Ask Ade: How to increase, decrease your body weight

Wed, 09/24/2008 10:51 AM  |  Health

Ade Rai is Indonesia's most famous bodybuilder and a passionate advocate of good nutrition and a healthy lifestyle. Every second week, he will be offering professional advice and answering your questions through this column.

Dear Ade,

I'm a 29-year-old woman. All of my friends say that I'm too skinny for a woman of my age and height (38 kilograms, 156 centimeters).

Ade, what can I do to make my body curvier? Thank you for answering my question.

-- Rosa, Jakarta

Dear Rosa,

Thank you for sending in your question. You are indeed a little on a skinny side. I hope you are in good health to take up a regimented training and nutrition program. Once you get clearance to start an exercise and a diet program from your doctor, here is what you can do.

Start a resistance training program three times per week. Preferably done every other day, starting with day one for upper-body push exercises that target your chest, triceps and shoulders. Day two for lower-body exercises that target front thighs, hamstrings and calves. And day three for upper-body pull exercises that target your back, biceps and trapezius.

Increase your intake of lean proteins: For every meal that you take (by the way you need to take in at least 3-4 solid meals per day, which means you have to adhere to your meal times), have at least a serving of protein the size of your own palm. This can come from various lean sources like lean red meat (tenderloin or sirloin cut), chicken breast (without the skin), egg whites, tempeh or tofu.

Having a cup of skim milk or fat-free yogurt in between meals is a nice trick to boost your protein and calcium intake at the same time.

Increase your intake of complex carbohydrates: Have a serve of carbohydrates about the size of your own fist at the same time you are having your lean protein. The preferred sources for complex carbohydrates would be brown rice, muesli, oatmeal and whole grains.

Take in as many colored veggies as you can with every meal: Vegetables are nature's best sources of vitamins, minerals, flavonoids, enzymes and antioxidants. A bowl of garden salad with a touch of oil and vinegar dressing every meal would ensure that.

To further boost the profile of your nutritional intake, it's also a wise move to take a multivitamin and mineral supplement daily.

Stop smoking and start sleeping more: If you smoke, please stop. Smoking is a very unhealthy practice that puts stress on you down to the cellular level, hence preventing you from gaining a healthy weight. Scientific research has shown that sleep deprivation is the main culprit of an unhealthy body weight (both over and underweight).

Good luck with your endeavor, Rosa. Please keep me updated with your progress.

Dear Ade Rai,

I am 171 cm tall, and I weigh 85 kilos. My ideal weight (good defined muscle six pack abs) was 68 kg. When I was 76 kg, my abs were no longer visible but my belly was still flat, and the abs definition was still there (the middle line, and outer line of the muscle abs).

I am an between meso and endomorph type person. I usually lift weights slowly (it takes eight seconds for me to complete one bench-press rep; four seconds to lift it and another four to return to the starting position). Should I be using quicker reps and lighter weights?

On the bench press I can lift 40 kg in 10 reps and two sets. On the third set I am already struggling. On the lat pull-down machine I can also pull 40 kg; 10 reps and three sets, but I cannot pull them quickly since they're heavy for me.

I usually do my workout at 7 p.m. and try to finish it in an hour. Sometimes I eat after my workout, which is sometimes at 10 p.m., and I also drink milk before I go to sleep. I seem to be gaining weight and size, which includes my tummy.

I want to lose weight, not gain anymore muscle. My upper body and lower body shows that I workout. I just want to flatten my belly. Should I lift heavy weights or lighter weights (in order to save time because I can lift them faster if the weights are lighter) and should I do more weights or cardio work? Thank you.

-- Stephen, Jakarta

Hi Stephen,

Thank you for writing in with so much information for me to work on. This is the type of letter that makes it so much easier to answer.

Physiologically, you would see more gains if you perform all your exercises with a quicker repetition speed. For the positive or concentric part of the repetition, it would be better to bring the speed up to one second instead of the four seconds that you have been used to.

Hold the contraction at the top for one count, and then have the negative or eccentric part of the repetition done in two to three seconds. Although you may find yourself a little stronger on most exercises, I would recommend you to stick with the current weights that you use to get used to the new rep scheme.

Then, do 30 minutes of cardio and maintain two heartbeats per second (120 beats per minute).

For your post-workout meals, you may want to start with a lean protein drink immediately after you finish your workout. Then half an hour after that, have a good solid meal containing lean protein and complex carbohydrates, which I suggest you take at around 8.30 p.m. This meal is very important as it should give you enough nutrients for recovery, and also serves as a bridge meal before a final one before you hit the sack.

A good, lean liquid protein drink may be the one to go for prior to going to bed.

Please keep all your meals lean with no additional fats added, as all of your foods, especially the proteins, will already have all the fats you need.

Check your progress not just by the scale, but also by the percentage of body fat, then calculate your body fat in kilograms or pounds. If the number goes down while you keep your lean body mass (body weight subtracted by fat weight), you are on the right track. Otherwise, start reviewing your diet.

 

Thank you all for writing in. Please keep the questions coming. I appreciate your kind words and encouragement. Have a safe Idul Fitri.

Have an exercise or diet question? Fire away via ask_aderai@yahoo.com

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