bicep&forearm technique / adding mass questions

[page19]

I'm having the hardest time seeing any gains in these two areas, and I think it's because I'm just not doing it right--as in, the following day I'm not feeling the soreness (and satisfaction) that I normally feel after working out other muscle groups.

All around I have difficulty adding mass and gaining weight, but these two areas have been the hardest for me. As for my triceps, I've seen major gains since I began. Here's a pic to see where i'm at right now so you can see my olive oil arms.
http://i38.tinypic.com/2mywyvo.jpg

I have the eating habits of a garbage disposal (or so i'm told) and am having a hell of a time gaining weight. I'm stuck around 150 lbs right now.


So I guess I have two questions---what kinds of exercises should i try for my biceps and forearms to add some size to them, and please be specific with the technique and form so i might get more out of my time at the gym.

Aside from perhaps just eating more (if i possibly could), what things might I try to help boost myself past this size and weight plateau i'm at now? I'm trying to incorporate all the important lifts... deadlift, squat, bench, row, weighted chin/dip---actually i've been following Adonis's 4 day total body plan for about 4 weeks now, and have seen improvement in the amount i can lift on certain movements, but just haven't been able to add a single pound.


<---- total noob

[tooncesthecat]

Make sure you're getting plenty of protein! Best nutrient for gaining and keeping mass. For biceps, nothing beats good ol' barbell curls. Dumbbell curls and ez bar curls are good too. Vary the hand placement with barbell and ez curl bar. Finish with chins but really focus on the biceps part of the movement. For forearms, first of all, don't use wrist straps. This will force you to use your forearms to hold heavy weights. One other thing I have done is to grab some heavy dumbbells and hold them at my side for as long as I can. I try to get 1 minute. If I can, I move up in weight. Try these on back day after you fry your forearms training back (without straps)!

[JoeBAR]

Originally Posted by page19

I'm having the hardest time seeing any gains in these two areas, and I think it's because I'm just not doing it right--as in, the following day I'm not feeling the soreness (and satisfaction) that I normally feel after working out other muscle groups.

All around I have difficulty adding mass and gaining weight, but these two areas have been the hardest for me. As for my triceps, I've seen major gains since I began. Here's a pic to see where i'm at right now so you can see my olive oil arms.
http://i38.tinypic.com/2mywyvo.jpg

I have the eating habits of a garbage disposal (or so i'm told) and am having a hell of a time gaining weight. I'm stuck around 150 lbs right now.


So I guess I have two questions---what kinds of exercises should i try for my biceps and forearms to add some size to them, and please be specific with the technique and form so i might get more out of my time at the gym.

Aside from perhaps just eating more (if i possibly could), what things might I try to help boost myself past this size and weight plateau i'm at now? I'm trying to incorporate all the important lifts... deadlift, squat, bench, row, weighted chin/dip---actually i've been following Adonis's 4 day total body plan for about 4 weeks now, and have seen improvement in the amount i can lift on certain movements, but just haven't been able to add a single pound.


<---- total noob

To grow, you need to EAT, to get BIG you need to eat BIG and to get massive, you need to eat MASSIVE ... And lookin at your pic I can tell straight away that you ain't eating enough.

Plateau are a mental/nervous thing, nothing to do with size. There are kids out there who squat 580lbs at a body weight of 200, and some who weigth 200 and can't squat 405.

Forget the arms, what you need are wheels. The 'IMPORTANT' lifts are all you need to do. Do wil's program: pendlay's 5x5 ... And eat a ton. Don't stop eating when you see your abs disappear, you don't know enough to gin a lot without putting a bit of chub so forget about it, it's easy to correct later.

The program runs for 9 weeks, by crimbo you can easily add 30lbs of body mass and shift those 'plateau' by at least 45lbs.

[wildstang]

echoing joebar you need to eat more. i also was quite the hard gainer in my youth. human garbage disposale. did not matter what i ate i could not put any weight on. my metabolism was just so jacked from my activity and athletics. i didnt start putting any extra muscle on untill i learned to eat right.
even then i still needed a little extra help in the form of supplements. supplements are not the cure all but can be helpfull if used smartly. lots of green veggies, lean meats and good fats from fish oil supps and nuts. i still needed a protein drink with my meals even then. i can get by without now because my metabolism has slowed down with age, along with my activity levels. really depends on how active you are. the more extra sports and excercise you do the more nutrients you need. your obviously still burning more then your consuming. half a protein supp of syntha-6 or other blend with meals would more then likely help put extra weight on.
i know majority of people prefer real food over supps but if mixed into meals it will still have slower absorption from having to break down normal foods. and if your anything similar to i was not being able to stretch the stomach to accomodate the extra food needed thats when the supps come into play.

[page19]

Originally Posted by tooncesthecat

Make sure you're getting plenty of protein! Best nutrient for gaining and keeping mass. For biceps, nothing beats good ol' barbell curls. Dumbbell curls and ez bar curls are good too. Vary the hand placement with barbell and ez curl bar. Finish with chins but really focus on the biceps part of the movement. For forearms, first of all, don't use wrist straps. This will force you to use your forearms to hold heavy weights. One other thing I have done is to grab some heavy dumbbells and hold them at my side for as long as I can. I try to get 1 minute. If I can, I move up in weight. Try these on back day after you fry your forearms training back (without straps)!

hmm, i've never tried wrist straps or been tempted to do so... some good ideas in here, i'll give them a shot.. sometimes i think that i'm just not proportional enough yet, so i tend to work out my weak links instead of the intended muscle group..

Originally Posted by JoeBAR

To grow, you need to EAT, to get BIG you need to eat BIG and to get massive, you need to eat MASSIVE ... And lookin at your pic I can tell straight away that you ain't eating enough.

Plateau are a mental/nervous thing, nothing to do with size. There are kids out there who squat 580lbs at a body weight of 200, and some who weigth 200 and can't squat 405.

Forget the arms, what you need are wheels. The 'IMPORTANT' lifts are all you need to do. Do wil's program: pendlay's 5x5 ... And eat a ton. Don't stop eating when you see your abs disappear, you don't know enough to gin a lot without putting a bit of chub so forget about it, it's easy to correct later.

The program runs for 9 weeks, by crimbo you can easily add 30lbs of body mass and shift those 'plateau' by at least 45lbs.

I'll do my best to eat more.. but i already feel like i'm eating so much.. i'll squeeze more in where i can.. but to think today between noon and 7pm i ate four times, with 6 servings of vegetables, 5 chicken breasts, 2 servings of fish, with plenty of bonus fruits and some breads...(not to mention a protein shake after working out)

probably just sounds like a lot to me but isn't enough to up my weight.



That program might be what i need to try out though. I'll be taking a little vacation the last week of the month, so i'll be forced to spend a week out of the gym.. that'll give me a good chance to take a break before i dive into the 5x5 program

[page19]

Originally Posted by wildstang

echoing joebar you need to eat more. i also was quite the hard gainer in my youth. human garbage disposale. did not matter what i ate i could not put any weight on. my metabolism was just so jacked from my activity and athletics. i didnt start putting any extra muscle on untill i learned to eat right.
even then i still needed a little extra help in the form of supplements. supplements are not the cure all but can be helpfull if used smartly. lots of green veggies, lean meats and good fats from fish oil supps and nuts. i still needed a protein drink with my meals even then. i can get by without now because my metabolism has slowed down with age, along with my activity levels. really depends on how active you are. the more extra sports and excercise you do the more nutrients you need. your obviously still burning more then your consuming. half a protein supp of syntha-6 or other blend with meals would more then likely help put extra weight on.
i know majority of people prefer real food over supps but if mixed into meals it will still have slower absorption from having to break down normal foods. and if your anything similar to i was not being able to stretch the stomach to accomodate the extra food needed thats when the supps come into play.

Yea, i'm definitely in the hard gainer category. My metabolism is a bit out of whack to start with. When I was joining the Air Force i was initially disqualified for having too high of a resting heart rate... 114bpm! They had me go to a doctor and get it taken for five consecutive days in case i was just nervous on my initial test, and it still averaged out to about 105bpm after doing daily tests. That was nearly three years ago though, and just taking it right now i'm cooled down a bit to 78bpm.

[page19]

well, i just read the caloric excess article with pendlay's routine... and basically what i got out of it was to quit trying to eat clean and just dive into whatever's gonna make me pack on some pounds. i've pretty much avoided processed sugar and fried foods for a couple of years now, so if that's the kind of things i need to start having again, it might be harder than i thought

[Hans_Rachid]

Don't worry so much about your arms, from your pic it looks like they are proportional to the rest of your body. It's very unlikely that you're gonna have them become much bigger if you stay at 150 lbs. So I say keep on doing big compound lifts and eating a lot and the gains will come. To help increase your calorie consumption you can also take a spoonful of olive oil / peanut butter a few times a day, it's an easy extra 100 kcal plus it's healthy! Also, don't forget the main principle of training : progressive overload. So don't let your workout get stale and always keep on improving something from one session to the next. Lastly, make sure you're getting plenty of rest. If you cover the basics and give it enough time you will definitely make improvements - not only on your arms, but overall.

[TommuGuns]

Hey brother... size takes years to put on (not using gear).

For example, to gain an extra inch of lean muscle on your biceps will take over a year (at least).

When you train biceps... do your last 6 sets as drop sets. You will get a major pump and your biceps will grow in one gym session.

Ill let you in on a little body building secret... hard work and a good diet!

What does your current bicep workout consist of?

[TommuGuns]

Originally Posted by Hans_Rachid

Don't worry so much about your arms, from your pic it looks like they are proportional to the rest of your body. It's very unlikely that you're gonna have them become much bigger if you stay at 150 lbs. So I say keep on doing big compound lifts and eating a lot and the gains will come. To help increase your calorie consumption you can also take a spoonful of olive oil / peanut butter a few times a day, it's an easy extra 100 kcal plus it's healthy! Also, don't forget the main principle of training : progressive overload. So don't let your workout get stale and always keep on improving something from one session to the next. Lastly, make sure you're getting plenty of rest. If you cover the basics and give it enough time you will definitely make improvements - not only on your arms, but overall.

Eating a spoon full of olive oil?? How do u stomach that without throwing up?

[Hans_Rachid]

Originally Posted by TommuGuns

Eating a spoon full of olive oil?? How do u stomach that without throwing up?

Years of training my friend, years of training

[JoeBAR]

Originally Posted by page19

well, i just read the caloric excess article with pendlay's routine... and basically what i got out of it was to quit trying to eat clean and just dive into whatever's gonna make me pack on some pounds. i've pretty much avoided processed sugar and fried foods for a couple of years now, so if that's the kind of things i need to start having again, it might be harder than i thought

It's not so much having junk. You said you have tons of veg. Try to replace them in 2 meals a day by something a bit more filling: rice or pasta. You NEED carbs, not necessarily processed, but carbs none the less. Bit of bread just doesn't cut it, a cup of rice post work out will do just fine

[page19]

Originally Posted by JoeBAR

It's not so much having junk. You said you have tons of veg. Try to replace them in 2 meals a day by something a bit more filling: rice or pasta. You NEED carbs, not necessarily processed, but carbs none the less. Bit of bread just doesn't cut it, a cup of rice post work out will do just fine

i'm usually eating rice twice a day, just didn't get too much yesterday--I guess it's safe to assume that carbs in the evening is just fine if you're trying to bulk?

[wil]

Originally Posted by Hans_Rachid

Don't worry so much about your arms, from your pic it looks like they are proportional to the rest of your body.

I agree with Hans on this. I thought the very same thing when I saw your pic. You are just lean all over. If you focus just on your arms and they get big but your chest/shoulders stay small in comparison, then you'll look silly. You said you already focus on the big compound movements... so maybe you need to change the rep/weight scheme you use. I have become a huge fan of deadlifts. They hit your entire body if you do them right (at least I think I'm doing them right )... legs, lower and upper back, arms, everywhere. When I first started doing them seriously (about 3 months ago) I felt sore in places I didn't even think I had muscles. And since I don't use straps, my forearms have improved a lot (also my grip strength).