My main guestion is if someone could tell me what is the best way for a skinny guy to gain muscle mass. How the workout routine should look like, are supersets good for building muscle mass or not, and should I eat many small meals or a few big ones throughout the day? I want to start doing Scott's MAXIMUM GROWTH series, is it good for a skinny guy to do?

Rob,

I don't know what your age is or how long you have been lifting but assuming you are under 23 and are a novice lifter the key to growth is simple - train like an animal and eat like a horse.  Don't sweat the number of meals, calories, etc.  If you are really skinny, you have a hyperactive metabolism which means you have the luxury of pretty much eating anything and gaining quality size.  You want to focus on the compound exercises - squats, deadlifts, pull ups, rows, benches, overhead presses, dips, calf raises - to build a solid foundation of mass and strength.  Eat and rest and watch the muscle grow :-)  Experiment with routines and definitely leverage Scott Herman's programs to get you started and show you proper form.  You will gain your most size and strength in the first 2 years as long as you stay natural.  Avoid anabolics at all costs even if tempted - your body will never truly learn on its own how to grow without "chemical assistance" and your health later in life will be compromised.  

Best of luck.....

John

Thanks for the answer, I'm 19 and I have been lifting for five months now :)

Hey Rob, I checked out your profile but you didnt put any information about your meal plan or routine in your "notebook"

Can you tell us about your routine and list for us your meal plan (Calories, protein, carbs, fat)

Thanks!

Great advice and well said John! 

Hey Rob! For a skinnier guy that has a hard time gaining muscle I would recommend to up your carb and fat intake! Protein is obviously of greatest importance when trying to build muscle, but the carbs will help you gain some weight. You need to be eating around 1.5 grams of protein per lb of body weight per day. What is your age, height, and weight? 

I'm 19, 141 pounds (64 kg) and 6 foot 1 (185 cm). I'm from Croatia and we have metric system so I don't know if I converted it correctly :D. Scott, I used to do muscle gain workout, 3 days per week. First day chest,back and abs, second day legs and third day shoulders and arms. It was ok but I think it wasn't hard enough so I tried doing MAXIMUM GROWTH series last week and it felt great. I'm obviously a bigginer so I don't really know how much carbs, protein and fat I eat in a day, and also I'm a college student so I can't have a strict meal plan, making my own meals is not an option because of money and time so I eat in college cafeteria but I always try to eat the good stuff like rice and chicken when I can.

It sounds like you are on the right track so just keep moving forward. Actually I use the same split as you which is monday chest/back/abs, tuesday legs, wednesday shoulders/biceps/triceps/abs, but I repeat this for thursday, friday, and saturday. Sunday I rest. If you do it this way it will get more intense and you should start making gains as long as you eat as good as you can and you are training correctly. I will say that the Maximum Growth series is awesome for muscle gain so just experiment a bit and see what works for you. Weeks 1 and 3 you could do your normal split, and weeks 2 and 4 you could do the Maximum growth series. This will keep your muscles confused and since you are a beginner your body should make gains right off the rip. Start using the meal planner so you can get a better idea of how you're eating and what areas of your diet you need to improve on. Trust me bro, it all comes down to your meal plan when trying to build muscle. The training is important to, but the body goes by the simple rule of demand and supply.

Hey bud. Nate is right. Take it from me, I've been VERY well known throughout my life as a skinny guy, just bones. This is despite a general amount of time spent pumping iron.

The two keys in general to getting bigger are this. Increase the protein, continue lifting. Maybe a week at best ONCE IN A WHILE, but just don't stop lifting. Your body will respond to the constant strain by increasing it's size so as to support the weight better. The protein will rebuild everything you destroy in your workouts and some.

I'm finally leaving the realm of a skinny guy and it's because i'm extremely focused on being in the gym and I've increased my protien intake probably by 70-80 grams. It's made a very clear differnce in my bodies structure.

I'm so glad to hear you are making progress Big Boss!

I would do as these guys have said. Eat more protein and CARBS someone at your weight should be eating at least 170 grams of protein per day! You will see your best gains when you get your diet on point it is one of the most important factors of muscle gain!

Thank you guys for the advices :)

You're welcome! Now use this valuable info to your advantage! We look forward to hearing about your progress and feel free to ask more questions!

What up rob18I?! Iim just going through and following up with everyone that has asked for advice.

I'm curious how your progress is going brotha! I know it could take some time before you pack on the pounds but hopefully the great advice in this thread helped out.

Can't wait to here from you!

Hope you're having a great new year, lets make it a year dedicated to muscle gains!

Hey rob..!! Seems like you got all the information that you need

I'm skinny guy like you before! I would like to give you some advice regarding your concern.

I suggest that you should not focus on toning first since that you're a skinny guy, you should focus on your calorie intake. In order to come up with a good body result that you want, PROPER NUTRITION should be spot on first. You're weighing 141 lbs your protein intake should be 150-180gs daily or above for your muscle growth. You should eat carbohydrates and some fats to BULK you up. And the rest of nutrients is up to you how you will distribute the amount intake. Again proper nutrition is very important of all, because it is pointless or useless to workout even if your routine is advance and intense if don't give attention to your MACROS, all your hard works will do nothing to you .

Second thing is, also spot on your routine! Proper intake of macros will be useless if you don't have a good combination of workout, you should not train 5-6 times a week. You're not able to gain a desired growth muscle you want for that because your muscle will be on serious stress. 3-4 times a week is good. Work intense but short, and make sure that you're having enough rest a day.

You can try my split schedule . I would like to suggest a set of exercises if you want ... but if you have your own ,you can do it instead.

Monday: Chest and Triceps ( 4 set of 8-12 reps) per exercise

Tuesday: Shoulder and Legs ( 4 set of 8-12 reps) per exercise

Wednesday: REST day

Thursday: Back and biceps ( 4 set of 8-12 reps) per exercise

Friday: REST day

Saturday and Sunday: Abs

ALWAYS REMEMBER that our muscle needs enough rest for serious recovery and growth.

From wimpy to WOOOPPP!! but not that wimpy as the old one.! As an ectomorph ( skinny type) all we have to do is increase our protein intake even carbs too. Everyday is CHEAT day for a skinny guy! I just follow all Scott Herman programs for a year and here's the result man! then when you're BULK and satisfied go for the toning! hope my tips above will definitely help you.