Home wrote:
Alright so I recently gained some weight so that I'm not so scrawny and I've moved on to the point where I'm focusing more on lifting/becoming fit. I lift now, but not as regularly as I'd like (probably averages out to 2-3 times a week) so I'm going to try to get more dedicated. I have a few questions.
1. Diet. I've read the diets of some other guys in this thread, but I probably don't burn enough calories to eat the mammoth amounts that guys like Sonder eat. So how important is diet? What sort of food should I be trying to eat? As of right now, I usually eat a bowl of cereal for breakfast, a turkey sandwich (with chips, etc) at lunch, and dinner is pretty much whatever the fam eats. So I could definitely use a few pointers.
2. Supplements. Right now, I drink a protein shake after every workout, and that is the extent of my supplementation. What else would you suggest? (Keep in mind I'm probably not at the level that I need pre-workout energy drinks.) When should I take protein? I've been considering starting Creatine in a couple weeks if I can keep the lifting schedule on point, any suggestions/advice on that?
That's about it for now. The tennis season starts in a week, which should allow me to consume more calories. I'm worried about being too lazy to lift and go to tennis practice everyday though.
I suggest an All-in-one shake post-workout. Something like Phd Nutrition ISO-7 or Optimum Nutrition AfterMax which will give you all the supplements you need after workout. Including creatine. You can go for Creatine Capsules + protein shake, but it's going to cost you more money for the same effect (probably worse because it's not balanced properly). Also, do NOT load creatine. There are lots of articles out there that tell you you should load your creatine for 1-2 weeks (20g a day) for your body to get a supply of it... It's bullshit and will do more damage than good. No more than 5g of Creatine a day. Ever.
You should have a pure protein shake in the morning, that or 3 eggs. Always a good start to the day (and breakfast of course) and that's already a good 30g of protein at the start of the day.
There is no "level" for pre-workout energy drinks. They will actually help you quite a bit because you'll lift more with them, added to the fact that most of them contain 50% of your creatine intake, and then you take the other 50% afterwards (all all-in-one shakes are "meant" to be taken twice a day). It's entirely up to you, but it will give you a massive boost.
Other than that, you don't need any other supplements.
As for diet - Remove anything you that isn't healthy (like chips) and replace it with something with protein. Try and have either oats or eggs in the morning; chicken for lunch and something fatty (good fat - lipids, not carb fat) for dinner. Snack in between with small sandwiches and the sort. I don't follow a very strict diet, but I make sure my protein intake is always good and never eat shit like chocolate bars and stuff (of course, I'll treat myself when I'm out and stuff). Diet only gets very very important when you're trying to reduce body fat and get a totally lean but muscly body - it's more directed for serious serious body builders. A healthy diet is good enough.
