Q&A for: 23-Sep-06
1791. Q:
mike, i have 2 questions
1) when im squatting, my knee clicks pretty much every time im coming up from the squat, it doesnt hurt, i can just hear the sound.. is that bad?
2)why am i so weak? im 16, 6'4 224 pounds, and i only bench 145, squat 145, and dead 145. bench-5 reps squat-6 dead-8 reps
A:
1) If there is no pain present then most likely your knee clicks are not a problem. It usually happens partly because of lack of flexibility in the tendons and partly because of the physiology of the kneecap. Do more stretching of both the quads and the hamstrings and see if that helps the clicking. But if you do feel pain in knee, then you should definitely stop doind squats see a doctor or a physical therapist if pain persists.
2) You are not weak at all! At 16 you are very very young and probably have not been lifting for very long. Strength depends on neurological adaptations which come as result of long-time practice and from effective strength-training programs just as much as it depends on sheer physical size. So don't get frustrated with your perceived lack of strength but simply keep at it and with time I guarantee you will be quite strong. If you want to try a strength-specific program, check out this. Good luck!
1794. Q:
I am very curious about my body. I want to lose my fats. give an example of exercise that will help me
A:
To lose extra body fat most effectively you need to do two things: first, eat a healthy balanced diet with slight caloric deficit to lose weight and second, do heavy whole-body weight training along with some cardio. The basic idea is to weight-train ALL of your muscles because each muscle is capable of burning fat -- the more muscles you involve the more fat will be burned. So there is no one exercise that will by itself make you lose much body fat (though squats and deadlifts are probably best overall exercises since they hit more muscles than any other).
I wrote an article on how to lose fat and I suggest you start by reading that. It will also point you to a couple other articles that will teach you about healthy diet and effective weight training. Take time to read and understand them all and you'll know exactly what to do to lose that extra fat. Then you can get a starter program by filling out my fitness guide. Good luck!
1795. Q:
I am 6 feet tall. If I lose one inch off my waist how many pounds of fat did I lose^.
A:
This can vary from person to person, but I'd say losing one inch off the waist with good nutrition and training programs means you lost 8-10 pounds of weight of which 6-8 pounds is fat.
1796. Q:
Mike, I recently shifted to a lighter weight-more rep workout. On my bench press, I now do sets to failure of about 12-9-5 reps. Is this still too heavy? Should I knock off a few pounds?
A:
If you're doing 12-9-5 reps to failure, I would still consider that heavy. That is the range I would recommend for most people most of the time, but if you wish to try higher-reps program I would reduce the weight by another 10-15% which should bump the reps to 16-20/set range.
1797. Q:
hi im an o level student and i am overweight since childhood. i go to gym often but i always land up in breaking my routine that is i go to gym for a few days and then leave it. i have a lot to study so i cannot possibly make a fixed time for work out.im a muslim and i think i can lose weight during ramadan.pls help me by giving me a diet plan for ramadan so that i could lose weight even without going to the gym as i am always busy in exams n monthly test.
A:
I assume your age is around 16-17 (not sure exactly what 'O level' age is)... At your age unless you are very obese it's not a good idea to try and lose a lot of weight quickly -- a good pace would be no faster than 2 kgs (4 pounds) per month and I would try to make it slower. You may lose more weight in that since you'll be fasting for a month, but in general it's not a healthy goal to lose a lot of weight quickly.
As far as your diet during Ramadan, it does not need to be anything very special. You will almost certainly lose weight anyway so I would focus on eating healthy and eating a lot when you can to make sure you don't lose weight too much (which as I said is not healthy). If I understand correctly, you'll be limited to two meals per day -- one early in the morning and one late in the evening. In this case I would make sure the morning meal is rich in healthy carbs (oatmeal is always a great choice and/or fruits), protein (maybe eggs or any other protein-rich food), and healthy fats (dry-roasted nuts or egg yolks). In the evening I would have a big dose of veggies (perhaps a large salad or steamed veggies), some brown rice or sweet potatoes, some sort of lean meat or fish, and some olive oil as a salad dressing. Again, the emphasis should simply be on eating generous amounts of healthy foods when you can -- the fasting during the day will take care of weight loss already.
As far as the gym and workouts, I would not ignore them. Weight training not only burns fat while you are doing it, but even more importantly it preserves muscle which in turn burns fat around the clock. You will always get far better (and more lasting!) results when weight-training while losing weight than just dieting alone. A simple 20-30 minute program you can do in the gym whenever you get a bit of time is this.
Hope that helped, good luck!
1798. Q:
mike in response to question 1788, I beleive the young man was a muslim. Many of us who love to workout and go to the gym, as you may know will not be able to eat OR drink for the majority of the day, so our blood sugar will be low and we'll be tired. what kind of training program can you recommend for us to do to hold on to what we've earned over the year? keep up the great site!! Adam UK
A:
Check out my answer right above and also Q&A #659. By having to fast during the day you won't be in optimal shape to do much physical activity and certainly not to build muscle or strength. So the goal should be on maintaining what you have as much as possible, both weight-wise and muscle-wise.
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