Can Skinny Guys Get Muscles?
If you are skinny, have been skinny all your life and never seem to put on any weight then you may wonder can skinny guys get muscles at all. While there is a certain fashion for skinny guys most who actually are slim will tell you that they do not like the way they look and they do not like being weak. To be brutally honest most women will also tell you that men who are well built are more attractive which is understandable as this is what women are typically biologically attracted to. Men with muscles look stronger and more capable at least in that old style caveman sense which dominates a lot of our senses when we look at others for attractiveness and compatibility.
In any case, being too skinny can be no fun. The unfortunate thing is that most also think that they will be this way forever as their attempts at the gym give no great results after weeks of effort. This however is not the end because skinny guys CAN get serious muscle growth once they realize they need to approach things a little differently.
Metabolism
This is the big difference between you and other guys out there trying to build muscle mass. As a skinny guy and what the bodybuilding industry terms “Hardgainers” you have a very fast or high metabolism which is once of the factors that stops muscle growth as well as gaining fat.
A quick definition of metabolism:
Metabolism is the chemical processes occurring within a living cell or organism that are necessary for the maintenance of life. In metabolism some substances are broken down to yield energy for vital processes while other substances, necessary for life, are synthesized.
So what this means when you have a high metabolism is that the process that breaks down food into energy happens at such a fast rate that a lot of this excess energy is wasted which means there is nothing left that gets stored as fat cells but tragically nothing left to use to repair and build muscle. This is why guys who have trouble with losing weight often make excellent body builders, just look at the Olympic power lifters for proof.
What this means for you is that your eating habits must change drastically if you are to achieve skinny to muscle growth. The major change should simply be the amount you eat, your body used to a certain amount of food but that food is burned up too quickly so you must intake MORE food than before so that your metabolism cannot churn through it fast enough. Having enough energy left to repair and build muscles is essential during the rest and recovery period and what and how much you eat is a core part of this.
Workouts
Another issue when considering can skinny guys get muscles is how you do your workouts. While lifting weights is what you need to do if you hit the gym and do not have a plan then your efforts are often wasted by not being efficient in your weight lifting exercises. This is often compounded by what the mainstream bodybuilding magazines may tell you. One annoying routine I keep hearing is working on one muscle group each day for hours on end, this is ridiculous!
A quick note on how muscles grow:
Without going into too much detail, it is important to note just how muscle development is gained. The overall principle is quite simple considering its complex structure. When you exercise, for example as you lift weights, perform aerobics etc, you will break down muscle tissue in the body. The more you exercise the more tissue will be broken down. When you stop your activities, nature will attempt to rebuild the broken layers of tissue, but a little stronger than last time so the tissue doesn’t break as easily. Over a period of continuous destroying and rebuilding, your muscle will grow and adapt to the strain you put on it. The skin will stretch and your body will gain size and strength.
What this means is that light weights are not going to stress your muscles much so you should concentrate on heavy weights. What this also means is that continually punishing one muscle group is a waste of time because once you have pushed it to its limit once you can do no more for that muscle … it is in need of rest and repair.
Recovery
The next core aspect of going from skinny to muscle is rest and recovery. This is one part of body building that is sorely neglected in favor of supplements, workout routines and diet which are important but are not everything. The simple fact is that your muscles only grow when you rest because when you rest your body uses the energy from food to repair the muscles which then heals and creates more muscle to become stronger in the face of stress.
What this also means is that you should not over-train. If you hit the gym too often and do not give yourself the time to recover and grow your muscles you waste your workout time exercising muscles that have not achieved the best growth and you start from square one again.
So can skinny guys get muscles? The answer is a resounding YES as long as you educate yourself on how to build muscles for your body type.
Vince is now a professional model and fitness coach respected worldwide. Vince Delmonte has released this fully downloadable guide on how you can get the body you want without supplements or steroids which i greatly respect. This is your best best chance to go from skinny to muscle fast instead of wasting time and money on supplements and ineffective workouts. Click here To Visit The Official No-Nonsense Muscle Building Site
Do You Want a Complete Guide to Building Muscle?
James McLain here, the owner of this site. I know building muscle is hard work when you are a skinny hardgainer and continually punishing yourself at the gym for no gains is demoralizing. If this is your experience too then I highly recommend you check out the complete bible for skinny guys to gain muscle - the No-Nonsense Muscle Building guide by Vince Delmonte.
Vince was once a hardgainer. A skinny runt who thought he could never gain the physique he craved but discovered the secrets of skinny bodybuilding and went from 149 pounds to 190 pounds of rock solid muscle in less than 6 months!
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@Lance
Hey Man,
That workout looks fine. Do not worry about following it exactly, try to find similar exercises that target similar muscle groups to change it up. In fact, change a few things around to find what feels best for you.
Your diet does sound like it is in need of an overhaul though. Eggs are good and rice gives energy but you might need to add in more lean meat and vegetables. I would also ditch the coffee if you are having too much of it. Too much bread is not going to help that much either – your body needs a mix of nutrients especially protein for muscle development.
@James McLain
Thanks you!!!..
I started to eat more the past 2 weeks. I already see changes with my arms and chest but I still don’t see any development with my abs and I still have a belly. I only see my abs when I hold my breath and you can barely see it too.
@Lance
Hey man,
Do not worry too much about a bit of fat. When you are bulking up it is bound to happen. Once you reach teh muscle mass you are happy with it is easy to cut down your food intake and slim down to lose the fat and show the muscles even more ok.
So I weigh about 130-135 and im 5’8 I have been 130-40 for about 6-7 years. I am pretty skinny and would like to know any good workouts to start on. I eat a lot of carbs, and some protien, but i usually skip breakfast. I dont have access to a gym but I might be able to buy a home gym and use wieghts on that.
Hey! My Name Is Faaz!
Does Bulk Mass Gain actually help? Does it have any chance of effecting me in the future?
Thank you!
@Matt
Hi Matt,
Skipping breakfast is a bad idea. You need to be eating all the time man. 4-5 meals a day not the usual 3, or on your case 2. You are not getting enough energy for your body to grow. Start eating breakfast. Workout AFTER breakfast also not before.
You can do workouts at home, but you need weights, you need to be able to add weight as you workout so you progressively end up lifting heavier and heavier – and in turn proving you are getting stronger and stronger. Lifting the same weight over and over is why people plateau and do not get more gains. Invest in home weights, or join a gym is my advice
@Faaz Gambit
Hi Faaz,
Forget the mass gain stuff, good working out and eating properly will do MUCH more for you.
Hi james do you recommend raw eggs drinking loads of milk, how big should each 5-6 meals portions should be? And what time frame would be best to eat those meals plus do you recommend boxing,ruby ect when trying to build mass. Plus also water is key to building muscle as with food factor intake ? Cheers for reading
Hi,
I am 6 feet tall and weigh 150 and I want to gain muscle and I have been looking around for the best possible solution. I saw the Vince Delmonte No Nonsense Muscle Building package and it seems good, what do you think of it? I want a plan or workout schedule that will get me started in the right direction and I am considering using the No Nonsense program. My first question was regarding that program but second, do you suggest taking protein shakes or should I just focus on a better diet and eating 5 to 6 times a day? Last, how often should I be running, everyday or a couple times a week because I want to stay in shape and gain muscle at the same time? Thanks.
@justin
Hi Justin,
Your portions for each meal should be considerable. Not as big as a big breakfast or dinner, but it should not be a snack either.
Each should be a moderate meal. I cannot give you an exact calorie amount because that will differ from person to person. If you are doing it right you should feel pretty full all day because you are not snacking but filling up every few hours. This feels really weird – but if you are working out right and working out HARD then this food goes a long way to help build muscle.
Eggs are good, milk is ok – but you should not just guzzle that all the time. Lean meat, nuts, and vegetables of all sorts as well. Water is VERY important too. Keep hydrated and will help with all parts of your health as well as your bodybuilding.
Sport is ok too if you are working your muscles – but sometimes you can just end up using a lot of energy on the field doing endurance training more than muscle mass training, so be aware of that.
@Shawn
Hi Shawn,
I am a big believer in Vince’s work with the No-Nonsense Muscle Building Guide. There is no miracle training regime anywhere, but Vince’s guide is SOLID which is exactly what skinny hardgainers need so I endorse it on this site.
As for supplements and so forth. I am not a big believer in them unless you are really not getting enough protein from your food. I think a good diet and workout regime does not need those things for the most part – especially if you are beginning.
As for running and staying lean while bodybuilding. Ditch that idea man. You cannot lose weight and stay cut while building big muscles. You will be working at cross purposes. All the professionals bulk up and have a big of fat while they get bigger muscles and THEN go on a cutting regime to lose the fat. Trying to do both will usually just frustrate you or destroy the work of each other.
Imagine you do a great workout and eat well – then the next day go hardcore cardio. Your body ramps up your metabolism due to this plus all the energy lost doing cardio. Yoru body will not have enough energy left to build muscles making you feel tired and run down without gaining any muscle.
Hey,
My name is Brandon and im a senior in high school. Im 6ft tall, weigh 150lbs, and have only 9% body fat. I have been working out for two years and im not very big. I do 3 full body workouts a week(mon, wed, fri) and the other two days I do sprints (tue, thur). I have been working out like this for two months. I can’t seem to get any stronger and i was wondering if you could help.
Hey I’m skinny as he’ll 5,7 125ibs. I just become a member at a 24 hour fitness, so I plan to eat four meals a day and workout Tues,Thurs an Sat. So I can gain weight and build a nice body haha. I have one question, would you say I should cut out swimming on off days? Feel like it won’t help gain weight right?
Hi i’m 16 and only 5’4.75″ and I weigh only 110 ibs. I’d been working out for months and I seem to get a little muscle and a little ab showing. I also increased my food intake. Then I just didn’t seem to think it was working, then I gave up. Now I want to start again, but is there anything I could do differently this time that I was doing wrong last time. I have little weightlifting equipment and mainly do push-ups and sit-ups. My main workouts last time were just push-ups and sit-ups and constant weightlifting with these two 5 pound weights.
@Brandon
Hi Brandon,
The sprints might be burning a lot of energy you could be using for bodybuilding. I would cut down on that and exclusively work on your weight lifting for best results and use those in between days as rest days to let your body recover and grow.
How much you eat is probably the other part of the puzzle. You need to really cram a lot of food in to make sure he body has enough energy to build muscle as your super fast metabolism is burning through the calories so fast it leaves very little left unless you eat big.
@Benny G
Hi Benny,
Swimming is great exercise, but you have it right – you need to minimise that while you are bulking up as it leaves you precious little time for the body to repair and gorw the muscles because you keep stressing them with the swimming.
@Cameron
Hi Cameron,
Muscle grown when you stress them with heavy weights. Heavy enough that you can only do 8-12 reps a set before you cannot push any further.
With push ups and small weights you will not be giving the muscles the motivation they need to change. I would invest in a gym membership, or a better set of weights for the home or you will never get bigger basically.
@ james
Hi
I’,m 5’8″ and 145 Lbs, about 2 months back i was 125 Lbs, and going thru weight training.
Work out for 3/4 days in a week. I’ m still looking as i was 2 months back, despite the fact i have added 20 lbs. There is no change in my body, still skinny. Can you tell me what is going wrong in my case. And what should i do to gain muscles.
@Pratik
Hey man,
If you have gained 20 pounds then you must have made some difference!
If you have put on fat then it might be you are eating too much and not workout out with enough intensity. If you are still looking skinny you might have bulked up all over a little bit adding muscle mass evenly distributed so it does not show as much.
Keep at it man, you are gaining weight, it will show more dramatically soon ok. Never give up!
Thanks James for reply,
One more thing according to BMI my weight is now ok according to my height, will it be ok if it gets further increased, without much fat on body ?
@pratik
Hi Pratik,
Forget the BMI, it is a helpful indicator but is very flawed essepcially when you get out of the average body type and into extreme types such as ectomorphs (skinny guys) and endomorphs (stocky guys).
Concentrate on your strength and build that as prime importance.
Hello James. I am 18, 5’10″ and weigh roughly 150lbs. I have never worked out on my own but have a descent body due to sports. I eat roughly 3 full meals a day and 2 protein shakes which does fill me up. I read that I need to be getting 1g of protein per pound of body weight and I am fulfilling that. I live with my dad and he has a bowflex which has 310 lbs of resistance. I go to college in about 8 months and was wondering if it is possible to gain 15-20 lbs of muscle in that amount of time if I work out 3-5 times a week, with heavy resistance, low reps.
@Kyle
Hi Kyle,
To put it simply, yes – it is achievable to gain an extra 15-20 pounds of muscle in 8 weeks if you do all the right things. Totally possible.
However you will need to be dedicated and stick to the plan – but you seem to have the basics down. Just remember to work on increasing your strength over time as well as eating what you need and continually challenging your muscles and you will see gains.
Hey James,
I’m 6 ft, 16 years of age and about 140 pounds. I’m quite skinny and have tried working out before to gain muscle but to no avail. I am a keen rock climber but all that has done for me, is give me big forearms. I was wondering if you could suggest a scheduled plan, of how to work out my entire upper body and what i should eat in order to gain that muscle.
Thanks,
Theo M.
@Theo
Hi Theo,
Hard to provide something so detailed for you, I would recommend getting the no-nonsense muscle building guide if you want a real step by step approach to bodybuilding. This site is not setup for anything more than general information but I will give what advice I can.
I can say that you should not just focus on upper body. Make sure you exercise the whole body as it is better for overall toning, and for the release of more growth hormones in general.
Check out my article on bodybuilding nutrition here which will give you some help, but basically you will need to eat a lot if you are working out right which involves heavier weights. Rock climbing has not challenged your muscles because your own bodyweight is too light – you have plateaued and need to hit many more muscle groups with enough weight to break down the muscles so the body builds them up stronger and bigger.
Hi, I am 20 and 6’3″ 165lbs. I am a very thin guy and, its my fault I havent really put any work in the gym in a few years. I want to get back into it. I have read some of your advice and it all sounds great. I plan on working out at my college rec center before my classes 4 days a week. I am planning on doing upper body mon. and wed. and lower body tues. and thurs. How does this schedule sound to you? My main target area is my chest and arms. But manly chest. What exericse do you consider me doing to, my chest looks like a 10 year olds lol. I now understand my diet is essential. Only problem is I am kind of a picky either so its hard to eat healthy. Can you please give me specific foods you would consider me eating. Please and thank you!!
Hi, I am 17, 5’10, and 125 lbs. I work out but do not see results and I know it’s because of my diet. I just don’t eat a lot and can’t find the time or appetite to put down what I’m doing for food. Am I doomed to be skinny?
@Ben
Hi Ben,
I prefer to do total body workouts each session, but other people do split and some do OK – but i prefer to work the whole body each time. I might have a focus more on particular areas each session, but the more muscles you recruit in your workout – especially each exercise – the more growth hormone is often released helping your entire effort.
Also – you are working out 4 days in a row which is not going to give your muscles and nervous system much time to recover. I would split your workout into 3 larger ones that incorporate more variety of exercises. Make sure to have a day in-between each session also.
Check out my article on Chest Exercises for more info on that.
In terms of diet, kinda hard to help as I don’t know what you mean by picky. You need calories, you need protein, and you need a decent variety of fresh foods including fruits and vegetables as well as meats and grains so you can’t be too picky – you need to pick what you need and like from this core idea.
@Jack
Hi Jack,
No one is ever doomed unless they make themselves doomed. You CAN eat more, but you need to train yourself basically.
The simple fact is that if you workout right, get the right amount of rest, and even get good nutrition but do not have enough calories or protein – you will not be able to build a lot of muscle. Some yes, a lot, no.
Most hard gainers are under-eaters – heck I was one too. It is best to concentrate on calorie dense foods. Ones that give you a lot of energy but do not fill your stomach up sheer volume.
Hi sir,
at first i was a little sceptical about this site because you always see sites with amazing stuff and such and u think u get tips and all what not, and it almost immediatly tells you to buy there book or some other crappy item, but i read the comments and responses and the article itself, and im really enthousiastic, im almost 16 years old about 1,70 meter(s) tall and weigh around 49 Kilograms, when i tell people i know my weight they ask if i got manorexia, it bothers me being skinny, and i know you say food is the solution, but i got a hard time eating usually, i get stuffed easily and don’t like the feeling that i’m about to throw up, i’m not on any sports but i try to workout, i got a dumbbell of 10,5 kilograms and a pull-up bar, if you could give any tips on how to eat or what to do and not do it would be really great, because i try but i still stay skinny, i want a V body and so because i would feel more confident too if i just bulked up and most boys out of my class got rather broad shoulders and weigh around the 60 Kilograms some 70 so please PLEASE help me!
I’m sorry, but i would like to add another note, i would want to join a rugby team but the size of those guys… O_O and if i were to dare enter a rugby field with 49 Kg -_- i would be thrashed and thrown away, so the bulkier the better i guess
again, thanks in advance.
And one more thing, i hardly eat fruit so :S yea kinda stupid i know, not even once a day usually not even once a week but i’ll hear from you i hope, thanks in advance.
@Michael
Hi Michael,
Thanks for the positive comments and I am glad you are enthused because a better body is not out of your grasp ok. Yea, the eating can be hard but it is an essential part of building muscle – however you overfill yourself without doing a proper workout you will not have the hunger for your meals anyway so combine that with your workouts and it will help.
Try to eat calorie dense foods also which take up less space in your stomach but have a lot of energy – and also eat 4-5 time a day not the usual 3. This might seem harder but you split your meals into more manageable ones anyway so it is easier for some skinny guys. Check my article on hard gainer dieting also.
As for rugby, it will certainly help you build muscle but yea you might get hurt to start with. Maybe ask to train with them as a winger or something – hell just be on the bench but be a part of the team and you will get something out of the training at least so go for it.
As for fruit – well that’s not too bad – vegetables are more important to be honest but a balanced diet should include them as well. Try to find at least one fruit you like maybe
Hey what’s up? So I am 5’11 150lbs and about 3.8% body fat last time I checked. I race triathlons at an elite level and have recently picked up ultramarathons and mountain running. I have my first 100 mile run pretty soon. I’d like to gain about 15 pounds so I can be a bit bulkier while still competing in these high endurance sports. My dad is 5’9 and about 128 pounds so obviously being skinny is in my genes. I currently bench press about 135-150 for reps during workouts and my recent max was 205. I can also do about 29 pull ups as well and I do have an 8 pack. I am by no means weak, in fact I’m stronger than most guys who weigh more than me but still in the 170ish weight range. I’m just trying to gain 15 or so pounds so I can be a good size. Oh and I actually smoke weed almost everyday after my training sessions and right before meals so I stimulate my appetite. It does help with training beca use it helps achieve deeper sleep cycles. Also my 10k time has still decreased to a 32:50 even with the smoking (only weed, no tobacco) and my mile time has gone down to a 4:23 in the past year. I feel like I’m doing everything right but I just can’t seem to gain much more than 5 pounds or so. Help?
Thanks guys.
@Joe
Hi Joe,
Simple answer man – you are doing endurance sports. Endurance sports require very different things from your body than strength based sports.
Look at a sprinter compared to a marathon runner in the olympics – the marathon runner is going to be skin and bone but can run forever and a day – the sprinter is going to look muscular as heck because he has trained to release bursts of powerful speed that require muscle power and mass.
If you want to gain weight you are going to find it very hard while doing endurance sports.
Hi , I have had gastric bypass 4 years ago and since can not gain muscle.. dont lift weights that much which is a part of it. But I want to be big but dont have the motivation or strength to reach it.. seems just like a dream. whats a good motavation getter to get my lazy ass to the gym and lift. I just feel i might be the pu$$y at the gym thats not lifting what everyone else lifts.. thanks joe smalls
@James McLain Thank you for the response, i will try to follow up your advice, and i’m gonna check out your article about the Dieting now, so thanks again
Hey James. Cheers for publishing this article, was very helpful.
Im 18, 6ft and weighing around 11stone and really slim. I am quite conscious about my body as a lot of my friends are a lot bigger than me. I’ve been going to the gym a few times, yet i’v done the mistake which i read on this article of not doing heavier weights. What’s a good starting point if i want to gain muscle fast… im off on holiday with the lads in 6 months and don’t want to be conscious of my body when im there. Cheers
Hey James. I’m 6″ 2′ very skinny 65kg 14.5 years old (been through puberty) and a very keen bodybuilder. Unfortunately I’m not having big success I have only put on 5 kg in a couple years. I feel like other boys are developing quicker. Could this be a problem of stunted growth or diet. I know some boys who are strong because they drink a lot of milk. Please could you help? Thanks
@Joe
Hi Joe,
Motivation is actually the key point to really changing your body, or your life in general. It is also the most personal and variable thing to advise on compared to the same science for muscle growth everyone can learn.
If he major problem is worrying about what you look like when you are there – that is something you just have to get over. Everyone one of those guys started small and worked their way up – faster or slow it doesn’t matter.
Jerks will be jerks, but most do not care and will actually give you heaps of respect if you keep coming back and working on it – dedication is something bodybuilders understand and give props for.
Best thing to do it have a narrow focus of just yourself, your weights and that’s it. Don’t look at anyone, plug in your earphones and get focused on just one thing – increasing your strength each time you are there and measuring progress.
@Dan
Hi Dan,
A really good starting point is getting your body fit for the kinds of weight lifting required to pack on some serious pounds. I recommend a free course Vince Delmonte provides called Upside Down Training or something similar.
This guide gets you prepped for bodybuilding and you will probably put on some initial muscle with it as well. Worth looking into and it is free:
Upside Down Training
@Raul
Hi Raul,
It could be a range of things that are holding you back. Your diet, your workout techniques, recovery process and so forth. If you have a high metabolism you need to work a lot harder and be more consistent than some other guys more naturally apt to gaining muscle easily. If you copy their techniques you might not be doing your own body any favours.
Have a look at this bodybuilding checklist for skinny guys to start with.
Hey James, this is a great site you’ve got here. I’m really glad I can across it. At the moment I have 17% bf 6ft and 150lbs. I’ve been working out 5 days a week, one day cardio, one day full body, and the rest are different muscle groups. I want to pack on some muscle cause I’m a pretty skinny guy. But what’s more important to me is getting my abs visible by may. Do you think I have enough time to build up my muscle and then lose the fat I’ve acquired in time?
@Armani
Sounds like you are trying to do too much man. 5 Days a week is not giving your body much time to recover and grow. Best practice is to bulk up, then cut down the fat to show the abs. Trying to do both can sabotage one or the other.
Hey James my name is Anthony. Im a 17 year old who has been skinny his whole life and cant seem to gain weight. I eat alot but cant gain weight. In that case I hope to gain muscle throughout my body so my skiny body does not show. What is the best way to do this. I can really only do 10 push ups a set. Yeah its that bad. I need to get stronger and need a solution. Thank you?
@Anthony Soulikas
Hey man,
We all need to start somewhere. You are not going to be able to get buff by starting where you want to be, you need to push your body to its limits where it is now – then build on that.
I think you would benefit from using the upside down training guide which is designed for people like you at the very beginning of bodybuilding. It will get you in shape for the main course basically and is free
@Brett
Don’t mess asround with the workouts that bodybuilders do. If won’t work for you. Concentrate on compound movements. Back squat, Deadlift, Military press, and the Bench press. If you want strength and size, learn to love to squat. Don’t waste your time with isolation exercises like cable crossovers, tricep pressdowns or any other crap like that. Do a lot of pullups, do them erery second day. When doing legs, use high reps, with heavy to moderate weight. Do six sets of squats with 10-12 reps, past parallel(or you are wasting time). Then do 2 sets on the leg press 30 reps each set. Do this 2 times a week, and you will get results. Stop doing cardio, and get into anarobic activities( short track sprinting, stadium stairs) that will build some power.
Good luck with your progress!!!
@James McLain
ive been a very skinny person ever since i can remember, im about 6 foot now and i differ from 120 to 130 in weight everytime i check. i was always pretty strong for a skinny guy, i could usually lift about 20 to 30 pounds over my own weight since i was younger. (im 19 now). im an avid skateboarder and i have been since i was 7, i know im probably burning more than im taking in by skating. i havent worked out in a while but id like to know some routines you could suggest for me because i used to work out with my friends a lot, i never saw muscle growth but i would get stronger and increase my ability to lift more weight. and also, id like to increase my wrist size because theyve always been very small and its something that always bothered me and brought me down, is there anything i can do to change this? thank you
@nick
Hi Nick,
If you saw an increase in strength but no noticeable mass gain then you might have been hitting just one of the types of muscle fibres in your body. I want to make clear you mean you could lift heavier weights, not lift weights more times – in that case you were lifting the wrong way for endurance not mass or strength.
I would make sure you are also eating enough food to take advantage of those workouts. Your body quickly burns through calories so needs to be fuelled.
Wrists have been my bane too, I have been trying this exercise for a while and getting some results though:
Lever Lifts
Hey James, I have type 2 diabetes, n I’m 6’ n weigh 155 lbs, I have always had a high metabolism, but is it healthy for me to gain more weight or will that cause problems w my diabetes? I eat atleast 6 meals a day, n workout 4-5 times a week, usually doing 2 seperate muscle groups in each workout, is there something else I should/shouldn’t do that would help me better in achieving my goal weight of 185-195 lbs, and is that safe/healthy for me to achieve?
Thanks,
Joseph
Im super skinny but web I workout or at least try I’m so sore for days and I can’t even try to workout again. So Its like no point.
@Joseph
Hi Joseph,
I am not an expert on diabetes so I hesitate to give any concrete advice here. Instead check this link out and see if it might help you. Best of luck!
Bodybuilding with Diabetes
@Chris
Hi Chris,
To start with you are going to hurt yes as you body is not used to it. This will fade though and your pains will last less time as you go on so its just a beginner phase.
Also you need a day or two off between intense workouts anyway to have enough recovery time to build your muscles.
Lastly, you can reduce soreness by increasing protein intake on those days which can help the body build muscle and lessen the pain you are feeling. Hope that helps!
Hey I am 6″1″ I live on a farm and am very active I am 17 but I weigh only 135 I have a 6 pack and already eat like a pig but my entire body is pretty cut but I can’t bulk up at all I eat probably 3 pounds a day all I wanna do is bulk up and keep my muscle tone any tips?
@Donovan
Hi Donovan,
Working on a farm is tough work but it might not be the right kind of workouts to gain a lot of muscle. If you are doing a lot of cardio and repetitive lifting you will be working your endurance but not your power of strength.
Muscle mass comes from training for power and strength which involves heavier weights to really stress your muscles. If you are burning a lot of energy at work though you will need to pack in a lot of food during the day to do this and also get some heavier weights to help with muscle growth.
About two months ago I went in the gym to perform seated DB shoulder presses and the entire outside of my shoulders were hurting extremely bad. I had been lifting heavy up until then and was gaining muscle constantly. Since then I can barely do sets with 25lbs (was at 70 lbs). Any advise as to what exercise I can do to gain muscle or go heavier? I also cannot bench. I went from 270 to 135. I have too much pain in my bicep tendon and outside of my shoulder. My Dr. says stop lifting all together and the chiropractor says I am knotted up. Any advise?
@dsammyb
Hey man,
I hesitate to give any advice when your doctor is going to know better than me how much damage you have done to yourself. A lot of injuries you can recover from but you are going to need to be fit before you can hit the weights hard that’s for sure.
You might need to seek physiotherapy and spend some time healing up that injury because I don’t want you to hit the gym too early and cause even more damage man – health first ok.
Hi James, i tried posting earlier but cannot see it. So im sorry if it does post twice.
I’m 17 years old, 6ft 4, and about 133 pounds.
I have no real muscle in my arms, shoulders, legs and stomach so i got a lot to work on.
I used to be playing sports all the time until 2 years ago, i was always skinny then but a lot smaller the height piled on later in 2010. Now, 2 years on im lazy and eat lots and lots of junk food and gain nothing! I’m not 100% sure on what i should be eating throughout the day so if you have any information on that, that would be great. I’ve never been to gym but i am planning to go regular in the next two months.
I’m also bored of junk food i know its not good for my health when im sat around been lazy all the time. I just cant understand how im so skinny considering how much i eat. Junk food doesnt make me feel good either which is understandable.
If theres any good exercises that i could do in my home without much trouble and see results please let me know and also how much time per exercise.
I probably missed other important questions but this is all i can think of so anything else added would be great! thank you
@dave
Hey man,
To get bigger muscles you really need to hit the gym or get some weights, but if you are starting you can get some quick results with body weight exercises and also get your body ready for heavier weights – but you will plateau quickly and will need to move on after a bit.
Download the upside down training guide if you like, tis free and gives you a heap of less gym intensive exercises to do.
Hi, im 5’11… 6’0 on a good day… im not skinny i actually need to lose 15 to 20 lbs.. but i want to get bigger than i am but in a good way obviously… should i focus on losing the weight first by doing lots of cardio or should i try to get bigger then lose the weight.
My workout plan looks like this…
( i try to do as heavy as i think i can go and successfully push out the reps)
bench press 3 sets 8 reps
Dumbell curls 3 sets 8 reps
Dumbell shoulder press 3 sets 10 reps
leg press 3 sets 15 reps
Lat pull downs 3 sets 10 reps
tricep extensions 3 sets 10 reps
chest flies 3 sets 10 reps
squats 3 sets 8 reps
do you like this plan and do you think it will work out for me?
@Brant
Hey man,
I would build muscle first because that can often lead to fat loss anyway as the body diverts energy and pulls it form fat to build muscle. If you get to the muscle you like then it is easier to tone down after that.
Hello James, nice article, but I have some questions.
I’m 22, about 177 cm, and 60 kilos. Pretty skinny, to say. However, there is one more thing – I have a slight dextroconvex thoracolumbal scoliosis, and because of that my ribcage is somewhat “curved in” backwards towards the spine (instead of normal, “flat” chest in other skinny people). Because of that, my chest muscles are practically non-existent.
I visited a doctor, and he said that the scoliosis will not develop anymore, that it came to a full stop – and that none of the internal organs are affected by it. He also said it could be purely genetical, but he never told me if it can be fixed, just mentioned me to “fill that chest hole” with some muscles by excercising.
My goal is, if possible, to fill that hole with some muscles somehow. What is the best way to do it? I’ve also checked the calorie intake calculator, and it said I should take approx. 2700 cal. per day to gain at least 80 kilos – perhaps I should eat more?
I’m primarily worried about that damn scoliosis, and whether it will affect thw grow of muscles.
Hey Thomas,
I don’t know much about this condition but if it has stopped effecting you then you should be able to build some muscle, you might not look like other guys but it should normalise the chest a bit. Your chest muscle might have been damaged or changes somewhat but exercising the chest should still produce results along with the rest of your body.
Eating enough is going to be a challenge and something that most skinny guys struggle with because you need a lot more energy to build muscle. 2700 a day or more is probably what you will need yet but you need to also work out the right way too.
hey, my name is will, 30, i weigh roughly 120 lbs and am 6’3. i am planning to join a gym shortly, and don’t want to go into this without having a plan ready. here’s the thing, they say proccessed foods is bad, so canned goods are off limits? what about frozen veggies. i have never ate raw vegetables, never liked them. i don’t know how i can go around eating those, unless i use a power shake where i mix it with fruits in a blender or something. i also am on a spending budget with food, i could probably only afford $120 on food per month and $70 is ebt. i would have to look into sales and all for foods i guess but what do i buy? i know eggs, cereals, sausages may be ideal for the most part on breakfast. lean meats also. rices, pasta, fruits, yogurts, i may have to use a protein powder also. and i don’t want to take supplements but i may have to like, fish oil caps idk. please help, i live in central florida and spring break is around the corner. i want to go after those young hot college girls.
@william
Hi William,
Processed and packaged are not always the same thing. Frozen vegies are actually suppose to be pretty good as they have not had much change nutrition wise – though I would suggest trying to wean yourself onto some raw vegetables as well.
Packaged foods that have gone through some sort of processing are not the best though and are often stripped of vital nutrients and have a lot more sugar, salt, and preservatives added – this is not helpful.
Your list of foods there look pretty good though so i think you are on the right track, but a little more variety is very helpful. The main point is how MUCH you eat and how OFTEN you eat to keep your body fuelled for muscle growth at all times. A bit of protein powder can be helpful and i am glad you are not using supplements … you need all the nutrients from a wide ranging diet for muscle growth and general health.
I think you have done your research – now put it in a plan and make sure you heave the right intensity and give your body time to rest between workouts too.
Good luck with the girls!
Hi James,
I am an 18 year old Asian standing 5 foot 5 inches, weighing 110 pounds. I am the smallest in size among my same age friends. I have problems eating a lot and will feel like puking once I am too full. The skinniest part is my wrist, it is barely skin and bone only. And the size of my bone is small compared to the others of my age and having difficulties finding a watch to wear. Can I just do stationary workout at home without hitting the gym? For example, push-up, sit-up, squats, etc. Thank you.
@Nick
Hi Nick,
Body weight workouts will be ok for a short period, but once you can easily perform them with lots of reps your muscles are not longer challenged and will not grow. Eventually you will need to move on to using weights – but as a beginner it is always the best place to just start. Push ups, Dips, Chin ups, Squats, Lunges – all good to start with.
Food is probably your biggest issues, try reducing your food intake for each meal – but have like 5-6 meals a day instead. This way you do not feel bloated after a meal but you will feel kinda full all day – but your body always has some energy to spend on building muscle too.
Try this tactic with 3-4 days where you have an intense home workout session and see if you see some gains ok
Hey James ,
I’m really surprised that you’ve been helping people for two years on this site . That’s impressive . Normally people just use these articles as advertisements to get people to buy pills or something .
Anyways im 5’7 and 15 years old weighing 120lbs . Fairly skinny. My legs are normal tho , and i have a fiarly good 6/8 pack . Problem is upper body (mainly chest and bicep) , but while reading through , you said to do the entire body , not only one portion . Would i still be fine if i didnt bother doing legs (i run a lot during the summer) . Also , is there anyways to get more meat on my chest ? It’s pretty flat /: unlike most people my age .
Thanks !
@Eric
Hi Eric,
I try to help people and love hearing success stories not just flogging product for the sake of it – I didn’t even realise it had been 2 years now actually thanks for letting me know!
In regard to all body Vs parts of the body exercises. There is an advantage I believe in training your whole body. The more muscle groups you recruit in a session the more growth hormone is released. (less rest time between sets is also good for this). This will help overall muscle growth and weight gain. It also means you will be more proportional.
However, often you will want to work a particular area more and that is fine, just make sure not to neglect the other parts of the body in the same session. Just put a bit more emphasis each session on arms, or chest, or legs etc.
I would say though to do squats, great exercise for your legs and core, and will help overall muscle growth too.
Check my article on chest muscle growth also for more help.
Hey James ,
thanks for your reply . I have one more question tho .
when i stand up , my two lower abs arent there , and it’s completely flat , leaving me with a six pack
but when i do crunches , and i look at my abs , those two lower abs are there , giving me an 8 pack . Do you have any idea why ?
ive been doing ab work for quite some time now so i dont think it has to do with training more ..
thanks .
I think im the skinny guy perfect storm. Very fast metabolism. i try an eat alot, and consume whey protien/supplements not only to build muscle, but simply to supplement my calorie/fat/proteine intake. I excercise regularly using basicly improvised P90x exercices, pickin an choosing specific videos/exercises – not followin the set “plan”. I put in extreme effort, at my peak durin the “chest” video i was doin a total ofa bout 300 pushups, starting with sets of 40-30 an diminishin as i went till i couldnt get off the floor. My job is also a problem, as a stone mason i think there are days where i literaly burn 4000+ calories. Cant seem to gain much weight, while mt strngth has really skyrocketed , any tips?
@Eric
Hi Eric,
I am not entirely sure what you mean. If you mean after you do some crunches you can see some extra muscle on your abs it might be that the blood has travelled to the muscles being worked making them swell up for a time. As they cool and the blood flow returns to normal they might not be as visible.
If you mean as you straighten your back they go away and as you crunch up they appear, this might simply be the movement of the muscles and skin and how they position when your body moves.
In the end, do not worry about it, workout for fitness and strength because your genetics plays more of a part in how you ‘look’ when you are ripped or muscled.
@Chris
Hi Chris,
A high intensity job can be hard as you can only continue to eat as big as you can to make up for all that energy loss. I presume you have looked at my article about eating 5-6 times a day not the regular 3? In any case, the only other area I can see that might be problematic is that you talk about doing LOTS of push ups which is admirable but you might be training the wrong kind of muscle fibres for muscle growth.
High reps target a muscle fibre that is linked to muscular endurance, something you need working in your industry i suspect which is good. But muscle mass is linked to other muscle fibres that work on raw POWER. Higher weights with less reps (less because you simply cannot do more reps in a set due to exhaustion mind you) target these other muscle fibres for strength and power which will lead to an increase in mass. IT will also allow you to lift bigger weights easier.
James – thanks for the input. My woman hates cookin lol – sounds like my best bet is literally jus eat alot more, an while i dont goto a gym, ill work on no rests inbetween sets, or more confusion like throwin chest flys in between sets. The amount of food i can eat at work is a challenge as i cant really get “full” becuase I really have to move, and as my employers arent really the nicest of people i dont think theyd allow for additional breaks to eat smaller amounts more frequently. I think the other problem is that at like 5′ 6” to 5′ 8” and 150 pounds and literally almost NO body fat i already do have a pretty good amount of well defined muscle and to go up from here is just goin to be harder than i thought. Ill keep ya posted on my gains. Lastly – do you know of an accurate way to come up with how many calories i burn in a day? Thanks for your time!
@Chris
Hey man,
How much you burn in a day is hard to calculate because of a number of factors. First is quantifying exactly how much energy is used in your activities and exercise, then there are things like how hot or cold you are during the day, and of course there is your metabolism which is different from person to person.
In any case, here is one that might give you an idea:
http://www.calculator.net/calorie-calculator.html
Maybe add some more calories onto the total if you feel you have a high metabolism.
I’m really skinny, and am 18 years old. I can see my abs, but they’re not defined.
I’m really athletic, but I’ve never been happy with my chest and arms. Both muscle groups seem to never want to grow no matter how much effort I put into it. I trained for 4 months last summer with a personal trainer and the only growth I saw was how much I could lift, but not my actual muscle size. I’m not looking to get REALLY big, but I’d like to gain a little size on my arms and have a chest that has a slight bulge, with definition on my muscles. I guess what I’m saying is I want to get cut?
@Nathan
Hi Nathan,
Working out for strength and for muscle size are similar but slightly different. I think you should always workout to gain strength, but in the process adjust your workouts to target different muscle groups, and different muscle fibres. You see, the fibres that control endurance, raw explosive power, and more steady strength are a bit different. When you hit the explosive power and steady strength fibres you will find the mass will begin to grow as well as your strength. Your trainer might have been hitting up only one aspect.
The other thing to consider is your food of course. You need to really eat a lot to fuel more muscle growth, if you were not eating enough you might have stopped your muscle growth potential.
Getting cut is the final stage after bulking up also, if you want a bit more size you will need to work hard for it – after that you can adjust your diet and exercise to burn away the fat and show off your muscles.
Hey James, I’m 6ft 130lbs. Sorry it’s so long, but hopefully you can answer my question better with more details. My friend and I have recently begun working out intensely in the gym (1-2 weeks so far). We’re both skinny but he’s a few months ahead of me in terms of strength, weight, etc. I have been consuming about 3000 calories a day, broken up into 5-6 meals with a Carnivor Beef Protein shake (2 servings) post workout, and the Carnivor Beef Mass Gainer shake (1 serving). I’m not eating as much fat as I normally do, but I have been focusing more on the healthy calories in meats, dairy, veggies, fruits, etc. I use a calorie counter app on my phone that tells me I’ve been consuming roughly 250g of protein each day, 175g of carbs, 72g of fat.
As for workouts, yesterday I did seated calf raises, squats, leg extensions, and lunges. For the calf raises, I did 14 sets of minimum 10reps each to failure. Started at 240lbs, which was my max a week before, went up to 320lbs. Finished off with a superset starting off at 320 down to 240 with each rep to failure with no rest. Held out for about 15 reps each. The squats were a simple 4 sets with 10,8,6,4 starting at the bar(45lbs) up to 15lbs additional weight. We were dead by the time we did leg extensions so a 4-set ladder goin up from 60lbs. We nearly collapsed on the 4 sets of 10rep lunges with 10lbs in each hand.
Today, we did benchpress, incline press, bicep curls, and hammer curls. For the benchpress, a 3-set ladder with 10,8,6reps (65lbs, 75lbs, 85lbs) with a superset going down from 95lbs with each rep to failure. [Note: Last week, I could only do 95lbs once without any workout beforehand] Kept decreasing 10lbs each set til I couldnt even lift the bar itself. Incline press was same thing cept my max was only 75lbs. Bicep curls and hammer curls were same concept except diff weight. B. curls were a superset starting from 25lbs down to 8lbs each arm. H. curls started with 20lbs excluding bar, and ended with bar itself.
So my question for you is, are we doing this right? I want to maximize my newbie gains, and I want my pain to count to the fullest potential. We only target a muscle section once a week with a 4-5 day split. What do I need to fix? I’m seeing impressive strength gains, but no weight increase. My biceps and calves grew by .5 inches the past week soo I don’t understand & I read the article on strength vs. hypertrophy training.
@Victor
This is Victor again, I made a slight miscalculation of the nutrient intake. 150-200g of protein, 150-250g of carbs, and 50-80g of fat. Yes I do keep a balanced diet with all the goodies, and absolutely NO junk food whatsoever. I’m in bulking up phase.
@Victor
Hey man,
Long comment but I will post a short reply. It sounds like you are doing pretty well from what I read. The only things I would add are that you should not be working out every day. You need time to rest and recover so your body can add that extra mass. You might also injure yourself if you push too hard so 3-4 times a week maximum ok …
Also, do not worry too much about weight gain – look to your strength gain and your physical appearance. If you see size increase then you are adding muscle. If you are losing some fat while building muscle for instance your weight might not look to change much.
Keep at it for a few more weeks and do not expect a huge increase straight up – it is an incremental thing to build muscle and gain wait. Keep at it, keep going hard and do not get discouraged. In a month or two you are going to be looking a light buffer I guarantee you ok man.
Hey, I am too skinny even i don’t like to wear T-shirts don’t like to get naked my arms. i feel so ashamed when i look at my self in mirror
My Stats
Age 21
weight 48kg
Height 5.11”
Waist 28
Take a look at my eating habits and lifestyle than tell me what to do
i was never healthy…at the movement i m perusing my Bs studies in Malaysia
i dont have some proper schedule of sleeping, studying, eating and so on…
some time i sleep 24 hours and some time awake 28 hours…
my life is just bound till my college 4 5 classes in a week
rest i spend my all time in my bedroom using internet, studying and chit chat with friends
Eating
in breakfast i mostly eat sweet chicken with rice and some salad
at night again rice but fried one…( both meal small size coz i dont feel much hunger)
and some times McD with coke or Pepsi
3rd problem is my Bad breath…and i think its belongs to my stomach.
4th problem i do masturbate almost every second day
and yeah my face and body color is very pale..i look like dead bodies and i oftenly feel pain in my shoulders and lower leg muscles and some times in lower back bone with very pale urine
(
i don’t want muscles like bodybuilders. i just want to gain normal looking muscles, 58 kg weight and pleasant look.
)
and thanks very much in advance
@Saqib
Hey Man,
Nearly everything you got going for you is wrong for building muscle I have to say.
You need to change your diet big time, no junk food, healthy foods with much more protein. If you do not feel hungry you need to force yourself to eat more. It sounds like you do not eat lunch either which is very bad. You need to keep your body fuelled through the day!
You need to just start moving and exercising too. Simple body weight exercises such as push ups and dips, just go jogging too for your health.
The worst thing if your sleeping though. You need regular sleep not sporadic sleep like you have. Really you need to look at your entire lifestyle more than just getting muscle man – you need to change everything. Your study is important but you are hurting your body with this sort of lifestyle.
Hey man, great site, really well done.
I’ve always been skinny and tall, but it was only recently I started trying to buff up a bit.
Anyways, I’m 15, I weigh 55 kg and I’m 5’9.
I skate a lot, and by that I mean everyday for a few hours, so my legs are pretty good. But other than that I’m pretty pittyful.
I have never been to a gym or really worked out. I have been watching what I eat but only recently. Turns out I need way more food than I thougt. So, any pointers would be appreciated.
@Ekat
Thanks Ekat!
To start with man you should begin with body weight exercises. Chin ups, push ups, lunges, dips etc. Combine this with more food you should see some early gains in your upper body and arms.
Once you hit a certain point though, this exercise will not build muscle as your body finds it too easy. After this you start needing weights to stress the muscles more – but I suggest you start working your upper body and eating more as you do it. If you are looking for moderate gains to start this is where to begin. Keep this up every day for a few weeks and see how you go.
After that it gets a little more tricky but the idea of progressive overload is something you will need to look into.
Hey James it’s Eric again
just wondering for ab workouts , does the “heavier weights less reps”rule still apply ? If it does , does that mean I shouldnt do normal crunches anymore , that I need to do them with heavy weights now ?
thanks .
@Eric
Hi Eric,
Heavier weights will tear the muscles you are targeting allowing them to heal and grow. This means if you want bigger more visible abs then this will help yes. However, if you want a more narrow midsection and larger pecs then you might not want to hit it too hard.
However, I think upping it on your abs is good because a strong core is very helpful in avoiding injury and keeping good form when weight lifting.
Also – strong guys have strong cores so I guess that says something.
Hello james,
im danish from Pakistan….
i have got a serious problem with my muscle formation
i am not a english man soo im sorry it would be difficult for me to explain u that well but i would certainly try to do so.
i have been going gym from last one and a half year.. im 5ft 8 inches tall and my weight is about 55 kgs
i have some serious sminny arms back chest and u can say .. im overall skinny
i have been trying hard as i can to make my body grow and for that i once i used weight gainer suppliment as well… i am lifting good weights tho but still i cannot see any progress in my body increase.. just i can say by going gym my body got a bit of a shape and muscles got hard and got some cuts.. nothing else.. arms size is the same.. its 11 chest same and everything… i dont know what to doo….. soo i wanted to get some serious tips and videos from u.. cuz i really trust that u can help me improve my body.. i really want something to have …. please do reply mee.. im really sad on my condition
@Danish
Hi Danish,
It is hard to pinpoint what might be the problem. You say you workout, but are you lifting in the right weight range? 8-12 reps max is a good estimate – more than that will not challenge the muscles to grow.
Are you eating enough? You could be lifting well but if you do not get enough calories and protein then you will not have the energy and nutrients to build muscle and all your effort will be wasted.
More info need to help sorry but look to your diet and your weight lifting habits ok man – good luck!
i am 5’6′, weight 62 KG, i have osteoporosis, age 40, i look like 28/29 but i have never put on weight in my life i remained same all my life but now when i realized my bones are getting weak i got worried, now can i do some exercises which can help me build muscle strength and improve bone health.
@Sumit Thukral
Hi Sumit,
I do not know much about osteoporosis but resistance training with weights is good the muscles AND your bones. Pressure on the bones through strength training adds to bone density and will help you with your condition I am sure. A diet of calcium AND with a lot of magnesium as well will also help from what little i do know of bones and your condition.
Hi James,
I am skinny and 29 and have actually never worked out in my life so this will be interesting to see if it all works..
My question is, to start on the right foot, is it better to work out in the morning or the evening?
Also, I’m a smoker. Apart from being very bad for me in general, will it hinder muscle development? Probably a stupid qustion but someone told me it would.
Cheers!
@Greggles
Hey man,
Congrats on the decision to start working out not just for building muscle, but also for your overall health!
First up – yes smoking is bad. It is bad in so many ways I cannot possibly put it all in here. You are sabotaging your health by smoking and your entire body functions worse including muscle building – but also your fitness in the gym to have a proper workout. The poisons form cigarettes are also draining your bodies energy as it fights them – yea – not good man – quit smoking ASAP.
As for the morning and evening argument – there is still a lot of debate about this but here are a few things to consider.
You really should eat a meal before you hit the gym, and give yourself some time after the meal to digest it a bit for energy. Exercising in the morning also burns mroe calories through the day.
So, I personally found it hard to get to the gym in the mornings after eating a meal as well. With work and study was too hard on the weekdays so I mainly did it in the evening or afternoon. However often I go mid morning on the weekends as i do like the feeling of being pumped up for the rest of the day.
I do not think it will make too much of a difference but I think afternoons would benefit skinny guys more.
Hey James,
I am 6’5 and weight 78 kg.
Ive been working out now with 7.5 kg weights for about 3 months.
I eat aallooott of food and simply dont see any change in my body.
I look really skinny and get kinda sick of people picking on me.
Do you have any tips?
Hank
@Hank
Hey man,
You need to up your weights. Get weights that you can only lift 8 to 12 times in a set before you give out. That’s a good estimate of the weight range that helps stress the muscle to get them to react and build up.
Once you start finding it is easy to do 12 or more in a set then you need to add MORE weight to continually challenge those muscles.
Hello
I’m frustrated I have always been a very very skinny underweight guy and have wanted to gain weight and or muscle. I went from being 18 yrs old 5’10″ 150lbs to recently being 31 still 5’10″ 185lbs ! But I developed hight blood pressure and hight trigleserides of over 400! And being put on 2 medicines to reduce them. I decided to go on a low card, low fat, low sugar diet and in two and a half weeks I have lost 15 lbs! Now at 170. My goal is 155-160lbs. My question is with my situation of high blood pressure and high trigleserides should I continue on my current path of my diet and get thin again and work on my abs? OR how can I bulk up while staying healthy? That’s the Question
Thanks for your time
@Marcus Alan
Hey Man,
I would probably consult a dietician about this. I do not want to give any advice that might harm your health in any way. From what I understand though – I think your diet is probably a key contributor to high blood pressure and triglycerides.
You might need to look into a healthier diet, that still gives you enough calories and protein to maintain and build your muscles – but exactly what that diet would be is hard to say without knowing your current diet.
Hope that helps – but I do not want to give the impression i am a medical expert as I am not!
i know skinny people have to eat more to gain more fat to help rebuild muscle, but when i try eating more my stomach can’t take it and i start getting that vomit feeling, so i stop eating once i start feeling that. i want to gain muscle but how do i do it with hour vomiting
@omar
Hey man,
Eating a lot of food is hard to do at first as you are not used to it. There are a few tips I can give you.
1. Eat 5-6 meals a day not 3. This spreads out the amount of food you eat so you have some time to digest between meals.
2. Eat high calorie foods. These are foods small in size, but have a huge amount of calories (energy) packed into them. Avocado is one for instance.
This should help you space things out and not be quite as uncomfortable.
Hey I’m really skinny and the only big muscles I have are abs shoulders and legs…my arms are still small….I can only lift 20 pounds for 3 sets of 12 is that good? because I’m definetly not seein improvements I’ve been working out like that for a month and I can’t come close to lifting 25 pound dumbells for that much…..
@joseph
How many time can you lift the 25? If you can do about 8 at the most this is what you should be doing. If you keep doing this and eating well, your arms should adapt and grow more muscle to compensate.
You will find after a little while you will be able to do 9 or 10 – then more. Keep going until the 25′s become too easy then go up another weight – do not stick to the 20s ok!
Hey thank you for all this valuable advice…Just wondering what you’d suggest to a 40 year old male who’s just going back to the gym, after 2 years of inactivity…
@John
Hey man,
First up, take it easy – don’t go in gung ho right up. Second, make sure you are fit enough to start lifting heavier weights so you do not hurt yourself to begin with (This is a good little free guide to get you started). A general fitness exam is a good thing too – most gyms offer this when you start so worth looking into.
After this – check out my articles here for more advice on how to go from there ok!
Hi i’m 6’1″ iv been 130 pounds ever sense my teenage years i’m now 36. just quit smoking about three months ago and put a workout and eating plan in place. first two months i just lifted once every few days maybe upper body rest 2 days then lower body rest 2 days and so on. I was so out of shape that i would stay sore for days so i would wait till it went away before i worked out again. During this two month period I gained around 5 pounds my diet was still in the works very hard for a 130 pound person to consume 3000+ calories a day. My stomach is now stretched lol and my muscles have gotten use to working out.
In the last month iv gained 10+ pounds iv done a lot of research on foods and i’m trying to consume 3000+ calories a day but usually I don’t. I drink weight gain shakes no more than 2 a day. This morning after breakfast I weighed 151 pounds with shoes and clothes. I feel good about my progress I just have one concern.
95% of the time i work out alone at home with free weights. I work abs and forearms everyday work upper back chest arms one day next day i work lower back and legs. problem is i use a lot of my upper body on leg day cause i have to lift a barbell over my head to do my squats and also during leg curls i tense up my upper body. I feel so drained after workouts and only take a day off when i’m having joint pains or really sore in a certain muscle. I’m seeing results and i can feel results i’m seeing muscles iv never seen and feel bigger in all areas.
my main question is can i keep going like this or is it better to make my self take days off even when im not sore? and should I get a membership at a gym so i can use machines to focus on legs without having to use my upper body? its always 48 hours or more before i work legs but upper body is getting a hard work out every 48 hours and a light workout every 24 hours.
one other thing iv read bench press curls squats and dead lift are all i should do to bulk up. I do these but i also do a lot of other focused lifts is it bad to do too many different focused lifts on top of bulking lifts?
@Rex
Hey man, quick answers.
1. Taking days off is needed even if you are not super sore. Your body needs time to rest and recover. Your muscles and your nervous system. Do not overdo it as you might injure yourself and you will actually stifle muscle growth.
2. Get a membership at the gym. I know everyone is trying to save money but it is an investment for your body and your health. You will get more out of the range of machines and weights at the gym than you can do at home and it is motivating to go to the gym .
3. I do not believe that there is some magical order of lifting. Just make sure you workout with intensity for each thing you do. If you are draining yourself too much and not lifting well that’s where there is a problem.
Hi John,
Just wanted to ask you one thing, I’m 16 right now,turning 17 this July and I’m over 6 feet tall already and weighs only 51 KG! I really look skinny but not unattractive
I just want to gain some weight, but the problem is I’m an introvert so you know I don’t like being out and working out on gym I feel like other boys would laugh at me. Is there any way I can gain weight at home?? I completely sit idle at home but still can’t put on weight cause of high metabolism! Or you think I should weight till I get 18 cause it’s kinda in my genes that our family men start getting weight after their eighteens? Will beer help I’m non alocohlic but I’ll do what I can to put weight (muscles not needed)!!!!
Please reply soon
Thanks in advance,
Anu, India.
hey i just turned 15 and im only about 95 pounds. i eat a good amount of food but maybe not the right kind (3 meals a day and snack in between meals). i want bigger muscles mostly in my arms and legs because i get made fun of a lot. i understand i need to exercise my whole body but im more focused on my arms & legs. what are some good exercises and foods to get me there? how often and how much time should i exercise? also how long is a good resting period?
Hi Anu,
Beer will not help at all. Better to sty non alcoholic ok.
You can do some exercises at home but you need to continually challenge your muscles with more weight not just more reps. This means you need to get some weights for home or something that will challenge your muscles.
Or get other people laughing at you that is just your own internal demons. Big guys at gyms will usually be impressed f they see you going frequently and training right as they were not always big either and know the dedication needed to get big
@Dents
Hey man,
Food is food, doesnt matter if it is arms or legs it goes in the same place. Exercising for your arms and legs though there is some variance.
Try working out really intensly 3 times a week to start evenly spaced as you can. Worjk the whole body, but when dedicating a portion of your time to arms and legs make sure to include squats but with weights, which are awesome for the legs. For the arms concentrate on your triceps with pulldown type exerises, biceps with bicep curls and so forth, and shoulders with shoulder presses
hey james
please when s the best time to go to the gym? is it the morning hrs or afternoon? again shd we eat before we go to the gym or eat after workout?
thanks.
@kingsley
That is a can of worms in some circles.
However my belief is that to have a good workout for muscle gain you need to have some energy to do that workout. This means you need to eat before your workout and about an hour beforehand too so you digest some of that food.
Morning or night, I don’t think there is that much of a difference, but most people do not have time to eat early and go to the gym while still getting a decent amount of sleep in. I defaulted to twice in the evenings during the week and in the morning on the weekend when I could afford the time in the morning – but the choice is yours just makes sure you don’t workout on an empty stomach.
hey james
m 17 years i dont drink i dont smoke or do any kind of such thing that is hazardous to my health. But the sad part is m 5feet 10 inc. and am just 110 pounds. I’v tried gym and diet charts for me but nothing seems to work. And since m a vegan so m rilli havin a hard time.
Can you please help me or plz figure out what is the weak part of my routine??
@shiva
Hey Shiva,
Being a vegan is difficult when bodybuilding that is for sure. It could be a number of things form your weight lifting technique, to your recovery time, and most often for skinny guys the diet. I just put up a new article on Vegan Bodybuilding for Skinny Guys which might help – but make sure you also pay attention to HOW you are working out ok.
@James McLain
well thanx a lot
i’l surely work on it
Hello, i’m 5’10 and about 144 lbs.
I’ve been swimming for five years (2004-2009) and got a decent body but still a little skinny but fit.
I was wondering what beginners at the gym start with. Easy dumbbell exercises, bench press or other things at machines? I can’t lift 20kg benchpress without shaking a little :/
It’s so embarrassing that I don’t want to go to the gym.
-Alex
@Alex
Hey Alex,
The short answer is you lift to your maximum potential for the strength you have now. And then you work to improve on that maximum progressively.
Who cares if you do not lift as much as the massive guy who has been working out for years and might also be genetically lucky as well?
Forgive my language, but fuck that man. Who are you looking to get a better body for – yourself, or other people? If it is for other people then you are missing the point and you will not have the main drive for real change.
If you are doing this for yourself, your own self respect and desire to be stronger and healthier – then you should not care what anyone thinks, most people will give you massive respect if you start showing gains and progress, that is what real men do. It is not what you are now but how you reach your potential!
Hi James great website I wonder if u could help me i recently bought a multi purpose home gym and have been using it for about 2 months theres 5 different exercises to do all for your arms I do 15 reps on each and do 4 sets on all, and I do the same weight it’s 30 kilos I do this 5 days a week it takes about 30 mins. To get bigger should I be putting more weights on and do less reps, like 15 at 30kilos 10 at 35 and 6 at 40kilos. Thanks for your time
James this website has really inspired me to get of my arse and start exercising thank you
And as well i was not lifting big I did at least 15 reps for each exercise and i have gotten one tone but i need to be actually bigger not ripped( except for the ab area) but i am now lifting big like basically double and i still am not sore , in my arms is it because of the protein is repairing it really fast or what? Because when i first started working out i could feel the soreness the next day , but now i can’t? am I doing something wrong or is it normal
@Luke
Hey Luke,
Glad my little site has inspired you! To answer your question – yes, you need to up the weight to see results. Try upping the weight til you can only do 8 to 12 reps in a set before yo simply cannot do any more. That is a good range to really target muscle fibres for growth.
You might also want a day or two off to rest those muscles during the week. If you keep working out you never give the muscles time to rest and grow!
@max
Hey Max,
Do not rate your muscle growth on how sore you are – just like you should not rate muscle growth on that pumped feeling. All these things are not actually indicators of getting bigger. If you have gone through the beginner period of weight lifting you can see a noticeable decrease in how sore you feel even after an intense workout.
In fact, you might feel more sore after doing endurance exercises than strength training due to increases in lactic acids and other factors. Measure growth, measure strength – forgot the rest.
hey james
exercising,weigtht lifting,diet,healthy eating etc. is on one side and all set
but do you have any advice or any tip for those who just can’t get their minds set on
training and exercising consistently…my problems arise when i just dnt feel like visiting the gy regularly
@shiva
Hi Shiva,
You are totally spot on man. The BIGGEST factor in getting buff is your motivation. It is a tough topic to write about actually, everyone gets motivated by different things. I really should write an article about it for the site.
However for the moment I find those that stick with it are those driven by a certain goal which is not just getting bigger, a goal that is something substantially more. You need just one driving force that will kick your ass into gear when you remember what that is – but it is different for everyone.
Some do it for their health, some do it for the girls, some do it to compete. However most guys I talk to do ti because they need a CHANGE in their life and the body change is actually a physical manifestation of a deeper more psychological need for change. If you do not have a burning need for change for the better than it will be hard. Find what that need for change is and harness it into your motivation for physical change.
Hope that makes sense man!
Hello, I just read your article, I was just wondering if this program would work for me. I’m 17 and 5’9(supposed to grow taller)) but I’m 138 pounds and not muscular at all really. I am pretty darn good at anything I do but gaining muscle and weight are my enemy. I want to get bigger not only to improve confidence in the way I look but also because it would be better for me overall. Any suggestions?
Hi james,
Im a really skinny guy. I read ur articles n all. But the prob is. Im just a teenager. I’ve got no money to hit the gyms and get weights. Is there an alternative way? Like some other exercise/workout routines? Thx
@Harley
Hi Harley,
You sound like the exact sort of person who would get a lot out of the guide. Naturally skinny and have already tried to gain some muscle but find it frustratingly difficult.
I think the guide will help you a lot, but also feel free to check out all my articles on this site as it is a pretty good introduction that can get you started man.
@Ricky
Hi Ricky,
Bodyweight exercises such as sit ups, pull ups, push ups etc are always the base exercises. However they only go so far, if you can already do all of these a good 15-20 reps a set without too much difficulty then you NEED heavier weights or your muscle simply will not grow.
Sucks I know – some kids use makeshift weights. A few bricks scavenged, a metal bar here and there. Nothing for it but to find heavy weights that will stress your muscles not just weights that you can lift so many times your body is working on endurance not power and strength.
@James McLain
Okay thanks!
Hey james
i am 16, 5’8 and about 138 lbs ive been doing pushups alot and lifting heavy thing(cant afford any weights) i eat alot and have messed up knees and a bubble butt im doing squats trying to tone it but ive seen some improvement on my arms but i’m not sure how much longer the exercises i am doing will work i lift a 30 lb chair like 120 times a day and do sometimes 200+ pushups a day and i only feel strain on my back and arms a little bit i always used to lift weights when i was 13,14 and 15 but would eventually give up at one point i had six pack abs when i was 13 but soon after gave up on working out you have any advice? Thanks
Hi Brandon,
No point in lifting those chairs and doing push ups any more man. As I have stated before heaps of times it not about liftign a weight a lot of times. This does not build muscle mass, just enhances the endurace of your muscles.
You NEED heavier weights or you will never place enough pressure on the muscles to prime them for growth. You have to lift real heavy to create the tiny tears in yoru muscle that will heal and become new and bigger muscles.
Find makeshift weihts that are heavier or do everything you can to get better weights or a gym membership man.
Hi James,
I’ve been working out for around 2 and a half months now, I’m 17, 150lb and I’ve seen some gains but not gains I would like to see. I only use dumbells and exercises like bench press, chest flys, shoulder press and dumbell curls, I go to the gym 3 times a week and have the same workout of those excercises every time I step into the gym. I eat 4-5 meals a day eating roughly 2900 calories, I eat foods like fishfingers, chicken breast, whole wheat pasta, whole wheat bread, potatoes and oats. Should I use different exercises and workouts as I want to benefit more and have bigger gains and am I eating enough with the right food? Thanks.
@Chris
Hey Chris,
Your diet is sounding OK man, how much you eat I cannot comment on as everyone is a little different. I would just experiment with that but keep eating big.
I would suggest you do not neglect your core and legs in your exercise routine either. It is so easy to fall into building the upper body but the more muscle you gain overall the better. so … SQUATS … do them man they are awesome.
I would vary your routine a little but there is no need to change all the time for the sake of change. You want to do the same exercise week on week anyway to measure your strength gains … but you do want to mix things up a bit over time.
Try to work your whole body each session and do it with intensity. Not too many breaks, go hard each time and make each session really count!
Hey bro..!
m studying in 12th standard and 5 feet 9 inches 18 yo and 50 Kgs.
Sadly i cant afford to go to the gym…is there any way how i can workout at home only (any exercises similar to those which u do at the gym)…??
And is there a possibility that i can increase my height now after 18 years??
@shivam
Hi Shivam,
Bodyweight exercises such as situps, pushups, chin ups ae all good to start but you will eventuall hit a wall and gain nothing mroe from them once you can do them too easily. If you can find some makeshift weights such as bricks or even a bag full of textbooks etc you can jury rig some weights to make those exercises mroe intense with weight – give that a go.
Eventually though you will need to move on to proper weights.
Hight – i am really not sure actually – i am guessing no, but i might be wrong. Might reply again if i find something about this i am curious now too.
Please notify me about it ASAP..!
THanx
Bro can you also tell me about what veg food has most protein content in it and what should (how much) i intake before and after exercising ?
@shivam
Hi Shivam,
I have an article on vegetarian and vegan bodybuilding. Check it out here:
http://www.skinnytomuscle.net/articles/vegetarian-vegan-bodybuilding-for-skinny-guys/
Hi!, I’m 21, 6’4-6’3 I usually go between the weight of 139-145 constantly my motab is very fast, but I also do 5ks,10k, half marathons etc, I am really trying to get my chest to stick out more I notice the slower my motab gets the more muscle mass I get which makes me happy but I am a african american, and it’s said we gain muscle faster and tone easier, so it’s just a tad bit confusing I have okay abs (8pac not huge but there) I don’t think i will ever get big arms sadly, but I can atleast make my chest pop out a little more advice?..I do alot of situps some…pushups not alot honestly, and alot of crazy other things
@cedric robinson
Hey man,
Well if you are not doing a lot of push ups thats obviously a starting problem. If you are running a lot, doing a lot of cardio and you are only doing body weight exercises and admit not much there is your problem.
You need to engage your chest muscle with some weight and intensity and cut down on your cardio if you are serious about building muscle.
More tips on chest muscle growth here