Lifters: What is your go to guide...

Book? No.

Website? Yes - Lyle McDonald's. It may not answer every question you'll ever have, but it answers many.

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/


edit: Of course, you can buy his books, so I guess that would technically be a "yes" to that first part...

The first book I was directed to read was:

Man 2.0: Engineering the Alpha - by John Romaniello Adam Bornstein

Available pretty much anywhere you want to buy it.

Or you can steal it off the internet.

Edit: Lyle is a good reference as well. Just remember to verify everything anyone says with real world application. Nobody has every answer for every situation.

About dietary matters and muscle building, I agree that Lyle McDonald's site is excellent.

On training matters--how to structure a lifting program, etc.--look into Mark Rippetoe's books (Starting Strength first, then Practical Programming). You will not need to worry about periodization for some time; that's not a novice concern. But once you get there, there is a book about 5/3/1 also (a particular periodization-based program for more advanced lifters).

Hey dude, i've been their before, the amount of info out there is daunting at best >_<. no need to fret though. Trust me when i say you'll eventually work yourself into a program you enjoy just by getting a feel of what works for you. The main thing i can say is stick to your main compound movements for now like Squat, Deadline, Bench, Military Press and Pull-up/Chin-ups. Once you can get those bad boys up to a decent level through progressive overload then you should be doing fine. 3 sets between 3 to 5s for each! Focus on strength first! Starting Strength is a great program for that!

In response to 'Things I don't understand:'

Bulking/cutting: when and how to do that
Bulking is eating in excess of maintance calories with the intent to increase your weight. In conjunction strength & conditioning program this extra weight will tend to be or mostly be muscle. The main focus should be minimal fat gain.
A cut is the opposite, its intent is to decrease your body fat while maintain muscle, this is achieved by eating below maintanence.

Body recomp: when and how to do that
I don't know a whole lot about it and i don't buy it really!
periodization: ????
Too much to get into, google it!

Being in deficit too long:????
I've been their, you'll when you're in deficit for long when you feel like $%$^£ and your body-fat isn't dropping despite being at a ridiculous calories deficit.

Metabolism reset: when and is it necessary??
When the above stated occurs. Reverse-dieitng- graduate yourself back up to your maintenance calories over a few weeks.

Over training:??? What is too much?
Only you can tell, everyone is different!

Scoobys workshop is a great place to start

H

I wouldn't make it complicated. I've been lifting many years and have never worried about bulking and cutting phases, body comp, etc. The biggest thing you have to know for the average person I think is to hit each body part twice per week. If you hit each body part more that twice per week it is too much. Once per week is ont enough. That is just an average rule of thumb.

I don't think that has as much truth to it as you claim. A person certainly could hit each body part twice a week, there are valid routines for that. Also valid is a 3 or 4 day routine where each body part is hit once per week, and people make gains with that just fine. I do a 3 day per week routine and have made good, steady progress with that.

A lifter can't make progress without good diet and recovery. So more important than the # of times in the gym is what you eat and are you resting enough. A starting lifter should focus on that balance, just work on eating better, recovering and applying yourself when you are in the gym. This is where I think the true effort comes in, just having a well balanced and consistent effort. :glasses:

I wouldn't make it complicated. I've been lifting many years and have never worried about bulking and cutting phases, body comp, etc. The biggest thing you have to know for the average person I think is to hit each body part twice per week. If you hit each body part more that twice per week it is too much. Once per week is ont enough. That is just an average rule of thumb.

I don't think that has as much truth to it as you claim. A person certainly could hit each body part twice a week, there are valid routines for that. Also valid is a 3 or 4 day routine where each body part is hit once per week, and people make gains with that just fine. I do a 3 day per week routine and have made good, steady progress with that.

A lifter can't make progress without good diet and recovery. So more important than the # of times in the gym is what you eat and are you resting enough. A starting lifter should focus on that balance, just work on eating better, recovering and applying yourself when you are in the gym. This is where I think the true effort comes in, just having a well balanced and consistent effort. :glasses:

Beginners (1 year or less usually) should hit a full body workout 3 times a week to maximise muscle hypertrophy. The focus should be on compound movements where several muscles are worked at the same time.

Speaking strictly from an efficiency viewpoint (building the most amount of muscle in the shortest time as a beginner), this is probably the best beginner program I know of; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=feY6vi6ORXo

You're over thinking this. Most of the issues you cited are on the edge or extreme edge of lifting and exercise. For 90% of people they really don't come into play.

This is the truth. If you don't need to over-complicate it, especially if you're at an early stage, then leave it for later.

However, if you are still interested in learning about body-recomp and all that, Lyle's website is a good resource. RE bulking, cutting, etc, specifically I would recommend giving http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/muscle-gain/general-philosophies-of-muscle-mass-gain.html a read.

But give it some thought and consider what Dav said. Depending on your goals, you may or may not need to go too deeply into it, and you may run the risk of over-thinking and making it harder than it needs to be.

You're still new to lifting and have weight to lose?

Lift weights consistently and eat at a deficit consistently. Forget the rest for now.

When you're down to your goal weight and are truly happy with that weight (mine kept decreasing), then assess your body fat percentage, have an objective discussion of whether it's accurate and low enough, and only then consider bulking.

Some good advice already. Just to add mine is to pick an established program and stick with it for a while. Keep it simple and dont bog yourself down.