Whiteabbeywords

So I've been making my post workout shake and I just wanted to see if you guys had any suggestions. I put 50g whey, a banana, 7g creatine and 200g milk in the blender. I'm lifting heavy at the minute (5/3/1 + big but boring) and would like to get bigger and stronger. Is there anything I'm missing I am missing? Would 50g maxi maze instead of banana or water instead of milk make a difference? Thanks guys

I'm off foe a two week family holiday next month. While I do intend to take a break, I don't want to loose and strength gains I've made over the past 4 months. I know that body weight squats and lunges will look after my lower body and that push-ups will work my chest and triceps. Just not sure how to work my back out in a hotel room. Any help much appreciated!

Hi All I've just discovered strength training after about a year of other rep, bodybuilding-type training. In October I started 5/3/1 for deadlifting and squats and I'm addicted! I'm particularly interested in the deadlift. My 1RM has gone from 95kg in November to 140kg just before Christmas. I'd love to hit 180KG by my birthday in April (2 1/4 X body weight). Every week I was lifting more and seeing progress but it's levelled out quicker than I'd have liked. I lifted 140kg one week and felt amazing but couldn't replicate that weight 6 days later. I'm on the 3-rep week next and I'd love to keep making gains. I'm just focusing on the big 4 lifts plus pull ups 3-4 days a week. I was hoping some of you guys with more experience could give me a tip or two regarding preparation up to a few days before a maximal effort day. Sleep, food, stretching, mental prep anything you can think of I'd be so grateful to hear about. Thanks

What's your most recent progress? I found that getting to 3-4 reps was the hard part after that I could almost add a rep per week. So I think your closer to mastering it than you think!

Thanks guys, I really appreciate you taking the time to comment. Unfortunately both pieces of advise are conflicting! Hopefully come one will come in and break the tie!

A bruise is exactly the way it feels although there is nothing to see. So are you cutting leg work altogether until the pain goes away?

I've been training properly with weights for almost 6 months. After reading some advise on this site and others I really started to focus on lifting heavy with big compound movements. Problem is that I went a bit too heavy and hurt my knee! It's a very specific pin point pain at the front of my knee which only bothers me if I touch it or squat. I think the issue may be related to stupidly wearing running trainers with a very thick sole which puts some of the weight on my toes rather than heels. I haven't squatted for a few weeks now and I really miss it! Has anyone ever experienced this type of injury before? Can I train through it using a lighter bar and better footwear? Assuming I have to do the sensible thing and stay of squats until the pain totally goes away, what is the most knee friendly exercises I .can do? Thanks

'Keep her lit' as we say in Belfast! I did 6 sets today on the bar, close grip pull ups without a band alternating with wide grip pull-ups with the band. Definitely think it puts a bit of mass on the arms!

Well done. I'd work on 3-4 sets of 10-12 reps for a week or two then drop to the weakest band. Or you could try the first set unassisted and only use the band when you need it.

I wouldn't use the step as it makes the movement too easy, taking out a lot of your core and pushing all the way up. The band gives you a boost when your at the lowest part of the motion but after that it's mostly you!

I remember that after 6-7 weeks with a personal trainer I was feeling pretty good about myself. After some squats he asked me to do 5 natural grip pull ups, I gave it my best shot but just hung there like a half wit! As I could hardly lift myself up an inch I didn't go near the bar again for another 6 weeks and just focused on diet and big compound movements. Then one day the gym was empty so I thought I'd give it another go, I knocked out 6 quite easily, it was like someone else's arms were lifting me,! The wide grip pull up is so much more difficult. I bought a light assistance band from amazon for a few pounds. It only took 5-15kg off the weight but that made a big difference. After a few weeks with the band doing 6 sets of 6 I can now do most sets without assistance. So from my own personal experience I'd advise you to try a band and see if it helps. Good luck with it and the wedding in August!

Hi all Have any guys experience of using the drug Clomid? It's routinely prescribed for female infertility but some body builders use it when they come off steroids to help with natural hormone levels. I've never taken 'roids and don't intended to start either but my wife is taking them for the conventional reason with no ill effects so I thought I might try them to help build extra muscle. Does anyone know if there's a positive effect of using Clomid eveen without a course of steroids? Thanks

Thanks guys, I should have been more specific, I was going to elevate the bar 10 inches higher than it would normally sit with plates on it.

I'd like to start dead lifting heaver weights again (from my standard 4 sets Of 10 reps). Some of the old boys in the gym have advised me to start with the bar raised about 10 inches of the ground on steps. I know this reduces the chance of injury but I'm not clear in what I'm missing out on by raising the starting point of the bar. Thanks

Thanks for taking the time to comment. I feel bigger mainly in my upper body, my stomach is still flat but there's no hint of a six pack there now! My wife says I look better but she's biased. The test was done in a body scanner ( looked similar to an MRI) which the docs in Uni tell me is as accurate as I'll get for body composition, day 0 was taken in the same machine. Thanks for the article Bolson, it makes sense but only over very short periods of time, I've been dedicated to building muscle for 7 weeks. I've tried to focus on lifting progressively heavier weights and on the big compound movements. I've got my 200g protein per day but have probably been lazy with carbs and fat as I don't really measure them. I'm not sure it can be answered in a forum but I just need some guidance on what to do next. 6 ibs muscle gain seems great and would make me want to continue as I've been doing, 6 ibs fat gain is equally worrying and I don't want to get fat again!