Making Things Too Complicated

I have been reading these threads discussing whether to eat 40% carbs of 60% carbs ... 12g of protein or 10g ... I gotta tell ya, who gives a shit?

I am not training for the olympics. I eat reasonably. I know roughly how many calories I should take in during the day. I know roughly what kind of macronutrient breakdown I am looking for. I don't count the actual calories or grams of macronutriets, I estimate. I don't restrict myself to an ultra-strict diet. Why? Would I see bigger gains if I did all that? I don't know, maybe. Maybe it would work for me and I'd wind up with a slight improvement, but I doubt it'd be a drastic one. I'm seeing great gains these days, so why try and tweak the shit out of it and make it more complicated?

I lift with my brother. He's unemployed so he stays home all day and reads about maximizing his gains. He is on a strict diet, he logs everything he eats in fitday. He quit drinking completely. He gets much more sleep than me. He is simply more dedicated to improving than I am because of his extra time.

Our gains are precisely equal. My squats and deadlifts are actually ahead of his now.

I eat healthy, whole foods. I eat more than 3x a day. I only supplement protein if it's a day I'm not getting much from what I eat. I get enough calories. Some days, I'm taking in more fat than I should be. I drink a bit while bulking. I'm still seeing great results. Why?

BECAUSE I WORK MY ASS OFF IN THE GYM.

Really, I think that's the most important thing. Unless you're undereating, if you work hard, you're going to get bigger. If you go nuts and eat too much, sure you'll probably get a little fatter, but that's OK, you can lose it later. If anything, I personally undereat. I work a lot and don't have time to eat 6 meals a day or whatever people say it takes. I am still putting on a little extra BF though and a good amount of muscle, so I am pleased.

The thing about it is, if you make your program so strict, you're more likely to give up on it. The diet is important, sure, but we're not elite athletes who can only eek out meager gains by tweaking everything we eat and do to maximum efficiency. Most of us are in good shape at best, and we're still in a zone where - as long as we exercise properly and enough - are going to see GOOD, STRONG results.

So, if you're looking to improve your fitness level or put on some muscle or lose some weight and are intimidated by all the diet and lifting mumbo jumbo ... just find what you can do and start doing it. The most important this is to MAINTAIN it. Don't be lazy, you still will have to get more physical activity and lift so hard in the gym it hurts sometimes, but ultimately, you're going to feel and look a lot better regardless of the little stuff. Just lift the freaking weights and eat reasonably! Keep it simple.

Seconded.

I approve of this thread

I third the "just work hard" part.

All of this moderate-intensity stuff had me feeling ... just ... ugh. Couldn't tell if the effort was being wasted or not, wasn't seeing results, wasn't really invested in it.

With Crossfit, of course, it's so over-the-top that you KNOW for a fact that you're working. You can't help but get some results. Maybe the results are that you puke, or overtrain and injure yourself, or (like me!) you lose 30lbs of fat, your overall level of fitness skyrockets and you get seemingly endless wind in any sport you play. But something *will* happen.

Two months ago, I put a hold on Crossfit and started trying to gain muscle mass by following a 3-time-per-week full body workout (trying this "Hyper Trophies" thing I have heard so much about); the reason is, I lost muscle mass in South America due to the heat, surfing constantly and relatively few workout opportunities, so I want to bulk up before returning.

I can't remember what I was eating during these last two months; never thought about it. It was plenty of protein and such. I gained 15lbs in those months, a lot of it muscle, and I'm heavier today than I was yesterday.

Just, you know, work out hard. Don't be a lazy bastard.

1: Tribalwar has Trolls.

2: Losing weight/gaining mass isn't hard. If you work hard and eat right, not hard at all.

3: There are a lot of idiots who come up with fitness bullshit to make money. I'm inclined to think muscleheads are just that; all muscle, no brain.

Signed. Some of the stuff is really helpful, others seem way over the top.

its all about lifting till you puke! :) Thats how you get real gains!

if you actually take a look, most of the people recommending these super detailed diets aren't in any particularly great shape themselves (read: ptavv)

there's basically 2 rules

1) push yourself to do extra sets/miles and work hard
2) stop eating shit like pizza and soda and ice cream

very simple

if you actually take a look, most of the people recommending these super detailed diets aren't in any particularly great shape themselves (read: ptavv)

there's basically 2 rules

1) push yourself to do extra sets/miles and work hard
2) stop eating shit like pizza and soda and ice cream

very simple


haha, bang on. If you work hard and dont eat shitty foods, your going to see results.

ayz, how good of shape am I in? What are you basing it on?

and I've never advocated a super detailed diet, in fact I've, over and over again, told people that they shouldn't be micromanaging or anything else... but they should be keeping track of what they eat

i've just tried to dispel the common myth that massive protein supplementation is important, and that a low carb/massive protein/high fat diet is moronic for losing weight (in the long term, to drop 8-10 lbs it's fine)

eat right. work hard.
Age, too, is a factor. As you age you must adjust your diet and workout regime. Unfortunately unavoidable.

its all about lifting till you puke! :) Thats how you get real gains!

amen! I lifted again for the first time in a month the other day and I thought i was going to throw up all over myself doing my last set of squats :O

and I second/third/fourth/fithededed what rayn said. In fact, I think Im drinking tonight! hoo hah.

first time in a month - squats :O


Have fun making your way to the shitter! ;)

yea...it fucking hurts to get off my computer chair

Sitting back down without falling is harder. :)

So true. I would go bat shit insane if I sat and counted my exact diet all day.

I love the info brought out about the carb/protein debate however. Good reads.

I agree with what you have said rayn, although I believe the diet is at least as important as what goes on in the gym. Not that you disagreed with this.