Is it possible to gain 2 lbs of muscle a month instead of 1?

Im talking about gaining pure muscle . Not WEIGHT not FAT .. But actual lean muscle . Is it possible to do so supplement free? If so how . How much time would i have to put in the gym ?

Replies

  • T_X_L
    T_X_L Posts: 140 Member
    I think that's a hard question to answer. There's a lot of things to consider, IMO, genetics being the biggest driver (including overall size), followed by age. Some guys are "hard gainers", typically slim but have trouble packing on muscle. Look to your male blood relatives for clues. I think you'd have to be quite genetically gifted to add 24 lbs. of muscle naturally in a year. You'd need to eat a caloric excess, which means you'll have body fat to go with it, you can cut later.
  • astronomicals
    astronomicals Posts: 1,537 Member
    Im talking about gaining pure muscle . Not WEIGHT not FAT .. But actual lean muscle . Is it possible to do so supplement free? If so how . How much time would i have to put in the gym ?

    Maybe... You don't understand the underlying principles of gaining mass. I cant describe it in three sentences or a picture with bubble comments via pintrest. More time training could easily mean even less mass gained than a shorter time spent training. Chew on that.
  • Rayman79
    Rayman79 Posts: 2,009 Member
    Is it possible? Yes

    Without a large cocktail of drugs? No.
  • MrGonzo05
    MrGonzo05 Posts: 1,120 Member
    It's possible to gain muscle at that rate. If you eat optimally, train optimally, avoid injury, get enough rest, are a novice lifter, good genetics, young, male, and healthy. However, you will also gain body fat if you eat enough to accomplish that. So no.
  • OsricTheKnight
    OsricTheKnight Posts: 340 Member
    If you want to maximize strength gain, I recommend reading and following the program in "Starting Strength". For inspirational reading, you might check out YNDTP (http://startingstrength.com/articles/clarification_rippetoe.pdf).

    Osric
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
    depends
  • GymTennis
    GymTennis Posts: 133 Member
    My answer would be..No..For a very few lucky guys with great genetics, maybe... A pound of muscle a month is just fine.. 12 pounds of muscle in a year, spread all over your body... Everybody's gonna notice that
  • Brandonalex15
    Brandonalex15 Posts: 102 Member
    My answer would be..No..For a very few lucky guys with great genetics, maybe... A pound of muscle a month is just fine.. 12 pounds of muscle in a year, spread all over your body... Everybody's gonna notice that
    But for even just 1 pound . How much time would i need to spend in the gym a week? Specificly , i want some gains ! Lol
  • astronomicals
    astronomicals Posts: 1,537 Member
    ya need a proper balance of lifting and rest and a productive routine.... i already said that doing too much is counterproductive.

    go ahead and train oyourself into the ground if u want... youll be one of many who gets nowhere
  • astronomicals
    astronomicals Posts: 1,537 Member
    3 hours a week.. thats including your warmups and cool downs.. maybe another hour of ardio total... thats plenty
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    Im talking about gaining pure muscle . Not WEIGHT not FAT .. But actual lean muscle . Is it possible to do so supplement free? If so how . How much time would i have to put in the gym ?

    It's extremely difficult to put muscle on that quickly. Like professional athlete level of commitment level of quickly.

    And even those who can, can generally only do it for 6-12 months before gains taper off significantly.

    (I'm assuming PED-free)
  • Rayman79
    Rayman79 Posts: 2,009 Member
    Some general guidelines for you:

    Eat at around 15% over your TDEE (to many calories and you risk gaining too much fat)
    3-4 sessions in the gym at 45mins to 1hr max (plus a low intensity warmup and cool down).
    Hit the weights hard and always strive for that extra bit of TUT. One more rep, a slight increase in weight etc.
    Make big compounds the basis of your routine (eg squats, deads, row, bench), with a reasonable amount of secondary movements and minimal isolation work.
    Do a bit of cardio, but not too much (1-2 sessions a week will be plenty)
    Eat around 2lb of protein per lb of body weight per day
    Eat .3 - .5 lb of fat per lb of body weight per day
    Stay well hydrated and get 7-8 hrs sleep every night.

    :drinker:
  • GymTennis
    GymTennis Posts: 133 Member
    My answer would be..No..For a very few lucky guys with great genetics, maybe... A pound of muscle a month is just fine.. 12 pounds of muscle in a year, spread all over your body... Everybody's gonna notice that
    But for even just 1 pound . How much time would i need to spend in the gym a week? Specificly , i want some gains ! Lol

    Just lift the freaking weight
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,992 Member
    Im talking about gaining pure muscle . Not WEIGHT not FAT .. But actual lean muscle . Is it possible to do so supplement free? If so how . How much time would i have to put in the gym ?
    Yes. You'd have to be in calorie surplus and ensure you're training progressive overload with enough intensity and equal recovery time for muscle to grow. A male newbie in late teens to 20's can easily put on 2lbs of lean muscle in a month if program is followed correctly.

    EDIT: If we're speaking of the first month or two, then it's possible. To maintain that pace, probably not likely.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • davepearson86
    davepearson86 Posts: 158 Member
    Yes it is possible to gain 2lb of muscle a month. If you are a MALE, and a newbie lifter and training/eating right and are a meso or endomoph.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,992 Member
    Yes it is possible to gain 2lb of muscle a month. If you are a MALE, and a newbie lifter and training/eating right and are a meso or ectomoph.
    In to just say that somatotyping is bunk science. The rest is true.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • davepearson86
    davepearson86 Posts: 158 Member
    Yes, whatever you want to call it, we all have that friend who plows through 5000+ calories a day every day and is skinny, lanky and doesn't do any exercise. That's what I mean by ectomorph, whatever you want to call that. "hard gainer" I see called as well.
  • LiftAllThePizzas
    LiftAllThePizzas Posts: 17,857 Member
    There's only one way to find out.
  • izWHATitIz
    izWHATitIz Posts: 73 Member
    Check out this calculator over a scoobysworkshop.com will help give you an idea of what you should be doing.

    http://scoobysworkshop.com/muscle-gain-calculator/
  • geekyjock76
    geekyjock76 Posts: 2,720 Member
    This has a lot to do with your individual P-ratio (Partitioning ratio). Someone genetically gifted with a favorable P-ratio will gain less fat/more muscle in a surplus and lose more fat/less muscle in a deficit. On the other hand, poor *kitten* with an unfavorable P-ratio tend to gain more fat/less muscle in a surplus and burn less fat/more muscle in a deficit.
  • MrGonzo05
    MrGonzo05 Posts: 1,120 Member
    Yes, whatever you want to call it, we all have that friend who plows through 5000+ calories a day every day and is skinny, lanky and doesn't do any exercise. That's what I mean by ectomorph, whatever you want to call that. "hard gainer" I see called as well.

    Actually, none of us have this friend. Just because you see someone eat an entire pizza for lunch, does not mean they eat that way for 3 meals a day, every day.

    Hard gainer is pretty much a made up concept.
  • trojanbb
    trojanbb Posts: 1,297 Member
    Even with acceptable fat gain, it would only be possible your first few months of serious training or if relying on muscle memory (like you used to be a competitive bodybuilder)

    Even with drugs, you could not do this (cue Boromir from lotr)
  • Danny_Boy13
    Danny_Boy13 Posts: 2,094 Member
    Im talking about gaining pure muscle . Not WEIGHT not FAT .. But actual lean muscle . Is it possible to do so supplement free? If so how . How much time would i have to put in the gym ?
    Yes. You'd have to be in calorie surplus and ensure you're training progressive overload with enough intensity and equal recovery time for muscle to grow. A male newbie in late teens to 20's can easily put on 2lbs of lean muscle in a month if program is followed correctly.

    EDIT: If we're speaking of the first month or two, then it's possible. To maintain that pace, probably not likely.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness industry for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

    ^^^ This
  • klugity
    klugity Posts: 14 Member
    No, unfortunately it is impossible to gain 2 lbs of lean muscle in a month drug free. If training, nutrition, sleep efficiency is maxed for a year you can see around 6 to 10 lbs of lean muscle gain. That's is why dedication, discipline and patience are key to making muscle gains!
  • MsBots
    MsBots Posts: 6
    You can't gain muscle without gaining some fat. It doesn't work that way. When you gain weight you can both fat and muscle. When you lose weight you lose both fat and muscle. Lifting + good nutrition means that you maximise muscle growth while gaining weight. Lifting + good nutrition means that you minimise muscle loss while losing weight. Read this article > http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/muscle-gain/general-philosophies-of-muscle-mass-gain.html
  • mustgetmuscles1
    mustgetmuscles1 Posts: 3,346 Member
    Its possible with a good program, good diet, enough rest, new to training and if you are a young male.

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