Hard Gainer Tips

Thursday, May 10, 2007

5k!

So randomly in the last week or two my wife and I decided that we are going to start to train for a 5k run sometime in the fall. Some of you may be thinking "but to train for that you'll have to do cardio!" Yes that is true. Most of the time you'll hear that if you're a hard gainer you should do as little cardio as possible so you don't lose any additional muscle. But I also remember when reading Arnold's book that he recommends doing quite a bit of cardio no matter what mainly for overall health. So as long as I don't overdo it there shouldn't be any problems.

To train for this 5k we're using a plan called the Couch-to-5k Running Plan. No, I'm not exactly a couch potato but I still decided on using this plan mainly because it's been a long time since I have done any serious real running (not on an elliptical or treadmill) so I felt it would be best to gradually work my way into. We've been doing this for 2 weeks now and its a pretty good plan!

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Tuesday, May 8, 2007

More Interesting Advice

I read some other interesting advice from another column by Vince DelMonte (read here). He makes an interesting comment that if you can't even control your own bodyweight you really have no business lifting heavy. While it may sound a little harsh I think he makes some really valid points.

Vince recommends shooting for the following goals:
60+ Pushups
20+ Wide Grip Pullups
40+ Dips
20+ Chin Ups
10+ One Leg Squats (deep)
and if you're really ambitious 5+ Handstand Pushups

Can you do those? What about for 2-3 reps? Sounds like a good goal to shoot for no matter what just for functional training!

Skinny Guy Article

I read a good article from Vince DelMonte that gave some good advice to us skinny guys and hard-gainers. Check it out!

Defeat Your Skinny Genetics and Own 2007