Q&A with Chris "The Technician" Aceto, master guru

[Chris Aceto]

i would add cardio right away sometimes decreasing calories....sometimes what happens is the body just says "screw u" and adapts. I would add 3 days of interval cardio 30 min and see if u look harder on day 4 ( which is my expectation)

[Suprmann]

Hey Chris,
How many exercise do you normally recommend per body part and how many working sets per exercise? Also what would you say is the average amount of time you recommend spending in the gym per body part?
thanks!

[Chris Aceto]

Hey Chris,
How many exercise do you normally recommend per body part and how many working sets per exercise? Also what would you say is the average amount of time you recommend spending in the gym per body part?
thanks!

My philosophy is summed up
1) More is not better UNLESS you sra able to maintain good strength thruout a workout and/or a good pump. THEN more is better
2) Stick with sore exercises; the ones u are strongest on
3) It varys from person to person but even though I advise rule #1, you should always leave the gym thinking " I could have done another exercise" if u do that, then u wont overtrain
4) Not the detail u are looking for but as I always say the devils in the details

[mackdaddy567]

Hey Chris I am currently in my second week of dieting. I work and go to school every day and only have time to hit the gym once a day so I train and then do 30 minutes of cardio. I was wondering if you think taking bcaas would be a good idea before my cardio. My schedule is usually to eat at about 7pm, and start training by 745 and by 845 ish be on the treadmill. My next meal is at about 10. Also I was thinking of doing something like every 14 days or so eat like I would in the off season, which would be about 600-700 calories extra. Do u think its a good idea? Or should I just stay strict?

[Bem90]

Do you currently accept new clients?

[hira2]

Welcome Chris. Did you prep Jay for the 2001 Olympia? If so, what was done differently that year to achieve his best ever conditioning?

[Provo82]

Hi Chris,

Ive recently read your books championship bodybuilding, everything you need to know about fat loss ive also read lyle mcdonalds book on ketogenic diets. any other good reads you can recommend to help establish a well rounded good base of nutritional knowledge? whether there by you or someone else. thanks in advance. im not against textbooks either so feel free to recommend one of those if need be.

[Spacey]

Hi Chris, I just read your article Balanced Blood Sugar Levels For New Fat-Free Muscle Mass, which provided a lot of food for thought.

Based on the paragraph from that article quoted below, I was wondering what adjustments you would recommend for someone who supplements with exogenous insulin.

If you have trouble staying lean following a higher calorie bulking diet, avoid sugar and stick with slower-burning carbs like oats, cream of rye cereal, rye bread, yams, red potatoes and pasta. The reason: bodybuilders with a higher percentage of body fat experience greater insulin surges from eating carbs (compared to leaner bodybuilders). Insulin spikes ultimately cause blood sugar levels to drop, and low blood sugar levels can be catabolic. The insulin surge can also leave you weak, tired, and can, ultimately, elevate catabolic, muscle wasting, hormones.... Moderate insulin secretion can keep blood sugar levels more stable and stable levels are idea for muscle growth and fighting any potential increase in body fat.

I assume that injecting 10ius of exogenous insulin around your workout would cause huge swings in insulin levels, which should lead to catabolism and increased body fat. But my understanding from the many insulin users here and from Milos Sarcev's thread is that taking insulin and eating fast-acting carbs (which would cause a greater spike) actually promotes muscle growth without fat gain. If a bodybuilder takes Humalog immediately pre-workout, for example, do you think that it is possible to avoid a drop in blood glucose levels by eating fast acting carbs during the workout and then returning to a slower-carb/protein diet?

Thanks.

Hi Chris, not sure if you saw this, but could you take a look and let us know what you think?

[Chris Aceto]

insulin can make u fuller and bigger. It still to a large degree boils down to calories, BBers who use it off season usually add mass of cource but get fat as hell too. With regard to using it dieting.....it would likely crush your blood sugar levels.....by that IO mean bring them too ( dangerously) low

[Chris Aceto]

Well gor just genereal info on phsyiology I love the Physiology Coloring book! Thats the real title

[Chris Aceto]

Yes I did. Well one thing I do recall a week or so out maybe more we rolled all the dice and went out and pigged out. True story. PIGGED OUT, then he depleted and loaded rest is couldy cause i was only 21 at the time

[Chris Aceto]

I pick and choose depends on my energy levels

[Chris Aceto]

yes I do like BCAA and think they are effective when u are or close to getting run down
Diet strict until u can figure out "ok this diet is actually working" once u can dtermine that the diet is effective then you can cosider taking a day every 10 days or so and adding another 700 calories to the diet.

[Night_Wolf]

Chris,
on low body fat levels (7-8%) when should I eat my carbs? (I do AM cardio on empty stomach and PM weight training after meal 4) And should I add carbs to my whey shake after weights.

Thanks!

[Spacey]

insulin can make u fuller and bigger. It still to a large degree boils down to calories, BBers who use it off season usually add mass of cource but get fat as hell too. With regard to using it dieting.....it would likely crush your blood sugar levels.....by that IO mean bring them too ( dangerously) low

Thanks for the info!