Topic of the Week: What has helped you the most?
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TexasLifter89
Well-known member
Diet.
I mass cook about 20 chicken breasts a week, plus veggies and a variety of rices and other stuff. If I stuff my face or restrict my intake, but stick to same types of foods I see great things. This combined with a push/pull/legs routine stacking 1 rest day on Sundays is ridiculously awesome to my physique.
I mass cook about 20 chicken breasts a week, plus veggies and a variety of rices and other stuff. If I stuff my face or restrict my intake, but stick to same types of foods I see great things. This combined with a push/pull/legs routine stacking 1 rest day on Sundays is ridiculously awesome to my physique.
Steve Rogers
New member
I had a guy at the gym a bit ago compliment me and ask me what I was doing. I quickly thought of one of the easiest, most over looked things:
Sleep.
I told him I started seeing better gains once I started getting at least a good 8 hours of sleep. I said, "We don't grow in the gym...we tear down. We grow when we're resting..." He looked super surprised.
Sleep.
I told him I started seeing better gains once I started getting at least a good 8 hours of sleep. I said, "We don't grow in the gym...we tear down. We grow when we're resting..." He looked super surprised.
Otheridstaken
Active member
For me everything changed when I started crossfit. I can do more pull ups now then ever before. I use bars more than dumbbells. Crossfit helped enormously with the mental edge, in everything I do now. I haven't heard the word can't inside my head for sometime now.
Eating a lot cleaner since starting as well.
The forum has been a big help with my future plans.
Eating a lot cleaner since starting as well.
The forum has been a big help with my future plans.
booneman77
Legend
Diet. Years ago I thought I knew what diet types worked and didn't but it wasn't until I really read up and stuck to one laid out for 12+ weeks that I saw the kind of results I had never even thought possible.
It was an absolute revelation to me that it could be diet more so than training that produced the gains and weight loss I had always thought could only be done by working more and harder.
Once I worked through that first time, I have become infatuated with tweaking and tinkering with every different type. I know my body so much better than i ever knew possible. I could tell you how almost any good will treat me in the short and long term from just satiety all the way through performance days later.
It was an absolute revelation to me that it could be diet more so than training that produced the gains and weight loss I had always thought could only be done by working more and harder.
Once I worked through that first time, I have become infatuated with tweaking and tinkering with every different type. I know my body so much better than i ever knew possible. I could tell you how almost any good will treat me in the short and long term from just satiety all the way through performance days later.
Interesting. I often want to forget what I learned form youtube. lol
Driven2lift
Legend
#1 perseverance and commitment
The right mentality gets you far.
I went over a year with 6 lifts a week + morning cardio and no de-loads
This is after losing 95 lbs
#2 diet
Can't exercise your way out of a bad diet...
This single handedly lost my first 80 pounds
Dropped liquid calories, smarter choices, etc.
Since tracking intake accurately I can also make gym progress better by ensuring adequate fuel and if needed making alterations in diet to use alongside
#3 stop winging it
Jumping on a proven program shows you how the gym life is done.
Learn about progression and lift technique.
The right mentality gets you far.
I went over a year with 6 lifts a week + morning cardio and no de-loads
This is after losing 95 lbs
#2 diet
Can't exercise your way out of a bad diet...
This single handedly lost my first 80 pounds
Dropped liquid calories, smarter choices, etc.
Since tracking intake accurately I can also make gym progress better by ensuring adequate fuel and if needed making alterations in diet to use alongside
#3 stop winging it
Jumping on a proven program shows you how the gym life is done.
Learn about progression and lift technique.
Shasow
Banned
Hard one since there are many factors from the macro to the micro level but probably it would have to be learning to listen to my body. Applying this skill to diet, training, resting, deloads, blast periods, etc, etc, etc has enabled me to maximise and speed of achieving my goals.
This may be more important for us 30+ guys.
This may be more important for us 30+ guys.
Dirty Dan
Board Sponsor
I actually agree with you here. I wouldn't say YouTube has helped me out the most, however when I first started lifting I would watch various YouTube videos from different fitness experts which gave me a basic grasp on proper form and how to target the actual muscle that you are working.
Not to be a kiss ass, but, without this very forum and its knowledgable members I certainly would not be where I am today. Every time I log in and read through some threads, I always learn something new. Aside from fitness related information, I always ask non fitness related questions about various life issues/problems and always receive sound advice. AM is a very valuable asset to me.
On a side note, I love these topic of the week threads!
NoAddedHmones
Well-known member
Learning from mistakes.
DirtyWilly
Member
Learning that there are stages and limits to weight-loss.
I let myself go too far, stress, work, eating. It took me about a year of stagnation to figure it out, but the same methods I used to lose 50lbs absolutely would not work past it. Cutting carbs seems to have a limit and settling into your gym routine seems to as well. Even though I was spending an average of four hours at the gym twice a day, I eventually hit the limits of fat-loss using those methods. This doesn't mean to haphazardly "mix-it-up" but in order to get further results I had to change things up, introduce planned carb loading days, lift weights on muscles I never use, and start true HIIT instead of sports.
I let myself go too far, stress, work, eating. It took me about a year of stagnation to figure it out, but the same methods I used to lose 50lbs absolutely would not work past it. Cutting carbs seems to have a limit and settling into your gym routine seems to as well. Even though I was spending an average of four hours at the gym twice a day, I eventually hit the limits of fat-loss using those methods. This doesn't mean to haphazardly "mix-it-up" but in order to get further results I had to change things up, introduce planned carb loading days, lift weights on muscles I never use, and start true HIIT instead of sports.
TheIronAsylum
Active member
coop
mrsims
New member
Progressive overload/ lifting heavier. This worked magic for me, and really took me a long time to wrap my mind around because no one in my commercial gym does it.... no one. Another thing no one in my gym does that really helped me: writing my routine down and tracking my progress on lifts. .
warnerve
Well-known member
Really agree with counting calories, I have started logging on MyFitnessPal for a month and am very pleased with it. I have always roughly estimated my protein and sometimes watched carbs, but have never actively logged everything. I find it's also good to log reps some too, make sure you are making progress and hold yourself accountable.
LiftWithDonuts
Well-known member
tracking everything. tracking progress by percentages and diet by macos i found is when i make the most progress. Knowing when to move up in weight/reps and when to cut back/add more calories.
JeremyNG25
Active member
1. Diet 2. Weeding out all the lies and BS in the fitness industry 3. Finding a training program that Is unique for me 4. Accepting my limitations and getting to understand my body and what works for me
mjdel05
Member
warnerve
Well-known member
I personally love having access to so many training protocols online. Has been a huge help in laying everything out. I know a lot of people like to go by feel but I much prefer having it all laid out before I even step foot in the gym.
booneman77
Legend
I think this is true as training can be a lot less personalized and still see similar results. Diet has to be nearly exact for YOU in order to be optimal.
True, but I've seen some decent gains made off ****ty diets. I've also seen people react very well to a change in training, mainly increasing TUT.
mixedup
Well-known member
I think good gains can cone from training I think diet becomes more important when your looking for visual changes
Shasow
Banned
IMO someone making good gains on a crappy diet (although you'd have to define crappy diet as even this can gets murky) would be a result of either drugs or genetics.
Well of course its going to be genetics, but its not like they are some rare breed.
No, I don't think its stupid at all.
Shasow
Banned
Genetics above average by definition is kinda rare mate.
Why? Try training and not eating or eating twinkies all day. Try eating without training and see if you make progress.
Why? Try training and not eating or eating twinkies all day. Try eating without training and see if you make progress.
Who says you have to be above average? Do you know of some magical genetic scale? I've seen plenty of lifters make decent gains with below average diet.
Way to bring in the total extremes to make a general point. :facepalm:
mixedup
Well-known member
Well depending on goals diet can do things exercise can't and exercise can do things diet cant.
You can get to single digits bf% without ever lifting weights or cardio just on diet. And you can get stronger just by lifting weight and keeping diet same.
So imo yes based on goals one is gonna be more important. When I'm cutting for a contest for sure diet is more important when trying to put on size my training style becomes more important than my macro count and meal timing
Shasow
Banned
Thats where this is quickly going, into percentages of diet vs training. It will be an endless debate.
It wasn't a general point. I'm saying unequivocally that diet and training go hand in hand. One without the other is a waste of time. The better both are the better results will be.
So? That the point...if its going into percentages, then one could be more important than the other depending on the individual.
Making a blanket statement that they go hand in hand equally, is not accurate.
So asking people whats more important to them, shows that there IS a difference depending on the person.
Your own argument proves it. The genetic elite...diet and training do not go hand in hand with them.
Shasow
Banned
The best bodybuilders on the olympia stage (i.e. genetic elite) don't take diet as important as training or vice versa? I'm not sure what you mean, I'd say they do.
mixedup
Well-known member
My coach is stepping on the olympia stage in 11 weeks and right now diet is alot more important than training style
Considering what I've seen them eat pre-content at times, no. Unless you consider bbcue sauce on your chicken all the time, healthy. You are even going further to the extreme now...the genetic elite on grams of drugs per week.
Shasow
Banned
Training "style"?
Regardless, tell him to start training crappy..... He should be fine, right? Of course not.
Shasow
Banned
Too many variables admin this will be too timely for me to debate about. Its all good.
Hence my point...they are not equal for everyone or go hand-in-hand. It simply is not black and white.
mixedup
Well-known member
No he's no training crappy what I mean is during prep diet takes precedence over specific training like high volumefor hypertrophy. It's not that both aren't important but one is always going to be more important than the other based on specific goals.
mixedup
Well-known member
Individuals differ also difference between competitors when your in precomp all you want to do is preserve the muscle you built in off season while shedding fat working out to preserve muscle is alot different than lifting to build your not even worried about strength it's granted your gonna lose strength
tyga tyga
Legend
What?
Preserving = eating maintenance calories and increasing drug mgs
Building muscle= surplus of calories and increasing drug mgs
You're comparing two different dieting strategies.
Steve Rogers
New member
Oh another thing that helped me...?
QUIT DRINKING. :-D
Empty calories, horrible on the body -- and it just got old after a while. If you have a goal, the booze only slows you down. And you'd have to be crazy to drink on a cycle unless you like feeding your liver through a cheese grater. Liv-52 and other products can only do so much.
I get more enjoyment mirrin' myself in the morning, with no hangover than I did with the "buzz" of drinking.
QUIT DRINKING. :-D
Empty calories, horrible on the body -- and it just got old after a while. If you have a goal, the booze only slows you down. And you'd have to be crazy to drink on a cycle unless you like feeding your liver through a cheese grater. Liv-52 and other products can only do so much.
I get more enjoyment mirrin' myself in the morning, with no hangover than I did with the "buzz" of drinking.
mixedup
Well-known member
Maybe I worded wrong basically I was saying when dieting down your lifting protocol isn't going for new mass or strength gains those goals will take a hit to achieve stage ready bf%