Weight & its importance

Kell

Folks,

a lot of responses to "How do I get big muscles" questions, seem to centre around gaining weight. I am 5' 11"ish, ten stone and have been for about 11 years so theres not much point in me trying to gain weight as its not going to happen. Why is body weight important when trying to gain muscle mass exactly?

Cheers-

K

logic1

Originally posted by Kell
Folks,

Why is body weight important when trying to gain muscle mass exactly?

Cheers-

K

Not quite sure what you mean here. Bodyweight isn't the most important factor when trying to build muscle mass. Much more important would be body type, mesomorph, ectomorph, endomorph. Obviously people with these natural bodytypes would have different bodyweights mesomorphs being naturally muscled with low bodyfat, ectomorph naturally low bodyfat low muscle mass, endomorph medium muscle density medium/high bodyfat.

These factors will have a much bigger effect on someone trying to build muscle but a determined person will be able to pack on mass regardless. Another factor is your bodies natural comfort zone, there's only so much muscle mass a person can pack on comfortably before the body says "Hey I shouldn't be this heavy.. **** this I'm not holding all this weight" and you hit a plateau or even start to drop weight, maintenance for body mass outside your natural range will be extremly difficult.

.logic.

Kell

Originally posted by logic1
Bodyweight isn't the most important factor when trying to build muscle mass.

I wasnt implying that it was. I fall into the ectomorph category so can someone please (if they can) provide explicit instructions as to how to pack on mass as 7 days training isnt doing the trick.

Thanks-

K

Benbaz

Originally posted by Kell
how to pack on mass as 7 days training isnt doing the trick.

You just answered your own question there!!! 7 days training is way too mush training to put on mass!!!

B.

Kell

I dont get it. Take more breaks between training days and gain mass in between. Not being smart, but how does that work?

K-

Jak

Kell if I recall I talked to you about this before, so you can't be doing the 7 day training thing for very long.

I'm heading out now so this will be shortish, and it's not directed at you alone, but the general posts on training and not getting big.

1. 7 days a week is probably too much unless you are hoping to turn pro and are on some serious supplements/gear. Rest from your sessions is as important as the session, given that the rest time is when your muscles will rebuild and grow. Simple approach is not to double train a muscle group and take 1 on day - 1 off day.

2. 3 days weight training with maybe 1 or 2 cardio is MORE than enough training. Break it down into mixed bodyparts, Shoulders/back etc. Going to the gym and ****ing around is not training, and I've met a lot of people who go to the gym "everyday" who are still as weak as little girls. Why? Because they don't train hard, and most people need to train with some psycho's to realise what training hard is. You ideally need a training partner but at the least someone who will spot you for heavier sets. I feel sick after a lot of sessions, aim for that.

3. Diet, Diet, Diet. Logic put a very good post up on this one time which summed most things up. But really people, read the sticky thread on "I can't gain weight". None of you are genetic exceptions - trust me. Supplements will also help, but the bottom line is a good diet with enough calories will do the job. Do the work/reasearch to figure out what you need.

4. Patience. Unless you are on gear, sometimes training can take a long time to show the results you want. When I look back over things now, I started training at 16 or so, almost 10 years ago. In the last 5 years I have taken it very very seriously, and probably gained about 60lbs. I can count on one hand the number of sessions I have missed from any program over those last years. Even if I'm away, I find a gym. As a natural sometimes it is slow, but don't focus on the time, just take it in smaller steps. Some of the big people you see are big because of gear (not saying they don't put in work, I just see them in a different light), some are big because they have been at it for a lot longer than you. So again ... patience.

5. Related to the above. Keep a trainin log of everything - weights, reps, day, how you feel, bodyweight. I have these going back years and it really helps to remind yourself how far you have come. You are never going to go to the gym one week and find you have jumped 20kg on a lift since last week. Log books help show you how you improved.

6. Buy FLEX, as an example. Read and develop a session from the excercises they suggest. Stick to it.

7. Do it for a year and stick to it before, saying "You can't gain weight".

Gluck,

JAK.