Getting ripped without a gym membership

24

Replies

  • Davidsdottir
    Davidsdottir Posts: 1,285 Member
    Agree with the recent posters, it's the amount of muscle in the the time period in the OP that causes my raised eyebrows.
  • Wheelhouse15
    Wheelhouse15 Posts: 5,575 Member
    Putting on 25lbs in a year is doable, but certainly not while staying lean unless you plan on breaking out the needles. The 25lbs you put on will be around 12-15lbs of fat so you won't be ripped so you will have to cut and that will sacrifice a bit of muscle to get down the fat then you'll only be up about 8-10lbs or muscle. This is if you are doing a bodybuilding routine in a gym, I'm not sure what you can gain on bodyweight only exercises but likely somewhat less since you won't be maximizing muscle stimulation. This isn't a knock against bodyweight, but it just takes more time due to the leverages that need to be overcome. You just don't see that many people who are really big from bodyweight only.

    I used to workout with a group that alternated between bodyweight and weight training and we always lost size during the bodyweight phase of training. It just doesn't stimulate the muscles the same way nor as maximally, but the things you could do with your body were pretty damn impressive.
  • Davidsdottir
    Davidsdottir Posts: 1,285 Member
    fb47 wrote: »
    avadahm wrote: »
    I haven’t been successful in THAT much muscle gain (10 so far) but calistnics definitely work to a good degree for me.

    I personally avoid the gym because I don’t feel like paying money for it. I can invest in basic equipment at home if needed.

    You do you and keep at it and there’s no way you can’t accomplish your goals!

    how do you know you have put on 10 lbs of muscle??

    I love how people can pin point exactly how much muscles they have gained.

    It's simple. You just need a protractor, a graphing calculator, a scientific calculator, a scale, and an abacus.
  • fb47
    fb47 Posts: 1,058 Member
    fb47 wrote: »
    avadahm wrote: »
    I haven’t been successful in THAT much muscle gain (10 so far) but calistnics definitely work to a good degree for me.

    I personally avoid the gym because I don’t feel like paying money for it. I can invest in basic equipment at home if needed.

    You do you and keep at it and there’s no way you can’t accomplish your goals!

    how do you know you have put on 10 lbs of muscle??

    I love how people can pin point exactly how much muscles they have gained.

    It's simple. You just need a protractor, a graphing calculator, a scientific calculator, a scale, and an abacus.

    I am pretty sure she did that.
  • billkansas
    billkansas Posts: 267 Member
    Not to pile on, but I like to hit a Double Biceps with transition into Most Muscular pose and then estimate muscle poundage gained using a secret formula which is accurate to 0.01% (if done in my typical bathroom mirror lighting conditions).
  • Lean59man
    Lean59man Posts: 714 Member
    Well, I hope the OP comes back so we can pummel him some more. o:)
  • jessef593
    jessef593 Posts: 2,272 Member
    fb47 wrote: »
    avadahm wrote: »
    I haven’t been successful in THAT much muscle gain (10 so far) but calistnics definitely work to a good degree for me.

    I personally avoid the gym because I don’t feel like paying money for it. I can invest in basic equipment at home if needed.

    You do you and keep at it and there’s no way you can’t accomplish your goals!

    how do you know you have put on 10 lbs of muscle??

    I love how people can pin point exactly how much muscles they have gained.

    It's simple. You just need a protractor, a graphing calculator, a scientific calculator, a scale, and an abacus.

    Just all that stuff the overage person has
  • Wheelhouse15
    Wheelhouse15 Posts: 5,575 Member
    Lean59man wrote: »
    Well, I hope the OP comes back so we can pummel him some more. o:)

    Pummel horse? ;)
  • jessef593
    jessef593 Posts: 2,272 Member
    jessef593 wrote: »
    fb47 wrote: »
    avadahm wrote: »
    I haven’t been successful in THAT much muscle gain (10 so far) but calistnics definitely work to a good degree for me.

    I personally avoid the gym because I don’t feel like paying money for it. I can invest in basic equipment at home if needed.

    You do you and keep at it and there’s no way you can’t accomplish your goals!

    how do you know you have put on 10 lbs of muscle??

    I love how people can pin point exactly how much muscles they have gained.

    It's simple. You just need a protractor, a graphing calculator, a scientific calculator, a scale, and an abacus.

    Just all that stuff the overage person has

    *kitten*. Spell check. *average.
  • Muscleflex79
    Muscleflex79 Posts: 1,917 Member
    avadahm wrote: »

    how do you know you have put on 10 lbs of muscle??

    Measure it? I didn’t just gain 10# total and assume it was muscle. It did take a while, I admit.

    measure it HOW and how long did it take?
  • Savyna
    Savyna Posts: 789 Member
    OP, you may be interested in browsing reddit.com/r/bodyweightfitness they have a lot of material on bulking, cutting and maintaining with a primary focus on progressive calisthenics. FitnessFAQs (a youtuber) also has a lot of videos on his bodyweight fitness journey (dirty bulking, cutting back down, maintaining his weight). Good luck.
  • Muscleflex79
    Muscleflex79 Posts: 1,917 Member
    avadahm wrote: »
    avadahm wrote: »

    how do you know you have put on 10 lbs of muscle??

    Measure it? I didn’t just gain 10# total and assume it was muscle. It did take a while, I admit.

    measure it HOW and how long did it take?

    Lol I almost feel like you’re trying to troll. Let the OP work his heart out and support him
    I’m trying. Isn’t that what we all need for our goals? If he learns he will have to readjust then he will.

    And if you must know, I did say I didn’t put on 25# of ripped because that seemed like a lot. But encourage the guy anyways. What do I have to gain by tearing him down?

    who was tearing him down? you made a claim that seems unlikely/improbably/curious so I was asking how you did it and how it was measured. you cannot make lofty claims on a public message board and think no one is going to question them.
  • LotusFlwr2013
    LotusFlwr2013 Posts: 217 Member
    Avadahm,

    Well,that is one of the reason I many times thought of leaving these forums. Don't get me wrong. Many people on here are very helpful and the app is amazing. I have issues with these forums sometimes. Many times when somebody come on with a different idea or experience etc, they are met by lots of backlash. There is ways to tell somebody and to teach and ask questions without sounding like a ..... doing it.
    But...it is what it is. We can't all agree.

    OP, good luck to you. Please show us progress pictures and prove the nay sayers wrong.



    I think people get frustrated and that is why there is negativity... they take the comments personally and feel like

    ..."well clearly if there was a way to do that I would not spend X amount of time/money doing Y to attain Z ...

    ...you know how sometimes someone will lie to your face and your first reaction tends to be "Do they think I am this DUMB?" ... instead of thinking "OK WOW this person needs help".

    SOOOO this has nothing to do with the post but my way of encouraging you karintalley to relax through the adverse reactions and find the good information people do share... :smile:
  • Kst76
    Kst76 Posts: 935 Member
    Avadahm,

    Well,that is one of the reason I many times thought of leaving these forums. Don't get me wrong. Many people on here are very helpful and the app is amazing. I have issues with these forums sometimes. Many times when somebody come on with a different idea or experience etc, they are met by lots of backlash. There is ways to tell somebody and to teach and ask questions without sounding like a ..... doing it.
    But...it is what it is. We can't all agree.

    OP, good luck to you. Please show us progress pictures and prove the nay sayers wrong.



    I think people get frustrated and that is why there is negativity... they take the comments personally and feel like

    ..."well clearly if there was a way to do that I would not spend X amount of time/money doing Y to attain Z ...

    ...you know how sometimes someone will lie to your face and your first reaction tends to be "Do they think I am this DUMB?" ... instead of thinking "OK WOW this person needs help".

    SOOOO this has nothing to do with the post but my way of encouraging you karintalley to relax through the adverse reactions and find the good information people do share... :smile:

    Thank you. You are right.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    I used to do nothing but calisthenics for a long time...I was in the Marines and afterwards I continued doing them because I preferred it to the gym. I was lean and fit and well defined with a good physique, but I'd hardly say that I was "ripped" or "jacked"

    I think it would be incredibly difficult to put on 25 Lbs of lean mass in a year with body weight training. A newb in the gym with a solid lifting program would be lucky to put on 20 Lbs in a year, so I'm hard pressed to think that will happen with body weight training alone.

    You can definitely build a nice physique with body weight...it's just the claim of 25 Lbs in a year or a year and a half that I have serious doubts about.

    This is a pretty good article...

    https://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/ask-the-ripped-dude-how-much-muscle-can-i-put-on-naturally.html

  • stanmann571
    stanmann571 Posts: 5,727 Member
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    I used to do nothing but calisthenics for a long time...I was in the Marines and afterwards I continued doing them because I preferred it to the gym. I was lean and fit and well defined with a good physique, but I'd hardly say that I was "ripped" or "jacked"

    I think it would be incredibly difficult to put on 25 Lbs of lean mass in a year with body weight training. A newb in the gym with a solid lifting program would be lucky to put on 20 Lbs in a year, so I'm hard pressed to think that will happen with body weight training alone.

    You can definitely build a nice physique with body weight...it's just the claim of 25 Lbs in a year or a year and a half that I have serious doubts about.

    This is a pretty good article...

    https://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/ask-the-ripped-dude-how-much-muscle-can-i-put-on-naturally.html

    If you're under 25 and doing "military grade calisthenics" as a relatively untrained person 15-20 lbs in a year isn't inconceivable. It's suboptimal, no doubt. I gained 10-15 lbs of mostly muscle in basic training 20 years ago. I know it was mostly muscle, because I gained almost 4 inches across my chest and shoulders and nothing at the waist.
  • Wheelhouse15
    Wheelhouse15 Posts: 5,575 Member
    edited March 2018
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    I used to do nothing but calisthenics for a long time...I was in the Marines and afterwards I continued doing them because I preferred it to the gym. I was lean and fit and well defined with a good physique, but I'd hardly say that I was "ripped" or "jacked"

    I think it would be incredibly difficult to put on 25 Lbs of lean mass in a year with body weight training. A newb in the gym with a solid lifting program would be lucky to put on 20 Lbs in a year, so I'm hard pressed to think that will happen with body weight training alone.

    You can definitely build a nice physique with body weight...it's just the claim of 25 Lbs in a year or a year and a half that I have serious doubts about.

    This is a pretty good article...

    https://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/ask-the-ripped-dude-how-much-muscle-can-i-put-on-naturally.html

    If you're under 25 and doing "military grade calisthenics" as a relatively untrained person 15-20 lbs in a year isn't inconceivable. It's suboptimal, no doubt. I gained 10-15 lbs of mostly muscle in basic training 20 years ago. I know it was mostly muscle, because I gained almost 4 inches across my chest and shoulders and nothing at the waist.

    I'm impressed, or maybe it's the difference in our systems, but most of us actually lost muscle during basic due to the stress etc. Of course, I was only listening to those who were already in shape like I was, maybe the smaller, untrained members were actually gaining muscle.

    Note, I did the officer training but I don't think recruit training was different. We certainly weren't treated any differently in physical training and discipline that I ever saw or heard of.
  • jseams1234
    jseams1234 Posts: 1,219 Member
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    I used to do nothing but calisthenics for a long time...I was in the Marines and afterwards I continued doing them because I preferred it to the gym. I was lean and fit and well defined with a good physique, but I'd hardly say that I was "ripped" or "jacked"

    I think it would be incredibly difficult to put on 25 Lbs of lean mass in a year with body weight training. A newb in the gym with a solid lifting program would be lucky to put on 20 Lbs in a year, so I'm hard pressed to think that will happen with body weight training alone.

    You can definitely build a nice physique with body weight...it's just the claim of 25 Lbs in a year or a year and a half that I have serious doubts about.

    This is a pretty good article...

    https://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/ask-the-ripped-dude-how-much-muscle-can-i-put-on-naturally.html

    If you're under 25 and doing "military grade calisthenics" as a relatively untrained person 15-20 lbs in a year isn't inconceivable. It's suboptimal, no doubt. I gained 10-15 lbs of mostly muscle in basic training 20 years ago. I know it was mostly muscle, because I gained almost 4 inches across my chest and shoulders and nothing at the waist.

    I'm impressed, or maybe it's the difference in our systems, but most of us actually lost muscle during basic due to the stress etc. Of course, I was only listening to those who were already in shape like I was, maybe the smaller, untrained members were actually gaining muscle.

    I was lean when I went to basic... I was freaking ripped when I got out. It is quite impressive considering how little we were given to eat and how short basic training is in the US.... 8-13 weeks depending on branch of service. I was the guidon carrier so was last in line for chow. We all had to finish and get up as a unit as soon as the drill instructors were done eating - and they didn't eat last. I learned to eat without chewing. lol
  • Lean59man
    Lean59man Posts: 714 Member
    edited March 2018
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    I used to do nothing but calisthenics for a long time...I was in the Marines and afterwards I continued doing them because I preferred it to the gym. I was lean and fit and well defined with a good physique, but I'd hardly say that I was "ripped" or "jacked"

    I think it would be incredibly difficult to put on 25 Lbs of lean mass in a year with body weight training. A newb in the gym with a solid lifting program would be lucky to put on 20 Lbs in a year, so I'm hard pressed to think that will happen with body weight training alone.

    You can definitely build a nice physique with body weight...it's just the claim of 25 Lbs in a year or a year and a half that I have serious doubts about.

    This is a pretty good article...

    https://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/ask-the-ripped-dude-how-much-muscle-can-i-put-on-naturally.html

    If you're under 25 and doing "military grade calisthenics" as a relatively untrained person 15-20 lbs in a year isn't inconceivable. It's suboptimal, no doubt. I gained 10-15 lbs of mostly muscle in basic training 20 years ago. I know it was mostly muscle, because I gained almost 4 inches across my chest and shoulders and nothing at the waist.

    I'm impressed, or maybe it's the difference in our systems, but most of us actually lost muscle during basic due to the stress etc. Of course, I was only listening to those who were already in shape like I was, maybe the smaller, untrained members were actually gaining muscle.

    Note, I did the officer training but I don't think recruit training was different. We certainly weren't treated any differently in physical training and discipline that I ever saw or heard of.

    It would be a rare bird who gains weight in basic.

    You usually get really leaned out and drop 10-20lbs.

    "A lean, mean, fight'n machine."


  • stanmann571
    stanmann571 Posts: 5,727 Member
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    I used to do nothing but calisthenics for a long time...I was in the Marines and afterwards I continued doing them because I preferred it to the gym. I was lean and fit and well defined with a good physique, but I'd hardly say that I was "ripped" or "jacked"

    I think it would be incredibly difficult to put on 25 Lbs of lean mass in a year with body weight training. A newb in the gym with a solid lifting program would be lucky to put on 20 Lbs in a year, so I'm hard pressed to think that will happen with body weight training alone.

    You can definitely build a nice physique with body weight...it's just the claim of 25 Lbs in a year or a year and a half that I have serious doubts about.

    This is a pretty good article...

    https://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/ask-the-ripped-dude-how-much-muscle-can-i-put-on-naturally.html

    If you're under 25 and doing "military grade calisthenics" as a relatively untrained person 15-20 lbs in a year isn't inconceivable. It's suboptimal, no doubt. I gained 10-15 lbs of mostly muscle in basic training 20 years ago. I know it was mostly muscle, because I gained almost 4 inches across my chest and shoulders and nothing at the waist.

    I'm impressed, or maybe it's the difference in our systems, but most of us actually lost muscle during basic due to the stress etc. Of course, I was only listening to those who were already in shape like I was, maybe the smaller, untrained members were actually gaining muscle.

    Note, I did the officer training but I don't think recruit training was different. We certainly weren't treated any differently in physical training and discipline that I ever saw or heard of.
    I was under 145 when I entered... I was nearly 160 when I finished. So yes. I was on the small side(but not so small as to be on double rats) I was almost entirely unconditioned(in my upper body... I walked 8-15 miles a day for transportation)

    Yes, isn't typical. But certainly possible
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