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Advice on lifting and running

1,249 Views | 7 Replies | Last: 5 yr ago by 16Ag18
mrmill3218
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AG
I currently weigh about 165.

I fractured my wrist recently playing soccer so I only lifted my legs for like six weeks.

I am back doing both now (upper and lower body) but really need some advice for getting some gains.

My legs are very skinny. Lifting doesn't seem to change them much. I try to eat a ton but it seems to go to my belly more than anything. I also need to run to get in shape because soccer season is coming up.

Does anyone have any advice for what type of workouts I should be doing to getting upper and lower gains, but also get in shape?

I was planning on doing chest/tri's one day, back/bi's the next, then legs and just kind of rotating, while throwing in some sprints a couple days a week in the mornings.

Would love your thoughts and advice. Thanks!
ttha_aggie_09
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AG
If I had to guess, you're plowing through calories due to running and lifting, and your not getting the neccessary calories to help add muscle/weight. You're running a deficit or your just barely meeting the amount you burn.

If you have a gym that can help with a more accurate BMR calculation, you can get a pretty good idea of how many calories you burn in homeostasis. Factor in your calories burned (maybe average during workouts/runs) and that should give you an estimated daily caloric consumption/burn rate.

Once you have that number, start adding a a few hundred calories a day and see how you respond after a few weeks. Adjust up or down as you see fit.

ttha_aggie_09
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AG
Quote:

My legs are very skinny. Lifting doesn't seem to change them much. I try to eat a ton but it seems to go to my belly more than anything. I also need to run to get in shape because soccer season is coming up.

Does anyone have any advice for what type of workouts I should be doing to getting upper and lower gains, but also get in shape?

I was planning on doing chest/tri's one day, back/bi's the next, then legs and just kind of rotating, while throwing in some sprints a couple days a week in the mornings.



How old are you? Any previous injuries to stop you from squats or lunges?

I would start with mixing in squats, after a few weeks of focusing on form and lunges (dumbbell, kettlebell, barbell, etc.). Squats are such a great excercise if done properly... they will help the rest of your body gain strength. Baby steps though.

Lunges are just a good excercise and can be done with a lot of weight, light weight, or just body weight. All will help with leg strength (hamstrings, glutes, quads) and are relatively easy to do.

For isolating the lower quad (tear drop - near knee), I am a big believer in elevated dumbbell split squats.
https://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/split-squat-with-dumbbells

For stability and building your form for squats, do these a few times a week. They're awesome!
https://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/single-leg-squat-to-box

Your splits are probably good for now.
P.U.T.U
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Who said you had to run to get in shape? Lots of HIIT work to help your cardio, long slow continuous exercises hurt your gains and are not ideal for fat loss. Weights and HIIT together are a better combination for getting you in shape and a lot better solution for muscle gain/fat loss
jcwoosley
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AG
When I graduated high school I weighed 160 pounds. Similar story, had always worked out hard and tried to eat a lot but just couldn't put on weight. Met with a nutritionist when I started my freshman year and he told me that even if you feel like you're eating a ton, you're most likely not. He put me on a 5000 calorie a day diet and I started putting on weight like crazy.

I'd recommend downloading the "my fitness pal" app and tracking all your meals religiously, will probably surprise you to see you're not eating as much as you think. Use that to work towards the goal of hitting at least 4000 calories a day and if you continue working out hard and running you'll start building muscle fast.
mrmill3218
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AG
ttha_aggie_09 said:

Quote:

My legs are very skinny. Lifting doesn't seem to change them much. I try to eat a ton but it seems to go to my belly more than anything. I also need to run to get in shape because soccer season is coming up.

Does anyone have any advice for what type of workouts I should be doing to getting upper and lower gains, but also get in shape?

I was planning on doing chest/tri's one day, back/bi's the next, then legs and just kind of rotating, while throwing in some sprints a couple days a week in the mornings.



How old are you? Any previous injuries to stop you from squats or lunges?

I would start with mixing in squats, after a few weeks of focusing on form and lunges (dumbbell, kettlebell, barbell, etc.). Squats are such a great excercise if done properly... they will help the rest of your body gain strength. Baby steps though.

Lunges are just a good excercise and can be done with a lot of weight, light weight, or just body weight. All will help with leg strength (hamstrings, glutes, quads) and are relatively easy to do.

For isolating the lower quad (tear drop - near knee), I am a big believer in elevated dumbbell split squats.
https://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/split-squat-with-dumbbells

For stability and building your form for squats, do these a few times a week. They're awesome!
https://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/single-leg-squat-to-box

Your splits are probably good for now.

I just turned 29. No injuries. My lower back tends to get tight but I roll and stretch and push through.

I do a lot of squats and a lot of lunges.

My workout in the gym yesterday consisted of:

10 reps of 185 back squat
8 reps of 185 back squat
6 reps of 185 back squat

3x10 overhead squat with a 22.5 lb dumbell

3x10 squats holding a 70 lb dumbell (did these on the dip machine to get a deficit)

Maybe I'll just continue these and eat more?
mrmill3218
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AG
P.U.T.U said:

Who said you had to run to get in shape? Lots of HIIT work to help your cardio, long slow continuous exercises hurt your gains and are not ideal for fat loss. Weights and HIIT together are a better combination for getting you in shape and a lot better solution for muscle gain/fat loss

The problem is that I don't run right now haha. Need to start to get into shape for soccer!
ttha_aggie_09
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AG
Goblet squats - when you hold a dumbbell, assuming you're holding it up like a front squat.

You might want to play with your weight and reps. Diet is still the likely culprit in prohibiting your muscle growth but your routine can still be a major factor.

How much time are you resting between sets on squats? Most of the guys that ask for advice on increasing their squat weight are only taking 1-2 min breaks between sets. That's fine, if you're goal isn't building strength on squat. If you're goal is to increase your leg strength and squat weight, you need to make sure your rest interval is sufficient... depending on what you read and what's feasible with your schedule, that can be 2-5 minutes. I increase from 3 to 5 minutes by the end of my sets.

If you're breaks are short, try adding a minute rest in between and see if you can squeeze out a couple more reps at the existing weight (almost guarantee you will). After that, start slowly adding weight and increasing rest time on squats (if you can afford the added time).

The rest of your workout switch back to the short rest intervals and focus more on isolation excercises.

16Ag18
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AG
I started doing hexbar deadlifts as my main leg workout about two months ago and of course I ran about 5 times a week as well, but i decreased my 5k time from about 21 minutes to an 18:35. If you want to focus on explosion and having your legs be able to take you further, and gain muscle, i would imlplement hexbar deadlifts in your lifting regime.
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