[kevinm6571]

I am 183 lbs, hard gainer and 36 y/o. My goal is to get as much muscle mass as possible considering my body type. I was hoping to get some advice from you all as I have gotten good tips here in the past. At any rate, here is my normal routine:

morning
2-3 eggs
turkey bacon
cereal
milk or orange juice
Cheap Body Tech (vitamin shoppe brand) L-Dopa

Lunch
Varies as I am at work but I try to keep it low fat high protein and carbs. not always possible as we have lunch brought in 3-4 times a week

1 animal pak

Pre-workout
1 scoop no-xplode

Post workout
MHP Probolic shake with peanut butter and added oats
one more dose of l-dopa

Dinner
Once again varies, although generally is either grilled chicken or turkey, brown rice or barley and broccoli. Tons of it.

Workout is an intense 4 day split - back/bis, chest/tris, shoulders, legs in that order. Wednesday is abdominals.
Daily caloric intake is around 3,000 cals 230 gr protein

I have made steady progress but would like to take it to the next level.

All comments are appreciated

[tim1985]

i think you should bump up your cals to around at least 3,500. imo opinion i would just keep doing what your doing because you say youve been making steady progress and if your still growing naturally i would even think about going to "the next level". btw dump the animal pak, theres better/cheaper multi's out there, look into multi-pro 32x from AST or ADAM from NOW.

[AllGenetix]

hard gainer means you gotta eat more than you think, try some spoonfulls of pb in between meals and you will be surprised how much those cals add up!

[tim1985]

Originally Posted by AllGenetix

hard gainer means you gotta eat more than you think, try some spoonfulls of pb in between meals and you will be surprised how much those cals add up!

my thoughts exactly! im not sure but i don't even think hes at maintenance level with 3,000, although i could be wrong.

[DreamWeaver]

More Calories and more meals, I am thinking more like 4000 calories. Eat every 3 hours pack it in.

[kevinm6571]

Thanks everybody for the advice! I am going to have to work out a plan to add about 1000 cals.

[DreamWeaver]

You can use this site if your not already www.fitday.com

[kevinm6571]

Originally Posted by tim1985

i think you should bump up your cals to around at least 3,500. imo opinion i would just keep doing what your doing because you say youve been making steady progress and if your still growing naturally i would even think about going to "the next level". btw dump the animal pak, theres better/cheaper multi's out there, look into multi-pro 32x from AST or ADAM from NOW.

Tim,
Out of curiosity, why don't you like the Animal PaK? I was wondering because I only have about three left.
Thanks!
Kevin

[tim1985]

Originally Posted by kevinm6571

Tim,
Out of curiosity, why don't you like the Animal PaK? I was wondering because I only have about three left.
Thanks!
Kevin

i don't like the Zinc they put in it (as oxide) because ive heard its not a good form of zinc(can't remember where i read this) and also i don't like taking all those pills at once. look for a multi that has Zinc(as chelate), im using multi-pro 32x and it has a good profile for a cheap price $15 for a 50 day supply.

[kevinm6571]

Originally Posted by tim1985

i don't like the Zinc they put in it (as oxide) because ive heard its not a good form of zinc(can't remember where i read this) and also i don't like taking all those pills at once. look for a multi that has Zinc(as chelate), im using multi-pro 32x and it has a good profile for a cheap price $15 for a 50 day supply.

I agree, taking all of those pills sucks! I go through two glasses of water just to get them down.

[tim1985]

Originally Posted by kevinm6571

I agree, taking all of those pills sucks! I go through two glasses of water just to get them down.

yup it does suck, multi-pro is 1 pill taken twice daily and its cheap.

[DreamWeaver]

I have always avoided multi's put out by sports supplement companies and just get my multi at the health food store. MST's vitamin and mineral supps have caught my eye though.

[footster]

just curious...if im trying to cut..but want to keep the muscle...would staying at 3,000 cal a day be good? and a scoop of pb inbetween meals? or is that for bulking?

[DreamWeaver]

What is your BMR, I know it is just a guideline I have to go well below my BMR to lose weight body type plays a major role. I think 3000 calories would be a good recomp level for me but I would likely have to taper that. I would use www.fitday.com to figure out where you should start.