Steve Dougson said:
Sorry to add another weight-gain thread, but I've been browsing over these forums and I'm overwhelmed with the amount of dietary information. It seems a like there is a lot of debate as to what a proper diet is and so I apologize if this just adds to the clutter.
Anyway, I'm 150 lbs at the moment and I ultimately want to weigh in at 170-180 pounds. I've decided to make a goal of reaching 160 by Christmas time. I've been working out since the Superbowl and I've found that I've plateaued at about 150 lbs, and I believe that this is the result of me not increasing my caloric intake. That or impatience.
I read over the sticky thread concerning the myths of starting a high calorie diet. I found it interesting because it was only a few days ago that I really began to focus on a higher caloric intake. Since I'm only beginning this diet I would like to do it effectively and so any help is appreciated. My knowledge of nutrition is pretty limited and so any dietary tips such as timing of meals is appreciated.
Your confussion is understandable. there is a lot of info out there.
when i went into the Gracie instructor trainee program I decided to add 20 lbs of muscle in about 4 months. My brother is a natural bodybuilder and has won a few competitions so i did his plan.
We both have the same body type so it worked for me but you may be built totally different,so I guess take what you can that works for you.
5 days a week I did my freeweight training. all after grappling of course)
Mon. Back and bicepts, Tues, legs( a lot of your total weight comes from your legs so don't just lift upper body like some of these clowns you see in the gym)
calves can be worked out nearly everyday because they are small muscles that heal rather quickly, Abs too.
work the muscles out until failure occurs,were you just can't lift the weight another inch.
This will help to tear down the tissue( wich you help rebuild through diet and rest)
Wed,Rest your muscles to let them heal.Don't lift anything.
Heavy weight less reps is the key to getting mass!
Thurs. chest ,tricepts,and shoulders. make sure that you drink about 5 oz. of water every 10-15 minutes. the muscle is full of water and it needs replenishing when you tear them down.
Fri, Abs , a little cardio,(not to much to were your burning all kinds of calories, but enough to work out your heart. it's a muscle too.)
Sat. Legs and Abs. (as with all muscles you need to give them positive and negative resistance. don't just lift the weight and let it fall. let the weight down slowly, and controlled,
Bad form will be of no use to you. Better to lift 20lbs. properly that 50lbs. improperly.
Working out on an empty stomach will cause your body to use fat for energy. this is good.
After your work out, take some amino acid pills that you can get from GNC. 2-3 pills depending on millegrams.Go to a good Mexican grill like Rubio's or baja fresh and get a big burrito with meat and cheese, stay away from the filler items in the burrito. and put some protein in you. Go home and rest.
Sun. Rest,Eat,Rest, Eat.
My brother would always be eating,5'9" 215 lbs. with 6-8% bodyfat depending on if he had a contest.
Eat before you go to sleep, your body rebuilds itself when you are sleeping. Protein shake I use hemp protein,flax and whey. hemp protein has the purest form of plant protein for the human body.
My brother told me to set an alarm for 4 in the morning, get up and eat egg whites or make a big protein shake or a turkey sandwich. good protein and the tryptophan will put you back to sleep.
Creatine is a good suplement for growth. Creatine is found in red meat naturally, and what it does is it helps the muscle cells retain water in the cell, causing a larger firmer muscle to develope.
You don't have to eat totally clean all the time, reward yourself once or twice a week with some Taco bell or what ever you like.
Now back to the training. You have to change up your daily rutein after a little while to kind of "trick your muscles" do higher reps less weight once in a while. Mix-up muscle groups that you train together normally.
Also do supersetting were you don't rest in between sets. not all of the time of course.
Protein and Carbs are neccesarry for muscle growth. No Atkins diet here.
Go to GNC or any other nutrtion center and get some good protein bars to eat on the go or at work in between breaks. Doing this made me go from 150 to 178 in about 3 1/2 to 4 months. Hope this helps and good luck.
