Training for the mere mortal.
I've trained on & off now for about 18 to 19 years and like a lot of people I read all the magazines and took all the supplements under the sun when I first started. I clearly remember buying (or should I say wasting my money on) the "Cybergenics" supplement and training package when it first emerged with the adverts featuring Franco Santoriello going from weed to hulk.
Now what i can tell you from all these years experience is this, training properly and effectively is f**cking hard work and no supplement (legal that is) under the sun is going to make it any easier. Also if you beleive that the pro bodybuilders in the mags got their physique using the supplements they advertise then you are sorely mistaken, steroids and other such substances in very large amounts are almost soley responsible (along with outstanding gentics) for their freakish apperance. If you want to take supplements then a multi-vitamin mineral tablet and high quality protein powder are all you really need.
Forget 6 day a week double split routines with pre-exhaust, pyramiding sets etc etc. I tried all these many years ago with no success. Effective training for the ordinary bloke is not rocket science, it should consist of mainly the big three: Bench Press, Squats and Deadlift (free weights being better than machines), with some additionals like calf raise, military press, crunches etc although the entire routine should probably be no more than about 7 or 8 exercises. Concentration curls and leg extensions are going to do nothing for a 7 stone weakling, these are isolation exercises whereas the big three are compound movements which incorperate the major muscle groups plus many other smaller stabilising muscles. Sets and reps are more of a personal thing some like 5x5, 3x10-12 etc personally I prefer 1 warm-up set and then straight into the work set of around 8-10 reps. This routine is done twice a week (although squats and deadlift should probably be alternated especially if done for 20 reps) and would probably last no more than 45 minutes.
Although this probably doesn't sound a lot if done properly it will work, the key is progression. After the first 3 or 4 weeks of getting into the routine weight should be added in small increments (1 or 1/2 kg even less for the smaller movements) for as long as possible. This is how muscle is built. After being overloaded the muscle super compensates so the next time it is able to lift more weight, although in reality this will probably be much less than even 1/2kg, but over a period of time it will add up to perceptable gains. The by-product of this increase in muscle strength is muscle mass. This does of course require considerable effort in the gym, if you breeze through your routine then your not working hard enough. Try this little exercise, take a weight you can squat for 10 reps (10 hard reps not easy ones), drop it 15-20% and try and get 20 reps with it, if you haven't collapsed on the floor puffing like a steam train then your not trying (be careful if your not used to this sort of training though or you'll pay for it the next couple of days with extremely sore legs).
Of course the most overlooked part of a training regime is rest. Muscles don't grow when you train, only when you rest. 2,3,4 or even more days may be needed to recover fully from the session, and training before the muscle has recovered is counter-productive. Sleep is also something that needs to be looked at, without adequate amounts of it your never going to be able to recover properly.
The major factor in training is learning what works for you, 3 sets of 10 might work wonders for you while someone else may grow better on 5x5, you might recover in 2 days while another may need 5 days, but IMHO the above outlines a good place to start.
To finish if I could recommend one magazine to someone just starting or frustrated with their lack of gains it would have to be Hardgainer. It was only after reading the first issue of this back in 1989 that I started to make any real progress. (no I don't work for them)
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