Find out what is preventing your body from gaining muscle mass and how to get rid of such a common problem. Many people are convinced from their own experience that it is very difficult to gain muscle mass with the help of natural training. In such a situation, some turn their eyes to steroids, while others take a simpler path and simply stop doing bodybuilding. It is difficult to dispute the fact that ectomorphs are indeed more difficult to gain muscle mass compared to athletes with other types of physique. Today we will tell you why it is difficult for you to gain muscle mass and how to overcome congestion.
Why is it difficult for you to gain muscle mass?
We have already said that your genetic data is to blame for poor progress or its complete absence in gaining muscle mass. Moreover, it is difficult to achieve positive results even with regular training and properly organized nutrition. Let's figure out why it is difficult for you to gain muscle mass, because after finding out the reason for this, you can find ways to overcome all difficulties.
Let's start with the structure of skeletal muscles, which in ectomorphs differ significantly from other types of physique. First of all, the composition of the muscle tissue of lean athletes is extremely heterogeneous. Scientists call these muscles striated. Some of the tissue cells, also called fibers, are white. It is they who are actively growing under the influence of physical exertion.
Other fibers are red and are responsible for muscular endurance. Red fibers can also increase their transverse dimensions, but it is very difficult to predict the development of this process. Ectomorphs have a high amount of red fibers in their muscle tissue, which suggests more endurance but less potential for mass gain.
The second reason why it is difficult for you to gain muscle mass is your high metabolism. At the same time, with the right approach to business, you can turn this disadvantage into an advantage. This requires good nutrition and high-intensity training. Metabolism determines not only the rate at which energy is obtained from food, but also the body's ability to rebuild.
Today, not every person has the opportunity to organize proper nutrition. It often turns out to be insufficient, not to mention its balance. At the same time, a lot of weight gain depends on your diet. If you do not consume enough nutrients, then no workout will help you achieve positive results. The body simply will not have enough energy and building materials for this.
You must remember that in the absence of progress in your diet, you can simply not have enough calories. If you want to know why it is difficult for you to gain muscle mass, then with a high metabolism and regular physical activity, it may require two or even three times more energy compared to the norm that you are using. Every athlete, even if he is naturally gifted with great potential for muscle tissue growth, needs to consume a lot of calories in order to progress. Recall that without energy (carbohydrates) and building materials (protein compounds), you should not expect an increase in muscle mass.
At the beginning, we said that red fibers prevail in the muscle tissues of the ectomorph, but with sufficient physical activity and the right diet, you will progress. Of course, the rate of mass gain will be lower compared to mesomorphs, but you will grow. Thus, we can safely say that you must first revise the nutrition program. Very often, novice builders do not pay due attention to their diet, focusing on training. As a result of this approach to training, there is no increase in muscle mass.
What should an ectomorph do to gain mass?
Since even a mesomorph is extremely difficult to progress in conditions of insufficient nutrition, ectomorphs should first of all pay attention to their diet. This is an axiom and any professional builder will tell you the same. It should be noted that in the history of bodybuilding there are many examples of how athletes with a thin physique achieved great heights. In this regard, the name Frank Zane immediately comes to mind.
To progress, physical activity alone is not enough, and it must be supported by appropriate nutrition. Since ectomorphs burn energy quickly even at rest, the requirements for the indicator of the energy value of their diet are much higher. After answering the question why it is difficult for you to gain muscle mass, let's find out what steps you need to take to change the situation for the better.
- Increase your calorie intake. Since, under the influence of physical exertion, energy consumption increases sharply, then in the absence of progress, you first of all need to increase the energy indicator of your diet. The calorie content of the daily diet of an ectomorph should exceed this parameter, calculated for people with a normal physique at least twice.
- Eat only the right foods. You must supply the body with only that energy that will not be consumed immediately. By increasing the body's energy supply, you can solve the problem. However, for this it is necessary not only to increase the indicator of the energy value of the nutrition program, but to make it balanced. Eat foods that contain complex carbohydrates. This will allow you not to waste energy in the rhinestone, but to create its supply, which will then be used up in the lesson. About 30 percent of the total caloric intake should be protein compounds, from which new tissue in your muscles will then be created. One of the main advantages of ectomorphs over other body types is the inability to quickly gain fat mass. This allows you to increase the amount of fat in your diet. Of course, they should be extremely useful. After completing the training, fast carbohydrates can be used to provide the body with the opportunity to restore energy reserves in a short time.
- Stick to your diet. It is very important to eat food on time so that the body does not starve, and it always has all the nutrients in abundance. If you did not eat regularly and a little earlier, then a sharp increase in the indicator of the energy value of the diet can lead to disruptions in the work of the digestive system. To avoid these troubles, it is necessary to increase the amount of food intake gradually. Do not forget that for the fastest and most complete processing of each nutrient in the digestive system, certain conditions must be created. If the acidity in the stomach must be high for the processing of protein compounds, then this is not required for fats and carbohydrates. In order not to create heaviness in the abdomen, it is worth sharing the intake of nutrients. Also, try to eat at the same time so that the body adapts and can prepare in advance for processing food.
- Make a meal schedule. You may know that athletes try not to eat for a certain time before class. This is because fatty foods make your stomach feel heavy, you may feel sleepy, and some of your energy will be used to process food rather than exercise. Therefore, it is best to consume complex carbohydrates before training. Do this an hour or even 30 minutes before the start of the session, which will create all the necessary conditions for muscle growth. You've probably come across a recommendation to eat two hours before training. It is true for people who want to lose weight. Since you are chasing completely different ate, then you should eat earlier. This is due to the desire of the body to restore the energy balance in a short time. If at this moment he does not receive food, he will begin to actively use fats or glycogen, but after training, the reserves of the last substance are usually already exhausted. On the contrary, you should take a portion of simple carbohydrates immediately after completing the training. For this, gainers can be used.
- Drink plenty of water. It is necessary to drink water, because the human body consists of almost 80 percent of it. During exercise, water is also needed, but in small quantities. Often, experienced athletes prepare a cocktail from BCAA, which is gradually drunk throughout the lesson.
- Don't forget about micronutrients. Often, athletes pay close attention to essential nutrients, while completely forgetting about micronutrients. At the same time, these substances are necessary for the body to solve various problems, including when gaining mass. We will not now list all micronutrients and talk about their beneficial properties. In sports food stores, you can easily find complexes of trace elements that will help you in solving the task.
- Don't exercise too often. This advice may seem strange to you, but excessive physical activity does not at all contribute to gaining mass. It is quite enough to conduct three classes a week, working on each for a maximum of an hour and a half, or even an hour. If you are training in this particular mode, but there is still no progress, then the matter is not in the classes.
- Use basic movements. It makes no sense for ectomorphs to waste energy on work in simulators. For mass gain, only basic movements should be used. With their help, you will ensure sufficient physical activity and a powerful hormonal response of the body.
For more on how to gain mass for ectomorphs, see this video:
