Getting Bigger - point me in the right direction?
Discussion
33yo been running, cycling and swimming for years. Wanting to put some weight on my arms, shoulders, chest and back. Running has kept me lean for but I'm a natural fatty (mesomorph). I'm in good shape but there's nothing on my arms, at all. But the thing is, I don't care in the slightest how strong I am. I could not care a less. All I want is a bit of weight in the right places to fill out a t-shirt. For girls, basically. My competitive interest will always be racing.
So, my thinking was; stop all cardio bar swimming + one 6 mile run a week (don't want to lose it!)
Start eating like there's no tomorrow. All chicken, tuna, eggs, salmon, nuts, avocado, brown rice, and all the veggies. As much as I can afford.
Go nuts touring the machines to target specific muscles. Work them until absolute failure, 3x 10 reps or so?
Slowly work up the compounds. Get some professional advice on form.
Eventually, when the weight start increasing, start splitting the days of the week to target specific areas (including the compounds)
I don't mind putting on a little fat over the winter (hopefully it'll soon vanish once Tri season gets underway next year)
Sound reasonable? Stupid? Average? Any advice welcome!
So, my thinking was; stop all cardio bar swimming + one 6 mile run a week (don't want to lose it!)
Start eating like there's no tomorrow. All chicken, tuna, eggs, salmon, nuts, avocado, brown rice, and all the veggies. As much as I can afford.
Go nuts touring the machines to target specific muscles. Work them until absolute failure, 3x 10 reps or so?
Slowly work up the compounds. Get some professional advice on form.
Eventually, when the weight start increasing, start splitting the days of the week to target specific areas (including the compounds)
I don't mind putting on a little fat over the winter (hopefully it'll soon vanish once Tri season gets underway next year)
Sound reasonable? Stupid? Average? Any advice welcome!
Day 1 - Chest and Triceps
Day 2 - Long Run
Day 3 - Back
Day 4 - Shoulders and Biceps
Day 5 - Shorter Run
Day 6 - Legs
Day 7 - Rest
Day 1;
Bench Press, incline dumbell press, cable flys
French press, close grip bench press, rope pushdowns
Day 3;
Deadlift, lat pulldown, bent over rows, single arm dumbell rows
Day 4;
Standing military press, side dumbell raises, front dumbell raises, rear delt flys
Straigh barbell curl, dumbell curl, cable hammer curls
Day 6;
Squat, stiff leg deadlift, walking lunges, standing calf raises
All of the above 3 sets of 10. Drop set (10reps/10reps/10reps reducing weight ~20% each drop) on the last set of each muscle group.
High Protein, Moderate Carbs, High Fat diet. Don't go too crazy if you believe you're a mesomorph as it will result in rapid fat gain and rapid motivation loss! Use http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bmr_calculator.htm to work out your basic metabolic rate and initially shoot for 500cals above that - re-assess after 3 weeks to see how your body has responded with regards to fat/weight gain. If no change, bump it up another 500. If you've gained bad weight (mirror), reduce it by 250. Although with the swimming, running and now the weight training, you may find you need to eat way more than your bmr to see change.
Try and focus carbs around your workouts (pre/post) and protein in every meal.
Good fats - avacado, eggs(inc yolk), peanut butter (organic/natural), oily fish.
Good carbs - oats, brown rice, cous cous, sweet potato.
Good proteins - fish, eggs, chicken, turkey, red meat.
Don't make it more complicated than it is. If you eat in a calorific surplus and you lift heavy and consistantly, you will gain muscle.
Day 2 - Long Run
Day 3 - Back
Day 4 - Shoulders and Biceps
Day 5 - Shorter Run
Day 6 - Legs
Day 7 - Rest
Day 1;
Bench Press, incline dumbell press, cable flys
French press, close grip bench press, rope pushdowns
Day 3;
Deadlift, lat pulldown, bent over rows, single arm dumbell rows
Day 4;
Standing military press, side dumbell raises, front dumbell raises, rear delt flys
Straigh barbell curl, dumbell curl, cable hammer curls
Day 6;
Squat, stiff leg deadlift, walking lunges, standing calf raises
All of the above 3 sets of 10. Drop set (10reps/10reps/10reps reducing weight ~20% each drop) on the last set of each muscle group.
High Protein, Moderate Carbs, High Fat diet. Don't go too crazy if you believe you're a mesomorph as it will result in rapid fat gain and rapid motivation loss! Use http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bmr_calculator.htm to work out your basic metabolic rate and initially shoot for 500cals above that - re-assess after 3 weeks to see how your body has responded with regards to fat/weight gain. If no change, bump it up another 500. If you've gained bad weight (mirror), reduce it by 250. Although with the swimming, running and now the weight training, you may find you need to eat way more than your bmr to see change.
Try and focus carbs around your workouts (pre/post) and protein in every meal.
Good fats - avacado, eggs(inc yolk), peanut butter (organic/natural), oily fish.
Good carbs - oats, brown rice, cous cous, sweet potato.
Good proteins - fish, eggs, chicken, turkey, red meat.
Don't make it more complicated than it is. If you eat in a calorific surplus and you lift heavy and consistantly, you will gain muscle.
The above is bulls
t, its;
Take cretin and obligatory whey protein shake within 30 mins of workout finishing
Monday - Chest
Tuesday - Arms
Wednesday - Chest
Thursday - Shoulders and Abs
Friday - Arms for the night out
Saturday - Chest + Arms for the night out pump
Sunday - just take pre-workout for energy boost
t, its;Take cretin and obligatory whey protein shake within 30 mins of workout finishing
Monday - Chest
Tuesday - Arms
Wednesday - Chest
Thursday - Shoulders and Abs
Friday - Arms for the night out
Saturday - Chest + Arms for the night out pump
Sunday - just take pre-workout for energy boost
Fozziebear said:
Just eat more and lift heavy objects
Simple as that. Look at Starting strentgh/5x5 Stronglifts. Simple easy to follow programmes. Build the strength first and the rest comes withit.Great app for 5x5 on android and ios.
good thread here - http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=144...
ColdoRS said:
Day 1 - Chest and Triceps
Day 2 - Long Run
Day 3 - Back
Day 4 - Shoulders and Biceps
Day 5 - Shorter Run
Day 6 - Legs
Day 7 - Rest
Day 1;
Bench Press, incline dumbell press, cable flys
French press, close grip bench press, rope pushdowns
Day 3;
Deadlift, lat pulldown, bent over rows, single arm dumbell rows
Day 4;
Standing military press, side dumbell raises, front dumbell raises, rear delt flys
Straigh barbell curl, dumbell curl, cable hammer curls
Day 6;
Squat, stiff leg deadlift, walking lunges, standing calf raises
All of the above 3 sets of 10. Drop set (10reps/10reps/10reps reducing weight ~20% each drop) on the last set of each muscle group.
High Protein, Moderate Carbs, High Fat diet. Don't go too crazy if you believe you're a mesomorph as it will result in rapid fat gain and rapid motivation loss! Use http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bmr_calculator.htm to work out your basic metabolic rate and initially shoot for 500cals above that - re-assess after 3 weeks to see how your body has responded with regards to fat/weight gain. If no change, bump it up another 500. If you've gained bad weight (mirror), reduce it by 250. Although with the swimming, running and now the weight training, you may find you need to eat way more than your bmr to see change.
Try and focus carbs around your workouts (pre/post) and protein in every meal.
Good fats - avacado, eggs(inc yolk), peanut butter (organic/natural), oily fish.
Good carbs - oats, brown rice, cous cous, sweet potato.
Good proteins - fish, eggs, chicken, turkey, red meat.
Don't make it more complicated than it is. If you eat in a calorific surplus and you lift heavy and consistantly, you will gain muscle.
This is great, thank you! I'll follow this as best I can.Day 2 - Long Run
Day 3 - Back
Day 4 - Shoulders and Biceps
Day 5 - Shorter Run
Day 6 - Legs
Day 7 - Rest
Day 1;
Bench Press, incline dumbell press, cable flys
French press, close grip bench press, rope pushdowns
Day 3;
Deadlift, lat pulldown, bent over rows, single arm dumbell rows
Day 4;
Standing military press, side dumbell raises, front dumbell raises, rear delt flys
Straigh barbell curl, dumbell curl, cable hammer curls
Day 6;
Squat, stiff leg deadlift, walking lunges, standing calf raises
All of the above 3 sets of 10. Drop set (10reps/10reps/10reps reducing weight ~20% each drop) on the last set of each muscle group.
High Protein, Moderate Carbs, High Fat diet. Don't go too crazy if you believe you're a mesomorph as it will result in rapid fat gain and rapid motivation loss! Use http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bmr_calculator.htm to work out your basic metabolic rate and initially shoot for 500cals above that - re-assess after 3 weeks to see how your body has responded with regards to fat/weight gain. If no change, bump it up another 500. If you've gained bad weight (mirror), reduce it by 250. Although with the swimming, running and now the weight training, you may find you need to eat way more than your bmr to see change.
Try and focus carbs around your workouts (pre/post) and protein in every meal.
Good fats - avacado, eggs(inc yolk), peanut butter (organic/natural), oily fish.
Good carbs - oats, brown rice, cous cous, sweet potato.
Good proteins - fish, eggs, chicken, turkey, red meat.
Don't make it more complicated than it is. If you eat in a calorific surplus and you lift heavy and consistantly, you will gain muscle.
Im going to incorporate some standing around with an angry face drinking protein shakes, too. Should boost T levels. Already seen massive gains just by watching 80's action movies!
"I'm not fat, I'm accumulating mass"
I would seriously consider a 5x5 routine, especially if you're just starting weight training.
Ignore specific small muscle exercises like biceps isolations, you will be wasting your time. Just stick to progressively heavy compounds and, if you really want to give your biceps a good workout (if you have enough in the tank after the main routine), do pull ups. If you do countless BB and DB curls, you will end up disappointed with the results. IMOHO
Ignore specific small muscle exercises like biceps isolations, you will be wasting your time. Just stick to progressively heavy compounds and, if you really want to give your biceps a good workout (if you have enough in the tank after the main routine), do pull ups. If you do countless BB and DB curls, you will end up disappointed with the results. IMOHO
lemmingjames said:
The above is bullst, its;
Take cretin and obligatory whey protein shake within 30 mins of workout finishing
Monday - Chest
Tuesday - Arms
Wednesday - Chest
Thursday - Shoulders and Abs
Friday - Arms for the night out
Saturday - Chest + Arms for the night out pump
Sunday - just take pre-workout for energy boost
Made me laugh that, "Cretin"t, its;Take cretin and obligatory whey protein shake within 30 mins of workout finishing
Monday - Chest
Tuesday - Arms
Wednesday - Chest
Thursday - Shoulders and Abs
Friday - Arms for the night out
Saturday - Chest + Arms for the night out pump
Sunday - just take pre-workout for energy boost
What you need to add for perfection is Chest plus f
king about with Iphone for twenty minutes a time whilst monopolising one piece of equipment that loads want to use.There was a young Asian guy at the gym the other day that had been skipping leg day, was admiring his admittedly
very impressive torso, he removed his jogging bottoms to reveals some legs, I had not seen anything like it unless they were on something that had fell out of a nest.
chris watton said:
I would seriously consider a 5x5 routine, especially if you're just starting weight training.
Ignore specific small muscle exercises like biceps isolations, you will be wasting your time. Just stick to progressively heavy compounds and, if you really want to give your biceps a good workout (if you have enough in the tank after the main routine), do pull ups. If you do countless BB and DB curls, you will end up disappointed with the results. IMOHO
Sounds reasonable.Ignore specific small muscle exercises like biceps isolations, you will be wasting your time. Just stick to progressively heavy compounds and, if you really want to give your biceps a good workout (if you have enough in the tank after the main routine), do pull ups. If you do countless BB and DB curls, you will end up disappointed with the results. IMOHO
I've done my share of compound lifting in the past, and it did work wonders. I'd leave the gym feeling utterly broken at times, but in the good way.
Went on a couple machines yesterday.... left feeling like I'd just done some weird stuff with my arms? Nothing special! Bit achy today, though!
J4CKO said:
Made me laugh that, "Cretin"
What you need to add for perfection is Chest plus fking about with Iphone for twenty minutes a time whilst monopolising one piece of equipment that loads want to use.
There was a young Asian guy at the gym the other day that had been skipping leg day, was admiring his admittedly
very impressive torso, he removed his jogging bottoms to reveals some legs, I had not seen anything like it unless they were on something that had fell out of a nest.
Why does the fact he was "Asian" have to be mentioned? If he was white would you have mentioned his ethnicity??What you need to add for perfection is Chest plus f
king about with Iphone for twenty minutes a time whilst monopolising one piece of equipment that loads want to use.There was a young Asian guy at the gym the other day that had been skipping leg day, was admiring his admittedly
very impressive torso, he removed his jogging bottoms to reveals some legs, I had not seen anything like it unless they were on something that had fell out of a nest.
cringle said:
J4CKO said:
Made me laugh that, "Cretin"
What you need to add for perfection is Chest plus fking about with Iphone for twenty minutes a time whilst monopolising one piece of equipment that loads want to use.
There was a young Asian guy at the gym the other day that had been skipping leg day, was admiring his admittedly
very impressive torso, he removed his jogging bottoms to reveals some legs, I had not seen anything like it unless they were on something that had fell out of a nest.
Why does the fact he was "Asian" have to be mentioned? If he was white would you have mentioned his ethnicity??What you need to add for perfection is Chest plus f
king about with Iphone for twenty minutes a time whilst monopolising one piece of equipment that loads want to use.There was a young Asian guy at the gym the other day that had been skipping leg day, was admiring his admittedly
very impressive torso, he removed his jogging bottoms to reveals some legs, I had not seen anything like it unless they were on something that had fell out of a nest.
Personally I was more concerned about why he was removing his trousers in the gym
(no homo)?cringle said:
J4CKO said:
Made me laugh that, "Cretin"
What you need to add for perfection is Chest plus fking about with Iphone for twenty minutes a time whilst monopolising one piece of equipment that loads want to use.
There was a young Asian guy at the gym the other day that had been skipping leg day, was admiring his admittedly
very impressive torso, he removed his jogging bottoms to reveals some legs, I had not seen anything like it unless they were on something that had fell out of a nest.
Why does the fact he was "Asian" have to be mentioned? If he was white would you have mentioned his ethnicity??What you need to add for perfection is Chest plus f
king about with Iphone for twenty minutes a time whilst monopolising one piece of equipment that loads want to use.There was a young Asian guy at the gym the other day that had been skipping leg day, was admiring his admittedly
very impressive torso, he removed his jogging bottoms to reveals some legs, I had not seen anything like it unless they were on something that had fell out of a nest.
"Asian" to me isn't a pejorative term, just a descriptive one so perhaps stop looking to be offended ?
TurboHatchback said:
cringle said:
J4CKO said:
Made me laugh that, "Cretin"
What you need to add for perfection is Chest plus fking about with Iphone for twenty minutes a time whilst monopolising one piece of equipment that loads want to use.
There was a young Asian guy at the gym the other day that had been skipping leg day, was admiring his admittedly
very impressive torso, he removed his jogging bottoms to reveals some legs, I had not seen anything like it unless they were on something that had fell out of a nest.
Why does the fact he was "Asian" have to be mentioned? If he was white would you have mentioned his ethnicity??What you need to add for perfection is Chest plus f
king about with Iphone for twenty minutes a time whilst monopolising one piece of equipment that loads want to use.There was a young Asian guy at the gym the other day that had been skipping leg day, was admiring his admittedly
very impressive torso, he removed his jogging bottoms to reveals some legs, I had not seen anything like it unless they were on something that had fell out of a nest.
Personally I was more concerned about why he was removing his trousers in the gym
(no homo)?It was in the changing room where I was covertly looking at young, well muscled men
They will call me Purple J4CKI.
I have to say it may be where the gym is but the clientele is mainly white, the Asian folk that do visit dont, as a rule seem to be regulars, but this guy obviously is, the Asian community do seem to be perhaps a little under represented in Sport and Fitness related pursuits thinking about it.
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