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I chose my username for good reason, because breaking news: students have very little money. As I stick to a (mostly) paleo diet, a breakfast/lunch of this on toast or that in a sandwich wasn't an option for me, and I had to devise my own meals. After some time of scouring for paleo meals that were ideal for my muscle-focussed diet (using a protein:carb:fat macro ratio of 40:30:30 as a basic guideline), I had trouble finding many that fit my food budget (read: not much). I stumbled across the famous 2-ingredient pancake recipe (blend 2 eggs + 1 banana, fry, flip), this was fairly ideal for my diet, but quite a pain to make every morning in a frying pan from pound-stretcher, especially if I wanted to get to the gym before a 9am lecture. Adapting from the pancakes I came up with the following recipe, it fits my macros, costs a mere £1.05 (may differ depending on where you shop) for an amount that could cover 2 breakfasts (I have half for breakfast and half as a post-workout meal), and tastes delicious. Apologies for the essay of an introduction, this is my first post and wanted to introduce myself somewhat, so without further ado, a recipe that requires no introduction. Ingredients: 7 eggs (you may wish to use egg whites depending on where you stand on the yolk debate) 2 bananas (preferably medium-large, as small bananas may result in more of a frittata) 1 scoop of whey protein powder (I like vanilla, but other popular choices include chocolate, maple, toffee, or banana) A dash of cinnamon (that's a metric dash, not imperial) Instructions: Preheat oven to 180C (unsure of Fahrenheit or gas mark equivalent) Grease casserole dish or equivalent how you see fit (some do not require greasing, I use 1kcal spray) Blend all ingredients together thoroughly Poor mixture into dish Place dish in the oven for roughly an hour (times may vary, keep an eye on it the first few times baking) Remove dish and allow to cool before serving Note: double, triple, quadruple the recipe if you like, increase to baking time will vary depending on the type of dish used. Feel free to recommend changes in the comments, and if you decide to try it yourself, let me know how it goes. Thanks for reading, -SB

I figured since I'm new to the community and have only been lifting weights for about 3-4 months now that I'd share my current routine with you all. The individual workouts were designed by a Personal Trainer based on my goals and what I was able to do around a month ago. Day 1, Push: Bench press (5 sets of 10) Pec fly Push up Cable press Tricep pull down Reverse fly (4 sets of 10 as a superset) Day 2, Legs: Barbell squat (5 sets of 10) Dumbbell lunge Dumbbell step up Barbell glute bridge Leg press (4 sets of 10 as a superset) Day 3, Pull: Bent over row (5 sets of 10) Chin up (assisted if necessary) Pull up (assisted if necessary) Deadlift Bicep curl Push up row (unsure of actual name, you hold dumbbells in the push up position and pull them back) (4 sets of 10 as superset) Day 4, rest After day 4 I repeat the cycle unless I'm feeling particularly sore, in which case I take a second rest day before repeating. It doesn't fit a weekly schedule, instead I just repeat the cycle regardless of day. The exercises in the super sets aren't done in a particular order, I tend to mix it up and it varies depending on what equipment is most available. Any criticisms or advice would be gladly appreciated. Thanks for reading, -SB

Good morning, good afternoon and good evening everyone. As I'm new here I figure I'll give a very brief background of my physical activity history. Birth-2013: Any physical activity was virtually non-existent. I hate to single somebody out because of their weight, but in 2012 I began dating somebody who was incredibly "out of shape", and sufficed to say she brought me down with her. But this isn't a complaint, prior to 2012 I was your average guy that didn't exercise very often, when my year-long relationship ended in 2013 I had gained 3 stone, I was unhappy with my body and it was exactly the push I needed to do something about it. 2014 January-June: With a newfound incentive to increase my physical fitness and lose weight, but very little knowledge on how to do so, I set off on my adventure. At first it was gradual, I'd walk my dog for two or three times longer than I had in the past (he was a big old thing so he loved it). Weight began to shift, and I started paying more attention to my diet, removing most junk food and increasing the chicken, tuna, fruit and veg. When the weight loss slowed down I took up running every morning. Unfortunately I must admit I went too far the other direction, I lost all three stone I'd gained and then some, ending up too skinny. June-Today: With a new newfound incentive to increase my physical fitness and gain weight, I started reading more into it, learning how to build muscle and the best methods for it. At the start I was so skinny I struggled with 2.5kg dumbbells, but the more I read the better became my techniques, I began to build back up my weight in largely muscle. By August I was doing compound lifts with equipment Id bought and stored in the shed, with my max lifting being around a 20kg barbell. In August I began seeing a personal trainer, who smoothed out the rough edges in my diet and exercise. Now I'm slightly heavier than I was in 2012 but much healthier, and lifting over 50kg in a lot of my exercises. I may not be the most muscular or the fastest runner, but I shook off 4 stone in 5 months and then managed to gain a stone in muscle (and a little fat on the side) in 2-3 months. I'm healthier and stronger than I've ever been and improving. Now that I'm at university I don't have a high budget, but I have managed to plan so that I can eat healthy and train regularly without getting myself a ton of (more) debt. If anybody's in the same boat I'd love to hear how your fitness has been going since moving to uni. Thanks for reading, -SB