If you want to have an aesthetic physique just like the ones you see in Fitness magazines and all over the internet, you should know that they all have some things in common: they have a good amount of muscle mass, a low percentage of body fat, a symmetrical and balanced shape and an amazing six pack abs. They are all shredded and are considered the “dream body” for most men and the most sought after body by most women. In this article we will discuss the basic steps to follow in order to get such a body, starting with weight training, nutrition and cardio.
First of all you need to know your starting point. Most guys that are not happy with the way they look are either buff men who look good in clothing but have a high percentage of body fat or skinny guys who don’t have any fat, but don’t have muscle mass either. If you are the big and bulky guy you need a weight loss program and if you are the skinny guy you need a program for building muscle. In the points below we will cover both cases:
Weight Training for Skinny Guys
- a training session shouldn’t last more than 45 minutes
- you need to focus on compound movements rather than machines and isolation exercises
- you should have a 5% increase in strength every 2 weeks
- don’t waste too much energy on forced reps and 1 or 2 extra reps should be enough
- a 3-days split program is best for a skinny guy
Weight Training for Bulky Guys
- a bulky man can train for 60-90 minutes to burn extra calories
- you can also add isolation movements for more effort and more burned calories
- it will be very difficult to increase strength while being in a caloric deficit, but it is vital to maintain your current strength throughout the weight loss phase to prevent muscle loss
- drop sets and pre-exhaust work well for bulky guys and burn more calories
- you can spend more time on each muscle group and split your program into 5-days per week
Nutrition for Skinny Guys
- to gain weight, consume approximately 15 times your body weight (lbs.) in calories each day. For example if you weigh 160 lbs you need about 2,400 calories each day
- eat 1-1,5 grams of protein per pound of body weight for maximum muscle growth
- consume twice as much complex carbohydrates than protein. Great sources include oatmeal, sweet potatoes, rice and whole grains
- also include healthy fats in each meal (olive oil, nuts, avocados)
- your largest meals of the day should be the breakfast, the pre-workout meal and the post-workout meal
Nutrition for Bulky Guys