My First Post - Go Easy ;-)

Tall

Evening All,

This is my first post, so go easy ;-)

I've been training for about a year, but my goals then were different to what they are now and I knew nothing about nutrition.

I'm 6ft 6, and weigh in currently at 105Kg or about 16.5stone which by my thinking is quite heavy, and I have a 44inch chest which i think is quite broad, and yet when you look at me... I'm Skinny!!!

(Photo Attached)

I'm currently taking 3 lots of protein shakes per day (USN Muscle Fuel Dynamic, 53g Protein, 13g l-glutamine) each with 40g of oats and a banana in, and just started on Creatine last week.

I'm eating 6 or 7 meals a day, lots of chicken, lots of wholemeal.

I'm doing the basics in terms of weights at the moment - i.e. lifting the heaviest weights I can without going daft (i.e. 1RM) and not going in to isolation exercises.

What tips can any give on how to bulk up?

My goal ideally is to be athletically big.

All help greatfully received.

Nick500

Never mind what supplements you are on, what are you eating??? :P

Tall

ok ;P

Example Day:

06:00 - 4 Creatine Tabs, 1x Protein Shake (With Oats & Banana)

06:30 - Workout, 2 Bottles Sports Water

08:00 - 16:00 - 'Graze' on the following:

2x Protein Shakes (With Oats and Banana)
3x Wholemeal Sandwhiches (Egg Mayo or Chicken)
150g Rocket, Spinach, Watercress Salad
4 Pints Water

18:00 - 2x Chicken Breasts, Boiled New Potatoes, Carrots

20:00 - Protein Shake

(Doesn't look that good when I write it down!)

Tall

Just thought I'd post having come back from the Gym.

Todays workout:

(These three exercises were all on the smith machine, done one after another - is that called a superset?)
3x 8 Squats @ 40Kg
(Broke my right knee years ago so gotta go real easy on squats)

3x 8 Stiff Leg Deadlifts @ 30Kg
(Never deadlifted before so wanted to make sure I got my form correct. Gotta get a trainer to give me some pointers on these)

3x 8 Upright rows @ 30kg
(Anyone know how to stop my wrists clicking on these?? Gonna change to a barbell for this)

3x 10 On the Pec Deck @ 52kg
3x 10 Chest Presses (Machine) @ 52Kg

3x 10 Close Grip Seated Barbell Curls @ 30Kg

3x 10 Seated Rows @ 63Kb

1x 10 Preacher Curls @ 40Kg
2x 10 Preacher Curls @ 30Kg (Arms had gone by then)

Ruggerbugger

It looks like you've got off to a pretty good start in your first year. I've got a couple of suggestions which you might consider:

It would definately be a good idea to get a trainer to give you pointers on your form. You do not want to be getting into bad habits now as they're very hard to get rid of down the line.

Next; I'd ditch every exercise you do on a machine for free weights. If done properly the squat and deadlift should not hurt your knee (if they do, get a physio to check it out).

Also, you might want to switch to a upperbody-lowerbody split.

On lower body day your primary exercises should be the squat and deadlift (congrats on already picking out the two best muscle building exercises around). I also like the lunge, front squat and back hyperextension. Get a trainer at the gym to show you how to do these correctly. Your reps and sets look good. NB if you first set is of 8 reps you should be lifting enough that you can't do the same number of reps the next set.

Upperbody exercise: Flat bench, Dips, Pull-ups, Bent over row, Upright row and shoulder press.

Immediately after working out chuck down 50grams protein in a shake and get up to 100grams of carbs (either get a weight gain powder or just have a coke and some fruit or something). This post workout shake alone will probably improve your progress significantly.

Keep eating clean protein and carbs the rest of the day (looks like you're already doing a good job there).

Tall

Cheers RuggerBugger.

If I'm working out in an evening I always have a 50g Protein Shake within about 30mins of finishing the gym and then a couple of slices of toast.

If its on a morning I normally slip a protein shake in the car while driving, and sometimes treat myself to a bacon cob.

I had a trainer for 7weeks last year, and I use her everynow and again just for the reason you suggested - being self employed I can't afford anytime of work due to bad lifting.

I used her on Wednesday to get form tips on my deadlifts, which are now working great.

I read somewhere in Mens Health that unless you are already 'big' and working on isolation exercises your body would create more muscle by doing a whole body workout 3/4 days per week. Anyone got any thoughts on this??

I try and do as many exercises as I can on free weights, but I'll get a trainer again next week to show me how to swap from machines to free weights. I know I should do this, but find the pec deck alot easier than butterflies... Cheating I know...!

I was told ages ago that squats and deadlifts were good, but didnt really think anything of it. Did a bit of research recently and spotted just how many muscles they worked. I feel great after workout with those in - dunno what they release into the body but i like it!

Ok so heres my current workout:

4x 6-8 Deadlifts @ 40Kg - Gonna up this to 50Kg next week as I feel comfortable now. Also gonna get on the Olympic bar instead of barbells.
3x 8-10 Squats @ 40Kg - Gonna up this next week but stick to the smith machine until I'm more confident on my knee. Taking Cod Liver Oil and Glucosamine to keep the knee sweet.
3x 8-10 Pec Deck @ 73Kg - Good increase on this since starting on Creatine.
3x 8-10 Lat Pull Down @ 52kg
3x 6-10 Tricep Dips (Not assisted)
3x 6-8 Wide Grip Pullups (Assisted by 30Kg - Aim is to go unassisted)
3x 8-10 Barbell Curls @ 30Kg (Stood up)
3x 8-10 Preacher Curls @ 40Kg
3x 8-10 Flat Bench Press[Dumbells] 22kg Per Hand
3x 8-10 Incline Bench Press[Dumbells] 20Kg Per Hand (Getting tired at this point)
3x 10-12 Seated Rows @ 60kg
5minute half way thorugh run to give the muscles a breather

I'm resting alot less between sets and exercises too.

Diet - well I had a day off today (apart from the vits), but monday/tuesday/wednesday diet was:

3x Protein Shakes (P:53g, C:32g, Glutamin:13g)
2x Granary Subs with Egg Mayo
200g Chicken with 100g Salad
4 Peices Chicken
Evening Meal - Lots of Chicken and Veg and Pasta or Pots

Supplements:
Protein: 53g and 13g l-glutamine in my shakes
4x Creatine Ethyl Ether
1x Ginseng
3x Normal Multi Vit
2x Vitamin D (I read it was a Steriod Hormone???)
2x Vitamin B
1x Vitamin C
1x Cod Liver Oil
1x Calcium and & Glucosamine

And I've just read a paper saying that Vitamin A in large doses acts like a natural muscle building steriod so I'm gonna get my mits on some of that.

I'm tempted to swap to a protein shake with more carbs as i'm struggling for energy on early morning workouts.

All help greatfully received! Cheers for the help so far folks!

Nick500

Stop eating bread and eat sweet pototo, brown rice, cous cous, heavy fruits like banana and lots of fibrous vegetables instead.

eat more lean chicken breast rather than chicken salads, and pre-prepared sandwiches suck

Ali M

Right, i must admit ive not fully read all your threads as im not a great reader, the bit i grasped is that you want to put on weight and it seems to me your diet is not good enough.

1st thing, Diet get this nailed and then get your training nailed.

TRAINING WISE: stick to basic movement (i see you use a pec deck, whats the point, looking at your pic there is nothing there to shape)

CHEST: Bench press X 5 sets - Incline press X 4 sets
BICEPS: BB Curls X 5 sets.

BACK : Pulldopwns to the back of neck X 5 sets - Pulldowns to the front X 3 sets
TRICEPS : Pushdowns X 5 sets

SHOULDERS : BB Press behind the neck X 5 sets - Close grip pull ups to the chin X 4 sets.

LEGS : Squats X 5 sets - Machine leg curls X 4 sets
CALFS : machine X 5 sets

All ive tried to do here is give you easy basic exercises for mass building once you have got the mass then introduce some shapping exercises.

Ref to diet i think you need to eating around 3,500 calories per day and to be honest you look so lean i would just eat for England and see where im at in 6 months. Eat anything dont worry about clean diets your lean and your body will probably burn fat and excess calories away, just concentrate on calories and try to get the protein in there. If you were fatish id say keep the diet clean.

Good luck hopefully this helps a little.

Tall

Cheers Ali,

Just switched today to some mass gaining protein shakes with 100g carbs per shake. So three of these per day should add 1800 to 2100 calories to my daily intake.

That photo was uploaded by mistake - thats an older one, added some to my progress pics.

Gonna have a month on this new protein shake, train hard and see how I go. Trying to sort my diet out at the same time, I think im really gonna struggle to get 3500 calories from food???!?!?!

Going to try and switch to as many free weights as I can and move away from the machines.

Tall

Just back from the gym having followed Ali's routine with a couple of extras thrown in (mainly due to the fact I forgot to take Ali's routine with me...)

Everywhere feels really pumped.

5x 10 Deadlifts @ 50Kg
5x 10 Barbell Shoulder Presses @ 16Kg
5x 6-10 Dumbell Press @ 20kg per hand
5x 6-10 Incline Dumbell Press @ 14Kg Per Hand (Struggling at this point!)
5x 10 Bent Over Rows (Barbell) @ 25Kg
5x 10 Pulldowns To Back Of Neck @ 50Kg
5x 10 Pulldowns To Front @ 50Kg
5x 10 Leg Presses @ 100Kg
5x 10 Calf Lifts @ 100Kg
3x 10 Back Hyper Extension @ 100Kg
3x 10 Weighted Situps @ 80Kg
5x 6 Barbell Curls @ 25kg
5x 10 Tricep Pushdowns @ 50Kg

Just polishing off my 2nd shake of the day (44g Protein, 100g Carbs) and I'm now off in the hunt for huge amounts of food.

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