I am ripped!!!! but CANNOT gain weight!

[bukowski_merit]

i'm 6'1 - 155 lbs!
i workout 4 times a week (no cardio except for Hindu Squats), and have been doing that for about 8 months... when girls see my body for the first time they act really surprised that i'm so muscular because they say it doesn't look like i am when i'm wearing clothes... this is not what i want!

i tell them the sad story about how no matter how much i eat - i can't seem to gain weight...

i might eat eggs and bacon for breakfast... and i pour loads of syrup on top of them...
then eat 1-2 snacks out of the vending machine
then for lunch i'll have a cheesesteak or italian hoagie... with fries and a soda
might eat an apple or two
go home eat a bowl of cereal or oatmeal
eat dinner late... normally something like fried chicken with rice and vegtable
then i normally eat some kind of berry (strawberry or blueberry)
drink some kind of shake (sometimes i mix milk shakes with protein shakes and throw in some scoops of peanut butter - which has to equal close to 1000 calories)...

and yet, here i am sitting somewhere between 155-160 depending on the time of day... i've even tried being on some weight training diets... nothing seems to really let me put on weight...

is this just because i have a high metabolism? is there some kind of pill i can take to slow down my metabolism?

i'd like to be in the 180 range... i was there in high school believe it or not... but 10 years later - i feel like i can't reach it...

 

[Rampage1]

eat more... if your are eating a lot and still can't gain weight then you need to eat more...Show us your routine, it could probably do with a bit of work if you aren't gaining weight!

 

[bukowski_merit]

my food budget is already stretched thin... i probably spend about $25 a day on food and i DO NOT need to be spending that much with all my other bills... but i do it anyway...

anyway here's what i do...


MON - i do body weight exercises i learned when i was doing MMA a couple years ago (back then it was good that i couldn't gain weight - took no effort to stay in my weight class). This includes burpies, hindu squats and pushups, a ton of different pushups, back arches, pullups, exercises with chairs, just stuff i learned... i take about a minute inbetween exercises and normally workout for about a hour...

WED - I go to the local gym and follow some advice from people about bulking up (less reps as heavy as i can lift, etc) (it's pretty small and they don't have a lot - these are my current numbers) -
Bench - 195 5 reps/5sets (my chest is the only part of my body that i'd call big and it runs in my family)
Seated Curl - 145 5rep/4sets
Lateral Pulldown - 165 5 reps/3sets
Normally do some pullups here
Do some Dumbbell curls 40 lbs 6rep/4sets
Do some Front Deltroid raises 30 lbs 6 reps/3 sets
a few other dumbbell exercises that i don't know the names of
i normally take about 30-45 seconds in between each set...
takes me about a hour to do all these...


Thursday - Do the same as monday


Friday or Saturday - I do all the leg exercise machines in the gym... haha.. how professional right? i just don't know what they're called... i do 3sets/5reps.

 

[eko]

throw some more good cals on there. add some grilled chicken and rice. thats a buttload of calories and lots of protein. also, snack on nuts (no homo) throughout the day. I got a big jug of almonds from costco and only a handful of them is like 200 cals.

chicken is easy to cook. get a foreman too

i started doing it and i broke through my plateau and am getting stronger!!

 

[I-tallionStallion]

i might eat eggs and bacon for breakfast... and i pour loads of syrup on top of them...
then eat 1-2 snacks out of the vending machine
then for lunch i'll have a cheesesteak or italian hoagie... with fries and a soda
might eat an apple or two
go home eat a bowl of cereal or oatmeal
eat dinner late... normally something like fried chicken with rice and vegtable
then i normally eat some kind of berry (strawberry or blueberry)
drink some kind of shake (sometimes i mix milk shakes with protein shakes and throw in some scoops of peanut butter - which has to equal close to 1000 calories)...

and yet, here i am sitting somewhere between 155-160 depending on the time of day... i've even tried being on some weight training diets... nothing seems to really let me put on weight...

is this just because i have a high metabolism? is there some kind of pill i can take to slow down my metabolism?

i'd like to be in the 180 range... i was there in high school believe it or not... but 10 years later - i feel like i can't reach it...

http://www.sosuave.net/forum/showthread.php?t=125444
http://www.sosuave.net/forum/showthread.php?t=134782

Dude consider yourself lucky. You need to start making your own food to save money. you need to get on a three day split with the diet changes in the link. It's a good place to start. When you are eating 3500-5000 calories 6 days a week, then you will grow. Lift and eat good healthy cheap foods to gain muscle and size. If you have problems and have been following the above diet I gave you, we can adjust it for more calories.

 

[CosMoenTropic]

I'm kinda like that too. Ironically I look more ripped when I take off my clothes because of low bf.. But Ive started working out seriously and notice its easier to pack on the muscles when you take a good shake like Muscle milk or cytogainer. I used to think supplements are for meatheats, but if you take one of these a day along with a "quality diet"(read up on what this is) you'll see results.

The good thing is that when you bulk up you will look more ripped and not have to worry about cutting as much. I have a smaller frame though at 5'8" and it seems to be easier to pack on muscles. Now nothing in life is easy,but Im just saying it is easier to get the body you want if you put in the hard work as opposed to others who might need to watch their diet more carefully.. When you are at 6'+ and skinny, its harder. Also, make sure you stay flexible by taking martial arts or do a good all-around sport as a lot of taller guys I know tend to lose their athletic flexibility once they bulk up.

Oh yeah, heres a tip. Before you eat something, ask yourself what you are really craving right now. Sometimes the body has a way of telling you which nutrient it needs. If you feel like beef and not chicken--go for the beef, even if chicken is more convenient. As long as its healthy, you're fine. And workout more--that will get you hungrier, and switches your body into working and building mode.

Everybody has different metabolism. Artificially slowing down yours will just make you fat. Maybe get a little bit more fat ( yes, even saturated fat) into your diet as it helps with testosterone production which helps noticeably in muscle building.

 

[dennyw]

Well i would take it easy with that stuff, i heard that stuff can cause medcal probems in later life. You should ask a specialist, a gym trainer they would definately know how to help you, or im sure you could find something on the Internet that can help.

 

[yungahdubz]

Maybe try switching to a routine that revolves around squats and has deadlifts.

In the routine you posted up it only has one of the big 3, you should probably thinking about switching routines unless squats and deadlifts are some of the exercises you don't know the names of.

Squats - http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=6QRk2uWfyRk

Deadlift - http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=G6aM0CYPh3w

Bench, Squats + Deadlifts = real mass builders.

 

[ThreeStorms]

You should try a high-fat diet.
Eat lots of nuts. Buy Fish oil. Olive oil. Don't waste the oil you used for cooking either. I always pour this fat over my food before eating. Very cheap source of calories. Also, it tastes great.

One thing to avoid is sugar. You may ask, why, if I try to gain weight, as sugar is loaded with calories? In my experience, anything sweet, even only a tiny piece of chocolate, kills my appetite for hours (must be related to insulin-levels). So you consume some calories first, but take in much less afterwards than you would normally.

 

[bud_2005]

I don't have this problem unfortunately so maybe its harder than I think. But how can it be hard to gain weight?? GNC sells mass gainers you could start taking that. Drink a spoonful of olive oil sometimes. Go eat the buffet at Pizza Hut. It is so easy to gain weight if you want to. I have the opposite problem though.

 

[EFFORT]

I don't have this problem unfortunately so maybe its harder than I think. But how can it be hard to gain weight?? GNC sells mass gainers you could start taking that. Drink a spoonful of olive oil sometimes. Go eat the buffet at Pizza Hut. It is so easy to gain weight if you want to. I have the opposite problem though.

believe it or not it can actually be hard for a small number of people that truly eat a lot of food, but i never put anyone into that category until i see there diet and how consistent they are with it.

 

[talrock]

believe it or not it can actually be hard for a small number of people that truly eat a lot of food, but i never put anyone into that category until i see there diet and how consistent they are with it.

x2! If you are not consistently gaining weight, then you are not taking in enough calories for your metabolism. Try eating protein with every meal, either a shake, or lean ground beef, turkey. Peanut butter and EGGs are a good, cheap way to get in enough cals. Try adding some more fats like mentioned above. Whether you want to eat clean, or dirty if you don't care about fat gain, you need to eat!

 

[EFFORT]

x2! If you are not consistently gaining weight, then you are not taking in enough calories for your metabolism. Try eating protein with every meal, either a shake, or lean ground beef, turkey. Peanut butter and EGGs are a good, cheap way to get in enough cals. Try adding some more fats like mentioned above. Whether you want to eat clean, or dirty if you don't care about fat gain, you need to eat!

hah where did you come from? I'm seeing you tell people to "shut up and eat" all over the place. Nice

 

[AF77]

Dude your diet bites. I'm not talking down to you, but dieting/body is my thing. I'm a fitness model, body isn't my problem. This is what your bulking should look like man:

Meal 1: 1 whole egg, 4 egg whites and no fat cheese on a whole wheat high fiber bread 35/16/5
Meal 2: Chicken breast with � tablespoon of peanut butter 40/3/9
Meal 3: Low fat popcorn, egg white and turkey sandwich with low fat cheese 40/65/6.5
Meal 4 (in workout shake): Whey protein and Dextrose with 5g of creatine 35/20/1.5
Meal 5: Turkey, fat free cheese, lettuce, and Dijon mustard on whole wheat sub bread 35/80/4
Meal 6: Tuna with fat free mayo and fat free cheese melted on whole wheat bread, 1 cup broccoli, 3 fish oil capsules 35/25/6
Meal 7: 1 large chicken breast with 3 fish oil caps and tablespoon peanut butter 40/3/13
Meal 8: 1 can tuna, 2 fish oil caps, tablespoon peanut butter 40/3/11

Breakdown:
300g protein
205g carbs
56g fat

This should cost you about 6-8 dollars a day.

 

[talrock]

hah where did you come from? I'm seeing you tell people to "shut up and eat" all over the place. Nice

Most people b!tch about how they want to lose weight, or how they're not gaining. It's because diet is grossly underestimated (myself included), when it is most likely the solution to most of these problems! Good to see someone else on here who knows what he's talking about.