questions about gaining weight

[fiz]

ok, i've been trying to gain weight for 4 months, ive gained about 20 pounds in the first 2 months, and i've been at 160 for the second 2 months.

I eat about 100 grams of protein a day..

Should I eat lots of carbs too?

What should I eat before my workouts?

right now i eat nothing before, and lots of protein after


I make protein shakes every day, eat sanwhichs, chicken, steak, fish, peanut butter... anything i can find that has lots of protein

i have had no results in 2 months.. all it does is give gas lol, no weight gain at all


can some one help? eating just doesn't seem to work, i eat like every 2 hours, even before i sleep

[2brich]

IMO...you should carb up after workouts too bro. diet is only one variable here though, you must rest and workout as well. try looking into incorporating some powerlifting moves.

go to: http://www.biofitness.com/demos.html and click on the powerlifting and weightlifting demos bro. you wanna get bigger, start doing more Squats. trust me on this.

[Szczepankiewicz]

2brich is Correct.

Squats are king.

[2brich]

thanks for the support my friend !

i was reading a Q&A, section at another board. here is a little comment on the Squat. Tell me what you think..hehe


QUESTION: I understand that all weight bearing exercise stimulates a Growth Hormone release (and Growth Hormone makes your body want to store lean muscle tissue instead of fat) so what's the big deal about the squat? Why not the leg press, hack squat, or Smith machine?


ANSWER: You've hit on the key issue here. When you suspend a weight over the entire body, that it's unaccustomed to, it brings more of the bodies 600 plus muscles into play. They fire on and off like crazy, acting as stabilizers through the assent and descent to keep you from toppling over. This makes a wave of stress hormones wash through the system and that's what stimulates the tremendous Growth Hormone release. No other exercise involves so many muscles, or stimulates anywhere near as much GH release as the free squat. That's why it truly is "The King of Exercises".


2brich

also, check out this site and click on the manta ray and the sting ray. does anyone here use either of these devices. i am a fan of PL, but i can squat more when i use the manta ray. let me know what you think..hehehe

click or type this in: http://www.adfit.com/

[Szczepankiewicz]

Sorry, I try not to use sexual, I mean exercise aids.

When I lift I try to avoid knee and wrist wraps, bar pads, or any clothing that will "aid" in lifting.

When I powerlifted in High School, I used only knee wraps (for squats) and a belt (for all 3 power lifts).

Since I have mellowed with age I try to avoid using any assistance devices. Sure they add to your total weight, and if you are competing, then you might want to use them. But being in martial arts, I try to avoid utilizing them because when the "rubber hits the road", you have no assistance other than proper technique and all around fitness.


You build the temple from the ground up, starting with strengthening the ligaments and tendons along with the skeletal muscle groups. As your body can handle it, then you gradually increase through the weights.

I am personally trying to move away from iron as it is highly addictive and isn't necessarily compatible with my current training goals. Sure you can have a really big bench press, squat, and dead lift, but by doing squats, pushups, and other natural bodyweight exercises, the muscle mass and endurance you build are more suitable for a larger range of activities.

Don't get me wrong, for athletes doing strength or speed exercises, weightlifting is a good way to go, but for me, I want all around usable fitness.

Just my 2 cents.

I'd like to here your comments 2brich.

Thanks,

SZ

[2brich]

interesting my friend. i'm getting away from the weights (and anabolics...hehehe) too. just started Muay Thai and Hapkido. i'm extremely frustrated with my performance now. sloppy and uncoordinated is what i would call it. yet, i am having fun at the same time.

2brich

[Szczepankiewicz]

Interesting indeed!

Hapkido is very similar to the Jujutsu I study. We have a few techniques that have only been found in Hapkido when we were looking for similarities.

I too am in the situation, trying to break free from the structural constraints of Static Power (being big and strong) and into Dynamic Power (being flexible, fluid and fast). It is indeed a horse of a different color.

Checkout our website and see if there is anything of interest you would like to discuss.

Anabolics are a good thing to get away from. Very hard on the ligaments and tendons.

I have been lifting weights for about 15 years (on again off again). I am trying that workout listed in one of the other threads. We will be on it until Thanksgiving, then into a heavy, heavy bench program.

I used it (the bench program) and jumped up from 315 with difficulty to 350 easily in 7 weeks. My spotter went from 165 to 180 in the same time, but he is the tall skinny type. It was pretty sweet, but my elbows and forearms were in serious pain....

SZ

[Bruce_Fan]

20 pounds?

Hi Fiz,

I don't mean to question your gains, but you gained 20Lbs of MUSCLE in TWO MONTHS?

That's incredible!
I think normally gaining 20LBs of muscle in a whole year is pretty good, but in 2 months?

2bRich, you have any comments?
(I am assuming gains without steroids. With the steroids, it's a different story.)

Bruce_Fan


Ps. Interesting little fact about squats. I didn't know that.

[fiz]

I don't measure my fat, so I'm not sure that my gains were entirley muscle. But I have increased my strength substantially, so I know that a considerable amount was muscle.

[2brich]

IMO, it's kinda hard to measure one's ability to gain, without the help of anabolics/andro. i want to make one thing clear here, that i am in no way advocating the use of gear.

as you know, we are all different. what may work for you, may not work for me and so on. it's all trial and error. we can do a little research and see what has worked for others and see if we can customize to fit your specific needs.

i would like to know first off your body type: endomorph (thick body, powerlifters), ectomorph (thin, long distance runners) or mesomorph (naturally vascular, muscular).

i know several, endo's who were able to gain 20lbs in a short time, can't say the same for an ecto. i'm not saying that they can't gain, it may take a little more time. it's in the diet, rest, body type, age and workouts.

[Mr. Miyagi]

Hapkido is awesome. I saw an article in BB magazine where a Hapkido master whipped a belt around his opponents head and used it to blindfold him and then walked around him and pulled the belt to secure the blindfold and control his opponent. Even juijitsu doesn't have such effortless techniques.

[2brich]

Mr. Miyagi,

hello my friend. totally agree with ya. we have a lot of TKD black belts in my class. most are still white belts in hapkido. one thought he could spar against a green belt hapkido student. let me tell ya, that match was over in minutes, and only b/c my hapkido friend gave him the long walk. it was a humbling experience for the TKD student.

but i still think it's best to take more than one style, thus is my reason for taking the hapkido, Judo, sirum, and muay thai.