# Advice for a slim 17 year old on bulking up



## bmwmatt (Jan 5, 2009)

Hey all I'm new to this forum.. been meaning to join up a while back but not had the chance. :thumb:

Ok here's my question:

I'm 17, 5'10, I have a 31 inch waist and a 36 inch chest. I weigh about 145pounds. I'm known as just slim and athletic to my friends but I really want to bulk up a bit maybe to 160pounds at the maximum. I want to know what I should consider first and how I should approach this.

Currently I'm spending about 30mins 2/3 times a week on my arms and chest (because I have pretty toned legs at the min) I lift weights that I can lift about 10 times until failure (about 10kg dumbbells). I do 3 sets.

I'm eating about 2800-3000 calories a day which apparently is enough for the extra weight I want for my body type (used a calculator on some fitness site). I'm hitting my protein targets and currently thinking of buying some creatine or whey protein. I'm a low body fat % so I'm trying not to be too worried about putting on fat at the moment.

If I keep up this routine do you think I'll notice a change in my arms, chest and shoulders within a month? I am a hardgainer, I don't use this as an excuse but I am.. I have a really fast metabolism too, it runs in my family.

Also, do any of you lot think 17 is too young to be bulking up because I'm still growing? I'm 18 in 3 months.

Thanks :thumbup1:

Matthew Dobing


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## YoungGun (Mar 30, 2008)

Working just arms and chest won't get you bigger really, it needs to be a whole body workout with legs incorperated. Post up your diet, what you have for meals, how much etc. No your not to young, 15 pounds is no easy thing to do so just don't think it will happen over night and you'll be fine. Check out some begginer stickey threads, they have all the info you need. :thumbup1:


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## bmwmatt (Jan 5, 2009)

So if I want to have a bigger upper body I have to do a full body workout? I thought if I just targeted a few muscles I could acheive a broader neck and shoulders. Hmm, so won't I put on really any muscle on my arms after a month if I continue to follow this routine?

I'm not really looking for anything drastic.. maybe my aims are too high for me at the minute.

Thanks younggun though.


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## Guest (Jan 5, 2009)

aims arent high

you dont have to train legs but its all about keeping your body in proportion

post up your diet mate and training routine for upper body, if you dont want to do legs we cant force you lol


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## YoungGun (Mar 30, 2008)

No doing arms and chest twice per week, i'd be suprised if you could see a drastic change in 3 months, when i say full upper body i mean try something like this: Mon: Chest

Tues:Legs

Wed:Off

Thurs:Back And Biceps

Friday:shoulders and triceps

weekend:Off

That way your working your entire upper and lower body making you bigger overall. If you go off this rule, you have to gain 10-14 pounds of muscle overall to put 1 inch on your arms how long do you think it will take you. What are you eating because training is secondary, if your diets poor this will severly hinder progress.


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## bmwmatt (Jan 5, 2009)

Ok this is a basic plan of what I'm doing at the min, you might laugh.

Diet

Morning 9am

Porridge, 2 glasses milk, 2 bananas

Lunch 12am

Tuna sandwich with 2 glasses milk, 3 handfuls of mixed nuts

Sometimes grilled sardines on brown bread with tomatoes

Snack 3pm

A fitness milkshake (its no protein shake) but it has 20grams of proteins and a lot of vitamins.

Dinner 6pm

Usually veg, meat (chicken, beef, lamb)

Sometimes spag bol or fish with salad and potato

Rice pudding (sometimes lol)

Snack 8pm

2 Glasses milk, more fruit and nuts

Before Bed 11pm

A banana, glass of water.

Training

mon - 3 x 10 pressups (wide and narrow handed), 3 x 10 pullups, 3 x 10 tricep dips

tue rest

wed - 3x10 dumbbell curls, 3 x 10 lat raises, 3x10 tricep dips

thurs rest

fri - gym most of the machines for arms and chest/back (pec deck etc) 3x 10, free weights 3 x 10

sat- rest

sun -rest

I don't even know the name of some of the workouts I do so please don't ignore my newbishness haha


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## big ad (Jan 4, 2009)

yonggun is right, if u want to get big you need to work the hole body, your still young so dont worry to much, read some books watch other people at the gym, pick it up as you go its taken me years to get really big, its not a race, but a tip if you want to bulk up EAT LOTS about every two hours good food though. if you want to look 100% you need to be 100% committed, but engoy it it should'nt be a chore and you could up your calorie intake by 500 to 1000 more,


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## Guest (Jan 5, 2009)

train 3 times per week do the following.

Day 1

5 sets of squat 15-20 reps

5 sets of deadlift 5-10 reps

5 sets of bench press 5-10 reps

Day 2

5 sets of leg curl 15-20 reps

5 sets of chin ups as many reps as possible

5 sets of over head press 5-10 reps

Day 3

5 sets of leg press 15-20 reps

5 sets of t-bar rows 10-15 reps

5 sets of dips as many reps as possible

Pyramid up your weights on your final set you should only be able to complete the lower number of reps in your rep range. Every week you need to do either more reps or more weight. Google how to do these lifts correctly. Stay consistant.


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## YoungGun (Mar 30, 2008)

bmwmatt said:


> Ok this is a basic plan of what I'm doing at the min, you might laugh.
> 
> Diet
> 
> ...


 There is not enough protein in your diet although i would't call it unhealthy. Have a look in the food and nutrition section, read read read. You will find everything you need for diet but snacking on nuts etc is a good protein source. As for your training i don't think your doing enough, don't be afraid to go in the free weights area, doing pec dec in machine heaven you don't need, try Bench pressing in the free weights area, it will be much more benificial. try to follow a programme like the example iv'e gave you and if you search the forum you will find exercises to do. Heres some basic ones you can search on the internet and you will get demos of how to do it.

Basic exercises:

chest- Bench press, incline bench press, cable crossovers

Legs-Squat, leg press, dumbell lunges

Back- seated row, lat pull down, bent over row, shrugs

Triceps-dips, close grip bench press, skull crushers, rope pull down

Shoulders-Dumbell press, barbell press, latteral raises etc.

They are just some basic exercises, go on youtube or google check out some examples of the correct way to do the exercise and try them out seem what you like. Just search around the forum mate, everything you need is here, good luck:thumbup1:


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## YoungGun (Mar 30, 2008)

Con said:


> train 3 times per week do the following.
> 
> Day 1
> 
> ...


 Lol you type faster than me, those arms of yours should be slower than mine!  There twice as big!


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## wales29 (Sep 13, 2008)

Your current work out wont really gain you any muscle mass at all. Not very quick anyway.

EG: Working your biceps just doing 3sets of 10 isnt really working them.

I do that as a warm up set with some lower weights before i start.

Press ups etc are good for toning the body but wont put much mass on either, try using a bench press or use the 2 dumbells instead. Although you will need more than 2 10kg weights for that


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## TaintedSoul (May 16, 2007)

Too finshed from gym to type much. But that diet is lacking badly. At your age your mom should want to padlock the fridge!!

Breakfast for starters the only protein is milk. How about some eggs and protein powder.

And after 6pm's meal you dont have any other protein till bedtime except the glass of milk.

Enter your foods on fitday.com and post back the breakdown protein/carbs/fats/calories. I think you will be surprised.


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## T_Woody (Jul 16, 2008)

Your diet appears to be ok for your (or should i say our?) age. Im 17 aswell, and it is hard to get your diet sorted out properly at this age so i would suggest just making sure your getting enough protein.. carbs and quality fats.. You know whats healthy and whats not 

As for training it doesn't sound too good tbh and bulking to 160 isnt a lot to gain.

My programme is as follows;

Monday - Chest & Triceps

Wednesday - Shoulders & Biceps

Friday - Back & Legs

Saturday - Biceps, Triceps & Delts


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## TaintedSoul (May 16, 2007)

T_Woody said:


> *Your diet appears to be ok for your (or should i say our?) age. Im 17 aswell*, and it is hard to get your diet sorted out properly at this age so i would suggest just making sure your getting enough protein.. carbs and quality fats.. You know whats healthy and whats not


I disagree. at your age your tests levels and growth hormones and running high, so why should you eat less than someone in the 20's or 30's.

You would eat amounts according to your weight and his various meals times are lacking on most things. I'd for a start aim for about 30grams of protein in every single meal. You young and natural burn fat like a furnace. Eat eat eat and grow grow grow. By the time you 21 you will look really good.

It is hard to afford food at your age but see what your parents can do and the rest will need to come from a job. If you budget it right it wont cost youa fortune.


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## bmwmatt (Jan 5, 2009)

Thanks everyone so much for your advice. I've taken note of the routines and the diet advice. It is hard to get what you need in a diet at my age especially if your in a family that likes to cook at certain times. They don't like me making my own food they'd rather I eat with them at 6pm every day... this is where I can't make a good protein filled dinner as much as I'd want to.

Thanks for all the exercises you've recommended and I've started going out of college on my free periods to do my workouts.. even though I might have some work.. screw it lol 

Thanks all

Matt


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## Guest (Jan 6, 2009)

TaintedSoul said:


> I disagree. at your age your tests levels and growth hormones and running high, so why should you eat less than someone in the 20's or 30's.


 You should eat much more! Your body is growing in height in girth ext. Doing weight training yet not eating enough will actually stunt your growth because those calories will go into repairing your body not growing it taller/larger/stronger.

No offence woody but that program is ****.

Legs with back??? Biceps twice???

Swap it to Monday chest triceps delts Wednesday Legs Friday back rear delts biceps and you will not be dissapointed trust me


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## bmwmatt (Jan 5, 2009)

lol Alan, cheers for the motivation, I like hearing people's stories especially if they were a bit like me.

If i eat a lot more will I put on a lot of fat too or will it go more into muscle building?

Should I be looking at cardio aswell as bulking or just wait till after I've bulked?

Thanks


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## T_Woody (Jul 16, 2008)

TaintedSoul said:


> I disagree. at your age your tests levels and growth hormones and running high, so why should you eat less than someone in the 20's or 30's.
> 
> You would eat amounts according to your weight and his various meals times are lacking on most things. I'd for a start aim for about 30grams of protein in every single meal. You young and natural burn fat like a furnace. Eat eat eat and grow grow grow. By the time you 21 you will look really good.
> 
> It is hard to afford food at your age but see what your parents can do and the rest will need to come from a job. If you budget it right it wont cost youa fortune.


I agree, but i didn't mean it like that, i could eat that much. I ment when your 17 still living at home, things are different. For reasons such as my mum cooking tea and shes not into nutrition like me.. I can't eat at my own times etc..


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## T_Woody (Jul 16, 2008)

Con said:


> You should eat much more! Your body is growing in height in girth ext. Doing weight training yet not eating enough will actually stunt your growth because those calories will go into repairing your body not growing it taller/larger/stronger.
> 
> No offence woody but that program is ****.
> 
> ...


 

I have only recently started doing Legs and Back together, more of a trial really. I do arms twice because i i want my arms to grow more as they dont seem to be growing as much 

Although i do like the sound of that routine Con, i will try that out next week i think.


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## TaintedSoul (May 16, 2007)

T_Woody said:


> I have only recently started doing Legs and Back together, more of a trial really. I do arms twice because i i want my arms to grow more as they dont seem to be growing as much
> 
> Although i do like the sound of that routine Con, i will try that out next week i think.


If you went heavy on back (rows, pull downs etc.. ) and chest your bi's and tri's would get a decent workout and you might only have to train them again another day.

Dont neglect the bigger picture for the sake of having big guns! Build your foundation now well you young and do those heavy compound lifts.


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