Got a 6-pack yet? Might have to try that more often...

OP- That is probably your problem, no spotter. You need to find someone to spot you so you can push yourself. I know when I was at my peak on the bench I was doing a set of 185 10x, 215-225 8x, 245 6x, 265 4x, 275 2x. I would NEVER attempt doing that without a spotter. Without a spotter I felt comfortable around the 225 mark, but with a spotter I felt comfortable going up to 275 because I knew if I couldn't get it off my chest my spotter would (ideally as he struggled to at times). Plus you can't only do bench and expect to see gains. Like I'd do a whole workout of chest, whole workout of Biceps/Triceps, whole day of back/shoulders (btw doing lat pull downs and other things for you upper back will help bring your bench number up) and if I felt chipper I'd do a whole workout for legs (usually I just ran 1-2 miles before each workout). And I was only 160 pounds at that peak, benching a 1 rep max of just under to 2x my BW and in high school (i got out of squats after high school) I was squating 415 at a BW of 155-160. I was dangerously close to a 6 pack this time last year. I had the top 2 abs and middle 2 abs defined and showing through but could never get the lower abs showing and I think that had to do with the fact I use to be like 220 pounds in middle school so I have loose stomach skin that I really should get a tummy tuck to tighten it up.

 

To say that supplements are a waste is a bit misleading. While in college for kinesiology, we did quite a bit of testing to see if supplements really work. They do. It greatly depends on person and work ethic. They are so overmarketed it is difficult to sort the good from the usless.

Supplements I think everyone can benefit from

Multivitamin - This along with protien is key, I have seen personally greatest benefits from these two alone. Vitamins not only help the bodys natural muscle building/metabolism process, but they also cut recovery time down greatly

Protein - The biggest problem most people have is they don't get enough. You need 1g of protein for every pound you weigh. I need 185g of protein everyday and its extremely difficult. The brain uses more protein than almost any other body function. Your body however can only process 40g of protein at one time, so anything about that and its just getting waisted.

Creatine - Is helpful but not all that its cracked out to be. Its not going get you ripped quick, but what it will do is store water in muscle cells, so you will see noticeable results, but unless you continue to work out routinely and supplement with the previous, these results will be short lived.

(mass builders)
Carbohydrates - I recently added Xplode XL (GNC product) to my workout regiment. I have noticed peaked energy and a change in body composition. A shake has replaced breakfast, and decreased the amount of food I eat at dinner. The carbs in the supplement do not convert to fat like normal food does so this stuff can stay in your system longer and will be burned easier.

Pre-Workout - This is basicly the same things as listed above, just with some added vasodialating effects, and caffine. This helps to give you that added pump strength.

MY PRODUCTS -
Amplify XL - Protein
PMD Pump Fuel - Preworkout
Xplode XL - Carbohydrate
PMD CR5 - Creatine
GNC Mega Men Sport - Multivitamin
PMD Muscle Phix - Endurance Booster

In the end it is all what you make of your workouts.

 

I am looking at using chia seeds. From what I have been reading they sound really good for you.

 

Short of steroids, nothing really does anything significant towards building muscle other than correct motion, eating properly, and repetition.

 

I agree with what most are saying about supplements. Usually a person does get some results over several weeks by taking protein to feed the muscles after breaking them down, and some get short term mixed results with creatine (water retention).

But please let me give you a warning: be careful and don't overdo it. I have been into body building at various points in my life and used most of the standard supplements out there. At my peak, I was working out with sets of 325 lb benches and such (now that I am older I am no where near that). But I started seriously working out again and was getting massive (I am 6' 3" and about 250 lbs) as I started stacking with creatine, protein, pre workout drink, post work out drink, aminos, and testosterone booster.

But I ran into a serious problem this past week; my kidneys shut down! Really, my wife had to get me to the emergency room because I was blowing up like crazy over a couple of days (I look like Martin Short with a bee sting) and couldn't breath. After checking me for a heart attack and blood clots, the tests came back with elevated creatnine levels from kidneys. They went into acute failure. Been home all week from work as I still can’t get my energy levels up and can’t walk far without running out of breath (but my levels are coming down).

Probably some other contributing factors as well, but the doctors are adamant that I get off all the supplements. So don't be tempted to overdo it because you want faster results, and don’t fall for the marketing hype of the synthetic supplements that promise massive pump and growth!

 

Great advise Desert, I too have heared of a few people that have attained acute renal failure because of high creatine. Sorry to hear about your recent trip to the ER, hope all is well and you get to feelin better.

 

Thanks Jared!

 

I did cross country in high school as well, and track. I graduated weighing in a a mere 118lbs. When I went to college I wanted to beef up a little. The only supplements I bought were a cheap weight gainer and a good multivitamin. I ran to and from the college gym, about 1 mile each way. I did chest and tris one day, back and bis, another, and legs and shoulders, the next, and then repeated. I took one day a week off to rest. After the first quarter, i weighed 145 lbs. Then I hit a wall. I weighed about 150 for the next year or so. I was buying books and tons of supplements and didn't really see much gain. I started changing my workout routine every time in the gym to keep my body guessing. I purposely did the excercises I hated, used the machines I wasn't good at. I started to work my muscles to failure to push them to the limit. I took a few body building classes and a nutrition class since working out is like a science. You have to research tried and true methods and then fine tune them to you. Everyone is different so things that work for some may not work for others. Through the years I gained a decent amount of weight. I replaced running with swimming because it is easier on your joints and is more cardiovascular. I eventually established a peak weight of 209lbs. Gaining muscle really only comes down to two things: how/when you work out and what/when you eat. When you work out, always do a warm up set, choose a weight that you can push comfortably for at least 15 reps. This should be a weight that is extremely light. By doing this you are telling yoiur body, "hey! wake up! it's time to pump some iron" without putting a great amount of initial stress on your body. As for the normal routine, work your body out evenly. Legs are important! I used to neglect my legs because I thought they were already strong from running. Well, running makes your legs a different kind of strong as it builds a different kind of muscle. Your legs have the largest muscles in your body. Subjecting them to adequate stress releases more testosterone than any other muscle. As i mentioned before, keep your body guessing. Stay true to a routine that works out each muscle group evenly and on a set cycle, just mix it up on what machines, excecises, methods you use to work those muscle groups. Do drop sets, stack your sets, cut down rest time, do static movements, etc. Drink throughout the workout. Always eat a very small amount of protein before you work out and a decent amount of protein within 30 minutes of finishing the workout. Lay off energy drinks! If you eat 3 meals a day, split it up among 5 meals. A protein shake and some fruit is a meal. Protein mixes/weight gainer can get exspensive. I used to by BSN products. Their protein drink tasted great but is also about $54 a tub. Eggs, lean beef, and tuna are great sources of protein. I don't work out as much any more because of military injuries but I still mantain myself at 180-185lbs at 5'9". But the knowledge is still there if you have questions. I may not remember all the technical/medical mumbo jumbo I have been taught but I know products, foods, excercises, etc. Good luck. Stay motivated. The gym is a church; you're just preaching to the sound of clanging metal. It's your own world and you are the strongest man in it!

 

rivydzl is right on the money.

To the OP you need to drastically increase what you are lifting. The only weight you are lifting is a bit for your bis and some for your chest. Try doing two exercises for each major muscle group and one for each minor group. A major muscles group would be back, chest, legs. My two exercises are normally a compound movement and an isolation movement, since you are a beginner concentrate on compound movements. So for chest I'd do bench press and flyes. Minor muscle groups would be bis, tris. Shoulders have several muscle groups involved, but they are also hit when doing back and chest. The reason you are only doing one exercise for the minor groups is they are worked when you hit the major groups. You need to do four sets of increasing weight and try to keep the rep range around 10. It is fine to drop the reps as the weight goes up, but try to get to 10 reps.

I'm not going to say supplements are a waste of money, but I will say for most people they are a waste. Most people don't workout hard enough to need the increase from the supplements. Protein is about the only one that many people could use. For the most part, supplements are about on the same level as driving a race car to get milk.

 

First thing you need to do is establish a goal...why are you lifting? Strength? Size? Power? Endurance?

After you determine where you want to go, then you can determine how to get there.

If you're looking to gain weight, #1 thing is diet. No amount of supplements will help you if you dont EAT! Eat eat eat. 5-6 meals per day. Chicken, eggs, peanut butter, tuna fish, oats, steak, veggies, protein shakes, etc. Lots and lots of good food. Absolutely no alcohol or fast food. Work out with heavy weight, low rep, core-body exercises. Dead Lifts, Squats, Bench Press, Shoulder Press, Shrugs, Curls, etc. Work each muscle group once per week.
(Day 1 Legs/Shoulders; Day 2 Chest/Triceps; Day 3 Back/Biceps)


I've been lifting for about 10 years. The #1 thing I see all the time is people trying to beef up and not change their diet. They eat fast food, skip meals, etc and expect awesome muscle gains. Doesnt work that way. I'm convinced that diet is 45%, workout routine is 45%, supplements and other crap are only 10%.

I gained from 145 to 185 3 years ago just by eating more, eating healthy, drinking 2 protein shakes per day, and only taking a creatine pre-workout supplement. Nothing else. I'm down to about 170 right now just because I like to run a lot.

Get a notebook, write down your workouts and the amounts of weight you work each time. Write down your body weight each time you lift. Every 8 weeks, take 1 week of and don't lift at all. During your week off, restructure your workout and find new lifts. This will act as a shock to your muscles and can stimulate growth and strength.

Dont get caught up in supplements. Focus on what you eat and how your workout is structured. You will see results when you get these 2 in focus.