Fit Talk: Gaining Mass for the New Year

Happy New Year! I am currently in London, but I hope all of you had a wonderful New Year’s Eve and have had a great start to the new year!
Because some people had been requesting it, this week’s article is about gaining mass. This is very general and broad, so I suggest sitting down with a trainer so they can give you a more detailed explanation for your specific goals and your specific body type.
Gaining muscle mass is one of the most common goals for men, especially gay men. It is also one of the hardest things to do. I will cover the basics and essentials but it is a very complicated topic because gaining weight is easy, but gaining muscle mass – that is something totally different.
For those just getting started on your journey to a healthier lifestyle I highly suggest you employ a personal trainer to help you get started. Many new comers want to try things out on their own before seeking help, but the key is to first build a solid foundation (proper form, technique, how to progress, etc. etc.). Before bulking up, I suggest to start by getting in better shape first as to not over stress your muscles and body — this way you will prevent from burning out. If you have been working out on a consistent basis but have met a plateau you can’t seem to breakthrough, I also suggest hiring a trainer, especially if your goal is to gain mass. Having someone help to spot and push you beyond what you normally lift is imperative in gaining muscle mass.

The first thing you need to do and become more aware of when trying to bulk up is your calorie consumption. No matter how much you workout, if you burn more calories than you consume you will not gain mass. So you need to start eating more food, not just protein but more carbohydrates also. Not all calories are created equal. Your calories should be coming from healthy foods not high calorie fast foods (burgers, tacos, burritos). When eating carbohydrates you want to stick with whole wheat pastas, oatmeal, rice, wheat bread, fruit, and veggies. Stay away from white bread, cereal, and anything that is very processed. For protein, stick with shakes and lean meats. Muscle Milk is a very good tasting and effective shake. Myoplex Deluxe is also very effective but not the best tasting. Your lean meat selection should include chicken, fish, egg whites, etc. You will want to eat 6-8 times a day, especially if you have a difficult time gaining mass; and instead of eating to curb your hunger, you will be eating to get full. At times, especially in the first few weeks, it may feel like you are over stuffing yourself. This is why gaining muscle mass is difficult, you want to gain muscle mass and not gain fat, but figuring out how many calories is too much and how many are too little is quite a bit of a guessing game. Especially writing this, I can’t give generalities because what may be too many calories for one person, may be too little calories for another. So this is another reason I suggest hiring a trainer who is educated enough to help you out with this.
When lifting, the easiest thing to remember is more weight less reps. Each set you do, you want to increase the weight and lower the amount of reps.
1st Set – 12 Reps
2nd Set – 10 Reps
3rd Set – 8 Reps
4th Set – 4-8 Reps (until failure)
The first set should be a bit of a warm up. Not incredibly easy but not to the point where you can’t complete them. The second and third set should get progressively more difficult. The last set should be the most difficult and should require a spotter to help you finish the last two or three reps – you should aim to reach failure.
When working out upper body with a goal of gaining mass, I highly recommend pairing chest and biceps, back and posterior deltoids, and shoulders and triceps. This way each muscle group gets a great workout without fatiguing from the stress being put on the opposing muscle group. Don’t overwork one muscle group (meaning don’t work chest 3 or 4 days a week), this will cause muscle deviations and result in bad posture.
If you are not working out your legs, start! Legs make up half of your body, so they are big muscle groups. When you work out big muscle groups such as legs and back, you produce more growth hormones, leading to bigger gains in strength in mass. For those who are looking to gain weight, I recommend trying to hit legs twice a week.
An example of a week’s routine would be:
Monday: Chest & Biceps
Tuesday: Legs
Wednesday: Back & Posterior Delts.
Thursday: Cardio or REST
Friday: Shoulders & Triceps
Saturday: Legs
Sunday: Cardio or REST
Get good rest during and after your workouts. Take about 45-60 seconds rest in between sets. You want your muscles to recover before attempting to lift a heavier weight. Get a good amount of sleep, this will allow your muscles to repair themselves and to not be overworked. Shoot for 7-8 hours, but I know that is highly unlikely. Lastly, give yourself at least one day off where you don’t workout with weights. This will again give your muscles ample time to recover.
As far as cardio, you should keep with low intensity cardio for longer durations. If your aim is to lose weight, I suggest high intensity cardio but since this article is for gaining mass, more specifically for those who have trouble gaining mass, I recommend low intensity cardio for 30-45 mins.