What Does It Take To Get Big?

What's It Really Take To Get Size?

Al was commenting on my post about Michael Jackson being afraid of strength training and asked:

“What does it truly to get size?

PLEASE CORRECT ME IF I’M WRONG! To me, i always assumed that getting “big” meant that it took lifting weights (with progressive overload emphasis) and the big factor: eat lots of food. Am I right?

This article struck a cord with me because i don’t want to get big either, and i was laways afraid of hitting the weights in fear of that result.

– Al S.”

What Does It REALLY Take To Get Big?

First off, it doesn’t matter whether or not you lift weights. The weights are irrelevent. What matters is that you’re stressing your body:

• If you’re an idaho farmboy, your “Resistance training” is bailing hay and throwing around cows …
• If you’re a construction worker your “resistance training” is lifting wood, concrete sacks and all that joyous stuff all day …
• If you wanted to you could just do tons of reps of bodyweight exercises all the time …

The point is, YES you do need resistance training of a progressive overload manner–but it doesn’t mean the only way to get big is with weight training and it DEFINITELY doesn’t mean that if you lift weights you’re “doomed” to get bigger.

You Can Get Huge On Bodyweight Exercises Alone!

The Great Gama Got Huge By Lifting His Own Bodyweight and EATING.

The Great Gama was an indian wrestler and he trained primarily with bodyweight exercises. It’s said he did 5000 bethaks (deep knee bends or “hindu squats”) and 3000 dands (“hindu pushups”) every day. And he ate a LOT. That was his job to be a wrestler.

He was undefeated and Gama was 5ft 7inches and around 260 lbs with a reported 54 inch chest. He was a big boy and he got that way from primarily bodyweight exercises.

How Gama REALLY Got Big and You Can Too.

He ate. Then he ate some more. If you wanna get big, you gotta eat. If you don’t want to get big … then keep eating the same amount of food (or a little less). It’s pretty simple enough.

How Do You Know If You’re Eating Enough?

When the scale starts showing you’re gaining weight. Lot’s of guys are like, “I’m a hardgainer–I’m eating a ton!” but they’re really not.

If you’re eating a “ton” but the scale isn’t moving (meaning you’re not adding SOME kind of weight–fat or muscle) then you know you’re not creating enough of a calorie “surplus” for your body to put on some additional type of mass.

So if you wanna get big. Then EAT!

So if you DON’T wanna get big … then just keep eating clean … keep eating the same amount (or a little less).

It really comes down to that.

So Let’s Review:

What have we discovered about getting big?

• Lifting weights don’t make you gain weight …
• No type of exercise really makes you gain weight …
• Eating more calories every day than you need (a calorie surplus) makes you gain weight.
• If you DON’T want to gain weight–don’t eat more–eat cleaner–or eat less.

I hope that answers the question of “what does it really take to get size?”