Dr Dave's training Q&A

[o'dave]

Hi guys,

I've introduced myself in another thread but essentially I'm a Level 3 Personal Trainer who is also a fitness/strength and conditioning coach for rugby players. I'm not affiliated with any one club preferring to work for myself as i spotted a gap in the market for professional training for amateur/semi pro players playing at a high level who hold down full time jobs. I so however work with professioinals from the big clubs so can pass on lots of medical/fitness advice from the international arena etc.

Anyway I'm always happy to answer questions on the subject as there's lots of conflicting advice out there (read as: bullshit) so in a bold move I thought I would start another thread where people can ask specific training questions andI can try to help - I'm sure there's other coaches and experts too who can pitch in.

This is my job so I can't spend all day on here or write epic 16 week perodised programmes unless you line my palm with silver but when I'm not training people, usually during the day, I get very bored and this is marginally more fun than trawling the web for my other obsession: 1800's vintage pornography.

Cheers

 

[brooksey101]

Didnt see this thread but i have sent you a pm

Hope you will reply soon

 

[o'dave]

Hi Brooksey,

Sorry it's been a mad week. I'll get back to you today about this and give you some tips and training you can be doing.

Cheers for all the emails lads, i'll do my best to reply as quickly as possible

 

[YoungBlackie]

Hi

Im Just Starting The Weights Back Up.

I Am 5ft 4 And Weight About 124 Pound

I Know I Should Be Intaking About 1.8-1.9g Of Protien Per Kg Of Body Weigth But What Sould Be My Carb Intake??

 

[o'dave]

Hi

Im Just Starting The Weights Back Up.

I Am 5ft 4 And Weight About 124 Pound

I Know I Should Be Intaking About 1.8-1.9g Of Protien Per Kg Of Body Weigth But What Sould Be My Carb Intake??

[/b]

Hi YB,

In terms of carbs - I would recommend about 50-60% of your daily calorie intake assuming you're training at the moment


So if your daily calorie requirements are about 2000 KCals (I'm guessing it's more than that but as an eg) then this equates to about 300g of carbohydrates. (1 g of carbohydrates gives 4Kcals of energy)

The MOST IMPORTANT point is that the TYPE of carbohydrates you consume. You should aim for more low GI carbs - whole grain bread, cereals and pastas, nuts, seeds, legumes, fruits and vegetables. You should avoid unhealthy carbohydrate-rich foods, such as sugary snacks, soft drinks, white pasta/rice/bread etc the beautful chip and most processed, packaged foods. These foods contain lots of calories while offering little nutritional value. Some of these foods also contain saturated and hydrogenated fats that are bad for your CV health.

Any further questions drop me a message


Dave T

 

[tjr]

How would you go about getting a faster acceleration (=more force into the hit), e.g. from a pick-n-go around a ruck? Think 1 to 2 meter sprints.

 

[o'dave]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (tjr @ Aug 29 2008, 07:53 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

How would you go about getting a faster acceleration (=more force into the hit), e.g. from a pick-n-go around a ruck? Think 1 to 2 meter sprints.[/b]

 

[o'dave]

I have a facebook group too with more rugby training info and discussion so without wanting to divert any traffic from TRF you can access more of my articles, tips etc there DT Rugby Fitness

 

[Petden]

Barbell Sub- Maximum Impact Plyometric Jump Box Squats. Can you further explain this exercise, I do not fully understand it.

 

[Sir Ferguson]

What is a good sample diet for a rugby player looking to increase muscle size (weight in general) and strength (working at around 8-12 reps with 2 sets, full body workouts three days a week)?

I understand thats a rather broad question, but I'm having trouble finding any insightful guidelines on the internet.

P.s (I'm 150 pounds, about 5'10, and engage in about 2 hours of moderate to intense exercise every day).

 

[greenstripe]

Hi. How would you bulk up?? like for a small person? cheers.

 

[o'dave]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (ali g @ Dec 15 2008, 08:57 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

Hi. How would you bulk up?? like for a small person? cheers.[/b]

There are two ways to gain mass - we can increase lean mass, or fat mass - both will add weight when you stand on the scales but obviously result in a very different appearance and rugby ability

Lean mass (muscle) gain can be achieved through a combination of a balanced diet (but you may need to eat more) and resistance training.

Research differs slightly but the general consensus (and my experience in the industry would verify this for most people) is that the biggest gains in size and strength can be achived through lifting the heaviest weight you can for 6-10 reps. If you can't perform that many reps with it, drop down a weight and if you can do over 10 it's probably too light.

Concentrate on compound exercise (where more than one muscle is working) like bench press, squats, deadlifts, shoulder press, lat pull down and olympic lifts (clean and jerk etc) and keep the smaller isolation exercises (one muscle) to a minimum like bicep curls. If you have never trained before or are unsure of any exercise MAKE SURE you see a professional instructor first. (most gyms will have smeone who can show you)

The amount of lean wieght you can expect depends a lot on genetics, body type, hormonal balance and diet but anyone can increase their strength gains regardless of size.

Their is too much on diet to explain here (so take a look at my facebook group DT Rugby Fitness) but basically you need to be in a positive energy balance (eating more calories than you burn off with maintenance)

If you eat and train accordingly you can expect to add between 0.5 - 1kg a month but this will be much greater at the start than after a few months of training.

Message me if you need more info but hope that helps

 

[o'dave]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Sir Ferguson @ Dec 15 2008, 05:36 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

What is a good sample diet for a rugby player looking to increase muscle size (weight in general) and strength (working at around 8-12 reps with 2 sets, full body workouts three days a week)?

I understand thats a rather broad question, but I'm having trouble finding any insightful guidelines on the internet.

P.s (I'm 150 pounds, about 5'10, and engage in about 2 hours of moderate to intense exercise every day).[/b]

It is a broad question but these guidelines might help.

Calories - you need to work out your RMR and calorie requirements first - you can read here how to do that here. Then you need to make sure you gradually increase it. Try adding 200Kcals a day for a couple weeks and then add a further 200. I have had clients who had to eat an extra 1000Kcals a day to add weight!

Fat - 15-30% of your calories and you want to focus on unsaturated fat. Things like nuts are great as they are pumped full of calories but very good for you.

Carbohydrates - with all that hard work you need to carb up. 60% of you calories. Focus on complex (low GI) carbs before exercise and simple carbs (energy drinks/fruit) post exercise

Protein - Consume 1.8-2g per kg of body weight so for you that would be a minumum of 122g a day. Anything above 2g has no further effect so most of the gym monkeys you see drinking 5 or 6 shakes are literally ******* their money away

Further tips:

• Refuel asap after training and generally consume 1g of carbs per kg of body weight
• Read up on creatine and make you own decision - research shows it can promote growth
• Take Meal replacement shakes etc - but these are to suppliment your diet not replace meals.
• Increae frquency - eat at least 3 meals and 3 snakcs daily and every 2-3 hours
  If struggling to eat enough:
• Add things like bananas, fruit, honey, seeds etc to your meals for extra calories
• Plan high calorie, low bulk snacks like shakes,smoothies, nuts, dried fruit and energy/protein bars

Remeber all of this is worthless unless you're training hard too. You need to lower the rep range i would suggest to 6-10 and hit complete muscular failure. The whole body thing 3 times a week is fine though

 

[Sir Ferguson]

That sounds good, I'll have to change my rep range.

But I find it schocking, that by the formula, to simply maintain my weight 3500 calores are necessary (1665x1.7+756 approximately for the weightlifting).

And then considering an increase in weigh might require me to intake in the region of 4000 calories.

Sample diets that detail how I could achieve this seem totally unrealistic, with meals needing to be consumd at akward time during the school day, and portion sizes appearing to be drastically above anythg I've consider.

What I'm really wondering, is if these concerns sound reasonable, and my figures are correct?

And much thanks for the earlier advice, it's refreshing to find someone willing to share their expertise for free.

 

[o'dave]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Sir Ferguson @ Dec 17 2008, 10:45 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

That sounds good, I'll have to change my rep range.

But I find it schocking, that by the formula, to simply maintain my weight 3500 calores are necessary (1665x1.7+756 approximately for the weightlifting).

And then considering an increase in weigh might require me to intake in the region of 4000 calories.

Sample diets that detail how I could achieve this seem totally unrealistic, with meals needing to be consumd at akward time during the school day, and portion sizes appearing to be drastically above anythg I've consider.

What I'm really wondering, is if these concerns sound reasonable, and my figures are correct?

And much thanks for the earlier advice, it's refreshing to find someone willing to share their expertise for free.[/b]

It can be a bugger trying to work out exact calorie requirements; and remember theory is theory and nobody is a textbook case. Like I said, so much depends on genetics. body type, your metabolism but in my own experience lots of people underestimate the amount they eat when adding muscle.

I'll use myself as an example - I'm 5'10", 13 stone at moment and body fat about 9%. In my job I'm mad active obviously. I wanted to bulk up a bit for the start of the rugby season but I struggled simply because of the amount of cardio I had to do and the fact I wasn't eating enough. The first two weeks I lost weight but my fat % stayed constant so I knew I was breaking down lean muscle mass due to lack of fuel. I have to consume almost 4000 calories a day to build mass - think that's a lot? remember this One very fat Phelps

Now I'm not suggesting anyone is like that but to put it in perspective all the research shows people in the 1950s consumed more calories than average person today. But overall they would have been significantly more active.

I would say get yourself measured (scales and body fat) and try increasing your calorie intake slightly if you are straggling to put muscle on. If you are particularly mesomorphic and can just look at a dumbbell and put muscle on then you probably don't need to eat more. The key though is to try and eat smaller nutritnet rich meals more often. I don;t really have 'huge' meals at all but pretty much eat something every feew hours.

So much depends on your job and body type etc that its hard to guess on the internet but overall eating a bit more when you;re working out shouldnt turn you into a tubster. Keep your cardio primarily to interval training and play it by ear dependning on your sucess or otherwise. After a month you should start to see changes which can help you balance diet accordingly.

My final comment would just be to remember that strength and power are massively more important than size in rugby. Remember Bryan Habana - 90kg (14 stone) and according to official Springbok stats can bench press 160kg. I wrote an article on weight training for rugby here: Welcome to the Gun show

 

[121rusga5]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (o'dave @ Dec 15 2008, 10:33 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

Anything above 2g has no further effect[/b]

Can you provide any research to back this up?

 

[o'dave]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (121rusga5 @ Apr 14 2009, 08:17 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (o'dave @ Dec 15 2008, 10:33 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Anything above 2g has no further effect[/b]

Can you provide any research to back this up?
[/b][/quote]

Protein intake about your optimal requirement will not result in further mass or strength gains. Studies at McMaster University Ontario and Kent State University Ohio showed similar results to back this up. Chiefly that strength training approximately doubles your protein needs and that increasing your protein needs does not increase size or strength in a linear manner. Groups using optimal protein and groups using more than optimal both increased muscle mass by equally as much so there is no need to consume above and beyond. In fact there is a train of thought that it could be harmful to the liver or kidneys - this is only theoretical but there is evidence it may lead to excessive calcium excretion. A little bit of research will pull up lots of subsequent reading for you http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art...rticlekey=50900 http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/0023.htm this last article sums up the various conflicting studies but it must be stressed they all point to the fact anything over 2g per/kg is pointless

ultimately too much protein will probably not harm you but it's a waste of money and may simply cause fat increases. I doubt anyone except elite athletes would need to be anywhere near the 2g/kg mark anyway

 

[Fa'atau82]

Hi Dave

I don't know if you know about Taro, it is a root vegetable you normally get in tropical climates, and would be typical to samoan, tongan and fijian diets and you may have encountered that in the UK. Do you have any info about how to use it for a diet? I know it is full of protein, and wondered if you had any info on how much you should eat?

Gary

 

[o'dave]

I probably know as much as anyone else about it I'm afraid. I've certainly had it but can only really remember two things about it: 1) that it's toxic unless cooked and 2) that it is indeed high in protein and nutrients in general, in keeping with most leaf vegetables.

Not sure what you mean by 'use it for a diet'? I would suggest just cooking it properly and including it in a balanced diet as a great source of nutrients. No idea about amounts - i wouldn't eat it at the expense of other things. There is no magic food unfortunately - the boring case is that a balanced diet is indeed the best way to go.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Fa'atau82 @ Apr 27 2009, 06:38 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

Hi Dave

I don't know if you know about Taro, it is a root vegetable you normally get in tropical climates, and would be typical to samoan, tongan and fijian diets and you may have encountered that in the UK. Do you have any info about how to use it for a diet? I know it is full of protein, and wondered if you had any info on how much you should eat?

Gary[/b]

 

[OSU Blue]

Hey Dave,

I have a question regarding supplements. First a little background: I'm currently bulking, I'm 6' 190lbs, an experienced lifter, 22 years old, have been taking meal replacements, protein powders, multi-vitamin, glutamine, creatine, glucosamine and an omega 3, 6, and 9 supplement.

I'm out of the omega supp, and since I really don't trust the brand or product really (but thought what the hell with the price and all), I was curious as to your opinion on omega amino acid supplements compared to a straight BCAA supplement.

Honestly, I've been really busy and have not researched either as much as I probably should, so if I have said something of ignorance, my bad. Do they even do the same thing? Is one viewed better than the other? What exactly do they do (and not read directly from a label)? If you don't have any experience with this, then that's cool, but please say so. Obviously I'm very skeptical as to what information I get, because I realize there are tons of people online and in bodybuilding forums that flat out have no idea what they're talking about and try to give advice, so I like to grill anyone with real experience any time i get the chance . Thanks for your time, by the way, and take care...