can I gain upper body muscle while running 60 mpw?

You can definitely gain muscle on such low mileage.

If you're trying to put on mass, try sets of 3-5 as opposed to 10.

You are certainly a fit individual, so bravo! Keep in mind, being thin and strong will keep you fast as hell. But if you're really looking to gain some muscle you shouldn't being doing any sets where you're comfortably fininishing reps in the 8-10 range. I would say look for 3 sets of 6-8 reps and also try some pyramid sets. Heavier = better for putting on muscle mass. Protein intake is a must too (be smart though). Finally, you can add weight to body weight exercises like dips and pull ups, so do it. Google it too. The amount of friggin body building sites out there is ridiculous.

yes and without the regimen you've outlined

Eat more dairy and red meat. Most likely you are a natural ectomorph. Dumbbell curls are really not an effective exercise, look it up, it feels good watching your biceps contract in the mirror but it's actually hardly doing anything. I am going to defer to the more experienced people on major matter of sets, days per week, more specific diet, because getting training right is crucial and the last thing you want is misinformation.

Not sure how much quality is included in those 60 mpw but you will overtrain if your lifting hard and running hard.

If you want to make running and lifting work and get bigger and stronger I would suggest that you EAT ALOT and you cut back running. there no specific diet required but alot of calories.

It's impossible to build a lot of muscle while running that much. You need to be in a surplus if calories to build muscle. Running that many miles will always put you in a deficit unless you are eating 10k calories. 6-8 reps builds strength. 8-12 builds muscle it's called hypertheophy training

Jo Jo beans wrote:

It's impossible to build a lot of muscle while running that much. You need to be in a surplus if calories to build muscle. Running that many miles will always put you in a deficit unless you are eating 10k calories. 6-8 reps builds strength. 8-12 builds muscle it's called hypertheopy training

False. 6-8 is more hypertrophy. beyond that you are getting muscular endurance which is not effective to build size unless you are a complete noob. Also, the 1-3 rep range if done heavy will build more dense muscle and connective tissue.

So the answer will be a mix of hypertrophy 6-8 and heavy 1-3 reps. It is difficult to eat the calories necessary and have the time to run and lift.

its incredibly hard to gain real muscle mass whilst running serious miles. you cant just have only an upper body regimen like that and expect to see results. thin people have hard time gaining lean weight as it is and if you truly want to build extra muscle mass heavy sqauts and heavy deadlifts are the name of the game. literally the two most important mass building exercises. you might lean up around the arms but you won't gain real size without squats and deadlifts. its hard to picture at first if you dont have much lifting experience but even to build upper body mass they are essential. problem is it is extremely hard to juggle those 2 lifts with running every (or nearly every) day. like another poster said, you will over train if you try to do too much of both

as far as the workout you have. you want to focus more on compound lifts to gain mass. things like dumbell curls and shoulderflys will just burn more fuel and not add any muscle to your body (you will get even thinner!). squats, deadlift, barbell rows, military press, bench press are all great mass building workouts. i know you're looking to build arm size and this makes it seem like you aren't focusing on the muscles you want to but trust me, read up on the benifits of compound lifts with respect to size gain for more info. arm curls are a waste of time and compound lifts build muscle like no other

of course on top of all this you will need to eat ridiculous amounts of food. they say around 1 gram of protein per pound you weigh is optimal for weightlifters but as you're running on top you probably wanna overshoot by some. then add all the healthy fats and calories you can cause you'll need em

Brev wrote:

Running is my passion but I'm definitely getting sick of looking like a twig. Is there any way I can put on some muscle while running this much? I don't mind putting in the time but I'd like to get the most out of lifting.

I've been lifting for an hour, 3 times a week for several months and have barely noticed any improvement. Can someone with more experience give me some tips (number of reps, sets, type of lift, days per week, diet, etc.)?

typical workout (4 sets, all 10 reps):

dumbbell curls (20,25,30,35)

body weight dips (10x,12x,15x,max)

pull ups (8,10,12, max)

bench (100,115,120,125)

dumbbell shoulder press (20,25,30,35)

shrugs @ 180lb (10x,15x,20x,max)

pec machine (100,115,130,145)

dumbbell shoulder fly (10,12,15,15)

HGH

Know more than you do wrote:

Jo Jo beans wrote:

It's impossible to build a lot of muscle while running that much. You need to be in a surplus if calories to build muscle. Running that many miles will always put you in a deficit unless you are eating 10k calories. 6-8 reps builds strength. 8-12 builds muscle it's called hypertheopy training

False. 6-8 is more hypertrophy. beyond that you are getting muscular endurance which is not effective to build size unless you are a complete noob. Also, the 1-3 rep range if done heavy will build more dense muscle and connective tissue.

So the answer will be a mix of hypertrophy 6-8 and heavy 1-3 reps. It is difficult to eat the calories necessary and have the time to run and lift.

^^ first guy wrong, second guy right.

General lifting outline:

sets x reps-

1 - 2: will increase 1RM ability

5 x 3-5: increase strength for size/power ability. Enough weight to become stronger but not enough reps per set to really break down the muscle to need to build a lot bigger

3 x 6-12: hypertrophy- get bigger and stronger

> 12: muscular endurance- not enough weight to break down the muscle to need to become bigger or stronger

Nutrition is almost more important than what you are actually doing at the gym. If you a carb based diet (cereal, sandwiches, pasta) you are not going to put on as much mass as a protein diet (eggs, lean meat, etc.). You can do the same workout but if you go home and eat ramen and a frozen pizza you are not going to get the same benefit as if you have a protein shake right and then eat vegetables and lean proteins.

As also said above, it is possible to put on upper body mass, but you are going to need to be in a big surplus of calories. 60 mpw is still an average hour of running every day and your body is going to want to become efficient at it, thus slimming out muscle where it is not needed. Because you are lifting you'll get a little mass and more tone, but don't expect to be making big size gains while you're still running that much.

Running and fitness are mutually exclusive. One or the other.

Your workout routine isn't that bad, except that you need to upgrade to men's weights instead of those pink dumbbells...

Here's my 3 step plan for you:

1. Stop running (except for sprints maybe once a week)

2. upgrade to men's weights (have you ever seen CrossFit barbells, those are freaking HUGE)

3. upgrade your diet - out with the grains, in with animal protein/fat, red meat

Good luck, brah.

If you are doing this same workout 3 times a week I think you are both doing workouts too frequently and not enough for specific body parts(just my opinion but I have no problem adding muscle mass when I want). I suggest the following:

1. Break up your upper body workouts to different muscle groups across the three days. There are a number of ways to break it up but one example would be:

Day 1: Chest and tris

Day 2: Back and Bis

Day 3: Legs and Shoulders (and abs)

2. Do at least two exercises for each body part. You only have one exercise for tris, the body weight dips - try tricep pull downs or push downs. You only have pullups that will touch the lats and this is a huge muscle - try seated rows or bent over rows.

3. Add a leg routine. As a runner we may need not do as much as non runners, but just google some articles about benefits of squats and deadlifts on the release of Growth Hormone & Testosterone not to mention the numerous articles on benefits of lifting legs specifically for runners. Personally I lift legs on an easy run day following a long or hard run day. For me it is lifting first then the easy run.

sizematters wrote:

If you are doing this same workout 3 times a week I think you are both doing workouts too frequently and not enough for specific body parts(just my opinion but I have no problem adding muscle mass when I want). I suggest the following:

Bodybuilders typically do each body part once per week. This works great for them when they're on the sauce.

For us natural guys, I find that working body parts once every 4 days works pretty well.

E.g.

M Chest/Shoulders/Triceps (Push)/ Squats

T Run

W Back/Biceps/Deadlifts (Pull)

T Run

F Chest/Shoulders/Triceps (Push)/ Squats

S Run

S Back/Biceps/Deadlifts (Pull)

M Run

...

Two things: try to keep your miles low (~5mi per run) and make sure you eat enough. The priority should be lifting until you have gained some mass.

Absolutely possible. Heavy, heavy weights with low reps. Powerlifting.

Arnold would disagree with you guys that greater than 6-8 reps does not build muscle. He used to include sets with up to 30 reps in his program and said the volume was necessary.

Any ways OP, it isn't about your training program or your running at this point. You aren't seeing results because of nutrition. You need to eat more, a lot more. The eating is th toughest part of building muscle

Dial it up wrote:

Arnold would disagree with you guys that greater than 6-8 reps does not build muscle. He used to include sets with up to 30 reps in his program and said the volume was necessary.

"Ze smaller ze muscle, ze more reps you shall do"

Calf, biceps, triceps, etc....

Don't try this with the bench or squat.

When you get to the point you can do 12 pullups, add weight.

If you really just want to focus on upper body....

3 x week

5 sets of 5

*two warmup sets. Three sets of same weight. Inc. wt when you can do 5 reps on consecutive max effort sets...aka 2 set rule.

So...60 x 5, 80 x 5, 100 x 5, 100 x 4, 100 x 3. (When you do 100 x 5, x 5, x 3 then add wt).

Barbell bench

Weighted pullups

Push press

Barbell row

3-5 x 10-15 on these secondary exercises

Preacher curl

Skull crusher

Lateral raise

Eat. Eat. Eat.

Also, keep in mind you are limiting your upper body growth by not lifting lower body.

Running so much you will likely not see much muscle growth if any

Alan

Starting strength by Mark rippetoe.

eat more protein.