Getting in shape 2008 / 2009 / 2010

[BigJerm]

So I got my creatine in and started my loading phase today. Wow I could actually feel a difference in the workout. I had a lot more energy. I ended up with this:
http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/hp/creatine.html

Also, got a badass drink shaker from them with a wisk ball inside of it. Mixed my protein shake easily.

[ghostdancer308]

 {toast} Loading is a scam! Just take the maintenance dosage and you will be fine.

[wideload]

Question....?

My old diet of,
skim milk
bananas
wheat germ
kelp
honey
lecithen..sp?
used to give me a good bit of energy.
A fruit choice mid morning...orange/apple???
Two chicken breasts and a salad for lunch.
Another fruit choice mid afternoon.
Baked pot. with steamed veggy...broc.-carrots.
That seemed good for all I thought I needed.
Is the powders or pills or whatever they take now better than the natural foods?
My powerlifting and body building days were over 40 years ago but I was in great shape then.
If one starts off on these other subs. is it a long time or full time replacement to natural food groups?

[Trailabite]

Wideload,

My personal opinion is there is nothing better than natural! But, protein drinks have come a long way since 40 years ago - they actually taste good now. As far as eating natural foods I think you still have to have a good diet regardless or nothing will seem to work right. My problem with trying to do it with just natural foods it seems like me and my wife spend a lot of time in the kitchen and that gets old so we now stick to eating lots of chicken and good fresh vegetables and fresh fruits along with our protein drinks.

There's a  lot of different protein powders out there but the ones we use are Syntha-6 and my wife uses ISO Pure due to it being lactose friendly. Another personal preference is I do everything I can to avoid GNC. They usually have everything but they are way way over priced.

[wideload]

I found that GNC is just that and they seem to NOT have many answers for me anyway!
At 61 I still know what it took to get there but just need to stick with limited weight lifting, no more 400lb bench presses for me but as I was up to 400 push ups a day last year and NOT enough sit ups so I am going to fab another dip and push up rack and stay with that.
I think doing 3 pushaways!...a day I'd be much better off!

[BigJerm]

Wideload, I would never use the shakes and powders to replace food. I use them to add to my diet. I cannot seem to consume enough protein in my diet so I add a shake to get more in. If you got the time and discipline eating healthy is bet but Chuch is right, you can spend some serious time in the kitchen cooking/planning.

Chuck, I avoid GNC unless I know they are having a super sale on something I really want. Most of their staff knows about as much as the training booklet tells them and their prices are steep on some products.

[tjl1388]

I am trying to bulk down...by a good bit.

I am 6'4" around 275...would like to get to about 225.  The plan is 1500 calories a day and some form of cardio and maybe some push-ups/sit-ups thrown in for good measure.

Protein bulks you up doesn't it?   My problem so far has been breakfast. Can't seem to find anything that is quick and won't break the bank.  Fruits just don't last me to lunch.

[ghostdancer308]

Cutting your calories that much might work against you. Slowly cut back. Just watch your portions and eat every 2-3 hours. Protein will burn off but only if your active. If you take in a higher level of calories and not burn that amount in return you will store it as unwanted fat. Try to burn more than you take in. Your cardio should be gradual as well. Slow and easy, every other day for 20 minutes. Intensity will depend on your personal ability. Walking is just as good as running.

[BigJerm]

The wonderful rule of thumb these days to cut weight is try and consume a gram of protein PER pound of body weight. Idea being you need food, you need calories but if you eat more chicken, steak, seafood ect then you will eat less of things that are not healthy and still get in the vital protein needed to fuel your body.

Watch your 1500 calorie intake. The best thing to do is forget all the calculations and such online and just start eating healtheir and adjust as you go. When I dropped about 30 lbs last year I just made up a diet, calculated the amount of carbs, calories and protein and adjusted as need be to loose weight. Just remember, protein is big, get veggies in (fiber) and you need carbs but you need to watch the amount so rice, potatoes, bread, pasta, ect.

[BigJerm]

Well GNC was having a sale big enough to bring me in so I got the Black Powder and some Glutamine. Drinking the BlackPowder now so should be a good workout hopefully at 5

[tjl1388]

My big problem is breakfast.  I leave the house at around 5:40am and never seem to have time to make anything.  I always thought protein was for building muscle and would cause me to gain not lose.

So if I grab something like muscle milk etc for breakfast my body actually burns that (protein in general) faster than dry cereal?

[BigJerm]

Protein is a good way to Jump start your metabolism. I wish i wasnt to lazy about breakfast but I do eat cereal instead of making eggs or something.

BTW the BlackPowder has me pretty amped up right now!