Hardgainers Don't Exist

Training Bodybuilding
61

I’m a go drink a protein shake to spite the “hardgainers” right now.

Ok I’m back. I’m not a hardgainer. I’ve got some pretty crappy genetics for lifting, but I made DAMN sure I did what it took to gain muscle and strength. I’ve had to work harder than just about anyone I know to fight for those few pounds. But I’ll be damned if it didn’t work. And is going to keep working. And even given my shit-tastic genetics, I remain somewhat skeptical about the genetic inability for average genetic people to handle 225 or 240 and relatively lean naturally. I know that I’ve been as high as 238 (softish). But I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt that I could get there lean again w/o any sort of “aid”. It’s simply a matter of dedication and time.

And yeah I realize there are people who don’t have that top end growth, but there are a lot fewer of them than people think. I don’t really want to get to 240 right now, to be honest. I’d rather lean up to 205 and ripped (in my defense, it’s been 6 YEARS since my last cutting cycle I’ve waited long enough to see abs–currently 220 and 12% ish), and then power on up to 225 and lean. After I reach that goal I’ll figure out whether I want to go higher. To be completely honest, I’ll probably end up going to the dark side before I get to 230 again, but I’ve been there so I know it’s possible, even with crap genetics.

All I know is that once you are willing to be different from everyone else, it becomes a lot easier to get to your goals.

62

At the end of the day the only thing that matters is knowing who you are and where you stand, because we’re all different.

Knowing about how much food, and what kind of food you have to eat every day to make the right kind of gains. Knowing what you have to focus on at the gym (basically the same for everyone, but each person has their own imbalances, etc). Knowing about how much exercise you can tolerate before burning out. Etc etc. And the only way to find out all these things is to get out there and experiment. And not be afraid of making mistakes… A dirty bulk hasn’t killed anyone as far as I know, but it has made a lot of people smarter for the next one.

63

I think more of less what it boils down to is well… psychology.

Most beginners label themselves as hardgainers because they don’t blow up overnight (or even the course of a year) from hard work at the gym. They see huge guys and think, geez I must be doing something wrong.

But this is usually not the case. It just takes time and dedication, and it can take a long time for a novice to finally realize this. But even more importantly, it comes from a long standing human urge to be special. Let’s face it… 80% of us are normal average joes. We don’t have racehorse metabolisms. But we don’t have super slow metabolisms either. We can’t pick up 25lb of muscle a year. But if we remind ourselves that we are different by some inherent and thus unavoidable genetic flaw, it’s never our fault. We’re simply just totally different than the rest.

Of course, like others have mentioned, this is a bell curve. There will be outliers. Diseases like hypo/hyper hypothyroidism obviously warrant a mention here to.

64

Hardgainer = too impatient…the worst part about it is the label will never go away because the magazines have hardgainer articles every month with the promise of size if you follow a six week plan.

65

[quote]LiveFromThe781 wrote:
i think the term slow-gainer and hard-gainer are interchangable. at least i can accept that without drugs the most mass i can put on in a month is a pound or two. i still go to the gym 4 times a week and bust my ass though because i know that even though 2 pounds at max is insignificant its the only way i can put on anything at all. so if i gain 12-24 lbs a year thats still 12-24 lbs a year. i gained 24 lbs from the last time i went to the doctor (went today so thats how i know) and i look dramatically different compared to then.
[/quote]

I’m sorry. I’m going to have to call you out on this one. Do you only weigh yourself once a year? As Berardi says, “If you aren’t assessing, you’re guessing.” Buy a scale, for crying out loud.

66

Here’s what Poliquin has to say on the topic:

“[B]y calling yourself a hard gainer you’re creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you believe you’re a hard gainer, you are a hard gainer; in contrast, if you believe you’re an easy gainer, you’re an easy gainer.”

67

[quote]toddthebod wrote:
Here’s what Poliquin has to say on the topic:

“[B]y calling yourself a hard gainer you’re creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you believe you’re a hard gainer, you are a hard gainer; in contrast, if you believe you’re an easy gainer, you’re an easy gainer.”[/quote]

Poliquin’s full of shit. Some people do have an easier time gaining weight, and building muscle, than others. To say it’s purely mental is fucking retarded. Think for yourself, home boy.

Edit: I’m not saying calling yourself a hardgainer isn’t a rationalization, it is. But it’s a FACT that some people do have a harder time.

68

Hardgainers exist, but if they work hard enough they can succeed, even if they lose a nut to cancer:

http://asp.elitefts.com/qa/training-logs.asp?qid=70578&tid=

69

[quote]CC wrote:
Professor X wrote:
It is also funny how many people claim they need to actively avoid getting “too big”…but these same people all think they have some abnormal inhibition of muscle growth.

That makes no sense at all.

I’m pretty sure they make that decision to not get “too big” after realizing they don’t have the drive and dedication to do so, which they in turn call being a “hardgainer”.[/quote]

I don’t want to get laid too much.

70

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:
toddthebod wrote:
Here’s what Poliquin has to say on the topic:

“[B]y calling yourself a hard gainer you’re creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you believe you’re a hard gainer, you are a hard gainer; in contrast, if you believe you’re an easy gainer, you’re an easy gainer.”

Poliquin’s full of shit. Some people do have an easier time gaining weight, and building muscle, than others. To say it’s purely mental is fucking retarded. Think for yourself, home boy.

Edit: I’m not saying calling yourself a hardgainer isn’t a rationalization, it is. But it’s a FACT that some people do have a harder time.[/quote]

Here’s a question, then: What benefit does one get out of labeling themselves a hardgainer?

71

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:
toddthebod wrote:
Here’s what Poliquin has to say on the topic:

“[B]y calling yourself a hard gainer you’re creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you believe you’re a hard gainer, you are a hard gainer; in contrast, if you believe you’re an easy gainer, you’re an easy gainer.”

Poliquin’s full of shit. Some people do have an easier time gaining weight, and building muscle, than others. To say it’s purely mental is fucking retarded. Think for yourself, home boy.

Edit: I’m not saying calling yourself a hardgainer isn’t a rationalization, it is. But it’s a FACT that some people do have a harder time.[/quote]

Someone who doesn’t really believe they will make gains worthy of their work will never perform work worthy of gains.

That’s not the same as saying it’s purely mental. However, saying that some people gain muscle, gain strength, lose fat, gain fat, run fast are more intelligent etc. is just another way of saying were all genetically unique which is undeniable.

Hardgainer has come to be defined as poor lowly victims of biology who no matter what they do are inextricably capped at some minuscule level of potential. That attitude is the death knell for any training they do and is based on the faulty belief that most people without pro potential are like them. Hardgainers. The term is useless anymore.

72

Haven’t seen this point brought up yet…

Seems to me most ‘hardgainers’ are pretty young. If you are into a high school sport, you’ll probably start lifting at around 14-15, most likely way before your endocrine system is operating at full bore.

I fully believe that truly learning how to lift with intensity takes time and is very important for gains, but that learning also either coincides with or is a result of max testosterone production. Either way, the ‘hardgainer’ status usually gets fixed somewhere around age 18-25.

Was it learning how to eat and lift properly, or a normal variation on the onset of puberty (and not a disease state per se)? Probably both.

On a side note, anyone know how the onset of male puberty is trending? I know female onset is trending younger. I also am aware of the whole ‘failure to launch’ thing - it’s pretty hard to man up at an early age with the amount/price of schooling required to get a career going nowadays. And forget about buying a reasonably priced home… And who know what BC hormones are in our drinking water…

Anyway, some food for thought.

73

[quote]LankyMofo wrote:
toddthebod wrote:
Here’s what Poliquin has to say on the topic:

“[B]y calling yourself a hard gainer you’re creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you believe you’re a hard gainer, you are a hard gainer; in contrast, if you believe you’re an easy gainer, you’re an easy gainer.”

Poliquin’s full of shit. Some people do have an easier time gaining weight, and building muscle, than others. To say it’s purely mental is fucking retarded. Think for yourself, home boy.

Edit: I’m not saying calling yourself a hardgainer isn’t a rationalization, it is. But it’s a FACT that some people do have a harder time.[/quote]

Poliquin also classifies people by “element” types.

http://www.T-Nation.com/article/bodybuilding/the_five_elements&cr=

[i]
As far as the Fire, Wood and Earth types, none are necessarily disadvantaged when it comes to bodybuilding or strength sports, but it is important for them to train for their type. Obviously, pure types are not that common and most people fall somewhere in-between the five points of the continuum:

FIRE > WOOD > EARTH > METAL > WATER

You may have noticed that I have not paid much attention to the metal or water types. They are, unfortunately, guys who generally will never make much progress. They have bad nervous systems, the wrong muscle fibers, and poor endocrine systems. Usually, though, these guys end up being attracted to non-weightlifting activities like yoga, or stamp collecting.
[/i]

74

[quote]HoratioSandoval wrote:
Haven’t seen this point brought up yet…

Seems to me most ‘hardgainers’ are pretty young. If you are into a high school sport, you’ll probably start lifting at around 14-15, most likely way before your endocrine system is operating at full bore.

I fully believe that truly learning how to lift with intensity takes time and is very important for gains, but that learning also either coincides with or is a result of max testosterone production. Either way, the ‘hardgainer’ status usually gets fixed somewhere around age 18-25.

Was it learning how to eat and lift properly, or a normal variation on the onset of puberty (and not a disease state per se)? Probably both.

[/quote]

Good points, and I really think older “hardgainers” never went through the GPP and SPP of athletic competition at a young age, which hinders their progress. They probably didn’t play sports or lift weights, so their motor control and work capacity were never developed.

Now that they’ve gotten older, they’re trying to do what the former athletes are doing in the gym and it isn’t working. They’re skipping step 1 and going straight to step 10 (or whatever). They have to start with basic bodyweight movements and just really learn how to move properly. Once that all gets grooved in, then move on to the more advanced training.

If the diet is in order, the physique should take care of itself.

75

[quote]Zap Branigan wrote:
LankyMofo wrote:
toddthebod wrote:
Here’s what Poliquin has to say on the topic:

“[B]y calling yourself a hard gainer you’re creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you believe you’re a hard gainer, you are a hard gainer; in contrast, if you believe you’re an easy gainer, you’re an easy gainer.”

Poliquin’s full of shit. Some people do have an easier time gaining weight, and building muscle, than others. To say it’s purely mental is fucking retarded. Think for yourself, home boy.

Edit: I’m not saying calling yourself a hardgainer isn’t a rationalization, it is. But it’s a FACT that some people do have a harder time.

Poliquin also classifies people by “element” types.

http://www.T-Nation.com/article/bodybuilding/the_five_elements&cr=

[i]
As far as the Fire, Wood and Earth types, none are necessarily disadvantaged when it comes to bodybuilding or strength sports, but it is important for them to train for their type. Obviously, pure types are not that common and most people fall somewhere in-between the five points of the continuum:

FIRE > WOOD > EARTH > METAL > WATER

You may have noticed that I have not paid much attention to the metal or water types. They are, unfortunately, guys who generally will never make much progress. They have bad nervous systems, the wrong muscle fibers, and poor endocrine systems. Usually, though, these guys end up being attracted to non-weightlifting activities like yoga, or stamp collecting.
[/i][/quote]

This article has me very very close to writing Poliquin off forever. Although I think the term hardgainer is meaningless and stupid, Poliquin’s mind over matter views are even more ridiculous.

76

[quote]beebuddy wrote:
Zap Branigan wrote:
LankyMofo wrote:
toddthebod wrote:
Here’s what Poliquin has to say on the topic:

“[B]y calling yourself a hard gainer you’re creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you believe you’re a hard gainer, you are a hard gainer; in contrast, if you believe you’re an easy gainer, you’re an easy gainer.”

Poliquin’s full of shit. Some people do have an easier time gaining weight, and building muscle, than others. To say it’s purely mental is fucking retarded. Think for yourself, home boy.

Edit: I’m not saying calling yourself a hardgainer isn’t a rationalization, it is. But it’s a FACT that some people do have a harder time.

Poliquin also classifies people by “element” types.

http://www.T-Nation.com/article/bodybuilding/the_five_elements&cr=

[i]
As far as the Fire, Wood and Earth types, none are necessarily disadvantaged when it comes to bodybuilding or strength sports, but it is important for them to train for their type. Obviously, pure types are not that common and most people fall somewhere in-between the five points of the continuum:

FIRE > WOOD > EARTH > METAL > WATER

You may have noticed that I have not paid much attention to the metal or water types. They are, unfortunately, guys who generally will never make much progress. They have bad nervous systems, the wrong muscle fibers, and poor endocrine systems. Usually, though, these guys end up being attracted to non-weightlifting activities like yoga, or stamp collecting.
[/i]

This article has me very very close to writing Poliquin off forever. Although I think the term hardgainer is meaningless and stupid, Poliquin’s mind over matter views are even more ridiculous.[/quote]

It certainly makes me scrutinize what he says much more closely and not just blindly accept him.

He is obviously a successful coach but his mind works differently than mine.

77

[quote]beebuddy wrote:
<<< This article has me very very close to writing Poliquin off forever. Although I think the term hardgainer is meaningless and stupid, Poliquin’s mind over matter views are even more ridiculous.[/quote]

Despite having me gazing puzzled at my screen sometimes, Poliquin has this funny long standing habit of producing serious results.

78

[quote]Tiribulus wrote:
beebuddy wrote:
<<< This article has me very very close to writing Poliquin off forever. Although I think the term hardgainer is meaningless and stupid, Poliquin’s mind over matter views are even more ridiculous.

Despite having me gazing puzzled at my screen sometimes, Poliquin has this funny long standing habit of producing serious results.[/quote]

If you say so then I shall give him one more chance. The whole element thing was just nuts though!

79

A few words in defense of labels.

Thinking of myself as a hardgainer helped me. It wouldn’t have been convincing to try to think of myself as “normal” or “like everyone else”. My weight never even hit 63 kilos before I started training at age 31 and I stand 178 cm. That kind of physique might have been “normal” at Auschwitz.

I didn’t use the label as an excuse for crappy results but as a constant reminder that I don’t have much room for excuses and need to work a lot harder than most people in the kitchen. I went from 62,5 to 88,5 kilos in my first year of lifting, so it seems to be working OK.

80

[quote]toddthebod wrote:
LiveFromThe781 wrote:
i think the term slow-gainer and hard-gainer are interchangable. at least i can accept that without drugs the most mass i can put on in a month is a pound or two. i still go to the gym 4 times a week and bust my ass though because i know that even though 2 pounds at max is insignificant its the only way i can put on anything at all. so if i gain 12-24 lbs a year thats still 12-24 lbs a year. i gained 24 lbs from the last time i went to the doctor (went today so thats how i know) and i look dramatically different compared to then.

I’m sorry. I’m going to have to call you out on this one. Do you only weigh yourself once a year? As Berardi says, “If you aren’t assessing, you’re guessing.” Buy a scale, for crying out loud.[/quote]

i weigh myself weekly. at the gym where they have a tiptronic scale (thats off) and at my work where theres a very accurate digital scale.