Need advice from "Bulkers"...

As a total novice lifter, he can probably put on ~2 lbs./month for a while, and should take advantage of that while it lasts. Eating about a 500 cal daily surplus should work. It is almost obscenely easy for a noob lifter to get great results, so just getting in the habit of lifting and eating right should be all he needs to see great results. Later on if he sticks with it and starts slowing down, feel free to post again and you can get advice on a more involved routine, but for now simple is best!

Here's the rundown:

Diet:
Eat ~500 cals/day surplus.
Eat 1g protein/pound lean body mass.
If fat gain seems excessive (it shouldn't), reduce caloric suplus.
On lifting days, after lifting, get at least 300g carbs, around 100g of which can be sugar (I like Frosted Flakes for this personally). This will aid recovery and help with muscle synthesis.
Lean meats, fruits, and veggies are preferred, but eating a little bit of junk won't hurt.
If sufficient caloric intake is difficult, whole milk is amazing for adding calories.

Workout:
Look at Starting Strength, or StrongLifts 5x5 or 5/3/1 for good beginner programs (any one of those should work). These should give great results until around 'intermediate' strength levels (www.strstd.com for nice strength standards calculator).
Work out in the morning if at all possible.
The only cardio that should be done is walking or very low intensity steady state. If he really wants to do cardio, 1-2 days/week of HIIT is probably OK as well, but make sure to account for calorie burn to maintain your caloric surplus.

As long as body fat gain isn't excessive, I wouldn't worry about it... it's a _LOT_ easier to get rid of body fat than it is to gain muscle.

Hope this helps!

have him start his own account and ask for himself

that would be a good start on his road to being a "big boy"

He needs to eat ALOT and lift ALOT, and skip cardio, it will only require him to eat more. I haven't weighed 130 since i was 12, and i am only 5' 7"

Don't worry...give him a couple years and the pounds will just magically appear. I'm 31 and have, what sounds like, the same frame as your husband (about 5'8, around 130-135lbs until I was 30). Literally, it seems when I hit 30 a switch flipped and I started slowly gaining. Couple months ago I got up to 145, which is fine, but the problem was I gained it by eating junk (fast food, sweets) and it surely wasn't muscle gain.

I decided to take the approach of losing the weight I'd gained first, then work on bulking up. I've lost the weight (down to 128), now working on making the switch over to bulking (really, just trying to commit myself to the gym time). Eating the calories is easy...eating the right calories to reach the goal is the hard part.

It's also difficult with a spouse trying to do the opposite (lose weight instead of gain). When I'm working on 2,100 calories (should probably up that) and her on like 1,400 makes meals difficult. Best of luck!

If he's having a really hard time adding weight while eating healthy (i.e. adding muscle instead of fat) he can try the GOMAD diet (or a portion of it at least). Basically, if someone is having a hard time eating enough to gain weight, they can just add a bunch of whole milk to their diet for good, high quality protein, fat and carbs. GOMAD stands for gallon of milk a day and that's exactly what it is. Eat healthy food and if you're not gaining, drink milk and lots of it.

>recommends being healthy
>suggests GOMAD

lol

I don't see what the problem is. If he eats healthy, protein rich meals high in fiber and good fats, it's really easy to feel full after not eating a ton of calories. If he's having a hard time putting on weight, GOMAD is a decent option. Much better than stuffing himself with lower quality foods that are high in calories but less filling and void of essential nutrients.

Whether he has just complained about this or has asked for you help, it seems like it's a touchy subject. My advice is to offer solutions for him to discover on his own, or together with you.

There are many different ways to approach weight gain/loss, which is why it's important for him to find something that will fit his current lifestyle. I would track what he eats for 3 days to find out his caloric intake, how often he eats, and what kinds of foods he eats. This will help identify his behavior with food and help him better understand what plan will work best.

Many people have already posted some great advice which I hope doesn't fall on deaf ears, but here are a few websites that have great articles on the topic of "bulking."

http://www.bodybuilding.com/guides/

http://www.simplyshredded.com/category/nutrition/bulking

Some things to consider:

-Try to limit total calories to no more than 1,000 kcal above the daily requirement. Anything above will go to waste (ie - fat).
-If you are new to working out, keep it simple with full body workouts 3X's a week, and 2X's cardio. You don't want to get hurt and ruin any new muscle/weight.
-80% of the program is diet, 10% is sleep, 5% is workouts, and the last 5% is rest.
-Add variety to your workouts & diet, this will keep you consistently improving.

If you have any additional questions, please let me know.

Best Wishes,

Truth_in_action82