gaining the most possible muscle

[franks2089]

What is the best way to gain the most possible muscle without getting my bf% over 10% between now and January 1st. I found out I made varsity and I want to gain a little extra strenth.

Since I don't I don't have practice between now and January I can lift a max of 6 times per week, but I don't want to have to stop running.

start:
5'10
152

Things I would like to improve:
chest size, seems like I have a small chest and its not growing even though I have raised my max bench 50 pounds since the beginning of summer

arm defination, they look thick but don't really have any defination, they are 16 inches when flexed

ab defination is good in the morning before I have eaten everything it is very defined, but the second I eat/drink anything it seems to go away.

[OldGoalie]

You should obviously work on high weight, low rep counts in your lifting, but I certainly wouldn't lift 6x a week unless you're alternating muscle groups, because your muscles need time in between to develop. Overtraining will actually stunt muscle growth.

But if you want to put on muscle weight, you need to be eating more and high quality, lean proteins (chicken, fish, lean red meats, peanut butter), good carbs like brown rice, yams, steel cut oatmeal, etc. and lots of green veggies for minerals and vitamins. You may also want to consider supplements, like EAS stuff.

[WHEELAX2]

I would suggest reading body building articles as opposed to strength articles.. these are two similar but very different ways to train.. to build up muscle mass that is cut and defined, but not very thick, you would use body building techniques, many exercises hitting muscles at various angles with lighter weights and high reps.. strength training involves lifting heavier weights with less reps...

I would suggest combining both methods.. and you will have to consume a lot of calories to bulk up, then when the season is approaching, you can begin to slim down and cut up.. <<

if you are trying to gain mass, you won't want to do much cardio, if you are trying to get cut, do a ton of cardio and use mainly body building techniques with some strength building exercises in between...

I would suggest trying to bulk up over the summers and training for sport in the fall/winter..

[lacrosseNewb]

You usaully want to wait 48 hours to lift using the same muscle, if you dont wait, your muscles wont have time to heal. If you wait longer, you will get weaker

[franks2089]

You usaully want to wait 48 hours to lift using the same muscle, if you dont wait, your muscles wont have time to heal. If you wait longer, you will get weaker
I know a lot about lifting weights, its just I dont gain weight easy. Since the beginning of summer I have increased my max bench from 175 to 225 in other words 75 pounds more than my bodyweight. But I can't gain muscle size. I look the exact same as I did and weigh the same, but I'm a lot stronger.

[OldGoalie]

I know a lot about lifting weights, its just I dont gain weight easy. Since the beginning of summer I have increased my max bench from 175 to 225 in other words 75 pounds more than my bodyweight. But I can't gain muscle size. I look the exact same as I did and weigh the same, but I'm a lot stronger.

Then you need to be eating more...a LOT more. Get some bodybuilding books or do some online research on gaining muscle and you'll see that most of those guys who put on significant muscle mass eat a ton, and use supplements. (Obviously I'm not including the anabolic steroids, as that's for Mr. Olympia types)

[Spoon's]

yea, eating is important, eat eat eat.... protien perferably. You should be eating carbs before, and loading up afterwords to replentish glycogen stores inside your muscle so your body doesnt catabolize your muscle for energy. Also, if your looking for size, 8-15 reps. If your looking for strength 2-6 reps. Thats the general rule of thumb. Make sure you get your protien. Give your workout a variety of exersizes. And get your rest.

[alexhawk]

I thought it was less reps for size and more for strength???

[WHEELAX2]

nope just the opposite... U do more reps with lower weights hitting the muscles with various excercises..<<lots of sets and reps with low weights.. <<body building

strength >> heavy weights, lower reps, less sets<< although body builders do incorporate strength training to increase density..

[alexhawk]

Ahh, fair enough.

[WHEELAX2]

I think anyone who is serious about weight training in general should pick up Arnold's encyclopedia of bodybuilding.. it's worth the money...

[Cburylax]

I think anyone who is serious about weight training in general should pick up Arnold's encyclopedia of bodybuilding.. it's worth the money...

You mean Arnold's Encylopedia of How to Hurt Yourself? Ha......sorry, shameless joke coming from a strength and conditioning specialist. I guess if you're new to lifting it wouldn't be a bad book....but I would recommend Mark Verstegen's Core Peformance over Arnold for an athlete.

Franks, I know I still owe you a workout but in the meantime all the information here seems like good advice. Try using a hypertrophy scheme for lifts (6-12 reps, 3 sets, 4-2-2 tempo) and incorporate more compound lifts likes squats, deadlifts, cleans, bench, and rows. Don't waste your time with isolation movements like calve raise, curls, tricep press downs, lateral raises etc. You need to move more weight and eat like a horse, better yet a hippo....

Try something like this using a compound set principle:


3x Bench/Squat
3x Pull Up/Barbell Lung
3x Box Step Up (with dumbells)/Barbell Row

Try doing this in one workout, its pretty tough if you keep the weights high and follow the tempo and sets scheme. This is 18 sets for total body. If you do 10 reps at the 4-2-2 tempo (8 seconds/rep) that is 80 seconds per exercise, 160s per set. This comes out to a 48 minute workout IF you don't stop to take a break (which is impossible). I recommend resting 1-2 minutes between sets. If you do the math this is over an hour workout and your time under tension with heavy weights will probably be greater than you've ever experienced.....

Try doing this for 2 weeks 3x per week and then we can change it up.

Waiver: You need a spotter for this.....

[Diesel4958]

You are chasing three different rabbits Franks. It is hard to go for strength, size, and defenition all at once. You may not gain alot of weight, but you could gain strength. bf% I really don't care about it until I cut down about two months before the season, I try to eat clean but I'm not fixed on it. I just did a strength program much like Cbury has done except i did 5 sets first 10 reps (warm up) and the other 4 of 5 reps. I did all compound lifts such as Deadlifts, squats, bench press, Push Press, and Pull ups, two days a week, I would have one rest day, and two ab/cardio/calves/forearms day. I gained alot of strength in 5 weeks, not alot of mass just 5 pounds, but alot of stength.

[Spoon's]

Yea, you realy cant get all too much size, while reducing body fat dramaticaly. It is possible to gain little muscle, while scarcly reducing or maintaing body fat. But not drastic measures on both ends. However as far as building muscle goes, If you do more reps, you get more of a "pump" which is blood flowing through the muscle, and the blood caries nutrients and protien to the muscle. So by getting the "pump" more of your muscle is building because its receiving more blood. If you do higher weight, you put lots of stress and tention on the muscle shocking it, and having your brain send electrical signals to the unused muscle to make it come to use. You still get alittle bit of a pump but not as much as with higher reps.

Now with that in mind, a very popular method for strenght and grown training is.... go a couple of months with a muscle building rutien (more reps, focusing on a pump) Then taking that muscle and training it and strengthening it (less reps, focus on explosion). Keep in mind that you will see alot greater strength gains when you are strength training this way. Because you are building more muscle to be strenghtened. Than if you had a solid strength training workout without any variety focusing on a "pump".

You have to have the muscle first, before you can go back and strength train it. Once you do you will see HUGE strength gains.....

[Diesel4958]

I believe it is just progressive overload.

[W.e Lax]

wellll you could bulk up then cut , i think it will work the best for you if you have trouble gain wieght id recommend going on a weight gainer for a few months gain some wieght , then a little while before your preseason change your lifting more towrds body building do alot of cardio , and youll burn the fat you got while bulking up im in the process of doing that now , im 175 right now i wanna be 185 around lax season

[Kwick_STX]

Try something like this using a compound set principle:


3x Bench/Squat
3x Pull Up/Barbell Lung
3x Box Step Up (with dumbells)/Barbell Row

That seems like a good workout... but does that mean alternate between benching and squatting? And this is considered full body right? So do this every 48 hours?

Edit: and my advice is to eat the foods provided above plus add suplements like CytoGainer or Whey Protein. Don't use it right away, but you seem to already have had enough lifting experience to use it. Take it half 15 minutes pre-workout and half immediately post-workout.

Find out what low-glycemic index carbs are and eat those pre-workout. Things like fettucini, legumes, lentils. Most raw pasta and vegetables are what I'm trying to get to.

-STX