glassorion

Thanks! Good call about the Glutamine and the non-vegan AAs.

Hi guys, Thanks to some of you, i replaced the whey protein in my diet with EAAs and BCAAs about a year ago. I have generally had a good experience with them (much easier on the stomach among other things) but was wondering if i was ingesting the ideal ratio. I know a lot of you have been taking these, and was wondering if anyone can look at my usual mix below and offer advice before i commit to another 5kgs of it: L-Glutamine by the Pound 15% Branch Chain Amino Acids INSTANTIZED (BCAA's) 35% Essential Amino Acids (EAA's) by the Pound 35% Leucine 4:1:1 by the Pound 15% I have a feeling i may be taking too much of the Glutamine. Currently i take 1 scoop (10gms) pre and post workout (little more if it was really intense). Thanks for all your help!

Ive been using Nitrous Oxide supplements along with EAAs+BCAAs+Beta Alanine from TrueProtein. I would like to switch from the NO to just plain Arginine. However the Arginine powder from NOW supplements tastes REALLY bad. I was wondering if someone could comment on the stuff TrueProtein carries in terms of taste; i dont want to buy 2 lbs of the stuff only to discover that its just as rancid. Any advice would be much appreciated!

I lift for about 45 - 50 mins. throw in about 20 mins for jumping rope bw sets. breaks are very short. the majority of the bananas are blended in my post wo shake..i also have a few throughout the day. its one of the most important part of my diet (with the foods listed above making the rest). oh and if you want to bulk, the rest periods are as important as the wo days (along with sleep of course). rest enough and lift and eat big. should get you there.

i eat 4 lbs of bananas on workout days. ive added 20 pounds in 3.5 months.

could flaxseed actually cause it? i never had acne during puberty. recently (im 22)...( the flaxseed thing could be a coincidence, dunno)..ive been getting it bad. other fat sources are tofu, tempeh. no nuts generally. diet is pretty clean too.. cant figure out what the cause it...any ideas guys?

robert, any ideas on how to decrease the difference, if its even possible that is? i have the same problem...

I eat fruits at various times day or night! imo dont see a problem with it..

So what your saying (which is what i got from all the Raw food material out there) is that as long as you have sufficient amino acid sources, you dont need extra proteins?

What is your fat ratio now? 10g of fat is super low... Less than 7gms!

Exactly! thats why i have totally cut out processed protein sources. but im worried that my body will not be able to make up the balance through synthesis through amino acids and i wont add mass/ muscles will degenerate. so in your experience, do you see the body making up to that extent (i lift quite heavy/mostly compounds etc). BTW thanks for the link. Its proving to be quite indispensable.

Here are my stats: 5'10.5" 145 lbs lean body weight is 136.67 pounds maintenance calorie range: 2500 - 2700 Till i made the switch i was consuming approx 90 - 100 gms of protein / 100 gms of CHO / >10 gms of fats my weight leveled off at the mid 140s with this macro profile - i was seeing strength gains though my activity level is the same as before - lift 3x a week. soccer 1x a week (about 2 hrs at a time). i have been consciously trying to get sufficient rest and have been doing well in that department. what i am wondering is whether my body will naturally compensate for the lack of directly ingested proteins (i now est that i consume <20 gms of proteins). i still want to increase size and strength as far as goals are concerned. what are your thoughts?

I have been researching Raw diets for a while and am very motivated by Raw athletes like durianrider and others. untill recently i was supplementing with protein powders to ensure that i was getting enough protein (my goal is to increase lean muscle mass). i have, starting a month ago, stopped all supplementation and am eating 80% raw. I make sure to eat foods with good amino acid profiles. my question is, if i keep replenishing my amino acid pools, will my body synthesize the requisite amount of protein? or do you guys feel that im starving my body of this macro? any advice would be appreciated.

So far, the stores i have tried have it for $5.39 a pound. Anyone know a place where one can get it for cheaper? I looked online but you need to buy enormous quantities for it to make a difference in price. PS If anyone is into Yerba Mate there are places uptown (around 175th st) where you can get it as cheap as $3 for 4lbs.

I got a few single serving packets of NO-XPLOD free for running a race so i tried it out. According to the directions i took it 1/2 hr or so before lifting. Got a noticeable surge in energy, felt alert and sharp. Was more pumped during the workout as well. overall it was a good feeling. however im not planning on continuing using it. im also cutting out creatine and protein supps and going RAW. today is my 5th day RAW and it feels great. no energy drops in lifts either. my final verdict would be that you dont need all this stuff, its a waste of money and it takes its toll on your body.

Dan, 3 sets for each muscle group? whats you average W/O like? do you do a total body routine?

Sounds good. It's so cheap that I might as well give it a shot. Yeah, I thought low-fat/high-protein/high-carb would be best, but I might have gone too low-fat and need to shift some carbs into fats. I've kept up the intensity of my workouts, but the downtime between sets is a killer. I usually do 5-6 exercises varying from 3-6 sets of 12-3 reps. It's a 3x split of legs, shoulders/arms(pull), chest/arms(push). But the wait for full recovery is up to 90 seconds between sets. On off-days I do cardio with usually one rest day per week. I'm thinking about maybe a 5x split after this. try reducing the breaks between sets. this is called lactic acid training. your body will learn to get rid rid of lactic acid faster and thus lowering your downtime. there is no such thing as too little fat in my opinion. if you are in caloric excess, your body will turn some of that into fat if need be. so i wouldnt worry about that aspect. try not doing as much cardio or resting more, it might help you bulk.

If you want to use creatine, i would suggest taking it post workout (apart from also taking it pre workout if you like). you might lose a little size (when you cycle off your muscles will lose a little water) but if you maintain the same intensity while working out, you wont see any strength losses. From my experience, carbs are higher on the absorption scale wrt energy for the body than fats. low fat/high carb should be ideal to bulk. i would play around with the ratios to find the optimal amount of carbs so you barely break even and dont gain (too much) fat. this will take a lot of time and dedication though. have you tried increasing the intensity of your workouts? ps also check out Waxy maize starch as a post/wo carb source

Troy: Have you always taken 80-90 grams? Ive read so many differing opinions on dosages that i'm quite unsure how much i should go with. Right now i weigh about 148 lbs and take 50 grams of WMS. From what i understand, the dosage should depend on the extent to which you deplete your glycogen reserves. So my question is, do you feel an added benefit when you take 90 grams or does it plateau off after a certain amount?

I think that's normal. It quickly replenishes blood sugar so you are no longer craving food right after you have it. Unlike actual sugar, it doesn't spike insulin, so you also don't have the blood sugar crash 45 mins later. I feel the same thing. I'm amazed at how well wms helps my muscles recover and without the jitters I used to get with dextrose. Chris Thanks for the quick reply. in fact, it was so quick that im still shaking from my workout (which was 2 hrs ago ! ) Have you seen any visible results since you started taking it? My mass fluctuates in the same range so im not entirely sure if i added muscle (though that would take more than a few weeks). I dont feel enervated and sleepy post workout as before though. But from all the hype, im not sure what to realistically expect!

Im experiencing some weird effects on WMS. Wondering if anyone else is as well.. Before WMS: i had a huge appetite after lifting heavy and used to gulp down my protein shake and still be hungry for more food. Since i started using WMS: (been on it for the past few weeks) immediately post WMS i become very full. 30 -45 mins after, when its time for the protein, i find it hard to drink the same quantity i had no trouble with before. I have read that it 'empties the stomach'. i experience no such thing. i started with 35 grams and increased to about 50. Appreciate any info/advice...

this may just be a personal preference thing, but i feel really comfortable doing decline DB presses. i generally max out on 70s and go to the rep before failure. no problems with blood rushing to the head. gives a very nice pump. one problem i have though is that despite my chest being very strong (wrt to my weight = 140lbs or 62 kgs) its still not particularly exceptional ( well...thickness wise)..my back seems to grow proportionate to the weight though...still trying to figure this out..

Hey everyone! ive been on a body part split (chest,arms,legs,back,shoulders) for a couple of years. the most amount of mass i have put on has been in the past 6 months (mostly due to eating more carbs). ive read a lot about TBT and decided to give it a try. i came up with the following and started with day 1. today is day 2 and im VERY sore. any comments/advice would be very appreciated. note: was not able to do the bicep/tricep isolation on day one as i was exhausted, but both the muscles are sore today. 3 sets of each exercise with about 5 -7 reps. DAY 1 Romanian Dead Lift Squat (legs close together) Standing Calf Raise Incline Bench Incline Fly/Cable Fly/Pec deck fly Weighted wide grip Pull up (20lbs) Wide grip Pull Downs/ seated row DB clean press preacher curl/reg +hammer curl close grip bench/underhand bar press downs. DAY 2 HIIT : sprints DAY 3 Squat (legs far apart) Stiff Legged Dead lift Seated calf raise Flat bench Flat Fly/Cable Fly/Push ups Weighted mid grip Pull up (20lbs) Mid grip Pull Downs/ DB row One arm DB curls (Reg + Hammer) Skull Crushers / one arm rope press downs DAY 4 HIIT : sprints DAY 5 hamstring leg curl Leg press BB clean and press Lunges Decline bench Decline Fly/Cable Fly Pullovers Weighted close grip Pull up (20lbs) close grip Pull Downs/ BB row BB (straight bar) curl ( underhand + over hand grip) tricep kickbacks/ V bar pressdowns DAY 6 Rest DAY 7 Soccer for a couple of hrs. ABS : hanging windshield wipers /leg raises/ swiss ball plank Ive been a vegan all my life. never tasted meat. until a couple of years ago i definitely wasnt getting enough protein. as a result my arms are very thin. overall body shape resembling an ectomorph. just after lifting when i flex i see a lot of definition and a decent amount of size. but when im not pumped, my body looks quite average. i havent been able to explain the significant difference. maybe one of you can. stats 5'10 145 lbs.