Hi Gennaro,
I would like to know at what age can my son start using weights. He is 15 and plays Australian Rules Football at a junior club in Victoria, Australia. He plays with boys that are turning 16 this year and he only turned 15 in Jan 2010. Thank you for your time and hope to hear from you soon.
Pat
Hi Pat,
Your son can start weight training now with light weights and basic exercises. I would also suggest you combine his dumbell work with some body resistance exercises. I recommend that you also increase his total caloric intake and have him eat regularly throughout the day.
A common myth is that if you weight train alone you will get bigger and stronger, but without increasing calories (and as aerobically active as he must be) your son will not get bigger or stronger. The bottom line is, he has to be eating more quality calories than he is burning in order to put on size and strength.
I wish I had of known (or been more conscious) when I was a teen that it was OK to weight train and eat more, as I also played Aussie rules and was a very skinny kid. Although skillful I could have used an extra 10lbs for extra hip and shoulder nudge. Because Aussie Rules Football is a very physical sport and requires (among other things) power, endurance, and strength, basic weight training and calisthenics will be great for him.
Here is a guideline routine he can perform every day or 2nd day depending on how he recuperates from each session.
Warm up:
Arm circles
Body weight squats
Routine:
Pushups 3 x 15-20 ( very slow and controlled)
Dumbell flys 3 x 12
Pullups/Chinups 3 x 8-12
Dumbell single arm rows (with knee and hand on bench for support) 3 x 10-12
Hanging leg raises (abs) 3 x 15-20
Swiss ball crunches or Situps 3 x 20
Dumbell squats (holding dumbells by side progressively increasing load over sets and or sessions) 3 x 12-15
Single dumbell calf raises 3 x 12-15
Dumbell side raises 3 x 8-10-12
10 minute Warm down:
Stretch hamstrings, glutes, quads, calves, and upperbody. Refer to his coach or a good stretch book for specifics on stretching technique.
Let me know how he goes with it and keep in touch!
Gennaro
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Hi Gennaro,
I’m really interested to learn how to shop for healthy foods - there are Whole Foods Markets in Canada too. I’ve done competition diets but think there is a better way to shop for foods and stay as lean as possible year round. You’re amazingly lean. How do you maintain that? Steve Reeves was a great power walker too .
Please drop me line.
Regards,
Dustin
Dustin,
Thanks for your positive feedback. Competition diets are too strict I agree but the concept of adhering to 5-6 small consistent meals a day taken from the bodybuilding school of thought is what has kept me consistently lean over 20 years since winning the Mr. Australia. This will also work for you if you’re consistent and can incorporate enough cardio and resistance training in to your lifestyle program.
WholeFoods/Wholebody is an excellent place to shop and has everything you need. Here is an example of my nutrition program. Using this as a guideline will help you attain that lean look year round.
Breakfast 7am
1 cup of organic oatmeal or cream of buckwheat (1/3 cup) with 2 scoops of Whey Protein Concentrate (non bovine and or hormone free) mixed with 10 ounces of organic almond milk
Mid-Morning 10am
6 organic egg white scrambled or omelet (1 yolk) with 1 cup of cooked organic brown rice or brown rice cereal or 2 small slices of organic German 100% rye bread. Toast bread and top with 1/4 of organic avocado.
Lunch 1pm
Grilled or oven roasted turkey breast (6 ounces) or ground turkey breast burgers (no breadcrumbs) with a 6 ounce baked sweet potato and side of low sodium pure lentil soup (1 cup)
Mid-afternoon 4pm
Isopure zero carb protein shake or homemade shake (as above) with spring water and a tablespoon of organic almond butter
1 banana
Dinner 7pm
Lean organic lamb, chicken, beef or wild salmon (6 ounces) with one 16 ounce frozen bag of Wholefoods organic Asian stir fry steamed veggies.
Supper 10pm (optional - if up past midnight)
6-8 organic scrambled egg whites
* Drink 3 litres/quarts of water a day
* Supplement with L-Carnitine liquid, L-Glutamine and a Multivitamin/mineral
* Eat fresh organic fruit between meals if hungry.
Let me know how you go with it mate!
Gennaro
Gennaro,
I’m a busy professional and enjoy working out in the gym, but can only train a body-part intensely for no longer that 15 minutes, and then I start to lose energy, interest, and that desired burning/pumping feeling in the muscle. I love cardio but am strapped for time and get bored spending too much time on the cardio equipment. Is there a routine you can prescribe me that will have me work specific bodypart’s without burning out, get some intense cardio in at the same time, and keep me under the clock so I don’t spend too much time in the gym, and give me the body defining results I need?
Thanks so much!
Gerald
Gerald,
Here is a results driven cardio/bodypart routine that will help you shape and define specific muscles while burning fat and keep your workouts short, sweet and intense.
I call it my Interval Cardio Bodypart Specific Training Program
Day 1
12 mins intense Cardio
10 mins chest
10 mins intense cardio
12 mins back
10 mins cardio
8 min abs
Day 2
Cardio 36-40 minutes (A combination of 12 minutes of each of stationary bike, elliptical and treadmill or a 40 minute outdoor powerwalk or both)
Day 3
12 mins intense cardio
12 minutes quads
10 mins cardio
10 minutes hams
10 mins cardio
8 minutes calves
8 mins cardio
Day 4
Cardio 35 minutes (A combination of 12 minutes of each of stationary bike, elliptical and treadmill or a 40 minute outdoor powerwalk or both)
Day 5
10 mins intense cardio
10 mins shoulders
8 mins cardio
8 mins biceps
10 mins cardio
8 mins triceps
8 mins cardio
6 mins abs
Day 6
Cardio 35 minutes (A combination of 12 minutes of each of stationary bike, elliptical and treadmill or a 40 minute outdoor powerwalk or both)
Day 7
Rest
This program has proven to be very effective with many of my clients. If you need more specifics on this program feel free to call me or book in for a trial session.
Be consistent and enjoy the results!
Always in health!
Gennaro
Gennaro,
I was a vegetarian up until recently because I found that doing the whole 6 meals a day diet with high protein intake was really upsetting my gut and all the chicken, steak and tuna wasn’t digesting in my stomach, it felt like a rock, so I couldn’t sleep and then had no energy for my workouts. I was so very hungry after each meal as I found the protein made me very hungry ( I know protein is supposed to fill you up, but not in my case).
However I have found that being on the vego diet which made me feel less hungry and filled me up for many hours, made me lose my hard earned muscle, so I have gone back to eating meat but will try to eat a small amount at each meal to see if I can cut up and retain my muscle.
I work out 5 times a week and sometimes do cardio for 40 minutes, but weights I do religiously. Wondering if you deal with vegetarian diets (with small amounts of meat) to lose body fat but put on muscle at the same time. I am still going to the gym but I am 45 now and put on fat much quicker than ever. I would like to see my abs again. I look forward to your response. Thankyou,
Walter.
Walter,
I have and still do train quite a few vegetarians. In fact one of my vegetarian clients packed on 15 pounds of muscle and lost 8% body fat at 52 years of age (See client Richard Glasgow on my success story page).
Vegetarian diets can be very healthy but if your goal is to build a lean, muscular and athletic physique with a well defined mid-section, you need to start incorporating quality protein in to your nutrition plan.
Here is what I propose:
Even before you eat breakfast begin your day with two glasses of water. Then go off on 45 minutes of outdoor Power-walking or an intensive indoor cardio session combining 12 minutes of each of elliptical, stationary upright bike and treadmill, constantly varying the level and speed. Eat a banana or apple immediately after your cardio session, and shortly thereafter have your traditional oatmeal and whey protein shake, or 6-8 egg white omelet (with1 yolk), and brown rice cream hot cereal. Weight train either after breakfast or later in the day for 45 minutes to one hour with intensity and complete your routine with 15 minutes of Powerpose®. Resistance training and Powerpose should be performed at least 4 - 5 days per week and cardio at least 5 days per week. Train your abs in fast circuit formation every other day 3 days a week for no more than 15 minutes each session, and vary your workouts.
Make sure each meal contains a complete protein . A complete protein is a source of protein that contains an adequate proportion of all of the essential amino acids for your growth needs. This does not mean you have to eat huge amounts of meat or fish at each meal. However, moderate amounts of lean, organic protein need to be present in meals and snack. Don’t feel you have to eat red meat or chicken every day to grow either. These sources of protein do take longer to digest and can cause bloating for some. You can build a great body just as effectively by eating a variety of fish, eggs and whey protein concentrate or Isolate, which all have very high biological values and are digested and assimilated in the body easier.
Do not consume chocolate coated protein bars, sugary drinks or packaged meals no matter how healthy (the producers) say they are. Stick with whole foods. Fresh fruits, raw nuts, dark chocolate, and brown rice cakes are great snacks, but limit your portion size and frequency.
Do not consume any starchy carbohydrates after 5 pm and supplement your nutrition program with L- carnitine which you can have before your cardio sessions on an empty stomach. You can also energize your mornings with some green tea or yerba mate.
Mid-morning should be a whey protein shake with almond milk or water and a tablespoon of organic raw almond butter.
For lunch you can eat lean grilled chicken breast or a turkey patty with sweet potato or brown rice and 2 green veggies. Mid-morning - 3 bean salad with 2 boiled eggs. Finally, for dinner treat yourself to organic and/or wild salmon with cruciferous vegetables.
Record all your meals in a food journal and eat them diligently every 3 hours. Drink 3 to 4 quarts or litres of water daily and limit alcohol content to 1 unit per week. Eat at home as often as you can as you’ll be better able to control your portion sizes, and additional fat, salt and sugar, that restaurants often add in to foods to make them tastier.
Most importantly, without consistently adhering to these guidelines over a period of months, and ideally incorporating them as part of your lifestyle, the results you seek will not be evident.
Start today and continue for life, and I know you will see your abs soon and experience life changing results!
Keep me posted and have fun with it!
Gennaro