I want to gain weight and muscle mass. Advice?

[Lorcan]

I am 17 and 125lbs. I have a small appetite. I live in a rural area. My nearest gym is 10 miles away. It's not a nice flat urban 10 miles, lots of up elevation changes, going up hills, and down hills, varying in steepness.It's cold, it's wet, the roads are shit, the drivers can be careless. 

I want to gain weight and muscle mass (hypertrophy).

I said I was going to go to the gym this summer, after 4 days, I gave up, my body ached. The journey sucked. I gave up

Cycling for me takes 50 minutes to get there. (So it takes 50 minutes of cycling each way) .Walking takes 2 hours (each way). I hate the cycling , not sure if it was just my untrained body, but it was tough on my quads, and they felt weaker everyday I did it, during that summer I did cycle down to my local town (20 minutes cycle away) quite frequently and it sucked.

I'm considering making a home gym for this reason.

Or, should I just tough it out?

As it is my appetite is small, It is hard for to eat a lot, further more the cycling burns a minimum of 500 calories.

There is no excuses, I know if I had to, I could cook up a big batch of rice and carry it with me alongside water and some olive oil in a rucksack. Run the 10 miles there. Do my workout for an 1 hour. Run 10 miles back. 5 days a week. (Or cycle, but with the elevation changes and bendy, shitty roads, it sucks equally, just takes less time)

Is there any benefit of me making that commute just to get to the gym in order to gain muscle mass? I'm not anti-cardio, but fuck me, seems like it would be considerably easier to get a home gym.

I'm not sure what to do. I think the most efficient option would to get some dumbbells and a bench instead of having to haul ass 20 miles to gym, 10 miles each way.

I live in Ireland? If anyone has any good links to weight sets I could buy from amazon (amazon.co.uk that is) is some other UK/Eurpeon website feel free. I feel like my progress with Calisthenics is to slow.

Has anyone have any experience in gaining weight and muscle mass. I'm a skinny guy and weak. This needs to be fixed. What is the best equipment I could get without having to spend a shit-ton?

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Hellspeed]

Strengthen the core, like planks, holding to a tree, squat position, stretches. Learn to Breathe and channel the Breath into your lower body. Muscle mass will come naturally even with not paying attention to diet. Is a matter of relaxation and proper letting go of the mind. 

[Sahil Pandit]

@Lorcan

I've been using these for about a year. You can make some serious gains if you train often! Good thing is that you with calisthenics, your muscles recover much quicker than if you were to say, squat or hit chest in the gym.

Make one of these, and get back to me. We can set up a workout routine that is based off of your strength level

[Xin]

@Lorcan ive gained a lot of muscle from calisthenics alone so just do a load of pushups , pullups ,squats , and then move onto harder variations.so personally I don't think you need equipment , apart from a pull up bar which you can probably find at a park.

 

[purerogue]

First of all cycling is not to build muscle mass, it is sure way to burn allot of calories, which you clearly do not need now. 

Only thing you need to do is eat allot, ofc with understanding what to eat,  you do not have to start eating tons of food straight away, you increase amount gradually, or else you can get some health issues, your stomach has to stretch to be able to take more food, it does not happen overnight. 

It can be long process to increase weight, depending on your genes, so lot of patience is a must, you could start to notice changes only after few months and then they will start to pick up pace, there is tons of information out there, lot of bs too and I do not have patience to write article about weight gaining and muscle building as there is just way to much to cover. 

 

[Leon_Mao]

I've been gaining mass the past couple of months. What I do is eat just a little more than what I'm comfortable with each meal to gradually get myself to be comfortable with big meals. Milk with every meal is also a good habit, it broke my plateau a while back. Also if you're anything like me you may delay meals for whatever reason. If you do this make sure to build a habit to get food whenever you feel hungry, also having healthy snacks on hand will help too.

[Michael569]

Building a home gym is definitely a good option. You can order some of the following and save on gym fees. 

• Gymnastic rings or TRX (hang on a tree somewhere)
• pair of adjustable dumbbells 
• a large barbell with some weights (example)
• skipping rope 
• rubber band (15kg resistance or more)
• medicine ball

With these you'll be able to create hundreds of functional workouts. In the UK, I'd estimate around £120 for all above, maybe even less on Amazon or Decathlon. 

+ the money you save you can use to get a proper nutrition. 

Edited December 27, 2018 by Michael569

[Matt8800]

On 12/26/2018 at 3:26 PM, Lorcan said:

I am 17 and 125lbs. I have a small appetite. I live in a rural area. My nearest gym is 10 miles away. It's not a nice flat urban 10 miles, lots of up elevation changes, going up hills, and down hills, varying in steepness.It's cold, it's wet, the roads are shit, the drivers can be careless. 

I want to gain weight and muscle mass (hypertrophy).

I said I was going to go to the gym this summer, after 4 days, I gave up, my body ached. The journey sucked. I gave up

Cycling for me takes 50 minutes to get there. (So it takes 50 minutes of cycling each way) .Walking takes 2 hours (each way). I hate the cycling , not sure if it was just my untrained body, but it was tough on my quads, and they felt weaker everyday I did it, during that summer I did cycle down to my local town (20 minutes cycle away) quite frequently and it sucked.

I'm considering making a home gym for this reason.

Or, should I just tough it out?

As it is my appetite is small, It is hard for to eat a lot, further more the cycling burns a minimum of 500 calories.

There is no excuses, I know if I had to, I could cook up a big batch of rice and carry it with me alongside water and some olive oil in a rucksack. Run the 10 miles there. Do my workout for an 1 hour. Run 10 miles back. 5 days a week. (Or cycle, but with the elevation changes and bendy, shitty roads, it sucks equally, just takes less time)

Is there any benefit of me making that commute just to get to the gym in order to gain muscle mass? I'm not anti-cardio, but fuck me, seems like it would be considerably easier to get a home gym.

I'm not sure what to do. I think the most efficient option would to get some dumbbells and a bench instead of having to haul ass 20 miles to gym, 10 miles each way.

I live in Ireland? If anyone has any good links to weight sets I could buy from amazon (amazon.co.uk that is) is some other UK/Eurpeon website feel free. I feel like my progress with Calisthenics is to slow.

Has anyone have any experience in gaining weight and muscle mass. I'm a skinny guy and weak. This needs to be fixed. What is the best equipment I could get without having to spend a shit-ton?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Im almost 50 now. When I was in my 20s, I took testosterone for 60 days and put on a lot of muscle mass. I kept about 75% of it after I stopped taking it (I kept working out about 30 min 4x week). One of the best health decisions Ive made.

If you do something like this, DO NOT abuse it and keep doing it. Educate yourself. It should only be done for health reasons, not vanity.

Edited December 28, 2018 by Matt8800

[Lorcan]

6 hours ago, Matt8800 said:

Im almost 50 now. When I was in my 20s, I took testosterone for 60 days and put on a lot of muscle mass. I kept about 75% of it after I stopped taking it (I kept working out about 30 min 4x week). One of the best health decisions Ive made.

If you do something like this, DO NOT abuse it and keep doing it. Educate yourself. It should only be done for health reasons, not vanity.

Did you how Low T?

From skimming around youtube and the internet,from what I gathered from skimming around was that steroids cause permanent long-term damage and decrease longevity. Which puts me off doing them entirely. Stuff life it perma damaging your kidney.

I did not do too much research. Is this true or does it depend? Whats your experience.

Edited December 28, 2018 by Lorcan

[ULFBERHT]

Bro,

When I graduated high school, I was about your size. 135lbs pounds with no muscle mass and a small appetite. Then, I started power lifting. Within a few months, I put on nearly forty pounds. I didn't get fat, either. Now mind you, I wasn't shredded, but I put on quality mass in a very short amount of time and got significantly stronger. That's how newbie gains work.

Here's what you do:

Keep riding your bike to the gym, but ride as fast as you can. High intensity cardio is more anabolic than low intensity cardio, so make the most of it by hauling ass back and forth.

Once you get to the gym, do exercises that focus on the barbell lifts - squats, dead lifts, bench presses, over head presses, and barbell rows. Do calisthenics if you want as accessory work, but calisthenics are difficult to push volume on after a while. It's easier to achieve progressive overload with barbells because adding weight is easy.

Start with those workouts 3-4 times a week.

Now, your nutrition: for 3-4 meals a day, whether you're hungry or not, here's what you eat :

1. Meat or eggs, with a glass of whole milk

2. A healthy carb like brown rice

3. A vegetable and a fruit

4. Finish the meal with a protein shake

DO NOT WORRY ABOUT GETTING FAT AT THIS POINT. JUST LIFT AND EAT. Someone may see this post and say this isn't necessarily healthy. That person is a pussy who has never lifted a barbell. You can worry about your abs later after you get some muscle and strength under your belt.

I did a routine like this for many years. As I mentioned, I put on size quickly, and a few years after that, I was over two hundred pounds and dead lifting 500 pounds like it was fucking nothing.

It can be done.

[Lorcan]

17 hours ago, ULFBERHT said:

Bro,

When I graduated high school, I was about your size. 135lbs pounds with no muscle mass and a small appetite. Then, I started power lifting. Within a few months, I put on nearly forty pounds. I didn't get fat, either. Now mind you, I wasn't shredded, but I put on quality mass in a very short amount of time and got significantly stronger. That's how newbie gains work.

Here's what you do:

Keep riding your bike to the gym, but ride as fast as you can. High intensity cardio is more anabolic than low intensity cardio, so make the most of it by hauling ass back and forth.

Once you get to the gym, do exercises that focus on the barbell lifts - squats, dead lifts, bench presses, over head presses, and barbell rows. Do calisthenics if you want as accessory work, but calisthenics are difficult to push volume on after a while. It's easier to achieve progressive overload with barbells because adding weight is easy.

Start with those workouts 3-4 times a week.

Now, your nutrition: for 3-4 meals a day, whether you're hungry or not, here's what you eat :

1. Meat or eggs, with a glass of whole milk

2. A healthy carb like brown rice

3. A vegetable and a fruit

4. Finish the meal with a protein shake

DO NOT WORRY ABOUT GETTING FAT AT THIS POINT. JUST LIFT AND EAT. Someone may see this post and say this isn't necessarily healthy. That person is a pussy who has never lifted a barbell. You can worry about your abs later after you get some muscle and strength under your belt.

I did a routine like this for many years. As I mentioned, I put on size quickly, and a few years after that, I was over two hundred pounds and dead lifting 500 pounds like it was fucking nothing.

It can be done.

Thank you for this.

Do you have any tips on how to not have to constantly go for a shit due to the increased food? At what times should I eat such that I'm not going to have to go for a shit in a field mid cycle. How much water did you drink and how often did you not to go for a shit a day?

Go faster? Really? Would it not me drain me more for my workout?

Edited December 29, 2018 by Lorcan

[ULFBERHT]

1. Constantly shitting is a hilarious, but not valid, concern. You'll be fine. Your body will handle the increased intake appropriately and more intelligently than you could ever manage on your own. Just let it do its thing. Actually, as long as you're eating quality food, I wouldn't be surprised if your digestion becomes better, not worse.

2. Monitor your intake of water based on the color of your piss. If your piss is not light yellow or clear, you're not hydrated. Drink water consistently throughout the day and you'll body will do the rest. Just spread it out over the day so you're not pissing every five minutes.

3. Yes, go faster. At first it's gonna be tough and you won't be able to go very fast, but soon your body will adapt, and after awhile you'll be able to handle it with no problem. Just make sure you're progressively pushing the pace and not trying to go too fast all at once. Start riding to the gym at a moderate pace that you can handle and sustain. After awhile, try to lessen the time it takes to get to the gym by picking up the pace. This may actually serve your weight lifting because by the time you get to the gym, you won't really need to warm up.

If you're going to be riding to the gym, you may find after awhile that it becomes a little harder to put on muscle. When this happens, simply increase your calories until you start gaining weight again. It really is that simple.

In the immediate though, I wouldn't worry about it. Start eating like I described above and you'll get bigger no matter what you do. Remember, the idea that some people simply cannot gain weight is crap. If you're a skinny fucker who is otherwise healthy, you're skinny because you're not lifting and eating. Don't let your current weight and frame be a limiting belief.

Finally, I'll add that I never said riding that distance to the gym and then lifting will be easy. BUT, if you're serious, and you're looking for a challenge, you actually have a golden opportunity sitting right in front of you. Just imagine this for a moment: imagine that you completely dedicated yourself to this challenge of riding your bike to the gym four times a week, lifting some heavy-ass weight, and riding back home. Imagine that you really got your nutrition dialed in and are getting a little bit bigger and a little bit stronger, week in, week out. With that kind of activity, and with the proper nutrition and rest, in about two years time you're gonna look like you were carved from fucking stone.

[Mickey]

You can use weight gain products or high protein powder like whey protein.

[Ziggyzoozoo212]

If your serious about this than you really do need to put in hard, HARD fucking work, you can't expect serious progress from half assing stuff or giving up really quickly.

[TriteNTrue]

@Lorcan

https://www.aworkoutroutine.com/

I read most of the articles here and  came up with my own routine based on this. I lost 15lbs and built 10lbs of muscle.

[Outer]

Maybe try to look for used sets of dumbbells someone is selling for cheap or giving away, using whatever websites and apps you have available. If you are expecting to succeed it is pointless to buy the most expensive, brand new ones, since you will become so strong that you will need to buy more weights.

Then buy a cheap healthy fat source like different nut butters. Or you can just eat a lot of nuts. But look what is cheapest in your local grocery stores.

In my opinion you should just work on getting stronger, that's a bit easier to understand than  how to gain a lot of muscle. As you get stronger you will also gain more muscle. So see your muscle growth as a bonus. Once you cannot gain any more strength, look into building muscle. Hope that helps.

Edited January 22, 2019 by Outer

[pluto]

The body will naturally adapt to the lifestyle. If you do a lot of physical activity during the day you will generally feel more hungry and eat more and grow based on the physical activity. If you train only one hour a day at the gym and the rest of the day doing nothing then you will not see results for a long time because for 23 hours you are doing something else.

The best results come from when you are physically active all day then come home and feast until evening then rest and repeat next day. I figured this out by observing my friends and myself during those phases of my life. I was training legs once or twice a week and only when i started to do long mountain hikes almost every day i noticed density/growth/thickness because every day they were being pushed/pumped thus forced to adapt and grow.

The friends i had that had hard physical jobs all day paired with 1 - 2 hours of a gym a day grew much denser and larger than those who only went to the gym and bummed around or had non-physical jobs. The body will adapt and grow overtime not just muscle but bone and everything.

That's just the way i see it based on observation. Not saying other ways do not work but you will naturally notice people that are physically active most of their lives are naturally far more muscular/dense because the body must adapt or you will break down.

2c

[Solace]

Here is a review for a great book on dumbbell training for you. It also includes diet recommendations, and is very detailed. The reviewer is my health consultant his advice has lead to increased health and vitality in mind, body and emotions  

https://www.amazon.com/review/R2STQ2SWFJ8LCM

And the book:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/145044458X/ref=cm_cr_srp_mb_bdcrb_top?ie=UTF8

He also does calisthenics, so contact him for more questions.

[TimothyWeiss]

For both gaining or losing weight, you should exercise properly. By working out your muscle weight will also increase. There are many home remedies which one can try like Banana shake, dairy products etc.

[Matt8800]

On 12/28/2018 at 2:15 PM, Lorcan said:

Did you how Low T?

From skimming around youtube and the internet,from what I gathered from skimming around was that steroids cause permanent long-term damage and decrease longevity. Which puts me off doing them entirely. Stuff life it perma damaging your kidney.

I did not do too much research. Is this true or does it depend? Whats your experience.

People say a lot of things but unless it is backed up by scientific studies that support those conclusions, those claims are useless. I remember hearing the refer madness stories as a kid and believing those also.

Taking oral steroids are hard on the liver, which is why one shouldn't do it for longer than one cycle. Injections are much safer but one would have to get over the idea of it.

Rice contains some arsenic. Too much arsenic will kill you but that doesnt mean that rice will cause you damage. People have died of caffeine overdoses but that doesnt mean you shouldnt ever drink coffee. Do research based on science and studies and use common sense.