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civic_rida
10-21-2008, 09:40 PM
Im starting to get really frustrated with my slow progression.
Since last year i've only been able to put on 7 pounds.
Who here after 4 years of weight lifting is still able to put on 10 or more pounds of lean mass naturally.

JAYMEZ
10-21-2008, 09:42 PM
When was the last time you changed your work out routine? And I mean completely radical change?

civic_rida
10-21-2008, 09:45 PM
Just recently changed to high reps.
Im going to try to cut back on the amount of the times i go to the gym and focus more on recovery.

pinoyhero
10-22-2008, 06:11 AM
How is your diet ... if you're thinking your traiing intense enough then I would imagine an upgrade in deit wouldhelp. Think about it, training wont make you heavier eating more will.

Buffalo Soldier
10-22-2008, 09:46 AM
Ya dude its all about diet and cosistency. Find a nice bulking diet with high cals. and have a high calorie high protein shake after every workout.

kutt3r
10-22-2008, 09:52 AM
Originally posted by pinoyhero
How is your diet ... if you're thinking your traiing intense enough then I would imagine an upgrade in deit would help. Think about it, training wont make you heavier eating more will.

That is where I would start.. you need to be in a + comsumption of calories and if you are one of those skinny guys that has a high metabolism you might want to look at alternative diets to see what will work for you. More carb, more fat, more protien, everyone is different in what works.

When I would try to put on mass I would ust eat, yes I gained some bf% but I found it was much easier to gain with the excess. The 2-3%bf I could always drop later.

I would also check your workout, lose all the little movements in favor of large muscle groups to make gains quicker. Squats/Deads/Bench are you friends.. nothing beats a PL routine to gain size... Bicep curls all day are not going to gain you mass, think back, hams, chest.

Recovery is a good thing too, if you are not getting enough, when do your muscles have time to rebuild...
Try different things to get you through the plateaus.
Check getbig.com, steriods.com (not for steriods, but there are great articles on there that are work out related) another good link for ideas is intensemuscle.com... and lots of other resources for getting over plateaus.

There are lots of opinons and thoughts about the subject, but you need to find what works for you.

Good Luck!

civic_rida
10-22-2008, 01:45 PM
Yea i dont believe in bulking up with excess calories and then cutting down. I know it works but its not for me.

Buffalo Soldier
10-22-2008, 01:52 PM
^^Why is it not for you? Excess calories, protein and good training is the magical equation for mass.

civic_rida
10-22-2008, 03:51 PM
I like staying lean all year around.

Masked Bandit
10-22-2008, 04:44 PM
Originally posted by civic_rida
I like staying lean all year around.

Then you will probably always have trouble putting on mass.

civic_rida
10-22-2008, 06:43 PM
lol

pinoyhero
10-22-2008, 07:00 PM
Nah, not really, you can put oin weight with clean food and compound movements, just wont be as easy. Check your caloire count and up it, bolt on more carbs (veggies and fruits) and fat (nuts) and protien (eggs meats). Skip the protien shakes and focus on lots of real food, treat eating like training, it can be just as if not more important.

When it comes to training kutt3r has the idea, squat, deadlift, oly lifts (snatch, clean and jerk) and rows/chins are the way to go. Skip anything machine based and focused on small muscle groups. The goal is to get the body to get broken down by hurting te muscles and release testosterone by forcing it to work harder than its used to.

If you want something new give Crossfit a try (crossfit.com) I've been on it for 6 months, its not for everyone (wel maybe it is) but I absolutely love it. I've tried tons of different stuff in my 10+ years of training and this is the shiz.

Darkane
10-22-2008, 07:45 PM
Years training means nothing when it comes to muscles. I've seen lots of people training for 5+ years with the basically the same body composition from the start.

I know you wanna stay lean year round and all that, AND YOU CAN, but do you have the discipline?

There are a few things you can do here.. A Damage control day (or two) can really help.

Eat massive AND clean (keyword clean) and on two days of the week cuts carbs to 50/day. The damage control days will keep fat in check while giving you surplus days to grow.

The other option is to do a timed carb diet approach. Eat ALL carbs around the workout if possible. But you can pretty much stay lean eating clean and logging everything you eat, making small adjustments based on weight, measurements, and body fat.

94boosted
10-22-2008, 07:55 PM
If you've been training for a year and you only put 7lbs on your doing something wrong either your program or your diet it's that simple. Like pinoyhero said you need alot of Heavy Compound exercises and your definitely going to have to eat more especially high protein foods.


And DON"T NEGLECT LEG TRAINING it's more important to your overall physique than you may think. :thumbsup:

Darkane
10-22-2008, 09:13 PM
Originally posted by 94boosted

And DON"T NEGLECT LEG TRAINING it's the most important part to your overall physique :thumbsup:

Fixed. ;)

KRyn
10-22-2008, 09:23 PM
Ha, putting on weight is one of my favorites things to do. To gain mass you need to eat, eat and eat some more! Just up your calorie intake and you will gain weight that simple. Try a weight gainer if you are having trouble eating enough.

civic_rida
10-22-2008, 10:24 PM
When i started out i was 150 . Last year i was 180 and this year im 187 and around 10 percent body fat.
My diet is around 3000 calories with 160 grams of protein and under 200 grams of carbs per day. I train legs just not a fan of squats. Going to try going to the gym 4 times a week see how that works.

kutt3r
10-23-2008, 09:24 AM
Originally posted by civic_rida
When i started out i was 150 . Last year i was 180 and this year im 187 and around 10 percent body fat.
My diet is around 3000 calories with 160 grams of protein and under 200 grams of carbs per day. I train legs just not a fan of squats. Going to try going to the gym 4 times a week see how that works.

Up your protien , that is the first thing I see... for gaining you are going to want 1.5g-2.0/lbs at least. (I think Darkane had a great post some where about this with better figures... I never drop under 1.5g/lbs ever...)

How tall are you? Whats your build? 7lbs might have been a good gain for your body type... things slow down as you get the base going...(you have gained 30lbs) there are so many factors that is very hard to determine on a forum. :)

Darkane
10-23-2008, 11:28 AM
Originally posted by civic_rida
I train legs just not a fan of squats.

To bad. Why don't you like them?

It might be a blow to your ego but try using a light weight and doing box squats. This will help build proper form, strengthen the posterior chain and give you the proper metabolic demand that squats produce.

civic_rida
10-23-2008, 12:49 PM
Im 5'10

Darkane would doing squats on the smith machine be okay to start?

kutt3r
10-23-2008, 01:22 PM
Originally posted by civic_rida
Im 5'10

Darkane would doing squats on the smith machine be okay to start?

I would say yes, and only for one reason... to build your confidence if you are that uncomfortable doing them.

By using the Smith you are isolating and not really getting the full benifit of a squat. (Front squats on a smith to isolate quads is killer, but very specific)

There are so many different types of squats that you shouldnt have to resort to the smith machine. If you need support I would suggest dumbells and an exercise ball against the wall. This will give you the support you might need to start to get you comfortable.

As Darkane suggested start light and box squat, use no weight to warm up with, dumbells/barbell/olympic bar all works.

Buffalo Soldier
10-23-2008, 01:35 PM
Fuck squats on the smith. Do em up on a squat rack even its little weight. Feel the squeeze.
The day you see some good muscle mass and striations in your legs will be a fucken good day man. Legs will become your favorite group of muscles to WO

Darkane
10-23-2008, 09:00 PM
Originally posted by Buffalo Soldier
Fuck squats on the smith. Do em up on a squat rack even its little weight. Feel the squeeze.
The day you see some good muscle mass and striations in your legs will be a fucken good day man. Legs will become your favorite group of muscles to WO

Agreed. I'm not a fan of smith machine. It has it's place in the bodybuilding world, but not for legs. Also, it doesn't develop any hip strength.

Normal power racks are your friend. Box squat is great for beginning.

Here's a good vid for form. Notice he sits back, like sitting on a chair. He's pushing off with his heels. One trick also is to try "Spreading" the floor with your feet and driving your hips forward. Almost thrusting except forward and up. Staying tight, the squat does take a little time to get, but man it's worth it.

EDIT: Found the perfect video.

32mfwyja300

Oz-
10-27-2008, 08:16 PM
Originally posted by Darkane


Agreed. I'm not a fan of smith machine. It has it's place in the bodybuilding world, but not for legs. Also, it doesn't develop any hip strength.

Normal power racks are your friend. Box squat is great for beginning.
One trick also is to try Spreading the floor with your feet and driving your hips forward. Almost thrusting except forward and up. Staying tight, the squat does take a little time to get, but man it's worth it.



When I learned to change my squat form from pushing down into the floor to trying to spread the floor apart the weight I was using jumped significantly. That plus using some good accesory exercises like pull-throughs & glute ham raises really worked help my posterior chain strength.

Also for the box squat, if your gym doesn't have a box to use for squats. You can use the step aerobic risers with a 45 lb plate on top. Just adjust to your depth of parallel and you won't be a quarter squatter anymore. The biggest mistake everyone makes is that they want to move up in weight but lose their form by quarter squatting.

You might also want to consider dual factor theory for your training.

Step Aerobic risers that I was talking about

http://us.st12.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/sportsunlimited_2026_8871375742

Darkane
10-28-2008, 04:53 PM
Originally posted by Oz-


When I learned to change my squat form from pushing down into the floor to trying to spread the floor apart the weight I was using jumped significantly. That plus using some good accesory exercises like pull-throughs & glute ham raises really worked help my posterior chain strength.

Also for the box squat, if your gym doesn't have a box to use for squats. You can use the step aerobic risers with a 45 lb plate on top. Just adjust to your depth of parallel and you won't be a quarter squatter anymore. The biggest mistake everyone makes is that they want to move up in weight but lose their form by quarter squatting.

You might also want to consider dual factor theory for your training.

Step Aerobic risers that I was talking about

http://us.st12.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/sportsunlimited_2026_8871375742

Exactly, I actually just bought some Chuck Taylors. Just from having a flat plank now instead of my crosstrainer shoe which had at least 1" of heel lift I'm much more stable and put up 2 more reps at the same weight. Got more Glute and Ham in it :D

kutt3r
10-29-2008, 08:46 AM
Originally posted by Darkane


Exactly, I actually just bought some Chuck Taylors. Just from having a flat plank now instead of my crosstrainer shoe which had at least 1" of heel lift I'm much more stable and put up 2 more reps at the same weight. Got more Glute and Ham in it :D

http://www.vibramfivefingers.com/

Love them for squating, dl's... starting to run in them as well.

:thumbsup:

wiggaplz
11-03-2008, 04:08 PM
This is how you gain size:
1) eat
2) eat
3) sleep
4) eat some more
5) train
6) then eat

....in that order.