Confused about weight/muscle gain

[SpikeDC]

Hey guys, was wondering if you can help me and get me int he right direction. I want to try some supplements ive seen advertised, (Halodrol-50 for example). But my main question is how to gaain and get more muscular and at the same time not get fat? i see all these guys at the gym with big muscles and lean frames and wonder if thats all genetics. Im 37, 5'10", 147lbs. Ive always been a lightweight. Im toned witha swimmers build. Been working out for 10 years now and basically just able to keep toned but never been able to get big muscles and get that gain of 20 more pounds or so to do that. I use Musclemilk daily, have used Creatine before and have tried the weight gainer stuff. When I used weight gainer it just gave me a fat stomach. As Im 37 now, its harder to keep weight off my stomach area. So i eat a lean and healthy diet so i can try and get some abs to show but even thats hard. So im wondering where do i start? what should I take? Will these supplements like Halodrol or stuff on Legalsteroids.com help me gain the muscle I need? Pic of me attached

 

[nosnmiveins]

hey man, and welcome to AM. first off i have to say that the massive guys that u see in ur gym that have 4-6% bodyfat and weigh 250-300lbs...eigther have great jeans, or spend a lot of money on roids.

anyway...the key is DIET, just eat eat and eat some more. u want to stick to basic protein, like chicken, tuna, whey, etc. the weightgainers u took probably have a lot of fat in them, and muscle milk does also.

at ur age PH's are definetly a possibility, but i have never tried any so i'll leave the explaining to someone else

 

[SpikeDC]

Well im not talking about massive guys, im talking guys that are lean builds with lots of good muscle. But my point is, what should i take to help gain muscle? And is musclemilk not good as a protien? does it make peole fat?

 

[Cellardude]

Well im not talking about massive guys, im talking guys that are lean builds with lots of good muscle. But my point is, what should i take to help gain muscle? And is musclemilk not good as a protien? does it make peole fat?

you might look into a recomping. Although it's slow. If you want lean builds with good muscles bulk and then cut. A year would show lots of good results if your diet/training is good. at the age of 37, you could possibly look into roids however, it seems that you should start with fixing your diet first and then go into that. It will yeild better results for you. not to mention help you gain/keep your gains in the future. Another possibility is X-Factor, Im running it now, Non hormonal, and totally depends on your diet/training. Ill keep you posted on how that goes.

 

[rpen22]

Getting muscular while being lean is going to be about diet, specifically calorie count and timing IMO. I would not suggest you use Halodrol-50 or the "steroids" from that other site you posted, until you find a diet that works for your body type. Only then, will you really get the most benefit from those products anyways.

 

[SpikeDC]

Well how do i find that diet? Maybe i have to get fat to get cut and muscled? it seems like when i eat a lot all i get is a bigger stomach? What should I be eating? Anyone reccommend a diet?

 

[Cellardude]

Well how do i find that diet? Maybe i have to get fat to get cut and muscled? it seems like when i eat a lot all i get is a bigger stomach? What should I be eating? Anyone reccommend a diet?

heres a copy and paste from my diet. It's on my calorie count though, so you may not want to immitate the diet. I weigh in at 195 pounds and need bout 3000+ diet.

-1 cup milk, 1 cup oats, 3 tbsp honey, 2 whole wheat slices with -4 slices lean turkey
-chicken,skinned with white rice
-cottage cheese with green tea soy protein shake
-subways sandwich 6 inch whole wheat chicken breast
-PWO shake- Isopure whey protien shake with dextrose
-steak/chicken/pork/beef with rice and veggies
-glass of milk and cottage cheese

just remember to keep the diet clean as possible, it's not the quantity of calories that helps put mass on but rather the quality of it.

 

[CHA0S]

Well how do i find that diet? Maybe i have to get fat to get cut and muscled? it seems like when i eat a lot all i get is a bigger stomach? What should I be eating? Anyone reccommend a diet?

Yea you eat a lot more but not necessarily to get fat. Just to let you know it is physically impossible to transform fat into muscle but it is possible gain muscle and lose fat at the same time. So heres what i suggest, eat the same things you do as if you were cutting but eat more of it. I've always upped my cals gradually. Find out what your daily intake of calories are and add 500 more for the first two weeks and 250 more every week after. Its slow and takes a lot of patience but trust me, it works.

 

[SpikeDC]

Thanks for the tips guys, i will try eating more immediately. 2 questions: what is a good protien supplement to use (i use musclemilk now) and are there any other supplements I should take? Are supplements a waste for me?

 

[SpikeDC]

Are you saying if I try something like Halordrol or one of these legal steriods that absoultely nothing will happen and it will just be wasted?

 

[rpen22]

The only problem I have with Muscle Milk is the amount of fat/serving. Fats are very nutrient dense and have a lot of calories/gram which can add up if you're trying to stay lean. For a blend protein, I much prefer Xtreme Formulation's Ultra Peptide.

 

[rpen22]

Are you saying if I try something like Halordrol or one of these legal steriods that absoultely nothing will happen and it will just be wasted?

I can't say NOTHING will happen. I don't think the "legal steroids", which BTW are not real steroids, are anything more than a scam. Halodrol-50, however, is an actual steroid. And along with steroids, come side effects. I just don't think, in your situation, the benefits would outweigh the side effects in the long run.

 

[EasyEJL]

just look at the labels wherever you buy proteins. Try to find ones with minimal fat + carbohydrate content. You can always have fruit or oatmeal with it, but you can't subtract out the carbs if they are already there there are a few board sponsors like All the Whey + True Protein here, or sams club has EAS protein cheap as balls.

Another thing to look at is your workout routine. Has strength been going up or have your lifts gotten stagnant? Also, there are a few mass gaining specific routines you might want to try.

Supplements have value as well, and could possibly benefit you. they really are best used as plateau breakers. It doesn't look like dropping fat is as big a priority as adding muscle, so i'd look at something like Drive, X-factor, or Powerfull. any of those are natural, and help with muscle growth.

Also ignore what cellardude say about "just remember to keep the diet clean as possible, it's not the quantity of calories that helps put mass on but rather the quality of it." Its the quantity. But the quality can effect how much of the mass is muscle and how much is fat. Remember that 1lb of muscle only has 150g of protein in it....

 

[EasyEJL]

Are you saying if I try something like Halordrol or one of these legal steriods that absoultely nothing will happen and it will just be wasted?

It will work assuming you don't fall prey to marketing and get one of the BS ones like Legal Gears Methyl 1-D (halodrol 50 is real, halodrol liquigels aren't a steriod, they are the active in x-factor) in conjunction with proper diet + training. You need to track diet closely (fitday.com is easy) and make sure that if you were to use one of those compounds that you add an appropriate amount of calories to each day to maximize value. If you ate the same and worked out the same as you do now and took those, you'd have fairly low to no mass gains, probably would get some strength gains tho.

Take some time and try some of the herbal / natural things first, as there are MANY that do work. spend time here at AM looking at logs, reading reviews. Don't take any one persons word for anything

 

[CHA0S]

Thanks for the tips guys, i will try eating more immediately. 2 questions: what is a good protien supplement to use (i use musclemilk now) and are there any other supplements I should take? Are supplements a waste for me?

for gaining weight, can't go wrong with Cytogainer.

and as for all your legal steroid alternatives, some or most of them are in fact Pro Steroids. Which means they still are steroids and are little more dangerous (only if used improperly) but are a lot more potent and you will see results if you have a good diet by your side.

 

[drewh10987]

Another thing important thing to remember when trying to gain weight/mass is that you must consume more calories than you burn. So you must eat over maintenance level. So like Easy said the quantity is important because you must consume more calories to put on weight, but the quality of those calories is going to help determine whether the weight you put on is going to be muscle or fat. You can get 500 calories from a snickers bar or you can get 500 calories from a chicken breast. Its your choice.

Another thing to remember is that it is very very difficult to put on muscle without gaining any fat, unless your on gear. So don't freak out if you gain a little bit of fat, just remember to get your calories from good sources to minimize the amount of fat. It's not that difficult to cut a little bit of fat once you've gained an acceptable amount of muscle.

 

[CHA0S]

Another thing important thing to remember when trying to gain weight/mass is that you must consume more calories than you burn. So you must eat over maintenance level. So like Easy said the quantity is important because you must consume more calories to put on weight, but the quality of those calories is going to help determine whether the weight you put on is going to be muscle or fat. You can get 500 calories from a snickers bar or you can get 500 calories from a chicken breast. Its your choice.

Another thing to remember is that it is very very difficult to put on muscle without gaining any fat, unless your on gear. So don't freak out if you gain a little bit of fat, just remember to get your calories from good sources to minimize the amount of fat. It's not that difficult to cut a little bit of fat once you've gained an acceptable amount of muscle.

Yea fats are good for you (unsaturated and polyunsaturated) just don't overdo it. Add some Flaxseed oil or some Olive Oil when cooking, you can barely taste them and they are very good for you.

 

[hill5673]

Anyone else wondering what his workout routine looks like?

That would be a big factor. If you gain fat instead of muscle when you eat more then maybe you need to reconfigure your training..

 

[ImJ2x]

And don't neglect cardio. It's good for overall health, especially at our age. (Actually, I'd kill to be only 37, lol.) And it can be used to fine-tune any unwanted fat you accidentally accumulate from the extra calories. Just don't over-do it, or you obviously won't be able to gain any weight.

 

[BigCasino]

You're 5'10" @ 147lbs.

So no steroids or PHs for you sir.

Listen to all these helpful guys telling you to get your diet in check. That is what you need, you need to figure out your daily caloric requirements, your basal metabolic rate, and you need to add 500 calories to that when it comes to what you consume during the day. Keep adding 500 calories until you are seeing the scale go up about a 1lbs or 2lbs a week.

6-8 meals during the day to get those calories in.

I know it sounds too simple to be true, but that is the problem here, you simply are not eating enough to grow.

If you wants to take some supplements to help you out, keep up with the creatine, maybe add in some X Factor, or Mass FX. These are non-hormonal supps that will help you out once you have your diet down.

Good luck!

 

[edwards]

agreed that its your diet. eat 6 times a day in small meals. You are 147 lbs. You look to be about 13% bodyfat. So that means you have 128lbs of lean mass. You should eat 15 calories per lb of lean mass per day. That is 1920 calories per day. Divide by 6 to get the amount you need per meal. That is 320. So you need to eat 320 calories, 6 times per day. You need 32 grams of protein per meal, 32 grams of carbs and about 7 grams of fat. You can adjust your caloric requirements based upon whether you are growing or not. If not, then add another 320 calorie meal in there. Maybe some casein protein before bed. Check out trueprotein.com for a place to get cheap whey or casein protein.

Also, what does your workout look like? You haven't said anything about that. Post it up and we'll take a look at it. It looks like you've got a good base to build upon.

 

[SpikeDC]

Wow, thanks for all the info all. Youl all are great and so nice to tell me all your thoughts. Im trying to take it all in without making myself confused or crazy. Well sounds as if I do need to eat more and eat well. I eat a good diet, rarely any junk and lots of whole foods and grains. And I do cardio HIIT 3 times a week running 20 mins each.
As for my works wouts Ive been working out with a friend lately and we have gone to doing just about one body part per day--we usually will do 4-6 excercises, 3-4 sets with reps starting at 12 going down to 6 or so. Ive been trying to push myself and ive noticed a bit of gain i think, well in that I havent weighed this much since college and I think its from the training ive done with my buddy, less and heavier.

I will look into the different proteins and supplements you all mentioned. Sounds like these other things like Halodrol isnt something I should be taking right now.

Im not counting my calories but I know i should be more disciplined about adding those other two meals in as im probably eating 4 meals on a good day.

 

[CHA0S]

You're 5'10" @ 147lbs.

So no steroids or PHs for you sir.

Listen to all these helpful guys telling you to get your diet in check. That is what you need, you need to figure out your daily caloric requirements, your basal metabolic rate, and you need to add 500 calories to that when it comes to what you consume during the day. Keep adding 500 calories until you are seeing the scale go up about a 1lbs or 2lbs a week.

6-8 meals during the day to get those calories in.

I know it sounds too simple to be true, but that is the problem here, you simply are not eating enough to grow.

If you wants to take some supplements to help you out, keep up with the creatine, maybe add in some X Factor, or Mass FX. These are non-hormonal supps that will help you out once you have your diet down.

Good luck!

:goodpost: its as simple as that. I hate all those fitness or health magazines that give you tips to a well shaped person. They give you 5 tips and want you to keep buying their magazine to see their 100s of worthless tips in their upcoming issues. Funny, if they just put that one simple tip of upping your cals and knowing what to eat, they'll be out of business.

 

[SpikeDC]

Any other thoughts on a good protien with no fat, or very little fat that any has been happy with? And what is X Factor?

 

[EasyEJL]

the eas sells for $28 for 6lbs at sams club, costco + bjs have similar. can't beat it in terms of protein / $