Workout supplement questions

JohnnyTheFox

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Used to work out quite a bit but hard to get anything going consistently with upper back issues on and off, it has been feeling better and want to get back into working out and want some supplement advice.

I had decent success with creatine and chicken breast but want to take it to the next level. Any suggestions that are safe and at least somewhat cost effective.

And please before you post it no I will not drink raw eggs{Yo Adrian}:laugh:
 

Trouty

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Used to work out quite a bit but hard to get anything going consistently with upper back issues on and off, it has been feeling better and want to get back into working out and want some supplement advice.

I had decent success with creatine and chicken breast but want to take it to the next level. Any suggestions that are safe and at least somewhat cost effective.

And please before you post it no I will not drink raw eggs{Yo Adrian}:laugh:
Optimum Nutrition is the bees knees, Achilles. Bodybuilding.com often has great sales on it, too. Their protein mix has glutamine and creatine in it. But you're gonna wanna get a creatine monohydrate on the side. Don't worry about casein protein powders, just go to Costco and stock up on Fage yogurt, it has a **** ton of casein in it. Eat about two servings of that before bed. Use the ON shake after workout and about 6 hrs after your workout.

Make a tuna salad in the evening, on top of your chicken and black beans, and in your tuna, instead of mayo, use Fage as well.

You're gonna want about 300-400g's of protein a day, and about 3000-3,500 calories. Tho, this is completely arbitrary without knowing your weight and adjusting your micro and macros to it. Everyone is different. If you're overweight you may need less. Age is also in play. Your goals are another factor. Do you want to bulk up? Cut? Get in shape?
 

Trouty

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Also, what body type are you? Endo, Ecto, or Meso? These also matter as per calories in your diet and the workout routines you do.
 

Trouty

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Used to work out quite a bit but hard to get anything going consistently with upper back issues on and off, it has been feeling better and want to get back into working out and want some supplement advice.

I had decent success with creatine and chicken breast but want to take it to the next level. Any suggestions that are safe and at least somewhat cost effective.

And please before you post it no I will not drink raw eggs{Yo Adrian}:laugh:
One of the best things you can do for yourself is go to Costco and get their whole, raw, chickens. They're cheaper there than anywhere else for the size/lb. I've checked extensively -- tho I'm in LA, you may have better luck.

Roast in the oven at 450 for an hr (depending on weight of the birdy) with kosher salt, pepper (outside and cavity), and thyme and rosemary if you so please (salt and pepper is all you really need). Black beans. Oatmeal and peanut butter and a banana for breakfast, with an occcasional ON serving poured in your oats.

Buy your chicken whole, and eat half every day, using Tupperware to store the other half in the fridge. That's 150g of protein right there, alone. Stock 6-9 in the freezer. Eat your main meal about ~1.5-2 hrs after your workouts if you're lifting for muscle mass, max. Always have a shake ready in your car with ~40Gs of protein for right after your workout.

You do need supplements to maximize your growth. It is what it is. But you only need a great protein shake and a preworkout with BCAA's (and the creatine I mentioned above, which will last you for a couple years; you'll go through a tub of protein a month). The rest is fluff.

The casein Fage yogurt and Fage tuna salad is key. Eating 5 times a day is key.

It's a lot of work, but in a year and half, you can go from 25-40lbs overweight (depending on your cardio:weight-training) to being a swole beast, bubba.
 
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JohnnyTheFox

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:laugh:Uggh....
You just hit me with information overload

I am 6,1 180, and honestly had no clue what those body types were before you mentioned them. I suppose I would have to say I am between a Ecto and Meso.

Ok first off all lol remember I am in Okla and wish to heck we had a Costco here, I do believe there is one 100 miles up the hwy though.

Never heard{or noticed} about Fage yogurt and noticed they do sell it at Wal Mart so looks like ill be going there, i suppose you are going to tell me to get the plain flavor:laugh:or as long as its Fafe brand its ok?
Can remember the last time i had a tuna salad............ugh:facepalm:
I do love pizza however.........

I am 53 yrs old and am honestly not trying to bulk up, just want a little more size.
 

TheCount

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Multivitamin, protein powder and creatine is all I take.

Trouty is right that you should be keeping track of what you eat, and counting macro's is one way to do that. The beauty of keeping track of macros rather than being on a "diet", is that you can still eat pizza as long as it fits your macros – meaning you'll probably have to cut fat and carbs out of some other meal.

Honestly though, if you're just getting back into it, then I'd say just try and keep it fun and motivate yourself to build a habit of working out and eating reasonably healthy. If you try to read the entire encyclopedia of fitness first, you'll never make it to the gym.
 

Supercowboy1986

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This is a really good write up and summary. While reading it, I felt like I was writing it because the things I was thinking to write was already here :laugh:I even do a similar meal prep with chicken except I don't buy the raw, I buy the rotsery from Costco because it's really convenient for making tacos and to be used for other meals. You get a lot of mileage from those bad boys.

The only caveat I have to add is for me, preworkouts were a waste of money and made me incredibly jittery for my workouts. I use coffee, black with no sugar as a pre workout now and it gives me the boost I need without the jitters.

I would also include a multivitamin (opti-men) and an omega 3 (fish oils). Omega 3's can help with muscle soreness and it does alleviate joint pain for when you do squats and deadlifts. I can tell the difference at least.

Fage Greek yogurt is good but I use it for breakfast instead of replacement of casin but I really prefer the Trader Joe's blueberry nonfat Greek yogurt. Best tasting and textured yogurt I ever had and they are 99 cents each! I actually prefer taking casin before bed.

Also worth mentioning most ON flavors are easy to mix and taste better than average when mixed with water. I love milk and use skim with my shakes but if you're out of milk, water is perfectly acceptable to use while it maintains a decent taste, which is way more important than it sounds.

One of the best things you can do for yourself is go to Costco and get their whole, raw, chickens. They're cheaper there than anywhere else for the size/lb. I've checked extensively -- tho I'm in LA, you may have better luck.

Roast in the oven at 450 for an hr (depending on weight of the birdy) with kosher salt, pepper (outside and cavity), and thyme and rosemary if you so please (salt and pepper is all you really need). Black beans. Oatmeal and peanut butter and a banana for breakfast, with an occcasional ON serving poured in your oats.

Buy your chicken whole, and eat half every day, using Tupperware to store the other half in the fridge. That's 150g of protein right there, alone. Stock 6-9 in the freezer. Eat your main meal about ~1.5-2 hrs after your workouts if you're lifting for muscle mass, max. Always have a shake ready in your car with ~40Gs of protein for right after your workout.

You do need supplements to maximize your growth. It is what it is. But you only need a great protein shake and a preworkout with BCAA's (and the creatine I mentioned above, which will last you for a couple years; you'll go through a tub of protein a month). The rest is fluff.

The casein Fage yogurt and Fage tuna salad is key. Eating 5 times a day is key.

It's a lot of work, but in a year and half, you can go from 25-40lbs overweight (depending on your cardio:weight-training) to being a swole beast, bubba.
 

CF74

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150914121959-arnold-schwarzenegger-celebrity-apprentice-1024x576.jpg



Sounds like an Ectomorh...
 

TheBigEasy

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Some VERY solid advice guys. So not to 'overload' your brain, target 205 grams of protein/day. I won't list the good protein sources because the guys above did an awesome job doing so. My only advice is to try and get most of those 205 grams from food good/clean food sources. I only use protein shakes if I need help getting to my daily goal. My target is 100+ grams more than yours and a guy can only eat so much chicken, fish or almonds! If nothing else, work on eliminating sugar and bad fats from your diet while replacing them with eating good fats and lean protein sources. But most importantly!!!!....give yourself a cheat day so you can give your mind a rest. Eating clean is a job and we all know how much we enjoy our weekends. After a while, your body and mind will start to hate cheat days and you'll find yourself eating clean 7 days/week...365 days/year.

 

Trouty

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:laugh:Uggh....
You just hit me with information overload

I am 6,1 180, and honestly had no clue what those body types were before you mentioned them. I suppose I would have to say I am between a Ecto and Meso.

Ok first off all lol remember I am in Okla and wish to heck we had a Costco here, I do believe there is one 100 miles up the hwy though.

Never heard{or noticed} about Fage yogurt and noticed they do sell it at Wal Mart so looks like ill be going there, i suppose you are going to tell me to get the plain flavor:laugh:or as long as its Fafe brand its ok?
Can remember the last time i had a tuna salad............ugh:facepalm:
I do love pizza however.........

I am 53 yrs old and am honestly not trying to bulk up, just want a little more size.
At your age, height, and weight, you can probably do about 2,500 calories a day, Achilles. Like a poster above said, you can do about 250g/day of protein since you're not trying to bulk up too much.

5 days a week. Do a little cardio before your workout 3 days a week, for about 20 minutes. As another poster said, coffee is another great pre-workout, but you need some BCAA's. Essential for any weight lifter.

I would use plain Fage, and add my own fruits and whatnot to it, over that flavored nonsense. I always eat the plain with a couple tbl spoons of peanut butter and some cinnamon sprinkled on top.

If you want workout routines, PM me, bubba :)
 

JohnnyTheFox

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At your age, height, and weight, you can probably do about 2,500 calories a day, Achilles. Like a poster above said, you can do about 250g/day of protein since you're not trying to bulk up too much.

5 days a week. Do a little cardio before your workout 3 days a week, for about 20 minutes. As another poster said, coffee is another great pre-workout, but you need some BCAA's. Essential for any weight lifter.

I would use plain Fage, and add my own fruits and whatnot to it, over that flavored nonsense. I always eat the plain with a couple tbl spoons of peanut butter and some cinnamon sprinkled on top.

If you want workout routines, PM me, bubba :)

Sure, shoot me a pm. I was working out fairly consistently until 2012 when I had a slipped disk{C4 C5} since then it bugs me off and on. And any type of shoulder presses I do seems to at times aggravate it, tried some back in June and my left arm still goes numb sometimes depending on the position im in, Thanks!
 

TheCount

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At your age, height, and weight, you can probably do about 2,500 calories a day, Achilles. Like a poster above said, you can do about 250g/day of protein since you're not trying to bulk up too much.

5 days a week. Do a little cardio before your workout 3 days a week, for about 20 minutes. As another poster said, coffee is another great pre-workout, but you need some BCAA's. Essential for any weight lifter.

I would use plain Fage, and add my own fruits and whatnot to it, over that flavored nonsense. I always eat the plain with a couple tbl spoons of peanut butter and some cinnamon sprinkled on top.

If you want workout routines, PM me, bubba :)

You buy into BCAA's, Trouty? I've seen people carrying jugs around but I've heard mixed things about whether BCAA's are worth it.
 

JohnnyTheFox

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Multivitamin, protein powder and creatine is all I take.

Trouty is right that you should be keeping track of what you eat, and counting macro's is one way to do that. The beauty of keeping track of macros rather than being on a "diet", is that you can still eat pizza as long as it fits your macros – meaning you'll probably have to cut fat and carbs out of some other meal.

Honestly though, if you're just getting back into it, then I'd say just try and keep it fun and motivate yourself to build a habit of working out and eating reasonably healthy. If you try to read the entire encyclopedia of fitness first, you'll never make it to the gym.

Ok enlighten me, what are macros? Total Calories? Protein?
 
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