I am a collegiate baseball player looking to gain at least 30 pounds in about 8 months. my body fast is around 7% right now. I lift twice a day, and supplement-wise i take 2-3 protein shakes a day along with creatine serum after each workout. im trying the Pound O’ Week diet i found here on TMag bu it says little to no cardio. im a pitcher so i have to run at least 20 minutes a day. is there any alternative diets i could use?
I just wanted to tell you to ditch the creatine serum …its junk
“I supplement wise”
No you don’t, Creatine Serum? two words: Sucks ass.
Eat before you do your cardio, drink a postworkout type shake or mrp after the cardio and you’ll be fine. Stick with the diet, or switch over to massive eating. Look for the article and see if it’s a fit. Worked for me, I used it during track season, lost no weight, actually I gained three pounds, mostly on my legs though.
–AL–
anyone got any other suggestions in terms of supplements. i guess the consensus is the serum is garbage. what should i switch to?
The tiny amount of cardio you’re doing won’t hurt you. Just make sure you’re eating enough to cover the calorie expenditure, and still have a ~500 kcal daily surplus.
sounds like i should bag the serum. what does anyone recommend instead?
“I’m a pitcher so i have to run at least 20 minutes a day.”
Sounds like your strength coach doesn’t know much about the energy systems used in baseball, eh?
Supplement wise, if you have the money look into the MAG-10 stuff, also make sure you eat a lot more food than aloted by the pound ‘o’ week diet. Check under the MAG-10 Plan for Success and it will give you an entire time line of what to take when coming off the MAG-10, plus how much to eat. I never go without ZMA becuase it helps me sleep at night, and keeps my test levels up. Methoxy is good stuff. Regular micronized creatine will work just fine, that serum stuff is pretty much worthless, as some have said. I’ve heard a lot of jazz about nitric oxide helping out with mass and strength. Like I said if you’ve got the funds, then experiment see what works for you.
yeah, i dont dig the running. its not like its hard, it just burns calories and makes it even harder for me to gain weight. im a hard gainer as it is. its not like running is the only conditioning we do, i just seem to sweat and lose a lot. theres really no way around it either. unless i stop sweating.
There is no such thing as a hardgainer. You just aren’t doing things correctly.
Not try. Do.
dude why are you so hung up on supps? start eating your ass off and youll gain some weight.
JW, thanks for clearing up the self-imposed “hard gainer” issue. I agree with you. Adaptations need be forced.
Sizzle my Bizzle, back to you, bro. I’m guessing that the off-season running portion of your program is to keep the weight off. Obviously this is not your problem, but, if it need be done, then do it and eat more. In all actuality, I don’t think this is hampering your gains–or lack thereof–and I know (from experience) that including cardio at the proper times and intensities during a mass gaining phase can actually be very beneficial.
As far as nutrition goes, I’d suggest you look into Massive Eating. This will probably get you up closer to your caloric needs. You’ll have to continue to push the envelope, however.
In addition, you should ditch the protein shakes. Why? Well, you’re wasting your protein and money if you’re taking them in by themselves. I’d suggest that you get in whole food meals in place of your shakes. If you have to have shakes, then make sure it’s a good protein source and that you have either some quality carbs or fats with the protein as a complement.
As far as your weight training goes, how often are you lifting? And, why are you lifting twice per day (i.e. for the team or for cosmetic reasons)?
Ksizzle,
Don’t rely so much on supplements to gain weight. Its all in your diet my man!! Granted I take some supplements, but they are in the form of Surge, Grow, fish oil, flax oil, and a multivitamin. I think of all of them as more like part of my diet rather than supplements.
Read up on “Massive Eating” and you get an idea of how you should REALLY eat in order to gain some quality mass.
As for the running. I was a pitcher in college too and while yes, distance work is important for endurance reasons…you shouldn’t be doing any distance work in the days leading up to a start. Rather, you should be incorporting sprint work into your routine. Think about it…each pitch you throw is an EXPLOSIVE movement when all is said and done, so it stands to reason that sprints should play an integral role in your workouts. Instead of 20-30 minutes of distance work (running poles)…do 15-20 minutes of sprint work in the days leading up to a start.
And don’t forget to EAT!!! Read everything John Berardi has written here on t-mag, trust me…it will make all the difference. Good luck bro…Tony G
thanks for the help guys. im just sick and tired of being so lean. im gonna go on the Massive Eating diet. i lift twice a day for cosmetic reasons and because i want to push myself as far as i can be pushed, physically. my diet is probably what has been hindering me in my gains. all i know is that im willing to do whatever it takes to pack on the pounds, and id like to do it as soon as possible. thanks again guys. lemme know if you have any other suggestions.
I’d focus on pre and postworkout nutriiton in addition to 2.5g of protein per pound of bodyweight.
- You need at least 40 grams of a good BCAA/Glutamine supp. Sip it before and during your workout. (Glutacene is a good one)
- Take 3 scoops of Surge immediately post workout.
- Eat as many good proteins and carbs about 1 hr after post workout shake.
It’s going to take close to 14-18 months to put on 30 pds LBM IMHO.
I’m really diggin’ this new diet. I’ve put on 2.5 lbs in 3 days. Thanks for the help guys.