Muscles for a Scrawny Guy?

[enkrypt0r]

Before you ask, yes, I've read the FAQ, I'm just hoping to get a little bit of information more specific to myself. If this is against forum etiquette, then please feel free to delete this thread.

I'm a 16-year old male, and I currently weigh 130 pounds. I'm rather skinny, however I don't have much muscle mass, so I just look scrawny. I can eat tons and tons of crap without putting on weight, which leads me to believe that my metabolism is pretty fast. About a year ago I had my fat content measured, and if I recall correctly, it came out to ~12%. I think I have a bit less than that now, so it's probably 10 or 11. I have had just about zero exercise in my life other than gym classes up until I decided to get in shape about a month ago.

The only place there's much fat on me is my stomach, and I'd like to get rid of it and see some abs. I realize that spot-training is a myth, and I need to do some cardio. To get abs, should I try lots of cardio to lose the weight, then strength training to increase my abs, or should I increase my abs, then try to lose the weight to reveal them?

I used to drink 6-10 cans of soda per day, and for the past month or so that's been cut down to 1-2 per day, and I never drink any with calories or corn syrup. Hopefully I can either get off it completely or at least down to 1 per day. I've been eating very little junk food, and much more fruit, vegetables, chicken, etc. I try to get a small workout in before each shower, so that's 1-2 times per day for 10-20 minutes, depending on how I'm feeling. During this time, I'll usually do things like jog in place, do pushups (2x20), bicycle crunches, and sometimes situps as well. I realize this isn't much of a workout, but for someone as scrawny as myself, I've actually started to see some changes. My arms now look slightly bigger and more muscular, although they're still relatively weak. I'm now starting to see an outline of pecks which were nonexistent a month ago.

So, there's some background on me. I realize that I should make my workouts much more intense, but I'm just getting started. Is there anything that anyone can tell a scrawny guy who want to look a bit more muscular? I don't need to be really buff or anything, I just would like to be able to take off my shirt at the beach or a pool with some confidence. I take a multivitamin daily. Should I use some sort of supplement as well, or no? Should I try to lose fat before working on my abs, or work on my abs, then lose the fat?

Thank you very much for reading, and for any advice you should be able to give me.

I'll provide pictures if anybody cares to see what I've got to work with.

[HARDMAN]

Search for Starting Strength and read it.

Generally to gain muscle you'll have to gain some fat too, so most people will work on gaining weight first and then doing cardio to cut the fat. As a skinny guy it shouldn't be hard for you to lose any fat you gain.

[Chris]

shit, just do dead lifts, you'll be a man in no time.

[Bender]

Protein.

[Kwinnie Bogan]

Do they call you scrawny Dan? Do they know WHO YOU REALLY AM YOU AM CHEWBACCA! Protein and Carbohydrates are your friends, along with healthy foods.

[The General]

soda is your worst enemy give it up~!

[enkrypt0r]

Thanks guys... I'm trying to get off soda. I used to drink tons and tons of the stuff, but it ate through my wallet with no mercy. After I decided to stop, I actually went through withdrawal for a couple days... It was pretty bad. Now I'm down to one can, never any corn syrup or calories. Hopefully I can get completely off it, or at least to only Sprite or other "light" sodas.

How much protein do I need? Should I find supplements (Can I if I'm under 18?) or should I just eat lots of steak and eggs? Should I continue jogging/cardio things, or focus on only strength training and listing?

I really appreciate your help guys. I think I'm mentally committed to finally making a change in my life. Come to think of it, I've been making a lot of changes as of late. I stopped chewing my nails, I barely crack my knuckles, all kinds of things...

[Kwinnie Bogan]

Don't eat steak, it's very fatty. Stick to chicken, fish, and if you want red meat go for 'roo.

[Agent 008]

Originally Posted by KwinnieBogan

Don't eat steak, it's very fatty. Stick to chicken, fish, and if you want red meat go for 'roo.

I don't think it really matters for him right now.

OP: Eat everything in sight. 3k calories every day is your bare minimum. Consistency is most important - so by every day, I do mean every day - there are no "rest" days. Get on the program described in Starting Strength, until you figure out how things work and are able to customize the program to your needs.

[Aftershock]

I reccomend 130g of protein a day. 1 Large egg = 6g of protein. 100g of pistachio nuts = 24g of protein. This gives you an idea of how much to eat, and no matter how much you work out you will never get muscles without protein.
The best suppliments are whey protein, you can get it off the net if you have a Debit card.
YOU GOTTA EAT THEM OSTRICH EGGS BRO.

[negz]

Eat: butter, steak, fatty yogurt, almonds, peanut butter, cheese, eggs.

Drink: raw milk, creme, honey, water.

[enkrypt0r]

I think I'll have to get some pistachios... They're good, I haven't had any in a long time. I don't have tons of protein in my diet, which is probably half the reason I'm scrawny to begin with. I'll try to eat a lot of it.

By raw milk, do you mean unpasteurized?

[Agent 008]

Originally Posted by enkrypt0r

By raw milk, do you mean unpasteurized?

Full fat, I think.

[Death Snuggle]

Originally Posted by enkrypt0r

I think I'll have to get some pistachios... They're good, I haven't had any in a long time. I don't have tons of protein in my diet, which is probably half the reason I'm scrawny to begin with. I'll try to eat a lot of it.

By raw milk, do you mean unpasteurized?

Raw milk is technically straight out of the cow, but I'd assume whole milk would work fairly similar if not exactly.

[negz]

Straight outta the cow's titties.

[Mor3BL7]

Meal 1 (7 AM)
1 cup of dry oats mixed with water
1 cup of egg beaters

Meal 2 (9 AM)
Meal replacement packet like Prolab's Lean Mass Complex (which has a 40/40/20 nutrient ratio) mixed with water or a protein powder (with around 40 grams of protein) mixed with 40 grams of carbs from cream of rice, grits, or oatmeal.
1 Tablespoon of Flaxseed Oil (Spectrum brand is best)

Meal 3 (12 Noon)
1 cup of brown rice, or medium sized baked potato, or 1 cup of oatmeal
2 cups of green beans, broccoli or any other desired vegetable
6-8 ounces of chicken, turkey, or lean fish

Meal 4 (3 PM)
Same as Meal 2

Meal 5 (6 PM)
1 cup of brown rice, or medium sized baked potato, or 1 cup of oatmeal
2 cups of green beans, broccoli or any other desired vegetable
6-8 ounces of chicken, turkey, or lean fish

Meal 6 (8 PM)
Same as Meal 2

[Thought Riot]

Just eat 4 large meals a day, and bring along fruits, vegetables, and nuts to snack on throughout the day. You don't need supplements to get your nutrients. I'd say all you really "need" is a multivitamin and some whey protein post work out. But take some prework out before squatting for the lulz.

something like this is probably fine:

Breakfast- eggs+sausage+toast
School lunch- PB+J/tuna sandwiches
Home lunch- pasta (with meat in it )
Dinner- meat with salad/veggies, whatever
and the post/pre workout whey

Of course, this will vary depending on what your family is like and what's avalible for you. I doubt that you're going to be able to completely change dinner. Always go whole grain. Never go for processed stuff. Brown Rice>white rice, stuff like that.

And track progress. It's great for your motivation. First time I started working out, I gave up. Year later, I kept with it. Take a picture every month or take measurements to see progress. Make small goals to keep yourself motivated. A goal of "gain 20 pounds" is long-term and can be daunting. Something like "add 5 pounds to this lift" is great motivation everytime you go to the gym, and is something that you can achieve very rapidly at the beginning.

Drink a half gallon of whole milk a day. 1200 Calories and 64g of protein. Mix it with your protein drinks pre and post work out, and it's not too much milk left over. Just drink water besides that. You really don't need soda. Just stop it. After eating right, stuff like soda will taste way too sugary and even weird.

[Deadrix]

First post!!! ( I know no one gives a shit )

Hey enkrypt0r mate!!

The best way to start gaining muscle is simply by gaining weight. As most people have already replied to you Protein!, ill repeat it Protein is your new best friend. Chicken, tuna, salmon, red meats, eggs get it all down you, obviously within limitations.

On the training side of things you'll basically get all the newbie gains so your weights will progress pretty rapidly at the start but will obviously begin to level out after a few months. I would suggest 3 x week split, splitting the body:

Day 1 - Chest, Shoulder, Tricep
Day 2 - Back, Biceps
Day 3 - Legs

People seem to neglect legs because their a bastard to train, but bear with them their worth the gains. As someone has also posted read around the subject, get some knowledge of certain exercises and apply them to your routine. Theres a tone of material on bulking on the internet mate you should have no problem finding it.

Anyway good luck with it.....

[Aftershock]

Originally Posted by enkrypt0r

I think I'll have to get some pistachios... They're good, I haven't had any in a long time. I don't have tons of protein in my diet, which is probably half the reason I'm scrawny to begin with. I'll try to eat a lot of it.

By raw milk, do you mean unpasteurized?

Good man! I went up 14lbs in 2 and a half month, from 130(About a year ago). You notice the difference.

[enkrypt0r]

Originally Posted by Hypnotic

Good man! I went up 14lbs in 2 and a half month, from 130(About a year ago). You notice the difference.

Sounds similar to me. What did you do in that 2 1/2 months? Eat lots of protein, I'm assuming... What sort of workouts worked well for you?