Why Can't I Gain Muscle?

Training
61

I came to this site having gone from a 280lb lard-ass to 179lbs shredded with about 8 months hard training & perfect diet, so I was no stranger to having a bit of will-power. However despite having abs, they just didn’t look right because I didn’t have the overall size (especially my scrawny legs) for the physique I wanted.

I firmly believe that the prevailing attitude of ‘eat more, fuck your abs and keep lifting’ on these forums was the primary reason I was able to gain size since then. Nearly 30lbs since November, some of it fat but I’m pretty damn happy with it - many of my friends who lift but stay lean year round were a bit taken aback by that as they had only made gains of a couple of pounds (if any at all) over the same period.

I actually stalled around the 200lb mark for a few weeks and was stressing over what was wrong - basically I was still using the same ‘bulking diet’ I had been using for ages and I needed to knock it up again. Since then I’ve stuck on another 8lbs. It really was as simple as eating more. Ultimatley I’m aiming for 245lbs.

It’s kind of odd because before I was almost fearful of putting on fat - now I have phschological issues with cutting or losing size (thanks Prof X :smiley: )

62

[quote]CHEKonIT wrote:
Maybe using Arnold wasn’t the best example, but I still insist if it was that easy, 99% of people in the world wouldn’t be unhappy with their body.[/quote]

And it wasn’t easy for Arnold (or any if his ilk), either. He still had to bust his ass to get where he is.
Doesn’t matter who you are, or what your gentic potential may be… if you don’t work hard (and smart), consistently, you aren’t going to see results.
Throwing excuses is a cop-out, most likely masking the fact that you aren’t being honest with yourself.

63

Nobody said its easy, its SIMPLE.

You lift hard (not your made up version of hard) and eat for gains (not your made up version of what amount to eat for gains) and you grow. If you slack in either area, you will slow your progress or fail completely. ITS THAT SIMPLE!

64

[quote]PGA200X wrote:
Nobody said its easy, its SIMPLE.

You lift hard (not your made up version of hard) and eat for gains (not your made up version of what amount to eat for gains) and you grow. If you slack in either area, you will slow your progress or fail completely. ITS THAT SIMPLE![/quote]

I like this PGA person, even though he plays golf. In this thread, he has spoken like a man, and not a girlie man with pink ribbon in his hair, a popped collar and a pilates bumper sticker on his car either.

Dear tiny, under-fed, emasculated, I squat to pee, about to have your period she-males; IT AINT THAT FUCKING HARD!!! If you lift something apart from your skirt, and eat something apart from man junk, you will put on muscle.

To that other dickhead who said “people who go from 125lbs to 155lbs don’t get any respect” - do your fucking research on a bloke called 110%. He was a little Asian bloke who did exactly that, and it’s one of the best received threads on this site. Apologies if this has been mentioned already, but I have already forgotten all previous posts due to intoxication.

PS - If you’re skinny and this post/thread offends you, take your rage out on a hamburger or six.

Dunkin Donuts,

Massif

65

[quote]conorh wrote:
Trogdor wrote:

I’ve been training seriously for four years, and I cannot even touch a 300lb bench (but honestly I couldn’t give two shits about bench training), nor can I deadlift 400lbs (which is by far my favorite lift); the answer to these problems, however, is not “just fucking eat”; neither is my lack of dedication to blame. I train 4-8 times per week (depending on the current program) intensely, using only free weights and 90% compound lifts; this however, does not mean I train wisely. Why have I made such little progress? I honestly believe I just haven’t figured out how I best respond. Eating more has not worked for me and working harder is not an option. I am not complaining about my genetic potential, my lack of growth, lack of supplement funds, lack of anything…
I don’t give a shit about how long this takes, it’s now my lifestyle and I believe, with patience, I will eventually understand myself that much better. However, if I so choose to ask a question of those more experienced than I, I would appreciate a response with due thought and consideration. I respect all your efforts and successes, but you can take your condescending attitudes and shove them up your collective ass.

You just said you haven’t been training wisely. That’s the point. I believe strength is a great barometer of progress for most trainers. If you’re getting stronger month by month then you’re doing something right. If you’re not then what you’re doing isnt’t working and you need to change. I happen to think the squat and deadlift for sure are good indicators for most people and then a bench press or overhead press, but to each their own.

If you’re purely an aesthetics lifter, then you can still make progress, your indicators are just different. Maybe you need to use a tape or photos or what not to gauge progress month by month. I don’t know or care what your goals or aspirations are, by the way, so I don’t look down on them.

The point I mainly wanted to get across is that people need to measure and observe what they’re doing and attack their weaknesses. If you’ve been making good progress towards your goals but haven’t met my arbitrary standards, then fuck me and my opinion, you’ve still been making progress, and I respect that. My post was aimed at people who aren’t using any indicator whatsoever and aren’t making any progress and seem confused or unhappy about it.

I hope this post shows more “due thought and consideration” and is more to your liking.

Sincerely,

Conor[/quote]

In the past four years I’ve gone from 225 lbs and 20% bf to 145lbs 6%, and back to 190 at 13% two years later. My point is just because I cannot bench 300 lbs or deadlift 450 doesn’t make my contribution to this site worthless, nor should I be ignored if asking for help. Many of you assume the answer is " STFU and eat", it isn’t. While in some cases this may be a solution, more often than not I see it used as a cop out; giving advice without even bothering to read the original post. As a side note, there are definitely more constructive ways of saying the same thing if indeed it needs to be said.

I can gain at 2k cals, I can gain at 4k cals, and surprisingly the rate at which I gain muscle does not change by much. I’ve tried both for several years now, so in this regard I have some experience.

My comment about not having trained wisely is more in regards to continually pushing myself too far too soon, without easing up to allow myself to recover. While overtraining might not be so easily achievable, I very easily reach a state in which I can no longer gain strength and size without significantly cutting back on intensity first. If anything, I’ve learned I best respond to a “three steps forward, two steps back” approach to weight training.

I do not have a problem with people offering advice from their own experiences, and for many that might just be as simple as you claim. I do, however, have a huge problem with comments like

“you arent huge bc you suck ass and don’t give a damn, fucking pussies.”

That is first and foremost demeaning, and an insult not only to all those whiners but those of us who would do anything to succeed and have not yet achieved that level of success. That sort of attitude has no place on this site (which has been an invaluable resource to myself and others). It is no one’s place to attack others from behind an internet veil of anonymity. Obviously, if you cannot contribute something of any value to a thread, don’t reply in the first place.

66

[quote]Trogdor wrote:
In the past four years I’ve gone from 225 lbs and 20% bf to 145lbs 6%, and back to 190 at 13% two years later.

I can gain at 2k cals, I can gain at 4k cals, and surprisingly the rate at which I gain muscle does not change by much. I’ve tried both for several years now, so in this regard I have some experience.
[/quote]

4k in calories at 200lbs and a normal weight/workout training program (real normal not Abercrombie normal) is BARELY your maintenance level.

67

[quote]Massif wrote:
… I squat to pee…[/quote]

I just busted out at work and had to cover my mouth. So are those ATG or 1/4 squats? Also, how important is foot placement?

68

[quote]PGA200X wrote:
Trogdor wrote:
In the past four years I’ve gone from 225 lbs and 20% bf to 145lbs 6%, and back to 190 at 13% two years later.

I can gain at 2k cals, I can gain at 4k cals, and surprisingly the rate at which I gain muscle does not change by much. I’ve tried both for several years now, so in this regard I have some experience.

4k in calories at 200lbs and a normal weight/workout training program (real normal not Abercrombie normal) is BARELY your maintenance level.[/quote]

last I checked every formula in the world says ~3200 is maintenance, 4k is well over that. Regardless of that fact, I can easily maintain my body weight at 1900 cals/day. As always, i’m willing to try just about anything, so more likely than not my intake will increase in the future (I just cannot afford it atm). Anyhow, this is nitpicking and off the point. While not everyone might deserve your respect, belittling people on an internet forum is not conducive to anything positive (whether you are right or not).

69

[quote]PGA200X wrote:
YOU ARE NOT EATING ENOUGH AND/OR YOUR WORKOUT INTENSITY SUCKS!

You are not over training![/quote]

I have to disagree on two points.

First point, is that workout intensity is not so much necessary to gaining muscle. More muscle, sure. But any weight gain is going to include some muscle, even for a person who is totally sedentary. The only real issue is that these “hardgainers” are not eating enough to gain any type of mass, period.

Second point, is that some of the people who aren’t gaining really are overtraining. I’ve seen several newbies post here who were considering themselves “hardgainers” particularly because they were doing more and more work in the gym - to the point of insanity - but not putting on any muscle mass. They were simply blaming the wrong factor, and couldn’t get it in their heads that they needed more food on the plate rather than plates on the barbell.

70

[quote]Trogdor wrote:
last I checked every formula in the world says ~3200 is maintenance, 4k is well over that. Regardless of that fact, I can easily maintain my body weight at 1900 cals/day. As always, i’m willing to try just about anything, so more likely than not my intake will increase in the future (I just cannot afford it atm). Anyhow, this is nitpicking and off the point. While not everyone might deserve your respect, belittling people on an internet forum is not conducive to anything positive (whether you are right or not).[/quote]

3200 doing nothing training wise. You workout anything normal (not Abercrombie normal) it jumps 1000 cals.

I am very hesitant to believe you maintained muscle at 2000 cals at 200lbs.

71

[quote]Trogdor wrote:
“you arent huge bc you suck ass and don’t give a damn, fucking pussies.”

That is first and foremost demeaning, and an insult not only to all those whiners but those of us who would do anything to succeed and have not yet achieved that level of success.

That sort of attitude has no place on this site (which has been an invaluable resource to myself and others). It is no one’s place to attack others from behind an internet veil of anonymity. Obviously, if you cannot contribute something of any value to a thread, don’t reply in the first place.[/quote]

Have you been on the internet before?

That aside, this whole thread was started because people are tired of people posting endless threads with pictures of their emaciated bodies, proclaiming how buff they will be in 6 weeks, asking for which weak areas to work on (here’s a clue = all of them) and then moaning when they get an honest reponse (eat more food, work out hard).

If that “attitude” didn’t exist, no-one would learn anything, as these same people who post their picture threads never read any articles, and seemingly never work out in most cases.

Now you may find it harsh, but the best advice is as PGA200X stated, workout hard, eat more. People spend too much time thinking about working out and very little time doing it.

72

[quote]Kailash wrote:
PGA200X wrote:
YOU ARE NOT EATING ENOUGH AND/OR YOUR WORKOUT INTENSITY SUCKS!

You are not over training!

I have to disagree on two points.

First point, is that workout intensity is not so much necessary to gaining muscle. Any weight gain is going to include some muscle, even for a person who is totally sedentary. The only real issue is that these “hardgainers” are not eating enough to gain any type of mass, period.

Second point, is that some of the people who aren’t gaining really are overtraining. I’ve seen several newbies post here who were considering themselves “hardgainers” particularly because they were doing more and more work in the gym - to the point of insanity - but not putting on any muscle mass. They were simply blaming the wrong factor, and couldn’t get it in their heads that they needed more food on the plate rather than plates on the barbell.[/quote]

I think the concept of overtraining is HIGHLY over-rated. I honestly believe much of that can be offset by the trainer’s diet. If you are eating enbough to give your body everything it needs, it won’t fall into a state of “overtraining” unless your entire routine is just fucked all to hell. If some newbie is in the gym for 2-3 hours a day, then yes. That may be a possibility. That simply brings us back to the basics…a concept that many people still haven’t grasped.

73

I think the thing noobs have to realize is that Rome wasn’t built in a day … or 12 weeks… or a year even. At the same rate, gaining 5 lbs in a year and blaming it on everyone and everything is fucking ridiculous. I have to honestly admit I made some of those excuses that PGA wrote about when I was younger…hardgainer, genetics, yadda yadda yadda. Well, I read and applied T-Nation’s collective advice for a year and was enlightened. Noobs, it’s not fucking rocket science.

74

I’m new to the website/gym thing and I have to say I can’t really fault the sarcastic/mocking tone adopted by more than a few users who have obviously been on this site for a while.

If they’re not going to put in the time to use the search function over to the left what are the odds they’re going to put in the amount of effort to reach their goals. A pure waste of everyones time.

75

[quote]Ghost22 wrote:
It’s fucking hard for people predisposed to being skinny.

My 2 cheesburgers.[/quote]

-agreed.

-lol! that cheesburgers line was enough to make me post… great line…

76

I agree wholeheartedly with the prevailing opinion in this thread. When I found this site, I was the usual ecto who felt he ate like an NFL lineman but couldn’t gain a pound. But I didn’t post pics of my emaciated frame and ask for help. I read every thread I could find that somehow related to gaining muscle. Eventually, my mindset completely turned around.

Unlike the lazy majority of American people, I possess complete control over how I look. Given enough time, I can look how I want to look. If I want to be ripped, I can be ripped. If I want a bulk belly, I can get a bulk belly. Granted, I think I took the bulking advice a little too far in the beginning. I ate TOO much (10k+ kcals) from the very beginning (although I’d rather see a newb err on the side of more bodyfat, just to get away from the “i can’t see my abs, my life is over” mindset).

I never had problems putting food down not because of some innate ability to eat a lot, but because I told myself that finishing this meal would lead to more muscle. I saw the light at the end of the tunnel, and I was going to get there or drop dead trying, end of story. But I am thankful for the range of attitudes presented on this forum.

Prof rails into ppl, but as far as I’m concerned, until you have the dedication and knowledge to be as big as him (not necessarily possess his strength or size), you need to hear it. If you come on here because you desire more muscle, you’d better recognize what the atmosphere you aspire to enter entails. The website is called TESTOSTERONE Nation, and as stated before, the site’s background color is black. That should dispel any questions about this environment.

America is a big proponent of the get-results-quickly-using-the-least-effort-imaginable lifestyle. Hell, you can have a plush Ab-Lounge, along with its outraegous promises, delivered to your front door. And you don’t even have to leave the couch to order it! But changing your body composition doesn’t fit that lifestyle. As much as the emo “hardgainers” want to mock the big guys who say that ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day’, the bottom line is that those dispensing the advice have learned that the advice is right, and despite their delivery, you need to take it to heart.

Yes, I am a “hardgainer.” It is “harder” for me to “gain” than the average person. My maintenence cals will probably be over 5 or 6,000 once I’m done with this intial bulk. But you have to play the cards you’re dealt. That is all.

-birdmanblair

77

[quote]birdmanblair wrote:
I agree wholeheartedly with the prevailing opinion in this thread. When I found this site, I was the usual ecto who felt he ate like an NFL lineman but couldn’t gain a pound. But I didn’t post pics of my emaciated frame and ask for help. I read every thread I could find that somehow related to gaining muscle. Eventually, my mindset completely turned around.

Unlike the lazy majority of American people, I possess complete control over how I look. Given enough time, I can look how I want to look. If I want to be ripped, I can be ripped. If I want a bulk belly, I can get a bulk belly. Granted, I think I took the bulking advice a little too far in the beginning. I ate TOO much (10k+ kcals) from the very beginning (although I’d rather see a newb err on the side of more bodyfat, just to get away from the “i can’t see my abs, my life is over” mindset).

I never had problems putting food down not because of some innate ability to eat a lot, but because I told myself that finishing this meal would lead to more muscle. I saw the light at the end of the tunnel, and I was going to get there or drop dead trying, end of story. But I am thankful for the range of attitudes presented on this forum.

Prof rails into ppl, but as far as I’m concerned, until you have the dedication and knowledge to be as big as him (not necessarily possess his strength or size), you need to hear it. If you come on here because you desire more muscle, you’d better recognize what the atmosphere you aspire to enter entails. The website is called TESTOSTERONE Nation, and as stated before, the site’s background color is black. That should dispel any questions about this environment.

America is a big proponent of the get-results-quickly-using-the-least-effort-imaginable lifestyle. Hell, you can have a plush Ab-Lounge, along with its outraegous promises, delivered to your front door. And you don’t even have to leave the couch to order it! But changing your body composition doesn’t fit that lifestyle. As much as the emo “hardgainers” want to mock the big guys who say that ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day’, the bottom line is that those dispensing the advice have learned that the advice is right, and despite their delivery, you need to take it to heart.

Yes, I am a “hardgainer.” It is “harder” for me to “gain” than the average person. My maintenence cals will probably be over 5 or 6,000 once I’m done with this intial bulk. But you have to play the cards you’re dealt. That is all.

-birdmanblair[/quote]

good post

78

[quote]Trogdor wrote:

In the past four years I’ve gone from 225 lbs and 20% bf to 145lbs 6%, and back to 190 at 13% two years later. [/quote]

Bro, I don’t want to bust your balls, but I wanted to point something out. When you started at 225 @ 20%, you had 180 lbs of LBM and 45 pounds of fat, assuming your numbers are accurate. You then cut and lost 36.3 pounds of fat and 43.7 pounds of muscle. :-\ Since that time, you’ve put on 29 pounds of muscle and 16 pounds of fat. If you continue to bulk at your current rate, when you reach 225 you’ll have 187.8 lbs of LBM and 37.2 lbs of fat, @ 16.5% bodyfat.

Net gain: you converted 7.8 pounds from fat to muscle in 4+ years training.

It might be time to change something up, friend.

79

[quote]De sleeplijn wrote:
tpa wrote:
The threads that genrate the most interest are the ones where a skinny guy puts up a pic of himself holding a shoe

No doubt there. That thread is a classic and I must admit that was the first thread I was put onto when my mates told me about this site.

Or xCelticx with his instinctual training was pretty solid too.

But there have been guys who have put skinny shots of themselves on and asked for genuine advice and they have been given the not so specific “eat more, lift heavy” mantra.

Tell them to read Berardi or whoever is best. Don’t just tell them to eat more. Give them some decent guidance.[/quote]

Well, the problem is not about giving advice, but more of wishing that they would have taken some time and researched their questions more. There is so much info on this site, that just about any question has been answered numerous times. Now, if he were to come here and say he read such and such and has a question to clear up, then there’s a better chance of getting serious answers. Coming on here and posting a pic of oneself with NO experience and asking a broad question is just a bit assinine. If you haven’t been working out, then you need to work on every aspect of training.

80

[quote]nramaker wrote:
Trogdor wrote:

In the past four years I’ve gone from 225 lbs and 20% bf to 145lbs 6%, and back to 190 at 13% two years later.

Bro, I don’t want to bust your balls, but I wanted to point something out. When you started at 225 @ 20%, you had 180 lbs of LBM and 45 pounds of fat, assuming your numbers are accurate. You then cut and lost 36.3 pounds of fat and 43.7 pounds of muscle. :-\ Since that time, you’ve put on 29 pounds of muscle and 16 pounds of fat. If you continue to bulk at your current rate, when you reach 225 you’ll have 187.8 lbs of LBM and 37.2 lbs of fat, @ 16.5% bodyfat.

Net gain: you converted 7.8 pounds from fat to muscle in 4+ years training.

It might be time to change something up, friend.

[/quote]

Exactly, unless you’re happy with mediocre results.