Difficulty in putting on muscle.
10-11-2009, 10:09 PM
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Difficulty in putting on muscle.
I am a student, 17 6ft and of a skinny build. I am trying to put on some muscle as currently I am practically embarassingly lanky. I cycle every week day for roughly 20 minutes as i have to get to the bus station to get to college and back. The bus station is completely down hill from my house so I have a good uphill ride back. This means that my lower body is muscular and well toned, but anything above my arse is a bit of a mess. I am also not adverse to running or walking quickly for long distances.
The problem is that with my busy timetable and lack of money I am finding it very difficult to get into a proper routine or build up any sort of half decent muscles.
My day is structured around college, I have to get up at 6:45, shower, eat a bowl of bran flakes and be on my bike before the bus at 7:30. Then I have an hour for lunch and am back at just before 18:00. After this I usually have a considerable amount of coursework and other various things to do so don't have a particuarly large amount of time to waste. I have monday and wednesday afternoons off college and so am home for around 14:00 instead. For lunch I will generally try to eat reasonably healthily but need something to get me through the rest of the day such as a small bottle of Coca Cola or a chocolate bar and for dinenr I will eat what ever the rest of the family is having which is generally a pretty balanced meal. At the weekends I need to keep sunday free due to possible work but my saturday is generally reasonably free as long as I don't have too much college work to do.
My job is piss poor and I am payed at £3.53 an hour (which unfortunatly is the legal minimum wage at my age) and the hours are very few and far between so I don't have the money to join a gym or buy much equipment. As an example I have £40 to buy anything that I need for college and lunch until the end of the month when I will be payed about another tenner to last me until christmas. This vast lack of time and money really leaves my options pretty limited. I have managed to find a set of 5kg weights at the bak of the garage, which from the packaging look like they are from the mid 80s and another set of 1.5kg weights from the same period. I can do seemingly endless reps with the 1.5kgs so i have givven up with them and are currently just using the 5kg ones. I can do about 40 bicep curls relativly comfortably with them and then about 30 shoulder presses.
I am finding it difficult to do much else with my limited time and equipment. I really just have the dumbells, a chair, a bed, a small amount of floor space, a bicycle and a pair of trainers. I am also unsure of what I should be eating and how much to help. I cannot do any fancy 6 meal plans as it just does not fit around what I have to do in a day and also I cannot splash out on trips to the gym or much new equipment as it would mean me going hungry or selling the few remaining child hood memories on ebay.
I know this seems an almost impossible situation, but if anyone can help then please give me some ideas, the rest of the internet has been decidedly unhelpful.
Thanks.
I'm not sure if I should be eating more to help me
The problem is that with my busy timetable and lack of money I am finding it very difficult to get into a proper routine or build up any sort of half decent muscles.
My day is structured around college, I have to get up at 6:45, shower, eat a bowl of bran flakes and be on my bike before the bus at 7:30. Then I have an hour for lunch and am back at just before 18:00. After this I usually have a considerable amount of coursework and other various things to do so don't have a particuarly large amount of time to waste. I have monday and wednesday afternoons off college and so am home for around 14:00 instead. For lunch I will generally try to eat reasonably healthily but need something to get me through the rest of the day such as a small bottle of Coca Cola or a chocolate bar and for dinenr I will eat what ever the rest of the family is having which is generally a pretty balanced meal. At the weekends I need to keep sunday free due to possible work but my saturday is generally reasonably free as long as I don't have too much college work to do.
My job is piss poor and I am payed at £3.53 an hour (which unfortunatly is the legal minimum wage at my age) and the hours are very few and far between so I don't have the money to join a gym or buy much equipment. As an example I have £40 to buy anything that I need for college and lunch until the end of the month when I will be payed about another tenner to last me until christmas. This vast lack of time and money really leaves my options pretty limited. I have managed to find a set of 5kg weights at the bak of the garage, which from the packaging look like they are from the mid 80s and another set of 1.5kg weights from the same period. I can do seemingly endless reps with the 1.5kgs so i have givven up with them and are currently just using the 5kg ones. I can do about 40 bicep curls relativly comfortably with them and then about 30 shoulder presses.
I am finding it difficult to do much else with my limited time and equipment. I really just have the dumbells, a chair, a bed, a small amount of floor space, a bicycle and a pair of trainers. I am also unsure of what I should be eating and how much to help. I cannot do any fancy 6 meal plans as it just does not fit around what I have to do in a day and also I cannot splash out on trips to the gym or much new equipment as it would mean me going hungry or selling the few remaining child hood memories on ebay.
I know this seems an almost impossible situation, but if anyone can help then please give me some ideas, the rest of the internet has been decidedly unhelpful.
Thanks.
I'm not sure if I should be eating more to help me
10-11-2009, 11:30 PM
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To be perfectly honest mate you've listed what you need to change.
You do need to eat a LOT more. ie 6 meals a day as you said.
You could probably do with cutting out the cardio to get some weight on.
You definitely need to get into a gym and work hard. Its doesnt happen overnight.
You could like those 5kg all day and you'll never get big. Sorry but you're full lifestyle is dictating you're size.
You do need to eat a LOT more. ie 6 meals a day as you said.
You could probably do with cutting out the cardio to get some weight on.
You definitely need to get into a gym and work hard. Its doesnt happen overnight.
You could like those 5kg all day and you'll never get big. Sorry but you're full lifestyle is dictating you're size.
11-11-2009, 08:26 AM
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To be perfectly honest mate you've listed what you need to change.
You do need to eat a LOT more. ie 6 meals a day as you said.
You could probably do with cutting out the cardio to get some weight on.
You definitely need to get into a gym and work hard. Its doesnt happen overnight.
You could like those 5kg all day and you'll never get big. Sorry but you're full lifestyle is dictating you're size.
You do need to eat a LOT more. ie 6 meals a day as you said.
You could probably do with cutting out the cardio to get some weight on.
You definitely need to get into a gym and work hard. Its doesnt happen overnight.
You could like those 5kg all day and you'll never get big. Sorry but you're full lifestyle is dictating you're size.
11-11-2009, 10:23 AM
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I think age and your bodytype are against you. I was a lanky skinny runt as a teen and even with going to a proper gym found it very hard to put on any muscle. I always thought I had muscles but when I look back at pics of me now I don't appear to have any, lol. It wasn't until my mid 20's that things started to slow up and I started to grow.
Unless your desperate to get big I would personally enjoy the fact you can eat what you want and not put on any size. Lots of people would be happy with that!
The weights that you are currently lifting are counter productive to what you want. You are doing far far too many reps which in turn is making it a cardiovascular exercise which you don't need. Getting a new set is the way forward but I sympathise with your money situation. How about looking in the freeads or similar for some very cheap stuff? Fitness is one of those areas that contains fad buyers. You would be surprised at the amount of people who buy these new fangled machine/weights etc with the intent of getting fit but hardly ever use them. Ask around your family & friends. I have no doubt that some of them have weights kicking around under the bed, in the garage etc, even if they are those sand filled plastic types that you get from the likes of Argos. Gather them up from wherever you can and make up the kilos that way.
Another thought, although not something I would normally suggest, is to go back to basics. Its not ideal by any means and I'm not 100% it would work but how about lifting anything heavy. Something like wheels with tyres attached? Worked for Rocky
. Just use your imagination. I'm sure marines train in unconventional ways. Their fitness and strength doesn't come straight out of a gym. Circuit training, restistance training, running with back packs etc etc. Nothing stopping you squatting with a back pack full of bricks or pressing a tyre over your head????
However, as said, all of the above will not help you to grow without the food intake. Just consume as much as you can. Aim for carbohydrates and protein and if you can just eat your parents out of house and home.
Let them pay. lol
Unless your desperate to get big I would personally enjoy the fact you can eat what you want and not put on any size. Lots of people would be happy with that!
The weights that you are currently lifting are counter productive to what you want. You are doing far far too many reps which in turn is making it a cardiovascular exercise which you don't need. Getting a new set is the way forward but I sympathise with your money situation. How about looking in the freeads or similar for some very cheap stuff? Fitness is one of those areas that contains fad buyers. You would be surprised at the amount of people who buy these new fangled machine/weights etc with the intent of getting fit but hardly ever use them. Ask around your family & friends. I have no doubt that some of them have weights kicking around under the bed, in the garage etc, even if they are those sand filled plastic types that you get from the likes of Argos. Gather them up from wherever you can and make up the kilos that way.
Another thought, although not something I would normally suggest, is to go back to basics. Its not ideal by any means and I'm not 100% it would work but how about lifting anything heavy. Something like wheels with tyres attached? Worked for Rocky
. Just use your imagination. I'm sure marines train in unconventional ways. Their fitness and strength doesn't come straight out of a gym. Circuit training, restistance training, running with back packs etc etc. Nothing stopping you squatting with a back pack full of bricks or pressing a tyre over your head????However, as said, all of the above will not help you to grow without the food intake. Just consume as much as you can. Aim for carbohydrates and protein and if you can just eat your parents out of house and home.
Let them pay. lol
11-11-2009, 12:05 PM
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imo the weights you have are pretty much pointless using if you want to put on muscle.
Imo the best way forward for you with you budget and free time is to use body weight excercises....
*Press ups, close and wide frame, maybe get someone to put a weight on your back.
*Chin ups, close and wise grip, change your grip to attack different muscle sections
you could load a rucksack up to wear while doing these to add weight.
*squats with a loaded rucksack
*dips with a loaded rucksack
Doing them will work the major muscle groups
Imo the best way forward for you with you budget and free time is to use body weight excercises....
*Press ups, close and wide frame, maybe get someone to put a weight on your back.
*Chin ups, close and wise grip, change your grip to attack different muscle sections
you could load a rucksack up to wear while doing these to add weight.
*squats with a loaded rucksack
*dips with a loaded rucksack
Doing them will work the major muscle groups
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