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Why do people assume it takes long to build a decent body?

WHY

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You are right, but lifting is the most variable thing in the world. You really really really need to see what works for you and it's different for everyone. Once you start putting "it's x and y" you've lost the long term fitness game. Everything from caloric intake to nutrition to intensity frequency is a simple guideline, not a rule.
 
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garyfritz

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But i realized that i wasn’t eating enough. At 43 year old, 6 meals a day for two months and I was at 175lb from 160. So yeah you can put on weight. If you eat a lot you’ll gain muscle and fat.
I suspect that's me too. Put me in front of a big feast of food and I can (and do) pack away as much as 2-3 people. So I thought I was getting plenty of calories. But then a few years ago I tried one of those apps that tracks everything you put in your mouth. I was surprised to realize that, in spite of the occasional big meals, on an ongoing basis I was only averaging about 1800 calories a day. A male of my age/size should do about 2200-2300, if I remember right. So it's no wonder I stay scrawny.

By comparison, my son who bulked up in a few months of workouts eats a huge amount of protein. He's a major carnivore and it's fairly typical for him to eat 1.0 - 1.5 lbs of meat per day. 2 lbs isn't unusual. On top of that he used to have 6-8 eggs for breakfast, but he really hates eggs and he's stopped that. So he had plenty of fuel to build those muscles. Now that he's living with me again, I'm eating a lot more meat than I used to. I should try tracking my calories again.

But I understand your "couldn't maintain it" point. People who struggle with losing weight probably hate guys like us, but it's really HARD for me to eat enough food to put on weight. Partly because it almost gets gag-worthy to try to cram that much food down my piehole, partly because my body doesn't tend to hold onto it. Last month I spent 2 weeks in Italy (Tuscany) on an over-the-top 1st-quality food & wine extravaganza. I was eating a ton of amazing rich food every day, almost more than I could stand. After 2 weeks of that I gained 3 lbs -- and that was gone within a week or two.

I've always been a pretty "low energy" person. I wonder if that's because I'm just not feeding the furnace enough, so my body turns down the thermostat. (And I do tend to have a low body temp, usually about 97.2°F = 36.2°C.) There's not enough fuel so I go into semi-dormant mode. Hmmmm.

I don’t think you should be doing 90 minute workouts at your age. Think about it, if you are tiring your muscles like your son, why aren’t they growing? It’s probably because they are missing the fuel to grow. Your limiting resource is food, not muscle stress.
So the issue is not necessarily my age, but the lack of fuel. Doing the workouts still makes me stronger, and that's a good thing. I'll think about how I could pack more fuel in there. I don't really want to do the whole protein-shake thing. I did that for a while with my son but I'm not convinced that's healthy long-term.
 
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GainsGainsGains

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I suspect that's me too. Put me in front of a big feast of food and I can (and do) pack away as much as 2-3 people. So I thought I was getting plenty of calories. But then a few years ago I tried one of those apps that tracks everything you put in your mouth. I was surprised to realize that, in spite of the occasional big meals, on an ongoing basis I was only averaging about 1800 calories a day. A male of my age/size should do about 2200-2300, if I remember right. So it's no wonder I stay scrawny.

By comparison, my son who bulked up in a few months of workouts eats a huge amount of protein. He's a major carnivore and it's fairly typical for him to eat 1.0 - 1.5 lbs of meat per day. 2 lbs isn't unusual. On top of that he used to have 6-8 eggs for breakfast, but he really hates eggs and he's stopped that. So he had plenty of fuel to build those muscles. Now that he's living with me again, I'm eating a lot more meat than I used to. I should try tracking my calories again.

But I understand your "couldn't maintain it" point. People who struggle with losing weight probably hate guys like us, but it's really HARD for me to eat enough food to put on weight. Partly because it almost gets gag-worthy to try to cram that much food down my piehole, partly because my body doesn't tend to hold onto it. Last month I spent 2 weeks in Italy (Tuscany) on an over-the-top 1st-quality food & wine extravaganza. I was eating a ton of amazing rich food every day, almost more than I could stand. After 2 weeks of that I gained 3 lbs -- and that was gone within a week or two.

I've always been a pretty "low energy" person. I wonder if that's because I'm just not feeding the furnace enough, so my body turns down the thermostat. (And I do tend to have a low body temp, usually about 97.2°F = 36.2°C.) There's not enough fuel so I go into semi-dormant mode. Hmmmm.


So the issue is not necessarily my age, but the lack of fuel. Doing the workouts still makes me stronger, and that's a good thing. I'll think about how I could pack more fuel in there. I don't really want to do the whole protein-shake thing. I did that for a while with my son but I'm not convinced that's healthy long-term.


Look up the sample self-made weight gain shake I posted in this thread. Nothing unhealthy about milk, oats and fruits. You can also put in nuts or a little bit of oil to bump up the kcal.
 

Colton

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I suspect that's me too. Put me in front of a big feast of food and I can (and do) pack away as much as 2-3 people. So I thought I was getting plenty of calories. But then a few years ago I tried one of those apps that tracks everything you put in your mouth. I was surprised to realize that, in spite of the occasional big meals, on an ongoing basis I was only averaging about 1800 calories a day. A male of my age/size should do about 2200-2300, if I remember right. So it's no wonder I stay scrawny.

By comparison, my son who bulked up in a few months of workouts eats a huge amount of protein. He's a major carnivore and it's fairly typical for him to eat 1.0 - 1.5 lbs of meat per day. 2 lbs isn't unusual. On top of that he used to have 6-8 eggs for breakfast, but he really hates eggs and he's stopped that. So he had plenty of fuel to build those muscles. Now that he's living with me again, I'm eating a lot more meat than I used to. I should try tracking my calories again.

But I understand your "couldn't maintain it" point. People who struggle with losing weight probably hate guys like us, but it's really HARD for me to eat enough food to put on weight. Partly because it almost gets gag-worthy to try to cram that much food down my piehole, partly because my body doesn't tend to hold onto it. Last month I spent 2 weeks in Italy (Tuscany) on an over-the-top 1st-quality food & wine extravaganza. I was eating a ton of amazing rich food every day, almost more than I could stand. After 2 weeks of that I gained 3 lbs -- and that was gone within a week or two.

I've always been a pretty "low energy" person. I wonder if that's because I'm just not feeding the furnace enough, so my body turns down the thermostat. (And I do tend to have a low body temp, usually about 97.2°F = 36.2°C.) There's not enough fuel so I go into semi-dormant mode. Hmmmm.


So the issue is not necessarily my age, but the lack of fuel. Doing the workouts still makes me stronger, and that's a good thing. I'll think about how I could pack more fuel in there. I don't really want to do the whole protein-shake thing. I did that for a while with my son but I'm not convinced that's healthy long-term.
I feel ya. There was a long period of time in high school when I literally struggled to eat more than 1000 calories per day (I was quite ill and was even considering feeding through a tube). Even before that I was always a lanky hardgainer.

Several times I showed up to class with broken capillaries all over my face because my attempts at force feeding breakfast ended with vomiting it all back up. So needless to say I had to get creative in figuring out a way to eat enough calories to grow.

I eventually succeeded and went from 145 lbs to 185 lbs at 10% body fat. Am still making lean gains every week.

Theres been lots of good advice here in this thread by gainsgainsgains and others, but I'd like to throw in a meal plan that me and a few people I'm helping have been using to make the scale go up.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Meal 1: Chocolate Peanut Butter Shake
-6 tbsp. creamy natural peanut butter
-2 cups chocolate almond milk
-1 scoop whey protein (This can be mixed in water and consumed separately if desired- that’s what I do)
Add to blender and mix thoroughly.
Meal total: 50 grams protein | 900 calories

Meal 2: Granola Cereal
-1/2 cup honey nut granola cereal
-1 cup low-fat milk
Meal total: 15 grams protein |370 calories

Meal 3 (Pre-Workout): Toasted Sandwich
-1 medium/large slice sourdough bread
-2 slices cheese
-3 slices Canadian bacon
-1 teaspoon butter
Bake bread in oven for 4 minutes at 350 degrees. Next, add butter, meat, and cheese, then bake for an additional 3 minutes.
Meal total: 33 grams protein | 550 calories
Intra-Workout: drink 1 bottle (about 16 oz) Gatorade during workout

Meal 4: Protein Shake & Rice
-2 cups fruit juice
-1 cup cooked white rice
-1 scoop whey protein in water
Meal total: 30 grams protein | 500 calories

Meal 5: Salmon, Broccoli, and Milk
-7 oz salmon, cooked with olive oil (steak could be substituted here)
-1 cup steamed broccoli (or other greens)
-2 cups low-fat milk
Meal total: 62 grams protein | 650 calories

Meal 6: Granola Cereal with Berries & Honey
-1/2 cup honey nut granola cereal
-Add desired amount of blueberries and honey
-1 cup low-fat milk
Meal total: 15 grams protein | 400 calories

Grand Total: 205 grams protein | 3,370 calories

If you aren’t gaining weight on this meal plan, you can easily raise the calories by drinking more milk.

If you are gaining too much weight, just reduce the calories.
This meal plan is comprised of foods that are extremely calorie dense, making it great for guys with small appetites (like myself) who otherwise struggle to put on weight.

Remember: This meal plan is a good starting point and will work great for most people, but if you need help designing a more customized plan, just ask. (For example, we can work together to find alternatives if you are allergic to any of the foods listed above)
 
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Colton

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Wow thanks for the share, the meal plan looks amazing!

Food looks yummy too, I can do this ;)

Sent from my SM-N950F using Tapatalk
Great, that's exactly the message I was hoping to get across. Just remember that if you choose to follow this meal plan exactly you still need to weigh yourself each week (it's super easy- I do it on friday mornings right after I get up and use the bathroom)

when cutting I recommend aiming for 1 to 2 lbs lost per week. So, if you aren't hitting that mark you would just add or subtract a little food from the meal plan.

If you struggle with hunger then drinking sparkling water can also help fill you up, and it's zero calories.
 

GainsGainsGains

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I fully co-sign Colton's posts and truly hope we could help/motivate some of you.

Keep in mind to always track your results, check the scale weekly and see if your strength goes up. We can give general advice that most likely will work, but it's ultimately up to you to figure out your maintenance level and stay above/below it.

It's really not rocket science, though - a simple PPL routine and tracking your calories will bring results if you stay consistent. Unless you're aiming for bodybuilding competitions it's a really low time investment with great returns in health and aesthetics.
 

biophase

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I suspect that's me too. Put me in front of a big feast of food and I can (and do) pack away as much as 2-3 people. So I thought I was getting plenty of calories. But then a few years ago I tried one of those apps that tracks everything you put in your mouth. I was surprised to realize that, in spite of the occasional big meals, on an ongoing basis I was only averaging about 1800 calories a day. A male of my age/size should do about 2200-2300, if I remember right. So it's no wonder I stay scrawny.

By comparison, my son who bulked up in a few months of workouts eats a huge amount of protein. He's a major carnivore and it's fairly typical for him to eat 1.0 - 1.5 lbs of meat per day. 2 lbs isn't unusual. On top of that he used to have 6-8 eggs for breakfast, but he really hates eggs and he's stopped that. So he had plenty of fuel to build those muscles. Now that he's living with me again, I'm eating a lot more meat than I used to. I should try tracking my calories again.

But I understand your "couldn't maintain it" point. People who struggle with losing weight probably hate guys like us, but it's really HARD for me to eat enough food to put on weight. Partly because it almost gets gag-worthy to try to cram that much food down my piehole, partly because my body doesn't tend to hold onto it. Last month I spent 2 weeks in Italy (Tuscany) on an over-the-top 1st-quality food & wine extravaganza. I was eating a ton of amazing rich food every day, almost more than I could stand. After 2 weeks of that I gained 3 lbs -- and that was gone within a week or two.

I've always been a pretty "low energy" person. I wonder if that's because I'm just not feeding the furnace enough, so my body turns down the thermostat. (And I do tend to have a low body temp, usually about 97.2°F = 36.2°C.) There's not enough fuel so I go into semi-dormant mode. Hmmmm.


So the issue is not necessarily my age, but the lack of fuel. Doing the workouts still makes me stronger, and that's a good thing. I'll think about how I could pack more fuel in there. I don't really want to do the whole protein-shake thing. I did that for a while with my son but I'm not convinced that's healthy long-term.

Gary, do you have a low body temp but always feel hot?
 
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LPPC

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Getting in a good shape is pretty straight forward and achievable for I think 98% of the population. Whether you can achieve a good physique comes down to mental health and mental toughness: discipline, non-laziness, motivation, self-image and so on... More effort should be spent into getting the right mindset, just as in business.
 

garyfritz

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Gary, do you have a low body temp but always feel hot?
Nope, I'm cold-blooded. When I'm just sitting in my office working at the computer, I have to have it at least 72-73F -- or my fingers get so cold I can't type.

I hate the typical Phoenix shop attitude -- "It's 100F outside so we'll run the AC at 67F"... brrr, I'm miserable.
 
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garyfritz

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BTW I said above that possibly my low caloric intake could contribute to my low body temp & possibly my low energy levels. But whatever the cause of the low temps, I've also seen claims that low body temps cause low energy levels and many other problems. Your body is a big bubbling pot of chemical reactions, and lower temps slow chemical reactions and prevent enzymes from working properly. Years ago I read about this and tried some "interesting" DIY treatments to try to reset my body thermostat (such as baking myself in a 110F room for 8-10 hours) but no improvements.

My son is determined to pack some weight on me and help me bulk up a bit, so we're going to up our caloric intake. Instead of the 1800 kcal I usually average, yesterday I had nearly 3000. I'll shoot for 3000-3500 for a month and see if anything changes, whether it's weight, muscle mass, or energy levels.
 
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Everyman

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What they really want the short-cut. Eat what they like + a leaf of salad and 10min slowly walking on the treadmill twice a year should do the trick. This is also very disappointing to Sam who did all the research, provided all the information and tried to constantly be a good role-model for them.

It's difficult with family. I wouldn't do it. If they don't feel encouraged by looking at how their son is doing (and doing well) then nothing can help them.

This is why home exercise equipment exists, travel time would have taken up too much time, so I lost weight via diet and exercise. The major issue, I found with it was motivation was less on my own(fitness DVDs don't quite do it, but they try to solve the issue) I was lucky in my friend was available and in a similar situation so we could work out in the shed together. I can think of a couple of ways you could use software to improve on the current equipment to address this problem.

I cycle to work daily 14km in total (40mins) and it helps a lot. If you do it daily, 5 times a week, 250 times a year then it's enough to be well.

Naval: "The oldest problems have the oldest answers"

Lose weight: Caloric deficit
Gain weight: Caloric surplus
Both: train your body and eat whole foods
Both: create systems that create habits to do those things w/out the reliance on willpower.

What do you mean by 'whole foods'? Sorry if it's stupid but it can be misleading.

I cannot agree about the calories. Of course you will lose weight but will you maintain it after (yo-yo effect)... I think it is Gary Taubes but also others that say 'it's more important what you eat than how much you eat it - Good calories, bad calories''

I eat loads of lard, bacon, butter, peanut butter (I try to keep 50-70% fats in my diet). I am more energetic after 24 hour fast than after eating a high carb meal. But it took a couple of months.

My wife and I spent a week with him and tried to get him interested in exercise. He says sh*t like "eh my whole family died from diabetes I can't live forever anyways, might as well not ruin my enjoyment by trying to exercise."

Have you ever read "How To Win Friends and Influence People" by Dale Carnegie? I am still trying to convince people to do something. I do it all wrong and when I read that you tried to interest him in exercise I thought 'Maybe you should ask him what he is interested in instead of pushing exercising..'. I am not saying it's bad. I would just try, if you have time, to get interested in his hobbies, and then somehow link it to a healthier lifestyle.

Nope. I am on a very strict Keto diet, and it is working wonders.

Me too.

It's perfect. After a couple of weeks, past withdrawal syndrome (yes, you get withdrawal syndrome after reducing carbs to minimum) it's brilliant.
 

StayHeady

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It's not that I don't have time, it takes focus away from other things I could be doing and it feels damn near impossible to change my diet, I've been trying for almost two years.
Hey brother first of all i hear ya. Growth and change isnt easy. it takes time and discipline. Youve got to stop "trying" to change your diet and just do it. Go to the store and buy only whole foods. Ive found the best results with just meat and vegetables 5 days a week. Then as a reward i use the weekend as my cheat days. I promise you if you start doing this you will feel better and perform better. As far as the exercise goes start small. Do 10 pushups a and get a jump rope or a pull up bar that fits on your door frame and just do a little bit each day. Like MJ says its in the process. Just a few good habits done everyday. Jog and do some pushups and some pullups. if you need help with motivation do what he says in the book. Go to a gym where everyone is in better shape then you. Dont pay any attention to anyone (unless some eye candy is near by) and just put in work. SWEAT EQUITY. I promise all of this will transfer over into other areas of your life (if you are consistent). It makes everything else in the day run smoother. Plus your mental health improves as well. Youre in this forum for a reason. To me that says you have the willingness and the capacity to get results. Go prove it. We believe in you. Now get after it
 

StayHeady

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If you don't have time to workout now you will end up paying for it with time in the future. In other words, working out today will add valuable time to your life. Time that won't be spent in a broken, dilapidated body later on due to your preventative upkeep today.

I find that how you eat and what you eat are the two most important factors to achieving results in the gym that last. For me, intermittent fasting with balanced fat/protein food sources, limiting carbs, sugars and hydrogenated oils, tends to produce the longest lasting gains.

I also encourage people to incorporate stretching into their routine. Even 15 minutes of stretching a day, with a focus on the calves and hamstrings, is a great way to avoid/prevent injury.

And doing high intensity interval training can also help save time. There is also body weight exercises you can do on the fly, without the time commitment of going to the gym. Even walking around your office building during breaks can do wonders.
Truth!
 
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Colton

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BTW I said above that possibly my low caloric intake could contribute to my low body temp & possibly my low energy levels. But whatever the cause of the low temps, I've also seen claims that low body temps cause low energy levels and many other problems. Your body is a big bubbling pot of chemical reactions, and lower temps slow chemical reactions and prevent enzymes from working properly. Years ago I read about this and tried some "interesting" DIY treatments to try to reset my body thermostat (such as baking myself in a 110F room for 8-10 hours) but no improvements.

My son is determined to pack some weight on me and help me bulk up a bit, so we're going to up our caloric intake. Instead of the 1800 kcal I usually average, yesterday I had nearly 3000. I'll shoot for 3000-3500 for a month and see if anything changes, whether it's weight, muscle mass, or energy levels.
I hope that goes well for you. In my experience I actually have less energy when forcing myself to eat lots of food (digestion takes a lot of energy), it results in a sort of lethargic /always full feeling.

That being said, you will gain lots of muscle as long as you provide the necessary stimulus needed for your muscles to grow. (get as strong as you can at the exercises that matter the most)
 

Ciano_94

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No, **IF** your body type is well suited to building muscle.

I understand where you're coming from but I disagree with this.

You need to apply progressive overload to your workouts in terms of amount of weight lifted.
Your body will adapt and grow.

e.g (a simplistic one):
Week 1: Bench Press 4 Sets X 8reps @ 45kg
Week 2: Bench Press 4 Sets X 10reps @ 45kg
Week 3: Bench Press 4 Sets X 8reps @ 47.5kg
etc...

Nutrition/Rest are also very important of course.
Body Type/Genetics/testosterone not as much as you are assuming.
 

garyfritz

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I'm sure a proper lifting regimen will produce better results than a bad regimen.

But people are different. Not everyone sees the same results for ANYthing. You can play in the NBA even if you're 5'5", but you've got a lot better shot if you're 6'10" . Anyone can build muscle, but it will happen a lot faster and easier if your body is well-suited to build muscle.
 
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