For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

[J-Unit40]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

I have a love hate relationship with squats. I hate to do them but love the fact that they are pound for pound the best excersize you can do so i try to do them at least once a week.

Squat's are probably the worse excersize where you see people doing way too much weight but with really crap form. It's way better to half the weight and get the form spot on then it is to try and push big numbers imo.

I agree. I never did squats in college while training for hoops, but the coaches made sure we subsituted with leg presses. Looking back, I wish I would have done them because they are very good for power and explosiveness. When done with proper form, squats are the best exercise you can do.

Now, as a 31-year old, I do them with light weight (typically dumbbells), strict form and high reps and I love them.

[EWRMETS]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

I've been doing them 3 times a week.

[stewaat]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

I've been doing them 3 times a week.

That's quite a lot.

I was doing them 2x/week. One heavy and one moderate.

I would do:
135x5 (Warm up)
185x5 (Warm up)
225x8
275x8
275x8
295x8

That was my heavy day, nothing too heavy but I needed a spotter to go up. Moderate I would stay at 225 and just do 4x10-12.

I wish I had a spotter to try and bust them out. I have average form. Being 6-3 and not the most flexible in the hip region made it tough. I used to be terrible but got to the point where I could do them correctly.

I always get sore from squats...always.

[USF11]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

That's quite a lot.

I was doing them 2x/week. One heavy and one moderate.

I would do:
135x5 (Warm up)
185x5 (Warm up)
225x8
275x8
275x8
295x8

That was my heavy day, nothing too heavy but I needed a spotter to go up. Moderate I would stay at 225 and just do 4x10-12.

I wish I had a spotter to try and bust them out. I have average form. Being 6-3 and not the most flexible in the hip region made it tough. I used to be terrible but got to the point where I could do them correctly.

I always get sore from squats...always.

I wish I could squat. I got a odd body type and jacked up knees. There really is o substitute for them.

[Rainey]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

My short body actually helped me out with freaking squats! It felt good doing 450+ and only weighing 170 pounds.. lol

Probably helped that I was a catcher too, so I had the flexibility to go all the way down in perfect form.

Though, I have gotten where I couldn't get back up when I got closer to 10 sometimes lol

[AuburnAlumni]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

That's quite a lot.

I was doing them 2x/week. One heavy and one moderate.

I would do:
135x5 (Warm up)
185x5 (Warm up)
225x8
275x8
275x8
295x8

That was my heavy day, nothing too heavy but I needed a spotter to go up. Moderate I would stay at 225 and just do 4x10-12.

I wish I had a spotter to try and bust them out. I have average form. Being 6-3 and not the most flexible in the hip region made it tough. I used to be terrible but got to the point where I could do them correctly.

I always get sore from squats...always.

I'm pretty proud of myself. I decided to try and get super lean for summer and have been dieting pretty strict. I've gone from 246 at 17% Bodyfat to 220 and 9% bodyfat over the last 3 months.

I've been doing HITT training in the mornings and lifting at night.

My current leg routine is as follows....

1. Free Squats (I rarely use Smith machines for squats)
--1 warmup set with no weight at 15 reps
--1 warmup set at 135 for 12 reps
--3 working sets at 405 for 8 reps

2. Leg Press
--3 working sets at 675 for 6 reps

3. Stiff Leg Deadlifts (using Dumbbells)
--3 working sets with 120lb dumbbells for 12 reps.

4. Lying 1 Leg Curls
--3 working sets at 110 pounds per leg for 8 reps, then finishing with a dropset at 110/70/40 with both legs

By then...my legs are toast. I do calves separately 4 times a week.

[stewaat]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

Man I hate you.

I need to break 10%! I always end up having a big cheat every other week and stalling my progress.

31 days til da beach for me...therefore I'm going to use all my will power to get under 10%! Today is day #4 haha...man. I need to make it past two weeks and I'll be straight.

By the way 220 @ 9% bf is ridiculous man...you are a stud.

[EWRMETS]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

That's quite a lot.

I was doing them 2x/week. One heavy and one moderate.

Yeah it is a lot but I'm trying to strictly follow Rippetoe's Starting Strength which has you squat 3 times a week at 3x5. I started this at the beginning of February and have already increased my squat by over 100 lbs but I never really squatted before then.

[ehh]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

Squatting is the single best exercise anyone can do for their muscles.

Fixed.

As the doc said (head of orthopedics and a knee specialist at Yale so I think he's qualified) they are a nightmare on your joints and knees especially if you're over 6'0, which I am by eight inches.

He said he sees dozens of power lifters a year who come in and have ruined their knees from squatting over the years.

I've always been a huge proponent of squats and I simply can't bring myself to tell someone not to do them because as you said they are the best exercise for building muscle and burning fat but people should be aware of the risks.

[USF11]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

Fixed.

As the doc said (head of orthopedics and a knee specialist at Yale so I think he's qualified) they are a nightmare on your joints and knees especially if you're over 6'0, which I am by eight inches.

He said he sees dozens of power lifters a year who come in and have ruined their knees from squatting over the years.

I've always been a huge proponent of squats and I simply can't bring myself to tell someone not to do them because as you said they are the best exercise for building muscle and burning fat but people should be aware of the risks.

Thats true people like me can never do squats correctly because of my body type. But if you are able to do them the right way they are invaluable.

[USF11]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

I'm pretty proud of myself. I decided to try and get super lean for summer and have been dieting pretty strict. I've gone from 246 at 17% Bodyfat to 220 and 9% bodyfat over the last 3 months.

I kinda have been on the same path, one great snack food has been yogurt cups. They are 100 cal and 10 g protein.

I used to be a fast food junkie and I rarely ever go anymore, or drink any carbonated drinks.

[KG]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

I agree. I never did squats in college while training for hoops, but the coaches made sure we subsituted with leg presses. Looking back, I wish I would have done them because they are very good for power and explosiveness. When done with proper form, squats are the best exercise you can do.

Now, as a 31-year old, I do them with light weight (typically dumbbells), strict form and high reps and I love them.

I never did them either in high school or college. Our coaches used to tell us that doing that for hoops would make ur legs heavy...effin idiots.

There are so many other exercises that you can do for explosiveness that aren't as hard on ur knees as squats.

I used to do this plyometrics training program that really really helped build my legs up strength wise in the long run. The first 2-3 weeks they were dead though. I would go up for a board and mentally I would think I was high off the ground but reality would settle in and I would hit the ground much faster than anticipated.

[KG]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

I think I'll buy a tub of the Syntha 6 and use it strictly for post workout/before bed since I workout around 10:30.

Here's my dilema. It's sort of applies to your workout plan.

I work until 6 usually. It takes me about 45 mins to get home because of traffic or the Metro train. I play ball about 3-4 times a week and I never eat anything more than a snack (granola bar, some kind of fruit, etc...) before I hoop. I just can't hoop on a full stomach. So by the time I get home it's like 10-11 pm and I havent eaten dinner.

Am I better off not eating anything because it's so late or drinking some kind of protein/meal replacement shake?

I'm 5'11 ~190lbs. My goal is to get leaner (Body fat%) as opposed to packing on muscle. My target weight is ~180 lbs which I know I can do in the summer just by hooping outside but I want that weight to stay off.

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

[TarHeelMan]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

Interesting... I haven't had a problem with it. I don't hoop like you do, but when I get home, I'll have dinner, around 6:00 or so. Then I'm hanging around the house with my wife and kids then studying, and I'll hit the gym around 10:30, after they're all asleep. My diet is along the lines of the Anabolic Solution that my man stewaat mentioned, but I haven't had a problem with weight gain having a shake before bed.

[stewaat]

Re: For all you guys wanting to gain muscle, size, etc.

KG- eat. Just make sure you get approximately the right number of cals/day and you're fine. Eating before bed isn't bad for you, it's a myth. It's bad if you've already eaten your maintaining amount of cals...then those surplus are going to be stored as fat. It would be worse though to not eat before bed.

TarHeelMan - I'm still on the high fat diet and I really like it. 30 days til da beach for me so I'm picking up my cardio. I eat 3 eggs, 3 sausage links, 2 cheeseburgers, 1 bag broccoli, 1 fillet of salmon, string cheese, & 85% chocolate every damn day. I don't get tired of it either...it's so good! Cheeseburgers!!!

*No buns w/burgers*