I'm 17 yrs old, just about 6ft tall, and I weigh 120 lbs. I'm not a lazy person, and I dont do too much sitting around (well, okay, I like my books... but i watch zero television), but my problem is an insane metabolism . I have a very strong cardio system, and I excell at distance running (I'm a provincial quality runner), but I can just NOT seem to gain weight. Are there any suggestions as to what I could eat/do to build upper body muscles? As in, specifically? What I do have is well-toned, but that's almost nothing . Most people tend to think I'm anarexic, which is really, really annoying, and does NOT help in the girlfriend dept :P.Any helpful comments would be appreciated.
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Trying to GAIN weight
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You might want to try a high-calorie dietary supplement. You can get protein powders, or really high-calorie stuff like ScandiShake (made by Axcan Pharma, a Canadian company; you mix it with milk).Do you eat at lest several large meals a day?
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Several! lol! I try to eat as much as I can... which is usually quite a bit. Most of what I eat is real cooked food though... no hamburger helper in my house! And I drink lots of water. A friend (massive guy, about 190 lbs, all muscle) told me i should drink a lot of milk, and it could help some. But would you say calories are more effective at increasing muscle mass, or protiens? I don't worry about fats... I cook with them .
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Protein is good, and you use more of it when you're building muscle, but there is a limit...excess protein is eliminated by the body, and consuming massive amounts of it stresses the kidneys.You need to consume a lot of calories. I don't think it would be the best thing to live on something like ScandiShake, although it would be possible, but mixed with whole milk it has a lot of calories, and is fine as a supplement.
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ic. thx 4 the tip steve, i appreciate it
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"weight gainer" - that what Boost, Ensure (both of which are avaliable in higher-calorie versions), ScandiShake, etc. are.
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Those supplements are pretty expensive, but they're not necessarily for people with "dietary issues". They contain theoretically balanced nutrition, including vitamins and minerals. What they give people who are on tube feeding is not much different. They have roughly the same effect as eating a lot of food, but with an unfortunate lack of fiber, and with a high fat content.
But a whey protein supplement is a good idea. You can get it as an unflavored powder.
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protien and lots of it... egg, beans, fish (lots of fish)
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Protien is very good, but at some point, the body just eliminates excess amounts. Consuming huge amounts of protein stresses the kidneys.