Greetings fellow believers. I am new to the site. I am getting back into working out after a lay off of more than a year. While the home page seems pretty strong in its definition of just what a "hard-gainer" is, I think I may fit several different categories at once.
Allow me to give some info: I am 25 years old. I stand 5 feet 8 inches tall, and weigh 130 pounds on average. In addition to my slightly shorter than average height, I am of smaller proportions than the average adult male. My hands, feet, neck, shoulders, and everything in between are all small. All my clothes are men's size small, any rings I wear have to be women's rings, and I wear a size 8 shoe.
I most definitely have a very fast metabolism. As hard as most find it to believe, I actually have an under-active thyroid, as diagnosed by my doctor. Despite this, I remain skinny as a rail. I got into working out in high school for probably the same reason a lot of others did-to try to raise my confidence and maybe attract the attention of some girls.
While I have gained little weight over the near decade since, I am happy to say I am quite fit. I am proud of my abs in particular, and enjoy good tone in my chest and arms. But nonetheless, putting on real size or mass has never really happened for me.
I slacked off working out regularly about a year and a half ago.
At the time, I was working in an assembly line in a factory. The work was very physical, and I found that I came home too exhausted to hit the gym afterward. And I was actually able to get away with not working out, because the work was so intense that my muscles still got worked quite hard.
However, earlier this year I got a new job. I am now a filing clerk in an office. Sufficed to say, the work is much less demanding. I also find I have been prone to snacking as there is a never ending stream of leftover food from executive meetings in the lunch-room. As a result, I have begun to lose some of the muscle tone I have enjoyed, and I also find my strength has suffered greatly; I find that lately lifting the tubs of incoming expense reports challenges me.
To the point of this post. I am getting my butt back in the gym for the fall and winter, and since my salary is more comfortable I even intend to start working with one of the gym's personal trainers. I am convinced that my habit of working out a lone before was part of my lack of gains-I simply was not pushing myself as hard as I would if I had a partner. However, I definitely think sheer genetics plays a part.
In a discussion with a friend who has been taking courses in nutritional science, I was told that a huge problem for me is the sheer lack of fat on my body. In her words, because I have so little fat on me by nature, my body turns around and metabolizes the muscle tissue I try to build for its energy needs. It is an interesting idea that had not previously occurred to me.
I have used all the supplements before-multivitamins, anti-oxidants, creatine, and an endless stream of protein shakes, but never got much out of it. But perhaps that is simply because my body used it all up too damn fast.
Anyhow, I am considering starting to drink some heavy-duty weight gainer shakes for the remainder of the summer before I get myself back in the gym to try to add a few more pounds to my body so that maybe my metabolism will have something else to draw on for its energy needs, and maybe I can keep a little more of the muscle I build.
I know I need to up my caloric intake, and am starting to prepare a schedule for myself and a grocery list that will support my needs. However, I would be highly appreciative of any extra tips of info that I can get. So come on, help a guy out?