Just wondering if there are any guys on here who work out and what their routines are? I am roughly 150lbs/27 years old and try to keep in shape through lifting weights. I struggle with the amount of recommended food intake and also have danced around different routines for a while trying to figure out what works best for me. I find it difficult to time a workout right like before/after a meal, etc due to lows and energy.
I try to work out before I eat, or 2-3 hours after, to get the insulin on board over and done with before I get too involved in anything? Lifting will raise my BG maybe 40 points so I don't mind starting that 85-90 and don't bother snacking. I like to have protein after I lift or run or whatever. These days, I'm mostly running and doing crunches/ elliptical on off days.
I am an ancient old horse. I do the bench press and incline bench press. I worked up to 150 lb. Not sure if it s my plateau. I eat the whey protein a bit of carbs and inject some insulin which they say is supposed to be good for growing muscle.
I tried to bulk up a few times in the past. I'd reach a plateau and the only way to break through would be to up my calories, a lot. I tried protein powders and such, but I'd get to a certain point and my BGs would go wacky. It's tough to balance.
I still lift up to 5 times a week, rotating through routines and body parts. I just do a lot more cardio these days, and if I miss a weight day, so be it.
Let me caveat by noting that I am a diagnosed as a type 2 and my experience may or may not be helpful to you. After diagnosis, I took up weight lifting and gained about 25 lbs of muscle mass. I am not a young man like you, I am instead an old fogey (50 years old). Gaining muscle mass requires challenging your body with progressive weights and fueling your body growth. To get the most out of things, you may need to implement pre-workout and post-workout diet. I found the book Nutrient Timing: The Future of Sports Nutrition helpful. You need to plan your insulin regime around how you respond to weightlifting. I spike during weightlifting (rising more than 100 mg/dl), but everyone is different. It can be very helpful to follow up your workout with "covered" meal within two hours, that helps you recovery and the insulin is required to enable the uptake of nutrients. Remember, you don't get big from weight lifting, you get big recovering from weightlifting. If you are following a low carb diet, you will have a different response as well. I use protein supplements, buying low carb 100% whey protein from costco in 6lb bags. I down those after workout as well as additional times during the day if you really up the protein.
Finally, workouts. I am a fan of heavy weight training. All the time at the gym, the trainers have people do functional and circuit training, light weights, isolated exercises and lots of reps. If you want to put on mass all over your body, perform compound lifts, do them with strict proper form and go heavy. A good program is found in the book Starting Strength which is also described in detail in a Wiki and you can participate in the on-line forum Startings Strength Website.
This is my opinion, others will no doubt have other views.