Journal for my first P/RR/S Routine and Diet

[aja44]

Returned to the gym about 7 months ago after being out of serious lifting for about 12 years. Over the last 7 months I have made good gains, but not sure if those gains are just my body "remembering". I have been doing the following 4 on / 1 off routine:
Chest/Bis
Back/Tris
Shoulders/Abs/Forearms
Legs

After reading some excellent articles on this site (thanks mostly to CowPimp), I think I have a better understanding of how to train. The guy knows his shit!!!! I will begin posting each day the results of my workout and diet for the previous day. I hope to do this routine as suggested for 9-12 weeks with a week off at the end.

Any suggestions, recommendations, and comments would be great and helpful.

One question I have is a recommendation on Creatine or Protein drinks. I was taking Creadex and Altered State (3 each AM and 3 each PM) along with GNC Whey (right after my workouts). This was recommended to me by the rep in GNC and not sure if it's worth the money or not. Someone in the gym recommended SizeOn and SuperPump250, anyone agree? Also, I was reading that the best protein out their is IsoPure, although its watery from what I read. Again, any input on this, and how ofter to take would be greatly appreciated. I'm out, so need to restock and would rather buy good stuff.

 

[aja44]

Day 1

Beginning Stats
Male
39
5'11"
262lbs w/ 28.5%BF

Using the "Body Fat" calculator and diet advice posted in the forum by BUILT along CowPimp's "Training 101" sticky, I have tried to put together both a workout routine and diet for the next few weeks.

I going to follow a 4 day split P/RR/S routine consisting of:
Check - Back - Legs - Delts,Arms,Abs

Day 1 - Power - Chest
Flat Bench - 275lbs 3x6
Incline BB - 235lbs 3x6
Decline DB flys - 60lbs 2x6
Cable Flys - 70lbs 2x6

Diet
Meal 1
1/2C Dry Oats
1/2C Natural Apple Sauce
1/4C Raisins
Sprinkle Cinn
4 Egg Whites
Water

Meal 2
16 oz Protein Shake
1 slice WW bread
2 Tablespoons Natural Peanut Butter
Water

Meal 3
1C Brown Rice
1 can Solid Tuna in Water
1 teaspoon sharp ground mustard
Water

Post Workout Protein Shake
IsoPure Protein - 20oz

Meal 4
5 oz Filet Min
1 small Red potato
1.5 cups string beans
Water

Totals - 2504 Calories, 57.4 Fat, 283 Carbs, 206 Protein

Woke up late today and I dont want to eat any later than 2-3 hours before bed. With this, I was unable to get the additional meal in today. Will be back on normal schedule tomorrow (Sunday) and should be able to get a 5th meal in, if not more. Back today, should be fun

 

[aja44]

Day 2 - Back - Power

Bent over BB rows - 185lbs 3x6
T-Bar Rows - 115lbs 3x6 (new machine to gym, first time on this in years)
One Arm Dumbells 80lbs 3x6
Front Pulldowns (shoulder width) - 190lbs 3x6

Diet
Meal 1
1/2C Dry Oats
1/2C Natural Apple Sauce
1/4C Raisins
Sprinkle Cinn
4 Egg Whites
Water

Meal 2
1C Brown Rice
1 can Solid Tuna in Water
1 teaspoon sharp ground mustard
Water

Meal 3
6 oz baked chicken breast
1 small baked red potato
1 cup steamed asparagus
Water

Meal 4
16 oz Protein Shake
1 slice WW bread
2 Tablespoons Natural Peanut Butter
1 banana
Water

Meal 5
6 oz Top Sirloin Steak
large Romain Lettuce Salad (fat free dressing)
1 cups string beans
Water

Totals - 2900 Calories, 80 Fat, 338 Carbs, 238 Protein

 

[aja44]

Day 3 - Legs - Power

Squats - 315lbs 3x6
Leg Presses - 400lbs 3x6
Deadlifts - 275lbs 3x6
Lunges w/ 60lbs dumbells 3x6
SLDL - 135lbs 3x6
Calves - off block in SmithMachine 315lbs 3x6

DIET:
Meal 1
1/2C Dry Oats
1/2C Natural Apple Sauce
1/4C Raisins
Sprinkle Cinn
4 Egg Whites
Water

Meal 2
1C Brown Rice
1 can Solid Tuna in Water
1 teaspoon sharp ground mustard
1C Asparagus
Water

Meal 3
6oz Baked Chicken Breast
1 small Baked Red potato
1 small cucumber
Water

Meal 4
16 oz Protein Shake
1 slice WW bread
2 Tablespoons Natural Peanut Butter
1 banana
Water

Meal 5
6oz steamed Chicken
1C Steamed Broccoli
1/2C Brown Rice
Water

Meal 6
16oz Protein Shake

Totals - 3033 Calories, 60 Fat, 344 Carbs, 271 Protein

 

[liljojo4711]

nice start, keep it up

 

[aja44]

Day 4 - Delts, Arms, Abs - POWER

BB Military Presses - 275lbs 3x6
DB Arnie Presses - 60lbs 3x6
DB Laterals - 30lbs 3x6
BB Uprights - 95lbs 3x6
Facepulls - 90lbs 3x6
CG Bench Press - 275lbs 3x6, 3x5, 3x5
Tates - 50lbs 3x6
Standing BB Curls - 115lbs 3x6
Incline DB Curls - 50lbs 3x6
Reverse Grip curls - 50lbs 3x6
Crunches - 25lbs 3x6

DIET
Meal 1
1/2C Dry Oats
1/2C Natural Apple Sauce
1/4C Raisins
Sprinkle Cinn
4 Egg Whites
Water

Meal 2
1C Brown Rice
1 can Solid Tuna in Water
1 teaspoon sharp ground mustard
1C Asparagus steamed
Water

Meal 3
6oz Baked Chicken Breast
1 small Baked Red potato
1C String Beans steamed
Water

Meal 4
16 oz Protein Shake
1 slice WW bread
2 Tablespoons Natural Peanut Butter
1 banana
Water

Meal 5
6oz Turkey Burger
2 slices WW Bread
1 slice Smart Beat Cheese
Medium Romain Lettuce Salad w/ FF dressing
Water

Totals - 2300 Calories, 48 Fat, 288 Carbs, 180 Protein

 

[NJ-Surfer]

What are your goals? At 28.5% BF I would think you would want to be cutting. Is 3000 calories below your maintenance? I would suggest lowering the carbs and upping your fats as well as getting your total calories lower.

As far as protein shakes go I think Myoplex is the best tasting and has good balance of nutrients...its also probably the most expensive.

 

[aja44]

Goals

Hey NJSurfer, thanks for the reply.

Yes, my primary goal for this 9 week PRRS is to cut and learn the program. Based on the "BodyFat Calculater" on a post by Built, I entered in my current weight and bodyfat which told me my bodymass was around 188lbs. That is what I am using as my intake for protein and fat. Based on what I read, I should multiple my body weight x 15 calories to maint (262x15=3930).

I'm trying for the first week to stay around 3000 calories total.

188 x 1gram of Protein = 188 grams of protein minimum
188 x 1/2 gram of fat - 94 grams of fat

I'm definately trying to get my protein higher than 190, shooting for 240 - 260. I'm still trying to work on the fat intake, 94 grams of fat seems high? I'm also still trying to work on maint the diet. I am a paid contractor working on client networks and its hard to walk out every 2 hours to eat when there paying $1000 per day for me to be there. So I eat my first meal @ 5AM when I leave and then pretty good to get my second meal in around noon or so, and then maybe a break around 3.

So based on the initial numbers from the calculator, I've been staying about 1000 calories below maintenance level for my BodyWeigh. Am I doing this wrong?

 

[NJ-Surfer]

The 13-15x bodyweight is a rough estimate for maintenance calories. You may very well need 3900 but that seems a bit high to me. See how it goes but be prepared to cut calories if your not seeing weight loss. A good rate of loss is around a 1lb/week.

Don't be afraid to raise your fat intake. Fat in food does not equate to fat on your body; its all about the calories. Fat is essential and as long as you???re not deep-frying you'll be fine. Try adding some nuts, avocado, all natural peanut butter, and cold-water fish like salmon. They're healthy and taste great as well as very satisfying while cutting calories.

You also don't need to eat 6 times a day. Again, the bottom line is calories/day. Granted it makes it easier to stave off hunger but eating more frequently isn't a requirement for cutting or bulking it just makes it a bit easier logistically.

 

[aja44]

Day 5 - Off Day

First week of Power went pretty well. My major issue is that some exercises I have no idea what my 1RM was, so I just picked a weight and went with it. Also, I dont have a workout partner on a regular basis, so I dont really know what my 1RM is. And because of the times I'm in the gym, not to many people I would trust to spot me properly for a squat or heavy bench. So I based the 80-85% weight I did for this week of the max's I have done for 1RM without a spot.

Got on the scale this morning and weight was 255.9lbs

I had my BF done in the gym, so I will look to have that done every other week.

Diet is going well I think. One question I have is should I not eat late at night? How long b4 going to bed should I stay away from eating if at all? The rule of thumb I was given was 3 hours, but sometimes I'm starving by 9 and know I'm going to bed at around 10.

DIET
Meal 1
1/2C Dry Oats
1/2C Natural Apple Sauce
1/4C Raisins
Sprinkle Cinn
4 Egg Whites
Water

Meal 2
1C Brown Rice
1 can Solid Tuna in Water
1 teaspoon sharp ground mustard
1C String Beans
Water

Meal 3
6oz Baked Chicken Breast
1 small Baked Red potato
20 Red Grapes
Water

Meal 4
16 oz Protein Shake
1 slice WW bread
2 Tablespoons Natural Peanut Butter
Water

Meal 5
6oz Chicken Breast
Medium Salad
1 slice Smart Beat Cheese
4oz WW Pasta
Water

Meal 6
6oz Chicken Breast
WW Multigrain Wrap
Water

Totals - 3449 Calories, 72 Fat, 428 Carbs, 273 Protein

 

[aja44]

Day 5 - Chest - Rr

Flat Bench - 245lbs 3x8
Incline DB Bench - 75lbs 2x8, 1x10
DB Flys - 60lbs 3x8
DB Pullovers - 75lbs 3x10
Cable Flys - 60lbs 2x10

Tempo on most was 4/1/2/1

Great Pump

DIET
Meal 1
1/2C Dry Oats
1/2C Natural Apple Sauce
1/4C Raisins
Sprinkle Cinn
4 Egg Whites
Water

Meal 2
6oz Baked Chicken Breast
2oz WW Pasta
1C Peas
Water

Meal 3
16 oz Protein Shake
1 slice WW bread
2 Tablespoons Natural Peanut Butter
Water

Meal 4
IsoPure Protein Shake - Post workout while doing cardio

Meal 5
5oz Filet Min
Medium Salad
1C String Beans
Water

Meal 6
16 oz Protein Shake
1 banana

Totals - 2700 Calories, 71 Fat, 240 Carbs, 270 Protein

 

[aja44]

Day 6 - Back - RR

Missed my workout today due to work. Was all set to go to the gym at my normal 1PM time and got the call. Worked on the issue for a few hours and thought we had it resolved but then again at 10PM got the call again that a piece of hardware officially failed. 2 hour trip into NYC, onsite for 7 hours and then 2 hours home. Long day, but got to pay the bills.

Did manage to keep the eating good until about 1AM when I caved and had a large cup of coffee with some milk to keep going.

DIET
Meal 1
1/2C Dry Oats
1/2C Natural Apple Sauce
1/4C Raisins
Sprinkle Cinn
4 Egg Whites
Water

Meal 2
1C Brown Rice
1 Can Solid Tuna in water
1C steamed Asparagus
Water

Meal 3
4oz WW Pasta
2 small meatballs
1C Peas
Water

Meal 4
6oz Baked Chicken Breast
2 slices WW Bread
1 slice SmartBeat Cheese
Balsamic Vin
Water

Meal 5
16 oz Protein Shake
1 WW Wrap
1 Banana
2 Tablespoons Natural Peanut Butter
Water


Totals - 2900 Calories, 55 Fat, 386 Carbs, 221 Protein

 

[T_man]

About the calories, I would use LBM rather than total weight as a way of measuring total calories needed. You could be up to 28.5% over-estimating your calories needed, which is over 1k calories on your current estimate.


Btw there's a section for journals;
Online Journals - IronMagazine Bodybuilding Forums

It's a bit late but maybe you can re-make the thread there or a mod could shift it?

 

[aja44]

Day 7 - Back - RR

Today was a mess. Got home from emergency call for work around 9AM, slept until 1PM, drop off wife to pickup car at shop and then got to the gym

Was not at my best for my workout simply because I was running on 4 hours of sleep after being up for 28 hours. But got through it. Diet was shit because I was watching the JETS with friends. I stayed away from the snacks only having a handful of pretzels, but did eat 2 1/2 slices of pizza. Stayed away from the beer.

Bent over Rows reverse grip - 135lbs 1x12 for warmups
185lbs 1x8, 2x10
Reverse grip front pulldowns - 170lbs 3x10
Wide Lat (front) - 200lbs 2x8
T-Bar machine - 115lbs 3x8
Hyper Extensions (no weight) 3x10

DIET
Meal 1 (1AM while at work)
6oz Baked Chicken
1 WW Wrap

Meal 2
1/2C Dry Oats
1/2C Natural Apple Sauce
1/4C Raisins
Sprinkle Cinn
4 Egg Whites
Water

Meal 3
1C Brown Rice
1 Can Solid Tuna in water
1 Cucumber
Water

Meal 4
16oz Protein Shake
1 slice WW Bread
2tbsp All Natural Peanut Butter
Water

Meal 5
2 1/2 slices pizza
Water

 

[aja44]

Hey T-Man - thanks for taking the time to reply.

How would I determine my maintenance calories using Lean Body Mass as opposed to total weight?

From what I read, my maintenance calories are determined by taking my current weight and multiplying by 13-15, so that number came to around 3900. I began trying to cut 1000 calories off that number while still hitting my protein and fat numbers.

So if my LBM is around 188, why multiplier am I using off than number for calories?

Also, not sure how carbs play into this. Where should I try and keep my carbs while trying to cut BF%

Thanks,

 

[NJ-Surfer]

Hey T-Man - thanks for taking the time to reply.

How would I determine my maintenance calories using Lean Body Mass as opposed to total weight?

From what I read, my maintenance calories are determined by taking my current weight and multiplying by 13-15, so that number came to around 3900. I began trying to cut 1000 calories off that number while still hitting my protein and fat numbers.

So if my LBM is around 188, why multiplier am I using off than number for calories?

Also, not sure how carbs play into this. Where should I try and keep my carbs while trying to cut BF%

Thanks,

It's almost impossible to get an exact measure by using a multiplier. The best way to figure out your maintenance calories is experimentally. Use the 13-15x current body weight to get started. If that comes out to 3000 calories/day then cut it down by 500 calories per day so this would bring you to 2500 calories/day. In a weeks time you will have run a 3500 calorie deficit (7x500=3500 cal.) and should have lost ~1lb (1lb of fat = 3500 calories). If you have not lost 1lb in that week then try trimming another 200 calories/day. If you start losing more than a 1lb/week and feel like you're starving then increase your calories a bit. After about a month you will have a much better idea of how your body works and it should get a lot easier. Hope this helps.
BTW, you may want to move this post to the Online Journal section.