View Full Version : Best training type for hardgainers?
Joff the Beast
03-01-07, 3:39 pm
Let's discuss the ultimate training strategy for hardgainers(ectomorph).
Ive trained 1 year using a standard bodybuilding routine, 8-10 reps,heavy workloads, and about 15 sets per big bodyparts and 12 sets per little bodyparts.
I gained 20 pounds of lean muscle mass in about 1 year with this training type.
Now Im trying to work more in endurance related mode (after reading an article on hardgainers on bb.com made by Steve Holman (X-rep, Iron Man magazine). I do 12-15 reps by sets, slow motion times to have longer sets time, add Xreps at each last set of an exercise. I dont know if it will pay off but I have to experiment to find the best training way ever.
Hardgainers, which type of training has helped you gains musclemass?
i go for heavy for the 12-6 rep range, ive never committed to any of those off colar workouts, hardgainers need to lift heavy, its worked for me, ive tried those fad workouts but they never did anything, sure i got a pump but nothing builds better muscles then heavy weights, the only sorta thing like that i do is 21s at the end of bis and a do rest puase with BO rows, other then that straight sets and super sets
karmazon
03-01-07, 3:44 pm
I will let you on the biggest bodybuilding secret ever. This is the best strategy for hardgainers and it will ABSOLUTELY WORK 100% GUARANTEE:
Lift weights.
I will let you on the biggest bodybuilding secret ever. This is the best strategy for hardgainers and it will ABSOLUTELY WORK 100% GUARANTEE:
Lift weights.
Nice, couldn't have said it any better. People are always looking for a shortcut to getting bigger.
Joff the Beast
03-01-07, 3:55 pm
Is looking for the more effective way to train a waste of time ? No. Can you train and stagnate ? Yes.
I dont know if you have good genetics but I sure dont like to waste my time in the gym and I try to find the better way to put on musclemass.
Torque757
03-01-07, 4:11 pm
I bet at least 90% of so called "hardgainers" out there are just peaple who dont eat enough. They to quickly turn to different training methods rather than addressing the REAL culprit: not eating enough. Gains in the gym are DIRECTLY proportional to how good your diet is outside the gym.
Universal Rep
03-01-07, 4:40 pm
Let's discuss the ultimate training strategy for hardgainers(ectomorph).
Ive trained 1 year using a standard bodybuilding routine, 8-10 reps,heavy workloads, and about 15 sets per big bodyparts and 12 sets per little bodyparts.
I gained 20 pounds of lean muscle mass in about 1 year with this training type.
Now Im trying to work more in endurance related mode (after reading an article on hardgainers on bb.com made by Steve Holman (X-rep, Iron Man magazine). I do 12-15 reps by sets, slow motion times to have longer sets time, add Xreps at each last set of an exercise. I dont know if it will pay off but I have to experiment to find the best training way ever.
Hardgainers, which type of training has helped you gains musclemass?
T's right bro... If you're a "hardgainer" who's looking to add mass, you should focus first on your diet. Getting enough quality calories? If not, no training in the world is gonna get you bigger or heavier... You gotta feed the machine first, give it the fuel it needs to grow... Just make sure you're getting in the gym and stimulating the muscles. The real work is done when you eat and when you rest...
Your in the gym for 1-2 hours, its the other 22-23 hours each day you need to make sure is on track. You don't grow in the gym. You get wounded in the gym and you spend the rest of the time outside the gym mending those wounds. If you mend them right you will come back bigger and stronger and ready for a harder battle.
We all want it and we want it yesterday, but reality is, we cant always have what we want, when we want it.
Animal Strong!
TheNaturalG
03-01-07, 5:08 pm
A hardgainer, but you gained 20 pounds in one year? And if you truly are a hardgainer that means you had to eat huge amounts of food to gain that 20 pounds. So wouldn't you already know that to continue to grow you have to keep eating huge to get huge.
renglander
03-01-07, 5:18 pm
Your in the gym for 1-2 hours, its the other 22-23 hours each day you need to make sure is on track. You don't grow in the gym. You get wounded in the gym and you spend the rest of the time outside the gym mending those wounds. If you mend them right you will come back bigger and stronger and ready for a harder battle.
We all want it and we want it yesterday, but reality is, we cant always have what we want, when we want it.
Animal Strong!
AWESOME WAY TO PUT IT!!!!!
Nice, couldn't have said it any better. People are always looking for a shortcut to getting bigger.
NO ONE SAID ANYTHING ABOUT A FUCKIN SHORTCUT.....different people need different ways of lifting and diet to gain weight. what works for one may not work for another. just because it's different doesn't mean it easier or a shortcut!
karmazon
03-01-07, 6:19 pm
NO ONE SAID ANYTHING ABOUT A FUCKIN SHORTCUT.....different people need different ways of lifting and diet to gain weight. what works for one may not work for another. just because it's different doesn't mean it easier or a shortcut!
People get too crazy about their workouts. If you eat big and lift weights your body WILL respond and build muscle. All those crazy rep schemes and things like that are for people who have been lifting for 20+ years, and their bodies adapted to everything else. Stick to the basics, they will give you the best results, as proven by decades upon decades of bodybuilding history.
Kiwi129
03-01-07, 11:41 pm
He's exactly right guys. I used to call myself a "hardgainer" just because I was skinny. That just means I have to eat more quality food... lifting + bad diet = "hardgainer" no matter who you are. Stick to the basics, fuck all the X Rep, point of flexion workouts. I'd choose to do 4 x 6-8 sets over that shit any day of the week.
Zkmertens
03-02-07, 1:30 am
I have to agree with all of the above.
Once i learned how to stuff my face properly i put on damn near 30lbs of lean meat in a few months. (165 may to 192 Dec. )
Just hit it hard, eat like a horse, and get your rest!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I will let you on the biggest bodybuilding secret ever. This is the best strategy for hardgainers and it will ABSOLUTELY WORK 100% GUARANTEE:
Lift weights.
I couldn't disagree more. You can lift until you are blue in the face but you won't gain an ounce without EATING!!! Hardgainers must eat an excess of calories...more than the average person needs to gain weight. Training is important, but training won't get you mass.
He's exactly right guys. I used to call myself a "hardgainer" just because I was skinny. That just means I have to eat more quality food... lifting + bad diet = "hardgainer" no matter who you are. Stick to the basics, fuck all the X Rep, point of flexion workouts. I'd choose to do 4 x 6-8 sets over that shit any day of the week.
poetry...
I going with the other bro's. Eat quality foods and lots of it. Train hard. Eat quality foods and lots of it.
Leave the fuckin leg press alone! I use it only as a warm up or a finisher. Nothing, and I mean nothing puts the overall mass on your frame like squats! If you don't like that weight on your shoulders that feels like a Hummer axle maybe you don't want to grow. When I made a commitment to put on mass that would be all I would do for legs. I have done very heavy pyramids into drop sets. A typical routine like this 315x15-20 405x12 455x9 495x7-8 515x6-7 545x4 then work my way back down with a wicked drop set 495,455,405,365,and finally staggering back from the rack beaten to shit as many as I can get with 315 tryin to sit on the floor with it!. I am shocked I have never thrown up with this routine, but it usually leaves me on the floor breathing heavy and watching the light show.
karmazon
03-05-07, 6:27 pm
I couldn't disagree more. You can lift until you are blue in the face but you won't gain an ounce without EATING!!! Hardgainers must eat an excess of calories...more than the average person needs to gain weight. Training is important, but training won't get you mass.
Way to misunderstand my post.
Heavy weights, 8-6 reps, 4-6 Sets - alot of food/supplements and rest.
it works - try to keep reps low - work on using intensity, you have to shock your body into growth - thats how I did it, and thats how its done.
I got the biggest secret: eat!!
Guardian
03-06-07, 10:31 am
Let's discuss the ultimate training strategy for hardgainers(ectomorph).
I'm an ectomorph myself and have been training for almost 1,5 years. From experience i realize that some kind of HIT really works well for me, keep my muscles sore longer, thus limiting the number of training days per week, make it all more efficient. Four days per week of training days, 3 days off and that's 3 days of full rest, recovery and growth which i think suit me well as an ectomorph who needs more calories to grow. I know carbs aren't anabolic, but ectomorphs really needs a lot of carbs, especially those who are under 30 as their test level are higher, making metabolism faster.
Back to the question. For me, high volume works well too (i started lifting using high volume, sometimes even too high as i recall), but not as well as high intensity. But i'm not doing super ultra HIT Mentzerian style. Basically, mine is 2-3 exercises per bodypart (at least 2 compound, free weight exercise), each consists of 1 warmup sets, 2-3 heavy sets, 6-10 reps, with the heaviest weight i can handle. Spotter is a must.
But for back, i do more exercise (2 pullup/down, 2-3 row exercises) but with the same set and rep scheme.
Some might not call it high intensity, anyway it really works great for me.
Torque757
03-06-07, 2:52 pm
I'm an ectomorph myself and have been training for almost 1,5 years. From experience i realize that some kind of HIT really works well for me, keep my muscles sore longer, thus limiting the number of training days per week, make it all more efficient. Four days per week of training days, 3 days off and that's 3 days of full rest, recovery and growth which i think suit me well as an ectomorph who needs more calories to grow. I know carbs aren't anabolic, but ectomorphs really needs a lot of carbs, especially those who are under 30 as their test level are higher, making metabolism faster.
Back to the question. For me, high volume works well too (i started lifting using high volume, sometimes even too high as i recall), but not as well as high intensity. But i'm not doing super ultra HIT Mentzerian style. Basically, mine is 2-3 exercises per bodypart (at least 2 compound, free weight exercise), each consists of 1 warmup sets, 2-3 heavy sets, 6-10 reps, with the heaviest weight i can handle. Spotter is a must.
But for back, i do more exercise (2 pullup/down, 2-3 row exercises) but with the same set and rep scheme.
Some might not call it high intensity, anyway it really works great for me.
My training style is very similar, and I am also pretty ectomorphic.
IntensityJT
03-06-07, 3:06 pm
My best success has come from 4 sets of compound lifts...pyramiding from 12-6 reps, doing pyramids not only increased my size but also my strength...doing a lot of advanced techniques such as drop sets, supersets, negatives, and forced reps really help is shocking the muscle, if y ou are a hardgainer that would be the best thing to do is to incoorperate those techniques in your routine somwhere
I used to think i was a hardgainer, i trained like 2 hrs atleast 5 days a week, didnt deadlift or squat, hit each muscle twice a week, and gained little weight. The past year i would focus on squats, deads, military press and all the other compound lifts, pretty much avoided machines, and iso movements. Ate like a bear, not necessarily clean foods but ate a lot. Ive gained 50 lbs.
IF YOU WANNA GET BIG, EAT AND TRAIN LIKE YOU ARE BIG, AND YOU WILL GET BIG.
Joff the Beast
03-12-07, 5:15 pm
So the keys to growth for ectomorphs are:
1-Eat big
2-Lift heavy
3-Use the more compound exercise as possible.
4-Use techniques to shock muscles (superset,dropset,x-reps) here and there.
Personnally, Ill stop my higher rep range experiment and return back to 8 reps set with high volume. Ill begin training 5 days per week (one body part each time+abs) instead of 3 times (2bodyparts + abs).