I did one set of leg press from the sitting position to the standing position then walked vigoursly into the kitchen and removed a beer from the fridge quickly, then repeated several times throughout the evening. I'm much more relaxed now and need some rest so my little girl has agreed to go get me the next beer.

Fell off the wagon over the weekend. Daughter had a sleepover, am swamped with work, and had a ton of stuff to do at church on Sunday. I didn't get much sleep and when I am tired, I eat. My body is trying to find energy, so I over eat.

I didn't go to the gym on Friday or Saturday.

Today was a good day. Ate Subway twice and had some nuts. Had one regular soda, but other than that I was good.

The workout kicked ass. I felt great. I actually had a little less time than normal, so I didn't BS around at all.... I got in and got my work done.

The break did me some good, because I felt stronger and had the best workout in weeks.

Yes , its called a Kegal. Tell your daughters gymnastics coach to show you how to do a Kegal correctly though just so you'll know.










HeHe!

Do any of you totally pig out after your workouts? I've heard if you want to gain muscle its best to eat something both high in protein and high in carbohydrates. So your body can quickly recover from your workout. But I don't know if I could work out and then go eat pizza or something. My coworker used to do this, but he'd go a few months of focusing on getting bigger (and fatter), then spend another month or so cutting down. He'd do phases instead of both at the same time.

Supposedly its a good idea to eat some cottage cheese right before bed, too. It has a protein called Casein which is one of the slowest acting proteins. This helps your body build muscle overnight. It seems silly to me that eating a certain food can help you get more muscle but a guy I used to work with was one of those natural bodybuilders and he swore by it.

Bulking and cutting are silly concepts if you're just doing them back and forth. If you want to bulk and stay bulky, fine... pig out. But the body builds muscle as a defense mechanism. As long as it has the necessary components to build muscle, it will do so if you give a reason to.

So, no, I don't pig out. I strictly control what I eat because it's simply not necessary for me to yo-yo up and down to gain weight and fat and then cut out the muscle and the fat. If you control what you eat and exercise, then the body will adapt to whatever caloric levels you're at. If those caloric levels are too high for your activity level, you'll gain fat, even if you're working out a lot. Some bodybuilders consider this a good thing. If you're eating below your caloric requirement levels, you will have a more difficult time building muscle unless your body already has spare energy in the form of excess fat. IMO, it's just easier to pick a caloric level, get adequate amounts of protein and lift heavy weights many times. If you want to continue to grow muscle and aren't getting fat, up the calories. If you start gaining fat with your muscle after that, then you're probably at your natural peak and will have to use steroids to get any bigger... but I don't know why you'd want to if you're that big.

Casein is a great protein to eat at all times of day, not just before bed. It keeps you fuller for longer, which is great at night. The reason for eating casein at night isn't necessarily for muscle building, but for metabolic purposes to keep your body out of ketosis for as long as possible. But really, it's just taking in protein period that will give your body what it needs to build muscle.

Got an hour of spinning in today, then continued my new strength building program on the bench press and worked on increasing pullups.

Lame.

Just drink a protein shake.

Thank you for replying.

Supposedly without simple carbs to help repair the muscle immediately, you will lose progress in your muscle formation. So something like a big glass of chocolate milk would be great. That's what I do, at least. I don't, however do the bulk and trim stuff, as I'm not that hardcore. I just go to feel better and get stronger.

BTW Silock, thank you. I gave you rep last night for this.

Yeah, I can tell you this isn't true. Maybe partially, but not enough to make a big difference in muscle gain. At least not for me. But then I eat carbs as part of a meal later on, too.

A big glass of chocolate milk wouldn't be a great idea, IMO. Not nearly enough protein and too much other shit. Too many calories. I don't want a meal replacement shake after I work out.

Cool. It might have something to do with body type. Are you more of an ectomorph or endomorph? I personally can eat a huge serving of calories and still be trim, yet not be much stronger either.

I'm definitely an endomorph. I think I gain muscle pretty easily but I have to watch what I eat or I'll blow up.

Chocolate milk is actually pretty great after a workout, especially if it's skim or 2%. Not as much protein as a protein shake or something, but it's got decent balance between protein, carbs and fats.

I think that a protein shake is better, but if you don't want to spend the money or can't get a protein shake on a vacation or something, chocolate milk is a good alternative.

I just got done coming back from the gym.

Just ate a whole bunch of pussy too.

How manly is that?

I think I win.

Just to clarify, diet, and consequently body size, do not determine how strong an individual is. There is not a direct correlation between size and strength. That is, you cannot tell how strong a person is by just looking at them.

So I'm not sure what you mean by what you eat influencing your strength. The only way to get stronger is to lift heavy weights repeatedly. Your diet should simply be giving you enough calories to help you sustain the workout and give your body the raw materials needed to sustain muscle growth.

Hit body pump again, and that's going to do it in that class for a while. I just can't push around the kind of weight I want to push around in the workout. Too many reps. I'll definitely still go back on occasion for a changeup, but I'm going back to my other routines for a while.

I will say that I see the attraction. I feel ****ing great after the workout. Total workout high. Body is pumped and tired.