I've been working out at the gym for the past 4 months, and now I want to learn more about body-building and weight-lifting. I've done some research and have been dieting right, but feel like there is almost too much information to sort through regarding lifting and supplements. Does anyone have a link to a good information source regarding work-outs for mass-gaining cycles? Or advice/suggestions? Also, what kind of supplements would be good to start out with? I currently use L-Glutamine, Whey Protein, and BCAAs.
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Mass Gain Workouts - Suggestions?
- Thread starter pmalcom
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Creatine monohydrate is good to take, it's the only sup I take now. Getting bigger is pretty simple, focus on compound movements. Just make sure you are doing deadlifts, squats, presses, pull ups and some kind of rows. Don't work out too much and make sure you have some kind of progression to your program. Read some of the stickies for a more detailed look at training.
Darkcity
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arnold has a great book for everyone who trains called ( encyclopedia of modern bodybuilding) was one of the best thing i ever bought..
hmm for me my core lifts im doing 3 sets of 5 and thats working good with 6-8 reps on 3 sets for the aux lifts. then again everyones body reacts differently so might take a few different things to figure out what works for you.
hardcore5000
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go hard, focus on no more than 2 major muscle groups a day. try to do between 6 to 15 reps in each set. stick to the fundamental free weight exercises and supplement those exercises with modified versions. break down the muscles as much as u can so they comeback harder and bigger. Mix it up a bit. And consume plenty of protein.
purchaseprotein
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Never train with less then 70% of max rep no more then 6 reps.
ie max bench 300 never do less then 210 always shoot for 6 reps. If 6 comes to easy go up in weight. If you train with someone your final rep should be with a touch spot.
ie max bench 300 never do less then 210 always shoot for 6 reps. If 6 comes to easy go up in weight. If you train with someone your final rep should be with a touch spot.
purchaseprotein
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Sorry I wish I could have posted the link
Here are some conclusions I have come to over the last few years. None of this is really new as I’ve said it before. It’s just that the last few years of experience and experiments have confirmed some of these things and I thought I should share them with you as everyone could always use a refresher.
1) The best rep range for a combo of size and strength for most average, drug free lifters is still 5-8.
2) When training for hypertrophy gains, doing sets with weights below 70% of your 1 rep max is an utter waste of time for all but the genetically elite or chemically enhanced. The rare exceptions are certain lower body exercises and prehab movements.
This has nothing to do with training for speed/power as you can use weights in the 50-60% range when that is the goal. But for pure hypertrophy gains you want to be using weights above 70%.
In simple terms this means that if your 1RM on the bench press is 300 pounds it would do you very little good to rep out sets with less than 210 pounds (70% of 300). The weight will be too light to optimally recruit motor units and build any real appreciable size. At that point you’re really only training endurance.
3) This is pretty much the same as number two. Doing reps above 10 is largely a waste of time for most genetically average, drug free lifters on most exercises. Some smaller bodyparts like neck will fall out of this range for safety reasons and certain lower body movements respond better to slightly higher reps. But those would be the exception rather than the rule. The average guy looking to get jacked should stick with ten reps and under most of the time.
Here are some conclusions I have come to over the last few years. None of this is really new as I’ve said it before. It’s just that the last few years of experience and experiments have confirmed some of these things and I thought I should share them with you as everyone could always use a refresher.
1) The best rep range for a combo of size and strength for most average, drug free lifters is still 5-8.
2) When training for hypertrophy gains, doing sets with weights below 70% of your 1 rep max is an utter waste of time for all but the genetically elite or chemically enhanced. The rare exceptions are certain lower body exercises and prehab movements.
This has nothing to do with training for speed/power as you can use weights in the 50-60% range when that is the goal. But for pure hypertrophy gains you want to be using weights above 70%.
In simple terms this means that if your 1RM on the bench press is 300 pounds it would do you very little good to rep out sets with less than 210 pounds (70% of 300). The weight will be too light to optimally recruit motor units and build any real appreciable size. At that point you’re really only training endurance.
3) This is pretty much the same as number two. Doing reps above 10 is largely a waste of time for most genetically average, drug free lifters on most exercises. Some smaller bodyparts like neck will fall out of this range for safety reasons and certain lower body movements respond better to slightly higher reps. But those would be the exception rather than the rule. The average guy looking to get jacked should stick with ten reps and under most of the time.
OK, so 5-8 reps, 3-4 sets per exercise I'm guessing, and I read in one of those stickys that upper pull/legs/upper push is a good routine, figured I'd do abs and cardio in between each of those days. Good?
I went from 155lbs to 175lbs from January to March, but then I started trying to switch up my work-outs every week, and slacked on my diet for a few weeks. Now I'm down to 170 and want to get back to gaining weight. When I was gaining, I was doing Chest/Tri - Legs/Back - Bi/Shoulders with 2 days of cardio and abs.
How many calories are you eating now? You DO know that's where the growth comes from, right? It's not from your workouts. Those just tell the calories where to go.
What is your current mass-gain diet? How many calories, and how many grams of protein, carb and fat are you taking in?
What is your current mass-gain diet? How many calories, and how many grams of protein, carb and fat are you taking in?
Currently, 2600 cals with 218g protein, 347g carbs, and 52g fat. I know that caloric intake is important for growth, but find it hard to consume the 3000+ I need without eating nonstop. I eat tuna, egg whites, 2 sandwiches, 2 protein shakes, fruits, veggies, oatmeal, non-fat yogurt, potatoes, and broccoli, among a few other snacks throughout the day.
Add some more fat, and you can easily get 3K+ a day.
I echo ihateschool's sentiment. Why all the lowfat food? Eggwhites? Why? The best nourishment is in the yolk. Eat those, start cranking up the fats. No more non-fat anything. You should be drinking whole milk, eating full-fat yogurt, buttering your spuds and veggies and knocking back shots of olive oil in your shakes.
You're almost right about calories being important: calories are EVERYTHING - you simply cannot grow muscles out of air. You're losing weight because you've decreased your intake, flat out. Calories in, calories out.
Take a look at ihateschool's recent weight gain. Ask him how he's doing it, and do the same thing.
A lot of whole milk, olive oil, and nuts or nut butter added to any decent 4 meals will put you well over 4000 calories, I get about 5500 this way. Never be hungry but don't stuff yourself so full you can't eat for 5 hours. Try to be pretty full when you go to bed since that's the longest time you don't eat every day. Also try to sleep as long as you can every night. Gaining weight really isn't that hard you just have to eat calorie dense stuff.
Does this not make you gain too much weight from fat as opposed to muscle? I have NO problem putting more fat in my diet, I just didn't want to become a fatass. What kinda gains you been making, and by eating more fat do you have to do more cardio?
Here's a sample day from fitday
Calories 5,573
Fat 209.6g, 1,855 calories 33%
Saturated 83.7g, 739 calories 13%
Carbohydrate 660.3g, 2,568 calories 46%
Protein279.7g 1,154 calories 21%
Calories 5,573
Fat 209.6g, 1,855 calories 33%
Saturated 83.7g, 739 calories 13%
Carbohydrate 660.3g, 2,568 calories 46%
Protein279.7g 1,154 calories 21%
Nah man, fat doesn't just stay as fat. Your body burns it off like anything else. Fat calories are important for a lot of the bodies functions. A lot of refined sugar will more likely make you add fat than calories from fat. I don't do cardio at all anymore, mostly because I don't enjoy it and I do what I want most of the time.
^^ wow. Guess I'll shoot for 3500-4000 then. one last thing, how do you keep track of all that? I have an app on my phone that calculates it for me when I put in my meals. Do you just record it all yourself?
Fitday.com, but honestly don't count them anymore I just eat 4 meals and drink at least 75oz of whole milk a day. I counted everything I ate on that site for a while and it was between 5k and 6k all the time so I just eat til I'm full now.
