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I Want to Grow

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Posted by: btodde

Hello, everyone. I am new here and any advise I can get from you buffed Monsters, bring it on. I am 31 and weigh only 130#. I am 5'6". Not very big but I have been lifting for about 5 years now. And trying to go heavy for about 2 1/2 years. I am up 225 on bench. I think it is very good for 130#. I was 120# when I started, so a 10# gain isn't too bad. I have gained no fat what so ever. It is all muscle. I am at 10% bodyfat. But now I am at my plateau. Can't get any bigger or lift anymore. Hurt a lot. I am hoping to get know everyone here and get some help gaining weight and lift more. My goal is to up to 140-150 by end of this summer!!!! Thanks. Todd


Posted by: Prince

btodde welcome to IM!

Eat Big to Grow Big!

Start by going into the diet/nutrition forum and posting your diet.


Posted by: btodde

kwel thanks.


Posted by: Martinogdenbsx

yeah i would say that is one of the main things people overlook in bodybuilding is diet although i have tried and failed and my second attempt starts tommorow!


Posted by: btodde

Yeh, but how do I eat big without getting fat? I am quite proud of my 10% bodyfat... I want to be chisseled(bad spelling)


Posted by: Purdue Power

You have to deal with putting on some body fat and a little water retention if you are going to eat right. You bulk for awhile, putting on a lot of muscle and some fat. After that, you cut down, keeping nearly all of the muscle that you gained while losing all of the fat.


Posted by: sgtneo

welcome aboard m8, and eat alot to gain alot, im 5.6ish and about 140ish but you can bench more than me lol i ahve not been training as long, good luck and enjoy your visit


Posted by: btodde

Quote:
Originally Posted by Purdue Power
You have to deal with putting on some body fat and a little water retention if you are going to eat right. You bulk for awhile, putting on a lot of muscle and some fat. After that, you cut down, keeping nearly all of the muscle that you gained while losing all of the fat.


How do I do that? Lose fat and keep muscle?


Posted by: Archangel

Welcome!!!


Posted by: Purdue Power

You do more cardio, lower your carb intake, eat enough protein to maintain your muscle mass and not much more. You can also take some suppliments to help you burn it off, such as Alpha Lipoic Acid, Conjugated Linoleic Acid, L-Carnitine, Chromium Picolinate,etc. You can do a search on here to learn more. You can take and Ephedrine/Caffein stack, which is very popular. You have to drink a ton of water, but you need to do that all the time anyways. You don't take in any carbs withing 5 hours of going to bed. There is much more, but again, just do a search. You will learn more about so many different things if you set out to find one thing.


Posted by: DamnHardGainer

Btodde, you sound like an ectomorph...how's your metabolism? When you get older you may have to be concerned with fat as your metabolism slows down, but based on what you wrote about yourself, I doubt that's a problem with you right now.

In fact, you sound pretty similar to me. I was 125 lbs at 22 years old when I started lifting and having already stopped growing as an adult. I'm a hard gainer and now 7 years later I weigh 165 lbs, and would weigh more had I not been so stupid to ignore my legs until last year -- my upper body is well developed but my legs are catching up now. I can lift heavy weights compared to guys who outclass me by 50 lbs, and definately more lb for lb in most cases.

If I were you, I'd ignore concerns about fat. You're still young enough to do that. Bulk up first, then worry about cutting if you have to later on. I bet you're one of those types like me who can eat a can of crisco and not gain an ounce! I wouldn't do much cardio...just enough for keeping your endurance up, but not enough to start burning muscle fiber for energy. If you're an ecto, you probably don't have much in fat stores for energy. Eat constantly, supplement with creatine and various protein drinks/powders. Mix a protein drink before you go to bed and keep it by the bed. If you wake up for any reason down it...8 hours of sleep is like fasting for people with fast metabolisms! If you always sleep through the night, set an alarm in the middle of your rest...as for me, my body wakes me after 3.5 hours for protein intake.

You sound like you're making great gains...225 lbs at 130 lb bodyweight is very good. That's 1.73 times your bodyweight! Consider a 200 lb man who pushes a comparable 346 lbs! I know many who cannot do that. Are you lifting 225 for reps or max? In any case, if you hit a plateau mix up your routine...add different exercises, change the order you do your routine, and/or increase intensity. Always life heavy with relatively low reps. Aim for twice your bodyweight in strength on the bench for a goal.

Good luck, I know what it's like to be a hard gainer. But guys like you and me sometimes have an advantage in looking striated and cut at all times. Any mass you gain really shows.


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I Want to Grow


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