1-1.5 lbs a week gain!

... or even the one below.

Alternate A and B routines 3 non consecutive days per week. (Ex. Mon\Wed\Fri, week one ABA week 2 BAB, etc.)

A routine
Mandatory:

Squat 3x8

Superset
Standing barbell press 3x8
Chins 3xfail\3x8 weighted or assisted\lat pull downs 3x8

Optional:

Superset
Any curl 2-10x12
Lying tricep extension 2x10-12

Superset
Calf press 3x12-15
abs 3x10-12

B routine
Mandatory:

Deadlift 1x8

Superset
Bench press 3x8
Barbell Row 3x8

Optional:

Giant set
Shoulder side raise 3x10-12
Face Pulls 3x10-12
Shrugs 3x10-12

Superset
Calf press 3x12-15
abs 3x10-12

Do at least one warmup set for each compound lift with 8 reps at 50% workset weight. An additional warmup with a bit more weight and less reps might be nice. Something like 4 reps at 75% of workset weight.

Find your 8 rep maxes for each lift and start at 20% less than that. Ex. If 135 is the absolute most weight you can bench for 8 reps, start at .8*135=105 and work up from there.

Add 10lbs to deadlifts every workout, 5lbs to squats every workout, 2.5-5lbs to bench, rows, and standing press every workout. Progress on chin-ups as best you can. If you do any optional lifts, add weight\reps as often as you can. I would hold off on adding any of the optional lifts for 2-3 months. Without optional lifts added, each routine should last a bit under 30 minutes.

Rest 90-120 seconds between sets of squats. Rest 30-60 seconds between each exercise on supersets. If you do the full giant set on B routine, probably no rest at all between sets.

Eat at least 1g protein and .45g fat per lb of your lean body mass (total weight minus fat weight). Fill the rest of your calories with whatever, but plenty of carbs. Order a digital food scale from amazon.com Track food on myfitnesspal.com website and\or phone app. Eat to gain 3-4lbs\month for ~3 months then drop back to gaining 2-2.5lbs\month from there.

no don't get some "gear". thats for guys who don't have the balls to produce their own testosterone.

protein: lean body mass in lbs x 0.8-1 = gramms of protein.(a little more if you like but no need to overdo it.)
fats: bodyweight x 0.5-0.8 = gramms of fat. (a good amount should be polyunsaturated. for a hardgainer a little more fat is not a problem and can have an anabolic effect.)
crabs: increase until you start gaining at the desired rate. simple as that.

if you are looking for a new training program "5/3/1 boring but big" worked great for me.

do you even lift bro?

Hey guys, I'm pretty new here; just signed up an hour ago haha.

I'm starting mfp because its really hard for me to gain weight and I thought maybe I should track what I eat and see where it goes. Anyhow, my question is, what is the fastest way to gain muscle mass (healthy weight gain)?. I'm looking for suggestions on my diet, I do consume 1 26g protein & supposedly complete amino acid protein shake a day (Mutant Mass), but would like to supplement it with more.

I work out 3 times a week separating my workouts into chest, arms & back (Monday), abs and legs on Tuesday, shoulders & push-up (to failure) on Thursday, squats & dead lifts on Friday & chest and arms and back again on Saturday. Sunday is usually rest day.

Help! Thanks,

-J

Hey guys, I'm pretty new here; just signed up an hour ago haha.

I'm starting mfp because its really hard for me to gain weight and I thought maybe I should track what I eat and see where it goes. Anyhow, my question is, what is the fastest way to gain muscle mass (healthy weight gain)?. I'm looking for suggestions on my diet, I do consume 1 26g protein & supposedly complete amino acid protein shake a day (Mutant Mass), but would like to supplement it with more.

I work out 3 times a week separating my workouts into chest, arms & back (Monday), abs and legs on Tuesday, shoulders & push-up (to failure) on Thursday, squats & dead lifts on Friday & chest and arms and back again on Saturday. Sunday is usually rest day.

Help! Thanks,

-J

1) You might want to look at a training program that has you under the barbell more frequently instead of a body-part split. All-Pro's routine is a good example, and there are others as well, that should have you pressing/pulling/squatting frequently and adding weight to the bar in a linear fashion as time goes on. Your lifts should be going UP.

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=4195843&page=1



2) I'd figure out your maintenance needs and aim for about 1lb/week gain, give or take. Some trial and error will be necessary on your part as you'll need to target a small calorie surplus and then monitor your rate of weight gain and adjust. A good plan would be to take daily weigh-ins and average them out so that you're also seeing a weekly average weight, which you can then monitor (compare changes in average weight over weeks). Adjust calories up or down to land you near that 1lb/week target.

http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/muscle-gain/whats-my-genetic-muscular-potential.html
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/muscle-gain/general-philosophies-of-muscle-mass-gain.html

As far as energy and macronutrient intake, protein needs will be relatively HIGHER in a caloric deficit (during weight loss) because amino acid oxidation increases.

In non drug users (I'm making an assumption here that you're choosing not to use steroids) eating in an energy surplus (excess calories), I doubt you need to go over 1g/lb total bodyweight in protein and depending on the size of the surplus, you're probably just fine going slightly under it -- but you should have plenty of room to let personal preference play a role here since it should be quite easy to get adequate macronutrition being that calories are in excess.

While the research does point to a number a bit under 1g/lb bodyweight as being sufficient, going slightly above it provided that adherence/performance needs are still being met, seems like a reasonable "cover your *kitten*" idea. This is likely even more important in a caloric deficit. You have more leeway when calories are in excess.