Are You Eating Right to Maximize Your Bodybuilding Workouts?

The bodybuilder diet is probably one of the toughest ways to eat out there. You need to toss down at least 6 meals every day, you need to shop for and cook all that food, weigh your portions, and calculate the right number of calories to experience muscle gain. Simple stuff, right?

Okay, maybe not.

I'm just realizing how much trouble people often have with their diets when they're trying to get the most out of their bodybuilding workouts, and it reminds me of back in the day when I was just starting. Back then, the idea of eating 6 meals per day seemed like witchcraft almost. I was a skinny, 130 lb hardgainer, and I knew I had to eat, but I just couldn't seem to force everything down.

So now that I'm here where I am now, it's easy to forget that there are so many people out there who are only where I was when I was just starting.

Listen guys, if you really want to hit those gains you've been dreaming about, you have to eat right. I figured out that there was only one rule I needed to follow: Eat more.

I was doing the training so I knew I wasn't going to get fat, but I had to push myself to eat enough. Every time I thought I was full, I would eat just a little bit more.

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A Gym Exercise Routine for Hardgainers that Actually Works

I spent some time in a post yesterday explaining how the term "hardgainer" is often a fallback for anyone who has trouble putting on weight. I honestly believe that anybody can build muscle mass, and if you think that you are a "true" hardgainer, do me a favor and stick to this gym exercise routine, then tell me you haven't gained anything.

As always keep your food intake up while you are doing the following 3 day a week workout, and don't try to lift more than you can handle. Check it out:

The "rep goal" listed for the following exercises is the total reps you should shoot for out of 3 sets. Remember that. When the rep goal says 25, that's 25 reps split between 3 sets. You might want to aim for 10, 10, and 5.

Now, here's the full body hardgainer workout routine you've been waiting your whole life for.

Squats: Rep goal-25

Deadlifts: Rep goal-15

Bench press: Rep goal-25

Overhead press: Rep goal-25

Dumbbell rows: Rep goal-25

Barbell curl: Rep goal-25

Dumbbell bench press: Rep goal-25

Barbell rows: Rep goal-25

Dumbbell curl: Rep goal-25

Calf raises: Rep goal-45

Weighted situps: Rep goal-45

Side bends: Rep goal-30

20 rep squats: Rep goal-20

Once you are able to hit the assigned rep goal in a maximum of 3 reps, add 10 more pounds of weight for that exercise.

You should be doing this 3 days a week on nonconsecutive days for best results. And don't miss the eating plan for hardgainers to make sure you maximize that muscle gain.

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A Daily Exercise Routine for Hardgainers

Let me just say one thing before we get started here: You are NOT a hardgainer. The word hardgainer is a fallback term used by people who haven't been seeing results. With the right type of daily exercise routine and a proper eating plan, you will gain muscle. It doesn't matter if you're the skinniest, scrawniest kid on the block; I've seen everybody gain when given the right type of regimen.

The thought that you are a hardgainer is only holding you back. It's a fallback because you can not see results, and think "It's okay, I'm just a hardgainer."

What you SHOULD be thinking is: I need to train harder.

If you really want to gain muscle, you need to minimize your cardio workouts to less than 4 every week, and never miss a workout. The first time you miss a workout, you'll just be making it harder on yourself.

If you really want a routine that works, check out the 100 rep full body shocker exercise routine at that link. It's not quite a daily exercise routine, but it gives you the foundation you need to start packing on muscle and getting that body you've always wanted.

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6 Week Home Exercise Routine for Stronger, Thicker Arms

The following 6 week program will work to give you stronger arms (focusing on triceps and biceps), and it does this by incrementally adding difficulty to the workout routine.

This is a beginner workout program that you should only perform on two days out of the week, and it's acceptable for both male and female bodybuilders.

Let's break it down quickly before we get started:

Week 1 and 2: Use a low/moderate weight and a low rep volume. This lets you ease into the twice weekly arm workout.

Week 3 and 4: We're increasing the weight up to moderate along with a moderate rep volume, increasing the intensity and set number.

Week 5 and 6: We're going up another notch to a more intense volume, but we're keeping the weight itself at a moderate level. It's going to be challenging!

After you get through the 6^th week you can either take a week off from all arm exercises, or if you feel up to it you can go through again, starting with week 1 and using slightly more weight. Use a weight level that challenges you but isn't so heavy it prevents you from completing the sets.

Do this twice a week, but make sure there are two days of rest in between each lift day.

Week 1 and 2

First Day

Cable curl: 2 sets of 12

Dumbbell tricep kickback: 2 sets of 12

Second Day

Concentration curl: 2 sets of 12

Cable tricep extension: 2 sets of 12

Week 3 and 4

First Day

Seated dumbbell curl: 4 sets of 10

Skullcrusher: 4 sets of 10

Second Day

EZ bar preacher curl: 4 sets of 10

Seated French press: 4 sets of 10

Week 5 and 6

First Day

Barbell curl: 5 sets of 10

Tricep dips: 5 sets of 10

Second Day

Chin ups: 5 sets of 10

Close grip bench press: 5 sets of 10

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Full Body 100 Rep Workout Routines

In a previous post we talked about the 100 rep shocker routine. That time we only talked about arm workouts. In this one we're going to take the concept higher so you get a concentrated, powerful full body workout routine that will boost your muscle mass and give you a more vascular, ripped appearance.

Here are the quick guidelines for the 100 rep workout routines one more time:

Do at least 40 reps, more if you can. Subtract that number from 100 and rest for that many seconds. (50 reps= a 50 second rest). Then do the same thing, adding your rep count to the first time.

That's it. It's intense, difficult, and it will make you feel like a beast at the end.

For the following full body workout, do each exercise as explained above, then rest 3 minutes before moving onto the next exercise.

Full Body 100 Rep Workout

leg press calf raise

cable tricep extension

hammer curls

dumbbell lateral raise

barbell shrugs

incline bench press

lat pull down

leg press

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