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

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