Skinny Man lifting!

I wan't to grow some muscles because i'm sick of being a stick figure,i have always been scared of social situations because of my figure,i was made fun off at school to the point were i could not even walk or run around people because they would laugh at me,so i started to slouch (to be shorter made me less lanky)and avoid my friends.

Iv'e tried and failed many times at the gym i have long arms and legs that makes me a hard gainer to get any size and maintain it.
I'm 32 my metabolism has slowed right down i'm still skinny but i have a fat gut now and am starting to get bitch tits.
I have fought depression over the years and today i feel like i want to change lifting helps with confidence i know this any tips or routines will be greatly appreciated.

P.S i have started stretching cause i could never touch my toes doing the leg stretch,and also doing 'planks' for work on my core.

Okay, a couple of things.

1. Diet
You've grown overweight because of a bad diet. You need to start eating healthier.
Calculate maintenance calories, 14-16 cal/lb will give you a rough figure, from there you can adjust using the scale (if you start losing or gaining weight, adjust up or down).

Couple of guidelines you could follow for good eating:
1. Plenty of protein, make it the center of every meal.
2. Plenty of veggies, some fruit.
3. Moderate portion of unrefined carbs (beans, rice, oats, whole wheat bread..etc)
4. Small portion of refined carbs (if you crave it)
5. Reasonable portion of fat, try to get most of it from sources like nuts, fish and olive oil.

On meal frequency: some like 3 solid meals a day, others like 6 smaller ones. See what fits' you best in terms of hunger/tendency to overeat. The ideas that you must eat 6 meals a day, or that you must eat breakfast are both outdated and false.
You could also check out intermittent fasting maybe it's something for you Lean gains read up on it on that blog.

I suggest you start eating at maintenance for now and start lifting regularly, you will see body composition changes. When these changes slow down you can start thinking about dieting or maybe bulking up a little. For now just get your diet right, changes will happen.

2. Workout
Start by reading this article (part 1-4) Beginning weight training (really all the questions you might have about diet/exercise are answered in the articles on that site)

Because of your description I think starting out with a full body machine routine would be best.
Join a gym and start training your whole body, start out with a round of machines and maybe some bodyweight stuff.
I would suggest a full body routine 3x a week (example mo, wed, fri), about 3 sets for all major movements.
In order to see any changes you'll need to focus on progressively getting stronger/lifting more. This means that's you're not going to get anywhere without pushing yourself. Start with a rep range of about 8-12 reps per set.

You can add in some cardio, if you want to do this during the same workout, do your cardio after the weights.
Adding some more overall daily activity (like taking the bicycle to work ) wouldn't hurt either.


After you've built up some base strength you can start some barbell work, squats, bench press, pull ups, dead lifts, shoulder press...etc
Start a routine like Starting Strength, or another basic barbell routine.


3. Go to the doctor and have yourself checked out for low testosterone levels.

Checkout the book You are your own gym EXCELLENT and its body weight exercise.

Whatever you do, if you've never lifted before: Start Slow!
You can't enlarge a muscle you've just torn.
Not to mention it takes time to strengthen your tendons and ligaments.
Just as important, if not more so, than muscles.

Thanks so much guys all good advice thanks for the links

To be honest gaining muscle isnt really that hard, people just make it harder then it is. Im 16 and 168lbs and I can bench 260 from working out for like 7 months. I did everything on my own no trainer or anyone to help aid me. If your really serious about getting stronger. Search up starting strength. Its the 1# strength gaining program out there. Its quite basic there is some technique and what not to learn. Also just by doing pullups pushups and dips you can also get really muscular. Search up barbarians2k on youtube and you will see these massive guys that workout on cement and a bar. You also gotta make sure your eating in a calorie surplus inless your overweight. But if you go to www.startingstrength.com you will learn so much. That is the number one spot to start lifting weights. Honestly I can say it enough. Go there if you really wanna get stronger and build muscle. Also just out of curiousity how can you be so insecure when your walking around with a 8inch dick in your pants? I would give all my muscle away for that. Even if you are the fattest or skinniest guy in the world but you got a huge dick you will probably have any guy beat in the ego department.

One general rule of thumb is: Train from the bottom up, or from the center out.
You might not need to jump straight into weight training; bodyweight exercises can give you a fantastic workout.
Plus, your body and gravity being the only equipment-it's pretty cheap too.

8incyclops;480856 said:

Thanks so much guys all good advice thanks for the links

Click to expand...

Girth that's true i was thinking about this today i just have to start! and do what works for me.

Guy12345 Those Barbarians2k guys have awesome body strength I'm going to set a goal to do 10 pulls ups,Starting strength is good this week I'm hitting the gym,also i may have a 8 incher (on a good day) but i just need to get fit i feeling so low dosen't help.
Maxameyes I have swam in the past I'm going to do this also as a warm down

Girth that's true i was thinking about this today i just have to start! and do what works for me.

Guy12345 Those Barbarians2k guys have awesome body strength I'm going to set a goal to do 10 pulls ups,Starting strength is good this week I'm hitting the gym,also i may have a 8 incher (on a good day) but i just need to get fit feeling so low nad weak dosen't help.
Maxameyes I have swam in the past I'm going to do this also as a warm down.

good advice in this thread

You could consider steroids.

Anyway, you'll get bogged down in too much information ... here's what you need to know.

First ... you can't out train a bad diet. Meat. Plants. Water. End of story, that is always your goal. Sure you won't be able to do it all the time. Sure you'll be out with friends at a pizza place, sure work will buy you bagels but your over arching goal is meat, plants and water. So at that pizza place ask for a salad, no cheese and no dressing. I know that takes the fun out of eating out but only at first. If you are constantly working towards eating really well then the few times you are on a date or at a special dinner won't really matter.

Eat more fruit. Drink more water. No matter what you think, you are not drinking enough water or eating enough fruit. There are plenty of days where I'll eat 20 pieces of fruit. Again, you'll have a hard time doing that at first, but it's just a goal, something to work towards.

Don't eat processed carbs. Processed sugar, rice, wheat, cereals, all that shit is straight bad for you. So don't eat it ever. Again, that's the goal so you might find you switch from white bread to brown bread, from white pasta to brown pasta and then you reduce the portion and increase your intake of meat or fruit.

Training. Depending on your goals you'll train in different ways but for you, as a skinny guy right now you need two things.
1. To be able to lift safely.
2. To build mass.

So, start learning to squat. Start learning to deadlift. In fact, just start doing starting strength. (http://startingstrength.wikia.com/wiki/FAQ:Introduction) There are no tricks, not tips, no special ways to do a bench press or any of that shit. Ignore pretty much everything but what is outlined in starting strenght for at least a year. Just do that. All of the gains you get happen under the bar and at the table .. not talking to curl bros, not flexing in the mirror, not eating a cookie because you're bulking. Forget all that. yeah 'De Franco's Westside for Skinny bastards' is a better programme, but it's for athletes and you are way off being an athlete and you'll just ruin all the great gains you'll make in the short time (you're newbie gains).

So in summary.
Eat meat, fruit and vegetables and drink water. That's your goal. Start into it and do your best. Don't be put off when you fuck up and eat a hamburger just keep trying.

You're going to go to the gym 3 times a week. you are going to do starting strength (some people will call that 5 x 5). Any dude at the gym who hasn't heard of it or doesn't rate it, or hasn't done it, doesn't know shit about fitness and should be ignored.

Now I could tell you about how the squat and deadlift are the most anabolic of exercises. I could tell you about how squating low (ATG or ass to grass) stimulates a stretch response that will increase your bodies ability to adapt, etc, etc, et fucking c, but you've enough to worry about ... you've gotta hit the gym and eat clean ... which is hard work.

We could all offer you advice and you could evaluate it but what is your evaulation worth? You're not in a possition to judge what's best for you or what you like.

Hard truth....
Meat. Plants. Water.
Gym, 3 times a week, 5 reps of 5 sets, deadlift, squat, row, press (depending on the day).

Finally. Best of luck. Don't be put off by people seeming gruff or almost aggressive with their advice .. training is an area so completely full of shit with idiots who know nothing teaching people who know less than nothing and that leads to failure. Those of us who have succeeded are frustrated and if you're not going to get on the path and stick on the path why are you even here? And why should we waste our time helping.

So what I'm saying is .. we all want you here, we all want you to succeed ... but if you're not hard enough to listen and then do, you're not hard enough to get under the arm small and come out from it big.

And in closing. What matters is consistency ... consistency in terms of diet and training means one thing ... getting back to it. What I mean is, you'll fuck up, you'll go out partying and drink 10 pints and the next day you'll think 'fuck it, I fucked up so fuck it' and you'll help yourself to a hang over meal of pizza. Well that's not how it works. You wake up the next day and you remember the good work you have done ... even if it was one meal that week, you remember it and remember that you did get some benefit from it. You remember that you did a good workout and you're not going to ruin that good work. Every good thing you do is in the bank back there, don't go wasting it. If you fuck up and eat shit or miss a work out, that's okay. Get back on the wagon and work out next time, eat good next time ... well, not next time, THIS time.

girth hammer;480853 said:

if your skinny and very new to lifting, sadly your best way to get bigger is trail and error. Really thats the bitter world of getting muscle for anyone. You can get advice on diet and lifting from any and everyone. But many are mislead cause someone has to profit with their "broscience" that works for anyone and everyone who follows it, yet most have zero results to show for it, catch my drift?

At the end of the day, you"ll find what works by years of learning what doesnt for you.

There is no one who can lay out a diet, training program, rep range for you, etc. Etc. For you to pack on size. Not here to be a grinch, here to not bs and you continue doing whats not going to work.

P.s. Im not saying learning about lifting and diet is wrong by any means. Just no one can find out what will work for you, better than you.

Click to expand...

best advice in this thread bar none

REDZULU2003;481513 said:

best advice in this thread bar none

Click to expand...

Gotta disagree. Sounds like setting up for a load of trying out this and that and inconsistency. Sure you'll always be dialing in exactly what's best for you but a good coach will direct you in the correct way.

Also, what works for one guy isn't that far from what works for the next. For example rep ranges ... 1 - 5 for strength, 6 - 12 for size and above that for endurance. Sure some people will find growth at 15 and sure most people find growth at 1 - 5. This idea that you need to go through constant trial and error is totally wrong.

Same thing with diet. Sure some people can eat shit and still get ripped and sure some people eat super clean and don't loose fat as quickly as the next gym. But by and large you have a good coach directing you and it's always the same way, eat clean, eat often, don't eat processed foods, etc. There's no trial and error for what works for one person and not another. Sure you're always dialing in your nutrition but it's always in the same basic direction.

Lift hard and big with a good coach or gym body and eat clean.

The trial and error thing sounds like advice from guys who lift at home / alone, definitely are not and never were athletes and probably don't have great results.

I think its great advice. Rep ranges are much confused area for starters.

The body will not become more defined doing more reps as apposed to lower ones. How defined a muscle becomes is determined by the amount of fat around it. For some things one may need more endurance for muscles X and Y which would help to do more reps like for those specializing in sports etc.

Most adult males could do low 1-5 reps on a 1500 calorie diet forever and never get larger. Its true low rep workouts done powerful and with intensity will build more size but never definition or shape. You can't build shape either. Reason the lower reps work size is the ''fast twitch'' fibers required in powerful explosive movements are much larger then the ''slow twitch'' fibers required for more enduring tasks.

For size one should incorporate all muscle fibers where possible and not just the fast twitch. The slower twitch ones have more of a vascular effect on the muscle, which again aids in that growth and getting nutrients to it. More muscle gained the easier it is to lose fat! muscle burns fat and once you have the bulk commencing the fat will be eaten away.

The only thing to alter on your goal whether to tone up or bulk is simply the nutrition and not the rep ranges.

That last gripe is the very false sense many claim they can re-shape the muscle complete bullshit! Your muscle can only get bigger or smaller. The shape it takes is determined not by the exercise but by your own genetics. I think the confusion comes in when muscle groups often seen as single such as shoulders, back and thighs can be isolated to a set muscle within that range of muscles. Shoulder has 3 with the rear, lateral and frontal. Work the lateral head and increase width obviously but you cannot alter the actual shape of any muscle. So if you hear of an exercise that makes your chest muscles wider its complete shit. I know of the wide gripped neck press which aids in developing chest width but it will not reshape your already inherited chest muscles. What it does is distribute the load (weight) so that the chest is working the area that would aid growth more in width. Whatever shape you get is what you were genetically born with, it can not be altered whatsoever ... bring the potential out yes but it cannot be altered.

Hey Red, man.

Is your post in response to mine? I'm confused because I didn't say the things you are responding to. If anything you're saying what I'm saying; that there are hard and fast truths and that 'experimenting' and seeing how your body responds is basically a waste of time for 90% of clueless people.

I'm just responding in general

Girth Hammer;480853 said:

If your skinny and very new to lifting, sadly your best way to get bigger is trail and error. Really thats the bitter world of getting muscle for anyone.

Click to expand...

There is trail and error involved but this does not rule out good advice, or good programs.
Different individuals will have to find out what works best for them but there are various ways of travelling that road.

1. You just muddle on and do your own thing. I see many people in the gym "improvising" with their own little routines awkward exercises. They will most likely never get anywhere.

2. The people that get on a solid routine and follow at least the very basic strategies for dieting. These people will most probably grow. Some adjustments will need to be made (for example caloric intake) but almost everyone I know who just started a solid routine such as a basic barbell workout (like ss) with a decent diet where all the fundamentals were in place (adequate kcal and protein) got results.
Now for some a certain program might not be optimal, they will experiment and make some adjustments, follow a different program or change their diets a litte. These individual variances are always there.

But there is a huge difference between these two approaches to training. The view that you're basically on your own and have to find your way in the dark is just false. There are good programs, diets etc. The most important thing is doing it and not run on self will. Start a program, get your diet in order, work hard.
If you're not progressing well, make adjustments or choose a different routine
People who don't get results are those that fuck around all the time and don't have their basics in order.

I'm lanky, skinny and tall too!

Run heaps to get the fat off and eat very healthily.

Just exercise a few times a week (which exercises? I dunno just look at previous posts). You don't need to pack on muscle. Use your skinny body to your advantage.
For example, just look at Brad Pitt in Fight Club. He actually doesn't have that much muscle but he gets that beautiful chiseled ripped look from having so little fat on his body. (You don't need to be that skinny though). I am telling you this because this is obviously for your image, not for your ability to lift heavy objects.

View attachment 25335
View attachment 25336

I reckon a hardcore routine would be hard to keep up, so just be gradual and consistent.

Thats just my 2 cents worth.