There's a lot of conversation going on on the boards about how a lot of WF members want to gain some weight. As a guy that has a metabolism like a jackrabbit on crack, I know that gaining good muscle weight can be a challenge. It's not enough to eat, you have to eat right. It's not enough to do a few pushups in your bedroom, you have to train right. And it's not enough to sleep when you get tired. You have to rest right because THAT'S when muscles grow.
First off, a little about me. I'm no musclehead 'roid freak. I did, however, spend 8 years in the military (4 years active; 4 years reserves) as a Master-at-Arms (a kind of Navy military police). One of my collateral duties was that of fitness coordinator for a reserve division full of cops, prison guards, firemen, and rescue workers. So these people were already pretty fit to begin with (well, most of them, anyway). I trained with Navy SEALS, EOD, Marines, rescue swimmers, and every one in between.
I'm not bragging, I'm just letting you guys know that I do, in fact, know what I'm talking about. When I joined in 96 I was 17 and weighed 125 lbs. Right now, I'm sitting right at 180 lbs and under 10% body fat. I'm only 5'7"
Like I said, I'm no muscle head. I just went from really skinny to having broad shoulders, a chest I'm not ashamed of, and arms I'm quite proud of. And I work out proportionately. That means I take great care in making sure I don't grow huge arms with no chest or a huge upper body with really skinny legs like you see so many guys doing. I just think it looks really silly.
I'm going to show you the absolute fastest, safest, and most effective way to do the same thing so that, if you really work at it just like I say, you can gain 10 to 15 lbs of real muscle by the time May (and beach weather) rolls around. Nothing will compliment that huge wallet that you're going to have from the advice you get on WF with a set of guns you can show off on the beach.
***I hold no medical responsibility with what you do with this advice. If you go around trying to pick up cars and shit and your stomach shoots through your nutsack, it ain't my fault***
STEP 1: Get your diet straight.
Ok, it's been said a few times in the other threads but I want to reitterate it here: your DIET is the single most important factor in effectively building quality muscle.
I would hardly ever recommend any one just eating anything in sight, but in some people's case it's almost a necessity. It's been branded as the "see food" diet.
I'll pick on Jon for a minute. Jon is a pretty tall guy, but is fairly light for his size. He smokes a lot of cigarettes and has no intention of quitting. However, the largest factor in his diet is the fact that he takes Adderall. Anyone that has ever taken this medication knows that it's hard as hell to eat when you take it. I took it for a month and had to put it down because I could literally feel myself getting weaker as a result of not being able to force food down. For Jon's initial 4 weeks, I didn't hesitate at all to prescribe the "see food" diet. Short of absolutely pigging out on chips and soda (which I told him to cut way back on anyway), his metabolism, and his chemical variables (cigarettes and Adderall) Jon needs to do anything he can just to get the ~1 to 1.5 grams of protein per lb. of body weight per day that he needs to gain some quality mass. Any fat that he gains in addition to the muscle, he can work off with some cardio and diet adjustments that we work out after he gets acclimated to the weight training and diet changes.
So unless you are in the same situation as Jon, you will have to watch your diet a little more closely. Oh sure, you can eat a bunch of fat and shit, but you won't be able to see the muscles you're gaining through all the pudge.
Here's what you should shoot for in your daily diet split:
~40% lean protein (Tuna, Chicken Breast, Steak, High-quality protein shake)
~30% fats (try to go for mostly good fats that are found in fish. contrary to popular belief you NEED fat - it gives you the necessary energy)
~30% carbs (don';t believe the hype - you need carbs unless you want to look like Kate Moss. But go for whole grain bread instead of white, brown rice instead of white, etc)
Cut sweets, chips, soda, alcohol, etc to a bare minimum.
TAKE ONE DAY PER WEEK TO TOTALLY PIG OUT, DRINK, ETC.
I use Saturdays so I can eat anything I want all day and drink all night. This will help you stay on course for the rest of the week.
Drink plenty of water. Drink 1 liter during your work outs. Drink at least a half gallon or so throughout the rest of the day.
Eat 5 or 6 meals a day.
Here's an example of an average day for me while taking in about 200 grams of protein per day:
- Wake up
- Take supplements (discussed later)
- Have a protein shake. 40 grams Whey protein, 5 ice cubes, 1/2 cup of 1% milk, 1 tablespoon of peanut butter. I add a banana because I can't ever remember to eat fruit. If I want it to taste like a Reese's peanut butter cup, I'll add some chocolate syrup.
- Go workout.
- Take post-workout supplements (discussed later)
- Have a post-workout shake the same way as described above. ~ 80 grams of protein so far.
- One hour after post-workout shake, I will have my first "food" meal. Usually a can of tuna on four whole-grain slices of toasted bread to make two sandwiches. I use a tiny bit of Miracle Whip, but not too much and I top it off with some relish. ~ 120 grams of protein so far.
- 3 hours later, I'll have dinner. Usually consisting of chicken breast cooked on the ol' George Foreman, some Asparagus, and a baked sweet potato. Damn, I'm making myself hungry. ~160 grams of protein so far.
- About an hour before bed I'll have one last shake or two sliced turkey sandwhiches (enough for 40 grams of protein). The tryptophan helps me sleep. ~ 200 grams of protein.
If you stick with it, you'll see it's not that hard at all to consume enough food if you eat the right things.
Next post: The Supplements
First off, a little about me. I'm no musclehead 'roid freak. I did, however, spend 8 years in the military (4 years active; 4 years reserves) as a Master-at-Arms (a kind of Navy military police). One of my collateral duties was that of fitness coordinator for a reserve division full of cops, prison guards, firemen, and rescue workers. So these people were already pretty fit to begin with (well, most of them, anyway). I trained with Navy SEALS, EOD, Marines, rescue swimmers, and every one in between.
I'm not bragging, I'm just letting you guys know that I do, in fact, know what I'm talking about. When I joined in 96 I was 17 and weighed 125 lbs. Right now, I'm sitting right at 180 lbs and under 10% body fat. I'm only 5'7"
Like I said, I'm no muscle head. I just went from really skinny to having broad shoulders, a chest I'm not ashamed of, and arms I'm quite proud of. And I work out proportionately. That means I take great care in making sure I don't grow huge arms with no chest or a huge upper body with really skinny legs like you see so many guys doing. I just think it looks really silly.
I'm going to show you the absolute fastest, safest, and most effective way to do the same thing so that, if you really work at it just like I say, you can gain 10 to 15 lbs of real muscle by the time May (and beach weather) rolls around. Nothing will compliment that huge wallet that you're going to have from the advice you get on WF with a set of guns you can show off on the beach.
***I hold no medical responsibility with what you do with this advice. If you go around trying to pick up cars and shit and your stomach shoots through your nutsack, it ain't my fault***
STEP 1: Get your diet straight.
Ok, it's been said a few times in the other threads but I want to reitterate it here: your DIET is the single most important factor in effectively building quality muscle.
I would hardly ever recommend any one just eating anything in sight, but in some people's case it's almost a necessity. It's been branded as the "see food" diet.
I'll pick on Jon for a minute. Jon is a pretty tall guy, but is fairly light for his size. He smokes a lot of cigarettes and has no intention of quitting. However, the largest factor in his diet is the fact that he takes Adderall. Anyone that has ever taken this medication knows that it's hard as hell to eat when you take it. I took it for a month and had to put it down because I could literally feel myself getting weaker as a result of not being able to force food down. For Jon's initial 4 weeks, I didn't hesitate at all to prescribe the "see food" diet. Short of absolutely pigging out on chips and soda (which I told him to cut way back on anyway), his metabolism, and his chemical variables (cigarettes and Adderall) Jon needs to do anything he can just to get the ~1 to 1.5 grams of protein per lb. of body weight per day that he needs to gain some quality mass. Any fat that he gains in addition to the muscle, he can work off with some cardio and diet adjustments that we work out after he gets acclimated to the weight training and diet changes.
So unless you are in the same situation as Jon, you will have to watch your diet a little more closely. Oh sure, you can eat a bunch of fat and shit, but you won't be able to see the muscles you're gaining through all the pudge.
Here's what you should shoot for in your daily diet split:
~40% lean protein (Tuna, Chicken Breast, Steak, High-quality protein shake)
~30% fats (try to go for mostly good fats that are found in fish. contrary to popular belief you NEED fat - it gives you the necessary energy)
~30% carbs (don';t believe the hype - you need carbs unless you want to look like Kate Moss. But go for whole grain bread instead of white, brown rice instead of white, etc)
Cut sweets, chips, soda, alcohol, etc to a bare minimum.
TAKE ONE DAY PER WEEK TO TOTALLY PIG OUT, DRINK, ETC.
I use Saturdays so I can eat anything I want all day and drink all night. This will help you stay on course for the rest of the week.
Drink plenty of water. Drink 1 liter during your work outs. Drink at least a half gallon or so throughout the rest of the day.
Eat 5 or 6 meals a day.
Here's an example of an average day for me while taking in about 200 grams of protein per day:
- Wake up
- Take supplements (discussed later)
- Have a protein shake. 40 grams Whey protein, 5 ice cubes, 1/2 cup of 1% milk, 1 tablespoon of peanut butter. I add a banana because I can't ever remember to eat fruit. If I want it to taste like a Reese's peanut butter cup, I'll add some chocolate syrup.
- Go workout.
- Take post-workout supplements (discussed later)
- Have a post-workout shake the same way as described above. ~ 80 grams of protein so far.
- One hour after post-workout shake, I will have my first "food" meal. Usually a can of tuna on four whole-grain slices of toasted bread to make two sandwiches. I use a tiny bit of Miracle Whip, but not too much and I top it off with some relish. ~ 120 grams of protein so far.
- 3 hours later, I'll have dinner. Usually consisting of chicken breast cooked on the ol' George Foreman, some Asparagus, and a baked sweet potato. Damn, I'm making myself hungry. ~160 grams of protein so far.
- About an hour before bed I'll have one last shake or two sliced turkey sandwhiches (enough for 40 grams of protein). The tryptophan helps me sleep. ~ 200 grams of protein.
If you stick with it, you'll see it's not that hard at all to consume enough food if you eat the right things.
Next post: The Supplements
