# Have lost fat, now need help to gain muscle!



## McRoNiX (Dec 22, 2004)

hey guys.

Duno if I'm in the right place as I don't want to be huge or anything (no offense meant) but I thought you guys might be able to help me.

I am 17, 6' 2" and weigh about 157lbs. I have recently (last month or so) lost nearly a stone on my hunt for a 6 pack and it is now starting to show. I am a skinny guy though, lanky. My arms are very thin, and weak, and I need help working them. My diet has been low cals, and i do a few weights in the gym but mainly cardio and sit ups etc. How drastically would I have to change my current way of life to get bigger arms?

Thanks,

Craig


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## winger (Jul 26, 2003)

Dump the cardio and lift more. Get consistant for the new year.


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## big (Sep 14, 2004)

Post up your current diet and training routine and we'll pick it apart for you!


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## McRoNiX (Dec 22, 2004)

Thanks for your replys,

My current diet isn't set. I've been on a low calorie diet for around a month now, and I'm ashamed to say its starting to get slack with christmas coming up! But my usual diet would probably consist of a large bowl of cereals for breakfast, probably 2 rounds of sandwiches of something similar in the day when I am at college, perhaps with a snack in the day (a banana or 2 for example). Then for dinner I would have a large meal, something like a pie, vegetables and potatoes, possibly followed by a desert. Iam veggetarian so the pie would be quorn as opposed to meat, quorn is higher in protein and lower in fats than meat. Then late evening I would probably have fruit, perhaps something like a banana sandwich and a pint of milk.

Like I say this isn't set but is probably an average day for me. Not that much I don't think.

As for training.

I go to the gym on tuesdays and thursdays. At the moment I am doing quite a bit of CV which would probably consist of 12 minute run (at a high level), 12 minute bike, possibly a row (1000-1500m on highest level).

Then I would perhaps go do 3 sets of 12 bench presses, on a fairly low weight but one which is challenging for me over 3 sets. Probably around 35-40kg. Then some more pectorial work, I forget the name of the machine, but the one where you pull the two pads/bars round to meet in the middle. Again about 35kgs. Then I may do some bicep stuff but it would only be 3 sets of 12 reps on a horizontal row or something, as I am currently doing more CV than anything. Then I would go and do 3-5 sets of situps, all different types, crunches being top of the list. Then finishing it off with a 6 minute run, 1 level down than the start.

Thats Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Wednesdays I have basketball training (3 hours) or a match (about 1 hour), which is quite heavy CV stuff. Apart from that, I run occasionally and play sports but nothing scheduled.

I was aiming to get a 6 pack and that is coming on, but I think I may still need to lose more weight before that is defined.

However I really want to build my arms up, so I need your help and suggestions. Do I get my weight down to a minimum then try and add muscle or start now? I keep hearing you need fat to add muscle, is this true?

Thanks a lot


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## McRoNiX (Dec 22, 2004)

??? can anybody give some advice. I've bought a chin up bar for xmas, will this and push ups be good exercises to do?


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## OnePack (Jan 9, 2004)

good idea, but if you want to grow your arms its not enough. Again, concentrate on the main exercise (bench) but dont forget to do legs as well (squats). I know, like myself when i first started, I thought that you dont need to do legs, but its actually v v important to work them.


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## hackskii (Jul 27, 2003)

Chinup bar is ok for developing your back.

I would do some pushups/pressups.

But without some weights it is kindof hard to hit the whole body.

Could run some stairs for legs.


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## McRoNiX (Dec 22, 2004)

Thanks.

Does body fat % effect how easy/hard it is to gain muscle?

and should I start taking protein shakes or any other supplements?


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## Jimmy1 (Aug 14, 2003)

1no and 2yes if you cant manage to eat your requirements in whole food


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## megatron (Apr 21, 2004)

Essentially to gain muslce and bigger arms you need to do the following...

excersise no more than 3 times per week, never on consecutive days.

Perform sets of 8 repitions of Heavy weights.

Excersise each major muscle group only once per week (as to not overtrain). For example you can do one day for arms, another for legs, another for shoulders + neck, another for back.

Do compound movements wiht free wieghts.

Eat regularly and include a decent amount of protien in every meal, you say that you are skinny, I am also naturally skinny, in order for me to gain muscle I have to eat more than others, say 6 meals per day. If you are 6'2" then you will need to eat a great deal to gain.

Sleep for a minimum of 8 hours a night.

In order to keep the fat off, simply cut out the carbohydrates in the last meal of the day, and lay off the junk food.

Your arms won't grow without the rest of you growing, excercise arms, legs, back everything.


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## hackskii (Jul 27, 2003)

McRoNiX said:


> Does body fat % effect how easy/hard it is to gain muscle?


Yes.

John M Berardi has an article out where they did studies on this.

Not only will a leaner guy build muscle faster than a fat guy (bulking) the fat guy will lose more % of bodyfat than the lean guy when dieting.

I will have to find that article and post.


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## McRoNiX (Dec 22, 2004)

Thanks for all posts. I am planning to lose the little I gained over the holidays, this month, by having a low cal diet and lots of cv. And then in February follow your advise.

If anyone has any example diet and exercise plans that would be great. Hopefully I will pass my driving test this month and then I can go to the gym more (twice a week atm).

I am vegetarian which can make protein hard to find, so if anybody can help me make meal plans thats cool. I was looking at getting Whey Protein Concentrate, from myprotein.co.uk, mainly because it is cheap. So I will start using this 1-2 times per day, but need help coming up with decent meal plans!

Any further advice, comments and help are very welcomed.

Thanks.


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