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My name is Dan and I will gain 30 lbs of muscle


Bakersdawnpatrol108
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Hello everyone,

My name is Dan and My goal is to gain as much weight as possible while staying healthy, flexible and happy.

My target is 30 lbs in twelve months, which is about a pound or two a week.

About me:

I have been doing martial arts since I was a child.

I have been weightlifting on and off since middle school.

I was in the Army Airborne Infantry. I don't want to talk about the army or any politics. Period.

I now work in private security, armed.

I am a certified and registered yoga teacher.

I plan on going to advanced yoga teacher training.

I have weighed 125 to 135 pounds since middle school.

My current lifestyle is like this:

Hot Bikram yoga, weight lifting at planet fitness, work and spending time with friends and family.

My weight lifting plan is one body part for each work out, along with hot Bikram yoga, 3-5 days a week.

The body part gets 5-6 exercises, 8-10 reps to failure.

It is hard for me to gain weight.

I am joining this forum to help keep me accountable and motivated to stick to my goals.

Weights have never been my strength.

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Hey Dan.. welcome.

 

Wow, 30 pounds (an increase of 25% of your bodyweight) in 12 months sounds like a fairly ambitious goal for a hard gainer! Not trying to discourage you but you might want to read this article here. It gives some practical advice that might help you with goal setting. I think it may be easier to measure your strength gains, rather than your weight gain... and it would be more indicative of muscle (not fat) gain.

 

To get bigger / stronger, you'll need to lift HEAVY. Go for 4-6 reps max and occasionally test what your one rep max is. To gain the most amount of mass, focus on your major muscle groups - squats, deadlifts, bench and shoulder press, and pullups. Training your biceps, triceps and calves will do very little to increase your size or strength .. but if you really want to do them, do them at the end of your workout. If you include any cardio aim for sprinting (high intensity) rather than any type of endurance training... to train your muscles to work as 'fast' twitch' muscle.

 

Good luck!

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I noticed you said you are a hard gainer ~ I can't see how you would be able to gain 0.5-1lb a week? The 1-2lb you stated would actually put you closer to gaining 50+ pounds in a year ?! Add in the Bikram Yoga 3-5 days a week (which to a degree will be counteracting the weight gain), you're going to have your work cut out mate!

 

Secondly, I don't think it's a great idea if one of your goals is to stay healthy. You would be much better trying to gain 'quality muscle' at a slower pace; granted it doesn't sound much at first, but if you could pack on a pound a month consistently, that 12lbs of muscle at the end of the year would give you a pretty amazing transformation... much more so than 30lbs of muscle/fat.

 

Just my 2c, all the best MF.

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I know this is ambitious. I am aiming high for a reason. I won't be hard on myself or upset if I don't make this a reality. I will still be gaining pounds this year.

 

I may actually train differently. I'm still working out my goals for next year.

 

Two months of cardio, weightlifting with high reps and medium weight, and yoga.

 

Two months of weightlifting and yoga.

 

Two months of power training (strength endurance) and yoga

 

Two months split up by two weeks each block then a two week recovery period of just hot yoga.

 

The last two months are going to be yoga and weightlifting.

 

I may not gain as much weight this way but over all fitness will be ideal.

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Go on any forum about weight training or bodybuilding and ask how to gain weight and you`ll get 30 different answers, and see an argument or two about who`s program is "right".

 

There is no "right". It`s going to take a great deal of experimenting and paying close attention to how your body responds. Get someone to help you who`s experienced enough to park their ego and develop the plan for YOU.

 

One fact, however, is that the basics apply to everyone (with the .01% of people who are genetically freakish). You have GOT to put the calories in if you`re going to gain weight. And to gain that much weight, in ANY amount of time (in lean body mass anyway) will take protein, and lots of it.

 

My advice? Yes, lift heavy. Choose three exercises for each muscle group...one basic,compound movement like bench press or squats, and two specific movements like dumbell press and pec deck flyes. Rep range for the first exercise would be in the 6 to 8 range for 4 sets. Then 3 sets of 8 to 12 of your other two. Do two major muscle groups a day, 3 or 4 days per week. My favorite routine has me doing each body part three times in two weeks.

 

Any advice you get on the internet will be very basic. What you really need is someone who can follow your progress and adjust your program as you develop. Goal setting, as mentioned, is very important. I have all of my clients write up goals for two weeks, 4 weeks, 8 weeks, 12 weeks, 6 months, one year, and 3 years. Looking at your 6 month goal from day one seems outrageous, but seeing it from your 12 week goal it becomes simply the next thing to check off the list.

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Any advice you get on the internet will be very basic. What you really need is someone who can follow your progress and adjust your program as you develop.

I agree. You have set some big goals for yourself and unless you are in the health profession you could probably benefit from a PT/Trainer of some sort to keep things on track. FWIW I have been a Sports coach/PT for 10+ years now and I can honestly say that everyone is different!

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  • 1 month later...
  • 3 weeks later...

Hey Dan, how have things been going so far? Are you having success with your gains? I've been trying to bulk the last 3 months and have only been averaging about 3 lbs per month but I am taking it as a partial success and a partial indicator that I need to work harder.

 

-Dylan

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