Life's hard for hardgainers.
You have to break your balls at the gym even to put on the slightest bit of size.
JOE feels your pain.
So we went to meet top Irish bodybuilder Anthony Lynch at his Raw Gym in Dublin to find out which are the best moves to get you the most muscle.
Aesthetics athlete Anthony, who muscled his way (geddit) to the NABBA Mr Ireland final, came up with 10 exercises every hardgainer should have in their workout plan.
1. Bench Press
Everyone's favourite move. But if you want to big up your chest, hit it with dumbells for better muscle separation. You can add in incline or decline variants to hit your chest from a different angle.
2. Pull-ups
There really isn't a better bodyweight exercise out there. It will help add thickness to your back. Once you get better start to add a bit of weight to keep it challenging.
3 Bent-over rows
This move will add some real meat to your middle back. Load up a barbell, bend your legs and ensure you are pulling with your back rather than your arms. Really squeeze at the top of the movement.
4. Deadifts
Deads give you the most bang for your buck of nearly any exercise. It will hit your quads, glutes, lower back, lats, traps, rhomboids and more. If you want to get big, get deadlifting.
5. Shoulder press
Everyone wants those big, boulder-like shoulders. Well, hitting a shoulder press every week will help you get there. Dumbbells will serve you best.
6. Upright row
If you want those thick t-shirt muscles that will make you look like something out of the Hulk films, the upright row is a must. It will hit those traps like nothing else.
7. Shrugs
Another great movement for big traps. But make sure you go heavy and keep your muscles under tension for as long as possible.
8. Squats
The king of exercises. If you do anything during the week, make sure you're getting under the bar and squatting at least once. Training legs will help you get the biggest gains - so don't skip it.
9. Lunges
You really don't want chicken legs, do you? Well get lunging to really work those glutes and quads.
10. Stiff-leg deadlifts
People often neglect the hamstrings. Well don't. A good pair of hamstrings will not only look good in shorts, but it will give you more explosive power and help secure the knee joint from injury.
https://youtu.be/V0nYF1KxVOU
