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Putting on weight

I didn't realize water had vitamins, but then again I also didn't realize milk never had any fluids in it.

Actually, nevermind...
 
If you really want a hardcore diet, try living off only vector cereal, milk, and homemade fruit smoothies. It got me JACKED.
 
1. Oats and Squats
2. Protein shakes between meals
3. Lean chicken and fish
4. Broccoli

Works for me. ;D
 
ballz said:
Sirloin won't suffice?
New York steaks have always been easier for me to cook; they're all the same thickness. Whereas sirloin varies to much.. I'm no cook so I stick to what's simple for me. Don't get me wrong; sirloin is a bloody gift from the gods, but I prefer it to be cooked by someone who knows what they're doing.. and I don't.

prima6 said:
A guy weighing 125 lbs eating 4000-5000 calories a day is going to put on a substantial amount of fat.  That's between 32 and 40 cal/lb, which is almost double what any healthy "bulking" routine would require.  Most guys trying to put on muscle efficiently are going to run at around 20 cal/lb and still wind up putting on some fat.  At 5000 cal/day a 125 lb man would expect to put on around 5 lbs/week and the body is incapable of putting on 5 lbs of muscle a week.  Most studies suggest something in the neighbourhood of 0.5lbs/week of muscle is more realistic.  The remaining 4.5 lbs is going to be fat.
I know it sounds ridiculous, and thats because it is; but it was the only way for me to gain weight back when I was quite literally a human skeleton. I don't have any studies to back it up, but it worked for me and I doubt I ever went over 10% body fat. So my own empirical evidence suggests that ridiculous amounts of food is what's needed for ectomorphs to gain weight.
But of course we all have different genetics, so what worked for me may not work for other ectomorphs.
 
IsraelC said:
New York steaks have always been easier for me to cook; they're all the same thickness. Whereas sirloin varies to much.. I'm no cook so I stick to what's simple for me. Don't get me wrong; sirloin is a bloody gift from the gods, but I prefer it to be cooked by someone who knows what they're doing.. and I don't.

I just thought it should be made clear that the most expensive cut of steak out there is not necessary. Most people can't afford a New Yorker every day. A lot of people can't afford sirloin either.

Beef would be sufficient instead of New York steaks.
 
I like eye of the round for beef.  It's lean, much leaner than a New York cut (~6% vs ~20% fat by weight), and pretty inexpensive.  Usually I try to stick with deer, moose and caribou, but sometimes it gets a little scare.  I'm rationing out my remaining deer and moose right now.
 
prima6 said:
I like eye of the round for beef.  It's lean, much leaner than a New York cut (~6% vs ~20% fat by weight), and pretty inexpensive.  Usually I try to stick with deer, moose and caribou, but sometimes it gets a little scare.  I'm rationing out my remaining deer and moose right now.

I like the round but I usually slice it up and stew it cause seeing how lean it is it can be pretty tough. It is the leanest cut I believe.

Milpoints for the wild game. Things always taste best when you hunted it down and killed it yourself :sniper: Nothing like bottled rabbit for a quick & tasty dose of protein. Migratory birds kick a pumped up chicken's ass too.
 
New York steaks are one of the cheaper cuts at my butcher. I actually just finished eating one, which I unfortunately overcooked >.<

I supposed bison would also be a good choice if you're looking for lean red meat; I haven't really looked at the prices but I'm pretty sure its around the same as beef.. I think.
 
IsraelC said:
New York steaks are one of the cheaper cuts at my butcher. I actually just finished eating one, which I unfortunately overcooked >.<

I supposed bison would also be a good choice if you're looking for lean red meat; I haven't really looked at the prices but I'm pretty sure its around the same as beef.. I think.

Look up some recipes before you attempt cooking some. Bison tends to become dried out if you cook it too long due to the lack of fat in it. I suggest doing it up in a stew with onions, carrots and potatoes.
 
IsraelC said:
I supposed bison would also be a good choice if you're looking for lean red meat; I haven't really looked at the prices but I'm pretty sure its around the same as beef.. I think.

Much more expensive but so delicious.....
 
One Two said:
I highly reccommend the diet plan by "TheHead".
Are you kidding?
This diet is good for loosing weight.
Food  like chicken breast, fish,lean meat,eggs (white part)- are good for loosing weight.
For putting on weight you should eat much carbohydrates like:
1.Cereals with milk
2.Muesli
3.Rice
4.Milk chocolate
5.Sweet fruits
6.Pasta
7.Potates
8.Pork
9.Any juices
10.Yeloow ,black and white beans.
11.Corn
12.Pancakes
13.Pizza
14.Hot-dogs

But anycase you should have consultation with doctors.
 
sky777 said:
Are you kidding?
This diet is good for loosing weight.
Food  like chicken breast, fish,lean meat,eggs (white part)- are good for loosing weight.
For putting on weight you should eat much carbohydrates like:
1.Cereals with milk
2.Muesli
3.Rice
4.Milk chocolate
5.Sweet fruits
6.Pasta
7.Potates
8.Pork
9.Any juices
10.Yeloow ,black and white beans.
11.Corn
12.Pancakes
13.Pizza
14.Hot-dogs

But anycase you should have consultation with doctors.

While I agree with some of your suggested food choices (and others I don't), chicken breast, fish, lean meet and egg whites can all be successfully used while putting on weight.  All that really matters to put on weight is taking in more calories than you burn.  Of course, ensuring they are quality calories of the right macronutrient ratio will help you put on quality weight (better ratio of muscle to fat).  Of course, you need a training program to encourage muscle growth or it won't matter.
 
I am somewhat hesitant to put my :2c: in here, but there has been a fair bit of misinformation posted. I am not a doctor, all of this information has been gained through a couple of years of reading, self-experimentation, researching medical studies, and talking with various people in the medical, nutritional, and fitness industries. I am not responsible for anything that happens if you use the information contained in this post. Do your own research. Do what works for you. Otherwise:

Keep to the basics if you are serious about wanting to gain lean body mass (muscle, not fat):

Take progress pictures in good lighting with just a swimsuit. Take them yourself in the bathroom mirror if you're not comfortable having someone else take them/don't have anyone to ask. At least one from the front, and one from the side. Print them out and keep them somewhere you will see them daily. I have talked to a significant number of people who were successful in either gaining or losing significant amounts of weight, and almost every single one of them stated that honestly looking at pictures of themselves was the biggest motivator to keeping on track. It's easy to look in the mirror and tell yourself that you aren't a little chubby around the midsection, but for some reason it's a lot harder to do when you're looking at a static picture - probably because you can't turn slightly to get a better angle.

Get your bodyfat% checked. The caliper method is cheapest. This gives you an idea of where you are starting, and allows you to track your fat gain. The accu-measure caliper is cheap and you can test yourself. It isn't the most accurate thing in the world, but it is fairly consistent, and the actual number it gives you is less important than the trend in the measurements you take. If the skinfold measurement isn't increasing, you are most likely not gaining a significant amount of fat, especially in men. Bodyfat% is a much better indicator of body composition changes than scale weight. Example: Recently, I was 165lb. I then dropped to 145lb. Now I am back up to 165lb. That doesn't seem significant until you consider that I went from around 20% bodyfat to 13%, and 90% of that weight gain is muscle. Weight and bf% should be the two measurements you should track weekly. Don't bother with daily measurements as your bodyweight will fluctuate greatly day to day depending on a large number of factors (I personally fluctuate up to 6lb between morning and evening, and up to 4lb day-to-day). You can also track circumference measurements if you want, but it's not necessary.

Lift weights. As mentioned earlier in this thread, squat, deadlift and bench press are the ones you definitely want to have in your program. I would also recommend adding pullups and shoulder press so you're hitting all of your major muscle groups. Starting strength, and other 5x5-type routines have been proven to give consistent moderate gains, especially in beginners. I personally use a single set to failure routine, which I'm finding has larger than average muscular mass and strength gains (I've added a minimum of 40lb to all of my lifts in the past 5 weeks). I recommend getting a single session with a personal trainer so they can check your form on your exercises, to ensure that you are not going to hurt yourself. Remember that your muscles only grow when you tear all of the individual fibers and they heal. That is why I personally train to absolute muscular failure with lots of recovery time, as your muscles heal at about the same rate as a burn. IE: Slow. If anyone wants more information about my training program, feel me to Private Message me and I will give you more information about it.

Eat lots. Try to stick with real food whenever possible, the less refined the better. A good rule of thumb: if it doesn't go bad in a reasonably short time frame, it's probably not real food. You should be shooting for a bare minimum of 20cal/lb of lean body mass. IE: If you are 150lb and 10% bf, you should be eating a bare minimum of 2700 calories per day (150-10% = 135 | 135x20 = 2700). Try to get at least 1 gram of protein per lb of lbm, more is better. The rest should come from a balance of healthy carbs and fats. Again, the less refined the better. Your macronutrient ratio does not matter much as long as you are getting enough protein to repair your muscles, and enough carbs to restore your muscle glycogen. Mom was right, eat your vegetables too. That said, If you are training sufficiently hard, you shouldn't have to count calories as your body becomes adapted to the exercise and increased food intake, and you will become a food-devouring machine. Basically, listen to your body. It knows better than you or I ever will. If you are getting 20cal/lb and are still hungry, eat more. The only time not to listen to your body is for the first week or so while you are adapting to the increased food intake. You will probably have trouble getting the necessary amount of food down for the first few days, but then it will become automatic.

Drink lots of water. Your body uses water as part of the system to deliver nutrients to your muscles. If you're thirsty, you're already too dehydrated. Don't worry about set amounts of fluids, just keep a glass or bottle of water by you all day and sip on it when you feel like it. Again, listen to your body, it should tell you everything you need to know.

Supplements are completely unnecessary. If you really want to take something, creatine has been shown in numerous studies to be effective and completely safe at recommended dosages. Get regular creatine, don't worry about any of the fancy other types. Creatine Monohydrate works just fine for 99% of the population, and if you are a non-responder, none of the other types will help you at all. Whey protein is not necessary but is quite handy if you live a busy lifestyle or have trouble getting in enough "real" protein. A good multi-vitamin is never a bad idea.

tl;dr version:
Take pictures
Get baseline measurements, track your progress
Lift weights
Eat real food, lots of it
Drink water, also lots
You don't need supplements

That's it.
 
Everything LJohnson said is correct, true and should be applied.

Supplements can help...if you can't find time to cook enough/carry food with you: a weight gainer supplement (with low sugar/fat) can definitely help you get your calories in while bulking.

A preworkout helps me get psyched for the gym but you have to stop taking it every 5 weeks for a week or two.

If you are brand new you can gain upwards of 13-15lbs of lean muscle in 8 months of bulking. That's solid muscle, not taking into consideration glycogen/water/fat.
 
airdelta2 said:
Supplements can help...if you can't find time to cook enough/carry food with you: a weight gainer supplement (with low sugar/fat) can definitely help you get your calories in while bulking.

A preworkout helps me get psyched for the gym but you have to stop taking it every 5 weeks for a week or two.

If you are brand new you can gain upwards of 13-15lbs of lean muscle in 8 months of bulking. That's solid muscle, not taking into consideration glycogen/water/fat.

Weight gainers are expensive. If you have the money, giv'er. I personally prefer a shake of homogenized milk, almond butter, whey protein, with blueberries (or any other fruit) thrown in for flavor. The shake I usually have for breakfast is 930cal and 80g of protein. That's a good chunk of my daily goals right there. As someone mentioned earlier, your blender is your friend.

I personally don't usually recommend pre-workout energy/NO-booster supplements for a couple of reasons. First, NO-boosters have been shown to be good for basically nothing except quickly transferring money from your pocket to the bank accounts of supplement companies. There are some studies showing minor advantages, but they are within the range of being statistically insignificant and not worth the money. In addition to expense (usually $1-4/dose), my primary reason to not recommend these products is because they are just not that good for you. While they are not directly physically addicting, the vast majority of them include either a large dose of caffeine or 1,3-Dimethylamylamine, which can eventually, with frequent usage, create dependencies. Both of these are CNS stimulants, and when you get used to relying on them, you have to eventually keep upping the dose, and will eventually get to the point where you will get withdrawal symptoms if you stop. Trust me, this is not fun. Also, if you come to rely on these supplements, you will begin to feel sluggish any time you are not on them and may begin taking them on a regular basis. Sure some people are addicted to coffee, but there's a Tim's on every corner and it's a socially acceptable addiction. People will start to look at you funny if you're jonesing to find a Popeye's or a GNC every couple of weeks. Be aware that 1,3-dimethylamylamine is illegal in some countries, and is essentially an amphetamine analogue. Every person reacts differently to it, so if you purchase anything containing it, I recommend starting with half of the suggested minimum dose. If you take too much, you will most likely be extremely jittery and unable to focus for hours. It feels like you are unable to focus on anything because you are too busy focusing on everything. As one person I know put it, that stuff will rip the top your head off, so be careful with it. Some people also find that it will mess with their internal clock, and are unable to sleep within 6 to 12 or even 16 hours of taking a dose. Use at your own risk, and your mileage may vary of course. I do keep a small tub of one of the major brands at home, but I use it rarely, at most a couple of times per year when I know am going to have a very long day ie: triple back to back shifts or something similar. If you are going to take one of these supplements, make sure you take at a minimum one week off per every 4, with no more than 8 weeks before a break. Two week breaks every four are ideal. This minimizes your dependency risk by slowing your body's adaptation to the drug, and also slows the hit to your wallet.

If you are going to get supplements, I personally recommend bodybuilding.com. They are way cheaper than local brick and mortar stores (over 50% savings on a lot of things), and have reasonable shipping costs. One bonus for us Canadians is that the shipping cost includes all taxes and duty required by the government, so you don't get a customs bill when your package arrives, which takes about 2 weeks to the west coast - every package I have ordered has arrived in 9 business days to BC. I am in no way affiliated with bodybuilding.com or any other supplement supplier/company, I am just giving my personal recommendation. I haven't used any other company out there, but I did a bunch of my own research before placing my first order. I recommend you do the same.

0.5lb/week of pure muscular growth is realistic and sustainable for pretty much anyone up to their genetic potential. More is possible, but is outside the scope of this post.
 
Yup, bodybuilding.com is great and probably the cheapest place in North America to get quality supplements. Anything domestic in-store is going to cost you almost double than it would on bb.com (even with expensive shipping to Canada).

I usually go with Real Gains from Universal for bulking, tastes great...600 cals 88g carb/7 fat/55 protein. I pay 50 bucks for 11lbs of it which is a great deal even compared with making my own gainer (with similar macros). It might cost a little more due to shipping but it is very convenient and ensures I stay consistent with my bulk (which is the most important part of getting results, the long haul).

Some preworkouts are terrible stimulant junky products like Jack3d...with terrible crashes. However, I just tried 2 different products that gave me great focus, pumps (looks awesome in the gym) and very clean energy (which means I can lift with more volume and get more done without burning out). They really do make a difference. Not a huge one but enough to warrant me buying them (1 30 bux container lasts me almost 2 months).

The only really 'necessary' supplements I'd say are whey protein isolate (most people need 170-200g + protein while bulking...even more when cutting), creatine mono and a multi. I also use XTEND which is a great product for recovery (Branch Chan Amino Acids BCAA's). I just ran out last week and I am definitely a lot more sore without taking the BCAA's so they do make a difference (much quicker recovery/I am never sore the next day).

Advice I wish I listened to when I first started...if you don't eat enough you will spin your wheels in the gym and get frustrated quick. Without the proper nutrition for building muscle - there's almost no point in working out intensely because all you will do is maintain what you have or lose some of the muscle you have now (since you're pushing yourself but not eating enough to compensate for the weight lifting to even maintain what you got). Eat (clean) over maintenance by 250-500 cals and after a few months (6 months to a year being a big difference) of that + lifting (with constant progression in strength) + recovery - you will notice a difference.

I'd say 2lbs of muscle a month is realistic in your first year...I am in my first. I have friends in their 4th, 5th, 6th and know some Pro Natural Bodybuilders and they don't gain that much (yet are not at their genetic limit either). They'll bulk for like 10 months and put on maybe 7lbs of muscle if they are lucky. After your 2nd or 3rd year muscular gains definitely aren't as quick. That's why year one gets you 'noob gains', quick muscular gains since your body is so new to weightlifting.
 
Eat a Can of Tuna after every workout... Most of the cans have under 100 calories and 25 g of protein or more. Maybe 1 Grams of Fat and they are extremely cheap. A-lot of Vitamins in them now also since they mix it with mineral water and the only downside is:
1) The Bad Breath
2) If you eat a lot and I mean a lot.. Like 30 Cans a day for the next 25 years you might die of Mercury Poisoning  ::).
 
OneMissionataTime said:
Eat a Can of Tuna after every workout... Most of the cans have under 100 calories and 25 g of protein or more. Maybe 1 Grams of Fat and they are extremely cheap. A-lot of Vitamins in them now also since they mix it with mineral water and the only downside is:
1) The Bad Breath
2) If you eat a lot and I mean a lot.. Like 30 Cans a day for the next 25 years you might die of Mercury Poisoning  ::).
Agreed, keep it cheap and easy ;), my staples are tuna, eggs, milk and whey powder( if the budget allows). oh and don't forget the fruits and veggies
 
OneMissionataTime said:
Eat a Can of Tuna after every workout... Most of the cans have under 100 calories and 25 g of protein or more. Maybe 1 Grams of Fat and they are extremely cheap.
to lose or to gain?
 
Actually there are better options (then bb.com), that are also Canadian as far as online supplements, they also usually include free shipping on order of 99$ and up.

- whey-factory.com
- sndcanada.com
- befit.ca
- fitshop.ca
- pumphousenutrition.ca
- rippedcanadians.com
- pumpdsupplements.com
- supplementsource.ca
-
 
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