Weight Gain for Hardgainers

Are you tired of being a skinny weakling?

Does it feel like gaining weight could be impossible?

Is your “hardgainer” body type making it hard to gain weight fast and see explosive results?

If you feel like your genetics have robbed you from having sleeve ripping arms and the body of your dreams, DON’T WORRY! I felt the same way….Until I implemented a few simple changes to my plan and packed on over 40 pounds of solid muscle in 24 weeks.

You see, weight gain is really not as complicated as it may seem. The main issue we face as hardgainers is, we follow plans and routines put together by NON hardaginers for NON hardgainers. You must first understand the fact that our body type is different and our approach to building muscle should be as well.

What works for them DOES NOT WORK for us

Why can't we GAIN WEIGHT?

1. You are spending more than 3-4 hours in the gym weekly.
2. You’re not eating enough of the RIGHT foods.
3. Your gym routine was created for bodybuilders and NON hardgainers.
4. Not increasing your overall workout volume.
5. Depending too much on weight gaining supplements and not enough on the compound workouts that increase muscle building hormones.

This was me…

I was 115 lbs of skin and bones with little or no confidence at all. I didn’t have the girls, I didn’t have the drive, and I definitely didn’t have the confidence to change that.

As time went by I noticed my friends getting bigger, stronger, and more attractive to the ladies. But me? Nothing, I didn’t grow and felt like I would be stuck at a measly 115 lbs forever.

On a mission to gain weight fast, I started reading bodybuilding magazines, spending hours in the gym, spending tons of money on supplements, and following bodybuilding routines.

After several weeks, I saw no results whatsoever. I didn’t understand why it worked for my friends, but did nothing at all for me. I figured I was cursed with genes that prohibited me from building muscle.

That was until…
I dedicated myself wholeheartedly to finding the answer to my problem. I questioned the pros who were “hardgainers” and pieced together all the answers that helped me go from Bony to Brawny with no supplements whatsoever.

Still feel like it is impossible for you to gain weight?

Fear no more, I have put together this free website and made all my “secrets” accessible to you. “Why?” you ask, well as you can tell I am very passionate about muscle weight gain for hardgainers and would be honored to help out others like myself who are losing hope.

Popular Articles:

Muscle Building Workouts

How To Put On Weight

Build Legs for a Massive Upper Body

Beginners Routine for Explosive Gains

How to get Big Fast - Rep Range for Muscle Size

Get Strong Fast - Secret to Increased Strength

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A Sneaky Little Trick That Will Double Your Muscle Building Efforts

This is a special guest post by Mitchell Graves of http://www.fitwithitch.com/

On the quest to build muscle, there are endless ways to get it right, and endless ways to get it wrong.

Well, I’ve stumbled upon a little way to get it very right.

I call it, a Duration Superset.

I’d known about the three types of muscle fibers for years. Type 1’s which are your slow twitch fibers, are responsible for slower and endurance movements. These fibers don’t grow much (ever seen a true marathon runner?). You have type 2a’s which are basically your in-between fibers. They can grow as much as 25%. Finally, you have type 2b’s which are your fast twitch fibers. They can grow by up to 100%. Your type 2a’s can go between type 1’s and type 2b’s, depending on how you train. We’re looking for muscle growth here, so we want them to go to type 2b’s since these fibers have the most potential for growth.

The key phrase here is “depending on how you train”. The sequence I’m about to show you will recruit the most muscle fibers in the fastest manner possible.

Most guys who have no knowledge of muscle fibers, miss this and just do random exercises when they go to the gym. There’s a method to my madness and it’s paying off nicely.

I came across this little trick when I combined a few philosophies. I was looking at another program that included a lengthy set at the end. The author explained (and I agreed) that by throwing this set in, it would recruit a lot of type 2a muscle fibers that rarely get recruited in a workout. Hitting them this way would stimulate the most growth, effectively turning them into type 2b’s.

This set is a basically a burn out set, but you’re shooting for 12-15 reps. The longer duration will flood the muscles with blood (you’ll get a HUGE pump). This will in turn increase cell size which means more nutrients can flow into your cells for more muscle growth.

This Duration Set, isn’t just done with any old exercises though. It’s specifically done with a “contraction exercise”. Contraction exercises include Sitting Bicep Curl (with your elbow on your knee), Leg Extensions, Leg Curls, Dumbbell Kickbacks, etc. You get the idea. You do contraction exercises because they are good for recruiting the most muscle fibers in a particular muscle since they are usually isolation exercises. These exercises take good advantage of the peak contraction point principle which says that your efficiency of muscle fiber recruitment goes up when you reach the peak contraction point.

I’m not done yet, so don’t run off and do this just yet. Remember, I said that this was a superset. A superset with what you may ask….well here we are.

In my program, I do four sets of decreasing reps using a compound movement. Compound movements include Squats, Deadlift, Bench Press, Shoulder Press, etc. My decreasing sets are 12, 10, 8, and 6. That last set is to recruit the most type 2b muscle fibers (which are your power fibers that can grow the most) and hit the nervous system hard. When you hit your nervous system hard like that, you increase the efficiency at which your brain tells your muscles to fire. Doing this, will increase you strength because it’s like opening more lanes on a highway. You can increase the traffic flow.

To wrap it up, here’s what it all looks like. A compound movement with decreasing sets. Then, on your last set of 6, once you finish, run over to the contraction movement for that same muscle group and do a maximum of 15 reps. NO REST. So for instance, if I wanted to do my chest, I would do the bench press 12, 10, 8, 6 then run to the peck deck and do 12-15 reps. Once you hit a muscle group, you’re DONE for the day on that muscle. Please do not go back and try to do other stuff. The reasons behind that will have to wait for another article.

So get out there, get to it! I’ve used this technique to put on as much as 2lbs in a week, WHILE dropping body fat with my diet. This technique takes advantage of SO many muscle growth principles, it’s not even funny. So this works like a charm.

About the Author,
Mitchell Graves is a fitness author and trainer. He’s the author of Rapid Ripped Abs – The Fastest and Simplest Way To Turn Your Gut Into A Six Pack. Period. And the author of FitWithMitch.com, which is a blog dedicated to muscle building, fat loss, and nutrition.

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How to Gain Weight Fast - Supplements

Although supplements aren’t exactly necessary for weight gain, they can generate a decent amount of results. I personally am not big on muscle building supplements but am aware that some of them do have their benefits. If you are in the process of building muscle and gaining weight, you know that doing so strictly on nutrient dense foods is not easy. A lot of us have full time jobs, children, school, or other important obligations that sometimes make prioritizing meals a little difficult. If you fall into this category, I recommend you research some basic and safe weight gain supplements such as:

Weight Gainer
Whey Protein
Nitric Oxide

Weight gain supplement – Weight Gainer
Weight gainer mix works great for emergencies. If for any reason at all you are unable to sit down and have a meal, weight gainer works as a great replacement. However, relying too much on a weight gain supplement like this can have its negative effects. I suggest these protein powders only be taken in the case that you are unable to have a nutrient dense meal. If you are a beginner and find it hard to consume the amount of calories required for you, these weight gain powders work excellent. Typically these weight gain supplements have a large amount of calories but you must be cautious. Do not get into the habit of simply choosing one because it has the most calories, try to aim toward one with higher quality calories.

Muscle Building Supplement – Whey Protein
In my opinion, whey protein is the best and most effective supplement available. Most people do not even consider this a supplement because it is pure and natural. Whey protein comes from cow’s milk and is very high quality. It is low on fat, lactose, and cholesterol. It also carries a rich source of amino acids one would need on a daily basis. This muscle building supplement is by far the best type of protein when rebuilding larger and stronger muscles.

Weight Gain/Muscle Building Supplement – Nitric Oxide
Nitric oxide is considered to be the modern day creatine. Most people take nitric oxide because it claims to increase muscle endurance, muscle size, strength gains, and give you an incredible pump. Whether those claims are true or not, I do believe that nitric oxide plays a big role in taking full advantage of all the nutrients you consume while taking the supplement. My logic is simple, the nitric oxide expands the blood cells (this is why you get a great pump), blood cells help distribute the nutrients to your body. With that being said, it is safe to say that your muscles will receive more of the nutrients you consume while on the nitric oxide.

How to Gain Weight Fast Supplements
I am not an expert on muscle building supplementation but I know enough to tell you that the supplements I have listed are pretty safe. Just like any other supplement, you should consult your physician before beginning to take it. Remember, these weight gain supplements are not necessary but can give a boost if followed by a proper diet and workout regimen.

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How to Gain Weight Fast for Hardgainers

As a “hardgainer”, gaining weight is not exactly the easiest thing to accomplish. However, with just a few simple tweaks to your diet, you could be on the road to some serious muscle gains fast. The main issue when it comes to building size for hardgainers is, we typically try to follow the diets and routines that are working for everyone else. The problem with that approach is that those diets and routines are not created for the “genetically challenged”. Before you go ahead and follow my advice, check out how I was able to gain weight fast without any supplements or putting on any fat. If you can respect those results, then I advise you to follow these small steps I used in order to gain muscle fast.

1. Stay Anabolic
Anabolism is a state in which your body is growing, the opposite of catabolism. Maximizing your body’s potential of being in an anabolic state can literally yield steroid like results without the sabotaging side effects. You can assure that your body is in an anabolic state by dieting eating six meals a day, following proper post workout nutrition, consuming the proper bed time snacks, and taking advantage of the growth and recovery stages that follow your workout. For more details on those stages, check out “How to Gain Weight Fast – Most Important Muscle Building Meals”.

2. More Rest, Less Gym
One huge mistake I see more often than any other is when we over train. The reason this happens is simple, because we fail to see results we assume we that we should be working out harder and longer. However, this is completely counterproductive. You see, while you’re in the gym you are breaking down the muscle and without enough rest and recovery you will not allow your body to rebuild larger and stronger muscles. My recommendation to you is, take the “one day on, one day off” approach while occasionally taking 2 consecutive days off. By simply making this small change I can guarantee you will start to see fast muscle gains, strength gains, and more energy in and out of the gym.

3. Compound Lifting
Another very big thing to focus on is the proper types of workouts. Although I am a firm believer that isolation workouts are crucial when it comes to packing on muscle, I believe that by making heavy compound lifts the focal point to each routine you will give yourself a huge advantage. You see, these compound lifts not only target more than one muscle group at a time, but they also require your body to recruit more muscle fibers in order to perform them. This not only makes your isolation workouts more effective, but it also allows your body to increase strength and muscle endurance at a much faster pace.

How to Gain Weight Fast for Hardgainers
If you can manage to keep your body in an anabolic state as much as possible, allow your body to repair and rebuild, and maximize your workouts, you will destroy those “skinny genetics” in no time. Following these rules has played an enormous role in my success and phenomenal results as a hardgainer and this is why I wanted to share this with all of you.

Related Articles:

How to Gain Weight Fast - Most Important Muscle Building Meals

How to Gain Weight Fast For Women

How to Gain Weight Fast the Healthy Way

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How can I increase my pull up strength fast? Simple Tips to do More Pull ups

Increase Pull up Strength Fast

Pull ups are in my opinion one of the most effective compound workouts for building a solid upper body. This is why I believe it is crucial to increase your pull up strength when weight training. Having a strong back along with strong biceps is the key to being able to perform more pull ups. Increasing the amount of repetitions you can perform of this bodyweight compound exercise is very important when building your back and biceps along with the rest of your body. I understand that pull ups is not possible right away for everyone and this is why I have put together these simple tips to do more pull ups. Here are a few small tricks you can follow in increase pull up strength quick.

1. Assisted pull ups/ Training partner
The best way to increase pull up strength fast is to perform assisted pull ups or getting a spotter. This works great for those who cannot perform any pull ups but is also very effective for those who want to do more than they are currently. You see, for those who cannot perform any pull ups, getting used to the movement as well as slowly decreasing the amount of assistance the machine or spotter provide will allow you to increase pull up strength fast. For those who can perform them and just want to break that threshold, getting assistance after failure will help build strength in that area.

2. Lat Pull Downs
Building a stronger back and biceps using the lat pull down machine will aid in pull up strength as well. The reason I suggest the lat pull down is because it uses the same grip/form and targets the exact same areas of each muscle as the pull up. Slowly increasing the weight on the lat pull down will play a major role in being able to perform more pull ups fast.

3. Chin ups
Performing chin ups (pull ups with a close underhand grip) seems to be much easier than your normal over hand wider grip pull ups. If you cannot perform these either, it is completely fine. Starting off with assisted chin ups will lead to unassisted chin ups much faster than pull ups. This is a great alternative and will also increase the strength needed to perform more pull ups without assistance.

Increase pull up strength fast:
Pull ups are an incredible bodyweight compound exercise that will help build your entire upper body fast. I recommend that if you are someone has eliminated the pull up from your routine due to the inability to perform a decent amount, that you follow anyone of these simple tricks to increase your pull up strength fast.

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How to Build Biceps From Home Without Weights

Today I came across a very interesting article about how to build biceps at home without weights. I thought to myself, "if that was possible, everyone would have sleeve ripping arms". That was until I read the article and realized that anyone could in fact build biceps from home without weights. Don't believe me? Check out this great piece by Matt Marshall.

How to Build Biceps at Home

By: Matt Marshall

Did you know that lifting weights is NOT the best way to build big biceps?
It's true. Barbell curls, dumbbell curls and cable curls are great exercises... but there is one single exercise that is far more effective and building raw strength and packing new muscle onto your biceps.

And best of all, you can do this exercise right in your basement or in your bedroom.
The exercise I'm talking about is the chin-up.

I understand that you might be skeptical. After all, not many guys give much thought to the old chin-up anymore.

But I will prove to you that the chin-up is one of the most brutally effective exercises for adding muscle mass to your biceps.

Why The Chin-Up Is Such An Effective Arm Exercise: Proof Point #1
If you want big biceps, it's a good idea to look around and see who has big biceps and discover how they managed to build big arms.

And if you do some research, you'll see that male gymnasts have some of the most impressive biceps. Sure, mammoth steroid-pumping bodybuilders have big biceps but in many cases these short, tiny male gymnasts will have even bigger biceps.

Oddly enough, most male gymnasts don't spend a lot of time in the weight room. So how do they build such massive pipes? Simple, they do a lot of chin-ups.

Why The Chin-Up Is Such An Effective Arm Exercise: Proof Point #2
In the late 1980's, scientist's set out to discover what were the most effective exercises for each body part.

They discovered that chin-ups were the most effective muscle-building exercise for biceps. Here's the science: It turns out that when your entire body is moving through space, it forces you to recruit more muscle fibers and in turn, grow muscle at a faster pace.

This is stark contrast to curls, where your body remains stationary and your hands move the muscle. With the chin-up, your hands remain still and your body is moving through space.

Chin-Up Variations:
Here are some variations on the standard chin-up that you can use to pack more meat onto your biceps.

The negative chin-up: This is perfect for guys that are not yet strong enough to do a true-chin-up. Start out standing on a chair, grab the bar and lower yourself as slowly as possible. Then stand up on the chair again and repeat.

The towel chin-up: Drape a towel over a chin-up bar. Adjust the towel so that one end is longer than the other. This makes the towel uneven and forces your muscles to work in a new position. Grip the towel and pull yourself up to the bar.

The one-arm chin-up: This is a true test of strength. Grab the bar with one-hand and see if you can do a chin-up. Less than 1% of the population can. If you cannot, try the a "fake" one arm chin-up. To do this exercise, grab the bar with one hand and without your other hand, grab the wrist of the arm that's holding the bar. This is also a great exercise for building up grip strength.
Work hard at chin-ups and you'll watch your biceps grow like never before.

Matt Marshall is not a personal trainer or a professional bodybuilder. He's just a former skinny guy who figured out how average guys (with average genetics) can build muscle and develop outstanding physiques. To get your free book, visit http://www.LookGoodWithNoShirt.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Matt_Marshall

There you have it, the simple explanation on how to build biceps from home without weights. Not only is this approach possible, but it works better than more bicep routines people follow using fancy gym equipment.

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How To Put On Weight - Hardgainer Routine

"I have been skinny my whole life. No matter how much I workout and eat, I can't seem to grow. Could you give me somewhat of a quick guide on how to put on weight?"

I had the same problem, that was up until I made just a few changes in my workout and diet plan that would assure that I would put on weight fast. I know how hard it can be for beginners who are trying to pack on pounds of muscle and find it nearly impossible to move the scale. But With 5 simple tips, I am going to show you how to put on weight in a matter of weeks. Are you ready to gain muscle mass rapidly? Follow these simple steps I put together for you to gain weight fast and efficiently without adding fat.

How to put on weight tip #1
Proper nutrition – Without the right amount of the proper types of food, all your efforts are worthless. Our bodies as hardgainers need at least 20-24 times the amount of our body weight in calories daily. Anything less will not be enough for our specific body type to increase muscle size. Any more would be too much and would leave our body no choice but to store the extra calories as fat. Follow this get weight fast formula and gain 3-5 pounds a week.

How to put on weight tip #2
Keeping track of progress – If you are performing the same workouts with the same amount of weight continuously, your body will find no reason to create bigger and stronger muscle. Your body creates muscle after strenuous activity in order to prepare itself for that kind of strain next time around. If we aren’t putting enough strain on our muscles they simply will not grow. The goal is to outperform your last performance each time you walk in the gym. Some ways to make sure you are lifting enough to grow are:

- Keep the same weight and add repetitions
- Increasing the weight without sacrificing repetition amounts
- Instead of resting 30 seconds between sets, rest 20, 15, etc.
- Keep the same weight, same repetitions, and add an extra set

How to put on weight tip #3
Proper post workout nutrition-

How to put on weight tip #4
Increasing testosterone levels – Testosterone is the mother of all muscle building hormones. If you can manage to keep your testosterone levels high (naturally) you can easily yield steroid like results. If you are really trying to maximize results in order to pack on pounds and get weight fast, here are a few tricks to increasing testosterone naturally:

- Sleep 7-9 hours of sleep a night and if possible, sneak a nap into your day.
- Heavy compound workouts such as squats, deadlifts, bench press, pull ups, etc.
- Train legs equal to upper body
- Increase your intake of avocados, oysters, celery, bananas, and almonds.

Things to avoid:
1. Alcohol consumption
2. Pain killers
3. Stress levels
4. Soy products

How to put on weight tip #5

Proper rest – Contrary to popular belief, our bodies do not create muscle in the gym while we lift heavy weights. In fact, while lifting we are actually breaking down the muscle. Our muscles are created during times of rest. If you are working out 5 days a week or more, you aren’t giving your body enough time to repair and grow. I recommend working out 3-4 days a week or every other day. This gives your body enough time to repair and grow and also lets your body rest enough to give 100 percent during its next gym performance.

Packing on pounds of muscle to gain weight fast!
These few changes in your current workout and diet plan will yield amazing results almost instantly. You can expect to gain 3-5 pounds of solid mass a week with absolutely no supplements. If you found this article helpful, you might also enjoy:

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Muscle Building Workouts

Today I would like to talk about the top muscle building workouts for skinny hardgainers. You see, isolating muscle groups can be very beneficial when it comes to building muscle in many ways. However, the mother of all muscle building workouts are known as compound exercises.

What is a compound exercise:
Compound exercises are those that target more than one joint and muscle group at a time.

Some of the benefits of compound exercises include:
-Increase in muscle building hormones
-Overall strength increases
-Fat burn
-Time efficiency
-Rapid muscle growth

Muscle Building Workouts:
Squats, Deadlifts, Bench Press, Military Press, Dips, and Pull ups.

These compound workouts increase strain on more than one muscle group at a time. This strain forces your body to produce more "muscle building hormones" such as GH/growth hormone and testosterone. These hormones not only accelerate muscle growth, but they help burn fat naturally. This will allow you to put on size and remain lean and ripped all at the same time.

These muscle building workouts are also known as "big exercises". They are challenging and will increase overall strength much faster than isolation exercises. Not interested in getting stronger? What if I told you that building strength is the most crucial point when building muscle? You see, if you perform the same exercises at the same volume all the time, your body will no longer feel the need to grow. This is why increasing strength is so crucial when packing on pounds of muscle, as long as your getting stronger and lifting heavier, your body will always feel the need to grow.

Lastly, because these muscle building workouts target more than one muscle group at a time, they will save you hours in the gym. Focusing on compound workouts will not only allow you to cut your gym time in half but it will also double your results.

Muscle Building Workout Routine:
Bench Press - 3 x 8
Pull Up/Dips (Superset) - 3 x 8
Bent Over Rows - 3 x 8
Military Press - 3 x 8
Squats - 3x 8

Start off with 3 sets per exercise for atleast the first 2 weeks. If you feel comfortable, add an extra set to each exercise. Breaks inbetween each set should be 30-45 seconds long. As time goes by and your muscle endurance increases, cut down the breaks by 5-10 seconds. Finally, be sure to alternate the squats with deadlifts every so often.

Conclusion:
Failing to make these muscle building workouts your focal point could be a major set back when trying to reach your goals. Follow this simple but extremely effective routine and notice incredible gains in weeks not months.

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How to Gain Weight Fast for Women

I like to think that because I am a hardgainer that my specialty is in helping skinny guys gain weight. Notice the keyword in that sentence? The keyword is "guys", I am always putting together fast weight gain tips for men. Do these same tips work for women? Not exactly, for women to gain weight and muscle mass they will have to take a bit of a different approach if they don't want to pack on pounds of fat or end up looking like bodybuilders. This is why I have put together this "Gain weight fast for women" post. In this guide I will discuss the three main keys to gaining weight for women.

-Diet
-Workout
-Rest

Diet
The diet is the most important factor when trying to achieve fast weight gain for women. The first thing you will need to know is how much you must eat. If you want to calculate the amount of calories you should be eating daily, simply take your weight and multiply it by 18.

For example: 115 pounds x 18 = 2070 calories

Now that you have calculated how many calories you must take in, it is time to figure out what kinds of calories they should be.

40% of the calories-carbohydrates
40% of the calories-protein
20% of the calories-fats

How many calories in a gram of protein, fat, and carbohydrate?

o Protein contains 4 calories per gram
o Carbohydrates contain 4 calories per gram
o Fat contains 9 calories per gram

So you have the amount of calories you must take in daily and you have calculated how much of each kind of calorie you should consume. Now I will go over the proper sources of these calories. You see, if you just consume carbohydrates, protein, or fats from just any source you could be making a huge mistake. If you take in the wrong carbohydrates they will store themselves as fat very quickly. You must focus on complex carbohydrates, these carbs will be kept as energy sources for much longer. The protein sources are just as important, without the proper amino acids your body will not create muscle as effectively. The fats we take in should all be natural fats in order to avoid creating unwanted fat weight. With that being said, here are some great sources for each kind of calorie.

Carbohydrates:
-Fruits
-Vegetables
-Whole grains (oatmeal, wheat bread, wheat pasta, brown rice)

Protein
-Egg whites
-Chicken breast
-Tuna
-Turkey (Cold cut or ground)
-Salmon
-Yogurt
-Beans
-Almonds

Fats
-Peanut butter
-Olive oil
-Almond butter
-Olives
-Unpasteurized Butter
-Flaxseeds or flaxseed oil

Workout
The workout I recommend is a full body routine with compound exercises. Performing a full body routine will allow you to hit every angle and muscle group. Because you are focusing on compound exercises, you will be able to target every muscle group in as little as 6 different exercises.

This workout should be performed once every other day to avoid burning too many calories and it will allow enough rest for muscle recuperation. Each exercise will consist of 10 reps and 4 sets meaning that you will perform each exercise 4 times with 10 repetitions each time. Rest will be 30-60 seconds between each set and one minute between each exercise.

Pull ups 3x10 (back and biceps)
Tricep dips 3x10 (chest and triceps)
Dumbbell chest press 3x10 (chest and triceps)
Bent over rows 3x10 (back and biceps)
Military press 3x10 (shoulders)
Squats 3x10 (legs)

- Make sure to use to proper amount of weight, if you can perform 10 reps too easily then you might want to consider raising the amount of weight. Also, if the weight is so heavy that you can not finish the entire 10 reps, you should consider lowering the amount of weight.

- On your days off from the workout, feel free to perform 30 minutes - 1 hour of cardio. This will aid in keeping off any extra fat from being stored. Also, things like running and walking are good for overall body toning.

- I highly suggest that you take one EXTRA day off a week. This EXTRA day does not include the days in between each workout day that I mentioned in the "workout" section.

Rest
Our body creates muscle mainly while we are in deep sleep. If you are not getting the right amount of GOOD sleep, your body will not develop muscle. The importance of building muscle is so that you are gaining lean weight and not just fat. The more muscle you have, the better you will look and also the more fat your body will naturally burn.

Fast weight gain for wome is as simple as consuming more calories than you are burning, if you workout every single day you will burn too many calories and make it nearly impossible to gain any weight or build any muscle.

Fast Weight gain for Women

This program is created for women who are looking to gain weight by putting on muscle mass without looking like a bodybuilder. Please feel free to leave any questions or comments in the comment section of this post.

Related Articles:

How to Gain Weight Fast - Most Important Muscle Building Meals

How to Gain Weight Fast the Healthy Way
How to Gain Weight Fast for Hardgainers

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How to Get Bigger Arms - AVOID these MISTAKES!

I often get questioned about some of the full body workouts I suggest to my readers. The main argument I have noticed is that the arms are not getting enough isolation in order for them to grow. My answer is simple, the biceps and triceps are smaller muscle groups. Not only are they small, but they are already being trained when targeting your back (biceps) and your chest (triceps). With that being said, here is what I feel to be a more detailed explanation as to why too much isolation on the arms results in overtraining and is ultimately unnecessary.

Video by Sean Nalewanyj of Muscle Gain Truth

Here is a great full body workout that I call the beginners routine. Don’t let the name fool you, this workout is great for beginners but also works amazing for more advanced lifters who are in need of a change in their routine. Remember what was said in the video when looking over this routine, happy lifting!

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How to Get Big Fast - The Rep Range for Increased Muscle Size

Where did anyone ever get this idea that heavy weight and low reps adds size, or that light weight with high reps build definition? This is probably the biggest misconception with weight lifters EVER! Today I am going to clear that up and give you the simple truth on how to get big fast.

A couple of weeks ago I posted an article about how to get strong fast. I explained that the rep range of 1-3 is best for strength and makes little to no difference whatsoever in muscle size.

The stronger or larger your muscles grow is determined by the type of muscle hypertrophy you trigger. You see, there are two types of hypertrophy, one called sarcoplasmic and one called myofibrillar.

For the sake of keeping things simple:
-Sarcoplasmic hypertrophy increases muscle size.
-Myofibrillar hypertrophy increases muscle strength and density.

How to get big fast
So what is the actual rep range I should perform in order to get big fast? Well, sarcoplasmic hypertrophy is typically triggered by 10-15 repetitions. Now, this doesn’t mean throw on light weight and pump the reps out. The idea is to go heavy, high rep, and focus on eccentric movement.

But wait, it’s not that simple….
Sarcoplasmic hypertrophy does not increase much strength at all, so what is the problem with this? It’s simple, if you aren’t increasing your volume (strength, intensity, ect), you will plateau and stop noticing gains. You want to know how to get big fast right? Well, although myofibrillar hypertrophy doesn’t increase muscle size, it does increase density and strength which in turn will allow you to increase volume during sarcoplasmic hypertrophy training.

My point is this...
To get big fast you must train with a combination of the two, alternate between 1-3 reps and 10-15 reps. Another more common approach is meeting right in the middle, performing 5-8 reps in order to increase strength, density, and size at the same rate. However, 1-3 reps will increase density and strength much faster than 5-8 reps, and 10-15 reps will increase size much faster than 5-8 reps. So why meet right in the middle? Well I find it more efficient to increase all aspects evenly and progressively. The type of approach you take is totally up to you, either one will work effectively so long as you stay CONSISTANT.

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Gain Lbs Of Muscle With 5 Simple Steps (Hardgainer)

Are you stuck at a certain size and finding it nearly impossible to gain lbs of muscle? Let me explain something, there could be one little thing you are doing wrong when trying to gain lbs, or there could a hundred. What I am not going to do is go through every single possible explanation for your lack of muscle gain, but what I will do is point out the top 5 most common reasons people fail to pack on muscle mass. Fact is, if you have been the same size for as long as you can remember, you are making at least one big mistake. That one mistake could sabotage your entire chance at any significant gains. Consider yourself lucky, you are about to get the ultimate solution for your problem.

Not eating enough:
As obvious as this point may be, it is also the most common reason people fail to gain lbs. You might even argue that you have gained some weight with your diet, that’s great. Let me give it to you straight, do you really think that eating the same amount of calories you did when you were 10 pounds lighter is enough to fuel your new physique? There is a very easy fix to this…..eat more! Right now you are simply eating just enough to maintain your current size.

Here is a very simple formula you can follow in order to know how much you should be eating.
(22 x Your Body Weight = Daily Caloric Intake)

You are at a plateau:
Similar to your diet, most people are afraid to make changes to something that has shown results. This is what I like to call the “if it’s not broken, don’t fix it” excuse. Let’s be honest though, at this point, it is broken. You see, if you follow a routine for 6 months without making any changes, your body has adapted to the stress and finds no reason to build newer and stronger muscles. The key here is to add more strain every workout than the session before. A few things you can do to break through that plateau are; increasing the amount of weight you are using without sacrificing repetitions, increase repetitions without sacrificing weight, cut your breaks in half, or add an additional set to each exercise.

Focus on the real muscle building exercises:
It is very important that you make compound workouts the focal point of your workouts. These heavy exercises target more than one muscle group at a time and are great for tearing down muscle fibers. Am I against isolation routines? Not at all, to the contrary, I think isolation workouts are very necessary. The thing is, compound workouts have so many great benefits that it would be counterproductive to ignore them. Some benefits of compound exercises are; increase of testosterone production, increased GH production, added strain on all muscle groups, and rapid increase in strength.

Here are a few Compound Workouts I recommend:
Squats
Dead Lifts
Bench Press
Military Press
Dips
Chin Ups
Bent over Rows

Relying too much on supplements:
The number one mistake we make when we have incorporated some sort of supplement into our routine, is we don’t feel the need to work as hard since we have assistance. What you need to know is, most supplements only make about a 5-10 percent difference and that is IF you are on a perfect diet. Another thing is, these muscle building supplements that claim to help you gain lbs, they don’t create muscle themselves, they only enhance our ability to gain muscle IF and only IF we are following a good diet and strenuous workout routine. You see, these pills and powders don’t make muscle, your hard work dieting and working out are the ones that do. These supplements can only go as far as to give you the ability to create extra muscle, but they will not make a difference unless you are playing your roll.

Not enough rest:
I know how bad it sucks to workout and not see any gains, and I understand the first instinct would be to workout more. Now that may seem like the answer, but unfortunately this will only worsen the situation. Contrary to what most believe, muscle is not created in the gym while we lift heavy weights, it is created at home or away from the gym while we rest. If you fail to rest, your body will not grow, period. What do I recommend? Well for starters, instead of 5-6 days a week, start going to the gym only 3-4 or every other day. This will not only allow your body time to create new larger and stronger muscle, but it you will also benefit from more energy and better workout sessions. Another very important step in the rest section is sleep. You should be getting at least 7-9 hours every single night. This extremely crucial because your body builds the most amount of muscle while we are in deep sleep.

Go Gain Lbs
Whether you are a hardgainer or just a regular guy unable to gain muscle mass, these 5 things are very important for your progress. I can assure any of my readers will definitely be back on the road to muscle mass with these simple changes to their routine. Good luck and Happy Lifting.

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Building Big Arms - Bigger Biceps and Triceps Fast

Let’s face it, building arms is easily the most common goal amongst weight lifters and bodybuilders. Having biceps and triceps that practically rip through your shirt sleeve is every mans ideal physique. Heck, if you ask someone to see their muscles, what is the first thing they are going to do? That’s right, they are going to flex their arms. The thing is, building arms may be the most common goal, but it is also the hardest to achieve after defined abs. Now, if you are interested in getting bigger arms but just can’t seem to produce results, here are a few tips that will help you break that threshold and experience rapid growth.

Prioritize:
A huge mistake lots of people often make when building up a lacking muscle group is, they fail to prioritize. You see, when we go into the gym we are at our peak, we are the most rested and have the most amount of energy. Whatever muscle group gets targeted first is going to get 100 percent of your ability. So, instead of going in and working your back or chest immediately, try starting with isolation workouts for your biceps or triceps every once in a while. This will allow you to lift a little heavier, perform more repetitions, rest less in between sets, and ultimately put more strain on the muscle.

Focusing too much on biceps and not enough on triceps:
This is one of the most common mistakes people make when trying to achieve bigger arms. I believe that the reason for this is simply because people are uneducated on the subject. So why should we focus more on triceps and less on the biceps? Well, the triceps make up about 65 percent of your arms. What does that mean to you? Ignoring the triceps will make it nearly impossible to add inches to your arms.

Over Training:
Another thing we must avoid when building arms is over training. The biceps and triceps are easily over trained for two main reasons. Number one, most people are unaware that working chest and back also targets arms. So, some of us are training the arms on chest and back day while still isolating them the following day or so. When this happens, your muscles are not given the necessary rest time to rebuild and grow. Number two, people tend to assume that if a muscle is lacking, it should be targeted more often. In this case, that approach is counterproductive. With that being said, the biceps and triceps are considered smaller muscle groups, one good isolation workout a week along with one good chest workout and one good back session should be more than enough.

The right workouts:
Have you ever noticed that your biceps and/or triceps do not seem to get sore after workouts? If so, you might be making a few small mistakes that can easily be fixed. With biceps, a common issue is form. Most people perform the basic barbell curls and tend to use more momentum than actual bicep strength. This is extremely common; a few things you can do to assure you are putting all the strain on the biceps are:

-Stand up against a wall with your elbows touching it as you perform the curls.
-Perform curls with an Olympic bar with your elbows touching your sides at all times.
-Focus more on concentration curls with your arm rested on your inner thigh.
-Use straight bars over “easy curl” bars.
-Rest the weight at the bottom position for at least one full second before lifting.
-Lower the weight slowly.

If you feel that your triceps are not taking enough punishment (not ending up sore 24 hours later), you should:

-Increase the weight without sacrificing reps.
-Add an extra set.
-Perform extra reps.
or
-Decrease rest time between sets.

The bad news is, there are lots of mistakes we can be making that will reduce our chances of building arms. The good news is, there is a simple solution to all of these small errors. Whether you are making all of these mistakes or just making one, fixing this will result in bigger and stronger arms for the physique you are working so hard to obtain. I hope I was able to answer any questions you may have had about building larger and stronger arms. If not, be sure to leave a comment below with any questions fitness related. Happy lifting!

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Top 5 Foods that Burn Belly Fat - Midsection Spot Reduction

A huge misconception in the fitness world is about whether or not spot reduction is possible. Typically I would say NO, but in this case, I have to say YES. You see, doing one million crunches a day will not reduce belly fat, and using silly fitness equipment like the “shake weight” will not reduce the fat on your arms. “So why did you say yes?” Simple, when it comes to exercise it is impossible to spot reduce but when it comes to diet, belly fat reduction is very possible. You see, there are actually foods out there that burn belly fat, believe it or not, they contain ingredients like monosaturated fats that have been proven to spot reduce/burn belly fat.

Here is a list of what I consider to be the top 5 belly fat burning foods:

1. Avocados: They contain fiber which helps kill hunger and also monosaturated fats that burn belly fat.
2. Assorted nuts: They are high in fat which also kills hunger, but the fat and minerals that they are loaded with are also belly fat killers.
3. Veggies: Broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, and cabbage all contain phytonutrients that help fight hormones that add belly fat.
4. Oatmeal: This is packed with healthy complex carbs along with fiber. Just be sure to stay away from the processed garbage they fill with sugar. A great fat burning ingredient that you can add to the oatmeal for flavor is cinnamon. This ingredient actually helps stabilize blog sugar and insulin levels.
5. Salmon: The high quality protein and high omega -3 fatty acid content makes this my top belly fat burning food.

By simply adding these foods to your diet or increasing your consumption of them will help burn belly fat. These are foods that I consume on a daily basis and a flat stomach isn’t hard to maintain. Are these the only belly fat burning foods? Not at all, there are tons, this just happens to be a short list of the ones I prefer and feel are most beneficial.

More Belly fat burning foods:
-Greek Yogurts
-Dark Chocolate
-Green tea
-Chili Peppers
-Berries
-Beans

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Hardgainer Diet Tips – Gain 5 pounds a week!

Hardgainer diet tips

Today I have decided to create a very effective “quick guide” for hardgainer diet tips. As a hardgainer myself, I understand that dieting may very well be the key to my success when building muscle. I also understand that sometimes people want to get straight to the point. So if you not interested in looking at my personal hardgainer diet, here is a quick summary of all the major points to focus on when trying to gain weight. Simply incorporating these very important points into your routine will allow you to gain as much as 5 pounds per week.

Hardgainer Diet Tips

1. Consume 18-24 times the amount of your body weight in calories. Example: 20 x 155 lbs = 3,100 calories per day.

2. Once you have a daily caloric intake amount, break it down into 45 percent carbohydrates, 40 percent protein, and 15 percent fat.

3. Split your calories into 5-7 meals per day.

4. Take 3-4 days OFF from the gym weekly. (Preferably 24 hours of rest between each gym session)

5. Make compound exercises the focal point of each workout routine.

6. Follow a clean diet by taking in only complex carbohydrates, high quality protein, and natural fats.

7. Keep your body in an anabolic state following your workout by adding simple sugars (banana, honey, etc) to your post workout shake/meal.

8. Make sure to get 7-9 hours of sleep every night in order to recover and allow your muscles time to rebuild.

These very simple but effective points will make a huge difference in the results you are seeing currently. Expect to gain anywhere from 2-5 pounds per week while following these hardgainer diet tips. These are the same tips I followed when going from 115lbs to 160 in less than 6 months.

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Hardgainer Diet Sample - How to Gain Weight in One Week

Hardgainer Diet Sample

Hey guys, so I just wrote myself a new diet that In my opinion will help increase muscle mass while burning fat at the same time. Now, although the physical activity and workout I participate in will play a part in the muscle increase and fat decrease, you must know that the diet is always most important. What I am doing today is basically just sharing my diet with you all. I’ll accept any suggestions you may have and I’ll also be answering any questions you may have about this hardgainer diet sample I have put together.

Hardgainer Diet Sample

Meal 1 - 6 Egg whites, 1 yolk, 1 cup oatmeal, 1 scoop whey protein
Meal 2 – Peanut Butter Sandwich on wheat bread
Meal 3 – 1 cup brown rice, 1 cup broccoli and cauliflower, 6 oz chicken breast

Workout
Post Workout shake – 2 scoops whey protein, 1 banana

Meal 4 – Half sweet potato, 6 oz chicken breast, and 1 cup mixed veggies
Meal 5 – 6 oz Salmon, 1 cup veggies, 1 cup brown rice
Meal 6 – 6 egg whites, 6 oz salmon or chicken breast

Now if you are a larger guy, use the formula on my hardgainer diet post and find out how many calories is enough for you. Once you know how many calories you should be taking in daily, you can adjust this hardgainer diet sample to fit you better.

This hardgainer diet sample was created to build muscle by taking in high quality protein from egg whites and lean meats. It also aids in burning belly fat by incorporating foods with monosaturated fats and omeg-3 fatty acids. Another great thing about the diet is, it takes advantage of the “muscle building window” we have for a few hours following our workout.

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Hardgainer Diet - How Much Should I Eat To Gain Weight?

Hardgainer Diet

The diet you follow as a hardgainer is in my opinion the most important part of building muscle. One of the most common mistakes we make as skinny guys is we assume that because we have a fast metabolism, we can just eat anything. Not only that, but for some reason every hardgainer I speak too always assumes he/she already eats more than enough. In my experience, this is never the case.

First of all, if you eat like crap….you will look like crap. Will you gain weight? Yes, but the question should be “Will I pack on pounds of solid muscle?” and the answer in that case is: maybe a little, but the fat you pile on over the muscle will eliminate looking muscular at all. This is a huge mistake made my tons of skinny guys including myself and the ever so popular “skinny guy savior” Vince Del Monte. I like to call this “Fat Skinny Guy Syndrome” or FSGS. You’re heavier than before and you might look good with clothes on, but going shirtless might be a little more embarrassing than it was when you were 20 pounds lighter.

For those who feel that they are already eating enough, well if that were the case then how come your still 120 pounds of skin and bones? Look, I have been there and I was that guy that said “it’s impossible to eat more than I already do”. That was until I was given a very simple formula that allowed me to pack on all the weight I have till this day.

Hardgainer diet formula:
18 x Your Body Weight = Total daily calories

Now, this is assuming you are at a desk job and live a normal family life with little physical activity. If this is not the case and you are a construction worker or play sports outside of work, you may want to adjust. You can replace the “18” with anything up to 24.

Do not make the mistake of assuming that eating 24 times your body weight while sitting on your butt all day will work better or faster. It is very important that you base this off of your daily physical activity to assure that you are not packing on pounds of fat.

Hardgainer diet foods:
As I mentioned earlier, you are what you eat. If you decide to eat junk, you will look like junk. The calories we consume should come from fast acting carbs, high quality protein, and natural fats.

Let’s just say that you calculated your daily intake and came up with 3000 calories. It’s not as simple as just eating random meals equaling out to this amount. There is actually a formula for the types of calories you should take in.

45% Complex carbs
40% High quality protein
15% Natural fats

For example: Daily caloric intake = 3000

-1350 calories from complex carbs
-1200 calories from high quality protein
-450 calories from natural fats

Hardgainer diet foods list:
Carbohydrates:
Oatmeal
Whole grain pasta
Wheat Bread
Sweet Potatoes
Brown Rice

Protein:
Chicken breast
Egg whites
Fish
Steak

Fats:
Flaxseed oil
Mixed Nuts
Almonds
Natural Peanut Butter

Hardgainer diet conclusion
There you have it, the correct formula to how much calories a hardgainer should take in daily. It is very important that you follow these rules in order to avoid the wrong type of weight gain. Following this diet along with a solid hardgainer workout routine, you can expect to pack on 2-3 pounds a week.

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Hardgainer Workout to Gain Mass

Hardgainer Workout

When you are a hardgainer like me, it is very important that you do not follow the bodybuilding trends and workout like others with different body types. If you are a hardgainer that is trying to gain mass, you must do things a little differently than your average weight lifter. Does this mean it will be harder for you to gain mass? Absolutely not, it simply means that with our specific body type, we must take a different approach when building muscle.

Because I know how frustrating it can get to be skinny and unable to gain muscle mass, I have put together this quick guide and hardgainer workout for you to follow in order to start seeing results. I know you can get a little discouraged at times, but the main factor when following these tips and this workout is consistency. Without consistency, no program or diet will work regardless of how effective it may be.

Hardgainer nutrition:
The first thing you must correct is your diet. The reason we find it hard to gain mass is simple, our body naturally burns through more calories than we are consuming due to high metabolism. There is a very simple formula that you can follow in order to make sure you are consuming enough put on muscle.

Depending on your daily activity, you should eat 20-24 times your body weight in calories.

Example: 155 lbs x 22 = 3,410 Calories per day

The number you multiply with your body weight will be determined by the level of physical activity you perform on a daily basis. If your job requires you to sit at a desk all day, I recommend using 20. On the other hand, if your job requirements are lifting heavy objects and running around, I would use 23-24.

Just because we might have remained skinny our whole lives even when consuming junk, does not mean that it is impossible for us gain fat mass. This is why it is extremely crucial that you choose your calories wisely when eating this much per day. If you sit at a desk all day and choose to eat 24 times your body weight in calories, you are now running the risk of over eating and ultimately storing fat. Make sure you calculate accordingly and get your calories from complex carbohydrates, good protein sources, and natural fats.

Hardainer Workout:
As a hardgainer, it is very important that we avoid over training, follow the right exercises, and perform the correct amount of repetitions to ensure that we gain muscle mass. There are three factors that will determine whether you build size or not.

1. Types Of Workouts
2. The Amount of Reps
3. Proper Rest

Performing compound workouts when you are a hardgainer is crucial. These particular lifts are the ones that will help increase strength, produce muscle building hormones such as GH and testosterone, and break down those muscle fibers in order to force muscle growth.

It is very important that you perform 8-12 reps because this is the rep range that will trigger muscle size. Contrary to the popular belief that “low rep is for mass, light rep is for definition”, higher reps in fact trigger the growth/size of the muscle. 1-5 reps (lower reps) are simply going to increase strength and muscle density.

Proper rest is very important because like most of you may know, muscle is created while we sleep/rest. If we fail to get the right amount of rest, our muscles will simply find themselves unable to grow stronger or larger. In this hardgainer workout to gain mass, I recommend taking a day off of strenuous activity in between each gym session.

Hardgainer Workout to Gain Mass
1. Squats 5 x 8-12
2. Bench Press 5 x 8-12
3. Pull ups/Chin ups 5 x 8-12
4. Dips 5 x 8-12
5. Bent Over Rows 5 x 8-12
6. Military Press 5 x 8-12

Beginner / Novice Lifters: I advise that you start off with 3 sets per exercise and work your way up until you reach 5 sets. Once you have reached 5 sets, you can then focus on increasing the weight and overall volume of the hardgainer workout.

Tips:
1. The squats can be replaced or swapped with deadlifts occasionally.
2. The Pull ups and Dips can be put together as a super set.
3. Feel free to Change the order around regularly for best results.

Hardgainer Supplements:
I personally do not feel the need to add supplements to my diet; however, if you choose to go in the direction of protein/weight gain shakes, it is very important that they DO NOT make up more than 35 percent of your calories.

Whey protein:
Whey Protein is great for post workout consumption. Be sure to add some high glycemic carbohydrates to your post workout meal/shake in order to boost your insulin. This will help you remain anabolic and assure that you will continue to grow without sacrificing muscle tissue. It also helps keep you anabolic over night while you sleep when accompanied by casein (Milk) and natural fats (Flaxseed oil or Peanut butter).

Weight Gainer:
Before purchasing a weight gain powder, you must make sure of a few things.

1. The carbohydrates are Complex
2. It is low in Fat
3. It has little to no sugar

These weight gainer shakes can help out for those who want to gain mass, but should only replace a meal if it is absolutely necessary. They are great for emergency situations when you have no access to nutrient dense foods or are in a rush and have no time to sit down and eat. The main benefit of the weight gainer shake is to aid in making sure you reach enough calories for the day.

Conclusion
Remember, if you have a different body type (hardgainer/ectomorph), following someone else’s workout routine will not work as well for you. It is very important that you follow a routine that is made and fit to your personal genetics. Consuming the proper amount of calories daily, following a solid hardgainer workout consistently, and NOT relying on “muscle building” miracle supplements will help you generate results faster than ever before.

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