Working Out & Protein Shakes

[StarsFan4Life]

I just purchaed 5lbs of whey protein from a recent "slick deal" on slickdeals.net. Essentially, I am ready to workout hard...mainly because I am not happy with my body and I know I can look better for the Mrs.

I am not currently part of any gym...but can if I need to be(here at work, we have a decent gym on the lower level, so I COULD workout during lunch or after work for $30 a month).

I purchased the P90X workout dvd's from a friend for $30. I also have 3 sets of dumbbells ranging from 10lbs to 35lbs. Besides the P90X workout, how can I effectively add a few pounds and muscle to my body?

I am 6'0, 185lbs, have a little bit of a gut going on and feel extremely skinny in my arms, chest and legs. I have never been much of a "big guy" but would like to maximize my results as much as possible. Protein shakes seems to be the best route - only if I work out hard and not soft/sloppy. From my understanding, if I do not workout hard while taking these shakes, I can turn these protein shakes into extra flappy addage to my gut....something I do not want.

Where do I begin? I want to be able to have a decent body to help boost my own confidience (yes, being skinny affects the way I do certain things confidentaly) and want to impress the wife a good 6 months - 1 year from now. I am also tired all the time because I know I do not excersise like I should, but I do take many vitamins every single day. I waste too much time sitting on my ass both at work and at home (except when I do yard work, which I enjoy). I occasionally go on long bike rides, but want this take change.

I am pumped and ambitious about this...just need a few good pointers and suggestions. Any good work out routines I can follow?

Help!

 

[Deeko]

Well, protein shakes add calories. If your caloric balance is too high, protein shakes will add to you gaining fat, no matter how you're working out.

If you want to cut fat and gain muscle, you really should join a gym and lift weights.

 

[MotF Bane]

Describe the "decent gym" on the lower level. Machines, cardio equipment, free weights? What does it have? If you're serious about this, you need to be part of a gym, so let's see if the gym at work will suffice. The sticky at the top of H&F will help pretty well for the general concepts.

 

[StarsFan4Life]

Tell me what type of gym I need to join (equipmentwise) and I will make sure we do it right.

 

[Deeko]

Does it have a squat rack? Most work fitness centers don't.

 

[brikis98]

First, check out the sticky at the top of the forum, it contains a lot of useful info.

Second, if you're trying to gain muscle mass, you need 3 things:

(1) A caloric surplus. Any energy your body doesn't burn up typically gets turned into mass, either muscle or fat. Use a moderate caloric surplus (250 - 500 calories per day), as too big of a surplus will result in a larger proportion of fat.

(2) Sufficient protein to build muscle. Aim for ~1g per pound of lean body mass. Although you should try to make whole food your primary source of protein, there is nothing wrong with using protein shakes. However, remember that protein contains 4 calories per gram, and counts just like any other macronutrient in your caloric intake - eat too much, and it may get turned into fat.

(3) An exercise program to convince your body to make this caloric surplus primarily muscle instead of fat. The most effective programs for increasing muscle mass involve weight training. In general, using heavier weights, low reps, and focusing on full body, compound, free weight movements (squat, deadlift, OH press, bench press, power clean) will produce the greatest increases in muscle mass. While I've heard some good things about P90X - including the fact that the workouts keep intensity high and it includes a diet plan - if it's not using heavy weights, it won't be very efficient for adding mass. If anything, it's more useful as a weight loss program. It sounds like you are a beginner, so you'd probably benefit most from a beginner strength training routine, such as the one described in Starting Strength or the similar Stronglifts 5x5. You'll need access to a gym that has barbells, plates, a squat rack and a bench. Lift heavy 3 times per week, eat a caloric surplus, and watch the muscle pile on.

 

[bossman34]

+1 on reading the sticky.

P90X is a decent program that will whip you into great shape quick, but I'm not sure how great it will be in helping you put on muscle. I'm going to offer an alternative point of view to brikis'...we've found that we don't completely agree on the best way for a beginner to start a resistance training routine. You can decide what is best for you.

Pretty much any resistance training you do in the beginning is going to lead to strength gains due to general adaptations within your nervous system. Only once this has happened will your muscles truly begin to grow. I don't recommend starting with heavy weights/low reps because you are putting stress on your bones, joints, and connective tissues that they may not be ready for in the early stages. Starting with lower weight/higher reps (6-12, even 15) will allow your muscles, tissues, etc to adapt and get ready for the increased loads you will put on them down the road. You said your goal was to gain muscle. To do this, 2-3 sets of 6-12 reps with 30-90 second rest periods is recommended. I would suggest starting with a full body routine 3 days a week for the first 4-8 weeks depending on your progression. After you've built up some good base strength and stabilization you should be ready to drop the reps and up the weight and maybe even split up your body parts to certain days.

Starting Strength is a great book in that it will teach you how to perform certain exercises correctly, but as I said, I would start with lower weight and higher reps in the beginning. Good luck!

 

[dealmaster00]

Check out http://stronglifts.com/strongl...ngth-training-program/ - a real decent beginners strength training program. It's what I used for the last 9 months.

 

[KoolDrew]

I don't recommend starting with heavy weights/low reps because you are putting stress on your bones, joints, and connective tissues that they may not be ready for in the early stages.

While I do see where you're coming from, keep in mind that as a beginner most of the work will be very lightweight form work anyway. By using less reps per set fatigue isn't going to set in as quickly and form is less likely to break down. I usually recommend something a bit different then Starting Strength, but I still keep the heavy compound lifts at lower reps (anywhere from 5-8). I may put in some isolation work in higher rep ranges though.

To the OP - brikis98's post outlined everything very well; however, I would recommend a slightly different approach, at least for the beginning. Rather than eating in a surplus right away I would recommend starting a solid weight lifting routine and eat at maintenance calories. Maintenance calories are the amount of calories needed to maintain your current bodyweight. Just by introducing a weight training routine you should start seeing positive changes in your physique while still eating at maintenance and ensuring you are getting at least 1g/lb of bodyweight in protein. However, you will eventually have to resort to a calorie surplus.

The maintenance phase gives you a chance to get used to tracking calories (which I recommend doing using thedailyplate.com or fitday.com) as well as getting into a lifting routine and getting form down before jumping right into a calorie surplus.