I Need A Mass Gaining Diet, Fast! Help!

[ladyhawk_1968]

I'm 5'4" and weigh 120.....it's easy for me to put on FAT but not muscle, therefore, I have to watch what I eat. I lift 5-6 days a week and teach Spin on Saturday. There's a big contest I want to do in July......I need a clear-cut diet (for women!) to gain some serious muscle.
Anybody, help!
Kim

[Nicole]

What is your diet currently like? For gaining mass, I would say try something around 15-20 calories per pound of bodyweight.

Another thing you might want to do is get your bodyfat checked just to see where you are at.

Most women I know will diet for 12-20 weeks to get ready for a show so you don't have a lot of time to go through a bulking phase.

[ladyhawk_1968]

I am trying to take my caloric intake up to 3,000cals/day. Bodyfat is 11.5%. I'm eating roughly 150-190 grams of protein (this is a new trial diet) a day. Trying to cut my overall fat intake down to half that. Is there hope for building mass by July? I lift 5-6 days per week and teach Spin twice.
Thanks for the reply, Nicole.
Kim

[Telly]

Have a look at your training. No diet will 'put on muscle', it simply gives your muscles the fuel to grow, but the key is training and training hard.

What is your current workout like and what sort of exercises are you doing?

[ladyhawk_1968]

I work one bodypart per day; 4 sets of each exercise x 10-12 reps each. I usually do 4-6 exercises for each body part, too. I work with a trainer who has an extensive background in physiology and coaching and a friend who has been competing for about 7 years. Perhaps I should plan to do a contest later in the year.......maybe one in November as opposed to July.
Any advice would be appreciated! I have my calories up to 3,000 per day.....and that's pretty tough to do (for me).
Kim

[Telly]

Hi Kim,

At 11.5% bodyfat it doesn't sound like you put on fat easily as you say, particulalry when ingesting all those calories.

4 exercises and 4 sets each, means a minimum of 16 sets per bodypart. I never try to measure overtraining through number of sets and length of workout, but you need to ask, do you need to perform that many to stimulate growth.

Without knowing what exercises you perform, i would advise you get back to basics with training. Heavy compound exercises should form the core of your workouts ie, squats, benches, deadlifts, chins, barbell rows, dumbell press etc.

If your workout is predominately isolation exercises, they will not give you the mass you're looking for, period. Male or female, compound exercises are essential for growth (assuming your not taking steroids, even if you are).

Don't be afraid to go down to 8 reps with good form, to give your strength and poundages a bit of a spike. Progressive overload is the name of the game if you wan to put on muscle mass fast. If you want muscle, you need to train like a 'bodybuilder'.

As far as competing goes, don't put a deadline on it. You want to be ready in terms of muscle mass. It''s very difficult to put on mass when getting ready to compete. You may be better off working hard for another year, and hitting the stage when you feel you're really ready. Don't rush it.

[ladyhawk_1968]

"Thank you" to Telly for your advice.
I do perform alot of the 'basics'; sticking to free weights more than machines. My calorie increase is recent--- I usually only eat about 2,000 cals per day. I've only increased to 3,000 this last week.
Competing in shows allows me to stay focused and have a goal. But, I'd like to be a true competitor even though I may not take the top honors. I've placed 2nd and 3rd respectively, in my weight class. I do enjoy it.
So, if anyone has any secrects for mass gain (sans the steroids) I'd love to hear them.
Kim

[Telly]

Kim,

Sorry, didn't mean to sound patronising. I thought you were new at training, didn't know you already competed.

If you have time, send through your workout and exercises.

How much cardio do you perform per week. You mentioned that you teach spin one day per week. Do you perform any other cardio?

[ladyhawk_1968]

Telly,
You weren't patronizing; and thanks for the reply.
I work one body part per day, 5-6 days a week.
Mon: arms--
bi's: curls, hammers, 21's, conc. curl for 10 reps x 4 sets
tri's: pull downs, dips, EZ bar overheads, rope (machine) pull downs
Tues: Back
lat pull downs, dumbbell rows, weight assisted chins (machine), hypers (for lower back) or Good mornings (for lower back), shrugs
Wed: chest
flat bench press with dumbbells, flyes with dumbbells, push-ups, rotary chest (machine), cable cross overs
Thurs: Spin class (as a student, not an instructor)
Fri: Legs
squats, extensions (machine), curls (machine), low sqats with the fitball against the wall, the leg sled (incline press on plate-loaded machine). Calve raises on plate loaded machine and standing raises with only body weight.
Sat:
I teach Spin for two hours
Sun: shoulders I think I'm out of room on this page! Write back. Kim

[Telly]

Hi Kim,

Firtsly, you need a rest day. At the moment, you don't have any rest days. You know that mucles grow when your resting so you really need one full day rest if not two.

It would be preferable to have that rest day in between your bodypart workouts, like say a wednesday, but if you can't then make it Sunday, and do shoulders with your back workout on Tuesday.

Your exercise selection is not too bad.

For biceps, cut your number of sets back to 10-12. Always do barbell curls, dumbell curls and choose from one of the other exercises alternating each week. Get down to 8 reps and go to failure last two sets of each exercise.

Triceps looks ok, but again, cut back number of sets, go heavy. You may like to try close grip bench press. It's a good size builder for triceps. Keep your hand spacing about 6 inches apart.

Back again looks ok, but definately start doing barbell rows as your key mass builder. It's a great exercise for width and detail. Also, perform your chins first as you will get most benefit when fresh, and try to do them unassisted if you can. Also replace good mornings and hypers with regular deadlifts. Deadlifts are equal to squats as an overall mass builder.

Chest: Flat dumbell press, incline dumbell press, incline flyes.

Legs: Focus on your squats and bring in lunges, they are a great exercise for the quads and hams, particularly for females.

Shoulders: Dumbell press, upright rows, lateral raises, shrugs

More to come. Tell me what you think so far

[Telly]

Kim,

With all your bodyparts, you could be doing less sets. You should be able to add mass with 12 sets for each bodypart, perhaps less for arms, as long as you give everything, and i mean everything

Get your reps down to 8 on the last two sets of each exercise, and strive to push as much weight as you can with good form. Muscle growth occurs through progressive overload, not shocking or supersets or all that other fancy stuff. It sounds simple because it is. Increase strength=increase in weight you can lift=increase in muscle mass.

Deadlifts are an important all round mass builder. Someone that deadlifts will always stand out in a contest, because they look harder and more muscled from the calves all the way up to the traps when viewed from behind. You don't have to do them every workout, because they are demanding, but at least every two weeks.

If you have your heart set on competing this year i won't discourage you, but if you can take a year off and just focus on the basic exercises and pointers i have given you, i think you will be surprised at how much mass you can build.

I know it sounds like making a big change, but if you are not happy with your current results and training, then it's time to change and experiment.

I would be happy to discuss your thoughts on everything

Telly

[shaun]

protein...lots of protein

[WestideIron]

Only do compound lifts. Eat 3500 cals.-4000 cals a day w/ 55%carbs, 35%protien, 10% fat. Excersise only 3 days per week to allow more rest time.

[Joe1014]

You probably wont gain too much mass by July. If I were you I would change your training split to allow time for your body to rest and recuperate. You dont gain muscle while your at the gym,you do when you are resting. I am going to give you a split that i think would benefit you the most.

Mon- Chest/biceps
Tues- Legs/calves/abs
Weds-rest!
Thurs-Back/triceps (i would take this spinning class out because when you are trying to gain mass, cardio is not a good idea because it is taking calories away from your muscle building)
Fri-Shoulders/abs
Sat- spinning (eat about 3,500 calories on this day if your eating 3,000 normally because 2 hours of cardio is way too much )
Sun-rest!

-use a weight gainer as your post-workout shake due to the amount of calories they contain. Studies show that after an intense weight training session almost nothing you drink will get stored as fat due to low glycogen levels

-if you have any other questions feel free to ask

[Fletch]

Originally posted by Joe1014

-use a weight gainer as your post-workout shake due to the amount of calories they contain. Studies show that after an intense weight training session almost nothing you drink will get stored as fat due to low glycogen levels

This is a great piece of advice to take wholeheartedly with the lack of time before the next competition. Make sure you get a couple days for rest. (rest days are exactly that.......nothing more......nothing less) Also, high calorie shake will get absorbed my your body because it will need the quality replenishment........this is the most important meal of the day because your body is most vulnerable to it's insulin levels. Your natural production of insulin (the body's most anabolic natural substance) will increase with the consumption of a good post-workout shake and will help give you that mass you need... naturally.

- Fletch