you dont wanna go upper body twice in a row. try switching up the sat and friday around so you get some rest between upperbody days.
Deadlifts and squats are core workouts =] Throw in an ab work out on your leg day and you’ll get some good results.
3g of EPA & DHA combined should be daily max. Organic’s always recommended if you don’t mind paying the extra. Probably gives your body the best of the best in nutrients and what not without all that chemical bs from factory animals.
It’s tough. I wouldn’t do deadlift and squat heavy in one session cause that’s really taxing on the body. Put one on Fri and another on Sun plus power cleans to one of those days. Make Sat bench press, barbell row, and then some other uber compound upper body lift (pull-up with DB held with your feet?)
Core work, just add one exercise to the end of each session. The DB between your feet on pull ups should work your abs as well.
I want to increase my leg flexibility (i.e. touch my toes). So, what are the rules for this? Can I stretch everyday, or only a few times a week? What kinds of stretches and for how long?
Heh. Good one. Thanks.
Hm…seems good.
I tried doing the “full body” then off then “full body.” I don’t feel like I’m getting growth. Thus I want to do full-leg days (the way I used to).
For me, the things I work on the deadlift feels VERY similiar to the stuff I work on squats.
Thanks, SZ. Thanks TM.
Magnus, you still around?
Also, do deadlifts and squats work your stomach? I’m guessing core = back and not front.
stretching once a day is fine. it takes ab, hamstring, and calve strength. So really focus on flexing and maintaining resistance in those muscles. You can stand straight up with your legs across each other. ie your feet are touching side to side right next to each other as if you’re standing normally except your left foot is where the right is and vice versa. use the front leg to keep the other leg straight keeping the under knee locked and just bend over and reach for your toes. then switch foot placement and do it again.
I find this easier than sitting down with your feet against the wall and reaching for your toes because this way you can use one leg to lock the other leg (no knee movement)
You can also try doing straight leg kicks. controlled and explosive.
standing splits work also. Put one leg straight out on to a bench or anything with height and slowly move your back foot out until you get a good stretch.
Squats should tax your ass and legs a lil more and deadlifts should work out your back a little more.
Core is basically your torso (back and abs), more specifically the deeper muscles under your abs and back. hence the name “core” hehe
Muscle involvement in squats varies tremendously depending on form.
bad info removed
Full back squat uses glutes and quads a lot with hamstrings to a lesser degree. Deadlifts should work your hamstrings predominantly. Specifically on the back, you’re using your traps and all the muscles around your shoulder blades to keep them pulled together. Lower back should get zero work because you don’t want it rounding out during the movement.
On the contrary, I find that lower back is the target for deadlifting. I don’t know how you’re doing it, but if lower back isn’t involved at all, I think you aren’t doing deadlifts.
exrx agrees with me
http://exrx.net/WeightExercises/ErectorSpinae/BBDeadlift.html
Correct you are. I guess I was overzealous with the “zero work” and should have just stated not to round out the lower back.
That Web site is great. Thanks very much.
That helps, thanks. Is there such a thing as stretching too much or for too long? I was thinking of sitting and stretching while reading a book or during some other sedentary activity. If I did, could I get results faster?
You can do it frequently but I wouldn’t suggest exceeding any sort of pain threshold.
Post-workout meal question. I heard it’s good take in a hefty amount of simple carbs right after exercising for an insulin spike. Does this mean I should choose white rice over brown rice because it’ll be processed quicker? It seems kinda counter-intuitive b/c i thought it’s best to choose brown rice whenever you can. Also heard fruit juice may also work so would OJ be a good enough source for carbs after a workout?
I’m glad to have seen this debate. Back strength is pretty much my main reason for doing deadlifts.
Still scares the fuck out of me when I feel the “burn” there though.
So, let’s try it another way: I should have my pull / push days (I don’t do upper/lower, like arms then legs), then on EACH day add a stomach movement to it?
Actually, do you guys do pull / push or do you do “top” / “bottom?”
Also, do you guys do things like curl OR pushup OR crunch? Or do you guys do the pushup + deadlifts / you don’t do deadlifts but instead do “snatches?”
I go for upper/lower body…
I should try this pull/push sometime
i’ve read articles saying to separate push/pull and others saying its actually beneficial to do push and pull the same day. However, Almost anyone will tell you not to workout when you haven’t recovered. Thats why it just seems more logical to do do top/bottom splits and then if possible, incorporate a push pull scheme that seems like its working better for you.
There is still heavy debate about that. From what I have heard though, soy protein powder shouldn’t be an issue, as most of the stuff they say causes estrogen production is processed out. Either way, it’s still being argued about.
Juice isn’t nearly as fast a carb as people previously thought.
The reason you would have white rice over brown rice is the fiber in the brown rice would slow digestion. You want those carbs replaced as fast as possible, so that you can return to a state where your muscles focus on rebuilding themselves.
Gatorade works, or pure dextrose if you are on a budget. Waxy maize starch is good as well, if you want to try out the latest craze. I’ve used it back when it first came out. Not sure it was any better, but it did feel better on my stomach than dextrose.
Just eating whole food though isn’t bad, it’s slightly less “efficient,” but I don’t think it’s going to be a huge factor hindering your goals. Go for a bagel, white rice, white bread, white potato…etc, if you are going the whole food route.
Thanks bro :tup:. Got another food question. Would you eat the same kind of pre&post workout meal for an HIIT session as you would for a weightlifting session?
I do 4-day upper-lower split. My upper body days consist of pushes and pulls; one being vertical movements and the 2nd being horizontal. For legs, one day is hip/hamstring dominant and the other is knee/quad dominant.