Originally Posted by fufu

If you are going to have a cheat meal, have a cheat meal and don't worry about it.

Originally Posted by gsxrK3

I'm going to cold stone in a little bit.

Originally Posted by vortrit

Olive oil and balsamic vinager.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

Just cutting out that fat free italian dressing and replacing it with the olive oil...will that lead me to the promise land of loosing that BF%?

Also...tomorrow is my off day from weight training (which I usually take my creatine monohydrate pills). When (if I do take creatine monohydrate pills on off days of lifting) should I take my dose of creatine monohydrate? I missed my cardio day today, so im resuming it tomorrow morning after breakfast has digested.

Originally Posted by vortrit

In answer to your first question... Yes, probably.

In answer to your creatine question. I don't know. I don't take any suppliments besides whey and a multivitamin. I do use muscle milk and I think it has some creatine in it. When I did take creatine for awhile I only took it on lifting days because I put it in my PWO shake.

Originally Posted by vortrit

Olive oil and balsamic vinager.

Originally Posted by Big Smoothy

Are the grams sugar in Balsamic Vinegar per serving usually considered high?

Originally Posted by Tom_B

Okay first things first .. if you have a cheat, you have a cheat. Were all human and slip up sometimes, not a big deal. You need to look at the big picture of things and realize one meal here and there is not going to adversly affect your physique to a HUGE degree.

Secondly just because you switch your Fat free dressing to a dressing with an olive oil base is not going to 'lead you to the promise land of drecreasing BF%', if fact you your are not accounting for the extra calories in the olive oil it could actyually INCREASE your Body fat. Yes it's a healthier choice but you still need to fit it into your daily calories/macros accordingly.

Salad dressing idea - Just mix some olive oil with different types of vinegar (apple cider, balsamic etc.) or Lemon Juice, or throw a bit of Fat free Mayo in there, or even use a Fat free, no sugar added yogurt. All are great options, just remember to incorporate into your daily macros appropriately.

And lastly for your creatine, The timing isn't going matter much at all, but if your worried about it just take it around the time that you normally work out at. For instance if you work out everyday at 1pm and that when you take your creatine .. just take your creatine at 1pm on your off day.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

That is a great idea with yogurt on salad...never tried it before. And also with the carbohydrates- maybe that is my deal. I do not really follow the carbohydrates that I consume; I do not do this because of the fact that im so active throughout every day that I burn a ton of carbs. I will keep track of all my carbohydrate intakes along with sugars, fats, and calories and post it tonight.

Originally Posted by vortrit

I'd still make sure your taking in some healthy fats.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

like the chicken breasts and the peanut butters?

Originally Posted by vortrit

Chicken breast has no fat hardly, but peanut butter yes. Definatly peanut butter or some nuts before bed w/ cottage cheese or protein.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

I make a meal with peanut butter and 7-grain bread...you think it would be better without bread (peanut butter plain)? That is usually the only thing I consume bread with is when i have that meal, should i cut bread completely from my diet?

Originally Posted by vortrit

I never eat bread before bed. I usually have two peices of sprouted grain bread in the morning and that's it. I'd rather not eat any bread than most of the stuff they sell in the regular grocery store.

Originally Posted by vortrit

Post workout I have:

1/2 cup of oat bran, 1 cup of yogurt, 1/2 cup of pineapple, 2 scoops of whey.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

I just use the regular dry oats with my yogurt- any major difference?

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

olive oil- under cooking in grocery stores? i checked dressing/condiments

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

could i have multiple meals (2 a day) of nuts and milk or a shake, or should i eat a salad say right about now and save the nuts and shake for before bed?

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

I think another problem is that I'm not allowed to take fish oils while taking this strong medication called accutane with it, so i have to wait another month or so till im off then ill do fish oils. I should probably work some vegetables in sometime today though. I know carrots have lots of sugar, but could i add some to my salad later today and have no problem?

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

stickies blow...probably have most of my answers, but i know you understand that hearing it first hand from somebody goes a far way. one more quick question: i have spinach leaf everyday...is that enough vegetables for the day?

Originally Posted by vortrit

From the sticky shopping list for veggies.

Vegetables:
Celery
Peppers (any color)
Mushrooms
String Beans
Zucchini
Eggplant
Squash
Romaine Lettuce
Iceberg Lettuce
Spinach
Asparagus
Avocado
Broccoli
Brussell Sprouts
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Cucumbers
Onion

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

CUCUMBERS it is then! ive heard avocado is good, never tried it/seen it before!

Originally Posted by vortrit

Be careful with those, however. Very high fat.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

no avocado then for my goal purposes

Originally Posted by vortrit

Well, I was not saying you could not have it. It is a good fat as far as I know. As long as it fit into your daily fats, etc., I just wanted to make sure you were aware of it.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

I am posting my intake today (which is my usual eating habbits) with cals, fats, carbs, sugars, so i can get some feedback and make the changes i need to make.

Originally Posted by vortrit

Good idea!

Talk to you later dude. I've got to get out of my house for a bit.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

Here is my diet for today: Let me know if I need to adjust anything.

My diet
4/29/07

Meal #1
1. Non-fat vanilla yogurt
2. Oats
3. Glass of skim milk

Cardio interval training= 30 minutes

Meal #2 (post cardio)
1. 1 scoop whey protein mix
2. 8 fl. Oz of skim milk
3. 2 pieces of 7 grain bread
4. peanut butter

Meal #3
1. Dry roasted peanuts (1 serving)
2. Glass of skim milk
3. Monohydrate pills

Meal # 4
1. Oats
2. No fat yogurt
3. Cucumber

Meal #5
1. Chicken breast
2. Spinach leaves
3. Fat free Italian dressing

Meal #6
1. Celery
2. Peanut butter
3. 1 scoop whey protein
4. 8 oz. of skim milk

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

ahhhhh, alright ill have it up soon

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

some of things i didnt measure out...not good? i didn't pour like huge portions though. my bad.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

When I first got to college, i was up at 178 lbs. I ran 5 miles a day for about 6 months and got all the way down to 144 lbs. With all that weight lost, is it possible that I have access skin from having a big beer belly??

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

Im seeing huge results in just the last week...i'll be good if i stay solid on this for a month or so. thanks again by the way, for giving me personal tips instead of sending me straight to the stickers. Mid-westerners know how to roll big time.

Originally Posted by vortrit

No problem. Just keep on top of it and you are not seeing results then it will be time to make some changes. If you are currently seeing results then that is a good thing.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

does celery have any nutritional value??

Originally Posted by vortrit

Celery is good as far as I know. I think it's pretty low cal and def won't hurt on a cut, etc. You'd have to look it up on fitday or something. Personally I hate it. Not because it's bad, I just don't like the way it taste.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

Same here, had to put peanut butter on that b****, then i caught myself eating the peanut butter out the jar it was so bad.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

never heard of it, what is it and where can i get me some?

Originally Posted by vortrit

Any health food store, or you can buy it online.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

Lately, for weights I've been doing reps of 12-10-8-6. What is another rep sequence i could switch up to to trick my muscles and build a little more muscle?

Originally Posted by vortrit

I'm not really the person to ask about weight because I usually have a lot of questions but I did drop sets like that for awhile, then went to 3x10. You could change it each week.

Week 1 - 3x10

Week 2 - 3x12

Week 3 - 4 x 9

Or something like that.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

Did you increase weight for each set? Maybe ill just go 12-10-8-6-4. I only do 3 to 4 exercises per body section (i.e. 4 for back, 3 for bi's). Anyway im passing out. New coach is coming in tomorrow, got to be ready. Talk to you later.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

I do seated rows, lat pull down, and the reverse peck deck. makes 3 sorry. How do you figure out your body fat%? not that BMI equation right?

Originally Posted by vortrit

I'm not really the person to ask about weight because I usually have a lot of questions but I did drop sets like that for awhile, then went to 3x10. You could change it each week.

Week 1 - 3x10

Week 2 - 3x12

Week 3 - 4 x 9

Or something like that.

Originally Posted by Double D

Not exactly real good.

How long have you been resistace training?

Something in 3 week cycles would be better.

Wk1-3 Endurance-2x15-45 sec ri tempo-3/x/1
Wk4-6 Hypertrophy-3x8-60-90 sec ri tempo-2/x/1
Wk7-9-Strength-3x5-120 sec ri tempo-Controlled
Wk10-Take the week off.

Really need to pose this question in the training forum you will get much better advice. But this is an ok loading pattern.

Originally Posted by EWI

Going back to your diet... it looks real weak on "real food protein" I would use your Whey only for just after your workout and instead eat some tuna, egg whites, chicken, etc... at the other times

Originally Posted by vortrit

Of course. And exactly the reason I clearly stated: I'm not really the person to ask

Originally Posted by Double D

Yeah I know this.

Originally Posted by Double D

Dont sweat it I will send for a hooker.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

So have the chicken breast and milk as my last meal of the day. Do whey protein after a workout. Now I do my cardio at night, will i be able to do whey after that or stick with oats, yogurt, and skim milk?

Originally Posted by EWI

I assume the reason you are doing cardio is to cut fat and probably you haven't really stressed muscle too much so the protein you get from your oats and milk are probably fine. Also, there is nothing wrong with mixing it up a little from time to time... whey one day, oats+ another...

Why aren't you doing early morning "fasting cardio" ?

Also, I would try to get some real food protein in as late as possible (just before going to bed) this will help raise metabolims slightly as you sleep... it will also provide a longer term protein source thus stabablizing blood sugar levels throughout most of the night. The reason this is important for building muscle and blasting fast is that when your blood sugar levels drop then your body will begin storing fat and digesting muscle (both are bad - right?) so if you have a slow... long acting real protein source working in the body... your blood levels will stay more stable and you will have an anabolic rest and recovery (sleep) rather than a catabolic one. It's ok then to start fasting the last few hours of the night which again makes for a prime "fasted cardio" state 1st thing.

Originally Posted by zonaguy03

couple questions on that:

1. can you briefly define 'fasting cardio'
2. would a few chicken breasts with skim milk be a decent last meal before bed?

3. I've heard that people shouldnt eat after 6-7PM. Now my deal is that I do get my 6 meals in per day to keep metabolism going. Should I also stick to this idea of time also or shake it off?

Originally Posted by vortrit

I think he means cardio in the morning on an empty stomach. Personally, I'd never do anything on an empty stomach.

Originally Posted by jamie1888

I asked this same question in another thread.. basically, I get up first thing in the morning and head right to the gym; there's only about 30 minutes from the time I wake up to the time I start working out. The general consensus is that I should eat something before I workout... Basically, your body has gone all night without food; so you should feed it!