Hi Matty,

Darrin's in Edmonton with Lori so I'll jump in with a couple of things.

First being 170 lbs doesn't tell us enough to give you complete advice. We need to know your body fat percentage. I know Darrin tells all his clients who want to bulk up to get down to a good lean body fat percentage first and then concentrate on putting on some muscle. The reason for this is to put on mass you have to eat a lot. If your body is in the habit of laying down fat it will tend to keep doing so even if you're working out hard. Also your lean body weight will determine to an extent how hard you can work out. I had a client a few months ago who came to me at a body weight of 170 lbs and he was as weak as a kitten. When I did a body comp on him he was carrying 60 lbs of fat! With so little muscle to work with he was unable to lift anything heavy.

If you are already lean (say around 10%BF) to gain more muscle you'll need to eat a lot of calories. Because you must avoid overwhelming your body with carbohydrates in any one meal you'll have to eat more meals a day. For fat loss we recommend 5 to 6 meals a day but for mass gain you'll have to go to 7. If you try to consume the required calories in fewer meals you'll get a higher percentage of food being converted to fat so you'll be spinning your wheels.

And you'll have to work out hard. If you can't afford a personal trainer find a work out partner. Chose someone who's mature and dedicated. The gym can be enjoyable but it's no place for fooling around so find a partner who's serious.

Lastly don't listen to the juice freaks who don't know anything if it doesn't come in a needle. They may look like they run the show but they're usually very insecure people who chose chemical substitutes for knowledge and hard work. They often have a psychological need to prove themselves so they'll give you all kinds of weird advice to make it sound like they know everything. With good science, hard work and an objective coach you don't need to resort to chemicals to make impressive gains.

So find out your body fat percentage and pass that on to Darrin.

Cheers

David