Gaining Huge Muscle Mass And Strength From Rings

[iyankov_96]

Hello Everyone,
I am new to GymnasticBodies.com and would like some help in making my goals a reality.
Firstly, let me say a few words about myself: I am 17, 171sm tall, 70kg. I have been training bodyweight exercises for two years (the first year and a half mostly without any progress because of lack of information).
Currently, my goal is to build a REALLY big muscular body with bodyweight training while at the same time having huge relevant strength to accompany it. I am aiming for a body like this one - http://oi44.tinypic.com/2vd63w6.jpg
My question is: Is it possible to build such a huge body solely from ring training (if in a calorie surplus) since ring training is so much fun and amazing. Or if it isn't would adding weighted pull ups/dips/push ups do the trick ? My nutrition is in place, I have read a lot, and the foods I eat are perfect for gaining weight (chicken breast, whole wheat pasta and bread, white rice, potatoes, dairy and nuts). The reason why I want to attain my body while doing ring training is because I will also get INCREDIBLE strength gains and functionality/mobility which bodybuilding only reduces.
Some notes about my traning:
Day 1 - Pull:
- I do sets of advanced tuck front lever holds, sets of dynamic front lever movement like inverted hang - advanced tuck FL - inverted hang.

- I do sets of back lever static holds (reached a plateau at 5 seconds).
- Weighted pull ups with 15kg about 3-5 reps per set

Day 2 - Push:
- Handstand push ups - about 6 reps, can't do more

- planche lean - 35 seconds max and frogstand - 60 seconds max

- planche lean push ups

- diamond push ups and wide push ups with 17kg weights

Day 3 - Legs:

- 4 sets of 8 reps one legged squat with 24,5kg

- 4 sets of 8 reps one-legged calf raises with 30,5kg

I repeat day 1 and day 2 twice per week.

 

I will transition to ring training depending on your answer. My main goal is muscle mass and my second goal is relative strength and functionality.

Thank you for your help and support !
Ivan

 

[Deins Drengers]

Foundation series

[Reece Nugent]

Foundation series and barbell work for legs. Squat and Deadlift. Paleo/Primal diet for nutrition

[iyankov_96]

I don't understand what you meant by saying ''foundation series''. Will ring training suit my goals ?

[Jean-Rene Losier]

Your body most likely isn't ready for rings yet, that's why everybody is recommending you do the foundation series first.

 

My advice though: maybe rethink your priority of building mass? Since I've adopted the "Form follows Function" mentality, that's when the mass really started to come. Aiming for muscle really is useless other than looking impressive.

 

It's like those lamborghini kit cars. You have the outside of a lamborghini, but your insides are that of a Pontiac Fiero...

 

That's just my opinion though, food for thought.

[iyankov_96]

Understood ! Well I can probobly do a few sets of weighted pull ups and dips to promote some gains... after I gain 10kg more in the long run so I guess those can come from ring training. One more thing. How can I learn the muscle up ? I can do weighted pull ups with +15kg weight, dips with the same weight too, I train explosive pull ups but I can't go high. I can do a muscle up with one hand first, then the other but when I try with both hands I get to my mid chest and that's where everything ends.

[Jean-Rene Losier]

I actually learned the muscle up by learning to kip properly so I could get a hang of how the transition movement was done. After i had that down. I worked with negative muscle ups on rings, and Russian dips. Which helped improve me a bit. But, again ( as annoying as it might sound ) it's only when I started doing foundation series that I really saw a huge improvement in my muscle ups. In fact, I tried them for fun in my last workout, and I can raise myself up with very minimal momentum now, compared to a couple of months ago. And I haven't trained specifically for them since January.

[Brad Greyeyes-Brant]

Can’t help you much on the rings side, but I can give some helpful suggestions/tips for the muscle mass side. Stuff I wish I knew when I was younger.

 

The upside is that being young you are in a great spot to gain muscle mass as you still got that juvenile growth on your side, so you can really make great strides in a short amount of time. The downside is that muscle building is still a stupidly slow process, and you gotta be prepared for the long haul to realize your true potential. Without pharmaceutical intervention, if you were to reach that kind of look by your mid-20s, you should be ecstatic.

 

Get a myotape and rely on measurements more than scale weight to gauge progress. People tend to equate size to scale weight, but weight can be very deceptive and focusing on that can be counterproductive. By that I mean most people gain scale weight waaaay too fast, thinking it’s all or mostly muscle when really the vast majority is fat. Most big muscular guys who are lean that aren’t on AAS are surprisingly light. For example, google John Barban who I think most everyone here would agree is a big n muscular dude. Funny thing is, in his photos he’s about 180lbs at 6’1. From memory, DEXA put him at about 10% bodyfat. Definitely wasn't in the single digits. And if he wanted to get to “shredded†bodyfat territory, he’d probably have to drop another 5-10 pounds still.

 

Smart training, eating as much as you can without getting fat in the process, realistic expectation, plus patience will be the recipe for success!

 

Oh yah, the measurements… track your neck, shoulders (at widest part just above the armpits), chest (at nipples), waist (at navel), upper arms, forearms, thighs, calves are the big that will give you a better understanding of what’s growing and what’s not.

 

If your waist is expanding at the same rate as everything else, you’re more than likely putting on more fat than anything else. If waist stays relatively constant and everything else is moving in the right direction (shoulders up, waist down, etc) than you’re doing it right. If you want to “bulkâ€, you’re in the demographic where it might actually work. Steroid users aside, bulking is more often than not a recipe for fat gain. Just make sure to keep your waist measurement to under 50% of your height. Past that, you’re just carrying too much bodyfat.

 

Hope you found some of this helpful!

[Travis Widmann]

If you look at any elite rings specialist you'll see that getting absolutely jacked based solely on Gymnastic Strength Training™ is certainly possible. But it takes a long time and enormous patience. You can get bigger faster with different methods, but you're right, you won't be as strong or as mobile or as generally athletic.

 

You'll always find different opinions on nutrition, but pretty much everyone agrees on vegetables. You don't mention those at all. Try making three fourths of all your meals vegetables while dialing back on the pasta and bread and great things will happen.

 

The Foundation series is a training program that Coach sells which details exactly how to gain gymnastic strength better than you can ever figure out for yourself. Check the Products page. The reason everyone recommends it is because if you really want those "INCREDIBLE strength gains and functionality/mobility" then Foundation is the best way to get them. Progress will be faster and safer.

 

As for the muscle-up, Coach says training those before mastering the rope climb is a waste of time, and potentially injurious. If you follow Foundation you will eventually master the rope climb. If you make your way through the entire Foundation series chances are a muscle-up will come easy. By the way, I can do a muscle-up (an ugly one) but I'm still laughably weak by Foundation standards.

[iyankov_96]

Thank you everyone !!! Ring training is definately something I am interested in. Since the muscle mass will eventually come (I might even do a workout or two specificly for muscle mass per week) I think I am going to transition from ''Street Fitness'' to ring training. And I will definately check Foundation series right now !
Thanks again, I'll post another comment if I need any more help.
P.S. What would be the best way to increase my max holding time on the advanced tuck front lever and the back lever ? I can do advanced tuck FL for 15-20 seconds max but with a nice form and my max back lever hold is 5 seconds... plateau since the beginning of the year...
 

[Joshua Slocum]

Seven years ago when I first started gymnastics I was in almost exactly the position you are in now. I was 17 years old, 167cm, 73kg, had a similar amount of strength (I could do muscle-ups but didn't quite have a back-lever). Can you build a body like the one you linked to from training rings and other gymnastics strength? Yes, absolutely. This is me in April: 

 

The most important thing you can do right now is learn to be patient. Building that kind of body takes years of work. Developing the mobility and tendon strength required for learning advanced ring elements takes many years as well. Any way you slice it, you're going to be well into your 20's before you achieve your goals. 

 

It wasn't until about year 3-4 that I started to have enough mass and definition that I thought I looked "good" with my shirt off. It took about six years before I learned any strength moves that I considered to be really impressive, and it wasn't until year seven that I started achieving my long-term goals on rings. So be patient and enjoy the ride. 

 

Foundation really is an excellent resource; I wish I'd been able to use it when I first started out. Get F1 and follow it, and you won't regret it. Within a few years, you'll have finished F4, look like a beast, have some sick skills to show off, and be ready to start more advanced rings training.

[iyankov_96]

Wow, man, you look awesome ! That is the body I am after, maybe a few pounds more but that is superb. My main goal in terms of skill work is increasing the holding time on my back lever, my advanced tuck and eventually doing a full front lever, getting enough strength for the tucked planche (I can do a frog stand with straight arms for 60 seconds and a planche lean for 35 secodnds), and mastering the handstand balance so that I can be able to do my HSPUs without a wall. Currently I can do 7 full HSPUs Not too bad.

 

P.S. I also want to learn the human flag. Not really a functional move in terms of building strength but it looks amazing !!!

 

[Larry Roseman]

I will say this. I've been doing on and off ad-hoc GST for a few years and have had decent results in appearance

improvement. Especially for my age.   Good training can take you as far as you can go, and diet is perhaps equal in importance.  However genetics does play a part too.

 

As far as emphasis goes, many people start a fitness plan to make a physical appearance improvement.

However, in my experience many people who start for this reason give up if they don't see the desired results in  3-6 months. Not all, but some. Visible results may take longer with GST though your age will help you. Focusing on skills makes sense as the objectives are nearly endless and rewarding intellectually and physically. 

 

Also knowing when to back off is important, as your body grows when it recovers not when it is working out.

A program such as Foundations includes back off time periods that enforce this, so you don't have to worry about it.

It sounds like you've made some good progress and I think it will continue, however don't be in a huge hurry. Enjoy

your journey

[Joshua Slocum]

Wow, man, you look awesome ! That is the body I am after, maybe a few pounds more but that is superb. My main goal in terms of skill work is increasing the holding time on my back lever, my advanced tuck and eventually doing a full front lever, getting enough strength for the tucked planche (I can do a frog stand with straight arms for 60 seconds and a planche lean for 35 secodnds), and mastering the handstand balance so that I can be able to do my HSPUs without a wall. Currently I can do 7 full HSPUs Not too bad.

 

P.S. I also want to learn the human flag. Not really a functional move in terms of building strength but it looks amazing !!!

 

 

I hate to sound like a broken record, but the Foundation Series is by far and away the best thing you could be doing right now: it will help you to achieve all of your goals. It will directly guide you through progressions leading to full front lever, full human flag, and straddle planche (as well as manna, hollow-back presses, strict rope climbs, and some very impressive leg-strength work). 

 

If you can not afford to buy it right now, start saving for it (if you put away a dollar every time you work out, you're just looking at a couple of months before you can get F1), and I would suggest looking at the killroy template for programming in the meantime. 

[Joshua Naterman]

You should see Joshua Slocum's back... ridiculously wide and thick.

 

My opinion for the OP: Take your time, train smart by working your way through the Foundation series, get your nutrition on point by following my advice on here, and stop worrying about gaining weight.

[Jordan Garcia]

Dude if you wanna get bigger focus on "time under tension" the longer the muscle is under a load the bigger you will get of course it has to be challenging ur not gonna get big by holding 5 lbs for 20 mins

Here's an example if you want a big back and your doing pull-ups try doing them with a slow tempo like 4-4-4 tempo that means you pullup for 4 seconds hold at the top for 4 seconds and lower for 4 seconds then at the bottom immediately start doing another pullup to keep the muscle under tension

You can do the same thing with dips or hspu's

Good luck!

[FREDERIC DUPONT]

(...) This is me in April: (...)

 

Hummmmm... I don't know..............

Only the boyz are watching you, the girlz don't seem to care much!

 

[Jon Douglas]

I know everyone already knows this, but seriously, up your calories to gain if the work is there. I have always been a touch heavy- endomorphic if you prefer-- and find it very easy to gain weight (fat/muscle) but harder to lose. F1-2 work has changed my frame entirely, I am heavier (denser) but all my clothes fit better. I am leaning and gaining weight week to week, but am starting to realise that if i want to be any heavier + the energy Im expending, Im really kind of below what I need to eat. But Im progressing and happy, no need to complicate further on a good thing.

The particularly best thing is that there's no need to stress about it, the training will have its effect. Workout nutrition makes a big difference in recovery and making the most of your hard work, but the effect will definitely still be there if you aren't 100% strict on your diet.

[Samuli Jyrkinen]

If you want to be strong like a gymnast but also get bigger - train like a gymnast and eat like a bodybuilder.

 

Foundations aren't too bad for getting muscle: short rest intervals, and enough volume & intensity to cause muscle hypertrophy. Bodybuilding routine might be better regarding size but I have always focused on bodyweight strength work, and when I see the results of people following bodybuilder routines with equal years of experience, I don't really look any worse. I guess you can see a bigger difference in a long run(5+ years). 

[iyankov_96]

I understand. One more thing. How come gymnasts work with a huge time under tension but are smaller than bodybuilders who usually have less time under tension. Is it just calories and nutrition ? Also... how come the more MUSCLE you have the harder the exercise ? For example let's say a bodybuilder with a huge back attempting a front lever. Why won't the muscle help ?
Thanks !

[Jordan Garcia]

Because a gymnasts goals are not for size but for strength the size is just a side effect from their training and bodyweight training won't get you as big as weight training but you'll be a hell of a lot stronger

As for bodybuilder trying front levers they need to have a good power to weight ratio that's why gymnasts try to stay as small as possible so that its easier for them to perform the strength positions but there is a video on YouTube of a bodybuilder doing a full planche

Skip to 1:55 to see planche

[Mats Trane]

 

Foundation really is an excellent resource; I wish I'd been able to use it when I first started out. 

 

So do I! I started GST training 4-5 years ago, The F-series would have saved me alot of time. I went to fast in the beginning and there were weaknesses I didn´t know I had. This resulted in minor injuries which put me in the situation where I couldn´t train certain movements.

The progressions in F1-F2 are just perfectly laid out. Following them wisely, step by step will minimize the risk of getting hurt. This will lead to faster progression as you will not spend time not being able to train.

[iyankov_96]

Wow... A bodyuilder... doing a planche That's something you don't see every day. Well I guess I should get that Foundation series since all of you guys recommend it
Thanks a lot for the help !
P.S. Check this out - Kali Muscle doing human flag: https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/p480x480/941209_556639317721031_1448728058_n.jpg
 

[iyankov_96]

Guys, I need your help. When I usually do weighted pull ups I can do about 1-2 reps almost full range of motion with 15kg (my 5-6 rep max). But after that my head hoes only halfway over the bar and eventually when I get to set 2 or 3 when I am on my last reps I can't go higher than the 90 degrees I make with my elbows when pulling. Is this normal ? Or is it a sign of disbalance and how can I correct this ?
Thanks !!!

[iyankov_96]

Don't be shy now