Thread: Why am i not getting bigger!?

Eat. Creatine is OK.

well, im also on a reduced calorie intake, as i am also trying to reduce body fat so eating to put on mass wouldnt be the best option for me to put on maximal muscle. also i was reading an artice that says that if you take creatine, and then get off it, you lose the gains associated with it. can i get the jacked muscles and the mega strength naturally without supplements?

You definitely can. Most of the weight added by creatine is water retention. Once you get off, the water leaves your body and so does the weight that is associated with it. Huge gains in strength are fully possible naturally. I don't take anything (except flax oil capsules, but those are a natural supplement that's more of a convenience than taking the actual oil) and I've increased my lifts dramatically. I now deadlift about 390 and ATG squat about 285 or so. Just keep on lifting and eating right, and take the advice of the more experienced members on the board. Question everything you don't understand and strive to gain knowledge. It's your best friend.

Originally Posted by ArnoldsProtege

well, im also on a reduced calorie intake, as i am also trying to reduce body fat so eating to put on mass wouldnt be the best option for me to put on maximal muscle. also i was reading an artice that says that if you take creatine, and then get off it, you lose the gains associated with it. can i get the jacked muscles and the mega strength naturally without supplements?

Loosing weight and gaining weight are oppisites, you can't do both. When you get as lean as yu want, starting eating a lot and you will gain muscle.

Originally Posted by ArnoldsProtege

im 16 and ive been lifting weights on and off through grade 11. this summer, ive been hitting the gym regularly for cardio and lifting. i wanna get bigger and stronger for football, and i have been intensifying my workouts more. however, my biceps,my pecs and even my legs seem to not be growing! i try and lift more weight, and i have increased my strength alot, but my arms and my chest just seem to not grow in size. i am abit overweight (currently 215 down from abot 250 in january) and i still have aways to go for my weight loss goal of 190. i was wondering if there were specific exercises/sets/reps/splits designed for maximal muscle GROWTH and STRENGTH. if someone could please help me, it would make a huge difference
in acheiving my goal. also, would it be unhealthy to take creatine at 16? thanks alot.

where in toronto?

intensity is key...

if ur not going balls to walls.. u wont get optimal gains

eat like u would if u were 250 lbs... ull see gains..

Thanks for the advice Squaggle boggin. were actually pretty similar( i bench 200,age 16, weigh 220) the only supplement im taking now is my Isoflex(Whey isolate) and i also add a tablespoon of L-glutamine to every shake(the guy at the local nutrition house suckered me in!) i HAVE seen improvement, and im thinking maybe i dont see it as much cuz i have a high bodyfat %. i always try and push myself my hardest, and i do alllot of cardio(about an hour/hour and a half each session) to reduce my bodyfat. thanks for all the responses. ill just stick to my protein and hope to get ripped lol. btw, i live in markham and goto Markham District H.S.

Having a high BF will probably help you to move more weight if that's what your goal is.

You cant lose weight and get maximum muscles at the same time. If youre trying to lose fat, youre probably looking at cutting calories by something like 500 calories a day, but if youre lifting weights and want to gain muscle, you should eat like 500 more (im only making an example here) The difference between losing fat, and gaining muscle is 1000 calories in this example, thats a big gap. If you want muscle, then that much cardio is not helping if youre also eating less. You will need to cut down the cardio, and eat more. You have to decide what you want. Do you want to lose more fat, or do you want to gain muscle? You will lose fat, but you wont gain much muscle on what youre doing now. Creatine is not a super drug to help you get big if you dont have the right workout going, along with proper nutrition. Decide what you want to do right now, and stick to that.

You are trying to lose weight and gain size at the same time? You have to know your dieting to achieve that.

What is your protein intake and how is it spread through the day?

thanks for all the feedback. i am currently having a pre workout shake and a pwo shake of IsoFlex protein(whey isolate) and i try and eat lots of protein through out the day. i weigh about 220 so should i reeally be getting 220 grams of protein and up a DAY to achieve signifigant strength gain? and when? should i have tuna or oats or something every 3-4 hours or before bed? im kinda new to all the supplementation and nutrition. also, i am not necesarily trying to lose weight as much as i am fat. i play football, so being 220 of muscle would be quite intimidating on the feild. i would not mind weighing the same or even more if i was leaner and in better shape with a reduced body fat %. also, can i put on lots of muscle and strength JUST by eating my protein and vitamins? i mean, some of these guys on the footballt eam are HUGE, and i cant help but think that theyer taking some sort of supplement. thanks for all the feedback.

Well carbs are just as important as protein when it comes to building muscle. They create the anabolic environment in your body. As for PWO, try 40-50g protein, 40-100g dextrose (estimate how much glycogen you depleted during wkout) and 5g creatine and see if you dont grow... Decreasing bodyfat while increasing muscle is incredibly hard as Mudge has pointed out. For a guy your size on a muscle building quest, i would recommend 250g protein AT LEAST, and 600g carbs along with a steady workout routine with cardio 3 times a week at 30 minutes a session.

Originally Posted by ArnoldsProtege

i weigh about 220 so should i reeally be getting 220 grams of protein and up a DAY to achieve signifigant strength gain? and when? should i have tuna or oats or something every 3-4 hours or before bed? im kinda new to all the supplementation and nutrition. also, i am not necesarily trying to lose weight as much as i am fat.

If you want strength, you have to train for strength. After some period of time generic training wont give you appreciable strength gains. If I start out a set of benching doing 10 reps, even as I work my way down my strength doesn't move at all.

Losing fat, means losing weight. To be able to trade fat for muscle and never change your bodyweight, without it being more than a few pounds, would be near miraculous for many people especially since you admit you are new to the dieting game.

As for guys on the field being huge on supplements, supplements dont throw magical bodyweight on you. Either they are naturally large people (they just so happen to be eating the right amount of food to weigh what they do without force feeding themselves), or they ARE doing the work required to maintain that kind of weight which may or may not be easy for them.

If you want to gain or lose weight, including losing bodyfat, you need to figure out how to eat your way there. Just taking protein isn't going to work magic for 98% of the people looking to change their body.

also check your BF this might sound weird to some of you but i know lots of people that have broken plateau's by cutting there body fat down to as low as it can go using MCT's and high protien to maintain there muscle and then after a few monthes of finally getting as close to 7% as you possibly can start bulking again. your test levels are so much higher when your BF is at least under 10% or as close to it as you can get. If you do it right you should be much more improved after your bulking cycle and the more time you do this the better you should be able to cut because of the extra lean muscle mass.

You smoke too much weed!

Go to the diet section. You aren't eating enough most likely, although you can feel free to layout your routine for some critiquing if you would like.

At 16 bro, you can cut fat and build muscle at the same time, thats the beauty of the teenage metabolism... You just have to be at maintenance level, lifting, and doing cardio, but you get much more focused gains if you just zone in on one...

Keep cutting, lose that fat, (thats what Imma doin now) and then start eatin big again!

Thanks alot all for the feedback. i was also wondering if less is more worked with cardio as well? so i should not only be doing 3 times a week for weights(mon:chest-tris,wed Back-bi's,Fri:legs-shoulders and alternating abs,calves and forearms) but i should also only do cardio 3 times a week? also what is dextrose and is it possible to take it in food form? ugh i cant belive school is starting soon...harder to focus on my training and diet !!

oh, i dont smoke THAT much.... :P

Originally Posted by ArnoldsProtege

Thanks alot all for the feedback. i was also wondering if less is more worked with cardio as well? so i should not only be doing 3 times a week for weights(mon:chest-tris,wed Back-bi's,Fri:legs-shoulders and alternating abs,calves and forearms) but i should also only do cardio 3 times a week? also what is dextrose and is it possible to take it in food form? ugh i cant belive school is starting soon...harder to focus on my training and diet !!

You can get away with doing a lot of cardio because you are trying to lose weight. However, if you decide to start bulking up when you finish reaching your desired level of body fat, then you are probably going to want to limit your cardio a little more. Also, a 3 day lifting split is a great choice for a natural lifter.