How To Build Muscle For Skinny Guys

slimbutbuffCan a skinny guy build muscle? Hell yes, you bet they can! We just need to follow these rules closer than most people.

I have heard a lot of people claim that your body size is defined by your genes/DNA – and if you are skinny when you are born then you will always be. I have heard guys say ‘I wish I were muscular but there is no chance of that since it is just not in my genes’.

Sorry, but that’s total nonsense. Because thin guys definitely can put on muscle and gain weight even with a fast metabolism. There are just a number of things that you need to do to be able to pack on some serious muscle mass.

As a skinny guy (or ‘hardgainer’ as they sometimes call it), like me, I’ll bet you would pretty much do anything to be able to quickly gain pounds of muscle, right? You’ve probably been through numerous fitness magazines and read several articles trying to convince you that you need to spend some fortune on muscle gaining pills and supplements?

Well, as a skinny hardgainer myself, I should tell you that to gain muscles is easier than some of those magazines would have you believe. It’s worth remembering that those magazines profit by providing lots of expensive advertising space for the supplement companies. And that most of their products are totally pointless and unnecessary for thin guys who just want to obtain several pounds of muscle in a few months.

First, let me begin by saying that your genetics don’t have any real effect on your body size and how muscular you are. It’s just that some people are simply born with a better ability to pack on muscle – while some hardgainers, or ‘ectomorphs’, like us are not. Nonetheless, that doesn’t mean that we can’t gain substantial amounts of muscle. We only have to approach things a slightly different way (as taught by the Adonis Golden Ratio program).

What Skinny Guys Need To Know To Gain Muscle

Skinny guys need to follow 3 simple principles to succeed:-

1. Eat Like Crazy

You gain muscle by eating like CRAZY. Yes, you have to eat more since you require a very high calorie intake to supply your muscle building energy requirements. Though, you should not just aim on the quantity, but on the food quality as well. A very big proportion of your nutrition should be proteins since they are the muscle building blocks. Good carbs, good fats and oils makeup the other proportion of your diet. Yes, there are good carbs and oils, not all of them are bad. Ensure that you also drink a lot of water.

Look, the main reason thin men cannot seem to obtain muscle mass or weight is just that they’re not eating enough.

Believe me, this was a big shock to me when I found out… why? Well, among all my friends I was the one that always ate the most and yet never gained weight… I could polish-off a 3 course meal and then finish theirs off too, ha ha! Yet, I still could not seem to add weight and muscle.

But the reasons I was not gaining muscle were:-

a) I was not eating enough calories and/or protein. I was taking in like 2,000 to 2,500 per day and yet my body required at least 3,500.

b) I was not eating regularly all the way through the day. It was a maximum of 3 times per day, and sometimes I would skip a meal. Instead of eating six times a day at regular intervals.

If you want to add muscle fast, then you MUST eat a diet that is good for mass gain. This involves focusing on good protein sources such as lean meats (chicken/turkey breast), egg whites, tuna, peas, nuts, beans and pulses. As a general rule of the thumb you ought to consume 2 grams of protein per gram of bodyweight – so if you are 150 pounds you need to consume about 300 grams of protein per day.

Here is a rough guide:

  • 20 x body weight (lbs) = daily calorie intake
  • 2 x body weight (lbs) = daily protein intake (in grams)
  • Good carbs = potatoes, whole grain foods, fruits and veggies
  • Good oils = olive oil, coconut oil, avocado etc
  • Lots of water

2. Sleep Like A Log

That’s right, you do not actually build muscles while in the gym. It doesn’t happen while you’re working out. You build it when you’re resting on the couch, or in bed sleeping. That’s when your body is doing most of it’s repair and enhancement work.

So always try getting the best sleep quality possible – go to bed early and rise early. Power naps are also a great addition.

3. Work Hard But Smart

Yes, you do of course still have to workout. Eating loads and just sleeping a lot will simply make you fat. But gorging on quality food, and sleeping really well while intensively working out will pack on solid muscle.

The trick to intensive workouts is pushing yourself to the sensible limit every time you visit the gym, whether it’s by lifting the maximum weight, maximum reps or set range, or combining of all these things. You need to push your muscles to tell them they need to get bigger – so it’s that last set or even that last failing rep that really makes the difference.

Varying your workout schedule is also a vital component of a great work out. By surprising your body you keep those stinking ‘plateaus’ away, and keep your body making gains.

Hard Gainer Weight Training

In order to gain muscle mass quickly as a skinny guy, weight training should be a major part of your workout.

Now, there is no need to become a gym rat… after all, too much is just as bad as not enough. So 45 minutes to 1 hour per session is enough. The key is performing all body workouts three times per week and sticking to the “big basic” exercises:

  • Squats: 1 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps.
  • Bench Press: 1 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps.
  • Bent over Rows: 1 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps.
  • Bicep Curls 1 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps.
  • Lying triceps Extensions: 1 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps.
  • Calf Raise: 1 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps

No, it’s not revolutionary or particularly trendy. But hey, do you want the ‘latest cool workout routine’ or do you simply want something the works instead! Remember that you are not trying to lose weight you’re trying to add muscle mass, so your workouts should aim to produce muscle not to burn calories.

So, slim guys really can gain muscle. You can get ripped, get big arms and be buff. And now you know how too. Eat right, sleep well and workout intensively. Follow these 3 muscle building techniques closely and you will live to prove that you too are not genetically doomed to be skinny.

Now get back to that gym friend:-)