[KM]

Saturday, August 2nd.

Woke up MEGA late this morning by accident, slept like *******.

The Grub
Meal 1
1 cup egg whites
1 + 1/4 cup oats
1/4 cup granola
1 high carb/protein yogurt

Meal 2 (post workout)
40g whey protein
1 powder Gatorade packet (dextrose)
1 5" banana
2 slices white bread

Meal 3
11 oz. tbone steak
1 large baked potato
1 cup broccoli
1 tbspn (approx) A1 sauce

Meal 4 (sister's engagement celebration)
1 small Ben & Jerry's cup: phish food...YUM.
1/4 cup mixed nuts.
1 serv. gainer shake
254g carbs
50g protein
2g fat

Meal 5
1 can tuna
2 slices whole grain bread
1 cup oats
2 whole grain waffles
1/4 cup maple syrup

Meal 6
1 cup cottage cheese
2 tbspn peanut butter
1 serv. mixed nuts (1/2 cup or so)

NOTE: Ate great today actually. I need more variety so tomorrow I'm killing the pasta and maybe some home made pizza! I enjoyed my ice cream but I ****ing hate ice cream; makes you feel ob'z. That's it today.

Tore the food.

The Fluids
1 gal+ water
1 whey shake
1 gainer shake
1 gluconate shake

NOTE: Not so bad, again, forgot to take my glucosamine. Might pound it right now.

The Iron

Probably the BEST leg day I've ever had. So much intensity, for some reason, the entire gym saw me and J killing the weights.

Heavy Full Squats
155 lbs x 12
185 lbs x 13
195 lbs x 14
205 lbs x 14
235 lbs x 14

Heavy Leg Press
315 lbs x 15
395 lbs x 13
415 lbs x 13
420 lbs x 14

Gym was closing. I fell over 3x, so:

Leg Curls
55 lbs x 12
65 lbs x 12

Leg Extensions
75 lbs x 13
85 lbs x 13

Calf Press
275 lbs x 18
315 lbs x 18
315 lbs x 19

NOTE: I went 2-3 reps past I could do! Worked my ASS off today. At 8 reps I was ready to quit but I busted thru like a champion. Forced these puppies to grow. Read my Arnold Encyclopedia and he said the legs can stake more load to grow so 11-15 reps can be done if need to break through.

AWESOME leg workout. Fell over after 1 set on squats (last) and 1 set on leg press (2nd to last).

The Supps
100% ON Whey Protein
ON Serious Mass Gainer
Gaspari Size On
SV Glucosamine & Chondroiton

NOTE: Yeah...lol. Looking into Beta-Alanine though, just don't know if it's worth it; thoughts?

THANKS for reading people!

PICS: Uploading two pictures right now of legs.



Kev

[KM]

Here's some: on the leg extension with no weight on it just pushed up to show some separation. I'm bulking so it's not as clean cut as it was on contest prep.

[allstar]

What is Beta-Alanine and where do we get it?

Beta-Alanine is a non-essential amino acid and is the only naturally occurring beta-amino acid. Not to be confused with regular alanine, beta- alanine is classified as a non-proteinogenic amino acid, as it is not believed to be used in the building of proteins.

The greatest natural dietary sources of beta-alanine are believed to be obtained through ingesting the beta-alanine containing dipeptides: carnosine, anserine and balenine, rather than directly ingesting beta-alanine. These dipeptides are found in protein rich foods such as chicken, beef, pork and fish. It is predominantly through ingesting the dipeptide carnosine that we ingest most of our beta-alanine, as the two other dipeptides are not found nearly as plentiful in our typical coniferous diet. However, obtaining beta-alanine through these dipeptides is not the only way, as our bodies can synthesize it in the liver from the catabolism of pyrimidine nucleotides which are broken down into uracil and thymine and then metabolized into beta-alanine and B-aminoisobutyrate. Of course, it can also be ingested through direct supplementation which is the focus of this article.

Below is a list of the benefits from beta-alanine, supported by peer-reviewed university research, published in reputable science journals.

Benefits of Beta-Alanine as supported by scientific studies:
Increase Muscular Strength & Power Output.
Increases Muscle Mass
Increase Anaerobic Endurance
Increases Aerobic Endurance
Delay Muscular Fatigue- Train Harder & Longer
What causes our muscles to lose strength,power and endurance during intense exercise?


When we exercise, especially when it’s high intensity exercise, our bodies accumulate a large amount of hydrogen ions (H+), causing our muscles’ pH to drop (become more acidic). This process is occurring whether you feel a burn or not.

The breakdown of ATP and the subsequent rise in H+ concentrations occur in all of our energy systems but H+ buildup is most prevalent in an energy system called glycolysis, which also produces lactic acid. At physiological pH, lactic acid dissociates H+ and is the primary source of released H+ ions during exercise, causing pH to drop. It is the released H+ from lactic acid that causes muscular performance problems, not the leftover lactate ions as many incorrectly believe. While lactic acid is the primary source of released H+, it is not the only source. H+ ions are also being released at a rapid rate when you break down the high energy compound ATP during exercise. With the presence of many sources during energy production releasing H+, pH drops quickly.

As our muscles pH quickly drops, so does their ability to contract forcibly and maintain a high level of performance throughout your workout session. Not being able to perform and maintain forceful muscular contractions and push your body to the limit during your workout session, seriously hampers your ability to maximally overload your muscles and force new muscle gains.


In a nutshell, H+ causes your muscles pH to drop, in tern decreasing your strength and causing you to fatigue faster. These limitations stop you from adequately overloading your muscles and forcing NEW muscle gains

So how can beta-alanine help us overcome this drop in pH that limits exercise performance?

To understand how beta-alanine works to fight the drop in pH within our muscle, you must first understand how carnosine works. The reason being is, beta-alanine’s performance benefits are not direct but realized through its ability to boost the synthesis of carnosine.

[allstar]

legs looking great man!

[KM]

Read that article bra:

What I got out of it:

Beta Alanine is pretty much the derivative of carnosine (the dipeptides and breakdown of carnosine). Carnosine is what BA is based around, and allows the body to stay in a positive muscle pH balance. So, carnosine, which is responsible for muscle fatigue, the burn and lactic acid. Carnosine soaks up the H positive ions. The more carnosine produced, the more "soak-up" and the further your muscles can work to max potential. BA boosts this up to 50% more, or so it claims.

In short it is a bufferer.

[KM]

Originally Posted by allstar

legs looking great man!

Thanks bud, have so much work for these babies though.

[allstar]

spot on, beta mixed with creatine,from what i heard is SUPER

[KM]

Right on, just re-searched a bit:

Effect of creatine and beta-alanine supplementation on performance and endocrine responses in strength/power athletes.

Hoffman J, Ratamess N, Kang J, Mangine G, Faigenbaum A, Stout J.

Dept. of Health and Exercise Science, The College of New Jersey, Ewing, NJ 08628, USA.

The effects of creatine and creatine plus beta-alanine on strength, power, body composition, and endocrine changes were examined during a 10-wk resistance training program in collegiate football players. Thirty-three male subjects were randomly assigned to either a placebo (P), creatine (C), or creatine plus beta-alanine (CA) group. During each testing session subjects were assessed for strength (maximum bench press and squat), power (Wingate anaerobic power test, 20-jump test), and body composition. Resting blood samples were analyzed for total testosterone, cortisol, growth hormone, IGF-1, and sex hormone binding globulin. Changes in lean body mass and percent body fat were greater (P < 0.05) in CA compared to C or P. Significantly greater strength improvements were seen in CA and C compared to P. Resting testosterone concentrations were elevated in C, however, no other significant endocrine changes were noted. Results of this study demonstrate the efficacy of creatine and creatine plus beta-alanine on strength performance. Creatine plus beta-alanine supplementation appeared to have the greatest effect on lean tissue accruement and body fat composition.

So changes were found in lean body mass but little changes were shown within the endocrine system (hormone control center). Strength improvements were also found not only with BA+Creatine but with creatine alone. So this does look like a solid stack.

[Tripower]

Great info lads...and solid wheels brother!

[robbyybt]

Originally Posted by KM

Read that article bra:

What I got out of it:

Beta Alanine is pretty much the derivative of carnosine (the dipeptides and breakdown of carnosine). Carnosine is what BA is based around, and allows the body to stay in a positive muscle pH balance. So, carnosine, which is responsible for muscle fatigue, the burn and lactic acid. Carnosine soaks up the H positive ions. The more carnosine produced, the more "soak-up" and the further your muscles can work to max potential. BA boosts this up to 50% more, or so it claims.

In short it is a bufferer.

BA is the rate-limiting precursor of carnosine, so the more BA you have, the more carnosine you have.

Originally Posted by allstar

spot on, beta mixed with creatine,from what i heard is SUPER

Meh, ive tried it and didnt really notice anything. Most studies arnt that conclusive anyway, personally I dont take it anymore but I supose theres no harm in trying it.

Originally Posted by KM