Guys if anyone interested in food, go to foodies, it is more to do with healthier eating, and u can post qu's about topics etc...U just have to answer some qu's before u join, but if u bros pop over I will open up the door regardless of your answers.

Thanks to the both of you again.
Been a big help, i'm sure there's plenty of people benefitting off this information.. I sure as hell am..

Siraj

yeah, change up the running/cardio. 5 slow paced miles arent always better than a mile's worth of sprints. also, you have to do something that fits your schedule. for example, if you work, or have school m-f, save your longer runs for the weekends, and the shorter workouts for the week. this way, its most likely that you wont use lack of time as an excuse for not doing it.

so there is no set answer for "how long one should run for". just keep the body guessing by changing things up!

And going back to when is the best time, athletes use circadian cycles, so u may want to look into that, it is to do with when the body is in most potent, hormones going, heat in body, they say it happens mid afternoon/early evening....lung capacity is best at 4-5pm this is all science that has studied...end of day if u r training in the morning and struggling to fit in, and end up running inconsistent (6am) but can do daily 6pm runs, then u r better off working out at the later time, as it is consistent and will burn more cals in a week due to this regular pattern.

regards to running, I used to run/cv in morning and 30 mins is cool, even 20 mins of interval is great, it depends on what u wnt to aim for

hey bro

Basically everyone hash heard the thing about morning exercise and blood glucose levels..they say if u ate last at 8-9pm the night before, u training at 6-7am it is like 9-10 hours after u ate, so there is a higher percentage of stored fat tha will primarily fuel that workout.
And after eating a few hours earlier u have more coarbs available for fuel so u will use them instead. I have read people sayig 20 mins in the morning is worth an hour later in refernce to amount of FAT burnt...I say if u are up and can squeeze in a morning 20 mins workout, I would do an interval type taining session. After 30 mins or so on an empty stomach we r talking of muscle being used as energy especially if weights r used, so u r losing muscle,

Howevr going deeper into it, some scientists have said that the diffences in morning and after food workout the fat difference is negligible

hey fitnessman,

this question is for u, although if anyone else has any input , it'll be appreciated.

how is running 3-4 hrs after a meal compared to runnin first thing in the morning on an empty stomach.. I know the morning run is the best, but its kinda hard to do.. what i wanna know is would they be considered the same thing.. also how long should one run for ??

GOOD STUFF MAN!!!

BIG , BIG HELP!! THANKS

U r welcome to the advice bro, and thanks Shiraz for the comment below.

Ok as said everyone has their view cardio workouts will work one way for some, another way for others. To do cardio before at a lower intensity? I think 99% of people do Cv work b4 hitting weights, but u have to challenge the heart for gains. BUT yes it is true that lower intensity for alonger duartion will primarily use fatand so u can reduce body fat%. Give it all a try and below I hav eput some examples that circulate in my courses etc...
Befor ethat the issue of creatine. this is a natural substance in us al, it is used to supply energy, which is ATP, this runs out very quick, and we then resort to glucose/beta oxidation etc...but creatine will 'lend' one of it phosphates to help provide ATP, so people (any kind) will benefit from a boost of energy in basic term. Thats why sprinters use it a lot, in 100m sprint it is that u get lactic acid build up as this is anaerobic work, and just having creatine will give u that 1/1000th of a second help. It is also a buffer for lactic acid. The trials that were originally doen used a set 5 day loading program of 20 grams a day, this fuels body with creatine on the muscle cells. However subsequent research done on rowers and athletes who did not want mass/weight gains, used a smaller load up principle, they ysed upto 6g ( i need to check it)and loaded up across 20-30 days, then kept this topped up with 2-3 g a day. And they had greater strength but not the gains in those doing the short loading up. remember creatine in excess is still seen as dangerous in circles, and on the tubs it does say toh have a 3 month session then a month or so clear to clear the body.If u have kidney problems etc..speak with an assistant in a supplement shop. If u take my view, I would say eat good, lift good, leave some of creatine and other things out for now.

Reference to keeping heart rate up is like circuits training, 30-45 sec gaps, and just fly through a workout, it all comes down to what u want. Remeber low intensity will burn fat while u train, higher intensity has been proved to continue burning fat a few hours later and keeping metabolism fored up, so great for weight loss.

Good luck and give me a shout if any qu.s come up, i am always in the books looking for new scientific research, take care guys and see the piece below:

Now here is some plagiarism!!:

But how can this possibly be? Everywhere you look, it's always said that long-duration, low-intensity training is best for fat loss. All high-intensity work does is burn carbohydrates, right?

Wrong.

After reading this article, I guarantee you'll develop a new respect for high-intensity cardio training for fat loss.

Low-intensity exercise is defined as working at a heart rate of about 60% to 65% of your maximum heart rate (which is equal to 220 - your age = maximum heart rate, thus if you are 20 years old, 220 - 20 = 200 max HR). High-intensity exercise is defined as working at about 75 to 85% or more of your maximum heart rate.

Using the previous example for maximum heart rate (max HR=200), working at 60% of your max HR would be 120 beats per minute and 80% of that would be 160 beats per minute.


There are several reasons low-intensity exercise is normally recommended for fat loss.

1. It's easy - In many cases people who are trying to lose fat don't always feel energetic enough to do hard training due to the caloric deficit (a.k.a. diet) that they are on. In these cases, just sticking to an exercise program can be hard enough, never mind making the exercise itself challenging.

2. It's low risk - A personal trainer generally can't go wrong by recommending low-intensity exercise to clients. Even the most out of shape person can usually do low-intensity cardio training safely. While this is certainly appropriate advice for novice trainers, it does not necessarily apply to the more experienced trainer when it comes to effective training.

3. It burns a higher percentage of calories from fat - this is very true: exercising at a lower intensity does burn a higher percentage of calories from fat than high-intensity exercise. But, as I will explain, this does not necessarily mean you're going to burn more fat.


Let's crunch some numbers to show you exactly what I mean when I say high-intensity exercise burns more fat.

Low-intensity training burns about 50% fat for energy while high-intensity training burns about 40% fat for energy. This is not a huge difference.

Say, for example, walking for 20 minutes burns 100 calories. Then 50% of 100 calories is 50 fat-calories burned.

Now say 10 minutes of interval training at a high intensity burns 160 calories. Well, 40% of 160 calories is 64 fat-calories burned.

By doing the high-intensity work, you've just burned 14 more fat calories in half the time. Starting to sound good? There's more...

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Low-intensity exercise only burns calories while you are actually exercising. That means the moment you stop exercising, your caloric expenditure goes back down to nearly baseline levels. Within minutes, you're not burning many more calories than if you hadn't done anything at all.

High-intensity exercise, on the other hand, continues to boost your metabolism long after you're done (often up to 24 hours after, depending on the length and intensity of the training session). This means you're continuing to burn many more calories all day long!

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Low-intensity exercise does nothing to build or support muscle mass. Maintaining muscle mass is critical to an effective fat-loss strategy as muscle burns fat just sitting there. Want to keep your metabolism working to burn fat? Do whatever you can to build or keep your muscle tissue.

High-intensity exercise has the potential to increase muscle mass. Compare the body of a top sprinter to a top marathon runner. The sprinter carries far more muscle mass. You won't get big bulky muscles from high intensity training but you will get shapely and more defined muscles!

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How To Do It

Now that you've seen how effective high intensity training can be for fat loss, how is it done?

The absolute easiest way to start this type of training is to get on a cardio machine at the gym and select the interval training program. As you'll see, you'll start off with a fairly light warm-up cycle, then quickly jump up to a high intensity level for a short burst. You will then drop back down to a low level for a period of time, then back up to a high level again, repeated several times and finishing with an appropriate cool-down period.

The repetition of these intervals is the nuts and bolts of high intensity interval training. You can also do it manually by adjusting your intensity level up and down over short periods of time.

For example, do 30 seconds at high power then 30 seconds at low power. Repeat. It's very simple and very effective.

Another excellent method for doing high-intensity training is called aerobic interval training. It is essentially the same concept as the previously explained interval training but the work intervals are longer with the intensity level somewhat lower. A good example would be running at a pace that you can only keep up for about 5 minutes then walking for 2 minutes then running 5 more minutes, walking 2 minutes, etc.

High-intensity training can be applied to any form of cardiovascular exercise. Anything from walking/sprinting to swimming to bike riding will work perfectly. I would recommend doing his type of training 2 to 3 times per week for best results. As always, be sure to consult with your physician before starting any exercise program.

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Remember, what you get out of exercise is directly proportional to what you put in. Work at high-intensity training for awhile and see just how much better your fat-loss efforts go.

Excellent advice guys, thank you both!

I appreciate the time and effort u've put in and I'll definitely put it to use. Thanks to the both of u and all the other brothers sharing their "2 cents"(or pence) i'm learnin new things every day.

I kinda like the idea of workin 2 days then restin one, but like shiraz said, i think i'll give my current routine 6-8 weeks and see how it goes.. i can change it after that..

Fitnessman, in regd to cardio, from what i've been reading (and not to challenge ur expertise here) i've learned that cardio should be done at low intenstiy before u work out.. i think the issue itself is a bit controversial.. but thats what i have been doing..i try to get my heart rate goin right before i work out and maintain it by not giving more than 30 secs between sets. i do like your idea of throwin in 30 sec sprints during a slower paced cardio and will def do that.

I was under the impression that creatinine is mostly used by skinnier guys tryin to bulk up and not by guys tryin to lose weight. (am i right or wrong), i got back into workin out after a long break and can barely lift close to what i used to.. so do u think i should use the creatinine, or since i wanna slim down its better not to..

great advice!

youve def earned your name "fitness man".

Hey Bro

Just had a read of your questions, thought I would throw in my 2 cents (or pence I am British!)

Firstly I think Shiraz gave some good advice,and as he said everyone has their own view.

I would have to say from the beginning that nutrition will play a massive role in bulking up. As will some 6-8 rep sets. The problems that occur is people start throwing protein in and forget that it is carbs that will fuel a workout, and protein that will repair and build muscles. When the body is not taking in fuel it will become catabolic as opposed to anabolic. So firstly you need to ensure you are eating good low glycaemic index foods, that will conserve energy or your workouts, these would be oats, wholewheat products, grains etc..bananas are great as long as they are not the ripe ones. Also you want to eat protein of course, in my research for my last paper (I am a sports nutritionist and personal trainer) i had to look into scientific studies of protein consumption, there is alot of conflicting views, I say for bulking up no more than 2.4grams of protein per Kilogram of body weight. Thats a max. I don't know if you guys use kg's out there. You are looking at approx 180g of proein as you are 90kg. This is based on g per kg / bw. You can increase this, but to be honest this should do you good. there are people (powerlifters who go upto and beyond 5-7g perkg/bw, so goalss objectives count. You should look at using whey as this is good absorbale protein for th ebody to digest, but remember at night to consume casein which is more for repairing up muscles through the night due to providing constant uptakes of amino acids. Use alot of different foods, try th elow fat version (turkey/chicken/tuna/egg whites) as opposed to red meat. Whey is good for a shake immediatley after the workout, casein (nilk) in eveing before bed (research by sports nutritionist Jeffrey Stout, Ph.D)

regards to workouts again there is so much out there, you have to feel good when working out, some would say that chest and triceps shouldn't be doneon same day, as can you give it 100% to triceps if they have been exhausted prior by 6-8 sets of 250lbs benching? So we used to have chest and biceps and back and triceps. Again you need to experiment.

Bottom line is a rest should occur, i used to to split training Mon and tuesday, rest weds hit the same spots thurs and fri and rest weekend, if however I got up and felt the body needed a rest for another 24 hours, then give it that rest, it will repay you with an awesome workout.

Forearms as said by the brother below, are incorporated in most exercises, but if you want to give them a hit twice a week, go for it. Choose what days when you feel right.

ref to bulking up, and slimming, you will lose fat, but you my weigh more, due to muscle beig heavier than fat etc...Muscle is the body's number one fat burner, so th emore muscles you have the more fat will burn. If you use a correct method of nutrition, it will enable you to bulk up without adding to much fat, our body composition will be better, a less body fat % , but maybe a jhigher BMI. This moves us onto Cardio!

Again th eargument slinger, yes do it in the morning as empty tummy etc..lower levels of glucose in blood so fat becomes primary source of energy..I always do my cardio when I feel right, i hav been doing it after a weights workout (research has shown it may be using up more fat...still waitng to see tho) you have to hit it for a minimum 20 mins 3-5 times p/w to lose weight as said by American College Of Sports Medicine. In regards to what zones to train in, this is one argument that will never cease, yes it is true that you switch to burning fat at a lower intensity, but at a higher intensity more calories are burned, maybe you may try a mix? I use fartlek training or interval, where we jog/cycle/row at an average speed, then do sprints for 30 secs, return to normal speed for minute then repeat, you can get info on this type from a PT at your gym or internet. make sure you ar eready and conditoned as this can be hard, also you can start with 10 second sprint bursts and work your way up. The heart can be trained everyday, but you owe it to yourself to rest a day bro. Also as Shiraz said, hit the body with a different cardio workout occasionally, give it some stress, thats when we respond and grow. And some days just give the body an extra day to recover, sit and enjoy life.
Finally supplements - creatine will help you bulk up, look bigger, mainly due to water retention. Each molecule of it needs water. You have to increase water consumption,as thi sis needed for all chemical reactions in the body. get a lot of fruit due to antioxidants that will help with free radical production due to exercise.

I hope this will help you further, and if ou hav eany other qu's shout over!

ok, think about it like this, when youre trying to bulk up, your body will need all of the extra calories that it can get in order to add mass to your frame. thats why people who are trying to get bigger generally eat more. however, if youre doing lots of cardio, youre burning a lot of calories that would normally go to building size. its very difficult to do both things at once you know?

if youre trying to tone up, then you can do cardio on rest and non rest days, if youre looking to bulk up, do like 15 mins of cardio on lifting days, and really rest on your off days.

you can add forearms to your shortest work out, just for the sake of saving time, but if youre lifting a lot, almost every movement incorporates some of your forearm in to it.

hope that helps some!

hey shiraz,
thanks for the advice bro, i'll definitely take it into consideration... especially the cardio, i never knew that u had to change ur cardio routine constantly (so i'll definitely get on that immed, but i can do cardio on my rest days, right?) ..
another thing i didnt know about till recently is the concept of bulkin up then slimming down, (cant u do them simultaneously).. as in lifting heavy weight as well as doin plenty of cardio.. i realize u may not get cut this way, but shouldnt it get u bigger while maintaining a slimmer physique..

thanks again man..

oh, one more thing.. where do i add a forearm workout..

if anyone else has anthin to add , i would appreciate it..

i would go with workout number one, over two, simply because there is just too much rest time in between in number two.

right now im working one body part a week, hitting it hard, doing 3 sets of 6 exercise, doing 10-12 reps per set. i will not gain any mass doing that, but it will help me get better muscular endurance and definition. ive found this way to be better when im training my body for things that will wear me down more (hiking, climbing, just long periods of activity). i also do 4-5 days of cardio with this. the key is to switch up your cardio routine. if you keep doing the same thing, your body well get adjusted to it, and your metabolism wont help you burn as much fat as if youre constantly shocking it. (ill run a decent pace 2 times a week, have a day of sprints, then one long, slow paced run, and then a day of something like basketball, or biking).

when im trying to bulk up, i hit a body part twice a week, and do more pyramid type workouts (reps of 10, 8, 6, 4 at a heavier weight). i also dont do more than 15 minutes of cardio.

as far as eating, i do breakfast, two hours later, protein shake, two hours later lunch, another shake, dinner, and a shake before bed. it usually takes your body a couple of hours to digest protein, and if you eat too much too soon, you'll know, because youre body will digest it out in a nasty way.

by no means is this way the best way. im sure other people have just as good, if not better advice, but this way has been working for me the last several years.

the most important thing is, is that whatever you decide, stick it through, dont give up right away if you dont see results. i give each workout at least 8 weeks to see if it worked for me or not.

hope that helps some. best of luck bro!