Hello every body. I've been reading this board for a while and I must say there are some really good people giving some really good advice here. Good job.
Now the backstory: I am 6'2'' 233lbs. I'm not sure as to what my body fat percentage is but I'm sure it's relatively high. I was lifting for around 7 months with great results and ran into a nasty case of tricep tendonitis which got me out of the gym for about 6 months to let it heal.
I began lifting and doing light cardio exactly one month ago. I did mostly isolation exercises to get all my muscles used to the strain of lifting again (sore as hell for a good 2 weeks). Needless to say the weight I've been able to lift has gone down considerably.
Now that I have hit one month I feel like I'm ready to get back in to a strength building routine. I've been reading about different routines and I've decided to do the
5x5 that I found on this board. I love doing deadlifts and squats (something must be wrong with me) and I would like to increase my overall strength.
I've also decided to use a carb cycling diet so I can drop some of this excess fat. I know some of you may say I should eat like crazy when doing the 5x5 but I've read some people's stories on how they had great results carb cycling and doing the 5x5.
So I'm here to show you guys the plan I would like to start next week and get some feedback.
I'll assume you all know the basics of the 5x5. My split would be:
Code:
Monday - Off
Tuesday - Gym
Wednesday - Off
Thursday - Gym
Friday - Off
Saturday - Gym
Sunday - Off
Working out on Saturday just better suits my lifestyle. With this split I am going to use this carb cycle:
Code:
Monday - No Carb
Tuesday - High Carb
Wednesday - No Carb
Thursday - Low Carb
Friday - No Carb
Saturday - High Carb
Sunday - Low Carb
My thinking is that my workouts will fall on the two high carb days and one low carb day which should give me the energy I need in the gym.
Below is the diet I have laid out using the values from fitday.com. For my current body type, it is recommended I get 3000 calories a day to maintain my current body weight. So I'm shooting for around 2500 calories a day for a nice cut.
Code:
More then 1 gallon of water drank per day. Usually around 1.5.
1 multivitamin and 1 L-Arginine supplement taken every morning with breakfast.
(Calories/Fat/Carb/Protein)
No Carb Day
7:30a.m. - Three Eggs Scrambled (304/22/4/20)
10:00a.m. - Muscle Milk Protein Shake (348/18/12/32)
12:30p.m. - Lean Ground Turkey & Reduced Fat Cheese Wrap (636/35/33/60)
4:30p.m. - Sci-Pro Protein Shake (220/3/6/42)
Workout
7:00p.m. - Chicken & Red Peppers (398/5/9/73)
8:30p.m. - Sci-Pro Portein Shake (220/3/6/42)
Total - (2126/86/70/269)
Low Carb Day
7:30a.m. - Oatmeal (128/1/27/3)
10:00a.m. - Muscle Milk Protein Shake (348/18/12/32)
12:30p.m. - Chicken & Red Peppers Wrap With Olive Oil (507/23/40/49)
4:30p.m. - Sci-Pro Protein Shake (220/3/6/42)
Workout
7:00p.m. - Chicken & Brown Rice (713/8/90/66)
8:30p.m. - Sci-Pro Portein Shake (220/3/6/42)
Total - (2136/56/181/234)
High Carb Day
7:30a.m. - Oatmeal (128/1/27/3)
10:00a.m. - Muscle Milk Protein Shake (348/18/12/32)
12:30p.m. - Grilled Chicken Wrap With Brown Rice (823/12/121/66)
4:30p.m. - Sci-Pro Protein Shake (220/3/6/42)
Workout
7:00p.m. - Barilla Plus Pasta With Tomatoes And Olive Oil(616/97/24)
8:30p.m. - Sci-Pro Portein Shake (220/3/6/42)
Total - (2355/53/268/209)
That is pretty much the plan.
I do have a few questions though.
1. 5x5 states to do "low volume" triceps. How many sets is low volume? 3x3?
2. Should light cardio be used at all during the 5x5? I like to do a light 30 minutes on the eliptical which usually burns around 400 calories. Should I cut this out all together or go on off days?
3. Any videos on the JS Row? Dropping the bar all the way to the ground seems like it would really strain my lower back because of my height. I would like to see the proper form for this.
Thanks in advance.
The Plan
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