My Story
I am a twenty year old female with a skinny and athletic body build. I was
blessed and cursed with a fast metabolism that makes it extremely difficult for
me to gain weight. I've always been involved in sports, lifting light, and
running, but recently I've decided to enter my first fitness competition in the
"bikini" category. These are the girls that are very toned and fit, not
necessarily huge bodybuilders. I am 5'4 and at the beginning of my journey
weighed 100 lb. Now about 10 weeks later I weigh 110 lb. I have seen tremendous
progress, but would still like to gain about another 5 lb. once I start my
competition meal plan.
This is me:
Calories
One of the most important keys to weight gain is the amount of calories
you're intaking daily. The average caloric intake for an individual is 2000
calories. To gain about one pound per week, you must take in about 2500
calories. This does not include any exercise that is being done. If you're
exercising which on average can burn from a couple hundred calories to over a
thousand calories depending on the intensity, you must account for this. If you
burn 500 calories jogging then you must add 500 calories to that days intake. It
is so important to keep track of your daily calories or figure out a set meal
plan that works for you so you know you're supplying your body with the fuel
that it needs.
Macronutrients
The three main macronutrients needed for any balanced diet are carbohydrates,
protein, and fat. Yes, fat is essential for your diet, especially for weight
gain. The trick, however, is to get the right balance that works for your body
and your intended goals. Usually your macro percentages are about 50%
carbohydrates, 30% protein, and 20% fat. A good application that is available on
smart phones is called 'My Fitness Pal.' This has been so helpful to me! You can
log in and keep track of you calories, grams of carbs, protein, and fat, and it
also gives you a macro breakdown of your percentages. You can also program it
based off of your fitness goal and it will tell you (without burned calories
from exercising) how much you need to eat for the day.
Carbohydrates
Everyone always runs, kicks, and screams about carbs. Carbs are a great
thing! They play a number of important roles in your body. They are stored in
your muscles for energy and they enable the majority of the protein you consume
to be used for tissue synthesis or better known as muscle building.
Carbohydrates are REQUIRED for your body to continually produce energy during
physical activity. Think of carbs as the gas needed to fuel a car. Without gas,
a car won't run. Just like without carbohydrates, your body won't have the fuel
it requires to support your daily activities.
Here is a pic of my arm:
Refined Carbohydrates
Now there are different types of carbs that are the most useful are certain
parts of your day. Refined carbs are bad carbohydrates. Essentially the fiber
has been stripped from them, causing them to digest like simple carbs and
basically be empty calories. Some examples of refined carbohydrates are: table
sugar, syrup, soft drinks, beer, wine, sweet tea, frozen fruits or vegetables,
bagels, white rice, pasta, muffins, etc.
Complex Carbohydrates
Complex carbs or unrefined are known as the good carbs. They are rich in
vitamins, minerals, and fiber and are absolutely essential for eating during a
post workout meal. These carbs take longer to digest and don't raise the blood
sugar level as quickly as refined carbs do. Complex carbs include honey,
spinach, vegetables, yams, beans, and whole grains. Eating the bulk of your
carbohydrates in the morning is the best time. Carbs with kick start your
metabolism for the day, ultimately allowing you to burn more fat. Usually for
breakfast I will have 1/2 cup of oatmeal with 1/4 cup of dried fruit, and a
flaxseed muffin. This breakfast is packed with about 500 calories and 83 grams
of carbohydrates. For bodybuilding and to help fat burning, DO NOT eat any
carbohydrates after eight o'clock. This way your body isn't storing anything
while your sleeping and being inactive and you will be plenty hungry in the
morning, which at first was also a big struggle for me.
Protein
Protein is very important throughout the day, but should be taken with your
complex carbs after your workout. Purchasing protein powder for shakes is an
easy way to fulfill the grams of protein that your body needs. I use Syntha-6
Isolate chocolate protein powder, mixed with either water or milk, and this
contains 25 grams of protein. You should be consuming a gram of protein per
pound of body weight or whatever weight you'd want to weigh. I usually consume
around 120 grams of protein. Good and healthy sources of protein obviously come
from meat such as chicken, salmon, turkey, beef, and eggs. Protein shakes should
only be used for convenience and not to replace protein in meals all the time.
Fat
It's not so much the amount of fat that you eat, but more the type of fats
that you eat. The answer isn't to cut out the fat, but to educate yourself on
how to make healthy choices. Good fats such as monounsaturated fats,
polyunsaturated fats, and omega-3's are essential for your mental and physical
health. The best kind of healthy fats come from foods like fish, avocados,
walnuts, almonds, olive oil, and canola oil.
Training
Obviously nutrition is a huge part of gaining weight and building muscle, but
that can't be the only thing done. Being dedicated to lifting and training is
also needed. Heavy lifting and pushing your limits will build muscle faster, but
you can't over do it. Gradually build up your weight amount by doing one rep
with a heavier weight and then going back down to the regular weight that you
were using. This will help you become stronger and eventually do all of your
sets with the heavier weight. I currently train six days a week, resting on
Sunday.
The exercises that are listed together are super-setted, meaning after you
complete the first you go straight into the next exercise, and then straight
into the third if there is one. Then you can rest.
Monday's Workout (Legs-Quads):
- Dumbbell lunges 3 x 10
- Jump squats 4 x 12
- Narrow Squats 5 x 8
- Leg Extension 5 x 12
- Separate Leg Lunge 4 x 12
- Leg Press 5 x 12
Tuesday's Workout (Bi's and Tri's):
- Barbell Curl - Lying Tricep Extension - 4 x 12, 10, 8, 12
- EZ Bar Close Grip Curl - Tricep Dumbbell Kickback- 3 x 12
- Reverse Plate Curls - Bench dips - 4 x 12
- Hammer Curls - Overhead Tricep Extension- 3 x 12
Wednesday's Workout (Cardio and Abs):
- V-ups 3 x 10
- Oblique crunches 2 x 15 each side
- 1 minute plank x 3
- Russian twist with medicine ball 3 x 30
- Full body crunch 3 x 12
- Leg lifts 3 x 10
- Slow twists with medicine ball 2 x 20
- Crunch on workout ball 2 x 20
- Corkscrews 3 x 12
- Abdominals thrusts 3 x 10
- Goalies 3 x 20
- Scissors 2 x 30 (hold legs straight for 30 seconds after)
- Kicks 2 x 30 (hold legs straight for 30 seconds after)
Also on random days that I feel like doing some extra abs I go to
RandomAbs.com. Each day they post a new ab workout that is supposed to be
super-setted (so done back-to-back right away) and let me tell you, they are a
challenge! Awesome to do if you're feeling up to it.
Afterwards do 30-45 minutes of cardio through running, elliptical, stair
master, or walking on an incline.
Thursday's Workout (Legs-Hamstrings):
- Dumbbell Lunges 4 x 12
- Sumo Squats 4 x 12, 10, 8, 12
- Barbell Deadlift 4 x 15
- Seated Leg Curl 4 x 12
- Single Leg Knee Raise 4 x 15
- Calf Press on Leg Press 4 x 20
- Glute Kickback 3 x 12
- Lying Leg Raise 3 x 20
Friday's Workout (Shoulders and Back):
- Lying Rear Delt Raise
- Bent Over Row with Bar 3 x 12
- Push Press
- V-Bar Pulldown
- Bent Over Row with Bar 4 x 12
- Assisted Pull-Ups
- Shoulder Planks 3 x 12
- Underhand Row with Bar
- Lat Pulldown
- Dumbbell Pullover 3 x 12
Saturday's Workout (Cardio and Abs):
Do the same abdominal workout from
Wednesday. Afterwards do 30-45 minutes of cardio, a different form of it than
Wednesday because changing up your routine helps to tone your body better. For
weight gain cardio needs to be watched carefully. Too much will burn all the
weight, but to maintain a healthy lifestyle, keep a healthy heart, and to keep
your metabolism up cardio is important. So doing it just a couple times a week
is enough, whereas those trying to lose weight should do it more often.
Sunday: REST!!! Having a rest day is so important for your body to
recuperate. Resting repairs your muscles and allows them to get stronger.
Working out everyday can actually damage your muscles, so don't over do it! The
human body needs to have rest to perform. Along with a rest day getting a full 8
hours of sleep every night will also help your body become stronger and
healthier. So it's not all about how much you can lift and what you eat, but all
of these aspects combined.
So far on my journey I have been successful and gained 10 pounds in two
months. I have seen so much progress and tone in my body that I have decided to
compete in my first fitness competition. Educating myself on nutrition
especially has helped me along the way. Obviously for competitions my diet will
change, but as for now I am still in my bulking phase so my diet is a little bit
looser. Once I get closer to the competition I will go through what is called a
'cutting phase' and my diet will become very strict, cutting out all of my water
weight and reducing the amount of fat on my body.
