Were you ever a skinny guy?

[Initiative]

I am 18 and 135 lbs give or take and around 5'8.

I have been trying to gain weight for about a year. I was wondering for all the Asian men in this forum how long it took you to get over scrawniness, how you achievied it. My father is overweight and fat! He used to be extremely scrawny but I havent spoken to him for a while and I was wondering at what age do skinny asian men begin to bulk up.

[cloudzero]

sorry man, i've heard this over and over.
don't give me that metabolism crap because i used that excuse myself before. you simply aren't eating enough

here is what you need to do

count your calories
try 2500 then see if you gain weight within a week or two
if you didnt, try 3000, then 4000

once you go 3000 - 4000 it will mean eating when your not hungry,
yes it sucks and its not comfortable. i don't recommend weight gain powders because the amount of powder you consume would have been the same amount of food with a higher calorie count.

5 - 6 meals a day spaced evenly within 2 - 3 hours

we aren't girls that eat 1 lb and gain 2 lbs of weight
no pain no gain....dont expect a picnic.

[popculturepooka]

I'm 19, 5'9 1/2" and 135 pounds.

I get some shit for being skinny, but really, it's alot better than the opposite. Just tone your muscles, then the weight will look good on you.


Be proud to be skinny!! lol

[Hiroshi2]

When I was 18, I was 6'3" and weighed 165 lbs.


Within one year of being in college and eating three meals a day, I jumped up to 220 lbs, where I've been ever since.


It actually wasn't that hard. You can gain 50 lbs in one year if you want to. Just eat more than you have to. Though skinniness is not necessarily a bad thing.

[Craig]

Yes, until my mid-20s I was 5'6" and a little under 125 lbs. Then I bulked up to around 145 lbs by working out, etc. I stayed that way for a few years. Then long-term unemployment hit and I started eating worse, had to move half way across the country to a high stress environment, etc. So, I lost muscle and gained fat and hovered between 150-160 lbs for a few years. I'm back in a cheap low stress area (for about 2 months so far), but haven't gotten back to working out or measuring my weight yet, but feel like I have already lost a little fat.

[Initiative]

I guess its hard to choose what I eat while living with parents. Im moving out in a month, so hopefully i can get a better diet for myself. I definately eat more than 2500 calories. Just yesterday I ate 3500 without thinking about it. My question was just that is there a certain point in a Asian Mans life that his body just changes through natural chemical means? For instance we all definately hit puberty later than other races. So maybe there is a certain time for my brain to tell my body GAIN WEIGHT!

So do you guys that were succseful in bulking up remember when it happened?

[cloudzero]

I guess its hard to choose what I eat while living with parents. Im moving out in a month, so hopefully i can get a better diet for myself. I definately eat more than 2500 calories. Just yesterday I ate 3500 without thinking about it. My question was just that is there a certain point in a Asian Mans life that his body just changes through natural chemical means? For instance we all definately hit puberty later than other races. So maybe there is a certain time for my brain to tell my body GAIN WEIGHT!

So do you guys that were succseful in bulking up remember when it happened?

don't worry about what point in your life it is
whats more important is this:

if you are still growing, i don't recommend lifting weights it will stop your growing.
if you've stop, then i recommend doing squats and deadlifts becuase they workout the whole body and will put you in an anabolic state

[inthesky]

i think i got this natural bulk-up, perhaps what you're referring to, at 21/22

[snow ninja]

there's no magic to it. EAT!! not just any food. good food, with some protein, veggies and carbs every meal. and snack on proteins/fruits veg instead of carb.

eat beef chicken and fish.

Why are so many asian guys so skinny? It's because of not eating enough, or a family/mom that can't feed properly, or lack physical activity.

also, if you are physically active you tend to be hungrier.

i know what you mean tho, i worked out for years but stopped and now i have to get back into it again. i just didn't like going to the gym anymore so i set up some weights at home but not enough weight or motivation to train religiously.

edit:also, the fast metabolism is a factor so it would be best to try not to go hungry at all and eat more often but maybe not as much.

[LaiSteve66]

I am 18 and 135 lbs give or take and around 5'8.

I have been trying to gain weight for about a year. I was wondering for all the Asian men in this forum how long it took you to get over scrawniness, how you achievied it. My father is overweight and fat! He used to be extremely scrawny but I havent spoken to him for a while and I was wondering at what age do skinny asian men begin to bulk up.

When I was 18, I was 5' 11 and 130 lbs. I even earned the nickname "stickman". To get over my scrawnyness, I had to wait for my metabolism to shit out on me, something I had no control over.

If I were you, I would enjoy the scrawnyness while it lasts.

[Gunz]

I did not pick up much weight until I had a little more moeny, and a softer life. At 8, I had no money, I lived on empty, and I did not have alcohol, a car, or a cushy job. I walked everywhere, or rode a bicycle. I did not drink beer, or eat beef regularly. I had a lot of pasta, noodles, veggies, and pizza.

Then in my late twenties, my metabolism changed. I grew olderr, and slowed down. I drank more beer, because i could afford it. I ate more beef, and richer foods. I gained 15 pounds, and fight to keep it from exceeding. I never got into junk foods, but I I know that high fat and high sugar foods builds weight, but in the fat and flab modes.

The only way to gain weight is to balance wegiht-bearing exerrcise, and solid protein, starch, and vegetable balance.

You gain weight in time, faster than you realize.

[VV o n g B a]

when i was 18, i was 5'4" and 135. i was relatively toned and fit. got to college and lost 10lbs and then started working. tried to gain it back by eating junk food. double whoppers, popeye's fried chicken, hot dogs, eggs. didn't work b/c occasionally i'd forget to eat b/c i was playing a computer game competitively. i've finally managed to gain back to 130 but it's just too much work to gain more. i hate wasting so much time and effort on something as banal as eating so i'm just resigned to my current weight.

[dej2]

5'7" 128 pounds in Highschool, age 18. pretty much stayed around that weight through out my twenties untill I was 30 years old... before this I could eat anything and not gain weight, then yes my metabolism changed and started gaining weight. Now I have to watch what I eat.

[inthesky]

oh man... metabolism slowing down is a time I'm going to suffer because of my bad habits. eating food at 2, 3 am.... better enjoy it while i'm still young. i feel my body looks better than it ever has, although i stopped lifting weights regularly.

[snow ninja]

what is wrong with these guys? malnourished?

i saw a cashier guy at the asian T&T supermarket and his bony thin wrists were so small you could snap it with one hand. he wasn't that short either. nearly 5.8-6ft

[cloudzero]

^^ read the whole thread man.
these guys are skinny because of a high metabolism. they basically eat all they want and still stay thin. in order for them to gain weight they must eat an amount WAYY out of their comfort zone for 3-6 months.

90% of successful bodybuilders start out as these kind of guys, because the big guys have the disadvantage of not being able to get cut up and rip their body muscles to shreds.

i know this because i use to be one of these skinny guys.
consistent, balanced calories at an amount out of my discomfort zone for a looong time was how i got over it.

[snow ninja]

i'm not buying it, he looked like a wimpy, frail, meek, fob who chooses to malnourish himself either that or his family didn't feed him properly and contributed to his meek state.

[cloudzero]

^ then your pretty closed minded. i use to eat with my friends at buffets and it always ends with me still eating and them sitting there wishing i would leave with them. at restaurants im always the one cleaning up the table. with that said, they still ALL weighed more than me. even with an ABOVE average amount of food, i was only MAINTAINING my weight. so you can imagine how thin i would have been if i had an average amount of food like the guy you saw.
hes probably just another me with an average food intake.

people who never saw me eat, assume i don't eat. its VERY annoying. when they do see me eat, they apologize.

dont judge a book by its cover

[kitkatbee]

it sure is hard being a guy

[cloudzero]

^ my sarcasm radar is busted. my vocabulary generator too. care to elaborate, kitkatbee?

[kitkatbee]

Oh eating when you arent hungry just to maintain yourself sounds stressful lol.

[snow ninja]

^^yeah, i know, crxy me a river,

[snow ninja]

^^ read the whole thread man.
these guys are skinny because of a high metabolism. they basically eat all they want and still stay thin. in order for them to gain weight they must eat an amount WAYY out of their comfort zone for 3-6 months.



never heard this before

[cloudzero]

Oh eating when you arent hungry just to maintain yourself sounds stressful lol.

well no, when i was thin, i ate way more than everyone else because it was a natural amount for me, and it did maintain a constant body weight.

it is when i decided to gain weight that i had to eat out of my comfort zone. yes, it was pretty stressful physically and emotionally. so it was like cleaning up the table and a few more orders.

i didnt know if you were being sarcastic because girls have told me they wished their body was like mine. but hey everyone has their own problems

never heard this before

they are called "ectomorphs" look it up. if you have read a fair amount of bodybuilding stuff you would have heard of it. you probably have no friends like this then, because a lot of underweight people dont choose to be like that (more guys and girls).

[Initiative]

when i was 18, i was 5'4" and 135. i was relatively toned and fit. got to college and lost 10lbs and then started working. tried to gain it back by eating junk food. double whoppers, popeye's fried chicken, hot dogs, eggs. didn't work b/c occasionally i'd forget to eat b/c i was playing a computer game competitively. i've finally managed to gain back to 130 but it's just too much work to gain more. i hate wasting so much time and effort on something as banal as eating so i'm just resigned to my current weight.

OMG this is exactly what im doing!

I work at very busy deli and I come home exahsted. I still push myself to work out sometimes. But I resort to fast food thinking since its unhealthy and fatty I should probably eat it because I need to gain weight anyway. I started this post like a few weeks ago and I just found out im only 132 lbs. WEAK!

[cloudzero]

OMG this is exactly what im doing!

I work at very busy deli and I come home exahsted. I still push myself to work out sometimes. But I resort to fast food thinking since its unhealthy and fatty I should probably eat it because I need to gain weight anyway. I started this post like a few weeks ago and I just found out im only 132 lbs. WEAK!

Unhealthy foods make skinny people skinnier and fat people fatter.
You need to start adapting to a caloric ratio and start gorging every 3 hours.

[Napoleon Chynamite]

never heard this before

uh.....try my entire family, haha

Although, it doesn't really matter if you can eat all you want and not gain weight b/c of a fast metabolism. Muscle tone and fitness is much more important for overall health and that's why there are plenty of skinny people out there that are also out of shape and lacking in muscle tone; because they're not doing anything about it b/c they think just b/c they aren't gaining weight that they are fine.

[Banana]

Here is the strategy I used to ingest an extra 1000-2000 calories per day.

1.) Three-four large 1 L water bottles
2.) A blender
3.) Couple bags of frozen berries from Costco
4.) A tub of natural peanut butter
5.) A tub of protein powder
6.) Low fat milk
7.) 10 minutes of your day

You are not mixing all these ingredients exactly but you can mix the following:

*** 1-3 cups of low fat milk - 300 calories
*** 1-2 cups of mixed berries - 200 calories
*** 40-60 grams of protein powder - 160-240 calories
*** 1-2 tbsp of natural peanut butter - 200 calories

This adds up quickly to over 800 clean calories and they are all healthy foods. You will notice that these shakes have no junk sugars and no 'bad' fats.

If calorie counting is not your thing then simply monitor the number of cups, scoops and tbsps. I suggest starting with portion sizes of 1 for everything. While the 40-60 grams of protein is always consistent i.e. 1 cup, 1 scoop and 1 tbsp of the above ingredients and then build
to two and three where recommended.

[BeTheReds]

I eat like a horse. I'm thin as a toothpick. It's always been that way.

[kitkatbee]

I think its time to go hippo.

[cloudzero]

I think its time to go hippo.

go semi hippo :wink:

[unemployable]

I used to be hella skinny. Then I started doing the workouts and stuff. I got buff, but it was hard.

Then, I just started staying at home and watching anime. I got kind of fat, and now I don't complain about being skinny anymore. I look kind of scary now.

[j&j2]

don't give me that metabolism crap because i used that excuse myself before. you simply aren't eating enough.

Sometimes it CAN be a high metabolism.

When I was in HS, I ate and ate and ate (my parents grocery bill dropped significantly once I left for college) – I’m talking about eating 2 Whoppers, a chicken sandwich, a large fry and a diet coke at BK (and I’d be hungry in again in another 2-3 hours) or eating a whole bag of Nutter Butters for breakfast - and I was a whopping 130 lbs at 6’1” my senior year in HS.

Once, I got to college, I started to lift weights to train for a sport. I gained 25 lbs in 6 months (I wonder why none of my HS coaches ever pushed me to lift weights?).

I gained about another 10 lbs over the next 3 yrs of college, but I seemed to have hit a wall. However, once I hit my mid-late 20’s, I went through another spurt where I gained another 15-19 lbs to my current weight range of 180-184 lbs.

This is not unlike something that Tiger Woods went through. Tiger used to complain to his father how he wasn’t putting on as much mass as he thought he would training. His dad told him that men in their family don’t begin to “fill out” until their mid-20s, and sure enough, Tiger ended up “filling out” nicely.

[cloudzero]

^i didn't say high metabolism doesn't affect gaining weight at all. it does. sure it might make it harder for one person than another. but it is not enough stop ANYONE from getting heavier. i went to a bodybuilding forum and told them my story. they all yelled at me because they all pretty much had the same story. its a matter of will.

and another factor is that they consume ONLY fats, or ONLY carbs, or ONLY protein. they need to be consumed together to grow.

eating so much that food is leaking out your ears and still not gaining weight? sorry, take it up a notch and eat til its not leaking, but gushing.

when the bodybuilders yelled at me, i was convinced that it was my will power that was the problem. then in 10 days, i gained 12 pounds. in 10 days j&j2, not 3 years. it was a turning point after trying for 4 years. now i can pretty much mold my body anyway i want, since losing weight is so easy for me.

[Untalented]

Was I ever skinny? . . HAHAHA I wish.
Apparently I'm as fat as ever, guess I don't count.
I am 17 weighing over 150 pounds and i'm like 5 feet.
I'm a SHORTY, but i started body building in seventh grade.
I wanted too show off to the females, and now i suffer with NO GIRLS AT ALL !

[Azn Retribution]

Been 5'6" since High School.

Highschool: 107- 110lb

Now: 149 - 153lb @ 15.1% BF (measured 3point caliper scale)

Acheived over a few years(no steroids) via:
-Consistent Somewhat Healthy Eating. (3:1 ratio of protein to carbs. Ex: 3g protein for each 1g of carbs)
-Plenty of Water.
-GOOD Quality Multivitamin and Fishoil
-Consistent FOCUSED DISCIPLINED workouts. (meaning don't try to lift more than your able to. don't force it, control it, focus on isolating and/or using compound muscles depending on your target.)
- HIIT(think muay thai/boxing/stick fighting/crossfit programs) to help condition for dense quick twitch muscles.
-Sleep

[Adaon]

I went from 5'1" freshman year to 5'6.5" senior year in high school, and kept my weight at 115, the whole way. I would go to Great America and Marine World (CA Nor Cal Theme Parks) and just do the weight guessing or age guessing game and collect prizes.

I would sit at hot pot buffets, all you can eat seafood buffets, and etc. for hours (longest I clocked was 3.5 hrs, and that was steady consistent eating. I got kicked out from lunch so they could get prepped for dinner). Then again, I was one of those kids who could never sit still. I was always running around, pranking someone and fleeing for my life, if not playing basketball/football and swimming on occasion. My diet growing up was consistent of a lot of rice, chicken, beef, pork, and veggies. Rarely had seafood. I killed candy and chips and soda when I could, being the sugar fiend I was at the age.

Once I graduated from high school and started working regularly, of course, I couldn't do all the sports and all the other energy draining things I used to, but I kept up the same diet. From 19, when I last weighted 125, to 24 when I weighed myself I was 194. (Still 5'6" ish) Yeh, someone tell me exercise (or lack thereof) and age don't factor into body weight. I DARE you. I'm 25 now, (duh) and 163. (More consistent eating/resting, and better dieting).

Long story short, since you read this far, yeah, I used to be a skinny Chinese guy. Now, I'm just working on being average. =P

[j&j2]

^i didn't say high metabolism doesn't affect gaining weight at all. it does. sure it might make it harder for one person than another. but it is not enough stop ANYONE from getting heavier.

For some people - they can eat all they want and still not gain weight.

^eating so much that food is leaking out your ears and still not gaining weight? sorry, take it up a notch and eat til its not leaking, but gushing.

I ate the same amount and started to gain weight - the only difference was that I started lifting weights.

^when the bodybuilders yelled at me, i was convinced that it was my will power that was the problem. then in 10 days, i gained 12 pounds. in 10 days j&j2, not 3 years. it was a turning point after trying for 4 years. now i can pretty much mold my body anyway i want, since losing weight is so easy for me.

12 lbs in 10 days is highly unlikely unless it includes a lot of water weight.

[cloudzero]

the first 4 lbs was due to more food in me at all times
now i see its about 14 in 25 days, still a high speed

For some people - they can eat all they want and still not gain weight.

yea, but im saying these skinny guys have to eat about twice what it takes to be full, 6 times a day for months and months to gain weight. of course eating comfortably wont gain u any weight. what have we been talking bout this whole time?

[ahsingjai]

I'm 5'10 at 160lbs.

It's about eating. When I worked full time and went to school fulltime, I lost a lot of weight. I went down as low as 129lbs. I gained back the weight during the summer.

Excerise is the key as well to maintain the weight. I haven't really worked out as much since I was 19, so the weight gained went back to my legs and stomach more so then other parts of my body because I use to jog a lot.

cloudzero is right, eat 4-6 times a day. Breakfast is important. Sleep is important. Eating doesn't have to be uncomfortable. Eating food you love. Eat something different everyday.

[teamliquid]

I'd love to be 'skinny'. Right now I'm 160 lbs and I'm only 5'8" on a good day. Although it might well be a 'stereotype' that Asian guys are scrawny, it's actually something I aspire to. I've got a thick neck, very wide shoulders, and a large torso. Somehow I think most people have an image of what an Asian guy is suppose to look like so when they see me they think I'm a musclehead and a show off. It makes me look 'threatening' and they isolate me. Believe me when I tell you that it's not so bad being 'scrawny'.

[ahsingjai]

160lbs at 5'8 is not skinny dude. I'm 165lbs at 5'10

[vicv]

think teamliquid wants to be skinny

[Azn Retribution]

I'd love to be 'skinny'. Right now I'm 160 lbs and I'm only 5'8" on a good day. Although it might well be a 'stereotype' that Asian guys are scrawny, it's actually something I aspire to. I've got a thick neck, very wide shoulders, and a large torso. Somehow I think most people have an image of what an Asian guy is suppose to look like so when they see me they think I'm a musclehead and a show off. It makes me look 'threatening' and they isolate me. Believe me when I tell you that it's not so bad being 'scrawny'.

um.. I'm 5'5ish - 5'6". currently at 157lb
If your a musclehead then I'm a professional body builder.

I don't even qualify for lightweight in many mixed martial arts competitions yet.

[cloudzero]

bodyfat percentage counts too

[KenTsui]

still Im skinny. but muscular.

[YMLEE34]

don't worry about what point in your life it is
whats more important is this:

if you are still growing, i don't recommend lifting weights it will stop your growing.
if you've stop, then i recommend doing squats and deadlifts becuase they workout the whole body and will put you in an anabolic state

Cloudzero, discouraging lifting weight while your body is growing is just one of many myths associated with exercising.

[Broomer]

I was a skinny bugger pre-teens after which I blew out to a whale.
My solution, at least a packet of Korean instant noodles a day and little exercise.

Mid 20s, I started doing about 4 hours (at least) of cardio a week and the same amount of time spent on weights training. Started losing the fat and gained muscles.

Now, getting the man boobs back as I need to adjust to married wife. Hitting the gym (proper one) this one.

Ka.

[Sunflare]

Started out big in size. Heavy boned.

But I got skinny as a toothpick at one point when I was smoking cigarettes (2 packs a day) and other, uh, stuff. . . . . :starts whistling and get shifty eyed in guilt:

But now I'm alot heavier now that I quit all that junk. Not horribly obese but I'm a big dude. Got a heavyweight boxer kind of build again. Not toned up in muscle like a perfect michaelangelo sculpture, but the girls still like me, they know I have alot of luv 2 give. :cool:

[cloudzero]

Cloudzero, discouraging lifting weight while your body is growing is just one of many myths associated with exercising.

exercising is good when your growing, weight lifting is bad
still think im lying? then how about having your 7 year old kid do squats?

didn't think so....

[contra_diction]

workout critique appreciated.

i've been athletic my entire life, but i'm rather skinny. seems my body's ideal weight for my 6 feet 2 inches is 165 lbs. ok, really skinny, but it honestly doesn't look that bad. every year or so i decide to try to put on some mass. each time, after a few months of hard lifting, overeating, and supplementing, i've always managed to get up to 182 (looking nice! i'm always afraid to lose my definition but it doesn't happen) at which point i plateau, get frustrated and quit. within the next month, i'm pretty much back to where i started.
well, it's about that time again. this is what my workout regimen currently consists of:

diet/supplementing
i eat six meals a day. two of which are protein shakes (cyto-sport's muscle milk if you're curious) before and after workout. three whole meals per day (one before bed), high protein, veggie, fruit, carb. between lunch and dinner snack is a gainer shake containing 1200 calories, 50 g protein, and even a bit of glutamine and creatine (optimum's serious mass), oh and a fruit. i'm also taking a thermogenic (ast sport science's dymetadrine xtreme) twice a day at recommended dosage, though i suppose i don't particularly need this......um, and a centrum

workout
i workout everday of the week. mon-fri weight lifting concentrating on no more than one or two major muscle groups per day, never repeating a muscle group more than once a week, with emphasis on overload stimulation as opposed to high rep garbage. on the weekends, i do a short cardio session consisting of 16 min on recumbent bike on the random setting as hard and as fast as i can go.... um, i do pushups and crunches morning and night everyday, and i don't really play sports anymore.

any suggestions on how to break the plateau? specific supplements? nutrient timing? lifting methods?...?

[deez nuts]

workout critique appreciated.

i've been athletic my entire life, but i'm rather skinny. seems my body's ideal weight for my 6 feet 2 inches is 165 lbs. ok, really skinny, but it honestly doesn't look that bad. every year or so i decide to try to put on some mass. each time, after a few months of hard lifting, overeating, and supplementing, i've always managed to get up to 182 (looking nice! i'm always afraid to lose my definition but it doesn't happen) at which point i plateau, get frustrated and quit. within the next month, i'm pretty much back to where i started.
well, it's about that time again. this is what my workout regimen currently consists of:

diet/supplementing
i eat six meals a day. two of which are protein shakes (cyto-sport's muscle milk if you're curious) before and after workout. three whole meals per day (one before bed), high protein, veggie, fruit, carb. between lunch and dinner snack is a gainer shake containing 1200 calories, 50 g protein, and even a bit of glutamine and creatine (optimum's serious mass), oh and a fruit. i'm also taking a thermogenic (ast sport science's dymetadrine xtreme) twice a day at recommended dosage, though i suppose i don't particularly need this......um, and a centrum

workout
i workout everday of the week. mon-fri weight lifting concentrating on no more than one or two major muscle groups per day, never repeating a muscle group more than once a week, with emphasis on overload stimulation as opposed to high rep garbage. on the weekends, i do a short cardio session consisting of 16 min on recumbent bike on the random setting as hard and as fast as i can go.... um, i do pushups and crunches morning and night everyday, and i don't really play sports anymore.

any suggestions on how to break the plateau? specific supplements? nutrient timing? lifting methods?...?

We have a pretty extensive working out thread that's been accumulated over the years

http://forums.yellowworld.org/showthread.php?t=4509&highlight=working+out

along with a few independent threads floating around.

In a nutshell:

I personally think the reason why you're plateauing and not making gains is because you are overtraining. Your growth comes when you rest not when you lift.

It's also hard not to lose some cuts when you're putting on muscle mass that is why most intermediates cycle between mass and cut cycles.

[contra_diction]

We have a pretty extensive working out thread that's been accumulated over the years

http://forums.yellowworld.org/showthread.php?t=4509&highlight=working+out

along with a few independent threads floating around.

In a nutshell:

I personally think the reason why you're plateauing and not making gains is because you are overtraining. Your growth comes when you rest not when you lift.

It's also hard not to lose some cuts when you're putting on muscle mass that is why most intermediates cycle between mass and cut cycles.

yes, i've perused that thread.

you're probably right about resting, but once you get in the groove and have a good routine going, it's hard to quit. i'll take a week off after ten weeks of training to see how that goes. i've never really had problems losing cut so i'm not worried about that right now.

should i still supplement and eat the same on the weekends when i don't lift or even during the week i'll rest?

[deez nuts]

yes, i've perused that thread.

you're probably right about resting, but once you get in the groove and have a good routine going, it's hard to quit. i'll take a week off after ten weeks of training to see how that goes. i've never really had problems losing cut so i'm not worried about that right now.

should i still supplement and eat the same on the weekends when i don't lift or even during the week i'll rest?

On mass cycles I typically allowed myself one day to binge usually on Sunday since my mass cycles fell during football season for me (fall and winter). Careful binging isn't necessarily a bad thing since it tricks your metabolism. Cut cycles was obviously a lot stricter in terms of diet. If you're on a budget, I would probably save the supplements when you do your cut cycle since you're restricting your calories while you need to maintain what your body needs like maintaining your protein intake.

I would also at times allow myself to take the last week of the month off if I feel like I was burning out or at least reduce my sets. It's a delicate balance to train enough to maintain an anabolic state and not go into a catabolic state.. You gotta learn to listen to your body. The general rule of thumb especially when you're trying to pack on muscle mass is that it's better to undertrain than to overtrain. And if you're plateauing during your mass cycle, at times it's a sign that you're burning out especially if you notice the amount of weight you lift decrease week by week.


As for your routines to put on muscle mass, you want to focus on compound movements. I highly recommend deadlifts and squats. When I plateaued on a certain lift such as say barbell bench. I would up the weight on my deadlifts and squats, stop barbell benching and do dumbell benches. In like a month or so, go back to barbell bench and I usually break through the plateau.

It really depends on what you're training for. I trained for strength so it was more of a powerlifter routine. I did a cut cycle for the summer when I was younger, but nowadays I'm stuck in a perpetual mass cycle because of work and just try to maintain strength.

[contra_diction]

On mass cycles I typically allowed myself one day to binge usually on Sunday since my mass cycles fell during football season for me (fall and winter). Careful binging isn't necessarily a bad thing since it tricks your metabolism. Cut cycles was obviously a lot stricter in terms of diet. If you're on a budget, I would probably save the supplements when you do your cut cycle since you're restricting your calories while you need to maintain what your body needs like maintaining your protein intake.

I would also at times allow myself to take the last week of the month off if I feel like I was burning out or at least reduce my sets. It's a delicate balance to train enough to maintain an anabolic state and not go into a catabolic state.. You gotta learn to listen to your body. The general rule of thumb especially when you're trying to pack on muscle mass is that it's better to undertrain than to overtrain. And if you're plateauing during your mass cycle, at times it's a sign that you're burning out especially if you notice the amount of weight you lift decrease week by week.


As for your routines to put on muscle mass, you want to focus on compound movements. I highly recommend deadlifts and squats. When I plateaued on a certain lift such as say barbell bench. I would up the weight on my deadlifts and squats, stop barbell benching and do dumbell benches. In like a month or so, go back to barbell bench and I usually break through the plateau.

It really depends on what you're training for. I trained for strength so it was more of a powerlifter routine. I did a cut cycle for the summer when I was younger, but nowadays I'm stuck in a perpetual mass cycle because of work and just try to maintain strength.

I'm sure I'll be in that perpetual mass cycle perpetually as well :smile:

I vary my exercises every two to four weeks. Now, I'm not sure if this is ideal or not, but usually I'll mix barbell training with dumbbell training. If I do flat barbell bench, then I'll follow up with incline dumbbells, or vice versa. I never considered using it as an alternate path to further gains. Why is this? Is it a muscle memory thing?

I do squats every leg day, and I just started incorporating deadlifts into my routine. I'm really digging the deadlifts, as I feel like I'm working everything. I definitely feel like I need to push on from now on, instead of getting frustrated when I begin to plateau. Maybe a week rest instead of a year haha will allow me to familiarize myself with my body better, and I'll get used to it. There's no doubt, though. I get very into my workout. I love it. It's all the eating that I grow weary of. Just curious, what supplements do you use, if any?

[deez nuts]

It's all the eating that I grow weary of. Just curious, what supplements do you use, if any?

Don't use any now.

Back in the day, I mostly used protein supplements. I used glutamine but I read that in recent research that it's pretty ineffective. I did a creatine cycle. I didn't like it, it made me cramp. My left tricep cramped on my second set of incline barbell bench with 225. Didn't really use a spotter cuz it was just my second set. Damn well almost killed myself.

[contra_diction]

Don't use any now.

Back in the day, I mostly used protein supplements. I used glutamine but I read that in recent research that it's pretty ineffective. I did a creatine cycle. I didn't like it, it made me cramp. My left tricep cramped on my second set of incline barbell bench with 225. Didn't really use a spotter cuz it was just my second set. Damn well almost killed myself.

I used glutamine at one point it time, and it didn't do much for me either. My recovery time and everything seemed normal. I never felt right taking creatine. The gainer I'm supplementing right now has a small amount of both in it, but it's negligible.
I've even tried things like NOExplode and N30 at the urging of my peers, but I never felt the effects of these supplements so I stopped using them. I feel like my body just doesn't react to some of the ingredients in these. Is this normal for some people to be I don't know... resistant?

Also, what are your opinions on testosterone boosters and growth hormone potentiators? haha sorry so many questions. Take your time!

[deez nuts]

I used glutamine at one point it time, and it didn't do much for me either. My recovery time and everything seemed normal. I never felt right taking creatine. The gainer I'm supplementing right now has a small amount of both in it, but it's negligible.
I've even tried things like NOExplode and N30 at the urging of my peers, but I never felt the effects of these supplements so I stopped using them. I feel like my body just doesn't react to some of the ingredients in these. Is this normal for some people to be I don't know... resistant?

Also, what are your opinions on testosterone boosters and growth hormone potentiators? haha sorry so many questions. Take your time!

I've never tried those. A lot of those things are hit or miss. Everybody metabolizes things differently. It might also have a psychological placebo effect too. I honestly think a lot of things out there are snake oils.

As for boosters and potentiators, I doubt they work as well as they claim if they work at all. What me and my lifting partner used for a "boost" was watch porn before we went to the gym. Looking back that was pretty gay. Hahaha

[cloudzero]

protein shake does not count as a meal
want more mass? your not eating enough PERIOD, dont even try to argue
want more definition? this is a bit complicated:
eat less on rest days
cut the fat: FYI, most meats poultry beef pork all fatty except fish

CARDIO CARDIO CARDIO

drop the creatine, its only water
drop the weight gainer, its processed cheap ass carbs with added sugar

[contra_diction]

I've never tried those. A lot of those things are hit or miss. Everybody metabolizes things differently. It might also have a psychological placebo effect too. I honestly think a lot of things out there are snake oils.

As for boosters and potentiators, I doubt they work as well as they claim if they work at all. What me and my lifting partner used for a "boost" was watch porn before we went to the gym. Looking back that was pretty gay. Hahaha

You know, seriously, I was wondering this myself. I really think most of these products are a mental thing. The only people I knew it wasn't a just a mental thing for are the ones that had serious bowel related side effects haha.

I know this guy that runs with a porno while on the treadmill. He calls it his reminder for motivation. It's funny because he just brings it to the gym with him without shame. I'm surprised no one has ever taken offense to it especially a girl.

protein shake does not count as a meal
want more mass? your not eating enough PERIOD, dont even try to argue
want more definition? this is a bit complicated:
eat less on rest days
cut the fat: FYI, most meats poultry beef pork all fatty except fish

CARDIO CARDIO CARDIO

drop the creatine, its only water
drop the weight gainer, its processed cheap ass carbs with added sugar

haha ok drill sergeant!

actually, the gainer i take has no added sugar so there's very very little in it. i've experimented and researched quite a few before i settled with this one, and while i realize shakes aren't meal supplements, they do speed up the weight gaining process.

and yes, i realize i need to eat more to gain more. i wasn't arguing. it's common sense. over the last few weeks i've gradually increased my intake considerably. for example, i can eat three to four large pieces of chicken WITH a meal as opposed to one or two now. i'm definitely seeing gains, so i'm not too worried about it. i don't take creatine, and i don't have problems with maintaining definition.

[deez nuts]

You know, seriously, I was wondering this myself. I really think most of these products are a mental thing. The only people I knew it wasn't a just a mental thing for are the ones that had serious bowel related side effects haha.

I know this guy that runs with a porno while on the treadmill. He calls it his reminder for motivation. It's funny because he just brings it to the gym with him without shame. I'm surprised no one has ever taken offense to it especially a girl.



haha ok drill sergeant!

actually, the gainer i take has no added sugar so there's very very little in it. i've experimented and researched quite a few before i settled with this one, and while i realize shakes aren't meal supplements, they do speed up the weight gaining process.

and yes, i realize i need to eat more to gain more. i wasn't arguing. it's common sense. over the last few weeks i've gradually increased my intake considerably. for example, i can eat three to four large pieces of chicken WITH a meal as opposed to one or two now. i'm definitely seeing gains, so i'm not too worried about it. i don't take creatine, and i don't have problems with maintaining definition.

Eat steak. Best gainer out there. Nothing packs on the mass like steaks. You eat enough chicken during cut cycles. Take the opportunity to eat fatty steaks during your mass cycle. I use to devour like 3-4 10-12 oz sirloin steaks a day like two to four times a week during my mass cycle. Just season with a little bit of salt and pepper and grill those bad boys. Heck the motivation to lift hard and heavy was so I can eat more steaks.

Worried about costs cuz steak is expensive? A lot of supermarkets as well as Walmart/Sam's Club offer eat that day cuts of steak meaning the sell by date is that day really cheap. I picked up I think it was like six 8-12 oz thick cut ribeyes for like $20 bucks.

[contra_diction]

Eat steak. Best gainer out there. Nothing packs on the mass like steaks. You eat enough chicken during cut cycles. Take the opportunity to eat fatty steaks during your mass cycle. I use to devour like 3-4 10-12 oz sirloin steaks a day like two to four times a week during my mass cycle. Just season with a little bit of salt and pepper and grill those bad boys. Heck the motivation to lift hard and heavy was so I can eat more steaks.

Worried about costs cuz steak is expensive? A lot of supermarkets as well as Walmart/Sam's Club offer eat that day cuts of steak meaning the sell by date is that day really cheap. I picked up I think it was like six 8-12 oz thick cut ribeyes for like $20 bucks.

Steak is my bad for my skin, though haha :cool:

That's not bad at all. I remember we tried buying a bunch of steak from one of those guys that drive around with them in the backs of their trucks. Those weren't very good. I'd advise against that.

[deez nuts]

Steak is my bad for my skin, though haha :cool:

That's not bad at all. I remember we tried buying a bunch of steak from one of those guys that drive around with them in the backs of their trucks. Those weren't very good. I'd advise against that.

I thought the cuts of meat at the commissaries/px on base was pretty good and well priced when I went to Fort Bragg.

[contra_diction]

I thought the cuts of meat at the commissaries/px on base was pretty good and well priced when I went to Fort Bragg.

Everything on base is usually very reasonably priced. Only military clothing and alterations are outrageous.

[deez nuts]

Everything on base is usually very reasonably priced. Only military clothing and alterations are outrageous.

All this talk about meats. You know what was awesome? We went to this hog farm, picked out a little piggy, watched the guy kill it for us, prepped him, brought the carcass home and had a piggy roast. Best pork ever.

[contra_diction]

All this talk about meats. You know what was awesome? We went to this hog farm, picked out a little piggy, watched the guy kill it for us, prepped him, brought the carcass home and had a piggy roast. Best pork ever.

You disgust me, sir! Truly, I am disgusted!

So is it anything like catching, cleaning, and preparing fish? I used to like holding the fish against the ground until it slowly stopped flopping. I imagine it to be much more visceral cos pigs squeal.

Aha I'm just kidding! You're a savage, though.

[deez nuts]

You disgust me, sir! Truly, I am disgusted!

So is it anything like catching, cleaning, and preparing fish? I used to like holding the fish against the ground until it slowly stopped flopping. I imagine it to be much more visceral cos pigs squeal.

Aha I'm just kidding! You're a savage, though.

Well we basically went to the farm, looked at little piggies, picked a plump one, the guy led us to the slaughter shack, hung the little piggy up by the hind legs and slit his throat. The only squealing was when he was being hung up and then silence.

I'm actually gonna take up hunting when I move down to NC at the end of March. It's so primal how you hunt your own meat, clean it, gut it and butcher it. I'm definitely indulging my inner Ted Nugent.

My gf's sister and her husband raised a steer, killed it when he was a certain age and cut him up into steaks that lasted them for about a year. Or how my gf's dad that had deer come to his backyard, he would bait the deer within shooting range with food and shoot it. He loved venison steaks and sausages. It mortified her as a kid. Hahaha.

[contra_diction]

Well we basically went to the farm, looked at little piggies, picked a plump one, the guy led us to the slaughter shack, hung the little piggy up by the hind legs and slit his throat. The only squealing was when he was being hung up and then silence.

I'm actually gonna take up hunting when I move down to NC at the end of March. It's so primal how you hunt your own meat, clean it, gut it and butcher it. I'm definitely indulging my inner Ted Nugent.

My gf's sister and her husband raised a steer, killed it when he was a certain age and cut him up into steaks that lasted them for about a year. Or how my gf's dad that had deer come to his backyard, he would bait the deer within shooting range with food and shoot it. He loved venison steaks and sausages. It mortified her as a kid. Hahaha.

It's not something that I'll probably ever get into, but I definitely have a deep respect and appreciation for those who do. One of my coworkers doesn't buy meat at all. He hunts deer, duck, cougar, lizard, ape, whatever, cuts it up, and grinds it himself. Then, his wife cooks it into all kinds of delicacies. After dinner, he grunts and has sex with her before he sleeps to go to work the next day. Ok ok maybe I added that last part to indulge my inner misogynist...so he might not actually sleep :biggrin:

[deez nuts]

It's not something that I'll probably ever get into, but I definitely have a deep respect and appreciation for those who do. One of my coworkers doesn't buy meat at all. He hunts deer, duck, cougar, lizard, ape, whatever, cuts it up, and grinds it himself. Then, his wife cooks it into all kinds of delicacies. After dinner, he grunts and has sex with her before he sleeps to go to work the next day. Ok ok maybe I added that last part to indulge my inner misogynist...so he might not actually sleep :biggrin:

You forgot the part where he smears the blood from a fresh kill underneath his eyes!

[j&j2]

exercising is good when your growing, weight lifting is bad
still think im lying? then how about having your 7 year old kid do squats?

didn't think so....

Heavy lifting is bad for the young-uns.

[Zombie Dave]

You disgust me, sir! Truly, I am disgusted!

So is it anything like catching, cleaning, and preparing fish? I used to like holding the fish against the ground until it slowly stopped flopping. I imagine it to be much more visceral cos pigs squeal.

Aha I'm just kidding! You're a savage, though.

i'm a veggie, but when i look at little dancing lambs, i still think to myself mmmm mint sauce

One of my coworkers doesn't buy meat at all. He hunts deer, duck, cougar, lizard, ape, whatever, cuts it up, and grinds it himself. Then, his wife cooks it into all kinds of delicacies.

ape ... vol au vants?

ape ... goujons?

ape ... sweet bread?

how the hell do you turn ape into a delicacy?!?

[Gobbledycnk]

I had the opposite problem. I currently weight 210 which isn't too great for cardio. I do enjoy being powerful but it wasn't always easy when i was younger and had 2 run a mini marathon in high school. Alot of koreans, japanese norther chinese and mongolians are strong physically but being too fat sumolike is a big problem, much worst than being skinny. Being 130 isn't a big deal, studies proved that you guyz have a better life expectancy. The skinniest people ive seen were vietnamese and philipino but it's not genetic I believe it has to do with purchasing power. I read a report on BBC alarming about the chinese new rich kids who became total fatties. The communist party had to offer them special fitness trainings...it was 2 years ago or so

[cloudzero]

do grounded jumping jacks, its non-impact cardio that dont stress the joints too much. when you get to a state which cardio don't leave you huffing and puffing, then your metabolism is high enough to burn fat even during rest

[Jimmyboi]

I am 18 and 135 lbs give or take and around 5'8.

I have been trying to gain weight for about a year. I was wondering for all the Asian men in this forum how long it took you to get over scrawniness, how you achievied it. My father is overweight and fat! He used to be extremely scrawny but I havent spoken to him for a while and I was wondering at what age do skinny asian men begin to bulk up.

Bodybuilding.com

Check the forums, search titles like Clean bulk, bulking, lean mass, asian etc.

Diet is important. Eat lots of protein rich foods like Chicken breast, steaks, tuna, salmon.

Carbs, stick to complex carbs, brown rice, sweet potato

Fat, clean fats like olive oil, peanut butter

snacks: forget mc donalds/ pizza, its time for fruits/ salads

suplements: protein shakes, weightgainers, creatine, multi- vitamin


Training:
Do split training

mon: chest/ tricep/ abs
wen: back/ bicep/ abs
fri: shoulder/ legs/ abs


Cardio:

Go for a run like 2x a week.

[Adaon]

I had the opposite problem. I currently weight 210 which isn't too great for cardio. I do enjoy being powerful but it wasn't always easy when i was younger and had 2 run a mini marathon in high school. Alot of koreans, japanese norther chinese and mongolians are strong physically but being too fat sumolike is a big problem, much worst than being skinny. Being 130 isn't a big deal, studies proved that you guyz have a better life expectancy. The skinniest people ive seen were vietnamese and philipino but it's not genetic I believe it has to do with purchasing power. I read a report on BBC alarming about the chinese new rich kids who became total fatties. The communist party had to offer them special fitness trainings...it was 2 years ago or so

Swimming helps. =)

[Nidus]

being asian and skinny is as typical as chinese people wearing glasses

[J Honcanese]

Yes, but only until the age of 8. And then after that I got a whole lot bigger. I think it was down to two things: diet and exercise. It was during this time that I started swimming and eating lots of meat and carbs. Since then I've been pretty far removed from the stereotypical skinny, lanky Asian dude. I was once asked if I did any American football in high school.

[Shiyuan]

Meh. I was a chubby kid growing up. I had Oprah syndrome: fat, skinny, fat, skinny... etc. I don't think it's typical, I've been to China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, I've seen my share of fat tots and kids. I just think that the respective native cultures there can be especially harsh on weight. If anything, I believe a good number of those "skinny" Asians there were chubby kids who got tormented into anorexia or some such unhealthy dietary restriction.

[j&j2]

being asian and skinny is as typical as chinese people wearing glasses

Uhh, NE Asians - Koreans, Mongolians, Northern Chinese are known to have a good no. of people w/ "thick bones".