17 y/o, looking to build up muscle in New Year, advice?

Do starting strength until you plateau and reset on all three lifts 3 times in a row. After this do any routine you like that revolves around Squats, bench, Deadlift, OH press and barbell rows.

This is what I did from 17 years onwards and I regularly squat 160kg+ 5 times a week, don't bother with Wendler's 5/3/1 it is far too advanced and will not work unless you are seasoned athlete and the progress is far too slow, my routine at the moment is very high frequency squatting, once you do a few cycles of SS you will have the skills and base to decide your own routine. When you get there I advise focusing on Deltoid, Back, Hamstring, Glutes, Calves and Biceps to give an extra illusion boost of size of that is what you are after.

I highly recommend eating a **** ton of food 24/7 and getting your macros, do not worry about "lean bulking" that is a myth peddled to morons to keep them weak. Eat BIG and clean, lift heavy, squat high bar and deep everyday and over the next few years you will do just fine particularly at 6'2 @ just 17 size and mass will come easy you will look big compared to many guys regardless just due to your bone structure. Also take your multis, fish oil and joint supplements, after 5 years of hard training you will only be 22 and you will be huge and strong, you MUST be consistent, you cannot take weeks off every other week, you MUST train hard nearly everyday with the very occasional deload, when it comes to your body you cannot be half arsed, to your genetic code and therefore your natural body large amounts of muscle is very inefficient and the human body will get rid of it ASAP particularly if you are not getting your macros, humans have evolved primates (in trees) ---> to on ground runners, this is why we have big lats still but also our bodies try to be thin and lean naturally, to over overcome this your need to get your macros and EAT and NEVER slack off both eating and lifting at the same time you have to both or one or the other, there will come a point where you know you are not doing it right because your legs hurt either from not squatting enough or not eating enough. Peace.

***bonus

If you have no gym do a solid body-weight routine until you can do a **** ton of muscle ups and hit your macros, this may also help when you do finally get access to a gym or equipment (you have to have at least barbells, plates and rack all of which you can pick up from Powerhouse for £20 a month on finance (which I recommend as at 17 you will not have a spare 900 £ + lying around) by building a base.

I'm 17, at 6'2' and 10stone. As my weight indicates, I'm not very well built at all. I want to try and build up some muscle in the new year, but I don't know what the best way to start is, especially as I'm very out-of-shape, and always have been (I can barely do 15 push-ups). Any advice?

I don't want to start an argument but I really don't understand why people on here are so quick to recommend SS for beginners. Strength isn't everything. OP wants size, in which case OP can gain more size on a programme that encourages 8-12 reps with progressive overload as opposed to SS in which OP will gain ego strength, yet no real size gains, as many people have actually proven. I really do fail to understand this argument of 'Oh I you need to do SS to gain some strength to make real gains!' No, you don't. You just need to push your muscles with a progressive overload of what YOU can lift. The amount of muscle fibres being recruited by a person who can lift 100KG is exactly the same as someone who can lift 50KG because it's all relative to their personal strength.

SS is designed for novices, that is the sole purpose of the routine.

It allows the novice to practice simple compound movements, learn technique, and allows for a basic concept of progressive overload to be used.

The routine is not purely strength it WILL result in size too. If a novice has put 200lbs on his deadlift they will be bigger, the whole notion of "you either train size or strength, and strength training wont get you big brah" is an absolute MYTH especially if you are EATING correctly (aka: big). But it ain't all useful, 5/3/1 for example is no use to him. (in my experience)

I've never done a size routine in my life but in bigger and stronger than all of my peers who swear by "8 to 12 brah, muscle confusion brah". Take squatting for example, i squat daily but usually only a max, will i make more size gains doing 5 x 5 or 4 x 10? No, because muscle is not some kind of consciousness, take bodyweight, 3 x 3 of 100kg of bodyweight will feel the same as 3 x 3 of 100kg of barbell. Personally I've never seen a novice make good, efficient gains while learning good technique and habits by throwing them into an advanced or even intermediate bodybuilding split, Imo its a recipe for keeping small and weak. You say strength is not it but if you can deadlift over 500lbs generally speaking you will not be small, particularly op who is 6'2 @ just 17, he wont have even stropped growing yet ( in terms of mass) solid diet, macros, consistency, bodyweight, ss, and then whatever he likes and he guanteed to be all he desires, i don't think telling him to hit "dat der chest day 8-12 brah, get the pump" comprising of various exercises all requiring technique to learn to perform safely is best option, not even slightly.

In the end it's up to OP.

I'm 17, at 6'2' and 10stone. As my weight indicates, I'm not very well built at all. I want to try and build up some muscle in the new year, but I don't know what the best way to start is, especially as I'm very out-of-shape, and always have been (I can barely do 15 push-ups). Any advice?

I don't want to start an argument but I really don't understand why people on here are so quick to recommend SS for beginners. Strength isn't everything. OP wants size, in which case OP can gain more size on a programme that encourages 8-12 reps with progressive overload as opposed to SS in which OP will gain ego strength, yet no real size gains, as many people have actually proven. I really do fail to understand this argument of 'Oh I you need to do SS to gain some strength to make real gains!' No, you don't. You just need to push your muscles with a progressive overload of what YOU can lift. The amount of muscle fibres being recruited by a person who can lift 100KG is exactly the same as someone who can lift 50KG because it's all relative to their personal strength.

SS is a progressive overload program combined with large calorie surplus.

You are advocating a progressive overload program combined with large calorie surplus.

The difference is that SS uses 5 reps and you prefer 8-12 reps. Do you really think this is going to make an enormous difference?

Everywhere on the internet, every professional bodybuilder, every amateur bodybuilder generally use between 6-12 reps, not five.

Plus, I've already mentioned that SS leaves your biceps and triceps with no work, and arguably not enough work on every other part apart from legs.. Benching once a week when you've just started is nowhere near enough.

Not a brilliant source but... http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/topicoftheweek8.htm

I don't think "every amateur bodybuilder" does that at all since many amateur bodybuilders just on this site use SS.


SS has you benching 1.5x per week (3x every two week cycle) and OHP 1.5x per week.

Biceps, I can grant. Add curls to SS if you like. It doesn't change a lot.

I'm classing amateur bodybuilders as those that lift for amateur competitions. Not some teenager on a website.

Benching 1.5x per week still isn't enough. When someone first starts lifting, their muscles are so receptive and unused to what they're doing. That's what promotes this 'noob gains' for the first few months. That's the time where you build your core technique and the time where you can make the most gains. Benching 1.5x a week doesn't achieve that. Plus, your only benching. If you said chest 1.5x a week, perhaps thats on the cusp, but still not enough. But you're just benching.. What about your upper chest? What about your inner chest?

Obviously a competition-standard athlete won't be using a beginners' program.


Right but you also do OHP which also works triceps. The pecs are a single muscle; differentiating between "upper" and "inner" chest is not important for a beginner (if at all).

I don't want to start an argument but I really don't understand why people on here are so quick to recommend SS for beginners. Strength isn't everything. OP wants size, in which case OP can gain more size on a programme that encourages 8-12 reps with progressive overload as opposed to SS in which OP will gain ego strength, yet no real size gains, as many people have actually proven. I really do fail to understand this argument of 'Oh I you need to do SS to gain some strength to make real gains!' No, you don't. You just need to push your muscles with a progressive overload of what YOU can lift. The amount of muscle fibres being recruited by a person who can lift 100KG is exactly the same as someone who can lift 50KG because it's all relative to their personal strength.

Obviously a competition-standard athlete won't be using a beginners' program.


Right but you also do OHP which also works triceps. The pecs are a single muscle; differentiating between "upper" and "inner" chest is not important for a beginner (if at all).

Ss is recommended because it's a full body routine meaning it's good for strength gains and focuses on the big 3. You need to build a foundation of strength first to get size. It's hard to find a shredded person who is weak. Size follows strength. I'd say get your bench to at least 1 . 1xbw before going to splits which is more about size

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Do 5x5 because you'll be doing more reps than 3x8 and at a far heavier weight


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