Lets start with my body type and what I have. I am an ectomorph, I weight about 140 pounds, I am 6 foot 1 and have super thin bones with a narrow structure. Currently at my disposal, I have a cheap big 5 bench press, a smaller bar that I use for curling and overhead presses, and a couple dumbbells. My bench press does have cable addon and one of those leg dealios make for working your quads.
I took it upon myself to try and start lifting weights 3 weeks ago. I started with what I know the super basics. So every other day I have been doing these exercises.
3 sets of 10 reps bench
3 sets of 10 reps curls
3 sets of 10 reps shoulder presses
and I just started adding the dumbbell row this week.
But what I want eventually is a full body workout with what I have. I want to be hitting my legs back abs arms chest shoulders and everything in between. I would like to be able to do this with my current weight setup or at least figure out what I need and go get it.
I’m not brave enough get a membership at my gym, I’ve been to my local gym before and it makes me feel quite uncomfortable.
Welcome to the beginners forum (from another beginner).
I won’t start chucking out advice : just encourage you to get stuck in, hit those weights and eat !!.
Have you had a read through the stickied threads at the top of the page here…good basic stuff ?
Have you had a look at some of the programmes that might lead you in the right direction eg westside for skinny bastards (not a joke) ? or starting strength ?
Most basic programmes seem to be built around the big lifts ie squat,deadlift, bench and/or overhead press.
Of note–how is your diet ? do you keep a food log ?
[quote]Mike T. wrote:
It seems like everyone that post a new topic weighs 140 IBS… How is that possible? Fracking Eat some steak and chicken.[/quote]
I can’t explain why everyone seems to be quite skinny, but as an ectomorph it is all about genetics. Ectomorphs generally have a high metabolism and thin bones. For the past 3 weeks I have drank nothing but loads of water, eat breakfast lunch dinner and a few meals in between. Plenty of meats, plenty of oats and grain, ok on the vegetables a lot of spinach, and a a decent amount of complex carbs. I have this protein supplement called super mass. it adds 1000 calories on top of what I eat. Did that for 3 weeks and haven’t gained a pound however my muscles did get bigger and I upped my benching weight by 20 pounds and my curling by 10 since I started.
I do not have a food log but I can look into getting one.
EDIT: Im looking at Westside for skinny bastards and they are using alot of gym workout stations. Currently I am limited to bars and dumbbells at the moment… but this is first glance. Thanks for the support I will continue reading.
There is no such thing as an ectomorph - it is an excuse for not eating enough. If you indeed added 1000 cals/day to your diet and did not gain weight in 3 weeks you probably dropped cals in other meals. Keep a food log, otherwise you will be guessing, and most likely underestimating the calories you really consume.
You mention drinking water, eating oats, grains, and spinach. These are great to include in a healthy diet, but will not cause massive weight gain. You want to be drinking whole milk, eating eggs, meats, nuts, cheese, more meat… You get the picture?
[quote]pcdude wrote:
There is no such thing as an ectomorph - it is an excuse for not eating enough. If you indeed added 1000 cals/day to your diet and did not gain weight in 3 weeks you probably dropped cals in other meals. Keep a food log, otherwise you will be guessing, and most likely underestimating the calories you really consume.
You mention drinking water, eating oats, grains, and spinach. These are great to include in a healthy diet, but will not cause massive weight gain. You want to be drinking whole milk, eating eggs, meats, nuts, cheese, more meat… You get the picture?[/quote]
That ^
Try not to put limits on yourself before you’ve started or seen how far you can come.
I started off like yourself, but made a change pretty quickly when things were done right. Used to think that my body just wasn’t absorbing food, but I just wasn’t eating enough (a lot).
The routine you do depends on your own recovery really (train a bodypart as much as it’ll recover from), amongst other things.
[quote]jaggar wrote:
Did that for 3 weeks and haven’t gained a pound however my muscles did get bigger[/quote]
Does not compute. You haven’t gained a pound, but your muscles got bigger? Do you think they got bigger or have you taken measurements? (But that’s really a side issue since actually gaining pounds is the immediate goal.)
Bottom line is that if you’re not moving the scale, you’re not taking in enough calories. I checked your post history and a few months ago, you wrote about “uncontrollable shaking.” Whatever happened with that? From what you described, it sounded a bit like hypoglycemia, but that’s a wild guess.
Are you still doing jiujitsu?
It’s not all that hard to keep a food log. Here’s the first step… what, exactly, did you eat yesterday?
I’ll also second (or third, whatever it is) that the ectomorph or hardgainer label is often misapplied, if it’s ever even applicable at all. You’re training and nutrition aren’t sorted out at all, so there’s no way you can justify calling yourself an ectomorph. For now, you’re a pretty tall, very skinny dude. I was 6’2" and 170 in high school, so I kinda get where you’re coming from. Kinda.
Last thing… a picture of you would’ve been much more informative than that cartoon in your first post.
[quote]jaggar wrote:
Did that for 3 weeks and haven’t gained a pound however my muscles did get bigger[/quote]
Does not compute. You haven’t gained a pound, but your muscles got bigger? Do you think they got bigger or have you taken measurements? (But that’s really a side issue since actually gaining pounds is the immediate goal.)
Bottom line is that if you’re not moving the scale, you’re not taking in enough calories. I checked your post history and a few months ago, you wrote about “uncontrollable shaking.” Whatever happened with that? From what you described, it sounded a bit like hypoglycemia, but that’s a wild guess.
Are you still doing jiujitsu?
It’s not all that hard to keep a food log. Here’s the first step… what, exactly, did you eat yesterday?
I’ll also second (or third, whatever it is) that the ectomorph or hardgainer label is often misapplied, if it’s ever even applicable at all. You’re training and nutrition aren’t sorted out at all, so there’s no way you can justify calling yourself an ectomorph. For now, you’re a pretty tall, very skinny dude. I was 6’2" and 170 in high school, so I kinda get where you’re coming from. Kinda.
Last thing… a picture of you would’ve been much more informative than that cartoon in your first post.[/quote]
Since i made that first post on TNation, ill be honest I haven’t kept with my schedule since then, Ive only been working out steady for about 3-4 weeks now.
I found this program online called fitday, it’s kind of an online food log.
For that day, I had
4 cups granola throughout the day
4 hard boiled eggs
6 oz pork loin
protien shake
2 cups whole milk (conservative guess)
2 bananas
Calculated out to 3340 calories, 118 g of fat 436 carbs and 158G protien
For sure my muscles are getting bigger. But it’s like you said the scale hasn’t moved since last checked. But I’m also not weighing myself daily I’m doing kind of a every week thing.
For income reasons I’ve had to put a halt on jiu-jitsu but I’m sure as hell going back when things pick up.
As far as the shaking goes, since the start of my weight lifting again and changing my diet up so for the most part it’s gone. I really noticed a difference when I started drinking nothing but water and milk.
[quote]jaggar wrote:
Im looking at Westside for skinny bastards and they are using alot of gym workout stations. Currently I am limited to bars and dumbbells at the moment… but this is first glance.[/quote]
WS4SB probably isn’t the best choice for your current equipment setup. Check out this recent Livespill from Wendler for a good plan for your situation: http://www.T-Nation.com/strength-training-topics/1400
Working with the basics will be just fine, but the sooner you start training every muscle group, the sooner you can see some good progress.
[quote]For that day, I had
4 cups granola throughout the day
4 hard boiled eggs
6 oz pork loin
protien shake
2 cups whole milk (conservative guess)
2 bananas
Calculated out to 3340 calories, 118 g of fat 436 carbs and 158G protien[/quote]
That’s a start, for sure. Stick with it and be consistent everyday. Consistent with the total calories, most of all, but also try to push up the total protein a bit too.
That’s fine, and actually a good idea. Weighing in daily isn’t necessary because your weight can change a few pounds based on a single meal. Weigh in once a week, naked as a jay bird, first thing in the morning after hitting the bathroom but before eating or drinking anything. That’ll give you the most accurate and consistent measurement.
