My name is Brandon I'm 23 and new to this forum.. The reason I joined is because I have a lot of questions and since I don't have the experience already I figured why not to reach out to those who have already been there and done it.. Here's the deal, I joined the gym in february and have been going at least 3-4 times a week since, so in total about six months. I have packed on a good amount of muscle (upper body only so far), and have a couple of issues I'd like to adress.
Number one - small chest, weak back (and posture) issue. I've noticed I have big shoulders, big triceps, small chest, and weak back. I recently came across an article online talking about this guy and his training partner. They both started out at the same time, he was much more proportional than the friend chest-wise more than anything. He finally came to the conclusion the friends form was off which is why his chest was weak looking compared to his.
He didn't push his chest out enough when doing the exercises, I have this issue as well because my middle chest is almost non existent while the outer chest is far more pronounced (I can barely do close grip push-ups). I have this issue as well I think because I'm overcompensating with my shoulders and triceps to move the weight. I see small looking guys getting up 2 45 plates on each side and I can barely get up 155 (1 45, and 1 25). What would be a good way to build up the chest so I can really see results?? I'm going to obviously try the form thing that I read about, it says to arch lower back slightly, raise ribcage, squeeze scapulae together, and pull shoulders down and push into the bench.. does this sound right to you guys?? That's it for chest.
Now on to the back, I recently pulled out the door-gym that I have and started getting back into doing palm facing in pull-ups, of these I can do about 15-20 (i can barely do 6 of the palm facing out ones). I don't really feel sore enough doing back exercises and could use some help with a couple good ones. Right now I do seated rows, lat pulldown, upright rows, lower back extensions on the roman chair, various cable exercises (none of which make me sore enough). One problem I've been noticing that bothers me is my posture, I walk around with my shoulders slightly leaning forward as opposed to being pulled back, I attribute this to having a weak back, and mediocre core strength. I'd be interested to hear thoughts on this.. When I'm doing lat pulldowns I can barely touch the bar to the top of my chest where its supposed to be, and it's not the amount of weight either because I've gone really light and it's still difficult.. Are there some good stretches that would allow me to loosen up my back so i can get a real stretch in my muscle like I need to make it grow?? That's it for back..
On to diet - I think I am the most clueless in this category. First of all just know I love to eat food that tastes good - pizza, chicken wings, fried foods, anything that is basically unhealthy but I have been staying away from it for the most part and still I am not seeing the type of results I want to see.. I currently weigh about 181 and am muscular but don't have the abs that I am dying for.. This is the reason I'm always @ the gym because I hope that if I do enough HIIT on the treadmill I'll one day have those abs shine through.. I do a lot of weight lifting as well so it's not just cardio, which I know is good for fat loss and muscle retention/growth.. I want to lower my body fat percentage to the point where you can really see muscle definition, obviously abs fit into that equation.. I'm going to break down the past couple of days of my diet and please critique the shit out of it so I know what I'm doing wrong and the proper ways of dieting and healthy weight loss..
Diet :
Yesterday - Eas Myoplex shake for breakfast (42g protein, fat 6g, carb 22g), turkey, turkey bacon, lite mayo, lettuce on whole wheat for lunch, eas myoplex for 3rd meal, chicken breast, and brown rice for 4th meal
Thurs, 8/20 - Eas Myoplex shake for breakfast (42g protein, fat 6g, carb 22g), turkey, turkey bacon, lite mayo, lettuce on whole wheat for lunch, eas myoplex shake for 3rd meal, slice of pizza 4th meal
Please let me know if this is too much protein to be consuming if I'm trying to get really lean, for maximum muscle definition.. My goal is to get down to like 165-170 and be solid muscle with a low body fat percentage and I know it doesn't happen overnight but really would be so appreciative if someone could show me the right way to go about it. Thanks in advance for all your help
However, no offense, but you need to do shorter posts with simple titles if you want to get help on things. You have too much detail in the non-important areas and not enough in the important areas. I'm going to move this thread to the right sub-forum and delete the other thread for you.
Now, all that stuff about not pushing out your chest, etc. is not the issue. You need a actual workout program (like from a book). I suggest Built For Show.
Also, you need to track your calories and then eat fewer of them. I'm sure your protein is fine, it's your calories that are too high if you aren't losing weight.
http://www.tmuscle.com/readArticle.do?id=1508256 for hip posture. Test and see if your pelvis is neutral, posterior, or anterior. There is also a sample program for those in anterior and those in posterior.
http://www.tmuscle.com/readArticle.do?id=1823834 I feel this article is one of the most important to me because depending on my goals (my goal is the deadlift and posterior chain to be stronger than the other lifts), I want to be balanced and have no imbalances once so ever. I believe in this article and the % to get me to where I need to be balanced wise.
Hopefully these articles will help you with your goals and most important, to create a lifting program for yourself. Don't forget the mobility and dynamic stretching work before you work out. Warming up is very important. Foam Rolling is also good before you workout if you have any tightness or trigger points anywhere.
wow you guys are awesome thanks so much for your help. I have a lot articles to read.. Will take your advice mon, and lost dog about shortening the posts and getting to the point quicker.
**IN NEED OF HELP** : /
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