still be burning fat upto 3 days later.

Example of my routine on a cut:


Monday: Chest & triceps weight training
Tuesday: HIIT Cardio
Wednesday: Back & biceps weight training
Thursday: HIIT cardio
Friday: Legs & shoulders weight training
Saturday: HIIT cardio
Sunday: Off

Without knowing your height and weight, but with that kinda training routine, aim for 3000 calories each day for the first 2 weeks, then 2800 for the next week, then 2600 for the next week etc.. etc..

Basically you have to go by what your body is telling you and what the mirror is telling you - but i can guarantee results from that routine.

Basic diet you could follow:

7am - 3egg whites, 1 whole, 2 slices toast, milk
10am - protein shake/meat sandwich
1pm - tuna & jacket potato/steak & potato etc... (anything with a good amount of protein and decent carbohydrates)
3pm - protein shake/meat/fish
5pm - high protein/medium carb meal
8pm - protein shake/high protein meal/cottage cheese

It's better to have smaller, evenly spaced out meals rather than 3 big ones... remember you want to keep your metabolism going as quick as possible.

Lots of water!!

Good fats are very important too!!! Omega-3 etc..

As you can see protein is incredibly important, and losing fat is made up of mostly what you eat and the way you eat.

Apologies if this isn't particularly coherant... 3 hours sleep then a 10hour work shift has finished me off..

Time for bed.

Thanks for the detailed post. Using that diet, at what time would you be exercising? I try to exercise in the morning after a small breakfast. Someone said cardio work should be before breakfast to be most effective?

Also I've just worked out my BMI at 5 ft 10, 186 lbs is 26.7

Right, I'm off out for a cycle!

[Distant]

nerf said:

cw42 said:

It might come across cheesy and American, but this site and it's advice and training guide is actually very good
http://www.iwantsixpackabs.com/abs.html
I'm on week 5 now, and not really been dieting but all of my clothes are too big for me and my posture has improved noticibly. For a very small outlay at your local decathlon, the results seem to be good. My log:
http://www.theabsforum.com/showthread.php?t=6971

i found this a couple of months ago. when i first read 'week 1' i thought i would have to add some more exercises to the end of the routine as it looked a bit feeble. i cycle and run a little bit. when i did it for the first time, i almost died! and couldnt finish the routine... i was really shocked at how hard i found it. i did 'week 1' for 2 months just to get my heart rate up, and i too have noticed the difference in my posture. and i feel stronger round my core/middle. moving on to week 2 this week......

I like the look of that routine, I think I'll start doing that 3 times a week (maybe combined with some heavy weights just to keep the upper body going in the right direction) and do HIIT on the other days with a day off on the 7th day.