If you want to LOOK like you know your way around a gym, you’re probably going to need to gain some weight at some point in your training career.
But how much weight do you need to gain? What will YOU need to weigh before you actually LOOK like you work out.
Here’s a good rule of thumb:
Take your height in inches and multiply that by 3.
So if you are 5’8 (68 inches), you’ll need to weigh around 195 to really get that impressive look of power.
Don’t take my word for it:
Strong.
George Eiferman won the Mr. America contest in 1948.
He was 5’7 and his weight is listed at 195 pounds. Of course, that’s probably his contest weight so he may have weighed more on a regular day. But as you can see, he clearly has the look of power.
Or how about Dick Dubois?
Dubois and Reeves picking up chicks.
And as you can see, he too had the look of power and strength.
Finally, let’s not forget about John Grimek. Grimek was a beast at 5’8 and 210 pounds. He actually weighed as much as 250 pounds at one point but competed at 210 pounds.
And as you can see, he DEFINITELY looked like a guy who knows a thing or two about weight training.
Grimek. Old school power.
Shoot for 3 pounds per inch of vertical height.
And if you want to see how the old timers gained weight, check out the Tried & True Fitness Guide to Muscle & Might. Because on page 59, I reveal a strategy used by one old time trainer to gain over 100 pounds of muscle — way back in the 1930′s! See for yourself.


{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Matt,
Great stuff, as usual! I am starting to take the liver supplements that I received from your firm on Tuesday, started yesterday. Question. My shoulders are bad from severe damage when I was younger (63 now). Any advise on movements for strength / power without military presses? Otherwise I do OK, it’s just the presses that I am limited on weight.
Can you still do the presses at all — even with a limited weight?
Because a lot of guys report great results for fixing bad shoulders with light weight, high reps (25 or more per set) presses.