New here - Q's about cardio and gaining muscle

[RottenWillow]

RW, if I understand you correctly, I can take whey protein with meals too instead of just after lifting? I get really lazy about cooking and that would be wonderful. Also, I do not take it on days that I don't lift, should I be?

I happen to be a big fan of drinking a liquid only breakfast since it gets the protein to the muscle far quicker than waiting for solid food to liquefy and slowly pass into the large intestine. If you got a good night's sleep it will have been 9+ hours since you last fed your body, so you're very likely to be in a negative nitrogen balance state--not good if you want to build muscle. The quicker you get that protein into your bloodstream the better. My breakfast is 1/2 cup of rolled oats, 2/3 cup of whey protein isolate, and 1 tsp of stevia blended well into 24 ounces of filtered water.

And yes you should keep your protein intake up even on days you don't train, but its up to you if you want that to be in the form of protein drinks or whole food protein.

 

[greentree]

I happen to be a big fan of drinking a liquid only breakfast since it gets the protein to the muscle far quicker than waiting for solid food to liquefy and slowly pass into the large intestine. If you got a good night's sleep it will have been 9+ hours since you last fed your body, so you're very likely to be in a negative nitrogen balance state--not good if you want to build muscle. The quicker you get that protein into your bloodstream the better. My breakfast is 1/2 cup of rolled oats, 2/3 cup of whey protein isolate, and 1 tsp of stevia blended well into 24 ounces of filtered water.

And yes you should keep your protein intake up even on days you don't train, but its up to you if you want that to be in the form of protein drinks or whole food protein.

Perfect, thanks RW! The only thing that seems difficult about the liquid meals is that I already sometimes don't get enough calories. Are there any good high calorie/high protein shakes out there, with good fats and stuff in them?

It still mystifies me that you guys eat as much as you do, It's hard to remember to eat that often! I wish I could buy pre-cooked chicken or something. I have a friend who eats cans of tuna. That's nice and easy, but it seems so gross. Any good tips for easy no-cook foods (or microwaveable)? I read the stickies on recipes, but I don't really cook except for steaming veggies and grilling chicken or salmon.

 

[trex74]

Perfect, thanks RW! The only thing that seems difficult about the liquid meals is that I already sometimes don't get enough calories. Are there any good high calorie/high protein shakes out there, with good fats and stuff in them?

It still mystifies me that you guys eat as much as you do, It's hard to remember to eat that often! I wish I could buy pre-cooked chicken or something. I have a friend who eats cans of tuna. That's nice and easy, but it seems so gross. Any good tips for easy no-cook foods (or microwaveable)? I read the stickies on recipes, but I don't really cook except for steaming veggies and grilling chicken or salmon.

You can get those pre-cooked BBQ chickens in the grocery store, they are usually pretty greasy though...
I like tuna myself, but I don't like to bring it to work because it gets too fishy when it's out of the can for a while...But fresh out of the can with lemon juice/olive oil in a salad is pretty nice, I just taste the lemon really...
Hard boiling a bunch of eggs is easy too, it takes 13 minutes to boil an egg, then you can eat however many eggwhites/whole eggs you want.
If you bake/grill a bunch of chicken/turkey in advance it's easy too.
Low-fat cottage cheese is high protein as well, but there is a lot of sodium if you have concerns about that.
In the grocery store you can find various canned beans/pulses that are full of protein too. I like a mixed bean medley, there's usually one like that available. Just drain, rinse, and add to a salad.
My advice is to try cooking a bit more, maybe on a day where you have time, like a Sunday. Just try a couple things for the next day, like the chicken, or cooking some brown rice (tip:a rice cooker makes perfect rice every time), or making a big salad that you can just add stuff do when you are hungry (Like chicken, cottage cheese, beans, eggs etc.)
This website covers the basics of cooking, it's pretty simple stuff, once you get the hang of it you'll be whipping up stuff in no time. try looking at other websites for inspiration too.
Stick to the basics for now, and try harder stuff when you're ready.
Cooking Techniques for Beginner and Intermediate Cooks

 

[musclemom]

How can you NOT remember to eat, I've never understood that

I promise you, though, you start seriously lifting weights, when you wake up in the morning, the first thing your body says is FOOD!

Eating is not the problem, cooking, planning, prepping, packing and toting that's a drag ...

 

[musclemom]

Bump.

 

[greentree]

Sorry about the slow response, I was out of town.

Yeah, I can't sleep in because I'm too hungry in the morning, lol... I hear ya there. It's just when I'm busy doing homework for hours or working that it doesn't hit me until I'm bored. Also, I love the idea of a bean salad! I can do that. I have a crockpot, can I cook chicken in there somehow? I'll have to look through the recipes more, and try to find some that I can do. ,

On a different subject, when I do calves (just toe-raises right now) they seem to be crazy sore for like 5 days. My chicken legs are a problem area for me. I used to try different exercises with low reps and high weight and never saw any improvement in this area. I read an article that suggested doing toe raises on a step and concentrating on pushing all the way to the tip of your toes. I'm giving it a shot - I do a set of 70, then 50, then 40 with 30 sec between. It burns, and I see the results, so that's not the problem. Why does it take so long to recover? Is that normal? Will using the muscles during regular cardio cause a slower recovery time? Is it bad to use the muscles in cardio before they are recovered?

Thanks again guys, Merry Christmas!

 

[RottenWillow]

Perfect, thanks RW! The only thing that seems difficult about the liquid meals is that I already sometimes don't get enough calories. Are there any good high calorie/high protein shakes out there, with good fats and stuff in them?

It still mystifies me that you guys eat as much as you do, It's hard to remember to eat that often! I wish I could buy pre-cooked chicken or something. I have a friend who eats cans of tuna. That's nice and easy, but it seems so gross. Any good tips for easy no-cook foods (or microwaveable)? I read the stickies on recipes, but I don't really cook except for steaming veggies and grilling chicken or salmon.

Sure, but you really don't want to add fats to your first meal of the day if you want to speed protein to your muscles. I'd wait at least a few hours, preferably three, after meal #1 to eat your healthy calories.

For fats in Meal #2 you might try "light tasting" olive oil. It's has 120 calories per tablespoon and doesn't taste as heavy and greasy as regular olive oil. It's also pretty cheap, so you won't break the bank trying to add healthy fats for calories.

 

[greentree]

Sure, but you really don't want to add fats to your first meal of the day if you want to speed protein to your muscles. I'd wait at least a few hours, preferably three, after meal #1 to eat your healthy calories.

For fats in Meal #2 you might try "light tasting" olive oil. It's has 120 calories per tablespoon and doesn't taste as heavy and greasy as regular olive oil. It's also pretty cheap, so you won't break the bank trying to add healthy fats for calories.

Good tip! I had no idea. I am learning so many good things from you guys - thanks!

 

[musclemom]

Sorry about the slow response, I was out of town.

Yeah, I can't sleep in because I'm too hungry in the morning, lol... I hear ya there. It's just when I'm busy doing homework for hours or working that it doesn't hit me until I'm bored. Also, I love the idea of a bean salad! I can do that. I have a crockpot, can I cook chicken in there somehow? I'll have to look through the recipes more, and try to find some that I can do. ,

On a different subject, when I do calves (just toe-raises right now) they seem to be crazy sore for like 5 days. My chicken legs are a problem area for me. I used to try different exercises with low reps and high weight and never saw any improvement in this area. I read an article that suggested doing toe raises on a step and concentrating on pushing all the way to the tip of your toes. I'm giving it a shot - I do a set of 70, then 50, then 40 with 30 sec between. It burns, and I see the results, so that's not the problem. Why does it take so long to recover? Is that normal? Will using the muscles during regular cardio cause a slower recovery time? Is it bad to use the muscles in cardio before they are recovered?

Thanks again guys, Merry Christmas!

160 toe raises!

I dunno, legs seem to be one thing that it's hard to fight genetics on. You've either got slow twitch/endurance or fast twitch/sprinting. But you're going to get bulk from high weight/low reps not high reps/bodyweight. The more compound movements you do (i.e., squats, deadlifts) the more growth you'll see throughout your body.

However, have to be realistic, too, meaning, genetics are genetics. Got to play the hand you're dealt. Take me, I've got a 32" inseam and 15" calves I've been lifting weights for nearly 15 years but nothing has ever changed the fact I've got long lean, legs.

 

[greentree]

160 toe raises!

I dunno, legs seem to be one thing that it's hard to fight genetics on. You've either got slow twitch/endurance or fast twitch/sprinting. But you're going to get bulk from high weight/low reps not high reps/bodyweight. The more compound movements you do (i.e., squats, deadlifts) the more growth you'll see throughout your body.

However, have to be realistic, too, meaning, genetics are genetics. Got to play the hand you're dealt. Take me, I've got a 32" inseam and 15" calves I've been lifting weights for nearly 15 years but nothing has ever changed the fact I've got long lean, legs.

Grrrr! I've been told this before, but I don't like it, lol. I have a 32" inseam as well. I'll have to see if I make any progress. I had a great workout today, and I'm exhausted. It feels good!