I am an avid martial artist and fitness trainer. I'm 16 and have been lifting weights continuously for over 2 years. Over this period, I have increased my strength and endurance exponentially, but am not much bigger than before. My diet has been heavy with protein and carbohydrates for about the last 8 months. For the last 2 months, I've started drinking protein shakes to help stimulate muscle growth. I'm consuming 80-130 grams of protein on lifting days and 50+ grams on rest days. I've kept it constant, doing it every single day, with only minor results. I weigh 140 pounds and am about 5'9. Should I just wait longer for any drastic effects to take place? Should I increase my protein intake or general calorie intake? Should I drink the heavy amount of the protien shake on rest days too?
First of all, it sounds like your getting enough protein. The thing about weight lifting is that not everyone is going to bulk up. Some people will bulk others won't. It depends on your body type. Next, protein doesn't stimulate muscle growth, protein only rebuilds muscles once they've been torn down. Also, you may want to research calories and direct effects upon weight, if you keep on a really high calorie diet, chances are, you are going to notice a jump in body fat percentage. Calories are units of energy, any calories you take in and don't use get turned into fat. Every 3500 calories that you don't use, translates into 1 pound of fat. Under normal conditions, weightlifting for 1 hour only burns between 500 and 700 calories. Protein that is not used to restore muscle is turned into energy(calories), and, if not used as energy, turns into fat, every gram of protein is approximately 4 calories when converted for energy. Another thing to keep in mind, the bodies favorite energy source is carbohydrates, next is fat, last is protein. It is easier for the body to turn carbs and fat into energy than it is for it to turn protein into energy.
i'd suggest you eat more on rest days as well. You just need to eat a little mor to bulk up but maintain your protein intake. BUilding muscle also boils down to the total # of calories consumed vs the total # of calories burnt
For the body to grow muscles, you need excess calories, like the machine pointed out. Too much and you get fat along with it, as TKD pointed out. What does your lifting routine look like? Generally, the best way to increase muscle mass is by doing 3 sets of 12-15 reps at about 70-75% of your max abilities. There are better ways, yes, but if your not a pro bodybuilder, this one is just so much easier. Post your workout and then we'll see what we can improve.
Right now I'm at 4 sets of 15 of 120 pounds. I'm about to up the weight though. I always do around 15 or 16. I up it 10 pounds usually and I can get 4 sets of 10. This is bench press btw. Although I'm not going for muscular strength, but rather a blend of endurance and strength.
1. work at 8-12 reps rather than 15 2. Take the 80-140g of protein on rest days to - you grow during recovery! 3. Buy this and read it - twice.... http://www.hardgainer.com/beyondbrawn.html
Do you only do bench presses? In that case, your not likely to see good results. If all your progarm follows the general idea of your bench press, you should be along the right tracks to be building up muscle. **Enter age and genetics** Of course, you are only 16, and have not completed your transisiton into adulthood, muscle mass might have to wait until you do. Some people take an incredible amount of time to "bulk up" and some gain incredibly in no time at all, thats where genetics come in. A little misunderstanding that is way too common these days has pretty recently been discovered and many of the MA-Sports trainers have been adjusting to the new info. The info is that doing more reps and more sets does NOT increase your musclular endurance when it comes to Martial Arts. It does, however, increase your muscular endurance when lifting your weights. An old truth that is becoming more and more recognized over old workout instructions is: If you want to run, run. Well, as an MA running may no be your goal, but the truth in this is that if you want to gain muscular endurance, for example, to be able to kick better, you should include high-intensity kicking-cardio with a heavy bag or just no bag. Couple that with your lifting routine, but might want to drop the sets to 3, moderation is the key here as always. If you still feel you should be getting heavier, despite your genetics and age, you should eat more. At best, buy a "gainer" protein mix and drink a portion after every training. If you can afford it, take it in the morning on resting days as well. If you can't afford a gainer (very likely!! I couldn't afford one myself!) you need to adjust your eating. This is hard to do for school children, I should know! Because, dinner at 7 isn't really adjusted to your need as an athlete (I do not recommend you prancing about at home trying to fix this though!). Since you are in school most likely, I will not recommend my preferable "6fist diet" which most pro athletes probably utilize. Instead, get a fat % checkup, write down the results on a piece of parchment and hang it up on a wall so you don't forget. Then start your eatin'! Eat everything. Eat fish, eat chicken, eat meat, eat jogurt, eat eggs, if it has proteins and complex carbohydrates, EAT IT. If it has unsaturated fats or polyunsaturated fats, EAT IT. EAT EAT EAT!! If you like eatin', this is the best advice you've ever got. There is a catch though...every month you should get another measure on your body fat. Write it down under your previous one (you could mark the dates for easy preference) but you should always go on the same weekday at the same time though! Now, the catch, if your body fat goes above 12% (you won't get rippped and cut with so high %, but its much healthier for you) you need to cut down on your fats and carbohydrates the next month (but still eat like mad, only watch the calories a little) This will make sure you have enough calories and proteins to grow muscles. We are talking lots of food here, at least in the beginning. This is advice from experince. The post-workout meal should be immediately after you let go of the last weights, for optimal growth. First eat (very fast, have something prepared beforehand) and then stretch! Your meal needs to have complex carbohydrates and proteins. This could be roast chicken breast or turkey breast, or just anything you can think of. I think someone here posted a good table of foods that contain each energy source, but I don't remember where it is. How fast you eat your proteins is directly related to how much muscle you grow, according to some recent studies. Good luck with your training!!
Oh, sorry about the long posts everyone who doesn't like reading!! I just get cought up in the writing!
Djhallib, since you seem to know more about training for bulk and stuff than humble old me. I have done pretty extensive research and the like but you obviously out-knowledge me. I have been dieting to drop some weight and get toned, I bulk very easily in the muscle department, but I'm probably in the region of 10-15 pounds overweight. My diet has consisted of mostly fruits and vegetable that are low calorie foods, I have very little meat to avoid the high calories, I drink 90% water every day, always making sure to get my reccomended daily amount, and I work out with weights and aerobic training like crazy but do not see any real effects. I know for a fact I am burning more calories than I am taking in, I'm eating no more than 1000 calories a day. I weigh 180 pounds. So, let me know what you think please. Remember my goal is not to bulk. Thanks
1000 calories a day will send your body into survival mode - it will hoard fat and slow your metabolism as it thinks it will need it in the future. Protein with weights will increase lean body mass - this burns calories even at rest! Muscle is your friend! Add another 500 - protein too - and the weight should start to come off.
Listen to Dave, he's the (edit: most) knowledgable one. I've been doing the kind of workout in the book Dave recommend for the past month, and I have gained 7 lbs on it already! Just finished a workout... my chest muscles are still shaking, lol. Jack
Yeah, yoda nailed that one. Too low calories do not make you lose weight faster. I measure everything in the metric system, so I will say this in the metric system. The maximum weight loss per week should be about 1kg, any more will not be due to loosing fat. You should aim for about 700g of body fat per week for reasonable weight loss. Eating only 1000 calories a day is okey if you are a 15kg dog. For a human, you must be crasy The daily recommended value for males in training I think is about 3500calories. This is an average value. Someone posted here how many calories there are per pound of body fat, but for the life of me I can't find it. If you do, you can use that to calculate how many calories you should eat. Also, Yoda IS more knowledgable then me if anyone was wondering.
Thanx for the info guys. I'll try and eat more and more often. That could be a key factor holding me back possibly. I'll also look into that book you mentioned Yoda.
what kind of snacks are good for weight training and low in sat. fat, that u dont have to cook or anything. That would be ideal.
Tuna in a can, it can be eaten raw and is delicious. It has poly-unsaturated fats and loads of proteins, the ideal snack for an athlete. Its cheap too, but remember to buy dolphin friendly tuna
erm....any suggestions for the veg guys? PS - I am an eggitarian not pure veg, and the only one in a family of pure veg Thanx, |Cain|
