Allrighty, I just got done reading The four hr. body and while skeptical i’m going to give the “geek to freak” chapter a shot. I’ve always been a thin, hard gainer my entire life. Unlike a lot mass building diets, this doesn’t require loads of supplements, food restrictions or hours in the gym.
Here are the basics:
I need to consume a minimum of 1.25 grams of protein per lb of body weight daily. Limit fats and sugars, though carbs are fine. Workouts are fast; 15 minutes a week, broken into two short 7.5 min sessions. high weight, rep to total failure two exercises a session.
That’s it. If done correctly I should see at least 2.5 lbs a week according to the book.
So, starting out: 5 7", 155 lbs. 31 years old, no problems with cholesterol or BP.
I’m getting most of my extra protein from shakes, and eating the same lunch every day (high protein chili mac) to limit down complications; I’m just trying to make certain I meet the daily goal. Only supplements are a normal men’s multi-vitamin and some glucosamine for my knees (which have been bad since high school)
I’ll weigh in every sunday for a month and stick to the program, (no cheating or fiddling with it. Let’s see if this is quackery! For science!
Meals:
breakfast: 16 oz protein shake with whole milk.
snack: 16 oz milk, handful of crunchy whatevers
lunch: Chili mac actual weight varies, I simply made enough for six meals and divided the pan.
snack 16 oz milk, crunchies
Dinner: 6 oz of lean protein, veggies and carb side, 16 oz milk
snack: 16 oz protein shake
Oh yeah, forgot to mention; Nashiitashii is doing the opposite program which touts itself as being able to remove up to 20 lbs of fat weight a month. (our research indicates about half that is common, though every reviewer we could find messed with the program and binged heavily on cheat day.) I’m not going to post her stats, unless she;d like to do so, though i will post her results. We both started this morning.
Maybe I am off-base here, but these two aren’t computing for me. I know that BMI isn’t perfect, yada-yada, but as of now you are at the high end of normal and with 20 extra pounds you would be half-way to obese!
BMI is a good guide, nothing more. I have a broad frame and short little legs. Currently chest 40’, waist 32’, neck 17’, arms 12’, shoulders 28’. As long as I keep my actual fat percentage under 15% I’m good. I’m currently around 11%.
I’m skeptical of the work out regimen as well, but it is what it is. The idea is to seriously stress different groups each workout and feed them over the next few days to ensure maximum growth and recovery. It isn’t about sculpting or toning, just bulk. I don’t mind if some of it is fat, I can lose that easily. I’ve never had a problem there. This is actually a sort of modified GOMAD (gallon of milk a day) program, that has produced good results in bodybuilders and strength athletes since the 70’s so it’s nothing overtly new.
Sounds like BS to me. 7.5 minutes isn’t even enough time to warm up properly. Going to failure as a beginner is a great way to suffer some pretty extreme form issues and increased risk of injury, not to mention being incredibly sore 24/7. I’m going to guess that the exercises aren’t the same every workout, which means that you’re increasing the load at most once per week, well under what an untrained person can actually sustain. What are the exercises it recommends?
Also, the website reads rather like an infomercial. In particular it claims that, in less than 30 minutes each, you will learn how to:
[quote=4 hour body]
[ul][li]How to produce 15-minute female orgasms[/li][li]How to triple testosterone and double sperm count[/ul][/li][/quote]
The whole book reads like an infomercial. I read a few chapters and had to quit. The author just constantly brow-beat with a hard sell. Ah dude? I bought the damn book, so stop it, m’kay?
It is the only book on Kindle that I have permanently deleted.
Yeah I’m ignoring that part of the “body hacking”. There is also portions on polyphasic sleep, proper technique for strength and endurance etc… As a whole, it all seems plausible.
I’m not a rank newbie at training, I’m just lazy and unmotivated. I hate the gym, but work hard physically every day. I go ahead warm up not just cold lift.
Let’s see here today I did..I should mention that it’s really two supersets.
Pull over+bent row @ 95 and 110 lbs
Leg press + calf raises @ 180 lbs
I would have to agree with others that you don’t sound like a ‘hardgainer’ at all, as I’ve ever used the term. You’re a perfectly average weight and build (but leaner than many guys). At 5’5", my ‘set point’ has been 100 lbs and 16-19% body fat for over 10 years. 8 months of 3000+ cals per day, minimum 1g of protein per pound of body weight, and lifting heavy for 20 minutes 3-5 times per week (plus doing power yoga regularly), got me a whopping 5 lbs or so of muscle (but huge strength gains, so I was happy). That is ‘hard gaining’… and I just lost all that weight after two months of being depressed, not stuffing my face daily, and not working out. Back down to 100 lbs after hitting my all-time high of 108 this past spring.
If you do gain 20 lbs in a month, a lot of it is going to be body fat. It’s physiologically impossible to put on much muscle that fast even with steroids. It sounds like you’re in excellent shape already… don’t fuck it up!
Let us know what happens though, I’m fascinated by weight gain experiments.
You’re also a woman. He says he has 10% body fat, so only about 15 lbs - you probably have at least 30 lbs of body fat (20%, on the low side for a woman who isn’t an athlete), possibly as much as 50 lbs. That makes an astronomical difference in the way your bodies look at the same size and weight, differences in bone size aside.
Damn man! That IS a hard gainer. While I retain what I gain, It used to take 3500+ cals a day plus heavy training to do so. And it took me 12 years to go from 110 to 155. (some of that is fat. I’m lazy and hate traditional cardio to maintain a ripped look) So this is an interesting approach, and it might target me up to my goal a little easier. As I mentioned upthread, I’m not concerned with BMI rating at this point. I’ve consulted with a doctor in the past who is comfortable with my target weight provided it is concentrated primarily in muscle mass and distributed fat rather than a lazy spare tire. Athletes use a different standard anyway.
“Average” is a very good way to describe my physique at the moment, though I carry less fat and have broader shoulders then most men my height and weight. I’m mostly trying to increase my “stoutness” If that’s even a term! and add muscle to my chest, shoulders and limbs. I’m comfortable with my core. The goal is to add a few inches to everything to give my body a pleasing solidity of muscle that I find appealing. I’ve always though of a solid physique as masculine, and having grown up a skinny, developmentally delayed (physically) child, that has stuck with me. I’m not going for a hulk / bodybuilder look, just solid and strong. I greatly dislike the gracile nature of my limbs in particular. Though I’m quite strong, it doesn’t show at all, and that is annoying to me. I’ll keep you posted though. So far, getting my protein in this method has not been difficult or annoying in the least. I ate a regular meal for lunch and haven’t had any problems with the milk since I’m spacing it out.
Let us get a baseline: HERE Is a photo from today. (Safe for work, I’m dressed) I’ll use this outfit for the follow up photos. I’m wearing a shirt because my tattoo makes it difficult to see the contours of my body. No flexing or anything silly.
Nah, I’m 5’7-5’8 and about 150 and I’m skinny as a rail. Also, Like Acid Lamp, I can’t put on weight if I try. Seriously, I locked in at 140 in high school and now, at 31 I’m about 150ish. In college I got a deep fryer. Had deep fried food at least twice a day…nothing. Two summers ago I had a manhole sized butter burger and a milk shake 3-4 times per week, never wavered by more then 2-3 pounds. Last summer I did a full round of P90X and watched what I ate. Cut the burgers/shakes down to once or twice a month and stuck with things like grilled chicken breast or turkey on the George Foreman…seriously, never dropped below 148 (not that I was trying, I just didn’t).
But with that, during the entire round of P90X I put a little bit of muscle on my biceps and that was all I noticed (other then flexibility from stretching every day). My body seems to have locked into where it wants to be.
People tell me my shitty eating habits will catch up with me someday, but they’ve been saying it since I was 7 years old and I can still eat crappy food all day long with no consequences…Wait, what was the question?
I can’t say that I have shit knees, but my knees are not perfect. I’ve found that after a month or two of squats (not going near maximum exertion, mind you) and my knees actually feel A LOT better (same with my lower back). Stronger.
Anecdotal, definitely. Do what you are comfortable with.
That said, perhaps it’s a form thing?
I do full squats with the bar on my delts - my feet are about shoulder width apart.
If you absolutely cannot do back squats, perhaps you could do something similar?