Q: Can you blog a summary of your meals/diet in a day?
- Fabodylous reader
A: Right now I'm dieting for a competition, so my diet is aimed for fat loss rather than mass gaining. Thus, my meals in a typical day are so -
8am - Whatever meat my hostel canteen serves
9am - protein drink and cardio
11am - 7 egg whites with 3 yolks
2pm - beef steak with salad
5pm - tuna salad and nuts
8pm - again whatever meat my hostel canteen serves, with veggies this time
10pm - protein drink and weight training
12am - tuna salad and nuts
When I'm gaining mass, the only differences in my diet are that I don't take the nuts and that I add a carbohydrate source, such as rice, pasta, sweet potatoes or oats into my meals, except the last meal of the night. You don't have to follow this diet plan strictly, but it should be taken as a guideline as to what your diet should be like. Most importantly, keep your protein intake high (as least 1g of protein for every pound of bodyweight) and eat every 2 to 3 hours.
Q: Wow. I read your blog. I can see lots of perseverance on your part. I'm wondering if you have any advice for me, a working adult who does not take any supplements.
-de.crystal, Lowyat.net forum user.
A: Haha. Thanks a lot. A while ago, I was working as a marketing executive for an Internet company, and I had to travel everyday to meet clients. During this time, it's hard for me to get good meals everyday. I did learn a few tricks to work around it. One is to keep everything I need in my car. I kept my protein supplement in my car boot and also a set of clothes and my sports shoes so I could hop to the gym immediately and if I ever missed a meal, I could take my protein supplement to make up for the loss. Perhaps you could do the same by keeping some simple food (such as canned tuna, or protein drinks) at your office pantry. As for having gym workouts, you NEED to create a habit. Find a time each day when you're free to go the gym and stick to it. I know some people refuse to take supplements because they think that it's only for hardcore bodybuilders but it's not. Our muscles respond the same. Our muscles are made out of cytoplasm, mitochondria and nucleus. For starters, try getting this (click here) and keep it in your office. When you can't get a good meal, take 3 scoops of it. Remember, perseverance brings future benefits. I wish you the best in following your programme while working.
Q: Hey, just wondering if you could write up a schedule for someone who wants to gain muscles and lose fat at the same time.
- Fabodylous reader
A: To tell you the truth, it's more efficient if one either works towards losing fat or gaining muscle mass instead of doing both at the same time. That's because some fat loss methods are contradicting with muscle gaining methods and if you try to aim for both, your chances of failing is higher. The best thing to do is to assess yourself. Will fat loss or muscle gain look better on you? If you can't decide, try muscle gain first. That's because after you gain some muscle mass, it'll be easier for you to lose fat. For a muscle gain plan, click here. So train hard, and eat well!
Q: Dear Wee Kiat, I'm an average teenage girl trying to firm up my flabby arms and tighten up my tummy. I do have access to a basic gym at my condominium. Could you spare some tips for me?
-Tan Su-Ann
A: Hi Su-Ann. Well, a few times in the gym and jogging at the park could do you good. Try hitting the gym twice a week, training your triceps with the following workout. It's pretty simple and all you need is a bench, dumbbells and an adjustable ab bench. Before you start your workout, have a light jog on the treadmill just to loosen up your limbs and get the blood flowing.
Tricep Kickbacks - Perform 1 warm up (WU) set and 2 working sets (WS)
Seated Triceps Press - Perform 2 WS
Bench Dips - Perform 2 WS
Concentration Curls - Perform 1 WU, 2 WS
Alternate Hammer Curls - Perform 2 WS
Triset: Twists, Crunches, Vacuum - Perform Cycle Once
Doing cardio will help you burn some fat off which will shrink your tummy and make your arms seem less flabby. Jog, swim or bike 2 to 3 times a week, 45 minutes a session, with a heart rate of about 120-140 beats/minute. To be honest, I never measure my heart rate during my cardio. Instead, to gauge if I'm using the right intensity, I do the talk test. That is, I jog as fast as I can up to the point where I can still talk comfortably.
P.s. Don't use this gauging method if you're swimming. :)
- Fabodylous reader
A: Right now I'm dieting for a competition, so my diet is aimed for fat loss rather than mass gaining. Thus, my meals in a typical day are so -
8am - Whatever meat my hostel canteen serves
9am - protein drink and cardio
11am - 7 egg whites with 3 yolks
2pm - beef steak with salad
5pm - tuna salad and nuts
8pm - again whatever meat my hostel canteen serves, with veggies this time
10pm - protein drink and weight training
12am - tuna salad and nuts
When I'm gaining mass, the only differences in my diet are that I don't take the nuts and that I add a carbohydrate source, such as rice, pasta, sweet potatoes or oats into my meals, except the last meal of the night. You don't have to follow this diet plan strictly, but it should be taken as a guideline as to what your diet should be like. Most importantly, keep your protein intake high (as least 1g of protein for every pound of bodyweight) and eat every 2 to 3 hours.
Q: Wow. I read your blog. I can see lots of perseverance on your part. I'm wondering if you have any advice for me, a working adult who does not take any supplements.
-de.crystal, Lowyat.net forum user.
A: Haha. Thanks a lot. A while ago, I was working as a marketing executive for an Internet company, and I had to travel everyday to meet clients. During this time, it's hard for me to get good meals everyday. I did learn a few tricks to work around it. One is to keep everything I need in my car. I kept my protein supplement in my car boot and also a set of clothes and my sports shoes so I could hop to the gym immediately and if I ever missed a meal, I could take my protein supplement to make up for the loss. Perhaps you could do the same by keeping some simple food (such as canned tuna, or protein drinks) at your office pantry. As for having gym workouts, you NEED to create a habit. Find a time each day when you're free to go the gym and stick to it. I know some people refuse to take supplements because they think that it's only for hardcore bodybuilders but it's not. Our muscles respond the same. Our muscles are made out of cytoplasm, mitochondria and nucleus. For starters, try getting this (click here) and keep it in your office. When you can't get a good meal, take 3 scoops of it. Remember, perseverance brings future benefits. I wish you the best in following your programme while working.
Q: Hey, just wondering if you could write up a schedule for someone who wants to gain muscles and lose fat at the same time.
- Fabodylous reader
A: To tell you the truth, it's more efficient if one either works towards losing fat or gaining muscle mass instead of doing both at the same time. That's because some fat loss methods are contradicting with muscle gaining methods and if you try to aim for both, your chances of failing is higher. The best thing to do is to assess yourself. Will fat loss or muscle gain look better on you? If you can't decide, try muscle gain first. That's because after you gain some muscle mass, it'll be easier for you to lose fat. For a muscle gain plan, click here. So train hard, and eat well!
Q: Dear Wee Kiat, I'm an average teenage girl trying to firm up my flabby arms and tighten up my tummy. I do have access to a basic gym at my condominium. Could you spare some tips for me?
-Tan Su-Ann
A: Hi Su-Ann. Well, a few times in the gym and jogging at the park could do you good. Try hitting the gym twice a week, training your triceps with the following workout. It's pretty simple and all you need is a bench, dumbbells and an adjustable ab bench. Before you start your workout, have a light jog on the treadmill just to loosen up your limbs and get the blood flowing.
Tricep Kickbacks - Perform 1 warm up (WU) set and 2 working sets (WS)
Seated Triceps Press - Perform 2 WS
Bench Dips - Perform 2 WS
Concentration Curls - Perform 1 WU, 2 WS
Alternate Hammer Curls - Perform 2 WS
Triset: Twists, Crunches, Vacuum - Perform Cycle Once
Doing cardio will help you burn some fat off which will shrink your tummy and make your arms seem less flabby. Jog, swim or bike 2 to 3 times a week, 45 minutes a session, with a heart rate of about 120-140 beats/minute. To be honest, I never measure my heart rate during my cardio. Instead, to gauge if I'm using the right intensity, I do the talk test. That is, I jog as fast as I can up to the point where I can still talk comfortably.
P.s. Don't use this gauging method if you're swimming. :)
Tips:
1. For bench dips, if it's too hard for you to perform the same way shown in the video, try putting your legs on the floor. That will make it easier.
2. Don't go too easy on yourself. Choose a weight for each exercise so that you can perform 10 to 12 reps each set. The last few reps must be very challenging and difficult to perform. If it's not, then your arms and tummy won't have any reason to tighten up.
3. Triset means performing three exercises with minimum rest in between.
4. Since you're young, this advice is especially for people your age - In your pursuit for a hotter and better body, lots of people, especially uncles and aunties will try to advise you what to do and what not to do. DON'T listen to all of them, especially if they have the body that well, most of us don't aspire to have. They might be nice, but the only reason they think they know better is because they are a lot older and more experienced than you. Get advice from people who have been involved in the fitness industry for at least a few years.
Take care and you've made a great choice in following Fabodylous!
1. For bench dips, if it's too hard for you to perform the same way shown in the video, try putting your legs on the floor. That will make it easier.
2. Don't go too easy on yourself. Choose a weight for each exercise so that you can perform 10 to 12 reps each set. The last few reps must be very challenging and difficult to perform. If it's not, then your arms and tummy won't have any reason to tighten up.
3. Triset means performing three exercises with minimum rest in between.
4. Since you're young, this advice is especially for people your age - In your pursuit for a hotter and better body, lots of people, especially uncles and aunties will try to advise you what to do and what not to do. DON'T listen to all of them, especially if they have the body that well, most of us don't aspire to have. They might be nice, but the only reason they think they know better is because they are a lot older and more experienced than you. Get advice from people who have been involved in the fitness industry for at least a few years.
Take care and you've made a great choice in following Fabodylous!
Kudos to bodybuilding.com!
