dcristo says
That is some good advice from JoChris26. I would even suggest spending less time in the gym. 30-45 minute sessions, training 3 times per week is more then enough if you are training with a high intensity. What I mean by this is that when you are lifting weights for the purpose of bulking up, you train differently to what you would be doing if you were training for muscular endurance.
Getting bigger means you need to train to be getting stronger, so you want to improve your muscular strength. You achieve this by lifting heavy weights and doing low reps. The focus of your workout routine should be lifting heavy with the basic compound exercises which include squats, flat/incline bench press, leg press, barbell curls, shoulder press, and even some body weight exercises like pull ups and chin ups.
Also, don't overlook your diet. You need to eat ALOT so you remain in a calorie surplus. The nutrients from food is required for energy and building muscle, so constantly be eating through the day, every 3 hours like clockwork. And don't just eat any food, ensure they are healthy high calorie foods which pack the most punch.
Hope this helps!
jmckiernan86 says
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JoChris26 says
To get bigger requires pushing your muscles. They need to be trained past their limits so that they can build. To do that, work to failure when you are weight training. In short, this causes microscopic tears in muscle fiber. Rest, food, and protein help repair the muscle. In that process the muscle grows in order to be able to handle your weight lifting requirements the next time your lift. Make small increments of weight amounts each time you lift in order to push the muscle.
That is not to say you need to spend hours on end in the gym. In fact, you can get in a whole routine within 1 to 1.5 hours and 3 to 4 days a week and get results. There is such a thing as overtraining and it is detrimental to your success.
Plus, your nutrition plays a HUGE role in getting bigger muscles. Food is fuel and just like your vehicle, your body, (the engine), needs fuel to run. But you don't want to put in watered down gasoline. Same for the food you eat. You want high quality nutrients to get bigger muscles.
My hubpages, "Build Muscle Bulk" give much more information if you are interested. Good luck in your training.
nathan meyer says
Eat more. Like your weights, train in a progressive fashion eating a little more and then a little more everyday. Liquids are a good way to get calories even when you feel full. Eat your 3-4 normal meals a day now add +pint of skim milk a day. When you platuea change to 2% then whole. Then go to to a half gallon then a gallon. Before steroids came in the late 1950's people wanting to grown would drink a gallon of whole milk a day while following a program of hard & heavy squats. It performed miracles.
Squats, Deadlifts, Bench, wt, dips, leg presses--the big compounds done for 4-8 reps cause the body to release testerone and make you grow larger in addition to localized muscle stimulation.
Google 20-rep Breathing Squats and 5x5 programs. Avoid isolation movements avoid working for a burn or a pump or a feel or a shape--work to put a little bit of weight on the bar every workout.
Add more sleep. Move to 9-10 hours a night.
Gains of 15-30 lbs in a month have happened by simply adding sleep and an extra gallon of whole milk a day while doing 2-3 hard workouts a week. 80-100lbs in a year is not crazy in an untrained lifter or a volume "pumper" who suddenly trains correctly.
Depending on your metabolism you will gain some fat. Your body set point won't change unless you do. This is why its called bulking.
I gained 15 pounds in a month and 30 total over 14 months after I did this and gave up that Weider stuff.
You can do it! (meyernate@aol.com)
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