Tips on working out... (1 Viewer)

[Jason Co]

Shawn,
Both methods can work for you. As long as you are progressive with your workout. Research shows that you can make just as many gains with one set to failure as you can with three sub max sets. If time is of a concern, one set is all you need, provided you can push to failure. What it really comes down to is what you enjoy. I have been training for most of my life and I don't like to train for more than an hour a workout. I train relatively hard for probably 45 minutes then let my body recover before I train again. What most people fail to realize is that you get stronger on your days off not the days you train.

Jason

 

[Bruce Hedtke]

Another great way to "speed up" muscle growth is negative resistance. That is when you lift the weight to its highest point and control the descent. For example, if you were doing the benchpress, you would lift the weight and then lower it on a 5 count-it should take you 5 seconds to bring the weight back to your chest. You will definitely need a spotter on this (not that you should be lifting without one).

Bruce

 

[Max Leung]

Nick, most (all?) protein drinks include a lot of carbs. However, quite a few cheat and use simple sugars instead of more complex carbs to "pad out" their claim for a high-calorie drink.
You don't need to have a protein/carb shake though...sumo wrestlers eat a hell of a lot of rice, for example. Other people eat tons of pasta, potatoes, etc. Even fruit has a lot of carbs!
Quite often, these traditional sources of carbs are much cheaper than the relatively expensive protein drinks. $5 for a Myoplex protein shake packet? Screw that, that's a week's worth of pasta!

 

[DustinDavis]

Nick,
Everything people here are saying about workout techniques and whatnot is fine. I think the real key, no matter what you do is: if you want to get big, you have to eat big.
You should take some time to really look at your calorie, carb, and protein consumption. If you burn more than you eat, you will lose weight no matter what. Watch out for calories from fat, watch out for simple carbs, make sure you get enough protein. If you get the above from shakes, that's fine as long as you're not replacing meals with shakes--they are supplements not replacements.
I was in similar situation to you when I was 26 or 27. I weighed 130 lbs and had been that weight since high school. A skinny little bag of atrophy. I put on 45-50 lbs in less than 12 months, no exaggeration, with the following:
1. Diet, see above. Also eat more meals per day. I ate between 4 and 6 times per day. You may think you are eating big right now--you're not. I was eating 3500-4000 calories per day when I could.
2. Hard, heavy weights. My regimen was never more than two days on (for recovery), never more than two days off (for consistency). Get a partner to help you push yourself.
3. Drink lots and lots of water.
I got real big. Not that complex, but it takes real determination. The hardest part for me was actually the diet, not the workouts. Have fun.

 

[NickSo]

1. How old are you? 16
2. Define what you mean by "eat a lot" I mean i can EAT alot, and not gain a pound. I eat 3 average meals a day, not TOO healthily though :frowning: (usually not the full suggested servings of the food groups)
3. How many times a day do you eat? Three
4. When is your biggest meal of the day? Dinner
5. What is you activity level like? Except for working out and the very occasional activity, none
6. Stop reading body huilding magazines. Thats not a question, but i dont read them... Maxim however...
7. Don't spend a dime on supplements until you answer these questions. okay
Thanks for all the tips guy, this thread is going to my bookmarks

 

[Jason Co]

NIck,
I agree with Dustin. You should be eating at least 5 meals a day. The other thing is your age. You are still young at 16 and you have really not begun to fill out. Gaining weight is a simple equation put in more calories than you burn.

Jason

 

[Mike__D]

Yes, eat a lot, although you should probably eat healthier than I did. It was just amzaing how well my metabolism worked when I had that much muscle mass. I guess it worked hand in hand. I ate much, which helped build the muscle, and the muscle helped burn off the fat. Am I right on this? I'm no expert.

Mike D.

 

[Jason Co]

It is true that adding muscle will help to increase your metabolism. Approximately 1 pound of resting muscle will burn 100 calories per day.

Jason

 

[Mike__D]

Now HERE is an interesting workout. Jason Co, can you comment? This is very interesting and if indeed it works, I'm all over it.
Mike D.

 

[NickSo]

You don't need to have a protein/carb shake though...sumo wrestlers eat a hell of a lot of rice, for example. Other people eat tons of pasta, potatoes, etc

hmm, rice eh? i guess i can get all i need. See my name? Im chinese EVERY SINGLE NIGHT, rice rice rice rice rice. Im only eating a bowl though, ill eat more on days i work out, coz i usually work out after dinner...

 

[Jason Co]

Mike,
It's kind of funny how certain activities that people did in the past come back to the forefront. It reminds me of the old isometric workouts (push against an immovable object as hard as you can for a certain period of time) The beauty of strength training is......it's easy. What I mean by that is as long as you create muscular tension and follow the overload principle you WILL strengthen your muscles....PERIOD! My simple suggestion for those of you who want to get in shape is to experiment. Find a few different methods and try them out. Whichever method appeals to you, do it. Just make sure you record exactly what you are doing to ensure progression (next workout lift more weight or lift it more times). I work with college athletes and we train much more intensely than your average gym go-er.
To answer your question Mike, sure you can get gains that way, but I am not a big fan of training a muscle at only one degree of the movement. Basically with a static hold, if your arms are at 170 degrees (10 degrees of flexion) then that is the only range of that muscle you are affecting. I train all the athletes through a full range of motion.

Jason

 

[Mike__D]

Thank you Jason!

Mike D.