1. Biography
• Name: Ashish Patel
• Age: 24
• Height: 5’10”
• Weight (Contest): 160 lbs.
• Weight (Off-Season): 150-155 lbs.
• Hometown: Houston, TX
• Gym: 24 Hour Fitness
• Profession: Business Development Analyst for Eborhood.com
2. What got you started in bodybuilding/fitness?
I started lifting weights in my senior year of high school. It was about October of 2004. At the time, some of my friends were into lifting weights—so as a result I started and wanted to get a little bigger too. Eventually, most of my friends stopped, but I became very attached to lifting weights and wanting to get bigger. Initially my goal was to get as much muscle mass as possible, but over the last couple of years, I have altered that to gaining as much lean muscle as possible and getting ripped up. Due to my change in goals, I have been concentrating on doing more reps per set and intense abs and cardio every day.
3. What keeps you motivated to train?
I am motivated to train and live a healthy lifestyle because I am always conscious of my weight and how my body looks physically. It really drives me to work out hard every day and also eat healthy. I don’t see myself changing my lifestyle for a long time. I am going to try to do it as long as I am physically able to.
4. What workout plan has worked best for you?
Monday: Chest
• Bench
• Incline Dumbbells
• Decline Bench
• Dumbbell Flies/Cable Crossover - superset
Tuesday: Back
• Deadlifts
• Bench Bar Rows
• Lat Pulldown
• Rows
• Wide Grip Pull-ups/ Cable Pulls - superset
Wednesday: Biceps & Triceps
• Bench Bar Curls
• Incline Dumbbells
• Skull Crushers
• Overhead Dumbbell (Seated)
• Dumbbell Hammers/Preacher Curls - superset
• One hand cable extension/Rope on cable - superset
Thursday Shoulders
• Military Press Dumbbells
• Barbell Raises
• Barbell Press (behind neck)
• Shrugs
• Dumbbell Flies & Dumbbell Raises - superset
Friday: Legs
• Squats
• Front Squats
• Good Mornings
• Dumbbell Lunges
• Leg Press (one leg at a time)
• Calf Raises & Calf Curls - superset
Saturday: Light Biceps / Triceps / Chest
Choose favorite exercises for each body group listed. Do four exercises for each body group but superset them two at a time with a very light weight.
• Bench/Incline Dumbbells - superset 4 (12-15)
• Dumbbell Flies/Decline Bench - superset 4 (12-15)
• Dumbbell Curls/Incline Dumbbells - superset 4 (12-15)
• Wide Grip Barbell Curls/Preacher Curls - superset 4 (12-15)
• Skulls Crushers/Overhead Dumbbell - superset 4 (12-15)
• One hand cable extension/Rope on cable - superset 4 (12-15)
Sunday: Light Back / Obliques / Shoulders
Choose favorite exercises for each body group listed. Do four exercises for each body group but superset them two at a time with a very light weight.
• Deadlifts/Bench Bar Rows - superset 4 (12-15)
• Lat Pulldown/T-bar Rows - superset 4 (12-15)
• Dumbbell Lawnmowers/ Side Crunches 4 (12-15)
• Wood Chops/Cable Push-Pull 4 (12-15)
• Military Press Dumbbells/Dumbbell Flies 4 (12-15)
• Dumbbell Raises/Shrugs 4 (12-15)
*Cardio: Every Morning for 20 minutes: 10 minutes light, 10 minutes intense (right when you
wake up on empty stomach).
*After Every Workout: 10 minutes sprinting, 200 jump ropes.
*Abs Every Morning: 60 sit-ups with legs raised in air or on a exercise ball (before morning
cardio).
5. What is your philosophy about cardio?
I believe cardio is very important and should be done daily. It helps in any case whether it is to gain or lose weight. You just have to adjust what type/intensity of cardio you do based on your goals.
6. What is your philosophy about weight training?
I believe everyone should live somewhat of an active lifestyle. It will help keep you physically healthy and can also provide mental satisfaction. There are many benefits associated with weight training, but you should always train for yourself and not to impress others.
7. Do you prefer HIIT or steady state cardio?
I think the type of cardio you do depends on your workout goals. I do a mix of both high intensity and steady state. I believe if you are trying to gain/lose a great deal of weight, then you might want to consider doing HIIT cardio more frequently than steady state cardio. If you are just trying to maintain your look, then I believe steady state is the way to go.
8. What are your top 5 favorite exercises?
My top 5 favorite exercises are:
- Hammer Curls
- Dumbbell Flies
- Incline Dumbbells
- Preacher Curls
- Back Rows
9. What is your philosophy about nutrition?
Your diet is just as important as working out no matter what your goals are. If you want to gain weight, you obviously have to eat more. If you want to lose weight, you still have to eat a good amount to be healthy and keep a good metabolism. I also believe no matter the end goal, you have to maintain a very clean diet. I personally never have a cheat day because I like what I eat and don’t feel the need for one. Liking what you eat is also another big key when constructing a diet.
So the plan that has worked best for me is broken down in my daily meals section. I basically had the same meal plan for gaining weight, but I would just eat more and take in more calories and protein. The final thing I will say about eating well is to not overeat. After every meal you should feel full, but also you should be able to eat more if you wanted to (but you won’t).
10. What nutrition plan has worked best for you?
Meal 1: After Morning Cardio and Abs
• 1 scoop of NOW Food Protein Isolate with 8 oz almond milk by Almond Breeze Unsweetened and 1 cup egg whites
• 2 pieces of toast (Natures Own whole wheat light bread 3x fiber)
• 1/4 cup Yogi Granola
• 1 multivitamin
• 1 fish oil cap
• 2 BCAA caps (Optimum Nutrition)
• 6 raw almonds
• 1 cup coffee (black)
Workout Time: Pre-Workout Shake
• Jak3d, 1MR, or NO Shotgun
• I take a month off of each and drink 1 cup black coffee during that time for a pre-workout shake.
• 4 BCAA caps
Meal 2: Post workout
• 1 protein shake (1 scoop)
• 3/4 cup egg whites
• 1/4 cup Yogi Granola
• 4 raw almonds
• 4 BCAA caps
• 2 strawberries
Meal 3:
• 4 oz chicken breast on 2 pieces of toast
• 4 oz extra lean ground turkey breast wrapped in 1/2 Flatout bread
• 1 serving spinach
• 1 serving green beans (or any other vegetable)
• 10 blueberries
Meal 4:
• 4 oz tilapia
• 4 oz extra lean ground turkey breast
• 1 serving spinach
• 1 serving green beans
* If I am hungry in between meals, I eat a couple of raw almonds and drink a protein shake.
* Adjust your meal plan based on how your body feels. For example—if you eat this meal plan and feel really tired, then maybe you need to increase your carbs. If you feel like you aren’t growing then take in more protein. Your diet is key and you need to tailor to fit your body and workout goals. This meal plan is to stay very lean and get ripped. It will not work as well growing a lot of muscle. If you want to do that, you will have to increase your protein intake and food intake, but make sure it is proportionate to your current weight.
* If you are vegetarian then substitute either a protein shake or one cup of egg whites for each meat dish.
11. What is your favorite cheat food?
I don’t have cheat days/foods but if I were to cheat then I would eat the following:
• French Fries
• Blueberry Pancakes
• Banana Nut Muffins
12. What is your favorite health food?
I have many favorite health foods, but a few are:
• Egg Whites
• Spinach
• Oatmeal
13. What supplements have given you the greatest gains?
I have tried out many supplements to get to my goals. I have used all kinds of proteins, vitamins, and pre-workout drinks. I feel that my greatest gains came from the whey isolate protein that I use from NOW Foods (Unflavored). It’s a very clean protein and I have seen the lean gains I have wanted from using this product. As for pre-workouts, a few that work well for me are (Jak3d, White Flood, & 1MR). I also take multi-vitamins (Centrum, OrangeTriad, etc.), glutamine, beta alanine, and ON BCAA caps.
I would still recommend that you should always eat real food (egg whites, chicken breasts, etc.) if possible instead of taking a lot of different shakes and gainers if you are trying to gain/lose weight.
14. What does your pre and post workout nutrition consist of?
Pre-Workout Shake
• Jak3d, 1MR, or NO Shotgun
• I take a month off of each and drink 1 cup black coffee during that time for a pre-workout shake.
• 4 BCAA caps
Post workout
• 1 protein shake (1 scoop)
• 3/4 cup egg whites
• 1/4 cup Yogi Granola
• 4 raw almonds
• 4 BCAA caps
• 2 strawberries
15. Which tools have helped you most with your nutrition and training?
The main thing that has helped me most with both my nutrition and training is just experimenting with different workout routines and meal plans. Everyone’s body is different so it’s a trial and error process to figure out what works best for your body. You can always use a meal plan or workout routine as a guide but you should try to tailor it to your own goals and what works best for your body. Also, doing research and reading other people’s experiences helps a great amount in developing a plan that will work for you.
16. Have online resources (social networks) helped you in your training? If so, what are they and how have they helped you?
I have found a lot of help from online bodybuilding forums and reading people’s experiences with workout products, routines, and meal plans. Ultimately I believe it still comes down to trying out stuff yourself and figuring out what works for you. There is no substitute for experiencing something for yourself rather than relying on someone else telling you what to do.
17. Where is the first place you turn to when looking for training / fitness / nutrition advice?
I usually try to do as much research online about anything that I am going to try for the first time. I go to bodybuilding forums and see if people have tried a certain product or workout in order to see what mistakes I can avoid.
18. Who are your favorite fitness/bodybuilder competitors or role models?
My favorite bodybuilder is Ronnie Coleman. I know he is very popular among others, but he is the person who really got me into bodybuilding after I saw some of his contests and video.
19. What obstacles have you had to overcome (injury, illness, relationships etc)?
I have been lucky that I have not had any major injuries since I started working out. The one main thing I would say I had to overcome is the bias toward people in my culture (parents from India) of not being able to get muscular / ripped. I believe this is changing somewhat, but it was something that I was reminded of constantly.
20. What was the biggest mistake you made when you first started training?
The biggest mistake I made when I first started training was that I was worried about the amount of weight I was lifting. This should be the last concern you have, but rather you should worry about having correct form. If you have correct form and work out correctly, then the strength and weight gains will come along. So my motto is “form first and the weight will follow.”
21. What tips would you give to a beginner?
There are many things that I think would have helped me out when I started if I had known them. As I have previously mentioned, don’t worry about the amount of weight you are lifting, but instead make sure you have correct form. A good way to think of this is that when you leave the gym, nobody will know how much weight you do, but they will judge you most likely on your physique. Having good form will develop a good muscular body, which is the ultimate goal of bodybuilding (rather than how much weight one can bench press or curl).
Also when starting out, do not get intimated when going to the gym. I was as first, but then I realized everyone is concentrating on doing their own workout and I should do the same. Nobody is going to look at you and think “he/she is weak or not big.” I would think that sometimes, but I quickly realized this is not the case.
Lastly, work out to achieve your own goals and not impress others. You will achieve the best results when you do something for yourself rather than for another cause/person. The more you train and eat right the more results you will see and there will be benefits that come along with it. This will be plenty of motivation to keep training.
22. What are your future fitness goals?
I want to enter a couple of competitions this year for my weight class and experience level. I would like to see how far I can get and then make the necessary improvements to move up to a higher class next year. Maybe eventually I can sponsor some products.
23. Where can we find you on MuscleDog.com?
Check out my profile, ap3265 to see my fitness stats, bio and more.
