noob advice?

G'day guys, was just after some advice.

First some background information.

Im 20, male, currently serving in the ADF. Although ive had no trouble keeping and maintaining an operational level of fitness ive always had an interest in muscle building and development. Unfortunately this finds me in a bit of a pickle.

I apperently (according to the scales) sit at 82kgs and around 19% bf, at 175cm. About 6 months ago i tried to lean up and get some abs showing (never had any) and i managed to get down to 72kgs and around 12% bf, but in the process had lost virtually all my muscle mass and strength. Above all, i still didnt have the abs i desired. Basically i did it wrong.

Now my goal is still to get a defined ab region, but i dont want to lose the muscle ive built around my chest and arms. The pickle is i have no access to any cooking facilities other then a microwave, which leaves me relying on whatever food i can find that doesnt need to be cooked.

Now I realise I sound like a noob, but what sort of food should i be aiming to consume considering i cant cook anything, and what sort of training should I be doing to get the results i want, essentially just to get leaner (not really too fussed on getting huge, although it would be nice. genetically I have a big chest and arms compared to the rest of my body anyway). I do 3 PT sessions a week organised by the ADF but I also have plenty of time in the evening to do my own training sessions, and i have access to a top notch gym.

Please go easy on my guys, although im not new to training ive never really been happy with my body and i think its time i got serious and do something about it.

Cheers Dylan

Hi Dylan,

Firstly, thank you for your service.

A lot of what you've asked is going to depend on where you're based. Sounds like you basically want to cut, which is simply a matter of eating a calorie deficit. What sorta food do you normally eat? Main advice here is you have to monitor what your intake is, check the result then adjust the intake accordingly. If you don't know how to do this, say so.

What sorta PT sessions are you doing? Knowing the ADF it's probably long distance running and pushups/chinups? Definitely recommend you add some strength sessions in your free time. If you said what your current lifts are at, someone might be able to give you advice on which routine/program might be appropriate.

Can you please detail what you do with your PT Dylan.

Thanks.

Haha sorry, based at HMAS Cerberus for now but will be posting back home over west by the end of the year. Anyone thats been here would now how miserable of a place it can be lol.

I tried the calorie deficit thing and it worked but i hit 12% and i honestly just looked like a smaller version of myself, as id lost all my muscle mass. I still didnt have the abs i wanted, and i also hit a plateau that i couldnt get over. I also had problems with concentration and getting myself motivated which is something i cant really afford at this point in my training as im a technician and i cant afford to make mistakes. Obviously I was probably eating at too much of a deficit because since ive been eating more ive been able to concentrate better, so there must be a proper way of doing it?

I normally try and eat low GI carbs (porridge for breakfast, brown rice, etc) and my protein comes from shakes and canned fish, i know im obviously at a disadvantage as i dont have access to a fridge or anything like that, but surely i can still find a way to get lean with what ive got.

PT sessions are nearly always circuit based, short high intensity that sort of thing. In the evenings when ive got my own time i do weights but im not really too sure what sort of sessions i should do to hit my goal, ive been lifting 5 nights a week and then leaving weekends to rest but yeah, not too sure how i should be going about it. Everyone tells me weights are the best way to get lean because muscles burns calories throughout the day, but it doesnt seem to be working for me, i must be doing something wrong.

Disclaimer: I am also a noob

To reduce bodyfat and maintain as much muscle as possible, the basic approach is:
1) Continue to perform heavy lifting, increasing weight if possible, at the very least maintaining current levels
2) Eat at least 1.5g protein per kg of body weight every day
3) Maintain a slight calorie defecit every week

The reason you need to keep lifting heavy should be pretty clear, if you dont you lose muscle mass, regardless of how much or what you eat

The protein per day approach is to allow you to maintain and/or add muscle mass

Being in calorie defecit is the only way to reduce bodyweight

There are many approaches to acheiving sufficient protein intake without consuming more than your desired amount of calories, pick the one which appeals / fits your situation best.

Now to answer the question you are not really asking, what to do weights training wise?

A program based around compound lifts, barbell squat, deadlift, bench press, military press, etc.

For example:
http://ausbb.com/strength-training-power-lifting/9460-beginners-program.html
http://ausbb.com/bodybuilding-training-discussions/9660-beginners-look-here.html

If you are already a strong bloke then just ignore this post

Semillon said:

The reason you need to keep lifting heavy should be pretty clear, if you dont you lose muscle mass, regardless of how much or what you eat

Click to expand...

thats the key i reckon, when i leaned up before i stopped weights and just smashed cardio, it worked but i literally just shrank, i didnt lean up at all because i lost all my muscle mass. this begs the question of how much cardio i should be doing? i do do the 3 PT sessions a week which are cardio based but is that enough, or should i be doing more?

Can you please detail what you do with your PT Dylan.

Ahh sorry mate

3 times a week, class of about 20-30 people, usually do 20-30 min high intensity cardio sort of sessions, usually around some sort of circuit. Sometimes we do pump and spin classes and sometimes its swimming, it varies. Pretty much they revolve around the fact we have to be able to do 25 sit-ups, 25 push-ups and run 2.4km in under 12 minutes. So while ill work up a sweat they arent exactly what id call hard

Cardio is not neccessary to lose fat/weight, being in calorie defecit is.

If you were to eat at maintenance for your current activity level, then adding in additional cardio would put you in a defecit. Eating less calories would put you in a defecit. Having more learn muscle mass and eating the same would put you in a defecit...

ahhh i see, well i dont really have a choice with the cardio, and i like eating haha.

is there any particular exercises I should be doing?

To break it down into easy terms.
Eat protein every meal. Drop carbs.
Lift heavy weights with a compound exercise every session.
Cardio exercise, preferably HIIT.
Most importantly, stick to it.

weighed myself this morning, 80.7kgs at 17.3% BF.
at least there is progress but im still not very happy. id say most of that bodyfat is around my waist

Being male you will hold most your bodyfat around your waste, don't be disheartened by genetics.
Progress is positive!
Keep going, you're heading in the right direction!

Hey mate, what PQ are you training for at Cerberus?

I assume that you're doing long term training for a PQ and not just on a short term course since you have a microwave (possibly an incorrect assumption).

How long have you been with the RAN?

Electronics technician, definately long term course

Don't have a microwave, I have access to one haha

And I've been in 2 1/2 years now

Starting Strength

Second half is a discussion of strength training in the military in the US, you may get something out of it.

cheers mate that was awesome

definately starting to see results, all i hope is i can get as lean as i want to get.
bout to head to the gym now and smash some deadlifts out

Read:
- Starting Strength
- Practical Programming
- 5/3/1
- Alan Aragon's Girth Control, or any posts by Maxbrenner (on this board) or Emma-Leigh (bb.com).

Teach yourself.

shakey said:

Electronics technician, definately long term course

Don't have a microwave, I have access to one haha

And I've been in 2 1/2 years now

Click to expand...

A greenie huh? We might run into each other at some point, I'm finishing my Engineering degree for birdie greenie in the next few months.

Do you have any idea about posting locality after you finish at Cerberus?