Here is an article I wrote on the subject...Geared towards skinny guys who are just starting...
"How do I get big?"
I don't know how many times I have heard that question. Want to know how to get big? EAT MORE! That is the ONLY way to gain weight. No supplements, no training routine, and not even Anabolic Steroids will make you gain weight if you are not eating enough!
"But I have a fast metabolism, I eat all the time but I still can't gain any weight"
Look. No matter how fast your metabolism, you can gain weight. Its all just a matter of finding the amount of calories you need to consume on a daily basis. Here's how to find out: For one week, record EVERYTHING that you eat or drink...everything that you goes in your mouth. Calculate how many calories, protein, carbohydrates (carbs), and fat are in each meal. Add up these numbers to get your daily total. If your weight didn't change at all this week, then you have just found your AMR (active metabolic rate). In other words, this is the amount of calories you need to consume on a daily basis to stay at your current weight. In order to gain, you have to add calories to this number...500 should do the trick. If not, add another 500. Keep adding until you start to gain (1 pound a week is a good amount to shoot for, any more than that and you are adding some fat). Pretty simple, huh?
Macronutrient Ratio's
The three macronutrients (macro's) are carbs, protein, and fat.
Each macronutrient has a caloric value...
Protein-4 calories
Carbs-4 calories
Fat-9 calories
My favourite, and usually a very effective macronutrient breakdown for gaining muscle is:
40% carbs
30% protein
30% fat
That's 40% of calories from carbs, and 30% from fat and protein.So a person taking in 3000 calories per day would consume 300g of carbs, 225g of protein, and 100g of fat. Don't be afraid of carbs, they are not the evil the media and many other writers make them out to be.
Most of your protein should come from animal sources, beef, fish, eggs, and milk are some good quality protein sources. Carbs should come from grains, oats, and veggies, but try to stay away from simple sugars. Fats from non-saturated sources...oils, eggs, and peanut butter are all very good sources of fat, try to avoid saturated fat as much as possible (solid at room temperature).
Remember, to gain weight...you have to eat more calories than you burn off. As your weight increases, so will your caloric requirements. To keeps gaining, you have to keep adding the calories.
Training To Gain Muscle
Now that you have a basic understanding of nutrition for weight gain, i will teach you the basics of weight training to gain muscle. If you eat to gain weight, and don't weight train, you are going to get fat. I'm sure muscle weight gain is your goal, so you have to train, and you have to do it right.
Weight training is very simple, but most people make it much more complicated than it really is. First things First, put down that muscle magazine! The training routines outlined in these mags are those of elite bodybuilders, who have years and years of training under their belt. They are poor routines for a natural (without Anabolic Steroid use), and certainly are not suited for a beginner.
OK, now that that is out of the way, i will tell you the basic principles of training for muscle growth...
Train no more than 5 times a week, 3-4 would be best. This allows for maximum recuperation and prevents burn-out (overtraining).
Train each muscle group only once a week. This provides the muscle group with plenty of time to rest and grow.
Overload. In order for your muscles to grow, you must get stronger. Try to add weight, or a rep EVERY workout.
Train your whole body. Don't neglect any bodyparts, especially your legs...since your legs alone make up half of your body!
Use a full Range of Motion (ROM) on every rep of every set. Never sacrifice ROM for heavier weight.
Don't overlap muscle groups. Ex. when you train back, no matter how well you "isolate" it, your biceps will be involved to some degree. Therefore, don't train your biceps the day after back, or vice versa. Same rule applies to chest, shoulders, and triceps....and Quads and Hams.
Utilize free weight exercises as much as possible.
Utilize compound exercises as much as possible. Compound exercises are exercises that involve more than one major muscle group. Examples of compound exercises are:
Squats
Deadlifts
Bench Press
Chin Ups
Rows
Overhead Press
Parallel Bar Dips
Train to failure. This means training until you can't possibly do one more rep during a set. If a training program tells you to do 10 reps, then you should reach failure on your 10th rep. DO NOT stop just just because your only supposed to do 10 reps, just make sure to add weight on your next workout.
Don't exceed 20 sets per day training. This is just generally speaking,but it is a good guideline. I recommend 6-12 sets for large bodyparts (chest, back, legs), and 4-6 sets for small bodyparts (biceps, triceps, calves, traps).
Use a 6-12 rep range most of the time. This has been shown to be the ideal rep range for muscle growth.
More isn't always better. Don't make the mistake of thinking that's the more you train, the more you will grow. This is not the case. Remember, training is just a stimulus for growth...you grow outside of the gym.
Rest
Try to get at least 8 hours of sleep EVERY night. This is one of the few areas of bodybuilding where more is actually better.
Conclusion.
I have just outlined a basic guideline more muscular weight gain. You must understand that your diet is the most important aspect when trying to gain weight (and any other time). But, in order to gain muscular bodyweight, all three factors must be present and well planned. Master Nutrition, Weight training and recuperation...and you will be on your way to you bodybuilding goals.
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