[kamspy]

Well, you know the pop is horrible for you and is helping you to keep the weight on. This 'no can do' attitude doesn't really sit well with me. You're most likely hooked on the sugar and the caffeine. Drink unsweetened coffee/tea or diet pop and deal with the sugar cravings for a couple of weeks until they go away. If you want carbonation, then use the diet pop or mineral water. If you don't need the fizz, drink water. As for stuff outside of food, it's not fast food that makes you fat, it's an excess of food. Figure out how much you eat in a day, and reduce that (keep protein high, it kills cravings and helps keep muscle on). If you can, use fitday.com for a couple of weeks to get a feel for what you're eating and what it's contributing to your diet. It's very helpful. Easy things to cut out (other than sugar drinks) are desserts and heavy alcohol consumption.

I agree that my approach toward pop is bad, but I'm taking steps to curb it. 3 cans a day was a stepping stone from my previous "the only thing I drink" approach. I was one of those guys who never got fat, then I around the time I turned 24 that stopped working and I was left with the bad habits.

My other problem is eating after dinner. If I can curb that, it would be a big step. But that's another bad habit from my awesome metabolism days.

[grumble]

im wondering if anyone who keeps a log of their diet would be willing to share? i need ideas of what to eat if im gonna start doing this shit. any good websites to built a dietary plan? (just joined a gym, looking to gain some muscle and lose some fat, no solid goals though)

Here's an idea of stuff that I eat:

Breakfast:
Eggs (4-5) w/ hot sauce, maybe a little cheese
Possibly oatmeal
Possibly bacon or peameal bacon
Possibly protein bar
Lots of 3% milk

Snack
Trail mix, milk

Lunch:
Chicken avocado wrap, smoked meat sandwich, burrito, that kind of stuff. High protein if possible.

Snack:
Trail mix, milk

Dinner:
Massive protein source (chicken, pork, beef, etc). Lots of it. I like to eat liver 1-2x/week, because it's insanely nutritious and it's cheap.
A veggie
Milk

After:
Drink milk until I hit calories for the day if there's a deficit.

This without fail gets me >1g/lb of protein/day and enough calories to gain weight if I so desire. If I want to lose weight, I cut to 1% or skim milk and stop eating so much trail mix. I don't drink much protein powder, though I usually have creatine in the evening. I mix it in hot water with a little lemon juice, it tastes like lemon water and is very relaxing.

The trick is that I used fitday for a long time and read a lot about nutrition until I kind of keep an automatic tally in my head without thinking about it. It's nice being in control of your diet.

[cuevas, PhD.]

3% milk? Why not skim?

[ipukespiders]

I agree that my approach toward pop is bad, but I'm taking steps to curb it. 3 cans a day was a stepping stone from my previous "the only thing I drink" approach. I was one of those guys who never got fat, then I around the time I turned 24 that stopped working and I was left with the bad habits. My other problem is eating after dinner. If I can curb that, it would be a big step. But that's another bad habit from my awesome metabolism days.

I'd like to recommend something totally different.

Starting tomorrow:

Eat exactly the same for the next week, drink all the pop you want...

...but also drink 4 Liters of water per day, every day.

If you can do that, reply to this post here in 7 days.

Also, do you have a bathroom scale? Weigh yourself tomorrow morning when you wake up. Then put the scale in a closet and forget about it.

[Duki]

oh god due to a thing i have i cant play any organised sport for like 6 months

which means i have to start running for the sake of running to keep in any kind of shape

i fuckin hate running

what do i dooooo

[ipukespiders]

oh god due to a thing i have i cant play any organised sport for like 6 months which means i have to start running for the sake of running to keep in any kind of shape i fuckin hate running what do i dooooo

pump iron

[Draft]

I'd be wary of that site, actually. There is a lot of broscience and misinformation out there to sift through.

But it's also one of the biggest lifting sites, maybe the biggest, so while there's lots of garbage, there's also a lot of very strong dudes. Don't dismiss BB.com.

[Phantast2k]

what do i dooooo

You swim? Or you man up & run. If you feel bored listen to mp3s, podcasts or audio books.

[DragonKnight]

Tomorrow is Memorial Day and this bbq is going to fuck with my cut. I'm gonna hit the treadmill for at least an hour tomorrow night. I'll just basically be eating a shit ton of meat and asparagus. Too bad i'll be getting some unnecessary carbs from the bbq sauce.

[X-Frame]

But it's also one of the biggest lifting sites, maybe the biggest, so while there's lots of garbage, there's also a lot of very strong dudes. Don't dismiss BB.com.

I was a huge regular there when I was in college. Name is Khryz there if anyone is interested. While I spent a lot of time initially in Teen Bodybuilding, Supplements, Exercises, etc -- soon after I realized that all the biggest, strongest, and smartest dudes (and women) were in their respective Journal sections.

Now I don't post anywhere unless it's in a Journal. I learned more posting in Journals and asking questions there along with starting my own journal and having people post feedback than in any other forum.

Not sure how it is now, but when I was active there were several people who were smart in the Exercise/Workout Program sections but still if I had to pick 1 forum to live in it would be the Workout Journal section.

Tomorrow is Memorial Day and this bbq is going to fuck with my cut. I'm gonna hit the treadmill for at least an hour tomorrow night. I'll just basically be eating a shit ton of meat and asparagus. Too bad i'll be getting some unnecessary carbs from the bbq sauce.

It's Memorial Day -- don't worry about it. Eat big for the troops!

Seriously though, I missed out on a lot of stuff in college when I was "dieting" and didn't want to stray at all. Cheating and just having a good time, going out for drinks, etc once in a while is not going to kill you -- let alone noticeably impact people's gains. Unless you're dieting for a competition, don't worry about it.

As you said, just hit the gym again the next day and resume your diet and I bet you won't notice a difference. Hell, some people will even notice they'll wake up SKINNIER the next day because the carb load will actually stimulate their leptin levels and boost metabolism back up.

[parrotbeak]

I agree that my approach toward pop is bad, but I'm taking steps to curb it. 3 cans a day was a stepping stone from my previous "the only thing I drink" approach. I was one of those guys who never got fat, then I around the time I turned 24 that stopped working and I was left with the bad habits.

Instead of a negative goal of cutting down soda, maybe try a goal of drinking a gallon of water a day? I don't know if you can drink that much during your workday, but if you focus on a goal like that, you won't really think about drinking soda, cuz every time you have an opportunity to drink something, you're thinking how much water you've still got to drink before the day is up.

Ah, I think ipukespiders probably has that same idea in his post.

[grumble]

3% milk? Why not skim?

Calories.

approx:
4L 3.25% milk = 2600cal
4L skim milk = 1550cal

I need calories. I'm not a big eater, and drinking milk is the easiest way to gain some weight. It works extremely well, so long as you don't OVEReat.

I switch to 1% if I want to lose weight.

[DragonKnight]

I broke down. I just had a strawberry and chocolate frosted doughnut. Cardio time.

I just couldn't help myself.

[Lamel]

I broke down. I just had a strawberry and chocolate frosted doughnut. Cardio time. I just couldn't help myself.

It's ok to have a cheat meal once in a while.


Anyway I am having trouble eating ENOUGH, I mean I can't drink milk or my acne gets way worse, I am doing a pretty clean bulk but it gets difficult to get 3000+ calories without milk. Any suggestions?

Edit: And clocking in this week and 145 lbs, making progress.

[Red UFO]

Pretty generic, boring question here but when doing push-ups, is there a good method of making sure you're equally distributing your weight?

[rando14]

Equally distributing the weight? You mean between left and right?

If you're using both hands I don't see why it would be "lopsided".

[Red UFO]

Equally distributing the weight? You mean between left and right? If you're using both hands I don't see why it would be "lopsided".

Yeah that's true, just wanted to make sure.

[WickedAngel]

Is there any good substitute for milk? Lactose intolerance really fucks that up for me; one glass and I've got gas all day. I can't even imagine what a gallon would do.

[X-Frame]

Is there any good substitute for milk? Lactose intolerance really fucks that up for me; one glass and I've got gas all day. I can't even imagine what a gallon would do.

I use Almond Milk. Vanilla, unsweetened. Throw in some stevia natural sweetener and it tastes great in my shakes.

[kamspy]

I drink a ton of water. We have a killer ice machine and filtered water dispenser at work and I probably do 4-6 32oz bottles a day.

[Neki]

You use the racks for barbell curls and stuff? In my gym, there's 2 whole other racks full of 20-100 pound mini-barbell weights that they can pick up and curl right there in-front of the mirror to their heart's content but so many want to load up a full barbell with 10 pounds and do it in the rack. I wish there was an actual GYM in my area, not a fitness center because then that would never fly. I want a gym with 6+ racks, 6+ ground pads for deads/cleans, dumbbells that go up to 200 pounds, etc. The free-weight area in my gym is decent but it's nothing compared to the army of treadmills and ellipticals. Lol.

No curls, just for rows, deadlifts, overhead press and squats. There is actually no free weight lifting area in my new gym, there is only the two squat racks, and the two Olympic bars that go along with them. If they actually had more olympic bars, I'd be happy to use them for everything but squats, but sadly no. So I spend 50 minutes in the squat rack doing three 5x5 exercises with warm-ups usually, feel kinda bad, but most of the time, no one is ever using them. I do agree with watching people curl the bar + 5 pounds, makes me kinda angry, lol.

[Masta_Killah]

Awesome new thread! Bah, leaving for boot camp in 2 weeks. Gonna miss talking about lifting with you fellas.

Is there any good substitute for milk? Lactose intolerance really fucks that up for me; one glass and I've got gas all day. I can't even imagine what a gallon would do.

You don't have to drink milk. As someone here said, it's used because it is a cheap source of protein and calories per serving size. If you are bulking, just eat more food. Try to shoot for 6 oz minimum of meat per meal and load up on the carbs. If you are cutting, continue to eat at least 6 oz of meat while drastically cutting your carbs.

Pretty generic, boring question here but when doing push-ups, is there a good method of making sure you're equally distributing your weight?

Try doing variations of push-ups. One method is to have one hand at a higher elevation than the other, or you can have your hands in different positions. Good one where you have one hand near your head, while the other is near your chest.

[grumble]

Is there any good substitute for milk? Lactose intolerance really fucks that up for me; one glass and I've got gas all day. I can't even imagine what a gallon would do.

Try milk with added lactase if you want to go the (very convenient and effective) milk route. I think one brand is lactaid.

[X-Frame]

No curls, just for rows, deadlifts, overhead press and squats. There is actually no free weight lifting area in my new gym, there is only the two squat racks, and the two Olympic bars that go along with them. If they actually had more olympic bars, I'd be happy to use them for everything but squats, but sadly no. So I spend 50 minutes in the squat rack doing three 5x5 exercises with warm-ups usually, feel kinda bad, but most of the time, no one is ever using them. I do agree with watching people curl the bar + 5 pounds, makes me kinda angry, lol.

Dude, that's perfectly fine. I wouldn't hate you. Lol. I would be jealous that you got the rack before me, that's all.

[reilo]

Is there any good substitute for milk? Lactose intolerance really fucks that up for me; one glass and I've got gas all day. I can't even imagine what a gallon would do.

I'm having a really bad last few hours due to the amount of milk I've been consuming. I'm not having digestive problems or anything, but man, I can barely breathe sometimes.

[cuevas, PhD.]

Calories. approx: 4L 3.25% milk = 2600cal 4L skim milk = 1550cal I need calories. I'm not a big eater, and drinking milk is the easiest way to gain some weight. It works extremely well, so long as you don't OVEReat. I switch to 1% if I want to lose weight.

Yeah calories are a must but I like to look at the quality of the calories.

1 Cup 3%
146 Calories
71 From Fat

1 Cup Skim
91 Calories
5 From Fat

I'd rather just drink half a cup more of skim milk or eat something else!

[parrotbeak]

Is there any good substitute for milk? Lactose intolerance really fucks that up for me; one glass and I've got gas all day. I can't even imagine what a gallon would do.

I personally enjoy Silk brand soy milk. I'm not lactose intolerant (or it's not noticeable, although I am Japanese and supposedly most of us are), but it stores well in bulk and I think it tastes good. I usually buy the vanilla one. The regular flavored one is noticeably blander.

No curls, just for rows, deadlifts, overhead press and squats. There is actually no free weight lifting area in my new gym, there is only the two squat racks, and the two Olympic bars that go along with them. If they actually had more olympic bars, I'd be happy to use them for everything but squats, but sadly no. So I spend 50 minutes in the squat rack doing three 5x5 exercises with warm-ups usually, feel kinda bad, but most of the time, no one is ever using them. I do agree with watching people curl the bar + 5 pounds, makes me kinda angry, lol.

Ya, that's me too. I always grab a rack as soon as one opens, and I'll warm up in it for my squats just cuz I don't want to lose it. A couple weeks ago I had plans after gym so I was on a time crunch. Never really paid attention to time before, and I realized I spend a long ass time on my 5x5 squats and rows, close to an hour with warm up. Barely had time to finish them and had to come back the next day to bench.

With the exception of warming up, I don't do anything in them that I could do outside of it. I could warm up with the small light bars in the dumbbell area if I weren't afraid of someone else hogging the rack.

I drink a ton of water. We have a killer ice machine and filtered water dispenser at work and I probably do 4-6 32oz bottles a day.

Maybe replace soda with a protein shake?

[CruxisMana]

So I've got 4 months before University starts again, so while I'm at home I've decided that I'm actually going to do something productive with my time, although I really don't have much idea where to start (besides having read the OP).

Age: 19
Height: 6"
Weight: 138lbs
Goal: I'm not quite sure. In a broad sense I'm sick of having such small arms, so I really want to try and gain some results there.
Current Training Schedule: None. This will be the first time I've really ever done anything of the sort, but I'm looking to start as soon as possible.
Current Training Equipment Available: Barbell and Dumbbells (and a basic bench).
Comments: Since this will be a beginning for me I'm just looking for any sort of advice that you guys can offer.

[ipukespiders]

Yeah calories are a must but I like to look at the quality of the calories. 1 Cup 3% 146 Calories 71 From Fat 1 Cup Skim 91 Calories 5 From Fat I'd rather just drink half a cup more of skim milk or eat something else!

Milk fat is good for you.
I've been cutting since January, and I'm still dropping body fat, and I drink 2%, eat 2% cottage cheese, bit of cheddar.

[X-Frame]

So I've got 4 months before University starts again, so while I'm at home I've decided that I'm actually going to do something productive with my time, although I really don't have much idea where to start (besides having read the OP). Age: 19 Height: 6" Weight: 138lbs Goal: I'm not quite sure. In a broad sense I'm sick of having such small arms, so I really want to try and gain some results there. Current Training Schedule: None. This will be the first time I've really ever done anything of the sort, but I'm looking to start as soon as possible. Current Training Equipment Available: Barbell and Dumbbells (and a basic bench). Comments: Since this will be a beginning for me I'm just looking for any sort of advice that you guys can offer.

You're a beginner, which means you're lucky. It'll be easy for you to grow on almost anything, at least at first.

There's a couple things you need to focus on. 1) Eating big. 2) Getting strong. 3) Resting.

For eating big, re-read Post #3 in this thread. Should get you going. Just remember that you're tall and skinny, so if you've been like this all your life you probably don't really "get" how much calories is needed to grow. Most people when I was in college were shocked at how much I ate just to go from 175 to 195. You won't need as much since you weigh less, but if the scale isn't moving and you don't see changes in the mirror you're not eating enough. Period.

For lifting, stay away from any muscle or fitness magazine -- forever actually. There's plenty of links at the end of Post #4 here that should provide you with guidance.

Resting, self-explanatory. If you're a skinny kid because you play sports 6x a week, or run often -- in order to grow you'll need to cut back or else eat a lot more. Plenty of sleep is also key.


The rest is all gravy at this point for you. No need to over-analyze. Just eat big (plenty of protein), a lifting program that uses primarily the big, multi-joint compound exercises (bench, row, squat, shoulder press, etc) and sleep.

[grumble]

Yeah calories are a must but I like to look at the quality of the calories. 1 Cup 3% 146 Calories 71 From Fat 1 Cup Skim 91 Calories 5 From Fat I'd rather just drink half a cup more of skim milk or eat something else!

Yep, but there's a point of protein consumption where it all just gets oxidized (ie used for energy and not structural building). I get more than enough to stimulate solid muscle gain, and everything beyond that I eat to make sure that there are plenty on non-protein energy sources to burn so the protein that happens to be floating around my bloodstream at that moment goes towards building tissue.

There's nothing wrong with eating a fair bit of fat. It's eating too many calories that's the issue; I'd accept a slightly slower muscle gain rate if I can dramatically slow down my fat gain. It's about balance, a smooth but not crazy-fast bulk followed by a smooth but not crazy-fast cut (though I find I can push the cuts pretty hard personally).

Of course, worst of all is not eating enough calories.

[cuevas, PhD.]

Any of you guys take gaba? Even with intense workouts I have always had trouble falling and staying asleep. Gaba seems to help that and more.

[SeanR1221]

Feel free to cut oatmeal. It's not necessary to eat it, ever. You might have pulled something, or might have banged it with the bar. That happens and can leave swelling and a little bruising. I also love fitday. I usually end up somewhere around Zone levels, at 40/30/30 P/C/F. I find I have issues eating enough with higher protein, since I have a small appetite and protein is very filling. Let us know how fitday is working out for you down the road.

Yeah I have a solid bruise above my knee now :)

Think I'll stick with the elliptical for a few more gym days to not stress anything. Especially because I'm working legs today.

Thanks for the oatmeal tip. Breakfast today was 2 eggs and cottage cheese.

[SeanR1221]

Also, should the OP put some info about 5 day splits into the thread?

I agree that 3 day/full body routines are great for beginners, but after a couple years of that, I was ready to move on.

Personally, my body no longer responds well to that. Doing a mixture of mostly compound and some isolated exercises split across 5 days has yielded the best gains for me. Of course this takes an extra level of dedication, and is not recommended to jump right into.

[Jason's Ultimatum]

Drinking GOMAD doesn't even sound healthy from the name alone. Fuck that noise.

[grumble]

Drinking GOMAD doesn't even sound healthy from the name alone. Fuck that noise.

It's not really meant as a long-term thing. Once you hit your target weight, you usually cut back on the milk. It works really well, and it's cheap and easy. If you don't want to do it, there are many other options.

[grumble]

Also, should the OP put some info about 5 day splits into the thread? I agree that 3 day/full body routines are great for beginners, but after a couple years of that, I was ready to move on. Personally, my body no longer responds well to that. Doing a mixture of mostly compound and some isolated exercises split across 5 days has yielded the best gains for me. Of course this takes an extra level of dedication, and is not recommended to jump right into.

There's a lot of debate about that. The old-time bodybuilders (ie pre-drugs) were all pretty much using full-body routines, and it was clearly very effective. The trick is to know that the full-body routine for a more advanced trainee doesn't look much like the one for a novice.

That being said, spit routines are viable options for advanced lifters. While I don't think they're ever appropriate for novices, they should really get included in the OP (with bold disclaimers explaining their intended audience).

Feel like writing something well-backed up?

[SeanR1221]

There's a lot of debate about that. The old-time bodybuilders (ie pre-drugs) were all pretty much using full-body routines, and it was clearly very effective. The trick is to know that the full-body routine for a more advanced trainee doesn't look much like the one for a novice. That being said, spit routines are viable options for advanced lifters. While I don't think they're ever appropriate for novices, they should really get included in the OP (with bold disclaimers explaining their intended audience). Feel like writing something well-backed up?

Yeah, I just spent the past hour reading some of the debates.

My old 3 day split didn't look half bad either. I think it was...

Day 1 (chest/triceps)
- Chest press
- Skull crushers
- DB flys
- Dips
- Cable cross-overs
- Tricep pull downs

Day 2 (rest)

Day 3 (Back/biceps)
- Lateral pull down
- DB curl
- Dead Lifts
- Preacher Curls
- Bent over rows
- Back extensions

Day 4 (rest)

Day 5 (shoulders/Legs)
- Squats
- DB shoulder press
- Calf raises
- Shrugs
- Leg Curls
- Shoulder lifts

Day 6/7 (rest)

Maybe if I ever went back to that, I'd incorporate some light cardio on rest days to stay a little active. I dunno. Keep in mind, I went from 3 day split -> 5 day split -> 3 day split -> nothing/being lazy -> 3 day split ->5 day split.

That second 5 day split was where I was in my best shape. I want to be back there. The nothing/being lazy/stressed over grad school KILLED me. Easily packed on 15 pounds, and I was only able to shake 5 off, even though all my old clothes fit me well again.

[DragonKnight]

I did the GOMAD last summer and I really do not recommend it. You will gain mass quickly but chances are a lot of it will be fat. I shot from 157 to 200 lbs in less than three months with the GOMAD and SS. Great gains, right? No. Way way too much fat. My stomach got huge and my face lost it's square shape and became round which is a problem that I am cutting to rectify.

Bulks should be slow. Find your BMR, factor in your activity level and add 500 cals. Start from there and you will bulk slowly but surely. Plus the GOMAD really fucked with my BP. I do not recommend it.

Plenty of other ways too bulk.

For example, here is a great breakast:

1 cup oatmeal
1 cup fat free milk
1 serving of wheatgerm
3 boiled eggs
1 banana
1 serving of honey
1 glass of OJ

That's a shit ton of protein, fiber, and calories with minimal fat

Lunch and Dinner--Eat a whole chicken break, 2 baked potato, and veggies

Snack--nuts and veggies.

[Jason's Ultimatum]

I'd ditch the OJ unless you're making it from fresh oranges.

[TheRagnCajun]

Drinking GOMAD doesn't even sound healthy from the name alone. Fuck that noise.

Its a good way to gain weight if you're too skinny and having trouble overcoming your metabolism. As a long term bulking strategy though, its not such good idea, too much fat.

[Jason's Ultimatum]

But how long do you use it for? A week I can see, anything past that it'd fuck me up. God, even one day would be enough to turn me away. I'd think moderation should be kept in mind for any diet. I'm a hardgainer with a superfast metabolism and sensitive skin, yet I'm able to slowly add the pounds with the right foods.

[nilbog21]

I tried reading the part about how to do deadlifts properly, but didn't understand. does anyone have a gif/video of proper form?

also roughly how many almonds should i eat when i work out. i am 140lbs

[Lamel]

I tried reading the part about how to do deadlifts properly, but didn't understand. does anyone have a gif/video of proper form? also roughly how many almonds should i eat when i work out. i am 140lbs

Lol...what. Why specifically almonds? If you want to know how much you should eat in general, read the OP and calculate your BMR.

But how long do you use it for? A week I can see, anything past that it'd fuck me up. God, even one day would be enough to turn me away. I'd think moderation should be kept in mind for any diet. I'm a hardgainer with a superfast metabolism and sensitive skin, yet I'm able to slowly add the pounds with the right foods.

You and me both man. How do you prevent breakouts while eating so many calories? It's becoming a challenge for me I hate seeing those little zits pop up.

[Jason's Ultimatum]

I eat salad every other day now. I also add dressing that helps with the calories. Other than that, the only thing that changed in my diet is eating two chicken breasts a day.

[DragonKnight]

But how long do you use it for? A week I can see, anything past that it'd fuck me up. God, even one day would be enough to turn me away. I'd think moderation should be kept in mind for any diet. I'm a hardgainer with a superfast metabolism and sensitive skin, yet I'm able to slowly add the pounds with the right foods.

I used it for three months and it was a big mistake. I'd say a month max and then stop

[Lamel]

I eat salad every other day now. I also add dressing that helps with the calories. Other than that, the only thing that changed in my diet is eating two chicken breasts a day.

I mean I can get the calories in, it's just that sometimes too many cause my skin to break out again. Any foods that help with that? I know anti inflammatory foods might...

[Jason's Ultimatum]

Well I eat just about 3500 calories a day. Maybe a bit more than that.

My diet looks like this:

Breakfast:
1 cup oatmeal
flax seed
sliced banana
pecans
scoop of whey protein

Shake
1 cup milk
sliced bananas
sliced strawberries
2 scoop almond butter
sliced avocados
scoop whey protein

Lunch
chicken breast and some kind of vegetable

Afternoon snack
chicken breast and kashi crackers

Dinner
anything really-lentil soup, steak, spaghetti, etc

Late night snack
cinamon raisen bread with two scoops of almond butter and an apple

Peanut butter breaks me out so I switched to amond butter. Plus, peanut butter tastes like shit now after trying almond butter.

I've heard a high protein low carb diet helps people who suffer with acne.

[parrotbeak]

I tried reading the part about how to do deadlifts properly, but didn't understand. does anyone have a gif/video of proper form?

Mark Rippetoe: Intro to the Deadlift

Go through the checklist from feet up as you do it (check your foot position first, then bar in relation to your mid-foot and shins, and work up). Start with an empty bar and practice the form until you feel like you are getting it, and then practice over and over with a light weight, maybe 95 lbs or less. You'll need to do it over multiple sessions to get the muscle memory imbedded. Don't move on to weights that could compromise your form while you're still in the learning stage. You want to be able to dl perfectly without thinking -- although of course you still consciously check your form even after you've gotten it into muscle memory. Helps a lot to have other people check your form.

Also once you move on to heavier weight, remember that the dl works a lot of muscle and is hard on the lower back, so don't overdo them.

Here's some helpful reading:

http://stronglifts.com/how-to-deadli...per-technique/

http://library.crossfit.com/free/pdf...ofDeadlift.pdf

[TheRagnCajun]

But how long do you use it for? A week I can see, anything past that it'd fuck me up. God, even one day would be enough to turn me away. I'd think moderation should be kept in mind for any diet. I'm a hardgainer with a superfast metabolism and sensitive skin, yet I'm able to slowly add the pounds with the right foods.

I used it for a month and gained 20lbs. Thats ok though because I was too skinny to begin with. A beginner can gain more than 1 lb per week lean muscle mass, then there's water weight. If I had to guesstimate, I'd say I gained 8-10 lbs fat and probably brought me up to 15% bodyfat.

Its a quick fix for skinny guys.