Need some info

[DiBatista]

This summer i need to get in top notch for football. This is my last year and i realy want to get scouted. What im wondering is, how much stronger/bigger can i get between now and september?

[chris_f]

Stat's? How often/hard can you train/eat/sleep/not go out partying??

[DiBatista]

I'm going to start working out every other day, i work out very hard, i sleep about 11 hours a night during the week. Partying, hmm, thats a problem, will that realy affect it. As far as eating goes im on a 3600 calorie a day diet.

[chris_f]

11 hours a night? Damn!! Every other day is great. Partying can/will set you back if you drink too much, but you're in HS, so in my opinion, f*ck it, have fun!! [img]smile.gif[/img]

As for what you can expect in terms of gains, approximately 1 lb/week if you do it right in terms of size. You can make most of it muscle if you eat properly (though that means little/no partying). In terms of strength, train heavy and you'll get stronger faster. Train for power and you'll get faster/more powerful faster. Try a mix of the two.

What's your routine?

[BMXMAN]

I would think if you are really serious about getting scouted, parties would be on your list of priorities.

[DiBatista]

I use my own workout, I'm a runningback/ posible wide receiever on offense and a corner on defense, so i need to be fast and strong. My workout is 3 hours long, on days i'm not working out because of resting, i usualy run in a 15 pound weighted vest with 4 pound leg straps on my legs.

Another question i got is, does running tone your entire body?

[chris_f]

oh boy!!!

My workout is 3 hours long

Yea... trim that badboy by 2+ hours, and then we can start talking. So what exactly IS your workout, may i ask?

and running toning your entire body? instead of starting a discussion about what tone is, i'll just say that getting muscle definition is a matter of losing enough fat to see the muscles below clearly. You can't spot reduce, so anything that burns calories is working towards the goal of more definition, though you must burn more calories than you consume for it to really matter.

Hope that helps, and give us some more info [img]smile.gif[/img]

[DiBatista]

i use 45 second rests between each set.
I start with bench presses
milatary presses
then leg extensions, leg curls
flys
lat pull down, ab crunch, stiff arm pushdown(using lat tower)
crunchs with a 45 pound weight on my chest
bicycles
preacher curls
wrist curls
dips
french press
dumbell pullover
isolation curl
front dumbell raise
bent lateral raises
normal lateral raises
bent over row, upright row
toe raises
squats shrugs

One last question, what if any are the harmful effects of creatine. Ive heard baldness and some other stuff but im not sure.

[peck191]

wow..that's way too much isolation- you need to cut most of it out..and where are deadlifts? You're training for sports, so what about olympic lifts?

[DiBatista]

i usualy train alone so dead lifts aint realy that safe(at a weight that would build muscle)

[chris_f]

i usualy train alone so dead lifts aint realy that safe(at a weight that would build muscle)

**cough** bullsh*t **cough**

How do you even spot deadlifts? Is that possible? You can squat or deadlift without a spot, though with super heavy weights on squats a spotter would be prefered.

Your excuse is just that: an excuse. Stop making them and bust your ass in the gym!! Besides, isn't light deadlifting more conducive to muscle growth and strength gains than no deadlifting at all?

[phizer]

well, I'm just reading through here, and a few things hit me...

If you are looking to get scouted, quit partying.

Sharkbait suggested that you cut your workout down to about an hour, but my opinion is that doing that isn't completely necessary for an athlete, or someone who's making training his primary objective. As long as you can recover from your training, then the 1-hour "rule" is not that important. About recovery, though: Do you do a post workout shake? Are those 3600 calories clean, healthy calories, or are they junk food (just asking)? I think that proper nutrition is a very important part of recovery.

No offense intended, but your routine sucks. You are training for performance, right? All that isolation stuff does very little to improve your abilities as an athlete. You should focus on heavy compound lifts. Squats, deadlifts and lunges should definitely be a consideration for someone who plays football. Explosive lifts, such as the olympic lifts, would probably have good transfer to your sport (although this isn't the case with every sport). If you've never done them before, it would probably be a good investment to get some coaching to learn the correct form, and start doing them. Plyometrics are also a good idea for someone looking to be powerful and fast.

Abdominal movements are lacking in your routine. There are many more exercises than just crunches and bicycles. Trunk flexion is not the only motion you need to consider. There is also lateral flexion and rotation, which will be controlled mostly by your abs, and trunk extension which will involve mostly your lower back, glutes and hams. Further, your trunk must be stable to help prevent injury, and it must work in tandem with the rest of your body to produce and transfer power. You should have a much higher priority on your core, and much less on things like isolation moves for your shoulders, and wrist curls. That will have much more benefit to your athletic performance. I suggest looking into some rotational moves like russan twist or cable wood choppers, lateral flexion moves like side raises, and more low back work, like dead lifts, glute-ham raises, and good mornings. Also, you should look into doing some stability exercises like front and side bridges (sometimes called "planks").