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Skinny bloke bulking up any tips?

M

Mikemsaggus

gday people im keen on bulking up and have been trying for over 6 months now with little result.
Could you give me some tips on bulking up?

A little info about myself
Im 17 male
5'4
53kg (116.6 lbs)
go to the gym 3-5 times a week and do about 5 laps around a footy field after (cant stop cardio because i need to get better for army tests)
i eat lyk a horse

my email/messenger is [email protected]

im not looking to be a body builder just of average size yet very fit n ripped
been kinda frustrated lately nd any help would be fantastic
cheers,
mike
 
Hello, and welcome! First off you probably only THINK you eat a lot. How many times a day do you eat? If it's less than 5, you need to up it to at least that. What sort of weight routine do you use? Heavy, basic movements should be your best buds at the gym. Also, you are still young, so you aren't near finished growing yet. Getting bigger while staying ripped is hard, but you have your youth on your side there. But it is still pretty near impossible to get bigger without gaining any fat.

Eat, squat, deadlift, bench, rows, pull-ups and chin-ups, or the lat machine, and overhead presses. Those exercises alone will get you bigger. Then eat some more.
 
I graduated highschool at 6'4", 158 pounds. :eek:
I was just a skinny bastard, nothin' changed that but time.
Now I am 230 pounds, (a bit more than I would like) and much more solid.
Don't worry too much about it.
Keep working out, and keep eating. Snack all day, protein shakes/bars are good too.
 
If you are already eating like a horse, I suggest you eat like a hippopotamus. 18 is young. You will continue to fill out for several years yet.
 
G

gone down south

I'm curious - why would you join a shaving board to ask about weightlifting issues?
 
Hello, and welcome! First off you probably only THINK you eat a lot. How many times a day do you eat? If it's less than 5, you need to up it to at least that. What sort of weight routine do you use? Heavy, basic movements should be your best buds at the gym. Also, you are still young, so you aren't near finished growing yet. Getting bigger while staying ripped is hard, but you have your youth on your side there. But it is still pretty near impossible to get bigger without gaining any fat.

Eat, squat, deadlift, bench, rows, pull-ups and chin-ups, or the lat machine, and overhead presses. Those exercises alone will get you bigger. Then eat some more.

I'd like to repeat what Kratos said. Most people who think they eat a lot really don't. If you actually figured out your macros for the day you will probably find that you aren't getting the amounts of protein, carbs and fat that you think. More frequent meals is the easiest way to up the amount you eat. Trying to eat 3 big meals a day won't work. Also heavy compound movements are best for size as was mentioned although you may want to try some olympic movements as well as those Kratos mentioned as long as you have somoene who can teach you proper form.
 
protein protein protein...... 1.5 to 2.0 g per pound of body weight every day. Ideally spread over 5 meals. (do not go more than 4 hours without eating something)

Eat as soon as you get up.
Eat just before going to bed... preferably something with a "long acting" protein (casein) in it (to feed you while you sleep).
 
I'm curious - why would you join a shaving board to ask about weightlifting issues?

This was going to be my next question.

Also heavy compound movements are best for size as was mentioned although you may want to try some olympic movements as well as those Kratos mentioned as long as you have someone who can teach you proper form.

Second that. I was going to put it in my 1st response, but I forgot. This is very important. Heavy and/or explosive lifting can mess up your joints if done improperly.


protein protein protein...... 1.5 to 2.0 g per pound of body weight every day. Ideally spread over 5 meals. (do not go more than 4 hours without eating something)

Eat as soon as you get up.
Eat just before going to bed... preferably something with a "long acting" protein (casein) in it (to feed you while you sleep).

Most definitely. One of the most counterproductive things to bulking up is allowing yourself to get hungry.
 
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Seriously, if you want to bulk up do two things:

1. Drink a gallon of milk a day and eat more than you are currently..

2. Do heavy squats. By heavy, I mean at least bodyweight, for starters. Full squats, with a barbell. After you can do that, add some DL's and Presses, again, with a barbell. Don't even bother with the typical muscle pumper gym routines you see in the mags.

Also Check out Mark Ripptoe's Starting Strength program.

There really aren't any secrets to getting big.
 
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Seriously, if you want to bulk up do two things:

1. Drink a gallon of milk a day and eat more than you are currently..

2. Do heavy squats. By heavy, I mean at least bodyweight, for starters. Full squats, with a barbell. After you can do that, add some DL's and Presses, again, with a barbell. Don't even bother with the typical muscle pumper gym routines you see in the mags.

Also Check out Mark Ripptoe's Starting Strength program.

There really aren't any secrets to getting big.

Hey you just gave away the secret.:laugh:
 
Seriously, if you want to bulk up do two things:

1. Drink a gallon of milk a day and eat more than you are currently..

2. Do heavy squats. By heavy, I mean at least bodyweight, for starters. Full squats, with a barbell. After you can do that, add some DL's and Presses, again, with a barbell. Don't even bother with the typical muscle pumper gym routines you see in the mags.

Also Check out Mark Ripptoe's Starting Strength program.

There really aren't any secrets to getting big.

You mean "steroid pumper," right(tee-hee,tee-hee)? Some of those marathon workouts in muscle rags are absolutely absurd. No "unassisted" lifter would get anywhere with them.
If you can handle a gallon of milk every day it's great. And cheap. But since not everyone is lactose dependent like me, I usually don't bring it up right away. And you good and well there is ONE secret to getting big...
HARD WORK, SUCKAS! NO WAY AROUND IT!
 
A couple of things to consider:

At 17, and only 5' 4", it is possible that you have not completed your growth phase. (Are either of your parents taller than 5' 4"?) Some men do no complete their growth phase till they are 25.

So don't try and force things. While you are still growing (vertically) it is difficult, if not impossible, to "pack on" lots of muscle mass. Blubbery fat, of course, is another matter.

I'd really avoid any sort of extreme eating regime. Drinking a gallon of milk a day is a good way to upset your stomach.

I'd concentrate on a healthy diet, rather than a huge one. Plenty of fresh fruit, vegetables, wholegrain carbohydrates, and a little lean meat. Dairy products (yogurt, skim milk, chesse) in moderation. And of course - stay away from alcohol and tobacco completely. These things really can stunt your growth.

I'd also stay away from extreme bodybuilding routines. Concentrate on whole-body exercises - moderate resistance that hits all the major muscle groups. Squats - lifting a heavy barbell ~ your bodyweight - are a good way to "trigger" the release of the sort of male hormones that will encourage the growth of healthy muscle tissue.

It may seem like a good idea to "pack on some pounds" - even if they are fat pounds - when you are thinking of yourself as a "scrawny kid" (you aren't) - but those pounds, especially around your middle, will be very difficult to get rid of later in life - when the benefits of having a low bodyfat percentage (ie. a "six pack" stomach) will be much more desirable.
 

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Stjynnkii membörd dummpsjterd
Anchor arms!
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Age, a job sitting on my arse all day, and being in a relationship seemed to be the magic formula for me.

I was 5'10" and 130lbs when i graduated high school.
 
A couple of things to consider:

At 17, and only 5' 4", it is possible that you have not completed your growth phase. (Are either of your parents taller than 5' 4"?) Some men do no complete their growth phase till they are 25.

So don't try and force things. While you are still growing (vertically) it is difficult, if not impossible, to "pack on" lots of muscle mass. Blubbery fat, of course, is another matter.

I'd really avoid any sort of extreme eating regime. Drinking a gallon of milk a day is a good way to upset your stomach.

I'd concentrate on a healthy diet, rather than a huge one. Plenty of fresh fruit, vegetables, wholegrain carbohydrates, and a little lean meat. Dairy products (yogurt, skim milk, chesse) in moderation. And of course - stay away from alcohol and tobacco completely. These things really can stunt your growth.

I'd also stay away from extreme bodybuilding routines. Concentrate on whole-body exercises - moderate resistance that hits all the major muscle groups. Squats - lifting a heavy barbell ~ your bodyweight - are a good way to "trigger" the release of the sort of male hormones that will encourage the growth of healthy muscle tissue.

It may seem like a good idea to "pack on some pounds" - even if they are fat pounds - when you are thinking of yourself as a "scrawny kid" (you aren't) - but those pounds, especially around your middle, will be very difficult to get rid of later in life - when the benefits of having a low bodyfat percentage (ie. a "six pack" stomach) will be much more desirable.

A 5'4" and 54kg, yes, he is small. Let's be honest here. And like you said(I as well), he still has some growing to do. Not to mention a LOT of muscle maturity to wait on.
Drinking a gallon of milk a day isn't for everyone. It worked for me, but my stomach could handle it. But if he's looking for more muscle mass he's going to have to eat more. Fat gain is controllable, especially if he is running regularly. And he's 17. Ditto on the tobacco and booze, both counterproductive to his goals, not to mention health.
 
Agree with much of what's been said.

Work your whole body two, or three at most, times a week. 'Split' routines working over 4 + days a week will not get you bigger any faster and may actually retard your progress. And don't do mountains of sets. One set works for me, but this is a controversial notion so I won't push it. Point is four is not likely better than three - you get the drift. At some point the balance between hard work and time shifts the wrong way and productive exercise degrades into simple, repetitive manual labor.

As was said, stay with big movements and away from "isolation" ones for the most part. Some machine single joint movements are productive, like leg extensions and chest flyes, but they may be superfluous if your big movements are producing gains in the areas you want. One big exception, machine-wise, is the Nautilus Pullover. Although it is a single joint movement, it works nearly every major muscle group in the upper body - if you have access to one, use it!

Keep your movements slow and focused. Throwing the weights creates more force on the joints and tendons and actually provides less work for the muscles.

Forearms, calves, bi's, tri's , front deltoids, traps and obliques will likely get adequate work with the basic movements so don't worry about curls, shrugs, etc. Especially since your not going for a bulgy muscle body builder look (big traps make shoulders look narrow and nothing ruins upper body aesthetics like over-developed external oblique muscles). Once you can do a dozen or more slow chin ups and dips with your body weight, then you can take a look at your arms and see if they need any more attention.

Also, since you're relatively short in stature, consider gymnastics movements in your training - handstands, planches, levers and iron crosses are all excellent upper body developers and are far more impressive 'show off' moves than high poundage squats or benches. These should replace a weight exercise in your routine, not be in addition to it. For example, bench press one day a week and practice planches another, practice handstands instead of overhead pressing, etc.

It sounds like you don't have a problem with food. Eat what you like (within reason of course) and just observe your results. The less you stress about food now, the more you set yourself up for a healthy approach to eating throughout your life.

Your genes set the limit on how developed your muscles will be. Don't buy into hype about super-routines or super-supplements or super-anything. Hard work and rest are the only things required. If you are consistently adding weights and/or reps on every exercise, you're building muscle.
 
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I graduated highschool at 6'4", 158 pounds. :eek:
I was just a skinny bastard, nothin' changed that but time.
Now I am 230 pounds, (a bit more than I would like) and much more solid.
Don't worry too much about it.
Keep working out, and keep eating. Snack all day, protein shakes/bars are good too.

+1 I wouldn't lose much sleep over it. Sounds like you're on a regular fitness program you may want to add some weights or even push-ups, crunches, etc. The weight will handle itself in time. I went into the Air Force at 17 weighing just under 140 LBS. And filled out nicely over the next 5 years or so. When I hit 30, like most folks I developed the metabolism of a sloth and packed on a few more pounds than I would like. I'm currently doing 4-5 days a week cardio and try to do strength training/flexibility a couple times a week. Slow going at the moment but I'm sure the weight will come off eventually. Enjoy being able to eat like a horse while you can. Trust me it won't last forever.
 

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