GAINING SUGGESTIONS PLEASE! (pictures)

[RookieTest12]

I am currently 21 years old, 198 lbs and 5'11'' and have been lifting for going on 5 years now, I have not taken any form of steroid, Being a student makes it hard to afford tonnes of food, but im doing my best to pack in the food and just givin er'. I packed on the majority of the size that I have at around age 19 and 20, and since then its been a year since i have noticed any significant size increase. I do have patience, but I have been thinking about a minor cycle and was looking for some suggestions/advice on what my options are, im looking to gain a good 10 lbs yet it seems i have been at a plateau for the past year, ive switched up my work outs, strength training stuff with sets of 4-6 and more reps like 4x10 and higher intensity stuff, but what i think i could really use is advice on the BEST possible excersizes to gain size in my legs seeing as I tore a muscle in my lower back last year, in the thoracolumbar fascia area. Anyfeed back is greatly appreciated. thanks guys

 

[Aztech]

stick with squats and leg press for leg size. front squats, hack squats, ssb squats, manta squats, etc. Maybe try 20 rep sets. And eat big.

 

[RookieTest12]

stick with squats and leg press for leg size. front squats, hack squats, ssb squats, manta squats, etc. Maybe try 20 rep sets. And eat big.

Due to my back injury, im a little worried about squats right now i think. would it be beneficial to keep on the leg press for a while? (while incorporating leg extensions, calves, and hammy work outs aswell) because I find a lot less stress on my back, so i figure it might be a good idea till i get my back up to par again.

 

[barnzy7]

you can always try do wall squats

 

[leanbody]

hey dude - you look good - lean which is a great place to be. I wouldn't recommend a cycle ATM because of what you said about diet. Food is expensive but IMO, the reason your not growing now is that you don't eat enough of the right things. You should track your diet carefully - weigh your food & all that (pain in the ass!) and log it - FITDAY is a great site for that. then see what your macros are. I bet if you revamp your diet you could pack on 10-15 lbs of muscle in a year! After that I'd consider a cycle but not before. (I may not have stated this clearly so sorry if I'm redundant.) If you do a cycle now with your current diet, you'll get more cut but won't add any mass. it would be a waste of money and your energy/time - best to put that money into food ATM.

Try to find creative ways to up your food intake cheaply - check out trader Joes or Costco - Buy thoose HUGE ass bags of chicken boobs & frozen Fish. Buy tons of brown rice & sweet potatoes.

And for the workouts - I'd concentrate on the lats (pull ups) - if your back hurts doing squats - get a belt or better yet do leg press heavy. Your arms look great & quads too - i bet they'd explode if you work out hard and eat a ton!

Good luck bro!

 

[RookieTest12]

Try to find creative ways to up your food intake cheaply - check out trader Joes or Costco - Buy thoose HUGE ass bags of chicken boobs & frozen Fish. Buy tons of brown rice & sweet potatoes.

Thanks alot leanbody. I dont have a problem eating that kind of stuff at dinner time, and oatmeal for brekfast. What i find most difficult is eating throughout the day, and what are the BEST foods to take with me during the day. If you could give me any suggestions on that , it would be great. And I just started that actually(going heavy on the leg press WITH a belt nice and tight-worked like a charm!) so im gunna continue with that, and any diet info for the day time would be perfect and much appreciated!

 

[Ripped Canadian]

I have one of these

The angle position really allows for perfect and comfortable motion eliminating much of the stress on the lower back.

 

[peanut]

I am a mega hard gainer. I think you should up your good carb sources using sweet potatoes and brown rice while using a waximaze starch in your supplement regime. I use S.A.N element which is a good one or i would take pure Vitargo. up the carbs and up the mass. As far as training I am old school. Squats and deadlift are the best mass builders. Best of luck on everything.

 

[leanbody]

Thanks alot leanbody. I dont have a problem eating that kind of stuff at dinner time, and oatmeal for brekfast. What i find most difficult is eating throughout the day, and what are the BEST foods to take with me during the day. If you could give me any suggestions on that , it would be great. And I just started that actually(going heavy on the leg press WITH a belt nice and tight-worked like a charm!) so im gunna continue with that, and any diet info for the day time would be perfect and much appreciated!

Great that the belt is working - i've had luck with it too - way better than injuring yourself or not doing legs. BTW wear it when you do Bi curls - you'll be amazed how heavy you can go - totally takes the stress off the lower back - even on the preacher bench!

For on the go stuff I like "chicken tenders" - for some reason they are cheaper than breatst and are bite size pieces. I'll take like 5 of them in a ziplock in my jacket to munch on - very portable - no fork required! i grill them on a George Foreman grill w a little lawery's salt and or lemon.

And like Peanut said the sweet potatos too are really portable cooked in their skins.

Good luck bro - lift big!