Looking for help with training/diet/? (long, pic link)

[Madd Hatter]

I can’t believe I’m going to set myself up for much ridicule, but oh well, I haven’t made a complete ass of myself in a few years… I'm the last person here who should post pics. I'm not doing it for vanity purposes (as will be obvious) or for "critique". I'm doing it for all-out HELP. I'm not sure I'm progressing as I should, and I absolutely despise my trouble spot (gut). I don't know if it's my routine(s), my diet, or just my genetics. I don't even know whether to cut or bulk anymore, up to now I've been doing my version of bulking. I have the gut of a bulker, but I'm pretty damn scrawny everywhere else.

They are the first 5 pics at http://members.aol.com/btwwtf/myhomepage/

No, these aren’t the before pics. I have none. But I was a total stick. No lines, flat everywhere, a stick. I mean even more so.
Anyway, the vital info:
1. 6'2" 197lbs, 23 y/o. Up about 25 lbs since I started, some of it may even be muscle! I don't know my bf %, it was measured at 11.19 by some college kids w/ calipers, but that was months ago and I was 175 at the time.
2. Been screwing around in the gym for a couple years, switched to mostly free weights 6 months back or so (which is when I noticed the slightest change in my body), about 10 weeks ago I got serious and started a routine, Wanna Be Big #1. That ran its course and I started the old-school routine 2 weeks ago. One weird thing: my weights don't go up very often/regularly. I dunno, maybe it's the process of learning to do shit right (can post set/ex info if requested).
3. My diet has proceeded about the same way, and now I'm to as healthy as I think I'm gonna get. On the average day I consume (in order):
- Bowl of Protmeal (oats w/ one scoop Triple Threat)
- 5g creatine (when I'm on it) before and right after w/o on w/o days, otherwise just 5g
- Another bowl of Protmeal, natty pb on 2 slices of w.w. toast, some skim milk
- Tbsp of flax
- Shake consisting of 3 scoops gainer powder 1 scoop TT spread over 6 hours
- Two cans of tuna
- 10 in. turkey sub, french bread with roughly 8 slices of deli turkey. NO CONDIMENTS, some animal crackers
- 5g creatine (when I'm on it)
- Tbsp of flax
- 1/2 cup or so cottage cheese right befored bed (the woman says this is one of my problems)

Now, some days there'll be one less Protmeal bowl or can of tuna, or an added banana, or I may all out cheat with stuff like Long John Silvers, Hooters, or Italian Buffet for dinner. Snacks are usually peanuts, peanut butter crackers, or Nutter Butters (I'm addicted to that shit). Some of you are undoubtedly laughing at this "diet". But I've come a long way. I've given up frozen pizza and chips, I rarely eat out, and I've recently given up "normal" cereal, bread, and pb. Oh yeah, and alcohol, only drank 3x this year. I don't know if I can get any better, but I'm willing to try if anyone has some suggestions (no, I don't eat red meat. I know, I suck).

Ideas I have for myself:
1. Xenadrine? I'm not worried about any ill effects, I just don't know if it'd do any good to pop a couple pills in the morning and then do the rest of my "permanent bulk" exactly the same????? And God knows I have no business losing the miniscule amount of muscle I have.
2. Cut the gainer powder out when I run dry? I got it because I figured I had to be getting nowhere near the carbs I should be. But if you're fat, you should cut down on the carbs, so I'm confused.
3. Hire a hitman to hold a gun on me at the gym while snarling stuff like "I WILL put this bullet in your ass if you don't lift this weight. LIFT IT MOTHERFUCKER!" ... I think I have an intensity problem I just can't get over.
4. Cut out the cheat food shit. I'm honestly not sure this matters all that much. I've always maintained the same weight range (up to recently) my whole life, regardless of what I ate. My gut has been there the whole time. Even when I dropped 40lbs a few years back, the gut never got better than how it looks now.

Anyway, I'd appreciate the input of the experts here, on cutting/bulking, my progress, my troubles, my ideas, things to change, whatever.

 

[MrMuscle]

I personally prefer to have TOTAL controll over what i eat. I weigh everything, write down everything, have a excel worsheet where i calculate all the caories, fat, protein and carbs.

take a look at my webpage http://www.mrmuscle.org i have written quite a bit about nutrition there, how to set up a diet, how to change it to a diet down diet and so on.

 

[the People's Champ]

*move this to the training board*

 

[Burning_Inside]

I personally prefer to have TOTAL controll over what i eat. I weigh everything, write down everything, have a excel worsheet where i calculate all the caories, fat, protein and carbs.

take a look at my webpage http://www.mrmuscle.org i have written quite a bit about nutrition there, how to set up a diet, how to change it to a diet down diet and so on.

Yeah you need to. You either it in defacit to lose or abundance to gain, simple as that. When I don't have a set exact diet, and a set routine, and don't keep track of my weight progress, I go nowhere either way, wether it be losing fat or gaining muscle. This is a real scientific hobby/sport. Some people can get away with being sloppy about it, but not for too long.

 

[coolcolj]

Well judging from the pics you look fatter than 11% bodyfat. I'm guessing around 13-15%

All you need to do is the basic stuff. Just east what you eat now and lift basic and you will gain. Keep it simple.
No need for protein powder, just take a multiv-viatmin, fish olie and calicium tablets

routine

Squat
Incline dumbell BP
Dumbell Row
Chin or lat machine.
DUmbell SHoulder press
Dumbell curl
Tricep extension or pressdowns
Calf raise

do 2 warm up sets and then do one set to failure, trying to get between 8 and 10 reps. Explode the concentric phase, but slow down near the lockout and then lower the weight slowly under control for a 3-4 count. Push the reps to failure when you can hit 10 reps, increase the weight by 5% next workout. All you need is 1 set per exercise. But keep the form strict!

You may find due to the chest and back work that your bicep and tricep exercises may not gain strength, don't fret, the chest, shoulder and back work fatigue the bicep and triceps quite a bit. Just keep going to failure until you can hit 10 reps.

Do the workout 3 times a week. After 12 weeks take a 2 weeks off and start again with the weight 10-20% lower and build back up again 5% at a time when you can do 10 reps until you get back to where you were before. And continue on as before for anotehr 12 weeks

Sooner or later you will plateau on this routine, and by then you will have a good strength and size base.

Then post here and we can get you something else to do

Thats' all it takes. Nothing fancy. And this routine works. I was able to go from chinning my bodyweight to chinning with 80lbs attached after 12weeks. And you won't overtain like all those other volume routines and you can do it in 45mins.
And one last thing the size you gain is mainly from actual muscle fibre thicking and not mixed in with other factors like you normally get from high volume set routines.

If you wanna get lean start doing interval sprints on the off days
twice a week.

 

[b fold the truth]

You need more mass. If you think that you have a "bulkers gut" take a look at my pics.

Your diet that you listed would absolutely starve me and the average human. You just don't have many calories listed there. I didn't see chicken, red meat, pasta, rice, fish, milk, etc.....

You need food to build muscle and to burn fat!!!

B True