please help Im stuck @ 160lbs

[Matthew Bryduck]

It's going to pack on solid muscle esp if your natural. Just be patience and stay the course!

Matt

[WorkoutLife]

Diet is everything man. I use to be right at 160 too. I just ate everything I could and then ate some more. You can have the most intense workouts ever, but if you don't eat a ton it's all for nothing really. You'll shred up, but not gain mass. Eat tons of pasta and have 2 1,000+ calorie protein shakes daily. I use a banana, peanut butter, almonds, yogurt, dried oats and 1-2 scoops of good whey protein. After doing this I'm up to 190 give or take now.

[chris mason]

So I've been putting down like 3200 cals a day pretty easy. Haven't gained any weight yet but I'm feeling stronger and performing better at the gym. Lifts have gone up slightly not so much in weight but in reps.. I went from a five day split to four and i think that's helping too. Thanks for the help. I'll stick to it and see how i progress.. Thanks again.

If you are consuming 3,200 and still not gaining weight then what do you think is the solution? Increase your cals. At 160 lbs and your height you have plenty of room for growth. Add cals in small increments until you begin gaining weight and then remain at that level until you stall again at which point you can add a few more.

FYI, you are also overtraining. Too many sets with too high of an intensity of effort in my opinion. Try cutting all of your working sets in half and watch yourself blow up. Trust me on this.

[slip85]

Just wanted to say thanks to everyone for the advice. I've been eating like a machine and I'm up 5lbs in a month.

Chris,
You said you think I'm over training.. Can you elaborate a little on what you would recommend? Thanks.

[thecityalive]

Try cutting all of your working sets in half

Any set that isn't a "warm up" set, reduce by 50%

[chris mason]

I'm new to this forum and looking for some advice..
I train 4 days a week on a split routine. Back and bi's / chest and tri's/ shoulders/ Legs and the forth day I do my shrugs, forearms, calves, and a few extra sets on arms. I primarily use free weights and cables.. almost no machines. 12 sets for large muscle groups and 8-10 sets for smaller. I try to switch up my program between db 's and bb's.

I do nothing but drop sets for a week once a month. Any help or harsh critiques are seriously appreciated.

Ok, with your 12 sets and 8-10 sets how many of those are warm-ups?

[slip85]

None. I do 2 warm up sets.that I dont count as "sets"

[slip85]

Rob, that seems a little drastic doesn't it? I mean just my db press for example is only 90 lbs 4 sets of 8. Should I really cut down to like 45lbs? Thats what i do flies with.

[chris mason]

None. I do 2 warm up sets.that I dont count as "sets"

And there you have it. I am 5'11" and weight 265-270 lbs. I am quite strong. I do, with the exception of speed work, 3-6 working sets for all of my muscle groups (speed work is done at a lower intensity which dictates higher volume).

The same was true when I was a bodybuilder.

As the other fellow said, cut your working sets in half and watch yourself get bigger and stronger.

[chris mason]

Rob, that seems a little drastic doesn't it? I mean just my db press for example is only 90 lbs 4 sets of 8. Should I really cut down to like 45lbs? Thats what i do flies with.

He meant cut the volume in half, lol. In other words, do 2 sets of 8.

[slip85]

Alright, since may just started I'll give it a shot for a month and see how it goes. 6 sets per muscle group 8 _10 rep range. . I'll start at it tomorrow.

[slip85]

He meant cut the volume in half, lol. In other words, do 2 sets of 8.

Haha.. Man i was really starting to question this response.. Thanks for the clarification. Idk what I was thinking

[chris mason]

Alright, since may just started I'll give it a shot for a month and see how it goes. 6 sets per muscle group 8 _10 rep range. . I'll start at it tomorrow.

That would be 6 sets for the larger and 4-5 for the smaller.

[slip85]

No problem.. Thanks man

[chris mason]

Give it about a month and let us know how you do.

[slip85]

I just gotta say that going from an hour + at the gym to 45 minutes is a big difference. I'm moving more weight and feel stronger already. I'll post the results soon.

[chris mason]

I just gotta say that going from an hour + at the gym to 45 minutes is a big difference. I'm moving more weight and feel stronger already. I'll post the results soon.

Excellent! What is the lesson here?

[slip85]

Lol. It was a hard pill to swallow. I really didn't think I was over training but I'm glad you convinced me to cut it back. Proof is in the gains.

[chris mason]

Lol. It was a hard pill to swallow. I really didn't think I was over training but I'm glad you convinced me to cut it back. Proof is in the gains.

Good! Remember, intensity and volume are inversely correlated. In other words, the higher the intensity the lower the volume you can benefit from (and vice versa).

[slip85]

Can anyone tell me what I'm doing wrong to upload pictures? I was gonna put up a 30 day progress pic but it just doesn't let me.

[slip85]

Can anyone tell me what I'm doing wrong to upload pictures? I was gonna put up a 30 day progress pic but it just doesn't let me.

[chris mason]

Can anyone tell me what I'm doing wrong to upload pictures? I was gonna put up a 30 day progress pic but it just doesn't let me.

I would guess the file size is too large?