Note- this will be an ongoing Q and A, updated as time goes by with newests posts appearing at the top………..

 

Hey John, I am a female competitor competing in figure and wondering about how my monthly cycle may affect my peak week and day of show? I am seeing that in 3 months I will have my cycle fall during the few days before my show, and I know for myself and others I have talked to I tend to bloat and hold water and don’t want that to affect my look on stage. I know you deal with a large client base and figured I would ask if you have had to combat this and what advice you could offer up? Thanks!!!

 

 

This is something that happens from time to time, though it’s not very common and when it does happen usually it’s not as bad as everyone feels it will be. But, there are definitely times it can play a factor in how much water you hold, and some ladies appear bloated compared to how they looked 10 days out.

 

A lot of ladies will panic and limit their water intake for fear they will hold more water, but the opposite is what I have our ladies do. Water is actually a very good diuretic when increased beyond normal intake levels, and for this situation it fits the bill very well. Normally I will have clients increase their water intake anywhere from 1-3 liters a day depending on how much they normally consume each day leading up to peak week. This increase in water will flush some of the water being held due to the oncoming monthly cycle and help keep water retention lower than it would be. Hope this helps, it’s not a super detailed, scientific approach because there just really isn’t a lot more that can be done. You should be fine by just increasing water the final 3 days leading up to your show.

 

 

John, I am hearing a lot of different views on creatine and when to take it. Should an athlete take it pre-workout, post-workout, in the morning on off days? When are the best times and what is the best kind of creatine? Thank you so much.

 

Creatine is one of those products that has been around for almost 20 years now and has been show to be one of the best supplements a natural athlete can take. There are many benefits from taking creatine such as increased muscle cell volumization, increased protein synthesis, increased strength, all of which lead to muscle growth. Creatine works by pulling water and nutrients into the muscle cells to be stored which leads to a bigger, fuller muscle cell, exactly what we want as athletes hitting the iron hard and trying to make gains.

 

As far as the best time to take it, there are a lot of different views on that but what I have my clients at Team Gorman do is take it intra-workout with their BCAA’s and intra workout carbs such as Dextrose. Why? Taking it during your workout and replenishing creatine stores that are being depleted with every rep in my eyes is ideal, it will help pull the water, bcaa’s and carbohydrates into the muscle cell immediately during the workout. The next best option would be to take creatine in your post workout shake since your creatine stores are depleted from the workout. The worst time to take it in my eyes is pre-workout, unless it’s taken about 5-10 minutes prior but again it would just be easier to put it in the intra-workout carbs and BCAA’s.

 

As far as the best kind, I am a fan of creatine monohydrate. (as long as is creapure and micronized which most products on the market today are) There are other forms out there, one note able is creatine ethyl ester but it has been show to raise creatinine levels in the body and that’s not what you want. I actually had a female client who was taking this form of creatine for a few months and had to get blood work done and her creatinine levels were very very high, we switched her over to the monohydrate version and all was fine.

 

There are a lot of good brands out there, we recommend 1st Phorm Creatine Monohydrate or they make a great product most of us use called 1st Phorm AlphaCre and it contains beta alanine and creatine monohydrate, a great combination for your intra workout drink.

1st Phorm’s Creatine Monohydrate and AlphaCRE supplements

 

I want to touch on dosing real quick- dosing for females and males under 200 lbs it has been shown that about 1 teaspoon (5 grams) is adequate to be taken on training days. Larger individuals can go upwards of 2 teaspoons but anything beyond that simply isn’t needed. On off days from training creatine isn’t needed either.

 

 

 

Team Gorman, I am wondering what supplements you would recommend to all clients who are planning on competing- please tell me what you would recommend as a list of things everyone should take, and maybe some that are great additions. Also, if you could recommend your favorite brands you or your clients have felt the best using that would be great, thank you.

 

This is a very common question but it seems that with the supplement industry always coming out with new products that it needs to be revisited often. I like to stick to a lot of the basics for my clients, but I will touch on some of the cool additional supplements that can help make a difference in your training.

 

Fast digesting whey protein-whey isolate or hydrolysate (hydro is best), take post workout. (1st Phorm Phormula 1 or Dymatize Iso 100)

Medium or slower digestion protein powders- slow digesting whey blends or casein proteins are good to use as part of your meal during the day because they break down a bit slower and will leave you more satisfied than having a very fast digesting whey protein. (1st Phorm Level 1)

BCAA’s- take during the workout to spike protein synthesis and optimize growth and recovery as muscle tissue is being broken down. 1 scoop for most females, 2 scoops for most males during the workout. (Scivation Xtend or Core Nutritional’s ABC)

Multivitamin- take after the workout to help fight free radicals. (1stPhorm M-factor)

Vitamin C- take after the workout to help fight free radicals and cortisol. 500-1000 mg post-workout works well.

Dextrose/Glucose- take during the workout as part of the intra workout drink. It helps increase the spike in protein synthesis, replenish muscle cells and aids in adding energy for the workouts. (1stPhorm Ignition or comparable dextrose/glucose powder)

Creatine- use in the intra-workout drink, it helps with cell volumization, recovery, strength and muscle growth. Take 5-10 grams depending on muscle mass (1st Phorm Creatine Monohydrate)

Beta Alanine- helps with the delay of lactic acid build up in the muscles and helps to push harder through workout sets. It also helps fight soreness and helps with recovery and works very well with creatine. Take during 1-2 grams during workout. (1st Phorm AlphaCre- also contains creatine monohyrdrate, NRG-X Beta Maxx)

Intra workout supplements- creatine, beta alanine, BCAA’s, dextrose, multivitamin

 

I will keep the list of additional supplements short because it could really be a mile long. Here are the ones my clients like to use, and myself as well.

 

Natural Test Boosters- I like to see D-aspartic acid based test boosters used, they have shown to give the best results for natural athletes. There are 3 on the market that are very good, and I designed the one for NRG-X Labs called Maxx Test. (1st Phorm Conquest, NRG-X Maxx Test)

Acetyl L-Carnitine- carnitine helps with the burning of fats for fuel by pulling them into the mitochondria of the cells to be used as energy. Take upon waking after after the workout to take advantage of the fat oxidation that takes place then. 500-1000 mg at a time is common. (ALCAR by Primaforce)

Green Tea- raises metabolic rate and is a pretty good fat burner. Take at the same time the acetyl l-carnitine is taken. 200-500 mg at a time works well. (Lean Green by Primaforce. Make sure products are standardized for ECGC)

Arachidonic Acid-  Also know as ARA, it is one of the most reliable anabolic supps used to support muscle size, strength and body recomposition.  This EFA has been shown in studies to be required to initiate protein synthesis, and when you train you lower your bodies levels of ARA.  This product was tested at the University of Tampa’s Human Performance lab and showed that it will help with remarkable increases in peak muscle power, with increases in the bench press max, muscular power and muscular endurance.  This will be an important supp during contest prep or offseason.  Dosing is about 1 softget for regular supplementation, and 2-4 softgels for maximal benefit.  (X-factor by Molecular Nutrition)

 

ATP- Peak ATP (Adenosine 5′- Triphosphate Disodium)  Oral ATP has been studied at the University of Tampa’s Human Performance Lab and has been show to help increase muscular strength and peak power output, promote blood flow and oxygen delivery, reduce muscle fatigue and help with recovery between workout sessions.  Oral ATP raises the amount of ATP outside of a muscle cell and provides a much needed punch during workouts.  Suggested dose is about 400 mg or so 30 mins prior to training.  (Peak Muscle by Promera)

 

Fish Oil- helps with overall heart health, joint health, muscle growth and fat loss. 1 fish oil cap is usually about 1 gram of fat. Use them to make up some of your fats in the diet, common amounts are 5-10 fish oil caps a day. (Any product that is standardized for EPA and DHA will work)

 

 

 

 

 

I am wanting to compete in the fall 2014, and I am confused as to how to figure out my macros for starting a diet. Right now I am just eating “clean” but not sure of how to figure up my starting macros and calories. I am 5’3” tall and 140 lbs, and I try and eat pro/carbs/fats with almost all of my meals I just do not measure anything out. Any help appreciated, thanks!!

 

I partly answered this in my last Q and A, and I’ll add that part again here since it hits on part of the answer and also get you some firm answers at the bottom.

 

I’ll outline the things I think every competitor should have set in place before they even think about stepping on stage or starting a cutting diet to get to very very low body fat levels. Too often I see people just start prepping without having a structured off season, and while that may work once or twice, they are done after that.

 

The first thing every competitor should have in place is a good off season where they have gotten their calories (namely carbs) up and held for a while to get metabolism revved up. This will give you the metabolic capacity to make it all the way through prep. Too many people don’t have their calories high enough to support getting to lower body fat levels and they stall out before they are finished and never look as good as they can.

 

You also need to have a good understanding of where your diet is in the off season, how many protein, carbs and fats you are having a day, and also what your refeed day or cheat meal(s) day consists of. When you start prep you should be able to start from very low to no cardio and introduce some cardio, and make a small decrease in carbs to start the fat loss process.

 

And lastly, I would make sure to start far enough out. Too many newbies start dieting at 12 weeks out with 30 lbs or more to lose, and they look like crap. If you have 30 lbs to lose, aim to lose 1 lb a week and diet for 30 weeks. Sound extreme? Well don’t gain a bunch of fat in the off season then, because if you have to lose it faster than 1 lb a week you WILL lose muscle and stall your metabolism faster that way.

 

So with all this being said, lets figure out where you can start your calorie levels and what macros to hit. Since you do not know your caloric intake each day, we will have to put in a formula and start somewhere. Here is what I have found works well for clients I have to do this with…..

 

What I have found to be a good starting calorie level for females is to take your current body weight and multiply it by 15. 140×15 will yield 2100 calories, which is what you should be up to in the off season to have a decent metabolic capacity to start a prep from. Now that you have your starting calories, lets break this down into protein, carbohydrates and fats.

 

For protein and females I like to set it at 1.0 to 1.2 x body weight, which will give you about 170 grams of protein a day and 680 calories.

 

For fats I would like to see you take your body weight x 20-25% which will give you about 35 grams of fat and 315 calories. (Note, I don’t recommend females going below 30 grams of fat a day for hormonal and health reasons. If you are a smaller female and your fat calculations come up lower than 30 fat a day, simply default to starting at 30 fat a day and do not lower it during prep)

 

The rest of your calories will be made up of carbohydrates. Because we have 680 protein calories and 315 fat calories (915 calories) that leaves us with 1105 calories remaining from our 2100 total for the day. Carbohydrates are 4 calories per gram, so 1105 calories divided by 4 gives us about 275 carbohydrates a day to work with.

 

So with your macros being 170 protein, 275 carbohydrates and 35 fats I would take this and run with it for 2 weeks and see if you drop weight, about 1 lb a week is ideal. If you do not lose, then I would adjust your carbohydrate levels down some.

 

Hope this helps, and good luck in 2014!

 

 

 

 

Hey John, I need to get an expert opinion on how to bring up weak bodyparts.  I am having a heck of a time bringing up my back and lats but also need to bring up my legs as well.  My chest and shoulders and arms are all pretty good and dont need to grow as much as my back and legs.  Can you suggest a good workout split each week to bring them up?  Any help you can give me would greatly be appreciated, thanks!

Great question, I get this one quite a bit actually.  Most of the time people think just training the body part harder will make it grow, and to some extent yes you can shock some growth but it’s going to be very minimal over time especially for folks who have been training for a few years or more.

 

I am going to assume you are training bodyparts once a week.  The first thing you will want to do is move to training your weaker body parts twice a week.  You wont need as much overall volume each workout as you are probably used to with once a week training.  If you have overpowering bodyparts it’s okay to only train them once a week, they will still grow just not at the rate of the body parts being trained twice a week which will allow the weaker body parts to catch up.

 

The next step is to find an amount of volume you want to use for each workout.  What I have seen work very well with my natural Team Gorman athletes is hit about 9-12 sets per bodypart, twice a week.  This will allow for optimal recovery after 2-3 days and you can hit those body parts again feeling fresh.

 

The third step is to make sure you have your higher calorie days on the days you train your weaker body parts so they get more calories that day that your other body parts on other days.

 

Lets break this down into what it could look like to bring up your Back and Legs:

 

Sunday:  Back/Biceps 9 total sets per bodypart (higher calorie day)

Monday: Chest/Shoulders/Triceps 12 total sets per bodypart

Tuesday:  Legs 9 total sets per bodypart (higher calorie day)

Wednesday:  off

Thursday:  Back/Biceps 9 total sets per bodypart (higher calorie day)

Friday: off

Saturday: Legs 9 total sets per bodypart (higher calorie day)

 

There is also the issue of rep ranges.  There are two ways I have found that work well here- to hit bodyparts heavy once a week and then in the 8-20 rep ranges again later that week.  This allows for all rep ranges to be hit during the week and works well.  In my opinion what I have seen that I think works best is to hit ALL rep ranges during each workout.  For example if you have back and 9 total sets, it may looke like this:

 

Lat Pulldowns- 3 sets, 3-6 reps. 

T-bar Rows- 3 sets, 8-12 reps.

Incline Dbell Rows- 3 sets, 15-30 reps

 

I hope this helps you prioritize your weak body parts and bring them up.  Good luck and train HARD!

 

 

 

 

 

John, I always hear people say you cant diet and gain muscle.  I would like to know once and for all if it is possible, and if it is how? 

 

This is one of the things you ask people and you have different schools of thought for sure and it can be tricky.  Most will say “No you cant gain muscle on a diet if you are at a caloric deficit, it’s impossible.”  I will say, anecdotally that I have seen it happen for years. 

 

The first scenario I have seen it happen is with people new to training.  You take someone who’s muscles are not used to training multiple times a week and get them on a decent diet with a good amount of protein and they are going to grow and recomp while losing dieting.

 

The second scenario I see it happen on is when someone gets on protocol using fast acting carbs intra workout, bcaa’s and follows up their training with whey protein and more carbs.  It can be argued all day long that it’s calories in versus calories out but I see it in almost every client that uses this protocol- they hold muscle better while dieting and get stronger year round, even during prep.

 

The last scenario is when someone has a higher calorie day that is over maintenance calories, such as a big refeed.  While on a cutting diet using a big refeed I see people cutting fat 5-6 days a week and growing for 1-2 days a week depending on the refeed. 

 

Here is the perfect example- this is NGA Figure Pro Val Thompson who in 8 weeks went from 126 lbs on the left (morning weight) to 126 lbs on the right (morning weight).  ZERO weight dropped but significantly leaner.

 

 

 

 

 

Dont let a cutting diet make you think you cant grow.  You should have the mindset to get in the gym and train hard and try and force growth.

 

Hey man, I am wondering if there is actually a legitimate fat burner out there for natural athletes, and if there is what is it?  And is it worth it?

 

One thing for sure, there are a lot of “fat burners” out there that are all hype, and get more money than they are worth due to yielding little to no results. With that being said there is a fat burning cocktail I like to have our athletes use that is inexpensive, easy to take and works.

 

The first ingredient in the cocktail is green tea.  Green tea boosts your metabolic rate and is a very good fat burner, and it also is an antioxidant.  I like to see people start off with 2-300 grams and work up to 4-500 grams, taken twice a day. First dose in the morning to get metabolism revved up and again later in the afternoon.  One thing to note, make sure the green tea you get is standardized EGCG or it’s not as effective.  A great product is Primaforce Lean Green.

 

 

 

The next ingredient to use is Acetyl L-Carnitine (not L-carnitine) which is proven to help move and transport fat inside cells to be burned as fuel.  I like to see clients start with a 3-500 mg dose taken first thing in the morning, and again after working out.  You can workout up to 2000 mg of it a day but I hardly ever have people go over 1000 mg.  A good product that I recommend is Primaforce ALCAR.

 

 

 

Finally if you are someone who will use caffeine this is a great addition to the stack and helps amplify fat burning and will also help with strength.  I like to see people start off with the lower amounts of about 100 mg in the morning and again 30 mins before training.  You can work up to 200 mg both times but I have seen over time the body start to become unresponsive and doses will have to go higher, which will cause the receptors to become more unresponsive.  The best thing to do with caffeine is cycle the dosing.  When you go off, make sure and slowly go off decreasing dose instead of going cold turkey.

 

 

 

I am thinking of competing in 2014, but I would like to know what you think the things are a competitor should have in place before they decide to compete. I know obviously they need to be training for a while and have a solid base of muscle, but other than that I don’t know what to expect on the diet, and where I should start and how to transition. Sorry if that’s all over the place, any help you can give is great, thanks.  I am 22 years of, 190 lbs and about 15 percent bodyfat using a 7 site caliper test.  I have been training for 2 years, diet has been all over the place, I do try and drink protein powder before and after my workout and eat 3 regular meals a day.

 

Ok, I think I know what you mean here.  I’ll outline the things I think every competitor should have set in place before they even think about stepping on stage or starting a cutting diet to get to very very low bodyfat levels.  Too often I see people just start prepping without having a structured offseason, and while that may work once or twice, they are done after that.

 

The first thing every competitor should have in place is a good offseason where they have gotten their calories (namely carbs) up and held for a while to get metab revved up.  This will give you the metabolic capacity to make it all the way through prep.  Too many people don’t have their calories high enough to support getting to lower bodyfat levels and they stall out before they are finished and never look as good as they can.

 

You also need to have a good understanding of where your diet is in the offseason, how many protein, carbs and fats you are having a day, and also what your refeed day or cheat meal(s) day consists of.  When you start prep you should be able to start from very low to no cardio and introduce some cardio, and make a small decrease in carbs to start the fat loss process. 

 

And lastly, I would make sure to start far enough out.  Too many newbies start dieting at 12 weeks out with 30 lbs or more to lose, and they look like crap.  If you have 30 lbs to lose, aim to lose 1 lb a week and diet for 30 weeks.  Sound extreme?  Well don’t gain a bunch of fat in the offseason then, because if you have to lose it faster than 1 lb a week you WILL lose muscle and stall your metab faster that way.

 

Hope this helps, and good luck in 2014!

 

John, I really need to bring my chest up big time, I have tried training high volume, low volume, DC training, everything and nothing is working.  I have been working it once a week except when hitting DC I am hitting it a bit more often then but after a year I am not seeing progress.  Can you help?  I am eating at 500 calories over maintenance and gaining size everywhere else but Chest has always been my weakest bodypart.  Thanks in advance!

 

This is a common question believe it or not, and a lot of people know they need to bring a certain bodypart up but they don’t know how.  I’ll outline some things to do below that will get you headed in the right direction.

 

First thing to do is make sure you train chest more than 1x a week.  I would start with twice a week, and hit all rep ranges both days.  Here’s an example:

 

1^st chest workout- Bench x 3-4 sets 3-5 reps, Incline Dbell x 3-4 sets 8-12 reps, and Pec Deck x 3-4 sets 15 to 20 reps.

 

2^nd chest workout- Incline Bench x 3-4 sets 3-5 reps, Flat Dbell Press x 3-4 sets 8-12 reps, and pushups 15-20 reps 3-4 sets.

 

This will enable you to activate ALL muscle fibers, and also train the muscle twice a week.

Lastly make sure you have a refeed after you train chest, you want all those extra calories going to the chest with priority after a workout.

 

Hope this helps, good luck!

 

Hey man, can you help me out with something?  I am a natural athlete and am wanting to know more about your NRGX Maxx Test product you designed.  I have heard great things about it, I got my test levels done and they were in the lower 300’s, not low enough to get a prescription, but low enough I am feeling it at times.  I want to combine this with a solid nutrition plan and get some mass put on, but not sure what to expect, or where to order it that’s best.  Should I cycle off it, does it shut my levels down when I come off?  Any help appreciated, thanks!

 

Sure, glad to help out here.  NRG-X Maxx Test is my baby, it’ s been out a year and a half now and has had an amazing impact on a lot of athletes, and I am truly blessed that it’s gotten such good feedback and recommendations.

 

Ive seen my clients with 250 test levels jump all the way up to 700, which is way above and beyond what’s expected.  Most will jump a good 200 points or so, which will get you in a good range to grow and feel better all around.

 

Here are the details on the product, you can order it online, we actually carry it ourselves if you want to order from us just holler at Leslie at leslie@team-gorman.net

 

This product was designed to work for just about every male out there, but it really shines in the following scenarios- people with low testosterone levels, people needing to gain muscle, people needing to retain muscle on a rigorous diet, natural bodybuilders, people on hormone replacement therapy (HRT), athletes looking to improve performance, people looking to increase libido, and athletes looking to set PR’s or get stronger. With that being said, let me give some background on the main ingredient that makes this supp what it is- Magnesium Aspartic Acid which is an amino acid that is found naturally in the body that works to increase LH and Testosterone in the testes and pituitary gland and is made when asparate racemase converts to L-aspartic acid into Magnesium Aspartic Acid in glands/testes that play a big role in the production of sperm and sex hormone.

In a study I found, researchers gave 24 men between the ages of 27 and 37 a dose of 3 grams of Sodium daily for 12 days in a row, while another 20 men where given a placebo. The results where phenomenal to say the least! With the 24 men receiving the supp, testosterone raised and astounding 42 percent after the 12 days, while LH levels rose 33 percent! Source: Reprod Biol Endocrinol. 2009 Oct 27;7:120

This sounds amazing, but the thing is that when you do raise test levels in some that already have a healthy test level, you run the chance of converting some test to estrogen. Though the chances are very rare and unlikely, I decided to run a natural estrogen balancer with Saw Palmetto. Saw Palmetto is thought of as a wonder herb in many different countries from treating male pattern baldness, to being an anti-estrogen to fighting off prostate and other cancers. With it’s ability to control estrogen levels it was included here so there would be a synergistic effect when taking the test/LH-raising compound.

The next component of MaXX™ Test is the libido enhancing herb Maca Root at 500 mg per serving. Maca root is known for it’s ability to increase sex drive and heighten libido, improve semen quality, production and volume, and is also known for it’s studies using it to help alleviate SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction.

Coleus Forskohlii Root Extract (20% forskolin) was included because of it’s powerful ability to help build muscle, increase testosterone levels, and cut bodyfat by increasing cAMP levels. Higher cAMP levels means high LH levels, higher test levels, and it also promotes the burning of fat cells through lipolysis to provide even more energy for the body.

Ascorbic Acid/Vitamin C was also included to help fight free radicals and cortisol due to it’s antioxidant properties, and help with recovery and the immune system. These are all things an athlete or person working out needs addressed.

Zinc was added in as well due to it’s ability to speed up the healing process after a workout, protect against aging of the skin and muscles in the body, and act as an antioxidant as well.

The best way to take this product is to take 4 caps in the morning upon waking to boost test levels during the day, and 3 caps at night to help sustain elevated test levels while you sleep. Most people seem to feel the product kick on about the 2 week mark, though some have reported signs of increased libido and strength gains as early as 10 days into the supplement.

There are many different situations to take this, and I believe it will work well in all situations. If you want to gain muscle and are a natural bodybuilder or just a natural athlete, it’s perfect for you. But what about people who are on Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT)? Yes, it works by raising test levels naturally through the LH pathway, whatever your test levels are at with your injections the doctor is giving you, MaXX™ Test will raise your test levels by a good number. What are the numbers? That’s hard to say but a lot of people will report a good 200 ng/dl. Say for instance you are sitting at 600 ng/dl free test level, MaXX™ Test will probably shoot you somewhere in the 800 ng/dl range. The thing to remember is, when you go to see your doc, discontinue MaXX™ Test about a month before the visit to get your test levels back to HRT levels so there is no adjusting your dosing protocol.

The cool thing about all the ingredients in MaXX™ Test is that they are all LEGAL, all NATURAL supplements and ingredients and can be used by athletes in any organization out there. And because there are no synthetic compounds, there is no shutting down of any hormones in your body. For example, when you take anabolic steroids, you shut down your bodies natural test production due to a synthetic drug introduced into your body. When you come off the anabolics your body struggles to produce natural testosterone again for a short time leading to fatigue, often depression, muscle loss, etc etc. Because all natural ingredients are used, nothing is shut down. When you stop taking MaXX™ Test, you simply go back to your regular testosterone levels you were at before taking the supplement without suppression of any hormones.

There are no signs after two years that this product or any of the ingredients need to be cycled on of off. This makes a great addition to any supplement protocol and one I believe will become the standard for athletes for quite some time to come.

As a summary, here is what taking NRGX MaXX™ Test can do for you:

1. Increase Testosterone levels
2. Increase fat burning
3. Strength gains
4. Muscle gain
5. Increased libido
6. Lower/control estrogen levels
7. Fight free radicals
8. Increased recovery and boosted immune system

 

 

 

I am thinking of competing in 2014, but I would like to know what you think the things are a competitor should have in place before they decide to compete.  I know obviously they need to be training for a while and have a solid base of muscle, but other than that I don’t know what to expect on the diet, and where I should start and how to transition.  Sorry if that’s all over the place, any help you can give is great, thanks.  I am 22 years of, 190 lbs and about 15 percent bodyfat using a 7 site caliper test.  I have been training for 2 years, diet has been all over the place, I do try and drink protein powder before and after my workout and eat 3 regular meals a day.

 

Ok, I think I know what you mean here.  I’ll outline the things I think every competitor should have set in place before they even think about stepping on stage or starting a cutting diet to get to very very low bodyfat levels.  Too often I see people just start prepping without having a structured offseason, and while that may work once or twice, they are done after that.

 

The first thing every competitor should have in place is a good offseason where they have gotten their calories (namely carbs) up and held for a while to get metab revved up.  This will give you the metabolic capacity to make it all the way through prep.  Too many people don’t have their calories high enough to support getting to lower bodyfat levels and they stall out before they are finished and never look as good as they can.

 

You also need to have a good understanding of where you diet is in the offseason, how many protein, carbs and fats you are having a day, and also what your refeed day or cheat meal(s) day consists of.  When you start prep you should be able to start from very low to no cardio and introduce some cardio, and make a small decrease in carbs to start your prep. 

 

And lastly, I would make sure to start far enough out.  Too many newbies start dieting at 12 weeks out with 30 lbs or more to lose, and they look like crap.  If you have 30 lbs to lose, aim to lose 1 lb a week and diet for 30 weeks.  Sound extreme?  Well don’t gain a bunch of fat in the offseason then, because if you have to lose it faster than 1 lb a week you WILL lose muscle and stall your metab faster that way.

 

Hope this helps, and good luck with the rest of your offseason!

 

 

Hey Team Gorman, I love your Q and A. I am wondering if you can help me- Im having a hard time growing, I am training all bodyparts 2x a week with different rep ranges.  My volume on day 1 of my bodyparts is 8 sets (heavy 6-8 rep range), and when I train that bodypart again later that week I am hitting 8 sets again (hypertrophy 10-12 rep range).   My current stats are I am 5’8” 180 lbs, I need all my muscle groups to come up.  I am taking in 210 protein, 275 carbs and 55 fats every day, I have to be careful because fat gain is easy for me.  Any tips you can throw my way I would appreciate it man!

 

I actually see this a lot, and I could easily just say to be patient and the gains should come as long as you are KILLING it in the gym, but I have an idea of what will work.

 

First, lets take a look at your number of sets you are doing.  I like the set up, I have a lot of clients train that way and I do myself a lot of the time.  What I would suggest is that you DOUBLE the volume for 2 weeks.  That will be good enough to feel like you are overtraining, but really you are overreaching for a couple of weeks.  Then when you go back to your normal split and volume you will actualize those gains.

 

Also, during your higher 2 weeks of volume, go ahead and increase your calories (carbs) by 25 a day.  So get 300 grams on your higher volume phase and then assess and drop back to 275 if you need it to drop back down.  A lot of coaches talk about altering the training but what people fail to realize is that nutrition is a big part of this, so increasing by about 100 cals a day from carbs will help you grow more than if you just left your cals the same.  And, you are def not going to get fat by adding in 100 cals from carbs on these higher volume days.

 

I would do these higher volume phases about once every 6-8 weeks, but listen to your body that may be too much or not enough, just play with it to see how you like it.  Good luck!

 

John, I saw where you worked with another prep coach on his prep (Jason Theobald) and noticed he was doing a TKD diet at the end of his prep but using the pre/intra/pwo protocol.  Can you explain a bit more about that and why not go with a traditional keto diet?  How big where his refeeds I bet they were NUTS lol! 

 

I can say working with J was one of the most fun preps I have helped someone with.  We both def learned some different things which was cool because now we are both better for our clients as a result.  Win win in my opinion.

 

Alright, TKD (targeted keto diet) is where someone has carbs around the workout, but not enough to keep them from dropping into a ketogenic state again.  We were behind on his prep as he only had 12 weeks to diet since he had prior travel arrangements and such.  We started his prep pretty high carb and got him decently lean, but we both agreed we need to switch him to keto to get him stage ready in the last 6 weeks or we wouldn’t make it.  It’s not something I would normally do but J and I are both very familiar with keto and with his body.  What we did was have his protein stay the same, his fats were about 65 grams a day on average, and he would take in 30 grams pre workout from dextrose and bcaa’s, and 30 grams dextrose and a couple scoops bcaa’s while he was training.

 

I have people do this to knock them out of ketosis, it will elevate blood sugar and also insulin which is good for recovery but also for blocking cortisol.  Running a keto diet without carbs is the single fastest way a bodybuilder can lose muscle, I have seen it enough personally I just wont go there unless it’s a last resort.

 

His pwo nutrition was whey protein and fats to get him back into ketosis, the whey is enough to stop the catabolic part of training, and the blood sugar dropping after the workout will signal the body to start producing ketones again, which the fat aids in.

 

His refeeds could definitely be big, what we did was work from about 600-900 depending on how flat he was and if he lost too fast.  Keeping it in this range allowed for him to drop about 2 lbs of fat a week and be ready just in time for his show.  He won his class at the NPC KY Derby.

 

Hey John, could you touch on what supplements to take around the workout and why?  I have heard a lot about creatine, but I know you have talked in the past about vitamin c, and other stuff.  Im a female who has just started working out and would like to learn, thanks.

 

This is a great question, and honestly something most people will overlook.  Here is what I have our female athletes do for their supplement protocols, it doesn’t have to be this advanced but this gives you and idea.

 

Pre-workout-

some form of caffeine, about 100 mg is a good amount for a female.

Beta alanine- NRGX Beta Maxx 1 gram (to help with recovery and staying power in the gym)

Creatine- 3 caps of NRGX CEE 3000

BCAA’s- Extreme BCAA’s by NRGX, 2 scoops

Dextrose- 20-25 grams for women

 

Intra-workout-

BCAA’s- Extreme BCAA’s by NRGX, 2 scoops

Dextrose- 20-25 grams for women

Sea salt- 1/8 teaspoon to help with contraction, it’s an electrolyte afterall.

 

Post workout-

Whey protein- anywhere from 25-50 grams of protein

Dextrose or sugar carbs- 20-25 grams here again

Beta alanine- NRGX Beta Maxx 1 gram to help fight lactic acid build up and recovery

Vitamin C- 500-1000 mg (ester C is best)

Multi vit- 6 caps NRGX Vital Core (to fight free radicals and recovery)

 

Hope this helps, obviously you will want to tweak it for you but this is what our serious athletes do to optimize muscle gain/retention and to recover.

 

John I am wondering what your thoughts are on Rep Range’s, and what I should be doing to get the most out of my workouts. My goal is to gain some muscle, I just got done dieting off about 20 lbs and I now have a decent set of abs, but my weight is about 170 lbs and I’d ultimately like to get up over 180 slowly while keeping my abs. I have always trained body parts once a week with about 16 sets for working body parts, 8-12 rep ranges because that’s what I think is best for growth. Should I continue on this path once again, or is there a better approach in your opinion? I have been training hard about 2-3 years now, and am 26 years old. Thanks in advance!

 

 

 

Hey, congrats on losing 20 lbs and getting those abs! Ahhh the joys of being young with abs!

 

To answer your question we need to address all the rep ranges and see what we can put together for you. If you have only been training in the 8-12 rep range then it’s time to start incorporating some different ranges in there to get growth maximized.

 

 

 

I wrote a plan using heavy and high rep ranges called MASS-Confusion but you will need another couple years under your belt I believe to start that. I have a better idea for you to hit body parts with different ranges, but in the same workout.

 

 

 

Low rep ranges are usually anywhere in my opinion at 6 reps and under, moderate reps are usually considered 8-12 reps, and higher rep ranges are thought of as anything over 15 reps. Our goal will be to incorporate ALL these rep ranges into 1 workout, and to record our lifts each week. Let me give you a sample Chest workout for week 1 and week 2. After week 2 you will repeat week 1 and then week 2 again. This will last for approximately 8-12 weeks then it will be time for a week off of the gym to recover.

 

 

 

Sample Chest workout week 1:

 

Incline Dbell Press x 4 sets, 4-6 rep range

 

Flat Bench Press x 4 sets, 8-12 rep range

 

Pec Deck Fly’s x 4 sets, 15-20 rep range

 

 

 

Chest workout week 2:

 

Flat Dbell Press x 4 sets, 4-6 rep range

 

Incline Bench Press x 4 sets, 8-12 rep range

 

Incline Dbell Fly’s, x 4 sets, 15-20 rep range.

 

 

 

It will be CRITICAL to record your lifts each week. When you come around to the same exercise after a couple weeks pass you will want to try and add some weight to your lifts and “force” strength gains which will also help force growth. Beat the log-book in other words. For example, if week 1 you did 90 lbs on your Incline dbell presses, next time you do that lift try 95’s and record your progress.

 

 

 

Hitting PR’s on these low and moderate rep-range lifts each week or two will also lead to your higher rep range lifts to go up as well. Now, we know that higher rep ranges don’t improve strength, but they are great when it comes to depleting glycogen which will allow you to eat more carbohydrates in your diet in the long term and will also allow for greater glycogen storage inside the muscle cell, which is very anabolic and causes growth.

 

 

 

I would structure your workouts like this according to whatever split you want to use, but make sure you do a few key things:

 

• 1. Warm up VERY well, lower rep ranges are no joke and can lead to injury quick.
• 2. Watch how your body responds and how you feel after a month or two, some will need a week off after 6-8 weeks, some can go 12 weeks. We all recover a bit differently but keep a close eye on that.
• 3. Make sure and keep your muscle cells “wet” and by that I mean use sea salt in your diet, creatine such as NRGX CEE (creatine ethyl ester), plenty of water and carbohydates. These all pull water into the muscle cell, hence the “wet” reference. A wet cell is an anabolic one.
• 4. Make sure and take a quality multi-vitamin post workout, such as NRGX Vital Core, and this also would be a good time to take 1000 mg vit c or ester C, and if diet allows NRGX makes a great recovery product called Raptor Recovery, I recommend taking this either during or post workout as well.

 

 

Good luck, I would put this new plan together and go foam at the mouth under a bar somewhere and enjoy the growth!

 

 

 

John Gorman – Team Gorman @ https://www.facebook.com/TeamGorman

 

 

 

I was wondering what your thoughts on are scientific studies vs. bro-science? I know you have recently been criticized by some folks because some of the articles you have written don’t have “sources” or are not backed by scientific studies. I have read a lot of your stuff and it makes a lot of sense, just curious where you stand on this and an explanation on why you think the way you do about things in regards to training and nutrition/supplementation. Thanks!

 

 

 

Let me be the first to say, I HATE the word “Bro-Science”, to me it just seems that some meathead is sitting around talking about 1980 and 90’s approach to nutrition and supplementation or using something he learned out of Flex magazine without anything to back up the claims except “it’s worked for me”.

 

 

 

With that being said, nothing gets on my nerves more than seeing some guy who barely trains or has only been training seriously for a year or two, sitting behind a computer looking up studies to go against some of the theories I have or against some of the things I know HAVE and DO work for my clients without any scientific study to back it up or that goes against what studies say. I call these guys “keyboard warriors”, they can look up anything in a heartbeat and argue all day long, yet you see them and they don’t even practice what they preach. J

 

 

 

Now, that is the extreme end of both spectrums, I myself am a middle of the road kind of guy, more of a grey-area nutritionist and prep coach who does like to base things I do off of studies but also I like to go against the grain and do things that fly in the face of a lot of studies, especially the ones that include sedentary individuals or non-athletes. The problem with a lot of studies guys and gals seem to cite and use, is that they are mostly based on animals or on people who don’t exercise the way we do, they don’t live the lifestyle and it’s hard to measure a lot of the things in studies that don’t apply to our area of physique enhancement.

 

 

 

I think it takes guys like me and others, who challenge studies with experimentation on our clients and ourselves that makes the industry grow and think outside the box. Too many people are constricting themselves by thinking everything has to be backed by a study, but also the other end of the line is people limiting themselves who think studies are irrelevant because “it’s worked for me…..BRO”. J Like I said, I am middle of the road on the subject and most of the time I will test something on myself or clients before I’ll take it at full value.

 

 

 

I will say, there are a few guys who I do look at when it comes to their training and approach to nutrition, and that’s Layne Norton and Cliff Wilson, there are others out there also but I think these two guys spend time intelligently going about their business and not only do they get things right most of the time, they also are quit to admit if they were wrong and they find a better way.

 

 

 

John Gorman – Team Gorman @ https://www.facebook.com/TeamGorman

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hey Team Gorman, I was wondering what to do next, I seem to have plateaued in my weight loss. Right now, I am eating 2200 cals a day, I am 35 years old male, have been keto for about 3 months now and have stalled out. I have about 40 protein and 15 fat at each meal, 6 meals a day. Cardio is at 45 mins 2x a day, need to drop about 10 more lbs and then I am ready to start putting muscle on, thanks man I heard you were a guy who knows how to work keto really well, hoping you can help me out.

 

 

 

Ahhhhh keto dieting.  I will be honest here, yes I am a keto-geek, but I am seeing more and more from people that have been doing keto over the past 5 years (myself) included, and I am not so sure I am that big of a fan of it anymore like I used to be…..

 

 

 

I have a feeling you are plateauing because you have been no carb for 12 weeks. I didn’t see any mention of a refeed, this is almost certainly what the problem is, the refeed is a restocking of carbs inside the muscle to help 1. Prevent muscle loss and 2. Protect the thyroid and metabolism from stalling and crashing…..

 

 

 

I would do this, take your pre and post workout meals, drop the 15 grams of fat (135 cals) and replace those cals with carbs, high gi carbs like kids cereal. This will protect against muscle loss but also help reintroduce carbs back into the diet and get metab going again. It would look like this possibly:

 

 

 

• Meal 1 pro/fat
• Meal 2 pro/carb (whey/kids cereal 10-15 mins before weights)
• Train here
• Meal 3 pro/carb (same as meal 2)
• Meal 4-6 pro/fat just like normal.

 

On off day, simply use the same approach but use low gi carbs like oats and potatos, rice, etc etc in your first 2 meals of the day, for example:

 

 

 

• Meal 1 pro/carb
• Meal 2 pro/carb
• Meal 3-6 pro/fat

 

On off days ditch one of the regular cardio sessions and do a HIIT cardio session between meals 1 and 2 (since HIIT requires carbs for fuel, the carb meals around HIIT are ideal) and this will help with shocking body into fat loss again but also the HIIT is good with speeding up metab. I would start with 2 HIIT a week, and progress up to 3-4, then start backing off cardio as you get your last 10 lbs off….

 

 

 

Lastly, refeed every week, do it post workout, start with 2 refeed meals one high gi and the other low/mid gi carbs. Here is a link on how to do the refeeds, be sure to get NRGX Glycomaxx and take 1 with first bite of refeed meals to help with glucose disposal:

 

 

 

http://nrgxlabs.blogspot.com/2012/03…ow-part-1.html

 

 

 

Good luck, hope this helps!

 

 

 

John Gorman – Team Gorman @ https://www.facebook.com/TeamGorman

 

 

 

 

 

I just got done competing and looked my all time best last weekend, I weighed in about 165 lbs. down from 195 lbs. or so, and took 2^nd in my class. Right now I am trying to figure out how to get muscle on me without a lot of fat gain and heard you know how to reverse diet someone and make then grow a lot while staying decently lean. I was doing 45 mins cardio 2x a week, my pro/carbs/fats where 195 pro/70/40 daily with a high day of about 280 carbs 1x a week. Any help would be appreciated, I don’t wanna rebound and get super fat fast like I have before!

 

This is a question I know is going to be asked by a lot, and the answer will help a ton of people out. This isn’t just for competitors, this is for anyone coming off of a diet, you have to restore METABOLISM. Metabolism is everything for fat loss, it’s our main priority.

 

After a show, your metab is most of the time at it’s low point, body fat and weight are low so you rely on less calories overall to fuel your daily activity and your body becomes accustomed to these lower cals and metab.

 

You are also doing 2x a day cardio sessions this will also need to be adjusted you can stay doing 2x a day cardio. I see people do it all the day it just isn’t necessary. You can just drop it out completely, your body is used to all that cardio and calorie burning just going to nothing is a big mistake most make as well.

 

First move is to reduce cardio to 2x a day cardio sessions, go to 30 mins each session. This will start getting body used to lower cardio levels. Also, add in some carbs the first week, about 25 carbs will do that’s about 100 calories added in to stoke metab and get the muscle building underway again.

 

Most people dieting for shows aren’t doing refeeds, I would do a 2 meal reefed on weak body parts and keep that in every week for good. So for example, if you need to bring up shoulders and legs, train shoulders on Sunday, do a 2 meal refeed post workout, and train legs the following day to take advantage of all those stored carbs. For more information on the refeeds I wrote on how to do them at

 

http://nrgxlabs.blogspot.com/2012/03/team-gorman-refeeds-whenwhyhow-part-1.html

 

Once you get your refeed in and increased carbs by 25 for the week and pull cardio back to 30/30, watch your weight on the scale but also the mirror. By the end of the week on Saturday and Sunday, you should still be pretty tight. If you are not, keep cals the same again for a week, then increase again. If you are tight then increase cals by 20 carbs and 5 fats at a whack keeping an eye on the mirror. Also, reduce cardio again to just 30 mins daily. The scale will go up but we are watching body fat levels not worry too much about scale, but use it as a tool. I have seen people lose additional weight from speeding up of the metabolism from the food.

 

The next move will be to add cals in again to reduce cardio again and again until you get to about 20 mins 3-5 x a week for health and also to keep you leaner, it also helps keep hunger up so you have an appetite.

 

Done right I have seen this work VERY well. It’s usually a 6-8 week phase, be careful much longer than that and you don’t need to increase much more, maybe every 3-4 weeks increase by small amounts like 10 carbs at a whack. And the longer you get into offseason, the less you will eat on the refeeds, you just wont be so depleted and you wont have as much room to store the carbs in the muscle. Don’t be afraid to bump the refeed down to 1 refeed meal a week.

 

Hope this helps. John Gorman / Team Gorman @ https://www.facebook.com/TeamGorman

 

 

 

Hey I was wondering what supplements you would recommend for someone really wanting to become a very well rounded athlete or just look like a FREAK! I am considering competing someday as well. Money is not an issue, but only the ones you think are legit and you wouldn’t go without, thanks man! I am about 160 lbs. male, been training 4 years and hard to gain weight or muscle.

 

Alright brotha you got it, I tell ya what I think is going to be best bet and when to take it.

 

Joint supps- NRGX Joint Maxx, take 4 caps daily to help with joint recovery from all the heavy lifting you are doing trying to gain muscle.

 

Beta Alanine- BETA Maxx by NRGX, take 3-5 caps pre and 2 caps post to help with better workouts but also to fight lactic acid and aid in recovery.

 

If you like pre-workouts, try NRGX New OVERDOSE REDUX, about 30 mins before the workout its LEGIT! No cals either, just straight up intensity and focus in a canister!

 

NRGX CEE 3000™– Creatine, take 4 caps either before or after your workout, I prefer after the workout as that is when creatine stores are depleted. It will help pull in nutrients, water, etc etc into the muscle cell for growth and repair.

 

Gatorade– Drink carbs during training, this is HUGE if you are trying to grow or maintain muscle while dieting down. Depending on what your daily carbs look like most guys in your range can use anywhere from 30-70 carbs at a whack during training.

 

BCAA’s- NRGX will have a new product out soon we are very hyped about, but until then Xtend by Scivation will fit the bill, 2 scoops or so in your Gatorade drink mix will help bump protein synthesis and help with growth and repair after each set completed during training. Most people are worried about recovery after the workout, this will help you recover during it better.

 

Multi-vitamin- NRGX Vital Core, take 6 caps post workout to fight free radicals that get in the way of recovery and growth.

 

VIT C or Ester C- take 1000 mg post workout for recover like the multi helps with.

 

Whey Protein– quality whey such as NRGX Sublime whey is a must for getting all your protein in, I have 3 solid food meals a day and 3 shakes myself.

 

NRGX Maxx Test– this is the product I designed for NRGX that is taking the market by storm. It’s all natural and raises test levels significantly with NO side effects. Take 7 caps a day, about the 3-4 day mark, hold the heck on because strength will go through the roof and you will make a lot of size gains!

 

Fish oil- most don’t take this but it’s great for growth and also your joints and heart health. 5-10 caps a day will be a good dose.

 

Glycomaxx by NRGX– a super glucose disposal agent. What that means is that if your body stores the carbs you eat normally in your body, glycomaxx will help them store with a sledgehammer effect, slamming them into the muscle instead of them going in at normal rates. Take 1 cap with any cheat meal or reefed, or take 1 with first bit of high glycemic carbs.

 

I am sure I left something out that I’ll go back and see after this is posted, but for now this is a pretty legit supp list. Hope it helps and good luck!

 

Hope this helps. John Gorman / Team Gorman @ https://www.facebook.com/TeamGorman

 

 I have a question, my husband and I are not dieting for competitions but would like to get very lean, and we are unsure of how many meals a day to take in. I have our calorie levels set that we are used to taking in but would like to know- is it better to eat 3-4 meals a day, or 6 meals a day? I know you have done some experiments with a group of people on 3 meals a day vs 6 a day and would like to know what you found out works best. THANKS!

 

I did do an experiment with about 18 people back in early 2012, all eating 3-4 meals a day for regular weight loss (not competition dieting) and I found that it made NO difference whatsoever to losing weight, almost all clients lost the same amount of weight to their counterparts on similar plans eating 6 meals a day. All I did was take the 6 meals a day plan I would normally write, and put it into 3 meals a day (combine meals) and they went longer periods between meals.

 

So, I would make your meal plan according to convenience, so people don’t like to have to eat 6 times a day because they are super busy. If that’s you, I would make sure and have the majority of your carb meals before and after your workout on training days (do 4 meals on workout days) and on off days do 3-4 meal, most of the carbs in the first 1-2 meals.

 

One thing I would recommend trying to diet to leaner body fat levels, take in 1 scoop of BCAA’s like Xtend between meals, that will spike protein synthesis since you are going longer periods of time between meals.

 

Hope this helps. John Gorman / Team Gorman @ https://www.facebook.com/TeamGorman

 

 As you said, yes I let my clients eat veggies (fibrous veggies) all they want.  There are many schools of thought on this, I will explain why I do what I do but at the end of the day, it’s “calories” because the label says so.

 

When you eat a fibrous veggy, say lettuce for example, it has carbs in it.  Fibrous veggies are almost all fiber and water, that’s the carb source the fiber.  When you put fiber into your body it doesnt illicit an insulin response or cause blood sugar to rise like say oats or potatoes do.  Veggies are basically fillers in my book, fiber is digested and scrapes along the lining of the intestines and cleans your insides out as well, so it’s a good thing to have in your diet you shouldnt even try and take veggies out to cut cals.  There is also the theory that it takes more calories to break down a fibrous veggie than there are calories in that veggy.  That part I dont know for certain, though I certainly know there have been many times with myself and others that the leaner we have got and hungrier the more veggies we consume to help stay satisfied. We would also never have fat loss interrupted and would continue getting leaner.  I have never seen fibrous veggies get in the way of dieting.

 

When dieting I would eat a whole bag of iceburg lettuce before bed every single night, on top of veggies at about 5 meals a day and never had probs at all.  I think because they dont cause a rise in blood sugar they dont interrupt fat loss and are okay to eat all you want.  I wouldnt suggest just eating pounds of it all at once because all the extra fiber attracts water to the stomach for digestion, making the scale weigh heavy for a day or two.  Add some extra in to a meal here and hear and keep increasing if you feel the need.  Just make sure the are “fibrous” veggies, not starchy veggies those DO raise blood sugar and require insulin to be secreted so count the starchy veggies as carbs in your plan.

 

 

This isnt a question that came from someone, but a situation with a client of mine that I want to address.  She had done a show in September 2011, got very lean, had done quite a bit of cardio to get lean (nothing wrong with that).  What her “coach” at the time had her do after the show was over was “dont change a thing and you’ll stay lean” so basically she kept doing tons of cardio at higher heartrates, and kept her diet the same, low calorie.  Now dieting down, we are having a problem with her body responding because 1. she’s used to cardio and never took it out, and 2. it’s hard for me to create a deficit when her cals are already low.  So what’s the answer here?

 

 

The answer here isnt to go find her old coach and choke him, though I want to do that for her 🙂  First thing we have to do is take a week off and let the body recover.  She’s so used to training and cardio, that’s she’s not recovering from the workouts.  And her cardio is only having her break even, we cant go any higher on cardio right now, so I had her take a week off.  Now, most people wanna shit when they hear me say “take a week off from cardio” lol, but here’s the reasoning- your metab will keep spinning when taking the cardio out or down a notch for a week, so most of the time people will still continue to burn, but their body becomes un-used to the cardio, that way when we reintroduce it later the next week it shocks the body back into fat loss. 

 

The other step we took is to cycle calories to keep her metab off guard, a traditional carb cycle, high medium and low days, also with a Team Gorman Refeed day in there as well at 1 hour feed till full.

 

This is still a work in progress, but its the first steps so if you are in this position try these steps.  Bottom line is this- dont do tons of cardio in the offseason and get those calories up so you can create a deficit later on when you start dieting.  Makes it SO much easier 😉  And dont hire coaches who dont know what in the world they are doing 🙂

 

    

 

I have a question about stubborn fat.  I am getting pretty lean, can see my abs decently, but still have quite a bit of fat on my back and legs.  I heard there are supplements out there than can help with stubborn fat is this true?

 

One of my favorite supps to use to target stubborn fat is Yohimbine HCL.  Not Yohimbe bark, that’s crap, it has to the Yohimbine HCL much better chemical bond. 

 

What is does is open up the A2 receptors, that are in the body with low blood flow and stubborn fat.  It’s a great addition but I only recommend using it when you have the stubborn fat or the “last 10 lbs to lose” because earlier than that is a waste IMO.  I usually start someone on it the final 12 weeks of a diet phase to get them very lean.

 

What I usually do is have them take  a stack of yohimbine, acetyl l-carnitine, green tea and caffiene as the amplifier. I have them take it in the AM before meal 1 and cardio (insulin blocks yohimbines effects). I also have them take it right after they train just when they are starting cardio when blood sugar is the lowest.

IMO if you have you take it, try 1 cap at a time (usually 2.5 g per serving) it causes anxiety in most at first until your body gets used to it after a few days and having a bunch at once is no fun lol. It’s great though because it helps hit the A2 receptor/stubborn fat areas with low blood flow. Good stuff!!

 

 

Can you give me a quick run down on how to start a diet for myself and my husband, we just wanna start working out and get in better shape, but dont want to over-complicate things.  I know that’s vague but if you can point us in the right direction I would be grateful.

 

Hey, congrats on deciding to get healthy!  🙂  Nothing wrong with a vague question, we all start somewhere and I am going to start you the same place I started, with a Body For Life Program style diet.

 

Basically, eat 6 meals a day, eat every 3 hours.

 

Meals 1-5 consist of a protein the size of your palm, and a carb the size of your fist.  Meal 6 at the end of the day is protein only size if you palm.

 

Exercise 3 days a week, alternate upper, lower, upper, then the next week lower, upper, lower.

 

On the days in between working out, do cardio 20 mins will do whatever you can do.

 

On Sunday go out and celebrate and have you a nice cheat meal, then Monday back on the plan.

 

Supplements can be simple, during this time you need a good multi vitamin like NRGX Vital Core, and Sublime Whey protein for you shakes/snacks in between meals.  That’s it, pretty simple but effective if you are just getting started.  For more info go to www.bodyforlife.com

 

 

I am a 22 year old college student (male) who’s been lifting for 4 months and I am wanting to gain some nice size, but seem to be getting leaner and leaner, well maybe just a bit more toned.  I want to have bigger muscles everywhere, and I am KILLING it in the gym, my workouts consist of Crossfit 4x a week, about 1 hour in length.  I am eating whatever I want, sometimes 5000 cals a day, I dont gain weight very easy, have been on the slimmer side my whole life.  Can you help me out?  Oh not really taking much in the supp category, just some pre-workout from time to time to get through those workouts, sometimes I wanna puke by the time I am done.

 

 

Wellllllllllll….. 🙂  I have something good here for you, but first let me address the workouts you are doing- Crossfit.  I will avoid getting on soapbox here, and I dont want people thinking I am a Crossfit hater. 

 

I see WAY too many people doing Crossfit style training, when they are trying to pack on muscle.  It’s just not optimal, throw in the fact you are a hardgainer by nature, this is definitely not the plan for you.  Crossfit is great for staying in shape or improving shape, or even having a lean, tone look.  But if you want size, you’ll never see anyone who’s built a lot of muscle with Crossfit or any kind of functional training.  Sorry, I said it and many people will argue but I just say, “Show me”

 

Okay, so what kind of training?  Simple, you can go two routes, more of a powerlifting routine OR a bodybuilding routine, depending on what you enjoy and what look you are going after.  Powerlifters build great bases of strength, and a LOT of muscle, the thing is though for appearance there’s not a whole lot of shape and structure to the muscle.  In other words a lot of powerlifters looks solid, thick and full of muscle.  Nothing wrong with that.  Bodybuilding style training (you dont have to be in “bodybuilding”) will get you a look where each muscle is attacked specifically, giving each muscle detail and a pronounced look.  It’s more for cosmetic looks than functionality or even strength, though there are a lot of strong bodybuilders.  Since I am not a powerlifter or an expert in that arena (See fellow NRGX athlete Jared Dale for that, he’s one of the best in the nation) I will focus on how to add muscle in more of a bodybuilding routine.  This routine below is what I give to a lot of my clients I train, it’s what myself and a lot of people have built their physiques with.  It hits the muscle from every angle and changes every week for 3 weeks, then when you finish the third week, you start over on week 1.  GOOD routine posted below.

 

Training Day

if you dont know what an exercise is, look it up on youtube and watch a short video that will help tremendously.  Train everything in the 10-15 rep range except abs and calves just go to failure higher reps is fine.

Shoulders/calves
Week 1. Rear delt cable extensions 4 sets

Military Press 4 sets
Upright rows 3 sets
Lateral dumbell raises 2 sets

Calf raises on leg press- 5 sets

Week 2.  Dbell Press 4 sets
Rear delt machine 3 sets
Dbell upright rows 4 sets
Front dbell raises 2 sets

Seated Calves raise – 5 sets
Week 3. Arnold Press 4 sets
Rear delt dbell raises 3 sets
Side cable lateral raises 4 sets
Shrugs 2 sets

Standing Calf raises, toes in, 5 sets

Training Day

Quads/Hams
Week 1. Squats 4 sets
Leg press 4 sets
Leg extns 4 sets
Lunges 3 sets
Seated leg curls 3 sets
Butt raises 3 sets
Week 2. Narrow leg press 4 sets
Ball squats 4 sets
Leg extensions (squeeze sets for 5 seconds 3 sets)
Dbell leg curls 3 sets
Leg curls on leg extn machine OR standing leg curl 3 sets
Seated leg curl machine 3 sets
Week 3. Narrow squats 4 sets
Leg extns 4 sets
Dbell squats 4 sets
Smith lunges 3 sets
Cable Leg Curls 3 sets
Leg curls 3 sets

Off Day (just do 1x a week since you are trying to grow)

 

Abs
Week 1.  leg lifts/ball crunch/supine bicycle crunches  tri-set 3 times
Week 2.  knee raises/power crunch machine/floor crunch tri-set 3 times
Week 3.  Weighted floor crunch/ceiling touchers/planks tri-set 3 times

Training Day

Chest/Triceps
Week 1.  Incline bench 4 sets
flat dbell press 4 sets
flat dbell flies 4 sets
skull crushers 3 sets
dips  3 sets
rope extns 3 sets
Week 2.  Incline dbell press 4 sets
flat smith press 4 sets
decline dbell press 2 sets
peck fly deck 2 sets
dbell skull crushers 3 sets
seated overhead dbell triceps extensions 3 sets
underhand cable extns 3 sets
Week 3.  Flat bench press 4 sets
Incline flies 4 sets
Decline flies 3 sets
Pushups 1 set
Seated overhead EZ curl bar extensions 3 sets
Bench dips 3 sets
Straight Arm Dbell kickbacks 3 sets

Training Day

Back /Biceps
Week 1.  Lat pulldowns 4 sets
Dbell rows 4 sets
Cable rows 4 sets
EZ bar curls 3 sets
Dbell curls 3 sets
Rope curls 3 sets
Week 2.  Pull ups 4 sets
Wide grip cable rows 4 sets
T-bar rows 4 sets
Barbell curls 3 sets
Dbell hammer heads 3 sets
Concentration curls 3 sets
Week 3.  Close grip lat pulldowns 4 sets
Horizontal pullups 4 sets
Incline Dbell rows 4 sets
EZ preacher curls/cable curls/dbell curls tri-set 3 times

 

Now onto nutrition, since you said you are eating 5000 cals a day, I will just say to make sure you are getting protein at every meal, either Sublime Whey or a lean meat source.  If you are eating that many cals you are getting plenty of fats and carbs, both help with growth.  Just make sure you get in the protein.  I wont go into detail because I know nothing about what you weigh, what food you like, if you have any limiting conditions, etc.  Just take your cals since you are a hardgainer, and split them up into 6 meals.  Make your 5000 cals equal 30% protein, 50% carbs, and 20% fats and you should grow for your body type.

 

Supps!  For a beginner, you can keep it simple.  Obviously use Sublime whey, but also use NRGX CEE (creatine ethyl ester) 4 caps after you workout.  To fight free radicals you can also use NRGX Vital Core, 6 caps post workout as well as 500-1000 mg vitamin C.  Since you said you like a pre-workout, try NRGX OVERDOSE, but hang on your workouts are gonna ROCK when you use this.  Start with 1 scoop 30 mins or so before you start workouts 🙂

 

Hope this helps, now get after it!

         

 My personal trainer is doing my workouts to get fat off me right now, I am doing the Body For Life diet with 1 cheat meal a week.  We are 1 week in, and he’s changed my workouts from decently heavy training in the 8-12 rep range to high rep light weight training, to “TONE” the muscle and burn fat as he said, I heard that’s a myth, am I correct?  I trust your judgement, please tell me if I should talk to him about it or not.  I’ve put some good muscle on, I heard changing to high reps will burn up the muscle?

 

Here’s the thing when you hire someone to do your training for you- out of respect you should listen and follow what they have you doing.  Well to an extent.  I’ve seen trainers have their folks do some very disturbing things, but I always keep my mouth shut because at the end of the day, it’s not my business.  Dont think I wont look over at Leslie and say something though as we watch some things done in the gym that make us cringe.  But, since you asked whether it’s a myth or not I’ll address it.  It’s up to you to talk to your trainer about it. 

 

When you build muscle doing one type of training, it’s good when you diet down to stick to something that utilizes part of that training.  If you have built your muscle with 8-12 rep ranges, it’s good to have that in the routine to help you hold onto muscle.  Simply upping ALL sets to 20 plus reps is a good way to burn the muscle out and possibly get too depleted (a lot depends on how many carbs you eat) but it doesnt give you any exercise sets in the 8-12 rep range to help keep the density or strength the muscle was developed with.  If I were training you, I would simply add in some high rep sets, but keep some heavier sets as well to “protect” the muscle and keep it strong.  The fastest way to lose muscle when training is concerned is to go to light weight high reps.  That’s old school that he probably learned from his gym teacher in high school.

 

Can you tell me how to choose my PWO carbs (post workout carbs)?  I’m seeing people eat everything from oatmeal to chips to fruit.  Help!

 

Definitely a good questions!  Here’s the thing, your post-workout carbs can be chosen by a number of factors- how many carbs you eat during a day, the intensity of your workout, food allergies, insulin sensitivity, diabetic, etc etc.  I could go on for 5 pages describing all the why and hows and should-do’s, so let me try and break it down simply.  Deep breath…….:)

 

For my clients, I know they are training hard so I go mostly with a carb that is low in fat and fiber, but higher glycemic so it’s broken down very quickly to help restore glycogen to the muscle quickly after a workout.  This also helps the repair process.  I’ll put a list of these down below, but lets lay this out for most people in general based on amount of carbs they eat.

 

For people consuming lower carbs during the day, maybe just carbs at 3 meals or less, try going with high glycemic carbs described above.  When you are lower carb, you are somewhat depleted in the muscle cell, the carbs you want are the ones that illicit a higher insulin response to store them quickly into the muscle, this is when insulin does it job best.  When the muscle is fuller (from a higher carb intake during the day) there’s a chance to spill over from the muscle once it’s full, into the fat cell that takes the excess.  Insulin doesnt care where it pushes carbs, so take advantage of when insulin works best.  Choices for PWO carbs that are for a lower carb intake are things like low fat poptarts, kids cereal, low fat pancakes, white bread, etc etc.

 

For someone who has carbs at more meals during the day, maybe 4-6 meals, it’s a good rule of thumb to use lower glycemic carbs since the muscle is somewhat fuller than a depleted muscle, insulin is secreted is slower amounts as lower glycemic carbs break down slowly over time. This will help keeping the fat cell from getting a lot of storage.  Things you can eat PWO that will be fine are sweet potato, brown rice, white potato with skin, whole wheat pasta, etc etc.

 

This is just a general guideline and there are all kinds of ways this can be manipulated.  I have people who are high carb eat tons of high gi carbs postworkout, but that’s a whole other topic.

 

Oh and before I forget here’s 2 things.  1. I am a firm believer in drinking WHEY protein with your carbs, not chicken or beef or even eggs that breaks down for a LONG time, not what we want.  And 2.  FRUIT is terrible post workout.  It stores mainly in the liver, not the muscle cell.  When you want to eat fruit keep it to PRE-workout, about 1 hour before you train as it will go to the liver, and be kicked out quickly into the body to be used as fuel for workouts. 

 

Hope this helps, this is a very detailed subject with many many different avenues.

 

 

Hey John, loving the Q and A’s, thanks for doing these!  Have a quick question, I see you let your athletes and clients eat veggies as much as they want.  Do you count these as cals or no?  I know Layne Norton and others say these DO count as cals, but others like you  say you can eat them as much as you want.  Can you explain for sure where you are coming from here?  Thanks!!!!

 

Glad you like the Q and A’s, just glad I am in the position to be able to answer these and help some folks out.

 

Here’s the deal with veggies- and you are correct and wrong at the same time.  First thing, I didnt say they don’t count as cals, I just simply don’t count them as cals.  Confused?  Sounds confusing so let me explain.

 

I let my clients eat “fibrous” veggies as much as they want to 1. Get the fiber they need in the diet, and 2. Stay full and/or slow the digestion of the foods they eat so they aren’t as hungry while dieting.  Things like salad, broccoli, cauliflower, etc etc are fine.  I just tell them to eat up and not worry about counting them.

 

                       

 

The thing is, veggies ARE calories.   There is the debate that “eating veggies is considered a negative calorie food” meaning they require the body to burn more calories to digest them than what’s actually contained in the food.  I haven’t seen a study to prove that so whether that’s true or not, I am not sure.  I do know that fibrous veggies do not really affect blood sugar, and are not really stored anywhere inside the muscle or fat cell so they don’t really impact weight loss from what I have experienced, but that’s simply because I have clients keep veggies in the diet the whole time and have them keep the veggies consistent for scale purposes.

I know I have prepped and eaten a TON of veggies a day toward the end and just kept getting leaner and leaner, my clients do this as well.  I have never seen it affect fat loss.  I think having to count veggies is asinine IMO, meaning I think that counting every last little morsel is overkill.  That’s like counting sug free gym in your diet.  Hell, if you have been chewing half a pack of gum a day, why all the sudden start counting it?  Just keep it consistent, it’s sugar alcohol anyway not even a full carb.  By all means dont go and all of a sudden chew 2 packs a day though, that’s going to impact your overall carb count for the day.  But veggies, feel free to eat them at will, just be consistent about it.  I would include them in 3-4 meals a day, meals that are farthest away from your workouts seem to work the best.

 

 

Hey Team Gorman, I was wondering what to do next, I seem to have plateaued in my weight loss.  Right now, I am eating 2200 cals a day, I am 35 years old male, have been keto for about 3 months now and have stalled out.  I have about 40 protein and 15 fat at each meal, 6 meals a day.  Cardio is at 45 mins 2x a day, need to drop about 10 more lbs and then I am ready to start putting muscle on, thanks man I heard you were a guy who knows how to work keto really well, hoping you can help me out.

 

 

Ahhhhh keto dieting J I will be honest here, yes I am a keto-geek, but I am seeing more and more from people that have been doing keto over the past 5 years (myself) included, and I am not so sure I am that big of a fan of it anymore like I used to be…..

 

I have a feeling you are plateauing because you have been no carb for 12 weeks.  I didn’t see any mention of a refeed, this is almost certainly what the problem is, the refeed is a restocking of carbs inside the muscle to help 1. Prevent muscle loss and 2. Protect the thyroid and metabolism from stalling and crashing…..

 

I would do this, take your pre and post workout meals, drop the 15 grams of fat (135 cals) and replace those cals with carbs, high gi carbs like kids cereal.  This will protect against muscle loss but also help reintroduce carbs back into the diet and get metab going again.  It would look like this possibly:

 

Meal 1 pro/fat

Meal 2 pro/carb (whey/kids cereal 10-15 mins before weights)

Train here

Meal 3 pro/carb (same as meal 2)

Meal 4-6 pro/fat just like normal.

 

On off day, simply use the same approach but use low gi carbs like oats and potatos, rice, etc etc in your first 2 meals of the day, for example:

 

Meal 1 pro/carb

Meal 2 pro/carb

Meal 3-6 pro/fat

On off days ditch one of the regular cardio sessions and do a HIIT cardio session between meals 1 and 2 (since HIIT requires carbs for fuel, the carb meals around HIIT are ideal) and this will help  with shocking body into fat loss again but also the HIIT is good with speeding up metab.  I would start with 2 HIIT a week, and progress up to 3-4, then start backing off cardio as you get your last 10 lbs off….

Lastly, refeed every week, do it post workout, start with 2 refeed meals one high gi and the other low/mid gi carbs.  Here is a link on how to do the refeeds, be sure to get NRGX Glycomaxx and take 1 with first bite of refeed meals to help with glucose disposal:

http://nrgxlabs.blogspot.com/2012/03…ow-part-1.html

 

Good luck, hope this helps!

 

I was wondering what your thoughts on are scientific studies vs. bro-science?  I know you have recently been criticized by some folks because some of the articles you have written don’t have “sources” or are not backed by scientific studies.  I have read a lot of your stuff and it makes a lot of sense, just curious where you stand on this and an explanation on why you think the way you do about things in regards to training and nutrition/supplementation.  Thanks!

 

 

Let me be the first to say, I HATE the word “Bro-Science”, to me it just seems that some meathead is sitting around talking about 1980 and 90’s approach to nutrition and supplementation or using something he learned out of Flex magazine without anything to back up the claims except “it’s worked for me”.

 

With that being said, nothing gets on my nerves more than seeing some guy who barely trains or has only been training seriously for a year or two, sitting behind a computer looking up studies to go against some of the theories I have or against some of the things I know HAVE and DO work for my clients without any scientific study to back it up or that goes against what studies say.  I call these guys “keyboard warriors”, they can look up anything in a heartbeat and argue all day long, yet you see them and they don’t even practice what they preach.  J

 

Now, that is the extreme end of both spectrums, I myself am a middle of the road kind of guy, more of a grey-area nutritionist and prep coach who does like to base things I do off of studies but also I like to go against the grain and do things that fly in the face of a lot of studies, especially the ones that include sedentary individuals or non-athletes.  The problem with a lot of studies guys and gals seem to cite and use, is that they are mostly based on animals or on people who don’t exercise the way we do, they don’t live the lifestyle and it’s hard to measure a lot of the things in studies that don’t apply to our area of physique enhancement.

 

I think it takes guys like me and others, who challenge studies with experimentation on our clients and ourselves that makes the industry grow and think outside the box.  Too many people are constricting themselves by thinking everything has to be backed by a study, but also the other end of the line is people limiting themselves who think studies are irrelevant because “it’s worked for me…..BRO”.  Like I said, I am middle of the road on the subject and most of the time I will test something on myself or clients before I’ll take it at full value. 

 

I will say, there are a few guys who I do look at when it comes to their training and approach to nutrition, and that’s Layne Norton and Cliff Wilson, there are others out there also but I think these two guys spend time intelligently going about their business and not only do they get things right most of the time, they also are quit to admit if they were wrong and they find a better way.

 

John I am wondering what your thoughts are on Rep Range’s, and what I should be doing to get the most out of my workouts.  My goal is to gain some muscle, I just got done dieting off about 20 lbs and I now have a decent set of abs, but my weight is about 170 lbs and I’d ultimately like to get up over 180 slowly while keeping my abs.  I have always trained body parts once a week with about 16 sets for working body parts, 8-12 rep ranges because that’s what I think is best for growth.  Should I continue on this path once again, or is there a better approach in your opinion?  I have been training hard about 2-3 years now, and am 26 years old.  Thanks in advance!

 

Hey, congrats on losing 20 lbs and getting those abs!  Ahhh the joys of being young with abs!  J

 

To answer your question we need to address all the rep ranges and see what we can put together for you.  If you have only been training in the 8-12 rep range then it’s time to start incorporating some different ranges in there to get growth maximized.

 

I wrote a plan using heavy and high rep ranges called MASS-Confusion but you will need another couple years under your belt I believe to start that.  I have a better idea for you to hit body parts with different ranges, but in the same workout.

 

Low rep ranges are usually anywhere in my opinion at 6 reps and under, moderate reps are usually considered 8-12 reps, and higher rep ranges are thought of as anything over 15 reps.  Our goal will be to incorporate ALL these rep ranges into 1 workout, and to record our lifts each week.  Let me give you a sample Chest workout for week 1 and week 2.  After week 2 you will repeat week 1 and then week 2 again.  This will last for approximately 8-12 weeks then it will be time for a week off of the gym to recover.

Sample Chest workout week 1:

Incline Dbell Press x 4 sets, 4-6 rep range

Flat Bench Press x 4 sets, 8-12 rep range

Pec Deck Fly’s x 4 sets, 15-20 rep range

 

Chest workout week 2:

Flat Dbell Press x 4 sets, 4-6 rep range

Incline Bench Press x 4 sets, 8-12 rep range

Incline Dbell Fly’s, x 4 sets, 15-20 rep range.

 

It will be CRITICAL to record your lifts each week.  When you come around to the same exercise after a couple weeks pass you will want to try and add some weight to your lifts and “force” strength gains which will also help force growth.  Beat the log-book in other words.  For example, if week 1 you did 90 lbs on your Incline dbell presses, next time you do that lift try 95’s and record your progress.

 

Hitting PR’s on these low and moderate rep-range lifts each week or two will also lead to your higher rep range lifts to go up as well.  Now, we know that higher rep ranges don’t improve strength, but they are great when it comes to depleting glycogen which will allow you to eat more carbohydrates in your diet in the long term and will also allow for greater glycogen storage inside the muscle cell, which is very anabolic and causes growth.

 

I would structure your workouts like this according to whatever split you want to use, but make sure you do a few key things:

1. 1.     Warm up VERY well, lower rep ranges are no joke and can lead to injury quick.
2. 2.     Watch how your body responds and how you feel after a month or two, some will need a week off after 6-8 weeks, some can go 12 weeks.  We all recover a bit differently but keep a close eye on that.
3. 3.     Make sure and keep your muscle cells “wet” and by that I mean use sea salt in your diet, creatine such as NRGX CEE (creatine ethyl ester), plenty of water and carbohydates.  These all pull water into the muscle cell, hence the “wet” reference.  A wet cell is an anabolic one.
4. 4.     Make sure and take a quality multi-vitamin post workout, such as NRGX Vital Core, and this also would be a good time to take 1000 mg vit c or ester C, and if diet allows NRGX makes a great recovery product called Raptor Recovery, I recommend taking this either during or post workout as well.

Good luck, I would put this new plan together and go foam at the mouth under a bar somewhere and enjoy the growth!

 

I am finishing up my offseason this year in the fall, then starting my dieting phase for some shows next year.  My question is about carbs, what carbs should I eat in the offseason around my workouts?  And should these change during the dieting phase?  Thanks man, really like following the way you guys do things, it’s off the beaten path and refreshing.  I am 190 lbs and about 15% body fat at the moment.

 

Hey, glad to hear you like the way we do things, I try and keep things different than most of the bland boring routines most are recycling out there on their clients.  I have found that I get really bored with the same old stuff myself, and that has me always looking for different and better ways to do things.

 

This brings me to the answer to your questions, carbs and what’s a good idea.  Most people diet on all low gi, healthy carbs like oats, sweet potatoes, brown rice, whole wheat pasta, etc etc.  Those are GREAT choices, but there’s better ways to diet with carbs around your workout.  Next time you workout, try this:  15-20 mins before your workout,  have a whey shake about 30-40 grams of protein and fast acting carbs with very little fat or fiber so it digests very quickly somewhere in the 30-40 grams of carbs range.  I usually have this combo on the way to the gym in the form of a low fat poptart and whey shake.  When you get to the gym, start working out and having some BCAA’s like Xtend (about 10 grams here will work) and some Gatorade powder maybe around 30 carbs or so, and 1 scoop of NRGX Raptor Recovery in 1-2 liters of water.  Have this finished by the time you are done working out.

After the workout (and cardio if you are doing it here) have another whey shake and another low fat poptart or kids cereal and take your post workout supps.

About 1-2 hours later eat your next whole food meal.

 

You will notice that your strength will go through the roof right off the bat, way more energy and way more growth will occur from this.

Once you start dieting, I would leave the high gi carbs in there as long as you possibly can, let the diet and cardio take care of fat loss, this combo will take care of muscle retention and even some growth in the beginning.  You will notice when you diet into the spring and such that you will be getting very lean but strength wont be suffering.  If you drop carbs I’d drop carbs that are outside this window first, and then start to drop these down last.

 

Hope this helps, good luck!

 

I have a question, my husband and I are not dieting for competitions but would like to get very lean, and we are unsure of how many meals a day to take in.  I have our calorie levels set that we are used to taking in but would like to know- is it better to eat 3-4 meals a day, or 6 meals a day?  I know you have done some experiments with a group of people on 3 meals a day vs 6 a day and would like to know what you found out works best.  THANKS!

 

I did do an experiment with about 18 people back in early 2012, all eating 3-4 meals a day for regular weight loss (not competition dieting) and I found that it made NO difference whatsoever to losing weight, almost all clients lost the same amount of weight to their counterparts on similar plans eating 6 meals a day.  All I did was take the 6 meals a day plan I would normally write, and put it into 3 meals a day (combine meals) and they went longer periods between meals.

 

So, I would make your meal plan according to convenience, so people don’t like to have to eat 6 times a day because they are super busy.  If that’s you, I would make sure and have the majority of your carb meals before and after your workout on training days (do 4 meals on workout days) and on off days do 3-4 meal, most of the carbs in the first 1-2 meals. 

 

One thing I would recommend trying to diet to leaner body fat levels, take in 1 scoop of BCAA’s like Xtend between meals, that will spike protein synthesis since you are going longer periods of time between meals.  Hope this helps.

 

Hey I was wondering what supplements you would recommend for someone really wanting to become a very well rounded athlete or just look like a FREAK!  I am considering competing someday as well.  Money is not an issue, but only the ones you think are legit and you wouldn’t go without, thanks man! I am about 160 lbs. male, been training 4 years and hard to gain weight or muscle.

 

Alright brotha you got it, I tell ya what I think is going to be best bet and when to take it.

 

Joint supps- NRGX Joint Maxx, take 4 caps daily to help with joint recovery from all the heavy lifting you are doing trying to gain muscle.

Beta Alanine- BETA Maxx by NRGX, take 3-5 caps pre and 2 caps post  to help with better workouts but also to fight lactic acid and aid in recovery.

If you like pre-workouts, try NRGX New OVERDOSE REDUX, about 30 mins before the workout its LEGIT!  No cals either, just straight up intensity and focus in a canister!

NRGX Cee- Creatine, take 4 caps either before or after your workout, I prefer after the workout as that is when creatine stores are depleted.  It will help pull in nutrients, water, etc etc into the muscle cell for growth and repair.

Gatorade- Drink carbs during training, this is HUGE if you are trying to grow or maintain muscle while dieting down.  Depending on what your daily carbs look like most guys in your range can use anywhere from 30-70 carbs at a whack during training.

BCAA’s- NRGX will have a new product out soon we are very hyped about, but until then Xtend by Scivation will fit the bill, 2 scoops or so in your Gatorade drink mix will help bump protein synthesis and help with growth and repair after each set completed during training.  Most people are worried about recovery after the workout, this will help you recover during it better.

Multi-vitamin- NRGX Vital Core, take 6 caps post workout to fight free radicals that get in the way of recovery and growth.

VIT C or Ester C- take 1000 mg post workout for recover like the multi helps with.

Whey Protein- quality whey such as NRGX Sublime whey is a must for getting all your protein in, I have 3 solid food meals a day and 3 shakes myself.

NRGX Maxx Test- this is the product I designed for NRGX that is taking the market by storm.  It’s all natural and raises test levels significantly with NO side effects.  Take 7 caps a day, about the 3-4 day mark, hold the heck on because strength will go through the roof and you will make a lot of size gains!

Fish oil- most don’t take this but it’s great for growth and also your joints and heart health.  5-10 caps a day will be a good dose.

Glycomaxx by NRGX- a super glucose disposal agent.  What that means is that if your body stores the carbs you eat normally in your body, glycomaxx will help them store with a sledgehammer effect, slamming them into the muscle instead of them going in at normal rates.  Take 1 cap with any cheat meal or reefed, or take 1 with first bit of high glycemic carbs.

 

I am sure I left something out that I’ll go back and see after this is posted, but for now this is a pretty legit supp list.  Hope it helps and good luck!

 

I just got done competing and looked my all time best last weekend, I weighed in about 165 lbs. down from 195 lbs. or so, and took 2^nd in my class.  Right now I am trying to figure out how to get muscle on me without a lot of fat gain and heard you know how to reverse diet someone and make then grow a lot while staying decently lean.  I was doing 45 mins cardio 2x a week, my pro/carbs/fats where 195 pro/70/40 daily with a high day of about 280 carbs 1x a week.  Any help would be appreciated, I don’t wanna rebound and get super fat fast like I have before!

 

This is a question I know is going to be asked by a lot, and the answer will help a ton of people out.  This isn’t just for competitors, this is for anyone coming off of a diet, you have to restore METABOLISM.  Metabolism is everything for fat loss, it’s our main priority.

 

After a show, your metab is most of the time at it’s low point, body fat and weight are low so you rely on less calories overall to fuel your daily activity and your body becomes accustomed to these lower cals and metab. 

 

You are also doing 2x a day cardio sessions this will also need to be adjusted you can stay doing 2x a day cardio.  I see people do it all the day it just isn’t necessary.  You can just drop it out completely, your body is used to all that cardio and calorie burning just going to nothing is a big mistake most make as well.

 

First move is to reduce cardio to 2x a day cardio sessions, go to  30 mins each session.  This will start getting body used to lower cardio levels.  Also, add in some carbs the first week, about 25 carbs will do that’s about 100 calories added in to stoke metab and get the muscle building underway again.

 

Most people dieting for shows aren’t doing refeeds, I would do a 2 meal reefed on weak body parts and keep that in every week for good.  So for example,  if you need to bring up shoulders and legs, train shoulders on Sunday, do a 2 meal refeed post workout, and train legs the following day to take advantage of all those stored carbs.  For more information on the refeeds I wrote on how to do them at 

http://nrgxlabs.blogspot.com/2012/03/team-gorman-refeeds-whenwhyhow-part-1.html

 

Once you get your refeed in and increased carbs by 25 for the week and pull cardio back to 30/30, watch your weight on the scale but also the mirror.  By the end of the week on Saturday and Sunday, you should still be pretty tight.  If you are not, keep cals the same again for a week, then increase again.  If you are tight then increase cals by 20 carbs and 5 fats at a whack keeping an eye on the mirror.  Also, reduce cardio again to just 30 mins daily.  The scale will go up but we are watching body fat levels not worry too much about scale, but use it as a tool.  I have seen people lose additional weight from speeding up of the metabolism from the food.

 

The next move will be to add cals in again to reduce cardio again and again until you get to about 20 mins 3-5 x a week for health and also to keep you leaner, it also helps keep hunger up so you have an appetite.

 

Done right I have seen this work VERY well.  It’s usually a 6-8 week phase, be careful much longer than that and you don’t need to increase much more, maybe every 3-4 weeks increase by small amounts like 10 carbs at a whack.  And the longer you get into offseason, the less you will eat on the refeeds, you just wont be so depleted and you wont have as much room to store the carbs in the muscle.  Don’t be afraid to bump the refeed down to 1 refeed meal a week.

 

Hope this helps, and good luck!