Hardgainer Training

Hardgainer Workout Using High Volume Training

2010-01-24T11:31:00.000-08:00

If you're still having trouble gaining weight, a good trick to add to your hardgainer workout is high volume training for a few weeks. Now, one very important point here is that I am NOT suggesting you do a million exercises for 2 hours a day 6 days a week.

This is the most detrimental thing you can do as hardgainer. You will see much better results training hard with just a few basic compound exercises a couple days a week the main focus on increasing strength.

However, if you have reached a level in your hardgainer workout where you have increased your strength significantly but still lack mass, try a little high volume training.

Here's an example of an abbreviated hardgainer workout routine that I would normally recommend for hardgainers to first increase their strength:

1. Squats: 5x5

2. Bench Press: 5x5

3. Weighted Pull-Ups: 5x5

4. Military Press: 2x12

5. Romanian Deadlifts: 5x5

This is a basic version of the 5x5 system that has been proven for decades to increase strength like no other.

Now, to add some high volume training in your hardgainer workout, let's use the bench press for example:

After two progressively heavier warm up sets for 5 reps, you do your last 3 sets of 5 with the near maximum weight you can handle for 5 reps. Immediately after this, you strip the weight to an amount that you can do 10 reps for in a relatively fast fashion.

After 30-45 seconds rest, do another 10 reps. Continue with this, while stripping the weight as necessary to maintain 10 clean reps per set, until you do a total of 8 to 10 sets. By the last few sets you probably will only be able to just do the bar, but that's OK. You've already done your strength training with your first 5x5, now the point is to really get the blood pumping in your muscles.

So, the entire process for just the bench press would look like this:

Bench Press: 5x5 strength training; then 10x10 w/30-45 second rest between sets

When doing high volume training like this, it is a good idea to abbreviate your program even further, such as just picking three exercises a day.

Obviously you won't be able to do strength training for the military press on the same day as the bench press with this, since your triceps will absolutely be fried.

Try this high volume training in your hardgainer workout for the most basic compound exercises for a while if you are hitting a plateau in your gains lately, and you'll more then likely add a few extra pounds within a matter of weeks.

Hardgainer Workout

2010-01-11T16:35:00.000-08:00

When it comes to a hardgainer workout, less is always more. Hardgainers by nature require much more rest and recovery time then the average person. This is why we see so many hardgainers train for month after month and year after year on long bodybuilding type workouts only to end up looking the same as when they started.

One very important key you must follow as a hardgainer is abbreviated workouts. It is much more effective to spend a good 45 to 75 minutes working hard on 4 to 5 of the most basic compound exercises 2 to 3 days a week maximum then 10 different exercises everyday 4 to 6 days a week.

A true hardgainer workout program will focus on exercises like squats, deadlifts, bench presses, bent-over barbell rows, weighted pull-ups, and shoulder presses. Focusing on just a few of these for 2 to 3 solid hours a week TOTAL will put MUCH more gains in terms of muscle, weight, and strength then any drawn out "advanced" bodybuilding program can.

If the majority of your workouts are isolation exercises then you are doomed from the beginning. No hardgainer will gain an ounce of weight or muscle spending hours and hours on the millions of variations for bicep curls and and tricep presses.

Put effort into bench presses, squats, and bent-over rows in your hardgainer workout, then you'll be on to something. You will not only develop you smaller muscles like like your biceps and triceps, but more importantly you'll be developing your larger muscles which in result will STIMULATE growth in the secondary muscles.

There's a whole science explaining why and how this works, but it's not neccessary to learn all that noise.

You don't have to know how or why electricity works, but you know every time you flip your light switch you lights will come on. Well, trust that every time you put in good quality hard work and consistency into the major compound exercises in your hardgainer workout, you'll start to see much better gains then before.

Hope this helps,

Derek

Hardgainer Workout

Gain Weight and Build Muscle in 2010

2009-12-27T17:48:00.001-08:00

If you've been going to the gym day in and day out, eating everything in site and gaging down useless supplements (not to mention unnecessarily draining your wallet), and you're just about fed up, listen here.

Gaining weight, even for hardgainers, doesn't have to be that complicated. In fact, it's not complicated at all. It's actually rather simple.

Even further, most things in life are simple. If you want to have more money next year spend less then you earn. If you want to learn another language set aside time everyday to practice and progress using a step-by-step proven formula. If you wanted to lose weight, exercise enough to where you burn more calories then you consume, and eat less more often of healthier and balanced foods.

Not to say that there is not more to it then just these over simplifications, but there really isn't MUCH more to it. Of course, we as humans love to complicate things.

Well I am here to tell you that gaining weight isn't all that complicated. Does it take hard work? Hell yes it does. Does it take consistency? You bet.

But the bottom line is you have to harmonize all of the factors that contribute to the bodies ability to gain weight and build muscle. The problem most people have is that they take a simple process and complicate it.

It's not most peoples fault, however, because the only way for the fitness industry to continue to make money is to continue to promote and advertise "new" and "revolutionary" supplements, equipment, and blah blah blah.

Now, you might be saying to yourself right now, "But Derek, YOU'RE in the fitness industry, this is how YOU make a living, so why should I listen to you??"

Good question. The answer is this: I'm never selling anything new. I have and always will be promoting the same old boring ebook for years and years.

Why? Because it WORKS. I never claim ANYTHING in this book is "new" or "revolutionary" because the God honest truth is that the fastest way to gain weight and build muscle has and always will be through just a few simple principles applied harmoniously.

How to Gain Weight and Build Muscle for Hardgainers is as successful as it is today because it cuts through all of the BS and tells you EVERYTHING you will EVER need to know about gaining weight and building muscle as fast as naturally possible for hardgainers. Period.

So if you are tired of hearing the latest FAD in gaining weight and building muscle that simply won't work for hardgainers and want just the simple straight forward truth, then get a copy of my ebook now.

How to Gain Weight and Build Muscle for Hardgainers

What better way to start off your 2010 when you are most motivated and energized with a time honored and proven step-by-step program that covers everything from A to Z in the SIMPLEST form possible for hardgainers.

One more thing, I have a New Years sale going on until, surprise surprise, New Years Day. After that it will probably go back to the normal price, so there's no time to waste here.

Train hard and follow everything to the letter, then let me here about YOUR results.

How to Gain Weight and Build Muscle for Hardgainers

Hardgainer Grocery List

2009-07-19T13:10:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

I have found over time that the majority of the problems hardgainers have when trying to gain weight and or/build muscle is not in finding a solid hardgainer workout, but in getting the right information in terms of the what, when, why and how of eating.

The simple advice of "eat a lot" or "consume more calories then you burn" doesn't really solve the problem most hardgainers have when trying to gain weight. I found a great article on askmen.com that covers the basics of a hardgainer and, more importantly, a great overall meal plan for them.

Check it out below:

Hardgainer Grocery List - AskMen.com:

"Are you one of the many guys who struggle to gain weight? If so, take comfort in knowing that you aren’t alone. Building muscle for anyone is not an easy process and for some, it can be remarkably hard. These individuals, who are often referred to as ”hardgainers,” are really going to have to push their dietary efforts to the limits to start seeing measurable progress.

Here is the lowdown on a hardgainers diet and what a hardgainer grocery list needs to look like:"

Read the rest here

How to Gain Weight When You Have a Fast Metabolism

2009-07-14T23:29:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

One of my articles that I posted last year still to this day gets a ton of views and comments back and forth, so I thought I'd bring it back and post it on my blog.

In the article I include a hardgainer workout as well as tips on diet and supplementing.

Enjoy below...

It seems like today everybody wants to lose weight. True, our country is having a major problem with obesity, but there are still those of us who would do just about anything to gain weight.

If you're anything like I was, you could just about eat a grocery store out of business and not gain an ounce of weight. So if you have tried anything and everything to gain weight to no avail, then keep reading my friend.

There is such a barrage of misleading information out there today that it's no longer a question of getting information, but instead discerning the right information.

So let's go over some of the key aspects you must follow on how to gain weight when you have a fast metabolism.

The first key is weight training, and before I go any further I want you to forget everything you have ever read on the subject of weight training, bodybuilding, and anything else of the sort.

Chances are you have been fed more misleading information then anything good, and since it isn't really that complex, let's start from scratch.

OK, there are only a few key exercises that you need to do, no more then two to three days a week. More is better in a lot of things in life, but not in weight training to gain weight, it's quite the opposite.

If you spend too much time in the gym on too many exercises all you are going to do is over-train and you may even lose weight, especially if you have a fast metabolism. The key is to really train HARD on just a few major exercises, and to really concentrate on getting stronger each and every week, even if it's only by a couple of pounds.

Here is an example of a few exercises you should do two or three days a week:

-Squats: 2 x 15

-Bench Press: 3 x 12

-Bent-Over Barbell Rows: 3 x 15

-Overhead or Military Press: 2 x 12

-Romanian Deadlifts: 1 x 15

These are the mother of all weight gaining exercises, and squats are the granddaddy of them all. Don't think that squats and Romanian deadlifts will only make your legs big. In fact, if you do them in the way I'm about to reveal to you, they will be responsible for 80% of the weight you will gain on your WHOLE body.

Now, here is one key point you can't forget: don't make the mistake of believing that because the reps are relatively high, means you are only going to be using light weights. Think just the opposite, you are going to be training with HEAVY weights (relative to your strengths or course) for HIGH reps.

Sounds like a paradox I know, but heavy weight for high reps will work for these exercises, and more importantly, they will work wonders for your weight gains.

The second aspect is your diet. The number one rule to gaining weight is this: you will only gain weight when you have consumed more calories then you have burned. So here's what you should do next: starting tomorrow, eat what you normally eat everyday, but count how many calories you are eating.

Whatever your number is, your goal is to eat around 500 to 1,000 more calories then that each day. Here is a little trick to help you do that: every morning make yourself a huge protein shake, enough to fit in a gallon container, and consume it evenly throughout the day, both with and without your meals.

Throw in a bunch of healthy, calorie and protein packed foods until altogether until it equals the 500 to 1,000 extra calories you need. Examples of what you can add are milk, a banana, peanut butter, molasses, powdered milk, and ice cream.

The last aspect you can't forget is to limit your other activities and rest as much as possible. Any time you're moving you're burning extra calories, and you'll want to burn as little as possible outside of your weight training. That means no cardiovascular exercises or any sports for that matter.

Remember, you are trying to learn how to gain weight when you have a fast metabolism and any activity outside your weight training is counter-productive.

Talk to ya soon,

Derek Manuel
Hardgainer Workout

Hardgainer Workouts - Busting through Plateaus!

2009-07-14T09:22:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

As hardgainers, more often then not we can hit "sticking points" in our hardgainer workout. This is where you get stuck at a certain weight on a particular exercise and can't get past it, or even worse, see a digression in results.

I found a great article that will help hardgainers get past these annoying a result robbing sticking points so that you can move forward and continue to successfully gain weight and build muscle in your hardgainer workout.

Enjoy!

Bodybuilding.com - Hardgainer.com - Barrier Buster: Tips For Busting Through Plateaus!:

"Sticking points are bad news, but everybody suffers from them from time to time. Sometimes the cause is staleness, brought on by overtraining, and the cure, simple though it is, is usually hard to take. You may know, deep down inside you, that what you really need is a complete layoff, but the very idea tastes like a dose of castor oil. At other times, when staleness and overtraining are not the cause, your progress can be kick-started by changing to a completely new routine."

Read more here

Talk to ya soon,

Derek Manuel
Hardgainer Workout

Gaining Weight: How Can You Gain Weight if You Are a Hardgainer?

2009-07-09T16:45:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

I found this great article on hardgainers who are struggling to gain weight. Many times hardgainers complain about trying every hardgainer workout they can get their hands on, when in reality it all too often comes down to their eating habits.

In the below article, bodybuilder Dave "Jumbo" Palumbo goes over the most basic fundamentals that EVERY hardgainer must know and include in their overall hardgainer workout.

Check it out below...

Gaining Weight: How Can You Gain Weight if You Are a Hardgainer?:

"Now ask yourself - and be honest - have you really tried EVERYTHING? How long have you been working at gaining weight? How persistent have you been? How many different training and diet strategies have you tried? How many calories are you eating? How many times have you increased your calories?

When I pose these questions to so-called 'hard-gainers,' 19 out of 20 of them admit that not only have they tried very few things, but they haven't even mastered the most basic fundamental of gaining weight:"

Read the rest here

Train hard fellow hardgainers,

Derek Manuel
Hardgainer Workout

How to Gain Weight Fast with the Best Supplements for Hardgainers

2009-06-29T00:59:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

I'm usually not one to talk much about supplements, all you have to do is flip through any muscle mag and you'll get bombarded with all that crap for 90% of the pages. However, as much as I hate how they market supplements as some magic formula that you can just take with a glass of water and wake up the next morning looking like the guy on the add, supplements still are an important aspect to any weight gain program, provided you take the right ones for the right reasons.

If you want to gain weight fast, adding the right combination of supplements to an already effective weight gain program can make progress much faster.

I recently found a good article on some of the best supplements for a hardgainer weight gain program as well as why each one is important. Check it out below.

The BEST Muscle Growth Supplements for Hardgainers

"Nutritional supplements are good because they prevent us from getting any nutritional deficiencies. The increased activity levels from your new exercise program will make your body have greater demands for vitamins and minerals, which will increase the probability of you suffering a deficiency without supplementation. Even a slight nutrient deficiency can sabotage muscle growth.

Can’t we get all the nutrients we need from food alone? We cannot rely solely on food nowadays to provide us with all the vitamins and minerals that our body needs because the processing of foods before they get to the supermarket, cooking, air, and even light have already robbed your foods of most of the vitamins that they have to offer. If you are deficient in one or more nutrients your body may not be able to build muscle and burn fat properly.

Not all supplements are created equal though. Some your body always needs, others are more dependent upon what your goals are and what your budget looks like. Below you will learn what the different categories of supplements are and which ones you need to use at all times. Read the rest here

Talk to ya soon,

Derek Manuel
How to Gain Weight Fast

The Hardgainer Way....

2009-06-24T18:17:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

As fellow hardgainers, we can view our "curse" in one of two ways. One, we can do what most people do and use it as an excuse of why we can't ever gain weight or build muscle. We can just blame our genetics and decide it's not even worth trying to gain weight and build muscle since we have to work 10 times harder then the average person.

The other way you can look at it is as if it is a gift. We can take something that started off as a major "weakness" and completely turn it on its head. We can have the mindset that YOU are in control of YOUR life, and refuse to make excuses or blame "circumstances" as to why you will never be successful in building the body you want.

Obviously, the second option is sounds like an easy choice to go with, but it is a lot harder said then done. We often times fool ourselves with actually believing what we tell ourselves most.

Any success in life requires first a winning attitude. An attitude that lives off the saying, "It's not what happens to you, it's how you respond to what happens to you that makes the difference in you life."

As hardgainers, it is very easy for us to just blame circumstance, but if you really need to gain weight and build muscle either just as much as the other guy or even more so, then you have to train your mind to respond with the winners attitude.

So if you have been living your life telling yourself that you'll never gain weight or build muscle BECAUSE you are a hardgainer and that you shouldn't have to work harder then others to gain weight, it is time for you to change your thinking.

It is time to embrace being a hardgainer as a gift. A gift that gives each one of us the hunger and desire to really prove that we can succeed in our journey to better bodies. After all, success is that much sweeter when you have more to overcome then the "average" person and you still get better results.

So, fellow hardgainers, accept the fact that we are born hardgainers, and use it to your advantage to build a hunger, desire, and work ethic that will smash all limitations that we thought were holding us back this whole time.

I hope this helps,

Your Friend,

Derek Manuel
Hardgainer Workout

P.S. Need to gain weight and build muscle mass but don't have a hardgainer workout program on how to do it? Check out the second edition of my best-selling ebook, How to Gain Weight and Build Muscle for Hardgainers.

Proven weight gain programs, diet and nutrition guidelines, goal setting, exercises and more ALL geared for HARDGAINERS ONLY!!

Check it our here for more info: How to Gain Weight and Build Muscle for Hardgainers

Motivational Strategies to Get the Most from Your Workouts

2009-06-22T10:46:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

Staying motivated is a key factor to having success in the gym. As they say, most people are good starters but poor finishers. This is because it is easy to get fired up and excited about a future goal you want to attain, such as learning how to gain weight fast, especially when you flip through a bodybuilding magazine or see a role model with a body like the one you want.

For the first couple days, we are all excited and ready to hit the gym and train with more intensity then ever. After the workout, we feel good and can’t wait until the next training day. This goes on for a few more days, for some even a few weeks.

Then suddenly, our motivation level drops. All of the sudden doing something else like watching T.V. or going out with your buddies to the beach sounds much more appealing. On our next workout day, we’re just not that eager to hit the gym hard and punish our bodies. We tend to even think about working out less and less.

Let me just say that at this point, and if you ever experienced this before, your goals for that particular workout are pretty much toast – unless you do something about it fast. Think about it. What got you all pumped up to begin the workout in the first place? What was different about the beginning of the workout that changed later on that kept you from continuing your workouts in the future?

One word: Motivation.

What exactly is motivation? The actual definition of motivate is “to provide with a motive or motives.” So if motivation is what provides you with a motive, a reason to workout, how do you maintain motivation until you reach your goals? Figure out your reasons why and how to constantly remind yourself on a daily basis. In other words, figure out “what” motivates you and “why” it motivates you and implement them into your daily thoughts and you will always be motivated!

Obviously this is much harder then it sounds, but there is a logical way to go about doing this. My mentor always used to tell me, “when you know your reason why, you will overcome any how.” So the first step to keep you motivated throughout your whole weight gain program or hardgainer workout until you complete it is to figure out your reason why and make sure it is big enough to compel you to action and keep your desire for its attainment a burning obsession.

Write it out on a piece of paper in one or two sentences and place it somewhere where you will see it every morning and every night. Write it on a smaller note card and carry it around in your pocket everywhere you go to constantly remind yourself of it.

This step is so important that I can’t stress it enough. Ask anybody who has had great success in any endeavor and they will tell you that their goal or dream was never two sentences away from their thoughts. They thought about it every minute of every day. They were in the zone. They knew exactly what they wanted and never took their mind off of it until it was achieved. Adapt this kind of thinking and attitude and motivation will follow you like a shadow.

The second approach to maintaining motivation and to keep it habitually in your thoughts is to set yourself up to where you are constantly reminded and fired up about working out. This can and should be done in several ways. The most effective way is to set up a series of ways in which you can be reminded all the time through literary, audio, visual, as well as face-to-face learning and training.

When you are constantly reading new workout material, listening to audio recordings that motivate you, watching videos or movies about working out and bodybuilding, and are associating with other like-minded people with the same or similar goals, you will have a steady and constant flow of motivation.

One of my favorite quotes is, “you will be the same person today in five years except for the books you read and the people whom you most associate with.” The truism in this quote cannot be denied. If “birds of a feather flock together,” what can you tell about your motivation and results based on the people whom you most hang around? How often are you reading new material on hardgainer training and bodybuilding? These questions can often present the reason why you may be losing motivation every time you start a new hardgainer workout program.

Begin today before anything else by finding your reason why you workout and ingrain it in your brain until it becomes a burning obsession. Then make sure you are always around information and people that support your goals. By just making a habit of these two things will not only jump start your motivation but also gives it the long lasting vitality and lifeblood it needs to continue to compel you all the way to the finish line.

I hope this helps,

Talk to you soon,

Derek Manuel
Weight Gain Program

Need to Gain Weight but You Also Play Sports?

2009-06-18T17:47:00.000-07:00

Hey fellow hardgainers,

Today I am going to address one of the most common questions that I get from those who need to gain weight. I would say I get an average of at least 10 emails a week of generally the same type of question. Here is the latest question I received:

"Derek, I am ready to start your program and excited to gain 15 to 30 pounds of muscle in the next 8 weeks. I know you mention that in order to gain weight that fast, I have to eliminate any type of cardio for the time period, which brings me to the next question: I LOVE to play basketball. I play pick up games at least twice a week, and I have games every Sunday, so I do a lot of running. Is this going to affect my weight gains?"

Feel free to replace basketball with whatever sport or recreational activity that you may engage in that includes cardiovascular exercise.

And the simple answer to this question is this: YES.

I'm going to be straight with you. If you are serious about gaining weight and strength, playing any sport often and doing a lot of running will make this VERY difficult. It doesn't make sense to begin a weight gain program when you are routinely performing exercises that provoke weight loss! ESPECIALLY AS A HARDGAINER.

The bottom line is this: you will ONLY gain weight when you consume more calories then you burn on a daily basis. This means for hardgainers, you have to eat a lot of calories, follow a proper weight gain program, and rest AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. Any additional cardio will cause you to not only burn the NEEDED calories to gain weight, but will also not let your muscles fully recover.

The best advice I can give in this situation is make a decision as to what is more important to you. Like anything else, to have success in something you have to sacrifice some things, and cardio is one of them if you really need to gain weight and build muscle mass.

Now, if you are are stubborn like me and absolutely cannot stop playing whatever sport for a short period of time, then it is an ABSOLUTELY MUST to do the following:

1) Try to limit how many times you play a week as much as you can (obvious, I know, but I have to say it)

2) Eat even MORE calories then the recommended amount to gain weight

3) Consume a high carb/protein shake a little before AND IMMEDIATELY right after each cardio session to limit any loss in needed calories to help you gain weight

4) Try to get as much sleep as your schedule can possibly permit, even if this means taking naps throughout the day if you can.

Like I said, you simply won't gain the MAXIMUM amount of weight in the minimum time period while doing a lot of cardio. You can almost say that no cardio is just as much part of the weight gain program as the diet and workout are.

However, you can still gain a lot of weight and really build up your strength if you follow a solid hardgainer program along with the steps I listed above, you simply just won't get the fasted results possible.

I hope this helps.

Your Friend,

Derek Manuel
Weight Gain Program

Hardgainer Workout: The Key Muscle Groups to Focus On

2009-06-13T01:17:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys,

If you are a hardgainer, or you just haven’t been gaining the muscle mass that you are striving to achieve, you may be leaving out some key exercises in your hardgainer workout.

If you look at any successful bodybuilder or weight trainer who trains to build a mass of muscle, and by successful I don’t mean just the guys you see in magazines but anybody with good results, you may notice that they spend a lot of time and effort in two main areas of their workouts: leg and back exercises.

There are many reasons for this, but one of the most particular is because they are the largest and most powerful muscles in your body. Exercises for your legs and back, such as squats, bent-over rows, and deadlifts, are hands down some of the most demanding types of exercises you can do when you train them hard and heavy.

But when developed properly they can build a mass of muscle bulk and help you gain weight for the rest of your whole body. Lower body exercises are by far the fasted
way to build muscle even if you are trying to increase the muscle mass on your upper body as well.

The reason for this is because you are stimulating your largest muscle groups, thus producing the most amount of testosterone throughout your body. Testosterone is a key ingredient if you need to gain weight. More testosterone means much more muscle mass potential for the rest of your muscle groups, such as your chest, arms and shoulders.

Specializing on back exercises can increase your strength and power and add pounds of muscle on your body in a very short amount of time. Specializing on leg exercises in your weight gain program is the fastest way to gain weight in the form of muscle mass.

A workout designed to specialize on leg and back exercises can add more size and slabs of muscle on your body then a meat factory can produce. You can turn a
skeleton into Hercules by just spending a couple months really grinding away ruthlessly on leg and back exercises.

The key, however, is to develop strength in just a few of these compound exercises and to work your guts out.

Constantly adding weight on a weekly basis is not an option, it’s required. Unlike training your arms or smaller muscles, your legs and back can withstand a lot of weight and a lot of endurance. You really have to work them to their maximum, and most trainees never have and never will.

That is why most trainees, especially hardgainers, will never get great results. But you are not like most trainees. You are a hard working, determined individual who will do whatever it takes to gain muscle weight effectively and in the least amount of time (just nod your head and agree on that one).

Here are the major leg and back exercises you should focus on if you want to learn how to gain weight fast and build muscle on your whole frame really fast: squats, regular deadlifts, stiff-legged deadlifts, bent-over rows, t-bar rows, and dumbbell rows. Note: all of these exercises must be free-weights. NO MACHINES! The goal is strength and power, and nothing can replace free-weights for this.

Being a hardgainer myself, I never gained a pound of muscle in 8 long years until I learned about the importance of squats. As soon as I added heavy squats to my hardgainer workout I started progressing every week and my weight gains shot way up. Then when I started really focusing on building strength and power in my back exercises as well, my whole frame added much more size and raw power then I have ever seen before.

If you are already in the middle of a weight gain program and have some leg and back exercises incorporated and your goal is to bulk up and gain some quality muscle mass fast, then really focus on those two muscle groups the most. Place them first in your workouts so you can put the most effort and energy into them. The return from hard work on these exercises is better then any other muscle group when you want to build a mass of muscle, raw size, and strength.

I hope this helps, and I'll talk to your next week.

Your Friend,

Derek Manuel
Weight Gain Program

How to Gain Muscle Weight in 21 Days

2009-06-10T15:58:00.000-07:00

Hey Gang,

Are you a slave of your habits or a master of them? Habits are one of the most powerful tools that can work for or against us. As the saying goes, "first we make ourselves, then your habit make us."

If your like most people you have probably had several occasions where you decided on a once and for all decision that sounds something along the lines of, "that's it! From now on I'm going to workout this many times a week, eat healthy, and exercise daily for the next several months." At the time, we may be fed up with our bodies and be really motivated to begin a workout program and have all the energy in the world to see it to the end..... at the moment.

But what happens a few weeks down the road? We begin to lose motivation, start to slack off, and sure enough, we are right back to where we started again until we get another inspirational boost to "finally make the decision" again.

Does this sound anything familiar to you? If you have always wanted to build muscle mass or follow a weight gain program, this probably hits home for most of you reading this. Again and again we follow this slow and tortuous pattern that in the end really get's us no where. As Albert Einstein once quoted, "the definition of insanity is repeatedly doing the same thing and expecting a different result."

So this means, if we are repeatedly going through the process I described above again and again without ever getting different results then we either need to do something different or check ourselves in to the nearest mental hospital for insanity.

So what CAN we do different? Here's the answer: create a habit. Write this down and memorize this. Because instead of trying to spontaneously hype ourselves into sticking with a weight gain program for several months, what we need to do is first break old habits and create new ones. Why? Because as you are probably aware of, once something is a habit in your life, you no longer have any RESISTANCE towards it because you are not CONSCIOUSLY making a change in your life, you are basically just acting on autopilot. No change equals no resistance, no resistance makes sticking to a program MUCH easier.

So instead of trying to FORCE ourselves to follow a program over the next several months, we are going to focus on making your workouts a habit FIRST, then you will have minimum resistance to finishing.

So how do we create a habit? I thought you'd never ask. Well, it is said that it takes 21 days to create a habit. That means what you need to do is pick one or two things that you have the most trouble sticking with, whether it's your eating habits, skipping days, training intensity, getting enough rest or sleep at night, whatever yours may be.

Once you identify your weakness, your goal is to create a 21 day plan to strictly follow your plan for 21 days STRAIGHT. The most important key here is to not miss a single day in the 21 day process; because if you do, then you have to start over.

For example, let's say you have trouble taking in enough protein every day to feed your muscles. One habit you can create is to take a protein shake first thing in the morning and one before you go to bed. All you have to do then, is for the next 21 days, consciously remind yourself by whatever means possible and FORCE yourself to do this for just 21 days. Don't think anything past 21 days, or you may get discouraged. Besides, you won't have to think about it after 21 days anyway.

All you need to focus on is doing this for 21 days, without skipping a SINGLE day. Make post-it notes, reminders on your refrigerator, alarms on your phone, whatever it is you need to do so you don't forget. Most people, even highly unmotivated people can discipline themselves for at least 21 days.

Once you have done this, you have created a habit, and you will begin to notice that you no longer need to THINK about or REMIND yourself everyday, because it will be a habit. You will have one more habit working FOR you, and not AGAINST you, therefore freeing up your time and energy to consciously focus on creating new habits.

Go ahead and try this out for whatever it is you find yourself not consistently following through on, and the more good habits you create, the easier and easier it will be for you to build muscle mass and stay consistent.

I'll talk to your soon

Your friend,

Derek Manuel
Weight Gain Program

Hardgainer Workout - The big 20: Rules for Hardgainers

2009-06-10T12:00:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

There are rules to success in any area. If you follow these rules, or laws, you will reach a certain degree of success depending on how many of and how well you follow these rules. For hardgainers looking to gain weight, this is no exception.

Ever wonder what the rules are for a hardgainer workout, ones that if remembered and followed religiously would produce results for you that you never thought you could achieve?

Here is an interesting article I found below on the 20 rules for a hardgainer workout that every hardgainer should follow if they really expect to get results. Enjoy.

The big 20: rules for hardgainers | Flex | Find Articles at BNET:

"The following 20 tips are not revolutionary, but this is only because the tried-and-true basics remain the most effective means for building muscle mass. The harder you struggle for another quarter-inch on your arms or another five lean pounds on a scale, the more crucial these rules are for your success. Adhere to all 20 to maximize your bodybuilding potential."

Read the rest here

How Many Daily Calories You Need to Gain Weight

2009-06-07T20:55:00.000-07:00

Hey gang,

I've gone over quite a lot the past few weeks on techniques for working out, but one of the biggest reasons that hardgainers don't gain weight is an insufficient diet.

If you are trying to learn how to gain weight fast, your diet and nutrition is even MORE important for gaining weight then the weight training. Proper weight training with a proper diet will add pounds and pounds of muscle; a proper diet with no workout will add weight in both fat and muscle, but a good workout without a proper diet simply won't result in much of anything except frustration.

So how many calories do you need to gain weight? Well, everybody is different, but fortunately there is an easy formula that you can follow to get an approximate of how many calories to eat if you need to gain weight.

Step 1:

Take your current body weight in pounds (lbs) and multiply by 11.

Example: 150 lbs x 11 = 1,650 calories

Step 2:

Figure out your metabolic factor.

If you are receiving this newsletter, I am assuming you are a hardgainer, therefore we will assume your metabolic rate is that of someone with a fast metabolism.

Now take your metabolic % based on your age below:

Metabolic %

Under 30 years old
Fast Metabolism- 50%

30-40 years old
Fast Metabolism- 45%

Over 40 years old
Fast Metabolism- 40%

Example: 1,650 calories x 50% = 825

So in this example I took the calories needed based on the body weight of 150 pounds, and now we multiply it by the metabolic % and get an additional 825 calories. You need to add these calories because even if you pretty much do nothing all day long, your body is still burning calories by keeping your organs working, walking, getting up, ect.

Step 3:

Put it together.

1,650 + 825 = 2,475 calories

This example suggests that a 150 pound person needs approximately 2,475 calories to maintain his/her weight. Now, since you are most likely trying to gain weight in the form of muscle, we need to take into account the weight training. An average weight training workout to gain weight will usually burn somewhere around 500 calories, so to be safe, let's add that into the equation on workout days.

2,475 + 500 = 2,975 calories

Step 4:

Now, it is said that in order to gain healthy weight, you need to eat about 500 extra calories a day. So, for the last part of the equation, let's add at least another 500 calories to your daily diet.

2,975 + 500 = 3,475 calories

Step 5:

Test, track, and tweak your progress.

One point you don't want to forget is that you must continuously make the necessary adjustments as you gain weight, or you will simply stop gaining weight. So every week or two, redo the equation with your new weight and make the necessary adjustments.

I hope this helps, and I'll talk to your next week.

Your Friend,

Derek Manuel
How to Gain Weight Fast

Need to Gain Weight? Try NOT Gain Weight with this...

2009-06-04T20:07:00.000-07:00

Hey fellow hardgainers,

One of the best ways to gain muscle weight fast is to combine a weight gain workout with an ultimate weight gain shake; of course still eating as much clean high calorie foods as frequent as possible throughout the day. If you have been keeping up with my newsletters, then you should already have a pretty good idea of what a weight gain program should look like.

Otherwise, if you are looking for the ultimate routine to gain weight and build muscle mass as fast as possible, then please visit the following link:

www.hardgainers-weight-tips.com

Once you have good weight gain program, then you'll want to learn how to make a weight gain shake. One of the best that I have ever found is right out of John McCallum's book, "The Complete Keys to Progress". It is called, simply, the Get Big Drink.

Here are the ingredients:

- A days supply of your favorite weight gain/protein powder
- Two quarts of milk
- Two cups of skim milk power
- Four tablespoons of peanut butter
- Half a brick of chocolate ice cream
- One banana
- Four tablespoons of malted milk powder
- Six tables of corn syrup

Whip up all the ingredients in a bowl, or you can blend the ingredients separately with whatever you can fit in the blender at once. This should make about a gallon's worth. Pour it in a plastic container and sip on it throughout the day until you evenly consume the whole lot. You can have a glass with every meal, and sip on it in between.

If you are lactose intolerant, than obviously this wouldn't be the best mix for you, and you'll have to make the proper adjustments. Otherwise, this is the best weight gain shake I've found to date. I've personally gained several pounds a WEEK with this, and have recommended it to dozens of others who have all gotten similar results.

As long as you don't make the mistake of thinking of this as a meal replacement drink and you start skipping meals, then you'll definitely gain weight. And if you combine this with some heavy squats and plenty of rest, you'll gain weight every week.

I hope this helps and I'll talk to you soon,

Your Friend,

Derek Manuel
Weight Gain Program

How to Gain Weight Fast - The Old School Way

2009-06-03T13:50:00.000-07:00

From around the fifty’s through the seventy’s, we can learn a lot of solid information on how to build muscle size as well as how to gain weight fast from the old-timers. There was a lot more common sense and simplicity when it came to weight training workouts for muscle mass.

Their training techniques differed very much from the ones we know of today, though most of the ones they used then are far more effective. The difference about their training was that they understood the importance of lifting heavy weights to build muscle.
Because when you build strength, you are building the foundation for size. Some strength exercises focus on building muscle mass better then others, while others have more of an effect on gaining weight.

Not only did the old time bodybuilders train with different exercises and programs then what we mostly see today, but the way they trained was completely different altogether. They trained HARD. Back then most of these bodybuilders worked out in basements or garages of their own homes. They didn’t have all of the pads, machines, and fancy gym equipment that make training easier and more luxurious that we have today.

In fact, many bodybuilders trained without any racks whatsoever, so in order to do most exercises, they first had to clean the weight off the floor and then get it into position (a clean is an Olympic exercise in which you pick the weight up off the floor and pull it up and get your elbows under it in one quick motion). Can you imagine that before beginning to squat say, 200 pounds, you first had to pick it up off the floor, lift it over your head and then lower it onto your shoulders? Now that’s hard work.

Gyms back then were more like dungeons, and you would only go in for one purpose and one purpose only: to lift weights. The old timers would go in there, concentrate fully on their workout, train hard, and get the hell out. For most bodybuilders back then, there were probably no easy days in the gym. You either give it all you got, or you don’t workout at all.

Since they understood the importance of lifting heavy weights to build muscle on most if not all compound exercises, this made easy workouts virtually impossible. They HAD to concentrate on what they were doing. They HAD to work hard on each rep of each set of each exercise. If they didn’t, they wouldn’t get any stronger, and if they didn’t get any stronger then they knew they wouldn’t get any bigger.

There were few if any supplements back then and steroids weren’t even heard of yet. They didn’t have machines or pulleys or cables. But what they did have was more then average successful weight trainers.

Gains of 10 pounds a month for hardgainers was not uncommon, and many gained 20 to 30 pounds of muscle within just a couple of months without much of a thought. Why? Because they weren’t exposed to the same bunch of garbage that is out there today. They trained with the right knowledge and loads of hard work and common sense.

If you really want results from your workouts and learn how to gain weight fast, you have got to change your attitude and thinking towards your training. Think of how the old timers trained next time you hit the gym. Go there with a single purpose in mind, and never let your mind stray from your workout. Your results will triple by focusing your mind while at the gym. If you’re just an “average” gym member, you’re going to get average results.

If you really want to know how to gain weight fast, build muscle size and add some truly raw strength, then keep your workouts simple, focus on the compound exercises, and workout with 110% intensity. Next time you’re at the gym, think about how the old timers trained, and your results will improve tenfold.

Hope this helps,

Derek Manuel
How to Gain Weight Fast

How to Gain Weight Fast with these Visualization Tips

2009-06-02T00:42:00.000-07:00

If you are reading this right now, I want you to raise your hand as high as you can. Go ahead and do it right now if you haven't already, I am going to make an important point here. OK, keeping your hand as high as you can, I want you now to raise your hand a little bit higher.

What's my point? Most of us have no idea what we are truly capable of, and we tend to often cut ourselves short. Metaphorically speaking, we tend to believe we have "raised our hands" as high as we can, when in reality we can always go a little higher.

If you are interested in how to gain weight fast and building muscle and raw strength beyond what you thought was capable for yourself, or maybe you just want a little trick to get some better results, then try visualization. You have probably heard someone at one time say, "I have to see it to believe it."

Well, any successful person in life in any category thinks the exact opposite, they believe it first and then they see it. Apply this to your training and your results will shoot through the roof.

Two ways in which you can use visualization are what we'll call long-term and short-term. Let's use the bench press for example. Let's say you currently can bench press 185 pounds for 10 reps
and your goal is to eventually bench press 250 pounds for 10 reps. Long term visualization is when you take some quiet time at night when you are lying in bed, relax your body and mind, and after a few minutes when you feel relaxed, you begin to visualize yourself bench pressing 250 pounds for 10 reps.

The key is to make it as real as possible, as if you are really in the gym working out. Use your senses to make this visual as real as possible; recall the smell, what the gym looks like, the feel of
the bar in your hands, what it sounds like in your gym, everything. See yourself completing each and every one of the ten reps in good form. Repeat this visualization every night, making it more
and more of a real experience.

Another trick you can use is to see someone else perform ten reps with 250 pounds. When I was squatting around 300 pounds and had my goal of 415 pounds, I went on YouTube and watched
videos of other people squat 415 pounds with ease and this totally gave me a new perspective, and the 300 pounds I was currently squatting no longer seemed so heavy.

Short term visualization works like this: when you are actually at the gym and getting ready to bench press, lie down on the bench and close your eyes. If you are going to do ten reps, then visualize yourself doing all ten reps in good form. It is important that you go through each rep in your head - and that you finish! Once you see it in your mind, snap open your eyes and perform the set; and repeat what you've already done in your imagination.

A final little trick you can use is to visualize yourself as being your favorite bodybuilder, or anyone with a lot more muscle and strength then you have while performing a set. Convince yourself as much as possible at that moment that you are really that person; visualize having those muscles, and the strength that comes with it, and then perform the set. This technique also works when doing exercises that might not be as challenging on your strength, such as pumping out your pectoral muscles with some dumbbell fly's; I'll bet you'll be able to pump out a few more reps then usual acting like a pro bodybuilder.

So if you are a hardgainer wanting to learn how to gain weight fast and build some real muscle mass, practice these visualization techniques and over time you will be getting a heck of a lot better of a workout then you were without them, thus bringing you closer to performing your best, meaning you'll get better results.

I'll talk to you soon,

Your Friend,

Derek Manuel
How to Gain Weight Fast

The Importance of Sleep for Hardgainers

2009-05-31T12:42:00.000-07:00

Hi guys,

There are a few VERY important factors that every hardgainer must follow if you want to learn how to gain weight fast and build muscle mass. Some of the more obvious ones are a proper workout routine, diet, supplements, and hard work.

Every so often I'll get an e-mail from someone who claims he or she has applied each of those key factors for many weeks and still say they have trouble trying to gain weight and build muscle fast.

One of the lesser known ways to build muscle fast in record time is something that most people just plain don't get enough of these days: sleep.

I read an article recently saying that the average person gets about 7 hours maximum of sleep per night. Whether you are a hardgainer of not, getting at least 7 hours of sleep per night is absolutely critical, preferably 8 or more.

Here is a simplified form of how your muscles grow and why sleep is so important:

First, while you are in the gym lifting weights, you are actually tearing tiny muscle tissues as you perform the exercises. When you eat your food, the protein serves as the repair tool for your muscle tissue.

However, your body only begins to use the protein and the rest of the nutrients to repair your muscles when you are resting or asleep.

That means, if you don't get enough sleep, your body doesn't have enough time to recover your muscles fully, and when you begin your next workout you won't be 100% recovered, which means you won't get maximum results from your workouts.

In addition, when you are following a hardcore workout program on how to gain weight fast, it is HIGHLY suggested to get an extra hour of sleep each night for the last month of your program.

If getting enough sleep every night is difficult to do, then try to at least take a couple 20 minute naps whenever possible throughout your day.

Remember, if your goal is to gain muscle weight fast and you are a true hardgainer, it is always better to rest throughout the day as much as possible. That means if you can walk rather then run, do so.

If you can sit rather then stand, do so, and so on. The more rest you give your body in-between
workouts, the more you give it time to properly repair itself, and the better results you will get.

I'll talk to you soon,

Your Friend,

Derek Manuel
How to Gain Weight Fast

The damn simple truth about supplements

2009-05-30T20:10:00.000-07:00

Hey guys ,

I am going to dispel one of the most misleading subjects as far as the best on how to gain weight fast and build muscle mass: Supplements.

Let me clear up all of the confusion about supplements right now by saying this:

No supplement will EVER substitute hard work, a proper diet, and the right attitude to gain weight and build muscle.

With the exception of the occasional meal replacement, supplements are meant to SUPPLEMENT, NOT substitute.

Supplements should be the last thing you add to your program. Supplements alone are completely worthless. They can add to the value of your progress only after you first apply a proper workout and diet.

Now don’t get me wrong, I am not against supplements, but the BILLION dollar market today glorifies them to the extent that anybody looking for a quick fix can fall victim.

Why are they so successful marketing these supplements even though most of them have no evidence whatsoever that they can do what they promise? Because their targets are people who
want to learn how to gain weight fast and build muscle but don’t want to work hard for it.

Don’t become one of these targets. Separate yourself from the wannabe’s and become what few people are willing to work for.

Make a decision to yourself right now that you will not look for any easy route to get what you want. Use your common sense and you will remember that anything worth a great reward requires sacrifice.

But the reward is always worth the work, ALWAYS.

Supplements won’t substitute any hard work for you but if you use them intelligently and know which ones really work and which ones don’t, they can help your progress.

Now that you know what role supplements really play in gaining weight and building muscle, here is a list of the only type of supplements that are worth investing any money in. Keep in mind that most big brand names are in essence pretty much the same.

1) Whey Protein Powder or Bars
2) Creatine Monohydrate Powder
3) Meal Replacement Powders or Bars
4) Multi-Vitamins
5) Post-Workout Carbohydrate Drinks
6) Extra Vitamin C
7) ZMA

You can pretty much find these at any local general nutrition store or any major website that sells bodybuilding supplements.

Remember, supplements are NOT magic. They act only as an additional component to a proper workout program, but should be the last component in order of importance. A proper workout, a thorough nutrition and diet plan executed persistently plenty of sleep, and the right attitude is all you really need if you are a serious hardgainer wanting to know how to gain weight fast and build quality muscle. Focus on these elements FIRST, then you may consider a few basic supplements after.

I'll talk to you soon,

Your Friend,

Derek Manuel
How to Gain Weight Fast

Free Weights vs Machines When Learning How to Gain Weight Fast

2009-05-28T14:40:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

This week I want to compare the difference between free-weight exercises and machines.

Which ones are more effective? Well, if you want to learn how to gain weight fast and build maximum muscle mass, free-weights are hands down MUCH more effective then machines in general.

Why? The main reason is because free-weights require complete strength and coordination of the weight, so your muscles are forced to work harder.

If your muscles are working harder, then typically this results in more growth. If the motion of the exercise is helped guided through its path, such as with machines, then your muscles have much less stress when lifting the weight.

When you train with free-weights, your body must adapt to the range of motion on its own. This is why whenever you try a new exercise you have never done before it feels awkward or more difficult, even with light weight.

Since your muscles have to adapt to this range of motion, you develop a more overall solid level of strength, resulting in of course bigger strength gains which means bigger muscles.

This is not to say that machines are altogether useless if you want to learn how to gain weight fast and build muscle mass. They play their part for some exercises that you can't use free-weights for such as the lat-pulldown machine for your back.

However, since you are probably more concerned with gaining weight and building muscle mass as fast as possible, I'm going to keep it simple like always:

STICK TO FREE-WEIGHTS!

Gaining strength in barbell and dumbbell exercises, especially compound exercises, will always build much more solid, hard, muscle mass then machines, period.

If you have been using mostly machines for a while and haven't seen any results worth bragging about, then perhaps this is where the fault is.

I would personally recommend that to those who want to bulk up and build as much muscle mass as they can in the shortest amount of time, eliminate machine exercises completely.

So, to sum it up....

Machines are good for pumping and isolation exercises, and free-weights are for gaining maximum muscle mass and packing on serious pounds of muscle in record time. Remember that if learning how to gain weight fast is your number one priority.

I'll talk to you soon,

Your Friend,

Derek Manuel
How to Gain Weight Fast

How to make your training limits vanish into thin air

2009-05-27T12:54:00.000-07:00

Today I’m going to talk about limits, what they are, what effect they have on your weight training progress, and I how to completely toss them out the window.

First off, what are limits?

The question we really should be asking is, are they real?

I like to describe limits as completely illusions. Though there are such things as limits, the majority of people today really have no idea what they really are, so in turn, they create illusionary ones.

Let’s look at the following paragraph I took from Randall Strossen’s book, IronMind: Stronger Minds, Stronger Bodies, which will open your eyes but more importantly have you think about what limits really are and what role they play on us:

"In the early 1920’s Henry “Milo” Steinborn squatted with approximately 550 pounds, which-beyond being a record lift-was viewed as close to man’s ultimate limit. Even by the mid-1950’s
this standard had only been nudged up to around the 600 pound mark. Enter the Canadian superman Doug Hepburn, who squatted 760 pounds in the mid-1950’s, a prodigious performance in the history of strength, but one which Paul Anderson completely
upstaged by cranking out 1160 in 1957…The fact that no one-even with drugs, squat suits, super wraps and super belts-has yet come within a hundred pounds of Paul’s mark is further
testimony to his colossal squatting ability. Once Paul Anderson had completely redefined conceptions of leg strength, however, others followed him into previously untouched territory, and by the end of the 1960’s, there were a handful of 800 pound squatters."

As you can see, as soon as a record, or limit, is broken, suddenly there become much more people who can match the previous record.

So what the heck is going on here?

Once every blue moon there comes someone who completely smashes all previous records.

He or she is a what we call a leader, a believer.

When others witness this, they follow. The leader is one who believes in himself and has complete faith that he or she can accomplish anything, and then goes and does it.

The followers just stay back and wait for someone to lead them, with no belief or intention of surpassing any limits themselves.

The truth is, the limits you create in your own head are the limits you create in your own reality. Focus on what you want to do and the heck with what everyone else is doing and what
has or hasn’t already been done.

Whether you want to break a personal record or a world record, you have with you 100% of every single thing you need to accomplish it. It doesn’t matter if everyone in the world does or doesn’t believe in you. You just have to believe.

So what are your limits? Are they holding you back from your progress?

Next time you write out your weight lifting goals, which I suggest you do if you aren’t already, try not to limit yourself, especially on your long term ones.

If it is something you really want bad enough, such as bench pressing 300 pounds or weighing 200 pounds of solid muscle, you will get it if you believe you will. I believe you can. In fact, I know you can.

Keep a close watch on the little voice in the back of your head that may be telling you that you are shooting to high or that you will never accomplish this or that.

It’s nothing but gibberish. Evict your inner doubts. Make it a formal process if you have to, but whatever you do, don’t ever, EVER doubt your abilities.

Because the amazing truth is, you’ll only achieve what you believe. If you doubt yourself or you don’t think that you can achieve a certain goal or goals, then those thoughts and those thoughts alone are the only thing holding you back.

Think about that for a while. It may change your life and how you view everything about it.

I’ll talk to you again soon,

Your Friend,

Derek Manuel
How to Gain Weight Fast

The Correct Amount of Sets/Reps to Gain Muscle Weight Fast

2009-05-26T11:15:00.000-07:00

Hi guys,

Are you finding yourself often confused with how many sets and reps you should be doing if you want to learn how to gain weight fast and build muscle mass as fast as possible? If you are, you are definitely not alone.

There are some general rules for this, but there are about just as many exceptions for this rule. But, since you are probably a hardgainer concerned with bulking up and slapping on pounds of muscle on you frame, then I’ll make it simple.

The general rule for size and strength is to use a relatively high number of sets with low reps; 5 sets of 5, 6 sets of 3; something that looks like this.

The amount of reps means that you will fail at around that number, so you’re going to use heavy weight. One thing to keep in mind is, whenever I say “heavy” throughout my newsletters that is a relative term.

What is heavy for one person is completely different to another, so make sure you understand that.

So, if you want your shoulders to look like you got a pair of football shoulder pads under your shirt, you would do about 5 or 6 sets of between 3 and 6 reps. Remember, this is only a general rule.

The point of low reps is to build strength. As you know from my past newsletters, strength is the foundation to size. The low reps means you focus on heavy weight and allow enough rest to increase the weight on a weekly basis.

Now, in one of my programs, in which I teach how to gain weight fast in the form of muscle as fast as naturally possible, the set/rep scheme is actually quite different from this. You actually perform only a few sets with relatively high reps.

To avoid confusion, don’t worry too much about how many sets and reps you do. Your main focus if you want to get huge is to get stronger, and, consequently, there are various ways of doing this.

The program that I advocate most is different from the low rep scheme but is still highly effective because of its design.

If you want to check out more about this program, you can find it in my eBook by clicking below to learn more:

How to Gain Weight Fast

As I said many times before, strength is the key to muscle growth. If you want to get bigger, you have to get stronger first. So structure your sets and reps with this purpose in mind.

Some important points to remember are this:

-Keep it simple; training for size means getting stronger, so don’t do too many exercises per muscle group so you can allow enough time and rest to recuperate and get stronger in just one or two compound exercises

-Use as much power and force in good form during your reps, DON’T do them slow so you can “feel the burn.” This will only limit the speed in which you will get stronger. Lower the weight in a controlled manner, but push/pull with all your might to get the weight back up. Otherwise YOU will get “burned”

-Take your time in between reps - that right – I said reps. Don’t rush them. If you need, take a few quick breaths between reps to gather your strength and focus. This will help you push the extra rep or two that will really boost your size and strength.

-When building up your strength, you will need to rest longer then the normal 60 seconds. For upper body exercises, take 2-3 minutes rest between sets to recover your strength and 3-5 minutes for your legs.

Remember, you need to train with heavy weights. Push the weight up with all the power and muscle you can, take a couple deep breathes, lower the weight slightly slower then when you lifted it, and do another rep.

You don’t have to count the seconds, but try not to rush your reps or go too slow. You’re not trying to run a marathon but you’re not doing tai chi either.

I’ll talk to you again soon,

Your Friend,

Derek Manuel
How to Gain Weight Fast

Is this fatal mistake limiting your results?

2009-05-25T23:23:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

This week I’m going to talk about one of the biggest causes of failure in most hardgainers. Read carefully because if you want to learn how to gain weight fast, you can't afford to make this same mistake. It wastes so much unnecessary time and effort that you wouldn’t believe.

There’s a guy that comes to my local gym. I notice him all of the time because every time I go to the gym, no matter what time of the day, he’ll be there. Nice guy, very talkative and friendly.

“Man,” I said to him one day in between one of his sets of curls, “I don’t see a mattress or any blankets anywhere.” He looked confused. I returned the look. “You mean you don’t live here?”

He laughed so loud even the guy with the blasting headphones looked up. “No, but I guess I do spend a lot of time here.” I was about to reply that he’s probably got more hours on the clock then the manager, but I thought about his laugh.

“How many hours a day do you train?” I asked.

“Oh I don’t know, it ranges from two to three hours a day, depending on my energy. Sometimes I’ll come back later in the night if I’m bored.” He gave me a wry grin, looked around, and said, “gotta build up those muscles, the girls love em!”

He then started another set of curls. I think he was on his tenth set. I waited until he was done before I asked him the next question.

“Do you think that works? I mean, training so much? Don’t you think you’re over-training?” I asked.

“I’d rather over-train then under train, man. I want to get big as fast as possible, that’s why I train so much.” He looked around again with that wicked grin, “summertime’s almost here and I gotta look good for the chicks, man!”

By looking at his physique, I couldn’t understand the logic.

Too many trainees make the fatal mistake of training too much. They think the longer you train and the more often, the bigger muscles you’ll get.

Even if you want to build up muscle endurance, weight training for three hours isn’t necessary. But for hardgainers who are want to learn how to gain weight fast, it can detrimental.

If you want to learn to speak Spanish, spend as much time as you want working at it. If you want to read faster, read as much and as often as you can. But if you want to gain weight and muscle mass, LESS is more.

Here is a rule of thumb: You should NEVER train longer then an hour and a half a day if you are trying to gain weight and muscle mass. Anything longer is actually counterproductive, you might even lose weight.

Instead of doing a bunch of different exercises for dozens of sets five or six days a week, you’ll get much better results if you spend just an hour, that’s all it takes and sometimes even less, three days a week working on just a handful of compound exercises.

Work on them hard, obviously, and make your main focus on getting stronger.

Don’t get all caught up in the bodybuilding industry these days. 99% of the information in magazines won’t be of any use to a hardgainer, and may even hurt your training results.

In fact, if you haven’t noticed yet, 99% of the content in magazines isn’t even information, but instead full of advertisements and endorsements.

Back to the point.

Like I said earlier, one of the major causes of failures in hardgainers these days is over-training. They spend too much time in the gym when they don’t have to, when they’d be better off if they didn’t. When trying to learn how to gain weight fast it is actually much simpler then most people believe.

Short, highly intense, heavy, abbreviated workouts are they key here. These will produce much better results in much less time.

If you are the really dedicated type of trainer and you might have fallen victim to this mistake, this will sound like music to your ears. You no longer have to train for hours and hours week after week. You’re done.

No more three hour workouts.

No more slaving away at a bunch of different exercises for dozens of reps.

No more spending half your life in the gym!

Now don’t get me wrong. I love working out, and if you’re reading this, you probably do to. But training for hours a day will only HURT your progress if you are a true hardgainer. One hour a day for three days a week is all you need.

I’ll talk to you again soon,

Your Friend,

Derek Manuel
How to Gain Weight Fast

The Number ONE Exercise if you Want to Learn How to Gain Weight Fast

2009-05-24T13:24:00.000-07:00

Today I am going to talk about just one exercise. Not just the exercise itself, but the way that it is supposed to be performed for if you want to learn how to gain weight fast.

Pay attention closely because if you are a true hardgainer, meaning you’ve tried EVERYTHING to gain weight and build muscle to no avail, then this may very well be the most important article you'll ever read if you want to learn how to gain weight fast

This one exercise, performed correctly, can and will put on more muscle mass on practically your WHOLE body more then any other exercise in the world. I stand by this claim firmly because I know from personal experience and countless others.

I have read numerous articles and success stories from hundreds of satisfied weight trainers easy and hardgainers alike who have gained pounds of muscle and body weight fast, very fast.

This exercise is no secret, but many people disregard it. The certain way that it is performed however, is surprisingly unknown to many weight trainers, personal trainers and even bodybuilding “experts.”

This exercise is so phenomenal that many programs, especially weight gain and bulk programs, consist of this exercise and only one or two more exercises, performed ONLY two days a week. That's it!

And people have gained MASSIVE amounts of muscle in record time.

I’m trying as hard as I can in not trying to sound like one of those cheesy sales people who offer ridiculous results in such a short time, but this is real.

Alright, have I built this exercise up enough?

To be continued until the next newsletter.....

Just kidding.

THE exercise on how to gain muscle weight fast, ironically, probably the most dreaded. Have you guessed it yet?

Squats.

But I’m not talking about just any type of squats, I’m talking about what’s called "breathing squats". The difference between squats and breathing squats is basically this: when loading up
the barbell with the normal amount of weight you would use for 10 reps, you instead do 20 reps with it.

“How” you say, “I’m I supposed to do 20 reps with the weight I normally use for 10 reps?”

Let’s look at how most people do their squats (for the few who do them): pretty fast paced, only taking a second or two rest in-between reps, and finishing without getting even remotely near failure.

With breathing squats however, you do them differently. After each rep, take three HUGE breaths, both inhaling and exhaling through your mouth to get as much air as possible, before your next rep.

Take in air until your whole chest swells up, then blow it all out forcefully.

Do them in this fashion for the first 10 reps. You will feel like stopping at 10 because it will be what you’re used to, but don’t. By now, your deep breathing will come naturally, and you may need to take 4 or 5 deep breaths in between each rep.

By rep number 15, your legs will start to tremble if they aren’t already. You will only have five reps to go, the biggest challenge yet. You will need to take anywhere from 5 to 10 HUGE and DEEP breaths before each rep.

Each rep will become a challenge of its own.

By the time you hit the 20th rep you will be completely wiped out. Your whole chest will be swelled up like a balloon and your legs will feel like noodles.

Immediately after you finish the squats, grab a light dumbbell between 20 and 40 pounds, lie down on a bench or across one, whichever is more comfortable, and do a set of 20 pullovers with them.

As you lower the weight, again, take a deep breath and get a really good stretch in your rib cage. As you bring the weight back up, blow it all out. Do 20 reps of these right after your squats.

The point of the pullovers is to stretch out your rib cage and permit more room in your upper body for growth. This will really expand your rib cage and increase the size and width of your chest and shoulders, giving you a huge and powerful look.

This isn’t the typical resistance exercise, so you don’t need to use a heavy dumbbell for this, just get a good stretch.

As you are probably thinking, this won’t particularly be a walk in the park. It will probably be the hardest thing you will ever do in the gym.

But the results are equivalent to the hard work. And WELL worth it.

And if you are a hardgainer wanting to learn how to gain weight fast, this is THE cure that will set you free from your skinny and weak frame.

Breathing squats, when performed properly and with an honest effort, will pack on more pounds of muscle in two months then anything in the world, assuming your diet is sound and you get plenty of rest.

The good news is you only need to do 1 set of 20, two to three days a week. That’s it. Once you do them a couple times, you will understand that is more then enough and you will feel like you’ve been run over by a garbage truck.

By the way, when you do them, you only need to do a few other compound exercises for the upper body, such as bench presses or bent-over rows.

The breathing squats will stimulate your body for muscle growth and weight gains like nothing else, so limit the other exercises to allow enough rest for your body to grow.

Here are a few pointers to make sure you the most out of your hard work:

1) Make sure you go ALL the way down until your legs are parallel to the ground. I see far too many trainees only go half way or three quarters of the way down. This is huge mistake and you
will be limited your growth substantially, so make up your mind right now that you will work hard and won’t cheat yourself.

2) Add at least 5 pounds to the bar every workout. If you do the squats twice a week that means an increase in 10 pounds a week; three times a week means 15 pound increase a week.

Unlike your upper body, your legs have a tremendous capacity of growth and strength, so adding 5 pounds each workout is very possible. You shouldn’t ever have to use the same weight as last week.

Remember, this exercise is more a test of will power then physical ability. You can do it if you believe you can. Shoot for at LEAST 225 lbs for 20 reps if you want any results worth noticing.

3) Remember to take in as deep of breaths as you can between your reps and the pullovers. The heavy breathing will add size and power like no other exercise so don’t take them lightly.

There you have it. If all else fails, breathing squats will be your savior if you are want to learn how to gain weight fast and build muscle mass as fast as humanly and naturally possible.

Give them an honest effort and get ready to throw out your old wardrobe and replace it with some bigger clothes.

I’ll talk to you again soon,

Your Friend,

Derek Manuel
How to Gain Weight Fast

How to gain weight fast with these key muscle building exercises

2009-05-21T11:54:00.000-07:00

Hey fellow hardgainers

Today I want to clear up something that is so important for hardgainers to know. If you’re interested in learning how to gain weight fast and putting on pounds of muscle in record time, naturally you should ask yourself, “what are the best exercises to accomplish this?”

The answer is simple, but because the market is flooded with so much garbage all you hear or read about is either the latest supplement or “advanced” exercises.

If you really want to gain muscle weight fast then anytime you are introduced to a “new” or “advanced” way of performing an exercise, you’ll do yourself a world of good by throwing it out the window.

Too many times do I see curious skinny gym members look over at the “gym buff” doing some funky exercise upside down on an exercise ball with one leg up flailing a pair of light dumbbells
around thinking that if they learned how to perform that exercise they can look like him.

Forget about it.

Whether it works for him or not is irrelevant, the bottom line is that this type of exercise or anything like it will NOT work for hardgainers.

If an exercise is “new” I can almost guarantee it is far less effective then the simple, basic exercises.

Why? Because all of the best exercises for maximum muscle growth have already been accounted for years ago. They have and always will be the number one exercises for the single purpose of gaining weight and building muscle.

Nothing compares and they will never be bested.

Basic or compound exercises allow you to lift more weight, and if you read any of my past stuff, you know that the heavier weight you can lift, the bigger you will be.

With that in mind, what are compound exercises and which are the best if you want to learn how to gain weight fast and build some real quality muscle mass?

Compound lifts, or multi-joint lifts, are weightlifting exercises that use more then one muscle group, preferably 3 or more.

For example, the bench press is a compound lift because although the primary muscle used are the chest muscles, your shoulders and triceps are also helping to lift the weight.

Tricep pushdowns, however, are what’s called an isolation or single-joint exercise. Since this exercise just isolates a single muscle, your triceps, it doesn’t stimulate nearly as much muscle growth as a compound lift would.

Though there are many different compound exercises, you must focus only on those that stimulate the most amount of muscle and allow you to lift the heaviest amount of weight.

Here are the granddaddy of all compound exercises that you MUST include in your workout if you want to learn how to gain weight fast and expect to build maximum muscle mass in the least amount of time.

1) Squats (whole lower body)
2) Deadlifts (hamstrings, quads, traps, lower back)
3) Bench Press (chest, tricep, and shoulders)
4) Shoulder Press or Military Press (shoulders and triceps)
5) Bent-Over Rows (back, biceps, lats)
6) Pull-Ups (back, biceps, lats)
7) Bar Dips (chest, tricep, shoulders)

If your workouts don’t include any of these exercises, then don’t expect to grow very much, if at all. Also, try starting your workouts out with one of these exercises first, before you do any other exercises for that same muscle.

This will ensure you exert most of your energy into the most important exercises, the ones that will be most responsible for your growth.

For example, if you are training your shoulders, start off with the barbell shoulder press before you do any laterals, shrugs, or any other isolation exercise.

A couple of months ago, a friend asked me why he wasn’t gaining any weight and getting any bigger. So I asked him to tell me about his workout. You can probably guess what it was.

Sure enough, he was doing about five exercises for each muscle group, mostly isolation exercises. He wasn’t doing any lower body exercises whatsoever, and the only compound exercise he was doing was everybody’s favorite: the bench press.

I held myself back from slapping him upside the head, and here is what I did:

I gave him a simple workout that consisted of ONLY compound exercises, which in fact doesn’t look too much different from the list of exercises above.

I told him to just do a few sets of each exercise a few times a week and to focus on just adding weight to the bar every week.

Did he grow? About five weeks later he e-mailed me back and told me of his improvements. He weighed 18 pounds heavier and added around 20 to 30 pounds to each of the compound exercises I told him to do.

Is this a common result? For those who are willing to work hard on just a few compound exercises can expect results like this, even hardgainers.

Was it easy? No. He worked hard, just like everyone else who got results like this. No fancy supplements or advanced exercises, just hard work on the key exercises, lots of clean food and plenty of rest.

Now that you know the key exercises for maximum muscle growth in record time, I want you to use them! If you haven’t tried any of them before then you will be in for a treat.

They’re tough, they’re demanding, they take sweat and grit and everything you got. They’re not the type of exercises you can do while you hung-over or on 3 hours of sleep.

You have to have lots of energy, be properly warmed up, and fully concentrated if you want to get the most out of them.

But they will bring you more results then all of the other exercises put together. This is how to gain weight fast and build muscle mass like never before.

I’ll talk to you again soon,

Your Friend,

Derek Manuel
How to Gain Weight Fast

If you don't do this you simply will NOT gain weight or build muscle

2009-05-20T00:04:00.000-07:00

Are you trying to learn how to gain weight fast, but are
having trouble gaining weight and building some
real, quality muscle consistently? Or maybe, when you first
started weight training, did you gain a little muscle and
body weight but then suddenly it came to a stop?

If you are not gaining any weight or getting any bigger, then
I suggest you take a serious look at your poundage’s.

I see so many weight trainers, easy and hardgainers alike go
day after day, week after week, and month after month
pushing the same weight they were doing last month.

They feel satisfied that they had a “good workout” because
their muscles are pumped and well exhausted by the end of their
workout after doing a bunch of sets of a bunch of different
exercises for one muscle group.

This is a BIG mistake.

No matter what you’ve read or heard, getting a good pump has
very little to do with muscle growth. All the “pump” means is
that there is a temporary increased blood flow in your muscle
tissue.

Though getting a good pump has a few benefits for
building muscle, you certainly shouldn’t gauge your workouts
by them, especially if you are a hardgainer and your main goal
is to learn how to gain weight fast.

There is a time and place for getting a good pump, and when
you are a hardgainer or a beginner (or both) trying to build
muscle mass, then this is definitely not it.

If your looking to gain weight and build muscle mass, you must
progressively add weight to your exercises. I don’t care who
you are, you can’t expect to build bigger muscles if you are
using the same weight over and over again.

You have to get STRONGER if you want to get bigger.

And I don’t mean increasing the weight once a month. If you
want to bulk up as fast as humanly possible, then focus
strictly on getting stronger at least every other week.

You can’t expect to look like the Incredible Hulk if your
sister is pushing the same weight you are.

Here’s why…

As evolution suggests, our bodies survival is based on
adapting to our environment. From all the way back to our
caveman days until now, our bodies have gone under many
changes in order to adapt and survive in the constantly changing
world.

Your muscles are no exception. Whenever you finish a heavy
workout, your muscle fibers adapt by recruiting more fibers so
they can cope with the weight if it is forced to try to handle it
again. As a result, your muscles will grow bigger.

As soon as your body becomes accustomed to a certain weight,
it will no longer grow. It will no longer need to!

You must constantly overload it with more weight then it is
used to handling.

From now on whenever you are doing a workout to gain weight
and build muscle mass, measure your progress by your strength,
NOT how good of a pump you get.

Keep track of exactly how much weight you use for each set on
each exercise, how many reps you did, and make it a goal to
slightly increase that weight at least every other week.

It doesn’t matter if you write it down on a palm pilot or the
piece of toilet paper stuck to your shoe when you walk out of
the bathroom, as long as you remember how much weight you
used and how many reps you did last workout so you can add a
little more on the next.

Don’t try to remember how much weight you used, because if you
forget you will hold back your progress each week by using the
same or less weight and therefore not getting any stronger, or
by adding too much weight too soon which will lead to set-backs.

If this happens constantly, you will waste days, weeks, and
even months out of your year in training. Can you see how
important it is to keep track of your poundage’s?

When first starting out, you may discover that adding weight
each week is not so tough and can be pretty consistent.

However, as you continue to weight train for a while you will
sooner or later hit what’s called a “sticking point” on one or
more of your exercises.

This is completely normal. From here, your increase in strength
will have to be slightly more gradual then before.

For example, though you may have been able to increase your
bench press poundage’s 5 pounds a week every week no problem
for a while, you suddenly are not able to perform the
pre-determined amount of reps of say, eight reps anymore.

Now, instead of increasing five pounds again next week, just
stick with that weight until you can complete the eight reps.
As soon as you can, try adding 2.5 pounds this time, or even 1
pound, instead of 5.

Remember, for long term results, slowly but surely is the way
to go.

You will always be much stronger after one year if you
continue to add weight in this fashion rather then trying to
add too much weight too fast and being stuck at that weight
for weeks and even months at a time.

Now that you know that in order to get bigger you must get
stronger, what is the fastest way to get stronger?

Keep your workouts SHORT and SIMPLE.

Marathon type workouts will only limit your growth and may
even cause you to lose weight if you train too much for too
long. You don’t need to do 5 different exercises for your chest
with 5 sets for each.

In fact, you will get a heck of a lot better results sticking
to just 1 or 2 compound exercises such as flat or incline bench
presses and just doing 2 to 5 sets each, 1 or 2 days a week.

Why? Because you will allow yourself enough rest to increase
the weight each week by focusing on just a few hard sets of
heavy weight on one or two major exercises.

So if you’ve been having trouble gaining weight and building
muscle mass, this may have been the major factor holding you back.

Make up your mind right now that you will train to become
stronger each and every workout, and you will be on the right
path to building some real quality muscle.

Eat plenty of good food, lift hard and heavy, get plenty of
sleep, and keep your workouts short and simple. This is
how to gain weight fast and build muscle mass in the most
effective and efficient way possible.

Train hard fellow hardgainers,

Derek Manuel
http://www.hardgainers-weight-tips.com

How to Gain Weight if it is Hard for You

2008-09-09T09:07:00.000-07:00

Learning how to gain weight if it is hard for you is just a matter of of combining the correct workout program to gain weight, eating the correct amount of calories and the right kind, and getting plenty of rest. If you were anything like I was, this statement put so simply would make you angry, because as a true hardgainer it just didn't seem that easy.

Being a fellow hardgainer myself and having trained for over EIGHT years with absolutely NO significant gains in weight, I understand how you feel. However, although being born a hardgainer was not my choice, remaining ignorant on the subject was. It wasn't until I began seeking information from the correct source that I began getting results. I commend you for being here and seeking information on how to gain weight if it is hard for you, because you can train until pigs fly but if you aren't training specifically for hardgainers, then you are really just spinning your wheels.

So, let's get right to it. Like I said in the beginning, learning how to gain weight if it is hard for you begins with the correct workout program to gain weight. Here is one below that has and will ALWAYS put on several pounds of muscle as long as you give it your all. Try starting off by training this same routine three days a week, with at least one day of rest in between. If you find yourself needing more time to recover, then switch to two says a week with at least two days of rest in between. Remember that workout programs to gain weight are most effective as abbreviated workouts that focus on the major compound exercises, so don't be fooled by its simplicity. And one more thing: do your squats breathing style, meaning you'll want to take at least three HUGE breathes between each rep, and at least five once you get past rep 15. Click the link breathing squats to learn more about them.

1. Barbell Shoulder Press: 3 x 12
2. Squats: 1 x 20
3. Pullovers: 1 x 2o (immediately after squats)
4. Bench Press: 3 x 12
5. Barbell Rows: 3 x 15
6. Stiff-legged Deadlifts: 1 x 15
7. Pullovers: 1 x 20

At a glance this workout seems simple, but it certainly isn't easy. You're going to have to push yourself like you have never before, especially on the squats. Work to increase the weight each and ever workout on the squats and deadlifts, and get up to as heavy as you can for each exercise.

Stay at this program for six to eight weeks. As long as you train with everything you got each and every workout, you eat at least 20 times your bodyweight in calories from high protein and high carb foods, you get as much rest as possible, and you increase your poundages substantially by the end of the six to eight weeks, you'll gain weight without a question. Give it your all and you'll never wonder how to gain weight if it is hard for you again.

Derek Manuel
Learn How to Gain Weight for People with Fast Metabolisms

How to Make a Weight Gain Shake

2008-09-08T15:09:00.000-07:00

One of the best ways to gain weight fast is to combine a solid squat routine with an ultimate weight gain shake; of course still eating as much clean high calorie foods as frequent as possible throughout the day. If you don't already have any workout programs for hardgainers, then click the previous link for a good one.

Once you have good routine to gain weight, then you'll want to learn how to make a weight gain shake. One of the best that I have ever found is right out of John McCallum's book, The Complete Keys to Progress. It is called, simply, the Get Big Drink.

Here are the ingredients:

- A days supply of your favorite weight gain/protein powder
- Two quarts of milk
- Two cups of skim milk power
- Four tablespoons of peanut butter
- Half a brick of chocolate ice cream
- One banana
- Four tablespoons of malted milk powder
- Six tables of corn syrup

Whip up all the ingredients in a bowl, or you can blend the ingredients separately to with whatever you can fit in the blender at once. This should make about a gallon's worth. Pour it in a plastic container and sip on it throughout the day until you evenly consume the whole lot. You can have a glass with every meal, and sip on it in between.

If you are lactose intolerant, than obviously this wouldn't be the best mix for you, and yuou can make the proper adjustments, otherwise, this is the best weight gain shake I've found to date. Combine this with some heavy squats and plenty of rest, and you'll gain weight every week.

Derek Manuel
Learn How to Gain Weight for People with Fast Metabolisms

The Best Exercise to Build Muscle Fast

2008-09-08T14:42:00.000-07:00

If you are interested in learning the absolutely best exercise to build muscle fast and in record time, read on my friend. Pay attention closely because if you are a true hardgainer, meaning you’ve tried EVERYTHING to gain weight and build muscle to no avail, then this may very well be the most important article you’ll ever read on the subject of bodybuilding. This one exercise, performed correctly, can and will put on more muscle mass on practically your WHOLE body more then any other exercise in the world. I stand by this claim firmly because I know from personal experience and from hundreds of testimonials.

I have read countless articles and success stories from hundreds of satisfied weight trainers easy and hardgainers alike who have gained pounds and pounds of muscle and body weight fast, very fast. This is definitely the best exercise to build muscle fast, but the funny thing is that it is not secret, it's just that many people disregard it. The certain way that it is performed however, is surprisingly unknown to many weight trainers, personal trainers and even bodybuilding “experts.”

This exercise is so phenomenal that many programs, especially weight gain programs, consist of this exercise and only one or two more exercises, performed two days a week. That’s it. And people have gained anywhere from 20 to 30 pounds of muscle in as little as 6 to 8 weeks. So what's the exercise? The exercise for gaining is, ironically, probably the most dreaded. Have you guessed it yet?

Squats.

But I’m not talking about just any type of squats, I’m talking about what’s called breathing squats. The difference between squats and breathing squats is basically this: when loading up the barbell with weight you would normally use for 10 reps, you instead do 20 reps with it.

“How” you say, “I’m I supposed to do 20 reps with the weight I normally use for 10 reps?”

Let’s look at how most people do their squats (for the few who do them): pretty fast paced, only taking a second or two rest in-between reps, and finishing without getting even remotely near failure. With breathing squats however, you do them differently. After each rep, take at least three HUGE breaths, both inhaling and exhaling through your mouth to get as much air as possible, before your next rep. Take in air until your whole chest swells up, then blow it all out forcefully.

Do it in this fashion for about the first 10 reps. You will feel like stopping at 10 because it will be what you’re used to, but don’t. By now, your deep breathing will come naturally, and you may need to take 4 or 5 deep breaths in between each rep. By rep number 15, your legs will start to tremble if they haven't already. You will only have five reps to go, the biggest challenge yet. You will need to take anywhere from 5 to 10 HUGE and DEEP breaths before each rep. Each rep will become a world of its own. By the time you hit the 20th rep you will be completely wiped out. Your whole chest will be swelled up like a balloon and your legs will feel like noodles.

Immediately after you finish the squats, grab a light dumbbell between 20 and 40 pounds, lie down on a bench or across one, whichever is more comfortable, and do a set of 20 pullovers with them. As you lower the weight, again, take a deep breath and get a really good stretch in your rib cage. As you bring the weight back up, blow it all out. Do 20 reps of these right after your squats.

The point of the pullovers is to stretch out your rib cage and permit more room in your upper body for growth. This isn’t the typical resistance exercise, so you don’t need to use a heavy dumbbell for this, just get a good stretch and focus on deep breathing.

As you are probably thinking, this won’t particularly be a walk in the park. It will probably be the hardest thing you will ever do in the gym. But the results are equivalent to the hard work. And WELL worth it. And if you are a hardgainer, this is THE best exercise to build muscle fast and it will set you free from a skinny and weak frame.

Derek Manuel
Learn How to Gain Weight for People with Fast Metabolisms

How to Build Up Muscle Strength

2008-09-05T12:42:00.000-07:00

If you really want to learn how to build up muscle strength to levels beyond the norm and turn from a hardgainer to a hardtrainer, try some power rack training routines. For those who don't know, power racks have and always will be foundational training equipment for building super human strength. For hardgainers wanting to learn how to build up muscle strength, power rack training can take your strength and weight gain goals to new heights.

Power racks a great because they allow you to train alone safely with as heavy of weight as you want on all of the major compound exercises. They also allow you to do certain training techniques you can't normally do with just a barbell or dumbbells, such as lock out positions, bottom position bench presses, squats, shoulder presses, etc.

When training with a power rack, normally you do so with the intent of building up muscle strength more than anything, so it is suggested to train with relatively low reps, usually nothing higher than five.

Before you get into a intense power rack routine, it is also highly advised to slowly progress into lower reps with your normal workout routines first. For example, if you have been training with a rep range of 8 to 12 reps for your normal exercises, take at least a month and slowly lower your reps as you increase your strength until you get to 4 to 6 reps.

Training with heavy weight and low reps not only builds up muscle strength, but also strengthens your ligaments and tendons as well. It is important that your body is thoroughly prepared for heavy power rack training, so make sure you have been training heavy for at least a month before diving into it.

Power rack training routines are best when they are abbreviated, with a focus on just a few key exercises. Training low reps with a focused intensity on just a few exercises will skyrocket your strength gains like never before.

Here is an example of a sold power rack training routine on how to build up muscle strength:

Mondays:

1) Squats: 5 x 5 with the first two sets as progressive warm ups
2) *Bottom Position Squats: 5 x 1 progressively working up to your max weight on the last set
3) Barbell Curls: 5 x 5 with the first two sets as progressive warm ups
4) Grip Work: 3 x of holding on to a weighted barbell for as long as possible, increasing either the time held or weight each workout

Thursdays:

1) Deadlifts (either regular or stiff-legged): 5 x 5 with the first two sets as progressive warm ups
2) Bench Press: 5 x 5 with the first two sets as progressive warm ups
3) *Bottom Position Bench Press: 5 x 1 progressively working up to your max weight for last set
4) Bent-over Barbell Rows: 4 x 5 progressively working up to your max weight for last set of 5
5) Grip Work: 3 x of holding on to a weighted barbell for as long as possible, increasing either the time held or weight each workout

*Bottom position exercises means that you set the pins in the power rack so that the barbell starts off in the bottom position of the exercise. Squats, for example, you would start off squatted down with your thighs parallel to the ground, thus, in the bottom position.

Although this program looks simple, don't make the mistake of thinking it is easy. If you focus on training for strength on each and every exercise, you will learn how to build up muscle strength faster then you ever thought possible. Also, don't make the mistake of over training, two days a week with this routine is PLENTY, and after the first couple workouts you'll realize that you'll need the rest.

So, as a hardgainer, train hard, eat as much clean food as much as possible, and get plenty of rest. Maximizing your strength levels through power rack training will prepare your body to gain weight and muscle like never before if you follow it up with workout routines to gain weight

Derek Manuel
Learn How to Gain Weight for People with Fast Metabolisms

Hardgainer Training and Hard Work

2008-09-05T12:09:00.000-07:00

One thing about being a hardgainer is that we can't train haphazard and expect to get good results, if any at all. The problem with most hardgainers who want to gain weight and build muscle, however, is not not combining SMART work with hard work. So, let's clear up what hard work is NOT for a hardgainer wanting to build a mass of muscle as fast as possible.

- Hard work is NOT training seven days a week for several hours a day
- Hard work is NOT going for huge "pump" or trying to just go for the burn
- Hard work is NOT a whole bunch of sets, reps, and exercises for each and every muscle group

For a hardgainer trying to gain weight and build muscle mass, the definition of hard work must be continuously training with the heaviest weight safely possible, on the most basic compound exercises, and doing every single rep with an intense focus and in GOOD form.

A hardgainers main concern in the beginning is to become as strong as possible. This requires the type of hard work that you just don't see in modern gyms today. Today gyms and workout facilities look more like social lounges or hangout spots.

Don't get yourself caught up in all that. When you go to the gym, you should go with a focus and determination and with only ONE thing in mind: to either lift more weight then you did last workout or to perform more reps. This type of training takes work, HARD work. Each and every workout will be a challenge, and you MUST be both physically AND mentally prepared for each and every workout.

A true hardgainer must accept the fact that he must train harder then the average trainer with decent genetics, and embrace it as a gift rather then a curse. Few things in the world are more rewarding then being laid out on the floor completely wiped out from giving your all, and accomplishing a long term goal that you set for yourself.

So hardgainers, make a commitment to yourself that if you want to gain weight and build muscle fast, then your going to have to make hard work a habit.

Derek Manuel
Learn How to Gain Weight for People with Fast Metabolisms

How to Build Muscle Size and Strength Using "Death Sets"

2008-08-28T12:35:00.000-07:00

If you really want to know how to build muscle size and strength as fast as humanly possible, study the old-timers. One very distinguishing factor between strength trainers and bodybuilders of yesterday and today was the intensity of their training.

One training technique they used that is very rare to see today is something called "Death Sets." By the name alone, you can tell they definitely aren't a walk in the park. But what they give you are results. Real results, and faster then any supplement or home gym can promise. In fact, they can very well be the fastest way on how to build muscle size and strength.

As a hardgainer, death sets can and will slap more pounds of muscle and strength on your frame then practically any other way of training. They are perhaps the most intense type of training you may ever do, but like I said, the results you get will be like nothing else. So if you really, really want to learn how to build muscle size and strength faster then ever before, and aren't afraid of some hard work, these are for you.

Death sets were properly named because they trigger what some call the "Grow or Die" mechanism. Unlike conventional training, they really work you closer to your absolute limit like nothing else. Basically, death sets are heavy, high rep training, and are not meant for your smaller muscle groups like arms or neck, but rather for the big muscle groups such as your legs and lower back.

Though you can apply death sets with most larger muscle groups, performing squats or deadlifts, either regular or stiff-legged, are by far the most grueling, but most effective when you’re learning how to build muscle size. Even though squats and deadlifts are known as mainly lower body exercises, you can no doubt expect your whole body to grow. The intensity will include your whole body to come into action, and as a result the rest of your muscles will benefit.

Some examples of death sets are 15, 20 and even up to 30 reps of squats or deadlifts, but with HEAVY weight. Heavy enough to where you feel finished at the tenth rep. But this is where your will power and focus come into play. This is a good test of your mental strength, because as soon as you even think about quitting or giving up, your body will do it. This is why it is so important to mentally prep yourself before the set, and to stay in that animal instinct throughout the whole set.

The good news is that you only have to do one of these sets per exercise, two at the maximum. But after you are finished you will feel completely wiped out. You may throw up or feel like passing out, but as long as you complete the set and make sure to nourish your body after with plenty of good food and rest, your body will grow. You certainly won't grow overnight, this is at least a two month process; but if you work hard enough and build up to heavy enough weight, your body will literally transform. Your mental toughness will also develop and you will eventually become as tough as nails both physically and mentally. Now that's a true strength trainer!

You can very easily over train with these, especially if you are a hardgainer. Just a couple other major compound exercises for your upper body should be plenty, and don't neglect proper nutrition and plenty of rest or you will be completely wasting your time and effort. This is perhaps the best way on how to build muscle size and strength fast.

Derek Manuel
www.Hardgainers-Weight-Tips.com

Hard Work: What it is and what it ISN"T in the Gym

2008-08-26T15:55:00.000-07:00

If you are a true hardgainer, then you don't have any time wasting energy on haphazard efforts. In order to get the most out of our less fortunate genetics, we have to be willing to train HARD. However, what I don't mean by working hard is by working out TOO MUCH. Overtraining is one of the major causes of failure in gaining weight and building muscle for hardgainers.

In weight training to gain weight, think quality over quantity. It is much better to train HARD on a few exercises then it is to do ten different sets of each exercise.

Here is a good way to make sure you are training hard enough: set goals. Think about it, if you just walk in the gym each day with no particular goal in mind, when you are doing your sets, how hard can you possibly work? Without a specific goal in mind for each set, chances are you'll probably cut yourself short and think you trained hard enough by the way you feel. Don't fool yourself.

Set both long term and short term goals. For example, a long term goal would be to be able to bench press 250 pounds for 1 rep when you currently bench press 215 pounds. A short term goal would be to beat either the amount of weight or the amount of reps you did for a particular exercise last time. For instance, if you performed 3 sets of 8/8/6 reps with the bench press last workout at a certain weight, then you can make it a goal to do at least one or two more reps on your third set to complete the full eight.

It sounds simple, but don't pass short term goal setting up, because it can make all the difference in your results, and it also serves as a systematic way to make sure you are training your hardest each day.

Derek Manuel
www.hardgainers-weight-tips.com

Workout Routines to Gain Weight

2008-08-26T14:32:00.000-07:00

If you are looking for workout routines to gain weight, you need to follow a specialized program, especially if you are a hardgainer. Weight training for gaining weight is a little different then weight training just to build muscle mass, build lean muscle, building big chest and biceps, etc, etc. Instead of focusing on making sure all your muscle groups get a good pump and are worked out in from several different angles, your main focus should be increasing your strength on the top 3 to 5 compound exercises.

For effective workout routines to gain weight, you should really train for strength with a focus on your biggest muscle groups, namely, your legs, back, chest, and shoulders. If you just focused on adding weight to the bar on exercises like squats, deadlifts, barbell bent-over rows, bench presses, and shoulder presses, your biggest muscle groups will produce the most testosterone and growth hormone, which means an inevitable increase in weight and muscle mass.

This may sound simple, and it is, but let's take a look at what most hardgainers do when trying to gain weight and are not aware of how to do so (a.k.a me ten years ago). I see most hardgainers go to the gym thinking that they have to hit ALL their muscle groups with several different exercises and angles, they have to make sure they get a good "pump", and the more often they train them the faster they'll gain weight and build muscle mass.

However, as you probably figured out by now, this is the wrong approach if you are looking to gain weight. Training your biceps with five sets of three different exercises won't help you gain weight, and, if you're a hardgainer, it probably won't add much muscle to your biceps anyway, especially if you're a beginner. Following this same approach with ALL the rest of your muscle groups will only hinder your progress towards gaining weight.

So let me get to the point: short, abbreviated, intense, and strength focused workout programs preformed two to three days a week at no longer then 75 minutes per workout is sufficient to gain weight.

Click the following link for more specific workout routines to gain weight

I hope this helps,

Derek Manuel
www.hardgainers-weight-tips.com

How to Gain Weight for People with Fast Metabolisms

2008-08-21T11:34:00.000-07:00

There is such a barrage of misleading information out there today that it's no longer a question of getting information, but instead discerning the right information. So let's go over some of the key aspects you must follow on how to gain weight for people with fast metabolisms.

The first key is weight training, and before I go any further I want you to forget everything you have ever read on the subject of weight training, bodybuilding, and anything else of the sort. Chances are if you are a hardgainer, you have been fed more misleading information then anything good, and since it isn't really that complex, let's start from scratch.

OK, there are only a few key exercises that you need to do, no more then two to three days a week. More is better in a lot of things in life, but not in weight training to gain weight, it's quite the opposite. If you spend too much time in the gym on too many exercises all you are going to do is over-train and you may even lose weight, especially if you have a fast metabolism.

The key is to really train HARD on just a few major exercises, and to really concentrate on getting stronger each and every week, even if it's only by a couple of pounds. Here is an example of a few exercises you should do two or three days a week.

1) Squats: 2 x 15

2) Bench Press: 3 x 12

3) Bent-Over Barbell Rows: 3 x 15

4) Overhead or Military Press: 2 x 12

5) Romanian Deadlifts: 1 x 15

These are the mother of all weight gaining exercises, and squats are the granddaddy of them all for people with fast metabolisms. Don't think that squats and Romanian deadlifts will only make your legs big. In fact, if you do them in the way I'm about to reveal to you, they will be responsible for 80% of the weight you will gain on your WHOLE body. Now, here is one key point you can't forget: don't make the mistake of believing that because the reps are relatively high, means you are only going to be using light weights. Think just the opposite, you are going to be training with HEAVY weights (relative to your strengths or course) for HIGH reps. Sounds like a paradox I know, but heavy weight for high reps will work for these exercises, and more importantly, they will work wonders for your weight gains.

The second aspect is your diet. The number one rule to gaining weight is this: you will only gain weight when you have consumed more calories then you have burned. So here's what you should do next: starting tomorrow, eat what you normally eat everyday, but count how many calories you are eating. Whatever your number is, your goal is to eat around 500 to 1,000 more calories then that each day. Here is a little trick to help you do that: every morning make yourself a huge protein shake, enough to fit in a gallon container, and consume it evenly throughout the day, both with and without your meals. Throw in a bunch of healthy, calorie and protein packed foods until altogether until it equals the 500 to 1,000 extra calories you need. Examples of what you can add are milk, a banana, peanut butter, molasses, powdered milk, and ice cream.

The last aspect you can't forget is to limit your other activities and rest as much as possible. Any time you're moving you're burning extra calories, and you'll want to burn as little as possible outside of your weight training. That means no cardiovascular exercises or any sports for that matter. Remember, you are trying to learn how to gain weight when you have a fast metabolism and any activity outside your weight training is counter-productive.

Derek Manuel
www.hardgainers-weight-tips.com