Gain Muscle by Training Less

I play safety for my football team and need to get a lot bigger by next season. I have just made my plan and wanted to see if you see anything to add... I will be eating a lot and bought Weight gainer Gold 2200. I plan to drink one shake a day plus increasing all other food as much as I can. My workouts will be chest and back and abs on Monday and Thursday, legs on Tuesday and Friday, and biceps, shoulders and abs on Wednesday and Saturday. I will also do running at least twice a week and I play basketball a lot for cardio but I really just want to get bigger and then I can get in shape....(from Curt)

Wow. I assure you I don't have anything to add. I might suggest a few subtractions however.

First off, I don't think it is very realistic that you would keep with this plan. It sounds like a killer, literally. I think you are under the impression that the more you do, the better your results will be. This thinking will get you a long ways in life with regards to a great many things but it will likely leave you very frustrated when pursuing muscle and weight gains. Often times when trying to build muscle, less is more.

I suggest you cut Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays out of your workout schedule and limit your workouts to about one hour each. This isn't advice that is given because I don't think you're motivated enough to do 6 workouts a week but rather it is given because I think you will get better results with such a schedule. Your muscles need time to grow. They grow at rest, not during the actual training. Go here for more on designing a weight training program and take note of the overtraining concerns discussed here.

Instead of just drinking a weight gainer and eating as much as you can, I encourage you to take a little more scientific approach to your diet. Check out the Weight Gain Diets page for some suggestions.

The specific weight gainer you described isn't the best available for muscle building. It provides a lot of its calories through simple carbs which could lead to excessive bodyfat gain. When you run out of the stuff you have, I suggest you look into Prolab's N-Large 2 as an alternative.

In summary, trying to do too much too quick can really backfire on you. I doubt the plan you described would have you gaining all that much muscle. Instead, it would probably leave your body worn out and unresponsive. Take it easy and be smart. That is where the results are.

JP Clifford