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Fellow ectomorphs, since we most likely have the same goals to gain more muscle mass, i'm just curious as to what exercises your workouts entail, just to compare notes.

For those who don't know what ectomorph is; people who are naturally thin, have low bf, are called 'hardgainers' as its tough to put on muscle for them, unlike the easily body sculpting mesomorphs who can do it with ease.

So yea, just curious, but what exercises are you doing, likes, dislikes, favs?

~Zach

Before I got my hernia fixed, I was doing squats, deadlifts, and hang cleans (basic powerlifting exercises). They're full body and require a lot of power from the legs (biggest muscle in the body), forcing everything in your body to grow to keep up.
I was also doing my best to get the number of pull-ups I could do up, as well as variations on the bench press.

I've been trying to put on weight for years. Never being able to gain muscle mass pissed me off to no end. I've tried protein shakes, eating fried fat, not exercizing for extended periods, drinking lots of booze, and whatever turns most normal people into what the spokesman for subway used to look like, has only given me a freakin baby beerbelly! I hate it.

As for the work outs I do when I'm not attempting to gain weight to turn to muscle are: yoga, pilates, running 3 - 4 1/2 miles 3 times a week, weight lifting and cycling on the weekends. I really don't give my body a chance to slow down when I'm on my regiment of exericize... I assuming that's what making it so hard for me to gain how I would like to.

i am trying one body part a day except legs i do twice a week.
for legs i do squats, leg extensions and leg curls. low reps 6-8 heavier weight
3 sets. on the other day lunges , deadlifts, squats and calf raises. for cardio15 mins on my spin bike twice a week on my days off. if u have better training advice would appreciate it.

Don't get too bulked up, guys. There's guys like me out there who love 'em some ectomorphs.

jprichva saidDon't get too bulked up, guys. There's guys like me out there who love 'em some ectomorphs.

I love your responses to lots of these threads. When I grow up I want to be funny and witty like you.

Geez, boiwunderkind, what a nice thing to say. Thanks.

I just finished the muscle building program from RJ and will now be doing a periodized workout I created with the help of an article that I read on here about ectomorphs and muscle gain. I'm using many of the exercises from the muscle building program for the periodized program since I found it to be quite an effective program.

Chest-related workouts are my favorite since as an ectomorph my chest is the most difficult part of me to grow (legs and bicept being the easiest). I really love dips using a weight, cause I can feel the burn after I finish doing them.

Stay lean and mean dudes! Mass dont mean sh*t. I see it as a gift. Not to mention, it's a big turn on for me.

I guess being an ectomorph is great, you'll probably get kinda cut when working out, due to the low body fat... of course some of us still have to deal with belly fat! Ugh! Hopefully cardio (swimming in my case) will help wonders!

Well being an ecto. sure does have pros and cons, though many like a thinner slim guy, which i'm glad genetics have given me that, i still desire to put on a little more muscle.

and i like doing dips too javaman

I am happily ecto. But I do a lot of push ups, pull ups, chin ups, etc to maintain shape. The thin comes from the miles, the yoga and avoiding too much fried food.

Do ectos always want to be bigger? I'm fighting my to become bigger. I've been struggling for a while now. I wanna get bigger but my body has other ideas lol. I guess lift hard, keep things changing, eat eat eat. Though what do I know, I'm still just a little guy. Keep it up though. Ya can't go wrong with hitting the gym...well I guess you can, over training is a serious problem!

Get planty of rest and water too. Good luck!

Doing high volume training is the key to hypertrophy, as any bodybuilder will tell you. Doing high sets (8-10) with moderate reps (8-10) is the best way to go. Of course, with that kind of time, you can only get in about 4-5 exercises before it's quitting time.

Well i guess not all ectos want to get bigger, though most that i've encountered do have the desire to do so. I'm glad i'm thin, as opposed to being fat, but I just don't like being percieved as being weak since i'm just skin and bones.

I definitely know what i have to do to get results, just wish i'd see them faster haha

Damn you skinny bitches! I'd gladly trade two or three inches from my arms and chest for a nice set of visible abs. So quit your goddamned whining !

There are some great tips in this post. To add to them, my advice is to do core work and I don't mean abs. Add balance and coordination challenges to your weightlifting and you will get amazing results. I'm 5'11" and my body naturally wants to weigh about 150 but I'm 170 right now and slowly gaining. I could give lots of advice on how to do that, but core training is the one that's most often over-looked by hard-gainers. Stay off of benches and machines and make your body WORK to stabilize you while you lift heavy weight. It's an amazing way to train!!

As a super-ecto, I hear your issues clearly. 12 months ago I weighed 150 lbs (already gained some weight by that point - I was seriously thin: profile pic is at about 160 pounds...) and started using a product called Vitargo. It helps to equalize your weight (I used to fluctuate 10 pounds throughout the day) and also helps if you are taking any drinks like Muscle Milk or anything else. It has helped immensely.

Also, you should look at your workout routine. Most ecto's have to do a different type of workout than easy gainers or fat people. Most people would say I work out too much, but in reality, with my metabolism, I need to lift more weights more frequently in order to see any muscle mass gains. I tend to do either one of two cycles - switching them up every 2 months:

routine 1: one body group per day - for each body group I'll do 4 sets of 8 reps each - heavy weights. for example:

Chest: bench press; incline press ; decline press; champagne fly flat; champagne fly incline; champagne fly decline; pushups focused on chest (wide stance); chest dips every other week I'll replace the champagne flies with regular flies to jump the system.

Routine 2: couple workouts together. I personally do: Shoulders/hard legs; chest/tri; back/bi. doing 3 sets of 10 to 12 for each muscle group.

I've also seen that doing legs everyday helps out with gains on other parts of the body - and I love doing legs so I do them almost every morning with an abs workout. (I know call me a gym nazi!)

Also, eating right is the biggest component - as is sleeping. I've had to force myself to sleep at least 6 hours a night and I try to get 8, but that's hard with my energy level/metabolism.

Hope that helps.

Chest/Shoulder/Arm related exercises are also my favorite.

I don't have access to a gym so I make do with makeshift equipment and body weight. I just stick with the basics for the meantime. Developing endurance and strength basically. Serious shaping comes later, I think. Let's see...

Squats

Bicep curls

A compound exercise in which I circle the dumbell SLOWLY in front of me and at the sides counterclockwise then clockwise. (Works for the shoulders/chest/biceps/triceps/laterals it seems.)

Pushups

Bench presses

Crunches

Vacuums

My main problem is developing the stomach area, I have a very weak stomach area even though I'm relatively stick thin. I'm seeing progress especially with my legs, chest, arms, and sides of my chest, (not much growth though, but they really are more defined, but in like... the four months since I started I've only gained 4 kilograms), but my belly is still as floppy as ever. It's not fat, mind you, LOL, I'm an ectomorph after all, but it's soft.

Ugh.
***

one thing that works for me is to focus on arm mass instead of chest. the chest benefits, too, but if the pecs are slow to grow, the arm strength and overall muscle tone show progress faster. for me -- seeing progress is an important psychological component of working out.

Also, don't work out in the morning. From what trainers have told me, working out in the morning is better if you are trying to lose weight. Working out after work or late afternoon helps to build muscle...

Compound power lifts.

I am a happy ecto.

Patience!! If you work out and eat you WILL get bigger. It'll just take some time. Work out heavy and it'll happen.

Thanks for the post!

As a tall skinny guy I have always tried to gain weight. Many times with little or no results. This time I have cut back all but about 45 minutes a week (15 minute increments) of cardio. This has been the most difficult change as I love to train for marathons.

I am now lifting heavy with only 6-10 reps x 4 sets and I am beginning to see some gains. Phew!

I appreciate all of your posts and "cheers!" to those that love the skinny guys.

zsocerstar saidWell being an ecto. sure does have pros and cons, though many like a thinner slim guy, which i'm glad genetics have given me that, i still desire to put on a little more muscle.

and i like doing dips too javaman

We should do dips together sometime! :-)

Yea i'm glad to find more people who like us thin ppl haha

And i know what i have to do for workouts and nutrition, but like vonsooner said, just takes time. Just wish it'd hurry up, haha

wow thanks for this post, I've learned a lot. getting some pecs is my problem. Guess I swim to much?

javaman9999 said[quote][cite]zsocerstar said[/cite]Well being an ecto. sure does have pros and cons, though many like a thinner slim guy, which i'm glad genetics have given me that, i still desire to put on a little more muscle.

and i like doing dips too javaman

We should do dips together sometime! :-)[/quote]

sounds like a plan!

I've been increasing my diet gradually for the past two months or so. I've gone from 2.5 meals a day (light breakfast, regular lunch, regular dinner) to almost 5 meals a day(early breakfast, mid morning breakfast, lunch circa noon, early dinner at 6, and then late dinner at 11 or so). Because we're naturally skinny we don't have to be paranoid about eating before we sleep. Plus, I've been alternating working out at 9:30 p.m. and 6 a.m.; it just depends on how sore my muscles are and if I feel I need more sleep due to muscle repair(your body will let you know how much rest it needs from the baggage under your eyes).

I try not to eat anything that doesn't do anything for my body, i.e. sweets and grease. I've gotten to the point where seeing anything sugar-related will actually give me a headache, and grease will make my stomach churn.

To me it seems like you almost have to eat at least four meals of all healthy food every day because healthy food is lighter, digests faster, but will do so much more for you in terms of muscle. For me I find it's generally a good idea to eat 30 minutes after a work out, so that when my muscles are repairing they have a nutrient source from which to pull directly.

And it may sound kind of funny, but one of my favorite quotes of all time is from the most famous homosexual: "The function of the muscle is pull and not push, except in the case of the genitals and the tongue."
--Leonardo Da Vinci.

Make sure that when you're lifting you pull only with the muscle you're trying to train. Your joint should be the only thing that moves on your body, like a pendulum. I see so many people at the gym doing things like tricep extensions using their backs in addition to their arms. Bad idea.

In addition to that you have to make sure you stress your body out every time you work out. For years I would go to the gym and work out for 2 hours and not feel sore when I left, and it was because I wasn't lifting enough and my heart rate didn't stay high. Keep moving at the gym and make yourself sweat every time you go.

Also, milk. Milk milk milk. There isn't any point in lifting if you aren't going to strengthen your bones. Stay away from copious amounts of bread, and make sure most of the bread you eat is toasted.

The RealJock 12 week work out program in conjunction with my new diet has helped me put on about 10 pounds in two months.

Hope this has helped.

wow yes maximforlife thanksfor that information.

Hmm to comment or not to comment that is the question!

But my god their are some golden nuggets of tips in this thread and some absolute stinkeroonies!!!!!!

So many different ideas here. Work out in the morning, work out in the afternoon, hi reps, lo reps. Caramba! Hard to know what will work.

For me, heavy squats seem to be the best. And core exercises. Whatever, they are all good.

You also have to know you are still young, and that you will put on weight no matter what. Just keep doing all kinds of exercises. When I was your age I weighed about 125 lbs. Now I'm up to almost 160. I didn't gain much at all until I was well over 30.

Don't be in a rush to gain weight, either. You look really well defined and cut now. You should be thrilled, actually. Much better to have a great physique and be thin than to be big and soft with no definition. Most guys would kill to have your physique, and I bet you don't have any trouble finding dates, either!

From my experience: Heavy compound moves. And, as annoying as it may be, eating your six meals a day, drinking plenty of water, and having adequate rest (sometimes a 30 minute power nap is all you need to give to give the body some repair time) need to be factored into your day. I also had to pay more attention to what I was eating, and when.

I had to cut back heavily on the aerobic stuff (I can be a little obsessive when it comes to getting on the treadmill, and my work has me racing around for hours at a time in a fast paced environment) which has helped a lot in keeping the weight on.

I have been putting in a concerted effort to gain weight in the last 6 months and have gone from my pip-squeak starting point of 68 kg (a smidge under 150 lbs) to around the 75 kg (165 lbs) mark. It's been a lot of work and my weight does yo-yo, but I made the decision I needed to concentrate on it more. I spent some money on a few sessions with a trainer and he totally smashed my ideas of what i was capable of (I bench 65kg, calf press 100kg, one hand row 42.5kg, and squat 100kg. i started benching 40kg). He also showed me correct form - a must when moving onto heavier weights!

Good luck guys. But don't forget that as satisfying as it may be to have the body of those mesomorphs and endomorphs we see on here (and add to our hotlists), sometimes it pays to love yourself and who you are a little more. I'm guessing there's quite a few out there who envy the ability to wear a 32in waist!

I've heard a lot of tips on gaining muscles, but usually they're from mesomorphs who naturally gain muscle regardless so they haven't really meant anything for me.

I started off at 63 kg and I thought I'd never gain weight but step by step I'm at 74-75 kg now. I've found that being extremely hungry and trying to eat huge meals haven't really worked for me, because usually I don't end up eating up the huge meal so instead several smaller meals.

Instead of protein shakes I go with the Super Gainer's Fuel, and I go with their suggestion to use it on days I don't train as well, I think that has been a major factor in gaining weight :3

Its just a slow Process building mass...not to mention frustrating... Keep working....

sure is and after all aren't we doing all this to keep fit?

Hey guys...

I'd echo everyone's comments. Diet (six meals a day), heavy lifting and consistency in gym time has been the keys for me to gain.

However, I'd also say that time was the key factor for me. 10 years ago I was 6'2, 160 and couldn't gain no matter how much I lifted or ate. Around 30 my metabolism finally slowed sufficient for me to gain a little easier. I now weight just a little north of 190, but its taken a lot of patience and work to get there.

Although its been 2 weeks since i've done this (finals and moving chaos) this is what i normally do as far as diet and exercise:

Diet: I generally try to eat about 4000 calories a day, with no junk food, candy, and a limit on processed foods. I have plenty of protein, eat at least 6 meals a day (european style works wonders for both loosing and gaining weight) and of course i get all my food groups in. I used to minor in nutrition, so i'm knowledgeable about the majority of things and know what i'm doing.


Now for the fun part, exercise routine has been changed a lot recently and messed up since they closed the mini gym on campus i'd work out at, so now at the Rec Center i've had to use different equipment and whatnot, but still basic stuff:


Monday: Upper body, mainly chest and triceps
generally do pull ups, dips, tricep cable extensions, dumbbell press, and then whatever else i feel like doing


Tuesday: Legs, abs, little cardio if i've got the time to. (love legs day)
Leg press, calf raise, dumbbell lunges, and goblet squats.


Wednesday: Upper body, mainly Biceps, some back.
Hammer curls, push ups, chin ups, back rows, pull ups, and again, whatever i'm in the mood for.

Thursday: Legs again (i normally would have lab though so sometimes i wouldn't go on thursday, i know bad)

Friday: Upper body again, whatever i feel like doing.

Saturday: the idea was to do cardio and abs, though i found myself going out of town every weekend i could if i wasn't studying. Sucks to have a long distance relationship, but anyways, starting soon i'll be doing it.


Sunday: rest


I know overall i need to start lifting more and heavier weights and doing some major muscle group exercises, which is what i plan to do, upon returning to the gym next week after moving into my own apartment.

So yea, over the summer i'll have a fellow exss phys. major and he and i are to work out daily, so hopefully i'll start seeing some good results, just gotta keep at it

There is a book called Scrawny to Brawny that's been out for a while. I got it (cheap) from the bookstore I work at. It's by Michael Mejia and John Berardi.

It was recommended by a friend's personal trainer as good for "hardgainers."

I'm not sure about the nutrition plan in the book, but the workouts seem good: high weight, low reps, etc... And I like the first workout is geared toward getting your body ready for serious workouts, instead of just throwing you into the lion's den.

I start it this month, as my birthday present to myself. Need to join the gym I think I'm gonna go to. And being 5'11'', and 130, I have a lot of work to do!!

Just my two cents.


Mike

Thanks for the book recommendation Sutherndude. Keep us posted on your progress, I'd be interested to see how valuable you find the book after a few weeks of training.

vonsooner saidPatience!! If you work out and eat you WILL get bigger. It'll just take some time. Work out heavy and it'll happen.

Its true... really you just have to be consistent and eat and workout enough. I dont really do cardio b/c I know it will make my weight drop.

I work out about 4X a week, alternating chest/back & Arms/Shoulders. I do abs every workout.

I think the biggest thing is that you have to be persistent... I was sickeningly thin before I started working out, but SLOWLY, I started building mass. It took me a year but finally I am getting somewhere! I prob could make more progress if I ate more protein, but I am satisfied with slow, steady progress....

Keep trying and keep pushing yourself!

I own scrawny to brawny, its a great book indeed. I loved it, and glad you mentioned it, i think i'll reread it sometime soon. Though stated in the book, perceived results aren't ideal since its about 70% genetics. But still, great book, love it.

First of all nice to hear from so many other ectos. Let me say a few things as a textbook example of an ecto!
a) I wanna take a mallet to the heads of people who say stop whinning and be glad you're thin! Being very thin can do as many bad things to your self worth as being overweight.
b) most overweight people can change and some drastically by working out. Us ectos take FOREVER to change.
Yes you work out to stay fit, that's the implied result of working out, but most of us ectos work out to get bigger. End of story.
When I left high school I was 6' and weighed 134 lbs. Cut decades ahead to me at 46 and I was still 6' and 134 lbs no matter how much I ate or how badly or no matter how much beer I had. I found that body for life site and started working out to their videos on the site. I did so 5-6 days a week for @ 6 months w/very little result. Then I found this site and learned alot and took some folks advice to get a trainer. I interviewed a bunch of them and found some interesting things. Most trainers tell you they know how to work w/an ecto but don't know how. They just regurgitate the info that's all over the internet and most of it doesn't work. Finally I found a guy I liked and thot I could trust w/my time and money. We did a food diary for a week and worked on that doubling my caloric intake. Over 7 months we tried diff. protein supplements and NOTHING worked. I then tried Serious Mass that helped alot. I have 5 half servings over the day incl. 1 b4 bed. Now I'm up to 152 lbs. Yeah it's taken forever but I feel better about it now that stuff is happening. Of course now I think about food all the time (wether hungry or not) or a snack. As for workouts we tried 6 week runs of diff. routines and that helped much more than what Iwas doing before. The most imp thing I learned was that I was overtrining by working out 6 days a week. I should only do 3 days (4 TOPS) for 45 mins as ectos need way more rest time bween workouts. That helped me the most. I lost a p/t job and had to put the trainer on hold for right now so I'm doing 3 days a week, 2 bosy parts each day. I love those Perfect Pushup handles! OK I blabbed enuf for now!

Remember the good old days when chuckystud would have told us skinny guys to take steroids and eat? It was our own fault that we were so thin, we just weren't trying hard enough. Hang in there - it took almost two years, but I went from 135 to 165 and managed to keep most of it on for the last 18 years.

jarhead5536 saidRemember the good old days when chuckystud would have told us skinny guys to take steroids and eat? It was our own fault that we were so thin, we just weren't trying hard enough. Hang in there - it took almost two years, but I went from 135 to 165 and managed to keep most of it on for the last 18 years.

LOL I was thinking about him as I was posting. He claimed to be an ecto but I find that really hard to believe.
Oh one more thing about Scrawny to Brawny. I thot it was a good book but the diet plan I think could only realistically be consumed by a 6' 4" football player. really it's out of control. But the info is in the book is good.

I'm curious about this Vitargo that someone mentioned. The makers claim you can expect to gain 12 lbs in 2 weeks w/this. This sounds weird to me. Also would you lose it if you stop taking it?

So far, the books looks like it will work well. The workout program seems to hit the mark for us dudes. It'll be a lot of long hard work, but we are gay men, so we don't mind long, hard, uh, work. (grin)

I have no illusions I'll get as big as they say, but any improvement will be good enough for me!

It's very good to know I'm not THAT much of a rarity out there. I didn't know there were so many guys like myself. whew!!

zsocerstar saidI own scrawny to brawny, its a great book indeed. I loved it, and glad you mentioned it, i think i'll reread it sometime soon. Though stated in the book, perceived results aren't ideal since its about 70% genetics. But still, great book, love it.

God I remember when I was in my late 20's 5'11 140. Now I am 174, but it took me a long time. I started working out at night less cardio more free weight training. I also made sure I had enough protein before and after working out. Still a 30 waist so I'm happy about that. Also I would never do steriods so I never have to worry about roid belly. My gym is loaded with guys who have done cycles of it plus HGH and a bunch of other crap I would never do and never will.

Good luck.

I think you look great natural tight abs and all!

hey Hellskitchen: that was the story of MY life! lol. Thanks for your information, as well as the input of all you guys. I'm fed up too with that saying "oooh you should be lucky you can eat/drink all you can, you wan't bulk etc. etc. but hey I want to be a (bit) bigger!

I just can't seem to eat enough.... it's a vicious circle. I eat heathy, but 3 small meals.... then i wonder why i have no energy! then when I go to the gym, i'm already tired. when i'm done, I crave healthy food, but my stomach is only small so I only eat a little. i've tried to break this cycle for years...force feed myself until I puke? or is there a better way? I even have a chef for a boyfriend, but still food doesn't do anything for me..LOL!

ddual said I eat heathy, but 3 small meals....

Try eating 6 small meals/snacks

Breakfast
mid-morning snack
Lunch
mid-afternood snack
Dinner
night snack

moxy232 saidhey Hellskitchen: that was the story of MY life! lol. Thanks for your information, as well as the input of all you guys. I'm fed up too with that saying "oooh you should be lucky you can eat/drink all you can, you wan't bulk etc. etc. but hey I want to be a (bit) bigger!

If the can change a man's sex why can't we change our body type? What I wouldn't give to be 180 lbs!<---bangs head on table some more!

Curious if anyone has tried the RJ 3100/day calorie diet.

I can eat 5000 calories a day and not gain an ounce. in fact, i'll lose weight. the only way i maintain or gain weight is to lift heavy and lift hard. If I go a week without working out i'll easily drop 4 pounds.

zsocerstar......slow and steady wins the race!

You're doing all the right things....eating clean, eating often, eating enough. You've got a nutrition background so you know that already. You're 21 so be patient (I know, I know...you've heard that before but it's true), you WILL grow into your body and all the hard work on the foundation will pay off!

I'm not an ectomorph but I've trained a lot of them and I suppose I always give them the pat (read "jealous") mesomorphic answer (LOL!)....be glad you're a hard gainer and burn calories so easily...you'll always see your abs and every inch of muscle you gain will show up immediately! Be thankful you don't have to watch every calorie you take in if you want to have abs.....it get's old QUICK!

Bottom line is putting on lean muscle naturally is a slow process even with protein supplements and eating right! So go by what you see in the mirror and don't compare yourself to anyone else because everyone is different and not everyone chooses the natural path. Nothing wrong with that, just don't let it give you a false impression about how "easy" it is to put on lean body mass. IT'S TOUGH for ALL of us trying to do it!

I was an ectomorph until I hit age 44.

When I started working out at age 25, I weighed 125# at 5'8". By the time I was 30, I got up to 150#, and this didn't change much until I turned 40, and only then was I able to reach 155#. When I got a cold and stopped working out, I'd always drift back to 150#.

I tried all kinds of supplements, diets, trainers, all with the goal of getting up to 160#. Nothing really worked until my metabolism slowed down.

I did get up to 155# by eating 5 meals a day, each containing clean protein and carbs, and doing a 4-way split workout. Lift heavy 6-8 reps, last set to failure. I got lots the most compliments of my life in my early forties.

Then I got partnered, settled down, metabolism slowed, had an arm injury, ate bad, and I got up to 160#. Then 170#. Then 180#. Most of it still muscle, but my abs were gone. My mistake was not paying attention to my slowing metabolism but still eating everything like an ectomorph.

Today I'm back to 168# and feeling balanced, and I'm still aiming for 160# which I'll hit by August. My point is that your metabolism is really hard to control, even with all the exercise and diet. I still have the ectomorph self-image though my metabolism is now actually endomorph.

This is why it sux to be ecto: I killed myself to go from 134 to 150 and getting past that is a challenge. One weekend I was kinda sick and pretty much styaed in bed Fri-Mon and I lost almost 5 lbs. Man was I down about it. That was like 4 months work lost just by being sick and not eating that much or moving around in ONE weekend. Argghh!

Has anyone heard of Vince Delmonte? Google him...

Meh I just accept it and do regular exercise. I don't really wanna put in the effort of eating 2000 extra calories a day and or anything like that, it doesn't matter that much to me.

But anyways I'm constantly struggling with muscle tension and tightness, pretty sure my pelvis is tilted forward, So I stick to Yoga and the Stability Ball, I love compound exercises, and I walk everywhere.

Tritimium saidHas anyone heard of Vince Delmonte? Google him...

He gained 41 lbs in 6 months? Hmm...........

Believe me, I know. I've been trying to gain weight my whole life. It is SO hard.

When I was in 11th grade, I weighed like 100 lbs. I started lifting weights, one of the smartest things I ever did. I got up to 130 after a year and a half.

I'm now at 145 and it took a lot to get those extra 15 pounds. I've always said, for us ectos, it takes three times the effort to get 1/3 the results.

But keep at it. Those big guys I remember from HS -- who only had to do marginal workouts to get big -- are now out of shape slobs. Every single one. I guess they had it too easy.

So in the long run, I think we're better off. Call it "Revenge of the Ectos."

HellskitchenManNYC said[quote][cite]Tritimium said[/cite]Has anyone heard of Vince Delmonte? Google him...

He gained 41 lbs in 6 months? Hmm...........[/quote]

Have a look at his videos on YouTube. Again, search for Vince Delmonte. (There are 62 videos at the moment.) If you check out his early ones, shot from a modelling contest, and then look at his later coaching videos, there's a noticeable difference in his physique. Quite amazing, IMHO. I'm encouraged.

i'm having good luck with following the diet that supplements the p90x regimen.

I'm an Ectomorph too! Yea it's a lot harder for ectos to gain muscles but if u keep at it (proper diet, consistent workouts), the outcome will be envied by many. Used to start off as the skinny boy who lifted in one corner..now i'm one of the biggest and cut in my gym and it feels good that all the hard work shows physically..people pop the juice question to me all the time and I take it as a compliment

I can show u a picture of myself 3.5 years back b4 i started lifting..man..let's juz say i hate looking at it lol..but i have it on my phone so that when pple come up to me for advice at the gym and feel like it's impossible to achieve their goals..i can show them where i started from.

The upside is definitely being able to eat as much as u want (mostly clean of course) and still being able to keep lean..i don't do much cardio (almost none) and I don't have to struggle to maintain my abs' appearance. Downfall is definitely losing mass quickly if u stop gym for even 1 week..so yea maintaining muscle mass can be challenging for ectomorphs.