Bulking up - Exercise & Fitness Message Board

tzlaxplr22 · 07-29-2005, 09:01 PM

For the past 3-4 months ive been using a normal amount of wieght that i can lift for 3 sets of 10. Ive been getten good results...but not fast enough...ive heard that if you lift more wieght less reps, like 7 or 8 reps of 3 sets than you will get more sucle faster.....im a pretty skinny guy, but i put on muscle quite easy..ne help wuld b appreciated

Skigomaniac · 07-30-2005, 03:13 AM

I'm told Less reps more weight, and adding more weight to each excerise each week will force your muscles to get larger, of course you need to eat really well for your body to agree with this. I do a 5x5 (5 reps, 5 sets) every week I add about 2 pounds to each exercise. I eat 5 medium meals a day and a protein shake before and after workouts. I've only been doing this for a few weeks so I'll let you know how it works out. I've been getting stronger and lifting more week to week so I gotta be doing something right

skyguy · 07-30-2005, 02:31 PM

Don't forget to work hard. Don't just go through the motions in your workout. Make yourself suffer. You should simultaneously love and dread your workouts.

craigsmith97 · 08-01-2005, 07:52 AM

I once read a book about the training techniques of the Nebraska football team. It stated thing in a way that really made sense to me. Your body will evolve to meet the challenges it faces. One important factor to any workout is changing reps. Once your body gets used to doing 3 sets of 10, it doesn't have to work as hard to achieve those reps. If you are constantly changing the stress you put on your body, your body will constantly change to meet those needs. I've tried two different programs. The first had four different rep sets:1)5 sets of 3 2)5 sets of five 3)10,8,6,4,2 4)5,4,3,2,1. These were changed each week so that all of the sets were done once a month. It worked pretty well. The second was three rep sets: 1)3 sets of 10 2) sets of 5 3)6,5,4,3,2,1. This one was in stages of about a month. I think it worked better than the first, and i gained a lot of bulk that way, but still had enough endurance work. You have a good base phase under your belt now, go to something like 5x5 or 6x6 for a month and see what happens.

zeez · 08-01-2005, 08:57 AM

Hi there,

Just gotta add my 2 cents.... since I love lifting weights! Been trying to get motivated to get my butt down to the Y this morning myself. Good advice above. What I've found that has helped me (now remember, I am 43 and female so bulking is HARD) is lifting to FAILURE. My favorite body part to train is biceps and the exercises I use I always go to failure. Example - barbell 40 lbs 10 reps narrow grip. Then wide grip, however many reps I can lift, usually 8-9. I'm doing other stuff to give my biceps a chance to rest before doing them with a different exercise.Then later in the session I'll do alternating curls with 17.5 DB 10 reps. Sometimes I'll throw in hammer curls, though I know they focus more on forearms.

I've noticed that other body parts I don't train to failure don't respond as well. But then again, I don't want bulked inner thighs that rub together either! That's what is working for me now. I may have to change things up in a while.

Also, something you may have to take into consideration is "eating clean" and eating enough. I asked about this in another post and received a terrific response. Here's the post:
http://www.healthboards.com/boards/showthread.php?t=301988
What I've read is 1.5 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight is what you need to eat for bulking. Eating 6 meals a day, making sure your post workout meal has protein and carbs, and limiting cardio during bulking are the basic guidelines.

Two rules I'm sure you know: always allow at least 48 hours before training a muscle group again and never train an injured muscle (unless by doctor's instruction for rehab).

And something you gotta remember.... just 'cause something works for one person doesn't mean it works for another! When a routine you are using isn't working or stops working, then it is time to change it up.

Good luck to ya!
~zeez
PS Ya gotta get plenty of sleep too!