My cutting routine needs help before it starts.

[g33z33]

I'm hoping some of you can help me figure out my routine, I've done alot of research but theres so much conflicting information out there it gets quite confusing. I want to cut down for now but I also intend to put on some strength at the same time, just because this will be the first time I'm actually doing a real weight training routine... or any real excercise routine. I might as well do it right the first time

I'm around 5'10" 170 and I've been dieting on and off. A year and a half ago I was 250+... but about 2 months ago I was 157 and I'm finally ready to hit the diet/training hardcore again. Last time my training really sucked and I was doing a pretty poor low-carb diet, and got decent results before I got depressed and gave up, so I hope to see better results this time around.

My biggest concern is of course losing fat, I'll sacrifice muscle if it helps my results but minimizing the damage is definitely good.

Diet is going to be 40/40/20, I have most of that figured out already.


Heres my proposed training schedule, always done first thing in the morning (seriously, first thing, due to my job I'll be getting up a little before midnight) probably after a small pro/carb meal

Monday: Back/Bi's
15 wide-grip pullups (weighted as soon as I can, might be awhile)
3 x 6-8 DB Shrugs
3 x 6-8 Bent over DB rows
2 x 6-8 Incline DB curls
2 x 6-8 Standing BB curls
2 x 6-8 Hammer curls

Tuesday: 20 minutes HIIT on stationary bike (I'll work up to it, starting at 4 minutes)

Wednesday: Chest/Tri's
3 x 6-8 Close Grip Bench
3 x 6-8 Tricep Extensions
3 x 6-8 DB Flat Bench
2 x 6-8 BB Flat Bench
2 x 6-8 Pullovers

Thursday: 20 mins HIIT

Friday: Shoulders/Legs
3 x 6-8 DB Shoulder PRess
3 x 6-8 DB Lateral Raise
2 x 6-8 DB Upright Row
4 x 8-12 Squats
4 x 8-10 SLDL

Saturday: 20 mins HIIT

Sunday: Rest


Okay thats about it... my biggest concern is overtraining, I definitely want to do HIIT at least 3 times a week (if not more) to maximise fat loss, but I also want to do the weight training. However I couldnt find much info on weight training while cutting, should I reduce the number of sets I do since I'll be doing HIIT on the alternate days? Also wondering about rep ranges to start out with, I hear 6-8 is good for most stuff so I just used that where I wasn't sure, if I hit 8 I would add weight next week of course. I know nutrition quite good but this training stuff is new to me. Any advice and suggestions very welcome!

 

[alke]

I might as well do it right the first time

AWESOME!!!!.....good strategy.

I'm around 5'10" 170 and I've been dieting on and off. A year and a half ago I was 250+... but about 2 months ago I was 157 and I'm finally ready to hit the diet/training hardcore again. Last time my training really sucked and I was doing a pretty poor low-carb diet, and got decent results before I got depressed and gave up, so I hope to see better results this time around.

your right about getting back into it, you should be able to get your strength and size back fairly quickly without gaining excessive BF if you eat right

Heres my proposed training schedule, always done first thing in the morning (seriously, first thing, due to my job I'll be getting up a little before midnight) probably after a small pro/carb meal

that works, you will burn fat by workng out first thing in the morning, you just feel like **** though......

keep a solution of maltodextrin and water to sip during the workout if you feel dizzy, light headed, or queesy stomach. Your liver only has so much glucose and the maltodextrin will keep your insulen steady through the workout.

Monday: Back/Bi's
15 wide-grip pullups (weighted as soon as I can, might be awhile)
3 x 6-8 DB Shrugs
3 x 6-8 Bent over DB rows
2 x 6-8 Incline DB curls
2 x 6-8 Standing BB curls
2 x 6-8 Hammer curls

Tuesday: 20 minutes HIIT on stationary bike (I'll work up to it, starting at 4 minutes)

Wednesday: Chest/Tri's
3 x 6-8 Close Grip Bench
3 x 6-8 Tricep Extensions
3 x 6-8 DB Flat Bench
2 x 6-8 BB Flat Bench
2 x 6-8 Pullovers

Thursday: 20 mins HIIT

Friday: Shoulders/Legs
3 x 6-8 DB Shoulder PRess
3 x 6-8 DB Lateral Raise
2 x 6-8 DB Upright Row
4 x 8-12 Squats
4 x 8-10 SLDL

Saturday: 20 mins HIIT

Sunday: Rest

looks good, I would throw in deadlifts somehwere, but thats me Im a big deadlift fan.

the 20 minutes HIIT.....is this the first time you are doing HIIT, it is not as easy as it looks. If you up to 20 minutes right off the bat uhm...okay, but I would start with 5 minutes:

30 seconds low intensity/ 30 seconds high intensity
30 seconds low intensity/ 30 seconds high intensity
30 seconds low intensity/ 30 seconds high intensity
30 seconds low intensity/ 30 seconds high intensity
30 seconds low intensity/ 30 seconds high intensity

then move up a minute each week.

Okay thats about it... my biggest concern is overtraining, I definitely want to do HIIT at least 3 times a week (if not more) to maximise fat loss, but I also want to do the weight training. However I couldnt find much info on weight training while cutting, should I reduce the number of sets I do since I'll be doing HIIT on the alternate days? Also wondering about rep ranges to start out with, I hear 6-8 is good for most stuff so I just used that where I wasn't sure, if I hit 8 I would add weight next week of course. I know nutrition quite good but this training stuff is new to me. Any advice and suggestions very welcome!

train like you normally do when cutting. DIET is the key to losing BF during the cut, you can do whatver you want in the gym, if you aint eating right, you aint gonna lose BF.

If you can add weight each week during the cut, DO IT! but pay attention to your body, successive weeks of adding weight and going to max on sets can burn out your CNS and cause overtraining resulting in the "typical bad day"

If your eating well, no reason you cant get stronger each week, even with a cut. Check into re-feeds. DO NOT ABUSE re-feeds, but they can help to keep you going strong and burning BF.

bump up your vitamin C and anti oxidents on the cut, your eating less and it creates stress on the body. physical stress and mental stress will result in higher cortisol levels which will affect your training. The more anti -oxidants you got in you the better you will feel and you wont have that "burned out " feeling a lot of people associate with cutting.

HIIT is great for maximizing the time stpent cutting so it doesnt turn into weeks and weeks of torture, google is your friend, if you need more links on HIIT I can get them to you.......

****make sure your diet is as tight as you say it is, if it isnt, you'll turn into one those drones at the gym (I know you dont want that), post it here and let us give our .02 on it

 

[g33z33]

Awesome, thanks for the feedback! It really motivates me that the routine I came up with is pretty solid since I just finally wrote it all down after thinking about it and researching for a few weeks. I had to take my best guess at alot of the stuff.

I planned on starting the HIIT at 4 minutes and slowly bumping it up at least a minute a week, if not more often if I feel I can handle it. Endurance is not a strong point of mine which is why I liked the sound of HIIT so much, I'd much rather do sprints than slowly jog a mile, and supposedly it works better.

I already planned on stacking some anti-o's including Vit C, melatonin, maybe grape-seed extract, and possibly others. I do like your maltodextrin idea though, I'll have to pick some up along with dextrose for pwo.

I know what you mean about feeling like **** in the mornings... I see it being a big problem for me because I HATE waking up more than anything and I'm usually dead to the world for about 3 hours after waking up. I'm gonna experiment with setting a 2nd alarm for about an hour before I plan to get up and taking some ALCAR, maybe caffeine, yohimbine and possibly a few other things, then trying to go back to sleep for another hour... I should be wide awake and ready to take on the world by the time that hour is up.

I'll post my diet in this thread within the next few days, I've got most of it figured out in my head I just need to crunch the numbers and I've been working too much lately to get that done.

Oh, btw, I have Stiff legged deadlifts on there, but I guess I could do half normal and half SLDL if thats what you would recommend... I don't want to add too much more volume to legs since I'm going to be doing HIIT on the bike the next day

 

[g33z33]

I just made a new thread regarding my diet if anyone wanted to check it out for me, I would greatly appreciate any feedback
http://www.anabolicminds.com/forum/showthread.php?p=141204#post141204