Making myself eat more....

[Reynolds 101]

I like to workout and keep decently active. I have pretty low body fat, but the thing is, I want to gain weight. Im a pretty skinny guy and I love food, but the thing is I just cant force myself to eat enough to gain.

I have weight gaining shakes but I dont see much difference because Im still not eating good solid food.

Heres a pic:



Im also a guitard :P

Anyways what can I do to force myself to eat more? Its going to be even harder with my senior year about to start because I'll be busy with school and I can only eat at lunch time during the day. The lunches are horrible. Help?

[Mike151]

Dude, enjoy it while you can. When your 40, you're going to wish you could still fit in those levis.
Anyway, Carbohydrates! Eat stuff with lots of carbs. Anything white. Potatoes, rice, bread, pasta, etc.

[standupright]

change what you are consuming as well. if you are talking about gaining as in muscle mass. then you need to define your workout as such as well as what you are eating. not just how much of it.

increase your protein and complex carb intake to supplement a workout that builds muscle mass.

[Reynolds 101]

Another thing that doesn't help is my workout equipment isn't that great. I have a bench with a calf extension type deal and i can use the barbell for some stuff, but I dont have dumbells. I also have a home gym thing which has a stepper, a pull down bar for lats and an ab thing but I think I need more compound exercises.

School starts on the 8th, and my first hour of the day is weight training which is very helpful, so I can use stuff there. Its also early in the morning so it'll help me stay awake during the day

[standupright]

Originally Posted by Reynolds 101

Another thing that doesn't help is my workout equipment isn't that great. I have a bench with a calf extension type deal and i can use the barbell for some stuff, but I dont have dumbells. I also have a home gym thing which has a stepper, a pull down bar for lats and an ab thing but I think I need more compound exercises.

School starts on the 8th, and my first hour of the day is weight training which is very helpful, so I can use stuff there. Its also early in the morning so it'll help me stay awake during the day

actually you don't need more equipment. just the basics. left heavy with low reps. the max you can bench press for 4-6 reps, same thing for squats, curls, back, and shoulders.

you said you have a bench, does it have a barbell for bench press?

[Reynolds 101]

Originally Posted by standupright

actually you don't need more equipment. just the basics. left heavy with low reps. the max you can bench press for 4-6 reps, same thing for squats, curls, back, and shoulders.

you said you have a bench, does it have a barbell for bench press?

Well when Im doing it for school Ill be more apt to stay focused and follow through with each workout so that will help.

And yeah it does.

[standupright]

Originally Posted by Reynolds 101

Well when Im doing it for school Ill be more apt to stay focused and follow through with each workout so that will help.

And yeah it does.

as long as you have enough weights to put on the barbell, you have what you need to start increasing your size with the basics. lift heavey, increase protein to build muscle, increase carbs to fuel your workout / recovery.

[Reynolds 101]

Originally Posted by standupright

as long as you have enough weights to put on the barbell, you have what you need to start increasing your size with the basics. lift heavey, increase protein to build muscle, increase carbs to fuel your workout / recovery.

Ok thank you. Will a multi vitamin daily help also? Because if there is stuff that might be missing from my diet that could help in providing it and it cant really hurt?

[standupright]

Originally Posted by Reynolds 101

Ok thank you. Will a multi vitamin daily help also? Because if there is stuff that might be missing from my diet that could help in providing it and it cant really hurt?

a multi def won't hurt.

[bigblondeafro87]

Im in the same situation as you bud, just whenever you work out, do as many reps as you can. Stretch before and after workout, don't eat too many fatty foods (despite having a high metabolism the fats will still hurt you down the road), and learning upright bass has made my arms more muscular so you might want to try that haha.

[Jereth]

Get yourself on a decent weight training programme. I strongly recommend Starting Strength by Markl Rippetoe or WestsideForSkinnyBastards3(WS4SB3) by Joe DeFranco.
Google them if you aren't sure.
If you do go with SS, make sure you go mad and spend that $30 and get the 2nd Edition book. Just trust me on this.

As far as diet, eating more protein and carbs will do wonders for you. Seeing as you are just starting off though you could simply add GOMAD to your regular diet.
GOMAD=Gallon Of Milk A Day(whole milk!)
Does freaking wonders for getting people bigger and stronger. Better than steroids for beginners(honestly!). Drinking 4-4.5 litres of milk a day is tough at forst but you become acustomed to it very fast.

Any questions don't hesitate to PM me

[Reynolds 101]

Originally Posted by Jereth

Get yourself on a decent weight training programme. I strongly recommend Starting Strength by Markl Rippetoe or WestsideForSkinnyBastards3(WS4SB3) by Joe DeFranco.
Google them if you aren't sure.
If you do go with SS, make sure you go mad and spend that $30 and get the 2nd Edition book. Just trust me on this.

As far as diet, eating more protein and carbs will do wonders for you. Seeing as you are just starting off though you could simply add GOMAD to your regular diet.
GOMAD=Gallon Of Milk A Day(whole milk!)
Does freaking wonders for getting people bigger and stronger. Better than steroids for beginners(honestly!). Drinking 4-4.5 litres of milk a day is tough at forst but you become acustomed to it very fast.

Any questions don't hesitate to PM me

I could probably start out with the GOMAD thing because I love a tall glass of cold milk. Nothin' better. Ill check out those programs too though, thanks.

[Tama]

Originally Posted by Mike151

Dude, enjoy it while you can. When your 40, you're going to wish you could still fit in those levis.

Just what I was thinking Mike !!!

[Stanley Design]

Talk to a dietition at a gym if you can. I was in your boat at your age, went about it the same way and just ate a lot more and drank weight gain shakes with my meals. Now I'm 5 years older and 206lbs instead of 120lbs at the same height, but now I got a bit of a beer gut and mass where I don't want it because I don't work out every day and still have a big appetite. Go slow, it's always the best advice for anything.

[hbarcat]

I'd start injecting steroids.























Just joking. Don't do steroids. Drugs are bad.

[Jereth]

Originally Posted by Reynolds 101

I could probably start out with the GOMAD thing because I love a tall glass of cold milk. Nothin' better. Ill check out those programs too though, thanks.

Ensure you combine GOMAD with an appropriate weight training programme. Simply adding that many calories(2970 to be exact) without the proper weight training will simply add a load of fat to your bones

[6jase5]

There is nothing wrong with lean and mean. Work on gaining muscle SLOWLY. I would speak to a dietician (registered or RD) versus a trainer at a gym.

Protein shakes will be better than milk, less sodium if you pick a good one. I tried creatine for awhile, keeps some additional water in the muscle but you have to drink a lot of water. Not sure I was overly sold.

You can do a lot without weights, google is your friend.

[L-A]

Just to point out, I know two people who went lactose intolerant from the GOMAD method (either this or it was a significant factor among others). Just don't aim for the gallon if you couldn't normally drink a gallon of water in a day. Replace your usual drinks with milk and there will be effects.

[lunarpollen]

Originally Posted by standupright

actually you don't need more equipment. just the basics. left heavy with low reps. the max you can bench press for 4-6 reps, same thing for squats, curls, back, and shoulders.

That's it, in a nutshell.

Don't worry too much about gaining size. Some people have the genetics for it, some don't. Muscle size doesn't automatically = muscle strength either. Strength trainers and powerlifters train differently than strict bodybuilders, and are often a lot stronger despite often looking smaller. You probably have the same type of DNA as I do, no matter what I do, I don't get bigger, but I do get stronger. Some of us are just meant to be the streamlined, sleek type (we just get stronger and denser while only increasing in size a tiny bit), while others are meant to be like the Hulk (they barely have to do anything and their muscle size just skyrockets), and others are in between... Just focus on training for strength with proper technique, and you will get some results. You might not get much bigger but you will notice a difference, and you will feel a lot stronger.

[L-A]

Oh, and go sloooooow.
Nothing spoils a workout like "throwing" the load, and strength mainly develops from effort while decontracting the muscle (the returning movement). I said strength too because I didn't really increase in size between 120 and 145.