Skinny guy seeking advice on building foundation

[W.J.A.B.]

hey guys, ive researched quite abit on this but still get a lil confused, im looking for a few good workouts to help me build a good foundation, right now im 6feet 2 inches tall 160 pounds, so as you can see ive got a long way to go, any advice on some good workouts to build a big foundation would be greatly appreciated, i will be yousing a strict deit with supps and gear, any good workouts i could try?

Thanx alot guys.

[AandF6969]

Don't use gear until youve trained AT LEAST 2 years HARD... i mean at least an hour in the gym, 5 or 6 days a week. You need to build a strong base before you introduce steroids or you will lose everything once you go off gear. Get protein, creatine, amino acids maybe some L-glutamine.
Don't forget diet. There's plenty of workouts on here, do a little research.

[SwoleCat]

It starts with diet first, then training, then rest/supps/etc.

~SC~

[AandF6969]

Very well put swolecat

[znak]

First year, you notice the changes
Second year, other people notice the changes
Then you start tweaking-- creatine, glutamine...

When you weigh about 200 lbs, look into test.

First year, do compound basics- squat, deadlift, bench, military, weighted dips and pull ups. Add weigh or reps EVERY session.

Year two- mix it up, add single joint to really blast a group. Technique should be pretty good.

EAT twice what you think you can. Have a shake before bed. EAT, EAT, EAT.

Write back in a year.

[Quake]

First off don't try too hard too quickly. You'll only get fed up and wonder what in the hell you're doing it for anyway. Work yourself into it, say go to the gym 2 or 3 times a week each time doing a full body workout to start you off,i.e. one exercise on each muscle group for 3 sets each exercise. Don't try increasing weights straight away, pick a weight that feels comfortable and use this for the 3 sets. Stick to this for 4 to 6 weeks to get a feel for training, try doing 10 to 20 minutes on bikes or rowing machine too if you have the time, getting fit in a cardio way will help in future workout intensity.

Try these exercises to start off with, changing the exercise you do for the bodypart each time you visit the gym. Variety will help maintain your interest and you will find the exercises you like and the ones you don't like so much.

Chest - Bench Press Flat/Incline/Decline, Dumbbell Press Flat/Incline/Decline, Machine Press Flat/Incline/Decline
Back - Bent over rows, One arm rows, Cable rows
Delts - Military Press Dumbbell/Barbell/Seated/Standing
Traps - Shrugs Barbell/Dumbbell
Biceps - Curls Barbell/Dumbbell/Seated/Standing
Triceps - Overhead Extension Dumbbell/Barbell/Seated/Standing
Quads - Squat (go easy with the weight! You don't want to injure yourself early on and this is an intense exercise! Ask anyone!) Leg Press (Not so prone to injury but still go easy)
Calves - Toe raises Seated/Standing

Also include exercises for your lower back if you have the time. This is a good area to strengthen right from the start, I know I've got the injuries to prove it (and an osteopath is not cheap!). For this do - Hyperextensions, Good Mornings. On both these go extremely light as they are high risk exercises, say 5 or 10 kg (11 to 22 lbs) should be plenty to start with.

Don't worry about the time you take between sets to start with, this will come with your training intensity as you become more experienced and comfortable with your lifting (what the cardio is good for).

If I think of anything more from my limited knowledge I'll edit the post. It is so fresh in my mind as I have just started back training after 3 and a half years of doing none at all. I tried late last year to get back into it, but tried doing similair things to that which I left off at, I lasted 2 weeks before I packed it in. I'm currently in my fourth month of being back at the gym and I've got the bug again, everything is going great, just ironing my diet out. If you're not a healthy eater dieting can be a greater discipline than training, so if this is the case for you don't worry about the "best" diet to be on straight off, even though it is the diet that feeds the growth. Go with what you're eating now and slowly discipline yourself, read about good foods, get some multi-vitamins don't worry about anymore than this for now the supplements will come later too. Small things such as taking the skin off your chicken or turkey go a long way and can be done as you go along so you slowly get used to the difference. Also jumping your protein up quickly can be heavy on your liver so increase it gradually as your liver will get used to the higher demand that is being called upon it. Drinking more water as you increase your protein intake can also help here. Beans on toast I am told is one of the best protein blends you can get for a meal, reading up makes a lot of difference.

Definitely leave the gear/juice/roids etc alone for some time. As you haven't trained before your body will get used to the demand you are putting on it. Here I cannot tell you what happens biologically as you start/increase training. Your body will obviosly react but I'm afraid I'm not knowledgeable on issues of natural testosterone production and supply and demand etc, but it's very interesting to learn about. As you get more and more "into it" you'll find that Body Building/Weight Lifting is about a great deal more than just brawn, it's a vast subject and very very interesting!

Happy days and I hope you get "hooked"!

[znak]

Great Post Bouncer!

[Quake]

Thanks znak! Where in Russia are you from? My mother is russian, her maiden name is Vassiliev (I think that's how you spell it), my deardushka was born in Strekolvka, but my mother was brought up in Moscow.

[W.J.A.B.]

wow, thanks for the info guys, i picked up some vitamins, Zinc, Vitamin C, and some amino acids, i also picked l-glutamine, creatine, and some whey protein but i guess i can leave it for awhile, and as or the gear im gonna wait untill i hit bout 200 pounds, and then add a cycle, but how long should i wait untill i add the creatine, l-glutamine, and deit plan?

[Speed Trials]

You can start using the supps as soon as you begin training. As for diet, make sure that's in order before you start training. Check out the stickies in the Diet Forum if you're looking for info on putting a diet together (in your case, check out the bulking sticky).

[W.J.A.B.]

what workout program would work best for building a good base?

[Hypertrophy]

Check out post #6, Bouncer had some good basic lifts for each bodypart!!

[Powrlftr]

The best way to build a good foundation is through powerlifting. Don't worry about all that Joe Weider crap and just lift heavy and for strength, you can sculpt yourself after 2 or 3 years.

[Quake]

Don't worry about the supps yet, glutamine aids in protein digestion, so leave this alone until you've got your protein up and your body has had time to adjust itself to the extra demand (as i talked about in post #6). I don't agree with speed trials in getting your diet together before starting training as a beginner. I don't want to make it sound like a task, but as I said diet is more of a discipline than training, so don't make it a task by trying to get this "new healthy high protein etc" diet together all in one go. If you're diet at present isn't already a "super" diet, then you're not only making a mental change and keeping a mental discipline by changing your diet, but you will be denying your body of the things that it is used to this will cause cravings and makes tying to stick to a diet hard work! Something you will realise is very important when it comes to putting things into your body, is that your body loves regularity, it gets used to, and adapts it's functioning to that which it recognises as having on a regular basis. This fact will come into play more and more as you learn more about dieting, supplements and the big one, "steroids". So, in the beginning, don't make hard work of it and make high demands from your body. As you become more disciplined in both your diet and training you will find that you can push your body harder in many different ways and can then look at hitting your body in various different ways from various different angles to get the best out of yourself.

Creatine helps with your muscle efficiency and it's ability to perform a more intense workout. It doesn't build muscle, it allows the muscle to undergo more strain so allowing for a larger foundation upon which muscle can be built. As you are starting off you really should not be worrying about training intensity (for reasons discussed in post #6), and as a result to take creatine would be pointless as you are unlikely to be straining your muscles to levels at which creatine will aid your muscle efficiency. Give yourself a little time before using this supplement.

Protein powder is good, but not to be relied on for getting your daily in-take of protein from. Food is a much better source. You could however, start drinking one shake a day directly after working out on the days that you train, and at some point during the day on the days you are not training. There may be an optimum time to drink a shake on off days that someone with more knowledge than I could tell you, but to start with you could put it in as an extra meal on your days off. Some people eat 5 or 6 meals a day, but again building up the number of meals a day should follow closely the growing intensity of your workouts so that you are getting the right amount of calories in to cover your recovery and energy expenditure. So again not something to worry about too much at the moment.

Best of luck!

[AandF6969]

What happened to deadlifts? They're one of the best mass builders around

[craneboy]

eat big, get big. train hard and lift heavy dont get sidetracked with upper body only train legs religously

[Beernutz]

compound movements are key to building a good base. But make sure your form is good. Squats, deadlifts, db presses are all essential.

[Hometown Hero]

Everybody responds differently to weight training. I would be lying if I told you it wasn't going to be hard, but your hard work will pay off. Not only will you start to look better, but you will start to feel better as your health improves. Some people also gain quicker then others, at this point if you have never trained you have no idea how your genetics will come into play. I went from 5'8 130 to 5'8 160 in only a year. But like swole was saying about diet it has everything to do with your development. If you dont eat you can't grow, and my diet was ****. Screw your body fat percentage for right now, just eat, get your body used to taking in extra calories. Right now nitpicking with your diet is only going to add extra stress that you dont need. Dont be scared of putting on a little fat, your goal is to grow. Just use a little common since with your diet and you'll be growing before you know it. EAT EAT EAT EAT!!!!!