Bulking up Vs. keeping muscle definition

S

Shockjock2000

0
Hey guys, I'm new so apologies if this isn't in the right forum:eek:

Basically I'll start at the beginning I suppose. I'm a 16 year old guy, always been really small for my age (runs in the family, bah). I'm about 5'3-5'4 and weigh around 100 pounds:eek: I'm pretty insecure about it tbh, but I'll skip the whole self-pity part. Anyway, having a toned stomach is really important to me, so every other day since mid july I've run on my treadmill for 30-40 minutes, usually burn around 800 calories. Problem is though, doing this obviously isn't gunna help me bulk up. I have pretty good muscle definition (do 100 curlups on the days i don't run) but i still have a bit more work to do. Right now I'm eating 2 meals a day so that I don't consume too many calories and waste all the work I've done so far. So I guess my question is this: I really want to bulk up, but also keep on improving. Is there anyway I could accomplish both? Would really appreciate any help!
 
sorry, should have searched:eek:

Can someone just answer me this though- If i started eating a lot more but still ran and did sit ups etc, would i notice a significant decline in ab definition?
 
Shockjock2000 said:
sorry, should have searched:eek:

Can someone just answer me this though- If i started eating a lot more but still ran and did sit ups etc, would i notice a significant decline in ab definition?
Click to expand...

There are ways to keep abs visible when bulking, yes, however I'd never suggest anyone run while trying to bulk up. Cardio on the elliptical at 2, 30-45 min sessions per week will keep fat gains to a minimum as long as you are clean bulking.
 
I'm also pretty obsessed with having a trim ab/wasteline so I'll give my 2 cents.

I've played around with ALOT of different exercises and regimens. First and foremost, if you are that skinny I don't really see why you need to run so much in the first place. It is important to keep the fat off the top of your muscle, but weighing as much as you do I don't think that's much of a problem. Take care to eat healthy as well and take in a good portion of protein. You can't build muscle if you don't have the building blocks to support it right? :)

Besides keeping the fat off and eating right, you will need to obviously strengthen your abdominal muscles. I said before that I tinkered with lots of different exercises. The most effective ones that I've found would be the following:

(note that these are most-definitely NOT the right names, but you should get the point)

Sit-up: This one is obvious, though it is also controversial since it may not be as effective as others. If done improperly, it may also damage your back. Despite all this, I find sit-ups to be very beneficial to my upper abdominals and obliques. If possible, try to do them on some sort of padded machine. My college gym has a few of these cool things that you can lie on and do "inclined" sit ups without hurting your back. I'm not sure how to describe this thing, but cheers to you if you can find one. Repeat according to your own strength.

Legs in the air crunch: Lie flat on your back and raise your legs with knees bent at a 90 degree angle (pretend like your legs below the knee are resting on a stool or ball). Do a normal crunch with legs remaining in the air. You can do this with your hands behind your head, or if you want to get more out of it you can do it with your arms simply in the air in front of you. Repeat according to your strength.

Legs in the air crunch - BICYCLE STYLE: This one is probably the most effective one of all of them. If you could only choose one to do, it would be this one. Similar to the one before, get into the same position with legs in the air and knees bent at a 90 degree angle. The only difference this time is that when you come up, have your right elbow touch (or try to touch) your left knee. Go down, then come up again and have your left elbow touch your right knee. Keep alternating as you come up. Repeat according to your strength.

Now, these exercises mostly concentrate on your upper abs. For awhile these were all I did, and I was worried about why my lower stomach wasn't looking as good as the upper, which is why I'll now introduce exercises for the lower stomach.

Leg raise - Lie flat on your back, and put your hands under your buttocks. Using your lower abdominals, lift your legs up to the point that your body is making an "L" shape. Hold for a few seconds, then come down slowly. Repeat according to your strength.


Kicking leg raise - Same as before: lie flat on your back and put your hands under your buttocks. This time; however, lift your legs about 6-12 inches off the ground. Keep them there. At this point, lift left leg 6-12 inches above the right. Then bring it back down to the same level as the right (keep them in the air though). With both legs still in the air, raise the right leg another 6-12 inches above the other left this time. Repeat this motions as if your kicking the backstroke in a swimming pool. Make sure to use your abdominals to lift your legs, of you're just wasting your time. How can you tell if you're using your abdominals? if they are burning, then you're using them lol. Repeat according to your strength.

V-leg raise - Another similar one, but a bit more intense: you know the drill - lie flat on your back with hands under your buttocks. This time, spread your legs apart like a V, kinda like when you go up on a jumping jack. Then; same as before, raise your legs for a few seconds then come down slowly. Repeat according to your strength.

It's important to know that for all of these lower abdominal exercises, don't let your legs touch the ground until you are done and ready to move onto the next exercise. Otherwise, you wont feel the burn and it will defeat the purpose of doing it in the first place.

I hope this helps. Just a disclaimer, these are most of the things I've found to be effective for myself. I could be right, I could be wrong. If someone wants to correct me or add, please do.


Good luck.
 
Diet is king.

And unless your genetics dictate that you can get big and lean, you will not bulk up in any appreciable way without putting on some fat.

No genetically skinny kid ever got big by gaining 1-2 lbs of muscle a year just to keep the abs.

Pick what's important to you.
 
sebs_8888 said:
I'm also pretty obsessed with having a trim ab/wasteline so I'll give my 2 cents.

I've played around with ALOT of different exercises and regimens. First and foremost, if you are that skinny I don't really see why you need to run so much in the first place. It is important to keep the fat off the top of your muscle, but weighing as much as you do I don't think that's much of a problem. Take care to eat healthy as well and take in a good portion of protein. You can't build muscle if you don't have the building blocks to support it right? :)

Besides keeping the fat off and eating right, you will need to obviously strengthen your abdominal muscles. I said before that I tinkered with lots of different exercises. The most effective ones that I've found would be the following:

(note that these are most-definitely NOT the right names, but you should get the point)

Sit-up: This one is obvious, though it is also controversial since it may not be as effective as others. If done improperly, it may also damage your back. Despite all this, I find sit-ups to be very beneficial to my upper abdominals and obliques. If possible, try to do them on some sort of padded machine. My college gym has a few of these cool things that you can lie on and do "inclined" sit ups without hurting your back. I'm not sure how to describe this thing, but cheers to you if you can find one. Repeat according to your own strength.

Legs in the air crunch: Lie flat on your back and raise your legs with knees bent at a 90 degree angle (pretend like your legs below the knee are resting on a stool or ball). Do a normal crunch with legs remaining in the air. You can do this with your hands behind your head, or if you want to get more out of it you can do it with your arms simply in the air in front of you. Repeat according to your strength.

Legs in the air crunch - BICYCLE STYLE: This one is probably the most effective one of all of them. If you could only choose one to do, it would be this one. Similar to the one before, get into the same position with legs in the air and knees bent at a 90 degree angle. The only difference this time is that when you come up, have your right elbow touch (or try to touch) your left knee. Go down, then come up again and have your left elbow touch your right knee. Keep alternating as you come up. Repeat according to your strength.

Now, these exercises mostly concentrate on your upper abs. For awhile these were all I did, and I was worried about why my lower stomach wasn't looking as good as the upper, which is why I'll now introduce exercises for the lower stomach.

Leg raise - Lie flat on your back, and put your hands under your buttocks. Using your lower abdominals, lift your legs up to the point that your body is making an "L" shape. Hold for a few seconds, then come down slowly. Repeat according to your strength.


Kicking leg raise - Same as before: lie flat on your back and put your hands under your buttocks. This time; however, lift your legs about 6-12 inches off the ground. Keep them there. At this point, lift left leg 6-12 inches above the right. Then bring it back down to the same level as the right (keep them in the air though). With both legs still in the air, raise the right leg another 6-12 inches above the other left this time. Repeat this motions as if your kicking the backstroke in a swimming pool. Make sure to use your abdominals to lift your legs, of you're just wasting your time. How can you tell if you're using your abdominals? if they are burning, then you're using them lol. Repeat according to your strength.

V-leg raise - Another similar one, but a bit more intense: you know the drill - lie flat on your back with hands under your buttocks. This time, spread your legs apart like a V, kinda like when you go up on a jumping jack. Then; same as before, raise your legs for a few seconds then come down slowly. Repeat according to your strength.

It's important to know that for all of these lower abdominal exercises, don't let your legs touch the ground until you are done and ready to move onto the next exercise. Otherwise, you wont feel the burn and it will defeat the purpose of doing it in the first place.

I hope this helps. Just a disclaimer, these are most of the things I've found to be effective for myself. I could be right, I could be wrong. If someone wants to correct me or add, please do.


Good luck.
Click to expand...

Thanks a lot man, that helps a ton! Really appreciate it.

So if I'm trying to bulk how often should I run? I'd use an elliptical but I don't really have access to one... 2 times a week?

I think I'm pretty bad at this bulking thing, everytime I eat more than I think I should I feel like I have to go burn it off or I'm going to become obese or something :/
 
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Shockjock2000 said:
Thanks a lot man, that helps a ton! Really appreciate it.

So if I'm trying to bulk how often should I run? I'd use an elliptical but I don't really have access to one... 2 times a week?

I think I'm pretty bad at this bulking thing, everytime I eat more than I think I should I feel like I have to go burn it off or I'm going to become obese or something :/
Click to expand...

Hmm...to be honest I'm not quite sure what your goals are. I was under the impression that you were just trying to be cut and defined in the abdominals. If it is to be bulky, I'm afraid I have pretty much no clue about that field.

However; if you're just trying to have a medium between bulk and cut, then I'd assume you would have to somehow find a balance. I'm under the impression that to gain bulk (or to just get big), one has to eat alot and lift alot. I'd assume if you're trying to be in between, so I would say you need to eat alot.... of healthy food. Eat lots of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and most importantly - grilled meats. You can offset a portion of this eating through your running, while the remains can go towards building some bulk. Remember that protein/nutrients = muscle build. However much muscle you want to build = how much you eat or not work off from running.

You also mentioned how often you should run to get bulky? Running/eliptical/cardio don't help you get bulky, they just help burn fat. I would say that with everything aside, twice a week should be plenty if you are 100 lbs at age 16. Not to call you strange (I think it's better to be very skinny then very fat, like I used to be). Being so skinny, you should concentrate more on developing some sort of workout regimen that also features a bit of lifting and the abdominal exercises I listed above.

Again, this is all just speculation from me. Please add or correct me if I'm wrong.

Hope this is helpful.
 
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PMDilly said:
Diet is king.

And unless your genetics dictate that you can get big and lean, you will not bulk up in any appreciable way without putting on some fat.

No genetically skinny kid ever got big by gaining 1-2 lbs of muscle a year just to keep the abs.

Pick what's important to you.
Click to expand...

Bump.

Just because it's more relevant than what's been posted.
 
I'm surprised nobody really went into much depth into his diet...one person did, but it was quite vague. I'm just very shocked at the fact that the original poster eats ONLY 2 meals a day!

Boy...where do I start...

Okay, so you wanna bulk. In order to do that and add mass successfully, you will need to create what is called a "calorie surplus"...which means that you're consuming more calories than your maintenance level (daily caloric requirements). That being said, when you are bulking, you will inevitably gain fat anyway. However, to gain minimal fat while bulking, eat a ton, BUT all clean, healthy foods (with the exception of cheat meals once a week; to fool and shock your body and tell it that you aren't starving).

Lots of people go through cutting and bulking phases...they bulk during the winter, and begin cutting during the summer time. You shouldn't even worry so much about gaining fat while bulking, because you will be anyway, so just eat healthy! The only time you should worry about fat is if/when you begin the cutting phase, when you start cutting your calories (and creating a "calorie deficit").

In a nutshell, the bulking phase is used to add muscle mass, while the cutting phase is used to get rid of the accumulated fat while simultaneously exposing what muscle you've gained during your bulking phase.

As far as your diet, EAT EAT EAT. Make sure you ALWAYS eat breakfast too. Try to eat small meals every 2-3 hours, all balanced with proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. And please, do not get so caught up in the whole "High protein, low carb, and low fat" diet thing. Most people already get sufficient protein already as is, and if you intake too much protein, it'll just be stored as body fat....thus, protein supplements aren't necessary. Carbs are an excellent source of energy, so consume a lot of those at least an hour or so prior to working out. Fats are also good energy sources (while at rest and light activity), AND...you need fat in order to burn fat. Try to consume as very little saturated fats as you can, but more unsaturated fats (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated) - as those fats are good for you.

Now, there's this really good workout program that I think you might like that has been proven many times to have worked. Check 'em out:

Take a look at the Rippetoe's "Starting Strength" routine. This one is ideal for beginners:



As soon as you stop seeing results from that program (which should take a couple months or so), start on Bill Starr/Madcow 5x5 Intermediate program:




EDIT: I also forgot to mention....cardio every other day is a little too much. With you bulking, and especially because you're very a little guy, you should be keeping cardio on a minimum. Once a week would actually be enough for you.
 
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Thanks a lot guys, I really appreciate it. Am gunna join the gym (long overdue haha) ASAP and get going on this.

In terms of food, is there anything that's healthy that should be avoided? Like peanut butter for example, lots of protein, but lots of fat as well...

Also, anyone have any examples of really healthy snack foods? (besides fruits and vegetables... if there are any others)
 
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Peanut butter shouldn't be completely avoided. Just as long as you eat foods in a variety, balance, and in moderation, you're absolutely fine. That's what nutrition is all about. :)

Peanut butter sandwiches on whole wheat/whole grain breads will make a great snack (even better if you eat a banana with it) with a glass of skim milk on the side. Happy trail mixes are good as well.

I suggest going to your local book store and reading up on nutrition books (NOT diet books!) and learning about the fundamentals of nutrition; so you have a pretty basic idea of what's good to eat and whatnot.
 
Okay cool. I have been doing a bit of research, but everyone seems to have different opinions on what to avoid and what not, gets a bit contradictory sometimes!
 
Oh I know what you mean. Like most people say to never let your toes past your knees while doing squats, yet I've seen tons of pictures of people doing them in dead-on proper form, with their knees passing by at least 2 inches or so. Everyone's different though.

It's just a matter of researching the facts and deciding what's best for you...because what may work for one person, may or may not work for another. Never stop questioning, and always keep researching to find out new things. :)
 
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