How to Gain Mass: Eating and Exercising in Fall and Winter

Nutrition

Muscle grows if you consume more calories than you expend. That is, you need to eat more. No other way.

This problem is especially relevant for people prone to thinness, scientifically called ectomorphs. They seem to eat normally and, having read about the principles of mass gain, increase their calorie content. For example, they additionally eat a chocolate bar or add two eggs to the breakfast menu. But there is still no growth. Why? Because the actually needed increase in calories is much larger than they imagine.

A good rate of mass gain is considered to be an increase of about 700 grams per week.

Sometimes for growth it is enough to increase the calorie content of the daily diet by 15%, but more often it is required to receive 30, 50 or even 100% more energy per day. How can you force yourself to eat twice as much? In fact, you don't need to do this. Doubling calories does not mean doubling the amount of food consumed.

Food is different, but you need to choose a high-calorie one, giving it 70% of the space in your daily diet.

High-calorie protein foods

Lean meat, especially poultry.
Fish and seafood. The most important source of healthy fats.
Low-fat dairy products like cottage cheese and cheese.
Eggs. You can eat 6-8 eggs per day, along with the yolks.
Legumes. Lentils, chickpeas, peas, and beans are good sources of plant-based protein, and the first two have a decent amount of the essential BCAAs in their composition, which is good too. Do not get carried away with soy, because it negatively affects the male hormonal background.
Nuts.

High-calorie carbohydrate foods

Buckwheat, pearl barley, oatmeal, rice, corn, wheat, millet porridge.
Durum wheat pasta.
Black bread.
Vegetables as a side dish for protein foods. Potatoes, carrots and beets contain a lot of starch, so you shouldn't lean on them.
Fruits. Grapes, pears, bananas, and persimmons are high in sugar and should therefore be limited.

The proportions of proteins, carbohydrates and fats in the diet

Proteins - 30–35%.
Carbohydrates - 50-60%.
Fat - 10-20%.

Nutrition Tips

Count calories and weigh yourself every 3-5 days.
With a weekly weight gain of less than 700 grams, increase the calorie intake. If the growth is faster, then it is better to reduce the calorie content, otherwise the excess will go to fat.
Eat more often. Divide the daily ration into 5-6 meals.

Sports nutrition

Plain high-calorie foods are not a panacea. Eating so much every day is still difficult, and often impossible due to work, lack of time to cook, and so on. These problems are successfully solved by sports nutrition.

Sportpit is actually a pure concentrated useful substance. The maximum volume required in the minimum. The vast majority of athletes, be they weightlifters, bodybuilders or crossfitters, take sports nutrition, and beginners and amateurs should do the same.

Whey Protein

Protein supplements help you meet your daily protein intake, which averages 2 grams per kilogram of body. It is recommended to get 50% of protein from regular food, and the remaining half from sports food. Whey protein is the most effective. Take it 3-5 times a day: in the morning, right after sleep, and between meals.

Popular brands:

Gainer

In the absence of mass growth, that is, with a lack of calorie intake, a gainer helps - a super-calorie mixture of carbohydrates and proteins. Take it immediately after training, and if you cannot have a normal breakfast, take it in the morning.

Popular brands:

Pre-workout complex

Pre-workout supplements are supplements that help you exercise more effectively. They include products to improve blood circulation and muscle nutrition, substances that promote the growth of strength and muscle volume, vitamins and microelements.

Popular brands:

Creatine

Creatine is one of the most studied sports supplements with proven effectiveness in promoting muscle growth and strength. Take it on rest days, that is, when you are not exercising, 3-4 grams.

Popular brands:

Vitamin and mineral complex

Lack of vitamins and minerals is harmful in itself, and specifically when gaining mass, it additionally negatively affects muscle growth.

Popular brands:

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Workout

Living organisms, and the human body in particular, are the result of millions of years of evolution. Do you know what makes us different from all our ancestors? In their life there was little food and an excess of physical activity, but now the opposite is true.

But the body is still working in the old mode. It is very economical and does not build muscle if there are enough existing muscles, but it happily accumulates fat, because frequent and prolonged fasting is the most common thing for it. More precisely, it was common, but several decades of well-fed life had no effect on the biochemistry of the human body.

It turns out that even a person who overcomes a calorie deficit in the absence of physical activity will gain mass, but not in the form of muscles, but in the form of fat on the stomach, sides, and so on.

Any physical activity in the absence of a calorie deficit will give some muscle gain, but we do not need "some", but the maximum. For this, it is important to choose the right training strategy.

Basic training principles for gaining mass

Do only basic exercises that involve large muscles and several muscle groups at the same time.
Do exercises with high weights and low repetitions per set.
Rest 2-3 minutes between sets.
Warm up thoroughly.
Study the correct exercise technique carefully.

Pay attention to the last two tips. They are extremely important and will help you avoid health problems. It is better to spend a few minutes on them than to recover from an injury for six months.

The best exercises for gaining mass

1. Total Weight: Deadlift and Classic Squats

Among the regulars of the gym and professionals, the opinion is popular that for a beginner to increase mass and strength, it is enough to perform only three exercises: squats, deadlifts and bench press. It is worth listening to them.

2. Chest: bench press dumbbells

The classic chest press uses the front deltas to a greater extent, thereby taking the load from the pectoral muscles. Therefore, for more effective breast development, it is recommended to press dumbbells.

3. Back: pull of the upper block to the chest with a wide grip

There is a misconception that the best exercise for expanding the back is a wide row behind the head, but in practice, the pull to the chest and pull-ups with a wide grip have proven to be the most effective. Reverse grip pull-ups and pull-ups follow.

4. Quads: Squats with a barbell on the chest

Shifting the weight forward relieves the load on the hamstrings and glutes, transferring it to the quads.

5. Hamstrings and buttocks: Romanian deadlift

The Romanian deadlift differs from the classic deadlift in that it is performed on straight legs from the middle of the knees. Roughly speaking, this is the final phase of the deadlift with the exception of the exit from the squat, when only the extension of the body remains due to the work of the biceps of the hips and buttocks.

6. Triceps: Press with a narrow grip or push-ups on the uneven bars

Triceps are relatively small muscles, and therefore isolation is not needed here, unlike the same chest and dumbbell press. The more complex the exercise, the better.

7. Biceps: standing lift with a straight bar

You read about the basic exercises, but you will still swing the bituha, right? If so, do it right. The EZ bar is more comfortable, but does not work out the biceps evenly. Only the straight bar loads both bundles of the biceps muscle of the biceps equally well. You will most likely need to reduce your current working weight by 5-10%.

8. Shoulders: standing or sitting dumbbell press

The width and roundness of the shoulders is given by the middle bundle of deltas. When you do the barbell press while standing or sitting from the chest, or even from behind the head, the emphasis inevitably shifts to the front beams. Dumbbells allow you to press along the axis of the body, maximally including in the work of the middle beams.

Sometimes workouts seem monotonous, and some exercises are uncomfortable. In these cases, remember Paul Dillett's words:

Among the dozens of exercises, there are those in which it is fun to overcome a lot of weight. From them you grow.

Simply put, try new things, find your exercises, and listen to your body.