Gabe and I are pretty fortunate. We put on mass relatively easily just by eating a few extra calories and hitting the heavy weights. Some others are not as fortunate. No matter how hard they try to get bigger it just doesn't happen. Typically the...
Gabe and I are pretty fortunate. We put on mass relatively easily just by eating a few extra calories and hitting the heavy weights. Some others are not as fortunate. No matter how hard they try to get bigger it just doesn't happen. Typically these types of people are labeled as "Hardgainers". Meaning it is really hard to gain any significant weight or muscle mass.
Not to worry, we have come up with a hardgainer diet plan that will help even the hardest of hardgainers put on some pounds of lean muscle.
Step 1: Track Calories As a hardgainer you need to keep track of how much you are eating. Now we don't put a calorie limit on hardgainers, but we do set a minimum meaning you need to be eating at least x number of calories. To determine your minimum caloric intake: [(your weight x 10) x 1.2] + 600. This is the absolute minimum number of calories you should be consuming.
Step 2: Whole Foods are King Stop it with the mass gainer shakes and meal replacement bars. Focus on getting the majority of your calories from whole foods. Also, just because you want to put on some weight doesn't mean to chow down candy bars and ice cream. You can make a homemade mass gainer shake out of oats, protein powder, peanut butter and olive oil that will put the beat-down on any store-bought mass gainer on the market. Aim to get the majority of your protein from lean meats, fish and your whey protein. Aim to get most of your carbs from oatmeal.
Step 3: Increase Water Intake This may sound funny, but drinking plenty of water is very important. It will improve your digestion and help you absorb all of the nutrients from all of the whole foods you are now eating! Shoot for 3/4 to 1 gallon of water per day.
Sample Daily Food Intake Diet for a Hardgainer:
Breakfast: 1c oats 1 scoop protein powder 1 fresh fruit Snack: 1 protein bar 1c fresh vegetables Lunch: 8oz lean protein 1c vegetables 2 slice whole wheat toast Pre-Workout: 1 scoop whey + any pre workout supplement Post-Workout: 1 scoop whey + any post workout supplement Supper: 8oz lean protein sweet potato 1c vegetables Late Night Snack: 1 scoop casein protein or 1c cottage cheese + 1tbsp natural peanut butter Need more calories - throw in a homemade mass gainer at any time during the day.
Combine this with StrongLifts 5x5 workout program or a Pyramid program and you will no longer be a hard gainer.
