Lifting Him up

A Whey to Try

With things tight around our house, I had to sacrifice my usual protein supplements and go cheaper. I purchased some whey concentrate from BuyBulkWhey . Now I am not going to get into the concentrate verses isolate debate, I will say give this a try. You have four choices to purchase:

1. Unflavored, unsweetened whey
2. Vanilla flavored
3. Chocolate flavored
4. Strawberry flavored

I have tried them all. The unflavored is just that. There is a slight milky taste when mixed with water. If you are into making protein bars or using protein in food, this would be a great product to use. I ordered the Vanilla 5 lb tub and asked for samples of the other flavors.

Vanilla is good, a little too sweet for my taste, but not bad. It is not a strong flavor, more of a traditional vanilla flavor than a French Vanilla flavor. They all mix well in milk or water, with a spoon or shaker. The vanilla is nice and mixed with lowfat or no fat chocolate milk gives a nice blend of flavor and carbs vs protein for PWO.

I tried the strawberry with some skim milk last night. The smell when the package was open was light and fresh. The taste was good, light and not the slightest bit over powering. It was not as sweet as the vanilla, in my opinion, but was nice. I am not a big strawberry flavored fan, I prefer the real berry to flavors. I probably will not order strawberry.

I just tried the Chocolate mixed in water, the ultimate test of protein flavor. WOW! Even in water it reminded of the nesquick or chocolate syrup milk we made as kids. It had the best taste of all of the chocolate proteins I have tried. It maybe that it was chocolatey but not too sweet, I am a dark, bitter chocolate fan. I recommend giving this a try.

5lbs is $29.99 plus shipping. They are pretty quick with the shipping and communicate really well with the customers. The macro break down per serving using water is as follows:

Calories 124

Fat 2g

Carbs 6g

Protein 20g

While this will not be my primary protein supplement source, I am still hooked on the At Large  products, this will be a secondary source for my protein needs. If you are seeking an inexpensive source for whey, I encourage you to check them out at BuyBulkWhey dot com .

Nitrean and Opticen Review

Protein Reviews

As I stated earlier, I use At Large Nutrition's  Nitrean and Opticen for my protein supplementation. Let me say up front that they are supplements not replacements for real food protein. While I try to get the majority of my protein from real food sources, time and sometimes cost affect my real food sources. I have tried many protein powders, trying to go cost effective and to find a blend that contains both fast acting proteins and slow acting proteins. Since I am now loyal to AT LARGE , I will not be posting links to the other brands.

EAS Premium Protein. This was the first protein powder I ever tried. It is a great buy coming in at $27-$36 for a six pound bag, depending on which store you buy from. The vanilla was okay flavor wise, nothing to get excited about. Since it was the first I had tried, it took some getting used to. It mixed well in a shaker cup or blender but was awful to mix in a cup with a spoon. This is a simple whey protein. While it is a great buy, the zavascale only issues it a B-

ON Procomplex - A blend of multiple milk based proteins, this powder had one of the better flavors ( I like the Vanilla flavor). If you go to their website you can find all the macro information. Procomplex mixed well even with a spoon, with only minor clumping. On the zavascale Procomplex earns an A

Dymatize 12 hour Elite -This protein is also a winner on the price scale. It is a whey/cassein blend, which is what I prefer. I tried the Fudge Brownie flavor first. I opened the container to smell brownie mix type smells. I smelled great, my mouth watered, then I tasted it. The smell and taste did not match. It was ...well... one of the worst things I have ever tasted. I used it for a few weeks, not wanting to waste, but finally gave the remainder away. It gave me horrible protein gas and left the oddest after taste in my mouth, kind of like a metal taste. This earned a D on the zavascale.

Syntrax Nectar - My son has never been able to tolerate or like milk. He will eat some ice creams and cheese, but even those are limited. As an ectomorph, he is needs more protein in his diet as he is trying to gain. I am turning to the nectar line to help. We purchased the Roadside Lemonade flavor. Upon opening it the smell of a Lemon Cake or Icing comes out. Do not expect a lemonade look, remember this is a whey product. It is thicker and more opaque than lemonade. The taste is okay, mildly lemon and hardly any whey flavor. I would use it as a snack occasionally. Personally I would not use it for my primary protein, especially since I like blends. If you are looking for a flavor with less of a milk product taste, you should look into the Nectar line. On the zavascale Nectar earns an A-

I will do a full write up on Nitrean and Opticen in coming days. They have earned A+ on the zavascale and I want to be able to tell you why I like them so much. Look for this upcoming article.

Interesting Articles

Here are a few links to some interesting health related articles.

When building muscle, testosterone is an important subject. Here is an article by Dr. Jeff Volek 

Here is a link to the routine I have been using the past month. Baby Got Back 

For those of you doing NROL or NROLW, here is a link to a forum that is NROL Specific 

I recommend At Large Nutrition's  Nitrean for protein supplementation.

Fatloss and Muscle Building routines

When I started out a little over a year ago, I started by reading and learning. Here are some sights to begin your research. I have not used, nor have I read, every single site referenced here. These are only suggestions, not endorsements. Those sites or books I do endorse will be noted.

At Large I have tried many different supplements and protein products. This is the company I endorse and encourage people to use.

A great list of good reading 

Training Protocols - a list of various weightlifting training protocols/routines.

The New Rules of Lifting I endorse and encourage the purchase of the book.

TNT   I endorse and encourage the purchase of the book. Men's Health TNT Diet: The Explosive New Plan to Blast Fat, Build Muscle, and Get Healthy in 12 Weeks (Mens Health)

Muscle Hack Two things I find interesting. Mark is Irish, after multiple trips to Northern Ireland, I have an affinity for the Irish People, and he is a low carber. Mark has some very interesting material.

Dr. John Berardi Great articles on nutrition, nutrition timing and exercise

Turbulence Training 

Hypertrophy Specific Training 

MH Power Training  I encourage the purchase of this book.

Home Grown Muscle 

The Brink Zone I have not read his books yet. Very good articles on nutrition and fat loss

Strong Lifts 

Tabata Theory I am captivated by this theory of cardio/ High Intensity training

Starting Strength Wiki  I encourage the purchase of the book.

Men's Health Huge in a Hurry: Get Bigger, Stronger, and Leaner in Record Time with the New Science of Strength Training (Men's Health (Rodale))

Welcome to Lifting Him up

I began this journey in November of 2007. My cholesterol was high and my doctor told me I needed to lose some weight or begin taking meds. I hate meds, so I sought to make changes. An elder in my church had just discovered the Men's Health TNT Workout he suggested that I look into the program. I read the website and then purchased the book. I began with 10 lb dumbbells and body weight exercises. For my Birthday, Dec. 21, 2007, my family purchased me a bench and 100lbs of adjustable dumbbells. I began to workout three times a week earnestly. I had a goal in mind, to get my cholesterol down. After 12 weeks, I returned for blood work. I was successful in bringing down the cholesterol but now hooked on weight training.

In November of 2008, I purchased a Power Rack and Barbell off of Craigslist. I figured the $50 deal I had arranged was better than $50 a month or more for a gym membership. For another $30 I was able to increase my total weights to 310 lbs of plates. A hernia, not from lifting, set me back two months. With a new home gym, I began 2009 with a goal of getting stronger and more defined. I completed 6 weeks of a modified Starting Strength routine and then 5 weeks of New Rules of Lfting Strength 1. My first squat was with an empty bar (45lbs). I recently set a personal best at 205 lbs. The gains have been remarkable.

My desire is to be able to share my workout logs and journey, pointing out the mistakes I make and the lessons I learn. I also hope to point any readers toward the only true hope any of us can have, Jesus Christ. If you are offended by overt Christian view points, this will not be the blog for you. I pray, however that you will join me in this journey.