ds1973's Journal
Protein supplements - broke downJun 22 2008 14:10
Well, finally broke down and bought some protein powder (100% whey) to supplement my diet. I'm still struggling with how to put on muscle without adding fat to my waist. I've heard people shooting for 40/30/30 or 50/30/20 carbs / protein / fat, but it's definitely challenging to hit (especially with kids and a wife who like spaghetti and pizza for dinner). I've started to cook up chicken breasts on Sundays to keep them for nights where the dinner protein content is weak.
Also not sure if I shoot for a surplus, only on weight training days and just eat maintainance when I'm in the office all day. My training schedule was also thrown off a bit this week by a cold so I didn't work out until Friday (as opposed to Wed or Thurs). So now I'm skipping Sunday and waiting till Wed again. Definitely saw my bench was a bit weaker and I had lost some weight during the week. (was only able to do 5 reps of 205 after 2 reps of 225 on Fri compared to 7 reps of 205 after 2 reps of 225 on Sunday).
ah, but protein powder is delicious and so handy! it does seem like it'd be a lot harder to eat on certain percentages if you're needing to work with other people's preferences as well. regarding the 30% protein - i was doing that religiously here for a little while, but i've always wondered/worried that too much protein can be bad for one's bones. i talked to a PT i know and trust and she confirmed that excess protein can leach calcium that can hurt a person later on. she said between 1 and 1.5 g protein per kilogram bodyweight is all that one needs to build and maintain muscle. So....since i'm not into this weightlifting stuff professionally or something, i figure it'd be better not to risk increasing my already good chances of osteoporosis - i mention all this to suggest that trying to hit 30% protein (which is tough, although cottage cheese and protein shakes can make is a ton easier) may not be necessary. I'm going to try working with 25% protein on workout days, 20% non-workout days and see what happens. at the same time, it's difficult to get my calories up if i'm sticking strictly to that, and keep the other macros in appropriate proportion. if i start turning into a blob, or feel that i'm losing strength/muscle, i'll reevaluate. i think that you should only worry about a surplus on training days. another thing that the trainer said is really the most important thing is to get that protein shake in 30-60 minutes after the workout, coupled with a piece of fruit, to shoot building materials to your muscles and replenish your body with the sugar it needs to perform feats of engineering genius. boo on colds. i'm in Texas right now and the only thing bothering my nose is the dust. |
Protein powder is delicious and handy? I've been mixing it, or rather it seems suspending it, into my morning coffee. This brand is supposed to be "readily dissolvable", I'd hate to see the brands that aren't! I've also gone back to eating those GNC pro-crunch protein bars for snacks and right after workouts. I've also been trying to shoot for 1 gram of protein per pound and if I go over, great. I don't think you'll blob out working out 3 days a week and watching your food. I'm pretty sure I've been getting stronger even with only 2 work-outs per week (see the difference between my april & June work-outs in my picture gallery). Yeah, it's slow, but like the article that Melkor posted in this thread: http://caloriecount.about.com/forums/post/71914.html http://www.t-nation.com/readArticle.do?id=1268956&cr= I can relate to the example in the section: "The Illusion of Big?". When I was working out 4 days a week, I could bench 225 8 times, back to back sets, but I weight 210 and had a 38 inch waist but I was bigger overall and had gotten bigger so gradually, I didn't realize it. I lost weight pretty fast and so lost a lot of muscle and now I'm down to a 32" waist again and a lot less fat percentage-wise. I also see there's a book "New Rules of Lifting: Six Basic Moves for Maximum Muscle". Looks like one of the same authors as the book you got. How do you like it so far? I'm thinking of getting it to shake up my routine, although my biggest concern switching up my routine is keeping it efficient (maximize work & minimize time). Each gym is laid out a bit different and you need to work around other people sometimes. My pet peeves are people resting on equipment, not stripping bars and sitting on equipment talking on cell phones. :) |
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