Supplement Suggestions

[SMP142]

hello everyone,
i have been on here for a little while trying to do some research on supps but, i feel like there are so many out there i dont know what is what.

i'm currently deployed again so i want to try out something new and see what happens.

the last thing i was using was animal pak, animal pump, whey post workout and casein before bed. i felt like i was coming along fairly well untill i got really sick for 30+ days and lost over 20 lbs. (gotta love poor living conditions).

i am 6'3'', 200-205. i know in a perfect world i want mass, strength and to trim up all in one but thats not how it works. i do cardio in the morning 5-6 days a week and lift at night about 2-3 hours before i go to bed. i only have 4 months left before i return home so i would like to know what my best plan of attack would be. i want to trim up before i leave but how long do you guys usually run that? 8 weeks? 12?

my plan was to bulk for 8 weeks or so and then try to cut down before i leave. does this seem like its do-able or should i go a diff route?

i was looking at the trifecta and natabolic stacks but like i said before there is so much out there im kind of lost in what i should go for.

any help you guys can give me would be awesome.

thanks-
Brian

 

[SweetLou321]

do you do your cardio fasted? what type?
Why do you lift for 2-3 hrs? whats ur routing?
Diet?
Creatine Nitrate
Beta-Alanine
BCAA/EAA
Protein
Fish Oil
Multi, Orange Triad

 

[SMP142]

i do my cardio fasted right when i wake up. i usually do tredmill or
elliptical but, i am thinking about starting "insanity" since they have it
here.

sorry, i didnt mean i lift for 2-3 hours. usually 1 hour or maybe 1hr 15min.
i mean i lift 3 hours prior to going to sleep.

-thursday-
-flat bench
-dumbbell bench
-dumbbell incline
-decline
-friday-
-squats
-sled
-lunges
-calf raises
-leg extend
-leg curl
-saturday-
-cable push downs
-skull crushers
-cable curls
-preacher curls
-dumbbell curls
-dips
-sunday-
-shoulder press
-dumbbell shoulder press
-shoulder flys
-front flys
-cable shoulder flys
-wide grip pull ups
-monday-
-wide grip seated rows
-one arm dumbbell rows
-pull downs
-back extensions
-dead lift

i know i am forgetting some stuff but i dont have my list in front of me
right now. any help with my routine would be appreciative as well.

i cant keep a real consistant diet since everyday is different at our dining
facility. i get a serving of meat at every meal (chicken, fish, turkey,
pork, beef) depends on the day but its always baked or grilled. broccoli,
grean beans or mixed vegi's. brown rice when they have it or sweet potatoes.
i make a salad on some days. they dont have nuts here or tuna so that sucks.

so do you think i should just try to slim down the last 4 months or do i
have time to bulk?

 

[SweetLou321]

slim down if that is ur ultimate goal
with your schedule for eating i would buy a 5lb tub of whey for meal replacements, always get 5 perday 3-4 hrs apart. 50g protein each meal, thats bout to small fist fulls of cooked meat btw-that equals 250g protein for the day, good considering u way 197
next buy some bcaa's. a big tub. Do 10g First thing in the morning before cardio (I hate fasted cardio btw another topic tho), never do i high intensity cardio fasted EVER thank you. then do 5g between each meal and 5g pre-wo and 10g post-wo with a banana for carbs then eat a meal 30min later. This will add about 25-30g bcaa to your diet, thats another 30g protein, so now ur at 280. perfect for your weight.
then eat all your carbs, breakfast, pre, post. get at least 50-60g fats everyday.
Ok and im not a fan of once a week routines, look into layne norton's power/hypertrophy split.
do HIIT on your off days
Other supps would be:
Creatine
Beta-alanine
Multi
Fish Oil

 

[SMP142]

i looked into the layne norton workout. looks pretty intense! have you had any luck with it?
also, i do HIIT training in the mornings. i usually dont do a constant pace for cardio. i do sprint/jog splits. do you think i am trying to do to much cardio? should i only do it on off days from lifting? 2 days a week?
creatine... CEE? mono? chelate? nitrate? taurinate? or just get one that has them all in it?
i take a multi but do you use the straight fish oil liquid or the omega-3 caps?

sorry if i am asking alot of questions but, the more specific i can get everything the easier it is for me to stay on solid mind set for my goals.

 

[SweetLou321]

yes i love layne's routines. I usually use an updated one you cant really find online. Once i did his routine my lifts took off and i started to grow. your body has a feedback loop it will respond to, if you train everything twice a week your body will recover faster due to the demand, i experienced more muscle fullness, i burned way more cals without additional cardio. the key is to not take the hypertrophy days to failure so your cns doesnt burn out. I use that routine when bodybuilding.
For creatine go with creapure if you have no problem with mono, if you do have a problem then use green mag or Nos Ether. nitrate maybe, im about to try it out myself.
Fish oil caps, 6-9g a day
I personally NEVER do cardio fasted, for a natural its got more cons then benifits. Your body loses body with cals in versus cals out. You may burn glucose doing cardio in a fed state but u still burn the same amount of cals so in the end of the day the same amount of fat loss, besides you have more energy training fed. HIIT is glucose dependent so you always wanna do that fed, ALWAYS. Low intensity is fat dependent id maybe do that fasted. And twice a week is plenty man!!! HIIT trains your cns system just like weight lifting does. You dont wanna overdue the HIIT, twice a week futher inhances recovery and conditions your cns system, it also futher inhences that feedback loop. Also with laynes routine and any routine you have deloads and percentage schems. Laynes is as follows. 50%, 60%-deload weeks, 75%,85%,100%, PR 1 PR 2 PR3 then deload. The deload always full recovey, cns recovey and the percentages have progression in mind, the key to success is a plan. best of luck

 

[SMP142]

awesome man, thanks for the help! i honestly feel i get way better results when i have a list or plan layed out.
do you take a pre workout supp? i dont think i would need to on hypertrophy days but on the power days do you feel it helps at all?

i cant find anything on the percentages you list. are you saying to go 3 weeks steadily increasing then deload for one?

im excited to try this out!

 

[SweetLou321]

there is nothing layed out to give you those percentages, its always made custom by layne himself
pretty much goes like this, or at least i used this...
Power-50% of 5 rep maxes deload, 75% of 5, 85%, 100%, then you attemp to hit personal records in three weeks PR 1, PR 2, PR 3, then you deload 50% of your new 5 rep max. Also as intensity increases volume must decrease, so id start 5 sets at 50% and by your third PR 3 week your down to 1-2 work sets.
Hyper-60% all weights, 80%, 100%, then you can PR from there but always stop 1-2 reps short of failure on everyset.
SO
Week 1 50/60% Week 2 75/80% Week 3 85/100% Week 4 100/100% Week 5 PR 1/100%
Week 6 PR 2/100% Week 7 PR 3/100% repeat

I always use a pre-wo, i enjoy them thats why haha. And yes it deff helps on power days when trying to pr on squats or rows
btw dont overdo the cardio on this, youll be burning thru cals very quickly as is, and you want all the recovery you can get. do the 2 days of HIIT, and use diet for the rest
Also id suggest carb cycling if i were you.
Do your lower carb days 5 days a week with refeeds on leg days since they are the most demanding unless your legs grow like weeds as mine do, then do them on upper days.

 

[JN230]

hello everyone,
i have been on here for a little while trying to do some research on supps but, i feel like there are so many out there i dont know what is what.

i'm currently deployed again so i want to try out something new and see what happens.

the last thing i was using was animal pak, animal pump, whey post workout and casein before bed. i felt like i was coming along fairly well untill i got really sick for 30+ days and lost over 20 lbs. (gotta love poor living conditions).

i am 6'3'', 200-205. i know in a perfect world i want mass, strength and to trim up all in one but thats not how it works. i do cardio in the morning 5-6 days a week and lift at night about 2-3 hours before i go to bed. i only have 4 months left before i return home so i would like to know what my best plan of attack would be. i want to trim up before i leave but how long do you guys usually run that? 8 weeks? 12?

my plan was to bulk for 8 weeks or so and then try to cut down before i leave. does this seem like its do-able or should i go a diff route?

i was looking at the trifecta and natabolic stacks but like i said before there is so much out there im kind of lost in what i should go for.

any help you guys can give me would be awesome.

thanks-
Brian

well id suggest a stim free perworkout as you lift at night...look into pre-max... that way you can train and still sleep

BCAA- 10g between three of your meals, to increase M-tor and protein synthesis.....

Creapure or kre-alkalyn your decision-for strength and ATP production

bulking id say run a good testboosting cycle
TCF-1 divanil and phyto-testosterone to cover all of your testosterone boositng and libido boosting desires

protein yourchoice, i jsut use w/e is cheaper
fishoil regular costco stuff
multi-vitamin personally i liek orage triad

 

[SMP142]

premax looks like its really good. but at $50 and only 10 servings it seems a bit steep.

so both of you reccommend ~30g of BCAA a day?

i am going to be ordering some stuff today or tommorrow i hope. do you think i should still take casein before i go to sleep? it seems like i wake up more refeshed when i do take it. not tired and worn out.

 

[SweetLou321]

i just eat a meal high in fat, i dont like protein shakes for any reason. to me if i can eat ill eat over a shake...but it does have merit

 

[JN230]

ya casein if oyu want a light feeling but want to cover your protein needs, i do whey with fats or a steak serving before bed personally....

and yes bcaa at that dose BETWEEN meals and 1 hr before meals causes good muscle growth

 

[JRob23]

I'd have to agree with most of the supp recommendations here.

Glutamine, BCAA, Creatine, Whey, Casein are my big picks.

I can mention many other great natty supplements, but if I had to choose...those are my main staples!

 

[SweetLou321]

id do 5g between meals, 2.5g of leucine is all thats needed to spike protein synthesis
also i would dose the bcaa's 2hrs after a meal and 2hrs before your next....your food aminos have a peak time of 2hrs in the blood, then spike the blood real quick with free form as the food aminos clear causes another spike, as the free form aminos clear 2 hrs later, you eat again once again causeing a protein synthesis response, layne norton did work on this

 

[SMP142]

i ordered my supps today.

-primortal performance-
-pre max
-IBCAA
-creatine mono

i bought the NOW whey since it was cheap and CFM.

salmon fish oil since i read it actually has higher potency and better quailty ingredients than regular cod/tuna fish oil.

i am gonna try out the pre max on power days. i want to try and use that the least amount possible since it cost so much.

i am going to start into the layne norton routine sunday. im excited to see how well this works.

i will try and keep you guys updated and see what happens. thanks again for all the help!

 

[SweetLou321]

anytime man, if you need any pointers feel free to p.m. with questions regarding the program

 

[SMP142]

so, i just finished my first week of the new workout the other day. i love it so far. the way its set up i actually feel like i am getting a better workout. i havent been this sore in awhile... cant wait to see how my weights come along in the coming weeks.

 

[SweetLou321]

Good to hear man thanks for the update, Btw just bc your sore does NOT mean ur muscles arnt recovered, your muscles recover fully after 5 days, and with the higher frequency you will experience more muscle fullness, the time your sore decreases, and all around feeling good

 

[Rosie Chee]

so, i just finished my first week of the new workout the other day. i love it so far. the way its set up i actually feel like i am getting a better workout. i havent been this sore in awhile... cant wait to see how my weights come along in the coming weeks.

Sounds good. If you're eating correctly for your goals, training properly, and getting adequate recovery, then you should see definite results - just don't think that it's the supplements doing it, though, since supplementation plays a very minor role in one's progress.

~Rosie~

 

[SweetLou321]

I agree, but he has good basics and a good training program...i hope his diet is on point

 

[SMP142]

i havent even received my supps from the store yet. hopefully they will get here sooner or later. i am not worried about those too much right now. just trying to stay focused on my workout plan and eating right. the supps with only add to what i am doing so far i hope.

 

[SweetLou321]

YES

 

[SMP142]

well, its been a little over 1 month since i started the new program. i can deff tell a difference in my weights. i never realized how much dumbbells would help all around.

i had a couple questions about the routine though. seems to be the most common one out there. this is the current one i am using....

Sunday: Upper Power
-5x5
-Barbell Bench Press
-Barbell Rows
-Military Press
-Barbell Shrugs

Monday: Lower Power
-5x5
-Back Squat
-Stiff Leg Deadlift, Or Romanian DL
-6-8 sets of Standing Calf, little higher reps, i like to do 6-8 on heavy days

Tues: Off

Wednesday: Hypertrophy Chest/Arms
-DB Incline Bech 3x8-12
-Barbell Close Grip Bench 3x8-12
-DB Flat Bench 2x8-12
-Preacher Curls 3x8-12 super setted with
-Standing French Press 3x8-12
-Push Downs 3x8-12 super setted with
-DB Hammer Curls
-Cable Crossovers Front-Back 3x8-12
-Machine Curl 3x8-12 supersetted with
-Machine Dips 3x8-12

Thursday: Hypertrophy Legs/Calves
-Hack Squat 5x8-12 super setted with
-Standing Calf 5x10-15
-Leg Extensions 5x10-15 super setted with
-Sitting Leg Curls 5x10-15 super setted with
-Sitting Calf Raise 4x8-12

Friday: Hypertrophy Shoulders/Back/Traps
-DB Shoulder Press 3x8-12 super setted with
-DB Front Raise 3x8-12
-DB One Arm Row 3x8-12 super setted with
-DB Arnold Press 3x8-12
-Lat Pull Down (Wide Grip) 2x8-12 super setted with
-DB Shrugs 2x10-15
-Lat Pull Down (Close grip, palms facing in) 2x8-12 super setted with
-DB Upright Row 2x10-15
-T-bar row 2x8-12

Saturday: Off


on my monday (heavy leg day) is it ok to add in leg press? i have never been real strong on squat. i keep a lower weight on in order to keep good form but, i dont feel i get a good enough workout on my legs. i have been doing leg press after in order to feel my legs wear down.

ive been on my supps for almost 3 weeks now, i can tell the creatine is starting to work. i have gained about 4 lbs (prob water weight). as far as the BCAA's go, what do you guys use to get rid of the nasty bitterness? i have been using crystal light packets and such but, i can still taste it even through that. i can taste it when i add it to my shakes as well. although not as much.

i tried the premax for the first time a couple days ago. i havent wanted to use it yet since i felt i was still progressing in my weights fine without it. i only did a half dose b/c i didnt know how i would react to it. i didnt notice any difference. i am going to try a full 2 scoops on friday and see what that does. is there a special way to mix it? are you suppose to stir instead of shaking it? i added it to a bottle of water and when i tried to shake it, it all turned to foam and then it wouldnt mix.

i also am starting to run low on my multi vitamin. right now i have just been finishing out GNC mega men. i got it on sale for $7 so i prob wont use it again. i see guys like orange triad as a daily. any other reccommendations?

-Brian

 

[Vincentn]

do you do your cardio fasted? what type?
Why do you lift for 2-3 hrs? whats ur routing?
Diet?
Creatine Nitrate
Beta-Alanine
BCAA/EAA
Protein
Fish Oil
Multi, Orange Triad

good protein diet i like your dietary plane.

 

[RenegadeRows]

Creatine Nitrate
Beta-Alanine
BCAA/EAA
Protein
Fish Oil
Multi, Orange Triad

Looks good to me!!

 

[Rosie Chee]

well, its been a little over 1 month since i started the new program. i can deff tell a difference in my weights. i never realized how much dumbbells would help all around.

i had a couple questions about the routine though. seems to be the most common one out there. this is the current one i am using....

Sunday: Upper Power
-5x5
-Barbell Bench Press
-Barbell Rows
-Military Press
-Barbell Shrugs

Monday: Lower Power
-5x5
-Back Squat
-Stiff Leg Deadlift, Or Romanian DL
-6-8 sets of Standing Calf, little higher reps, i like to do 6-8 on heavy days

Tues: Off

Wednesday: Hypertrophy Chest/Arms
-DB Incline Bech 3x8-12
-Barbell Close Grip Bench 3x8-12
-DB Flat Bench 2x8-12
-Preacher Curls 3x8-12 super setted with
-Standing French Press 3x8-12
-Push Downs 3x8-12 super setted with
-DB Hammer Curls
-Cable Crossovers Front-Back 3x8-12
-Machine Curl 3x8-12 supersetted with
-Machine Dips 3x8-12

Thursday: Hypertrophy Legs/Calves
-Hack Squat 5x8-12 super setted with
-Standing Calf 5x10-15
-Leg Extensions 5x10-15 super setted with
-Sitting Leg Curls 5x10-15 super setted with
-Sitting Calf Raise 4x8-12

Friday: Hypertrophy Shoulders/Back/Traps
-DB Shoulder Press 3x8-12 super setted with
-DB Front Raise 3x8-12
-DB One Arm Row 3x8-12 super setted with
-DB Arnold Press 3x8-12
-Lat Pull Down (Wide Grip) 2x8-12 super setted with
-DB Shrugs 2x10-15
-Lat Pull Down (Close grip, palms facing in) 2x8-12 super setted with
-DB Upright Row 2x10-15
-T-bar row 2x8-12

Saturday: Off


on my monday (heavy leg day) is it ok to add in leg press? i have never been real strong on squat. i keep a lower weight on in order to keep good form but, i dont feel i get a good enough workout on my legs. i have been doing leg press after in order to feel my legs wear down.

Yes, using dumbbells can make a huge difference, especially if you only use barbells before - ideally, your training programme should include a mixture of both.

If you're following that programme and not adjusting it specific to you, then there's no need to add in Leg Press - you're just going to add more volume to it and you don't need more volume. Regardless of whether you "feel" that you're getting a "good enough workout" for your legs when you do legs does not mean that you are not - with squats, you should be lifting as heavy as you can for the reps set with good form (trust me, if you are, you're getting a "good enough workout").

ive been on my supps for almost 3 weeks now, i can tell the creatine is starting to work. i have gained about 4 lbs (prob water weight). as far as the BCAA's go, what do you guys use to get rid of the nasty bitterness? i have been using crystal light packets and such but, i can still taste it even through that. i can taste it when i add it to my shakes as well. although not as much.

Not all BCAAs taste bad. However, if it's that bad, mix it in with your protein powder or preworkout or something. Maybe mix them with juice instead of water.

i tried the premax for the first time a couple days ago. i havent wanted to use it yet since i felt i was still progressing in my weights fine without it. i only did a half dose b/c i didnt know how i would react to it. i didnt notice any difference. i am going to try a full 2 scoops on friday and see what that does. is there a special way to mix it? are you suppose to stir instead of shaking it? i added it to a bottle of water and when i tried to shake it, it all turned to foam and then it wouldnt mix.

Just put Pre Max[/url[] into a shaker and shake it hard for a few seconds (or more). If it doesn't mix, you're not shaking it for hard or long enough.

i also am starting to run low on my multi vitamin. right now i have just been finishing out GNC mega men. i got it on sale for $7 so i prob wont use it again. i see guys like orange triad as a daily. any other reccommendations?

-Brian

There's several decent multivitamins out there - depends how expensive you want to go, as well as needs. NOW Adam is cheap and decent. MHP's Anavite is more expensive, but well worth it. Controlled Labs Orange Triad covers more than just your multivitamin bases and is an excellent product. There's a few other out there as well, but in the end it's up to you.

~Rosie~

 

[JN230]

hello everyone,
i have been on here for a little while trying to do some research on supps but, i feel like there are so many out there i dont know what is what.

i'm currently deployed again so i want to try out something new and see what happens.

the last thing i was using was animal pak, animal pump, whey post workout and casein before bed. i felt like i was coming along fairly well untill i got really sick for 30+ days and lost over 20 lbs. (gotta love poor living conditions).

i am 6'3'', 200-205. i know in a perfect world i want mass, strength and to trim up all in one but thats not how it works. i do cardio in the morning 5-6 days a week and lift at night about 2-3 hours before i go to bed. i only have 4 months left before i return home so i would like to know what my best plan of attack would be. i want to trim up before i leave but how long do you guys usually run that? 8 weeks? 12?

my plan was to bulk for 8 weeks or so and then try to cut down before i leave. does this seem like its do-able or should i go a diff route?

i was looking at the trifecta and natabolic stacks but like i said before there is so much out there im kind of lost in what i should go for.

any help you guys can give me would be awesome.

thanks-
Brian

8 week bulk, assuming non hormonal stuff here is best options
Creapure creatine
Beta alanine
Phyto-testosterone
Whey
BCAA before training
pre workout if needed i use shotgun for the aminos and stim
bulk divanil powder to use in conjunction with teh phyto-test
learn timing of food and shakes for meals

 

[SMP142]

thanks for all the replys. im still new to actually having a plan layed out on paper. i feel its helping though, which makes me more excited when its time to go to the gym.

i will try and update more often. im sure i will have more questions.

 

[rulk22]

thanks for all the replys. im still new to actually having a plan layed out on paper. i feel its helping though, which makes me more excited when its time to go to the gym.

i will try and update more often. im sure i will have more questions.

Good luck bro, and dont be a stranger.

 

[TheMeatus101]

do you do your cardio fasted? what type?
Why do you lift for 2-3 hrs? whats ur routing?
Diet?
Creatine Nitrate
Beta-Alanine
BCAA/EAA
Protein
Fish Oil
Multi, Orange Triad

Dont see too many people talking about Creatine Nitrate,if you were to choose a company that makes a creatine nitrate supp,go with Thermolife's C-BOL,great stuff.

 

[SMP142]

im taking creapture mono. i currently am not taking beta-alanine but, i am ordering my vitamins in the next few days. have any of you felt a benfit from using it? i always read conflicting articles about it. it is fairly cheap though so i might try it out.

 

[rulk22]

im taking creapture mono. i currently am not taking beta-alanine but, i am ordering my vitamins in the next few days. have any of you felt a benfit from using it? i always read conflicting articles about it. it is fairly cheap though so i might try it out.

Yes, im glad I added Beta-alanine with my Creapure creatine. Its like throwing creatine into next gear. Here is a little fact I got from the latest Muscle and Fitness: 100 % increase in muscle mass in weight trained athletes who took beta alanine with creatine for 10 weeks compared to those taking creatine alone.

 

[SMP142]

i started taking beta-alanine a week ago and i also started taking a serving of creatine twice a day instead of just post workout. im not sure which one it was but i can deff tell a difference. not to mention the program i am on. before i use to struggle with 80lb dumbells and i am going to try 125's this week. i could never rep 245 bb bench before either. also, im pretty sure i am losing body fat even though i am on a bulking cycle. i havent measured myself for it yet however, when i look in the mirror my stomach looks flatter.

as far as the hypertrophy split goes, do you guys do a 8-12 week cycle, take a week off then go right back to the same routine? i started everythng on december 19th but never felt i was into the program good until the beginging of january.

i need to start running again here soon since i have a PT test coming up in 6 weeks. am i going to need to lean towards more of a cut routine instead of bulk? i want to stay on my creatine but is it going to be as effective when i start running a lot?