My Coach wants me to bulk up. How?

[Stephen Dowling]

Hey guys! I had a Lacrosse meeting today, and after loosing about 20lbs of body fat during the summer, he told me to bulk up!I know you all are smart people, so I was wondering if you all could help me out with gaining weight. (preferably Healthy gaining) Anyways right now I weight about 140lbs, i'm 15 years old, and I'm about 6'1. Most people say I'm skinny, and my grandpa is always telling me to bulk up. Any help would be so, so awesome!

Thanks!


-Stephen


EDIT: I take advanced weight training as a class at school.

 

[dukebound85]

eat more and work out

 

[Surely]

Lots of McDonald's and ice cream, as well as some heavy weight training.

 

[Music_Producer]

Lots of McDonald's and ice cream, as well as some heavy weight training.

He mentioned healthy gaining

OP - make sure you eat a lot of protein, at least 1 gm/pound of body weight. Eat slow GI carbs like oatmeal, brown rice - you *can* have faster GI carbs but reserve those for your post workout shake and the meal after that.

Lift heavy for 5-6 reps max - but not so heavy that you injure yourself. You should know what weight you can handle for a clean 6 reps. (6 is an average number, some people get results with 3, 7, whatever - just make sure you're getting an insane workout)

Post workout nutrition is very important - chug a 40-50 gm protein shake with 30-40 gms of dextrose - great for spiking insulin and shuttling all the nutrients into your muscles.

And no, don't ever have mcdonald's and ice cream if you want to gain weight (unless all the weight is on your stomach and your butt)

Edit - forgot to mention calories. You're 15 so you have a fast metabolism and you play sports - so you're going to burn everything pretty quick. You need to ingest 3,000-3,500 calories. Make sure those calories come from good wholesome foods and protein shakes and you'll pack on the pounds slowly.

It's very easy to ingest 3,000 calories in a single fast food meal - but quite hard to do when you're eating chicken breast with brown rice, or 8 oz of lean meat with veggies. It gets real boring!

 

[Surely]

^^^^ Your way won't work fast enough. Not enough calories.

He's 15 years old- his body/health can handle McDonald's and ice cream.

I do agree with you on your weight-lifting recommendations.

 

[Stephen Dowling]

Thanks for all of your replies! Music_producer sorry I forgot to mention that I do take weight training at school and I also run daily. Do you have any recommendations as to where I get my protein from?

 

[thomahawk]

Thanks for all of your replies! Music_producer sorry I forgot to mention that I do take weight training at school and I also run daily. Do you have any recommendations as to where I get my protein from?

meat meat meat and more meat

but make sure you eat your veggies and fruits everyday as well cuz you don't want an imbalance of nutrition. other than that keep your physical activities constant

 

[dukebound85]

^^^^ Your way won't work fast enough. Not enough calories.

He's 15 years old- his body/health can handle McDonald's and ice cream.

I do agree with you on your weight-lifting recommendations.

reccomending eating McDonalds and ice cream to bulk up is absurd

he doesnt want to be fat

you are what you eat

eat healthy op

 

[richard.mac]

protein is good as it repairs torn muscle fibres after a workout which bulks you up. but i dont think there should be such an emphasis on it.

make sure you also add omega-3 and omega-6 fats and oils to your diet like fresh fish (pan fried with olive oil, no salt), Avacados, nuts (raw and unsalted, flax oil (fish sub.), flax and sesame etc. seeds http://www.alkalizeforhealth.net/Lhealthyfats.htm

also eat lots of lean beef and lamb (make sure its lean!) and vegetables.

 

[FSMBP]

Steroids.





Kidding...Just eat 6 meals a day, each meal with about 400-600 calories. And make sure that you get at least 1 gram of protein for each pound on your body.

 

[Cartaphilus]

There is a lot of foolish information circulating, from an irresponsible recommendation to eat MacDonalds and ice cream, to excessive consumption of protein, to overly simplified resistance training. The fact is that at 15 you can do as much damage to your long-term health as you can at 65. A poor diet at fifteen, depending on your genetic tendencies, can lay down that first layer of arterial plaque that can contribute to heart attack and stroke, to Type II diabetes, hypertension, and the rest of the lifestyle-related maladies that plague Americans. It's not too early to learn about eating reasonably, and your coach should be able to provide--directly or indirectly--some good guidance. You want a well-balanced and varied diet that provided your body with all it needs to perform and develop. Couple this with a consistent program of both aerobic and resistance exercise that you can maintain all your life. If you can possibly afford it, join a gym and engage a personal trainer to teach you how to use equipment to add muscle mass while avoiding injury, boredom, and imbalances. Adding muscle, even at your age, can be a slow process, but if you do it right, and maintain consistency, you'll end up with a body that will serve you well all your life.

And don't get too fixated on how you look; there are very strong athletes whose genetics just don't support a lot of obvious muscle mass, and no sport is worth the health effects of carrying too much fat. Educate yourself as much as you can, relying on mainstream physician-backed sources, and avoiding reliance on fads, supplements, and drugs.

Good luck!

 

[Music_Producer]

^^^^ Your way won't work fast enough. Not enough calories.

He's 15 years old- his body/health can handle McDonald's and ice cream.

I do agree with you on your weight-lifting recommendations.

His body can handle mcds and ice cream - no doubt, but why unnecessarily add on body fat and increase his insulin sensitivity? Have you seen kids nowadays? Even though they go to school and go about their activities they're getting fat.

OP - you can binge once in a while, but don't overdo it. I like a cheat day once a week where I eat almost anything and everything. I don't put on a pound of fat the next day, because my body is so used to burning off fat from the clean eating the rest of the days.

Protein sources - eggs are the best. They have the highest bioavailability - about 94% I think. Make a 7-8 egg white omlette (with 2 yolks) - bowl of oatmeal - perfect breakfast.

If you're going to buy protein shakes buy something like Optimum nutrition 100% whey protein - don't buy weight gainers.

Lean meats are good such as chicken, turkey, fish - but for you I would recommend meat at least once a day. Meat has creatine in it as well which would help with bulking. Staple meat and potatoes once a day will do good.

Veggies are a must - I feel a big difference in strength when I eat veggies everyday for a week or so - I just grill some chicken breast and eat it with peas, green beans and some broccoli. I'm not a big veggie fan, so sometimes I'll just blend broccoli and other veggies with some fruit and drink up.

Monitor your weight for a week - if you don't gain weight, bump up 500 calories to your diet. Most important - keep a daily log of what you eat so you have an accurate count of calories.

 

[Music_Producer]

protein is good as it repairs torn muscle fibres after a workout which bulks you up. but i dont think there should be such an emphasis on it.

make sure you also add omega-3 and omega-6 fats and oils to your diet like fresh fish (pan fried with olive oil, no salt), Avacados, nuts (raw and unsalted, flax oil (fish sub.), flax and sesame etc. seeds http://www.alkalizeforhealth.net/Lhealthyfats.htm

also eat lots of lean beef and lamb (make sure its lean!) and vegetables.

Protein is not only necessary for repairing muscle fibers - it takes part in almost every cellular component and function related to living - basic amino acids were the building blocks of life.

Don't abuse the protein though, of course - some people ingest 500 gms of protein and don't even workout! Keep it below 250 gms. Healthy fats are a good recommendation - I love me some natural peanut butter

 

[ravenvii]

Eat normally and add GOMAD*.

/thread

*Gallon of Milk a Day

 

[Stephen Dowling]

You guys are so awesome! Thank you so much for all of your guidance and ideas! You guys really are a great community! But, where is a good place to find natural peanut butter and things like that? Any specific place, or am I just not looking hard enough?

Like I said before. You guys are awesome

 

[electroshock]

Stephen, not sure if your school has a nutritionist -- probably not, but see if your coach or the staff might be able to recommend a nutritionist.

Reason is, they can work out the ideal amount of calories you need to absorb to meet your goal while balancing everything else. They can also give you sample diet plans to try out and are full of ideas for various types of food that will help your goal but stuff that you will find palatable and can help mix up things to avoid it getting boring. They're very useful, especially for this kind of situation. They're worth their weight in gold and are a big part of major league sports teams for this reason.

 

[Music_Producer]

You guys are so awesome! Thank you so much for all of your guidance and ideas! You guys really are a great community! But, where is a good place to find natural peanut butter and things like that? Any specific place, or am I just not looking hard enough?

Like I said before. You guys are awesome

Good advice from electroshock - but keep in mind - very simple formula to gain good muscle weight. Eat more calories than you spend, make sure they are clean i.e. no junk, low GI carbs, ample protein + workout = anabolism!

Btw, I'm talking from years of experience - I was 120 lbs @ age 22 when I started working out seriously and got my diet in check.

Stephen, you can find natty PB at any grocery store - I get them from Walgreens - the skippy brand. If you have a Costco in your area check out the Muscle Milk Plus jar (chocolate shake flavor) A scoop of that with 2% milk is heaven.

 

[Zombie Acorn]

3 words - natural peanut butter

 

[dukebound85]

Stephen, not sure if your school has a nutritionist -- probably not, but see if your coach or the staff might be able to recommend a nutritionist.

Reason is, they can work out the ideal amount of calories you need to absorb to meet your goal while balancing everything else. They can also give you sample diet plans to try out and are full of ideas for various types of food that will help your goal but stuff that you will find palatable and can help mix up things to avoid it getting boring. They're very useful, especially for this kind of situation. They're worth their weight in gold and are a big part of major league sports teams for this reason.

Seek advice from a Registered Dietitian over a nutritionist

 

[ravenvii]

Good advice from electroshock - but keep in mind - very simple formula to gain good muscle weight. Eat more calories than you spend, make sure they are clean i.e. no junk, low GI carbs, ample protein + workout = anabolism!

Btw, I'm talking from years of experience - I was 120 lbs @ age 22 when I started working out seriously and got my diet in check.

Stephen, you can find natty PB at any grocery store - I get them from Walgreens - the skippy brand. If you have a Costco in your area check out the Muscle Milk Plus jar (chocolate shake flavor) A scoop of that with 2% milk is heaven.

Eww, Skippy? They are crap.

My favorite natural butter is, incidentally, at Costco. Kirkland. To die for!

 

[Keniff]

Hey guys! I had a Lacrosse meeting today, and after loosing about 20lbs of body fat during the summer, he told me to bulk up!

He's just attracted to you, but he likes bigger men, just take some steroids, get bigger and you never know, the relationship just may work out between you both!

 

[rhinosrcool]

No Pain No Gain

Seriously, the nutrition advice (good amounts of protein balanced with carbohydrates and fat) is good.

You need to keep a log (lots of good exercise and fitness apps for either iPhone or Touch) so you can really figure out how much calories you are consuming.

Per day, 6 smaller meals are easier to digest. Maybe, one or two could be a protein shake with some fruit mixed in.

Again, have some resistance training that emphasizes heavier weights with lower and slower reps.

Set some small goals that you can achieve each week or two. Believe me, it's a thrill to meet your goals.

Of course, never take either steroids or growth hormones. Around many gyms, there are people that will try to convince you that there really is no harm.
There is! I know several people that think that creatine is a safe supplement. From my experience, they get uptight easily and their skin reddens. That's not a safe supplement!

Lastly, realize that you will not always make progress. Just like a baseball player who has a great year (Joe Mauer!), they have a lot of success, but sometimes, they have a slump. The key is keep at it.

Good Luck!

 

[djellison]

If you are fit and healthy - then you don't need to 'bulk up'.

Do you intend to make a career out of Lacross?

If not - tell him to stick it. Pumping your body full of stuff it doesn't need is not wise.

Are you underperforming? Then focus on some training that will strengthen where you are weakest. Other than that, just generic 'bulk up' is pure macho crap.

 

[mattyb240]

Seriously, the nutrition advice (good amounts of protein balanced with carbohydrates and fat) is good.

You need to keep a log (lots of good exercise and fitness apps for either iPhone or Touch) so you can really figure out how much calories you are consuming.

Per day, 6 smaller meals are easier to digest. Maybe, one or two could be a protein shake with some fruit mixed in.

Again, have some resistance training that emphasizes heavier weights with lower and slower reps.

Set some small goals that you can achieve each week or two. Believe me, it's a thrill to meet your goals.

Of course, never take either steroids or growth hormones. Around many gyms, there are people that will try to convince you that there really is no harm.
There is! I know several people that think that creatine is a safe supplement. From my experience, they get uptight easily and their skin reddens. That's not a safe supplement!

Lastly, realize that you will not always make progress. Just like a baseball player who has a great year (Joe Mauer!), they have a lot of success, but sometimes, they have a slump. The key is keep at it.

Good Luck!

I thought creatine had been proven safe, with loads of medical research when I considered taking it? (I chose not to). I'm only just starting to work out but I find protein shakes (100% Whey) really help recovery as well as just a good work out. I can see my body shifting, while I'm not losing weight I am visibly slimmer and starting to get bigger muscles.

 

[Abstract]

Thanks for all of your replies! Music_producer sorry I forgot to mention that I do take weight training at school and I also run daily.

How long, or what distance, do you run daily? Stop running daily and do it every 3 days or so rather than every day. If you're not an excessive runner, you can probably run for the same distance you do now, but if you run over 6 miles per session, I suggest cutting down, and running every 3, maybe 2, days.