The Journey of the Skinnies

[Erickt90066]

Hello, my name is Erick. Age 24, 145lbs, 5 '11. I just started to work out and currently going to Gold's Gym. Today I started the Jim Stoppani's 12 week short cut to size program.

I was at the gym today working out my chest. Only one bench available and this guy about 40 years of age tell me he would like to share the bench with me. So, I agree. Given that I am new to working out and skinny I begin benching about 25 pounds--i know its a low amount of weight but I was aiming for 12-15 reps. After finishing my rep the guy takes off the weight and does his rep with no weight and tell me " are you kidding me this is the weight you are using". I tell him well its my warm up and i am following a program that require me to uses microcycles which I need to do high reps. They guy tell me " you look like you have not been to the gym, this is a waste of time you need to lift more heavy" then he walks away and tell this chubby personal trainer to come help me out.

Man, I got upset, made my good energy turn into anger and kinda threatened to ruin my work out.

How do you handle haters like these? Its kinda tough being skinny and working around people who are not necessarily more fit but simply bigger in weight who think they are more fit because they can lift more. To be honest I am more worried about getting the form right and the habit of going to the gym and eating than the amount of weight necessary to impress people.

[thatswhatshesed]

Hello, my name is Erick. Age 24, 145lbs, 5 '11. I just started to work out and currently going to Gold's Gym. Today I started the Jim Stoppani's 12 week short cut to size program.

I was at the gym today working out my chest. Only one bench available and this guy about 40 years of age tell me he would like to share the bench with me. So, I agree. Given that I am new to working out and skinny I begin benching about 25 pounds--i know its a low amount of weight but I was aiming for 12-15 reps. After finishing my rep the guy takes off the weight and does his rep with no weight and tell me " are you kidding me this is the weight you are using". I tell him well its my warm up and i am following a program that require me to uses microcycles which I need to do high reps. They guy tell me " you look like you have not been to the gym, this is a waste of time you need to lift more heavy" then he walks away and tell this chubby personal trainer to come help me out.

Man, I got upset, made my good energy turn into anger and kinda threatened to ruin my work out.

How do you handle haters like these? Its kinda tough being skinny and working around people who are not necessarily more fit but simply bigger in weight who think they are more fit because they can lift more. To be honest I am more worried about getting the form right and the habit of going to the gym and eating than the amount of weight necessary to impress people.

screw what he thinks. I wouldve laughed in his face, who cares. Its his loss if he doesnt understand how to work out correctly.

[risingUP421]

gjdm

Damn, why dont i look that good at 170 lol

For the first 2 years have you done the typical 8-15 rep ranges?

Thanks man, and generally I never go over 10 reps, unless its abs, calves or if I'm just trying to burn out a muscle at the end of a workout. (Just personal preference)

Lately I've been doing the bodybuilding template of 5/3/1 and really like it. Its a great combo if strength and hypertrophy training.

[Dermbet]

Hello, my name is Erick. Age 24, 145lbs, 5 '11. I just started to work out and currently going to Gold's Gym. Today I started the Jim Stoppani's 12 week short cut to size program.

I was at the gym today working out my chest. Only one bench available and this guy about 40 years of age tell me he would like to share the bench with me. So, I agree. Given that I am new to working out and skinny I begin benching about 25 pounds--i know its a low amount of weight but I was aiming for 12-15 reps. After finishing my rep the guy takes off the weight and does his rep with no weight and tell me " are you kidding me this is the weight you are using". I tell him well its my warm up and i am following a program that require me to uses microcycles which I need to do high reps. They guy tell me " you look like you have not been to the gym, this is a waste of time you need to lift more heavy" then he walks away and tell this chubby personal trainer to come help me out.

Man, I got upset, made my good energy turn into anger and kinda threatened to ruin my work out.

How do you handle haters like these? Its kinda tough being skinny and working around people who are not necessarily more fit but simply bigger in weight who think they are more fit because they can lift more. To be honest I am more worried about getting the form right and the habit of going to the gym and eating than the amount of weight necessary to impress people.

That's unusual tbh. Maybe Golds gym is like that I dunno. It may have been his way of trying to help basically saying heavy weights will build, lighter weights not as much, but a pretty clumsy way to deal with people imo.

If i was you i would not follow any fancy programme. I would stick to the very basics and leave anything complicated for much later. Big compound exercises with weights as heavy as you can lift for 3 sets of 8-12 reps. Eat loads. Don't worry about detail...like building a house don't worry about interior decor before you have foundations!

[LNorris82]

melitonin is giving me weird ass dreams, like i remember every detail its weird but it works but the dreams are horrible. like my dad got eatin by wolves last night, should i still take this stuff? it puts me in a good deep sleep though

[nradam123]

Just subbed this thread. Its golden

[Dermbet]

Weird. I would personally steer clear of anything like that unless it was a really impressive drug worth the risk and building 2lb of muscle a week! Why can't you sleep normally?? i can't get enough sleep :-)

[Dermbet]

Just subbed this thread. Its golden

Good progress mate, just checked your blog. You've had such bad luck, you deserve to be successful. It's really showing in size, so it's working. You mentioned back pain. One of the problems of people new to the gym have (and even people who are regulars who should know better!) is trying to lift a weight that is too heavy. They lose proper form and start using their back. I've seen this so many times. These exercises are not aimed at putting unhealthy pressure on the back. Make sure you consciously think about your form all the time when doing an exercise and no cheating cos you can't lift it.

In terms of your workout, I am no expert, but it looks like you're doing too many small muscle exercises and too many overall. If you are a hardgainer, your body can not cope with it, it can not recover. I am doing only 4 exercises each session but all big ones. Bench press every session, squat or dead lift every session. I am only now seeing some gains. I went to the gym for years and put on a 1lb per month at best for years doing all sorts of isolation exercises and using machines and things. I used the leg press for example and I could lift loads but it didn't show anything in size. Doing squats and deadlifts properly my legs are finally growing!!

Sorry I didn't read every post, is there a reason you can't eat meat and eggs???

[SunKilMoon]

melitonin is giving me weird ass dreams, like i remember every detail its weird but it works but the dreams are horrible. like my dad got eatin by wolves last night, should i still take this stuff? it puts me in a good deep sleep though

How many miligrams are you taking?

[nradam123]

Good progress mate, just checked your blog. You've had such bad luck, you deserve to be successful. It's really showing in size, so it's working. You mentioned back pain. One of the problems of people new to the gym have (and even people who are regulars who should know better!) is trying to lift a weight that is too heavy. They lose proper form and start using their back. I've seen this so many times. These exercises are not aimed at putting unhealthy pressure on the back. Make sure you consciously think about your form all the time when doing an exercise and no cheating cos you can't lift it.

In terms of your workout, I am no expert, but it looks like you're doing too many small muscle exercises and too many overall. If you are a hardgainer, your body can not cope with it, it can not recover. I am doing only 4 exercises each session but all big ones. Bench press every session, squat or dead lift every session. I am only now seeing some gains. I went to the gym for years and put on a 1lb per month at best for years doing all sorts of isolation exercises and using machines and things. I used the leg press for example and I could lift loads but it didn't show anything in size. Doing squats and deadlifts properly my legs are finally growing!!

Sorry I didn't read every post, is there a reason you can't eat meat and eggs???

I get your point brah. I am taking a lot of care in ensuring my form is spot on nowadays.
And i do know that my workout is a little too much. But as i began it, i will continue it all the way. I can always learn something from it. And it also seems to be working pretty okay for now.

I am lifting the big compound lifts without much weight every now and then nowadays. My deadlifts and benchpress are not so bad now, but i need to work on my squats. Rows and military press are also decent. I will start lifting like you said once all these workouts are solid form, maybe in my next 6 week workout cycle.

Good to know that your legs are finally growing with squats and deadlifts. My legs are the worst part of my body. Girls in my school used to call me chicken legs haha. Need to beef them up soon.

Meat and eggs are okay. I cant eat them up everyday because i had haemorrhoids and i just recovered from it. If you get haemorrhoids, it is best to avoid meat and eggs on a daily basis, its just a precaution.

PS: I spent the last two hours learning to pose like a bodybuilder lol and put it as a private video in youtube. The goal is to make a similar video an year later and see all the size differences clearly. If all works as planned, that will be fun

[thatswhatshesed]

I get your point brah. I am taking a lot of care in ensuring my form is spot on nowadays.
And i do know that my workout is a little too much. But as i began it, i will continue it all the way. I can always learn something from it. And it also seems to be working pretty okay for now.

I am lifting the big compound lifts without much weight every now and then nowadays. My deadlifts and benchpress are not so bad now, but i need to work on my squats. Rows and military press are also decent. I will start lifting like you said once all these workouts are solid form, maybe in my next 6 week workout cycle.

Good to know that your legs are finally growing with squats and deadlifts. My legs are the worst part of my body. Girls in my school used to call me chicken legs haha. Need to beef them up soon.

Meat and eggs are okay. I cant eat them up everyday because i had haemorrhoids and i just recovered from it. If you get haemorrhoids, it is best to avoid meat and eggs on a daily basis, its just a precaution.

PS: I spent the last two hours learning to pose like a bodybuilder lol and put it as a private video in youtube. The goal is to make a similar video an year later and see all the size differences clearly. If all works as planned, that will be fun

Glad to have you in here man! sounds like your starting to have some success!
i see you said "I will start lifting like you said once all these workouts are solid form, maybe in my next 6 week workout cycle.". Why not start now? From my perspective, doing more compounds and moving away from isolation excersises is CLEARLY better and more effective, so why wait? I would check out starting strength (im sure its somewhere in this thread) to build a solid base. It will give you beastly legs aswell

[redmond3]

finished the 6 week 50 contest, might actually win it ;P

up 10.6 lbs.

pictures posted



Back to studying fml :X hope everyone is keeping up with their goals, and getting ready for summer

[thatswhatshesed]

those are some AMAZING results. Cant believe this was 6 weeks, looks like a whole body recomp. What workout/nutrition plan you on? would love to try this soon

[Dermbet]

hope everyone is keeping up with their goals, and getting ready for summer

Yep, this is the first time i am actually looking forward to a summer I can actually take my shirt off without being embarrassed (hopefully)

I am hoping to have gained another 13 pound by end of June which is almost a stone.

[Dermbet]

I get your point brah. I am taking a lot of care in ensuring my form is spot on nowadays.
And i do know that my workout is a little too much. But as i began it, i will continue it all the way. I can always learn something from it. And it also seems to be working pretty okay for now.

I am lifting the big compound lifts without much weight every now and then nowadays. My deadlifts and benchpress are not so bad now, but i need to work on my squats. Rows and military press are also decent. I will start lifting like you said once all these workouts are solid form, maybe in my next 6 week workout cycle.

Good to know that your legs are finally growing with squats and deadlifts. My legs are the worst part of my body. Girls in my school used to call me chicken legs haha. Need to beef them up soon.

Meat and eggs are okay. I cant eat them up everyday because i had haemorrhoids and i just recovered from it. If you get haemorrhoids, it is best to avoid meat and eggs on a daily basis, its just a precaution.

PS: I spent the last two hours learning to pose like a bodybuilder lol and put it as a private video in youtube. The goal is to make a similar video an year later and see all the size differences clearly. If all works as planned, that will be fun

Good that you are so determined. I think it must be tough without eggs and meat. I presume u are eating lots of fish and protein shakes to fill gaps maybe. I think you should do the big compound exercises. Don't just trust my opinion, look up lots of hardgainer articles on here. They almost all say: limited duration workouts, heavy compound exercises, masses of calories = size gains.

Good luck fella!

[redmond3]

those are some AMAZING results. Cant believe this was 6 weeks, looks like a whole body recomp. What workout/nutrition plan you on? would love to try this soon

Thanks bro, def put alot of time and effort in those 6 weeks. Would of done the same contest or no contest.

I actually did my own diet and workout routine for those 6 weeks. Currently getting certified in nutrition so learned alot


i actually gave some advice up there ^^ might be acouple posts up about tweaking diet every 2 weeks and how to do it along with the ratios


if can't see i can repost

[redmond3]

Yep, this is the first time i am actually looking forward to a summer I can actually take my shirt off without being embarrassed (hopefully)

I am hoping to have gained another 13 pound by end of June which is almost a stone.

Ahh can't wait for summer although I plan on keeping my shirt on lol I think once I get to 200 I'll be more comfortable about taking my shirt off

13 lbs by end of june is possible, reading some of your earlier posts I see you know quite a bit. You should have no problem reaching that goal bro. If you need any diet help , or workout just ask



hope to finish my certification by end of june


since contest is over, still another 40 lbs to gain by end of year. Have to take it slowly because not sure how adding 40 lbs to my frame will look. Want some tree trunk legs and they are growing!!!

I do barbell walking lunges, these help alot, I know its not alot but Currently lunging with 145 lbs (barbell) people look at me like im crazy then when they see me do it they are amazed lol I could lunge all day i love them.

[nradam123]

Good that you are so determined. I think it must be tough without eggs and meat. I presume u are eating lots of fish and protein shakes to fill gaps maybe. I think you should do the big compound exercises. Don't just trust my opinion, look up lots of hardgainer articles on here. They almost all say: limited duration workouts, heavy compound exercises, masses of calories = size gains.

Good luck fella!

I need to start reading this thread carefully. Its really big hehe.
I am eating protein shakes as my prime protein source. Also i am putting in peanut butter, cheese, milk (very less due to partial intolerance), oats which contain not so bad amount of protein. Rest of my diet is mostly carbs (I eat too much carbs nowadays) and olive oil for fat.

The only compound lifts in my routine right now are banchpress, deadlifts and rows. Then there are a few compound machine workouts, rest are isolations. I am in a 7 week bulk now with these exercises. I really want to start working out the way you guys said, but i am also very curious to see the end result of the goal i set forth a few weeks ago. My goal was 60 kg haha, and i am only 55.5 now. And with 3 weeks left, i think workouts wont help much, all i can do is EAT.

[redmond3]

I need to start reading this thread carefully. Its really big hehe.
I am eating protein shakes as my prime protein source. Also i am putting in peanut butter, cheese, milk (very less due to partial intolerance), oats which contain not so bad amount of protein. Rest of my diet is mostly carbs (I eat too much carbs nowadays) and olive oil for fat.

The only compound lifts in my routine right now are banchpress, deadlifts and rows. Then there are a few compound machine workouts, rest are isolations. I am in a 7 week bulk now with these exercises. I really want to start working out the way you guys said, but i am also very curious to see the end result of the goal i set forth a few weeks ago. My goal was 60 kg haha, and i am only 55.5 now. And with 3 weeks left, i think workouts wont help much, all i can do is EAT.

Well carbs are going to be very important when it comes to your bulking, I currently eat way more carbs then proteins and of course my fats. If you are looking to increase the protein in your diet along with carbs, try beans, light red kidney beans have roughly 23 grams of protein, and 77 grams of carbs and really cheap.

If chicken and eggs are giving you a hard time can you include any fish in your diet?

adding both compound and isolation will help with overall development, I like including both when I make my routine. Although eating is important, so is working out when it comes to getting the body you want. Make sure you are hitting your legs hard, and not skipping leg day. your legs are your biggest muscle group in your body so hitting them hard and eating will help you gain lots of weight make sure you hit the other groups as well

as for hitting another 5 kg in 3 weeks, I think thats a bit aggressive, especially if you aren't monitoring your diet and making sure you are hitting your macros. You could and high chance of putting on alot of fat if you do jump up 10 lbs in just 3 weeks. I would aim 4 lbs a month, slow bulk ftw

[LNorris82]

How many miligrams are you taking?

15 mgs

[HoneyBadger300]

15 mgs

Fuark me! That's a lot of melatonin. I take 5mg's (not time released) and occasionally I'll take 10 when my roommate is up all night screaming at League of Legends... Non-lifters.

Dropping in, been a bit since I posted. Who says skinny guys can't be strong? 360x5 squat PR today, check my log if you want to see the vid!

[SuperBuffOG]

Is Phase 8 a good supplement I should get? What supplements are recommended to gain weight and working out

[nradam123]

Well carbs are going to be very important when it comes to your bulking, I currently eat way more carbs then proteins and of course my fats. If you are looking to increase the protein in your diet along with carbs, try beans, light red kidney beans have roughly 23 grams of protein, and 77 grams of carbs and really cheap.

If chicken and eggs are giving you a hard time can you include any fish in your diet?

adding both compound and isolation will help with overall development, I like including both when I make my routine. Although eating is important, so is working out when it comes to getting the body you want. Make sure you are hitting your legs hard, and not skipping leg day. your legs are your biggest muscle group in your body so hitting them hard and eating will help you gain lots of weight make sure you hit the other groups as well

as for hitting another 5 kg in 3 weeks, I think thats a bit aggressive, especially if you aren't monitoring your diet and making sure you are hitting your macros. You could and high chance of putting on alot of fat if you do jump up 10 lbs in just 3 weeks. I would aim 4 lbs a month, slow bulk ftw

Yeah, my goal was 6 kg in 7 weeks. Now i still need to go 4.5 kg to reach my goal and its only 3 weeks left lol. Even if i only gain 3 lbs in this 3 weeks, i will be really happy !
I live in this hostel where they have this sort of army mess, they give staple food for lunch and dinner. Its mostly rice and wheat here and since that is free food, i eat a LOT of it. I am having fish, but its pretty hard to cook em in this hostel, so hard to have daily. I will be back in my home in a month, and then i can have whichever food i want to whenever i want.

Thanks man, you told me a lot of cool stuff. I will rep you once i am allowed to rep again haha, my limit is only two reps per day it seems like lol.

[orca23554]

Yeah, my goal was 6 kg in 7 weeks. Now i still need to go 4.5 kg to reach my goal and its only 3 weeks left lol. Even if i only gain 3 lbs in this 3 weeks, i will be really happy !
I live in this hostel where they have this sort of army mess, they give staple food for lunch and dinner. Its mostly rice and wheat here and since that is free food, i eat a LOT of it. I am having fish, but its pretty hard to cook em in this hostel, so hard to have daily. I will be back in my home in a month, and then i can have whichever food i want to whenever i want.

Thanks man, you told me a lot of cool stuff. I will rep you once i am allowed to rep again haha, my limit is only two reps per day it seems like lol.

I can confirm, I am Indian

The biggest challenge in my short lifting exp so far (approx 14-15 months) has been that Indian food is a tough thing to bulk well on. It's so damn carb heavy that if you go on an aggressive diet and don't match it up with the intensity in the gym you end up with a lot of fat. I learnt this the hard way last year when I gained 1.5 inches in 2 months on my waist since work kept me busy and couldn't spend too much quality time in the gym while I kept up an aggressive cal surplus

Go heavy on the eggs, milk & yogurt/curd (if you are a veggie like me), wheat is fine but keep a tab on the quantity of rice. Make up the protein shortfall from a whey supp if needed. More importantly find a gym where you can hit those free weight compounds every workout, I've seen all the so called good gyms here (Talwalkars, Snap Fitness, Fitness One etc), none of those guys have a squat rack/stands and expect you to use the smith machine. Added to that most Indian trainers are jokers who'll put you on a routine that's too volume heavy

If you do the basics right you should easily be 12 Kgs+ heavier before you finish your first year of lifting. Which means compounds + progressive overload + diet + rest

[nradam123]

I can confirm, I am Indian

The biggest challenge in my short lifting exp so far (approx 14-15 months) has been that Indian food is a tough thing to bulk well on. It's so damn carb heavy that if you go on an aggressive diet and don't match it up with the intensity in the gym you end up with a lot of fat. I learnt this the hard way last year when I gained 1.5 inches in 2 months on my waist since work kept me busy and couldn't spend too much quality time in the gym while I kept up an aggressive cal surplus

Go heavy on the eggs, milk & yogurt/curd (if you are a veggie like me), wheat is fine but keep a tab on the quantity of rice. Make up the protein shortfall from a whey supp if needed. More importantly find a gym where you can hit those free weight compounds every workout, I've seen all the so called good gyms here (Talwalkars, Snap Fitness, Fitness One etc), none of those guys have a squat rack/stands and expect you to use the smith machine. Added to that most Indian trainers are jokers who'll put you on a routine that's too volume heavy

If you do the basics right you should easily be 12 Kgs+ heavier before you finish your first year of lifting. Which means compounds + progressive overload + diet + rest

Awesome. Im taking a whey supplement. But my protein intake is still lower than i want.
The squat rack thing is true lol, but there are a few street style gyms in my area with pumping iron style free weights, but it looks dangerous haha. I will have to count my macros and look at my diet again soon.

[redmond3]

Is Phase 8 a good supplement I should get? What supplements are recommended to gain weight and working out

Such a vague question,


go to the grocery store, buy some foods and get your diet right first. You could get a pre workout supp after, and a weight gainer, and multi. Not really a need to take lots of supps.

[redmond3]

Yeah, my goal was 6 kg in 7 weeks. Now i still need to go 4.5 kg to reach my goal and its only 3 weeks left lol. Even if i only gain 3 lbs in this 3 weeks, i will be really happy !
I live in this hostel where they have this sort of army mess, they give staple food for lunch and dinner. Its mostly rice and wheat here and since that is free food, i eat a LOT of it. I am having fish, but its pretty hard to cook em in this hostel, so hard to have daily. I will be back in my home in a month, and then i can have whichever food i want to whenever i want.

Thanks man, you told me a lot of cool stuff. I will rep you once i am allowed to rep again haha, my limit is only two reps per day it seems like lol.

No rep needed bro Sometimes **** happens, you can focus on just eating whats available now, and workout , but give it your all. Because in one month when you are back home, you will have to kick it up a notch and we can help you with your diet 3 lbs in 3 weeks is def doable, rice is loaded in calories and carbs, maybe try increasing your rice and wheat intake alittle more, even if you don't gain weight I will be proud of you for simply not giving up. Obstacles are put in our path all the time, but that is clearly not stopping you. If its too hard to gain, given the lack of resources you have, try to maintain, and really get focused when you head back home to put on some mass.

[redmond3]

Awesome. Im taking a whey supplement. But my protein intake is still lower than i want.
The squat rack thing is true lol, but there are a few street style gyms in my area with pumping iron style free weights, but it looks dangerous haha. I will have to count my macros and look at my diet again soon.

Oh wow just checked and you are the same height as me and around 119, I was much smaller than you around 100lbs lmao...

with that said, one thing that really helped me was this pass summer when I dropped alot of weight from working alot and not really having time to gym or really eat right.

You may think what is he getting at, when this happened its like I started all over, I was around 134. My eyes opened up, because I realized I was basically starting over and I could focus more on slow bulking (3-4lbs a month) and build up a better looking physique, and not having to worry about putting on bad weight. I focused more on putting mass in the right spots and not the bad, and find it alot easier take it slow, it pays off..

1 month til your back home, let the countdown begin

[SunKilMoon]

15 mgs

Try 5 or less one night and see what happens.

[youngs7]

Hey guys. Been following the group for a while now but don't post that often. Worked out on a regular for a while lost year then my work assignment changed and I fell out of it. Started again this fall but work and getting married got in the way. I've used the time reading up and trying to get everything in line to attack this once and for all. I hoped to start going full speed to start the way but with the wife not having worked for a year it wasn't plausible to eat as proper as I need to. With someone extra money coming in, I am looking forward to start 2 weeks from now. I don't want to put it off but I'm not going to kid myself either by trying to start this week since my work week is going to be f***ed with long work and little sleep. Anyway, seeing all the stories keep me motivated and I can't wait to add mine. Planning on doing a big bulk and then cut. Wish I could gain only lean mass but I think bulking and cutting with have a bigger impact and I think us skinnies have an easier time cutting. Would love to see some progress before I head to the beach in 3 months.