getting bigger arms ?????? help

miller82

i've been training on and off for about 3 yrs and very consistently now since sept. but it seems my arms have stayed the same size since about christmas. i train about 6 days a week on a 3 day programme so i do biceps and chest together twice a week and triceps twice a week too. i'd do 3 different moves (e.g 21's,concebtration curls, and incline seated curls) i eat a fair bit of chicken meat and eggs but the arms just dont get bigger .

Anyone got any suggestions

(dont really wanna change my diet in any dramatic way at the moment as i have got finals in 3wks and i was told this could make me tired etc)

Flex

Just a couple of quick questions; how many sets do you do for your biceps and triceps each week and what exercises do you do for your triceps? and how many calories do you roughly eat a day and whats your weight?

Do you measure your arms?

Superdub2

one thing anyway, you should always have barbell curls as part of your bicep routine for width and some preacher curls for lenght from time to time

redman85

Have you ever thought that you could be overtraining? Working each bodypart twice a week gives it little or no time to rest and recover.

Cravez

Have you been using the same bi-ceps routine since september? If so you should be changing your routine every 3-6 weeks depending. Cause if you have been using the same routine then your bi-ceps are used to the same routine and resistence and therefore wont grow. As superdub mentioned instead of your 21's, concentration curls etc change them for barbell(or EZ) curls, preacher curls and hammer curls. Try that for a while and increase your calorie intake(including carbs) if you havent already done so, carbs with protein is better at building muscle than protein alone. Also your obviously working back also? exercising the back also works your bi-ceps depending on the exercises( most back exercises do ) which technically means you could be working bi-ceps four times a week, and therefore arnt giving your arms enough time to rest. Maybe cutting back bi-ceps to once a week e.g Monday and then doing back on thursday? so in total you have worked bi-ceps twice a week.

Hope this advice helps

good luck,

Dragan

to put it real simple your over training.

Think about it. You do chest twice a week and triceps twice a week. I assume you also do shoulders? So your hitting the triceps five times a week either directly or indirectly.

Same with biceps, your doing them directly twice and i hope to christ your doing back so that indirectly once.

I would suggest you look up a proper training split, stop worrying about t-shirt muscles and train properly.

But hey, thats just me.

miller82

Flex: i'd do three different moves and 3 sets at each. that goes for legs,shoulders,lats, back and triceps too.i'm 14 stone and about 6 ft 2. and i havent measured my arms but i know myself from looking at them and from my t-shirts etc i know they ain't getting bigger. i wouldnt be sure on my calorie intake. average day would be weetabix for breakie, soup and ham and cheese sambos for lunch and chicken or meat, with eggs/pasta/spuds or rice for dinner. i would also fit in a smoothie wit 4/5 pieces of fruit a day
Michael Cravez : i change my routine about every 3-4 wks.i.e i pick different moves.
so every one seems to think i'm over trainning ? ye ?
any other pointers ???????????

Dragan

What is your whole routine like?

This may sound odd but moves live deadlifts and squats add mass to the WHOLE body through the hormones they release, if your ignoring them you really are costing yourself growth.

Degsy

miller82 wrote:

Flex: i'd do three different moves and 3 sets at each. that goes for legs,shoulders,lats, back and triceps too.i'm 14 stone and about 6 ft 2. and i havent measured my arms but i know myself from looking at them and from my t-shirts etc i know they ain't getting bigger. i wouldnt be sure on my calorie intake. average day would be weetabix for breakie, soup and ham and cheese sambos for lunch and chicken or meat, with eggs/pasta/spuds or rice for dinner. i would also fit in a smoothie wit 4/5 pieces of fruit a day
Michael Cravez : i change my routine about every 3-4 wks.i.e i pick different moves.
so every one seems to think i'm over trainning ? ye ?
any other pointers ???????????

You're not eating nearly enough protein or eating often enough.You need to eat about six medium sized meals a day and include good quality protein in each meal.If you cant spare the time for preparing and/or eating meals,invest in a good quality protein supplement.

miller82

nice one degsy.
wot would be the 4 or 5 easiest sources of protein ? other than protein shakes etc.

Degsy

miller82 wrote:

nice one degsy.
wot would be the 4 or 5 easiest sources of protein ? other than protein shakes etc.

To get a good mix of essential amino acids(muscle building blocks),try eating things like Tuna,Chicken Fillets,Eggs(not too many yolks though),lean steak like Round,Turkey Fillets,Cottage cheese etc.Forget about ham sandwiches,there's no protein in them..get some decent food at regular intervals alongside a sensible training regime and you'll grow!

Flex

miller82 wrote:

nice one degsy.
wot would be the 4 or 5 easiest sources of protein ? other than protein shakes etc.

Chicken, turkey, round steak, egg whites, tuna, salmon, most fish, lots of them

EDIT: One step ahead of me Degsy

flywheel

Got this book a little while ago: Men's Health Peak Conditioning Guides: Essential Arms. Goes through arm muscles, mechanics, loads of exercises, stretching, routine planning, diet etc.

Also, don't be solely pre-occupied with your biceps, do lot's of tricep work too as they make up about 2/3 of your upper arm mass.

Easygainer

Have the weights you've lifted on these exercises gone up since Christmas?

miller82

ye i keep track of what i do each time and go up a rep or weight the next day

rubadub

Degsy wrote:

Forget about ham sandwiches,there's no protein in them..

Is the protein in them bad or something? I eat ham since it is low in fat and seems to be quite high in protein. I do put a lot of ham in a sambo so I am taking in less bread. I would put up to 200g of ham on a sandwich. Maybe you just mean the typical miserable thin slices?

bob04

Carbs Carbs Carbs Carbs Carbs

You wont grow without them

Also i only do biceps once a week.. 4 sets.. on back day when my biceps are already well and truly pumped

joejoem

rubadub wrote:

Is the protein in them bad or something? I eat ham since it is low in fat and seems to be quite high in protein. I do put a lot of ham in a sambo so I am taking in less bread. I would put up to 200g of ham on a sandwich. Maybe you just mean the typical miserable thin slices?

Ham is a fatty meat, not a great source of protein. Turkey is better if you have to eat sambos. Of course diced chicken fillets are one better. I bulk buy chicken fillets and cook a few at the begining of the week, put them in a lunch box and then take them as you need them.

I think certain people will find it hard to put size on, just keep eating and keep working out, its the only way to do it. I would be the smae, the time I notice most growth is when I take a week or two off. Because of this I am trying a work out on each area once a week. I find it good to separate your triceps and biceps work out by as much time as you can.

bob04

See arm pic?

Not massive i know as im cutting at the minute..

But i do arms once a week, 3 sets of curls and 1 set of 21's..thats it..

Its all bout the food.. good quality carbs, fats and protein...

Dragan

joejoem wrote:

Ham is a fatty meat, not a great source of protein. Turkey is better if you have to eat sambos. Of course diced chicken fillets are one better. I bulk buy chicken fillets and cook a few at the begining of the week, put them in a lunch box and then take them as you need them.

Turkey is actually WAY better than chicken dude, far, far leaner in fact.

As for BOB, love the bag of Whey in the background bro!

bob04

Dragan wrote:

As for BOB, love the bag of Whey in the background bro!

That whey is class..pure whey isolate.. 10lb bag.. i bought two of them from America.. should last me thro the summer.. hopefully anyway!!!

joejoem

Dragan wrote:

Turkey is actually WAY better than chicken dude, far, far leaner in fact.

As for BOB, love the bag of Whey in the background bro!

Yeah I know, cheaper too, but its so bland. I love the taste of chicken, turkey is very bleugh!