Zero to Hero?

[Talbot89]

Hi,

I want to be perfectly honest from the start. Im reasonably unfit at the moment, i can run for around a kilometer at a steady pace until im knackered. I go to the gym 2/3 times per week where i mainly focus on weights with just a 5 minute run before and after weights. Im 17, weigh 64kg and im just under 6ft. I used to play football all the time a few years back but that went out the window when i realised i looked old enough to get served in the pub .

Im going into the army at the start of next year and i would really like to be on peak performance once again. I am also very interested in completing an ironman triathalon in the future. So, if possible i would like some help from the guru's with some sort of training schedule to get me back on track. Im highly motivated to vastly improve my fitness so any help you could offer would be great.

What im asking you for is a weekly training schedule or tuition as to how to create one, along with perhaps a nutrition schedule. Please keep any help as simple as you can.

Thanks a lot.

R

[.V.]

Since fitness, strength, and conditioning are relative terms which mean different things to different people I don't know if your 64kg is a "fat" 64, a "solid" 64 or what.

However, based on the information you've given so far - you sound pretty thin for your height.

Let's give this a try.

Weight training M, W, F.
http://www.hypertrophy-specific.com/hst_index.html

Cardio training
Do your tri bricks 2X a week T and Th would probably be best that way you still have 2 days a week off to rest and recover. You are using metric so I'm imagining you are in europe - you do have 7 days in the week over there like we have on this side of the pond don't you?

Do your bricks like this T - swim/bike, Th- bike/run.

Try to improve no more than 10% each week. For example if you can run 1K this week - go for 1.1K next week.

Training for my first tri - I messed up badly and pushed too far, too hard, too fast and ended up back down to 170lbs with a lot of muscle loss.

Start training first for an international, olympic, or sprint distance tri. Get a couple of those under your belt, then use the same strategy to work your way up to conditioning for a 1/2 ironman...after a couple of those then you will be ready to train for a full ironman.

For more training information about bricks go here.
http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/default.asp

Don't forget to take a couple of months off from the tri training at a time and just work on muscle growth - even the real triathletes (I'm not a real one, just someone who plays at them and finishes last...even behind the fat women) will tell you that. This is because the intense cardio you'll be doing will burn up your muscle and leave you with none to work with then.

For nutrition, try this:
Calories - 2590/day
Protein - 210g/day
Carbohydrate - 280g/day
Fat - 70g/day.

Spread this over 6-8 meals/day if you can.

Then if you aren't getting bigger and stronger with better performance after a couple of weeks, increase by approximately 250cal/day each week (2590/day this week, 2840/day next week...) until you do start getting the results you want.

If your are getting fat from it, reduce your calories by the same proportion at the same rate.

Keep your protein at 1.5-2g/lb of body weight, your carbs at 1.5-2g/lb of body weight, your fat at 0.5-1g/lb of body weight. Adjust within these paramaters to suit your individual needs.

This is the triathlete's diet - not the bodybuilders diet - but the needs are very similar...except the triathlete needs even more food to keep from wasting away.

Don't forget to convert your kilos to lbs by multipling Kilo x 2.2 before you calculate your nutritional needs.

[Talbot89]

thats amazing help, im very greatful.

im currently using creatine when i go to the gym, are there any issues with this?

if i do cardio monday/wednesday/friday, could i do weights tuesday/thursday/saturday?

thanks again.

[.V.]

Creatine is good. Use it with any sugary drink immediately after working out to move water (which carries nutrients with it) into the muscle cells. This aid recovery, increases size and strength.

Koolaid is OK, low acid juices are ok. Dextrose is better, dextrose with maltodextrin is best. I use dextrose/malto koolaid that I make at home. No need for anything expensive or fancy.

[Talbot89]

how do you make that?

[.V.]

I take 1/2 gallon of water, 1/2 cup dextrose, 1/2 cup maltodextrin, and one packet of koolaid mix. Mix it together and keep it in the fridge. When I finish my workout I simply add 1 teaspoon to 10 ounces (1/2 of a gatoraid bottle) and drink it along with my protein.

The reason I mix it this way even though it's nasty sickeningly sweet (like regular koolaid) is to save space and not fill up on it - that way I can get all of my postworkout protien, milk, banana mix in too.

If I'm going out for a run or bike ride, I'll add 10 ounces of plain water and some electrolyte tablets to this mix and make what is essentially a better gatoraid or poweraid (same nutrient profile except without the HFCS or sucrose)...then it tastes like gatoraid and works better.

Note, at places like GNC or about any store that sells bodybuilding suppliments you can get dextrose and maltodextrin pretty cheaply. Most folks buy them online.

[Talbot89]

very helpful, thankyou, i have made up a routine, do you have msn so i could send it you?

[.V.]

Sorry, I don't use MSN. I'm on yahoo IM, and use g-mail & google chat.

Just post it here and you will get useful reviews from some very experienced folks who know their weight training...and cardio training too. Who know much more than I do.